Mr. Write Now Page 7

  “Where are you at now?” He asked curiously. She was a fast reader. She was already three fourths of the way through the book.

  Rosa didn’t look up, just continued reading, though she did read aloud for his benefit.

  “Evangeline leaned her forehead against the slightly yellowed glass and blew out a breath. Her landlady would not appreciate the late night visit by Mister Valentine. Detective, she corrected herself. He was a detective now.”

  He smiled and raised his coffee mug to his lips. She read for several more minutes before setting the stack aside.

  “What did you think?” He asked, leaning forward.

  “It’s good.” She said slowly. “Although…some of the French in there is gratuitous. And incorrect.” She finally looked at him, and frowned.

  “What’s that?” She asked, pointing at the plate he had on his lap. He held it out to her with a cheeky grin on his face.

  “Omelette au fromage.”

  She giggled, and took it. There was silence in the living room for a while as they chewed.

  “So, what happened last night?” He asked, setting his coffee mug aside. “I tried to find your pages but-”

  “Just forget it.” She said. “It doesn’t matter.”

  “It does, though. That game could have been dangerous Rosa. I know it seems fun from where you’re sitting but anyone could have come along to pick those pages up. Someone did, by the looks of things.”

  “I found the pages.” She said quietly. “I left them in my bag. I was an idiot, that’s all.”

  He couldn’t put his finger on why, but he didn’t believe her. Maybe it was the distant look in her eyes. Perhaps it was the slightly hollow tone of her voice, like that of an actor who couldn’t quite bring conviction to his lines.

  “Well then, why don’t you show me the last two? We can still go out and have that outing you planned.”

  Her sober expression melted away, leaving a cheerful smile in its wake. “That might be fun.”

  “Where exactly was I supposed to meet you?”

  She shook her head, her smile turning slightly impish. “No. We’re not going there. It’s going to be a surprise, like it should have been last night.”

  “It would still be a surprise, considering I didn’t go there in the first place.”

  “Nope.” She shook her head once. “We’re going out. I’ll give you directions to the new place.”

  He stood, brushing wrinkles from his dress shirt. He’d neglected to change out of his clothes from the previous evening, passing out on the couch in his business attire.

  “I’m going to shower first, if you don’t mind.”

  “I’ll come with you.” She said immediately.

  “You don’t have to.”

  She rolled her eyes at him. “You act like it’s a chore, Rick. I want to see you naked. Shut up and get your sweet ass in the shower.”

  He couldn’t really argue with her, because a very large part of him wanted to see her naked too.

  He stripped out of his shirt, and yelped when she pressed her cold fingers into his flesh. She grinned when he glowered down at her. “That’s for making me wait outside for ten minutes.”

  “You would have done it anyways.” He grumbled, caging her delicate wrists in one of his large hands.

  “True.”

  He leaned down to give her a peck on the lips. Of course, it was Rosa, and she wasn’t content to let it be just that. She pressed her body closer to his, making hungry sounds as they kissed. With a half growl he pinned her to the wall, one of his hands trapping the already caged wrists above her head. The other skimmed the waistband of her skirt, toying with it.

  “Rick…” Rosa panted, when he pulled back to suck in a ragged breath.

  He hooked his fingers in in the waistband of her skirt and pulled it down.

  He slipped his hand into her panties, stroking her gently. She bit her lip, stifling a groan as his fingers circled her clit. It was swollen, engorged with sudden arousal.

  “This isn’t fair.” She muttered, pouting slightly. “We’re supposed to shower and go…”

  “You can pay me back later.” He said, then dropped to his knees in front of her, ducking beneath her skirt.

  ***

  Somehow, amazingly they managed to find and dress in their discarded clothing. Rosa’s hair was a mess of partly tried tangles, and he didn’t look much better. Rosa insisted they leave though.

  “Come on.” She coaxed, unlocking her car and reaching inside the backseat for something. “The crackers will get even soggier if we wait.”

