Will You Love Me 'Til I Die? Ch. 01

"Would you prefer to sit to my right with me at the end of the table or across from me so we can dine face to face?"

"Maybe it's the effect of the Champagne but I think I'd like to be able to look at you while we eat."

Anthony moved the place setting from the end of the table to the first place on the side opposite the one that was already set. He pulled out the chair for Anne to sit down and when she was seated, he placed the linen napkin in her lap. He then came around and pulled my chair out for me and placed my napkin. A silver bucket with the bottle of Champagne was sitting on the table just to my right.

Anthony left but returned soon with a tray laden with a full service of Beluga Caviar. Boiled eggs with the whites and yolks in separate crystal cups, minced scallions, coarsely ground pepper with a little tiny spoon, sour cream, lemon wedges and freshly baked toast points provided the accompaniments to the main course of at least four ounces of caviar. I was in gastronomic heaven.

When we had finished with the caviar, Anthony cleared the table then served us the best Caesar salad I've ever tasted. It was all the more impressive because he made it at the table. I almost cried it was so delicious.

The entrée was veal in a cream and truffle sauce. Subtle and full of flavor at the same time, it was tender enough for a baby to eat. Asparagus tips and a small serving of a delicious grain accompanied it.

We hadn't talked very much while we ate that fabulous dinner but after Anthony brought us coffee Anne told him that he could retire for the night. He thanked her and said goodnight.

"Carl I'm sure you're wondering why I asked you to come here and why I've shown you what very few people have ever seen before. I'm a very private person when it comes to my home and I only share it with a very few close friends. I have no family since my parents died. I've never been married and I have no children. I've spent my whole life preparing for and conducting business. I've made a lot of money even though I didn't need to because my father left me a fortune."

"So you turn out to be a poor little rich girl."

"I suppose you could say that. But even poor little rich girls are human. Two weeks ago I was told by my doctor that I have an inoperable brain tumor and I have at most six months to live. I've had specialists from all over the world look at the tests and they all agree. I came home from that diagnosis and completely freaked out for an entire week. I screamed and cried and cussed and threw things and flung myself against the walls. I went through all the stages of facing death and finally managed to sleep for a few hours. When I awoke I was calmer. I realized that everybody has to face death sooner or later and whether I had six decades or six months left didn't make much difference. I had to ask myself what I was so afraid of. What was I holding on to so desperately that I couldn't let go of?"

"Anne I'm very sorry to hear this even though it doesn't change the things you've done. I'm not saying you should have been another Mother Theresa but we all have to face death and I'm pretty sure it's harder to do if you're not particularly proud of your actions in life."

"I take full responsibility for what I've done and I'm not ashamed of it. I was born into a culture of money and I was programmed to be a businesswoman. I became addicted to making money the way some people become addicted to drugs or alcohol. I let it consume my life and now that I have so little time left I realize I've missed something more important than money and material possessions. I've missed love. I've never loved anybody and nobody has ever loved me."

"Anne I don't mean to be inconsiderate but I feel pretty sure you never let anybody love you. More importantly, you never learned to love yourself."

"That's very perceptive of you, it took me quite a while to realize that. And that's why I've asked you here tonight. Carl would you consider granting me a last wish?"

"What could I possibly have that you could wish for?"

She looked at me the way only a little lost child can look at you. Scared, with tears welling up in her eyes. Finally she said, "Would you show me what love is?"

"Anne how can I possibly do that? First of all I already love someone else. Secondly love isn't something you can just turn on like a light bulb. Love comes from the heart and nobody can just make it happen. Most importantly love is based on trust. How can you possibly expect me to trust you after what you did to me?"

"I know it's a lot to ask Carl but of all the people I know you're the only one I actually had feelings for. I never let you know and I managed to suppress them but I did feel something for you once. It's because you love somebody else that I know you're capable of loving. I know you have a heart and you're very much in touch with it. I believe I have a heart too but I've never been given the chance to use it. As far as trust goes what possible motive would I have to betray your trust now? It would only be for at most six months and this may sound crass but I'll pay you for it. Whatever you lost while you worked for me I'll double it if you'll do this for me. Please Carl will you love me 'til I die?"

