by A. L Long
When we finally came upon a clearing, the view ended up being spectacular. To say that he had a little place tucked away in a wooded area was an understatement. Staring at me was a two-story home built with logs and stone. The entrance was enhanced with large log pillars set in masonry platforms covered in stone. As I pulled closer to the home, rounding the circular drive, I couldn’t help but admire the front door, which was etched in stained glass with the same glass design etched in the side windows as well as above the oversized wooden door.
Jonathan was the first to exit his car and head up to the front door. I wasn’t sure if it was the scenery that amazed me, but when Tessa nudged me, knocking me out of my stupor, the spell was broken as she asked, “Are we going to stay in the car all day?”
Focusing my attention to her, I opened my door and said, “It just wasn’t what I expected.”
“It is pretty spectacular, isn’t it?” she replied.
“That it is.”
Heading to her side of the car, I found she had already opened the door and got out before I could help her out of the car. Taking her by the hand, which seemed very normal, I led her to the front door where Jonathan stood waiting. When he opened the door, just like his warehouse, the interior was very impressive. The log beams on the vaulted ceiling were the focal point of the entrance, with large lifelike birds hanging symmetrically from the ceiling hovering over the ground below. It was very skillfully done and didn’t take away from the beauty of the room.
Keeping my eyes fixated on the ceiling, I heard Jonathan ask, “A hobby of mine. Do you enjoy hunting, Mr. London?”
“Not much. Truth be told. I have never been, at least not for small game,” I chuckled beneath my breath, wondering if he got my little joke.
Tessa definitely understood my humor as her elbow found its way to my stomach. Getting a disconcerted look from Jonathan, I shrugged my shoulders as he shook his head in disbelief. Moving toward the stairs, my sights were still on the stuffed bird mounts hanging from the ceiling. When we reached the top of the stairs, Jonathan led us down a long hallway, stopping at the first door to the left. Opening the door, he moved to the side and allowed Tessa to enter first, and then me. The room was large and nicely decorated with cream-colored walls and carpeting. There was a king-sized bed facing the doorway, which was set between two large windows. Off to the right was a large en suite bathroom that had a large open doorway.
As I looked around, I was certain that Tessa would be very comfortable staying here. Keeping my eye on Tessa, I watched as she walked over to the bed and lowered herself on it. She bounced up and down a few times; my guess was she wanted to check the comfort of the mattress. She rose to her feet and headed over to another door which I assumed was a walk-in closet.
By the time we finished the tour of Jonathan’s home it was late afternoon. Being the wonderful host that he was, he offered to have me to stay and share dinner with him and Tessa. There was no way that I could refuse. If I could have had my way, I would have stayed here with her forever. Taking a seat at the large dining table, the table was already set with fine china and crystal glasses. It seemed to me that he had gone through a lot of trouble for dinner. I wasn’t sure if he had contacted his staff ahead of time, but out of nowhere a short, plump lady appeared with a younger woman behind her carrying what I assumed was our dinner.
There was little conversation as we all sat and ate our food. Whoever the cook was, I had to hand it to them for preparing such a delicious meal. When the older lady came to gather the empty plates, Jonathan rose from his seat and suggested. “Shall we let our meal settle and head into the living room?”
Wiping my mouth, I placed my cloth napkin on the table and replied, “I think that’s a great idea. There are a few things I need to go over with you before I leave.”
As we headed to the living room, Jonathan turned to the old lady clearing the table and asked, “Agnes, can you bring some coffee to the living room, please?”
“None for me, thanks,” I said, looking at Agnes with a smile.
Allowing Tessa to take a seat first, I looked around the room taking in the décor. Once again, it was very inviting with neutral-colored walls and dark leather furniture. Taking a seat next to Tessa, I sat back and made myself somewhat comfortable.
Jonathan took a seat across from us and began addressing his thoughts. “I think under the circumstances, it would be best for you to stay here tonight and wait to leave in the morning. With Colin out of town until tomorrow, I want to make sure that Tessa’s first night here is as comfortable as possible for her.”
There was no way I was going to argue with him. More than anything I wanted another opportunity to hold Tessa in my arms. I also knew that I had to keep our relationship under wraps for the time being. Playing innocent, I responded. “I think that would be a good idea, I can either sleep here, or perhaps you have another bedroom I could stay in?”
“Don’t be silly, Xavier. I am not blind to the way you two look at each other. I am sure that you two can work out your sleeping arrangements,” he observed. “And before we go into further detail about Tessa’s safety, I can assure no one will come near the estate without being seen. Call it paranoia, but ever since my first run-in with Colin Gates, I have equipped all of my properties with state-of-the-art surveillance equipment.”
Jonathan had every right to be cautious when it came to Colin. I have even found myself looking over my shoulder wondering if he had his men watching me, making sure that I followed through with his instructions. Given the situation with Jeffries and his threat, I too had a sense of paranoia.
