Chapter Three

There were plenty of tables set outside the cabin, and most of them were filled with food from the nearest town. Everything was hot and smelled fantastic. No one was late, probably because you could smell the food for miles, and everyone was famished after a hard day’s work. Joshua walked around and personally introduced himself to everyone; he wanted them to feel at home with him and not feel like it was a formal affair. As he was making his rounds, his eyes caught sight of a beautiful woman, her skin a light caramel color. She was easily the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and her beauty appeared to be natural. She had long black hair tied up in a messy bun that looked sexier than if she had it curled for a gala event. Even from a distance, he could tell she had startling blue eyes that seemed to draw in people all around her. She looked exotic, though he knew her to be an American as well. She was breathtaking, and it took all Joshua’s effort not to stand there and stare at her.

He couldn’t tell her age, not that it really mattered to him. All he seemed to be able to focus on was how her smile seemed to light up the whole area. Who was that beautiful creature? She must have been from the hospital site because he knew he would have remembered her from his own site. He probably would have followed her around all day. She was with a few friends chatting amiably and looking around at the feast in amazement.

She was tall and had the build of a professional dancer. He knew he had to try to focus on something else because he was having a hard time taking his eyes off of her. She was a stunner, and yet all she wore were cargo pants and a tank top, and yet she could knock the socks off of any high society girl from New York. She was eyeing up the food with her friends, and he was suddenly more pleased than ever that he had arranged the whole thing. The volunteers probably hadn’t eaten that well in a while, and he may not have had the chance to meet the girl had he not arranged such a dinner. Whether or not the groups collided in their work, he didn’t know, but this event allowed him to make his own introductions to her. He wasn’t about to waste any time getting to know her—he didn’t want anyone else swooping in before he had the chance to speak with her.

Joshua moved towards her immediately, and almost knocked down a few volunteers in the process. “So sorry,” he muttered as he made his way through the crowd. The closer he got to her, the more beautiful she became if that was possible. He slowly approached the group she was in as they were gathering up food on their plates. He was close enough to touch her and could smell her perfume. It was like sandalwood, and the smell made him want to pull her close to him.

“Hi there. Would you guys care for something to drink?”

She turned to him and smiled, and that was the best gift he could have been given that day. Her eyes sparkled when she smiled, and it took all his willpower not to pull her in for a kiss. Those lips, he wanted to claim them. Joshua never reacted in such a way around a woman; he was usually very cool about talking to women, but this one caused him to only think of his bedroom and what he could do to her there.

“Hi, Joshua is it? We have heard a lot about you. Thank you for inviting us to this party; everything looks delicious. I’m Caroline, and I work with the AIDS volunteers here.”

So she wasn’t from the other building site, she was just another volunteer. Well, the more, the merrier was what he liked to say. He welcomed all the volunteers to come.

“Caroline, that’s a pretty name. I’m glad that you could come, all of you.”

She blushed, and he liked the way her cheeks reddened. She was even more beautiful.

“I’m famished. I was so thrilled to find out we had a place to go where there was already food ready. I don’t even know where to begin.”

“Oh, you are very welcome. Food has also been sent to the villages; they should enjoy the festivities as well.”

She smiled widely. “Well, that’s very sweet of you. I’m sure a hearty meal will do everyone good.” She was looking at him with interest, and he wondered if anyone would notice if he snatched her away. He wanted to take her into the cabin and touch every inch of her.

“Oh, it was nothing. I’m happy to do it.”

They stared at each other for a moment, and Joshua wondered if she was feeling the way that he was; there was a current of electricity charging through his body with her being in such close proximity. It was like they were the only two people at the cabin. He didn’t even care to talk to anyone else but her. She captivated him, and he wanted to put his mouth on her badly. She was staring back at him unwaveringly, and he had to wonder if she was having some dark thoughts herself.

“Well, it was really nice to meet you, Caroline.”

He held out his hand, and she took it. He shook her hand for an infinitely long time, and they were still staring at each other when he heard her friends giggling. The spell broken, he dropped her hand. Caroline was smiling as he tried to compose himself.

“How about that drink?”

