Not Quite Juliet: A Club Imperial Novel (Silver Soul Book 1) (27 page)

He sat up, then stood from the bed. “Wait here. Your shoes derailed my plans.”

“Nick—”

“Don’t move.” He stood in the door for just an instant. “I’ll know if you move.” His lascivious smirk appeared just before he ran out of the room.

I lay there, as instructed, one nipple out, arms to the sides, one shoe dangling off my foot. Sweet tamales, I felt more wanton than just about any other time I’d been with him. I was wearing crotchless panties and I was rather exposed. I stared up at the ceiling, and giggled. Then I started laughing. I had popped a waterbed with my CFMs; the wanton hussy was back full force. It felt good to be able to admit I liked this feeling and I liked sex and I wished Nick would get back here so we could have some indecent intercourse.

Walking back in, he had a basket of...things with him. I went to sit up, and he wagged his finger at me. “Nuh uh. Stay there. I want to admire this view.” He put the basket on the nightstand and tossed a few blankets over the footboard. “For temporary practicality, I brought those. We won’t be going back to the other room tonight.” He crawled up the bed again, and went right back to my nipple.

After I gasped from his teeth scraping me, my brain registered a buzzing sound. Before I could ask him what it was, I yelped from the light pressure of a vibrator on my clit. “Nick!”

“Hmm?” He wasn’t taking his lips off of me.

“What the hell have you got-ah!” The vibrations kicked up a little bit.

“Nothing.” He mumbled it around my nipples, creating an opposite humming sensation. They crashed together in the middle, creating a hot, melting sensation in my sex. Everything clenched and I let out a long, low breath. “Someone likes that.”

“What the hell have you got there?” I managed to gasp the words as he ramped the vibrations up even more and headed towards my entrance.

“You’ll see, after you come.” He moved over to my other breast and pulled the ribbon open with his teeth. He nosed the lace out of the way, and it fell away without too much effort. The vibrator found the nerves around my waiting tunnel and I gasped and arched up. Without mercy, Nick kept pressing forward with his toy and I could feel it wasn’t a regular shape. At all. And it tapered wider.

Holy moley.

While he nuzzled and licked and nibbled at the hard pearls that held his interest, he nestled the vibrator up into my soaked and throbbing channel and when he was the point he wanted, a second lower, deeper vibration started up. “Shit!” I gasped and grabbed his hair. “Oh, shit! Nick! What are you doing?!”

“Making you come,” he said. “I explained that. Goddamn—I love your tits, kitten.”

Whatever the vibrator was, he nestled it in my folds, resting the whole toy against every sensitive spot that existed. He let go of it and left it teasing inside me. He moved a now free hand to my other nipple and pinched, not entirely gently, while he nipped at the other one.

What the hell was this magic wand between my legs? I was going to come hard and fast. I couldn’t hold on. I was shaking and shivering, and the only thing keeping me on the bed was Nick. I was trying so hard not to come. It was almost too soon.

“Don’t fight it, kitten.” His words brushed my nipple. “This is just the first of the night.”

“Nick!” I couldn’t think of anything else to say. He used his free hand to press the vibrator against me, and that was the end of it. I shattered into a thousand pieces right there and then, squirming and screaming his name. He coaxed it out of me, pushing and releasing the toy making me ride the orgasm as he still sucked and nipped at me.

As I came down from the climax, I sucked in the air and just enjoyed the feeling of Nick carefully bringing me back to myself. The low thrum on my clit disappeared and as I started to really come down, the higher pitched thrum in my channel ceased, and Nick pulled the toy away from my sex. He smiled at me from his perch on my breasts. “I like crotchless panties.”

“What the hell was that?” I gasped.

“Call it an early Christmas gift.” He held up the vibrator which looked nothing like anything I’d ever seen before. It was shaped so differently, but having just experienced its prowess I understood exactly why it looked as it did. The toy glistened with my silk. “You told me you like sex. I like making you come. So, I went to the experts and they told me this was one of the best.”

“Experts?”

“Lisa and Emmy.”

I burst out laughing. “Well, you picked the right people.”

He pushed off my shoes and motioned me to straighten out on the bed. “Now. Let’s play.”

Oh, I liked the sound of that.

