Mistakes Ch 03

Jase watched Nia's departure with a grin on his face. He watched her hips and that lovely ass sway and almost cried. Damn, how he hated to see her leave but how he loved to watch her go.

Jase whistled as he thought of their date at 7pm. He was stoked, but they were definitely not going to Giorgio's. Hannah was always there on Fridays and to see she and her new lesbian lover would be too much for his ego to take. Plus, what he had in mind would definitely put him back in charge of their exchange.

**********************************

"Oh my god! Shut up!" Kimani clicked off the radio and rested her head on the car window. She and Harrison had been on the road for six hours and the rotation of Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran had given her a migraine that could rival childbirth.

Harrison looked at Kimani and sighed. She hadn't spoken to him since she got into the truck, glances, but no words. Maybe he had pressured her in therapy? She had been reluctant and he'd pushed her which if he knew his wife almost always backfired.

But what was he to do? In his defence he was only trying to save their marriage. If it was up to Kimani they would be in divorce court right now.

"Are you upset with me?"

"Are you serious?" Harrison nodded.

Kimani rolled her eyes.

"Yes. I mean we've decided to try and yet you haven't spoken to me the entire ride so I wanted to know, if you're upset with me?"

Kimani looked at Harrison's profile. His tense jaw and downturned eyebrows showed he was really upset and yet a little devil inside Kimani said, "Fuck his feelings. Who cares?" Kimani sighed because she did.

She knew that train of thought would do nothing for her marriage. "Appreciate him." She thought to herself before speaking.

"No Harrison I'm not upset with you I'm just tired is all." She watched the relief run over his face.

"Well, from what the GPS says we'll be at the cabin in thirty minutes. We can rest before dinner if you like."

"Okay." She whispered before turning back to the window.

When they finally reached the cabin Kimani was truly speechless. Never had she seen a sight in nature so beautiful before. Kimani hopped out of the truck and stood before the view. The Smoky Mountains just laid out for mankind's enjoyment. Kimani smiled. It was simply breathtaking.

She glanced at Harrison who had made his way to stand beside her. He had booked the mountainside chalet without any input from her and she was happily surprised.

"You did good Harrison. This is beautiful." Harrison felt his chest fill with pride.

"Thank you baby. I definitely had you in my mind when I chose it. Beauty on the outside and spectacular on the inside."

"There's more?"

"Of course there's more. We can't stand outside all night. They are bears up here."

Kimani thought of all the bear attack survivor stories she'd seen on Animal Planet and shook her head. She liked nature but being one armed from Yogi taking a bite of her, didn't seem fun.

"You're right. Let's go inside before we're eaten."

Harrison laughed and followed Kimani around the truck and to the trunk to grab their bags. Harrison grabbed Kimani from behind and kissed her neck.

"I don't think you're safe from being eaten inside either."

Kimani felt her skin tingle from his touch but quickly pushed his hands away when she thought of Dr. Rosenburgh's instructions.

"No sex Harrison." She reminded him as she picked up a bag and turned to face him. Harrison took the bag from her and sat it on the ground much to Kimani's chagrin.

"Harrison that's Louis V!"

"Whatever I'll buy you a new one but let's get back to this no sex thing."

"What's there to talk about? Dr. Rosenburgh said no sex so there will be no sexual intercourse around here."

"Who said anything about sexual intercourse? I just want to taste, not penetrate."

Kimani rolled her eyes and sighed. "What am I going to do with you?"

Harrison lowered his voice as he pushed against her. "Whatever you want, like, or need Kimani," Kimani's voice caught in her throat as his hand caressed her thigh. "I will do." He whispered as his hand drifted up her side.

Harrison couldn't stop himself from kissing her. All he wanted was to taste her, to feel her succulent lips against his. His lips moved over hers seductively. He knew that Kimani was feeling the heat he felt because she took control of the kiss.

Instead of the light coaxing he'd been going for, Kimani was serving up hard and commanding. Her lips and body were demanding a response and Harrison was happy to comply. He held Kimani's waist as he lifted her to sit on the edge of the truck bed.

