Hidden Secrets

She was already sexually aroused, as she slide her wetness over his rapidly expanding erection. As his body responded to her actions, his desire for her triumphed over all other emotions. Sensing that she had turned him on yet again, she grabbed his wrists and forced his hands over and behind his head. She wanted there to be no misunderstanding as to who was in charge. Playfully teasing his lips with her sensitive nipples, first one and then the other, Sasha skillfully captured the head of his member between her lips. In the next moment he was engulfed in her wet heat.

Her movements came quickly as the first of many orgasms swept through her body. Sasha groaned with satisfaction and then allowed her body to rest on his as she rested; her lips nibbling at his earlobe. Moments later, she began to slowly rotate her hips, grinding herself onto his captured manhood. She extended her arms, supporting her upper body, as she gazed down at him with hooded eyes.

"I love you so much; don't ever doubt that," she said almost in a whisper.

Then she increased the intensity of her actions. When she felt his hands caressing her arms and shoulders, she knew everything was just as she hoped. Rick had accepted his role for tonight and she was free to push the limits of his endurance.

Her next orgasm came out of nowhere. Her body shook as she momentarily lost control, her body pounding down onto his. Her mouth was open as if she were about to speak but no sounds were made. She lowered her body and once again rested over him.

Rick could feel the rhythmic contractions, gripping his abused cock. He tried to initiate some movement of his own; but Sasha quickly forced her body down against his and whispered, "don't move." He had no choice other than to obey her command. His arms encircled her body and held her tightly to his. He marveled at the thickness of her body, its heaviness, and the softness of her skin in contrast to the muscularity which lay just under the surface.

If he thought she was sated, he was woefully mistaken. For the next two hours, she used and abused his overly stimulated body for her own pleasure. Each time she felt him approaching the point of no return, she ceased all movement and clamped down onto his erection until his passion subsided.

As he approached the point of no return yet again, Rick looked deeply into her eyes, imploring her to grant him his release. Sasha smiled down at him, nodded, wrapped her arms around his body, and flipped their bodies over until Rick was on top.

"Give it to me my pet," was all she said. Rick commenced to fuck her like a man possessed. Just when he thought that his lungs would burst, his final orgasm of the day rushed through his body. He emptied himself into her and then collapsed onto her chest.

Just as his eyes began to close, Rick heard her whisper into his ear.

"Sleep well my love. Please know that I love you with all my heart. I'm sorry if I was a little rough with you tonight; I had to show you what kind of woman you were getting involved with. I am used to being in charge of my life and I have no intention of giving up my freedom. But be assured that I will always be loyal to you, I will stand by your side through good times and bad, sickness and health, and always be there for you. All I ask in return is that you do the same."

When Rick woke the next morning, he found himself still in her arms. As gently as he could, he pushed himself up off of her body and retreated from the bedroom. When he left the bathroom a few minutes later, he found her leaning against the door frame of the bedroom. She kissed him on the cheek as she passed him and disappeared into the bathroom.

When she returned to the bedroom, she found Rick getting dressed. She also spied the bag that she had brought with her the night before.

"Rick, thank you for yesterday and last night. That was the happiest day of my life. Now, what's for breakfast, I'm starved?"

"No, thank you, it's been a long time since I have felt anything close to that. As for breakfast, I'm afraid there's not much in my refrigerator other than a couple of leftover take outs and a six pack or two of beer. After all, I'm a bachelor, I don't cook much, and never do breakfast home. How about we head to a great diner I know and have breakfast, then we can come back here and spend the day together."

"Sounds good to me; give me a few minutes to get myself dressed and put on a little makeup."

"You look beautiful, just the way you are" he said with a sly grin.

"Down boy, breakfast first, and then, maybe, if you think you're up to it."

"No, I meant, you look beautiful just the way you are naturally, you don't need makeup."

"All women need a little makeup, some a lot more than others. It gives us confidence; but thank you for your kind words, a woman always like to hear that she looks good, especially from the man she loves."

