Table for Two (17 page)

She could feel his hardness poking into her leg, and that alone excited her. Of all the girls that surrounded him all the time, she was proud to know that she could excite him simply through a kiss. His hands reached up to massage her breasts as Bella's hand reached down to massage his erection. Neither one were able to suppress their groans of ecstasy. Before he lost it, he flipped Bella over so that he loomed over her. Slowly, he inched his way down her body, leaving a trail of kisses as he went. Her eyes went wide when he kissed her core and licked the length of her slit. Her back involuntarily arched when his mouth made contact with her clit, and his finger entered her slick hole. His mouth and finger worked in unison to give her the most powerful orgasm she had ever experienced from oral sex.

Slowly he kissed his way back up her body, and looked into her eyes before he kissed her softly. It was different than the hard, passionate kisses they had exchanged earlier that night. It was tender and loving, and it took Bella's breath away.

Slowly, Parker slid deeply into Bella, staring deep into her eyes the whole time. He leaned on one elbow and brushed her sweaty hair back from her forehead with his other hand. His kissed her lovingly over her entire face as he slowly slid all the way in and out of her. Bella couldn't tear her eyes from his, and there was something deep in them, something that rocked her to the very core of her heart and soul. She knew her eyes reflected the same, but neither one of them wanted to admit it.

The slow strokes were hitting Bella in just the right places, drawing out the inevitable orgasm, but keeping her on the edge. Parker looked like he was on the edge too, just waiting for her. After a few more strokes, he felt her starting to pulse around him, making him aware of her orgasm. It was just what he had been waiting for, and finally let himself go too. The slow and tender way that he made love to her was a symbol of how he felt about her, without actually saying the words.

*****

Bella laid in Parker's arms after they had both cleaned up, slowly drifting off to sleep. Just as she was on the edge of being in dreamland, she woke with a start when Parker shot up in bed. "Fuck!" he yelled.

"What's wrong?" Bella felt her stomach drop seeing him so distraught.

He smacked his head a few times, then looked at her with the most intense apology in his eyes. "We didn't use anything again. Bella, I'm so sorry. There's just something about you that makes me completely lose all rationality when I am so close to you."

Bella smiled. "It's ok, I got on the pill after…" Her smile disappeared. "Anyway, I'm on the pill now. Go to sleep."

Parker felt more relaxed, but felt bad bringing up the memories of her miscarriage. As much as it hurt him, he knew that it was far worse for Isabella. "I'm sorry baby." He told her sadly and pulled her closer to him, trying to hug away the memories for both of them.

*****

The days in St. Louis passed all too quickly for both Parker and Isabella. Before either one knew it, they were standing in the middle of the airport, Bella fighting to hold back the tears, and Parker wearing a blond mullet wig with a John Deere hat and a dirty old t-shirt with the logo of a farm store on it. The bangs on the wig were long enough that he didn't need glasses, especially on an overcast day. The weather fit the mood of both of them, neither one happy to say goodbye.

Parker held Bella in his arms. "It's only a couple more weeks, then I'll be back in New York." He told her, not sure if he was trying to make her or him feel better. After only a few short days, he had gotten so used to her being with him all the time.

"I know, and we're both going to be so busy that the time will fly, right?" She asked hesitantly.

He nodded. "Don't drown yourself in work again. If I hear from my mother that you are working yourself into the ground again, I won't be happy."

She smiled. "We'll see. I'm sure I have a lot to do to make up for being gone almost a week, and I promised Dylan some time off for covering for me since I've been gone."

"Ok, you better head to your gate, I don't want you to miss your flight." He told her with a wink, and kissed her softly. "Promise me something?" She looked up at him with innocent eyes. "No more gossip papers. You know firsthand that the things they publish are bull shit. And I promise you that these lips are meant only for you." He smiled and pointed to his lips before kissing her again.

"I promise." She told him honestly. "I'll see you soon."

"I'll try to call when I can, but I've been slacking, just like you have. Only a couple of weeks though, ok?"

She nodded and turned to leave. Parker reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her back quickly for a deep, lustful kiss that left her weak in the knees and a little disoriented. She waved to him one last time before she disappeared through security, feeling empty already.

*****

Just as she had assumed, Dylan gave her the cold shoulder when she returned to work the next day. As much as it hurt her that her friend was treating her this way, she knew that she was the boss, and she was supposed to be able to count on him in her absence. Knowing that he was only going to be a hindrance with his attitude, she decided to have him start his vacation early, rather than a week later. She called him into her office to tell him, hoping that things wouldn't come to blows. She already had a headache from all the paperwork she had gone through that morning.

"What's up, boss?" He asked her with a tinge of annoyance in his voice.

"Lose the attitude Dylan. You're my friend, but I'm also your boss. Show me at least a little respect, would you?"

"Well, after all the pictures of your exploits this past week, you deserve respect, don't you? Never thought you'd whore yourself just to get the attention of a rock star." He bit back. "And to think I believed that you 'just needed a break'. I should have known you were going to see that loser when you wouldn't tell me anything."

Bella took a few deep breaths, trying to keep her anger in check. "Honestly Dylan, I didn't owe you any explanation at all. What I do with my time is my business, not yours. And to call me a whore? I thought you knew me better than that; I thought you were my friend. Your vacation starts effective immediately, you have four weeks. If you don't come back with a different attitude, then consider yourself not only without a job, but without a friend too." She motioned to the door, giving him his leave.

Before he walked out the door, he removed his apron and threw it on the chair next to the door. "Glad to see you choose some guy over our friendship." He slammed the door shut on his way out.

