5

Aurora

 

I hoped I made the right choice by agreeing to go to his place for our first date. It was not something that I would do. Then again, it wasn’t something I had any experience with since I never really dated anyone besides Andy. My first date with Andy was when we were fifteen. 

Travis did sound sincere and I was willing to give him a chance. His original plan was to take me to his favorite restaurant, but since I told him that I wasn’t in the mood to go out. He was excited to cook one of my childhood favorites – Chicken Parmigiano.

The cab finally arrived at his apartment building. We were in the shady part of town. The elevator was old and dingy. There was a moment where I thought we would be trapped in the elevator for the evening.  Finally we were at his place. His apartment’s decor was simple, he had a few pieces of furniture that looked as though they were hand me down. The bachelor life was quite apparent from how there were no feminine touches. A humble home for a single guy.

Travis was searching through his phone for some music,

“How about some jazz?” he said.

I nodded. It was the same type of improv jazz that he used to play for me when I was in a coma. It was my favorite. He put the phone in a large mixing bowl which acted as a makeshift speaker.

Once the music was playing, he started to pull ingredients out of the fridge.

“Some wine? Red or white?” He made a face, it looked like that these were all he had on hand. “Unless you aren’t a wine drinker?”

“A glass of white would be great.” I supposed a glass of wine would help me relax and let go of the images of him and his ex from this afternoon.

I sat down at the kitchen island, sipping wine and watching him chop and pound the living daylight out of the chicken breast. It was a joy to watch him cook, to be in his element. I was a little turned on by just watching him. He was wearing a tight black t-shirt and blue jeans, with a white and blue pinstripe apron on. Even though he wasn’t exerting much energy, I could see his muscles bulging and tensing under his shirt.

It could very well be the wine’s influence since I was drinking on an empty stomach. Or that I was impressed and touched since it was the first time that someone cooked for me, aside from my mother of course.

We continued to talk while he put together a beautifully cooked meal. Our conversation meandered from topic to topic. We talked about our different upbringing and childhood, my life before the accident, and his backpacking throughout Europe.

Dinner was ready and the entire apartment smelled delicious. He placed the plates of chicken parmigiana, sautéed veggies and pasta in front of us, and poured us some more wine. He pulled off the apron, and sat down in front of me.

“This is chicken parm. At least my version of it. I hope you like it, Aurora.”  He proudly smiled at me.

“It looked like restaurant quality. The look of it, the smell, and everything. It looks like it came straight out of a magazine.”

I cut into the scrumptiousness and took a bite and it definitely tasted the way it looked, I was thoroughly impressed.

“Thank you. I’m so happy you liked it.” Travis was smiling from ear to ear, he had this boyish look to him despite the 5 o’clock shadow.

“Let’s get some dinner music going.” Travis changed the music from jazz to oldies romantic ballads. Nat King Cole was crooning in the background as we ate.

I didn’t realized how hungry I was until I started to eat. Everything was just divine. We talked more about where he learned to cook and his time in Europe working in restaurant kitchens in different countries to make money. Travis’ eyes lit up when he told me his stories about working for different chefs, it was clear to me that this was his natural talent.

“Have you thought of opening up a restaurant? I really think anyone who can read and follow a recipe can be a cook, but it takes a whole lot more and someone special to be a chef. And I think you’ve got it.”

“You know, the last person who suggested the same was my mother.”

“Maybe your mother was right. Why not give it a try?”

“I thought about it a lot too. I don’t think I’m good enough to be a chef, at least not yet. And then there is the obvious fact that I don’t have the money to start a restaurant. The failure rate is high and the startup capital is high. I can’t risk the little money that I don’t even have. But if the right investor or business partners come along, I would totally consider.”

“I always think of you as a risk taker, Travis.”

“I was, but life has taught me a few lessons so now I only take calculated risks.”

“Let’s talk about not being good enough. Is that how you feel?” I didn’t mean to sound like a therapist but I wanted to understand how his brain worked.  I poured him some more wine so he could let his guard down.

“That’s a tough question. I never asked myself this before…” he took a gulp of wine and continued,”maybe it all stemmed from my childhood. I didn’t have a dad, maybe it was a lack of male role model. We were poor. I had to watch my mother struggle and juggled several jobs to make ends meet. I didn’t exact fit in with the cool crowd in school. I didn’t go to college because there was no money, I didn’t bother applying and be accepted and then couldn’t go. I think it’s a whole sleuth of things that make me feel like an imposter.”

