More Than a Memory Read online

  “Baby,” I started, keeping my eyes locked on hers, “you could never ever be considered a burden to me. It wouldn’t matter to me if you never worked again, but with that being said, I know how much you valued and loved your job, which is why I secured you an interview at a station in Eugene. It was a bit presumptuous of me and while it’s only part-time starting out, it could eventually lead to a full-time position. Now, they are a much smaller station and aren’t as prestigious or well-known as the station here, but with you possibly on their team some big opportunities could arise.”

  Eden paused a moment to bring one hand to her chest and braced her head with the other, “I can’t believe this is all happening and you are going to such great lengths for me.”

  Wow, she really just must not get it. “There is absolutely nothing that I wouldn’t do for you.”

  A glimmer appeared in her eye and an evil smirk on her face; I was beginning to rethink the exact way I put that statement but in the end it wouldn’t have made a bit of difference. It was true, there wasn’t anything that I wouldn’t at least attempt to do for her.

  “You know,” she said, “I may take you up on that because I just may have an idea up my sleeve…” She wouldn’t elaborate further on her phrasing so I had to drop the subject for a while.

  I took her hands in mine and helped bring her to her feet from her sitting position. “Let’s pack up your desk so you can show me your bed,” I winked and in that moment she was complete putty in my hands. The same level of desire that I was feeling was reflected back to me tenfold from just the glint in her eyes.

  She looked around and picked up a small trophy in the shape of a microphone and a picture of her and a blonde woman, which I would assume to be Julia, opened her bottom drawer to yank out her purse, then turned to me, slinging it over her shoulder and slamming the bottom drawer closed with her foot. “I’m done.”

  I gazed around the mostly empty space that she called her office and realized that she really didn’t have much in there, especially for as long as she had worked there. “That’s all you have?” I questioned.

  She took one last glance around, making sure she had collected everything, and shrugged, “I just never felt the need to clutter my desk, so yeah.”

  As she drove us to her condo she took a little extra time showing me her favorite hangouts. The coffee shop she would frequent most mornings and where they knew her name and drink order by heart, the local music store in which during her early days as a radio DJ she would broadcast live from inside. She even took me down Broadway Street and showed me some of the best bars that she and Julia would make appearances at on Saturday nights. Eden was taking a chance and leaving behind a huge portion of her life; after college all of her adult life was spent learning the ins and outs of this beautiful city. I needed to consider myself a lucky man and count all of my blessings that she was taking such a giant leap just to be with me. If that didn’t tell me that she loved me, then I didn’t know exactly what would.

  Once we arrived in front of her condo and she pulled into the driveway she sat there a second with the biggest smile on her lips, holding her hand out to admire her new piece of adorning jewelry. She was practically glowing and was the most breathtaking woman I’d ever seen.

  “What is it, sweetheart?”

  “I’m just so happy,” she announced and made a little wiggling movement in her seat.

  I leaned across the console in the car and grasped her chin with my fingers, directing her head until her eyes were trained on me. “I’m glad, so am I. Norah will be extremely excited, too.”

  I noticed the telltale sign of a tiny bead of tears welling up in her eyes, “I’m going to have a daughter?” she said as if she had just come to the realization. I had no doubt in my mind that Eden would be a terrific mother for Norah, it was just the type of woman that she was. Norah would be absolutely thrilled to actually have a positive female figure in her life, paying attention to her, unlike her own mother.

  As we made our way towards her front door I heard the yapping of a little dog even before the white head poked out from in between the blinds. Just as soon as Eden’s key hit the lock, the dog’s head disappeared and its faint whimpering started to build until it was a full blown howl.

  Eden just barely inched the door open and a little fifteen pound dog darted out and started spastically circling our ankles. “Petunia, settle down,” Eden said in a soft tone and bent down just in time to catch the white Westie in her arms. “Baylor, meet Petunia,” I leaned forward to let her sniff my hand before I began scratching behind her ears. “She’s only a bit rambunctious when I first get home. Within a few minutes she’ll have worn herself out and you’ll find her in her bed passed out for a nap. Isn’t that right, girl?” She cooed.

