Easing The Grief
.....When she came out of the bathroom with an armload of makeup and
shampoo, Joe was sitting on her bed amid stacks of clothes, absently running
a finger over the lace of a bra. The action seemed so typical of him that
she almost smiled.
"You don't have to go with me," he said in a carefully controlled voice.
"Yes I do."
After a few seconds he shrugged, then sat watching as she quickly filled
her suitcase. When she added the simple black dress to the bag with his
suit, his jaw clenched at its significance but he made no comment. She
closed up the bags and put them in her dressing room, checked the contents
of her purse and added it to the pile. Joe was still sitting on the edge of
the bed, but his mask of indifference had cracked. His eyes were full of
the loss of his father and fear for his mother.
"The company is lending us a private jet. We leave at six tomorrow
morning, and should reach home by early afternoon. There will be plenty of
time to dress for the wake." Toni purposely kept her voice low and even.
"I called your sister before I came upstairs. There hasn't been any
improvement in Angie's condition, but she isn't any worse, either."
He nodded, but continued to stare at her. She stared back, trying to gauge
his state of mind. It took a lot of energy to maintain that show of calm.
He had to be exhausted, but he was still fighting his need to be comforted.
Talking was out of the question; loving wasn't. With a gentle smile she
held out her hand. When he finally took it, she led him through the suite,
locking doors and extinguishing lights, until they reached his bedroom.
She climbed the steps to the big antique bed and knelt in the middle of the
mattress, beckoning. Automatically he followed, and sat beside her while
she drew the bedcurtains around them, creating a dimly lit nest. Facing
him, she unbuttoned his shirt and slid it off his shoulders. She could just
make out the way his jaw clenched as he continued to contain his emotions,
so she urged him to lie face down on the bed. Straddling his hips, she went
to work massaging back muscles that felt like granite. At long last a
guttural sound emerged from his throat, and he began to relax. Smiling, she
kneaded his lower back for a while before shifting position to work her way
from his feet up the backs of his legs. Slowly the knots loosened, and she
began to think he might be able to sleep.
Joe had other ideas. He rolled over and quickly shed his jeans before
reaching for her blouse. Backing away, she undid the buttons herself,
watching his eyes turn black as she slipped out of her shirt and bra, skirt
and panties. Knowing that he enjoyed looking at her, she slowly raised her
arms and loosened her braided hair, letting it fall around her shoulders in
ripples. He reached out and caught a strand, letting it slide through his
fingers before tracing a line up her arm, across her shoulder, and over the
swell of her breast. Cupping both breasts in his warm hands, he drew her
forward so he could kiss her hardening nipples. Her back arched, and she
felt the customary heat flow through her body as he sucked gently.
Familiar with his strategies, Toni repressed another shudder and gently
pulled away; before he could protest, she pushed him down and covered his
mouth with hers, flicking her tongue lightly over his pouting lips. "Lie
still and let me love you," she whispered, then kissed his eyelids closed.
Stretching out beside him, she ran her hands lovingly over his body while
kissing his shoulder and throat. His fists clenched the bedspread when she
ran her fingers lightly over his thighs. His head tossed restlessly when
she had kissed her way to one tight nipple, and ran her warm tongue over the
hard point of flesh. His feet twitched as she teased the thin line of dark
hair that ran downward from his navel. Then his whole body went still as
she hovered over his hips, watching the blood pulse under the tightly drawn
skin of his rigid cock.
With a wicked little smile, she pulled her hair over her shoulder and let
it trail over his chest and stomach, then tossed her head so that a thousand
silken whips flailed over his turgid flesh. He sucked in his breath, and
she repeated the motion.
Joe watched her through slitted eyes, his heart pounding and every nerve
alive to the slightest sensation. Her hair was cool against his hot skin,
slithering over it like a satin sheet. Then her warm hand was lifting his
stiff cock, and he felt the exquisite torture of her hot breath. He groaned
as she took just the top of him into her mouth, rolling her tongue over and
around the smooth head. Watching her face bent over him was outrageously
exciting. She rarely offered to give him head, and he had never pushed the
issue. Obviously she had put her inhibitions aside to please him, and from
the soft sounds issuing from her throat it seemed she had discovered an
unexpected pleasure in the act.
She began licking him like a lollipop. Her free hand was busy stroking the
insides of his thighs, then brushing lightly over his balls. She was
concentrating intently on her work, but as she stuck her tongue out to tease
a protuberant vein, she looked up to see his reaction. There was so much
heat in her gaze, so much desire, that he found himself trembling with his
need.
"Jesus, babe, you're killing me," he groaned. "Quit teasing and fuck me!"
"Yes, love," she replied, and her lips closed around him and slowly slid
downward. It took every ounce of will to remain still, but he managed. She
continued to go down, somehow managing to take almost of all of him into her
small, hot mouth. His hips jerked upward instinctively, and she responded
by tightening her lips around his cock and tugging lightly as she raised her
head slowly.
He thought that would be the end of it, but Toni had other plans. Again
she took all of him into her mouth, and this time he felt her fingers
squeezing gently on his balls. He moaned, and she took that as a signal to
begin working him more rapidly. He felt his legs tense, and knew he was
close to coming. The pleasure was just too intense to bear much longer. He
couldn't believe she wanted him to come in her mouth, but he found it
difficult to pull enough air into his lungs to warn her. He clawed at the
covers as he felt the last vestiges of self-control slipping away.
"Toni . . . for God's sake . . . stop! . . . I can't . . . can't hold on .
. . much longer . . . "
Through the pounding in his ears he heard her mumble, "Do it, Joe." Her
voice sent vibrations down his shaft to his balls, and he gave a hoarse
shout as the night exploded in fireworks.
When he returned to reality she was by his side, propped up on one elbow
and smoothing the damp hair back from his temples. Seeing his eyes focus,
she kissed his forehead, then his lips.
"You should be able to sleep now," she whispered.
"Not yet . . . you haven't . . . dammit, babe, you've never done that
before. I got the idea it wasn't your favorite pastime." He felt oddly
embarrassed. Even though his body was sated and ready for sleep, his brain
reminded him that only one of them was satisfied.
"There is always a first time," she chuckled. "You've had a bad day, Joe.
Go to sleep now, and you can make it up to me some other time."
He tried to stay awake. He rolled over and nuzzled at her breast, but the
hand gently stroking his hair was hypnotic. He felt her shift, pulling the
blankets over both of them. His arms slid around her waist, and his last
thought was of the soft, warm skin beneath his cheek.
