Chapter 9
Chris laid in bed with his arm around Stephanie in a protective manner. He had slept only briefly during the night...morning, really. He couldn't stop thinking about what he and Stephanie had done. What had started out as an intense need to prove that their lovers had not cheated on them because they weren't up to par in bed had turned into something maddeningly passionate. And it had lasted for quite a long time...
He could remember every little detail of their encounter. He had been so surprised when she had stepped into the shower. He'd tried his hardest to resist her, but once he felt her tongue on his skin, any restraint he had felt disappeared, and he'd kissed her. The kiss had been shocking to both of them. They had pulled back and looked at each other, searching each other's faces. And then they'd been drawn together like magnets, horny magnets, but magnets nonetheless. From the shower to the bed, they had kissed each other softly, just touching, feeling. One thing had led to another thing...
And here they were. Chris gave a content sigh and wrapped his arm around her a little tighter, remembering everything they had done. He could remember the tears that had escaped from her eyes as he had hovered over her in the bed. He had felt horrible about the tears, wondering if they had been because of him. But then he'd remembered exactly why they were doing it in the first place. He'd felt an overbearing need to comfort her, this woman who hadn't been touched by her own husband in months. He remembered kissing her tears away. She had kissed him softly, tenderly, urging him to continue. And continue he had, slowly, tenderly, giving her the type of loving that she had wanted and deserved.
He felt her move slightly in his arms and knew that she was waking up.
Stephanie opened her eyes and briefly wondered where the hell she was. But then she remembered, and she wondered how she could have forgotten, even if it was only momentarily. She placed her hand on the arm that he had around her and felt the warmth coming from him. She hadn't been this close to any man in months, and his body pressing against hers was very comforting to her.
"Morning, beautiful," he whispered to her. He moved her hair over and pressed his lips against her neck.
"Morning," she whispered back, shivering a little when his soft lips touched her skin.
"You were better than her," he said quietly. "So much better than her."
She smiled to herself. "And you were better than him. You're so gentle and sweet. God, you were amazing."
"I know," he said smugly. "But...after what we did...how do you feel?"
"I feel satisfied," she said, closing her eyes. She intertwined her fingers with his and yawned. "Let's just go back to sleep."
"Good idea," he said, yawning as well. Together, they fell back to sleep, each one thinking about what had happened a few hours before...
About three hours later, Chris woke up to find himself alone in an empty bed. He looked around and saw no traces of Stephanie at all. He looked on the bedside table and a smile played on his lips. There on the table was a flower, some kind of note, and breakfast. He went into the bathroom and got cleaned up, brushing his teeth and pulling his hair into a loose ponytail. He glanced over at the shower and thought, This is where it all began.
He walked into the bedroom and over to the table. He sat down on the side of the bed and picked up a note. It was on a piece of stationary that read "FROM THE DESK OF THE PRINCESS" in big bold, capital letters. He smiled and thought, From her desk, huh? He started to read the note, which said:
Chris,
Thanks for everything. You gave me what I've been needing for months. You made me feel beautiful. Thank you for being there for me when no one else (namely Hunter) was. Now, I have to leave and get to work and you look so peaceful lying here sleeping. I just can't bring myself to disturb you and wake you up. Lord knows I didn't let you sleep much... Anyway, here's my cell phone number just in case you want to call. Oh, by the way, I already knew that I was better in bed than her. You just confirmed it...
Thanks,
Steph
P.S. The tables have turned, huh? I know you're probably the one used to getting up and leaving the chicks in the morning... LOL!
He finished reading her note and looked down at his watch. He knew that he needed to be getting to work soon as well, but first... First, he was going to eat his breakfast...
Stephanie sat in her office staring off into space. She knew she should've been working, but she was distracted, very distracted. Her mouth was practically watering as she relived what had happened between her and Chris. He had been so gentle, so sweet and passionate that it was surprising, not to mention enjoyable. It was funny, really, how they had never been good friends before the previous day. They had barely even had a conversation that wasn't work-related. And yet...they had slept together.
Someone knocked lightly on her office door. "Come in," she called, and she was surprised at how cheerful and light-hearted she sounded. She didn't have a care in the world, it seemed, even though she had walked in on her husband and his former mistress only a couple of hours before. Granted, those two really had been looking at their scripts, but it was all too suspicious the way Hunter's shirt was off and they were sitting close together...
"Steph, I know you don't want to see me right now, but we need to talk," Hunter said, coming into the office. He shut the door behind him, but that was a kind of difficult task for him, considering he was carrying a dozen of roses in each arm. He stood looking at her with pleading eyes, waiting for her to say something.
Stephanie looked at her husband and surprised even herself by smiling. "Seeing that I am in such a good mood today, I'm all ears," she told him. She leaned her elbows on her desk and waited expectantly.
"I know you want to know what Trish and I...what we were doing last night," he said, walking over to her.
"Let me ask you one question, just one," she said. "And you have to promise to be honest."
"Ask me anything," he said, standing by her desk.
"Did you sleep with Trish in our hotel room before I came in?" she asked, her voice not wavering.
"Steph, I swear that I did not sleep with Trish in our hotel room," he said, putting the roses down on her desk. "I want you to trust me, to believe me, when I tell you that we were only going over the script."
"Why was your shirt off?" she asked curiously.
"It was hot in our room," he said honestly. "Stupid air conditioner..."
"Ok, honey, thanks for the roses," she said, touching the roses and not looking at him.
"I'm forgiven? Just like that?" he asked, incredulously. "I was sure that you'd make me get on my knees and beg or something."
"I'm just in a ridiculously good mood today," she said, shrugging.
"Why are you in such a good mood?" he asked curiously. "It's like you're so radiant today, Steph."
"I know. I'm glowing, aren't I?" she said, smiling at the memory of why she was radiant.
"Yeah. You look beautiful today," he said.
"Thanks..." She looked down at her watch. "If you'll excuse me, I've got to go to a meeting." She stood up, smiling at him, then left the office, leaving him staring after her with a look of confusion and awe on his face...
