by Cherry Kay
Casey flushed slightly and laughed, holding up her hand to show that no explanation was needed. "Say no more."
The four had a pleasant lunch, if somewhat uncomfortable for Jason and Amara who knew the true reason for their new nuptials. After the food was eaten and Casey and Max had gone home, it was left to Jason and Amara to return to Jason's home.
Her professor held out a hand to her. It was partly for show, but also to comfort the girl whose life had taken an unexpected turn that day. It was ironic, in a way, that Jason had offered her a marriage to save her from a marriage, but there was so much more at stake with Amara's education on the line.
The whole thing was very symbolic. It was Amara's freedom that was truly on the line and her right to follow her mind and her heart and be who she was meant to be. She took his hand and they walked together past campus and then towards Jason's old house.
"Are you alright?" Jason asked her kindly. "It's been kind of a crazy day."
"I think so." Amara smiled wearily, but he saw that there was worry in her eyes. She looked at him and shook her head. "I can't believe we did this. I'm so sorry for dragging you into this, Jason."
Jason, thought Amara. It had taken Amara some practice to begin to call her professor by his first name in the few days they'd had to prepare before the ceremony, but he seemed like a Jason to her now. This man must have been a friend to do what he'd just done for her.
"I'm sorry you were forced to do something so drastic in order to have what is rightfully yours." Jason replied. "It's going to be alright, you know. We can do this. This is my place." He waved his hand and indicated the house before them.
Amara looked up to find they had arrived at Jason's home. It was really close to campus, and it was a beautiful old home. Jason had purchased this old Victorian house and remodeled it as much as he was allowed to, according to city standards, and as much as he could without changing the integrity of the style and build of the original structure. She looked up at the big two-story home and found herself in awe.
There was a wide porch that wrapped around three sides of the house. There were big bay windows and a big old oak front door with a large oval window made of beveled inlaid crystal. On the front porch, was a ginger colored cat, lying on the wooden porch swing. There was a wide grassy yard filled with flowerbeds and a long row of thick trees. And in one place in the yard, was a small fountain that bubbled softly into a little koi fish pond.
He opened the white picket fence gate and they walked up the sidewalk toward the porch, and then up the stairs to the door. The professor let go of her hand to unlock the door, and when they went inside, the first thing that Amara saw were her own suitcases, which had been sent over the day before, sitting in the foyer.
"I've cleared some room for you in my closet and dresser," Jason told her. "But I thought you'd like to arrange things in your own way. I can show you where everything is."
"Thank you, Jason, you have been so wonderful." She sighed gratefully and gave him a smile. Then she looked down and she saw the ginger cat had followed them in from the porch. She watched him as he threaded his way through her possessions, sniffing and inspecting everything.
She knelt down to pick him up. "Who is this little guy?" she asked.
Jason looked over his shoulder and chuckled. "That's Felix." He told her. "Our cat."
The word ‘our’ stopped her short and jolted Amara somewhat, but she knew that she had to get used to speaking as though she were in a relationship with this man. After all, she was moving in with him now. This cat was her cat too, for all intents and purposes, and she was glad for it, because she needed something to cuddle to give her peace and strength for the days ahead. The immigration agents would descend upon them soon and Jason and Amara had so little time to perfect their ruse.
"Can I get you something to eat or drink?" Jason offered her.
"No, I'm alright, thank you." Amara said quietly. "I'm so tired."
"Me too." Jason agreed. "I set up the bed for you. I'll just sleep on the couch." He said turning away from her.
"The couch?" Amara repeated in surprise, reaching to stop him. "Don't you think we should... you know... be in the same room? I'm paranoid we're being watched and we need to get used to being closer to each other, if we're going to fool anyone."
Jason looked at her with those kind eyes of his and nodded in acquiescence. He had such a non-threatening demeanor that Amara had been unafraid to suggest they share a bed. Everything about him was gentleness towards people and a passion for what was right. She couldn't believe he would ever hurt her. He led her upstairs to the bedroom and showed her where everything was kept. She got changed into her nightgown while he went into the bathroom to brush his teeth.
He seemed surprised to see her in her nightgown when he returned to the bedroom with himself in his pajamas. He cleared his throat a little and blushed, before pulling back one corner of the covers and tentatively sliding in beneath them. Amara followed his lead and all of a sudden, she was lying in bed beside her university professor, somehow as his wife. They lay there awkwardly, side by side for a while, until Jason shifted his weight so that he was lying on his side, and then Amara did the same.
They lay side by side, like corpses, until Jason tried to break the awkwardness by reaching out to hold her hand. Amara squeezed it with gratitude for his kindness and then slowly inched across the space between them to rest her head on his chest. His body was warm and strong against her cheek. She'd learned that he was a climber and liked to run. That explained why his chest was so firm against her hand.
She thought that they would just fall straight to sleep, but as they laid there together in the dark, her head on his chest, her world entwined with his, she looked up at him in the dim light of night that sifted in from the streetlights somewhere outside.
