Could You Be Mine? Pt. 02

Ellie's kissing skills were off-the-charts amazing: Wet, but not sloppy... aggressive, but not pushy... It wouldn't be hard to contemplate an entire day of non-stop making out. But I was still digging out of my week's worth of deprivation from Ellie's touch, and more urgently, the idea of throwing her over my shoulder was far too enticing to ignore.

She squealed with delight as I picked her up. I grabbed Thelma from my duffle bag and started unbuckling my belt. Thelma was our red strap-on, so named because it was, well, a redhead, and also because the first time I fucked Ellie with it, she kept shouting, "Keep going!" It only stood to reason that Thelma's blue counterpart would be dubbed Louise.

Ellie gasped with approval as I threw her on the bed, stripped and stepped into the harness. I joined her on the bed and ran my hand up her skirt.

"Looking for something?" She smiled wickedly.

I paused. "Underwear," I muttered, stating the obvious.

"Underwear... ah, yes," she wiggled her eyebrows, "That would be a consideration... if I were wearing any."

-pulse- My heart skipped several beats and I coasted my hand from the side of her hips to the crest of her mound. She opened her legs and pressed into my palm, "Come on, RJ, what are you waiting for?"

I didn't bother taking any of her clothes off. I pushed in and started with a slow, but deep rhythm. I didn't want to give her what I knew she wanted -- not yet. I wanted to scrape the cock against every nerve ending she had inside. Ellie made slow, soft moans in response.

"Oh god, you feel so good RJ... harder, please, harder."

Not yet.

"RJ..." her plea became more urgent, "More... harder..."

I pulled out and paused for a second. Our eyes met.

"Please, RJ..."

I plunged in. Hard.

"OH!" She shouted.

I did it again. I did it multiple more times. And it felt so good.

As Ellie started to tense, I rolled us over so she was on top. She loved riding me, and I loved her riding me. And a fully-clothed Ellie riding me into a massive orgasm was pretty mind-blowing to watch. I reached for her clit with both of my thumbs and rolled it between them. She started shaking with pleasure and I flicked my thumbs faster. God, I loved making this woman come.

"Holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit..." she squeaked. She doubled down on her thrusts downward, and I lost awareness of my limbs as she took me with her.

And then she collapsed on top of me, blonde hair flying, shirt all mussed up, her skirt a parachute of heat and sex that billowed around our bodies.

"Hmmm..." she whispered in my ear, "I love you so much."

"I love you, too," I stroked her hair off her face, "I feel so lucky."

Ellie kissed me, "You haven't tried my cooking. It's awful. You may yet change your tune."

I laughed, "Ian already warned me. But if I must live off dry toast and water for the rest of my life in order to be with you, it would be fine with me."

"Such chivalry," Ellie clicked her tongue, "I suppose I'll need to reward you somehow..."

My breaths shortened in anticipation of her touch. She discarded my harness with great efficiency, and when her tongue descended on my clit, I realized -- with a thrill that was equal parts joy and terror -- that I was done for... because there would be no coming back from the emptiness I would feel without her by my side...

Her tongue swept up those thoughts and chased them away with masterful swirls of seduction. I willingly let myself get lost in her love for me.

I've seen love go by my door
It's never been this close before
Never been so easy or so slow
I've been shooting in the dark too long
When somethin's not right it's wrong
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go.
You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go, Bob Dylan

Chapter 4: Idiot Wind

"Sorry!" I strode into my office.

Liz got up and gave me a hug, "I just got here myself."

I reached into my messenger bag and fished out a card key, "Here you go - gives you access to the elevator and to the sixth-floor entryway. Ian already has one, and I told the doorman that you'd give him the guest list later this afternoon."

"Awesome," Liz took the card key, "You'll be there, right?"

"Yep," I nodded, "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Liz gave me a quick kiss on the cheek, "Thanks, RJ, I better run."

"See you tonight," I gave her a quick salute.

Liz stopped short at the door and turned around, "Oh. Um, Alice will be stopping by at the party tonight."

I raised an eyebrow, "Alice... as in Alice Ray?"

Liz nodded.

Alice and I had an on-again, off-again friend-with-benefits arrangement that ended several years ago. It had been mutually convenient, and it served its purpose during its time. But when Alice moved to Paris for work, she met someone there and we eventually lost touch.

"What's she doing in New York? I thought she was in France?"

"I think she's moving back to the States."

"Hm. It'd be nice to see her, I guess."

