A Rose by Any Another Name

We didn't talk about any of the things that happened that night during the days that followed. Mike was apparently not ready to tell me what he had done with his ex-girlfriend and I told myself I didn't want to pressure him, but the truth was that a part of me was really afraid that he was cheating on me, and avoiding the topic meant I could try to pretend like everything was okay. Both David and Nicole had tried to call me several times but I had ignored them, embarrassed about the whole situation. I desperately tried to forget about everything, but it wasn't as easy as I had hoped.

After our shifts had ended on Wednesday, Mike and I went back to his apartment together to get ready for dinner with Kevin and Nicole. Mike started cooking while I took a long, hot shower and changed into some clean clothes that I had left at his place the night before. By the time I got out of the bathroom, a delicious scent of grilled chicken had started filling the kitchen.

"What are you making?" I asked, wrapping my arms around his waist as he poured us two glasses of red wine.

"My signature dish," he said. "Chicken fajitas. It's pretty much the only thing I can do that I know always turns out fine."

"Sounds great," I said and kissed him. "You might want to turn down the heat unless you want to burn the chicken, though."

"Shit!" he exclaimed and hurried to the stove to take the frying pan off of the heat. "Thank you! I have way too much on my mind right now."

"Are you nervous?" I asked, running my hand through his hair. "I thought you guys were really close?"

"We are," he affirmed. "That's why I want everything to be perfect when he meets my girlfriend for the first time."

"You don't have to worry," I said. "If you're such good friends, I'm sure I'll love him. Now, go get dressed while I set the table."

He placed a short but passionate kiss on my lips before he went to the bedroom. I had just opened the cupboard to get some plates when the doorbell rang and Nicole walked in.

"Hey honey," she said and gave me a hug. "Are you okay? Where's Michael?" "He's getting dressed," I said, pointing to the bedroom. "We're fine, by the way, don't worry about it."

"Pretty hard not to worry," she whispered so that he wouldn't hear her. "That was quite a show the other night. Have you guys talked about it?"

"Sort of," I said and started setting the table. "He said he wasn't cheating on me and I believe him."

"Really?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "I mean, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to put two and two together..."

"I know what we saw," I snapped. "But if he says he didn't cheat on me, I believe him."

"All right, all right," Nicole said, throwing her hands up in surrender. "You know him better than I do. I just don't want you to get hurt."

Truth be told, I wasn't as confident as I tried to appear. I wanted to believe him but even if he was telling me the truth, it hurt that he didn't feel like he could tell me what was really going on. All I knew for sure was that, if I wanted to see where this relationship might lead, I had to take a leap of faith and trust him.

"I have to believe him, Nikki," I said, almost inaudibly. "If he did cheat on me I would have to break things up, and I don't think I could handle that. I like him way too much."

"I know," she comforted me while stroking my hair. "I know. Just do me a favor and let me know if you ever need me to kick his ass for you."

I was going to tell her I appreciated the offer when Mike came out of the bedroom wearing a pair of stonewashed jeans and a light blue shirt, casually unbuttoned at the top. His hair was unruly and the scent of his cologne filled the room and sparked memories of kinky sex, dinners without underwear and long nights spent in his arms. I tried to think of something else while he greeted Nicole but when he turned around and winked at me I felt defenseless and possessed by his charm. He had me under his spell, there was no denying it. I knew I would be completely heartbroken if it turned out that he had been lying to me and that this relationship had never meant as much to him as he was making me believe.

Overwhelmed by all my contradicting emotions, I tried to keep busy by folding napkins and making sure the chicken wouldn't get cold. When the doorbell rang once again, Mike grabbed my hand and brought me with him to open the door.

"Wait a second," Kevin said, looking at me and Nicole, and then back at Mike. "You told me you were in a relationship but I guess I must have been a little naïve thinking you only had one girlfriend."

Mike burst out laughing and embraced his friend while Nicole looked at me, rolling her eyes.

"Man, I've missed you," Mike said before turning around and introducing me. "This is my girlfriend, Rose."

"It's so nice to finally meet you," Kevin said. "I can't believe he finally found a girlfriend who puts up with all his crap. I was beginning to think you weren't even real!"

"You could at least wait until after dinner before you start trying to break us up," Mike teased and put his arm around my waist. "Anyway, this is Rose's friend, Nicole."