"Jason," she said his name softly. "You have sacrificed so much for me. I don't think I could ever thank you enough. I don't know if you really realize how profound this gift of freedom and education that you have given to me truly is. I would be lost without your help, and not just lost for now, or lost for a while to come. I would be lost for the rest of my whole life. Your selflessness has saved my whole life." She shook her head, looking into his light eyes, hoping that the meaning of her words was getting across to him.
Her eyes began to fill with tears at the realization of what he had done for her, and she felt a lump rising in her own throat.
"What is the value of a life saved? What is the gift worth that you have so generously given me without any hesitation on your part? You have saved me from a lifetime of misery and loneliness, of regret and bitterness, Jason. You have given me a future wide open and filled with hope and opportunity. You've handed me the whole world and you did it all out of the kindest heart I have ever had the honor and privilege to know.
I can never repay you for what you have given me, but I do want you to know that I fully comprehend the enormity of what you have done, and I will be immeasurably grateful for it for the rest of my life." She squeezed his fingers while a single tear, and then another, rolled down her cheek, glistening softly in the dark.
Jason reached up and wiped it away, whispering back to her, "I was glad to do anything I could to help a woman with as much determination and heart as you have. It was my honor to help you, and it isn't anything you need to be grateful for. I couldn't stand the thought of you being forced to go back and marry someone you don't want or even like, and lose your opportunity at a life – a real life – doing what you are so talented at, and what you love. I want you to be able to reach for your dreams and exceed them. I had to give you a chance. You've come so far! I just couldn't let you go back."
More tears escaped her eyes, and he brushed them away, as she reached up and brushed his tears away, and somehow in the dark of the night, in the quiet space of wonder and the powerful genuine emotion between them, it was hard to tell if he kissed her first or if she kissed him, but it happened without thought or re
ason, without consideration of consequence or any forethought.
They were comforting each other, and as their lips brushed together, comfort was found. It was tender and sweet as real first kisses often are, and in that room with no one watching, with no one to put on a show for, they felt the soft touch of each other's lips in a real kiss for the first time. They pressed their mouths together gently and hesitantly, their fingers light and careful, exploring and discovering each other's faces.
Their first soft tentative kisses grew warm and as their breath began to grow short, their hearts began to beat rapidly, and their blood began to rush. Their lips parted, their tongues touched tentatively, and then bravely, and then with hunger as their bodies began to tense and heat with strong urges.
Jason's hands moved from her face to the back of her neck and then to her shoulders, his fingers curling around her snugly as the feel of her skin beneath his hands made him stiffen with desire for her. His breath grew shallow and fast as his mouth left hers and traveled slowly down her neck, tasting her skin and drawing a fire to the surface of her, making her belly burn and her body ache for him. She slid her hands to his back and as he turned, leaning his body against her, her fingers found the skin of his back, beneath the pajamas he was wearing.
She paused for a second as the feel of his warm body under her fingertips made her realize just where they were headed. Her breath caught in her lungs as she decided with a blend of happiness and fierce independence that this would indeed be the night that she would give herself to a man for the first time.
As his mouth moved over her neck and down to her collarbone and the hollow of her neck, she knew she had never felt as much comfort as he was giving her, and his attentions to her, like much needed rain saturating a dry and dusty African desert, were a welcome rush of pleasure and surrender.
She slid her hand up the back of his shirt and curled her fingers tightly on his muscled body. A strained sigh escaped him and he moved his mouth back to hers, kissing her hungrily, twisting his tongue around hers and moving his lips over hers more ardently. Her body was burning for him, and she was overwhelmed by the electric passion that had seemed to catch fire so quickly between them.
Jason wanted to ask her if everything was alright, but as she clung to him and kissed him more fervently with each passing moment as their desire compounded, he knew that they were headed to a place they both wanted to go. Still, he had to know. He had to hear her say it to him. He lifted his face from hers and she looked up at him in surprise with wide eyes as their breathless kiss was broken.
His voice was husky and quiet as he gazed down at her. "Do you want to make love with me?" he asked her, his body stiff and anxious for her.
The corners of her full sweet lips curled up and she smiled at him. "Yes... Jason," she breathed, closing her eyes and lifting her mouth to meet his again. He needed no further encouragement than that. In between their heated kisses, he pulled his clothes from his body and then he helped lift her nightgown from her, gasping as he saw her form in the pale light.
Her curves were full and rounded, from her beautiful breasts to her small belly and the swell of her hips from which her long shapely legs extended. He shook his head, looking at her as if she was the first woman he had ever seen. The astounded look in his eyes and the hunger that showed in his open mouth as he looked at her, made her belly tighten and her skin feel as if it was on fire.
Jason lifted his hands as she sat before him in their bed and he traced his fingertips slowly over the lines and curves of her exquisite body. She let her eyes close lightly as he touched her, his feather-light t caresses leaving trails of fire over her. He looked at her in amazement, wanting her more than he had ever wanted any woman, and he reached his hands beneath her thighs and pulled her down onto her back on the bed beneath him.
