Fatal Temptation (8 page)

Sadie quietly tip toes to the front entrance of her home, after locking up her SUV on the driveway. Her heart is still pounding in her chest and her entire body is frozen from the cool rain. She grabs onto the handle, unlocking the deadbolt with her key and slowly prying the door open.

“Hello?” She calls out into the darkness, not noticing a single light on in the house or any form of human life whatsoever.

With Ling gone to the sleepover and staying there until the morning, Chris must still be out. Waves of relief begin to fall over her, bringing her comfort. She slams the door behind her and rests her body on it momentarily, enough to gain her strength.

She made it.

She is home.

She heads upstairs towards the bathroom to undress and to warm up in the shower, forcing the hot water on and causing the entire bathroom to steam. She closes the bathroom door behind her, even though knowing no one is home, still craving that privacy. She feels a sense of shame for allowing Asher to get so close to her tonight and to kiss her, so she decides that a shower will work as a way to help warm her skin and to also, wash away his lingering scent.

As he pulls her drenched shirt up off of her body, she can get
a wave of his aroma, which fills up her nostrils and makes her weak in the knees. Not only does he look amazing, but also he smells intoxicating and having this scent of him at home makes Sadie feel even more on edge. She needs to rid all of him before Chris walks in. She has no choice.

She undresses further, slipping out of the tightened wet jeans and sliding them across the floor into a pile near the corner.
She then takes off her bra, throwing it onto the floor as well and finally, her underwear, which she steps out of slowly. As she does so, she can feel a string of lubrication fall between her legs, signaling that Asher was able to get her wetter with one kiss, than years of sex with Chris combined. It’s a harsh realization and acts as the tipping point for her.

She bursts into the adjoining room with her wet clothes in tow, throwing them into the washing machine instantly. She needs to rid any trace of Asher in her home; she can’t bear to have the memory of him here. Not in her family’s home. Not with her husband.

After starting the load and finally closing the lid, she can feel her heart sink. A piece of her is desperate to stop the machine and to take in his scent one last time, feeling as though she is missing him already but she refrains, placing her hand sternly on the lid and walking away.

With the water still running, she steps into the glass encased shower and finally is able to warm up, feeling the hot water running all over her body. It is exactly what she needs. As the heat from the water warms up her skin, she still smells
Asher with her, as his cologne is stained her skin. She looks to the shower gel, knowing that it will cleanse her skin of his scent but she finds herself debating whether or not that is a good idea.

He smells so good in the shower with
her, his woody scent mixed in with the natural spices of his pheromones compels Sadie to remain still, basking in his aroma for a little while longer before losing touch with him completely.

She lathers the shampoo, followed by the conditioner, letting it soak into her rain doused hair, bringing life back to the strands and softness. Then, she is at the crossroads, desperately wanting to hold onto his scent but knowing she cannot. That’s when she notices Chris’ shower gel nestled in the corner of the shower floor. It’s something he rarely uses and something that will at least help Sadie to imagine that Asher is there, still with her.

She squeezes a dollop of the gel into her hands and immediately, feels electric. She slathers it all over her body, slowly and effortlessly, allowing it to cover every inch of her, just as she assumes Asher’s hands would.

Wherever the soap traipses on her body, she fantasizes about Asher’s hands there
instead. She imagines him in there with her, caressing her all over and holding her in close. As her hands get lower on her body, sliding down the length of her abdomen towards her groin, she can actually feel her body shaking and moistening.

At first, she is overwhelmed by the sensation, feeling her knees buckling and worried she might lose her footing, but she tries again, sliding her hands down further until she can feel her swollen body beneath her touch.

She fantasizes that her hands are instead Asher’s and he stands with her in the middle of the steamy shower, holding her in with one arm and using the other to stimulate her sexually. As she touches herself, she pictures him kissing at her wet skin, and rubbing his fingers between her soft folds, never wavering in pace and keeping the focus on her. If she closes her eyes tight enough, she can imagine his naked body before her, soaked and wet from the hot water.

She pictures his chiseled abs, perfectly shaped nipples and rippling chest
, pulling her in close. She imagines grabbing at his skin for release and feeling his muscles flex with every motion he makes. He pictures what he looks like from the waist down, certain that he will be well endowed and has lots to offer her with, in terms of pleasure. She can feel her body swell up at the thought of him penetrating her deep, filling her cavern in a way that she has yet to experience.

Just as Sadie is about to slip a finger inside of
herself, to take this fantasy to the next level, Chris bursts through the ensuite bathroom, headfirst towards the toilet. She can hear him grunting and heaving, sure that he has had far too much to drink tonight. He immediately snaps her back into reality, making her feel guilty for thinking of another man.