"

Enchanté

," Kevin said in a deep voice, kissing Nicole's outstretched hand, making her giggle.

"All right, enough with the flirting," Mike cautioned with a hint of a smile on his lips. "Dinner's getting cold."

"Let me guess," Kevin said, slipping off his jacket. "Fajitas?"

Mike pretended to be hurt and slapped him playfully on his arm. "Really, dude?"

"I'm kidding, Mike," Kevin grinned. "Your fajitas are the best! They make me feel like home every time. The Mexicans have a lot to learn from you."

Kevin, Nicole and I sat down at the dinner table and started helping ourselves to the food while Mike grabbed some cold beers from the fridge.

"So, Mike told me you just graduated," Kevin said.

"Yeah, we both did," I told him. "Are you a doctor, too?"

"Me?" Kevin laughed. "No way, I'm not as smart as Mr. Brainiac over there. He got straight A's in high school while I spent most of my nights partying and most of my days hungover."

"Not much has changed..." Mike sneered.

"Well, I still don't know the names of all the bones in the body," Kevin admitted. "But I do make some pretty cool furniture. When I'm not partying or asking Mike for advice on how to cure hangovers, that is."

"You're a carpenter?" Nicole asked. "That is... totally different!"

Kevin laughed. "You guys save lives, I build things for people to sit on... Almost the same, right?"

"He did build me the most awesome loft bed when I was in med school," Mike acknowledged. "Oh, and the cupboard in my bedroom, too."

"You built that?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah, you know the cupboard with all the drawers," Mike said with a mischievous smile, very aware of the fact that he had reminded me of all the kinky things he kept in there. I blushed and glared at him, which only made him smile even more.

"It was a housewarming gift," Kevin explained. "I built it a few years ago."

"That's really impressive," Nicole said, batting her eyelashes at him. "You're going to have to show it to me later."

Right as Mike opened his mouth to say something, I attempted to kick his leg under the table to shut him up.

"Ouch!" Nicole cried out and reached down to rub her ankle. "What the hell, Rose?"

Mike burst into laughter. Nicole looked at the two of us, shaking her head.

"You guys are like two twelve-year-olds crushing on each other," Kevin chuckled. "I haven't seen you like this in a really long time, Mike."

"I haven't

felt

like this in a really long time," Mike added. "And it's all thanks to Rose."

He reached across the table and kissed me.

"Aww," Nicole said. "So cute I almost want to throw up a little. I'm going to need another beer soon if you're going to keep reminding me of the fact that I'm still single."

"We'll try to dial it down," I said, winking at her before changing the subject entirely.

After a wonderful dinner with interesting conversation, Mike and Nicole sat down in the living room and started discussing their experience working with cancer patients while Kevin and I stayed in the kitchen making small talk. I asked him what Mike was like in high school and he ended up telling me countless stories about their teenage years; everything from parties gone wild and embarrassing drunken moments to Mike's first crush and the first time he got his heart broken. I loved hearing all of it, both the good and the bad, because it somehow made me feel like I got to know my mysterious boyfriend just a little bit better.

"I'm so happy to have met you," Kevin said and put his hand on my shoulder. "He hasn't allowed himself to get feelings for anyone in so long, I thought he never would. I've been worried about him ever since Autumn so you can't imagine how relieved I am to see him this happy."

"Who is Autumn?" I asked, confused. "His ex-girlfriend?"

Kevin's eyes popped open in surprise as he realized he had just made a huge mistake.

"Oh my God, Rose!" he exclaimed. "He hasn't told you?"

"Hasn't told me what?" I asked, my chest tightening as I understood that Kevin knew whatever it was that Mike didn't want to tell me.

Kevin still looked just as surprised that I didn't know what he was talking about.

"Shit," he muttered, glancing over his shoulder to see if Mike had heard us, but he seemed to be busy talking to Nicole. "Rose, I'm sorry, after all the wonderful things he has told me about you I just assumed that you knew about Autumn."

"Who the hell is Autumn?" I urged.

Kevin opened his mouth but didn't know what to say.

"I know something happened," I said in a low voice. "He told me a while ago but he won't tell me what it is."

"It has to come from him," he said. "I'm sorry, I really shouldn't have said anything."

"I saw him with his ex-girlfriend the other day," I told him. "He told me he was at work but I saw the two of them together. He brought flowers and had his arm around her. Why did he lie to me?"

