Every Breath You Take (10 page)

They burst out laughing and Natalie leaned down to grab her purse and coax her burning feet back into her shoes. “All right, at least let me say my goodbyes.”

He grabbed her around her waist. “Hey, all jokes aside . . . you don’t have to do this.”

“I know I don’t have to, so, that must mean that I want to.”

“Have I ever told you I love you?”

“Only a little.”

Jason kissed her again before they sought out Brandy in a corner getting cozy with one of the groomsmen, then finally tracking down Christine, trapped in another corner with her mopey cousin.

“Oh, my God, thank you for rescuing me, chica,” she groaned once Natalie had pulled her away. “My cousin, she’s sweet, but she is a big ass hot mess.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Oh, how her life is so horrible and she’ll never fall in love and how she’ll be an old maid . . . yada yada, on and on. I mean, stab me in the neck, for real, just put me out of my misery, okay? Anyway,” Christine said as she rolled her eyes and snorted. “What’s up?”

“I just wanted to let you know we’re taking off.”

“Ooo-la-la. Gettin’ it in?”

Natalie slapped Christine’s arm. “God, you’re disgusting.”

“I hope you told Jason he needs a bolt-cutter.”

“Shhh! Would you keep your voice down? The whole reception doesn’t have to know . . . you know.”

Christine threw her arms around Natalie. “Chica, you know I’m just giving you a hard time. I mean, I hope Jason gives you a hard time tonight.”

“Oh, my God, enough.”

“All right, all right,” Christine said, laughing. “Seriously, love you, girl, and thank you for standing up for me today, all that stuff. And listen, if you can’t make the brunch tomorrow, honey, I will toast my mimosa in your honor.”

“Okay, I’m leaving now.”

“I would say sweet dreams, but I hope you don’t get any sleep tonight.”

Natalie ignored her laughing girlfriend and went off to grab Jason, who was talking with the groom. She slipped her hand into his, her nerves and excitement tingling on her skin, in her veins, in her chest.

“You ready?” he said.

She took a deep breath and smiled. “Oh, yeah.”

Ever since he was a little boy, his father would take him out behind the house and show him the family bank. He would always say, with all seriousness, “There is the ‘bank’ and the ‘bank’—the bank that the government knew about and the bank that was for emergencies. Like, if they ever had to go off the grid or something.

Daddy always believed in planning ahead.

As he placed the neat stacks of crisp dollar bills into his duffel bag, he was grateful to his father for passing his penchant for preparation on to him. And for showing him how to open the waterproof, underground safe all those years ago. His parents had gone to church and wouldn’t be back for hours. His heart skipped a beat as he turned the numbers. Click, click, click. He’d been hanging around for months and just couldn’t face one more day of his mother waving tomato soup in his face or the long, thoughtful gazes his father pointed his way. They watched him every minute of the day. No phone calls. Barely two minutes on the Internet. Barely enough time to think about her. The only reason they left him alone today was because he pretended he had food poisoning and couldn’t be too far from a toilet.

He zipped the duffel bag and stood up, taking one last look around. There was so much money in there, daddy wouldn’t even miss it. Well, okay, that wasn’t exactly true, but that wasn’t his problem.

It was all for a good cause. How else were they going to start their new life together?

He clutched the grimy piece of paper in the pocket of his jean jacket and looked at it for about the thousandth time since he’d first hastily printed it off the Internet. Although he had memorized it, he was still afraid not to have it in his sights.

Chicago. Why would she go to Chicago?

He’d find out soon enough.

His boots sank into the soft grass as he headed to his daddy’s truck. He slid behind the wheel and gunned the engine, giving one last look to his old life.

It was time.

N
atalie leaned back in her office chair, unable to keep the smile off her face. In fact, she hadn’t stopped smiling since Saturday night. Or Sunday morning.

Or Sunday afternoon.

Or Sunday night.

Or Monday morning.

