The One Thing

by Briana Gaitan

  I hook my arm in his and rest my head on his shoulder as we start walking back towards the hotel. Our timing has never been right before, but I have a feeling that this time I will finally get everything I wanted. This is my time, and I’m not about to waste it.

  Caspian spins me backwards through the crowd, my dress twirling perfectly around my frame. This is so fairytale like. I wish I could see myself.

  “Can we leave yet?” he murmurs into my ear. He dips me backwards slightly as he says it.

  “I’m the maid of honor. I have a toast to give. Don’t worry. We’ll have plenty of alone time after the wedding.”

  He gives a loud groan and spins me around one last time before pulling me in close and pressing up against me. I move my hands down his chest and play with the lapel of his borrowed jacket. Luckily, the wedding planner had an extra tux in her car in the off chance someone in the wedding party had an accident.

  “You look good in a tux.”

  “You don’t look so bad yourself, Deena.”

  I give him a half grin. In fifteen minutes, I was able to spruce up, but I’m in no way my usual stylish self. It doesn’t matter though. He’s seen me at my worst, and he makes me feel beautiful. Even without a pound of makeup and perfectly made up hair.

  Quinn and Chase dance up to where we are with smiles on their faces from their picture-perfect day.

  “You look so beautiful,” I tell her. She really does. Her wedding dress has a beautiful sweetheart shaped strapless neckline. The dress is snuggly fitted all the way down her body and then flares out dramatically at her knees with a bunch of tulle and silk. Quinn looks surprised for a moment by my comment before looking up at Chase.

  “I feel beautiful. This is a perfect day.”

  Chase responds by pressing a kiss on her forehead then looks at Caspian.

  “Hey man.” He holds his hand out to Caspian. “I’m Chase. Nice to meet you.”

  Caspian shakes his hand. “Caspian. Congratulations on the nuptials. This is a beautiful wedding.”

  “Thanks, and Ginger did most of the designing. Girl knows how to decorate. You should see her house. It’s like Pinterest threw up in there.”

  Caspian’s eyes focus in on me. “I hope to.”

  “I’m Quinn. It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

  My face turns an embarrassing shade of pink. “She did not.”

  Quinn’s eyes widen. “Oh, I did. A whole lot.”

  Caspian laughs to ease my tension. “It’s okay,” he says to me. “Leo had to hear a lot about you as well.”

  “What? Really?” I rise up on my tiptoes to press our foreheads together. Quinn and Chase make a few gagging kissy noises before they drift off back into the sea of dancing bodies.

  “Yes, really.”

  Caspian’s eyes focus in on someone behind me and his body tenses. I turn my head slightly to see Barrett engaging in a stare down with my partner.

  “Mind if I cut in?” Barrett asks, his eyes not leaving Caspian.

  I look to Caspian to let him know that it’s okay. He steps back, but not before giving my hand a slight squeeze of assurance.

  “Who’s the guy?” Barrett asks. He grabs my hips and pulls me forward. I put my hands on his shoulder, but can’t seem to relax.

  “His name is Cas.”

  “Oh, so the mystery musician makes his long awaited appearance.”

  “What do you want Barrett?”

  “I’m here to see how you’re doing. We haven’t spoken much since I left the show.”

  “Doing great.”

  “I’m sorry about the way things ended.”

  His apologies mean nothing to me. I look up at him with a sneer across my face.

  “Is your new girlfriend here?”

  “We’re not together anymore.” His eyes dart to the side before he sighs. “Your boyfriend is glaring at us. My time is up. I just wanted to see how you are.” His grip on my waist drops and we both take a step backwards.

  “Goodbye,” I whisper slightly. The room is dimly lit, but I’m still able to make out the emotions on Barrett’s face. Pain and regret.

  “He’s going to leave you too, Ginger. Maybe you need to accept the fact that we were as good as it was going to get.”

  That’s not true. I deserve better. I’m going to get better. My internal struggle continues for a few more moments as I’m left speechless.

