Keeper of the Flame

by Stephanie Burke

  Thinking of her looking so confused and needing time to herself caused him to sigh with great sadness. As much as he hated to acknowledge it, he could understand Caressa’s problem. He, too felt like a worthless burden to someone he loved.

  “You’re right, Flame!” Caressa got a determined gleam in her green-brown eyes that caused him to forget about his own problems for a time and again focus on her.

  “Properly trained models are hard to find, that’s what put me in such high demand. Anyone can look good in clothes, it takes someone special to make the public think that they too can achieve style and elegance with ease.”

  What had he started? Flame looked nervously at Caressa as she bounced excitedly on the couch like a small woodland creature Kendall had called a bunny rabbit.

  Taking him completely by surprise, she leaned over Spark and kissed Flame full on the lips.

  Flame leapt completely off of the sofa, jerking Spark into total alertness in his attempt to get away from the grinning woman. Spark let out a frightened shriek and eyed the woman who caused his sleeping problems with contempt.

  “What do you do, Mistress?” he nearly roared as he pulled his startled child to his chest for a comforting hug. He eyed her over his son’s head with suspicion.

  “I’m going to open a school for models, Flame; complete with an agency to promote them. I’ll be Maryland’s answer to Ford’s!” She crowed the name of what he had learned was a famous modeling agency as if it were the enemy waiting to be vanquished.

  “We need to celebrate!” Her eyes ran across the room as if looking for a worthy target to become the recipient of her jubilation on.

  Her words had him backing out of the room and towards the stairs and the safety of the bedroom above where his daughter slept. She would not try and use his body for her “celebration” if his children were present, would she?

  Totally ignoring his panicked reaction, Caressa sprang from the couch and raced to the kitchen, causing Flame to calm a little. He looked down at his son and hugged him closer. It was hard being a man, as his son would surely discover as he grew to full adulthood.

  “Ah-ha!” came Caressa’s muffled voice from deep in the kitchen.

  Curiosity winning out over caution, Flame eased his way to the back of the house and tentatively peered into the large room.

  Bathed in the light of the waning sun, Caressa stood triumphant, brandishing a carton of something frozen and two spoons.

  “Kendall is never out of Triple Chocolate Cherry Ecstasy!” she crowed as she looked at a clock mounted opposite the refrigerator. “Oh, look at the time!” she cried before racing back to the living room and motioning Flame to follow.

  “It’s time for my favorite talk show! You’ve solved all my problems Flame, and did it in record time. How can I thank you?”

  Flame looked confused as the woman walked over to a large wooden armoire, he thought that was the word for it, and swung the double doors open. Inside sat a large display window and a score of strange boxes with lights and dials. It was some sort of communication center, he realized. He moved in for a closer look, only to have Caressa latch on to his arm.

  All those warnings Devo had skillfully implanted in his mind came screaming to his recall, and he thought that he was going to have a fight on his hands. His body would respond to no woman other than his Kendall, and he in no way found this clinging desperate woman sexually attractive.

  Before he could open his mouth to form a protest, she all but pushed him onto the sofa and slapped a spoon into his empty hand.

  “We can’t watch The Dave Killerman Show without ice-cream!” she declared instantly easing his fears and piquing his interest.

  “The Dave Killerman Show?” he questioned as he took a firm grip on the spoon.

  “You don’t get him in Ireland?” she asked as she dipped the spoon into the sinfully rich frozen confection.

  She slowly, and with hands trembling in ecstasy, placed the spoon in her mouth and closed her full lips over it. Eyes closed, she slowly pulled it out moaning in obvious delight.

  “He has the best show around,” she continued, oblivious to the fact that he stared at her in wide-eyed amazement.

  He recognized the sounds as those a woman might make while in the throes of heightened sexual awareness, but he had not touched this woman in any way! Was it this “ice cream” that caused such a reaction? He had to investigate.