  After Eden gave Petunia a minute of attention she bent over to let her down and straightened back up again. “So,” she said, slapping a palm on her hip almost as if she was a bit nervous. “This is my home, well, for now.”

  I wiped my hands down my pants to try and dry my sweaty palms and walked further into the room so I could take it all in. The room was immaculate and decorated with rustic colors of gray and teal. She definitely held a woman’s touch and my house, our house, could use some sprucing up.

  Our house.

  Our house would soon be comprised of three people, two adults and a child. And adding a new dog to the mix, it would be absolutely complete. My breath became staggered as I tried to process everything that was occurring. Did I want this? One hundred percent yes but, truth be told, I was a bit nervous as well—not enough to end up in a panic attack but enough for me to break a sweat. Before when Eden and I were together there was always that looming expiration date. And now that it’d progressed to what I hoped in my heart was forever, would things still feel the same?

  I tried to stuff my worries and insecurities to the back of my mind. I could allow them back out when the timing was right.

  Several of the picture frames sporadically placed about her living room caught my eye. I took my time walking around to each of the few that were hanging on her wall, studying them as I moved along. There was one of her and Blaine in the studio, another was of her and the same blonde that was in the picture on her desk, and then one of her and Petunia as a puppy. She looked completely happy and carefree in each of the pictures. My heart panged with guilt at the thought of uprooting her so abruptly from her former life. I didn’t want her to regret this decision several years down the road.

  A teal frame perched upon one of her end tables was what took my attention next. Something in the photo drew me in and I found myself picking it up to examine it closer. I ran my free hand along the ceramic swirls just taking in how happy the three people in the photograph were at that time.

  Dean, with his goofy ass smile, was on the left and a much younger version of myself was on the right. Eden was sandwiched in between the two of us and she looked absolutely beautiful, with a twinkle in her eye.

  “Graduation?” I asked, but it was already clear to me that it was. There weren’t many times that Eden willingly wore a dress back then and the royal blue unzipped gowns that we all had on sort of gave it away. I vaguely remembered Eden’s mom taking the picture but I had never seen it; given the circumstances I could understand why.

  Seeing the picture itself made a lump form in my throat, but it was the phrase engraved on the bottom of the ceramic frame that threatened tears to well up in my eyes. I ran my rough fingertips over the cursive letters, feeling the smooth etching under my calloused skin, and released a pained sigh. So much fucking time wasted and for what? A bitch with a vendetta on our happiness?

  “The Three Musketeers,” Eden said, approaching me, looking down at the frame that was now tightly grasped in my hands.

  “You kept this out all this time? Even with the hatred that loomed inside?” I questioned, not sure that I was ready to hear her honest answer.

  Her eyebrows furrowed and she looked perplexed. “Bayl
or, there was never hatred. Sadness, yes. Despondency, yes. Heartsickness, absolutely. But never was there ever any hatred towards either you or Dean. I kept this as a memory because at the time that’s all you were. I didn’t want to forget that happy-go-lucky girl in the picture with her two best friends, because it was that next day when my entire life changed, including my outlook. I’ve come to the conclusion that Kristina instilled all of this bitterness inside us because of her own unhappiness in her life. She wasn’t a people pleaser, she just molded and changed people to what she wanted them to be. And when you fought back against it by standing up and stepping into the family business she knew that she had lost.” She took the frame from my hands and replaced it back on the end table where it belonged and then ran a hand down the side of my face and across my jaw, “She’s gone now and not hindering us any further. Now is our time to be happy and I for one am not going to waste another minute of it trying to dwell on the past or what could’ve or should’ve been all along. I now have a fiancé who I love more than life itself, who has a daughter that I would love nothing more than to call my own.” Tears were swimming in her eyes, threatening to release, and my own heart was thumping loudly in my chest. “Sure, this is all happening very fast, but you have to remember I’ve waited fifteen years for this moment, and I know this will be an adjustment for all of us. But I’m done with waiting around; it’s our turn for our happy ending.”

