"Oh…let me think about that…" my heart fell as he teased me. "I haven’t heard anything as good as that this week. That is an amazing idea."
"Good, I will drop them off at six o’clock and head to your place."
"Dinner will be on the table and it’ll be just a romantic evening in."
“I love the sound of being curled up in front of the fireplace with a glass of wine and dessert…" I was eager to be there in his arms.
"That and a whole lot extra," he said.
"I can’t imagine anything better."
"See you tonight, Destiny. I love you."
"I love you, too."
*******
At six o’clock on the nose, I said my goodbyes to my mother and children. I pulled into Jacob’s neighborhood at 6:45. I glanced in the mirror to check my makeup. I got out of the car and straightened my red dress. When I reached his door, I knocked and it didn’t take long before his arms wrapped lovingly around me and our lips tangled, as if it was our first time. Every time I was with Jacob, it was like our first time. That’s how I knew it was meant to be.
"God, I’ve missed that," I said.
His eyes drank in my dress and a smirk graced his lips. "God, I’ve missed this," he grabbed a handful of my ass in his hands.
"Behave.”
“That I can’t promise. Not when the sight of you drives me insane.” He hesitantly released me and led me into his dining room. The fragrance was inviting. He held out a chair for me and I took a seat. He then went over and began preparing our meal. “I cooked something you’ll like…pork chops and red potatoes."
“I see I’m in for a treat. No man has ever waited on me like this before,” I said.
"Remember, I’m not a chef," he teased, putting the plate of food down in front of me. I glanced at the delectable looking food.
"Looks edible to me," I said.
"Judge it when you take a bite."
I cut off a piece from the pork chop and took a bite. "Ugh…" I grimaced.
A look of concern entered his eyes. “I don’t usually cook, but I wanted to do something special for you. At least you know I’ll do anything for you,” he began.
I could not go on with the joke. "It tastes great, actually," I replied, laughing as I took another bite and a drink of the wine. "You did very well, Jacob. I must confess."
"I learned a few things from Greta," he said, referring to his nanny from childhood. He had adoration in his eyes whenever he spoke of her. We talked about how each other’s week went, discovering that we both had been waiting for this moment. "This weekend, I'm going to remind you why I'm your man, and I’ll repay you for joking about my food," he said, chiming my glass with his.
"Oh…" I scraped empty plate, stuffed. "What do you say, if we just put the dishes in the sink and tomorrow I help you wash them? Right now, I want to be wrapped up with you, getting punished for my stunning sense of humor."
"You read my mind."
I leaned across the table. "Can you read mine?" I asked, teasing him with a grin.
"You're thinking something naughty. And naughty girls learn the hard way."
I grabbed our dishes and slinked away from the table. I put them in the sink. When I turned around, Jacob greeted me with his hands snaking around my waist. He kissed me, pinning me against the kitchen counter.
"Are you teaching me a lesson?" I softly moaned, pressing my palms into his back.
His arousal grew against me, so I moved past him, grabbing our two glasses and topping them off with wine. I handed a glass to him. He took my hand and guided me to the living room. He leaned down, turned on the electric fireplace, and sat down on the blanket that sat before it. He pulled me down to join him.
"Now, this is what I’m talking about," he said, taking a gulp and putting his glass on a coaster.
We went back into a mesmerizing embrace, where heat and electricity filled our kisses. Our fire toasted the room. He placed me on my back and got on top of me. His tongue swept across mine and my hand dug into his back while we spent time taking it slow. His hands glided to my arms then eased to my back. While I reveled in the romantic moment, he eased the zipper of my dress down, but he didn’t go further. He just slipped his hand inside and massaged my back.
I opened his shirt buttons one by one. I didn’t remove his shirt, though. I ran my hands over his chest. Our bodies sensually moved against one another, grinding with slow force. My nails trailed down his chest while we intensified the movement of our tongues.
