A Toast to Starry Nights (14 page)

Sure, that works.

“Yeah, kinda stuffy in there. Shut the
windows, got myself a glass of water,” I held my half-filled glass aloft, “and
was going to turn the AC on for a bit.” I never liked lying. So, I looked upon
this as an exercise in creative Easter Egg hunting. The elusive Golden Egg was
lurking somewhere, left by the buff Hunny Bunny.... he might not tell me its location,
but if approached in the right manner, there's a decent possibility of him
giving me an idea of where it could be found.

Those blue eyes of his bored into mine.
I was sure he could see right through my ploy. The smirk on his lips didn't
quell the sensation of being busted in action.

I held the glass to my lips and took a
long drink of the refreshingly brisk beverage. “Ah, that hits the spot.”

“You know you make a lot of noise
rummaging around closets, don't you?” His eyebrow quirked upward with a superior
air.

“I wasn't the one who decided paper-thin
walls would be a good choice when this house got built... by you.” Aww, screw
it. He'll dish it out and I'll serve it right back. Banter was a fun game.

He laughed aloud at my audacious reply.
“Looking for something?”

“My sanity, have you seen it?”

“No, really. Did you lose something?”

Okay, contingency plan time. I
understood why I was never a passenger in the Mystery Mobile-- I'm too blunt.
“Yes, I said. My dear, sweet, addled mother told me you have a surprise lurking
about. I'm on a quest to find it before my brain implodes from what the
possibilities could potentially be.” I finished swilling my water. “Hence. me
trying to find my sanity.”

Dmitri uncrossed his legs and sat up. He
rested the pint on the coffee table and then stood with a smirk on his face.
“So,” he drawled, “you want me to reveal the location of this surprise you
assume me to have ready for you?”

“I don't assume, I was informed. However
my source is borderline iffy at times... but I can see by that shit-eating grin
on your face that you do have something up your sleeve. You don't smile like
that for nothing, and that's a fact.”

“Maybe I do have something... maybe I
don't. How much do you want it?” Dmitri's eyes glinted mischief.

I shrugged my shoulders. “However much
you want to give it.”

“You will either have to find it or earn
the answer.”

“I want to find it. May I have a clue?”

His hands rested on his hips as he
smirked. “You have to pay for the clues, since clues fall under the 'earn the
answer' category.”

I frowned. “No 'I Love My Fiancée
Discount' available?”

He cocked his head to the side as he
considered my query. “I suppose you can get a freebie question. Anything else
past the sample must be paid for in full at time of transaction.”

I laughed. “You rehearsed that, didn't
you?”

“Yep.”

“So I get one free question... hmmm...”
Oh, the possibilities. Gotta make the freebie count. “What's the surprise?”

He flat out laughed. “A declaration of
my support and adoration for you.” He raised his eyebrows and grinned. “How's
that? You like that, don't you?”

I would have preferred a straight
answer, but I'll take what I can get. It was a sweet sentiment. “What's the
price for another question?”

“You might not want to pay. It's a stiff
price.”

Ahh. Double entendre time. I know what's
on his mind... “
Stiff
, hmmm? How
stiff
are we talking about?”

“I'd have to say pretty stiff.”

“Anything else I should be aware of
regarding these negotiations?”

Dmitri eyeballed me something fierce.
“Yes, there is something you should know... you are the definition of what
happens when curiosity gets the best of the cat.”

I laughed. He was right. When he and my
curiosity intersect, I have no willpower. “Ok. I think I'm ready to pony up for
the next question.”

“I'll give you a discount because I like
ya.”

“Aww, thanks. I'm liking you more too.”

He stepped closer to me and wrapped an
arm around my bare shoulder. “The price for the location of the surprise is a
kiss.”

A piddly price to pay. I'd give him
kisses for free. I faked a deep sigh. “A kiss. Oh, that's a horribly stiff
price to pay. I'm just happy you don't need to wear a paper bag over your mug
in order to get laid.”

“I dunno, Kaylis. You border on the
freaky sometimes. You might actually like it if I wore one. We'll have to test
that theory sometime.”

I giggled. “Yeah... I don't think so.
That's along the same lines as a pork chop tied around your neck so your
parents could get the family dog to play with you. That's just not my cup of
tea.”

“So be it, your loss. Pucker up,
buttercup. Time to pay the piper.”

My eyes closed and I leaned towards him,
face upturned. Our lips met while his hand grabbed mine and pressed it to his
jeans fly. Beneath, he throbbed under my touch. I caressed him through the
denim and smiled with his oral onslaught. Stopped and stepped away from his
intoxication before I said, “Take me to the location. I paid my sugar, time to
ante up.”

That wide and sensuous mouth smirked.
“Gladly.” He walked towards our bedroom.

Now my curiosity was stoked. I just came
from there... where and what was it he had hidden?

I followed behind, my eyes searching
everywhere for the secret. Dmitri stood at the foot of the bed, bare chested
and smiling. His pants rode low on his hips.

He gestured wide and smiled. “Taa daa.”

“Thanks, Sherlock.” I crossed my arms
over my chest and looked to him.

“Do you want another hint?” Dmitri
probably would give himself a stroke if he stopped grinning.

“What's the asking price this time? I
know let me off light in the living room.”

He hooked his fingers in the elastic
waistband of my boxers and pulled me to him, hips against hips. “Yeah, you were
let off light. Ok, this time you're gonna have to be more into it... make me
believe you want me.”

My eyebrow quirked. There were a lot of possibilities
available in that statement. So I opted for the smartass answer. I pushed
Dmitri down onto the bed and straddled his lap while wrapping my arms about his
neck. Kisses were rained up his lips, jawline and shoulder. I nipped at his
collarbone, licking and sucking and teasing. My body writhed against his while
he rocked his hips back and forth.

