It was the place where she first laid eyes on him that had recently become like a second home. She hardly saw her husband who worked during the day, typically spending those hours running the sewing business left to her in her former employer's will. She also homeschooled and tended to her six-year-old son in the same place where she catered to her customers. Earlier in the year, she was commissioned to make a wedding dress for Elizabeth Schuyler, a daughter in one of New York's most prominent families. It normally did not take her a very long time to sew any garment asked of her, but because this job paid extremely well, more than any Negro woman would stand to make with one task, she wanted it to be perfect. And while spending long nights alone in her shop, she relished the peace and quiet.
As General Washington's aide de camp, he spent most of his year traveling with his Excellency's staff. War was an exciting time for him, enabling him the opportunity to rise above his station that he had had as a child born into illegitimately. He also yearned to be entrusted with his own command. He bided his time in his position, knowing that his involvement with Washington was his ticket to glory. This was a big year for him personally as well, for he had become engaged to Miss Schuyler. His connection to General Philip Schuyler through his second daughter would be most beneficial for him, both personally and professionally.
Although they lived very different lives, they still were in love with each other. And despite not being able to see each other as often as they would've liked, they made it habit to continue their intimate correspondence. Even though he knew it would break her heart as his was when she was married, he felt he owed her the common courtesy to inform her of his engagement. In fact, it was he that asked his future father-in-law to allow her to make his fiancée's dress. Upon hearing his news, she implored that they should no longer sleep together. Until that time, they had visited with one another rather sporadically so that he could see his son. And though always unintentional, their visits often concluded with sex, even after she was married. As much as they tried to go their separate ways, they often found it difficult to control their urges around each other. Their resistance to temptation would again be tested on one late November evening. Washington's troops found themselves caught in a very early winter storm, and were forced to spend the night in Elizabeth, New Jersey, the very place that she called home.
The snow was getting heavier by the minute and the wind stronger. As she finished adding the final piece to the dress' skirt, she heard a loud banging on the door. She usually did not scare easily, for in the time that she had been married, she never felt a need to worry for her safety. Her husband was a big man, and he was more than handy with the shot gun they kept atop their fireplace. But this thumping startled her. She moved slowly toward the door, grabbing a candle pillar for her protection. She opened the door with one hand and held the pillar over her shoulder with the other. Her eyes widened when she recognized the figure on the other side.
"Hello, Hannah," he said, removing his hat.
"Alexander!" she exclaimed, relieved. She moved over so that he could enter. "What are you doing here? Alexander is at the house with Paul." She closed the door behind him, and helped him out of his coat.
"I came to see you," he replied. He stood before her in full uniform with an earnestness in his eyes. She always thought he looked handsome, but there was something about him in his uniform that just about made her weak in the knees. "We were caught in the storm on our way back to Morristown," he continued, "and made camp here. I was granted a pass for a few hours." She nodded.
"I see," she replied, heading toward the coat rack. "And you wanted to see me…not Alexander?"
"Of course I want to see my son!" he answered. "But I have been missing you, Hannah. Since my engagement, I have not heard from you as often as I've written. And I figured that if I am to be here the night, it wouldn't be right if I did not stop over." She then felt his hands on her hips and his lips graze the tip of her ear.
"I can't, Alexander," she protested, moving away from his embrace. "You can't. You are getting married in a month! We agreed that the last time was the last time." She picked up the candle pillar and walked toward the table to put it back. He followed her.
"And I can't do without you, Hannah," he insisted. "You are the mother of my son and I love you. I will always love you. Tell me you don't feel the same."
She stopped in front of the fireplace and stared into its flames. She rubbed her hands over her knuckles before crossing her arms in front of her chest.
"I love you too. That is why I need to let you go. And every time I think I've gotten past this, you walk back into my life. It is too hard, Alexander. It is too hard to love you." Her eyes welled up with tears. He stepped behind her and turned her around so that his azure eyes pierced hers. He gently grabbed her face.
"I know, my love. I wish it did not have to be this way. I wish I were marrying you instead," he said, wiping away a teardrop from her cheek.
"I wish it too," she stated, "But you know that cannot be." She traced her fingers from the sides of his temple and along his cheeks. He placed his arms around her and pulled her closer. She still smelled of roses and lilac, the same as the night he first visited her seven years earlier.
"Just one more time," he entreated softly against her ear. She closed her eyes and exhaled deeply feeling her instincts take over. As he combed through her long curly locks, he grabbed the back of her head and kissed her lips passionately. She immediately allowed his tongue access into her mouth as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He scooped her up and walked her toward the table, her skirt inched up to her knees and her legs encircled around his hips.
"Alex- mmm, we can't…" she whispered against his lips. He sat her down and began removing his clothes. "Please, Alexander… I am a married woman. This is not right."
"What isn't right is the fact that I cannot be with you, unless it's like this," he reasoned. "I need you, Hannah. Say you need me too." She breathed deeply as she placed her hands along his sideburns.
