Her Anchor (137 page)

“Very well. Why don’t we start with why you left so suddenly?”

“I thought we were here to talk about Luca.”

“Luca.” He said, letting the name play on his tongue. “Like my middle name. Like my dad’s name.”

She shrugged. “It’s a nice name.”

“So he’s, what? Ten?”

“Almost. His birthday is next month.”

“Shit.” He said, raking is hand through his hair. “I’ve missed so much of his life. I should have tried harder to track you down after you left. I guess I always thought you would come back after things died down here.”

“I had no intention of facing everyone again. When I left I left for good.”

“You never thought that I would like to meet him? That he would like to meet me?”

“No. I didn’t want him to share the guilt I have over how he came to be. He’s a happy kid. A good kid. I want him to hold his head high and be proud of who he is.”

“So you hate me?”

She played with the hem of her dress and admitted what she never intended to. “No. I’ve tried to hate you, Mark, but I don’t. I hate what we did, but not you.”

“I don’t hate what we did. It may not have been right, but the time we shared together was genuine. At the time it was the only thing that felt real in my life and I would never take it back.”

“It felt real to me too, but I just can’t believe that something started on such a dishonorable premise could work.”

“I’m not the kind of guy who minces words, Brandy. I still want you and I think this can work if only you gave us another shot.”

Brandy stood and paced the room, coming to stand in front of a window looking into the darkened backyard. She needed time to figure out what she wanted. What Mark was talking about was something she had never considered. Ten years ago she would have been elated to hear that he wanted to make a real go of their relationship, but so much time had passed that she didn’t know anymore. Her mother’s words rang out in her head. Listen to her voice inside. Don’t let anger affect her judgement. She was trying hard to listen to what her heart was saying, but her thoughts were too jumbled to make any sense out of it.

In the reflection of the glass she saw Mark approach her. He stood behind her, not close enough to touch her, but enough that she could feel the heat of his body.

“I don’t have all the answers. All I know is when I close my eyes at night all I can think about is you. You’re in my head all the time. After all this time that has to mean something. When I saw you walk into the restaurant the other night I had to keep myself from rushing to you. And I know you think it was all about sex, but it wasn’t. It was the fact that I felt free enough with you to act like myself when I had to put on an act around everybody else.

It’s the way you hooked me the moment I met you. You had such a light, vibrant personality. I tried to be strong but I couldn’t help falling for you. I love you.” Mark’s fingers started a slow trail up her arms, tingling the sensitive skin there. She shivered against his touch. Against his words. “And now you came back. And I have a son. We have a child together, a connection to each other that can never be broken.”

Mark’s body shifted closer, his chest brushing against her back. Brandy tried to fight for her strength, but the feel of him so close to her, his scent triggering dozens of memories that she kept hidden away, her resolve crumbled. Her heart began to pound in her ears. It was so loud she was sure he could hear it too. She was terrified, afraid that her body would reveal the truth that she couldn’t admit out loud.

Mark’s breath was on the back of her neck, sending tingles down her spine. His lips brushed over the exposed skin between her neck and shoulder, her body firing at the sensation. As his teeth grazed the spot, Brandy moved back into him. His arms encircled her, pulling her closer to him. She could feel her ass nestling into his growing erection, her body responded in kind and she could feel the wetness pooling between her legs.

His hands found their way to her hips and he turned her around to him. “I need to see you.” He breathed.

Brandy reached a hesitant hand to his cheek, feeling the rasp of his stubble. She brought her face closer to his and his lips began to caress her own, delicate, tender. As much as she wanted to deny the truth in what she was feeling, his arms felt too good wrapped around her that she was quickly losing the strength to deny him anymore. She ran her hands up and threaded her fingers through his hair, deepening the connection and committing to memory the way he tasted, the way he felt under her hands.

And then he broke their kiss and stared down at her. She could see his chest rising and falling, could hear his labored breathing. He was hesitating, holding back, and she knew it had everything to do with her reservations. Mark Hudson may have been a lot of things, but he had never taken advantage of her. What happened from here was all up to her.