  He insisted they take his truck. It was cleaner than her car, and she admitted he might know the roads better than she did.

  “So where are you from originally?” He asked, glancing over at her. She was looking down at the picnic basket she’d packed.

  “Maine.” She finally said.

  He blinked. “Ah. You’re a long way away from home, then. Why didn’t you go to the University of Maine?” He asked. “Or any of the other schools in New England, for that matter?”

  “I told you.” She grumbled. “I don’t get along with my family.”

  An uncomfortable silence stretched between them. He decided after a tense minute that he’d just change the subject.

  “So, where are we heading?”

  She told him the location, and he frowned. He knew what direction to go, but didn’t know to whom the address belonged. He didn’t recognize it as any place he’d been before, or had ever heard of in passing. She continued to give him directions, though he had a good idea where he was headed.

  After ten minutes of listening to Garth Brooks and his contemporaries, he began to notice a pattern.

  “You’re taking us the long way round. It’d be faster if I-”

  “No.” She cut across him. “Keep going this way.”

  “Why? I thought you wanted to protect the sanctity of our lunch.”

  She bit her lip. “Can we…can we please just do this my way?”

  He glanced over at her again, glad that on the weekend the streets were considerably less crowded. “You did this when we were out with Elle too.” He remembered, mumbling his thoughts as they came to mind.

  “And come to think of it, you’ve never wanted to meet me anywhere near there. Always in bars, shops, or restaurants downtown, or outside of Fayetteville entirely. The classiest place you’ve let me take you is Mia’s. Why?”

  “I don’t like that sort of thing.”

  He didn’t think that was really it though. She enjoyed nice clothing, and fancy dates. Her taste in literature told me a lot of what he needed to know about her expectations. But he’d already blown it last night, and he didn’t want to be any more of an ass than he’d already been, so he didn’t press for more.

  Rosa led them to a cozy little home on the edge of town that looked like it could have doubled as a bed and breakfast. There were no cars in the drive, and all the lights off. Rosa was opening her door the moment the truck was in park.

  “Where are we?” He asked.

  “I’m house-sitting for a little extra cash.” She replied. “They’ll be back in a few days.”

  He balked. “We’re not having sex in there.” He protested. Not only was it rude, it made him rather uncomfortable.

  “I never said we were silly.” She clucked her tongue at him. “No, we’re headed around back.”

  He stayed rooted to the spot for another minute, while he decided whether or not following her onto someone else’s private property was a good idea. If someone spotted him…

  “Come on Rick.” Rosa pleaded. “Let’s just have a nice afternoon.

  He forced his legs to move, and pushed the anxious thoughts away. Behind the house was a propane tank, the only plot on an otherwise spectacular view. The lawn sloped gently downward towards a patch of woods, all of the trees sporting their muted fall colors. And just before the edge of the trees was a pond. It wasn’t quite large enough to classify as a la
ke. There was a dock jutting over the edge of the water’s surface.

  “Wow.” He muttered, staring at the picturesque landscape with his mouth slightly ajar.

  “It’s pretty, isn’t it?” She agreed, smiling wryly at him. He nodded, unsure of what else he could say.

  Rosa laid a checkered tablecloth on the grass and began to unload her spoils from the basket. She’d packed assorted finger foods like cheese, crackers, summer sausage, and pickles. She’d also packed strawberries, and a tub of whipped cream. He accepted a piece of cold chicken when she handed it to him, and sat across from her on the cloth.

  He ended up getting whipped cream in her hair after a particularly spirited bout of teasing. She’d made fun of his poem, much to his chagrin. It hadn’t been good, done one the fly as it had been, but he hadn’t thought it had been laughable.

  Rosa looked indignant, and attempted to get the whipped cream out of her hair, only succeeding in smearing it further.

  “That’s it.” She muttered, flinging down her chicken bones, stalking away from him.

  He climbed to his feet, still chuckling at the expression on her face. “Oh come on Rosa, it’s just a bit of fun.”