She finishes up in the shower, washing the scent of Asher off of her completely, before stepping out, grabbing a towel and walking over to her husband.

“Chris, are you okay?” Sadie steps over to him, watching him heave over the toilet, spilling the contents of his alcohol filled stomach into the bowl of water. “Do you need anything?”

He drunkenly waves her off, certainly embarrassed by his behavior and ashamed. He finally breaks from bouts of heaving, long enough to slur his words. “Just shut the door.”

She listens, gently latching the door behind him and hearing him heave once more. His entrance is quite the juxtaposition to Asher’s character this evening, making her yearn for him even more. She debates leaving again, knowing Chris would never remember it but finds herself devoted to him, despite not feeling the way she used to for the man she once loved.

She dries herself off, her stomach tied into knots and her head spinning, before slipping into bed.
When anticipating that shutting the lights off and getting into her familiar bed would bring her comfort, she is immediately disappointed when it does nothing but offer her the opposite. Sadie lies awake, completely, her heart longing for something more and knowing that it is only one decision away.

That’s the hardest part for her.

The sun rises, as Sadie lies wide awake in her marital bed, her heart still pounding and her nerves still bundled in her body. The moment she got home last night and changed out of the rain soaked clothes that smelled of him, showered and imagined him there, she knew she would have a hard time sleeping and that point was only emphasized by her having to listen to Chris heaving into the toilet all evening.

Even though she ran from the hold Asher had on her last night, she still doesn’t feel free. He pinpointed her emotions exactly and gave her the answers she needed, but
was too afraid to acknowledge.

“Sadie, can you get me some Tylenol?” Chris calls out from the bathroom during heaving sessions, interrupting her train of thought and immediately snapping her back into the reality that is her life.

“Sure,” she calls out as she slowly emerges from the bedroom, slowly rolling out of bed and when she gets to her feet, feeling like she is going to faint. The lingering effect of Asher’s kiss on her, paired with the taste of him still on her lips makes her entire body tremble.

After collecting herself, she walks over to the bathroom, opening the door and revealing the revolting smell that is Chris. The bathroom reeks of vomit, liquor and sweat, all the more reason Sadie needs to find herself growing more and more distant from him. She steps over him, still hugging the porcelain bowl as she reaches for the medicine cabinet, fetching the bottle of painkillers.

“You couldn’t get up to get the pills yourself?” she teases to him, not feeling an ounce of pity for the man.

“Don’t,” he says as he heaves again. “Don’t make fun of me.”

As Chris lowers himself off of the toilet, breaking from his bouts of spewing bile, Sadie studies his appearance more. He adorns the same clothing he wore out last night, too drunk in his stupor to remove them this morning. They are drenched in sweat and even partially covered in vomit. Despite being a responsible adult, Sadie knows that he needs the help and is far too much of a mess to do it on his own.

“Here, let’s get you out of these clothes and into the shower. It will do you some good,” she rubs his back as he lies on the floor and he agrees, nodding his head slightly but enough for Sadie to get permission.

She slides his sweat soaked shirt off of his body, revealing flushed and green skin beneath, with an even stronger scent of rotting alcohol. Sadie does her best to keep her nausea at bay, opting to turn on the bathroom fan to help the air circulate.

Next, she undoes Chris’ belt buckle, sliding the jeans off of him, followed by his socks and finally his underwear. Just as she slides the elastic down his body and off of his groin, her jaw drops.

“Chris. What the fuck is that?” she points with her finger, it trembling all of the way.

“What?” Chris looks up at her and then at her finger, pointing towards his groin.

He is slow to look down, fearing the worst and sure enough, the worst is waiting for him. As his gaze is set upon his flaccid body, he realizes there is a condom still resting on his body, filled with his own ejaculate that he forgot to remove.

“Fuck,” he curses to himself, quickly ripping the condom off of his body and throwing it into the garbage next to the toilet.

“Are you kidding me, Chris?” Sadie can feel her body begin to shake uncontrollably with anger, to the point where she feels like she might be sick herself. She can feel her fingers coil around the circumference of the pill bottle she has in her right hand, as her body glows with a color of crimson red.

“I can explain, Sade. Just let me explain.”

Instead of lashing out like she knows she wants to, she instead, opts for throwing the pill bottle in Chris’ vile face, causing the cap to break off the moment it makes contact with his skull, resulting in a plethora of tiny white pills spilling all over the floor.

“Sade,”
Chris stands to his naked feet, doing his best to plead to his wife. “I had no idea. You have to understand. I was just so drunk.”

