Pursuit For Lucidity (Crashing Waves) (68 page)

I liked the idea of simple and agreed to the procedure she promised would be quick.  I felt comfortable with Dr. Holmes and trusted her decision. 
I hadn’t told Alex about my birth control plans because he wanted to try for another baby as soon as humanly possible.  I wanted to take my time and preferred to be married before having children, but Alex didn’t know that, as he would probably propose right away and I didn’t want that kind of a proposal.

Alex and I were going to meet for lunch that afternoon
, but it was still a bit early and I had a few minutes to visit Laura before then.

“
Hey, Claire!” Laura jumped up from her desk when she saw me and hugged me as if she hadn’t seen me in ages.  She gave me the scoop about work, since I had been home for a few weeks.

I met Alex shortly after my visi
t with the ladies in the office.  “Hi, baby.  It feels good to be able to have lunch with you again,” he said, smiling.  We walked to the Cuban deli and ordered sandwiches.  As we ate, I let Alex in on my visit to the gynecologist.

“
Is everything all right?  Did she examine you?” he asked.

“
She did and everything is great,” I replied.  I told Alex about the device that Dr. Holmes inserted into my uterus to prevent pregnancy.  He frowned, since it wasn’t something he wanted to hear.

“
Look, Alex, I know you want a baby like nothing else in this world, but you have to take my feelings into consideration as well.  I may not be ready today or tomorrow, but maybe I will be ready in six months or one year or even two years. I’m going to go home and plan how we will be decorating our Christmas trees,” I smiled.

“
You are one woman who knows what she wants, Claire,” he replied, leaning over to plant a soft kiss on my lips.

We had decided we would have two Christmas trees, one in my condo and one in Alex’s house in Malibu.  We got my tree first and decorated it that night before we headed for his house for the weekend.  The tree we got for Alex’s house was extremely large
, since his house was very big compared to my small condo.  We had to use a ladder to decorate it.

I couldn’t wait for Christmas because I wan
ted to see his reaction when I gave him his gift.  He finally put the angel on the top of the tree and climbed back down from the ladder and stood next to me, observing the masterpiece.  He poured a couple of glasses of wine, which we sipped on next to the fireplace.  The smell of fresh pine from the tree was intoxicating.  I noticed a fire in his eyes when I looked into them.  We hadn’t made love since the miscarriage, not because the doctor had restricted it, but because I wasn’t ready emotionally or physically.  I had a feeling everything was going to change that night.

Alex took the glass from my hand
and set it on the side table next to his.  He held me from my waist, pulling me close to him.  I hesitated, as I still had pain from the healing fractures in my ribs, “I’m sorry, baby.  I will be gentle, I promise,” he said, loosening his grip.  His kisses made my heart skip a few beats.

“
I’ve missed you,” I said as I responded to his passionate kisses.

“
Oh, baby, you cannot even begin to imagine how much I want you right now,” he replied as his kisses continued to send shivers down my spine.

I stood up and took his hand and began walking toward the bedroom
, but Alex tightened his grip on my hand and pulled me back toward him, “No, that’s too far away.  I want you here,” he said, directing me toward the sofa across from the fire.  His lips didn’t leave mine as he unbuttoned my blouse with one hand and unfastened my bra with the other.  He pushed off the empty ornament boxes from the sofa, dropping them onto the floor, as he almost tore off the remainder of my clothing.  He lay me down on the sofa as his warm, bare chest rested gently on my breasts, his soft, moist lips pressed against mine.  His lips shifted toward my breasts, my abdomen, and finally lower and lower, as his tongue stopped between my thighs.  I moaned in pleasure, as it had been a while since we made love.  His tongue continued to move in circles as he slowly added his fingers, in and out.  I was so close to coming when Alex stopped, pulled out his fingers and began working his lips back up to my abdomen, breasts, neck, and finally my lips again.  In no time, I felt him inside of me, moving in slow motion and igniting my fire like the fire burning across the way.  My heart began to race as my breathing quickened.  His blue eyes glowed with passion in that dim room as they gazed into mine.

“
Tell me what you want,” he commanded.

“
Deeper,” I pleaded.

“
Is that all?” he asked.

“
Faster,” I pleaded.

As he pushed himself deeper inside of me and quickened his pace, I lost control and began to convulse in pleasure, as my nails dug deep into his back. 
He didn’t seem to care about the deep scratches on his back as he came with a loud groan.

<><><>

On the morning of Christmas, I opened my eyes to admire the beautiful blue ocean from his bedroom window.  Only in California could you enjoy such a beautiful warm winter morning, gazing out into the ocean free from fog or snow.  When I turned to face Alex, his eyes were open as well.  He had been waiting for me to awaken, so we could open our Christmas gifts.

“
Merry Christmas, beautiful,” he said.

“
Merry Christmas, Alex,” I replied.  “Let’s open our presents,” I said, jumping out of bed and pulling his hand to get him out of bed.

