Chapter 12
The plane couldn’t get her to the Oakland airport fast enough. After a night of listening to her mother, aunt, and cousin apologize while simultaneously justifying their behavior, Amy’d had to attend church with them the next morning only to be bombarded again.
This time it was the pastor’s newly divorced son. He was looking for a good woman to settle down and help him weekend-raise his three kids. Amy turned down his offer to “go for coffee and get to know one another better” as politely as she could.
So when Carlos greeted her just outside the secure area at the airport, she thought she’d died and gone to heaven. She didn’t care that they were in a big public place and stood a small chance of being seen by a co-worker. As soon as she saw tall, dark, and handsome with his chiseled face and his muscular arms, she launched herself into them.
Once they were in Carlos’ SUV he asked her, “Do you need to stop at your place?”
She loved that he automatically assumed she planned to stay with him tonight, because she absolutely did. “Yes. I’ll grab some clothes for tomorrow.”
He nodded.
“I missed you,” she told him.
He grinned. “I missed you, too.”
With that truth expressed, the logistics of spending the night with Carlos invaded her brain. “What about arriving at work together in the morning? How will that work.”
He shrugged. “We’ll figure it out.”
At her apartment, she quickly unpacked her small carry-on suitcase and then repacked it with a few outfits to take to Carlos’ condo. When she got back out to the living room, Carlos and Marcel were engaged in a deep discussion about Ava DuVernay movies and Marcel was clearly smitten.
Carlos looked up at Amy as she entered the room, her wheeled suitcase trailing behind her. “God, you look good.”
She wore a simple cotton traveling dress and a sweater. Warm and comfortable, it was anything but sexy. “Thanks.”
Marcel swiveled his head between them, his chin-length dreads swooshing around his face. “Damn. You two are so in love.”
Rather than deal with that embarrassing statement. Carlos got up and took Amy’s suitcase in his hand. Amy leaned over and gave Marcel a peck on the cheek. “Be good,” she said.
“Kay. See you soon, lovebirds,” Marcel teased.
The first few minutes of the ride to Carlos’ condo were held in silence. But Carlos broke it when they were halfway to his place. “So, how was your visit?”
“Irritating,” she answered honestly.
“Awww. Why’s that?”
Amy bit her lip. “Actually. I don’t want to tell you.”
Carlos frowned. “That’s…unfortunate.”
“It’s just that…ugh…my family were kind of jerks.”
He didn’t say anything. He didn’t push her to tell him. But the disappointment at her hesitation was written all over his face and it got to her. “Okay. Truth is they tried to set me up.”
“Set you up?”
“Yeah. They think now that I’m…different…changed…whatever, I should see lots of people. You know, play the field. So they brought some guy to dinner, then at church they tried to hook me up with the pastor’s son.”
“Church? What kind of church?”
“Episcopalian. But I don’t go to church around here. I just go when I’m back home to make my mother happy. You?”
“I was raised Catholic, but I haven’t been to church in years.”
“We’re getting distracted,” she said as they turned onto the street that would take them to Carlos’ place.
“So they tried to set you up?”
“Yes.” Amy couldn’t understand why he wasn’t as indignant about this as she was. “What do you think about that?”
“They have a point.”
“What?”
“I get it. You just opened your eyes and entered a whole new world—the world of dating. They want you to make sure you have the right person for you before you plunge in. It makes sense.”
For the first time since she and Carlos had started seeing each other, Amy was pissed at him. How dare he suggest she go out with other men. She wanted Carlos for herself and she desperately wanted him to feel the same way about her. The collision of anger and pain inside her chest made her want to lash out.
Carlos pulled into the parking garage and she waited as he made the arcing turns around and around until he got to his designated spot. He pulled in and cut off the engine. His hand was on the door when she hit him with her anger. “So, I guess it’s okay with you that I told the pastor’s son I’d go out to dinner with him when he’s in town next week then.”
He froze in mid-motion. Without looking at her he asked, “Are you serious?”
“Are you serious about not caring?”
“I didn’t say I didn’t care.” He turned to her. “I said I understood their point of view.”
Amy folded her arms over her chest, still guarded, still a little hurt. “Meaning what? That you agree with them? That you think I should play the field?”
Carlos leaned forward, his eyes narrowed, his lips tight. “You want the truth?”
She nodded tersely, her heart hammering in her chest.
“Let’s go upstairs and I’ll tell you.”