I undid his pants and slid my hand across his erection. He groaned against my mouth, but never broke from our heated kiss. My hand slipped inside his boxers and once again glided over his manhood, but this time without any barrier.
With our eyes locked, I began to remove my dress. Before I slipped it over my shoulders, he spoke.
"Wait…" He stood up and said, "I thought I could, but I can’t."
My heart pounded anxiously. I closed my eyes, as I tried to comprehend what was happening. “I don’t understand. This isn’t the first time we have been together, Jacob. I don’t get it."
He placed his hand on mine. "Destiny, look at me."
I opened my eyes. A startled gasp escaped my lips.
He was kneeling before me with a ring in his hand. "I started this day thinking tonight would be a nice romantic evening that ended in some amazing sex. Then I would propose to you when the time was right, and you would have no doubt in your mind that this was meant to be."
"Jacob…" I whispered. I stared down at the platinum ring with a big ruby in the center surrounded by baguette diamonds.
"Then, you come here wearing that red dress," he smiled showing his beautiful whites, "and we have the nice romantic evening and we are so connected. It just feels…so right. I don’t see why I have to wait any longer. This is meant to be and I hope you know that, too. I don’t want to go another night without knowing that you are going to be my wife. Destiny, will you marry me?"
Tears streamed down my cheeks. I stared at the ring. "Yes! I will marry you, Jacob." My hands shook as he put the ring on my finger. He pulled me to my feet and took me into a breathtaking embrace, kissing away my fears. He lifted me into his arms and carried me down the hall to his bedroom. He laid me down on the bed and we both wildly removed each other’s clothing.
He slid inside of me without warning.
I arched my back to give him better access to what was rightfully his. He dutifully pounded his way inside. He rode harder against me than ever before; the ferocious impact caused me to whimper in pleasurable pain. I lost myself in his violent thrusts.
"Jacob—" I whispered his name into the dimly-lit room.
"Yes baby…," he said, rocking his hips to the sound of my forced breathing.
"Oh Destiny…ahhhh…" he cried, as his cum rapidly forced its way into my womb.
I bucked in a whirlwind of lust. My body shook beneath him, my eyes only opening to look at the spinning ceiling. I fell hard against the bed, searching for a good breath.
"Yes…yes…yes…" I hollered, as I focused on the way his body excited mine. His hands ran up and down my back.
"You feel so good," he moaned, sliding his tongue against mine before trailing down and sucking his way to my shoulder.
"You feel good too," I said on a sigh, breathlessly moaning between each word.
His lips moved to my breasts, latching onto a nipple. He tediously sucked on the left and moved to the right. His teeth caressed each perky nipple, as his tongue slid across the nub.
My sighs turned to ragged sound as if he were trying to regain strength to speak.
He trailed down to my stomach, dipping his tongue inside my navel and swirling it around. He went further south and he licked the juices away from my nether lips. He slid his tongue in and out of my slit, rubbing with torturous movements across my clit.
Aching and throbbing, I wanted to feel his tongue slip in further. It gently moved in, deepening my moans. He fli
cked hard against my vagina, stroking it with desire.
A deep cry flew out of my lips, and I felt the fluidity of more cum seeping into his mouth. I reached down and grabbed his head, stroking him with pleasure. His tongue maneuvered around my opening, until he was removing himself and ending the pleasure-filled moment.
He rubbed his way up my body, his hands reaching my back and cupping my ass in his palms. He fell down on top of me. His hand reached down and grasped mine. He brought it up to his lips and kissed it.
I stared into his eyes until I drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
JACOB
Justine
"Justine!" I woke to beads of sweat running down my face. I sat straight up in bed. My heart was racing. All I could think about was Justine. Something was terribly wrong with her, and I had to get to her, fast.
Destiny sat up in bed, as well. She had a look of concern on her face.
"Jacob, what’s wrong?"
"I don’t know what it is yet, but something’s wrong," I said, as I jumped out of bed. "I have this feeling something is wrong with Justine. The last time I felt like this, she was being rushed to Calvary General after a major overdose."
