Sultry Summer

Lori Salter considered her reflection in the mirror as she applied her makeup. She liked having to get fixed up for work. It made her feel good about herself, and she needed that. Ted Davis, the stockbroker she worked for, insisted on professional dress. He allowed no slacks or any other form of casual clothing.

Since Lori had very little clothing when she started work, her boss had given her an advance on her pay - he said it was a clothing allowance, but she intended to pay it back - which allowed her to acquire a suitable wardrobe. Today she'd selected a black turtleneck dress with padded shoulders that fit her upper body snugly and flared into a long, sweeping skirt. Lori had the lithe body of a model and looked fabulous in the outfit.

She fed her son Donnie his breakfast, then she gulped down a cup of coffee and had a slice of toast and a half an orange before she left for work. It was as much as she'd eaten for breakfast for months. Then she got Donnie's things ready so she could dropped him off at the daycare center on her way to work.

Her boss, Ted Davis, was older, balding, and treated her as much like a daughter as an employee. He smiled when she walked into the office. "Good morning, Lori," he said. "Did you have a nice weekend?"

"It was great!" she replied. "Donnie and I are finally getting settled in to our new place."

"It's nice to hear that," Ted said. "By the way, you look gorgeous this morning."

Lori felt herself blushing. "Oh, Ted," she replied.

Ted smiled at her. "You really don't know how pretty you are, do you?" he asked.

Lori felt her face get hotter. "I'm not that pretty," she said, "and I'm too fat."

"I wish I had your weight problem," her boss said. He was portly and even his custom-tailored suits didn't hide that fact. "Raymond Damiano is coming in a little later to go over his stock portfolio," Ted said. "I'll be in my office."

Lori sat down at her desk and began working on some letters she had to type. "Raymond Damiano," she thought as her fingers flew over the keyboard, "God, he's so handsome! Just once, I wish someone like him would ask me out." She kept working and the morning flew by.

An hour later, a tall, tan, handsome man walked into the office. He wore a gray Italian cut suit, his black hair was styled perfectly, and he moved with cat-like grace. He walked up to Lori's desk and smiled at her. "Mr. Davis is expecting me," he said, "I'm..."

"Raymond Damiano," Lori said, then she felt her face get hot. "I...I know who you are."

"And who are you, may I ask?" the handsome man inquired. His blue eyes captured hers.

"Lori...ah...Lori Salter," she stammered in reply. She felt her face getting even hotter. "I...I'm new."

"I'm very pleased to meet you, Lori who's new," Damiano said. When he smiled at her, Lori felt funny inside. "I can't imagine how Ted manages to get any work done with someone as lovely as you in the same office."

Lori's face felt like it was burning. "Ah...Te...Mr. Davis, he...he's expecting, ah, you, Mr., ah, Damiano," she stammered. "He, ah, he said you...I...I should send you right in."

Mr. Damiano stayed at her desk and kept smiling at Lori, who began to feel like she was melting. "How long have you been working for Ted, Lori?" he asked.

"Ah...two...two weeks," Lori told him.

"I hope you don't think I'm being too personal, but are you married, Lori?" Mr. Damiano asked.

"Ah...I...I'm divorced," Lori replied. It was almost true. She'd filed for divorce, anyhow.

Mr. Damiano shook his head. "Any man who would let someone as beautiful as you are get away must be insane," he said.

"Mr. Damiano..." Lori murmured, more embarrassed than she could ever remember being. She was also feeling a bit overwhelmed.

"I'm so sorry," Mr. Damiano said. "I'm embarrassing you. Would you let me make up for embarrassing you by doing me the honor of having dinner with me tonight? If you're free, that is."

"Ah...sure, I...I'd love to," Lori said. She felt as if her heart would burst. He liked her! He had just invited her out to dinner!

"Wonderful!" Mr. Damiano replied, looking pleased that Lori had accepted his invitation. "I do have to talk with Ted, although I'd much rather spend the time with you. Would you please write down your address for me so I know where to pick you up? Will seven be all right?"

"Seven...ah...sure," Lori stammered. She wrote her address and phone number on a piece of paper and handed it to him. It wasn't easy because her hand was shaking.

Mr. Damiano took the paper from her, put it in his pocket, smiled at her again, then he walked into Ted's office.

Lori sat at her desk, staring after Mr. Damiano, her heart pounding, her mind awhirl. She couldn't believe it! He actually wanted to take her out! An important man like him! She'd seen his file and knew he was very wealthy. He lived in another state and had never come to the office before. She knew what he looked like because she saw his picture in a business magazine Ted had lying in the office.

She called Marie and made arrangements for her friend to take care of Donnie for the evening.

