Part 32: REJUVENATION
That next week seemed to drag on forever, Elana started interviewing on the Marketing department and she spent her extra time analyzing the Collections department. She and Sean only went to lunch together on Wednesday and they were not as talkative as usual. Elana wanted to ask Sean what was on his mind but she was scared of what the answer would be. Sheridan came to Crealite on Thursday when Elana was in Sean's office going over a report with him. Elana was standing over Sean while he sat at his desk with her reports in front of him. She was still trying to get some reaction out of him and purposely leaned over giving him a full view inside her blouse. Sean was almost sweating under the pressure and really did not know what Elana was saying, he was just agreeing as he tried to keep his eyes off her and concentrate on keeping his hands to himself at least until the ring arrived in another few weeks. As Elana talked, Charlotte buzzed Sean, who answered it immediately, happy for some diversion.
"Yes, Charlotte?" Before she could tell him the message Sheridan came through the door.
"Hi, love!" She said as she came in. She saw Elana hovering over Sean and noticed his forehead glowing slightly.
Elana stood up and removed her glasses while Sean stood up after thanking Charlotte for the message.
"What are you doing here Sheridan?"
"I came to see you darling." She said slowly looking from him to Elana. "How are you Elana. I see you did not disappear completely."
"No, I didn't Sheridan. That was just from the restaurant."
"Pity." She said then directing her attention back to Sean. "Sean, I need to talk about my expense account and we should have some privacy."
"Elana is the accountant ---"
Elana cut Sean off, making it easy for him not to ask her to leave, not that he was going to, but she thought he was. "We can finish our conversation later Sean. I'll just take these things and I can come back some other time." Elana gathered up her paperwork and went out the door past Sheridan without saying anything. Sheridan watched Sean as Sean watched Elana leave the room. When she left Sheridan began talking.
"You'd better be careful Sean. You know what people say about black women in an office environment. Just remember you have a child to think about and you can't afford to taint your image."
Sean was incensed at her remark and he wanted her out of his office. "Why are you here Sheridan?"
"Money, Sean. That $3,500 per month is not going to do it for me. You are a millionaire Sean and as the soon to be mother of your child, I don't think I should have to be worried about budgeting my expenses, which is what I've had to do. So this little amount of money you're throwing at me is going to have to be negotiated. I can take this to court if I have to."
"Sheridan, if somebody didn't budget to save that money and invest it wisely, there would not be any for you to worry about."
"Well, I can't be bothered with minor details. That's your job."
The two of them argued over the expense account for a few minutes and neither would budge. Eventually Sheridan stormed out threatening litigation and Sean was stressed even more; first from sexual anxiety and frustration of trying to stay away from Elana and now with the anxiety of Sheridan trying to bleed money out of him. The rest of his day was shot. Later on Elana came back to finish talking about the reports and she could tell that Sean was not really interested in what she was saying. Eventually he told her that he was tired and the reports looked fine. Elana took it to mean that he was cutting her off and wanted her to leave, so she did. On Friday, she decided to let him be for fear of getting completely rejected.
That Friday afternoon Elana decided to leave early. As she was leaving, she got into the elevator, but before it closed completely, Sean stopped it and got on with her.
"Why are you leaving early?"
"It's been a long week and I'm really tired. I figured I'd call it a day."
"You didn't even come in and let me know you were leaving."
"Do I have to report when I come and go to you."
"Actually, yeah, you're supposed to." He said referring to the consulting contract they signed.
Elana rolled her eyes and Sean knew something was wrong, so he elected to say nothing until they got to the garage. When they arrived at the garage level, Sean let her out and he followed.
"What's wrong Elana?"
"I guess I should be asking you that. Last week you stopped staying over and this week you have been really quiet. Not to mention you haven't made one move on me." Elana could not hold back her tears as she continued "I don't mean to pressure you Sean, but I've allowed all of these feeling for you to resurface. Feelings I forgot I had and now - now I realize that I need you to hold me and touch me, but for some reason I can't help but think that you're reconsidering ..." Elana could not finish her sentence as her tears began to flow more freely and she leaned back on her car.
Sean moved in closer to her and hugged her as she cried. "No, honey. Oh no, please don't think negatively like that. Do you want to know why I've been distant? Huh?" He asked as he held her face in his hands and wiped her tears.
"Yes, I do." Elana answered trying to compose herself."
"Honey, it's not because I don't want to be around you or because I'm reconsidering being with you. It's because I'm dying inside to have you and I know if I don't stay away from you I'm not going to be true to what you wanted years ago. Look. This is not the place to be discussing these things. Let me take you out somewhere really nice tonight. We can get all dressed up and go to a great restaurant and just eat, talk and dance all night, o.k."
"O.k. Sean. I'm sorry for breaking down in the parking lot. This is not like me."
"Don't worry. Just don't cry anymore. I can't stand to see you cry. I'm sorry I was the cause of that. I haven't been handling this right because I haven't taken your feelings into consideration. I won't ever do that again. I just need to be a stronger man." He let her go and opened the car door for her. "I'll pick you up at 7:00. Just don't torture me too much."
"What do you mean?"
"Go easy on what you wear. James filled me in on your dates with him. I can only take so much."
"I'll think about it." She said trying to smile and feeling better.
Sean closed the door and went back to the office as Elana drove away.