"It's not what you think," he said, trying to comfort me without saying too much. "He wasn't cheating on you, I promise."

"That's what he told me, too, and I want to believe him, but it's not easy when he won't let me in."

"I understand how you feel," he acknowledged. "And I know it might not seem like it, but he has let you into his life a lot more than you think. Mike has never been with a girl more than one night since they broke up because he is so scared of falling in love again. I know what happened because I was part of his life back then, but he hasn't told anyone else. He shut himself off completely and pretended like it never happened so he has never been able to cope with it."

"I just want to help him," I whispered, feeling more powerless than ever.

"You are helping him," Kevin assured me. "I've never seen him this happy since that day. He might not be ready to tell you what happened yet, but you've made him hopeful. Last time we talked on the phone he said he thought you might be the one he wants to spend the rest of his life with."

"Really?" I asked eagerly.

"In those exact words," he said. "It might be hard for him to express it, but he is crazy about you. Please, don't give up on him, he really needs you. He will tell you what happened when he's ready, but until then, you have nothing to be worried about, I promise."

"Okay," I sighed. "I trust you. I'll let it go until he's ready to bring it up again."

"You're the best thing that could ever have happened to him," Kevin said. "Don't forget that."

When both Kevin and Nicole had left, Mike wrapped his arms around the small of my back, pulled me into his embrace and gave me a long, sensual kiss. Somehow, it was different from all the other times he had kissed me. It wasn't as desperate and erotic as usual, the way he always kissed me when he was overpowered by lust and just couldn't get enough of me. Instead, it was a kiss filled with love and tenderness that made the world stop turning and the sun stop shining. I gasped for air when his lips left mine and cupped his face in my hands.

"What was that for?" I asked, smiling.

"That was for tonight," he said, gazing into my eyes. "I had the most amazing time and Kevin absolutely loved you."

"I tend to have that effect on people," I teased, making him laugh. "Seriously though, I really liked him. I'm happy you invited me."

"I was a little nervous," he admitted. "He means a lot to me and so do you. I wanted everything to be perfect and it was. You're amazing, you know that, right?"

"You're even more amazing," I said, tenderly tracing the outline of his lips with my index finger. He softly kissed the fingertip before putting the entire finger in his mouth and started sucking on it with increasing intensity and a lustful look in his eyes.

"I could do this somewhere else, you know," he hinted, and I felt a warm, tingling sensation spread throughout my entire body as his tongue started twirling around my finger again.

Overwhelmed with desire, I grabbed his shirt and pulled it over his head and arms. Mike quickly undid the buttons of my blouse, pushed it off my shoulders and let it drop to our feet. His eyes got darker as he unhooked my bra, placed both hands on my breasts and squeezed them hard enough for me to moan in excitement. Suddenly he grabbed both my wrists with his left hand and pushed me abruptly against the wall, pinning me down with his hips to keep me still. He gently kissed his way from my breasts to my neck and let his tongue meander over my collarbone before wrapping his right hand around my throat.

"Do you know how much I've wanted to fuck you all night?" he asked in a low voice, tightening his grip. "If it hadn't been for Nicole I would have done it right then and there on the kitchen table with Kevin watching us."

I swallowed, not knowing what to say or if he was even serious.

"You don't believe me, do you?" he asked as if he had read my mind. "It wouldn't be the first time, you know."

I looked at him, surprised, and he laughed.

"I've been really careful not to introduce this too fast," he continued, "because the last thing I want is to scare you."

"I'm not scared," I said, and he pressed his hand even harder against my throat.

"Good," he said. "Because I won't hold back as much this time. I'm going to fuck you just like you deserve, just as I've wanted to do ever since I first saw you. Wait for me right here and don't move, okay?"

He released my wrists and took his hand off my neck and I nodded. I stayed in the exact same place, waiting with anticipation as he walked to the bedroom and went through his drawers. The sound of rattling chains was enough to make me wet and fill my mind with vivid images of all the things he could do to drive me crazy with excitement.

"I want you to wear this," he said when he came back and held up a black leather collar with decorative chains and a metal ring attached to it. It looked like some sort of exclusive dog collar more than anything and I couldn't help but roll my eyes at him.

"Really?" I asked derogatively.

Mike tried to pull off a serious look but I could see that he was a little amused.

"This is where you say 'yes, sir' and put it on without asking any questions," he said with a slight smile.

