Gift of the Black Virgin (10 page)

“Remember on our last day together in Martel?
When you took me outside and fucked me until I said I’d do anything
you want?”

He nodded, eyes closed and hips thrusting
upwards to meet her movement.

“That was the first time in my life I knew
what it felt like to want a baby.”

Abruptly, he stopped moving and his eyes shot
open.

“What do you mean?”

“It should be pretty clear what I mean,
silly. I never really thought I’d want kids, but something about
you—the way I felt when you made love to me—made me feel that I was
ready to go all the way.”

“All the way?” he asked, a truly perplexed
look on his face. They’d both stopped moving now.

“Yes. If you consider conceiving and
delivering a child the full extension of the sex act. For women, I
mean.” She laughed. “You guys can just wander off and knock up
other smitten females left and right. But I realized I wanted
something more from you. I wanted us to mingle and merge and
produce a tangible result of our love. A love child, in the truest
sense of the word.”

She began to swivel her hips again, rubbing
her slick labia over the engorged head of his cock.

“You’re very articulate for someone who’s
about to get herself fucked silly,” he said between pants.

“I want your child, Luc. Nothing in my life
has had any meaning until now. This desire you’ve awoken in me.
It’s like I’ve become someone else. More mature, somehow.”

She bent her head and kissed him deeply.
“Does that make sense?”

“If you want a baby we have to do it like
this,” he said with a growl in his voice. He lifted his cock with
one hand and guided it into her. She sat down hard, ramming it
deeply up into her expectant body.

“Ah—I know, love.” She began to rotate her
hips gain, but more slowly. “I know.”

Being on top gave her most of the control,
and Jo thought briefly about the money issues they’d just
discussed. She didn’t want Luc to feel he was in a position of
lesser power. But here she was on top, calling the shots. And, she
had to admit, it felt pretty damned good.

For a moment she wondered if she should roll
off and let Luc take charge.

But it feels so-o-o good…

Then he grabbed her buttocks in his big hands
and lifted her, dropped her, and lifted her again. He was so strong
that his movements were fluid and easy. It didn’t seem like he was
suffering from lack of power. She heard his breathing grow louder,
more ragged, just like her own.

“You like it up there?” he asked, staring
directly into her eyes.

“You know I do,” answered, a little anxiety
overshadowing her pleasure.

“So do I, Joanna.” And with that he lifted
her effortlessly until she was almost clear of his cock, hesitated
a moment, then rammed her back down onto him so hard that she cried
out in surprise. Then he did it again.

It didn’t hurt, but taking control away from
her changed the way her body responded to him. Every time he
dropped her she felt herself opening up, expanding inside, her
pelvis widening and softening. He lifted her, then dropped her.
Rhythmically, over and over.

Her vaginal muscles seemed to go numb, the
pleasure center having moved somewhere higher up inside her, just
at the edge of his reach. With every thrust she tried to open
herself even wider, so he could touch that spot with the tip of his
cock. If she could only let him in a little more he would be able
to touch it, and she would shatter into a million fragments of
ecstasy.

Time, space, hurt feelings—even love—ceased
to exist for Jo as she strained to let Luc in further, deeper,
higher. It was almost like climbing an unreachable peak, the
forward movements almost imperceptible, they were so small. But he
was getting closer, and closer, with every thrust, until, finally,
she reached a plateau where her pleasure stopped its upward
movement and began to spread sideways.

Her orgasm was a full body experience,
originating from her expanding central core and radiating outwards
to tingle the tips of her fingers and toes and the top of her head.
She saw galaxies of stars behind her tightly-closed eyes, faintly
aware that her throat hurt from screaming hoarsely.

Vaguely, she sensed Luc bucking and moaning
beneath her, filling her with his seed. Then he released her hips
and she collapsed onto his chest as if she didn’t have a bone in
her body.

Their breathing slowed, their wits returned,
and Luc said softly into her ear. “And that, I believe, is how you
make a baby.”

She nodded against his neck, too overwhelmed
with emotion to speak.

“But that was just a trial run. When do you
want to start the real work?”