When she arrived at home, Elana called Gail and asked her to drop off something that would get attention but not be too seductive. Gail was all too happy to comply because she had just finished making the dresses she told Elana about last weekend. Within an hour she was at Elana's house with a two year old Chelsea and the dresses so that Elana could try them on. Elana elected to wear a knee-length, shimmering red fitted dress. A split ran up the front of her thigh and stopped about 8 inches below the waist. The v-neck of the dress dipped low into the cleavage area and gathered in the middle forming a bow tie effect. A thick strap worn around the back of the neck connected the sides of the dress. She covered herself with a red, satin shell organza coat. Also she put on natural color silk pantyhose, red high heel shoes and the diamond earrings Sean had bought her. Gail helped her curl her hair all over into spirals, and just as they finished the doorbell rang. Gail gathered Chelsea up and went to the door so Elana could put on her finishing touches.
"Hi, Sean."
"Gail, is that you?"
"Yeah! It's Me!" She said as he came in and they hugged each other.
"Wow you look great! It's been so long. Man!" Sean said remembering Gail as a skinny, but attractive college girl.
"Well, this one put the weight on me." She said nodding towards Chelsea.
When Sean saw the chubby little girl he thought she was the cutest thing he had ever seen. She had medium brown smooth skin and huge light brown eyes with beautiful jet black soft curly hair that was gathered in a little pony tail. "And who is this?"
"Tell Mr. Sean you're name baby."
Chelsea was as articulate as a two-year old could be and she said her name proudly. "My name is Chessee."
Sean and Gail laughed at her pronunciation. Then Gail continued. "Well I'd better be going. Elana should be out soon. You can come on in and sit down."
Sean went down the steps and into the living room as Gail made her way to Elana's bedroom leaving Chelsea with Sean. Gail came into the room trying to contain her excitement and fanning herself.
"Oooh! Damn girl you did not tell me how fine Sean has gotten! I like to fell down those steps trying to get away from him. I went and left my baby in there with him by herself. Whew, I forgot about how sexy those eyes of his were. Let me cool off a second. In the meantime you can put on that black dress because he is lookin' too good not to get any tonight. If you don't give him any, I just might myself."
"Gail!"
"Sorry! You see what effect a good looking man has on me. Sometimes I just say what pops up in my mind, which ain't always good. I'm just trying to get you to appreciate what you should be doin'." Gail said as she scurried around Elana's room looking for the black dress. "Now where's that black number?"
"No, Gail I'm wearing this one, let me get out of here before he gets worried that we're conspiring against him."
"Yeah and let me know what that gift is he's gonna give you. I'll lock up and hopefully I won't see you tomorrow morning for my appointment." Gail said as she picked up Elana's purse put it in her hand and pushed her out the bedroom door.
When Elana walked into her living room and Sean caught sight of her he stood up and he was truly in awe. He had never seen her in red before and she had chosen the perfect outfit to introduce herself to him in for the first time. He could not take his eyes off her as she approached him with a slight smile. When she met him where he stood, she waited for him to say something but he did not, he just kept gazing at her, so to break the silence Elana spoke first.
"So, do you like it?" She said twisting from side to side so that Sean could get a look at her from all angles. He still did not say anything, so she prompted him. "I haven't worn red in a while, so I decided to try it out."
"Yeah, baby I like it. I like it a lot. I see you don't play fair. I asked you to take it easy on me."
"I did!" Elana said with a devious smile.
"Look pretty Ms. Lana." Chelsea said looking up at Elana.
"Thank you sweetheart." Elana said as she picked Chelsea up and kissed her fat cheek. "I'll take you to your mommy and Ms. Lana and Mr. Sean have to go." She said to the little girl. Then she turned to Sean. "I have to go get my jacket, I'll be right back." Elana turned around to go take Chelsea to Gail and to get her coat. Sean could not help but glue his eyes to her perfect heart shaped derriere imminently displayed in the dress and swaying naturally as she walked away. He knew he was done for, and when she left he just wiped his face, put his hands on his sides and paced a few steps back and forth to get his concentration together until she came back. When she returned Sean still had not fully gotten it together, but at least he could direct their attention at something else. He was so overwhelmed with love for her that he did not know what to do with himself. Remembering her reaction to the earrings she wore that he gave her two weeks ago made his heart light and as she walked toward him he went into his suit pocket and pulled out a gift-wrapped box.
"I had to get this for you when I saw it. I hope you like it." He said as he handed it to her.
"Oh, Sean you just bought me these earrings. Now another present? I can't believe you!" She said as she hugged his neck. She let him go and unwrapped the long rectangular box, then opened it... "Oh, My God, Sean! I don't believe this! Oh God it's beautiful!" Elana was elated as she screamed and bounced up and down while she looked at the diamond and ruby tennis bracelet Sean had given her. It was perfect to wear with her outfit that night. "Put it on me sweetheart, please!" She said taking the bracelet out of the box and handing it to Sean as she lifted her arm for him to fasten it on her wrist.
After he fastened it, he lifted her hand up and kissed the back of it, then he slid his hand up her arm to her shoulder and took hold of her waist with his other hand, pulling her closer to him. "I'm sorry for causing your tears today. When you cry, my heart cries with you. I don't want to be distant, but when I'm near you, I don't feel complete unless I'm connected to you some how either by holding your hand or hugging you and having you next to me. I feel like I'm going to explode sometimes by holding back from you, but I really want you to know that it's not just your body I'm after. Even though right now that's ALL I want. These little gifts I've given you are nothing, but they do help me to relay how I feel about you. I'll give you whatever you want Elana, just don't ever doubt that I love you more than anything and now that you're here with me you're my forever, nobody else. O.k." He smiled down at her and Elana did not know what to say.