Mr. Damiano came out of Ted's office an hour later. "I'll see you at seven, Lori" he said, and left.

Lori's boss walked out of his office just as Mr. Damiano was leaving. "What was that all about?" he asked.

"Mr. Damiano invited me to have dinner with him tonight," Lori replied.

"Oh?" Ted asked.

"I can't believe it!" Lori gushed. "He's just about the most handsome man I've ever seen!"

"You sound excited," her boss said softly.

Lori was too excited to hear the hurt in his voice, or see the hint of pain in her employer's eyes. He'd had a crush on her from the day she came to work for him, but he couldn't muster the courage to do anything about it. He'd been widowed several years earlier and, although his daughter lived with him, he was lonely. He'd begun having fantasies that Lori might take an interest in him, but... "Lori, I'm very happy for you," he said. And, ironically, it was true. He cared enough about his new secretary to want to see her happy, and the dinner invitation certainly had made her happy.

"God, I'm so excited I think I'm going to bust!" Lori continued.

"I hope you have a wonderful time. If anybody deserves it, you do," Ted said, smiling weakly. He shrugged. "Well, I have to get back to work." He walked back into his office.

Mr. Damiano showed up at Lori's apartment exactly at seven and handed her a dozen long-stem red roses. She was so flustered she couldn't speak. "I...I don't know what to say," she stammered, "I...nobody ever...ah..."

Mr. Damiano looked at her, incredulous. "Surely you've been given roses before?" he asked.

"Ah...no...never!" Lori said. She kept staring at the box filled with flowers she held in her hands. "Ah...I...uh, I guess I ought to put them in water, huh?" she asked.

"If you want them to last," Mr. Damiano said. "Have you a deep vase and some scissors?"

"Ah...I, um, I, ah, think so," Lori replied. After searching for a while, she finally came up with a vase and pair of scissors.

"I'll show you what to do, so you know the next time someone brings you roses," Mr. Damiano said. He trimmed a little off the bottom of each stem, put them in the vase, then poured some powder from a packet in the box into the vase and added water. "The packet is a preservative florists always put in," he explained. "I'm not sure if it works or not, but it can't hurt to use it." He arranged the flowers a little, then stepped back and looked at them approvingly. "There."

"They're beautiful!" Lori exclaimed, hardly able to breathe.

"I suppose we should get going," Mr. Damiano said. "I've had a busy day and I'm ravenous."

"Uh, yes, of course," Lori said. She went to the closet and got out her coat. Mr. Damiano held so she could slip into it. She couldn't remember any man ever holding her coat.

Lori was stunned to find that Mr. Damiano had arrived in a limousine. "I...I never rode in a limousine before," she said once they were inside the luxurious vehicle, enroute to the restaurant.

"I perfer a limo," her date explained. "I can get more work done if I don't have to drive."

"I see," Lori said.

The restaurant where they dined was one Lori had heard of, but never dreamed she'd get to. She'd never eaten in a place where so many people fussed over you.

The maitre de seated them, then the wine steward appeared and Mr. Damiano ordered. It impressed her even more when he spoke to the wine steward in French.

Lori picked up the menu and was stunned. They charged more for some of their meals than she paid for food for an entire week!

"Do you like fish?" her date asked.

"Sometimes," Lori replied.

"The poached salmon here is superb," he said. "Care to try it?"

"I...I'd love to," Lori replied. She had no idea what poached salmon was, but she was willing to go along with anything Mr. Damiano suggested.

The wine arrived, and Lori sipped hers. "This is really good!" she exclaimed.

"I have a small investment in the vineyard in France where it's bottled," Mr. Damiano said. "In fact, the vintner sends me a case of his best every year."

He said it so matter-of-factly Lori didn't find his comment presumptuous. Didn't everyone get a case of fine wine from a prestigious French winery every year?

Their meal arrived. Lori tasted the poached salmon and found it every bit as good as Mr. Damiano said it would be. "I...I've never had fish that tasted this good," she admitted.

"It is excellent, isn't it?" Mr. Damiano agreed.

They chatted amiably during the meal. Lori learned that Mr.Damiano was an agreeable companion. He asked a few questions, listened well, and made her feel as if she were the only person in the world. She hadn't felt like that in a long time. Not since the night she met Bill Watson.

After the meal was done, her date ordered aperitifs, after they finished those, they had coffee. Lori wasn't sure what was coming next, and was a little scared. The night had been so wonderful she didn't want it to end.

"Well," her companion said finally. "I guess we should be going. I hate to. I've had a lovely time. You are a delightful dinner companion, Lori."