Liz crossed her arms, "Nice? You guys were so hot and heavy we all thought she was the one!"

"She wasn't," I said emphatically, "Neither one of us was looking for a commitment."

Alice and I had been birds of a feather. There was attraction, sure, but there had never been any interest in anything other than really good sex when we happened to be in the same city. We never talked about any relationship stuff. Alice worked for a global hotel conglomerate, and even though she was based in San Francisco, jetted off to various projects around the world at a pretty regular clip... hence the on-again, off-again component.

"Well, she's coming by. She's very interested to know what you've been up to."

I frowned, "Why? We haven't been in touch for years!"

"She said she wants to pick up where you guys left off... but I told her it was probably not in the cards."

"Yeah, definitely not gonna happen," I shook my head.

Liz gave a quiet whistle, "RJ -- don't take this the wrong way, but why not Alice or any of the others? I mean, Lauren's great -- Mona and I both love her to death... but it's not like you were dating losers before."

I felt irritated, having to continually explain myself to my friends, "I wish you guys would stop treating this like I had a lobotomy or something. I didn't like dating. Period. I didn't think I'd fall in love. Maybe it's because I wasn't ready, maybe it's because of any number of other things. Who cares? Doesn't mean I can't change my mind, right?"

"Of course not," Liz's tone was gentler, "But RJ, you went from one hundred percent commitment-phobic to getting an engagement ring! You can see why we are all a little confused, right? We're trying to understand..."

"I guess you'll all have to wait and see if I fuck this up, won't you?" I snapped.

Liz waved a hand, "Oh come on, RJ! Don't be so touchy. No one needs you to prove anything to anyone! Sheesh! I thought I'd tell you about Alice so you wouldn't be caught off guard when she shows up at the party."

That was just the beginning of my terrible mood. I was getting sick of people looking incredulous when I talked about Ellie. It didn't help when Ellie called me from her client's office in Chicago to tell me someone spilled water all over her stuff and essentially drowned her phone and laptop.

"Mom said there's a guy she knows who can revive dead phones. So I'll give it a go, thank god everything's backed up. Dad has a spare, so I'll swap the SIM out later tonight when I go over to their place. The laptop will have to wait."

"That sucks," I grumbled. I didn't like not being able to get in touch with her.

"RJ, what's up? You're not really getting all cranky over my dead phone, right?"

I rolled my eyes, "I hate people."

She sighed sympathetically, "More misanthropic than usual?"

"I miss you. And people all think I suck at this."

"What do you mean?"

I clicked the cap of my pen on and off, "Mona reminded me that it's been almost three months that you and I have been together. Apparently, I am about to phase into the freak-out zone and come to the realization that I actually still hate relationships."

"She said that?"

"No," I mumbled, "But I know that's what she was thinking. Liz said something similar. It's beyond irritating."

"I say let them think whatever they want. Seriously -- it doesn't matter. I know you love me, and I love you."

"Come back tonight," I knew I was whining.

"RJ, we've made it work for four weeks, we can hang on for one more night."

I heard my inbox notification sound, "Okay," I said as I looked at my screen. My heart jumped. It was an email from Greg Quinton saying Ellie's ring was ready. My mood shifted immediately.

"RJ?"

"Yeah!" I grinned, "Okay. I got it. Ellie, I have to go."

"You okay?"

"Yeah, sorry, there's an email I need to deal with. I'm good. Really."

"Okay. Don't mope around so much. Have fun at Mona's party tonight! I love you."

"I love you too. Let me know once you have a cell phone again, ok?"

Ellie hung up and I practically ran out of the office to Quinton's.

I gripped the small velvet box in both my hands all the way home. Greg did a great job and I couldn't wait to show Ellie.

I set the box on my bedside table, but I couldn't leave it alone. I opened it, closed it, opened it again. I thought about the hundred different ways I could ask her and about the hundred different ways she could respond. When Joey called from downstairs to say that the guests were starting to arrive, I realized I'd completely forgotten to get ready.

"Jesus!" I stepped out of my work clothes and was about to change when my phone rang. Ellie!

"Hey!" I glanced over at the ring box.

"Hi babe," Ellie said, "Dad can't find his spare phone. He's turning the house upside down, but I have a feeling mom tossed it and forgot to tell him."

"I'll have to be okay with waiting to see you tomorrow, then."

"Flight's at 6:10, so I'll be at your place by 11:00 latest... Hey, aren't you supposed to be at Mona's thing?"

"I lost track of time. I was about to change when you called."

"Are you naked?"

