“Because you want to look pretty for Uncle John, don’t you?”
“Since when is John my uncle?” she questioned.
Mama sighed and looked a bit angry. “Since now, Rose. Listen to me and listen good. If you want to stay here and have a roof over your head, you’ll be nice to Uncle John and do whatever he wants you to do, understand?”
“No, Mama, I don’t,” Rose whined.
John—her mother’s current boyfriend and their landlord—came over regularly and played a mean hand of gin rummy, but what did he want with her? All she wanted to do was watch some TV and relax on the couch. Besides, she had homework to finish.
“It’s simple. You’re not a little girl anymore. You’re a big eleven-year-old young lady. John needs a favour and in return, he’ll let us stay here another month.”
Rose squirmed a bit more as Melinda applied a rosy blush to her cheeks.
“Now, Rose,” Melinda began, looking directly into her eyes. “I know this might be a little weird for you, but just go along with it, okay? It’ll be just a one-time gig. I promise. I know you don’t like this but Uncle John won’t hurt you. I’ve got a line on a job, a real job this time. Waitressing at the diner down the road. With tips, I should be able to pay the rent without a hitch. Till then, you don’t mind helping out, do you?”
Rose shook her head and said, “No, Mama. I don’t mind. I’ll be nice to Uncle John. But what does he want me to do?”
Mama looked so sad, Rose would have done anything to make her smile again. Besides, what did a bit of make-up matter if it meant that they didn’t have to move again? Rose liked her school and was just beginning to make friends there.
“He’s meeting with his parole officer, honey. He needs you to tell the guy that Uncle John’s nice to us and even babysits you sometimes. That’s all. I know it’s a bit of a lie, but he
has
been nice to us, hasn’t he?”
Rose thought a minute and had to agree with her mother. Once he had even helped her with her math homework while waiting for Melinda to get ready for a date.
“But why do I have to put make-up on? I hate that stuff on my face.”
“You’re just looking a little pale still after that last bout of flu. Besides, you’re a big girl now and you need to learn how to accentuate your looks.”
Rose shook herself, forcing her mind back to the present. Glancing down, she realised she had been dusting the only picture she had of her mother. Really, Melinda Hester had been a lovely woman, but there was a hardness about her mouth that Rose hadn’t noticed before. Nothing would ever change the love Rose felt for her mother, but time and maturity had a way of fading the rose-coloured glasses of youth.
“Oh, Mama,” Rose whispered. “I know you didn’t have it easy, but why did you have to make it so hard for me?”
* * * *
Rose hummed along to a Lorenna McKennitt song while she prepared dinner. She wasn’t a creative cook, but she could certainly whip together a simple pasta primavera with garlic bread for the side. Nathan had said that he’d be by around seven and that he planned to spend the entire weekend with her. Rose was beside herself with excitement. After scrubbing her entire house, she’d laundered all the bed linen, replaced the towels in the bathroom, stocked up on his favourite beer and treated herself to a manicure and waxing. Running a hand up her smooth thigh, Rose smiled, thinking about Nathan’s hands on her. God, she loved his hands, so strong and slightly calloused. Nathan wasn’t afraid of hard work and knew how to repair a clogged drain or change a flat tyre. He also knew just where to touch her to turn her into a puddle of mush. Truth be told, he didn’t even have to touch her—he could just look at her with his dark eyes and she melted.
“You gonna let me in or just daydream?” a deep voice interrupted her thoughts.
“Shit!” Rose yelped, putting a hand up to her rapidly beating heart. “Nathan! I didn’t hear you knock.”
Quickly, Rose unlatched the back screen door.
“Besides, if you hadn’t insisted on installing this hook latch, you could have walked right in,” she scolded.
“Yeah. Me and every other pervert,” he answered, grabbing her for a strong hug.
“So, you admit you’re a pervert, do you?” She laughed.
“You bet I do,” he responded, nuzzling her neck and sniffing loudly. “Is that garlic I smell?”
