by Mia Villano
“Here, now talk,” she instructed and plopped down on one of the cushioned chairs. Jeannie couldn’t help but laugh when she saw the straw.
Sipping her wine, it began to calm her down and she told Marsha what happened.
“That’s normal, sweetie. You have feelings for this guy and you also have memories of Vince. It’s okay. Once Kane drives home and thinks about what happened he will understand too.”
“I shouldn’t have kissed him like I did. I became lost in the moment and he looked so good.”
“I would have done more than kiss him, Jeannie. You have more will power than I do. I would kiss Kane the day of my husband’s funeral,” she laughed.
“You’re nuts. I better keep him away from your slutty ass. That’s if I ever see or hear from him again. He thinks I’m a nut.”
“No, not this guy. He’ll be back. I can see his lust in his eyes. He’s smitten with you. Give it a few days and call him.”
“I don’t know, Marsha. It feels like I’m cheating on Vince and I think about Lydia, and I’m faced with so much guilt. I’m going to a bad place again.”
“You have to stop. Lydia and Vince are on a whole other plane. They are in a place where there’s happiness and they want you to be happy. We get too bogged down on thoughts about what the dead think and see. They are so far advanced than us they don’t see what we think they do.”
“Thanks, Marsh, for talking to me. You make me better.”
“That’s what I’m here for, man. Take it easy and enjoy the ride. God, how I would like to ride him,” she laughed again.
“Shut up. He’s hot isn’t he?”
“Hot is not the word. Scorching is better. Did you touch his package while you were kissing him? Give me something to think about while I lay in bed alone knowing my husband is with another woman in her bed.”
“Marsha, I’m selfish wanting to talk about myself and here you are with John and his issues. I thought you marriage was getting better.”
“No, it’s not getting better. In fact it’s moving towards us not being married much longer. John told me his friend and her husband divorced. If my marriage was getting better, that wouldn’t be happening. Oh well, what are you going to do?”
“Drink,” said Jeannie, sipping more wine and feeling pretty good.
“I have taught you well,” she laughed, reaching across the table to grab Jeannie’s hand.
After drowning her sorrows in wine, Jeannie went to bed. Even after slurping down an entire bottle of pinot noir, sleep was not easy to come by. She tossed and turned all night and her dreams were filled with both Vince and Kane. At one point they were both the same person and Jeannie finally got up and took a shower. It was barely dawn when Jeannie walked downstairs with a book to get her mind off what happened.
Marsha was up early and as they talked over coffee, and she handed Jeannie an envelope. To Jeannie’s shock inside the envelope was two tickets to New York City and they were leaving that morning. Marsha arraigned the trip and even contacted Jeannie’s employer to tell them she would be in on Tuesday. Jeannie had not been there in years and the idea of getting away from everything sounded too good to be true.
Jeannie whispered as she wiped a tear away. “Marsha, this is too much. You shouldn’t have done this.”
“Shut up. It’s what you’ve been needing. We’ll have a blast. I have to warn you, I hate flying. So with that being said, I’m drinking now.” Marsha threw back a shot of whiskey as Jeannie watched in horror.
“How did you get me out of work?” Jeannie was working at the newspaper full time and had not once called off since she had been back. Her job was through her temporary agency and she was doing such a good job they wanted to hire Jeannie as a full time employee.
“I pretended to be you and said that I had to make an emergency trip to New York and I would be back Tuesday. No problem. Now go pack and quit asking questions.”
“What about Michael?” Jeannie asked. She wasn’t comfortable leaving him for two days.
“Already arranged. I was going to tell you last night, but you were too upset. John will be with him and he has a ton of guy crap planned. He may be a shitty husband, but he’s good for something. Now, go get a suitcase and put a few outfits in and be ready in about an hour.”