She nodded, and he proceeded to pour a glass for both her and her friends. He excused himself immediately, not wanting to overstay his welcome. He had no idea what was going through her mind but knew he needed to clear his head. Joshua went about getting himself a plate full of food and went to find Ben. He was sitting at a table with a few others and decided to join them. While he sat there eating, he realized he didn’t have much to say. Ben was certainly making up for it as he chatted to everyone, telling all kinds of stories. Joshua was grateful for it because he didn’t feel like he could hold his own in a conversation at that point. The food was fantastic, of course. There were various types of meat from chicken to ribs to sausages and a mixture of vegetables and potatoes. There were also various salads and fresh fruit for the taking; it was quite a feast, indeed, and everything was so fresh. As he ate, however, he had a hard time focusing on anything but his conversation with Caroline. They hadn’t talked much, it was more about the feeling she gave him when they talked. He kept glancing in her general direction to see what she was doing. She was a bundle of light, no matter what she did. She was talking animatedly with her friends and seemed like the type of person that really loved life, and that was refreshing to see. Joshua knew he had to have her, no matter what. He had never seen any such creature as her and was determined to make her his. She was beautiful and would be his if it were the last thing he did.

As the night wore on, he kept his eye on her and thought of what he could do to win her over. He had caught her eye a few times as it appeared as if she had been looking around for him as well. The very thought made him a little hard when he considered that she wanted him as well. All he could think about was undressing her and spreading her legs before him. In fact, it was all he could think about. He needed to find out more about her, and see if anyone knew her personally.

He glanced at Ben, who was sipping on some whiskey. “Hey, how well do you know the volunteers that work with AIDS?”

“Oh, very well indeed. I make it a point to know everyone around here; it’s just better that way. At some point, we end up becoming one big family, after all.”

“That’s good, especially for those that stay on for long periods of time. What’s the story with Caroline?”

Ben chuckled. “Are you interested in the girl? You certainly wouldn’t be the first man to try to catch her eye. She’s gorgeous, which is why there seems to be so much interest in her, of course. Despite that fact, she hasn’t shown any interest in anyone else since she’s been here, she keeps to herself a lot. I think she’s pretty private about her life.”

Joshua nodded, taking it all in. “She’s not actually a girl is she?”

Ben couldn’t help laughing out loud, drawing attention to their table. Caroline glanced his way, and their eyes locked. He held her gaze for a beat, feeling aroused all over again. What was with this girl and the power she had over him?

“No, of course not, though we do get some volunteers that are young. I think she’s around 25 and quite a bright girl. As far as I know, she’s taking a break from her life to find herself a bit before going back to the real world. But I guess that’s what we’re all doing here, isn’t it Joshua?”

Joshua met his gaze and knew that he had heard all about the scandal going on back home at his company. He wondered who told him and whether others at the site knew about it as well. He supposed it was bound to happen, no matter what, but he had hoped for a little time off from discussing it. He could only hope that Ben and whoever else knew, didn’t think badly about him. He would at least like the benefit of the doubt in the situation. He had after all done nothing wrong. The last thing he wanted was for anyone to believe the rumors about him. It was sad after all, and he didn’t like the idea that he could come to a place like Africa for a break only to have it all follow him there.

Joshua nodded slowly. “Yeah, you’re right, that’s usually why people find themselves in a place like this. Working off their sins I suppose or trying to save the world, yet sometimes I think the two are often connected.”

“True enough, Joshua. I can tell you are a good man, though.”

“I appreciate that Ben, as are you.”

Ben smiled and picked up his plate before leaving the table. People started filtering out for the evening, the sun long gone now, just leaving behind the moon for company. It was time for everyone to retire for the night as work started again at 6 a.m. Joshua knew what he had to do; he wasn’t the kind of man that believed in having regrets. He stood up from his table and threw his plate in the garbage. He then made his way over to the table that Caroline was exiting.

“Caroline, I wondered if you would like to stick around and have another drink with me?”

She smiled warmly, and her friends giggled beside her. They left immediately, knowing full well what Caroline was going to say. It made him wonder if he had been the topic of conversation at their table for the evening.

“That would be wonderful, thank you. You can’t keep me out late, though, I’m not a morning person. I need my beauty sleep.” She laughed as she said it, and he had never heard anything more pleasing.

“I doubt that.” He motioned for her to head up to the porch, and she did so, finding herself a seat against the railing. Joshua went ahead and poured them both a glass of wine, handing her one. She took a sip and looked out at the night. The sounds all around them were nothing like you would hear in the city; it was actually kind of magical. He sat down besides her, ignoring the chair; he didn’t want to be that far away from her.

“Tell me, Caroline, what brought you to Africa? Tell me more about the AIDS volunteer work you are doing.”

“Well, for the most part, it’s education based. We spend most of our time at the current school teaching the kids. AIDS is a real problem here, and we hope to try to stop it from affecting future generations. We are trying to teach the kids about sex and how the disease is spreading out of control. We hope to prevent it from happening. At this point, all we can do is educate them and tell them how to avoid it.”

