The Pandora Affair Read online

  “Please” She whispered softly.

  “Please, what?” expecting to hear her needs. His naked body taut against hers, she could feel his hard substantial manhood teasing her backside. “Make love to me,” she begged. He could not wait any longer. He felt like he was going to explode with anticipation. He slid into her from behind as she moaned in ecstasy. He felt her body shudder against his. She clenched her feminine muscles with each deep, passionate stroke. She whimpered as his powerful thrusts began to build to another orgasm. He reached one hand in front of her and massaged her already moistened feminine interior as he continued glide in and out. As her hips began to rock back and forth he knew she was close to unleashing her sweetness again. One last vigorous thrust and they both felt their release. She turned her head to savor his kiss again as they slowed their harmonic motion.

  He was far from satisfying his sexual hunger for her. He swung around on the bed and lay on his back. Propping himself up on her pillows, pulling her on top of him with his powerful hands, he slithered her down on his shaft inch by erotic inch. He brought her to his lips and massaged her mouth with his tongue. He refused to let go of her; it was almost as it was physically impossible. He slid his big hands down to her bottom and grasped firmly as his unrelenting kiss dominated her. They moaned in ecstasy as they climaxed together once again. She brought out more passion in him in one night then he had ever had in his entire life. She was his ultimate aphrodisiac.

  James watched her sleep amazed at how passionate one woman could be. He had never had a serious relationship, but he was hoping all that was changing. He put his arm around her and had the best night’s sleep he had in a long time. Little did they know a third party watched their steamy love affair, slowly backing away from the sliding glass door with vengeance in his eyes.

  Chapter 12

  Samantha awoke early, still in James’s arms as he lay behind her. She had never felt safer in her life. She hoped the feeling would never fade. She slipped out from beneath his grasp being careful not to wake him. She felt amazing, so full of life. Nothing could bring her down. She looked around for her robe, remembering it was on the kitchen floor. She wrapped her sheet around her and traveled into the kitchen to fetch her robe. She made some fresh coffee to get her started, desperately needing the caffeine after the night she had. She stood in the kitchen drinking her coffee, flipping through the morning paper as James came from the bedroom. He was already dressed and looked as though he was getting ready to leave.

  “Are you going somewhere?” He recognized the sound of her disappointment. He stopped, turning to face her. “I have a restaurant to run, remember?” Taken back by his tone, the harshness of his answer sent an unwanted shiver down her spine. “Isn’t that why you have Roger, to open the restaurant?” “Look Samantha, at the end of the month I have to do the inventory.” His snappish comeback upset her. “Did I do something wrong?” Cursing himself for being a jackass he made a point to change his tone. “No…It’s just something that needs to be done. I have to go!” He did not even turn to look her in the eyes before he left. She was wrong, something could bring her down. What confused her was that it was the same thing that made her feel sensuous the night before. She fought back the tears, telling herself it was nothing personal and that he did have a business to run. She bought it, for a while.

  Ty came to her rescue as the knight in Armani armor. They sat in the living room, going over her never-ending issues with James. “I don’t’ understand, Ty. Everything seemed so perfect last night. I have never felt that way before about a man. And now it’s worse because I think I’m in love with him, but the way he made me feel this morning, he didn’t even look me in the eye before he left. It’s like he got what he was after and now he has no use for me. It would have been cheaper for him just to hire someone to satisfy his needs, then there would be no strings attached and no feelings would be hurt.” She cupped her face and sobbed quietly as Ty held her in his comforting arms. He had no idea what to say to her. He had plenty to say to James.

  “You told her what?” Roger asked James, wondering if he heard wrong. “I had to get out of there and I don’t even know why!” James said in his defense. “I know exactly why,” Roger offered as an answer as he hung his arm over the booth. “You’re afraid of commitment!” James raised his brow to Roger’s observation, no argument came of it. “What you don’t see is what you’re doing to her. You hold her to a tight work schedule, so she can’t have an active social life. You’re not willing to settle down with her after you had a night that any man would kill for…except for me, happily married…How is that fair to her? You can’t have your cake and eat it too, as nice as it would be…” Roger’s opinion over James’s personal affairs always seemed condescending. “And the worst part about this situation is you’re in love her! You’re as stupid as you look if you let her get away…AND for the love of GOD and everything sacred to men everywhere, you went soft, softer then…J-E-L-L-O!” Roger mocked him, mouthing ‘non committer’ with his lips. James’s aggravated frown just made him laugh.

  “Thanks, for your support.” “Hey man, I always support you if you’re right, but you’re not.” Roger sat forward, getting up to get a tea refill just around the corner, in the kitchen.

  “You know Roger, commitment comes easy for you, and you have a wife who is everything short of an underwear model.” James came up with the best retort he could think of, which still was mediocre to anything Roger had said. “That is such a cop-out answer man. Samantha is exceptionally gorgeous and you know it. What the hell is wrong with you? You think commitment is easy? You think it’s easy to run this place? Women hit on me left and right, a bar where so many single women come and go? Let me tell you something, it takes a real man to commit to a relationship. You better wake up and smell the tequila pal; you’re going to lose her if you don’t quit being a jackass…” They sat quietly for a moment, Roger contemplating if he wanted to take his defamation one step farther; which he did with utmost gratification, “And…if I were single you would have some serious competition. We both know I’m better looking and more suave then you could ever be.”