Isabella felt the tears well up in her eyes. She never expected her friend to treat her that way, and she hated to pull the boss card on him, but he seemed like he needed to be put in his place. Instead of returning to the paperwork that she had been previously going through, she got out the stack of resumes that sat on top of her filing cabinet. She examined them all closely, only pulling four out of the stack of more than one hundred. They all had restaurant management experience in fine dining, and all had worked their way up the ranks, starting as servers. Whether Dylan returned or not, she needed more help due to the explosion of her business.

After scheduling interviews with the four applicants, she returned to the paperwork on her desk and decided to handle the problems that had occurred over the week first and foremost. It was going to be a long day!

Later that night when the dinner crowd started to pick up, Isabella went to the kitchen to help the chefs. Once everything was under control, she went to check on things in the dining room. Every last table was full, including the banquet room. She also saw quite a few people waiting in the lobby. As much as she loved all of the business, she hated to see people waiting for so long. Grabbing one of the servers as he went by, she told him to get a large tray of mixed appetizers and set them in the lobby for those waiting.

Bella made her rounds, stopping at each table to make sure everything was satisfactory, and hadn't received a single complaint. Before she knew it, she was at a very familiar table.

"Good evening ladies. So good to see you again!" She smiled, and sat down as they offered her a seat.

"I heard that you took a vacation Isabella. It seems as though it did wonders for you." Sasha complimented. "Thomas said he would like for you to get in touch with him when you returned."

Isabella looked over at Bunny, and shared an almost imperceptible smile. "I'm sorry Sasha, but I've recently become involved with someone else. It wasn't planned, but it happened. Besides, I don't think I am really Thomas's type. But I will get in touch with him and explain it to him." She told her regretfully. She really did like Sasha and didn't want to disappoint her.

Sasha smiled. "That's alright dear. I was hoping that it would work out, but I understand when two people aren't compatible no matter how hard you try."

"Thank you for understanding." She was relieved, though she wasn't sure how to explain about her and Parker.

"I think I figured that you weren't meant for Thomas when I heard you had taken up with Parker." She laughed, letting Isabella off the hook.

Bella laughed, putting her hands on her cheeks to conceal the blush. She eyed Bunny who was smiling proudly. "I do believe I won the bet." She told Sasha. "But more importantly, I am so happy that you and Parker make each other so happy." She winked at Isabella. "I talked to him earlier today, and he sounded so rejuvenated. I think your visit was exactly what he needed. And obviously what you needed too. You are positively glowing."

Isabella blushed again. "We had a great time! I'm so glad he talked me into going. I've never done something spur of the moment like that before." She smiled dreamily. "But he has this way of making me unable to say no to him."

"I'm just anxious for his tour to end and for him to get back here." Bunny told her.

"Me too!" Bella said, a little more expressive than she had planned. She shook her head in embarrassment. "Well ladies, I hate to leave, but duty calls."

The bid their farewells, and when she left, she noticed that Bunny had a smile on her face, larger than she had ever seen before.

*****

Over the next week, Isabella went into work early every morning, in order to catch up on paperwork that hadn't gotten done while she was gone. It seemed like it was just another little payback from Dylan. And every evening, she would go home and do her nightly chores, getting back into a rhythm again.

She interviewed the candidates for the Assistant Manager position, and ended up hiring a woman who seemed very efficient, and had great recommendations. On her first day, Bella had told her all that she expected of her. She told her that the restaurant was her baby, and she expected nothing but perfection from her, and satisfaction from the customers. Abigail, or Abby for short, seemed to understand and agree wholeheartedly. She was a nice looking 37 year old woman who was single with no kids, and always dedicated herself to her job. She had told the woman about Dylan, and that he would be her boss for the time being, until she was fully trained, but once she knew the ins and outs, they would be equals. Since Dylan was still on vacation, and she didn't have much time to train Abby, she wouldn't start until Dylan got back from vacation. It still left Isabella shorthanded for the time being, but it would be easier in the long run. Isabella also had a backup person in case Abby didn't work out, or if Dylan didn't get his act together.

Time was flying by, but at the same time, it was standing still. She couldn't wait for Parker to return home, but was nervous. Things worked well for them when she went to visit him, but how would it be when he was home full time? Would he be upset that she worked so much? Would they get bored with each other? Would she get her heart broken? How would it go after the honeymoon period was over?

Parker had called a couple of times, and though the conversations were often rushed, they were full of emotion. Each of them hated to be away from the other, and it showed when they spoke to each other. Parker had let her know that his final concert for the tour would be in the city, and he wanted her to go.

"Try to keep me away." She joked.

"Ok, I'll pick you up before the concert and we can go together so that you can be backstage with me while I get ready." He told her.

"I won't see you before that?" She asked sadly. Usually they had a sound check or rehearsal the day before the concert, or at least that was how it was when she was with him.

"No, sorry. As soon as we roll into town, we have to go straight to the stadium for sound check and rehearsal. I'll only have about an hour and a half between that and the time I need to be back stage to get ready, so you need to be ready when I come to pick you up."

"Ok. I understand." She told him, just happy that she would be seeing him in the next few days. She needed to think of a way to get out of work for that night. Dylan wouldn't be back yet, and Abby hadn't started yet.

'Looks like it’s time to put some faith in the head chef.' She thought to herself.

Over the next few days, she was busy training her head chef Antoine on how to take care of things in her absence. For the most part, he would still be doing his same duties, but he needed to make sure that everything that came out of the kitchen was perfect, and every now and then check on the customers to make sure they were satisfied. He shadowed her the nights that she was training him so that he could see exactly what she was doing. At the end of the night, he was to clean up as they normally did, then take the till from the cash register and put it in the safe, and leave everything else for her to take care of in the morning.