by Mia Ford
“I definitely understand that.”
“Hey, look, I’m sorry about yesterday.”
“Sahara, I get it,” he replied, catching my gaze, and staring into my eyes intently, “I know that there is a lot going on for you lately and I guess you’re a little lost but it’s okay,” he grinned with confidence, “You’ll figure it all out.”
“Thanks.”
“I just can’t believe your mom was that upset over you getting home late…” He answered, seeming to be genuinely perplexed.
“I’ve been getting home late a lot,” I replied, heavy with insinuation, trying to change the mood of the conversation to something more enjoyable, “Last night was just one of many…”
“Well, I can’t apologize for that,” Anthony admitted as an evil grin slid across his face while a flicker of insinuation rose up in his eye.
“I don’t want you too,” I answered immediately, responding to his alluding facial expression with an encouraging gaze of my own.
“Well, I definitely can’t promise you that it won’t happen again,” he replied, encouraged by my response.
“I was hoping you’d say that,” I teased as we started down the stairs, toward his sports car, idling in the driveway. “So, where do you want to go for breakfast?”
“Honestly, I was hoping you could be my tour guide, since I’ve only ventured to the complimentary breakfast at the hotel.”
“Well, the town isn’t big…”
“So, the tour won’t take all day,” he beamed as a destination immediately came to mind.
“Although, I think I know just the place,” I replied as Anthony opened the door for me.
Chapter 7
I directed Anthony to a little family-owned diner in the center of the town that had the best southern breakfast I’d ever had; my momma was more of a dinner chef and even she admitted that her grits and gravy couldn’t compare to the succulent dishes prepared at this restaurant.
“So,” I asked as my curiosity got the best of me after we were shown to a private booth in the midst of the busy diner, “Not that I’m in any way complaining but, what’s with the early-morning wakeup call?”
“I thought a lot about our conversation yesterday as well and finally came to the conclusion that, it was no wonder you thought we were just having a fling,” he grinned, “I never took you on a proper date.”
“Is that what this is?” I teased, “Well, in that case, I think I can show you around the town enough to satisfy your debt.”
“Debt? Are you kidding? I love spending time with you,” he insisted as his gaze settled on her with amorous intent. The intensity of his expression made me slightly uncomfortable but in a daring, exciting way. It was as though his expression was daring me to come out of my element and do something I had never done before. It was a look of admiration that I wasn’t certain I deserved but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
“Thanks,” I answered, unsure of another response, or if the response I was giving him was even worthy of his comment.
Staring into his eyes, a juxtaposition of intense emotions consumed me. I felt lost but content. I felt nervous but protected. I wanted to turn away but didn’t want to break our current connection.
Eventually, the waitress came to take our order, which inevitably shattered the intensity of the moment but once it was gone, I feared never being able to get it back.
The rest of the day was spent exploring the town, which held a much more entertaining vibe when I was with him, then it ever did. I showed him places that were special to me and even introduced him to a couple of the people I had known all my life.
They were all friendly but some of them, I could tell, knew exactly who he was and secretly wondered what I was doing out and about with him.
I knew that I would be the talk of the town and my parents would probably know everything that happened by the time I got home but for the first time in my life, I didn’t care.
Even though Anthony and I hadn’t known each other all that long, I was proud to be with him. I was excited at the fact that he wanted to be with me.
Being with Anthony felt different and that day, I realized that I found a strength inside of me that I wasn’t aware I possessed.
It was a feeling that gave me a great sense of power, curiosity, and alluring confidence; not only in myself but in Anthony.
It was this duel confidence that led us back to Anthony’s hotel room later that afternoon.
Walking inside together, there was no secret about what we were there to do but the hotel staff and patrons had practiced their poker faces many times before. Therefore, we were not the least bit ashamed to be walking triumphantly to the elevator together.
However, our attraction to one another could barely contain itself long enough to make it to the hotel room.
After starting to kiss in the elevator and being interrupted by a couple exchanging places with us at our floor, it only took a moment for us to resume the moment the door closed.
Anthony was quick to pull me close to him and press his lips against mine, while his hands scoured my bodice, looking for a piece of clothing to remove.
Excited and tantalized by the taste of him and the ambrosia found in the thought of what we were about to do, I followed suit, starting to unbutton his shirt as he backed me up against the bed.
By the time the back of my legs hit the comforter, I had succeeded in opening Anthony’s shirt and was sliding the fabric down his arms, revealing him in all his taught, nearly-perfect masculinity.
Wearing only jeans, Anthony eased me onto the bed, having undone the clasp on my skirt, causing it to cascade to the floor.
I easily tore my shirt off and tossed it aside, while I watched a fire light eagerly in Anthony’s eyes.