She was still catching her breath as he launched himself out of the car and moved around to the trunk to retrieve her suitcase. Amy’s mind whirred as they headed to the elevator, then rode up it in utter silence to Carlos’ condo.
He set her suitcase down in the entryway as she closed and locked the door. Then he pulled her to him and took her into a deep kiss. Instantly, Amy was lost. This is what she’d been dreaming about for eight long days.
Carlos lifted her thighs, and taking the hint, she wrapped them around his waist. He carried her, as if she weighed nothing at all, to the bedroom and laid her down on the massive king size bed.
She sank into the fluffy blue comforter at her back as Carlos held his weight above her. He pulled away from the kiss and she arched up, trying to follow. But she was unsuccessful and he got away.
“I do not want you to date, kiss, or touch any man other than me. Ever. I want to be everything. I want to be your first and your only.”
Amy was completely overwhelmed by his statement. She stared into his eyes, sure that if the world was exploding around her she couldn’t care less.
But he wasn’t done. “I know it’s not right. I know it may not be what’s best for you. But I simply don’t care.” His voice was a low growl. “That’s the truth.”
Amy tugged on his head, trying to bring his mouth back to hers. “I don’t want anyone else,” she breathed.
Her statement had its intended affect and he lowered his mouth to hers, taking her in a searing kiss. When, after a short eternity, he moved his mouth to her neck she suggested, “Let’s just skip third.”
“Not a chance,” he replied.
Carlos showed little patience in getting Amy out of her dress, bra, and panties. By the time she was completely naked she’d managed to only get his shirt off. He was sucking at her nipples, moving greedily from one to the other and causing her to keep losing track of her goal.
“Stop,” she cried.
Carlos went completely still. He looked down at her, concern etched on his face.
“Sorry.” She smiled. “I just want you to get naked.”
Looking like he was in the middle of a board meeting, Carlos stripped off the rest of his clothes quickly and methodically. With an expression of utter concentration on his face, he went back to straddling her on the bed.
Amy was able to run her hands over every part of him she could reach as he labored over her sensitized skin. Seamlessly, his mouth moved down from her breasts to her ribs, then over her stomach. He dipped his tongue in her belly button. Before she had either the time or inclination to freak out about this very significant first, Carlos was poised between her legs, his breath hitting her where, until now, only his fingers had been. Those talented fingers played lightly at her inner thighs as he stayed there, heated pants hitting her flesh, for what seemed like a very long time.
“Carlos,” she whispered. She was so desperate it sounded like a plea.
He rushed forward, his lips and tongue wreaking havoc on her senses. Carlos had teased her that someday the fire department was going to knock on his door when they were engaged in sexual play. This time it really could happen. She had no control over the sounds coming from her, the heavy pants, the way she called out his name.
When the aftershocks of her orgasm were finally settling, Carlos moved up the bed to lie beside her. Shaky, but determined, Amy rolled to her side and kissed him.
She pulled back to look at him. “Amazing.”
He grinned smugly and tucked her hair behind her ear. “Sleep now?”
“Not a chance.” She reached down and took hold of him. He was so hard it was as if it were made of diamonds. She’d found her prize. “My turn.”
“It’s okay,” he practically groaned.
She stroked. “No. My turn,” she commanded.
“As you wish.” He rolled over onto his back. Amy followed.
Using his technique as a guide, along with the porn movie she’d watched with Marcel last week, she slid down his chest and stomach, kissing slowly as she went. When she reached her destination, Carlos’ stomach twitched and he let out a soft moan.
She knew how to make him feel good with her hands. How different could this be? She started by tasting him. It was slow and soft. And he seemed to be struggling. He squirmed and groaned, but he didn’t ask her to hurry up or instruct her to do anything different. He was letting her do as she pleased.
She tested different things. How his tip felt on her tongue. What it was like to lick all the way up. How her lips wrapped around the head. And finally, how it felt to take him all the way to the back of her throat.
“Oh God, sweetheart!”
He definitely liked that. And so did she. The hand jobs had made her feel powerful. Controlling his pleasure and giving him an orgasm was a heady thing. But this was more, so much more. Amy got completely caught up in it. She concentrated so hard on what she was doing she didn’t realize how close Carlos was getting until he tried to pry her mouth away from him. At first she didn’t understand why.
Then she listened to his words. “Baby. I’m gonna come. You have to move.”
But she didn’t want to move. She wanted to know what it was like to take him all the way. She wanted to taste him. So she resisted his pleas and was rewarded as he shouted out her name again and again.