  Adjusting his calmed son into better position in the crook of his arm, he dipped his spoon into the ice-cold mixture finding it a bit firm and hard to scoop. Caressa tilted the carton in his direction as she began to expand on the wonders of talk television.

  “This is a good one,” she said as she patiently waited for him to dig out a spoonful of the frozen treat. He acted as if he had never seen ice cream in his life. “It’s about couples who suffer because of mental abuse from their mates because of their bondage lifestyles.”

  Spark’s little head lifted at that, but no one paid him any attention. Caressa was humming the opening theme music to the show and Flame was eyeing the stuff on his spoon with a contemplative look. The red-headed infant’s full attention seemed to be riveted on what was happening on the screen.

  Flame carefully placed the spoon into his mouth, ready to pull it and the strange substance on it out at a moment’s notice, and his eyes widened in amazement before he too closed his eyes and moaned in delight.

  A wonderful flavor exploded on his tongue. The firm texture of the ice cream melted into a creamy mass filled with the robust flavor of deep chocolate tempered by the sweetness of fresh cherries, offset by the tiny chunks of bitter dark and semi-sweet chocolate pieces. He had never tasted anything so soul inspiring, except maybe for Kendall. Finally, he fully understood the sounds that the woman was making.

  This stuff was as good as sex! Well almost.

  “A man who savors his chocolate!” Caressa nodded in approval. He made sounds of unbelievable enjoyment and Caressa approved even more. If a man savored his food like her sister’s red-hared giant, he could savor...well...other things as well.

  Kendall was right, she decided right then and there. She had saved her sister from making a mistake with Richard and now Kendall had found this wonderfully expressive man who was obviously worthy of her. He never even made one move to stare at her spectacular legs, and in her not so humble opinion, they were spectacular.

  Then Flame’s eyes were caught by the spectacle on the screen. A man had a woman tied onto a makeshift bed and was demonstrating the correct way to administer discipline without causing harm. Mute, he watched every move the man made while Flame absently dug into the carton Caressa still held. What was he doing with that paddle? Women allowed this to happen? Could the women also discipline the men in this fashion?

  Flame was in for an education.

  Chapter Twelve

  The sound of muffled sobs drove Kendall to throw open her front door.

  “Who is hurt?” she cried racing down the short hallway with Richard on her heels.

  While she had been determinedly stalking down the aisle of her neighborhood grocery store, power shopping, she came to a sudden epiphany between the carrots and the lettuce in the vegetable aisle.

  She watched as a couple with two kids argued about whose responsibility it was to watch over their children while the father went off to play golf.

  The tired-looking mother argued that she needed a break from the children and the father declared that he couldn’t miss his tee time. “I have important clients coming, you know,” he cried.

  The children in question looked miserably at each other as they held hands and slowly walked behind their bickering parents.

  True, everything was moving so fast in her life, she had never known such a full range of emotions, but that wasn’t bad at all. Never had she felt a love so powerful that the very mention of his name made her heart weep with joy. Never had she been so thoroughly and completely loved or cherished like she was something spe
cial. Flame had brought her heart’s every desire, to be needed and wanted equally. He’d even brought her children! She couldn’t love Ember and Spark more if they had come from her own body. Who could ask for anything more?

  Flame was patient and understanding, and would soon be self-supporting. She knew Flame would ensure that he carried his own weight. He considered it all part of protecting his Mistress from all harm. Even more essential, he proved that he could be counted on. He’d never put his needs above hers or the children’s like the argumentative red-faced father that stormed down the aisles. He’d consider it unmanly.

  She hated the thought of him sitting alone and confused in the house, waiting on pins and needles for her to return and assure him of her love. She was one lucky woman to have found him on her front lawn, and she couldn’t wait to rush home and tell him so.

  But as she pulled up in front of her house, she was met by a sheepish looking Richard wearing his trademark brown suite.

  “What do you want, Dickey-Boy?” she asked as she climbed from the driver’s seat and opened the side door. She was anxious to get to Flame and make up for scaring him the way she had.