We needed one another. Now.
The entire day of being together had culminated into one intense, passionate moment, which was now becoming physically painful for us both.
Inspired by my bold advancement, Anthony tore off his jeans before grasping ahold of my breasts and teasing them slightly before easing his arms around, to unhook my bra.
Once I was revealed fully to him, Anthony took each of my breasts in his hands and kissed them in a gentle motion that seemed odd with the rough touch of his hands.
The strange sensation caused me to tremble with anticipation. I grasped ahold of his shoulders and spun him around, so that I was able to push him back, onto the bed.
When I straddled him, immediately after he eased himself back onto the comforter, I closed my eyes, feeling his hard, pulsing member shudder against the moist sheath of my womanliness.
His eyebrows raised with intrigue as my hands slid up the dips and valleys of his sinewy torso and rested over his elbows.
The heat that radiated off him was enticing and with every excited pulse, I felt my passionate essence thrusting toward it further.
I closed my eyes and rocked back and forth, grinding myself against him in a manner that put pressure on my clit, making me want to moan in pleasure.
However, I suppressed the moan until I slid myself over him and could no longer contain it.
I watched his muscles flex as his hands grasped my arms in response to filling me and the intensity of my need for him was accentuated.
Anthony chucked at my reaction and the jolt of it reverberated through me, sending a shock of pleasure through my entire body.
The moment I recovered from my momentary lustful paralyzation, I started to move against him, hard and fast.
I closed my eyes, focusing on feeling him inside me.
He reacted, moving with my body with a motion that helped him go deeper as I consumed more of him with every thrust.
Back and forth, the two of us moved, wildly and without regard for noise, nor neighbor.
The force of our movements caused the bed frame to slam against the wall and with the building tensions, my moans grew louder.
Neither of us consciously recognized this though because we had
entered a world all our own, where the only thing that mattered was a plethora of physical and emotional pleasure.
The moment built as sweat started to drip down our bodies from exertion and our blood was set ablaze with the force of our lust.
The amount of intensity that was retired to keep our pace eventually wore on us, as we tried to hold out for as long as possible. Yet, the mutual physical hindrances were more a strangely engaging reward; urging us to continue.
Eventually, we entered a state of mind where only the present was important. For more than a moment, nothing else mattered to either of us but the presence of one another. Life and all the challenges that came along with living dissipated into nothing more but fuel to encourage our euphoric escape.
These natural reactions only added to our allure and when the moment came, that brought the two of us out of this world, we remained as one.
Chapter 8
“You know, you can spend the night here,” Anthony offered, gazing deeply into my eyes.
For a long moment, I thought about it and actually considered how amazing that would be but ultimately decided that it wasn’t worth the aggravation.
“No,” I sighed, “I’m going to be in enough trouble already.”
“Why do you care?” Anthony hissed, which took me back, so he hastily continued, “I mean, seriously, I know that they’re your parents, but they don’t appreciate you. They don’t see you for the woman that you are, and I don’t think they ever will…I’m sorry.”
“I’ve never been what they wanted me to be, but you know as well as I do that doesn’t stop me from trying.”
“Yes, but Sahara, how long are you going to try to gain their approval, before the day you look back on your life and realize that you’ve been too busy trying to please them that you missed the chance to have your own life?”
“Okay, Mr. I’m still running my father’s company, even though I can’t stand it,” I retorted, harsher than I intended.
However, Anthony didn’t seem to mind. In fact, before he even spoke, it seemed that I had proven his conviction, “Exactly! Don’t be like me, Sahara. Don’t appease your parents until you are stuck carrying the cross of their legacy. I didn’t let my father walk all over me. That’s why I can stand up to everyone and don’t give a shit about anything, because the one thing I did give a shit about continuously reminded me that I was failing. Then, my father died, and I’m stuck with this company. Even if I do pull it out of despair and do well, my father isn’t even here anymore to see it. So, once again, I’m damned if I do and damned if I don’t.”
“Well, I’m proud of you for sticking with it,” I replied, “Maybe I can help you. In school, everyone said I was great with management and I did well in my finance class. I tried to help my parents with their finances once or twice, but they always told me how stupid I was and that they couldn’t trust me to ‘piss away their money’ I think that’s how my father put it.”
“I trust you. I would love some help trying to figure it all out.”
I grinned, feeling a sense of accomplishment, something that I hadn’t had the pleasure of experiencing in a long time.
“That sounds wonderful. I have to go now but we’ll talk more about this before you leave, okay?” With one final brush against his lips, I pulled away and started to get dressed.
I could tell by the look in his eyes that he wanted to say something, but I couldn’t have that conversation right now. Regardless of what he had to say, I wasn’t ready for that. Not yet.
