by T. J. Honey
Ronnie broke her concentration, “Want another shot Maddie? Or would you like to get back to the shore and join the rest of the folks. I think your Aunt BB might be getting worried about what’s going on over here,” he gave her a mischievous grin and winked.
Wow! She thought, he didn’t even make a pass at me and I was seriously open to it. Maybe he really is the mature man that he appears to be.
“Okay, yeah,” she giggled nervously. “We best be getting back before BB thinks we’re over here making mad passionate love!”
Ronnie laughed and stood up. He offered his hand and helped her out of the seat. She felt sparks fly as she placed her hand in his.
“Thank-you sir, so kind of you,”
They exited the boat and headed toward the door.
“I’m sure glad we got a little time together, Maddie,”
Stepping out into the fresh night air, Ronnie closed the boathouse door behind them and locked it. He slipped the key back under the landing and motioned for her to go ahead of him.
The fresh smell of the river hit her senses and she drank it in, reveling in it. It was a reminder that she didn’t have to do anything while she was on vacation except relax and enjoy herself.
They slowly walked back to the shore, where a huge crowd was gathering. The bonfire was bright against the clear night sky and there was excited anticipation in the air as people waited for the fireworks to start.
Now she was glad she had dressed in cutoffs and her tight blouse as the night was still so hot from the day’s heat, but she wished she hadn’t worn those damn sandals. The heel was a little high and it made it hard to maneuver through the sand. No wonder she fell. I must be careful the rest of the night, she thought.
Maddie spotted BB and they waved at each other. She saw a look of relief on her face and could tell she felt better knowing where she was. Ronnie asked her if she was ok to walk without help and she said she thought so.
They walked toward the shore and he motioned with his hand, “Let’s go over to that little raised sand dune over there… I want to show you something.”
She agreed and they walked over to a slightly raised area of the beach near the water. He took her arm gently and guided her up to the top of the mound.
“Are you feeling better now?”
“Yup… feeling like a person again,” she said teasingly.
They looked out over the water and watched the waves slowly lap against the shore, making a slight slapping sound… It was peaceful and calm. They were far enough away from the crowd, that no one really noticed them.
Ronnie pointed up at the sky, “See that little group of stars over there? That’s Sagittarius. Ancient people interpreted that star arrangement as representing a centaur archer who was aiming at the Scorpion who bit Orion. The ruling planet is Jupiter and it stands for luck,” he paused, looked at Maddie, and then continued, “Look, here on my arm.”
He turned his bicep toward her and there was a picture of a half man, half horse creature done in beautiful reds, blues, and yellows, outlined in black. He was holding a tiny drawn bow with an arrow in place. It was beautiful and very artistic.
“There’s a lot of spiritualism in Tattooing,” he said, as Maddie admired the drawing on his arm.
“Ronnie, that’s really beautiful. You must be a Sagittarian? “
“Right, you should see where else I have a Sag tat!” he looked for her reaction and laughed. She avoided his eyes, feeling the flush in her face again as she assumed where that place might be. She secretly hoped she would know for sure before the night ended! Bad girl!
A breeze came up over the water sending a chill through her. She tucked her bare legs underneath her, while they continued to gaze up at the stars.
Ronnie turned to her, “You cold Maddie?”
“A little,” she said, rubbing her legs with her hands.
“Here,” he put his arm around her and pulled her close. She could feel the heat of his body and smell a woodsy undertone in his cologne. It was sexy and turned her on. She felt protected for the moment and snuggled in a little closer. Her need to feel safe satiated for the time being.
“Thanks Ronnie, that’s nice,” she said in a small, shy voice.
They sat for a long time in silence just enjoying the peacefulness of the night and the closeness of their bodies, when out of nowhere the first BOOM sounded. Some of the smaller kids were right behind them setting off firecrackers. They both jumped in surprise and the kids ran off laughing hysterically.
“Very funny,” Maddie said, half laughing. “That sure didn’t help my nerves. Come on Ronnie, we better get back to the party, I think the fireworks are going to start soon.”
She looked at him as she spoke… their faces so close they could have kissed, but she turned away. Not yet! She thought.
Ronnie nodded in agreement, stood up and helped her to her feet.
He seemed quiet and she wondered what he was thinking as they walked toward the small crowd forming on the shoreline. She was still a bit chilly and wished she had a jacket or that Ronnie would put his arm around her again, but he didn’t and they walked together in silence.
As they reached the others, Maddie saw Laura pushing her way through the crowd.
“Hi guys,” she said, as she reached them, eyeing them both suspiciously, “What have you two been up to?”
“Not much,” Maddie said, winking at her.
Laura smiled that knowing smile, gave her a nod and started chatting with a guy standing next to her.
Ronnie was still withdrawn. She wondered if she had done or said something to put him off. Just as she decided not to explore it, he interrupted her thoughts.