  I was so glad that we were on the same page as one another and she squashed my fears with her powerful words and positivity ensuring that everything would be all right. We needed to get away from the sadness and tears because it absolutely killed me inside seeing her cry, even though they would’ve been tears of joy. I grabbed ahold of her hips in my hands and pulled her flush against me, so she had to crane her neck just to look up at me. “So you have this fiancé now? I think I might go off in a fit of jealous rage because he’ll get to see you naked anytime he wants. I don’t want any other information, but please tell me this, is he as good-looking as me?”

  An almost silent giggle escaped from her throat as she stood up on her tiptoes, trying to get closer to my face, “Oh but he’s more than just good looking,” she swooned seductively, “he is the sexiest man I have ever had the pleasure of laying my eyes on.” Her hand traveled up my forearm and bicep, all the way up to the base of my neck where her fingers began fiddling with the edge of my hairline. “And now, he’s all mine,” she said with a moan as her other hand moved to cup my ass through my jeans.

  My dick sprung to life as she began grinding her pelvis into me and pushed her voluptuous breasts against my torso. I bent my body just a bit so I could scoop her up against me and into my arms. There wasn’t time to go searching amongst the rooms just to find her bedroom, so I chose the next best thing to her bed or any flat surface in the kitchen; I picked the couch. I carefully laid her on her back against the tan-colored microfiber cushions and reached behind me to pull my polo off over my head and discard it somewhere on the floor. Her breathing was already labored with the anticipation of what was going to occur in the minutes ahead and she immediately lifted her back clear from the cushion so I could remove her shirt and unclasp her bra leaving her entire torso bared to me.

  I braced myself on my exposed forearms as she clutched her hands together behind my back and I took a brief moment to study her entire face and chest before engaging any further. You could tell her embarrassment was beginning to get the best of her when her cheeks and chest turned the faintest of reds. I knew that just by staring at her that there was no possible way for me to ever grow tired of seeing her before me. Eden was right, it was time for our happy ending and there was absolutely no one else on God’s green earth that could make me feel as complete and as elated as she did.

  Apparently I wasn’t moving in a timely enough fashion for her as she abruptly yanked on my sides, trying to bring my face closer to hers. She tried her best, but still she was no match for my upper body strength, and it was a bit comical seeing her getting more and more flustered and frustrated by the second.

  “Kiss me, Baylor,” she demanded before immediately letting go of her grasp on me altogether and skillfully sliding out from underneath my body, ending up on her knees directly in front of my face. This way was much easier for her to shift my head to where she wanted it to be. By that time I was raised up completely off of my forearms and resting on the palms of my hands and instead of bringing our lips together she stopped my mouth at the stiff peak of one of her round breasts. I hesitated before pouncing on her again and she released a throaty pout. “Bay, I need you. Don’t sit there and pretend that you don’t need me too.” Her movements were beginning to grow a bit bolder as she shoved her hand down my pants and took my throbbing erection in her clutch, emphasizing her point in my need for her as well. With her gentle yet abrasive touch, it was turning me on even further. She knew exactly what she was doing to me too when she squeezed my dick just a bit harder.

  I rose up on my knees quickly, having the element of surprise on my side, and wasted no further time before taking her mouth. I was rough and ravenous as I pushed into her gateway with my tongue making sure to give subtle nips with my teeth. The kiss was brief but extremely erotic and when I pulled away I made sure to pull that sexy as hell bottom lip with me, giving it a liberal suck before releasing it from my assault.