  An arm wraps around my waist. “You okay, Deena?” Caspian whispers into my ear, giving me the courage to smile while melting away any doubts I have. This is my future, everything is going good. No use dwelling on the past.

  “Yes. I’m better than okay.” I pull him from the dance floor. Away from Barrett, away from the bodies, and into a more secluded part of the room. I pull Caspian close to me and burry my head into his chest.

  “Thank you. I thought I could handle Barrett, but he’s just a cruel, sick, joke.”

  “I won’t leave you alone with him again. I’m here now, and I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”

  I take a few deep breaths before lifting my head. “So you’re really coming to California with me?”

  “Yes. It may take me a while to find a place to live, but I’m here, for good.”

  “I have a big house…why don’t you come live with me?” I say the words carefully, afraid that he will turn me down.

  He turns to the side, and clears his throat. “Um…don’t you think that’s moving a little fast?”

  “It was just an idea. It doesn’t have to be permanent. At least until you find a place.”

  “Truth be told, I’ve never lived alone. I can stay with you until I find a place of my own, but I don’t want to move too fast. I don’t want to mess this up.” He runs a hand down the side of my face. He’s right I’ve never lived with a guy before. Moving in together would be extremely fast.

  “So,” I say as I trail my fingers up his arms toward the back of his neck. Hearing his voice has weakened my will. “When you say move too fast. Does that include bedroom activities?”

  He intakes a sharp breath before slowly expelling it. “No. I think we’ve waited long enough for that. Don’t you think?”

  Long enough? Months upon months of sexual frustration is well past long enough. I grab his hand and begin to pull him toward the lobby.

  “Where are we going?” he calls out. I spin around and place my hands on his chest.

  “To my room.”

  His eyes widen in surprise. “But what about all your maid of honor duties? Don’t you need to catch the bouquet or whatever it is you ladies do?”

  “Oh, I’m sure Quinn can manage for a few minutes.” I try to pull him again, but he stops me.

  “I don’t want our first time to be hurried. I want our first time to be memorable, beautiful, and completely fuckin’ good.”

  I stick out my bottom lip.

  “Now look who’s having a hard time waiting. Don’t pout, Deena.” He grabs my hand and kisses the back of it. “I’m going to make love to you tonight, and it’s gonna be mind-blowing.”

  This is a different side to Caspian. One that I’ve never seen before. A side of him that’s open to love, willing to accept it, and feels deserving of it.

  “You deserve this. You know that, right? You deserve this. We both do.”

  He face doesn’t show any emotion, but he nods. “I know that now.”

  “Good.” I give him a mischievous smile. “Wait here.”

  I spin around and jump up to the stage where the string quartet is playing some upbeat dubstep pop song. I grab a mic from the stand near the DJ and turn it on.

  “Testing. Hello?” My voice comes through the speakers, and the music stops suddenly. The entire crowd stops what they are doing and looks at me.

  “Hi. My name is Ginger and I’m the maid of honor, and I can’t wait any longer to give my toast so here goes nothing.”

  I search through the crowd for Quinn and Chase. I finally find them chatting wi
th some friends near the drink table.

  “Many of you may not know that Quinn and Chase would have never gotten together if it weren’t for me. Quinn’s life used to be so boring.” I give a thumbs down sign and wink at Quinn.

  “She wasn’t boring,” Chase calls out. “You were just too wild.”

  The entire room laughs, and I give him the finger. “Maybe so, Crawley. Yet, here we are over a year later, and they are truly inspiring. Their love is a fairy tale. So unimaginably full of strength, selflessness, and warmth. They make beautiful babies together as well. These two have been by my side during all the ups and downs. Chase was tough when needed; Quinn held my hand when I cried. They complement each other perfectly. I’m ecstatic we’re all here today to celebrate your love. Your wondrous, crazy, love. Here’s to the new couple!” I raise an empty hand and put the mic back on the stand.

  The room applauds, and I walk off the stage into Caspian’s arms.

  “Can we go now?” I ask him. The only thing we’ll be missing is the cake, and I’m one hundred percent sure that Quinn won’t mind me sneaking out early.