________________

After a leisurely breakfast, they returned to the house. The Phoenix sun was already high in the sky, trying to burn to a crisp anyone or anything that was foolish enough to venture outdoors.

They sat in lounge chairs on the patio in the shade cast by the main house.

"Rick, I can't get over the size of this house. I can't imagine what it looks like inside. Would it be possible for you to give me a quick tour?"

"It's really a mess inside right now. Most of the furniture is covered with sheets and the painters are still working on second floor bedrooms."

"Please?"

Rick, who had been thinking about everything they had done and said in the last twenty-four hours, could refuse her nothing. He was tired of the charade that they both were playing; it was time for it to end. He just wasn't sure how to broach the subject.

"Give me a minute, I'll get the keys."

When he returned with the keys, Rick guided her around to the main entrance, this was where the architect had wanted visitors to enter the house for the first time. He unlocked the door and stepped back to allow Sasha to enter first.

"Oh Rick, this room is magnificent," she said as she moved past the foyer and entered the large formal living room, with its sweeping circular staircase leading to the second floor. The room had twenty-foot ceilings and was overlooked by a second-floor balcony. As they continued down a short hallway, they passed a closed door.

"That's a powder room."

They next entered a large kitchen. To their right the interior walls were lined with cabinets and appliances, the outer wall had a double sink and cabinets on either side; but the most striking thing was the large bow windows which allowed the room to be filled with light and provided a spectacular view of the valley beyond.

"Wow, what a view."

"If you think that's good, wait until you see the view from the second-floor bedrooms. It will take your breath away, especially at night."

On the opposite side of the kitchen was an informal eating area. The outside wall contained a double siding door opening onto the patio where they had been sitting earlier.

They continued down the hallway. Behind the kitchen was the formal dining room. It also had a large bow window, and the view was the same as in the kitchen. In the center of the room, under what Sasha assumed was a crystal chandelier, was a large table with what appeared to be eight chairs, covered by sheets. There was also several other pieces of furniture around the room.

Continuing down the hall, they came upon a set of eight feet high sliding doors which, when opened, disappeared into the walls.

"This is the family room."

Looking around the room she could see two groupings of furniture; one faced an opulent fireplace, the other faced a large flat screen television which was mounted on the wall. There were speakers mounted in the ceiling and a centrally located ceiling fan. To the right of the fireplace was a large window, which framed the view of the majestic Camelback Mountain. There was also a sliding door which again opened onto the patio.

As they retreated from the family room, Rick turned to close the sliding doors.

"Rick, what's in this room?" Sasha said as she took hold of the doorknob and, without waiting for a reply, opened the door.

"That's the library and office," he said as she entered the room. Sasha turned to the right and slowly walked the outer rim of the room. The hallway and family room walls were lined with floor to ceiling bookshelves. She could see that the owners were avid readers. There was an eclectic collection of both fiction and non-fiction books, some modern, but most were classics. There were also, business related books and a section of law books as well.

As she continued around the room, she passed between another sliding glass door to the patio and a large antique desk. The final wall was covered with framed pictures, surrounding a large, framed map. The map appeared to be old, it was creased in several spots and there was a large water stain on the lower left corner. As she studied the map more closely, Sasha discovered that it was an old map of the Phoenix metro area at the start of the twentieth century. She recognized several street names, mostly in Phoenix and several landmarks, the most familiar of these was the Agua Fria River. Next to the river, drawn in red was a large rectangle, which stretched from the bank of the river eastward towards the mountains of the eastern valley.

Sasha turned her attention to the pictures. As she studied several of the larger of the pictures she suddenly turned towards Rick and then back to the pictures again.

"Rick, why are you in several of these pictures; I don't understand, and who are these people?"

"Sasha, it's time to clear the air, there can be no secrets between us." Rick said as he took a couple of deep breaths to compose himself. "Those are my parents, Miguel and Helen Hernandez"

The air in the room suddenly became very oppressive. He struggled to find the right words.

