by Tia Siren
“Look, the new manager will be there any minute with the keys. And I’m not far behind, okay? I’ll be there in—”
“New manager! You have got to be kidding me?!”
“I’ll be there in five,” I said, hanging up the phone before she had a chance to say anything else.
I knew she was going to be angry, but even still, her pure rage made me wonder if I had done the right thing. Knowing that I was going to ask her to quit last night, I had gone ahead and had the locks to the store changed and hired a new manager, too. I hoped that in doing so, it would send a clear message to Kendra that I wasn’t messing around. I hoped that she would see what I was willing to do, and that maybe, she would see it for the act of love that it really was.
But based off her reaction and the vitriol that she spewed down the phone at me, my guess was probably not.
--
The store was open by the time I got there, so I guessed that my new manager had turned up. And, sure enough, when I walked through the front door, she was there to greet me.
“Mr. Marcus,” Sharon beamed when she spotted me. “I had no idea you were coming in today. Although, I guess it makes sense, being my first day and all. Although maybe you wouldn’t have come down, as like a test to see if I could handle things all on my own. But then, how would you know if I didn’t—”
“Hey, Sharon,” I said, hurrying toward her with a handshake in the hopes that it would shut her up.
Sharon was very good looking. There wasn’t a man alive that would argue against that point. She had a glamour model’s body, with big round breasts and tiny hips, while somehow still managing to sport a very big and perky backside. She also had big plump lips, bigger doe eyes, and long blonde hair that swept down her back and seemed to glimmer in the light.
But she was also dumb. Like really dumb. She was very chatty, personable, and an excellent sales assistant, but she was dumb as a post. I’d hired her more out of desperation to fill the spot than anything. Plus, I was certain that she would be able to sell the merchandise like nobody’s business.
“Sharon, when you arrived this morning, was there a woman here? Blonde hair, curvy hips, looked like she wanted to kill someone?”
“Yup,” Sharon said, nodding her head. “Oh yes, she was very mad when she saw me. I’ve never seen someone so mad. Expect this one time at a bar. Or was it by the pool? Okay, there was a bar in the pool.”
“Sharon, is she here?” I interrupted, grabbing her by the arms in an effort to make her look at me and hopefully concentrate for just a moment.
“Oh, yes. She’s in the staff room, collecting her things. I had no idea she was the old manager. I thought she was a crazy homeless lady. Although, what she had said kind of led me to think that maybe—”
Shaking my head, I stormed past Sharon toward the back room. But before I was able to walk inside and finally confront Kendra, my phone rang. The call was from Jack, and I knew that if I ignored it, he would just keep calling and calling until I answered. The last thing I wanted was a vibrating phone in my pocket while I tried to talk sense into Kendra. So, I answered.
“What?” I said curtly. It was a little rude, but I was in a rush, and Jack really wasn’t at the top of my list of people I wanted to talk to in that moment.
“Hello, to you, too. How are you? How have you been? What’s good? These are but some of the acceptable greetings that people use when they answer the phone.”
“I really don’t have the time, Jack. So you can tell me why you called or we’ll talk later.”
“Okay, okay. God damn. If I knew that you were going to be such an asshole, I wouldn’t have bothered. Look, I was just calling to let you know that the new club is a go. The papers are ready to sign, and the spot has been found. All you need to do, my friend, is find management.”
“Management?” I asked, an idea suddenly striking me through the brain like lightning. “What kind of management?”
“I don’t know. Someone with experience. Someone who is good with numbers and all that crap. Luckily, they don’t have to be on the floor either. They’ll be in the back most of the time, so you don’t have to limit your choice to some babe. But having said that, if you do find one that can count past ten I would always recommend hiring her first.”
“I’ve got to go Jack. But I actually have someone in mind. Thanks.”
I hung the phone up, slipping it back into my pocket.
Jack had actually just given me an amazing idea. One of the better ones I had ever had, and one that might just save my relationship with Kendra. I just hoped it wasn’t too late.
I managed to catch her in the back room just as she was packing up the last of her things. When I burst into the room, she spared me a glance before looking back down at the box in front of her that she was packing. I’d never seen her look so mad.
“Kendra,” I said.
“Save it,” she fumed, shoving something else into the box. “I don’t care what you have to say. Nothing you say can make it better. Nothing! Understand?”
“I’m still going to try. First, I want to say that I had no idea that this job was such a big deal to you. Seriously!” I said, seeing her about to cut in.
“Then what? If you had known how much I cared about this job, you wouldn’t have fired me and hired Sharon the bimbo? Can she even spell her own name?”
“I realize that what I did was wrong. Understand? I do. And I want to make it up to you.”
“Are you going to give me my job back? Oh, kind boss, how generous of you to restore me to my job. Should I blow you now or later? Just say the word?” The words dripped off her tongue like acid as she picked up her box, making to storm passed me.
I jumped in her way, blocking her from leaving. “Just hear me out. You can’t have this job back. But I want to promote you. The hours will be better, and so will the money, and you will still be a manager.”
“You don’t get it, do you? It’s got nothing to do with the job. I could have been a cashier at Hooters for all it mattered, and I would still be just as furious with you as I am now.”