––––––––

T
here was a gentle kiss on my forehead, and I swiped it away. There was a kiss on my nose, and I groaned. “Dervish, come on.” There was another kiss on my lips. “Dervish! Ew!” I popped my eyes open to swish the cat away. This was a dream, and I wasn’t falling for it again.

Except this time, it was no dream. Nick D was smiling at me from his side of the bed. “Morning, kitten.”

Wow. This was really nice.

I snuggled down into the blankets and realized I was really naked.

This was now awesome.

“How do you feel?” He had a smile on his face, but his eyes were sad. It was a strange combination.

I took stock: nipples, chafed; arms, exhausted; legs, jelly; clit, swollen; and pussy thoroughly aching. “Good.” I answered with a smile. “I have to say, being in a real bed with you is quite an experience. Where did you get all those toys?”

“There’s a shop downtown.” He slid out from the covers, and stood next to the bed gloriously naked. “Apparently a lot of your co-workers go there.”

“Siobhan’s.” I smiled. I didn’t think I was masking my ‘what no morning sex?’ feelings very well, and I was even more sad when he trotted over to the bathroom that was attached to that bedroom.

“That would be the place.” His voice echoed off the tiles.

“You don’t want to ravage me this morning?” Why beat around the bush. Or, rather, why not?

“I...have somewhere I have to go this morning.” His voice was filled sadness. He appeared in the door a moment later, and leaned a shoulder on the frame. “I’d like you to go with me.”

The seriousness radiating from him made me very aware this was not something easy, simple or something to poke fun at. I also had the feeling this was deeply personal, and for him to ask me along was a great show of trust. I nodded. “Of course.”

“Thank you.” He turned and walked back into the bathroom.

I wanted to go in there and use the shower with him, but somehow, I knew that wasn’t what he needed. I pulled one of the sheets off the bed, and wrapped it around me, walking over to the door. “I’m going to get my stuff and call my sister.”

He smiled at me in the mirror and raised his eyebrows. “You look good in a sheet.”

“You look good naked.” I turned and dropped the sheet off my shoulders, exposing my whole back and walking away from him. I knew nothing was going to come of that, but it felt good to do it anyway. I took a quick shower in the other bathroom and after dressing, found my phone downstairs in my purse. I found two texts on it. The first was from Nicole.

PickiNicki:
Hey sis. How was your sex tryst? I’m going to the mall to find some stuff to wear.

PickiNicki:
Text me, let me know you’re OK.

MorganaLeFey:
My tryst was wonderful. If you need any extra cash for clothes, let me know. And Pittsburgh winter can be just as viscous as Edgar. Think warm.

MorganaLeFey
:
You can pick me up from the library?

PickiNicki
:
Just text me when you’re ready. With directions.

PickiNicki:
Can we do dinner?

MorganaLeFey:
Count on it. Nick’s got a show tonight and I have to get this damn brief done for class. We’ll go big.

PickiNicki:
Big? Oh, no! You can’t mean...

MorganaLeFey:
That’s right. Panda Express.

PickiNicki:
Be still my heart!

I laughed and decided I would just call her later. She was in the land of clothes performing her rituals, so I wouldn’t disturb her. I flipped through to the other message.

555-1587:
It’s almost time for you to pay, little slut.

Again. So unoriginal. I wished I could block it, but there was always a new number, so I just deleted it. Like I usually did. I walked into the kitchen and found Nick there looking like...Nick. He wasn’t dressed in a suit, and he wasn’t dressed as a rocker-god. He was wearing plain jeans and a button down shirt in a small checked plaid. I didn’t even know the guy owned loafers. He looked so...middle class. The classic simple Nick did funny things to me.

“Coffee?” He offered without turning around.

“Sure.” I sat down at the table. “Where are we going?”

“You’ll see when we get there.” It wasn’t a malicious statement, but it wasn’t to be questioned. I took the coffee he offered and put way too many spoons of sugar in it, and then drowned the whole thing with milk. Nick turned up his lip. “Uh, Morgan?”

“I don’t like coffee.” I stirred the concoction. “I like what sugar and milk do to it.”

“Next time, I’ll make you cocoa.”

He pointed to the coffee bag on the counter: Jamaica Blue Mountain Peaberry, green trade, medium roast. Damn it. That was not what you did to quality coffee. “Sorry.”

He laughed, quietly. “I have really good Aztec cocoa, too. Wish I’d known.”

“Aztec cocoa?”