“I’m surprised that such a young girl is so invested in a project like this.”

“Well, I’m not that young,” she said with a laugh. She stared at him long enough for her point to drive home to him. Every part of his body took the hint.

“I just meant that someone as young as you should be out enjoying her youth, going out and having fun with friends and going to parties.”

“Well, I did do all that, but that stuff gets old. I want my life to have a purpose. I don’t want to be club hopping all through my twenties.”

He nodded, watching her carefully. Ben was right, she had a good head on her shoulders.

“So why come here?”

She turned to him. “No, you first. We all know you to be quite a wealthy man, Joshua. What brings you to Africa to slum with the rest of us?”

He chuckled. “It’s hardly slumming it. Something unexpected happened at my company recently that really had me re-evaluating a lot of things. Trouble is brewing I’m afraid, and I needed a break from it all. This is my temporary escape, somewhere that I can do some good while allowing myself to get a clear perspective on things. Plus, it was time that I got my hands dirty for a change, instead of constantly writing checks. It’s nice to come and meet a situation head on, instead of just throwing money at it. By being here, I can truly see what’s going on and where I can help the most.”

“Yeah, I can understand that. Well, to some degree; I don’t think I have any idea what it’s like to be in charge of a billion-dollar company. Your lifestyle is very different from mine, I’m sure.”

“Maybe.” He smiled, “Now it’s your turn.”

She looked into her hands, suddenly seeming very sad. “I came here because I realized I had an amazing life, and I felt guilty for it. Sounds crazy I know. All my friends back home thought I was nuts, but I have been just so blessed in life that I wanted to make my life matter more, I guess.”

“Interesting, explain it to me.”

She smiled and took a deep breath looking quite wistful about what she was going to say. “Oh, there’s not terrible past haunting me or anything. People just look at my life and think I should have this whole journey attached to it, and I don’t.”

“What sort of story do they expect you to have?”

She laughed. “I guess I’m not really explaining myself very well, am I? Well, my family is completely normal and all well-educated. A lot of people here are running away from something. I’m not. My life is normal and happy. I’m educated as well; I went to university for fashion, and that’s what I plan on focusing on when I get back. I already have clients lined up waiting for my designs. Some weren’t too happy that I decided to take a hiatus.”

“You sound like you have a successful future, so I’m not sure what you feel guilty about.”

She giggled. “I didn’t expect you to be so easy to talk to.” He smiled at her, glad that she found comfort in talking to him. He had to admit that he enjoyed talking to her as well.

“Hold your thoughts while I pour us some more wine.” Joshua left her sitting on the porch while he went to fetch another bottle of wine. He didn’t fill the glasses too much this time as he didn’t want her to be hungover in the morning, and it was getting late. He returned to the porch and handed her a glass.

“I hope you don’t feel guilty about being successful Caroline because that’s something that you are supposed to take pride in.”

“I knew a girl once who had to struggle for everything she had, and when we were in school together, she wrote a paper on the African American culture. It was rather beautiful.” She paused, and he waited for her to finish. He was completely intrigued by her; he could listen to her talk like that all night, even though he couldn’t help thinking how much fun other things could be as well.

“I guess knowing this girl is where the guilt comes in for me. She ended up going into politics while I studied fashion. We got together once, and she ended up showing me a video of the things that were going on in Africa. She is a big advocate, and she wanted me to be more involved in the world than just fashion. It made me realize how much I had in life while there were others who had nothing at all. Do you know what I mean? I just knew that I needed to give something back, to try to make a difference, even if it was just in some small way. So I have my sister in charge of the ordering of my designs, and I imagine by the time I get back, I’ll have a whole fashion company in the works. Which of course is very exciting.”

“You have a lot to be proud of. I hope you realize that. Your parents must be very happy with you.”

“Actually, no they weren’t at all. They worked really hard in their life to give me a better life, something grander than the one that they had. They wanted me to enjoy the life they gave me, not come here and feel guilty about it,” she said with a laugh.

“I guess I can understand that. Parents always want what’s best for their kids, and they just want you to be successful. This is temporary, of course, and they will see you happy in your business, and the rest won’t matter.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

He chuckled, not wanting the talk to get too serious. He was surprised by how the conversation had turned. He wasn’t exactly the type of person that liked to dig deep when he first met someone; of course, things just felt different with Caroline.

