Tony: Alvarez Security Series (16 page)

She placed her small hand in his as he led her from the table down the hall. Moving into his bedroom, she barely noticed that it had the same blankness of the rest of the apartment. But then the only thing that was really on her mind was the large, king-sized bed. As he turned to face her, she felt her nipples tightened at the look on his face.

As though in response to her thoughts, he lifted one hand to a breast, kneading the mound and flicking the nipple through the material. Her hands moved to her blouse, wanting to remove the offending garment, but his hands pushed hers out of the way. Slowly he undid each button as his lips stayed locked onto hers. Kissing, nipping, licking…his mouth savored hers as he slid the blouse off of her shoulders and onto the floor. Keeping his hands behind her, they moved to her waist and unzipped her skirt letting it fall to the floor next to the blouse.

Lifting her in his strong arms, he lay her gently on the bed before leaning over her body with his. Her breasts, spilling over the tops of her bra, were quickly released by the flick of his fingers on her clasp. He pulled a rosy nipple into his mouth, sucking deeply, eliciting a moan from deep within her. She began to writhe on the bed as he slid one hand down into her barely-there panties finding her folds slick and ready.

Releasing her nipple with a pop, he moved back to her swollen lips, his tongue thrusting in rhythm to his fingers embedded in her pussy.

Her hands found the bottom of his t-shirt and she maneuvered it up toward his head. Desperate to feel his solid chest muscles against her naked breasts, she wrestled with the material.

Chuckling, he broke the kiss, sitting up on his knees as he jerked the shirt over his head. “In a hurry, darlin’?”

“Yes,” she panted, her hands already to the button on his jeans. Getting them unzipped over his impressive cock was proving equally difficult so he rolled over to quickly divest himself of them as well. Shucking his boxers, his dick was standing at attention as he turned his gaze back to the gorgeous woman lying in his bed.
His bed.
He realized that he had not had a woman in
his
bed since his wife had died. The few times he sought company to take care of his needs, he had followed the woman from the bar to her place. No ties. No recriminations. Just two people who knew the score.

“Where’d you go?” Sherrie whispered, wondering at the expression on his face.

“Nowhere important, baby,” he assured. “Just realizing how lucky I am that you’re here.”

Determined to make love to her, he moved slowly, licking and sucking from her lips to her neck to her breasts once again. His fingers found their refuge deep inside as she felt herself climbing higher and higher.

The taste of her was intoxicating as the kiss went deeper. She tasted of wine and the sweetness of their dessert. Licking his way down her body he found the sensitive skin of her neck before moving lower. Giving each breast attention, he elicited moans from her as her hips began to press against his body.

“Patience,” he chuckled, his mouth moving lower. Using his hands, he spread her legs wide as he completely exposed her pink pussy to his eyes. With a growl rumbling deep in his chest, he dove in, licking her wetness before sucking her clit into his mouth.

“Aughh,” she moaned again, her hips rising. He moved one of his hands up to her stomach and gently pressed her back down.

Plunging his tongue inside, he continued to lap her juices, loving the taste of her. His hand on her stomach rose higher until it palmed her breast, pinching the nipple lightly.

“I need…” she panted, feeling the coil of tension deep inside her core ready to spring. “I…” was all she managed to say as he gave each nipple a tug as he sucked her clit deeply to his mouth. Her pussy walls clenched and her orgasm raced through her sending all of her nerves tingling outwards. Throwing her head back, she screamed his name once again.

He finished licking her glistening pussy before kissing his way back up her boneless body until he plunged his tongue back into her mouth.

“Please…I need you inside of me,” she begged.

“Baby, this was about you. Just you tonight,” he responded, wanting to give her everything she needed.

Her imploring gaze sought his as she captured his strong jaw in her hands. “This is what I need. This is what I want,” she explained. “I. Need. You. Inside. Of. Me.”

He held her eyes for just a moment, seeing nothing but truth and trust. Growling he grabbed a condom and rolled on top of her, stilling his cock just at her entrance. Holding her legs apart, he looked down at all her beauty. Pale skin gleaming in the moonlight. Blue eyes looking into his.
Jesus, fuck. She’s truly mine.
A sexy smile lit her face and he swore his heart stopped as her arms rose up to him.

Plunging to the hilt, his dick reveled in the soft warmth of her body. Leaning over her, his hands on either side of her head, he pounded deeply, trying to reach the innermost part of her soul. Hanging on to his self-discipline by a thread, he was determined for her to come again.

“Close, baby?” he panted.

“Yes, yes.” She grabbed his shoulders, holding on for all she was worth. The sparks shot from her womb out through her limbs as her orgasm rocketed. Digging her fingers into his arms, she cried out once again.

He followed her, his neck thrown back as the cords of muscles strained. Continuing to thrust until every last drop was drained, he fell to the side taking her with him. Holding her close, he wrapped his arms around her trembling form, pulling her tight into his chest. Legs tangled. Arms wrapped. Breaths mingled. Heartbeats pounding in unison.

Slowly awareness crept in and he looked back into her face, seeing her smiling at him.

“Are you okay, baby?” he asked.

“Oh yeah. I couldn’t be happier,” she whispered back.

Pulling her back tightly to him, he threw his leg over hers as his arm wrapped around her waist. Tucking her sated body next to his, he allowed the sound of her deep breathing to lull him to sleep.

*

A dream overtook
his sleep, as he wandered around the battlefield of his mind.

The dust. The dirt. The blood. He began to run, wanting to escape the desolation of the war-torn country. Something green was on the horizon and his booted feet pounded toward the color. As he came closer, he could see a beautiful, green park and in the distance was a dark haired woman holding a baby. Marla and Sofia. With his last ounce of strength, he continued to run toward them. But the park became a cemetery and he had to wind his way around the tombstones to try to reach them. They disappeared, but as he stumbled to a halt, he looked at the closest tombstone.