My mind was racing. I rushed over to my cell phone to see if I had any missed calls. There were none, so I called her.
"Are you calling her?" Destiny asked, and I could see the shock and disappointment on her face as she spoke.
"Yes," I said ending the call. "And she’s not answering." I immediately dialed up another number and tapped my feet on the floor as I waited for someone to answer. "Hello, Martha. I'm sorry to call in the middle of the night, but have you or Ron heard from Justine today?"
Destiny stared at me as I spoke. The distress of the turn of events was evident in the way she looked.
"Okay…sure. Have her call me if you do. Thank you!" I hung up the call. "Her parents haven’t heard from her either," I told Destiny, as I pulled a T-shirt over my head. "I have to go check on her."
"You're about to go to Miami now?" Destiny asked, as she sat further up in the bed.
"Yeah, I need to go check on her. The last time I felt this way, she had almost killed herself from an overdose."
"Jacob, you haven’t talked to her in months. I’m sure she’s okay and it was just a bad dream." Destiny said, springing to her feet. She walked over and stood face to face with me.
“No, it’s more than that. I know Justine.”
"Well,” she turned her head sideways and an incredulously daring look entered her glare. “If you know me, you’d come back to bed. You can call and check on her in the morning. Even if something has happened tonight, there is nothing you can do."
She didn’t understand why I couldn’t leave Justine hanging in a life or death situation. She had shown the ugly part of her character, but still she had been my friend for years.
"You don’t understand, Destiny. I can’t go to sleep when I can’t shake this feeling. You may not get it, but…" My phone rang, interrupting my thought, and I dropped my pants and quickly answered it. "Justine?"
"No, this is not Justine. It's Mallorie, one of the nurses from Calvary General. Is this Jacob Turner?"
"Yes, this is him," I said, shooting Destiny a frantic look.
"Mr. Turner, I have some bad news. Justine Parker has been admitted after being found unconscious at her home today. Her chart has you listed as next of kin, so we need you to come to the hospital as soon as possible so we can make some decisions about her care," the nurse said, and I could hear beeping machines and the busyness of a hospital in the background.
"Is she going to be okay?"
"It's touch and go right now, but she's a fighter. We need you to get here as soon as you can, in case she needs to go on the ventilator."
"I'm on my way," I said, hanging up the phone and going back to getting dressed. "I knew something was wrong," I said as I picked my pants up off the floor.
"Who was that?" Destiny asked, studying my face for answers.
"The hospital in Florida. Justine just got admitted. She overdosed and may need to go on the ventilator. I need to get there ASAP."
"You can’t be serious, Jacob. You are running off to Florida because of her?" she said, putting her hands on my pants to stop me from buckling them. “Why don’t you just call her parents back and tell them to go.”
"Destiny, stop this. I have to go. She is not only my friend, but her parents are my family’s friends; and she needs me to be there for her." My head was pounding, as I looked into her eyes and saw the hurt in them. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt Destiny. "You would do this if Montie was in trouble," I said, leveling with her. “And, I wouldn’t do anything to stop you.”
Her jaw dropped open, and she let go of my pants. "This has nothing to do with Montie! He is the father of my children. She’s your crazy ex that uses suicide threats to keep you in line. Besides, you have no real connection to Justine."
"Justine and I have history. We’ve been friends since kindergarten. You don’t know the kind of relationship Justine and I have…" I swallowed the lump in my throat as I remembered my old friend, the one that defended me when I used to be a piss ant.
“You’re right. I don’t know the relationship you and Justine have,” Destiny said somberly.
"I mean the relationship we had," I corrected. “Look, it’s not what you’re thinking.”
Destiny walked over to the closet and stood face to face with me again. "Jacob, just hours ago you made love to me. You asked me to be your wife and to spend the rest of my life with you. Now you’re running off to be with your ex-girlfriend," she said, as a tear rolled down her cheek.
