Promise To Keep

by Rainwater, Priscilla Poole

  “Betcha’. Well, so long.“ he said as he got in the cruiser and pulled out.

  Going to the mailbox, Connell opened it, placed the letter inside, raised the flag, then headed for Jonus’ camper.

  Jonus opened the door before he knocked, and invited him in. “Something wrong? Aisha ok?” he asked worriedly.

  It struck Connell how important Aisha had become to him, and others. “She’s sleeping, that pain medication is strong. I just wanted to say thanks, for today, and having my back at the bar. I just spoke with the Sheriff, we’ve got nothing to worry about. If you want some dinner, just come on up.”

  Relieved, Jonus let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, “Helen brought out some chicken and dumplings. Besides, my little fridge is still stocked. You want to come in? I was just watching Starship Trooper.”

  Connell shook his head. “Thanks, but I think I’ll call it an early night. Come up for breakfast in the morning. I’m no cook, but I think I can manage a bowl of cereal.”

  Jonus laughed and bid him goodnight.

  Connell’s last stop was to check on the dogs. They were inside one of the open barns, sleeping on a pile of hay. “You two, I’ll fry you up some spam in the morning for breakfast.” he said softly, not wanting to wake them.

  *******************************************************

  Aisha dreamed of the attack, only in this time the dog had gotten her down and had it’s powerful jaws clamped down on her throat. She whimpered, then began thrashing around in her sleep.

  Connell had showered and settled in for the evening, and was watching the History Channel when he heard the whimpering coming from her room, then a weak scream.

  Bolting out of his lazy-boy, he ran upstairs and into her bedroom. Turning on the bedside lamp, he saw her thrashing around and knew she was in the grip of some nightmare. Scooping her up in his arms he began soothing her. “Shhhh, shhhhh, it’s just a dream, calm down.” he said as her eyes flew open.

  “What?” she half screamed as she looked at him wild-eyed, then recognized him. In a shaky voice, she said, “I had a bad dream, oh my God it was horrible, I….”

  Caressing her back, he kissed her cheek as he rocked her back and forth and said, “Hush, don‘t think about it, you’re Ok now.”

  Her eyes brimming with tears, she sobbed and said, “Would you stay with me? Please?”

  “Sure. Let me go lock the house up, and I’ll be right back.” he said as he got up and left quickly.

  Aisha watched as he hurried from the room. She hated feeling so weak, so helpless, but she was finding herself wanting more and more to feel the warmth of his embrace, and the comfort from knowing she was protected in his strong arms.

  Getting up slowly, she hobbled into the bathroom to relieve herself, then washed her hands and brushed her teeth.

  Groaning and feeling like an old woman, she hobbled back to bed and waited anxiously.

  A few moments later Connell returned, wearing a terry-cloth house robe. Throwing back the covers, he removed his robe and crawled in bed beside her, clad only in his briefs.

  Turning over with a contented sigh, she scooted up next to him, her back to his front. He felt his body react, and thought, Come on, you shouldn’t even be thinking about that right now…

  She squirmed around for a moment, then turned over slowly and threw her good leg over his. Snuggling her face into his chest, she kissed it lightly and sighed. Oh I love his smell, the feel of him just being next to me…. she thought drowsily.

  Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, he asked softly, “Are you hurting?”

  “A little, my whole body is kinda’ sore.” was her muffled reply. Lifting her head, she could barely make out his handsome features, but thanks to the bathroom light she had left on she could see his gray eyes. It seemed she was thinking about the same thing he was.

  “Something on your mind?” he asked as he brushed his lips across her forehead.

  Snuggling back down with her face pressed against his chest she said, “What are we going to do? I never expected any of this to happen. To be honest, I thought you would toss my ass out after the first week.” she said, then smiled when she felt his body shake as he chuckled. Serious once more, she said, “I feel guilty because of Jenny.”

  Caressing her back with his fingertips, he replied, “I know how you feel. I feel the same way. I’ll always love Jenny, but what I feel for you is real and I want to explore that.”

  He leaned towards her, making her heart flutter with excitement, and her eyes slid closed as his lips touched hers. She didn’t want to hold back. She ran her lips over his, relishing the sensation, then deepened the kiss.

  He ran his hands through her locks, then reached out gently and pulled her body closer, careful not to hurt her.

  Breaking the kiss, she lowered her head to his chest and began licking, then kissing, the feel of her hot breath exciting him.

  Feeling himself grow hard, he said with tremendous effort, “We really shouldn’t, I don’t want to hurt you.“

  “Shhhh, I want to this time, darling. I’M asking YOU.” she whispered. She raised her head, ran her fingers through his hair, and pulled his lips to hers. Her tongue sought his, and after a moment she pulled away, looked at him, and whispered, “I’ll take your silence as a yes.”

  Placing her small hand on his chest, she pushed, urging him to roll over on his back. Slowly, still gasping, she crawled on top of him and laid down, her back to his chest.

  Knowing what she had in mind, he wrapped his arms around her.