“But don’t you want to hear about the other job? It’s the manager position at the new club. The one owned by me and Jack, where we combine Luscious and his night clubs.”
“Get out of my way, Grant.”
I didn’t try and stop her that time. She went to push past me, and I stepped aside, letting her. And as she walked away, through the shop and out the door, she didn’t bother to turn back and look at me. She didn’t care if I was watching, or what my reaction was. She didn’t care about me at all. It was in that moment that I realized that I had lost her. It was in that moment that I realized that I had made a terrible, terrible mistake.
Chapter 36
Kendra
Only Grant could make me that angry. He had the ability to bring an emotional reaction from me like I had never experienced before. I was so mad that I wanted to shout. I wanted to scream. I wanted to walk to where he usually parked his car and smash the window. But, of course, I couldn’t do that.
Instead, I walked.
The box that I was carrying was just full of useless trinkets that I had collected during my few months at Luscious, so I dumped them in the first trash can that I saw. I then turned off the main road that headed back to my apartment and walked into Central Park instead. I just didn’t feel like going back to my home, curling up into a little ball, and feeling sorry for myself. I didn’t want to give Grant that satisfaction.
In the end though, the Park was an even worse decision than my apartment could have ever been. I don’t know if it was always that way, or if it was just on account of my emotional state that everything seemed magnified, but the Park, for some reason, seemed to be packed full of loving and adoring couples.
I sat down at the first bench I saw, only to regret my decision the moment I had made it. The other two people on the bench were a young couple who were holding each other adoringly in their arms. They kissed one anothe
r and whispered into the other’s ear, what I assumed to be sweet nothings of love. It made my heart ache.
From there, I powered across the Park, away from them, only to be confronted by more and more of the same. From the couples on picnic blankets, to the ones that were jogging together, or strolling hand in hand. It was everywhere, and every single one only served to remind me of what I didn’t have. They only served to remind me of what I had walked out on with Grant.
Maybe I should have taken him up on his offer. Not the quitting of my job, but the taking of the new one. If he had offered me that, without forcing me to quit at Luscious, then I would have taken it, no questions asked. If he had asked, not told me, too, then I would have been only too happy to oblige, to keep him happy. But he didn’t ask me. He demanded it of me.
It was just so damn insulting. I don’t doubt that he loved me. And I don’t doubt that he trusted me, either. And I still loved him, just as much as I had the previous night. I just needed him to show me that he did. I needed a reason to say yes and be with him, because every time that I think he has given me a reason, he takes it back.
What I wanted, more than anything else, was an apology. I wanted one that he actually meant. One that showed to me that he was willing to let me live my life. That being with him wasn’t a mutually exclusive deal.
My apartment felt uncharacteristically empty when I got home thirty minutes later. I had always lived alone, and coming home to an empty place was normal. But that day, I don’t know. It just felt so final. It was probably because of this emptiness and solitude that I jumped about ten feet in the air when my phone rang.
It was Grant. I stared at the caller ID for several rings, trying to decide if I should answer. I wanted to talk to him. I wanted to hear his voice. I wanted him to apologize and try and make it up to me. But I was also scared that he wouldn’t. What if he was calling to end it for good this time?
“Hello,” I answered coldly.
“Don’t hang up, please,” he hurried on the other end of the line. “Please just hear me out.”
“I don’t know if I should, Grant. What reason do I have to hear you out? Tell me please. Give me one reason.”
“Us,” he said simply. “Isn’t our love reason enough?”
My stomach twisted with that confession. He was right. Maybe I did owe him that much. I did want a reason to forgive him. I just didn’t know if he was going to be able to provide it. If he was going to be willing. But it seemed that maybe he would be after all.
“Okay, fine,” I said. “Say your piece.”
Surprisingly, Grant hung the phone up the second the words had left my lips. But then, unsurprisingly, there was a knock at the door, and I knew who it was before I had even taken one step toward it.
“Hey,” he said as I opened the door. He offered me a weak smile as I stepped aside to let him in. He looked defeated, weak even. More so than I had ever seen before.
“You have five minutes,” I said, taking a seat on the couch. I don’t know why I offered him the ultimatum. In truth, I wanted a reason to forgive him. I was hoping that he gave me something, anything to latch on to. I hoped that he wanted to.
“I don’t even know what to say,” he admitted.
“How about sorry?” I suggested.
“Yeah,” he offered me another weak smile. One that begged to be forgiven. “I’ll start there. I’m sorry, Kendra.”
“And what are you sorry for?” I pushed. I felt like a therapist, and he was my client as I led him toward the answer.
“Can I say ‘everything’?”
“I’d rather you be specific.”
“From the beginning then,” he said, nodding. “I’m sorry for treating you like the girl who hurt me in high school and not the woman that you are. I’m sorry for acting like you mean nothing to me when, in fact, you mean everything. I’m sorry for assuming that my needs come before yours and that yours don’t even matter. I’m sorry for making you quit your job because of my own insecurities, and I’m sorry for thinking that this is okay.”