-pulse- "I'm in my underwear."

"Sounds delicious. It's making me wiggly. I'm sitting in my parents' kitchen, so no funny business."

I chuckled, "I wish you were here."

"Me too. Now go get dressed and play host. I'll call you after my dinner."

"Okay. I love you."

I dropped my phone onto the bed and got dressed. There were about a dozen people at the party already when I arrived. Mona was surrounded by four or five of them, champagne flute in hand. Liz was fussing around, and Ian was clanging away in the kitchen.

I went over and wished Mona a happy birthday. "RJ! Thank you so much for letting us do this here -- it's amazing!"

"No sweat," I smiled. I saw a couple friends from work and spent some time with them before we all sat down to dinner. Ian outdid himself. Dish after dish of Mona's favorites were consumed by everyone. I understood why Ellie never had to make an effort in the kitchen. If your best friend could cook like this, you'd never need to!

When our stomachs were full and happy, Liz stood up and gestured for silence, "Hey everyone, thank you for coming. Mona was worried that no one wanted to help her celebrate, so I'm so grateful you all took my bribe money and made an appearance tonight."

"HEY!" Mona threw a napkin at Liz in mock protest.

"Before anything else, let's give a big standing ovation to Ian Bishop, who fed us so well I don't think we'll ever need to eat again!"

People banged on the table and roared their approval. Ian waved proudly from the kitchen, but quickly ducked back in.

"Except of course, we will have to eat again, because it's time for cake!"

Ian re-emerged with a three layer cake of some sort on a tray, "RJ - can you get the lights?" He asked.

"Sure!" I leapt up and trotted over to the control panel by the stairs. I dimmed the lights as Liz lit a couple of enormous sparklers.

"Hang on, hang on, hey Alex," Liz yelled, "Can you take a video?"

Alex nodded and fished out her phone, "Alright. Go!"

The entire room started belting out "Happy birthday" as Ian placed the cake in front of Mona.

"Hey sexy..." a voice said behind me. I felt arms wrap around my waist. Some part of me thought -- hoped -- that it was Ellie, somehow finding a way back to New York to surprise me.

I turned around, a grin on my face. The grin disappeared quickly when I saw that it wasn't Ellie, but Alice.

"Oh, hi Alice," I tried to be polite, but she felt like such a long-ago part of my life that I really wasn't interested in getting caught up with her.

"LIGHTS, RJ!!!" Someone yelled.

Thankful for the interruption, I turned back and flicked the lights on as Mona got up to make a speech, "Guys... it is SO amazing to have you all here..."

"So -- here alone tonight?" Alice pulled me back towards her. I stumbled a little with surprise and she had me in a half hug before I even realized what was going on.

"Hmmm..." she whispered in my ear, "I forgot how good you feel against me..."

I tried to nudge her out of the way, but she tightened her grip. I looked into her eyes as earnestly as I could, "Alice, STOP. This isn't..."

"Isn't what?" She winked, "Come on RJ, you were always up for some fun."

Nope. She's not going to go there. She was not going to make a scene in front of Mona's birthday party. I grabbed her wrist and led her upstairs.

I opened the door to my apartment and dropped her arm, "Alice, I don't know what you expected, showing up here tonight, but--"

Alice let out a chuckle, "'No expectations,' isn't that what we always said? Have fun, and no talking about what comes next?"

She pulled me into the bedroom, "Come on RJ, it's just sex. And we do it so well together."

I extracted my hand. "No, Alice. Seriously."

She tilted her head, she looked confused.

"It's different now," I explained, "I'm with someone." I glanced over at the bedside table, my new habit of checking to make sure the ring was still there.

Alice followed my sightline and saw the small black box. Her eyes widened. "You...?"

"Yes."

"Happily ever after?"

"If she says 'yes,'" I smiled. I felt suddenly shy, confessing this to Alice. She and I had always scoffed at romance, scoffed at love. We had been well-matched. But that was before Ellie.

Alice flicked her hair back and took a step closer to me.

"So love isn't over-rated after all?"

"No, not with her."

Alice was still for a moment, looking at me, like, really looking at me. I held her gaze. She stood on tip toes and kissed me on the cheek. I felt her give my neck a slight nuzzle with her nose before she stepped back, "Okay, Rowan Kan. I can respect that. I wish you'd told me this was a possibility. I would've pushed for it harder."

Oh.

Alice smiled, ran her hand up my arm and squeezed, "Hmmm, still working out, huh?"

I shrugged.