She gathered her breath and laid her head against the strong beating of his heart. “Make love to me, Mark. I want to feel what it’s like being loved by you, and not just be the other woman.”

His hand came under her chin and tilted her head back. His lips pressed to hers, soft, supple. His hands slid down her body and under her ass, lifting her to his waist. Brandy wrapped her legs around him, linking her arms behind his neck. As he turned and carried them down the hall, she leaned forward and rested her forehead on his. Her eyes never left his as he turned into his room and gently laid her onto the bed.

Mark made quick work of removing his clothes before he crawled onto the bed, laying on his side next to her. The back of his hand caressed her cheek and down her neck. She shivered under his touch and he leaned in and kissed her lips as his hand continued its journey down her shoulder and to the curve of her breast. His knuckles brushed over one of the hardened peaks. Brandy inhaled a breath around his kisses, arching her back into his touch. The thin material of her dress did little to damper the feeling of his hands on her.

His right thigh covered her own and nudged her legs apart. It one swift move he angled his body above hers, breaking their kiss. His eyes drank in her body, his hands pushing the hem of her dress up. She raised her hips and let him pull her dress up her body and over her head. Brandy watched as Mark’s hands explored her nearly naked body, clad only in a scrap of ever-dampening silk panties, until they were on her breasts again. His head dipped and he captured one of her pert nipples between his lips. He swirled his tongue around the sensitive bud until she could no longer hold back a moan of pleasure, ripples radiating through her body and culminating at her core.

Her hands went to his hair, grasping at it and pressing her hips into his to staunch the ache that was radiating throughout her body. Or intensify it, she wasn’t sure anymore. All she knew was that his cock, which was gently bobbing against her slit with his every move, was driving her crazy. Her restless hands skimmed down his body, gabbing his firm ass. She sunk her fingers into his, urging him.

Mark seemed to understand her urgency and released her nipple with one final lap. His hand snaked between their bodies and pulled the piece of silk down her legs. Straightening until he was hovering above her, he rested on his forearms and brushed her hair back from her face.

“You’re beautiful.” He whispered, then slowly sank his thick length into her.

She moaned at the sensation of him stretching her. His mouth came down on hers, swallowing her sounds. He moved inside her slowly and she could feel every inch, every movement in miniscule detail. She brought her hands to his shoulders, holding onto him as his lips travelled down her neck, her shoulder.

Brandy raised her legs and crossed them at the small of his back, opening herself up wider to him. She met his purposeful rocking motions with a grind of her hips, friction sparking on her clit. She held onto him as the edges of her vision becoming distorted, the coil beginning to tighten. Turning her head to his, Brandy caught his bottom lip between her teeth and tugged on it before she sucked it between her lips.

Mark growled, his thrusts became more insistent. His hands gripped the mattress above them, gaining leverage, pumping into her with a powerful force. A sheen of sweat covered both of their bodies and the sound of their breathing echoed throughout the room. Brandy let her head fall back on the pillow, her eyes drifting closed.

“Look at me, Brandy.” Mark said, his voice thick with emotion. She raised her head and her eyes met his, connecting on a level she could barely understand. “I love you.” He whispered.

“I love you, Mark.” She said, ending on a moan as a torrent of ecstasy shot through her. She bit her lip and tossed her head back on the bed. Her orgasm rippled through her body in waves, tensing in pleasure.

From above her she could feel Mark tense. Her shuddering walls gripped and milked him through his release, the low rumble of his moan causing another wave of pleasure to wash over her.

He pulsed inside her until he had nothing left to give. Spent, Mark rolled onto his side and took her with him. His strong arms held her to his chest and she sidled into him, the thud of his heart matching her own.

They lay together relishing their mutual bliss, neither one ready to figure out the next step. Brandy’s thought were a jumbled mess. She wasn’t ashamed of what she had done. To the contrary she felt hopeful for what was to come. But she couldn’t base her life around words said in the heat of passion. She knew in her heart that telling Mark she loved him felt right, but she wasn’t willing to be played for a fool again.