She felt foolish now for thinking as she had and decided she would never do that again. "You know just the right thing to say to a girl Sean and I love your patience and your gentleness with me. I guess I just missed it for a few days. You can see how you're spoiling me already and now that you have me draped in diamonds and rubies, I think I owe you a proper thank you."
"Yes, you do." Sean said as their lips met in a loving kiss. After a few seconds, Sean broke away. "We better get to the restaurant before they cancel our reservation."
"Yes, we better." Elana said still kissing him, but then she stopped and handed Sean her coat and he helped her put it on.
After saying goodbye to Gail and Chelsea, they left and got into a silver ML 430. As they drove to New York, they talked about the car among other things.
"I thought you only had the Mustang, Sean, this is really nice."
"I figured if you were gonna get all dressed up for me I should take you out in style, so I picked this up this afternoon. Maybe it'll help keep my mind off those legs of yours." Sean said looking down at her exposed thigh from the split in her dress. Elana pulled her coat over her leg, but Sean pulled it back off and firmly placed his hand on her leg where he kept it until they got to the restaurant.
"I didn't mind the mustang. You keep it so nice. You seem to be free with your money these days. I hope you know you can't deduct any of this stuff."
"Don't worry about what I can deduct. And as a matter of fact I leased this Mercedes under my corporate name, so I can deduct the entire lease amount Ms. CPA." He said with emphasis.
After about an hour of each of them proving their business sense, they arrived at the restaurant and got out at the valet parking garage. Sean handed over his keys and reached for Elana who had walked over to his side of the car after the valet opened the door for her. They went to the elevators, and got in to ascend to the top floor where they would dine while viewing the city in the panoramic view. When they arrived, the hostess knew Sean from business meetings, Crealite hosted and a few dates with Sheridan who had insisted that he take her there because someone was supposed to be there on a certain night and she wanted to get a chance to mingle with them. Sean knew she never appreciated the scenery and she usually angered the chef and staff because of her consistently sending the food back and berating the staff. The hostess also knew Elana from her holding business luncheons and occasionally attending Sunday brunch with Gail and Max. He was really happy that Sean was with anyone but Sheridan Winthrop.
"Hello Mr. Logan, Ms. Powers. Mr. Logan we have your table by the window prepared for you. I believe it's your favorite spot also, Ms. Powers."
The hostess personally showed them to their table and Sean and Elana found that it was a favorite spot for both of them whenever they came. After checking the menu and ordering drinks and appetizers, Sean and Elana took the time to really get to know each other again.
"So, what do you hope to be doing in the next five years?" Sean asked as he played with Elana's fingers.
"Oh, I don't know. A lot of things I guess. I hope my company becomes part of the Fortune 1000. I'd also like to expand into Canada or Europe. I'm working on teaching inner city kids accounting fundamentals, which will hopefully give them an incentive to enter the field. I hope to start on my Ph.D. so that I can teach at some of the Ivy League schools, particularly University of Pennsylvania. Those are just some things."
"What about your personal life?"
"Well, I told you I'm buying that mink this year. I also plan to get a 7 series BMW, fully loaded. That's my dream car..."
"You haven't mentioned a family. Is that something you don't want right now?"
"I really haven't had a reason to think about that. I've always been so engrossed in my work, but I definitely want to be married and have a few children. Chelsea is such a joy, so it would be nice for her to be friends with my children just like Gail and I are."
"So is this something you want within the next five years, or later?"
"Well, I'm not getting any younger. I think after five years it'll be too late for me. Maybe three or four kids would be nice. I think what I truly want is to be with a man who adores me, to have good health, a nice home and a good business. I guess that's enough for anybody. If I get half of that I'll be happy."
"Sounds like you already have all of that now." Sean said
"Yea, I guess so. What about you Sean what do you want for yourself within five years."
"You."
Elana blushed as she continued "What about everything else?"
"If I have you, then I will have everything else. You already said you wanted three or four children. I'm ready to comply with that. What else does a man need but a beautiful, motivated and loving woman? If he has that, then he can build everything else from it. I've accomplished a lot, so I don't need any more money. I really just want to be with you and build a life together. There was a time when I wanted to prove myself in business, but I've done that. Maybe not with Crealite yet, but personally I've done really well in my investments and I actually don't need Crealite to keep me going, but it is the family business and as an only child I guess I'll always be there."
"I'm glad that you got out from under your father's shadow. I'm sure his footsteps seemed to be hard to follow at times."
"Yeah, they were, but things got easier for me when I realized that I needed to make my own footsteps. So I did." Sean's voice became more tender when he shifted the conversation. "Elana where my father is concerned I don't want you to have any apprehension about him. You won't ever have to worry about him harassing you or anything. I'll make sure of that."
"O.k. Sean. I must admit that I was concerned about that."
"Well don't be. There are some things I need to tell you. I just feel you should know about this. My great, great grandparents set up a trust fund after they sold their tobacco business. And generally the interest on the money goes to the first born of the eldest child, so I came into mine when I was 25. The same will be true with Sheridan's child. I wish I could change that, but I can't, so that means that if you and I ever had children our first born would not have any claim to any of that money."
"Sean, you didn't have to tell me that. I'm not concerned about money in that way."
"I had to tell you, because I want to be up front with everything. The thing is, I guess I feel bad for messing up like this. It's a lot of money. Somewhere around six million dollars, but with inflation leveled off with interest rates by the time the kid hits 25 it may be worth three or four times that."
"Does Sheridan know about this?"