  James leaned back in the booth and just stared forward. “God, I’m a jackass.” he commented. “Yep.” Roger agreed. “Flowers?” James asked, looking over at his blatantly honest friend. “Not unless you intended on getting hit with them. I know that one from experience, I spent a fortune on roses and she smacked me around with them while cursing me out in Italian. Cursing sounds much more appealing in Italian, you know.” Roger took a drink of his tea.

  “Well I guess we should do inventory,” James suggested. “We did inventory already just three days ago.” “Yeah Roger, but if we do inventory I didn’t really lie to her, right?” James offered as some sort of personal redemption. “I don’t know why, when you say ‘we’…it has to include me, every damn time,” Roger complained, crunching on the remaining ice in his glass.

  “Come on Roger, think of it as quality guy time,” James replied as he patted him on the back. “Then it should include a six-pack, a football game on the big screen, and women with big hooters in tiny outfits. Not counting straws,” Roger stated. He was clearly irritated. “Quit whining, you fruitcake, it’s not that difficult, besides it will give me time to think of how to make it up to her.” They stood in one lithe motion from the booth heading into the back to start inventory.

  Samantha and Tyler sat at the kitchen table eating the breakfast he had managed to throw together with the remaining items in her bare fridge. He was tempted to warm up the dinner James had brought over from Pandora’s but the last thing she needed was a reminder of him. She sat there moving her food around with her fork, when her phone rang. Tyler started to get up to answer it as she grasped his arm. “It’s probably him, let the machine pick it up,” she said softly. She rose to get herself another glass of orange juice, listening closely to her machine. She emptied out the carton of juice into her glass.

  Let the bastar
d talk to the machine.

  “You’ve reached Samantha Anne Lockley, please leave your name and number and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks for calling. BEEP. “Samantha, this is Robert Conley.” Her eyes widened, she drew in a rough gasp of air as if it were her last. The full glass of juice shattered as it hit the floor. “I hope you get this message, I’ve been trying to get in touch with you for some time. I’m sorry to have to bother you but you know the circumstances of my call. I need you to contact me as soon as possible to work out the details. You have my card.” CLICK.

  Tyler looked up at her when he heard the glass break. She was clutching the counter with one hand and clenching her stomach with the other as she slid to the floor. Her breathing was rapid and unsteady. He jumped up and came to her side, trying to hold her up. She became hysterical and her hands were shaking uncontrollably. “My god! What is it??” Samantha scared the wits out of Tyler, she couldn’t stop trembling. He scooped her up in his arms and stood up carefully, stepping over the broken glass. He quickly brought her to the couch trying to calm her down. He took her hands in his, which gave her a surge of temporary comfort. She looked at him with tears streaming down her face. She tried to speak; her words flowed out in a fluid stutter. She took a minute to regain her composure. He waited patiently. She met her friend’s concerned expression. She was lucky to have such a wonderful friend; she put her hands to his face. “Tyler, there is something I have to tell you about me. I…I am so sorry I kept it from you, but I had no choice.” Her eyes were glossy red and she was trying to avoid hyperventilating. He looked at her expecting the worst and he was almost afraid to say anything because it might upset her further. He managed to say what any best friend would say, “I’m listening.”

  Chapter 13

  Samantha sat down with her lunch at the University hoping to catch up on some reading before her next class. “Mind if I join you?” She didn’t even look up. “Be my guest, I don’t own the table,” she said with her nose in the book. “Wow, are you taking Business Management with Professor Gable?” the guy asked. She looked up, taken aback by what he had said. She looked him over once as she bit into her picture perfect red apple. He was very handsome, on the slim side with the blondest hair she had ever seen on a guy. His dark brown eyes seemed very friendly. She could not tell how tall he was since he was sitting down.

  “How did you know that?” she asked as she took another bite of her apple. “Gable is the only Business prof who requires that exact book for her class. I had her last year. Make sure you take good notes; she refers to that book a lot for her material and most of it will be on the exams. Her final is based on how well you know little details that may have seemed insignificant on the tests. That’s what makes her so tough. Don’t ever be late because she won’t let you in and if you’re sick you better have a friend in class because she will not go over the material twice,” he offered. “Well, sounds like my nightmare is just beginning. Thanks for the information.” She stuck her nose back in her book.

  “My name is David Joseph Alexander Ripley,” he said offering his hand. “That whole thing is your name, huh? Do you have a shorter name you go by? Dave, maybe?” Taking her eyes off her book as he laughed, she noticed his hand was extended. “Dave is great, call me Dave.” “Samantha.” She glanced over the top of the book inspecting his hand. She held out hers in order to study the firmness of his handshake. Her father always told her you could tell a lot from a man by his handshake. In Dave’s case, it was strong and somewhat forceful. “Just Samantha?” he asked. “Just Samantha…for now.” She smiled at him as she picked up her books and tossed the remainder of her lunch into the garbage. He smirked as he watched her walk off. She looked over her shoulder and he was still watching her. Her smile continued all the way to her next class.