She sighed and let her head loll back as she retraced every detail of being with Jason for the first time. She could count on one hand how many lovers she’d had—half a hand, really. She always thought she would save herself for marriage, that the mythical
It
would be the man to deflower her, the one she would spend the rest of her life with, glad she wouldn’t wind up as one of those girls with multiple skid marks across their back, front, and side who had been whispered about in the gossipy halls of tiny Braxton High. Once she arrived at college, though, it seemed pointless, and eventually she just wanted to get it over with, having grown tired of
That
hanging over her head for so many years.

She liked it. It had been nice. Pleasant. It hadn’t made her eyes go back in her head or lose her mind or go blind, as the hushed giggles she overheard from other girls in her dorm had led her to believe would happen. At first, it had hurt. Then she got used to it, even if it didn’t send her flying to the moon to frolic among the rainbows on her unicorn. It was okay. In fact, the sum total of her encounters had been that way—just okay.

It was altogether different with Jason.

The minute they got off the elevator on her floor, he swooped her up to carry her over the threshold, silencing her mock protestations with a flood of kisses tinged with wedding cake frosting. Once they were in her bedroom, he unzipped her bridesmaid dress with an aching slowness, stopping short when he crossed paths with the tiny rose tattoo residing at the intersection of the small of her back and swell of her bum, the result of a hastily accepted dare from Dina during winter break of her senior year of college. He could only laugh and murmur, “Sweet, quiet Natalie and her tattoo. It’s always the quiet ones,” before dotting the landscape of her back—tattoo and all—with soft, warm kisses that sent shivers to her core. He turned her around toward him and took her face in his hands, kissing her in that leisurely, sweet way that made her quiver like jelly, whispering how sexy and beautiful she was as he began to unhook her bra and let it slide to the floor. She yelped when he began to caress her breasts, gently at first, then with more intensity before finally laying her down on the bed to let his tongue slip over her nipples, first one, then the other. Over and over and over.

That made her eyes go back in her head.

Then, he peppered her entire body with kisses before burying his face between her legs, his tongue bobbing and weaving, in and out, hard and soft.

That made her go blind.

And when, finally, he entered her—slow and sweet and sure—Natalie finally got what the big deal was.

And that made her lose her mind.

He had teased her about being so loud, which sent her scurrying under the sheets in shame, which only meant he dove in after her to reignite their acrobatics. When they finally collapsed against each other, sated and spent, Natalie realized Jason had done what her scant liaisons to that point hadn’t.

He had turned her into a woman.

She sighed now, tracing lazy circles on the arm of her chair, her face blurry with dreamy desire as she felt his hands roam across her body and his lips brush against hers, his scent nestled within the grooves of her fingertips, perfuming the soft insides of her wrists. She crossed and uncrossed her legs, as if that would quench the fire. She didn’t think she’d survive the day. Hell, the morning.

Her desk phone rang and she smiled.

“Hey,” she said.

“Hey, yourself. I forgot to ask you this morning if you were free for lunch today.”

“Mmmm. I wish. My first meeting is in twenty minutes, then straight through until five o’clock.”

“Well, then I guess you have to come over to my place tonight for dinner.”

“Are you gonna cook for me?”

He chuckled. “Well, I’m gonna do something for you.”

“Sounds like I should eat before I get there.”

“I promise dinner if you bring dessert.”

“Mmmm. . .”

“Was that a yes?

“A big yes,” she giggled. “Especially since I’m a lousy cook.”

“You keep saying that. Are you really that bad?”

“I’d burn water.”

“Well, lucky for you, I’m an excellent cook, so I got you covered.”

“You know, I don’t think you ever told me how it is you got to be so good in the kitchen,” Natalie said.

“I’m almost embarrassed to tell you.”

“Try me.”

“Well,” he said with a sheepish laugh. “Um, a couple of years ago, Kevin and I took a cooking class so we could meet girls.”

“What?” she said, laughing.

“Hand to God. We didn’t know it was all couples, though, so that part didn’t really work out. But, as it turned out, I had a little talent, although Kevin dropped out when he couldn’t get his soufflé to rise.”

“Oh, my God, stop,” Natalie said, trying to stave off the giggles. “You’re too much.”

“You know it,” Jason said. “Hey. . .”