Marsha wasn’t kidding about not being able to fly. She drank half a bottle of whisky and still was a mess when the plane took off. Digging her fingernails into Jeannie’s leg was not pleasant for an hour. It took Jeannie several attempts to get Marsha calmed down each time the plane dipped from turbulence. She was quite entertaining. Once she sobered up and got settled into their hotel room, Jeannie wanted to explore the city. They walked through Central Park, sat on a bench, and people watched. The smell of vendors cooking filled the air and they couldn’t resist buying a hotdog. There was a man playing a violin, and the music was so perfect to hear in the distance while they laughed and talked. Marsha needed to make a decision on what to do with her life.
“Jeannie, it’s finished. I can’t keep putting up with his mood swings and the terrible comments he says to me.”
“I know, Marsha. I wouldn’t believe it if I didn’t hear it with my own ears. I’m not eavesdropping. I can hear him downstairs calling you names. I wouldn’t put up with his behavior either. Just like you wanting to step in with my mom, I wanted to step in with John. It wasn’t my place though.”
“You could shoot him for me. I’ll stand up for you in court,” Marsha laughed.
“Nice, Marsha. There has to be a better way to get out of the marriage other than killing him.”
“I have done everything I could to make him happy. I offered to have his daughter come and stay with us. I’ve forgiven him for the affair, and I’ve gone to counseling so much it’s not even funny. I have done it all and he still seems to be getting worse. Have you noticed his drinking is bad again?”
“Yeah, I did see that he was drinking a lot again. I don’t know, Marsha I love John, but there’s a point when you have to say enough is enough.”
“And I’m at that point when I want to say enough is enough. He’s miserable without her and I have to let him go and be with her.” Marsha looked up at Jeannie with a hurt look in her eyes.
Jeannie grabbed her hand. “You know what you have to do then.”
“I do, but we’re in the city of all cities and we’re young, hot, and crazy and we need to go have fun.”
“I would not say young, crazy yes. Hot is also pushing our description,” said Jeannie, laughing at her friend.
Marsha couldn’t help but smile at her. “Let’s go have fun.” Fun they had. They tore through the city like two teenagers, shopping, eating and later hitting some overly priced nightclubs.
The next day, Marsha was insistent they go to Grand Central Station for lunch. The weather was beautiful and Jeannie wanted to do something else. For whatever reason, Marsha was intent on them going to Grand Central. She said she loved the turkey sandwich at this one deli and she had a craving for a turkey Rueben.
Grand Central was exactly like Jeannie saw in the movies. The place was a constant stream of people coming and going into the city. Jeannie found herself gazing at the ceiling. She was mesmerized by the zodiac pictures. She seemed to see something different every time she was there.
“Looking for anything in particular?” a familiar voice came up behind her.
She turned around shocked at who was standing in front of her. Jeannie looked around for Marsha. She was nowhere to be found.
Chapter 19
“Kane, What are you doing here?”
“Well, I could make up a story that I was here for business and we magically ran into each other in the biggest city in the world, but that would be a lie. You’re going to find out sooner or later that Marsha told me you would be here. She also wanted me to tell you that she’s going home to end her marriage and left me here to be with you.”
“What? She went home?” Jeannie was in shock. Marsha told
her she was going to get a sandwich, not take the next plane back home, leaving Jeannie stranded in the middle of New York.
“Don’t look so sad. Yes, she did.”
“I’m going to kill her. Hold on a second, Kane. I’m calling her.”
Kane stood there and stared at her. His hands in the pocket of his jeans. His hair was gelled back, looking greyer. His face was covered in scruff. He looked amazing and she was so beautiful to him, angry with her cheeks getting blush red. He couldn’t help but laugh at her.
“Marsha. What the hell is going on with you? Get your ass back here. You just up and leave me?”
“What. I don’t want to hear it. This is awful what you did to me. What’s going on?”
“Okay, Okay. Yes, Yes. All right,” said Jeannie, having a conversation with Marsha on the phone.
She hung up and Kane stood still smiling. Jeannie didn’t think the whole situation was funny.
“Well, I guess you were right. She really did leave me here.” Jeannie frowned.