She raised her head and looked into his eyes.
He was serious. “I’m ready when you are,” she said softly.

“Me, too.”

“I’ll stop the pills tomorrow,” she said.
“I’m guessing it’ll probably take awhile because I’ve been using
them for so long. But I don’t really know.”

“No matter. Whatever happens, happens,” he
said, kissing her forehead. “Now let’s go eat that bird. I’m
starving.”

Chapter Seven

The week of the wedding flew by so quickly
that Jo could scarcely believe she was Mrs. Lucian LaPlante when
she woke up the morning after the ceremony in a beautiful hotel
room overlooking the Blue Mediterranean. Luc had been lucky enough
to get a room in a perfect location in the little town of Vernazza
in Italy’s
Cinque Terre
. It was only going to be a three-day
honeymoon, but she didn’t mind.

She held up her left hand and admired her new
wedding ring. The plain band went perfectly with her engagement
ring. Simple, elegant, and
hers.
Now she was Mrs. Lucien
LaPlante, something she would never have dreamed possible six
months ago. She remembered how privileged she’d felt when she first
learned that Luc wanted her as much as she wanted him. That was
back in Rocamadour, where night after night they’d made eyes at
each other over the crowded dining table until she almost went mad
from frustration.

Stretching her body in the big bed, she
reveled in the pull of her well-rested muscles. After the chaos of
the ceremony and the reception the day before, both she and Luc had
been too tired to make love. Tonight they would make up for it, she
knew.

Everything had gone smoothly. Her mother had
arrived a few days earlier, with Julie and her family. There was
plenty of room in the upstairs bedrooms to house them so Jo had
lots of help arranging the furniture, the flowers, and preparing
for the caterers. She was right about Luc sweeping her mother off
her feet. Sharon Clifford had simpered and giggled and flirted like
a girl with her new son-in-law. Jo and Julie enjoyed watching their
mother come out of her shell.

And then there was Julie. Julie knew that Luc
was attractive—she’d seen the photos—but Jo hadn’t expected her
sister to blush the way she did when she introduced him. It seemed
all three Clifford women liked the same type. And Luc absolutely
loved all the attention.

But perhaps the biggest surprise on Jo’s
wedding day had to do with Brenda.

Brenda called the night before the wedding to
tell Jo that she and her date had arrived at their hotel.
Considering how far they’d travelled, Jo invited them to the casual
family dinner she and Luc had prepared at the house.

Although Jo grew nervous while she waited for
her friend to show up, as soon as she saw her she relaxed. Brenda
looked wonderful. And at her side was Celeste, one of the
magazine’s freelance contributors. Jo knew Celeste only slightly,
and certainly hadn’t known she was gay. But here she was, holding
onto Brenda’s arm, beaming at everyone, thrilled to be in
France.

Jo hugged them both in welcome, really happy
to see Brenda looking so much better than the last time she’d seen
her. She was animated and happy, her old self, really. After the
meal was cleared away she managed to get Jo alone on the patio.

“Nice place you’ve got here,” Brenda said,
looking around the property. It did look pretty, Jo thought. She
and Daniel had tied white gauze bows on all the low-hanging tree
branches and Luc had wrapped white fairy lights around the
balustrade. The light from several hundred tiny bulbs was just
beginning to glow as the sun sank into the blue and gold sea.

Jo looked at Brenda warily but couldn’t see
any sign of the usual sharpness in her face. She took a sip of her
champagne. “Thank you. I’m very lucky.”

“So what d’you think, Joey? Isn’t she
lovely?” Brenda asked, changing the subject.

“Of course. But when did it happen?”

“Only a few weeks ago. She came by the office
to discuss some problems she was having with a piece, then asked if
I wanted to go for a drink.

“One drink led to another, and you know…Soon
it was the bare knuckle round and I confessed my thing with you.
Then she confessed she’d always had a thing for me, but didn’t
think I’d be interested. Too shy, you know?”

Jo nodded enthusiastically. “Then?”

“You don’t get to hear all the gory details,
sweetie. Just that it was great and we’re happy together, and I’m
sorry for being such a jerk.”

