One Room Away

"Well, I'm not making it. What have you been doing all day?" He stood halfway out of the doorway, his work clothes still on, and scowled at her. Yet again! How could you stay home all day until eight and wait for my return to be hungry? As the argument continued, his voice gradually rose from its usual muted tones to a volume that anyone in the hallway could hear. Finally, he dropped into his chair and started untying his bootlaces.

"Do what you want."

"What?" his wife yelled back.

"Do what you want! Go wherever you want, eat whatever you want. You sure as shit not getting it from me. This is ridiculous!" He kept looking up as he shouted, and looked back down to see the laces becoming an unrecognizable lump. This only made him more irritable. "Damn it!" he swore.

"Well if you don't want me here, I'll go see if there's someone who will!" She grabbed her coat off the chair closest the door in a sweeping motion, knocking the ironing board and a flurry of bills to the floor. In a shower of black lettering, she was out the door.

He sat there in silence as the last of the papers hit the floor. He knew he was irritable due to the weather being so horrible outside, but this was a long time in coming. Why was she like that? He refused to use the word lazy, because she went to work like everyone else. It just seemed that as soon as she got home and interacted with him, her compulsions went to zero. Grunting with effort, he slung the boot off into a cat bed and sat back for a second. This was no new occurence. He knew she had probably fled in tears to be coddled by her parents, living five minutes away. He had gotten pretty mad, he mused as he went into the kitchen. That might make her stay over there for the night. Hopefully anyway. He selected a glass from the shelf, waggling his hand in the unconscious habit he had during decision making, then picked up the tequila bottle. Sauza Blanco should correct this night, he thought. He put a finger of tequila in the glass, then muttered, "What the hell," and left the glass there, taking the bottle into the living room.

As he drank, he mulled over the situation. He could always leave....and then what? He thought. Doing the knight in shining armor to move out here with her family had seemed like a great idea at the time, but now that his own family was mad at him, pulling out of here would leave him in completely alien territory. He rolled the bottle between his palms as he grimaced. Trapped - at least for now. He would open another savings account, maybe at Bank of America. They had treated him well before...

This was his last thought before passing out.

The phone call rattled its way through his head, and kept up the chorus for Red Hot Chili Peppers' Otherside as he struggled his way back to coherence. His mouth tasted horrible, and there was an empty bottle of tequila poking into his grizzled cheek. The fuck was going on?

"Hello?"

"It's Anne. Are you home?"

Anne. The one woman who somehow, always knew when to call. Though he had lots of female friends (something that rarely escaped the wary, possessive eye of his wife), she was the one who could instantly put a smile on his face. He wanted to call her his best female friend, but somehow that always seemed a poor phrasing. She was one of those women about whom he would always think, "In another life...in another time..."and leave the thought grudgingly unfinished. Many times he heard her talking about her boyfriends and would come home needing a drink. He tried to parse his thoughts about her logically, yet she held some power on him that he could not explain.

"Yeah," he groaned, struggling to a sitting position. The next words snapped him into wakefulness, however.

"I'm being followed. I need help. Like right now."

He got up, instantly regretting it as angry thunderbolts crashed inside his head. He was up, though, and with something to focus on, the alcohol would burn itself out of his system quickly. It seemed like he would need it.

"Where are you now?"

"I'm on Green, coming up to Lake now. He's been on me for a good half hour now. No police stations really close to here and my gas is pretty low." He could hear her voice nudging against the oncoming panic and slowly being forced back. She was normally pretty stable and in control, which meant that this guy really worried her. Something had to happen, and for right now, he was the guy to do it.

"Well, you could always come here. Hit a left on Lake and gun it up that stretch. Two lights and then right, Ill be outside." He dropped the phone into the cushions and went for his jacket, fumbling around for his boots before sliding the cat off of the right side. What a night.