"You know I need you, Alexander… but this has to be the last time," she said, reaching for his belt buckle. She unfastened his pants and pushed them to the floor.
"The last time," he agreed, grabbing her by the waist. He helped her off the table and turned her around swiftly to unbutton her dress. She stepped out of it and pushed him against the wall by the fireplace. She turned around again so that he could unlace her stays. He then gathered her hair into his hand and sucked along her neck as she removed it from her chest. Switching places, he pushed her against the wall and reached for the bottom of her shift. She lifted her arms up so that he could bring it above her head. His fingers grazed over her arms and down to her bare hips. He turned her face to the side and kissed her again while lowering his own drawers to the floor. She sighed when she felt him press against her bottom, hitting her hand against the corner of the mantle. She knew she should not have given into him yet again, and part of her knew she would come to regret it in the morning, especially when having to face her husband. Still, she could not help but succumb to his wishes; he seemed to have a spell over her that made her forget all reason. She turned around yet again, moaning as she felt his hands cup her breasts. He slowly inched his fingers toward her salivating entrance, taking her clit between his thumb and middle finger. He picked her up again and upon sitting her back on the table, he pushed her legs apart. She gasped loudly as he entered her.
"Oh God," she cried, as her toes curled. She planted her nails into his back and bent her head back allowing him to nuzzle against her neck with his lips. He supported her bottom with one hand as he made love to her, his groans quieted by her kisses. After a few minutes, he stopped. "What's wrong?" she asked, breathlessly. He had started this, and there was no way he was about to leave her like this. He pulled out of her and reached for her hand.
"Come," he beseeched, grabbing a candle while looking at his fiancée's wedding dress. "We need to leave this room." She placed her hand in his as she hopped off the table. And as he headed for the staircase, she knew exactly what was on his mind.
She followed him up to the old room where she had stayed in her late teenaged years. It was still furnished the way she left it, as she often used it as a refuge for runaway slaves. And as such she kept warm blankets nearby. He placed the candle on the nightstand as she got into her old bed. He climbed on top of her and kissed her deeply, allowing his length to tease the tip of her woman hood. He gently massaged her breasts as she removed his hair from his bow, stretching her fingers throughout his auburn mane. Before entering her, he gazed deeply into her dark brown eyes. Her long lashes accented them perfectly, providing right balance of sincerity and lust. He brushed his finger along her lips; she kissed it as he smiled at her.
"Thank you," he expressed. "You, Madam, have given me more than I could have ever asked for." She tilted her head to the side, beaming at his words.
"You've given me a son, Alexander," she replied. "And for that, I will always be in your debt, Sir." He pushed her legs apart again, and slowly entered her. They both exhaled loudly and moaned in pleasure at the sensation. He teased her nipples with his tongue, syncing its movements with his gyration.
"Yes!" she exclaimed, clutching his back tighter with each pump. He chuckled into her ear as she continued moaning. He grabbed her waist to bring her toward his face. As he continued to love her harder and faster, her moans got louder and her breathing heavier. He had always found her beautiful, but the faces she made in response to his loving simply took his breath away. In this moment, he wished more than ever that hers could be the face he'd see walking down the aisle.
"Hannah!" he called out, feeling her tighten around him.
"Alex- ahh!" she tugged at his shoulder-length hair as she came all over him. He dug into her deeper until he let himself go into her. He collapsed onto her and brushed her curls from across her forehead.
"I love you," he said sincerely, taking her hand. She clasped her fingers between his and smiled.
"I love you, too," she responded, sadly. She believed that this was truly the last time they'd be together, for he was to be married soon.
After spending another hour or so nestled in each other's arms, they knew the time had come for him to return to his camp, and for her to return to her home. She never stayed at the shop this late and she feared her husband would soon come looking for her. They went back downstairs quickly and got dressed. She took care to ensure that his hair was tied up neatly by his bow, the same as it was upon his arrival. Before he left, he gave her a handkerchief, one that he kept with him on the battlefield.
"So you always think of me, no matter what," he said, reaching for his coat and hat. She held the gesture to her bosom and inhaled into it deeply.
"I always think of you regardless," she responded, opening the door. He took one last look at her before leaving for the evening, placing his hand on her cheek. She turned slightly and kissed his palm.
"I plan on being in Albany on the date you have set to deliver the dress," he announced, getting on his horse. "I trust you will bring Alexander so that I may see him." She nodded.
"Of course. Please stay safe." She blew him a kiss which made him smile once more.
He nodded and blew a kiss back.
"I am ever yours," he affirmed, as he signaled for his horse to depart. After he left, she walked over to the closet behind the form on which Miss Schuyler's dress was placed. She opened it and retrieved a small box, filled with letters and mementos from him. It was there that she placed and kept the handkerchief, only taking it out when she was in her shop. It was safe there… in the place where she first laid eyes on him.
The End