He locked their lips together again and Kimani's arms wrapped around his neck. Her delicate hands trailed up Harrison's neck and at the feel of her fingers rubbing over his bald head, a place she knew was a highly erogenous spot for him, Harrison groaned, low and sexy, a sound that had Kimani sizzling from the top her head to the soles of her feet. She nipped at his lower lip and Harrison smiled that movie star smile before lifting Kimani's shirt to expose her lace bra encased bosom.

"Lace? Unexpected but duly appreciated." Harrison chuckled.

He kissed her neck and Kimani pressed her hands against his shoulders. Kimani knew this was so not what they were supposed to be doing but God it felt so good! She closed her eyes as Harrison's tongue licked her collar bone. Kimani knew that she was losing her sense of control. But before she could give in "No sex" flashed like a beacon behind her eyes and Kimani knew she had to stop. She tried to use his name as a warning but it came out more like a moan as his hand cupped her breast.

She bit her lip as Harrison ran his thumb over her nipple. He circled the sensitive nub until it was a hardened pebble straining against her bra. She tried to protest again but it was like he was deaf because his mouth lowered to Kimani's breast anyways, laving and suckling her nipple until she was arching into his touches. Harrison moved to Kimani's other breast but pushed down the lacy fabric to taste Kimani's pure skin. Her Hershey kiss nipple melted on his tongue and he knew that he had to have more. As his mouth worked her breasts his finger worked her jeans unbuttoning and unzipping until his hand had enough room to cup her mound. He felt her wetness and was overcome by the need to drink from her fount.

"Mani I need to taste you." He groaned against the flesh of her breasts and Kimani was thrown.

How had they gotten to this point? One minute they were barely speaking and the next they were on the fast track to fucking like monkeys. Something was wrong.

"Harrison, stop." Kimani commanded breathlessly.

"But---"

"No." Kimani pushed Harrison away and adjusted her clothes before hopping down from the truck.

"Kimani."

"Uh-uh." Harrison watched Kimani pick up her bag and walk away.

"Goddamn." He cursed as he picked up his bag.

Harrison locked up the truck and pondered Kimani's behavior. She was cold one moment and on fire the next and he just couldn't understand how a person could flip like that. From the ferocity she just displayed he knew she was just as desperate as he was but she wouldn't let go. They had been so close to getting what they both desired and she still held back. He had to figure it out because if his aching hard on was any indication this was going to be a painful weekend for both he and his balls.

Kimani was blown away by the cozy yet modern feel of the chalet's interior. From her tour of the two story home she discovered four spacious master suites with log furniture, private baths and jetted tubs, an outdoor hot tub, a pool table and the sweetest sets of rocking chairs placed on both of the covered decks. There she could breathe in the crisp Smoky Mountain air and woo-sah.

She chose a bedroom upstairs and unpacked, all the while pushing away the feelings that Harrison's impromptu fondling had evoked. Kimani heard a shower downstairs and smiled to herself, at least she wasn't the only one suffering from ending their trunk affair.

Kimani finished settling in and decided to test the comfort of those cute rocking chairs she'd noticed during the tour. Kimani plopped a squat in one of the chairs out on the deck and exhaled. She took in the sweeping view of the lush mountain foliage and distant mountain ranges and strangely felt better.

This place really was great. It was quaint but comfortable, relaxing, calming, and peaceful, so far from Kimani's reality that she couldn't help but feel the sword of Damocles dangling over her head.

Could this slice of serenity withstand the tumultuous emotions of a marriage on the rocks? It sure didn't look promising. She and Harrison had been at the chalet for all of forty-five minutes and had gone from 0 to 100 in under thirty seconds before crashing back to Earth in a blaze of avoidance and misplaced anger.

"Don't focus on the bad, only the good." Kimani thought to herself as she watched the most beautiful sunset she'd ever seen in her life. It seemed like every hue of heaven and earth were smashing into each other right before her eyes and it made her think of she and Harrison, of how they collide, slamming into each other, blending until all that's left are stars, shining just like their love. Kimani sighed.

How was she supposed to survive the weekend without giving into temptation? Her heart called for Harrison and her body, oh it screamed for him, and that combination with the knowledge that they were secluded had her better judgement flying the coop.

Kimani closed her eyes and was assaulted by images of Harrison's hands running up and down her bare flesh, his tongue making figure eights around her wet center, his cock filling her to capacity as she cried his name. Her mind was overtaken by those pictures of them colliding like a sunset. Kimani opened her eyes and realized the sun had disappeared below the horizon.

