The Wandering Caravan (8 page)

“I’m still sorry anyway,” he said quietly.

I ran my fingers through her hair and looked at the sadness in his eyes. “Don’t punish yourself.”

“It’s hard not to.”

“Come here.” I patted the seat next to me. He moved then pulled the chair closer to me. He didn’t say anything, just stared at our joined hands.

“You did the right thing, Sean,” Ryan said. “And you did the most you could.”

Sean nodded but kept his silence.

“Is she bipolar?” Cortland asked seriously. “One minute, she acts like Scarlet’s mom. And the next, she acts like Scarlet isn’t good enough for her son.”

“I know,” Sean said with a sigh. “I don’t get it either. She’s crazy—literally.”

“Maybe she should get checked out…” Ryan sipped his wine then returned it to the table.

“You guys are being serious?” Sean asked.

Ryan shrugged. “She goes back and forth a lot…”

I shook my head. “She’s just going through a hard time, Sean. Give her space and see what happens.”

“I couldn’t stand it if she treated you that way in front of our kids.” He shook his head. “I couldn’t.”

“We’ll worry about that when we get there.”

“Okay.”

Sean stood up then cleaned the dishes in the sink. No one got up to help him. Everyone sat at the table, still in shock. Janice watched Sean roll up his sleeves then scrub the plates.

“Scarlet, you have a really good husband.”

“You do,” Monnique said.

Sean didn’t turn to us, but his cheeks started to redden.

“I know my sister is in good hands,” Ryan said.

We all left our chairs and helped him clean the dishes. Together, we saved the leftover food and cleaned all the plates and silverware. When everything was done, we retired to bed upstairs.

No one was in
a good mood after the dinner episode, especially Sean. I still had a headache so I took another aspirin before we got into bed. Sean pulled his clothes off but left his briefs on. That meant he still wasn’t going to put out.

When he lay in the center of the bed, I removed all my clothes then crawled on top of him. “We are making love tonight.”

“Scarlet, let’s give it more time…”

“Fine. I’ll just rape you.”

He smirked. “You can’t rape the willing.”

“Good response.” I pulled down his briefs and
rubbed my clitoris against his cock, letting my fluids soak him. His eyes darkened as he felt me slide across him. When he was lubricated, I pointed his tip inside me. I slid down and felt him stretch me.

“You okay?” he asked immediately.

I moaned. “More than okay.” I gripped his shoulders then sheathed him over and over. My tits rocked in his face, and he stared at them with a hungry expression.

His hands gripped my hips and he slowed my pace as I moved him in and out. “You’re perfect—fucking perfect.”

Sean always made me feel beautiful even when his mom stripped all my dignity away. He loved me unconditionally and it was the love I had always needed but never found. Seeing the love in his eyes made me crumble. I bit my lip so I wouldn’t scream. He always felt so good.

Sean had his bliss at the same time. He moaned loudly then depleted himself. We shared our orgasm at the same time, clinging to each other until we were both finished. I collapsed on his chest and fell asleep immediately. He was still inside me and he stayed there until the following morning.

10

Cortland

I thought Monnique would be over the fight we had a few nights ago, but she wasn’t. She normally didn’t hold a grudge about anything. She was a free spirit and didn’t waste her time being upset about things out of her control.

But she was still pissed.

When we went to bed that night, she turned on her side and faced the wall. She cuddled with a pillow instead of me and acted like I didn’t exist. I hadn’t brought up our argument because I didn’t think anything else needed to be said. I hoped the passage of time would rid the tension between us.

But it didn’t.

And now having her next to me was killing me. I missed the way she smiled at me, like I was her superhero. She would be clingy with me and never let me go. And I loved that. Now I felt like a stranger to her.

I was always the perfect boyfriend to her, as much as I could be at least.
I always picked her up from work even when it was at 3:00 a.m. I made her breakfast in bed every Sunday. I made love to her like I loved her. I told her she was beautiful every day, twice a day. I made her feel loved and cherished. I always helped with the housework and complimented her cooking. I really made an effort to make sure she never left me because I loved her so damn much. And I found it hard to believe that my one single flaw would push her away like this.

“Baby,” I whispered. “Talk to me.”

She held the pillow tighter and didn’t speak.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you upset.”

I still got nothing from her.

I decided to be more aggressive. I hooked my arm around her waist and pulled her to me, forcing her on her back. She tried to turn over again but I crawled on top of her, using my strength and size to make sure she couldn’t move. “Talk to me.”

“Cortland, I’m tired.”

“You’ve been tired for the past five days.”

“Well, I am,” she said quietly. She turned her face and stared at the wall again.

“Look at me,” I commanded.