I could feel the sadness in his words. Part of me regretted asking my question but it was not easy to look deep into one self and find answers to difficult question.

“Many people think they are imposters so you aren’t alone. Do you want to know what I see when I look at you?”

“Sure.” Travis was looking up from his wine.

“I see a man that is full of promise with a bright future ahead and not know it. A man who is kind and generous with the people in his life. Probably too generous. A man that had a difficult start in life, yet he didn’t let it define him. This is the man I see.”  I was happy to bring a smile back to his face.

He reached over the table, grabbed my hand and held it tight.

“Aurora, thank you. What you said really means a lot to me.”

“And I meant every single word.”

After we finished off dinner, Travis proceeded to the coffee maker.

“Coffee, espresso or tea?”

“Espresso please.”

“The only thing that’s missing is dessert. I can go to the store and see what I can pick up. Since we are having Italian, maybe I’ll get some gelato?”

“It’s ok, I think most stores should be closed. It’s nearly 9pm. How about I make dessert and you take a break since you cooked this amazing dinner for us.” I walked to the fridge and checked out what was available for something simple to satisfy our sweet tooth. I found some basics to create a crème caramel, just needed eggs, cream, and sugar.

He put his apron on me and when he reached around me to tie a knot in the back, I was pressed up against him. I felt the warm of his body, the hard muscle underneath his shirt. I could smell him, a light scent of a mixture of soap and aftershave. He was much taller than me, the top of my head came up to his collarbone. He looked deep into my eyes, and for the life of me I didn’t know why I looked away like a shy little girl.

The intensity from his eyes was too much. For God sakes, we kissed before. And deep down, I wanted to kiss him too. But I was scared, maybe scared of the feelings that I had for him. My mind was running a million miles an hour, and the butterflies were having its own little hurricane in my stomach. 

“Let’s dance.” Travis twirled me around as Etta James’ At Last started to play.

There in the kitchen we slow danced. I hadn’t danced in years. Feeling his hand down on my lower back gave me tingles up and down my spine. The electricity between us was intense. All my senses were heightened by the anticipation of what’s to come.

“You know I had this fantasy of doing this with you at our high school dance?”

I laughed, “really? That was easily 15 years ago.”

“Hey, I was just that innocent little 16 year old boy hoping to dance with his high school crush.”

“I guess fate or whatever you wanna call it brought us together to fulfill your fantasy.”

“Perhaps.” Our eyes met. My heart was thumping out of my chest.

“Kiss me,” I whispered. He lowered his lips onto mine.

When my tongue slid across his lips, Travis parted my lips on a soft moan. I felt that tense, tight coil clenching deep in my belly. I didn’t think about it. I didn’t want to think. I just wanted to feel.

His hands now framed my face, tilting it to kiss me deeper. Our tongues explored and danced with each other.

“Aurora,” he whispered when we finally pulled away, “I want to kiss you, touch you, kiss every inch of you. I want you.”

The intimacy of the moment was more than I could handle. I needed it, craved it. I never wanted to stop.

We undressed each other slowly, as if every exposed inch of skin needed to be worshiped and cherished. Every kiss was significant. Every moment was unforgettable.

We stepped out of the pile of clothes left in the middle of the kitchen, and he led me to his bedroom. He sat me down at the edge of his bed and he kneeled between my legs.

When Travis’ lips brushed over my already hard nipple, I moaned softly, my hands running through Travis’ hair.

“You feel so good, Aurora,” he said, his voice hoarse with blatant desire.

Travis got up from his knees and nudged me down to the center of the bed. His rough hands slowly grazed over my belly and tugged off my panties. I was now fully naked.

He kissed his way down my body, sucking on my nipples softly, finding sensitive spots under my breasts, licking his way down my narrow ribcage, pressing soft kisses to my belly.

“Oh Travis,” I whispered. My pussy was throbbing with needs.

Travis’ hands were now between my legs, stroking my pussy lips gently. He slid his finger between them, stroking me so softly, so tenderly.

“I want to taste you baby.”

I could only moan my desperation in response. His finger was in my pussy, sliding deep inside, feeling how tight and wet I was.

Travis dipped his tongue mischievously in my belly button, making me squeal.

“Someone is ticklish,” he murmured, before kissing his way lower.

“You smell so good, Aurora. You’re so beautiful,” he said as he stroked it softly, kissing his way up her inner thigh before finally nuzzling his lips against my pussy.

When he slid his tongue between my pussy lips, and found my clit. His tongue was swirling over it slowly in tight circles, I nearly climaxed. I was whimpering as the pleasure built.