  “I know you don’t want to see me right now, Kendall.” He worriedly ran his hands through his hair, ignoring his new nick-name. “But this is an emergency. Have you seen Caressa?”

  “Have I seen my sister? What’s wrong Richard? Did you two have your first lover’s spat?” Kendall had groceries to unload and a man who needed some good loving. She didn’t have time for Richard and Caressa or their problems.

  “This is serious, Kendall. I was stressed after afternoon rounds and said some really hurtful things to Caressa and now she’s run off.”

  Kendall snorted as she hefted her two grocery bags from the floor of the minivan, and slammed the door shut with the swing of one hip.

  “Caressa is a big girl, Richard.” She turned to the good doctor as she pointed out that obvious fact. “Give her some time to cool off and then she’ll go on home, like a good little girl.”

  She turned and started up her walkway, smiling as she saw that her MoonFlowers had opened their milky white petals for the soft kiss of the moonlight. The heady fragrance of the blossoms touched a cord within her heart. She had been enjoying the scent of these very blossoms when she had first found her auburn-hared spaceman on her front lawn. She would always associate the smell with Flame.

  “But she doesn’t know anyone else in Baltimore!” Richard’s plaintive voice drew her back to the present. The man could never take a hint. He was matching her step for step as she walked to her front door, paying no attention to the beautiful miracle of the MoonFlowers and their unique scent. “The only place she could run is to you.”

  “Listen to me, Richard.” Kendall finally groused out as they stopped at her front door. “I have not, nor do I want to see my sister now. Go home! She’s probably there waiting for you now.”

  She handed one of the bags to Richard as she inserted the key into the lock. If he was going to stand around pestering her, he could at least make himself useful.

  That’s when they both heard the sobs coming from inside the house. Ignoring Richard, Kendall thrust the door open and raced to the source of the heart-wrenching cries. Richard, hearing Caressa’s distinctive wailing sound rushed after her.

  As she raced down the hall, the thought of Flame in any pain was enough to make her murder the person responsible. Had the Execution Squad located him? Had the government learned of his existence? She was mad with worry, desperate to find out what was wrong with him.

  Dropping her bag unheeded to the floor, she was confronted by a sight that almost stopped her heart.

  Flame, her Flame, was slouched low on the couch as he sobbed his eyes out into a tissue. Beside him sat Caressa, red-faced and crying openly, her eyes fixed to the television screen. On her sister’s lap sat a riveted Spark, also staring in wonder at the screen, watching a woman in a leather corset cling to a man who lay chained to a chair on a studio stage.

  “Do not believe her deceitful words,” Flame cried out to the TV. “She will only abuse you again when she feels your resolve to leave has lessened.”

  “You tell him, Flame!” Caressa cried in complete agreement, blotting her eyes and tenderly running her fingers through Spark’s hair. “She doesn’t love you like you deserve to be loved!”

  The baby seemed entranced by all of the leather and exposed skin on the screen.

  “All right!” Kendall bellowed causing everyone to look in her direction. Even Spark turned away from the action on the stage to fix his large gray eyes on her.

  “What the hell is going on in here? Why are you darkening my doorway so soon, Caressa, when I told you that I did not want to see your face around here? Why is Flame crying and what have you got my baby watching? Look at him! Are you trying to turn him into a sex fiend?”

  She stood in the doorway; arms akimbo, firing off questions faster than the crying duo on the couch could answer. Then she spotted the carton of her most favorite ice cream, sitting empty on the coffee table with two dirty spoons.

  “You ate my ice cream!” she bellowed. “You two have a lot of explaining to do! Starting with why my son is watching this...this...trash and why my ice cream is gone!”

  “I think we all deserve an explanation!” Richard bellowed from behind Kendall causing Caressa to eye him with disgust and Flame with something akin to extreme hatred as the waterworks abruptly dried up.

  Spark seemed to blink in anticipation of the bloodletting to come, and perked up as much as an infant needing sleep could. Something was happening with the grown-ups and he had a front row seat.

