Hello folks... Now before I die from all those pitchforks and burning torches that you all are holding, I would like to apologize for the lack of an update... : ) So yes, the rating has been bumped up to "M" and I hope that isn't going to discourage you from continuing to read this little gem of mine. I do warn readers that somethings in this, and future chapters are for mature audiences, in case the "M" rating hasn't announced that already. Nothing belongs to me, except for Vasiliev. Enough stalling already, here is newest chapter to "Making Up Lost Time"...
He stood at the opened gateway in his boxers, clutching the door with his left hand as his right one fisted through his disheveled bed hair.
"Sophie…" It was as though he was seeing a ghost; but worse. "…Hi."
Sophie; the real Sophie, and not some figure of Kurtis' imagination, stood in his doorway smiling with delight. She had her hair pinned up in a tight dark bun with a strand here and there that poked out from her otherwise slick look. She had been heading off to her office and so was dressed in her primary work attire; a simple gray pantsuit. Her emerald eyes sparkled with happiness as she grinned at Kurtis' shocked expression.
"Believe me, I'm just as surprised!" She suddenly lurched forward and wrapped her arms around his waist in a welcoming hug. Pecking each of Kurtis' cheeks, she stepped into the apartment without ever even glancing back at him for permission. "I heard some noise and thought I'd come to meet the new tenants, but who do I find instead? Kurtis Trent, it must be-"
"-Ten years." He quickly finished her sentence, practically slamming the door as he walked back into his flat. "And what is it that you decided to come back for?"
"Oh you know me Kurtis, I'm a friendly neighbor. Just wanted to stop by and welcome the new tenants."
Fuck. You mean to say 'fuck the new tenants.' Kurtis smiled cheaply and moved past Sophie back into his room to put some clothes on. Sophie observed the apartment with keen interest. She hadn't seen Kurtis in nearly ten years, and coming back into the same apartment where they had gotten to know each other, spiked a whole new sensation in the pit of her stomach. Memories of carnal pleasure were ignited by certain things in the room. The couch, counters, even the oriental white rug in the center of the living room made her smile and bite her lip.
"Hello?" The voice startled Sophie - no; not the voice itself, but the fact that it sounded much too like a woman's. There it was, a brunette woman, clad in nothing more than an oversized button-down shirt and skimpy black underwear. Sophie's eyebrow twitched with curiosity. The woman seemed not to be bothered at all that she was barely dressed, and instead the creature moved towards Sophie stretching out her hand. "Hello, I'm Lara. And you are…?"
"I'm Sophie; Kurtis' ex." Both women stood in silence for a few awkward seconds. Then, emerging at the perfect time, Kurtis entered the room; fully dressed and ready to throw Sophie out. He looked at Lara, and then to Sophie, and then back at Lara; who by now stood with her arms folded as a smug smile began to form on her face.
"I'm sure you two have already made introductions, so if you don't mind Sophie, we really must get going." Ushering Sophie towards the exit, he slightly pushed the woman with his hand that rested on her lower back.
"Yes, of course." Sophie, for some reason, could not pin-point exactly why she was staring at Lara, but she was. And she watched the woman as Kurtis spoke to her, and when replying to his statement. "So you two must be-" Sophie evaded Kurtis and turned to face Lara again.
"-Nothing. We are nothing, just two people in the same apartment. Lara is my-"
"-Girlfriend." Lara approached Kurtis from behind, rubbing his shoulders. "Oh don't be shy sweetie; the world is going to find out soon enough. Besides, I think your ex-girlfriend should know how well you're doing. Especially after last night…" Her eyes flicked up at Sophie, and she tilted her head to kiss his neck.
"That's wonderful Kurtis, I'm sure you're doing quite well in all aspects of your life." It couldn't have been more obvious that Sophie was purely jealous. Territorial tension between the two women was rising, and Kurtis was stuck in-between the conflict. Not that he minded or anything; how many men get the chance to have two beautiful women fighting one another for one guy? I should just sit this one out. He would watch the matter unfold, perhaps something interesting would happen. Then when enough hair was pulled out, and blood spilled, then he would interrupt.