I pulled away after a couple minutes of
fun and asked, “Convinced yet?”

“I'd have to say so.”

“Ok... reveal the location of the idol,
Doktor
Jones.” I tried out a German accent.

He leaned back on his elbows and
chuckled. “I can't show you when I'm held captive. You'll have to let me go and
I'll take you to the treasure. You can hold onto my whip if you want to...”
Dmitri fought back a chuckle.

“I am glad you are amendable to my
vill
.”
I rolled off of him and he stood up on the bed to reach for the silken canopy.
Dmitri removed it from its hook and handed it to me. I wrapped the silk yardage
around the hoop to make it manageable, then settled it on the dresser.

“Hey babe, hand me that flashlight.”

I reached for the LED light between his
side of the bed and his nightstand. “Here you go.” I handed it to him. He then
turned off the bedroom light.

Dmitri smiled down at me and said to
close my eyes. I sat upon my pillows and covered my peepers as requested.

I felt him plop down beside me and then
the click of the flashlight. About thirty seconds later, another click.
Dmitri's calloused hand held mine.

“Okay, take a look.”

I looked up to see constellations
emblazoned upon the ceiling. Where the canopy had hung moments ago got replaced
with a spiral of words made to look like a galaxy with tiny stars, meteors and
planets sprinkled about in various shades of glow in the dark paint. I read the
spiral and gently smiled.

“
If ever there is tomorrow when we're
not together... there is something you must always remember. You are braver
than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the
most important thing is, even if we're apart... I'll always be with you.”
-Winnie the Pooh

My heart swelled at his surprise as I
drank in the sight. Awe and flabbergasted.

Dmitri broke the silence. “I, uh, found
the paper with a part of that quote in a pair of your jeans when I did
laundry.” He scratched the side of his nose with his pinky finger.

“The therapist wrote it down when I told
him about Mike. I didn't know there was more to the quote. It's beautiful.
Kinda morbid, but beautiful.” I couldn't take my eyes from the ceiling. It must
have taken hours for him to do it... he stunned me once again.

“Yeah, I find the thought of not being
in your future a total bummer, too.” His hand squeezed mine, and then he drew
it to his lips. A kiss lingered on the back of my hand. I studied Dmitri's
face, so familiar to me yet changed by time. The corners of his eyes gained
faint crows-feet. Fine lines etched his brow, and near his temples, a tiny
sprinkling of silver amongst dark brown hair. His face tanned by the sun and
weathered by exposure to Middle East summers. But the blue of his eyes remained
the same.

I looked upon the cosmos he created for
me, humbled by the way he gave me the sun, moon and stars for my very own. “Why
do you love me so much?”

Dmitri harrumphed. “Why do you love me
so much?”

I bit my lip as I contemplated the
answer. “I love you so much because when bad shit happens, you're there. You
anchor me in the stormy seas of life.” I gestured towards the ceiling. “You do
amazingly sweet stuff like this. Even when I don't want your help, you're there
offering it, or going behind my back to get things done for my benefit. You are
a genuinely nice guy-- I mean my mom adores you and Jet tolerates you better
than I thought she would. You are an excellent kisser, and have other
awe-inspiring qualities of a related nature. You inspire me. And support me and
my messy-artsy ways... the list goes on. There's more positives than negatives
when it comes to you... you're just that fucking awesome to me, Dmitri. If only
you liked cheese as much as I do... alas. And although it galls me to say it, I
thank Lorryn for bringing you into my life. Without her, there'd be no us.”

He looked deeply thoughtful. “I love you
because you're sweet. Funny. Intelligent. Witty. You like the Cure as much as I
do. You're clever... to name a few things. Not a lot of people are as easy to
talk to as you are. I can tell you anything. Sometimes you like to play with
shovels but that can be overlooked.”

I smiled. Playing with shovels means me
asking for further clarification to something Dmitri thought he answered
sufficiently the first time.

He continued with the ego stroking. “And
you're very easy on the eyes. That's like icing on the cake. You're beautiful
and strong and never change, Kaylis. Grow old with me. Get gray hair, some
wrinkles and dentures. Just never change being you.” He cleared his throat.
“I'm not as generous in spirit as you towards her. I don't know if I can
forgive her for what she did. It was hell thinking I could die in the big
sandbox and you'd never know I was sorry things happened back in the day. She
didn't want me to apologize to you... she didn't want you to know. She stole
years from me... from us. I don't know if I can forgive her for that.”

Years.

If Lorryn hadn't done what she did back
in the day, would Dmitri and I stayed together? “Honestly, those stolen years
served a purpose, hun. If I hadn't gotten involved with Mike, I'm not sure if
I'd appreciate you as much as I do, having seen the ugly side of man's nature.
I think I needed that reality check so that when something good came along, I'd
know.”

Dmitri smiled wide and changed the
subject. “I'm glad you like the night sky you now have for your very own.”

“I like it very much, thank you.”

“You know what I like very much?”, he
asked with a soft smile on his face.

I looked deep into the blue of his eye,
enjoying his gentle gaze. “Tell me what you like very much...”

His smile grew bolder. “I'd rather show
you.” Dmitri trailed his index finger against my lower lip. I retaliated by
licking and then sucking on said finger. My tongue caressed the digit with
enough skill to make him gasp. His eyes locked onto mine and a fizzle of lust
surged through my extremities so I sucked even harder.

“You need to not do that, Kaylis.” The
words would have been cold water to my libido had his tone agreed. Instead, his
tone told me, I like that, but I'd love it somewhere else.

I stopped my oral tribute and asked,
“You don't like me sucking on you?” I batted my eyes and interjected surprise
into my voice.

“I didn't say that.” Oh, the audacity of
me to insinuate he didn't enjoy my tongue massage.