As Gretchen waited for her food, she filled me in on the most up-to-date wedding details. Besides working full-time as a newly minted partner at her entertainment PR firm, and being a mom, she’d also planned her own wedding. Held at a luxury resort in San José del Cabo, she’d condensed all the festivities into one weekend to keep it affordable for her and Brian, and for their guests.
“I’m worried now that I’ve lost a day,” she said, rubbing the inside corners of her eyes without disturbing her makeup. “We hired a private chef for tonight’s rehearsal dinner, so I’ll have to go straight to the dining room to make sure everything’s in order. Then check out the wedding site and make sure they have everything they need, then quickly get ready.”
“Gretch,” I said, “with you, there’s no such thing as quickly getting ready.”
“Especially not with a four-year-old attached to my hip, but I have to make it work,” she said with a shrug. “I’ve never even seen the venue in person.”
“You’re getting married on the beach.”
“I know, but do you know how many decisions I had to make about that alone? Then, we’re moving into one of the ballrooms. I told the event coordinator I wanted the tables set up in a U-Shape, but when he responded to my e-mail, he said T-Shape. Banquet style would be better than a ‘T’. Was it a typo, or will everything go to complete shit—”
“Let me handle it,” I said, taking a deep breath and coaxing her to do the same. “I’ll make sure the event coordinator knows you want U-Shape, whatever that means, and see if he needs any last-minute decisions from you. I’ll also check in with the wait staff about dinner both nights.”
“Really?” she asked. “Are you sure?”
“Yep.” I had no plans for my weekend but be a good matron of honor and fuck my husband senseless. “Just let me know if anything else comes up.”
She grasped my hand. “Thank you, Liv. I’m stressed, but I really just want to have a great time. This’ll be my last hurrah for a while.”
I cocked my head. “What do you mean?”
She glanced over to where Brian and Emmalina stood at the soda fountain machine. “When we get back from Mexico, I’m going off birth control.”
My heart skipped with excitement. Gretchen had confided that she and Brian one day wanted to try for another kid, but she hadn’t taken any steps toward that. “You’re ready to get pregnant again?” I asked.
A wide smile overtook her face. “I don’t want to put too much time between Emmalina and a sibling.”
“Congratulations,” I said, hugging her, then drawing back. Emmalina had been a light in all our lives. “I’m thrilled, but David will be over the moon. He loves being her honorary uncle.”
“I can’t believe how great he’s been with her,” Gretchen said, shaking her head in awe. “Seriously. It means so much to us.”
Finally, after another bathroom break, we headed toward our gate. As we approached, I searched the terminal for David, but he wasn’t there. As I got out my boarding pass to double-check the gate number, my phone rang.
“Olivia, I’m at Burger King,” David said. “Where the hell are you?”
I covered my mouth to stifle a laugh. “I’m at the gate. I told you I was on my way.”
“Oh, for Christ’s sake, it’s a two-minute walk that took you fifteen,” he said, his footsteps echoing on the line. “I was worried you’d fallen in the toilet.”
I arched my eyebrow and turned in a circle to see if I could spot him. “And you came to rescue me?”
“Always. Don’t move,” he said with a sigh. “I’ll be right there.”
In a dark navy suit, the same dark-cognac-colored brogues he’d had for years, and an open-collared white dress shirt, David appeared like a beautiful six-foot-four mirage—a glorious oasis after months without a drop of water. His eyebrows hovered lower than usual, but I knew his irritation would vanish with one kiss.
As he laid eyes on me, his expression eased, but his shoulders remained tense. He’d lamented our physical distance since the moment he’d landed in Dubai months ago. Now, I knew he was dying to hold me. I was about to run to meet him, but Emmalina zoomed by me.
Though she and I were close, anytime Uncle David was around, she’d barely leave his side.
“There’s my girl,” David said, scooping her into his arms even though his eyes fixed on me. “I’ve been all over this damn airport looking for you guys.”
I gave him a sympathetic smile as Emmalina asked him why he’d been gone so long, then proceeded to list all her flower girl duties.