  Kissing my way down her neck to her exposed breasts, I flicked my tongue across the tip of her nipple and heard a throaty growl rip from her throat. I proceeded to enclose my entire mouth on her breast and gave each of them the attention they deserved. When I chanced a peek up at Eden, her eyes were closed tightly and that lip was pulled in between her teeth and her fingers were shoved into her tousled hair as if she couldn’t take the extreme pleasure. I sat back on my haunches and just studied her as she kept pulling on her hair that was still shoved into a haphazard ponytail. Reaching behind her, I pulled the binding constriction out of her hair and let the strands fall in wayward directions, covering her bare shoulders. She finally opened her eyes and the extremely pure lust that was shining back at me from within the depths of her milk chocolate irises was my complete undoing.

  I swooped in and pinned her body to the cushions once again, roughly attacking the button and zipper to her jeans, which were giving me fits. Our pants and underwear were the only barriers to exposing our complete bodies to one another and her jeans were proving to be insubordinate and quite frankly if I could have gotten away with cutting them from her body I would have. With my brain not communicating with my fingers on how to release her from the rest of her clothing, Eden shoved my hands out of the way and proceeded with ridding herself of them without my being in the way. I watched like a horny teenager ready to pounce while her nimble fingers seemed to take the barrier with great stride and within no time at all she had her jeans and her panties slipped from her legs and tossed them over my shoulder to some undisclosed location in her living room.

  “Now you,” she said, goading me to try and get my brain to work again so I could try and remove my own clothing barriers. After she noticed my faltering movements, she took matters into her own hands and began unzipping my pants and directing me to stand so she could pull them along with my boxer briefs down my thighs. Once they were bunched up around my ankles, I stood there as she continued to stay bent in front of me. Her eyes widened at the sight of my fully engorged erection and her pink tongue darted out and smoothed across her plump lips. She looked up, eyeing me carefully as if she was looking for permission for her to continue on her own accord. I nodded my head urging her on and she proceeded to take my cock in her hand, guiding it towards her parted mouth.

  Once her tongue hit the underside of my dick, it sprung to life, hardening even further and a deep guttural moan escaped my chest. She kept taking my dick as far back as her mouth would allow, eventually hitting the back of her throat before she slowly pulled it back out again, exposing all but the very tip, and proceeded to swirl her tongue around th
e head as if I was her very own personal lollipop.

  I couldn’t take the sweet torture much longer so I reached down and pulled her to her feet, leaving her with her lips downturned into a frown. I could imagine her crossing her arms, pushing up her bare breasts and stomping her foot like a petulant child because I took away her fun, and the thought almost made me laugh. I lay down on my back against the cool fibers of the cushions and pulled her hand towards me. “I want you to ride my face, Edie,” I said, boldly. Her reaction was just as I expected, her eyes widened and her cheeks flushed but after a little coaxing, she was bracing her knees on either side of my head and edging her center towards my awaiting salivating mouth. Once her pussy was exactly where I wanted it, I gave her an open-mouthed kiss directly over her center and guided her clit into my mouth. I had one hand coming up behind her, cupping her ass while my other hand reached up to cup a breast. With her juices on my tongue and her moans escaping her mouth, I was exactly where I wanted to be. She began rocking her body, grinding her pussy further into my open mouth and causing my tongue to pursue deeper into her core. The faster and harder she rode my face, the louder her moans were coming from her throat and in no time her hands that were braced on the end of the couch were shoved into my hair as she released a rather strong orgasm. I happily lapped up everything she gave me, ready to give her another orgasm, but she pushed up off of my face and guided herself down onto my throbbing erection, stretching herself until she was fully seated in my lap.

  My hands automatically went to her swiveling hips as hers traveled up her body until she was cupping her breasts. Her movements were quick and controlled as she continued to carry out the majority of the work riding my dick. “Oh, fuck, Eden!” I yelled as she raised herself up the entire length of my penis until she reached the very tip then slammed herself back down on me.

  Her speed accelerated and I could feel myself getting closer, but I tried my hardest to hold back until she had received at least one more orgasm. No sooner than the thought entered my mind, her walls tightened around my erection like a vice as she fell over the edge of another release.