It was getting late and Tessa had already gone up to bed by the time Jonathan and I finished our conversation. Heading up the staircase, all I could think about was pressing my body against Tessa’s, soaking in her scent as I pushed my cock deep inside her. Opening the door to the bedroom, the light was on, which told me that she was still awake. She wasn’t in the bed, which told me that she had to be in the bathroom. As I got closer to the doorway, I could hear the soft humming of her voice, which put a smile on my face. Even more than that, the image I saw of her bathing in the large sunken tub with bubbles all around her was a sight to behold.
Gazing over to where I was standing, she looked at me with a smile and offered, “Do you want to join me? There is plenty of room.”
She didn’t have to ask me twice. “Hell yeah.”
I slipped out of my clothes quickly, in the most unsexy manner, and seconds later I was in the tub, positioning my body behind hers. She was right about one thing; the tub was big enough for both of us, leaving room to spare. As I parted my legs so that she could move between them, I wrapped my hand around her hair and cocked her head back before placing my mouth over hers. Our tongues began mingling together, playfully dueling in sync with one another; first hard, then soft, then hard again. I wanted to consume the softness of her lips.
Turning her body slightly, her arms wrapped around my neck, deepening the kiss even further. I focused on what she was giving, and the mere touch of her lips was causing my arousal below the water begin to surface. With her body straddled over mine, it was only a matter of time before she would feel the rage of my desire.
Placing my hands under her arms, I broke out connection and lifted her slightly, holding her body so that her beautiful plump breasts were mine for the taking. Her hands left my shoulders as she took hold of the porcelain tub, allowing me to further accesses to her silky soft mounds. With no hesitation, my mouth covered her right nipple, lapping and sucking her perfectly round pebble. Cupping her other breast with my hand, I could feel the sweet weight of it beneath my hand. Kneading it between my fingers, a small moan escaped her lips, triggering yet another pulsating surge in my cock.
The foreplay, although enjoyable, was beginning to become excruciatingly painful as my erection began to enlarge to a painful length. Keeping my lips glued to her breast, I placed my hands on her hips and gently glided inside her sweet wetness. Keep
ing my thrusts slow and steady, it wasn’t long until I was fully embedded inside her tight channel. Her tight walls warmed my cock as they coaxed me deeper inside. The sound of her desire begged me to continue. “Xavier, please don’t stop,” she sighed with content.
“Never, baby, never,” I breathed through my own moans of ecstasy.
I could feel the scrape of her nails penetrate my shoulders while her back arched with pleasure. With all the women that I had been with, Tessa was the first to show me what true intimacy was and how much compassion could be shared between two people. When she dipped her hands between us and took hold of my sac, it took everything I had not to explode. Barely holding on to my own willpower, I gently tugged on her taut nipple with my teeth while making circular movements with the tip of my tongue. I could feel the walls of her pussy begin to grip my cock like a vise, which told me she was closer than I thought. Releasing her nipple, I flicked it gently with my index finger, opening her gates, while accepting her feminine juices coating my cock.
With immeasurable regret, my own pleasure hit as I pulled from the comfort of her channel and watched as my seed spilled inside my hand, which I cupped beneath the head. When I grabbed a hand towel to clean up the mess in my hand, there was a somber silence between us as she wrapped her arms around me, resting her head against my chest. Concentrating only on her breath, I listened to her as an unmistakable pang entered that I hadn’t felt before. Kissing the top of her head, I realized that Tessa meant much more to me than I had realized before, and I would do whatever it took to protect her. Even if it meant taking care of Colin for good.
~Ten~
Getting in my car, I turned the engine on and made my way back down the dirt road. Leaving Tessa was the hardest thing I had ever done. What made it even harder was the way she looked at me when I said good-bye. I knew that she would be safe with Jonathan, but it still didn’t make it any easier to say farewell.
If I was going to continue checking up on Tessa, there was one thing that I needed to invest in and that was an AWD vehicle. I didn’t know how much more my little sports car could take on this rough road. With the main road in my sights, I applied a little more pressure to the accelerator, wanting nothing more than to get off this road as quickly as possible. Making a complete stop, I waited for the oncoming traffic to pass before turning to my right.
Turning up the radio, I tried to get my mind off Tessa. I wasn’t sure what was going on with the DJ on the radio, but every song played reminded me of her. Maybe it was just me. By the time I had gone through every station on my pick list, I realized it didn’t matter what song I listened to, every one of them would have lyrics that would remind me of her. I found it hopeless and decided then that there was no way I was going to be able to get her off my mind.
With my thoughts drifting, I entered the city and neared my apartment. Just like every other day, nothing had changed. Everyone was doing their own thing, always in a hurry to get where they were going. “Whatever happened to taking things easy, slowing down a notch or two?” I asked to myself.
As I headed into the parking garage to my designated spot, I noticed a black Mercedes parked a space away. I would know that car anywhere. Putting my car into park and turning off the engine, I got out only to be greeted by Colin. I knew he was supposed to be back today, but I thought for sure that it wouldn’t have been until later.
By the expression he had on his face, he was not very happy. Acting as surprised as I could, I slipped my hands in my pocket and said, “Colin, I wasn’t expecting such an early visit.”
“Cut the bullshit, London. You know exactly why I am here,” he cursed. “You have about 10 seconds to tell me where Tessa is before Simon lays into you.”