“Just so you relax about this, I have my own room at the Hilton. Marsha didn’t plan on us staying together. Not after what happened last time. I wanted to see you, and Marsha arranged this for us. You got to love her,” he said.
“Or kill her, which would be a lot easier,” Jeannie joked.
“Well, you are here, we are together, we should enjoy our time in the city. Got any ideas?”
“I do. I can’t wait to show you around to my favorite places. Don’t you think we should talk about what happened first? I mean that was pretty intense.”
“Let’s go get a coffee.” They found a table, in a corner downstairs in noisy Grand Central. It was lunch time, and the place was a madhouse. There were people everywhere ordering lunch, talking on cell phones, and rushing around not making eye contact. Kane ordered two coffees with cream and cinnamon. Jeannie checked him out as he walked off to order. Damn, he looked good, she thought as she stared at his ass. For his age, his ass was holding up well, tight, and round it made her wonder if he wore briefs or boxers.
“I’m so sorry for running. I don’t know what came over me,” said Jeannie. She took a sip of her coffee and gazed into his blue eyes.
“The kiss was too soon. I shouldn’t have been so forward. You had reason to run.”
“Any other normal woman would’ve stayed and enjoyed your kiss. I ran like a frightened teenager.”
“It’s okay. I understand. I thought you ran because of my breath,” he laughed.
“You had wonderful breath. I ran because of how good it was. It was too much right then. Let’s get past that and enjoy this time together.”
“Forget the kiss happened? I can’t do that. It felt too right to forget,” he said. Kane saying that sent an ache through Jeannie. The way he was looking at her made her realize there was something there between them, something they couldn’t ignore.
“No, I want to forget we ended the kiss the way we did, or at least the way I did. Let’s start over?”
“Sounds good,” he winked at her.
They walked around the city looking at everything and going into the boutiques and stores. The night brought mixed emotions for Jeannie. It was sad being in such a beautiful place in New York City and not having Vince or Lydia with her. She was there to enjoy the moment and the company she was with. They ate dinner at a little Italian restaurant in Greenwich Village and Jeannie thought how much Lydia would have loved it. Jeannie had promised to take her there and that was another promise she would not be able to fill.
After dinner, Kane and Jeannie walked down to Times Square and had a glass of wine at a little romantic bar on the corner playing big band music. The bar was crowded, dark, and classy. Part of the area off to the back was portioned off for dancing. A few couples were locked in a private embrace as the music played. A slight hint of sadness hit her when she saw that, remembering the time her and Vince danced.
“I would like to move here,” said Jeannie, sipping her glass of wine and trying to forget about Vince.
“I don’t know if I could stand the craziness. I wouldn’t mind living here six months out of the year, but this would get on my nerves. I love the peace at my house and I don’t know if they let horses in these high-rise apartments.”
“That could be a problem when they have to go the bathroom,” laughed Jeannie.
“It’s nice to blend in and hide and no one would notice you,” she continued.
“That sounds fishy. Have you committed a crime you’re trying to hide from?” he laughed.
“You never know,” she winked at him.
“So how did you and Marsha arrange this little rendezvous and I didn’t know?” asked Jeannie. She was unable to look away from his sea blue eyes.
“This is all her fault. She called me to discuss what happened between us the night of the kiss. She told me I needed to see you. She suggested I meet you here on my way back from D.C., and she made it happen. I did what she told me to do. She has a way of doing that, doesn’t she?”
“That’s the case with that woman. She has a way about her to get people to do what she wants. I love her though. She has been my rock and my family through everything.”
“You’re lucky to have her. She’s quite a gal, born a few years too late.”
“I thought the same thing. When I first met her I thought she was insane. I still haven’t gotten an explanation on how this one was pulled off without me knowing.”
“Well, she called last night and insisted I meet you here. She said she would go for a day and then I was to surprise you. She wanted me to meet you both in Grand Central Station. I forget like a movie she saw.”
“Fatal Attraction,” laughed Jeannie.