"Kimani?" She heard Harrison's voice and stood.

"Yeah."

"I...um...made reservations for Grace's Kitchen and...I, I" his voice kind of dried up as his eyes got a full drink of Kimani.

She was simply exceptional. Kimani watched Harrison's eyes darken and decided to nip what she knew would follow right in the bud.

"Umm okay. Well let me just shower and dress and I'll be ready in thirty." Kimani gently pushed past Harrison before hitting the corner and zooming up the stairs.

Harrison ran a hand over his face in exasperation. He hoped the Doc was right about this weekend because Kimani running from him like he had the plague was hurtful. And as if she was sitting on his shoulder the Doc's voice filled his ear encouraging him.

"Be optimistic. This is only the beginning. Forgiveness and reconciliation take time. She loves you and that's what you work from." Harrison went back in the house and poured a stiff drink. "I hope you're right Doc." He muttered before downing the glass.

*********************************

Jase pulled up to Nia's home and smiled. "Not what I was expecting but cute." He thought as he walked up to her door. He rang her doorbell and regretted it instantly when it screeched a noise that sounded like nails on a chalkboard. Nia opened the door and frowned.

"Don't use the doorbell."

"Got it."

"So?" Nia stepped onto her porch and Jase was dumbfounded.

"You look so...damn...like...just wow."

Nia beamed. She knew she'd done good with her dress. After her appointment earlier she'd went straight to Wolfchase Galleria to find a non-Harrison associated outfit and like a gift from God she stumbled upon the apricot body hugging dress that was currently driving Jase mad.

It was simply perfect. It complimented her skin tone, hid any indication of a baby bump with its peplum, and made her feel like a million bucks just like every good dress should.

"Thank you." She answered as she made a mental note to make Her-She her shopping destination from then on.

"You're welcome. So are you ready?"

Nia looked at Jase's attire and shook her head. "The question is are you ready? What are you wearing?"

Jase looked down at his jeans and fitted black tee and shrugged much to Nia's dismay. "You can't go into Giorgio's looking like that. There's a dress code."

Jase smiled deviously at Nia. "I know. That's why we're not going to Giorgio's."

"What do you mean, 'not going to Giorgio's'? I specifically said, 'Giorgio's'."

Jase laughed and Nia could feel her irritation rising. From the arm cross and tapping foot Jase knew he'd gone wrong with the laugh.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't laughing at you just the situation. You're upset because you think I didn't hear you, correct?"

Nia nodded her head.

"Well, I heard you but I also saw you too. And you know what I saw?"

"No."

"Nia, I saw a woman who desperately needs to have fun and the uppity atmosphere of Giorgio's is no place to do that at all. So let me give you a good time. Please?"

Nia thought it over and realized that she did want to have fun before life as she knew it burst into flames. With all the drama surrounding her a little escape from reality seemed like a ticket to heaven. She looked at Jase carefully and finally caved.

"Fine, but do I need to change?"

Jase's face lit up and Nia couldn't help the smile that formed on her own face. "No, but you are a little overdressed for where we're going."

"Oh, well I'll change. It won't take that long."

Nia opened her door to go inside and felt Jase following. She turned to him quickly.

"What are you doing? I'm just making a quick change. You can wait outside."

He looked at her like she'd taken his favorite toy. "Why? It's not like I'd steal anything."

Nia rolled her eyes. "But you're nosy and I don't want you snooping around in my house plus I just met you so the jury is still out about the stealing."

Jase gasped. "Me? But I'm the nicest guy I know."

Nia laughed out loud this time. "Right, well if you're so nice you won't have a problem waiting out on my porch."

It was Jase's turn to pout then as Nia slipped into her house with a wink and a "be right out".

He had never waited on a woman, ever, and yet here he stood like an idiot waiting on Nia's goddamn porch. Jase shook his head. Jase Hanson, player extraordinaire, expert heartbreaker, getting stopped on a stoop. "A shame." Jase muttered as he paced.

He'd come to her place to turn the battle of the sexes to his favor which he'd partially done by getting her to still say yes without Giorgio's in the cards but she unconsciously turned it right back to her side by dismissing him with that damn wink. But as annoyingly frustrating as the circumstance of working for a woman was, the process was actually exhilarating.