Finally giving up on Sophie's departure, considering she just kept coming back into an unwanted conversation, he went into the living room and sat down on the ivory couch. Lara quickly seated herself next to him; running her hand up the inside of his thigh as she did so. This little action caused him to exhale promptly and slightly jump.
"How long have you two been going out?" To Kurtis' further agitation of Sophie, she decided to sit down in his recliner and continue to still be in the vicinity of the room. But as his mind ran through scenarios of ways to get her to leave, a larger part of him was deeply fascinated with the things that Lara was doing - to him. She hadn't acted this way before; so open and sensual, particularly around him. Unless of course she had some sort of agenda accommodated behind her actions.
"Just a few months now, right sweetie? I just adore him; ever since we first met it was like an atomic bomb went off!" Lara slid closer to Kurtis as she continued spinning her web of lies. "And the sex is amazing! I mean talk about a freak in bed…" She smiled and turned to Sophie, hushing her tone as though Kurtis wouldn't hear her. "That thing he does when I'm up on top of him, it feels so good that it makes me want to scream!"
Sophie's eyes widened in disgust. Who did this woman think she was talking about a subject that intimate? Why in hell would Kurtis date someone like this?
It was working; Lara's little scheme was working its magic right in front of their faces. Kurtis sat completely still next to Lara as well as in utter confusion. He tried his best poker face to camouflage his sudden interest in this new topic Lara was so urgent to raise. But somewhere in the back of his subconscious mentality he began to catch on.
"Oh you know Sophie; I think you remember how good the sex was when we were together." He turned his head to face Lara, "But unfortunately for her it wasn't satisfying enough, so she had to go find it somewhere else." It was Lara's inarticulate cue to go for it, and she did, gliding her palm down his chest and rubbing his thigh.
At this point Sophie was just furious. Not only had she begun to feel extremely uncomfortable in the room, she had just been harshly insulted by her ex. "I think I'd better go." She concluded impulsively, standing up and maneuvering towards the only exit out of the apartment.
Lara had picked up her leg and swiftly straddled Kurtis's heated figure. "I think you should too." She mumbled to Sophie, much too engaged with her newest activity. Lara heard Sophie close the door, and if she had conformed to her initial plan, she would have gotten off of him. When the two of them had resided at the hotel she had used a similar tactic against Kurtis to strip information out of him. Then, it was just a simple play of hands and nothing more. But this time, however, it was different. Now, as she rested astride Kurtis, with her legs on both sides of his lap and his hands inching up her waist, it was her judgement that had clouded with lust. Look at him; he wants you more than anything. You want it, you dream of it, you can taste him, you can have him! Do it Lara, TAKE IT!
No!
Kurtis, on the other hand, wasn't going to fall for this trick again. Last time, sure it had worked, and perhaps each of them got a little taste of the others' hunger, but he knew Lara – or at least he thought he did. The only thing that had kept plucking at his conscience was why she was doing it now?
With her alter ego battling her moral self, Lara's hazel eyes were transfixed onto Kurtis's. The words she wanted to express to him would not form in her vocal cords but fully scripted themselves into her brain. I can't do this Kurtis. Not now, not ever. Please understand and just leave it alone. If only he were able to read her mind, he might have understood what was happening and what she was trying to explain to him. She gently drew his hands and pushed them away, still attempting to telepathically get the message through to him. Leave it alone.
This built up puissance amidst man and woman seemed only to fuel them both with overwhelming urgency to achieve victory. A state of brinkmanship had officially been declared and now it was just a matter of time before one of them would lose their hold on their desires and give into the animalistic appetite. And so as Lara stood and walked away from him, she couldn't help but get the feeling she had started something; some sort of internal bestial competition.