  By the end of class she had more homework than five high school students. She picked up her books and walked out the door where Dave was waiting for her. “Hey just Samantha…for now, can I carry your books?” Dave offered, trying to keep pace with her. “We’re not in high school,” she reminded him. “You’re perfectly right, what was I thinking? Here, you can carry mine.” He handed her his stack of books. She laughed and took his books. “So I thought maybe you could buy me dinner sometime, since you seem to be pretty liberated and all…or maybe I could buy you dinner if you would let me.” He gently grasped her arm to get her to acknowledge his interest in her.

  She stopped and looked at him, carefully studying his face for sincerity or a hint that he was only looking for a roll in the hay. “If I start going out with you, I won’t concentrate on my studies,” Samantha said. “Well, how about I promise to make you do your homework first?” he suggested. “You’re relentless, you know that?” She laughed. “Well I have to be to get what I want,” he told her in a dead serious tone. That should have been her first clue. She considered him for a minute. He was definitely good looking and she figured about six foot. She handed over all the books she was carrying, including his. “Great, How about dinner?” he asked. “As long as you buy and it’s not fast food,” she agreed in her most proactive voice possible. “Outstanding! Wonderful! Perfect! How about Saturday night? We can do pizza…we can eat out. DINE out. I meant to say dine out. We can go in and sit down and have a waitress and everything. Then we can bowl if you would like…” Samantha thought Dave looked as though his head was about to explode. “Breathe…take deep breaths…I am sure whatever you decide will be fine.” She smiled as she scribbled down her phone number. Dave returned her smile as he waved goodbye, he had never been so nervous around a girl before. Samantha thought it was adorable.

  Samantha continued to see Dave, and the more she did the more she fell for him. He was polite, attentive and even her father liked him. He called her Baby, and she loved it, she felt so important to him. While getting ready for a night out with Dave, she felt this time would be different; she was ready to give herself to him. This would be their first time and she wanted it to be special. She spent extra time getting ready, wearing her prettiest underwear and her most seductively scented perfume.

  As she opened the door, the sweet stuffy air welcomed them. Samantha opened the windows to ventilate the cabin and he did a quick search outside the cabin for some firewood to make a nice warm blaze in the stone fireplace. He laid clean fresh blankets on the floor in front of the fire. They reclined and watched the fire spark. He leaned over to kiss her. She was so nervous she was quivering. Her comfort came when he promised he would never let anyone hurt her. She let herself relax as he explored her with his hands. He was strong and overbearing but he was trying to be as gentle as possible, knowing it was her first time. He covered her with his body. Her eyes were closed yet a single tear escaped and rolled down her face. She was not sure if it was one of happiness or sadness.

  Rolling off her, he lay behind her holding her tightly as they dozed off to sleep. She woke up early and rolled over to cuddle him. He pushed her away and got up. She watched him get dressed and told her to do the same. “Did I do something wrong?” she asked as she tried to hold back her emotions. He looked over at her, naked beneath the blanket and could not help but to smile. He moved to her slowly, “No baby, you did everything perfectly…” He slid back under the blanket with her. He had his way with her again. She was so young, beautiful and perfectly naïve. The cabin became a routine for them. Dave loved it there. Samantha’s father had invited him fishing up there more than once.

  The longer they were together the more Dave became obsessive and controlling. He would interrogate her when he did not know where she was. He constantly accused her of sleeping around on him. Dave gradually drove her friends away, they could not stand being around him, and he was always with her. They tried talking to her about it, but she denied that he was being controlling. Sex was a nightmare for her. She felt trapped. She was afraid of what he may do to her in one of his temper outbreaks. Public outings became dreadful for her. Even worse, she was more afraid to leave
him because of what he was capable of. He would check up on her in class and walk her to the next one. She always ended up crying when he left because he made her feel insecure and useless.

  Chapter 14

  Professor Gable had witnessed his abuse more than once and asked Samantha to stay behind after class one day. She confronted her about it, but Samantha denied that he was hurting her. She said he was just insecure because he thought she might leave him. He loved her very much, and he was usually really good to her. They just had been having some problems lately.

  Professor Gable knew she was lying. Samantha was not very good at it. Gable had Dave last year in her class and knew he was hot tempered. She let the matter drop, but informed Samantha that if she needed help to just ask her. Professor Gable noticed Dave waiting outside the door. She smiled and waved at him, trying not to be suspicious about talking to Samantha. She hoped he would think it was just about her studies. Gable knew she needed help but was afraid to ask anyone. She handed Samantha an itinerary for the next week, as she did with everyone as they went out the door.

  Dave waited patiently outside, watching Samantha walk to the door. He opened it for her and took her books. “What did Gable say?” he immediately inquired. “She wanted to know why my grades are falling and she said I need to raise them up to keep my GPA. She gave me next week’s work to get a head start,” Samantha said, lying to him. He raised an eyebrow as he saw Gable watching them walk away from her door. “Well maybe you need to stay home more and work harder,” Dave recommended. Samantha didn’t say a word.