Blood boiling, Sadie swallows a big puff of air in preparation to unleash on him, just as her cell phone begins to ring on the bedside table. As a mother, she knows instinctively that it is her daughter ready to be picked up and she comes first. She turns sharply and nearly runs to her phone, picking it up immediately, doing her best to extinguish her escalating emotions.

“Hello.”

Chris comes up behind her and places his hands on her shoulders.

She turns sharply, clutching the phone to her chest to prevent Ling from hearing another word. “Don’t you dare fucking touch me.”

The look of pure evil brewing in her body is enough for Chris, who backs off immediately and sits on the edge of the bed, waiting for her to finish the call, his head falling between his legs in defeat.

“Hey mom, it’s me,” Ling speaks on the other end of the call. “I’m ready to come home now.”

Sadie does her best to swallow her tears and to refrain from having her voice tremble on the other line. She can’t show weakness now. Not in front of Ling.
Never in front of her.

“I’ll be right there, baby. See you soon.”

She silences the call immediately, not waiting for Ling to say another word before collecting herself.

“Can we just talk about this?” Chris pleads as he rises from the bed, this time refraining from touching her.

“Talk about what?” Sadie is quick to shut him up with her words that act more like daggers in this moment.

As she stares down at her pathetic excuse for a husband, she can’t contain her emotions anymore. All at once, the severity of Chris’ actions mated with the sensation she had when Asher kissed her is all too much to bear. She breaks down, hard, sobbing uncontrollably as she gathers her belongings to head out of the door.

“Where are you going?” Chris is quick to stand to his feet the moment he can feel his wife slipping from his fingertips further.

“
It’s Ling,” Sadie replies, abstaining from acknowledging him too much, in fear she might lose control. “I have to go pick her up and I want you gone by the time she comes home.”

“Forever?” Chris asks the question, nearly in tears, the asperity of his actions finally catching up to him.

Sadie paralyzes with the question, comprehending the moment for what it actually pertains. Now is her chance to get out. Now is her moment to reveal the truth to Chris about how much it pains her to be with him and how the love is gone. Now is her chance.

She turns around to face him, her stomach in her throat and in her feet simultaneously. She stares at the man she once loved, who is now wiping rivers of tears away from his face, but still standing his ground for her. Her thoughts are conflicted, her heart even more so but she just can’t bear to say the words yet.

Instead, she turns from him and heads down the stairs, car keys in hand and beelines it for the garage before Chris can even move another muscle. He stands frozen in time, his head spinning and his heart throbbing in his chest.

Without warning, the landline to the home starts
ringing full blast, causing Chris to nearly topple over due to the sheer volume of it puncturing his headache further.

He picks it up after two rings. “Hello?”

“Hello, Mr. Cooper?”

Chris rubs at his temples, trying to ease away the aching pain. “Yes, this is he.”

“Hello, this is William Ross from the Opera House. How are you?”

“Fine, thanks and yourself?” Feeling an overpowering sense of nausea come over him, Chris sits back down on the bed, trying to collect himself for the duration of the phone call.

“We are in a bit of a jam and I’m hoping your little Ling can come to our rescue?”

Chris falls silent on the other line, unable to say another word.

William continues. “One of our performer’s for our Sunday Showcase has fallen ill and will be unable to perform this evening. We were wondering if your daughter would be interested and would have your permission to fill her place?”

“I don’t know if now is the time,” Chris begins, unsure about what his family’s future holds, let alone what is going to happen this evening.

William falls silent on the other line and it is evident that this was his last resort.

Chris picks up on the disappointment and sits on the bed to act as his crutch, continuing to rub his temples in hopes that it will help to distress him. “Well, let me see what we can do.”

“That would be lovely,” William perks up on the other end. “And, if it’s any consolation, she will be compensated very well.”

Chris’s eyebrows rise as he is intrigued by the phone call and the money incentive to bring his family together for both the experience for Ling and the financial help. He hangs up the phone and remains on the bed momentarily, trying to pull it together to face the day ahead of him when a call comes through on his cell phone.

He fetches it from his jean’s pocket, which is nestled on the bathroom floor, and picks it up immediately, not glancing at the caller ID.

“Hello? What do you have for me?”

The voice on the other line speaks and Chris’ expression falls briefly, which then turns to a look of utter malice and sin. The person continues to speak, as Chris couldn’t be more pleased, walking into the bedroom with a newfound sense of assurance.

“Perfect. Just perfect,” he hangs up the phone and laughs a villainous laugh. “Oh Sadie,
not so innocent after all, now are we?”