Rose gave an exasperated sigh. “So I guess the old saying is true…the way to a man’s heart really is through his stomach.”
“Hey, give me break. I had a peanut butter sandwich at eleven-thirty this morning. I’m famished,” he explained, releasing his hold on her to peek into the oven.
Rose slapped his hand playfully and scolded, “Go wash up and you can open the wine while I finish dinner.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he answered, grinning.
Rose watched, enjoying the view of his jeans-clad ass. Good Lord, the man had an ass to die for! Quickly, Rose shut and locked the back door, closed the curtains and set the table. Nathan hadn’t said he wanted a play event tonight, but just in case he did, Rose didn’t want to give the neighbours a show. Rose felt a familiar tingle in her intimate areas just thinking about Nathan. Nothing, absolutely nothing, excited her as much as kneeling before him and welcoming him home. Hell, her panties were already wet just from her thinking about it!
Nathan came back from the bathroom and opened the wine while Rose plated their dinner. Rose realised that her hunger for food had ebbed. However, looking at the sexy creature across from her activated a hunger of a different sort.
“Rose, I gotta say,” Nathan muttered in between bites of pasta, “my mama would be proud of you. You’re getting this whole al dente pasta down pat.”
“Thanks. That’s a huge compliment coming from a real St. Louis Italian,” she answered. Could a man be any sexier than when he was eating food cooked by the woman who loved him? Rose didn’t think so.
Nathan looked up, catching her eye. She saw his eyes darken and knew now that his stomach had been appeased, his thoughts had turned to other appetites.
“You’re beautiful,” he simply stated.
Rose was stunned. She didn’t know how to react. He’d said such things to her before, but always during moments of passion. She’d never seen herself as beautiful and to hear him say the words so bluntly confused her. Her hair was too fuzzy and too red. Her body was a bit too round to be fashionable and, standing at barely five feet three, she realised she’d never compare to the statuesque beauties commonly found in men’s magazines.
Nathan smiled. “You look like I just told you some fairy tale and expected you to believe it.”
“You have,” she answered.
Nathan’s smile vanished. “No, Rose. I haven’t.” He stood and walked around the table to hold her hand. “Come with me.”
Rose nodded and complied, mesmerised by his gorgeous, commanding eyes. Meekly, she followed him into her bedroom. He placed her before the full-length mirror, forcing her to look at herself. He stood behind her and slowly lifted her dress, exposing her body to the glass. Gently, he removed her bra and panties. Rose turned her head, trying to hide from her own reflection.
“No, baby. I want you to look at yourself,” he said, placing his hands on her cheeks and forcing her to face the mirror. “Look at your legs, see how long and strong they are? See how they flare into your hips, the perfect Y where your thighs meet your sex? The softness of your belly is enough to make a man drool.”
He splayed his hands over her lower abdomen and she moaned softly and leaned against his chest. He cupped her breasts, rubbing his thumbs over her nipples.
“You see these? These perfect breasts? Firm, round, soft. My God, Rose. I could suckle them the rest of my life and die a happy man,” he murmured.
He kissed her neck and dropped his head slightly, nibbling her shoulders. Rose tipped her head just a bit and lifted her hand to touch his cheek. Did he truly think all that of her? She saw only a mediocre body and a desperate need in dark green eyes.
“You, my dear, may never see what I do, but don’t insult my taste by denying the beauty of what I see. If I say you are beautiful, then know that you are,” he assured her.
Swiftly, he bent down and lifted her. He carried her to the bed and gently placed her on it. Keeping his eyes focused on hers, he undressed. Rose widened her eyes. Of course she had seen him naked before, but the vision of his biceps and his muscular, hairy chest never ceased to enthrall her. If Michelangelo had seen Nathan, surely he would have sculpted this body in marble.
Reaching for him, Rose ran her hand up his chest, entwining her fingers in his soft hair.
“Nathan. You are magnificent,” she whispered, leaning forward to kiss his chest.