"Ah...thank you," Lori replied and felt herself blush.

"Would you think it presumptuous of me if I were invite you to my suite for a nightcap?" he asked.

"Ah...no...I...I don't think it would be, ah, presumptuous," Lori replied. "I...I'd love to." She couldn't believe it! First a limo, then the incredible meal, now an invitation to his suite!

Mr. Damiano smiled. "Fine," he said. "I'm delighted."

They were driven to the poshest hotel in Jamestown. The chauffeur held the door, Lori and Mr. Damiano got out of the limo, then he led her up to his penthouse suite on the hotel's top floor.

Lori was impressed. She'd been in hotels before, but this place was lots fancier than any ot the ones she'd been in! Mr. Damiano's suite was larger than her apartment! It had a sitting room, a small kitchenette, and at least one bedroom she could see through an open door. A small bar stood along the wall of the sitting room.

Mr. Damiano took their coats, hung them up, then walked to the bar. "What would you like?" he asked.

"Ah...whatever you're having," Lori replied.

He fixed their drinks, handed Lori hers, then walked to a stereo and turned it on. Soft, mellow music filled the room.

Mr. Damiano set his drink down and looked at Lori. "Care to dance?" he asked.

Thrilled, Lori nodded. She'd never been out with anyone who acted this way. She moved into his arms and almost swooned when his arms went around her. She laid her head on his shoulder as they moved easily around the room. He was an incredible dancer. She'd never felt this wonderful before! "Mr. Damiano, I..." Lori began.

He stopped dancing and, holding her in his arms, looked at her. "My name is Ray," he said softly.

"Ah...Ray," Lori said, "I'm really having a wonderful time."

He pulled her against him and they resumed dancing. "I'm glad," he said.

The music continued and so did their dancing. It was as if neither of them wanted the delightful contact of their bodies to end. At one point, when one song ended and the next hadn't yet begun, Lori studied Ray's face. He had the most incredible blue eyes!

"This...this is so wonderful!" she whispered.

"It is, isn't it," Ray said, then he bent his head and covered her lips with his.

Passion, which had begun to smolder in Lori's body as they danced, flared alive. Weakness swept over her. Deep inside her, something told her she shouldn't give in to the overwhelming feelings, but she couldn't stop herself. Her mind was a maelstrom of jumbled emotions and her body was trembling violently.

"My word!" Ray said when the kiss finally ended. He seemed to be having trouble breathing.

Lori's chest felt as if someone had put a steel band around it. Her heart was pounding so hard she was afraid Ray could hear it.

Mr. Damiano stroked her face lightly with his hand, then he slid it into the open neck of her dress. Lori's legs went weak. She wanted him more than she'd ever wanted anyone!

His hand moved onto her breast and he gently thumbed a nipple to full life as indescribable thrills rocked Lori. She tightened the embrace she had on Ray to keep from falling.

"Ohhhhhhhhh!!!!!" Lori moaned, her head lolling on her shoulders. "Oh, Ray!"

He scooped her up in his arms, carried her into the bedroom, laid her on the bed, and gently removed her clothes. All the time, he was stroking her softly, bringing her gently to higher and higher levels of ecstasy.

By the time Ray finished removing her garments, Lori had lost the capacity for rational thought. All she felt was powerful, undeniable need!

"Please!!! Oh, God, Ray, please!!!" she murmured. "I need you! Please, Ray! I need you!!"

"I know you do, my dove," Ray replied, his voice soft and hypnotic.

Then he was on the bed next to her, his body as bare as hers. Lori had no idea when he'd undressed. His hands and lips began moving over her lovely body, teasing her, enflaming her, driving her ever-wilder with longing. No man's touch had aroused her this powerfully before!

"Please, Ray!!! Oh, please!!!" she begged, "I need you!!! Please!!!"

"Have patience, my dove," Ray crooned, his voice thrilling her almost as much as his touch. "You'll have what you want. Believe me!"

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!" Lori cried when, suddenly, his mouth covered her vagina. Her hips shot up off the bed and her hands raked the covers as his lips and tongue drove her still wilder. "Gahhhhhhhhh!!!! I...I...Oh, God...I'm commmminnnnnngggg!!! I'm commmminnnnnnggggggg!!!! Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Ohhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!"

The orgasm passed and Lori body began to calm, but Ray's caresses continued. Once again, she felt the fires of passion flaring, and once more need filled her. She couldn't believe it! She couldn't recall the last time she'd felt the way Ray was making her feel! She hoped he'd never stop!

Slowly, gently, inexorably, Ray took the gorgeous young woman back to the peak of ecstasy. Her body was tingling and every nerve once again screamed out for release.

