In my head I nearly screamed at myself, ‘What would Denice do?’ Finally I said.
“Seize the day.”
I put my free hand around his neck and pulled his mouth to me. He got involved quickly and I relaxed around being so aggressive. Yes, I knew he didn’t love me and yes, I knew I didn’t love him, but, luckily for me, I wasn’t looking for love. I was looking for carnal pleasures, plain and simple.
That was a really good kiss and I wanted more and was thinking of taking off my clothes when Rick spoke.
“For the experiments I have in mind we need a different setting.”
He walked me into the bedroom. My heart nearly leapt out of my chest, I had one shiver after another but I wasn’t going to back away. We stood at the foot of the bed and kissed again completely wrapped up in each other. Rick’s hand found its way under the front of my shirt to discover my breasts, a play ground.
A wretched complaining sound interrupted our session and Rick reached into his pocket and retrieved his phone. He listened briefly and then looked at me and then hung up the phone. Again he took me in his arms and kissed me soundly and then said.
“I gotta go.”
I groaned.
“Oh, one more please,” and resisted separation.
“Yeah, I liked that, too, and look forward to more.”
He kissed me again and squeezed me tight to him.
“Now I gotta go.”
He left me in his apartment. Even though I had learned a great deal, I was left feeling completely in need and frustrated. When I had myself composed, I left his apartment through the office and into the outer office where I found Amanda at her desk.
“Check your calendar for tomorrow and if it’s at all possible let’s you and me have lunch, ok?”
Amanda said, “One o’clock?”
“Sounds good, see you then.”
I’d been home for about a half an hour and was in the ‘Pinky bank’ preparing a bowl for later when the phone rang - our phone.
“Hello,” I said.
“Hello Helen; its Michael.”
Yes, I knew who was calling even if the phone wasn’t extremely selective; the reconnect told the story. It brought me first the longing and then the balance and the calm.
“Michael, is Lu with you?”
I needed us all together. The reconnect helped relieve the mental confusion brought on by the need; it also helped with the cry for physical gratification.
“She’s just in the other room, she’s coming. Are you ok Baby? You sound a bit wound up.”
“I guess I am.”
I confessed, I mean, really, why keep anything from him?
“Sex got yanked out from under me at the last minute and I’ve been left to cope. Honestly, right now I’m feeling like I’m gonna cry if I don’t get some physical contact and soon. Baby, this is pure torture.”
His reaction was of very quiet rage. I’d be the only one in the universe who could hear his ire for he was as cool as any man could be.
“Who’s the lucky guy?”
Butter couldn’t melt in his mouth, he was just that cool. You can imagine what a turn-on that was for me. Lord, help me.
“Rick,” I said like ‘oh duh’.
Ok, there it was, the rage bubbled over and he couldn’t hold in his temper.
“For Christ’s sake Helen.”
Would someone explain to me why I liked that so much, you know, that display of anger one only shows to those they love beyond caring if what they say isn’t popular but deemed necessary.
“I’ll be there tomorrow if you don’t tell me right now that you won’t see him again.”
How could I not feel how much he cared for me in those words and with the vehemence in his voice?
My skin was where I felt it first as the calm settled in on me and enveloped me and as with the wave in Sandy’s pool all of the pores on my skin accepted the pressure and opened up and allowed the calm to penetrate my internal being. Only that man, in all the world could do that to me, talk about plain and simple.
Our rhythm united, we sighed.
“Thank you for that display, I could eat you up; just by being you have given me such relief and sweet calm. Hope Lu won’t be long; we have a lot to discuss. There is so much to tell you that it may take all day to get it all out. You feel good, by the way.”
“Elena, oh, this is so nice.”
Her accent reminded me that I wanted to be with them. The reminders came by the second.
“Lu,” I said her name and it felt good for all of us.
“It’s good to hear your voice. Are you home and safe?”
“Si, Elena, we are home and miss you now.”
My tears had a mind of their own and needed to flow; I kept the sobbing to a silent stuttered sigh now and again. The mission found its way to the front and took control of my attention again. Deep breaths helped me focus and start.
“This is what I have learned. Rick is only using me to make his secretary jealous. They have a strong connection with one another but have had some kind of issue get in the way. I like his secretary; her name is Amanda. She is as comfortable with strangers as you are, Michael. Her interests are similar to mine. She’s also a designer and a seamstress. If I were into women, I go for her. Her porcelain skin is awfully nice.”
“Amanda and I are having lunch together tomorrow. After lunch, I plan to request help from both Rick and Amanda with figuring out why and who would boycott me from the Entertainment Industry.”
“Helen, we already know that it’s him.”
Michael was getting hot again.
“No, Michael, we don’t know that it’s him. If you were to ask me, from what I’ve experience in the past few days, do I fear and suspect Rick? I’d say, no, I don’t fear or suspect Rick at all. There is something goin’ on here that I believe to be directed by someone other than Rick.”
“What about his secretary?” Michael wanted more.
“What little information I could come up with was that she’s worked for Rick, as his executive secretary and regular go to person for seven years. She designs and makes her own clothes. She has a little brother who has social skills issues. Her parents were killed in a house fire a few years back along with the family cat, Jesus. She currently lives not far from the office with her brother. I’m telling you Amanda is not our culprit.”
“How can you be so certain that he isn’t the one behind it all?” Michael hadn’t yet received information that would help him to relax.
“The way he’s kissed me on a couple of occasions has led me to believe that he’s interested in some earnest ‘slap and tickle’. I’m honestly not bound to anything that would stop me from getting that gratification from him and dishing it out in return.”
“I hope you have more than that, Helen,”
Michael was still not satisfied.
“Michael, I sang for him. He’d asked me sometime back if I ever sang alone because he couldn’t isolate my voice when we sang together. So, I sang for him. He was impressed and at lunch offered to toast my musical career and was surprised when I told him the interest wasn’t there and that I wasn’t as good as I thought I was.