Jo hugged her friend, “I’m so glad you’re
here, Bren. And I’m so, so happy that you’re happy. I just couldn’t
do it for you. You know that, don’t you?”

“Yeah,” Brenda said, hugging Jo hard,
spilling the contents of her glass. “It’s time for both of us to
move on.” She pushed Jo away a little so she could look at her
face. “So you’re going to marry the hunk.”

“I am.”

“And it’s really what you want?”

“More than anything.”

“Then I wish you the very best, Jo. I mean
it.”

“Thanks, Bren. I know you do.”

“And you know that video I threatened you
with?”

Jo nodded.

“It’s gone. Erased. You don’t have to worry
about it.”

Jo laughed. “That’s too bad! Luc was really
looking forward to seeing it.”

“You told him?”

“Of course.”

“And he was okay with it.”

“He was.”

“Fucking
men
!” Brenda said, smiling as
the two friends walked back into the noisy room arm-in-arm.

Luc gave Jo her Christmas present when they
got back from their mini-honeymoon in Italy. Excited, she unwrapped
the square flat parcel to find a small painting of the Black
Virgin. Jo smiled as she looked into the figure’s knowing black
eyes, feeling a tingle of communion. As long as she loved Luc she
was going to be a member of the Virgin’s Cult.

“Luc! Where did you find this? It’s
lovely!”

“In Nice. Down at the flea market by the
marina. I think I was lucky. It’s probably not very old, but its a
good copy, isn’t it?”

“It is,” she said, inspecting the back.
“Thank you. I love it!” She guessed it was at least a hundred years
old. “I’m going to hang it above our bed, okay? Maybe it will make
me fruitful so we can multiply,” she said with a laugh.

Things settled down after the excitement of
the wedding. The winter weather was mild, and Luc continued to ride
his motorcycle into town so Jo could use the SUV to look at
properties. She’d found a real estate agent who wasn’t too
annoying, and once or twice a week he’d come up with another
listing for her to view.

Daniel spent weekends with his father and new
step-mother, and Jo found that she looked forward to his visits. He
proved to be a patient language teacher, and Jo was certain her
French was improving bit by bit. Daniel was also quite useful at
the farmers’ market and in the grocery store, able to advise Jo on
many of the finer points of shopping for French food. For a kid, he
was surprisingly opinionated about wine.

Even the dogs seemed to be relaxing a little.
Instead of trying to rip out each other’s throats, they now seemed
content to just bark, growl and strut circles around each other
whenever they happened to meet.

Everything was finally working out the way it
should, Jo thought. She was adapting. And she’d even stopped
feeling like their rental home was possessed by spirits. Or, if it
was, she now knew they were not malevolent ones.

She’d stopped her oral contraceptives and the
time was ripe for her and Luc to conceive their first child. All
she had to do was let Luc do his thing. Then eventually something
would stick, and she’d take over from there.

Ah yes. Life is good.

In mid January a cold snap threatened to
lower temperatures below the freezing point. Jo didn’t want Luc
tearing up icy roads on his bike, so she stayed home with Sammy
during the week and Luc took the car.

But then her realtor called, excited about a
new listing. It was perfect, he said. If they liked it, they needed
to get in there and make an offer before it was listed. He
scheduled her a viewing for the next day.

A slight frost had dusted the roads
overnight, but Luc insisted he would be fine on the bike. He’d take
it slow, he promised, kissing Jo goodbye early that morning. She
didn’t have a good feeling about sending him off like that. Not
only was it cold, a strong wind had sprung up.

But as soon as he was gone, her mind turned
to the photocopied property listing in her hand.

It was a twenty hectare piece of land, with a
four bedroom family home built sometime in the nineteen seventies.
It had a good view, an established walnut orchard, and several
outbuildings. Professionally landscaped. Lots of upgrades. It
looked perfect.

The realtor was already at the front door of
the house when she drove up an hour later. He let her inside and
she explored every room, taking pictures with her smart phone all
along the way. She was impressed with the house, but wasn’t sure
about the land. Luc would need to take a look at it right away. She
called him.