Finally her own thoughts drove her to break their silence.

“This doesn’t mean you win, you know.”

“Sure it does. I think tonight just proved my point that we belong together.” He said, his voice gravelly and sexy.

“We may still have that old attraction, but I’m not a naive girl anymore. I need more that lust to jump into a relationship.” She said, trying her best to sound firm.

“I already know we have more than lust. I love you whether you believe me or not, but I’ll go along with you on this. You want to start slow, then slow it is. How about we start by letting me meet my son.”

“I think that’s doable. We can stop by tomorrow before we leave.”

“Leave? You’re not going anywhere. You’re finally back in my life, I’m not letting you go again.” As if to emphasize his point, Mark wrapped his arms tighter around her.

“I have to go back. I have an apartment, Luca has school on Monday.” She protested.

“There’s apartments here. Schools too.”

“And I have a job to go back to.”

“Then quit. You can come work for me.”

“I seem to recall that didn’t work out so well the first time.”

“I beg to differ.” He said, pulling her in close. “I think it worked out perfectly.”

THE END

Katelyn sat alone in her bedroom, her new iPhone 6 in her hand. She stared blankly at it, not quite sure how to handle what she had just read. She knew that she should be more surprised, but honestly she had noticed that this was coming from a mile away. Katelyn’s hands were completely steady though. She wasn’t shaking. She realized that she wasn’t even that upset, but her mind raced to all the different options.

Judging by the text she had just received from her husband Dale, which was obviously intended for someone by the name of Sarah, she now knew for certain that her husband of twenty years was cheating on her. So, there are a few things she could do about it. Surely he would find out soon that he had texted her by accident and he would either beg for forgiveness or play dumb. Katelyn needed to come up with a plan of action before he was able to dictate the situation.

She stood up from the edge of the bed and got ready for the day. Her two boys, Tucker and Jonah, were taken to school by their father. She knew that divorce was out of the question. They were still in their formative years and she didn’t want to throw a wrench into their delicate minds. This is something that she and Dale would figure out and come to terms with.

It wasn’t even a question of love anymore. When the twins were born most of the love was lost any way. They had been warned about it, but couldn’t get back on track before the damage was done. When you bring a life into the world it fully consumes you, and when you bring in two they work twice as fast. Katelyn and Dale lived on different cycles and passed like trains in the night for roughly a year. The damage was done.

As she picked out her outfit she tried to formulate how she was going to handle the cheating business. Sarah was obviously his secretary, they spent so much time together it made perfect sense. Not to mention she was in her twenties, had a tight body, perky tits, the whole package that a man in his mid-forties would be looking for. She wanted to get ahead in life as well, and there’s no faster way to do that than sleeping with your boss for some great references.

Katelyn had almost gone after a few flings in their twenty year marriage, but backed out at the last second because she was holding on to hope that Dale would find a way to pull her back into his life. She would need to find out how long this had been going on with the secretary, once she figured that out she would decide the severity of the punishment. She knew she wanted him to stop going to her, but he would find someone else if it wasn’t her. At least she knew that Sarah wasn’t a real threat. Sarah didn’t want a family, she wouldn’t try to break them apart.

However, it had been a long time for Katelyn since she had been with a man. That would definitely be a part of the punishment. She would need to get something out of it. Not to mention, all she had was time on her hands and an empty house, it wouldn’t be difficult. She pulled her shirt over her head and let the soft fabric hang loosely on her breasts. They had begun to sag with age, but Victoria’s Secret was also her secret. It kept them looking youthful. She then tugged on a pair of tight black leggings. She had Instagram, she knew the power of a good pair of leggings.

Pulling out her phone she dialed the number for her best friend and held the phone up to her ear. If there was anyone that could help her, it would be Meredith. She had made it to forty without getting married, or attached, to any man. That was exactly what Katelyn needed. The phone rang for a few moments, but after a ‘click’ a voice came through the phone.