What I had gotten for Alex was very sentimental.  It was a white gold necklace with a car tire charm.  It looked very similar to the tire and rims on my car. 
I had it custom made by an Armenian jeweler in Downtown, Los Angeles who my father always did business with.  The rubber part of the tire was made from black onyx and the rest was white gold.  Our names and the day we met in the mall parking lot were engraved around the tire if you looked closely.  It was a very masculine piece of jewelry with so much sentimental value.

“
Oh, Claire, you put so much thought into this gift.  There’s so much meaning here.  You’re amazing, baby,” he said as his eyes lit up. “I-I can’t put into words how much I love it.  I’m never taking it off,” he said as he put it around his neck.  “If it wasn’t for your flat tire, we probably wouldn’t be sitting here right now,” he said as he kissed me.  “Thank you, baby.  I love you,” he said as he continued to kiss me.

“
You’re welcome.  I’m glad you like it,” I replied.

“
Like
it?  I
love
it!  Almost as much as I love you,” he confessed.

“
I love you too, Alex.  You’re my world, remember?” I replied.

“
My gift doesn’t really have any sentimental value, unfortunately, but I hope it’s something you like,” he said.

I reached under the tree and found a small, lightweight box about the size of a small notebook.  I couldn’t guess what the conte
nts were as Alex kept saying, “Nope, that’s not it,” so I just gave up and unwrapped the box.  As I opened the box, I noticed the contents were airline tickets for two.  I took a closer look and noticed he had gotten two first class tickets to New York, leaving on December 27, which was only two days away.

With my eyes wide, I asked, “We’re going to New York?”

“If that’s all right with you,” he replied with a grin.

“
All right with me? Oh, Alex, you know how badly I’ve always wanted to take a trip to New York,” I replied.

“
Then you better start packing, baby, because we leave in two days from today,” he smiled. “I figured, since you won’t be returning to work until mid January, I’ve taken time off until then as well, so you and I can ring in the New Year in New York.  My folks are dying to meet the saint who put a smile back on my face,” he said.

I threw my arms aroun
d his neck and kissed him nonstop.  “This is the best Christmas ever,” I confessed.  “You better start packing your things, so we can head to my place, so I can pack as well,” I noted.

“
Yes ma’am, but I have something else in mind at the moment,” he said as he carried me into the bedroom.

<><><>

Alex had booked a late night flight, so he could work on the day we were leaving to New York.  I had finished last minute packing and decided to sit down and open that days mail and pay as many bills online as I could before we left town.  I sorted through the junk mail and recycled all the unwanted junk mail.  I came across an envelope that didn’t include a return address.  My name and address were typed and I noticed it had been postmarked in Los Angeles.  I opened it to find a typed message.

Dear Claire,

This message is from someone who dearly cares about you.  The man who you are in love with and who claims to be madly in love with you is not the perfect man you think he is.  Run while you can.  Run before it is too late.  Don’t go to New York with him.  Look what happened to Angela and know that you will be just like her if you stay with him.  This is your chance to back out.  Find a man who doesn’t have any skeletons in his closet.

Anonymous

Who was this letter from?  I kept reading it over and over again until I had it memorized.  What skeletons would Alex have in his closet that I didn’t know about?  I thought I knew everything there was to know about his past with Angela.  I couldn’t tell Alex about the letter, especially on the day we were leaving for New York.

I heard his car pull up and folded the letter as quickly as I could, shoved it back into the envelope and put it in the inside zipper pocket of my purse and continued to sort through the mail as if nothing had happened.  I heard the front door open, “Hey, baby, are you all packed up and ready?” he asked.

“Hey, Alex.  Uh, yes, I’m all ready.  I was j-just doing the bills until you got home,” I replied.

“
Is everything all right?” he asked, as he looked into my eyes.

“
Yes, everything is fine.  Why?” I asked in a shaky voice.

“
You just look a bit nervous, that’s all,” he replied.

“
I’m an anxious flyer when the flight is over an hour long.  Plus, I’m nervous about meeting your parents,” I said.

“
Oh, come on, baby.  Don’t be nervous about them,” he said, taking my hands into his and kissing them.  “They already love you and you’re going to love them,” he assured.  He showered, changed, and loaded the suitcases into his truck and we were on our way to Los Angeles International Airport in no time.

I tried and tried
, but couldn’t get the letter out of my mind.  I was so angry to receive such a message when I was so excited about the trip.

We sat at the gate and
sipped on hot tea while we waited to board the plane.  As I observed Alex, trying to dig deep to see if I could sense any secrets, lies, or skeletons in his closet, I recalled what my grandmother would always tell me, “Never judge a person by what other’s say because the same sun which melts the ice also hardens the clay.”

END

Thank you for reading my book.  Please take a moment to leave a comment at the site from which you downloaded.

Mariejembooks.com