Looking over to Baldy, I could see that he was more than ready to get a piece of me. Switching my focus back to Colin, I replied, “I don’t know what the hell you are talking about. I haven’t seen Tessa for a few days.”
I don’t think Colin could have stood any closer to me as he stared coldly into my eyes. “I hope that you aren’t lying. I would hate for Simon here to adjust that handsome face of yours.”
Taking a step back, feeling extremely uncomfortable with his breath so close to my face, I left him standing there, giving him the satisfaction of having the last word. The way I looked at it, better to say as little as possible and walk away than to argue with him and regret the outcome.
With my back to him and just shy of talking distance, I was halted in my steps when he yelled, “You only have one more day, London, to finish the job I requested.” It wasn’t a shock that he would be reminding me what I needed to do. It was what he said next that had me concerned. “I’ll be watching you.”
If he intended on watching my every move, it would certainly put a dent in my plan. Somehow, I needed to get in touch with Jonathan and let him know that we needed to revisit our plan. Initially, using his connections, we were going to fake his death by torching a cadaver and making sure Colin witnessed the unfortunate accident. We were also going to leave something on the body that Colin would recognize so he wouldn’t question that it was Jonathan. Now, with eyes on me, the plan would have to be altered to show Jonathan being killed. It wouldn’t be impossible to stage with all our connections. I just needed to rethink our plan.
~*~*~*~
When I walked inside my apartment, I remembered how it was left by Colin’s men. I knew that Simon, ‘baldy,’ was the head guy. As quickly as we left, I guess I didn’t pay attention to how bad it actually was. I knew that they were looking for Tessa, but the way they left the place, I had a funny feeling they were looking for much more. She was pretty petite, but I was positive that she wouldn’t have been able to fit under the cushions of the couch or in the drawers of my desk. Even a dummy could see that they were looking for something besides her.
Picking up the papers that were scattered on the floor in my office, I stacked them neatly on my desk until I could spare the time to go through them and put them back where they belonged. Moving back to the living room, I shook my head and went to the fridge and grabbed a brew. Popping the top, I walked over to the living room, set it on the coffee table, and picked up the cushions to the couch, shoving them back into place before taking a seat. Pressing the opening of the bottle to my lips, I took a long pull as I gazed out the window wondering how Tessa was doing. I was almost ready to call her, but something stopped me. Remembering Colin’s words, I wouldn’t put it past him to bug my place.
Finishing the last of my brew, I went to my room only to be hit with yet another mess. Forgoing fixing my bed, I pulled my shirt up over my head and headed to my bathroom. Everything about this situation was fucked up. It seemed that ever since I laid eyes on Tessa, my life had become more complicated. I am not blaming her, I’m blaming Colin for taking control of a girl’s life and making it a living hell. At least there was one thing positive coming out of this, Tessa knew that I was telling the truth about Colin and she could finally get to know her father.
Standing under the hot jetted spray of water as it beat against my skin, I could feel my mind begin to clear. The only thing I could afford to focus on was convincing Colin that Jonathan Evans had been taken care of. The only way to do that was to make sure he saw it for himself.
Ending my shower, I had a clear perception of what needed to be done. Grabbing my cell from the dresser, I pulled up Jonathan’s number and waited for him to answer and headed out the door, avoiding having a conversation in my apartment all together.
“If you are calling about Tessa, my friend, I can assure you she is wonderful,” his voice came over the phone line with a hint of happiness in it.
“That is good to hear. I was actually calling for you. When I returned to the city, Colin was waiting for me in the parking garage. You can only imagine what he wanted.” I stopped to allow Jonathan to reply.
“Let me guess. It wouldn’t have to do with me, by chance?”
“Not initially, but when he accused me of know
ing where Tessa was, he reminded me of my deadline. Which is why I am calling,” I paused, contemplating how I was going to explain the change in plans. “He made it clear that he would be watching every move I made. We are going to have to change our plan. We need to meet, but we need to be careful. If I am being watched, the last thing we need is for them to see us talking together.”
Hanging up with Jonathan, we decided to meet in a very well populated area that he knew about outside of LA. It was going to take some doing, but I couldn’t risk being followed. Getting in my Jag, I pulled out of the parking garage. I knew that none of Colin’s men were there since all the cars seemed unoccupied as I left. Taking a left, my next stop would be the rental company at LAX. I had to give Jonathan credit for choosing the airport to rent a car. It would be extremely busy and even harder for Colin’s men to follow me.
After renting a compact car so that I wouldn’t draw any attention, I headed south on Hwy 1 towards Manhattan Beach. I knew the beach very well, and considering the time of year, it would be packed with tourists. As I headed down the highway, meeting with Jonathan was the furthest thing from my mind. Tessa was all I had been thinking about since the day I saw her in the back of Colin’s car. It made me sick to think of the awful and demeaning things that he had done to her. Even though she hadn’t gone into detail of what he actually did, I was well aware that her life with him wasn’t all chocolate and roses. If Jonathan ever found out what Colin had done to her over the years, or even what he did to her less than a week ago, he would lose all reasoning and kill him.
