Promises

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons is entirely coincidental. All characters depicted in sexual situations are at least eighteen years old.

As always, any political, social or religious views in this story are those of the characters and their circumstances, and don't necessarily reflect those of the author.

*****

PART FIVE -- A Looming Danger from the North

It's Destinee, live and in the flesh, standing right there in front of me. I'm in complete shock for several long seconds.

"Are you going to invite me in or just stand there with your mouth hanging open," she eventually says, with what I'm sure she means to be a lighthearted smile, but I can see the calculation behind it. Still, I don't want to be rude, so I reluctantly step aside and motion her in.

She's wearing some kind of wispy, sarong-ish dress that wraps around her amazing body with no visible means of support. It covers everything, yet hides nothing.

"What are you doing here?" I manage to say through my shock.

Destinee takes a deep breath. "Peter, I'm

so

sorry about what happened last week. It took me a few days, but I finally realized I'd been truly unfair to you. You've worked so hard to make yourself a better man and I'm afraid I didn't give you enough credit for that. I realize now that I did you wrong, getting mad at you for not breaking your promise to that girl. I mean, isn't a man who can keep a promise just what someone like me should be looking for?"

She's delivered her obviously prepared remarks reasonably well. A few days ago, I'd have been willing to call them good enough, but now I'm with Kira.

"Look, Destinee, I've-"

"Peter," she says, cutting me off, "I borrowed some money from my dad, and I've gotten a room here at the resort. Why don't you let the girl have this room all to herself and join me in mine?"

"Uh..."

Seeing that I'm not yet buying into her plan, Destinee takes it a step further. "Here, let me give you a taste of what we'd be doing." With that, she reaches behind her neck and releases something. Her single garment appears to unwrap itself and pool around her on the floor. She was wearing nothing else.

In times past, her extraordinarily beautiful naked body (with not even a G-string this time) would have been enough, but I have no intention of making love with her now, even if I hadn't made that promise to Kira. Destinee is no longer my vision of what I want. Still, my autonomic systems are working quite well, thank you, and as would be expected at the sight of a very attractive naked woman, are making my cock rise to attention. Fortunately, it's covered by my robe.

When I don't react, Destinee evidently decides to go for broke. Dropping to her knees in front of me, she pulls my robe open and wraps one hand around my hardening member, all in one quick, smooth motion. She looks up at me with those big eyes and reveals just how desperate she is. "I'm going to drink your cum," she says.

I'm so shocked by this unexpected development that it takes me a moment to react. By the time my hands wrap around her head to pull her away, her mouth is just inches from my rising cock. It's at this moment that Murphy's Law would dictate that the door should open. It does indeed, revealing the shocked face of a girl I've promised never to hurt.

Kira stares in horror at Destinee's open mouth and my exposed member. It's a nightmarish scenario and, for a moment, words fail me. I can see that the tears are already starting to form in her eyes when I finally find my voice. "Kira, I

promise

you that this is not what it looks like."

My words have zero effect, and I can hardly blame her. Any reasonable person could draw only one conclusion from what she's looking at. Kira bolts. I can hear her bare feet as she sprints down the hall toward the elevator. Her heartrending sob is clearly audible.

I don't know how I'll ever be able to get her to believe another word I say, but I head for the door anyway. Seeing that, Destinee clutches the hem of my robe in a death grip. "No, wait!" she cries, hanging on tightly. I wrestle with her for a long moment, but then just shrug out of my robe, leaving it in Destinee's hands. I race for the hallway, snagging my keycard from the little table next to the door, then sprint flat out for the elevator. The doors are just closing.

"Wait, Kira,

please,"

I yell. "Don't go." My hope of seeing her small hand appear and reverse the doors is unrealized. I watch them close before I can wedge any fingers into the opening. I despair as the LED numbers above the doors march steady and true, all the way down to the lobby, seven floors below. There's no way I'll be able to catch her now, and trying to do so in my current state of undress will only get me in trouble.

I suppose my next move is to contact Anna, because where else would Kira go?