"Oh, RJ," she sighed, "It was good to see you." And with that, she left.

Alice's words bounced around in my head for a little while. I had no idea she felt that way.

I went into my kitchen and grabbed a beer. I wondered if Ellie forgot to call me after her dinner. I desperately wanted to hear her voice, but it was way too late to call her parents' house.

I pulled out my phone and scrolled through the history of my texts with Ellie. When I finished reading them, I fished out another beer from the fridge and looked through my album of photos. Ellie had sent me a selfie the other morning of her in bed right after she woke up. I ran my eyes over every pixel. Tomorrow couldn't come soon enough.

I held the cold bottle to my forehead. My phone buzzed. Ellie!

"Hey honey," her voice grabbed my heart and squeezed.

"Hi!" I leaned over the counter, "I was just thinking about you."

"Anything good?"

"It's always good. I miss hearing your voice."

"Hmmmmm... how was the party?"

I looked at the clock, "Probably wrapping up, I think. I'm hiding in my apartment."

"Why are you being anti-social?"

I pushed off the counter and headed into my room, "I don't function well without you. It'd be so much better if you were here."

"I'll be wrapped around you this time tomorrow night."

I flopped onto my bed, "I'm going to go to sleep until you come back."

"Are you in bed now?"

"Mmm-hm," I closed my eyes, "And you're not here."

"I like that you miss me."

"How was dinner?"

"Unremarkable. But I got some quality time with my parents afterwards. I'm sorry I didn't call earlier."

"What are you doing right now?"

"Listening to my dad snore. I'm so glad we had hotels room to stay in all those times you visited. The walls here are paper thin."

I chuckled.

"Want to know what I'm wearing?" I heard Ellie shifting around in her bed. -pulse-

"What?"

"Your b-school t-shirt. It still smells like you."

"I was wondering where that went! Did I leave it at the hotel?"

"Nope, I stole it from your suitcase. I've been rolling around in it quite a bit." -pulse-

"Klepto!" I was about to say something about idle hands when my call waiting beeped. Huh. It's Ian.

"Hey Ellie, Ian is calling me -- I should get it, in case it's about the party."

Ellie groaned in frustration, "Ok. Fine."

"I know. Sorry. I love you. See you tomorrow."

"I can't wait."

I switched over to Ian's inbound, "Hey dude!"

"Don't call me 'dude' you ASShole!" Ian barked into the phone. Huh?

"What?"

"I thought she meant something to you, you lying sack of shit!"

"Ian, I have literally zero idea what you are talking about."

"Yeah? How about you come down here and I'll tell you to your face what I'm talking about?"

Okaaayyyyy. I went to the door leading to the downstairs meeting space and opened it. Ian was at the bottom of the stairs and he looked positively homicidal.

"Where is she?" He crossed his arms as I trotted down the steps. Liz and Mona were cleaning up the table. Everyone else was gone.

"Ellie? She's not here, she's not coming back until tomorrow." I paused when I realized he wasn't talking about Ellie.

"Not Lauren, ASSHOLE," he glared at me. I'm getting sick of being called an asshole.

"You mean Alice?" I said this as calmly as possible.

"If by Alice you mean the Scarlett Johansson look-alike you brought up there just now, then yes. Where is she?"

"We talked for two minutes, and then she left," I said simply.

Ian narrowed his eyes and looked me up and down, "You were up there for much longer than two minutes, RJ!"

Yeah. I was about to get some good loving over the phone when you interrupted.

"Nothing happened, Ian. I don't particularly appreciate you jumping to conclusions."

Ian jabbed a finger at my face, "The lipstick on your face and on your shirt collar says I'm not jumping to any conclusions, ASSHOLE."

That's it. I'm done. "Stop calling me an asshole. You have NO idea what you are talking about."

Ian shook his head, "Actually, I do know what I'm talking about, RJ, I ALWAYS knew I'd have to pick up the pieces. She's going to come home and I am going to have to help her get over you."

"Thanks for that vote of confidence, Ian, but I think she and I are going to be totally fine. Nothing happened. You're getting the wrong idea."

"What's going on?" Liz strolled up, "Ian, come have a drink. You deserve it."

"Not in the mood," Ian snapped.

"Seriously, guys, what's going on?"

"Nothing." I raised my hands, "Ian's got the wrong end of the stick."

"YOU took a supermodel up to your apartment and come back out with lipstick all over you and I AM THE ONE WITH THE WRONG END OF THE STICK?" Ian roared.