"They died when their light plane crashed enroute to their vacation home in Flagstaff. This was their home, the house I grew up in."

"I don't understand, why would you lie to me?"

"I couldn't tell you the truth, not when I first met you. I wanted to get to know you better, and I wanted you to get to know me. I wanted to make sure that you were falling in love with me, who you thought I was, not all of this." He said indicating everything that surrounded them.

"When I graduated high school, my father explained to me that we had a responsibility to our ancestors who settled in this land and ultimately prospered here and to all those who will come after us, to keep our wealth within the family. He said that too many people would be trying to take what we had and that I should be very careful about the women I associated with and particularly the one I married. My mother Helen was the power behind the curtain. She told me the same thing, but, also, that I would ultimately find the right woman to be my partner, and when I did, I'd know. You are that woman."

Looking back at one picture in particular, Sasha asked, "When was this picture taken?"

"That picture was taken a little more than four years ago, that was the day after I graduated law school and joined my father's company. I was to be the company attorney."

"Why was it taken in front of my studio."

"Was it, I never realized that, how can you tell?" Rick said, standing in in front of the picture and focusing his attention on the background. Then he saw it, the sign over the studio appeared over his left shoulder. He could just make out the words, 'The Studio, Sasha Richards Pilates.'

"I still don't understand, why there, why not here, or at a park or in front of an office building?"

"Because my father was especially proud of all that he had built; he built that shopping center and nearly all the shopping centers and stores along Bell Road in Glendale." Pointing to the map, Rick continued. "You see this rectangle; this outlines the land that has been passed down through at least six generations of my family and with me, now it's seven."

"That means you're my landlord?"

"I'm afraid so."

"Why is that?"

"Because now it's my responsibility to inform you that I have to evict you. The law requires that I give you thirty days' notice; but I'll be generous, I'll give you to the end of next month."

"What! Are you throwing me out? The Studio is my life; I can't afford to lose it."

"Who said anything about you losing the studio? I just meant that you would have to stop living in your office."

He watched the guilty expression replace her look of outrage.

"How long have you known?"

"I have no proof, so actually I haven't known for sure until just now. I admit you were very discrete about it. I've suspected that you have been living there for a little over two years. When I first joined the company, I worked in the office next to my father's. I hated working inside all day long; but I did it out of love and respect for him. When he died, I took over ownership of the company. I convinced my Uncles and my Cousins who are the department heads within the company that I could still do my job after I did what I wanted to do in the morning. Every day, I collected the garbage, did routine maintenance on the buildings, and got to know our tenants a lot better. Especially one tenant in particular. One who was always there before me and who would throw away her trash in the parking lot cans rather than follow the rules and get her own garbage service.

"One evening I spotted you walking to your car. I knew it was you, you hold yourself erect and have a very purposeful and confident way of walking. From my office, I watched you get into the VW and apparently leave the parking lot. I was just about to leave when I noticed the VW pull into the front parking lot. You got out and walked back to your front door. Every day I watched your car start off in one spot and end up in a different spot. Then, the next day, when I got there early in the morning, it would be in the exact same spot as it was the night before when I left.

"Like I said I had my suspicions, but had no solid proof. If my father or my cousin had known what I knew, they would have either kicked you out when you lease came up for renewal or hired someone to watch your car and you until they had their proof and then kicked you out. I was tempted to get the proof I needed to be sure. That was the night I installed your exhaust fan. When you left that night, I was tempted to check out your office, but you had locked the door. I could have lifted one or two of the panels of the drop ceiling, climbed over the wall, and dropped down into your office. Then I could have searched your office; I'm sure that sofa that I helped move into your office coverts into a bed.

"I had a built-in excuse for being there; the electrical panel is in that room; I would have needed access to that panel to install the switch I told you I was going to install. But I didn't because even though you were in the wrong, I didn't want to violate your privacy. It was a good thing I didn't because you would have caught me in the act; I wasn't expecting you back for at least another hour."