She placed her hands on the wall of his chest and slowly moved her fingers over the muscles and lines there, bravely letting her touch drift to his flat belly, and then she hesitated a moment before bringing her fingers to his erection. He was kneeling between her legs, looking down at her as her fingers explored his body with a delicate and curious touch.
Her warm dark eyes looked up at him and he saw the innocence in them and realized suddenly that she was touching a man for the first time. He drew his breath in sharply and pulled himself from her fingers, taking her hands in his own and locking his eyes onto hers.
"Amara! Is this your first time?" he whispered in awe.
Her heart fluttered and she nodded at him slowly. There had been no lies between them, and she saw no reason to change that now. "It is." she whispered back to him. "I don't know how to do this, but you know I learn fast."
He shook his head, fighting his desire for her. "Are you sure you want to do this with me? We don't have to do this. This isn't part of our plan! You don't owe me anything!"
She shook her head and smiled at him. "I know that, Jason. I didn't say yes because I feel obligated to you. I said yes because I want you. I said yes because I have never known a man with a heart as generous and kind and loving as yours. If I am going to give myself to any man, I can think of no other man I would rather share myself with than you."
Her genuine smile and heartfelt words were like the release of a floodgate for him. He only shook his head once in disbelief before lowering himself to her and kissing her lips passionately.
She spread her legs for him, and as she did so, she could feel his thick erection pressing against her body and she marveled at the realization that she was going to feel him inside of her. Some deep wanting in her belly made her lift her lips toward him and he groaned as she moved her body along his rock hard shaft, teasing him.
"Not yet," he managed in a strangled whisper. "Not for your first time, and on our wedding night. There's so much more than just that." With that, his mouth left hers and trailed hotly down her neck to her chest where he took his time kissing her breasts, sucking gently at her nipples and making her sigh and smile in bliss. Her bliss turned to breathless need as his mouth worked lower down her abdomen and finally closed over her core. His hands wrapped around her thighs, he kissed her at first, making her eyes fly open, and then as he worked his lips, his tongue and his teeth over her, she could not keep her eyes open. She could not stop her body from lifting to meet his mouth, or moaning softly as he pleasured her with his tongue. She clutched at the sheets around her and cried out as her first orgasm rocked through her body, rendering her immobile as everything in her shifted and she felt a tremendous release wash over her.
Her sighs softened and he lifted himself from her, looking up at her with a smile of satisfaction on his face, and an intense desire in his eyes for much more of her.
"Was that... an orgasm?" she asked breathlessly, staring up at him with a growing smile on her beautiful face.
Jason nodded. "Yes, Amara. That was an orgasm," he moved his body over hers, maneuvering himself to nestle in between her legs, and then he leaned down close to her ear and whispered, "I'm going to make sure you feel like that again tonight." And with that, he carefully pushed the tip of himself inside her, and inch-by-inch he slowly entered her, allowing her time to acclimate to her body being inside her.
She cried out once softly, and tensed as her virginity gave way to him, and then when he had filled her and began to move, she discovered the ecstasy that is the connection between two lovers.
He moved slowly at first, but as their passion burned hotter and her need began to consume her, she moved with him in desperation, her legs finding their way around his, her arms holding him close to her as her fingers dug into his back. Her senses were reeling from the feel of him drawing more orgasms from the depths of her, while his mouth moved over her dark nipples and her full lips, and he held back as long as he could, sharing with her a night of passion and release that neither one of them had expected. Overcome with the intensity of the fire between them that he could no longer hold himself back, he buried himself in her fully and flooded her until
he was spent. And then he laid in back in the bed and they caught their breath and looked at one another in amazement.
"I never knew..." She said softly, staring at his eyes as she lay there in her first afterglow.
He smiled at her and touched her lovely face. "It's different with everyone. That wasn't my first time, but I can tell you honestly right now, I never knew it could be like that either." His voice was quiet and her tone was gentle. He ran his finger over her cheek and her lower lip, then touched her chin and sighed. "It's been a long day. Why don't you get some sleep."
Amara didn't think she could sleep for all the excitement rushing through her still. Wondering at the experience she had just shared with a man who was her professor, then her friend, then her husband, and who now because of her desperate need for comfort, was also her first lover.
None of that had been in her plans, and her mind was ablaze with the curiousness of it all. But while she was busy thinking about all of the changes in her life, she drifted off to sleep, sure that she had too much going on in her mind to sleep, and before long, her thoughts had morphed into sweet dreams.
Chapter4
Although their night of sex had been incredible and unexpected, it did help in the days that followed when Amara and Jason had to make a show of their relationship. Amara could hardly feel shy holding Jason's hand in the campus corridors after the heated passion they had shared on their first night together in his bed.
It was an unusual way to start a relationship, or what was supposed to appear as a relationship, but the consummation of their marriage somehow acted as an ice-breaker as they stepped into a romantic way of doing things for the first time. They held hands between classes and ate lunch together in public and made sure to kiss each other often and convincingly so that nobody would guess that they were just playing at being in love.