What would ever prepare a person to be able to answer that question. Of all the situations I could ever have imagined having to face in my life I wouldn't even have thought to put this on the list.

"Anne do you have any idea what you're asking me to do? Love isn't something you can teach like playing the piano. I can't come over for a couple of hours three times a week and show you how to love. Doing something like that would be worse than doing nothing. It would be a sham. Love has to be real or it isn't love. We would have to live together, eat together, play together, bathe together and have lots of sex. I'd have to quit my job again. And as if that isn't enough you'd be asking Sandy to love you too. She would have to give up all the intimacy that we've shared for the last ten years and allow me to give it to you. How can I ask her to do something like that? This would destroy my marriage."

"I realize this would be difficult but you're the only one who can do this for me. Would you please think about it? Would you talk to Sandy and ask her if she would make this sacrifice for me? It's not like we're going to run off and live happily ever after and make babies. Couldn't she let me borrow you for a few months? Then you could take all the money I'll give you and go away for a while and be in love with each other for the rest of your lives which I really hope will be considerably longer than mine will be."

"I must be out of my fucking mind. Alright I'll ask her but if she says no then that's the end of it."

"Explain it to her this way. You had 50,000 shares of stock and the price reached a high of $50. If you had sold it then you would have made 2.5 million. I'll put 5 million in a hedge fund for you and Sandy that is managed by a friend that owes me a favor. The fund is earning between 12 and 17 percent so that would give you an income of at least $600,000 a year and you wouldn't even have to touch the 5 mil. You'd never have to work again. Your kids' education would be paid for. You and Sandy could travel or do whatever you want. You could retire at the ripe old age of 32. And since I would want you to be with me constantly I'll deposit $100,000 in your account for her as soon as you tell me you'll do this."

"That's a tempting offer Anne but there is one more critical consideration."

"What do you mean?"

"We need to see if we're sexually compatible."

"Well that shouldn't be hard to do."

"Having sex and being sexually compatible are two different things Anne."

"I guess that's something else I never got around to learning. How do we find out if we're compatible?"

"We go upstairs to that pleasure palace you call your bedroom and we spend the next two hours making love; or trying to."

"Really! Do you mean that?" Her eyes lit up. She sounded excited at the prospect.

"I can't believe it myself but yes I really mean that."

"Well come on, lets get started."

I got up and walked around to pull her chair back but before I did I leaned over her chair and kissed the side of her neck. "You really do look beautiful in that dress Anne. I could hardly believe it was you when I first saw you."

"Thank you Carl. I've decided to pamper myself and dress in things I don't usually wear. I don't want to be remembered as just an executive. I'd like someone to think I was an attractive woman too."

"Well that I can do for you. And you don't even have to pay me."

I pulled the chair back and she stood up. I stepped around to face her and took her hand and placed it on my shoulder. I put my arms around her waist and pulled her close. "Let's see if you feel as good as you look." I hugged her and she put her head on my shoulder. "Ummmh, you do feel like a woman. Now let's find out if you taste like one."

She raised her head and I looked into her eyes. They were surprisingly soft and vulnerable. I slowly moved my head forward and gently touched her lips with mine. She was tentative so I increased the pressure a little and she began to respond. I moved my hand down to her ass and pulled her closer while I kissed her and parted my lips to touch hers with my tongue. She was full of surprises and opened her lips to invite my tongue inside her mouth. I pulled back and looked at her.

"Whew! I didn't expect that. You've done this before haven't you?"

"It's been a while but it seems to be coming back to me."

"I think we should head upstairs and continue. You've passed the entrance exam with excellent marks."

I held her hand as we walked to the elevator. She punched in the code and the door slid open then she pressed the 8 button. We began to ascend. I took her hand again and it felt a little damp.

"Nervous?"

"A little."