As he spoke, something strange happened. Maybe not strange, but unexpected. I found myself forgiving him. Oh sure, I wanted to forgive him, but I had no idea that it would happen so quickly. I thought that he would offer me some platitudes and hope that was enough. I thought we would fight, maybe take a break, and then try again. I thought it was going to be an uphill battle the entire way. But no.
His apology was genuine. I had no doubt. As he spoke, he looked into my eyes. I could see behind them and see the truth in them. His body seemed to shake, and it looked as if he were lifting a huge weight off of himself.
“And I’m sorry for—”
I didn’t let him finish. I didn’t need for him to finish. He had said everything that he needed to.
I leaped from the couch and into his arms, taking his head in my hands as I pulled his mouth to mine. I caught him off guard, but only for a second. Almost immediately, he returned the kiss with equal enthusiasm.
“I really am sorry,” he tried to say between kisses. “I need you to know that.” He tried again as I smothered him. “If I ever hurt you again—”
“Grant, I know,” I said as I pulled myself from him. I looked into his eyes, and he looked into mine. And from that moment on, we both knew that we were on the same page.
From there, I took Grant’s hand and led him across the room to my bed. I laid him down, and we made love for the first time.
It was tender and passionate, like nothing we had ever done before. It wasn’t raw and sexually driven. It was sweet and soft. It was perfect.
We started by slowly undressing one another. There was no ripping off of clothes, or one of us standing back while the other admired. It was a joint venture. I removed his shirt, kissing him down his stomach as he slipped mine off, too. I helped him wriggle from his pants as he did the same with me and my skirt. We wrapped ourselves in each other’s arms, our bodies pressed up against one another, our skin merging as one. My hands were all over him and his all over me.
He rolled himself on top of me, kissing me deeply as he did. He didn’t pull or scratch, but stroked; it was caring, like nothing he had ever done before. From there, he slipped my panties off, and as he did, I pulled his briefs down. His cock was already hard, but I didn’t move to put it in my mouth, and he didn’t try and force it. I wanted him to be inside of me. I wanted him to be a part of me.
He wanted the same. Looking into my eyes, I felt him slip himself inside of my already dripping wet pussy. He slid into me slowly, inch by inch. It had never felt so good. Once it was all the way inside of me, he slowly pulled himself out, only to slide himself back in. Each time was like he was penetrating me for the first time. It really felt that amazing.
And as he rode me, back and forth, nice and slow, he kissed me on the lips. We kissed, and we kissed, and that was almost as good as the sex. He didn’t pull my hair or put his fingers in my mouth. I didn’t slap him across the face or jump on top and ride his brains out. Instead, I let him have me. All of me.
He grinded into me, back and forth, for what felt like hours. Every second was perfect and magical. Every second, I felt like I was on the cusp of orgasming but never came. It was an extended experience that only heightened with each passing moment.
But eventually, I did come. We both did. He looked into my eyes, telling me that he was ready. I nodded, letting him know that I was, too. He then increased his rhythm, making sure to move to the rhythm of my breathing and panting. As he did, I felt the orgasm erupt inside me. The moment that happened, I felt him also erupt inside of me. As one, together, we both came.
Although it was plain and it was simple, it was also the best sex we ever had. At least, I thought so, and I was sure that he felt the same way.
“So, what now?” Grant asked after several minutes of us lying next to each other, our sweaty bodies entangled.
“I think that we should take it slow.” It was something that I had been thinking about,
and I figured it was the best option. We had rushed into it far too quickly before, announcing our love straight away. No wonder we both had our hearts broken.
“Slow?” he asked, sounding almost disappointed. “What does that mean?”
“It doesn’t mean anything,” I assured him. “I still want to be with you.”
“Yeah? For how long?”
“Hmm,” I said, smirking as I did. I could see him watching me. “How does forever sound?” And with that, I rolled on top of him, ready to show him exactly what I meant when I said forever.
Chapter 37
Grant
Everything had to be perfect. I did another lap through my apartment, just to double check that everything looked as it ought to. I usually kept a pretty tidy apartment anyway, but it still didn’t hurt to make sure. I also had to check that the few extra furnishings that Kendra had bought over the past month were on display, too.
There was the Egyptian rug that she had picked out. I personally thought it was hideous, but she insisted that it added some much needed color to my apartment. My bed also had on the new bedsheets that she had personally chosen, and the shrub that she had gifted me was also on prominent display in the living room. It was all ready.
Really, I just wanted to make the place look like home, or as close to home as it could. Over the last month, Kendra had been coming here almost every night. In fact, I think I may have been to her place on two occasions only. It wasn’t personal. It was just that my place was so much nicer. And that was kind of the point of tonight. I had a big question that I needed to ask, and I wanted everything to be perfect. Well, I actually had two questions, but she had to say yes to the first before I even considered the other.
The truth was that I was just a touch on the nervous side. Everything between me and Kendra had been going so well for the past month that I was constantly on the lookout for something to go wrong. It seemed that was our usual pattern, and this prolonged period of happiness was messing with it. That was why I was so worried. There was a chance that what I was going to ask, if she didn’t agree, could send us down a road we both knew all too well.