“I’m going to put you down for a second, Emma,” David said. “So I can—”
“Emmalina,” Gretchen corrected him.
David glared at Gretchen, and I had to look at the ground to keep from bursting into laughter. He was a hypocrite. Although he’d never once called me by Liv or any other iteration of Olivia, David got irritated that Gretchen wouldn’t let anyone shorten her daughter’s name. According to Gretchen, Emmalina Ayers was the name of a movie star, and she intended to see that future through to the red carpet.
“Right. Emmalina.” David passed her to Brian and came toward me.
Brian covered Emmalina’s eyes. “Remember there’s a child present, mate,” he warned moments before David stooped to hug my waist and lift me so we were face to face.
David’s hand slid up into my hair as our lips met. “Mmm,” he said into my mouth. “It’s been too long. Phone sex doesn’t cut it.”
“If you’d let me send you nudes—”
“Not a risk I’m willing to take again. I still have the one you sent me in the dressing room years ago, but that’ll have to get me by. Hacking is a real thing.” Serious again, he lowered me to my feet and placed his knuckle under my chin. “How are you?”
“I’d say tired since I’ve been up since four, but I know you’ve been traveling for days. You must be exhausted.”
“I’ll manage. I slept on the plane.” His thumb brushed the corner of my mouth. “This was the only way I could get us on the same flight.”
“I’m glad you did,” I said. “I can’t wait to have six peaceful hours with nothing to do but ogle you.”
“Same,” he said. “How’s everything at the house?”
“Good.” I placed my hands on his chest, and he covered the backs of them. “It was hard to be away from the dogs, only to come home and leave again, but fortunately, they love your sister.” I grinned. “Alex is keeping them plenty exercised. I can’t believe he’s about to graduate high school.”
“Me neither,” David said, turning to Emmalina as she latched onto his pantleg.
“Are we going to surf in Mexico, Uncle David?” she asked, her eyes twinkling up at him.
He ruffled her hair. “If you packed your wetsuit, then I’ll see you in the water.”
“She sure did,” Brian said. “Thanks for finding a smaller break so she could tag along.”
David slapped Brian on the back. “Supposed to be a fun trip, not a surf retreat. I got her an instructor who’ll put her in the white water while we hit the line-up.”
“Right on,” Brian said, taking Emmalina’s hand and tugging her away.
David pecked me on the mouth and lowered his voice so only I could hear. “And what did you pack, young lady?”
“I found a special delivery at the house from a secret admirer,” I said, picturing the elaborate red bustier and panty set in my suitcase. “I can’t wait to try it on for him.”
David wet his bottom lip. “Approximately seven hours until we’re finally alone in our suite. I feel like I’ve been waiting a lifetime to be back inside you, so I hope you’re ready for the utter destruction coming your way.”
I laughed but shivered at a promise I knew he’d deliver. “Sorry, but it’ll be more like eight-ish hours. I promised Gretchen I’d handle some wedding stuff as soon as we land so she can check in with her family and guests.”
David heaved a sigh. “Of course.”
>
“We might be able to squeeze in a quickie after that, but I’ll need time to get ready for the rehearsal dinner at six-thirty. Then, Gretchen wants the girls to go to the hotel bar for drinks—”
“That could go all night,” David said. “Are you trying to tell me I might not be able to fuck you for another,”—he checked his watch—“twelve to fourteen hours?”
“Well, we could always do it on the plane . . .” I said and giggled at his scowl.
David and I had been on countless flights, and on every one, I’d tried to induct us into the mile-high club. And I always got some version of the response he’d given me the first time I’d suggested it.
“I’m not taking my wife in a disgusting airplane bathroom,” I said along with him. I laughed, but he didn’t find it funny.
***
On the plane, David stowed our carry-ons overhead, and we settled into our first-class seats, him by the window and me in the aisle. A flight attendant stopped at our row. “Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. Dylan. I’m Elaine. Can I get you a drink before takeoff?”