Warm arms wrap themselves around my body as Destinee catches up with me. Showing a level of commitment that I wouldn't have previously credited her with, Destinee has chased me down the hall buck naked. I know how strongly she feels about nudity and start to reconsider her motives. Have I been reading her wrong? Does she actually have such powerful feelings for me?

"She's gone, Peter," she murmurs. "Come on, let's go to your room so I can show you just how much I want you back. There's no harm in that

now

, is there?"

I can't think of anything I want less, but beyond that, I'm not understanding her motivations. What has changed in the last few days that's caused her to alter her opinion of me so radically? Borrowing money and flying to Mexico would be a big deal for a girl who works at a salon.

"Actually, Destinee, there

is

harm in that." I firmly break her arm lock on me and hold her wrists so that she can't turn away. "I don't

want

you anymore, because I love Kira like I've never loved anyone before."

Destinee sags a bit, but she's not done arguing. "You'd have let me do it if she hadn't arrived when she did. You would have quit fighting me."

"Not in a million years. I promised Kira that I would never go behind her back. I would never break that promise, especially with

you

."

She sighs. "Okay, I'll admit it. I could see it in your eyes that you weren't going to let me, but it doesn't matter now. She walked in at the perfect moment. I couldn't have

staged

it better. She'll never believe you weren't going to let me give you a blowjob."

"Then I'll spend the rest of my life trying to convince her of it if I have to."

"Sure, you could try that, but even if you get her back, she'll eventually see through your act and realize that it's all a front."

I shake my head. "I've already told her the truth about how I interact with people, but believe this or not, when I'm with her, I don't have to work very hard to keep up my front. I can interact with Kira almost like I have no disability at all."

Destinee looks me right in the eyes, searching for the truth. I think she finds it. "Wow, I think you're actually serious. You really

do

love that tiny little thing, don't you?"

"I do."

"Fuck, I flew down here for nothing. Let me back in your room so I can get my clothes."

"Not so fast. I want to know what possessed you to come here, especially after all the things you said when you left me."

I glance down the hallway. There are two doors open with people staring at the naked couple in the hall. Destinee turns and looks too as a third door opens.

"Dammit Peter, I need my

clothes

." She tries to pull free of my grip, but I'm not letting go.

"Tell me, Destinee, or we stand right here until Security arrives." She's like a caged animal now, desperate to get away. "Right now," I reiterate firmly.

She stops struggling. "Okay," she hisses, "when I left you on Saturday, I forgot to take that gold necklace you gave me. I called but got no answer, so I went over to your place. You weren't home, but I know your alarm code and where you hide a spare key."

"Holy shit. You listened to my answering machine, didn't you?" She just glares at me. "You know, nothing would give me more pleasure than going back into my room and leaving you naked in the hall. 'Fess up right now or I

will

."

Destinee blanches. "Okay, yeah. I listened to your machine and heard the messages from Bob."

"Good enough, I guess. You can have your clothes." I let go of her and we head down the hall to my room. She's none too pleased when I don't let her in, instead making her wait alone in the hall for a few seconds while I snag her lone garment.

"Don't let me see you again," I warn her. "You've caused enough damage." She says nothing, just taking her dress and running for the stairwell to put it on.

I quickly grab clothes of my own out of the closet. I don't know if I can ever get Kira to trust or believe in me again, but I need to find her if I'm going to have any shot at all.

I'm just starting to slip a leg into a pair of boxer shorts when the lock clicks again. To my utter disbelief,

Kira

walks in.

"Kira, thank God you came back. Please let me explain."

"Shhh," she murmurs, finger to her lips. Then, to my further amazement, she shrugs out of her robe. Of course she's still nude underneath. In wonder, I watch as she walks up to me and takes my mostly flaccid member in her hand. Bending her head down only slightly so that she can reach, she experimentally takes the head into her mouth.

I groan, more from the very idea that Kira is back with me for some unknowable reason than from the sensation, as good as it is. The thought goes through my head that perhaps she's planning on waiting until I've become complacent, then biting the tip of my dick off. I dismiss that as silly; no matter how badly she feels betrayed, she would never do that to me.