“Maddie, would you like something from the kitchen? I’m going up to the house to see if there’s any more of BB’s famous Margaritas in the blender.”
Glad that Ronnie had broken his silence, she assessed her mental and physical stability and decided another would be okay, in fact, didn’t she and Laura decide to get drunk tonight and find some cute guys? Well, she found one and wanted to explore the possibilities… she chuckled to herself.
“Sure Ronnie, that’s real sweet of you, I would love one.”
As he turned to walk up to the house, he yelled back, “Do you have a jacket I can bring down?”
“No, I’m fine.”
A jacket, she thought. No, hell no! I don’t want a jacket Ronnie… I want your arms around me. She wanted to cuddle up close and inhale him. In fact, she wanted both of his arms wrapped tightly around her.
As she was daydreaming about Ronnie seducing her, Laura appeared again and popped off, “Well, Maddie. Fancy you and Mr. Tattoo! Sexy isn’t he?”
She laughed, taunting her, wildly swinging her flaming red hair back and forth as she spoke.
“Yeah, yeah, and you’re right, he’s really nice too. I guess I misjudged him. I guess people can change.”
Or can they? Maddie still wondered. She had yet to experience all of him. Was there still a bad boy lurking inside of Ronnie Hatcher just waiting to jump out and grab her and make her do things she didn’t want to? So far he had been a gentleman, kind and caring and just a normal nice guy. Would he push himself on her again, or would this be an opportunity for both of them to start over with each other?
Ronnie showed up with the drinks and handed one to Maddie, “Here ya go. I got the last of this batch.”
“Cool,” she said, standing closer to him now and reaching for the glass. It was ice cold and sent a chill down to her bones.
Laura took that as her cue to disappear, “See you guys later, I got to find a guy to tickle my fancy. See ya!”
They both waved to her as she walked back into the crowd, talking with everyone as she went.
“Maddie,” Ronnie said quietly, “I really like you and I don’t want to do anything to upset you or scare you away. Did you feel uncomfortable when I put my arm around you?”
Wow, now that’s a shocker! He is so not the same person. Wonde
r if this is why he was so quiet.
“No Ronnie, no, in fact I found it very comforting.”
She looked up at him and saw the concern in his eyes, God, those beautiful eyes. He blinked and smiled. She wanted to kiss him, but controlled herself. Soon, she thought, soon.
Chapter Four
A few of the guys had gone over to the fireworks station to get things set up on the shore for the display. Maddie saw a small cannon and a whole line of Roman Candles, Red Rockets, and various other brightly colored fireworks just waiting to be deployed. It looked like they’d gone all out this year. She was hoping Ronnie would stay close to her when they started shooting them off and even put his arm around her again.
“I think they’re getting ready to start,” she said, as she licked some salt off the rim of her glass.
Ronnie watched her tongue lap up the salt with carnal interest. He caught her watching him, watch her, and winked at her. Her heart skipped a beat and she felt a warm desire rise up inside of her.
It took her off guard. She wasn’t a virgin, but she didn’t have much experience either. The only sex she’d had was with her two past boyfriends and it didn’t rock her boat, so to speak. She didn’t really see what the big deal was all about.
One of her boyfriends would always say, “Did you catch a boat?” And she wondered what the hell he meant. She guessed it was his description for climaxing. And she was never sure if she did or not. She never saw the quintessential fireworks they always talked about… the earth never shook… She never got her rocks off… or had any of the other euphemisms people used for coming. It just never happened for her. She had some pleasurable sex and got turned on a few times, but no one ever lit her fuse. She laughed to herself… perfect euphemism for the 4th.
But this was a different kind of feeling with Ronnie. She had urges she’d never felt before. Her blood felt like it was boiling, she got hot and flushed all over and her body ached to feel him inside of her. She blushed, just thinking about her new feelings.
“Firecracker for your thoughts,” Ronnie interrupted her.
“Ha Ha, very funny,” she said, sarcastically.
Just when she was going to come back with a snappy remark, they heard boom-boom-boom! The fireworks were starting. She saw Ronnie’s gorgeous face light up as a rocket exploded overhead. His eyes sparkled as a shower of brightly colored rainbows lit up the night sky.
He looked over at her, “Maddie, have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?”
She blushed, looking down at her hands trying to remember if anyone had ever called her beautiful before. She heard cute a few times, but never thought of herself as beautiful.
“Thank you Ronnie… that’s sweet of you.”
Watching him out of the corner of her eye, she was glad that the lights in the sky hid the red blooming in her face. As the fireworks continued to crackle over the river, Maddie went into a daydream. Between the alcohol and her feelings for Ronnie, she felt like she was somewhere far away… a beautiful place where she wanted to stay forever. It was warm, comforting, and felt safe. She needed to feel safe… ever since… she put the thought out of her mind. Tonight was for feeling magic.