Not more than a few minutes had passed since Lara had left Kurtis on the couch, when his head popped into her room. She was packing; preparing for the journey ahead of her. Lara looked almost at peace as she put her belongings into a duffel bag. But she gasped suddenly and hunch over, grabbing her side. It was her rib cage, and whilst lifting her shirt up, she realized the entire left side of her torso was bruised.
"My god, Lara. That's from the crash isn't it?" Kurtis came into the room and surveyed the damage, delicately brushing the injury with his thumb.
She hissed. "Don't." Lara attempted to bring the garment down, but he wouldn't allow it. He just stared at the bruise like he were a surgeon that seemed to weigh his options.
"It's a cracked rib. Barely missed your left lung."
"How do you know?"
"I can see it, the same way I distinguish objects when I move them with my mind. It's just a fracture so I'm going to try to push it back to its original position and the bone should be able to fuse back together within time." Kurtis made her sit on the edge of the bed as he squatted beside her, encircling her midsection with his fingers. If her waist hadn't throbbed with torture so much, his touch might have actually felt satisfying.
"Wait - you're planning on repositioning my cracked rib with your mind… Call me skeptical, but how is that even remotely possible?"
"It's not, but you're just going to have to trust me." He glanced up at her and smirked. "By the way, this is gonna hurt like a bitch."
"Thanks for the warn-" Before she could even finish, white hot pain shot through her system. Lara grasped Kurtis's shoulder and dug her fingers into his flesh, clawing for the misery to cease. She clenched her jaw, as her jagged breathing increased and painful whimpers began to tear at her throat. Her tormented eyes latched onto his determined ones, and she could feel the forsaken bone ever so slowly moving inside of her. A sharp yelp escaped her mouths cavity, which caused Lara to tighten her already white-knuckle grip on Kurtis. She strained to exert the suffering to the back of her mind, but the unbearable agony refused to obey. Just as Kurtis finally aligned the bone fragment, a cry bypassed her will and slipped out into the intense stillness around them.
"Calm down, you're fine. It's done, its over with." He tried to assuage her, but she shoved him away, her merciless eyes narrowing at his form. "I'll check if we have some aspirin." Sighing heavily with frustration and not wanting to be the entity of her hate, he left her bedroom returning to his own.
"I don't think we're going to leave today…" Lara sat on the bed, protectively cradling her tender left side. Kurtis reentered her bedroom with a glass of water and two pills. "I doubt our train would leave in these conditions."
"Because of the rain?"
"No, the apocalypse." She snapped back. "Of course the rain, it's been pouring ever since your little girlfriend decided to stop by and have a chat." Snatching the painkillers from his hand she gulped them down along with the refreshing water. "You shouldn't have let her in in the first place."
"Why are you making such a huge deal out of Sophie? Are you somehow jealous of her? I wasn't going to chuck her out the window and down three stories if that's what you wanted."
"Well maybe you should have."
"Maybe it should have been you." Lara glared at him, feeling the blood beneath her skin begin to reach boiling point. "You're probably right; we're going to be stuck here for another day. Meaning I have to put up with more of your bullshit and stuck-up attitude."
"My stuck-up attitude? I can't have one decent conversation without you bringing up some juvenile issue about personalities! And yet you think I'm difficult? Trying to get through to you is like trying to teach a stone how to write; no matter how many times you train it, it doesn't get it!" Lara rose and stormed out, enraged with Kurtis and the current situation.
"Where are you going?" He called after her, looking down at the wooden floors.
"I'll be in the shower!"
"Don't use up all the damn hot water!"
"I'll be sure to!" She barked back.
An angry growl erupted from between his clamped teeth and he found himself kicking the invisible air with rage. Kurtis got out of Lara's bedroom and reached for his leather jacket on the way out of the apartment. I need a fucking holiday. He hurled the door shut behind him.
As Lara's showers were never intended on being short or abrupt; it was only an hour and a half after their little feud that Lara emerged from the bathroom covering herself with a velutinous towel. Steam gushed out of the tiled chamber alongside with her departure. That bugger. Worthless, slimy, arrogant, lying bastard. As her thoughts proceeded to stir up more adjectives to describe her current views of Kurtis, she quickly realized that he had exited the building. Good, perhaps he'll get hit by a truck. Her physical pain had begun to die down, much thanks to the sedatives she had taken earlier, and she now felt the motive to call Bryce and make sure he was alright.