She sighed then met my gaze.

“Why are you so upset?”

“I told you I didn’t want to talk about it and you pressured me anyway. No means no, Cortland.”

“Stop saying my name,” I snapped.
She didn’t flinch when I raised my voice. “You call me babe. That’s it. Nothing else.”

Monnique closed her lips.

“I’m sorry about my curiosity. It’s such a big part of your life, and I don’t understand why you haven’t shared it with me. I tell you everything. You know exactly what happened with Elizabeth. I don’t even know when you broke up.”

“Why does it matter?” she snapped.

“It…it just bothers me.”

“If I don’t want to tell you, I don’t have to. The fact you’re forcing me just makes me despise you.”

“Despise?” My voice choked. That was harsh…

“Then you call Scarlet right away. I know you asked her to pry it out of me. I’m not a locked safe you need a crowbar to open.”

Scarlet told her?

She glared at me. “No, she didn’t say anything to me. But I know you, Cortland. You run to her for everything.”

“No, I run to you for everything. Scarlet knows a lot about me, but after you came into my life, I only confided my secrets to you.” Was she jealous of Scarlet? She never mentioned anything before.

“That doesn’t make you entitled to all my secrets.”

“Baby, take back what you said.”

“Take back what?” she asked.

“You said you despised me.”

Her lips were sealed.

I stared her down. “This is the first real fight we’ve ever had. I sincerely hope they aren’t all like this. Don’t say hurtful things to me if you don’t mean them. Because if you really meant that…maybe you shouldn’t have moved with me.” It hurt to say that, but it was the truth.

She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I’m just upset.”

I waited for her to take it back.

“I didn’t mean it…”

I moved further over her then brushed her lips with mine. “I’m sorry I invaded your privacy. I just want to know everything about you, at least the important things. But if it’s that important to you, I won’t bring it up again.”

“About time…”

“Baby.”

She looked into my eyes.

“I’m sorry. Please forgive me.”

Monnique squirmed slightly under my stare, having nowhere to go. “Okay.”

“So, we’re okay?”

“Yeah.”

I grabbed her underwear and pulled them off. “Good. Because we haven’t made love in five days and I’m about to explode.”

She parted her legs then pulled me into her. We weren’t slow like we usually were. We were both desperate for each other. Monnique was a very sexual person, just as much as I was, and if she didn’t get her way, she was grouchy.

I moved into her hard and fast right in the beginning. She and I clung to each other as we tried to stay quiet. I’m sure everyone else in the house was doing the same thing, but I still stayed courteous.

Besides Monnique, Scarlet was the only other woman I didn’t wear a condom with.
I felt guilty for having that experience with anyone besides Monnique, who I was actually in a relationship with. Even though I was in love with Scarlet at the time, I still felt bad. And I felt worse knowing I had a girlfriend. As soon as Scarlet entered my life, the world shifted. When she got back together with Sean, I forced myself not to think about her. Then I saw Monnique, and she blew my mind. I was drawn to her like the flowers to the sun. I could never get enough of her.

Monnique was kinky so the sex was always unbelievable. But I enjoyed making love to her more than anything. Her thighs squeezed around my hips as she grabbed my shoulders and rocked into me from below. She didn’t care about being quiet, so I had to stifle her moans with my mouth and make sure the bed didn’t make too much noise.

She was always loud when she came, so as soon as the orgasm started, I slipped my tongue into her mouth so nothing would come out. She tightened around me as the pleasure stretched, and when she was done, I let myself go.

I loved coming inside her. It was the best feeling, knowing a part of me was being deposited inside her. She really was mine.

After we were finished, we cuddled. It was the first time we had been close for the past five days. I was grateful to have her in my arms again. I never wanted her to leave. I was even more desperate to know her past, but she seemed firm in keeping it a secret. I realized I would have to let it go.

We drove to the city the next morning to look at a few apartments. The Ferrari only had two seats, so it was just Monnique and I. Scarlet and Sean were unpacking their belongings and making their mansion into a home. Ryan and Janice were helping. That gave she and I some alone time.

I loved driving Sean’s car. It was a speed machine. We left the top down so the wind flew through our hair. Monnique wore a dress and
it billowed around her in the car. She smiled while she stared at the scenery.

I turned to her while I was driving on the straight road. I marveled
at her beauty for a moment, watching the sun kiss her dark skin. She was the single most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. I only wish I could take a picture of her. But if I did, we’d probably crash.

I turned down a side road then pulled over. I hadn’t see
n a car for the entire drive so I knew we were safe.

“Babe, what are you doing?” Monnique asked.

“Fucking you.”

Her eyes
widened. “It’s in the middle of the day.”