David and I looked at each other. “It’s ten a.m. Are we drinking?” I asked him.
“Definitely.” He nodded once at Elaine. “Champagne and orange juice for my wife,” he said, “and I’ll take a whiskey, neat.”
As the remaining passengers boarded, David and I sipped our drinks. In suede fringed heels, Gretchen treated the aisle like a catwalk, flipping her blonde locks over one shoulder before stopping abruptly at our row. “You guys get pre-takeoff drinks?” she asked, incredulous.
Emmalina tugged her dress. “Mommy, keep walking.”
“Here, have mine,” I said and wrapped my napkin around the champagne glass to sneak it to Gretchen.
“Thank you.” Gretchen held it up. “Cheers to what’s possibly my last weekend of true freedom.”
“You’re holding up the plane, my love,” Brian said, hauling all of their carry-ons.
David snickered as they continued. “She treats him like a pack mule.”
“David, you always carry my bags, no matter how hard I protest,” I pointed out and turned to watch them cram into three seats with Emmalina in the middle. “Maybe we should trade and let Gretch and Bri sit up here,” I said. “It is their weekend.”
“Nah. I haven’t flown coach since I was a kid, and I intend to keep it that way,” David said, slipping on his reading glasses. “Did you bring the Tribune?”
I handed him today’s paper and settled in as we took off. By now, a flight with my husband shouldn’t have been anything special. But in his custom suit, adjusting his glasses as he focused on the Business section, it reminded me of our first plane ride together. We’d been on our way home from Dallas, where David had met my father for the first time. At his encouragement, I’d gotten out my laptop to give creative writing another try since I’d taken a class in college. Since my mother had always been the writer in our family, I’d never thought I could make a career of it. If not for David, I wasn’t sure I ever would’ve tried. Now, my second women’s fiction novel had just released to positive reviews.
David had been cheering me on ever since. We still argued, debated, and got under each other’s skin, but that would never stop. After my first marriage, where I’d kept my ex at a safe emotional distance, I appreciated that sparks would always fly in some form between David and me.
And then, there was our sex life. David would turn forty-three next month, and he had the sex drive of a teenager. And some days, mine ran even more rampant.
Two months apart had been pure torture, and David wasn’t the only one eager to get back to it. He’d never been desperate enough to do it on an airplane, but I knew my husband, and he had a breaking point.
Once we’d reached cruising altitude, the stewardess returned to replenish our drinks, and I asked her for a blanket.
David glanced over at me. “Cold?”
“A little,” I answered—a tiny, white lie.
He folded the newspaper, wrapped an arm around my shoulders, and pulled me to his side for a kiss. “I’m better than any blanket, baby.”
“Mmm.” I urged his mouth open and ran my tongue along his. “It isn’t fair. I don’t want to wait any longer.”
“The other night, on the phone, I told you to touch yourself.”
I nodded and slid off his glasses to put them in the seatback pocket. “I did, but you wouldn’t let me come.”
“And I know you wouldn’t disobey me, would you, my good girl? You’ll be rewarded soon.”
I searched his chocolate-brown eyes, warm as honey. “Reward me now.”
“Aren’t you two sweet?” Elaine said, holding out the blanket. “You must be newlyweds.”
As I unfolded the blanket, David shook his head. “We’ve been married five beautiful years.”
She touched her chest. “Color me shocked. The couples I see traveling together are either in the honeymoon phase or seconds from tearing each other’s heads off. You’re lucky.”
As she returned to the front of the plane, I covered both our laps with the blanket. “Yes, we are,” I said to David and slipped my hand underneath to run it along his thigh.
“What are you up to?” he asked.
“I want to play.” I touched his belt buckle. “You’re frustrated. So am I.”
He stopped my hand and lowered his voice. “You know there’s no chance in hell we’re getting frisky here.”
Of course I knew that. Though I’d gotten David to loosen up about public sex over the years, he still needed to be ninety-nine percent confident we wouldn’t be seen. He was too private to fondle me while we had company, but I had hope that I could convince him to move things to the bathroom. I kissed him again. “I love you,” I said.