  “You got whipped cream in my hair.” She complained. “And it’s just now dry. It’ll get crusty now.”

  He looked over her shoulder pointedly. “We could go for a swim, if you really want to get it out of your hair.”

  She followed his gaze, expression speculative. “I didn’t bring a bathing suit.”

  “Who needs bathing suits?” He snorted. “Haven’t you ever gone skinny dipping?”

  “No.” She said earnestly. He wasn’t sure why that surprised him, but it did. Perhaps it was her multitude of experiences thus far. Perhaps it was her sexual experiences prior to him, but he thought she’d have done something as basic as skinny dipping.

  He stripped off his shirt and winked at her. “Now’s a great time to start, don’t you think?”

  She grinned and followed him to the water’s edge, stripping off her clothes too. It was balmier than the usual winter afternoon in Arkansas, but the water was still cold. He didn’t linger overlong in it, lest dreaded shrinkage set in. But he wanted to let Rosa get the idea of what it was like. Maybe he’d show her again in summer, so she wouldn’t be put off the experience entirely.

  Rosa didn’t seem to mind though. She dove and surfaced each time with a grin on her face. Well, he reasoned, she had been raised in Maine. She’d probably experienced colder in her life.

  The murky pond water made it hard to see her form. Not impossible to feel it though. She pressed her body into his when they could touch bottom, winding her fingers into his hair as they kissed. The day was beautiful. She was beautiful, and innocent, and this day was shaping up to be perfect.

  She exited the water first, glistening and glorious in the afternoon sun. She turned back to watch him surveying her, a smirk on her face. “Come on.” She said, beckoning him from the water as well.

  He followed her dutifully, and lay back on the tablecloth at his prompting. She straddled his waist almost immediately, perky breasts thrust into his face. He licked the edge of one. The pond water tasted odd, and no matter how tempting her nipples looked he resolved not to do that again until they’d dried off.

  Rosa gave him a wicked smile before reaching down between them and palming his erection. He hissed out a breath. “Rosa…”

  “Be patient Rick, we’ll get there.” She said with a smile, pumping his flesh gently in one hand, making him harder. Prickles of heat ran through his body, and his nerves felt oversensitive. He needed to be inside her.

  “Let me-”

  “You said I could pay you back later.” She crooned. “Now, I’m doing it. Watch me.”

  He did, and got a very appealing view of her backside as she turned away from him. Her back was long and finely muscled. He watched in anticipation as she slowly lowered herself onto his throbbing erection. He hissed out another epithet. He heard a muffled laugh, and then she began to move.

  The slide of her wet, silken heat over his throbbing flesh was heavenly. He gripped her hips with a groan and tried to guide her, to get her to move the way he wanted. She shook him off, moving in a torturously slow rhythm she’d established.

  He finally gave up, letting his hand fall by his sides, pumping up into her as she came down on him, again and again. He was insensible, not entirely sure what he was saying except pleading with God and anyone who’d listen to alternately let him cum, and to never let it end.

  He watched her raptly, as she rode him, what he could see of her face transported by pleasure. Her hair, wet and dripping from the swim in the pond bounced against her back, sending gleaming trails of moisture cascading down her back and onto his chest. He didn’t care.

  Finally the pleasure peaked and he thrust up and into her, stilling as the pleasure stole his breath. Rosa moaned as well, shivering all over, her body clamping down on his hard.

  It was less of a dismount and more of a roll, when she lifted herself off him and collapsed onto his chest.

  “Thank you.” She whispered against his bare chest. He toyed idly with her wet, tangled hair. She was so damned beautiful. How had he been able to snare such an alluring siren? He was nothing special. What had he said or done to make her even consider taking up with him at all?

  “For what?” He whispered, his breaths moving her a few inches on every inhale. “This was your idea, remember? A nice afternoon picnic?”

  “Yes, but you didn’t have to come.”

  “Of course I’d come. I’d do just about anything for you.” The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them.

  She hesitated and then finally met his gaze. “Do you really mean that?”