  We barely make it to a hidden corner of the lobby before our hands are exploring each other’s bodies. He slams me up against the wall and moves his face down my neck and across my chest. I hook one leg around him and move his head back up so I can kiss him. My tongue explores his mouth while kissing and caressing his lips and face. I gasp as he jerks his pelvis forward against mine causing a shock of pleasure to explode throughout my body. Someone walks past and we tear apart slightly. My skin is flushed from his kisses, and we both still until the stranger has gone up the elevator.

  “How many floors?” he asks.

  “Sixth floor, so we have three flights.”

  Neither of us want to wait for the elevator to come back down. He points to a huge vintage square staircase that’s encased with carpet. This entire hotel used to be a train station so everything looks like it came out of the early 1900s. I pull off my heels and we run up the staircase. One flight up, and I turn around to face Caspian as a loud noise streams through the stairwell.

  “Can you hear the train?” I ask him.

  “Ginger. Keep going. I’m begging you.”

  He’s begging me, huh? I shimmy up against him and run my hands along the front of his pants. He throbs under my touch, and I give him a light squeeze before stroking him through the thin fabric. “They say the bottom floors are haunted. That’s why I have a room up top. There was this huge wreck in like 1910 or something. Killed 110 people.”

  I continue to tease him with my hand. He groans and lifts his head to the sky. “This place does remind me of something out of The Shinning, but enough with the history lesson. Keep walking, Ginger or I swear on everything holy I’m gonna take you right here on the stairs!”

  I bite my bottom lip and pull him closer while leaning back against the stairs. “You wouldn’t dare.” I trap him between my legs while he runs his tongue along my neck.

  “Yes,” I hiss. There’s a possibility that someone might appear at any moment, but it’s exhilarating. His hands explore my body for a few minutes as we make out like teenagers on the staircase. “I can’t wait any longer,” he says. “I need to be inside you. I need to feel you.”

  We hurry up the remaining floors to my room. Once the door is secured behind us, his hands run up my back. He brings the zipper down while anticipation pools in my stomach.

  “Dammit, Cas. Now you’re going too slow!” I pull the dress down to my feet and push him back onto the bed. He kicks off his shoes while I unhook my white bra. I watch as his eyes take in every bare inch of me. “Like what you see?” I throw my bra toward his face. I climb on the bed and straddle him before running my fingers down the front of his shirt. I take him all in. Blue eyes that crinkle in the corners when he flashes that perfect smile, a long body with perfectly tanned skin. He’s finally going to be mine.

  “This is really about to happen.”

  He cups my breasts in his hands while gently running his thumbs over my hardened nipples. “I’ve been wanting to know what those have felt like for months.”

  “Is it everything you imagined?” I bend down so that our faces are mere inches apart.

  “Better.”

  He reaches up to unbutton his shirt and tugs on his black tie. I scoot backwards a few inches and begin unbuckling his belt. My fingers fumble with the leather as I try and steady my shaking hands. What is wrong with me? I can’t see straight.

  “You’re shaking.” Caspian sits up and wraps his arms around me. I rest my chin against his shoulder and close my eyes. This is going to be the last “first time,” I know it.

  “I’m sorry. I guess I’m a little nervous.”

  “Shhh. It’s okay. We don’t have to do this.”

  Tugging on his shirt and pulling it back off his chest, I lean down to suck on one of his nipples. My tongue swirls across the pebbled hardness before I sit back up and smile.

  “No, I really don’t want to stop.”

  His head falls back and a moan escapes his lips as I pulse my hips against his hardness. I move faster against him, a pleasurable shock scaling through my insides each time I press against him. Our mouths do the same thing, and move to the rhythm of our bodies. His hands move up my back and entangle themselves in my hair. A trail of fire engulfs each spot where he touches me. A burning passion that urges me to move faster, grab him tighter, and kiss him harder. I get drunk on his touch, not wanting to ever let him go.