He put his arm around her and pulled her close, his breath was sweet with the smell of tequila. The musky scent of his body surrounded her senses and she felt heady! Almost like fainting. She took another sip of her drink to steady her nerves.
A wonderful, warm feeling was burning between her thighs and she cuddled closer to Ronnie. He gently pulled her chin up and brushed his lips against hers. She saw fireworks in her head; it was such a gentle seduction. He pulled back to see if Maddie would reject him, then placed his lips over hers and searched her mouth with his tongue… swirling it around and driving her crazy. She almost lost the feeling in her legs and her knees began to buckle. He put his arms around her waist and held her up, pushing his body against hers, taking her to the stars. Higher and higher she climbed, feeling herself leave her body… smothered in his heat, his passion, his animal magnetism.
She could feel his maleness pushing hard against her… his desire raging… his urgency evident. They were lost in a honey pot of sensual arousal… one becoming the other… two souls merging as one.
She became aware that other people were close by and might be watching. She didn’t want to end this bliss and come back down to earth, but she knew it wasn’t safe to be so passionate out in the open. What if BB and Don saw her with Ronnie? What if Laura caught them together like this and scolded her later for being so blazon? Surrounded by a crowd of people all enjoying the light show together, she wondered if any of them had even noticed the two of them embracing.
Ronnie pulled his lips away from hers, “I want you Maddie,” he whispered into her ear.
“Now… I want you now!” he hissed, pushing his hot breath between his teeth as he spoke. He was breathing hard and the sweat on his brow was highlighted by the lights in the sky.
“I want you too, Ronnie,” she said, gazing into his eyes… falling deep into the pools of blue.
She was still feeling dreamy and wondered if anyone would notice if they slipped away, or if it was the right thing to do, but she didn’t care. Not now, not while this feeling was sweeping her away. It didn’t matter. She wanted him.
Maddie was the kind of person who usually thought her relationships through. She’d never really been spontaneous. What a time to start! She thought. Passion was over taking her and stripping her of all her senses. All she wanted to do was feel… close her eyes and feel. She wanted Ronnie’s essence all around her... in her. She wanted him to take her, ravage her and never let her go!
Her mind traveled back to the seclusion the boathouse afforded. They could slip away during the fireworks break and make their exit… unnoticed. Everyone went to refresh their drinks, hit the head, and freshen up before the big finale. She looked at Ronnie with mischievous eyes. He read her mind and seemed to be thinking the same thing.
“Where, Maddie, where?” he asked, excitedly.
“Let’s head back over to your boat when they do the half time break,” her eyes searched his face to see if he thought it was a good idea.
“Great!” he whispered, “We’ll grab some drinks and casually head over there, that way we won’t raise any suspicion.”
He kissed her tenderly on the cheek, “You sparkle like the stars in the sky tonight, Maddie.”
She felt herself drifting up into the clouds again, spinning out of control in this endless seduction.
They snuggled close together, as they watched the first half of the show come to an end. Maddie held her breath waiting for the break to come so they could make their escape. Finally, there was a lull and the crowd burst into wild cheers and applause. Unwrapping themselves from each other, they clapped along with the rest of the group. Ronnie whistled loudly.
“Bravo,” he yelled out into the night.
Chapter Five
People began dispersing in every direction, laughing and talking, excited for the gaieties of the evening. Ronnie and Maddie headed up to the house to refresh their drinks. They tried to act discreet, but just as they reached the patio, Laura confronted them. They stopped abruptly; she was drunk out of her head.
“Hey you two, what’s happening, didn’t you just love the first half of the show, wasn’t it just so cool?” She stood there wobbling, her eyes half closed in her happy state.
God, Laura could string together a symphony of questions in half a second flat!
“Yup,” Maddie said, nonchalantly, hoping that Laura couldn’t see the heat between her and Ronnie.
She eyed them both suspiciously, going from his face to hers, trying to decipher what was going on between the two of them. Maddie blushed as she felt Laura reading her thoughts.
“Hmm,” she said, continuing to sway back and forth. “Okay, well I can see you two are up to something… details, girlfriend… later.”
She took off loudly into the crowd, her drink slopping
out of her glass as she went. Maddie could see that Laura was certainly letting her hair down tonight. She was honoring their pact to party hardy and it was fun watching her have such a great time.
Maddie and Ronnie continued to the kitchen quietly, still trying to act inconspicuous. They arrived to a big crowd, talking loudly, laughing and pouring drinks, with BB at the center of it all.
“Hi Sweetie,” she said, as they approached.
Her voice was more excited and higher in pitch than earlier. She could tell BB had gotten her nose in the mash and was having a marvelous time. She was the one who had taught Maddie how to drink and have fun while doing it. She was demonstrating her teaching quite well.