"Lara! My god, it's great to hear from you again."
"Hello Bryce" She smiled, holding the phone to her ear. "Where are you?"
"Venice. Beautiful place."
"Lovely. Listen Bryce, are you by a computer?"
"Yes, what do you need?"
"Look up when Vasiliev is having the grand opening to his gallery. If I'm correct, I believe it should be tomorrow at eight." Lara held the receiver to her shoulder whilst squeezing her damp body into a pair of jeans. Keyboard clicking echoed through the other end of the line.
"That's right. Tomorrow at eight, near Red Square. Do you want the address?"
"No, I'll find it. Thanks though. One last thing; can you pull up the blueprints of the gallery. Vasiliev knows I'll be coming, but if I can find a way to slip in without him comprehending it, then I wouldn't have to cause a large panic."
"I was wondering when you were going to ask. This may take some time. I'll call you back when I have them."
"Good." Lara tossed the phone onto the bed. She used a towel to dry her wet hair and braid it back into its' regular collective plait.
Most people who were acquainted with Lara never would assume her to be a pacer. Oh but she was; and a rapid one at that. It was something she absolutely dreaded; marching back and forth until a visible crater is created. But in this circumstance there wasn't much that she could do. With Kurtis out and about in who knows where, and Bryce working on those blueprints, Lara really did not have much to fully occupy her mind. The four hours of sleep she had gotten from the night before were not helping either. She sighed heavily as if a massive rock had been placed onto her back and laid down on the comfortable bed, closing her eyes for mere moments before drifting off into the darkness of sleep.
It was many hours later that Lara awoke to her mobile phones' buzzing. "Did you get them?"
"Yeah I did, I'm sending them to your PDA right now." Somewhere in the background a seductive feminine murmur vocalized itself. "Sorry Lara, I got to go."
She smiled mischievously. "I better not have little Bryce's running around when I get back." Ending the call she discovered that she had slept through almost the entire day. A new night had blanketed the aged city but the rain and thunder maintained their momentum, carrying on in loud claps and low-key droplets of tears. Being in a city this magnificent and not traversing it made Lara make the decision to leave the flat and explore the area. On her way out, her ladylike psyche persuaded her to comb a thin layer of mascara onto her eyelashes. You know why you're doing it…
Stop it already. This has nothing to do with him. She glanced up at the mirror and inspected the reflection, deliberating on whether she really should leave. I can't just sit here and wait…And so after making sure she had gotten Bryce's files, Lara quietly closed the front door after herself and walked down into the soaking street. The same pub she had spotted the day before still bustled with outcries of laughter and music. A couple of tourists dashed out from their cab and rushed into the tavern in hopes of the rain not seeping through them. Lara flipped her jackets' collar to protect her neck from the downpour and jogged down to the bar at the end of the corner.
The smoke filled room was not exactly what Lara thought she would be encountering. There were plenty of people there; some old, some young, and some who looked like they belonged in school rather than in a place like this. The warm environment was decorated with painted landscape murals, easily noticeable imitations of expensive art, and wooden caricature statues resembling drunken soldiers.
"Parlez-vous l'anglais?" She asked the bartender, taking a seat on a selected barstool.
"Oui. What can I get for you mademoiselle?"
She paused, catching the eye of a man sitting several chairs down. "Scotch." With precise skill, he dispatched the drink, sluicing the dark liquor into a clean glass. Slipping several euros to him, she whisked her scotch out of his hand and neared the man she spotted earlier. "Hello stranger."
Kurtis Trent remained sitting, staring straight ahead whilst taking a swig of his beer and not turning towards Lara. He set the bottle down and ignorantly lit up a cigarette, poising it at his lips and between his fingers.