  She began moaning and panting even louder as she felt his hands slowly pull her silk nightgown up over her hips as he nibbled and kissed her neck softly.

  She felt his large hand slip inside her panties, and she spread her legs wider. One large finger gently stroked through her wet folds, up and down, up and down, slowly. One hand reached up under her gown, and made it’s way to her breasts, where it began gently squeezing them, and tweaking her taught nipples.

  “Oh God you’re killing me.” she moaned, “Please, just give it to me.”

  His hands left her body for a moment, then she felt herself lifted into the air momentarily as he arched his back and pulled down his briefs. Then his hot hands were on her once more. Reaching down between her legs, he hooked one finger underneath the crotch of her panties, and pulled them to one side.

  “Ohhhhh GOD!” she cried as she felt his huge, hot shaft slip inside her, filling her completely. She screamed as she felt herself release early, and was dimly aware that her hair-trigger orgasm was the result of the sponge bath he had given her earlier.

  Closing her eyes, she felt her body being lifted up and down, up and down as his thrusts found a rhythm. One large, wet finger began stroking her clitoris in perfect timing with every thrust, as his other hand found it’s way back underneath her gown and began caressing and squeezing her nipples one again.

  “Ohhh, give it to me, GIVE IT TO ME!” she screamed, and began moaning like a wounded animal as his thrusts picked up speed and became so powerful he had to wrap one arm around her stomach to keep her body from tumbling off his.

  Just like their night in New York, she felt herself becoming delirious once more as she felt her body tossed about helplessly, wave after wave of pleasure washing through her and making her as helpless as a kitten at the mercy of a lion.

  Dimly, she heard him groan as his thrusts became even more urgent.

  “Ohhh, oh Connell….I…I…”

  His own hoarse scream interrupted her as his hot seed was pumped inside her. He collapsed, breathing heavily.

  They lay there for several minutes, neither one of them speaking, just trying to catch their breath.

  “You Ok?” he finally whispered.

  Eyes still closed, she smiled to herself, grabbed one of his hands and placed it on her womb and whispered, “Ohhh, yes. I’m just great.”

  *************************************************


  Connell woke, expecting Aisha to still be asleep next to him, but found himself alone. Rubbing his eyes he took a deep breath and inhaled the wonderful aroma of coffee brewing.

  Getting up, he pulled on his boxer shorts and stretched. He was a little disappointed, he had planned on fixing her breakfast for a change, and serving it to her in bed. And here she had actually gotten up before him. That said a lot in itself, and was carrying on as if she hadn’t been hurt badly less than a day ago.

  Aisha moved around the kitchen slowly, her leg still hurting. She had slipped out of bed early, leaving Connell asleep, and used his bathroom to shower and brush her teeth so she wouldn’t wake him. She had wiped the shower stall dry with a towel, and then put fresh bandages over her wounds, knowing he would have a fit if he knew she had been in the shower.

  Hearing a faint thud, she looked towards the staircase and smiled, knowing he was awake.

  She hobbled over to the window and peeked out at the stars that were still plainly visible, thinking about the previous night and this morning. Even though she had cleaned the bedroom and bathroom many times before, looking at all of Jenny’s things still in their proper place, just as they were before she died, her hairbrush, the skin care system she had sent her from Paris for Christmas the year before, her toothbrush and pink plush robe, made her feel guilty. Unable to help it, she felt as if she had defiled her friend’s home by sleeping with Connell, under the very roof they had shared as husband and wife. She knew she was thinking irrationally, after all, her friend had wanted her promise that she would always be there for him, but it didn’t make it any easier knowing her friend had said, “I swear, if he had ever tried to leave me, I would have grabbed his ankles and hung on even if he dragged me from there to China and back…I’ve always wanted him for myself, I love him.“ Closing her eyes, she felt a lump rising in her throat and thought, “Oh Jenny, why did you have to leave us?

  Hearing a door shut upstairs, she opened her eyes and hobbled to the stove. Flipping the sausage patties over, she stirred the harsh browns and onions one last time. Grabbing three plates, she turned off the stove burners and began heaping the food onto them.

  She jumped when Connell brushed his warm lips against her neck.

  “Why are you up and cooking breakfast, you’re supposed to be off that leg! Oh, and you‘re not fooling anyone, I thought I told you to stay out of that shower stall and tub for the next couple of days.”

  Her eyes grew wide and she said, “But how…..”

  Chuckling, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed the nape of her neck. “You forgot to wipe the bathroom mirror.” he explained. “You know, the condensation?”

  She felt her face heating up as she stammered, “Sorry, but I really, really hate not being able to shower. The sponge bath was nice and everything.” she said, feeling her face grow even hotter, “But it’s just not the same.”

  He sighed and said, “Ok ok, but you‘re every bit as stubborn as you accuse me of being, you know that?”

  Grabbing his hands, she brought them to her lips and kissed the back of each one lightly, then said, “I know, now go sit at the table, I’ll pour you some coffee. I may be hurting a little, but I’m not helpless.”