"Yeah, my dad never hesitated to let her know she needed to get me down the aisle and have some kids so that I would have someone to pass the money on to. She's always known about it."
"Does it require proof of parentage?"
"I'm not sure. That never was an issue, so I doubt it. Back in those days you really could not prove something like that."
"Well I'd advise you to do it in this case, just to be sure and so that no one will bring it into question in the future."
Sean agreed with Elana and said he would have a blood test done as soon as he could. They spent another few hours in the dining room and afterwards Sean suggested they go to the club in the building for after dinner drinks and dancing.
Once they got into the club, they picked a seat, and Elana ordered a drink. Then they got up to dance. On the dance floor, the band played R&B tunes that seemed to be just right for the two of them. Songs such as "You Belong To Me"(Anita Baker), "Tender Love" (Force MD's), and "Baby Hold On to Me" (Gerald Levert) were played as Sean and Elana held on to each other oblivious to everyone around them. They stayed on the dance floor until the bar was about to close and the last song was sung, "Send for Me" (Atlantic Star).
Now baby can't you tell. It's written all over my face.
My days and nights would be a living hell, if you go away.
So think about the misery, that you'd be putting me through.
Goodbye, does not mean a thing, with you and I.
Our love has stood through all the test, of time.
If you're planning to leave me behind, let me put one more thing on your mind.
If you ever leave me baby. Send for me.
I'm just a telephone call away. Send for me.
Put a message in a bottle, baby. Send for me.
See you're my everything, sweet baby.
My whole world revolves around you.
Nothing is what I am, without you here in my life...
Finally, the singer thanked the audience as everyone clapped, except Sean and Elana who could not seem to let go of each other. When the people on the dance floor began to disperse, Sean took Elana's hand and led her back to their table where he helped her with her coat and they left headed back to Long Island.
When they drove up into Elana's parking lot, Sean was helping her out of the car.
"Thank you for tonight. You're a great date!"
"So are you." Elana said
They walked to her door and repeated their usual scenario.
When Elana came back to the foyer to let Sean know the house was secure, Sean initiated his departure. "Well I'd better go. I'll be looking forward to tomorrow, I'd like to get to Jersey by 4pm, so could I come by and pick you up at say 2:30 or so?"
"Yeah, that'll be fine. I should be home by then. I'm going to Connecticut in the morning with Gail for her doctor's appointment. I was thinking that I could stop off and see my parents, then come on back home."
"If you're going to Connecticut, maybe I could take you both and check in on my grandfather while you and Gail are at your parents. Then we can bring Gail back and go on to New Jersey."
"I'd like that. I'll call Gail early and make sure it's o.k. with her. If there's a problem, I'll call, otherwise, if you can be here between 8:30 and 9:00 it would be good, because her appointment is at 11:00."
"I'll be here." He said, looking at her as if he wanted to say something else, but couldn't or wouldn't at least. "Well, let me get home. I'll see you in the morning." Sean instinctively took her hand and leaned down to give her a short, but tender and meaningful kiss. He did not want to touch her too much because he knew where it would lead. After he kissed her they both stood there in her foyer glaring at each other not really wanting to say goodbye.
"Did I mention how absolutely out of this world you look tonight?"
"No, I don't believe I remember you telling me that."
"Well, you do, so much so that I don't want to leave right now."
"You know you don't have to."
Sean pulled a strand of her curly hair out straight and let it bounce back in place. Then he slowly slid his forefinger down the side of her neck around the fringe of her dress. His finger outlined her bare chest and found it's way to the bulge of her clevage where he stopped and tenderly rubbed her. Then he let his finger continue down until it stopped at the crevice of the dress where it gathered in the front. "But I need to."
"You're not scared of me are you Sean."
"By no means honey. Just a little while longer and I'll show you, I'm not scared, but more focused on what needs to be done.." Breaking his mesmerizing stare he removed his hand from her. "Well I've got to get out of here. Promise you'll dream of me."
"I promise. And Sean. I love you. Thank you, for everything."
With that, Sean opened the door walked out and closed it behind him. He rested on the door, to regain his composure, because he was about to go back on his own promise. He had not anticipated that their just being together would hit him so hard. She was everything he wanted and having her was as easy as just taking her, but he wanted things to be special between them. He wanted every significant thing they did together to be memorable. Leaving her tonight caused his body to actually ache. It was as if he had torn himself away from her and ruptured some part of him in the process. He could not believe that his two weeks away from her had only increased his attraction tenfold. And her appearance tonight had magnified it even more. He noticed many other men at the restaurant and bar admiring her and he just could not believe that he was with someone so beautiful and captivating. He felt honored and proud that she was with him, and he could see that he was not going to be able to stay away from her much longer, but he also knew he could not avoid her like he had for the past two weeks. After a few seconds he took a deep breath and headed to his car. He decided that when he got to Connecticut, he would go to the jeweler and try to rush the order he had put in a few weeks earlier. He held on to the fact that he would see her in just a few hours and he was relieved that someone would accompany them all day.
At the same time Elana also leaned up against the front door. She could feel her heart racing from his touching her even though it had only been a subtle touch. She wished that he would hurry up and do whatever it was that he felt he had to do, so that they could really be together in the way her body longed for. She contemplated whether she should take Gail's advice and just present herself on a silver platter and she wished she had the opportunity to do it before he left. Those crystal blue eyes were molded into her brain and she wondered what it was he was thinking when he melted her heart while he stared at her. After she heard his car drive off she moved from the door and went to get ready for bed. Tomorrow she would see him again and she would take every opportunity to intensify her efforts to have him claim her as his own.