"I'm sorry," I said, blushing. "It's just..."

"It's just what?" he questioned.

I hesitated but he gave me a stern look.

"Tell me," he said, trying not to sound too harsh.

"It looks like a dog collar," I explained. "I just don't get it. I don't understand why you would want me to wear it."

"I guess that's a fair question," he admitted. "I'm sorry. I'm used to being with women who have done this before so I've never really had to explain it to anyone. I want you to wear it because it turns me on. It shows that you're mine, and I like that."

"I like that, too," I agreed. "I like it a lot."

"Will you try it on?" he asked.

I nodded so he placed the collar around my neck, tightened it and buckled it up. My body shivered as I felt his fingers against my skin and longed for more of his touch.

"To be honest, this is kind of new to me, too," he said and placed a trail of wet kisses right below the collar, giving me goosebumps. "I've collared women before but that was to remind them that they were mine to do with as I pleased. Which, of course, applies to you too," he added, grabbing my hair and pulling it down hard.

I closed my eyes as he nibbled and sucked on my earlobe, making me moan.

"But it's different with you," he continued. "I don't just want you to be mine when we have sex. I want you to be mine all the time. I want all of you."

That was all it took for me to change my opinion about the collar.

"I'll never take it off," I blurted out, causing Mike to laugh.

"You might want to take it off at work," he said and I knew he was smiling even though he still had a firm grip on my hair, making me look up at the ceiling. "I don't think it would go that well with your scrubs. I like the idea, though. I might have to find a more discrete one."

He let go of my hair and covered my eyes with a black tie that he tied around my head.

"Do you trust me?" he asked.

"Yes," I said without even thinking about it.

"Good."

He led me a few steps away, raised my arms over my head and attached my wrists to two handcuffs that must have been hanging from the ceiling. Then he unbuttoned my pants and slid them down my legs together with my thong, leaving me naked, vulnerable and very excited. I felt something cold against my ankles as he placed the leather cuffs attached to the spreader bar around them and buckled them tightly.

"Not that I think you'll want to close your legs," he whispered into my ear, "but it's a lot more fun this way because you'll be completely helpless and unable to resist what I've got planned."

"Just take me," I moaned. "Please!"

"Not yet," he said and let his fingers slide down my belly, around my waist and finally down to my inner thigh. He slowly moved his hand closer and closer to my pussy, wiping off the trails of juices that were running down my legs.

I moaned, waiting for him to plunge his long, delicate fingers deep inside me but instead, he teased me by running them around the entrance of my pussy. His touch was driving me crazy with desire and when he began probing just inside my opening I couldn't take it anymore. Instinctually, I pressed my hips forward and cried out in pleasure as his fingers slid further inside of me, but he quickly withdrew them and I suddenly felt a sharp, stinging pain on my right ass cheek.

"Is it really that fucking hard for you to stand still?" he asked harshly. When I didn't reply, he grabbed my hair and gave it a hard tug. "I asked you a question," he warned.

I swallowed, surprised and turned on at the same time.

"No, sir," I said. "I'm sorry."

Another hard slap came down on my butt in the exact same spot as the first one, increasing the burning sensation.

"I'll be right back," he said and left me alone for a few minutes, naked, blindfolded, tied up and insanely excited. I knew in that moment that he could have done anything he wanted with me. I was completely helpless and at his mercy and nothing turned me on more.

I heard his footsteps as he came closer but couldn't tell where exactly he was standing. Suddenly I felt something cold on my neck. It was so cold that it almost hurt a little as he slowly slid it across my collarbone and down to my breasts, circling them teasingly. I gasped for air as he pressed the melting ice cube against my nipple and cold water started running down my chest and my belly, giving me goosebumps. He unexpectedly sank his teeth into the oversensitive skin of my nipple and I cried out, more in surprise than anything else. He continued licking and sucking on it while sliding the ice cube down my stomach and over my hips. I became more and more aroused the closer he got to my pussy and was finding it really hard to stand still. My clit was throbbing and aching to be touched but the thought of something that cold being pressed against it made me a little nervous. As Mike held the ice cube a few inches below my belly button and the cold water ran all the way down to my swollen clit, I unintentionally pushed my hips away from his hand. Mike responded by placing the ice cube right on my clit, making me moan loudly. He started moving it in small circles, then he plunged his fingers into my desperate pussy, thrusting them in and out rhythmically.