I shook my head. "She's an old friend who could be dead by the time I get there. Please understand that this is no more than caring for a friend. It’s the right thing to do."
"A friend who has disrespected me on so many levels, more than once."
“She knows not to ever speak that way to you, or about you, ever again. I got that point across to her the last time we talked. And, I’m not going to socialize with her. I’m going to make sure she’s physically okay, spend some time with her parents and mine and I’ll be returning home.” I stepped around her and picked up my suitcase. I placed enough clothes in it for a few days. I slammed the suitcase shut and called Henry. I would call Ron and Martha once I got in my car.
"I need you to come and pick me up right away, and call Tim and tell him to get the jet ready for a trip to Miami pronto."
"Now?" Henry asked, sounding groggy.
"Right now!"
"Okay boss," Henry said, clearing his throat.
I walked over and pulled Destiny close. "Please don't cry, Destiny. You have to know that I love no other woman but you."
"Just go, Jacob," she said pushing me away.
"She needs me, Destiny. We’ll talk about this when I get back," I said, torn between my present and my past. I placed a kiss on her forehead and said, "I’m leaving the keys to my car for you to drive home. Lock up when you leave."
Destiny's tears tugged at me as I walked out of the bedroom door and up the hall. I could feel a rip in my heart as I got into the backseat of my car. I couldn’t tell what would hurt worse: losing Justine by suicide after having pushed her out of my life, or losing Destiny for trying to be there for a friend.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
DESTINY
Gon' Learn Today
He cooked me dinner. He asked me to marry him. We made love. Then, a few hours later, he’s traveling on his jet to stand beside Justine. It didn’t add up. Did he still love Justine? I was tired of her manipulating our relationship. I looked down at my engagement ring and forced those horrible thoughts from my mind. However, the only reason he would wake up out of a dead sleep calling her name was that they had an emotional connection deeper than what he admitted.
"I need you to come and pick me up right away, and call Tim and tell him to
get the jet ready for a trip to Miami pronto," he'd said, letting me know that his decision was final. When he hung up the phone, he looked torn, but his next words let me know where his heart was.
"She needs me…" he said before placing a kiss on my forehead. He left our bed of lust, leaving me at a loss for words.
"I need you, too," I whispered as his front door slam shut. More tears threatened to fall as I got up and put my clothes on.
The wonderful smell of his cologne lingering in the air impaled my senses. The look on his face as he made love to me was still fresh on my mind.
Then the fire in his eyes when he said, "She needs me…" rushed back. The contents of a person's heart would always shine through. Tonight was that time for Jacob. He and Justine grew up together and she was his best friend before they decided to date. Obviously, they were still fully united. The way he jumped up knowing that something was wrong with her said that they had a deep connection. There was no way in hell or high water I could marry a man that synchronized with another woman.
I brushed my hair back into a ponytail and put on my jacket. Looking around at his mahogany colored room decorated with pictures of American soldiers, I knew it would be my last time in that room. I committed every part of it to memory.
The doorbell rang when I walked out into the hallway. I rushed to the door with a smile on my face. He came back, I thought and opened the door without checking to see who it was. I thought Jacob had come to his senses.
"Boo bitch!" Justine said as I stood eye to eye with her chrome-plated pistol. She walked toward me, and I backed up into the house with my hands in the air.
My heart nearly jumped out of my shirt.
"Justine, what are you doing? I thought you were sick."
"Oh, I'm sick; sick of you being with my man, but I have medicine for your ass," Justine said as she pressed the barrel of the gun to my head.
"Ja-cob…is not here. He just got on his jet on the way to Miami to check on you," I said, hoping that would make her back down.
"Don’t tell me where my man is! I know where he is. I sent him there. I didn’t come for Jacob, Destiny. It's your home-wrecking ass that I'm here to settle up with." Justine's mascara ran wildly down her pale face. She looked as if she hadn’t had good sleep in days with disheveled hair and a wild look in her blue eyes.