Yay, another update! Now, don't get spoiled on me or anything. I've tried to write a little ahead, but only a little. *smile*
I'd like to reply to my anonymous reviewer first (literally - not even a name!): Thank you for reviewing! In chapter 13, Lucius and Ginny discussed their 'capacity' to be monogamous, but they never came to a conclusion. However, in chapter 18, they both said that they were the other's, but Ginny also said that she didn't want promises. I think deep down she knows that Lucius is quite capable of being with another woman, even a Muggle, if for nothing else but sex. He's very motivated by physical beauty AND he finds sneaking around extremely alluring. Emotionally, he couldn't be close to a Muggle, but physically, sure. That's easy. And remember, now that he's been living among them, he does not detest them as much as he did. I do think that given their relationship, there is an assumption on both their sides that they will be faithful to each other.
Ginny had been sitting on the front stoop petting the stray cat when a car turned into the driveway.
She immediately recognized that it was Soren, and her heart began to beat faster. She didn't even try to hide her smile when he pulled up to the door. At least she was wearing jeans and a sweater today.
Soren exited the car, and then he walked towards her carrying a large paper bag.
"What, no negligee for me?" he teased.
Ginny laughed and stood up. "Afraid not. You didn't tell me that you were on the way over." You did not just say that, her inner voice groaned. What is wrong with you?
Soren's eyebrows lifted while his eyes scanned her body, as they always did. "Would you have worn it if I had?" he asked boldly. This might be easier than he'd originally thought.
Ginny blushed and looked down, noticing that the cat was now hiding under nearby bushes. She knelt down and called to her, mainly to allow the color to drain from her face, but the cat hissed. She'd never done that. How strange, she thought. She's been so loveable and friendly.
"Your pet?"
Ginny stood up and shrugged it off. The cat was a stray, after all. "No, she just showed up one day, so I've been feeding her a little," she answered, looking at him expectantly for the reason why he was there, not intending on answering his previous question about her negligee.
"Well, I had a lunch meeting not too far from here, and I thought I'd drop off some food for you," he explained, handing her the bag. "It's bangers and mash with a piece of tipsy cake for dessert."
Ginny was caught off guard by his thoughtfulness. "Thank you. That was really nice of you." She took the bag and opened the front door. "Are you leaving now?" The words were out before she could stop herself. Why had she said that?
"Not if you invite me in."
Damn this blushing, she thought as her cheeks warmed once more. She walked in and held the door for him.
"You're still hobbling some, I see," Soren noticed as he watched her limp.
"Yeah, but it's almost healed," she explained. "I'm just babying it." She grabbed silverware and a napkin. "Do you mind if I eat? I'm starving."
"By all means, eat," Soren insisted. "Hopefully it's still warm."
They sat down at the table while Ginny dug in.
"Would you like some tea?" she asked as an after thought, realizing she should have offered before she'd started eating.
Soren shook his head. "No, thank you. Just enjoy your lunch." He was certainly enjoying watching her as she speared a sausage with her fork and lifted it to her mouth. The carnal side of him instantly pictured her on her knees in front of him, her beautiful freckled face cupped in his palms while he thrust his cock in and out of her mouth. His groin tightened at the delicious thought. He'd definitely save that visual for later. To think, he'd almost chosen the soup.
As Ginny bit into the meat, she noticed Soren's ravenous gaze, and she watched the tip of his tongue as it traced a wet path around his lips. She was no virgin; she knew exactly what was playing out in his mind. And on cue, she immediately pictured slipping to her knees before him, unfastening his pants and swallowing his manhood. She squeezed her thighs together, stifling a moan. How would he react if I actually did that, she wondered curiously, but then caught herself. You ought to be ashamed of yourself, her annoying inner voice chastised. You sit at this very table and have dinner with Lucius, and now you're imagining performing sexual acts on his boss here? You need some serious counseling. Ginny couldn't help it, though. The image was so erotic that it caused her knickers to dampen. In shame, she blushed again, lowering both her eyes and the meat. Reaching for a knife, she began to cut it into small pieces. It's just because of those dreams, she told herself. That's all.
"Hasn't anyone ever told you that it's not nice to stare at a woman while she's eating?" She didn't look at him; she was still too embarrassed.
"When a beautiful woman slips the end of a sausage in between her lips," he replied with a grin. "It's impossible not to watch. I'm only a man, Shayla."
Ginny was becoming accustomed to the constant heat that flooded her face when around him, whether she wanted it or not. "A married man," she commented, briefly glancing up at him and ignoring the flames of lust dancing in his eyes. Focus on eating, she told herself as she started on the potatoes next.
"Yes, married," he agreed with a nod. "But not happily. I don't expect you to understand, though. You're young, beautiful and very much in love with your husband. I envy him." He loved to watch her shapely lips close around the fork as it slowly slid out of her mouth. They were tantalizing, and he longed to watch his length slide out of her mouth in the same manner.
It was the first time that she'd heard Soren mention his marriage. "So why not find someone who will love you if your wife won't?" she asked bluntly. "You're intelligent and successful and handsome and –"
"Handsome, you say?"