  “Within reason.” He qualified.

  She raised her chin a fraction. “Then I’d like to make this serious.” She said firmly. “I’d like to be able to go out in public with you. I’m not demanding we announce it on social media or anything, but I want to stop sneaking around. I really want to be your girlfriend Rick.”

  His stomach, too full, and jostled by far too much physical activity as it was, pitched like waves in a violent storm. It had been a very nice morning. He didn’t want to have this conversation now.

  “No.” He said it slowly, with more surety than he felt. He liked Rosa. He really, really did. She was funny, smart, and by God was she a tease, but he liked that as well. He couldn’t remember a time in the last few years he’d been so happy.

  But there was still his life to contend with. He had a career, and the sort of relationship they had was not allowed. He could lose everything he had ever worked to accomplish. His reputation would be ruined at the University of Arkansas. More than that, he’d lose all credibility. He could be barred from teaching at all, if it became a public scandal.

  “No?” Rosa echoed. Her face, which had been glowing with post-coital contentment moments before, fell. “But-”

  “But nothing.” He cut across her. “It told you at the beginning that this wouldn’t be hearts and flowers, Rosa. I thought we had an understanding.”

  “But it’s not fair!” Rosa protested. “This isn’t how it was supposed to go. This isn’t how the story is supposed to end!”

  “This is life, Rosa.” He snapped, pushing to his feet and attempting to put his pants back on. “This is not a God damned book. I could lose everything Rosa.”

  “And I’m not worth it.” Rosa finished bitterly.

  “That’s not what I said.” He protested.

  “But it’s what you mean.” She said, glaring up at him. Her eyes were brimming with tears. She was refusing to blink, to let any of them fall.

  “Rosa-”

  “Just go. I’ll call a friend to pick me up.”

  “But-”

  “Go!” She all but shrieked at him, jabbing a finger back towards the house.

  He turned his back on her and trudged away. It felt like his feet had been dipped in co
ncrete.

  It had to be done. He tried to convince himself. You can’t be seen with her. Not while she’s your student.

  He heard a soft sniffle behind him as he made his way back to the truck.

  Yes. It had to be done. But that didn’t make him any less of a bastard for doing it.

  Chapter Nine

  Melanie’s apartment was located across town. After his Shakespeare class, that Rosa was mercifully not in, he made the executive decision to attempt to talk to his ex-wife. It was the mature thing to do, after all. He’d been putting it off for weeks, preoccupied by his relationship with Rosa. He’d called Melanie at least once a week, trying to get updates on Elle, and attempting to get answers from her about their tryst over a month ago.

  He pulled into the apartment’s shared carport. He eyed the flashy Audi parked next to him. Normally he’d not park near such an expensive car, since their owners tended to get sue happy when they even so much suspected damage to their precious cars. It was more than he was worth to cross such a person.

  He climbed out of the cab of the truck carefully, not wanting to ding the expensive car and incur the wrath of Darth Douchebag, whoever he might be.

  Melanie’s building was three stories high, and had dull brown siding. He ascended the staircase to her apartment slowly, wondering if this were truly a wise idea. She’d come over and picked up a package, and then decided to sleep with him. It honestly didn’t sound like the rekindling of an epic love affair, but still…

  He reached the narrow porch on the third floor and paused to scowl at the ashtray perched on the bannister. Why were all the women in his life smoking? That thought made his scowl deepen. When had he started thinking of Rosa as one of his women? It was supposed to be casual.

  He rapped on Melanie’s front door twice and then stepped back to wait. After several minutes he knocked again. He had half a mind to let himself in and repay the favor she’d done him a month before. She’d keep her spare key hidden in the paw of the ceramic dog she’d received as a gag gift two Christmases ago.

  Before he could indulge himself and act upon the idly fantasy, the front door swung open. Melanie stood in the doorway, clutching a dressing gown closely to her. Her hair was dry, nixing his theory she may have been bathing and had missed the knocks at the door.