"So where am I going to live?"

"With me, of course."

"You're getting a little too sure of yourself. What if I said no?"

"Well, I've got forty-five days to convince you that you would be a fool not to take me up on my offer; besides, I hear a lot of couples are now opting for March weddings. We would have a couple of months to try it out first."

"Are you asking me to marry you?"

"No I haven't asked yet, but I will; just as soon as you tell me the truth about your parents. That story you told me just doesn't make any sense."

"I know, but it was the best I could do on short notice. Actually, I did tell you most of the truth. My father was KGB, not a bureaucrat. My mother did work as a file clerk at the KGB headquarters in Moscow. But she was not only KGB, she also worked for the CIA. She was a spy. She had spied for the CIA for a number of years, but then she became scared that her cover had been blown and asked for a bolt hole. The night before we left, she killed my father; she made it look like he got drunk and fell into the river behind our apartment block. We flew to London, and then onto the United States. We were settled into Britton Beach and lived in obscurity until her handlers felt it was safe for her to resurface.

"The CIA arranged for my new identity and gave me enough money to start my business. I don't know what happened to my mother. We were not particularly close; she used me as cover while she spied on my father and then while she fed her handlers all the information she had in her head. You know the rest. Now do you still want to marry me?"

Epilogue:

The wedding took place on the first Saturday in March. It had not rained in almost a month and the long-range forecast showed no chance of rain for the next ten days. The temperature was in the low eighties. A perfect time to be living in the Valley of the Sun. Since Sasha had no family here in the United States that she could even contact and almost all of Rick's side of the family worked for the company anyway, everyone who worked for the company was invited. The invitation read:

'Please join us on March 2, 2019, at high noon, to help us celebrate our wedding. The dress code will be business casual, bring your bathing suits; towels and changing facilities will be provided. All children are invited as well and proper supervision will be provided at all times. But be warned, anyone, and we mean anyone, caught bringing anything that can be considered a gift of any kind, will be asked to leave. Your presence is all we ask for. Let's Party.'

________________

At two o'clock everyone was asked to gather on the patio in front of the pool house. Rick stood, nervously pulling on the collar of his tux shirt. His younger cousin Rob stood next to him, awaiting the bride and her Maid of Honor. As the first notes of the 'Wedding March' filled the area, heads turned towards the kitchen sliding door as Sasha, closely followed by Debbie, her student and Rick's administrative assistant, stepped out of the house and onto the patio.

Rob whispered under his breath. "Holy Shit, look at those arms, that body. You are a lucky man. Are there any more like her at home?"

"No, I'm afraid not; she's an only child and one of a kind."

"Dam, I'm always a dollar short and a day late."

"Don't worry, your time will come soon enough. There are plenty of woman out there who would just love to be with you. You just have to be patient."

Sasha dressed all in white walked with her head held high, a smile a mile wide etched on her face, as she approached her future husband. The priest appeared almost out of nowhere and stood next to Rick, as Sasha took her place at his other side and Debbie helped her fold back the veil off her face.

When all was quiet, the priest began to speak. "I've been asked to keep this short and sweet. Apparently, some of the family are members of our parish and have warned the couple about my comprehensive sermons."

Several moments of laughter broke the silence. When the laughter had subsided the priest continued.

"We are gathered here on this gorgeous afternoon to bear witness to the joining of these two people, from this day forth, they will no longer be two, but rather one.

"Do you Enrique take this woman Sasha to have and to hold, in good times and in bad, for richer or poorer, ( a quiet snicker came from the crowd as the priest raised his eyes briefly towards the sky), in sickness and in health all the days of your life?"

"I do."

"Do you Sasha take this man Enrique to have and to hold, in good times and in bad, for richer or poorer, (again the snicker came forth), in sickness and in health all the days of your life?"