It takes me very little time to respond to her touch and I quickly become erect as she holds me in her mouth. I can feel her tongue experimentally feeling around, bathing my glans and teasing the little hole at the end. I know that Kira has never done this before, but it's still an astounding feeling, marred only by the fact that I still don't know where we stand. Is this some kind of kiss goodbye? Her obvious sense of wonder as she explores me gives me hope that maybe it's not.

I begin to run my fingers through her thick, dark hair as she caresses my scrotum with light touches of her fingers. Her other hand begins to run up and down on my shaft. I've gotten this service from girls with a lot of experience, but Kira's earnest enthusiasm more than makes up for her lack of technique.

Kira experiments with taking me to the back of her throat, and gags slightly. She persists, though, and then begins to bob, taking what she can of me into her little mouth. Soon, her saliva begins to run down me, providing lubrication for her hand. She begins to stroke me with more authority. I'm nowhere near coming yet, but I begin to shake from the sheer, unbelievable intensity of it. I grab a hold of the dresser for support.

Kira's other hand leaves my balls, then reaches between my legs and begins to caress my anus. The sensation is astounding. I can feel that if she keeps this up, I won't last long. Then she becomes more insistent, pushing her fingertip in, just a little, until the sensation is almost more than I can bear. Indeed, I can feel my release building, ready to break at any moment. I don't recall going from flaccid to ejaculation this quickly

ever

, not even in my teen years, but I don't find it even remotely embarrassing.

"Kira," I gasp, "I'm about to come." She appears not to hear me, but I'm now past being able to give any further warnings. With a groan, I let loose.

Kira might have thought she was ready, but the first burst into her mouth still catches her by surprise and she jerks away from me. The next one paints her neck and she backs off a little further. Her eyes are wide as the last few ropes land on her bare chest.

The instant I'm done, I pick her up and crush her to me. Kira smells strongly of lavender and her skin is slightly slippery. I guess that she's probably fresh from the massage table. Her lips seek mine and we begin to kiss. She's already swallowed what little ended up in her mouth, so my taste isn't strong, but I wouldn't care if it was.

We kiss for a minute, but then I can feel Kira begin to shake. A moment later, she starts to cry. I keep her wrapped in my arms and cradle her head to my shoulder. "Hey, it's okay," I murmur. "It's all going to be okay." I just hold her close and rock her until she's ready to talk about it.

"I'm so sorry, Peter," she finally manages to say. Hearing

sorry

from her isn't at all what I'm expecting.

"

You're

sorry? You have nothing to apologize for, Kira," I say softly. "

I'm

the one who hurt

you

. But please let me explain what was going on."

"No need. I heard you talking to the bitch in the hall."

"But you were down in the lobby and..." I think it through. "You were in the vending room, weren't you?"

"Yeah." Sniffle. "Someone was getting on the elevator as I ran down the hall. I could have made it easily, but then I realized that you'd looked me right in the eye and

promised

that it wasn't what it looked like. I didn't know how it could be anything else, but I

know

you take your promises seriously. I needed to think about that, and without anyone seeing me crying, so I tucked myself in behind the Coke machine."

"So you heard that I wasn't cheating on you?"

"Yeah."

"If you'd have shown up five seconds later, you would have seen me shoving her naked ass out into the hall, dress in hand."

Kira looks directly into my eyes, smiling at that happy image. "I believe you."

"Thank God," I murmur. "So why did I get that most wonderful of experiences when you came back in?"

"You know, I'm not even totally sure myself, but after I ran off without even giving you a chance to explain, then heard the truth about what was really going on, I felt like I'd acted childishly. I guess part of me was thinking that if you were willing to turn down a blow job from such a beautiful woman because of

me

, I needed to show my appreciation by giving you one of my own."

"Well it certainly was unexpected, but I have to tell you, Destinee never did it even a tenth as well as you just did."

Which is true, and not just because Destinee had never let me come in her mouth. Kira's gift was real and full of love and caring. Anything I would have received from Destinee would have been purely cynical.