"Oh Kurtis, don't act so thrilled to see me." His icy eyes rolled in their sockets, lining up to look at her sideways. "See that good-looking man across the room? I think I shall go talk to him, seeing it as you aren't planning on speaking to me and all." Her tone was parallel to his unconcerned demeanor.
Only after Lara had walked away, had Kurtis seen the man Lara was suggesting. He wasn't bad looking, for a guy who looks like he's been fucking hookers all his life. He breathed out slowly and ordered another beer.
She had conversed with Frederic for several minutes before it became fully lucid he only spoke to her because he assumed he might be able to take her home.
Fortunately for him, it was his lucky night.
Everything had shifted into view; Lara finally understood why Kurtis was behaving the way he was. It wasn't because of the way she was acting, but because he wanted something she would not allow him to have. The night at the dock when he had tenderly kissed her; his touch felt like he had been dying to do it since they had first met. She knew it was truly killing him inside; seeing her with someone else; permitting them to feel her, stroke her skin, when she prohibited his own legitimate contact. Her mind smiled villainously. It was time he suffered.
Kurtis scrutinized the pair from his seat; an evolving feeling of sickness worming into his stomach. It was like watching a film about a human being skinned alive and you couldn't turn it off nor look away. She laughed gleefully at his pathetic jokes, whispered into his filthy ears, let his sleazy hands roam her divine body and she did nothing that would emit disapproval. In fact, if it weren't for the occasional push, it seemed that she was enjoying his presence. However, as his squalid little head leaned into her, Kurtis felt his pulse rise to a new found intensity. He strangled his bottle of beer, feeling a surge of energy swelling within him; feeling it anticipate bursting out.
Lara purred in Frederic's ear, sensing his lips seeking out the ones she possessed. She detected that her objective was watching them; his prying azure eyes tracking their every movement. She was pushing on glass, pushing harder, bent on cornering Kurtis out of his stability. The problem with glass however, is that the more you press on it, the more likely its bound to break. As Frederic's taunting lips zoned in on their target and as Lara caressed his chest awaiting the mouth-to-mouth collision, a deafening shrieking sound silenced everything.
The glass container in Kurtis' hand lay in pieces.
Anything made from the crystalline substance shattered suddenly; florescent lights crumbled to the ground, drinks spilled onto the floor, music ceased, windows blew in and blackness engulfed the building. With the exception of the rain outside, all persons in the room froze casting a frightening muteness. Lara could see a shadow leaving the bar; the entrance swinging on its hinges behind him. Kurtis. She ran out following him, forgetting the confused crowd and Frederic. "Kurtis, wait!"
He kept going, focused on forgetting this night, this city, these people, this damn continent and that damn English woman. Both of them couldn't care less about the weather surrounding them. The cold water was dripping down Lara's face getting into her eyes; rivulets rolling down her thin shirt. "So this is what you do, Kurtis? You run away fleeing like a pansy from me?! You think you're so different, so much better at what you do that you forget the shit around you!" His heavy boots splashed through puddles, but he had no intention of stopping and speaking to her. Walking quickly enough, Lara had to even run after him, and soon they had come to the glass apartment entrance. His hand twitched, telekinetically unlocking the deadbolt lock. Thunder boomed outside and the downpour was only becoming steadier with each of her bitter comments.
They now were in the staircase treading upwards to the third floor. Still pursuing him, Lara upped her pace trailing after him. She was fuming; at exactly what she wasn't sure, but she knew it was, in one way or another, directed towards him. "Are you ever going to admit to the fact that you feel something more for me?!" He faltered for the briefest of moments but pressed on, taking two steps at a time. His non-responsiveness caused her to pounce up to him and grab his forearm, pulling him back. "Kurtis listen to me!"