  “Oh, Dallie!” Caressa cried as she passed Spark to his father. “You have a real treasure in Flame.” She sprang up from the couch and ran with arms outstretched to her sister, totally ignoring Richard.

  Kendall stood frozen as Caressa embraced her.

  “Flame helped me figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life.” Caressa gave her immobile sister a little shake and pulled her unresisting form into the living room.

  Automatically, Kendall reached for Spark and the baby gave a crow of delight as he saw his mama. A still-sniffing Flame rose to his feet as he handed the baby to Kendall and motioned for her to take a seat.

  Of all the things she had expected to see when she charged through the house, this scenario was, in a few words, not one of them. She cradled Spark in her arms and waited for the explanations to begin.

  In full melodramatic mode, Caressa executed a quick turn and clapped her hands twice in front of her. “I’m going to open a modeling agency!”

  “You’re what?” Richard stepped into the room, looking a bit flummoxed by her words. “You can’t do that!”

  His words had Kendall and Flame eyeing him in shocked anger. Caressa wasn’t the smartest thing to ever walk the face of the Earth, Kendall knew, but no one had the right to disparage another person’s dream. Flame had come up with the perfect business opportunity for her sister.

  Flame was angered by the lack of respect shown to the odd woman. Yes, she had hurt her sister with her unthinking actions, but she still was a woman and deserving of respect. Before anyone could say anything in her defense, Caressa surprised them all yet again.

  “What makes you think that I can’t do this, Richard?” she questioned with eyes narrowed in anger. All the jubilation on her face was wiped clear by his words. “Just because I didn’t attend Harvard Medical School doesn’t mean that I don’t have a decent education!”

  Kendall silently applauded her sister while Flame looked a little amazed himself. It seemed that Kendall’s sister was not all, as they said on the TV show, fluff. She, like her sister, had a backbone, when she cared to remember it was there and how to use it.

  She stalked right up to Richard and jabbed a finger into his chest, wrinkling his perfectly pressed suite. “I’m not a worthless ornament to parade about on your arm. Flame showed me that I have strong points an
d value all of my own! I can do anything I put my mind to, with or without you!”

  Richard turned a thunderous look to Flame, who in turn gave him a small knowing smile. “This is all your fault you...you...home-wrecker!”

  “Don’t speak to him that way!” Instantly both Kendall and Caressa were yelling at Richard. Flame paid him no notice.

  Richard stared in shock at his beautiful, biddable Caressa. She had never raised her voice to him before and now she was defending another man. “How many women do you need, buddy?” Richard all but growled at Flame.

  “I think that it’s time we went home and talk about a few things, Richard.” Caressa spoke to him like Flame had spoken to her earlier, the way a parent would controlling the tantrum of a child.

  “But...” Richard tried to defend himself, but Caressa laid one finger against his lips to shut his mouth.

  “I think that it’s time to go home, Richard,” she repeated firmly.

  Richard looked around the room and then gave Caressa a small nod. “At home then, my dear.”

  Caressa walked over to Kendall and knelt before her sister. “I know that you didn’t want to see me for a while.”

  “Still don’t.” Kendall ruefully muttered to her sister with a small smile. It was true she didn’t want to be around Caressa, but she still loved her and was happy that she was standing up to Richard.

  “But I’m grateful to you for allowing Flame to help me.” She continued as if she didn’t hear Kendall’s comment.

  “As if I had a choice,” Kendall muttered.

  “I know you wouldn’t have turned me away, Kendall. You may be angry with me right now, but I’m the only family you’ve got and you love me.” She bent down and gave Spark a little kiss on his forehead before gracefully bouncing from her place on floor. “That one is going to be a heartbreaker,” she predicted. She then set her sights on Flame.

  “I don’t know what I would have done without you.” She and stopped in front of the blushing man. Looking up, she gave him a confident smile. “You helped me find my worth with a few words. I will never forget it and will always be grateful.” She reached up, pulled his face down to her level and planted a soft kiss against his cheek.