  After a few minutes, I scoot off his lap and stand up to pull his pants down over his legs. He leans back to help me remove them then sits back up to press his face against my stomach. He leaves a trail of kisses down my skin until he comes to the band of my panties. Using a skillful arrangement of his hands and teeth, he pulls the band down over my hips. As he wiggles them over my slender thighs and down around my ankles, he moves his kisses to my warm core. When his mouth meets the moist slit between my legs, I grab the back of his neck and push against him without restraint. Standing up with my legs only a few inches apart makes this difficult so when he throws me back on the bed beside him, I giggle with excitement and spread my legs wider for him.

  “Caspian, I’ve never seen you so aggressive before.”

  “Yeah, well you bring out a different side of me, you know.” He stops talking to finish what he began only seconds ago. My eyes roll into the back of my head as the warmth of his tongue slips against my clit. He inhales deeply before swirling his tongue against my sensitive core. I gasp out while trying to keep my composure. My fingers curl into the sheets, and I exhale a breath of air I forgot I was holding. He ravishes me, licking and sucking each inch of skin while bringing me closer to the edge of release. The desire doesn’t stop as I grind against his face practically begging for relief. My body tenses, and his mouth moves faster. I’ve never been able to get off this fast with any man, but I can’t hold back any longer. A rush of gratifying warmth flows through my body as I come. His tongue immediately stops swirling and he begins sucking up each drop of my sweetness, My hips buck up against him in a search for more because it knows this feeling will soon end.

  “Cas, oh my fuck.” The words escape from my lips as I ride out the waves. After a few seconds, my body steadies, and Caspian moves up my body.

  “You taste so good. I could do that all night.”

  Our lips meet again as he moves to lie on top of me. I wrap my legs around him tightly as the need begins to build once more inside me. I can’t think straight. I’ve wanted this for so long, thought about him for so long. He’s here, and in a few moments, we’ll have gone past the point of no return. His cock twitches against me with each movement, sliding around in the wetness he’s created.

  “We need protection,” I gasp out, moving away from his lips.

  He sits up and reaches to toward his pants on the ground. I scoot up to the pillow and watch as he pulls a condom from his wallet. I bite my lip as he tears open the gold magnum si
zed wrapper and rolls it onto his beautiful cock.

  Yes! I knew he would be big. Not that size matters much to me, but it’s a good surprise nonetheless. I shut my mouth before he notices me gaping. He crawls back on the bed and positions himself right at my entrance.

  “You ready?” He asks as he runs the tip of his cock up and down my folds.

  “Yes.” I let out a small sigh as he swirls himself against my clit. He continues teasing me for a few more moments until I can’t stand the anticipation any longer. He’s gonna make me beg for it.

  “Please, Cas.” I shut my eyes and grip him tightly with my legs.

  “Open your eyes.”

  I do as he says, and watch as his eyes search mine. “Deena, I love you.”

  The words I have been waiting for my entire life. My heart surges with emotion as I blink back tears. He was always the one; I think I always knew that.

  “I love you too, Caspian Norwood.” As soon as the words leave my mouth, he enters me. So slowly, that I can feel everything times ten. His warmth rubs against me until he can’t go in any deeper, and we both groan in desire as we take it all in. I’ve never felt this type of comfort with any other man. Normally, I would be worried about how fat I might look or my expression, how good I’m doing, or making sure I finish before he does. None of those thoughts are with me now. The only thing I care about is this moment. Nothing else.

  He begins this lovely rhythm with his hips, moving in and out of me. It feels as if he’s playing me a song. Our bodies more to the rhythm of a beat. Terms from my musical theater days come to mind. Accelerando and appassionato. Those words describe what he is doing to me, bringing me closer to crescendo. Each time our bodies join, sparks fly. I clear my mind and enjoy each tremor that he give me. Over and over, faster and faster he moves, but I want this to last. I don’t want this moment to end. I grab his ass with my hands and hold him inside me. I refuse to let go.

  “Slow down. I don’t want this to ever end.”

  He places a few kisses on my eyelids and begins moving again. “You feel too good. I don’t know if I can last much longer.”