With one arm still wrapped around my shoulders, he put his other hand to my cheek. “I love you.”
“Come on,” I said, feeling him through his pants. “Let’s go in the lavatory. I missed you so much.”
He released a small groan into my mouth. “You’re not playing fair.”
“It’ll be sexy,” I promised him.
“There’s nothing sexy about a lavatory,” he said, “and besides, people will definitely know what we’re doing.”
“So what?” I asked. “Passengers do it all the time. The flight staff expects it.”
“I doubt that.”
I curved my hand around him as he hardened under my palm. “You’re a top customer—they won’t bother us. And you heard what Elaine said. She thinks we’re sweet. She was practically giving us the green light.”
With a furrowed brow, David looked toward the front of the plane. “It’s risky.”
“That’s the point.” I slipped my hand lower to his balls, knowing that would drive him crazy. “When was the last time we did something like this?”
“Pretty recently.” His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. “New Year’s Eve party.”
I bit my lip remembering how he’d fucked me fast and hard in the coat closet of a private rooftop event while our friends had counted down to midnight. “And wasn’t it fun?” I asked. “Nobody knew.”
“That was different,” he said. “They couldn’t hear us over the countdown, and with all the commotion, they didn’t even notice we were gone. Plus, that closet wasn’t full of germs.”
“So we’ll keep our clothes on. Pull down your zipper, cover my mouth, and do it fast. It’ll be hot.”
“Goddamn,” he said through gritted teeth. “When you talk like that, I could burst through my zipper.”
“I can feel that.” I smiled. “Please, baby. All day yesterday you were sending me risqué texts while reminding me to save my orgasm for you. I feel like I’m going to explode.”
“Yeah?” he asked, pinching my chin between his thumb and forefinger. “If I do this, you’ll be quick?”
“After five years, you know you can make me come as fast as you want,” I said.
His breathing sped—that was good. I was gettin
g to him. “Fine,” he said. “But we’re in and out in five minutes.”
“I’ll go in first,” I whispered and unbuckled my seatbelt and walked toward the bathroom. Elaine’s back was to me as she readied the drink cart, so I snuck into the nearest stall. Inside, I checked my hair and makeup, then hiked up my dress around my hips and got myself started. I was wet by the time a soft knock came at the door.
“My wife is sick,” David said from outside the bathroom. “I just need to check on her.”
I slid open the door. “Good cover,” I whispered.
“Fuck me,” he said, ducking inside. “There’s no way the stewardess bought that.”
I unzipped his pants, forgoing his belt. “She won’t care as long as we’re quick. Now, fuck me.”
“How?” he asked.
The small space was barely big enough for me, let alone him. With my tall, broad-shouldered husband crammed into the bathroom, he already had my ass pinned to the sink.
I lifted my leg and hooked it around his hip. He took my chin in one hand and planted a hard kiss on my mouth as his other hand dove into my panties. “Christ, Olivia, you’re already soaking. I’m going to have to pull down my pants or you’ll leave a wet spot on my crotch.”
“There’s no time,” I said and gasped as he slid a finger inside me. “No time for foreplay, either.”
“Do not tell me how to make you come,” he warned, and with the sternness in his tone, I knew things were about to get serious. One hand moved into my hair and made a fist against my scalp as he circled his other thumb over my clit. “I’m so fucking hard,” he said. “I’ve waited months to—”
With a loud bang on the door, David jumped back and knocked his head on the wall as I teetered, and nearly fell into him.
“Hello?” Elaine called. “Please open the door or I will, Mr. and Mrs. Dylan.”
“Fuck,” he hissed, his face reddening as he hurried to zip up his slacks. “She just called us out.”
“One second,” I said, pulling down my dress.
“Two people aren’t allowed in one stall,” she said. “If you’re sick, I’ve got a barf bag.”
Ugh. My libido took a nosedive with the word barf, but poor David had an erection the size of a jetliner.
Cityscape Affair Series: The Complete Box Set Page 94