“Katelyn, what’s up, babe?” Katelyn made her way through the main foyer and began to walk down the stairs.

“I’m thinking brunch at Domingo’s? They’re the ones that open their bar for brunch, right?” Meredith laughed over the phone and Katelyn heard a man’s voice groggily ask who it was.

“What’re we celebrating,” Meredith asked, but paused to tell the man to stop asking so many questions and continued. “Or is this sad drinking? I’m trying to cut back on my sad drinking. It always ends with me doing something I regret and the taste of Tequila on my tongue.”

“I remember, the last time you slept in our pool. We’re celebrating the beginning of my new life, Mere. And I could use your help with getting it started right.” Katelyn could hear Meredith cheer through the phone and the man again angrily groaning about her being too loud.

“Let me put on some pants and get this guy out of my house, I’ll meet you there in like a half hour.” Meredith hesitated again for a moment to tell the man he didn’t mind about her being loud the night before. “Bring Dale’s credit card, we’ll be needing it.” Katelyn laughed as she passed through the front door using the fob to unlock her matte black sports car. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a black credit card with his name on it.

“Way ahead of you.”

******

Katelyn sat on the outdoor patio and ordered herself the largest mimosa she could get. The waiter wasn’t exactly thrilled at the prospect of serving a drunk housewife all morning, but once she placed her husband’s credit card on the table he didn’t seem to have a problem making sure that she never had a glass that was too low. As she sat waiting, she scrolled through her phone waiting to see how long it would take before Dale would notice, but as usual he was oblivious to everything. Needless to say he had just walked the five steps out of his office to get Sarah’s attention.

Just as she was beginning to picture the two of them having sex Meredith showed up and slumped down into the seat opposite her. Her sunglasses hung low on her face and her face was tangled and disheveled. She was the opposite of what a person would view as “put together,” but that is exactly what Katelyn needed in her life. She and Meredith had grown close in college together but had gone their separate ways right after graduating. Katelyn had gotten married and had her two children, Meredith took a few years and traveled the world writing as a travel journalist for a few publications.

Meredith opened the menu and studied it closely for a few moments before saying anything. The waiter came over and saw the way Meredith was slumped into her seat examining the menu. He took a deep breath and loudly sighed. Meredith turned around and saw him looking downtrodden.

“Oh, I’m sorry, is my appearance not good enough for you?” The waiter began to mumble an apology but Meredith pulled a wad of money out her pocket and slammed it down onto the table. “Well, how does this look, punk?” Katelyn looked at the bills and saw that most of them were dollar bills. Meredith looked down at them as well and then back up at the waiter. “It probably doesn’t look great, but I’m not a stripper.” She slowly wades the money back up and puts it into her pocket. “Just get me a gin and tonic.”

The waiter nodded and wrote it down on his pad of paper. As he walked away Meredith looked over her shoulder to check him out. “You’ve gotta admit, he can get away with his poor attitude with a butt like that.” Katelyn and Meredith both laughed as the waiter walked away and after catching her breath Meredith continued. “So, what’re we doing?”

Katelyn took out her phone and opened up the conversation between herself and Dale and slid the phone across the table. Meredith read through it and saw the message. She shrugged and handed Katelyn the phone back across the table. Just at that moment the waiter came back and dropped off their drinks, so Meredith held hers aloft and started a cheers.

“Here’s to getting back at men for their shitty inability to work technology.” Both women took large swigs from their drinks and slammed them back down onto the table. “Let’s get to work.” Meredith pulled out a small black book from her purse and began to flip through the pages, clearly looking for something in particular. “Who was that guy that I introduced you to at my book signing?” Katelyn took her phone back off the table and started to scroll through her own contacts.

“Bill maybe? I can’t remember, I met a few people at that signing and it was so long ago.” The waiter came back with two glasses of water and Meredith reached out and caught the man’s hand. Katelyn looked up in horror as Meredith began to speak.

“Hey, what do you say you and my friend here meet up in the bathroom in fifteen minutes?” The waiter chuckled to himself nervously and looked over his shoulder at his boss who was watching him intently as he set down the waters. He pulled away from Meredith and just as Katelyn was about to protest he whispered under his breath.