“Thanks. No, it wasn’t Fatal Attraction.” Kane noticed people slow dancing during the music and he asked Jeannie if she wanted to hit the dance floor.
Kane held out his hand and she placed hers in his. His hands were big, warm, and soft. He pulled her close to his body and being held by a man was comforting for a change. His face was rough and soft at the same time. She wondered how his scruffiness would feel against her body. She told herself to stop and remember it was the wine talking. Wine usually made her think of sex.
“You feel nice in my arms,” he whispered in her ear. His lips caressed her ear, and he brushed them down her neck sending goosebumps through her skin. His arms felt secure and muscular wrapped around her. Dancing with Kane, he led her gracefully and moved in way that made her think about how he would move in bed. If he could dance so smoothly, he obviously was amazing in bed.
“Dancing like this is nice again,” she whispered back. He kissed her neck and made her hot everywhere while his hands rested right above her ass.
“Come to my room,” she said, kissing him on his full, pouty lips. He tasted like wine, and she wanted to taste more. She kissed him again and this time she slipped her tongue into his open mouth. Something was coming over her. Her love of sex and intimacy inched its way back inside her. He pulled away to look at her.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“I’m so sure. I panicked when you kissed me. I felt something awaken in me. I’m so sorry for running. I’m not going to do that again.”
“I hope not because if we leave, you know we’re going to be doing more than kissing,” he said, as he kissed her back on the lips. His tongue danced around her mouth and she awakened even more.
“I want to do more than kiss you, Kane. I want you in my bed.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice. Let’s get out of here,” he said.
Chapter 20
Kane paid their tab and they stepped outside to hail a cab. The air outside was cool and breezy cooling Jeannie off. Within seconds the cab pulled up and they slid in the backseat.
“West 57th please, the Hilton,” said Jeannie.
The ride back to the hotel lasted forever, even though it was two blocks. Kane had his hand on her bare leg. Jeannie loved the heat on her smooth, oiled thi
gh. Running everyday had turned her once pudgy legs into something she was now proud to show off.
Feeling more playful than she had in years, Jeannie took his hand and moved it under her dress.
“I want you inside me,” Jeanie whispered in his ear. Kane closed his eyes showing he was beyond turned on from what she said. Jeannie put her hand on his crotch and he was rock hard. The wine at dinner had not made her drunk. It put her in a mood she had not been in for so long. She was sexy, womanly, and in control.
“I have wanted to hear those words from you for so long,” he said, as his fingers inched higher into her. Deeper and deeper his two fingers reached into her bare, warm sex. His thumb began rubbing the right spot, and she knew another few seconds and she would have lost herself to him.
“You better stop or I’m going to explode,” she whispered, throwing her head back against the seat.
He slowly took his hand away not wanting to spoil what he had planned for her in the room.
They reached her hotel and Kane handed the driver a fifty dollar bill and told him to keep the change. They couldn’t get up to the room fast enough without groping at each other. The elevator was torture since it was full of people. It didn’t stop Kane from turning her on more as she stood in front of him. He pressed his hardness into her behind and nudged her ever so slightly making her aware of what he wanted. Her legs went weak when his hard cock pressed up against her ass.
Kane dropped his hotel key and wallet on the desk in the hotel room. He hurriedly took off his watch and placed it next to his keys and wallet. Jeannie attacked him as she pulled his shirt out of his pants and ran her hands up under his shirt. His mouth was instantly on her and he laughed as he pulled her close to him. First, he unzipped her dress letting the fabric fall off her body. He admired how beautiful and full her breasts looked standing in front of him in just a bra and panties. He couldn’t wait to devour her. He unhooked her bra skillfully and it fell to the floor. Her nipples were hard as he bent his head to kiss them and give them the attention he so longed to do. She grabbed on to his hair and ran her fingers through it. She adored the way his slight beard felt silky soft against her skin and tickled her in the right places. His fingertips grazed her thighs as he pushed her panties to the side and touched her sweet cunt.