“Well, you can’t be much older than me,” she uttered.

“A little bit. I’m 31. Plus, I have a lot of experience, probably more so than you.”

“Experience in what?” she whispered. It wasn’t so much that she whispered, but how she whispered that caught him off guard. It was like she had lost her breath; it was kind of hot. He didn’t know what to say to her; she had rendered him speechless. He felt like he was losing control of his thoughts and wasn’t sure that it was the right time to make a move on her.

“I really feel like you understand me Joshua, and that’s a rare thing to find.”

She looked up into his eyes. “Oh, I definitely like you, probably more than I should.”

“Well, we don’t always have to be good, do we? We can just follow how we feel, can’t we?”

He stared into those insanely blue eyes as they bore into him. He could feel himself growing hard, and his eyes found her lips. All he wanted to do was take her right then and there, put his hot mouth on her body. But they had just met, and he worried they would be starting something they couldn’t finish, and he didn’t want to hurt her. He wasn’t exactly used to having attachments. Plus, they would be working together on the sites, and he didn’t want to cause a mess there as well. The last thing he needed was rumors going around about the two of them. The problem, however, was all he could do was think of her and how good it would feel to slide inside of her. He didn’t think he would be able to get that thought out of his head.

She got up then and made the decision for him. She placed her mouth onto his, and the fire that lit between them was intense. Caroline gasped inside his mouth and his loins burned for her. His hands went into her hair, pulling her closer to him. He kissed her deeply finding her tongue and sucking on it gently. She moaned, and the sounds she made caused him to go rock hard. Oh yes, he would have her tonight. He needed to hear her moan all night long. He stood up then and pulled her body to his. He kissed down to her chin and trailed kisses down her neck, sucking on her. Her hands found the bulge in his shorts, rubbing him hard and causing a friction that drove him insane. The knowledge that she was eager for his cock drove him half mad. He picked her up, carrying her into the cabin and laying her out on his bed. He pulled off her tank top and unclasped her bra. Her breasts dropped deliciously from the bra, and he bent down to suck on her nipples. She gave a guttural moan, and he sucked even harder. She pushed him away, tearing off her shorts, and he glimpsed a pair of white lace panties before she slid them to the floor. He couldn’t believe how badly he wanted to fuck her right then; she drove him insane.

He dropped to the floor in front of her, spreading her legs as she leaned back. Her pussy was so pink, it made him crazy. She was already wet, and he slid a finger inside her, feeling her drip down his finger. Seeing her spread out like that before him made Joshua want to fuck her right then, but he had something better in mind. That much was obvious. He bent forward, placing his lips on her clit. She gasped in surprise as his lips touched her pussy. He loved tasting her, and drank in her juices as he felt them against his mouth.

He licked her like she was the best tasting ice cream and plunged his tongue inside her. He ached to fuck her, but having to taste her was hard to pass up. He licked her pussy all over, having her cum in his mouth. He moaned, licking her pussy made him so horny.

“Baby, you are so hot, I love this.”

She writhed against him, and he knew he had to have her. She moaned his name, and it was just about the best sound he had ever heard. He leaned in and sucked her clit, forcing her to thrash beneath him. He sucked her good while fucking her with his finger. Caroline came all over his finger, and he pulled out.

“Please Joshua, I want you inside me.”

He never wanted a lady to beg; he would give her exactly what she wanted. He pulled Caroline up and turned her over. She gasped in excitement as she bent over for him, her tight round bottom in his face. He bent down and kissed her bottom, moving in real close to her. He was rock hard, and he couldn't wait to plunge inside her pink little pussy. Her tight bottom drove him insane, and he drove deep inside her causing her to moan loudly. She was tight and wet, and he really had to control himself or he would lose himself completely inside her.

“Joshua I need it.”

Her ass looked glorious right before him as he plunged deeper inside and moved within her. She called out to him loudly, and he briefly wondered if there was anyone within earshot. He could have cared less, however, let the whole village hear. He was fucking an amazing woman, and he wouldn't stop for anything.

Caroline came against his cock, and he continued to rock inside her until he spilled into her as well. He leaned down on top of her back, breathing heavily into her hair.

“Oh, Caroline that was incredible.”

“You bet your ass it was,” she said, giggling underneath him. He rolled off of her and lay down on the bed. She lay beside him, and they were silent thinking about what had just happened between them. She rolled into his chest and nuzzled it. He wrapped his hands around her and kissed her on the top of the head.

“Yes, that definitely was amazing.” They fell asleep tangled up in each other’s arms.