That next week seemed to drag on forever, Elana started interviewing on the Marketing department and she spent her extra time analyzing the Collections department. She and Sean only went to lunch together on Wednesday and they were not as talkative as usual. Elana wanted to ask Sean what was on his mind but she was scared of what the answer would be. Sheridan came to Crealite on Thursday when Elana was in Sean's office going over a report with him. Elana was standing over Sean while he sat at his desk with her reports in front of him. She was still trying to get some reaction out of him and purposely leaned over giving him a full view inside her blouse. Sean was almost sweating under the pressure and really did not know what Elana was saying, he was just agreeing as he tried to keep his eyes off her and concentrate on keeping his hands to himself at least until the ring arrived in another few weeks. As Elana talked, Charlotte buzzed Sean, who answered it immediately, happy for some diversion.
"Yes, Charlotte?" Before she could tell him the message Sheridan came through the door.
"Hi, love!" She said as she came in. She saw Elana hovering over Sean and noticed his forehead glowing slightly.
Elana stood up and removed her glasses while Sean stood up after thanking Charlotte for the message.
"What are you doing here Sheridan?"
"I came to see you darling." She said slowly looking from him to Elana. "How are you Elana. I see you did not disappear completely."
"No, I didn't Sheridan. That was just from the restaurant."
"Pity." She said then directing her attention back to Sean. "Sean, I need to talk about my expense account and we should have some privacy."
"Elana is the accountant ---"
Elana cut Sean off, making it easy for him not to ask her to leave, not that he was going to, but she thought he was. "We can finish our conversation later Sean. I'll just take these things and I can come back some other time." Elana gathered up her paperwork and went out the door past Sheridan without saying anything. Sheridan watched Sean as Sean watched Elana leave the room. When she left Sheridan began talking.
"You'd better be careful Sean. You know what people say about black women in an office environment. Just remember you have a child to think about and you can't afford to taint your image."
Sean was incensed at her remark and he wanted her out of his office. "Why are you here Sheridan?"
"Money, Sean. That $3,500 per month is not going to do it for me. You are a millionaire Sean and as the soon to be mother of your child, I don't think I should have to be worried about budgeting my expenses, which is what I've had to do. So this little amount of money you're throwing at me is going to have to be negotiated. I can take this to court if I have to."
"Sheridan, if somebody didn't budget to save that money and invest it wisely, there would not be any for you to worry about."
"Well, I can't be bothered with minor details. That's your job."
The two of them argued over the expense account for a few minutes and neither would budge. Eventually Sheridan stormed out threatening litigation and Sean was stressed even more; first from sexual anxiety and frustration of trying to stay away from Elana and now with the anxiety of Sheridan trying to bleed money out of him. The rest of his day was shot. Later on Elana came back to finish talking about the reports and she could tell that Sean was not really interested in what she was saying. Eventually he told her that he was tired and the reports looked fine. Elana took it to mean that he was cutting her off and wanted her to leave, so she did. On Friday, she decided to let him be for fear of getting completely rejected.
That Friday afternoon Elana decided to leave early. As she was leaving, she got into the elevator, but before it closed completely, Sean stopped it and got on with her.
"Why are you leaving early?"
"It's been a long week and I'm really tired. I figured I'd call it a day."
"You didn't even come in and let me know you were leaving."
"Do I have to report when I come and go to you."
"Actually, yeah, you're supposed to." He said referring to the consulting contract they signed.
Elana rolled her eyes and Sean knew something was wrong, so he elected to say nothing until they got to the garage. When they arrived at the garage level, Sean let her out and he followed.
"What's wrong Elana?"
"I guess I should be asking you that. Last week you stopped staying over and this week you have been really quiet. Not to mention you haven't made one move on me." Elana could not hold back her tears as she continued "I don't mean to pressure you Sean, but I've allowed all of these feeling for you to resurface. Feelings I forgot I had and now - now I realize that I need you to hold me and touch me, but for some reason I can't help but think that you're reconsidering ..." Elana could not finish her sentence as her tears began to flow more freely and she leaned back on her car.
Sean moved in closer to her and hugged her as she cried. "No, honey. Oh no, please don't think negatively like that. Do you want to know why I've been distant? Huh?" He asked as he held her face in his hands and wiped her tears.
"Yes, I do." Elana answered trying to compose herself."
"Honey, it's not because I don't want to be around you or because I'm reconsidering being with you. It's because I'm dying inside to have you and I know if I don't stay away from you I'm not going to be true to what you wanted years ago. Look. This is not the place to be discussing these things. Let me take you out somewhere really nice tonight. We can get all dressed up and go to a great restaurant and just eat, talk and dance all night, o.k."
"O.k. Sean. I'm sorry for breaking down in the parking lot. This is not like me."
"Don't worry. Just don't cry anymore. I can't stand to see you cry. I'm sorry I was the cause of that. I haven't been handling this right because I haven't taken your feelings into consideration. I won't ever do that again. I just need to be a stronger man." He let her go and opened the car door for her. "I'll pick you up at 7:00. Just don't torture me too much."
"What do you mean?"
"Go easy on what you wear. James filled me in on your dates with him. I can only take so much."
"I'll think about it." She said trying to smile and feeling better.
Sean closed the door and went back to the office as Elana drove away.