“Xocolatl.” He pulled open a cabinet and held out the can for me. “Liquid gold. The Aztecs thought of it as the food of the goods.”

“The Aztecs were no fools.” I studied the canister. “I’m ready to go whenever you are.”

“You talked to your sister?”

“We have a hot date at Panda Express.”

“Always living on the edge, Miss Kirkbride.”

“Indeed, Doctor Dovadsky.”

He let out a breath and downed the coffee. “Let’s go. Since you abused my coffee so badly.”

“Nice.” I also downed the rest of the coffee, and grabbed my purse and the backpack. “You can drop me off at the library later? Nicole is going to pick me up.”

“Of course,” he said. “You’ll be back after work?”

“Planning on it.”

He held up a key. “This is yours then.”

“Nick—”

“Nope, shut up and take it.” He pressed it into my palm. “I want you to have it.”

He was so serious today, I was having trouble believing this was the same guy from last night. Or the rehearsal, or the car or the broom closet. Nick took my hand and led me out the front door to his car. We had a ten minute drive to a florist, where he made me wait in the car. I didn’t know what we were doing there; it was so hard to get a bead on this guy today.

Nick walked back out and climbed in. He handed me a small bouquet. “Those are for you. You have a thing for purple callas.”

I stared at the small, six flower hand bouquet that he handed me. “How the hell did you know I like dark purple callas? I don’t go around advertising that...”

He winked. “I have my sources.” He held up a single flower. “This is an iris. Please hold on to it for me for just a little while?”

I took the flower carefully, and nodded. “Of course.”

A lot of my questions were answered—or at least silenced—when he pulled the car down the small, rough paved road of St. Alexander Cemetery. It was a small cemetery, and most of the stones were on the small side. I hadn’t really been in many cemeteries in my life; all of my family was in Wisconsin. I hadn’t really had a reason to go to one. I didn’t like it. It was eerily quiet, even for being just a few hundred feet from PA Turnpike. He pulled the car to a stop not too far in, and parked.

Nick did not want to get out. I could see it. He took a deep breath, and finally opened his door. I followed his lead, putting the bouquet he gave me on the seat and carrying the iris for him. He walked around the car and stopped for me to catch up, but didn’t take my hand. I walked with him over the dying grass in the cool air. The gray clouds which didn’t threaten rain seemed entirely too apropos of the mood.

He picked his way through the stones and finally approached one in the back. It was small, and I could see the plaque on it, but not what it said right away. He stopped about twenty feet away and seem to steel himself against...the name there, I guessed. I stood quietly, and held the iris out for him when he started to take a step.

Nick took the flower without looking at me. His eyes were on his feet, and I was pretty sure it was sheer force of will that he was still even walking toward the stone. I waited until he was just a few steps ahead of me and followed soundlessly. I stopped five feet away from the stone. Nick had walked right up to it. I looked at the name, and my heart broke.

Ava Aubrey Dovadsky.

Just one date on it, this date, four years ago. A small engraved picture of a tiny infant was set into the plaque. The same tiny infant he had on his mantle, the one he held for just that day.

He stood, unmoving, wordless for a long time. I didn’t know if he was praying, wishing, dreaming, remembering. I let him be. This was his daughter’s birthday. No wonder he couldn’t talk to me about her the night before. It was too close for him.

After nearly twenty minutes, Nick knelt down. He put a hand on the stone and bowed his head. He placed the flower at the edge of the stone and stared at it. He stayed there for another long moment, finally standing and turning away five minutes later. He saw me there, and I saw the raw, scathing emotions that ran through him. This wasn’t the rocker, this wasn’t the brilliant scientist standing there. It wasn’t even the suburban dweller I’d seen that morning.

This was a father, with the only thing that gave him the title ripped from his arms less than a day after it had been granted.

I didn’t say a word. I held my hand out, offering it without obligation, without strings. He walked away from the grave of his daughter, and stopped next to me. Nick just looked at me for a moment, and then took my hand. I wanted to pull him into my arms. I wanted tell him that everything was going to be okay. I wanted him to smile at me and tell me he knew that. But I didn’t. I just let him hold my hand as we walked back to the car. I took the keys from him without protest and slid into the driver’s seat. I picked up my flowers and put them on the dash board as he dropped into the seat. He fastened his belt, but that was all. Nick’s head dropped against the window pane, and he stared blankly back at the stone. It was barely visible from where we were.