Without warning she was propelled against the wall, slamming into it so roughly she thought her shoulder blades would snap. One of his hands found a way to her neck and clasped it, nearly cutting off the circulation to her head. His cobalt eyes held no remorse, nothing compassionate; it was an expression that Lara did not think any human could summon in their deepest of rages. She was unceremoniously pinned to the wall; unable to move any of her limbs. If there had been an emotion to describe pure hate combined with incomprehensible arousal in one word, she couldn't muster it. It stood out so clearly to her how ravishing his heaving wet body felt against hers. This, blending with the low levels of blood flow to her brain induced her to feel light-headed. Kurtis pulled away from her cautiously, turning his head and releasing Lara from his death-grip.
Lara snapped.
Filling the short gap between their drenched bodies, she kissed his lips fiercely, snaking her arms around his lean neck. Kurtis had been caught off guard when she initiated the movement, but he pushed her back against the wall again and deepened the passionate kiss; entwining his ravenous tongue with hers. This had gone far beyond a desire; it had advanced into a need.
There was no going back at this point. Both of them struggled getting up the last flight of stairs and stumbled into the apartment, clawing desperately at each others clothing. Breathless and in pain, Lara's agony only nourished her appetite for him. She hopped up and crossed her ankles around his waist, feeling the result of her efforts on him down under. Never breaking from the hungry kiss, Kurtis carried her to his bedroom and mentally closed the door.
"This-" She tore his leather jacket off, throwing it to the ground. "Doesn't change-" Peeling the t-shirt off, she bit his lower lip and tugged. "A thing." Her hands wanted to explore every millimeter of his tight glowing skin; too overwhelmed to decide what to feel first. "-No matter how good this is." She felt him smiling against her lips and she moaned at the thought of where those wandering creatures could go.
"Let's leave that to tomorrow shall we-" He stripped her of her clothes just as easily. "Because by that time you'll still be exhausted and begging for more." One palm guided itself along her backbone; undoing her bra and allowing it to fall, as the other slinked further below teasing the waistband of her panties. She was kneeling on the mattress whilst he stood next to her, stroking her beautiful skin. "I don't think you'll be needing these tonight." And in one swift motion, he pulled the undergarment down.
"Well then, I'm required to return the favor." Her tongue toyed wickedly along his chest, darting out in beats and tasting him. She pulled at his belt, driving his jeans to his feet. Well, well, well… Not bad… With one eyebrow raised, she retreated from his grasp and inched her way up the mattress; leaning on one elbow and raising a finger; curling it, inviting him to come closer. The look in both their eyes was burning with the thirst of aphrodisia and bodily flesh.
Kurtis kicked off his boots and followed her, sliding up her sprawled out figure. Kissing her calves, he persisted upward, gliding his hands along the inside of her thighs. He felt her shiver beneath him as his hands met a certain sensitive spot and chuckled quietly to himself. Women… She threw her head back, suppressing another moan from erupting. Continuing to caress her battle-scarred body with his lips, he coated her skin with hot lingering kisses. Her toned waist, breasts, collar-bone, throat; all experienced the moist precision of Kurtis' warm tongue. When she thought she wouldn't be able to take anymore of his pleasurable torment, he kissed her lips, pressing his conditioned muscles against her awaiting body. "What took you so long?" She grinned, arching her back into his physique as though it were magnetized.
"Strategizing my approach." All past known feuds and rivalries were abandoned as he sheathed himself inside her, suffocating her with his mouth as he did so. Her breathing became ragged, exiting her lungs in hot spurts of carbon dioxide. They were intoxicated; under the influence of each other; their scent, their sweat, their longing for sexual indulgence.
They rocked hips in a synchronized rhythm; sweating, digging their nails into flesh, fulfilling the second nature needs as they moved like one in Namur's moonlight. It was several hours later that they collapsed onto each other, more than once undergoing levels of blissful ecstasy they had never imagined. Both were slick with perspiration and heaved for fresh oxygen. Lara listened to Kurtis' heartbeat slow back to normal. She was lying on top of him, embracing his broad chest with her arms. If only you knew what you're getting yourself into…To the consistent soothing beat of their hearts, both Lara and Kurtis surrendered into a deep slumber.
Thank you for reading! Now I know you're just dying to review... : )