I unbuckled my safety belt and pulled her into my lap. “I don’t give a shit. No one is around.”

She resisted for a moment until I was inside her. Then she stopped protesting. I fucked her hard from below. She was tight and wet, and it didn’t take us long to find our mutual bliss. When she pulled me out, we both saw a cop on a motorcycle drive by. He pulled in front of the car.

Shit.

Monnique moved to her seat and fixed her hair. Then she gave me a look of hatred.

I couldn
’t help but smile. I shrugged my shoulders. “Maybe my brake lights are out.”

She rolled her eyes and looked away.

The cop approached my door, his hand on his gun. “Public obscenity is a serious offense.”

He didn’t say hi or anything. And he seemed pissed. “Hot cars and hot girls mix pretty well.”

Monnique looked mortified.

The cop wasn’t amused. “License and registration.”

Damn. I handed them over.

“Are you the owner of this car?” he asked.

“I wish,” I said with a laugh. I knew what I was about to do was lame, but I did it anyway. “It belongs to the Prestons’, whom are very good friends.” I assumed he would know exactly who they are.

He looked at the registration then back at me. “How do you know them?”

“My best friend just married their son, Sean.” I patted the wheel. “And this is his car.”

He handed back the license and registration. “Andrew is a good man. He gave my daughter a scholarship for college.”

Of course he did.

“But I will be telling him what you were doing in his son’s car.”

As long as it was Andrew and not Diane, I didn’t care.

“And I’ll make sure Diane knows too.”

I cringed. I didn’t care if they knew I fucked my girlfriend in the seat. I just didn’t want to give Scarlet more grief.

He smiled. “Have a good day.” He walked back to his motorcycle and drove away.

Monnique crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. “I’m so embarrassed.”

“What are the odds?” I said with a laugh. “We haven’t seen anyone all day.”

“I think we caught some of Scarlet’s luck.”

I laughed. “You could say that.” I started the car and got back on the road.

“Now Sean is going to know what we did.”

“Who cares? You think Ryan didn’t do the same with Janice?”

“Ryan has a little more class than you give him credit for,” she said.

I laughed again. “You obviously don’t know him very well.”

We drove the rest of the way in silence. As soon as we arrived in the city, the streets were crowded with cars. We fought traffic most of the time.

We took a look at all the apartments I was interested in. Monnique would have the final say in where we stayed. I wanted her to be happy in our new home. That was the most important thing to me.

Every single place was extremely expensive. But Sean told me what my new income was, and I could easily afford it. Monnique didn’t need to work. Her income was negligent to mine. But I didn’t dare say that to her.

“What do you think?” I asked when we got back in the car. People on the sidewalk kept looking at the car. A group of girls stopped and stared at it. Then they gave me a playful wave. I winked at them.

Monnique hit my shoulder. “I saw that.”

“Baby, you know I’m kidding. You make them look like a pack of raccoons.”

That made her calm down.

“So, which one did you like?”

“I don’t know…”

I immediately felt paranoid. Did she doubt our relationship? Was this too much? If she just told me the damn reason she and her ex-fiancé broke up, I wouldn’t be freaking out so much.

“Seattle is a big place but this…New York is huge.”

“I know it’s intimidating, but I’ll always be here. And we have Ryan and Janice. Plus, if you get into any trouble, the Prestons’ will take care of it.” I laughed at my own joke.

She looked at the skyscrapers and the people walking by. “It’s just such a busy city. Working in the ER would be a zoo. I’m sure a lot of critical patients come through…”

I could hear the anxiety in her voice. I wanted to tell her to quit, but I held it back. I promised her I wouldn’t do that. “Baby, you’ll be fine. You’re a great nurse.”

She gave me a breathtaking smile. It made holding my tongue totally worth it. “But I’m still scared.”

“Don’t be,” I said gently.

“Well, why don’t we live in Connecticut like Scar and Sean?”

“Would you want to?”

She shrugged. “Maybe. It’s not nearly as hectic.”

“Well, their apartments aren’t as nice as these. We’d have to get a house.”

“Oh.” She fidgeted with her hands. “That might be better if we were married…”

I took the hint. “How about I buy it, and when we get engaged, I’ll add your name to the papers?”

She smiled. “That sounds good.”

“Okay. Let’s go take a look.” I pulled into traffic and left the city.

“I’m sorry I wasted our entire day. I didn’t know it would be like that.”

I grabbed her hand and held it on my thigh. “Don’t apologize, baby. Any
time I spend with you isn’t wasted time, no matter what we’re doing.”

After we looked at the houses in my price range, we headed back home. My phone rang in my pocket so I answered it, one hand on the wheel.