When she arrived at home, Elana called Gail and asked her to drop off something that would get attention but not be too seductive. Gail was all too happy to comply because she had just finished making the dresses she told Elana about last weekend. Within an hour she was at Elana's house with a two year old Chelsea and the dresses so that Elana could try them on. Elana elected to wear a knee-length, shimmering red fitted dress. A split ran up the front of her thigh and stopped about 8 inches below the waist. The v-neck of the dress dipped low into the cleavage area and gathered in the middle forming a bow tie effect. A thick strap worn around the back of the neck connected the sides of the dress. She covered herself with a red, satin shell organza coat. Also she put on natural color silk pantyhose, red high heel shoes and the diamond earrings Sean had bought her. Gail helped her curl her hair all over into spirals, and just as they finished the doorbell rang. Gail gathered Chelsea up and went to the door so Elana could put on her finishing touches.
"Hi, Sean."
"Gail, is that you?"
"Yeah! It's Me!" She said as he came in and they hugged each other.
"Wow you look great! It's been so long. Man!" Sean said remembering Gail as a skinny, but attractive college girl.
"Well, this one put the weight on me." She said nodding towards Chelsea.
When Sean saw the chubby little girl he thought she was the cutest thing he had ever seen. She had medium brown smooth skin and huge light brown eyes with beautiful jet black soft curly hair that was gathered in a little pony tail. "And who is this?"
"Tell Mr. Sean you're name baby."
Chelsea was as articulate as a two-year old could be and she said her name proudly. "My name is Chessee."
Sean and Gail laughed at her pronunciation. Then Gail continued. "Well I'd better be going. Elana should be out soon. You can come on in and sit down."
Sean went down the steps and into the living room as Gail made her way to Elana's bedroom leaving Chelsea with Sean. Gail came into the room trying to contain her excitement and fanning herself.
"Oooh! Damn girl you did not tell me how fine Sean has gotten! I like to fell down those steps trying to get away from him. I went and left my baby in there with him by herself. Whew, I forgot about how sexy those eyes of his were. Let me cool off a second. In the meantime you can put on that black dress because he is lookin' too good not to get any tonight. If you don't give him any, I just might myself."
"Gail!"
"Sorry! You see what effect a good looking man has on me. Sometimes I just say what pops up in my mind, which ain't always good. I'm just trying to get you to appreciate what you should be doin'." Gail said as she scurried around Elana's room looking for the black dress. "Now where's that black number?"
"No, Gail I'm wearing this one, let me get out of here before he gets worried that we're conspiring against him."
"Yeah and let me know what that gift is he's gonna give you. I'll lock up and hopefully I won't see you tomorrow morning for my appointment." Gail said as she picked up Elana's purse put it in her hand and pushed her out the bedroom door.
When Elana walked into her living room and Sean caught sight of her he stood up and he was truly in awe. He had never seen her in red before and she had chosen the perfect outfit to introduce herself to him in for the first time. He could not take his eyes off her as she approached him with a slight smile. When she met him where he stood, she waited for him to say something but he did not, he just kept gazing at her, so to break the silence Elana spoke first.
"So, do you like it?" She said twisting from side to side so that Sean could get a look at her from all angles. He still did not say anything, so she prompted him. "I haven't worn red in a while, so I decided to try it out."
"Yeah, baby I like it. I like it a lot. I see you don't play fair. I asked you to take it easy on me."
"I did!" Elana said with a devious smile.
"Look pretty Ms. Lana." Chelsea said looking up at Elana.
"Thank you sweetheart." Elana said as she picked Chelsea up and kissed her fat cheek. "I'll take you to your mommy and Ms. Lana and Mr. Sean have to go." She said to the little girl. Then she turned to Sean. "I have to go get my jacket, I'll be right back." Elana turned around to go take Chelsea to Gail and to get her coat. Sean could not help but glue his eyes to her perfect heart shaped derriere imminently displayed in the dress and swaying naturally as she walked away. He knew he was done for, and when she left he just wiped his face, put his hands on his sides and paced a few steps back and forth to get his concentration together until she came back. When she returned Sean still had not fully gotten it together, but at least he could direct their attention at something else. He was so overwhelmed with love for her that he did not know what to do with himself. Remembering her reaction to the earrings she wore that he gave her two weeks ago made his heart light and as she walked toward him he went into his suit pocket and pulled out a gift-wrapped box.
"I had to get this for you when I saw it. I hope you like it." He said as he handed it to her.
"Oh, Sean you just bought me these earrings. Now another present? I can't believe you!" She said as she hugged his neck. She let him go and unwrapped the long rectangular box, then opened it... "Oh, My God, Sean! I don't believe this! Oh God it's beautiful!" Elana was elated as she screamed and bounced up and down while she looked at the diamond and ruby tennis bracelet Sean had given her. It was perfect to wear with her outfit that night. "Put it on me sweetheart, please!" She said taking the bracelet out of the box and handing it to Sean as she lifted her arm for him to fasten it on her wrist.
After he fastened it, he lifted her hand up and kissed the back of it, then he slid his hand up her arm to her shoulder and took hold of her waist with his other hand, pulling her closer to him. "I'm sorry for causing your tears today. When you cry, my heart cries with you. I don't want to be distant, but when I'm near you, I don't feel complete unless I'm connected to you some how either by holding your hand or hugging you and having you next to me. I feel like I'm going to explode sometimes by holding back from you, but I really want you to know that it's not just your body I'm after. Even though right now that's ALL I want. These little gifts I've given you are nothing, but they do help me to relay how I feel about you. I'll give you whatever you want Elana, just don't ever doubt that I love you more than anything and now that you're here with me you're my forever, nobody else. O.k." He smiled down at her and Elana did not know what to say.