  At that moment the kitchen door opened, and Jonus walked in. “Morning you two.“ Smiling at Aisha, he said, “Glad to see you up and about, gave us quite a scare yesterday.“

  “I’m doing alright, just a little sore.”

  Walking over to her, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tight, catching her completely off guard. Placing the coffee mug down on the counter, she returned his hug and said, “Hey hey, really, I’m alright, but I love ya’ to pieces for your concern.”

  Relinquishing his hold on her, he took a seat as she grabbed one more cup, poured his coffee, and placed both steaming mugs in front of them.

  Stirring in his cream and sugar, Connell nodded and mumbled, “Morning.“ Taking a sip, he was surprised at his own feelings of jealousy over the innocent embrace. He knew there was absolutely nothing behind it, just genuine concern and relief, but after having had her in his own arms he simply couldn’t stand the thought of another man touching her.

  Breakfast was pleasant and Aisha made small talk, all the while doing her best to hide the dull pain that had began spreading throughout her entire body.

  Despite her best efforts however, Connell noticed anyway. Frowning at her, he said, “You need to take your pain medication and lie down.”

  Picking up the plates, she stacked them one on top of the other, got up, and went to the sink. “I will when I clean up. I don’t want the dishes to pile up, it’ll just be more work later.”

  Sensing something was bothering her, Jonus got up to leave, clearing his throat. “Ummm, I’ll go get started feeding the animals. See you at lunch, Aisha.”

  She nodded, smiled painfully, and continued to clear the table, trying to ignore Connell’s steely gaze.

  “Alight, do you want to talk about what’s bothering you, or are you going to keep pretending nothing’s wrong?” he said after a moment.

  Unable to look at him, she began loading the dishwasher as she spoke. “Alright, you want to know? I feel like we shouldn’t have slept together, here, in Jenny’s house. I mean your house, yours and hers…. well, you know what I mean. This is just so, I don’t know, I‘m not trying to make you feel guilty. I mean, I know I was the one who started it last night, I just, hell, I‘m not sure what I‘m trying to say.” she finished, looking completely miserable.

  Walking over to her, he looked into her brown eyes, that were glittering with unshed tears. Cupping a large hand over the side of her face, she closed her eyes and kissed it softly.

  “Connell.” she whispered.

  “Look, I feel a little guilty too, so you’re not alone. We’re in this together, but that’s the way she wanted it, remember?” he said in a soft voice. “Aisha, this is your home now as well as mine. Or hers.”

  “I know that’s what she wanted, but still, I can’t help it.”

  Kissing the top of her head, he said, “We’ll talk more tonight, and since your birthday is only five days away we need to plan something special for you. Get some rest, see you at lunch. If you’re too tired or sore to make anything, me and Jonus will take you to Huddle House, Ok?”

  Giving her a peck on the cheek and a light pat on the rear, he turned and walked outside.

  *****************************************************

  Helen pushed her grocery cart slowly down the aisle, looking for a spice she had never heard of. She had called Aisha earlier in the day, offering to do her shopping for her. “Garam Masala,” she mumbled to herself as she finally spotted the item.

  Reaching out, she took it off the shelf, double-checked, and placed it in the cart. Chuckling to herself, she began pushing the cart again, thinking about how ever since Aisha had moved in with Connell, life had never been dull. She also thought about how much she had changed the man. For instance, the food. For as long as she had known him he was like her Ben, a meat and potatoes man. He still was, but at least one day a week she had him trying something different, things totally alien to his simple tastes. Tonight she was planning on cooking him an Indian meal.

  Turning the corner, she almost literally ran into Patty Miller, and she could tell by the nasty sneer on her painted lips that it wouldn’t be a pleasant encounter.

  “Well look who’s here. Helen. I hear your little black friend had a run-in with some dogs, too bad they didn’t finish her off.” she said as she glanced in Helen’s shopping cart, being outright nosy. Looking back up at her, her eyes were shining with sadistic glee.

  This sick bitch is actually glad she got hurt…Helen thought numbly. Frowning, she gave the woman a withering glare.

  Licking her lips nervously, the woman held her steady gaze, refusing to back down.

  Helen wasn’t about to let the sick bitch walk away gloating, Suddenly smiling, she said, “She’s fine.”


  “So glad to hear it.” was the phony, sarcastic reply.

  Leaning closer to her, Helen assumed a pose of ‘just between us girls’, and continued. “Don’t you go worrying yourself about her, girl! My my, if only you could see how well Connell takes care of her. He treats her like a queen! Why, after she got hurt, you should have seen him lifting her in those biiiiig strong arms of his, carrying her like she was a precious infant.”

  Patty’s smile suddenly went crooked and her left eye began twitching ever so slightly.

  Helen nearly laughed, knowing it was all the hateful witch could do to maintain her composure, and decided to go for the knockout punch. With a breathless sigh and a dreamy look in her eyes, she said, “Yeah, too bad EVERY woman cant have a man like Connell. I tell ya‘, if I didn’t have my Ben, that girl would have some real competition on her hands.”