"I...I nee...need you!!!" she moaned, writhing, her arms reaching for him. "I...I need you!!! Please, Ray!!! Oh, please!!! Please!!!!"

Ray's muscular body rolled onto Lori's and she felt his erection prod the soft, smooth flesh of her belly. She was ecstatic! He wanted her, too! "Don't make me wait!!! Please, Ray!!!!" she begged, thrusting her hips at him. "Take me, Ray!!! Please!!! Take meeeeeee!!!"

"Your wish is my command, my dove," he said and reached between them.

Lori almost screamed with joy when his hard cock entered her. She was so turned on, she couldn't wait. "Commmminnnnnnnggggg!!!! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Gahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!" she shrieked, her hips thrusting and straining.

Ray didn't move. He kept his hips pressed against her and held the rest of his body above her on outstretched arms as paroxysms of joy wracked her. When the spasms of delight began to wane, Lori felt him start to thrust into her. Slowly, ever so slowly, he moved. Lori had been fearful her abrupt coming would be her last, but once his movements began, she knew that wasn't so. Once more, as joy suffused her and she began to tremble. She locked her slim, shapely legs behind his and began matching his thrusts with urgent movements of her own.

It seemed to Lori as if their joining would never end. She'd never experienced anything like what Ray was showing her! He seemed to sense when she was about to explode and, just when she felt she couldn't wait, he would pause and let her calm. Then after a bit, he'd begin again, stroking into her gently, bringing her back to the very rim of delight.

She looked up at him and he smiled down at her. "Come, my love," he said softly. "Come for me."

It was as if a tightly coiled spring suddenly was unleashed in Lori's body. "Yesssssssss!!! Oh, God!!! Yessssss!!!! Yesssssss!!! Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! Ahhhhhhhh!!! Oh, God!!! Oh, God!!! Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Ohhhhhhhhhh!!!" she groaned as another orgasm, the most stupendous yet, tore through her.

"Gggggggahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!" Ray cried then, his hips pressing down against her as his hot juices exploded into her.

Spent, they lay in each other's arms for a long time. Ray continued to stroke and caress Lori gently, and showered her with a continuous stream of soft, endearing comments as he did. She had never felt so appreciated in her life!

Later, they were lying spoon-fashion, with Lori's back to Ray. He was caressing one of her breasts and she was quivering as once again her body responded to his touch. She felt his cock begin to swell and press against her buttocks.

"Mmmmmmmm!!!" she murmured and wriggled her bottom against his growing hardness.

"You like that, do you, my dove?" Ray asked. His thumb and forefinger captured one of her rigid nipples and twisted it gently.

Lori groaned louder. She couldn't believe how wonderful he made her feel!

"You're an insatiable little minx," he whispered. "I like that."

He slid his hand over her belly and onto one of her thighs. Lori felt him urge her leg back over his then, suddenly, wonderfully, his hard cock was sliding into her again. Passion rose as the wonderful wand of flesh filled and thrilled her.

"I never...Ohhhhhh!!!...never knew you could...Ahhhh!!!...make love like...Ohhhh!!! this," she gasped as his shaft plumbed her depths. Her moans of joy grew louder when his hand glided onto her clit and began twirling the rigid, hyper-sensitive bud of flesh.

"Can't wait!!! Oh, Ray!!! I...Ohhhhhhh!!! Too good!!! Oh!!! Oh!!! Oh!!!!" she cried. "Gaaaaaaadddddddd!!!! I'm there!!! Already!!! I'm there!!! Yessssss!!! Oh, Ray, yessssssssssssss!!!! Ohhhhhhhhhhh!!!! Ohhhhhhh!!!!" Lori quaked with the throes of passion as he jammed into her and twirled her clit.

"Darling!!! Uhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!" Ray groaned, then he exploded, filling her with heat and wetness once more.

When he finished, Ray held Lori against him, his hands still moving over her. "That was magnificent, my dove!" he whispered in her ear, "You are truly magnificent!" He kissed her softly on the neck. "I know you'll think I'm being ungrateful, but I'm afraid you'll have to leave now."

"But..." Lori stammered. Cold fear washed over her. Had she been wrong? Was Ray just like the others, only, perhaps, a bit more polished? She couldn't speak.

"I have to be up very, very early..." he went on, "and you have to get to work in the morning. I think it would be best if you went home."

"I...I don't want to leave," Lori protested.

"I wish you didn't have to, my dove," he said, "but tonight, I think it's for the best. I have to be in Montreal early tomorrow." He studied her face. "Don't look so sad, my dove, I'll be back in town Wednesday for another meeting with Ted. Would you care to spend the evening with me again?"