As he stepped outside, he heard the squealing of tires. Someone had come off of Lake in a hurry, and he could easily guess who that was. She saw him outside and whipped the SUV to the left, spewing loose pebbles onto the sidewalk as she pulled in. She got out and hurried over to him as they both heard a second squeal of tires. With someone else standing with her, all visible traces of fear evaporated. She stood shoulder to shoulder with him as the Lumina came around the corner. The car slowed, as if to make the same turn, and stopped in the street. Inside Dom's brain, gears turned. I wonder if this will work.

As the door of the car opened, he reached down to the waist of the tall t shirt he wore. "You might want to turn around!"

Even muffled by the falling snow, his voice split the gathering darkness, and the door stopped moving forward. He kept his hand at his waist, and waited, stone faced with racing heart. The door closed, and he could hear some grumbling and slurs as the car pulled off.

Only then did he allow himself time to look at Anne. She was sweating, even in the cold, and her bare shoulders were shaking. She turned to him and wrapped him in her arms, and purely by reflex he embraced her.

"Thank you," she breathed into his ear.

He held her for what, in another case with another person, would have been an inappropriately long time, then released her finally. They both looked at the snow, now coming down in force with large flakes, then back at each other.

"So.....maybe you should come inside."

Inside, with the heat going, the color came back to her cheeks and she sat on his couch gratefully. He had gone to the kitchen for some water for her, but standing in front of the refridgerator, he reconsidered and came back out with a bottle of spiced rum. She accepted a cup and lifted it to her lips with both hands. When she put it down, he was close to her, a grim look on his face. "Now what the hell just happened? What did I interrupt? A rape? A murder? A really persistent door-to-door salesman?"

She looked up sharply at him, intending to glare, but she saw the look in his eyes and knew that behind the screen of calm, his mind was exploding with possibilities.

She exhaled slowly and began. "Well, I was at a party and this guy kept coming on to me. I didn't want anything to do with him but he kept pushing up. Eventually I dealt with him-"

Someone got booted in the jewels, he thought-

"...but I guess he wasn't discouraged, and when I left I saw him after me. Then I ended up here, and, "she shrugged half heartedly, "here we are....alone?" She looked around. "Where is...you know."

She tried to make the words come out lightly, but the bricklike weight of her feelings was evident behind them. Anne did not like his wife. No, she thought. That wasn't it. She was frustrated that women like that could bag guys like this while she floundered with loser after loser. If she was his woman....she let the thought burn out. That can lead to nothing but trouble.

"She's gone somewhere," he grunted. To her gaze, he related the events of the evening, and they both rolled their eyes. They had had conversations along these subject lines many times before. Mutual frustration bubbled under the surface, and taboo thoughts came out of their twilight hiding places yet again. They normally would be able to suppress them, but the combination of alcohol and their recent shock left them weaker than usual.

The full scope of his position only now came to hit him between the eyes. Here he was, alone with Anne after all this time, in his own house. He laughed aloud, spilling some of the rum onto the arm of the couch and the dvd case hanging off it. Reflexively her arm jerked upward in suprise at the sensation of the liquor hitting it, just as he had leaned down to make sure the case would not fall. A sharp pain bloomed under his eye and he fell down onto his ass, more from surprise than anything else. The tequila affecting his balance had not fully dispersed either. Anne sprang up and rushed to him, the shadows of guilt flitting across her irises as she knelt to see the damage. "Oh damn, I'm sorry. I'm just kind of jumpy right now. Didn't mean to hurt you." She sat next to him on the carpet, ignoring the staring cat as she held his face in her hands. "Let me see."

As she held his face, she knew that it would be a mistake. Now she could stare full into those dark eyes that had haunted her lonely days time and again. After breaking up with her last boyfriend after he got abusive, she had come to him and dragged him to their favorite hole in the wall bar. As she had poured out her grief, rage and distress, she kept looking up only to see the level gaze of those eyes again and again, while his voice gently urged her to keep talking intermittently. There was nothing like a good listener, and by the end of the night she was smiling again, arm around his neck as they sang along to old Journey songs from a booth. The realisation that he was not on the market had always bit into her heart like a cruel hound. Still, though, some moments made her wonder. Like now, as they sat on the floor, accidental injury long forgotten as they stared into each others' eyes. Unconsciously, she bent in closer as he sat up slowly.