“Yes?”

“If I forgot to tell you, I had a really great time this weekend.”

“You forgot.”

“Uh oh. You’re not gonna hold it against me, are you?”

Natalie twisted the phone cord around her finger. “Be ready to pay up tonight.”

They said their goodbyes and hung up and Natalie went back to her drowsy daydreams of Jason ripping off her clothes, throwing her on the bed, and making love to her until the sun came up.

H
e parked alongside the house and cut the engine, wanting to take a moment to admire his masterpiece. It was coming along beautifully. Depending on what he heard today, he might be able to bring her here sooner than he had anticipated.

On cue, he saw his appointment pull up next to the mailbox at the curb. He cleared his throat and straightened his tie, mentally preparing to put on his public persona.

He swung the car door open and held out his hand.

“Ty, hey, how are you?”

“I’m just fine sir, how about yourself?”

“Ready to see how we’re looking.”

Ty gestured to the house. “Right this way.”

Ty proceeded to take him on a tour through the house, noting the security features, reinforced doors, the blacked-out windows, absence of any locks that could be picked with a hairpin or paperclip (should she miraculously come into possession of either), unbreakable glass, encased lighting that couldn’t be shattered, the soundproof walls. She wouldn’t even be able to start an electrical fire by rubbing two wires together, as he’d made sure there were no outlets in her room. The entire house was sealed tight as a drum. There would be no way she could escape, as he fully expected her to try—at least at first. She would fight him, of course, wail about how he had to let her go, beat his chest with her fists. Cry. Scream. Cajole. He knew she would try every trick in the book to get him to let his guard down.

But he had run through all these scenarios already and had defenses for all of them. All of those hysterics would subside in time, and then she would understand the sacrifices he had made for her . . . for them . . . so that they could be together. He knew he’d be able to tell when she truly was ready to share her life with him and take her proper place beside him as his wife.

After all, he knew her better than anyone.

He continued nodding and asking questions as Ty pointed out the features of the house. Ty, who was about as crooked as they came, had bought his trumped-up story about bringing his mentally and physically ill wife here to live and how imperative it was to control her comings and goings to keep her safe. Of course, all that money he paid him under the table didn’t hurt.

“So. Is everything to your specifications, sir?” Ty asked.

“Oh, yes,” he smiled. “Everything is perfect.”

“Great. We do have some more work to do over the coming months, but you should be able to move in on the day you requested, no problem.”

He smiled. “You have no idea how happy I am to hear that.”

Ty nodded and looked at him expectantly, waiting to be walked outside or, at the very least, dismissed so he could get on with his day.

And indeed, he wanted to get on with his own day.

He put his hands in the pockets of his suit pants and smiled. “You know, I’m going to spend a little bit of time walking around, planning for the move. Thank you again for coming out today to meet with me, show me everything. You go ahead. I’ll lock up.”

“Sure thing, sir. I’ll talk to you later this week.”

The two men shook hands, and Ty showed himself out while he continued to ramble through every room, picturing her in each one, barely able to contain the excitement bubbling inside him like a boiling pot set on high.

He waited a few more minutes, unable to take it anymore. He reached into his left breast pocket and extracted the lacy black thong. An involuntary groan came hissing out of his lips as he buried his face into the intricate ornamentation, his nose sopping up the thick, warm scent, his hand already reaching for his belt buckle as he dropped to the floor. He wrapped her underwear around his liberated bulge, already knowing it wouldn’t take long to come, and vowing to make the next one last all afternoon.

N
atalie looked over at Jason slumbering peacefully beside her, still in disbelief the bubble hadn’t yet burst.

It was late November, Thanksgiving having passed only a few days ago. It still shocked her a little that they continued to sail along on smooth waters. It had been a bustling holiday filled with dinner at his parents’ house (where, under Jason’s tutelage, she managed to deliver a winning homemade cranberry sauce), a Black Friday potluck at the roly-poly accountant’s house followed by bowling on Saturday night with her crew and their men, and finally lolling on his couch all day Sunday when not rolling around in bed.