No one, not any of the bimbos or even Hannah had ever had the effect upon him that Nia had and he'd only met her that morning. The knowledge of this alone made her more significant than he liked to admit to himself and of course it made him of her, the only woman that he'd ever loved, his mother.

He remembered her smiling over him as she tickled him until he couldn't breath, her pushing him on the swings as he screamed to go higher, her crying as she discovered his father's many infidelities. He remembered asking why she stayed and she simply answered that she "loved" him and he vowed that day that he'd never fall in love.

He would never give someone the ability to hold his emotions over his head and Nia was no exception to that rule, period. And as if on cue, Nia came out in an outfit that was simply made to test his resolve. She had changed into a little white tank top and paired it with skinny blue jeans and wedges. It would be plain on anyone else but Nia made it so erotic.

The white of her tank contrasted with her dark chocolate skin perfectly and her breasts stretched the fabric so that their very peaks peered at him, beckoning his mouth to taste. He inhaled before allowing his eyes to trail down her body to the skin tight jeans that fit like a second skin. They flowed over her hips and thighs as if they were painted on and tapered down to peep toe wedge heels that made him wonder if he had a foot fetish since the sight of her aquamarine colored toenails were turning him on.

He shuddered a breath as his eyes made the way back up her body to her awaiting face. She gave him a knowing smile and he could feel the blush creeping up his neck. Nia locked her door and Jase's eyes moved on their own accord, zeroing in on her round ass. It looked made for him to hold onto, to plunge into, to smack until she screamed from pleasure and pain. It called to him and he had to answer.

Nia felt Jase's hands on her ass and resisted the urge to press against him instead she turned around and slapped the shit out of him.

"What the hell Jase?! I turn to lock my door and you cop a feel!"

She knew she had stunned him by the look of sheer shock on his face and then she saw the anger seep onto it. "Get this straight white boy, I'm not the black women you see on TV. I'm not some video hoochie or welfare baby mama or love and hip hop harlot panting after a check, I'm a real woman. A woman with a enough pride to have high standards and standards that include not getting groped by you. So get it together."

His jaw tightened but he said nothing. Nia pushed past him towards the black Camaro he'd parked in her drive and he followed hastily behind. He unlocked the car and they both got in. Nia buckled her seatbelt and made no attempt to speak or even look at Jase. But after a minute passed and he hadn't started the car she broke.

"Jase?" She looked at him and he sighed.

"I apologize Nia for my um...actions earlier. I really don't know what came over me and I did deserve your reaction to my advances."

With that Jase pressed the push to start button, put the car in gear, and drove away from her home. Nia watched Memphis fly past her window as Jase drove.

The city sped across her window as her mind raced to catch up.What had happened back there? She knew that Jase had been looking at her but had he really believed she wouldn't take offense to him groping her?

"You never have before." She thought to herself. Which was right because up until Jase she'd never refused an advance like that. In fact, if she had met him a few months ago she probably would not have even blinked. Instead she would have most likely pulled him into her home and given him the business until he tapped out. But that would have had to be before Harrison.

Before he made her feel like a woman, like a lady. Before he made her realize that she was worth more and deserved more. It would have had to be before he made her love him and definitely before she found out he was married. After that bombshell everyone was a suspect, Jase included.

"Jase?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you married?"

"What?!" Jase looked at her sharply and almost drove them off the road. He corrected the car and glanced at her before looking at the road again.

"Are you married?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Just answer the question."

"No, I'm not married and never have been."

"Okay." Nia exhaled.

"So can you answer my question now?"

"What was it again?" Nia fidgeted in her seat.

Jase looked over at her again and sighed. "Why would you ask if I was married?" Nia didn't want him to judge her so rather than go into detail of she and Harrison's affair she gave a sensible answer.

"Because it's one of my dealbreakers. I made the list a while ago after a Tough Love marathon and,"

"Married men are on the list." He finished.

Nia chuckled. "Right."

She sighed and rested her head against her car window. That was close. She'd almost let him know her deepest secret. She wondered what he would think if she told him. What would she say? Would she go in guns blazing like Joseline Hernandez, side piece royalty, talking about, "Yeah my baby's daddy has a wife and kid at home, and what? I'm still that bitch."