Their names were carved in the cold marble. Beloved wife and beloved daughter. There were new words at the bottom and he dropped to the ground to see them. Wiping the grass away, he read
There is no life without pain.

“I’m letting you go, Tony,” he heard behind him. Turning he saw a smiling Marla, standing with the light shining behind her head, Sofia tucked safely in her arms. He stood, his breathing sharp and ragged. “Now you have to let me go too,” she said again.

He reached his hand toward her but she began to slide toward the light. “Marla?” he whispered.

“Be happy, my love. Be happy with Sherrie,” came the only response, as she and Sofia disappeared.

For the first time since his family had passed away, he did not waken with sadness. Instead he continued to sleep, peacefully, his soul finally at rest.

Turning over, he clutched Sherrie closer to his chest as dreamless sleep calmed him.

Sherrie lay awake, her heart pounding in her chest, a sharp pain with each breath. She tried to quiet her breathing, but found that nothing stilled the ache.

She had not imagined it. She could not will it away. She could not pretend it had not happened. He had cried out
Marla
right before pulling her in tightly.
He may be holding me, but in his mind he’s holding her.
Pain sliced through her, knowing her body was just a replacement for his wife’s.
He tried, I know he did. But maybe we were just fooling ourselves to think we could move beyond the past.

Silent tears slid down her cheeks as she slowly left the bed. Gathering her clothes from the pile on the floor, she dressed silently and moved to the living room. Slipping into her shoes then grabbing her purse, she left his apartment and drove home.

Arriving, she quickly stripped again before pulling on her pajamas. Soft. Comfortable.
Not as comfortable as his arms around me,
she thought ruefully, dashing the tears again.

I may not ever be much, but I deserve all of him.
She continued to lay in bed although sleep eluded her.
But if I can’t have him, he’s ruined me for any other man. I love him,
she realized. And allowed the tears to fall once more.

T
ony woke the
next morning, rested and relaxed in his bed for the first time in…ever. Rolling over to see Sherrie’s beautiful face, he found the bed empty. Senses alert, he knew the cold side of her bed indicated that she had left hours ago. He jumped up and as he bent to snag his jeans off of the floor he noticed that his clothes were the only ones there.

Stalking into the living room he instantly saw that her purse was missing as well.
Goddamn it. Where the hell did she go
? He grabbed his cell phone but his call went to her voice mail. A niggle of doubt crept in.

Like any mission, he carefully thought back over the evening. He knew he had not read the signals wrong.
She wanted to be here. She wanted to be with me. So what went wrong?

Walking back into the bedroom, he sat on the edge of the bed as he pulled his socks and shoes back on. Determined to find her, he intended to let her know that the next time she thought about leaving in the middle of the night, she had better wake him first.

Wake him. I was sleeping so deeply, I can’t believe I didn’t hear her get up. What had me sleeping so soundly? My dream! Jesus, fuck, that crazy dream.
His body stilled as he remembered.
Marla holding Sofia. The cemetery. She letting me go and telling me to be with Sherrie.

Startling, he jerked stiffly.
Sherrie? How did Marla know her name?
It was a dream…but felt like more. He realized that Marla had spoken to him. Somehow, somewhere…she knew.

Standing quickly, he grabbed his wallet, cell phone and keys and headed out of the door. Driving as fast as he dared, he pulled into Sherrie’s driveway. He jogged up the front stairs and pounded on the door. Torn between anger at her sneaking out and desire to crush her body against his, he waited impatiently.

“She ain’t home,” Bernard’s voice called out from the fence.

Tony headed over to greet the older man. “Did you see when she left?”

“Yeah,” he said, pushing his hat back from his forehead a little, his squinty eyes steady on the younger man. “She left out of here early. Not usual for her on the weekends.”

Tony’s mind raced for a moment, trying to work the problem.

“You ain’t asked the right question yet, sonny,” the older man quipped. At that Tony’s gaze shot back up to Bernard’s.

“And what would the right question be?” Tony growled.

“What did she look like when she left here?”

Tony rubbed his large hand over his face, stilling his frustration. “Okay. What did she look like when she left here?”

Bernard nodded, saying, “She was carrying a few of the winter roses that my wife gave her years ago that she keeps protected on her back porch. And she was wiping her eyes.”

Tony’s mind raced for only a second before quickly surmising, “She was upset. And heading to the cemetery.”

Bernard smiled a slow smile. “Thought you were a smart man when I met you.”

“Thanks,” Tony shouted over his shoulder as he jogged to his truck, pulling his tall frame into the driver’s seat. He arrived at the cemetery as quickly as he could and parked near her car. He looked over, seeing her kneeling at the grave marker of Charisse. Suddenly feeling like an intruder, he sat in the truck for a few minutes, allowing her time to grieve privately.

I love him so much Charisse. If you were here you’d be drooling over him and telling me to go for it. I just want something…something that’s all mine. I don’t mind that he has a past. I hurt for his loss, but I’m not jealous of his deceased wife. But Charisse, I want all of him. Not to be the shadow of what he had.

Kneeling next to her sister’s grave-marker, she pushed the grass away from the nameplate.
I wish I could afford to buy you a tombstone too. As soon as I can, I promise I will.
The cold wind whipped around her tiny frame, as she stood, wrapping her arms around her. Protecting her from the wind. Protecting her from the hurt.

Sighing deeply, she wiped her tears before kissing her finger, leaving a lipstick stain on the end of her forefinger. Leaning down, she touched the grave marker transferring the lipstick kiss.
That’s my kiss goodbye until next time, Charisse.
She turned and started to walk away, then stopped suddenly, twisting around one last time.
I love you, sis.