Page 23 of More than a Memory

They both agreed that the vanilla crème Chantilly edged out the lemon tart by a smidgeon. The waiter brought the bill and Sam settled up, leaving a generous tip. Standing, Sam grabbed Darcy’s hand, helping her out of the booth. His eyes roamed her entire body, lingering at the swell of her breasts revealed by the low-cut V-neckline. He glimpsed an outline of her nipples under the chiffon fabric and wanted to see more, wanted to feel her full breasts filling his hands as he cupped them. She glanced up just as he was staring at her chest and he sheepishly apologized for ogling her.

“Sorry, Darcy, I meant no disrespect. I just can’t take my eyes off you.”

“No need to apologize, Sam. I wore this for you and was hoping for a reaction. I would be disappointed if you weren’t checking me out!” She smiled at him and took his hand in hers as they exited the dining room.

12

They retrieved their coats and walked hand in hand to the valet service, which had already pulled Sam’s car to the curb for them. Sam walked her around to the passenger side and held her door while she climbed in. He jumped into the driver’s seat, and they headed for home. Pulling out onto the road, he reached over for Darcy’s hand and intertwined their fingers. Darcy couldn’t have described her feelings in that moment if she tried. It was so confusing because everything seemed a contradiction. She felt at home with Sam, yet at the same time all fluttery inside. She felt safe, yet fearful. She trusted Sam, yet she didn’t trust the situation. She felt content and restless. She wanted intimacy, yet she didn’t. She wanted more, but she was ready to run.

Admonishing herself, she remembered her promise to Annie and turned off the tape in her head, bringing herself back to this present moment. She was here, sitting next to a gorgeous, kind, fun, and funny man, and, by God, she was going to enjoy herself! He smelled good, looked even better, and kissed like a hero in a romantic novel. She slipped her hand from his to place it on his thigh, giving it a squeeze before rubbing her hand up and down his leg, finally nestling her palm between his thighs. With her hand in the crease of his slacks and her fingers resting right against the bulge between his legs, she sighed with pleasure, enjoying his responsiveness to her touch. She snuggled her hand just the tiniest bit more, teasing further reaction from Sam as he kept his eyes on the road ahead.

“What are you trying to do to me? Do you have any idea the havoc you are creating?” he asked, sounding pained.

Darcy leaned her head on Sam’s shoulder and rubbed her cheek against him. Then she stretched up to nibble the sensitive skin of his neck just beneath his shirt collar, liking the slightly salty taste of him. He groaned out loud, leaning his head back and chuckling with dry humor.

“You’re driving me crazy with want. I would hate to have to find a place to go parking before we even got home,” he said, only half joking.

“That sounds kind of romantic,” Darcy replied, playfully cupping his erection and gently squeezing.

Suddenly, Sam put on his turn signal and exited the highway. He quickly pulled into the first empty parking lot he could find, which happened to be a business closed for the evening. He unlatched his seat belt and turned wildly toward Darcy, grasping her shoulders and holding her still while he plundered her mouth. His open-mouthed kiss covered hers and he drank of her. She threw her arms around his neck and held him tight. He was swept away as he slipped his hand under the silky material of her garment and found her breast. He began to massage and pull at her nipple, the fullness and weight of her bosom driving him crazy as he bent his head to take her into his mouth. His lips and tongue pulled and tugged on her pink nub as Darcy arched back in abandon. She again reached between his legs to grasp his bulge and rub and massage, moving faster and faster as her own arousal increased to a high-pitched frenzy. While suckling her breast, he began to rub between her legs through her clothing, until she burst into a climax, calling his name over and over as she panted and convulsed with tremors.

Sam cradled her against his chest as her tremors subsided and murmured endearments softly into her hair. Kissing her head and stroking her hair away from her brow, he said softly, “I love pleasuring you, your body is so responsive.”

She began touching him again just as headlights shone into the car interior, the bright light effectively ending their parking session. Sam laughed out loud, ruffling Darcy’s hair and planting one last kiss on her nose as he said, “Busted.”

“Sam, what about you?”

“I’ll survive. It makes me feel like I’m in high school again,” he grinned, “not all bad.”

Sam pulled out onto the road and for the second time that evening headed for home. When they arrived at Darcy’s house, all her lights were on and Annie’s cherry red Miata was sitting in the driveway.

“That’s my sister Annie’s car. I wonder what she is doing here? It can’t be good.”

“Hey, before we go in. can we make a date to go horseback riding on my farm this Sunday?” Sam requested.

“That sounds like fun! It’s been awhile for me, so I hope you put me on the old, slow one,” Darcy joked.

“I was considering the wild stallion, but I’ll compromise. You can ride my chestnut gelding, Whiskey. He’s as steady as they come. Nothing better than a quarter horse. You will be well taken care of.”

“I’m so excited, Sam! I love riding. Now I’d better go in and see what’s up with my sister.”

They could hear Annie crying as they walked through the door. She was sitting at the kitchen counter with a red nose and tear-streaked face, holding wadded up tissues in her hand. Her hair was a long, wild tangle of red mane. Her hands were shaking as she blew her nose into the tissues. The three dogs were surrounding her, wearing concerned expressions.

“Annie!” Darcy exclaimed, running to her sister’s side and wrapping her arms around her. “What happened?”

Annie collapsed against her sister, sobbing.

“You were right. I should have listened to you,” she wailed. “Bradley showed up at my place tonight totally drunk. I let him in, and he tried to start fooling around, you know, he wanted to have sex. I said no and a huge fight erupted. He was furious, calling me terrible names, accusing me of cheating on him, and he punched a hole in my wall. I finally just lost it and said it was over. Then he did a complete turn-around and broke down crying, begging me to reconsider. I’m really done this time Darcy. I just suddenly knew it was never going to get any better and things have been escalating recently. The fights have been more frequent and going from zero to ten in a hot second. The next time, it might not be the wall he punches. Who knows what could come next?” she said her voice, still choked with tears.

“Oh, Sis, I am so sorry, but I’m proud of you,” Darcy comforted.

“Aren’t you going to say ‘I told you so?’” Annie sniffled.

“I would never say that! We are all doing the best that we can. Love is complicated. If he had revealed this side in the beginning, you wouldn’t have given him the time of day! Now you have taken the first step to reclaiming your life.”

Annie, as if just coming out of a trance, noticed Sam leaning against the door frame. She smiled through her tears and said, “Hey Sam. I’m sorry, I’ve completely screwed up your evening.”

“Annie, don’t even go there! I’m the one who is sorry. Sometimes it’s embarrassing to be a man,” he said.