I pulled her to me and kissed her again. There was no hesitation this time. She responded with enthusiasm and pressed against me as I held her. The elevator stopped and the door opened. We walked out into her floor. There were four rooms on this floor and all of them were exquisitely decorated. Not overly ornate but you could tell that all the furnishings were expensive and chosen by someone with a very refined taste. Despite the elaborate trappings the place didn't look like a showroom. It had a comfortable feeling that made you feel at home.

All the rooms had double French doors and the ceilings were all twelve feet high. Three of the rooms had stone fireplaces including her bedroom. There was a wide hallway that led to the bathroom if you could call it that. It was actually a luxury spa that would be the envy of any resort in the world. On either side of the hallway were double pocket doors that opened to huge closets.

"I assume we shall be heading to the bedroom. You can use the closet on the right of the hallway to hang your tux up. It belonged to my father and I only use part of it for my things."

"I want to watch you get undressed. Where do you usually do it?"

"My closet has a dressing table and a full length mirror in it. Wouldn't you rather undress me?"

"If this were a date I would but it's not. This is a test to see if we can be in love with each other and there's more to it than doing sexy things."

"I'm not sure I understand but come along and I'll show you what I would do if you weren't here."

We entered her bedroom through the tall French doors and walked down the hallway to her closet and slid the doors open. She walked over to her dressing table and removed her necklace, earrings and bracelet and put them in a jewelry box on the table then moved to where her shoes were kept on several racks. She bent down and took off the shoes she was wearing and put them on one of the racks. She walked back to me and turned around.

"Would you unzip me? I had help getting it zipped up and it's a little difficult doing it by myself."

"That's OK. This is something people in love do for each other."

I slid the zipper down her back and revealed the back of a black strapless bra. The label had the words 'Carine Gilson' written on it.

"You have impeccable taste in lingerie Ms. Cordet."

"You didn't expect me to wear undies from Wal-Mart with a $3500 evening gown did you?"

"I doubt that either of us was expecting me to see your undies Anne but I'm starting to be glad I am."

I brushed the straps off her shoulders and her gown fell to the floor. Her panties were a thong but had a strip of lace about three inches wide around her hips instead of a thin elastic band. I felt the material with my thumb and finger. It was the finest silk I had ever seen. The band came down a mere inch onto her crack so most of her ass was uncovered.

"Wow Anne, I had no idea you've been concealing this gorgeous ass all the time I've known you. If this were any other circumstance I'd be on my knees kissing and caressing it now but it's not, so let's continue with undressing."

She bent over to pick up her gown and deliberately pressed her ass into my crotch as she slowly retrieved her dress and stood back up. She walked over to another rack where other dresses were hanging and carefully hung up the expensive gown. Then she turned and walked back toward me stopping at the chair in front of her dressing table. She reached behind her and undid the clasp to the bra and removed it. She laid it on the top of a laundry hamper next to the table.

She stood there and put her hands on her hips and moved her shoulders from side to side so that her breasts swayed then waited for my reaction. "Do they meet with your approval?"

"Yes they most certainly do."

"Don't most men like them bigger?"

"I'm not most men. They're beautiful and perfect for you and that's all that matters."

She smiled then put her thumbs in the top of her panties and slowly pulled them down. When they were at mid thigh she bent over and slid them down to her ankles and stepped out of them and placed them on the hamper with her bra. She put her hands back on her hips and stood there. She didn't assume a defiant pose as if she was reluctant to be standing naked in front of me but appeared to be anxious for my approval. You would have to know her to understand how unusual this was for her because she had never sought anybody's approval for anything before. She was much more beautiful than I had ever suspected since she covered up that beauty with the hard veneer of a Wall Street wheeler-dealer. I guess she did inherit something from her mother after all.

"I'm not going to tell you what you already know Anne. What would you normally do next?"

"I would put on a dressing gown and sit at this table and remove my makeup."

"Skip the gown but go ahead and remove your makeup. I like seeing you naked."

She sat down and started wiping her face with a cotton pad that she poured lotion on.

"I'm not sure I see what this has to do with sexual compatibility yet."