She felt foolish now for thinking as she had and decided she would never do that again. "You know just the right thing to say to a girl Sean and I love your patience and your gentleness with me. I guess I just missed it for a few days. You can see how you're spoiling me already and now that you have me draped in diamonds and rubies, I think I owe you a proper thank you."
"Yes, you do." Sean said as their lips met in a loving kiss. After a few seconds, Sean broke away. "We better get to the restaurant before they cancel our reservation."
"Yes, we better." Elana said still kissing him, but then she stopped and handed Sean her coat and he helped her put it on.
After saying goodbye to Gail and Chelsea, they left and got into a silver ML 430. As they drove to New York, they talked about the car among other things.
"I thought you only had the Mustang, Sean, this is really nice."
"I figured if you were gonna get all dressed up for me I should take you out in style, so I picked this up this afternoon. Maybe it'll help keep my mind off those legs of yours." Sean said looking down at her exposed thigh from the split in her dress. Elana pulled her coat over her leg, but Sean pulled it back off and firmly placed his hand on her leg where he kept it until they got to the restaurant.
"I didn't mind the mustang. You keep it so nice. You seem to be free with your money these days. I hope you know you can't deduct any of this stuff."
"Don't worry about what I can deduct. And as a matter of fact I leased this Mercedes under my corporate name, so I can deduct the entire lease amount Ms. CPA." He said with emphasis.
After about an hour of each of them proving their business sense, they arrived at the restaurant and got out at the valet parking garage. Sean handed over his keys and reached for Elana who had walked over to his side of the car after the valet opened the door for her. They went to the elevators, and got in to ascend to the top floor where they would dine while viewing the city in the panoramic view. When they arrived, the hostess knew Sean from business meetings, Crealite hosted and a few dates with Sheridan who had insisted that he take her there because someone was supposed to be there on a certain night and she wanted to get a chance to mingle with them. Sean knew she never appreciated the scenery and she usually angered the chef and staff because of her consistently sending the food back and berating the staff. The hostess also knew Elana from her holding business luncheons and occasionally attending Sunday brunch with Gail and Max. He was really happy that Sean was with anyone but Sheridan Winthrop.
"Hello Mr. Logan, Ms. Powers. Mr. Logan we have your table by the window prepared for you. I believe it's your favorite spot also, Ms. Powers."
The hostess personally showed them to their table and Sean and Elana found that it was a favorite spot for both of them whenever they came. After checking the menu and ordering drinks and appetizers, Sean and Elana took the time to really get to know each other again.
"So, what do you hope to be doing in the next five years?" Sean asked as he played with Elana's fingers.
"Oh, I don't know. A lot of things I guess. I hope my company becomes part of the Fortune 1000. I'd also like to expand into Canada or Europe. I'm working on teaching inner city kids accounting fundamentals, which will hopefully give them an incentive to enter the field. I hope to start on my Ph.D. so that I can teach at some of the Ivy League schools, particularly University of Pennsylvania. Those are just some things."
"What about your personal life?"
"Well, I told you I'm buying that mink this year. I also plan to get a 7 series BMW, fully loaded. That's my dream car..."
"You haven't mentioned a family. Is that something you don't want right now?"
"I really haven't had a reason to think about that. I've always been so engrossed in my work, but I definitely want to be married and have a few children. Chelsea is such a joy, so it would be nice for her to be friends with my children just like Gail and I are."
"So is this something you want within the next five years, or later?"
"Well, I'm not getting any younger. I think after five years it'll be too late for me. Maybe three or four kids would be nice. I think what I truly want is to be with a man who adores me, to have good health, a nice home and a good business. I guess that's enough for anybody. If I get half of that I'll be happy."
"Sounds like you already have all of that now." Sean said
"Yea, I guess so. What about you Sean what do you want for yourself within five years."
"You."
Elana blushed as she continued "What about everything else?"
"If I have you, then I will have everything else. You already said you wanted three or four children. I'm ready to comply with that. What else does a man need but a beautiful, motivated and loving woman? If he has that, then he can build everything else from it. I've accomplished a lot, so I don't need any more money. I really just want to be with you and build a life together. There was a time when I wanted to prove myself in business, but I've done that. Maybe not with Crealite yet, but personally I've done really well in my investments and I actually don't need Crealite to keep me going, but it is the family business and as an only child I guess I'll always be there."
"I'm glad that you got out from under your father's shadow. I'm sure his footsteps seemed to be hard to follow at times."
"Yeah, they were, but things got easier for me when I realized that I needed to make my own footsteps. So I did." Sean's voice became more tender when he shifted the conversation. "Elana where my father is concerned I don't want you to have any apprehension about him. You won't ever have to worry about him harassing you or anything. I'll make sure of that."
"O.k. Sean. I must admit that I was concerned about that."
"Well don't be. There are some things I need to tell you. I just feel you should know about this. My great, great grandparents set up a trust fund after they sold their tobacco business. And generally the interest on the money goes to the first born of the eldest child, so I came into mine when I was 25. The same will be true with Sheridan's child. I wish I could change that, but I can't, so that means that if you and I ever had children our first born would not have any claim to any of that money."
"Sean, you didn't have to tell me that. I'm not concerned about money in that way."
"I had to tell you, because I want to be up front with everything. The thing is, I guess I feel bad for messing up like this. It's a lot of money. Somewhere around six million dollars, but with inflation leveled off with interest rates by the time the kid hits 25 it may be worth three or four times that."
"Does Sheridan know about this?"
"Yeah, my dad never hesitated to let her know she needed to get me down the aisle and have some kids so that I would have someone to pass the money on to. She's always known about it."