"Oh my God what are we doing?" skimmed the surface of both their consciousness as the distance between their lips shrank, and diminished into nothingness. The kiss was long, sweet, and tinged with such a sense of relief that they both closed their eyes gratefully at the sensation. No tongue, no hickeys, just the consummation of everything they had dreamed and longed for ages now.

A thud at the door made his head snap back, and he sprang to his feet, mind racing. Was that guy back for round two? She sat back on her heels and looked up as he took a look through the peephole. His eyes widened and he looked down at her. Kitchen, he mouthed at her.

Why?

NOW.

He opened the door slowly, and his wife staggered through the opening.

The cold air that brought her in also brought in the unmistakable scents of margarita and vomit, and he smirked involuntarily. From the kitchen, Anne covered her face with her hand and tried not to laugh. The sheer inanity of her situation made her giggle uncontrollably, and only the absence of light in the kitchen combined with her hand on her mouth kept her presence secret. Dom tried repeatedly to get a handle on the situation but she was clearly blitzed out of her mind. She kept on falling on top of him, and it was with difficulty that he reined in his temper. When he slung one of her arms over his shoulders and looked over to see Anne supporting her on the opposite side, his eyes ballooned again. She nodded firmly in the direction of the bedroom. With some navigational difficulty, they were able to get her inside while she babbled incoherently. With a great heave, they slung her onto the bed, and seemingly on cue, she passed out within moments. Dom pulled Anne out of the room and half closed the door, steering her back to the living room, where they stared at each other for a long moment before dissolving into silent fits of laughter, arms around each others' necks. When the fits subsided, she looked at him.

"Do you think she'll remember?"

"I don't think she'll remember what her name is for a while," he responded, sitting her down on the couch again.

"Sorry, it just looked like you needed help there."

"Thanks, I've done it before though." His brows furrowed for a second before straightening again.

She turned to face him, all smiles fading now.

"Why do you stay?" She grabbed him as he turned away shrugging, his usual way of avoiding a question. She turned him back to face her.

"Why?"

He opened his mouth, then closed it again. He stared at her as if only now seeing her.

"Well....I would be leaving with nothing. Looking forward to nothing. With no one."

Her fingers slid down his face, lingering softly on his lips and stilling their speech.

"What if you had someone to look forward to?" she breathed. His eyes grew into dark pools as he looked long and hard at her, and everything seemed to stop before his hand found hers.

The magnetism had always existed between them, and as their lips drew together for the second time this night, she felt herself relax finally. This was what they both needed.

As they kissed, his lips found her neck, and the urgent suction on her sensitive skin made Anne shudder in his arms. The pressure of his body on hers eventually made her fall back onto the floor, and then he was on top of her, tongues wrestling feverishly as his hands wandered up and down her body. When he finally made his way to her breasts, his fingers paused and roughly tore open the top she was wearing, black shreds sandwiched between their bodies now. Her nipples fell into view, and she felt him stiffen for a moment before lowering his head to them. The sensation was like none she had ever experienced, as his teeth grazed at them with an intensity just short of painful. In mere moments they were hard as bullets. He gripped her wrists and laid her flat down on the floor, mauling her everywhere his mouth could reach as she squirmed and gasped softly. She felt against her belly button a hard protrusion, and knew that he wanted her. Right now. The place where this was happening only heightened her anticipation, and she could feel a dampness spreading through her panties. She longingly bucked her hips against him, and the groan she elicited was only a promise of the things to come. Not enough. She needed more.

"Please...", she moaned, struggling a bit more. He stopped and looked at her expectantly.

"Let me up for a second. Let me make you happy....daddy." she breathed.

