Sophie Oak - One to Keep

“Oh, Stef. Stef. It feels so…I…” She stopped trying to talk. Every muscle in her body seemed to tighten, and she cried out. Her legs clamped down on his hips, her pelvis thrust up.

Stef followed her. He let himself go. He pounded away at her until his balls drew up, and it was impossible to stave off the inevitable. He came in long, glorious jets of cum. He pumped into her, delivering every ounce he had in his body.

He fell forward, shocked at how his heart was still pounding. This was supposed to be his quiet time, but he wasn’t satisfied. He wanted something more, something he’d never had before.

“I love you.” Her words were whispered as her fingers sank into his hair. He felt her lips on his head.

Still, he wanted more. There was something else he was missing, something that would complete the scene they had just played out.

His heart stopped as he realized what he wanted. The words were right there on his lips, practically dripping from his tongue. Foreign words. I love you . He’d never said them before. He needed to say them to her.

He held back and let himself rest on her breasts. Eventually her breathing slowed and steadied into the rhythm of sleep. She rested, her arms wrapped around him.

Stef lay there, unwilling to wake her, but his mind raced all night.

What the hell had he done?

In the morning he was waiting for her. He’d untangled himself and gotten dressed again. He’d sat at her tiny table and scolded himself in every way imaginable. She wasn’t ready for a relationship.

She was too young for him. He wanted too much from her. He didn’t have the right to demand that she settle down, and he wouldn’t, couldn’t, settle for less from her.

He’d played out the scenarios in his head. He’d thought about simply starting a D/s relationship. That would be the easiest way to keep her close. They could have their own separate lives and come together for play. It was the way he’d handled his relationships for a very long time.

He’d watched her sleep, and he knew he wouldn’t be able to keep it there. He would have her moved into the estate and under his thumb before she knew what was happening. It was his nature.

He could see clearly the way it would go. They would be happy for a while, but then she would need more. She would grow and change and leave him behind. It would be just like…

He didn’t want to think about his father right now. This was about Stef and Jennifer. His own parents were simply an object lesson as to why an older man should not marry a much younger woman.

Jennifer stirred, twisting as though seeking something in her sleep.

She obviously didn’t find it, and she went up on one elbow to look around the room. There was slight panic in her eyes, and then she softened as she saw him.

“Hey, good morning,” she said in a sleepy voice that went straight to his cock.

He wanted to strip down and climb back on the couch with her.

He would push her legs apart again and be where he always wanted to be—inside her.

“We need to talk,” he forced himself to say. If he gave in now, it would be disastrous for both of them. She had a whole career ahead of her. She didn’t need a man in her life who would try to take over.

She sat up, clutching the quilt he’d pulled over her. “Do we have to? I liked it better when we didn’t talk.” He did, too, but this was morning, and they had to face reality.

“Jennifer, last night was a mistake.” Her eyes slid away from his. “You bastard.” He didn’t argue. He was a bastard. He’d taken her last night when he’d known it was wrong. “It was a mistake, and I take full responsibility. It wasn’t your fault. I took advantage of you.” Now she looked at him, tears shining in her eyes. “Because I wasn’t here at all, was I? Because I didn’t make a choice? What the hell am I to you, Stef?”

“You’re a friend,” he said gently.

“No, I am not. People trust their friends. You said once that I knew nothing of trust, but you’re the one who doesn’t trust me. You think I’m a child, but I’m not. I know what I want, Stef. I want you.” She leaned toward him, holding her hand out. “Last night wasn’t a mistake. This morning is, can’t you see that?”

“Jennifer, I remember being twenty-three. It’s not the easiest time in your life. There are lots of things that you think you want, but you simply don’t have the experience to know.”

Now she stood. “Fuck you, Stef. Get out of my house. I’m not some child, but you’re never going to see it. You’re never going to see me as anything but some airhead kid.”

“I’d prefer to talk about this reasonably.”

“Screw reason. I’m done reasoning with you. I’ve begged and pleaded and made a fool of myself. Well, I’m done with all of that, Stef. And I’m done with you, so feel free to leave.”

“Last night you loved me, and this morning you’re through.” Everything she said just made his point.

She shrugged. “Well, I guess you were right about me, then. Out!” He left, the door slamming behind him and the worst feeling in the pit of his stomach telling him that he’d fucked everything up. He’d intended to be gentle, to talk it out. As he walked away, he thought he heard her cry. He’d knocked on the door, but it was locked this time.

He’d stood there, hand on the door, and wished he could go back in and hold her.

He left a few moments later, but that afternoon he’d been back like a moth to the flame. He’d come with flowers he’d bought at the Trading Post and plans to, at least, talk this out. He couldn’t stand the thought of her feeling down. Maybe, he’d thought, maybe, they could try.

Her apartment had been empty of anything that was personal.

Only the furniture remained. She’d packed up and left in a matter of hours.

He’d walked out, tossing the flowers in the trash. It was better this way, he’d told himself. It was better that she left now, rather than later.

Stef was jarred awake as the chair he sat in was forcefully kicked.

He sat up straight, forcing himself to come out of the dream he’d been having. It was a familiar dream, one he had every night. He’d made love to Jennifer again. He’d chased her down and taken her. He’d made her his. She’d been soft and utterly submissive by the time he’d gotten her underneath him. It had been perfect in his dream because this time he’d said the words he wanted to say. This time he’d made it right, and she hadn’t left him.

When his vision cleared he saw the reason he couldn’t say the words. His father was asleep in the chair across from him, his eyes closed and a blanket around his body. He was older, more fragile than Stef had ever seen him. His father was a rock. His father was a workaholic who never seemed to have an emotion, much less show one.

Except that one day. The day his mother had left them alone. He remembered very little besides shouting and his mother’s pronouncement that no amount of money made up for being tied to a husband and a kid. But he remembered his father’s knees hitting the floor. He remembered the way his father had clung to him as he cried.

The next day, Sebastian Talbot had been back to smooth, CEO

perfection as if nothing had happened. He’d divorced his young bride and never mentioned her name again. It had been years before Stef had heard anything about her, and then it had been a single e-mail explaining she’d remarried and requested contact. He’d been twenty.

He’d deleted it and blocked her from his e-mail.

Stef let his eyes slide to Jen’s sleeping form. She was even younger than his mother had been when she married his father.