"It does have a little something to do with sexual compatibility but mostly it has to do with loving. Watching you do these little ordinary tasks is what love is all about. I've watched Sandy do these things hundreds of times and each time I feel like I'm the luckiest man in the world to be privileged enough to have her in my life.

I'm sure you're more than capable of pleasing a man sexually. You would almost have to be with a fabulous body like that but I want to be sure you're capable of being loved. I have to know that you can appreciate the little things that make people feel so happy to just be with each other."

I walked over to stand behind her chair and reached for a hairbrush lying on the tabletop and began to brush her hair. "It's doing things like this for someone and bringing them a cup of coffee or walking up behind them and hugging them and kissing their neck that makes love so wonderful." I leaned forward and kissed her neck. "Can you feel that Anne? Does it send a little shiver up your spine? When that feels as good as having sex you'll know what love is. You finish taking your makeup off and I'll go get out of this tux and meet you in that plush bed of yours."

I took my time undressing and thought about what I was about to do. I still couldn't believe I had even talked to Anne again and here I was getting ready to make love to her. She had managed to make me even more conflicted about what I felt was right than when I worked for her. I was about to cheat on the person I loved with someone I despised because I couldn't stand the thought of anybody dying at the age of 31 and never having the experience of being loved or of loving somebody. I felt like I was damned if I did and damned if I didn't.

When I reached the bed she was already lying on it on her back. The lights had been dimmed and soft music was playing. I lay down on my side next to her and looked at her. "How are you feeling?"

"I haven't felt this way in a long time. I'm nervous and apprehensive...and scared. I've been thinking about what you said in the closet when you asked me if I could feel it when you kissed my neck. Oh Carl, I could feel it. It did send shivers up my spine and it brought back the feelings I once had for you and I want to feel them now and not make them go away. Carl I know I can love you and I desperately want to do it before I die." She turned to face me. "Carl please do this for me. Please don't let me die unloved." She started crying and then sobs racked her whole body.

I put my arms around her and held her. "Anne I'll try. I really will. But we have to take this one step at a time. Think of how many millions of people have had to go off to war and only had one night with the person they loved and never got to come home to them. Life's not fair Anne. Sometimes it's downright cruel. We're here tonight so lets make the most of what we have. Be a big girl now and show me you can do this."

She rolled over and reached for a tissue from a gold dispenser on the nightstand and blew her nose. Then got another one and wiped the tears off her cheeks. "You're right Carl, I'm being a selfish little brat. If we can make love tonight at least I'll have known it for one night even if that's all I ever have."

"That's better. Now come over here and put your arms around me so I can finally feel that warm sexy body of yours." She wrapped herself around me and looked in my eyes. How could I possibly refuse her? I could feel her soft breasts pressing against my chest. The lingering fragrance of her perfume infused my breath. Her chestnut hair spread all across the pillowcase and felt gentle on my face.

I moved my head down and started softly kissing her neck. My hand slowly slid across her back from her shoulder down to her ass and back up again. Her eyes closed and she held me tighter as she laid her head back and gave me complete access to her neck. The words of my favorite Bob Dylan song echoed in the back of my mind, 'she makes love just like a woman, but she breaks just like a little girl.'

"Anne it is written in the Koran that tomorrow is promised to no one. Be with me now in this moment. Don't evaluate it. Don't analyze it. Don't think about it. Just feel it with your body and with your heart. If you can experience everything that this moment has to offer then death can never take it away from you. This is our moment. This is where we need to be."

I kissed her neck gently and slowly kissed my way across her throat to the other side before moving down to her shoulder then back along her chest to the other one. The tension in her body began to ebb away. The rough breaths that followed her sobbing changed into an even cadence. My lips moved lower to the top of her breast and I trailed the tip of my tongue across her smooth flawless skin. I kissed the space between her breasts and continued my tongue's journey onto the other one. I brought my hand up and cupped it underneath and caressed it as I lowered my mouth to her nipple. My lips pursed around it and I sucked it softly into my mouth. She breathed deeply and pressed her breast into my mouth.