Kira's not quite ready to believe just how well she's done her first time out. "You're full of it, Peter," she laughs, but I can tell that she's pleased with herself for bringing me off that way. "I

will

get better at it, I promise."

"If you get any better, I probably won't survive the experience. Let me ask you, though, how did you manage to arrive just when you did?"

"Well, I got my massage, which really

was

to die for by the way, but then I was kicking back in a comfy chair, sipping a latte and waiting for the rest of the treatment. It's enough darker in the spa that the glass is one-way, so I saw it when Destinee walked through the lobby and onto the elevator. I couldn't believe it at first, but there can't be two women that look like her and there was only one place she could be going. I set my latte down and headed right out the door.

"By the time I got to the elevator bank, I saw that her car had stopped on our floor. It seemed to take forever, but I caught the next one and found myself standing in front of our room. I was afraid to open the door, but I did."

"Can I tell you exactly what happened in that minute she was in here?"

"Please."

So I give her the gory details. "Look, there's no excuse for my having let her into our room at all, especially when you weren't here."

"It's easy to make judgements in retrospect, but it's a lot different when it's actually happening," she says. Then a look of curiosity comes over her pretty face. "I think I heard you using a certain

word

when you were talking to her about me?"

I know exactly which one she means. It's not one that I've ever used with a woman before. Not honestly anyway. There's no use denying it now either.

"Kira, I

do

love you."

She beams. "I love you too, Peter. It was the fear that I might be losing you that made me realize it."

"Same for me." Kira cranes her neck up, so I sit her more upright and we kiss for a good long while.

At last we come up for air and I lie back on the bed, taking Kira with me. She assumes the position she'd woken in that morning, spread out across my chest. It feels wonderful as I gently stroke her back and shapely bottom.

"Peter," she eventually says, "I still don't understand why she came down here, trying to get you back. I mean,

she

broke up with

you.

You said something about an answering machine?"

"Yeah, my patent attorney was trying to get ahold of me and left a message that Destinee played back when she was in my shop."

"What exactly was it that she heard?"

"Well, it involves IWSS Industries, right next door in Saint Paul. They're one of the largest warehouse equipment system manufacturers in the world. I gave them a full demonstration of my ideas a couple of months ago. They showed an interest in licensing one of my fourteen patents. I figured I could see as much as four or five hundred thousand dollars out of it. Bob called to say that they've finally made an offer, but now they want more than one patent."

"Awesome! How many?"

"All twenty-three of them, as it turns out. They've looked it over and evidently think they could hit a home run and be years ahead of the competition if they implement my whole system in one fell swoop. They're convinced it will work -- as well they

should

be."

"And that means?"

"Their offer for a five-year, exclusive rights deal to those patents was for eighteen million, but Bob thinks we can hold them up for at least twenty-five."

"You did say

million

dollars?"

"That's just for the exclusive

use

of the patents for five years. They didn't bother to try and buy them from me outright. They know they can't afford them."

Kira's eyes are bugging out.

"Look," I say, "this isn't some kind of overnight success story. I've worked fourteen hours a day, seven days a week on this for better than five years. I've patented the ideas, built detailed engineering prototypes, completed hundreds of drawings, and created a well-developed beta program for running it. My work is going to make them a pile of money."

"How do you

do

all that? Working so hard and figuring out how to do all that stuff?"

I shrug. "It's just the way I'm wired."

My best private theory is that all the mental capacity that normal people use to instinctively understand social cues, instead manifests itself in my engineering abilities. I usually think several steps further down the line than other engineers. By the time I commit anything to paper or CAD software, I've already got it figured out. The rest is just transcription.

"So, you're about to become a multimillionaire?"

I think about that for a moment, slightly startled. I honestly hadn't thought about it that way. To me, the number of zeroes is only important for purposes of vindication of my work, but come to think of it, yeah, I'm about to become relatively rich.

"I guess that's what it boils down to."

"Well, I can see why Destinee was after you then. I'm just glad I latched onto you before I knew about that. I wouldn't want people to think of me as a gold digger."