"Does it require proof of parentage?"
"I'm not sure. That never was an issue, so I doubt it. Back in those days you really could not prove something like that."
"Well I'd advise you to do it in this case, just to be sure and so that no one will bring it into question in the future."
Sean agreed with Elana and said he would have a blood test done as soon as he could. They spent another few hours in the dining room and afterwards Sean suggested they go to the club in the building for after dinner drinks and dancing.
Once they got into the club, they picked a seat, and Elana ordered a drink. Then they got up to dance. On the dance floor, the band played R&B tunes that seemed to be just right for the two of them. Songs such as "You Belong To Me"(Anita Baker), "Tender Love" (Force MD's), and "Baby Hold On to Me" (Gerald Levert) were played as Sean and Elana held on to each other oblivious to everyone around them. They stayed on the dance floor until the bar was about to close and the last song was sung, "Send for Me" (Atlantic Star).
Now baby can't you tell. It's written all over my face.
My days and nights would be a living hell, if you go away.
So think about the misery, that you'd be putting me through.
Goodbye, does not mean a thing, with you and I.
Our love has stood through all the test, of time.
If you're planning to leave me behind, let me put one more thing on your mind.
If you ever leave me baby. Send for me.
I'm just a telephone call away. Send for me.
Put a message in a bottle, baby. Send for me.
See you're my everything, sweet baby.
My whole world revolves around you.
Nothing is what I am, without you here in my life...
Finally, the singer thanked the audience as everyone clapped, except Sean and Elana who could not seem to let go of each other. When the people on the dance floor began to disperse, Sean took Elana's hand and led her back to their table where he helped her with her coat and they left headed back to Long Island.
When they drove up into Elana's parking lot, Sean was helping her out of the car.
"Thank you for tonight. You're a great date!"
"So are you." Elana said
They walked to her door and repeated their usual scenario.
When Elana came back to the foyer to let Sean know the house was secure, Sean initiated his departure. "Well I'd better go. I'll be looking forward to tomorrow, I'd like to get to Jersey by 4pm, so could I come by and pick you up at say 2:30 or so?"
"Yeah, that'll be fine. I should be home by then. I'm going to Connecticut in the morning with Gail for her doctor's appointment. I was thinking that I could stop off and see my parents, then come on back home."
"If you're going to Connecticut, maybe I could take you both and check in on my grandfather while you and Gail are at your parents. Then we can bring Gail back and go on to New Jersey."
"I'd like that. I'll call Gail early and make sure it's o.k. with her. If there's a problem, I'll call, otherwise, if you can be here between 8:30 and 9:00 it would be good, because her appointment is at 11:00."
"I'll be here." He said, looking at her as if he wanted to say something else, but couldn't or wouldn't at least. "Well, let me get home. I'll see you in the morning." Sean instinctively took her hand and leaned down to give her a short, but tender and meaningful kiss. He did not want to touch her too much because he knew where it would lead. After he kissed her they both stood there in her foyer glaring at each other not really wanting to say goodbye.
"Did I mention how absolutely out of this world you look tonight?"
"No, I don't believe I remember you telling me that."
"Well, you do, so much so that I don't want to leave right now."
"You know you don't have to."
Sean pulled a strand of her curly hair out straight and let it bounce back in place. Then he slowly slid his forefinger down the side of her neck around the fringe of her dress. His finger outlined her bare chest and found it's way to the bulge of her clevage where he stopped and tenderly rubbed her. Then he let his finger continue down until it stopped at the crevice of the dress where it gathered in the front. "But I need to."
"You're not scared of me are you Sean."
"By no means honey. Just a little while longer and I'll show you, I'm not scared, but more focused on what needs to be done.." Breaking his mesmerizing stare he removed his hand from her. "Well I've got to get out of here. Promise you'll dream of me."
"I promise. And Sean. I love you. Thank you, for everything."
With that, Sean opened the door walked out and closed it behind him. He rested on the door, to regain his composure, because he was about to go back on his own promise. He had not anticipated that their just being together would hit him so hard. She was everything he wanted and having her was as easy as just taking her, but he wanted things to be special between them. He wanted every significant thing they did together to be memorable. Leaving her tonight caused his body to actually ache. It was as if he had torn himself away from her and ruptured some part of him in the process. He could not believe that his two weeks away from her had only increased his attraction tenfold. And her appearance tonight had magnified it even more. He noticed many other men at the restaurant and bar admiring her and he just could not believe that he was with someone so beautiful and captivating. He felt honored and proud that she was with him, and he could see that he was not going to be able to stay away from her much longer, but he also knew he could not avoid her like he had for the past two weeks. After a few seconds he took a deep breath and headed to his car. He decided that when he got to Connecticut, he would go to the jeweler and try to rush the order he had put in a few weeks earlier. He held on to the fact that he would see her in just a few hours and he was relieved that someone would accompany them all day.
At the same time Elana also leaned up against the front door. She could feel her heart racing from his touching her even though it had only been a subtle touch. She wished that he would hurry up and do whatever it was that he felt he had to do, so that they could really be together in the way her body longed for. She contemplated whether she should take Gail's advice and just present herself on a silver platter and she wished she had the opportunity to do it before he left. Those crystal blue eyes were molded into her brain and she wondered what it was he was thinking when he melted her heart while he stared at her. After she heard his car drive off she moved from the door and went to get ready for bed. Tomorrow she would see him again and she would take every opportunity to intensify her efforts to have him claim her as his own.