Thankfully, he respected it and simply offered goodbye once I was ready to leave.
“I’ll call you tomorrow?” Anthony offered.
“Sounds good,” I replied and left before his allure drew me back into doing something I knew I wasn’t ready for.
Chapter 9
When I returned home that evening, there were a million things running through my mind. I had never been so happy in my entire life and instead of focusing on what I was unsure of, I allowed myself to be excited for once.
However, from the moment I walked in the door, I knew that something was amiss. Before I even saw my parents, waiting for me in the living room with a stern look of disapproval etched into their faces, I felt all my bliss be sucked out of me.
Immediately, my stomach churned with nervousness and I felt my defenses rise, readying for a fight.
“Where have you been all day?” My father demanded.
“I was out with Anthony,” I answered solidly as I easily placed my key on the hook and slid my purse off my shoulder, as if I was ignorant to their anger.
“Of course, you were!” My father muttered, “You’ve been getting real cozy with that damn yankee, haven’t you?”
“Why would you do this to us?” My mother chimed in, sounding more hurt than angry.
“Do what?” I demanded, narrowing my eyes in protest, “You were the one who wanted me to take a more active role in being an adult and I happen to like Anthony.”
“You betrayed us!” My father screamed, barreling toward me with bulging eyes and a red face of fury.
“What are you talking about?” I demanded, standing my ground against him, refusing to back down. “I have never done anything to betray you,” I insisted, even though rebelling did play a part in my initial interest in Anthony.
“This is just another way to illicit attention,” my mother insisted, standing slightly behind my father, as though trying to show her support.
“No, but it’s a great way not to get stuck in this one-horse town, like our family is some kind of ancient relic that is stationary…You know, money does spend other places.”
“This is our home!” My mother insisted indignantly.
“But that doesn’t mean it has to be mine,” I retorted, “At least not forever. What’s so bad about wanting to explore the world?”
“Because you explore it in all the wrong ways! You’re still just a child…” My father insisted.
“No, I’m not.”
“See? It’s that yankee. He’s putting all kinds of terrible stuff into her head,” My mother hissed, grasping my father’s arm as though drawing conviction from him.
“This has nothing to do with him! You’re just blaming him…I’ve always wanted to leave. I’ve always wanted to leave this town. You just never listened.”
“You are a lady, Sahara…a southern lady and I will be damned if you run off with some carpetbagger… I don’t care how much money he has!”
“You just don’t like him,”
“You’re damn straight I don’t like him,” my father spat, “All he’s done since he’s got here is strung us along and filled your head with ideas that he’s never going to make good on.”
“He hasn’t strung you along and he hasn’t promised me anything!” I insisted, “I don’t even know what the specifics of your stupid business plan is! All I know is that you need an investor to do whatever it is you want to do. He’s your lifeline, so I’d be a lot nicer to him if I were you.”
“This is my house! This is my business and it’s my money!” My father insisted, now growing angrier from the challenge he perceived. “I’ve survived without this bastard and I’ll survive after he leaves. There’s nothing that he can offer me that I can’t get anywhere else!”
“Then do it! Break off your business deal with him…”
“No, Sahara. You are forbidden to see him again! We will conclude our business and he is going to leave. You are never going to see him again.”
Anger coursed through me. Now, I was the one who felt betrayed.
“Dad,” I replied, aghast but trying to keep my voice at an even keel, “fist of all, you have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about and secondly,” at this, I lost my already simmering temper, enraged by the fact that they were still trying to control me, “I am an adult! Like it or not, you can’t dictate who I can and can’t see!”
With that, I spun around, grabbing my keys, and clutching my purse, heading for the d
oor when I heard my father growl with rage, “Fine!” He screamed, “If you’re going to be a whore, you might as well make it worth our while!”
Before even a second thought, I whipped around to glare at my father. It was in that moment that I realized he was no one to respect and no one to listen to. I knew that I should have turned around and ran before the situation escalated but I couldn’t believe that I had heard him correctly.
“Excuse me?” I hissed, taking a step toward him.
By now, my mother had backed away from my father, trying to distance herself from his rant. She didn’t say anything, but I was certain she was unhappy with where he was going with this.
“You heard me!” He insisted, too fired up to back down, “If you’re going to jump his bones, why the hell won’t you at least pillow talk him into closing this deal for us. Do something worthwhile when you open your legs for once.”
“Dear Lord, Raymond!” My mother exclaimed but neither my father or myself paid her any mind.
“How dare you!” I screamed, “You obviously don’t know a thing about me or about Anthony!”
“I know enough,” he screamed, “I know that the only reason a man like that would want her is so that he could have leverage in the deal. So, now I’m asking for my leverage. Where’s your loyalty to your family?”