His eyes closed briefly. Of course she knew how to set him off, they had discussed it before in a not-entirely-joking manner once...but now it only heightened the sensations he felt. He got off her slowly and went back to his seated position as she crawled toward him in the near dark. Her fingers fumbled with his zipper for a few seconds before sliding it down with a loud sound. They both glanced toward the bedroom, giggling in their throats as they smiled at the conspiratorial nature of their activity. Then she reached in with her fingers and slowly pulled his manhood out. Here at last, her secret needs were being played out with the man she had wanted for years. She slid the tip into her mouth and grinned with satisfaction as he leaned back with a loud sigh. She put her left hand up, covering his mouth while she lapped and sucked at his cock with the care only true lust can provide, as he leaned against the wall and tried not to say her name too loudly. Every vein, every twitching inch was covered in her saliva and bathed with her tongue, and he only got harder as her ministrations continued. He put his hand on the back of her head, and she nodded swiftly in approval as he forced her head down onto his shivering dick, past her tongue and down into her throat. His toes curled as she worked with her throat muscles to bring him to higher and higher levels of pleasure. Eventually she felt his balls move and knew something was going to happen. She looked up into his eyes as he gritted his teeth and jerked upward, hard. Suddenly, warm, sticky liquid filled her mouth, her throat, her cheeks. Tears came to her eyes as she struggled not to choke, and she gasped when he accidentally bit her hand that was stifling his groans.

After what seemed like an eternity, he slumped down, releasing her head as she tried not to cough too loudly. She had swallowed as much as possible, but some had still leaked out onto her chin. "It tastes good," she mused. She thought that he would need a couple of minutes and maybe another sucking to get back into readiness, but her hopes were lifted higher than she dared when she felt him put her down onto her back. He loomed over her, sliding her skirt up to her waist and pulling her panties to the side. The anticipation was so good, as she hardly dared even to breathe until he leaned down and mouthed, "My turn".

As he entered her, she could not help but release a sigh of sheer contentment. He had not suffered much slowdown for having just came, and her tiny pussy immediately protested. He moved slowly, then stopped altogether, letting her walls adjust to the new invasion they were now undergoing. She reached up, locking her fingers around his neck, and tried not to scream as he pushed deeper and deeper, teasingly slow. When he finally stopped with one inch left hanging out of her, she could take it no more.

"Damn it, if you're going to do this here, then don't tease me." she whispered fiercely. She ground herself against him, burying his hardness all the way inside her, and his resolve vanished. He started planting himself all the way in, then pulling out until the tip was stretching her outer labia, then back in again. She thought she would go crazy once he started speeding up, and his moans told her that he was feeling her tightness all the way down and enjoying it immensely. She tightened up on him again and again, the contractions coming closer together, until her wetness flooded and she knew what was coming. She bucked and shuddered, whispering "Oh Daddy..." as she came and covered both of them in her sweet juices. In the dim light, she could see the moisture sparkling in his pubic hairs and knew that she would come again. As he rammed her even more fiercely, she once again succumbed to the trembling ecstacy as her consciousness focused down to the one area between them where they combined in a heated haze.

When she once again knew herself. she was on her hands and knees, and he was behind her. His left hand pushed down firmly on her shoulders, putting her on a first name basis with the carpet, while his right hand caressed her ass slowly, lovingly. He patted it slowly, and it seemed like a long time before he slid himself into her from behind. This was what he liked, she knew, and she arched her back to offer up her ass to him. He took the same left hand and curled it deliberately into her hair, and she trembled in delight as her hidden desires. He tried watching the hallway for any telltale shapes coming from the bedroom, but his attention quickly reverted to Anne, and her thrusting back on him to push him ever deeper into her. The taboo nature of their lovemaking only pushed him further into unthinking lust, and it was only a matter of time before he tensed again. She felt him, and reached under herself between her legs, stroking his trembling balls with her fingertips as she urged him on, to come inside her like they both wanted. He groaned and spasmed, pulsing load after load into her tight pussy as they trembled together in the early morning darkness.

She leaned close to his ear. "You're a bad boy."

"Well, yeah...but I have an idea that you like it that way."

She sat against his chest, looking down. "So what now?"

"Now, I get you home."

"And later?"

He smiled.

"Later can be whatever we want it to be."