Ginny bit her lip. She hadn't meant to say that out loud. "Well…yes," she admitted hesitantly, glancing down at her food to avoid his piercing eyes. "I mean, you're certainly not ugly."
Soren chuckled and thought that a little veiled truth might be advantageous to win some of her guarded trust. "My wife and I are from very old families," he explained. "There is much more at stake than just our happiness. Our marriage was arranged when we were quite young. It cannot be undone." He sighed and softened his expression towards her. "We live separate lives most of the time."
Ginny shook her head, and she noticed how his expression had fallen as he'd talked about his relationship. "I think that's awful," she commented, feeling somewhat sorry for him. She completely understood the archaic tradition and its frustrations, happy that her parents had never believed in it. It had been common practice for Pureblood families to arrange marriages, and she knew some Muggles did it, as well. "What a horrible way to live."
Soren shrugged. "That's what dreams and fantasies are for, I suppose," he remarked with a wink.
"Dreams and fantasies can only do so much, though," Ginny replied. "Usually, they leave you empty and wanting something real."
"That's when discreet rendezvous are most beneficial," Soren pointed out with his usual Cheshire cat grin.
"But, in a way, that's not real either," Ginny quickly countered. "Not real emotion, anyway."
Soren sighed as he watched her slice the tipsy cake and slip the sweet dessert into her mouth. He wondered if it would taste different smeared on her nipple and licked off; sweeter probably. "You're fortunate, Shayla. You have something real, so you'll never have to rely on dreams and fantasies like I have to." Truthfully, he relied more on discreet rendezvous, but he knew admitting that wouldn't garner her sympathy.
"I can have dreams and fantasies, too," Ginny defended.
Soren smirked in enjoyment of their conversation. It was working in his favor perfectly. "But when you have a man like Teague sharing your bed, I can't imagine that you'd need to fantasize about him, as well."
"Sometimes dreams are not always about your spouse," Ginny hastily admitted. As soon as it was out of her mouth, she regretted saying it. Her candidness always seemed to get her into trouble.
Soren's eyes twinkled like stars in the night sky. "Naughty girl," he teased in feigned modesty. "Pray tell who you've been dreaming about."
Ginny laughed nervously and shook her head. "I don't think so." She certainly couldn't tell him that he had been the one in her dreams.
"Do I know him?"
"No."
"Does he live around here?"
"Stop!"
Soren chuckled again, relishing in how easy it was to fluster her. "All right," he relented. "So, lunch was pleasing to you?"
Ginny wiped her mouth with a napkin. "It was delicious. Thank you again."
Soren stood to leave, but not before picturing what it would be like to take her on top of the table that they'd been sitting at; he'd press her back to the wooden top, grip her hips and plunge his manhood into her depths over and over and cause her to cry out his name in ecstasy. One side of his mouth lifted in a grin. Perhaps he would save that visual for later, as well. "I should return to work," he announced reluctantly, walking towards the door. "Thank you for the delightful conversation." When she joined him by the entrance, he asked, "Can I tell you a secret, Shayla?"
Ginny's heart raced expectantly. Rooted where she stood by his commanding gaze and overwhelming delicious scent, she quietly answered, "Of course, Soren." She absentmindedly wondered when calling him by his first name had become second nature to her. It didn't matter, really. She liked how it slipped past her lips like a soft sigh. He leaned over and barely grazed her exposed ear with his lips, sending shivers down her spine from the intimate contact. She closed her eyes when she felt the warmth of his breath as he spoke.
"Sometimes you're the one in my dreams," he whispered huskily, pausing to inhale the sweet vanilla that surrounded her like a scented cloud. "But when I wake to embrace you, my bed is cold and empty." When his lips brushed the shell of her ear again, it caused her mouth to open in response, but no sound came forth. "Do you ever dream about me, Shayla? Please tell me. It would make this lonely man's day."
As if under the power of Veritaserum, Ginny closed her eyes and nodded slowly, but she said nothing. She really hadn't planned on admitting that, but with him so close and his pitiable voice resonating through her and teasing her sympathy, the little resistance she had was all but nonexistent. He firmly pressed a warm kiss to her cheek and, when she opened her eyes, he was walking to his car. He'd kissed her. Kissed her.
As Ginny watched him drive away, she leaned back against the wall and palmed the cheek that his lips had touched, unable to ignore how the skin there tingled. And out of nowhere, turbulence erupted from deep inside her, like red hot magma blasting up through the throat of a volcano. Unable to restrain her tempestuous emotion and subjugated by the avalanche of her roiling inner turmoil, tears poured down Ginny's freckled cheeks in a salty deluge. She slid down the wall and was engulfed by the molten rock of discomfiture that oozed from her in ceaseless undulations. Lying crumpled and broken on the floor, she was reduced to a quivering mass of uncontrollable sobs and wails, and even when she vomited her lunch, there was still no suppression of her agony.
WHAT is Ginny getting herself into??!! Let me know what you think. I love to hear from all of you!