She felt the bed shift under his weight as she wantonly ran her tongue along his skin. When she encountered a hard nipple, she moaned with delight and sucked, her hands continuing their exploration of his stomach. He pushed his weight against her, forcing her to lie down.
“God, Rose. Do you know what you do to me? Are you trying to drive me crazy?” he asked.
“No and yes,” she answered between kisses. “I don’t care. All I care about is you. I want you, Nathan, I want to taste every inch of you. I want the smell of you on my skin. I want you to take your pleasure of me so that I can find my own.”
Nathan needed no other encouragement. He captured her mouth with his and pushed his tongue inside her mouth as he pushed his rod into her wet, warm tunnel. The woman was always ready for him, always. That knowledge alone made him hard. But Jesus, if he didn’t gain some control he’d lose his seed before he’d ever pleasured her and that was simply not acceptable.
“Nathan, I need you,” Rose gasped. She clenched her muscles around him, drawing him further into her own body.
“Girl, if you don’t slow down, I’m going to come too soon. You’re makin’ me lose control,” Nathan ground out.
“I don’t want you to have control. I want control and I want you to come. That alone will give me pleasure,” Rose commanded.
She sucked her finger. Nathan abandoned her lips and focused on her neck, biting down while he thrust into her.
Rose had thrust her finger up his asshole, massaging his prostate and stimulating him beyond belief.
“Jesus Christ!” he shouted, fighting a losing battle for control.
“Come for me,” she demanded. “Fill me.”
Nathan lost all semblance of control. He threw his head back and growled, his seed shooting into her warm, welcoming body. Somewhere, deep in the back of his mind, he realised that he had not yet put on a condom, but he couldn’t stop himself. She felt so damned good…all hot and wet and his. Besides, Rose was on birth control pills and they had both been tested just to be sure, so he knew they were both clean. Her finger slowly slipped out of his ass and he clenched his cheeks. She kissed his neck and wiggled beneath him as the wave of joy began to ebb. Slowly, he became aware of the slight body beneath him and he shifted his weight so as not to crush her.
“My God, Rose. You are the perfect woman for me,” he said, kissing her face.
“Not yet, but I will be,” she responded, pushing him onto his back.
He lay still, amazed as she kissed her way down his chest. Gasping, he felt her lips sucking gently. She carefully licked and kissed his shaft to her satisfaction and then lay with her head resting on his stomach, her hand wrapped around his depleted cock. He kept his hand entwined in her soft red hair, his mind completely blank and his body hers. His breathing eventually returned to normal and he realised that Rose had stopped moving.
“You awake, little one?” he asked quietly.
When she didn’t answer, Nathan sat up, careful not to disturb her too much. He shifted her so that her head was cradled against his chest. He sniffed her hair, enjoying its scent.
“My own little Rose,” he whispered. “One day, you’ll understand just what you mean to me. What a beautiful person you are. But for now, rest and know that I will always protect you.”
He gently kissed her head and settled himself to sleep as well. Tomorrow was soon enough to discuss plans. For now, he would enjoy the warmth and feel of her body.
* * * *
Nathan awoke the next morning and rolled over to reach for Rose. He opened his eyes when he encountered only a cold pillow.
“What the hell?” he mumbled.
He laid in bed for a moment longer. Hearing clattering in the kitchen, he glanced at the clock and groaned. What the fuck was that woman doing in the kitchen at six-thirty on a Saturday morning? Nathan briefly debated the merits of staying in bed over rousing himself, until the alluring scent of coffee reached his nostrils. Following his nose, he rose and wandered into the kitchen.
“Morning, sweetheart! Sleep well?” Rose asked, standing on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on his cheek.
“You seem awfully cheerful this morning,” he commented before grasping her hair and pulling her head back for a full-on, rock-your-socks-off kiss.
“Well,” she stammered when he released her, “if I could wake up to a kiss like that every morning, no wonder I’m cheerful. Here, why don’t you sit while I get you a cup of coffee?”