“I’ll wait to see you go in, just make sure it’s clear and then you can give me some kind of signal.” The waiter then walked away quickly and began to defend himself against his irritated boss. They couldn’t make out what they were saying, but it seemed the boss wasn’t too excited about his young worker cozying up with the guests. Meredith laughed as she turned back towards Katelyn.

“Well, there you go. That’s one.” She reached forward and picked up her drink, sipping from it smugly. “I think you should get a different guy for every time he’s ever been with that homewrecker.” Katelyn raised her glass and they toasted again, laughing as they did so.

******

Katelyn finished her drink and excused herself from the table. Meredith caught her as she was leaving and slipped a condom into her back pocket. Before Katelyn could ask why she had it, Meredith made the motion that her lips were sealed. Katelyn laughed and made her way towards the restroom, avoiding the gaze of the manager as she walked by him. She exited the dining area and walked past the kitchen towards the bathroom where she saw the waiter absentmindedly cleaning a few glasses on an empty table.

The liquor hit her and in a moment of pure risk, she changed her path so that she was walking directly passed him. She grabbed his tie and pulled him in the direction of the bathroom to the enjoyment of the kitchen staff who began to hoot and holler as she kicked open the door. The waiter playfully resisted and cheered on the kitchen staff as they started to go crazy.

Katelyn quickly looked inside and saw that it was empty and pulled the young man in after her. She had to admit that she had gotten used to being married and had very nearly tuned out the presence of other men to the point that she had not taken a good long look at this waiter. However, now that she was about to be having this intimate moment, she wanted to know what she was working with.

It’s obvious why Meredith had thought this was a good choice. The young man was clearly either an aspiring actor or male model and was just working at this restaurant until he had his “big break.” He had a very popular hairstyle, slightly longer on the top with shaved sides of the head. He had brown hair and there appeared to be streaks of blonde or something similar that were not at all natural.

The waiter clearly knew how to show off what he was packing though because both his shirt and his pants were cut well, the shirt pulled slightly at his chest and biceps, not going to rip, but giving you the impression that if he wanted to, he could. His pants hugged his butt well, showing a slight bulge in the front without being too obnoxious about it. Katelyn pulled him into one of the stalls and locked the door behind them. She began to unbutton his shirt as he started to talk.

“So, can I ask your name or what’s your deal?” Katelyn shook her head as she took his shirt off revealing a tight six pack and a hairless chest. She let out a small moan and felt her panties get wet as she looked at him. It had been years since she had had sex with Dale, but she had seen him naked whether she liked it or not, his doughy body was covered in patches of greying body hair, but this man was like a Ken doll, although hopefully with a penis.

“No, no names. There’s no need for any of that. It’s been awhile since I’ve been fucked and that’s what I want.” The waiter shrugged and appeared to have no problem with that. In a blur of motion he had pulled off her shirt and tossed it over the stall wall. If there needed to be any indication that someone was using it, the shirt over the stall door would certainly do it. The waiter bent down and lifted Katelyn up, her legs wrapped around his waist and he pressed her up against the wall.

They began to make out, their lips locking and tongues flicking against one another. His hands cupped her ass and kneaded it as they passionately got sloppier with the kisses. Her own hands clawed at his back and reached up into his hair, messing up the once pristine combed over look. However, it didn’t seem to bother him as his fingers squeezed and spread her cheeks. She pulled away from the kiss as he did this and he began to kiss and nuzzle into her exposed neck.

After a few minutes of this, he placed her back on the ground and turned her so that she was facing the wall and he knelt behind her. He slowly pulled down her leggings, her ass falling a bit flatter as he did so. The waiter didn’t mind as he spread her cheeks apart and began to tongue her pussy. Katelyn was embarrassed at this point, realizing that she hadn’t been expecting company and that she hadn’t cleaned up, but the waiter didn’t mind, his tongue lashing at her and his nose pressing into her ass.