A Year to Remember(51)
He eyed me suspiciously. “Why? Are you pregnant?” he asked, a little too loudly for my taste.
“No! No! I kind of hit my head and um, I probably have a concussion, so I’m not allowed to drink alcohol.”
Goldman’s demeanor went from playful to serious as he began to check my head for the lump. “How did you manage to bump your head, or do I want to know?”
“Ow!”
“Sorry,” he said with sincerity.
“I tripped and hit my head on the wall.”
“Don’t you think you should have gone to the hospital?”
“That’s what Caleb wanted, but I convinced him to let me call my doctor instead. I didn’t want to miss the wedding.”
Goldman made a noise deep in his throat that sounded almost like a growl. “You wouldn’t have been able to get away with that if you were with me.”
“Excuse me?” This conversation had taken a wrong turn at some point.
“What are you doing with a guy like Caleb?”
“What do you mean? What’s wrong with Caleb?”
“Not a thing for most women.” He paused, then put his hand on my cheek. “But you’re not most women.”
“Why is Caleb wrong for me?”
For once Goldman seemed at loss for words. “Because he isn’t Jewish.”
“So?” Not the answer I hoped for, but what else should I have expected?
He didn’t say a word, only held me a little tighter.
The song ended and the bandleader announced Jack and Jill would be cutting the cake. As I pulled out of his embrace, I thought he whispered something along the lines of “because he’s not me,” but I couldn’t be certain. My heart fluttered in my chest, but before I could ask him what he had said, Caleb came over to me to check in on my condition.
“How are you feeling?”
“I’m ready to go. Why don’t we say our goodbyes and go home?”
“I thought you’d never ask.” He kissed me full on the lips.
Although we should have said our congratulatory farewell to Jack and Jill, they were too busy smashing cake into each other’s faces. We decided they’d never remember if we said goodbye anyway.
I gave hugs to my brother and Missy, careful to ignore Goldman. But I still felt his eyes burning into my back as Caleb and I walked out of the room.
CHAPTER 20
MAY 27, 2012
DETROIT, MICHIGAN
WEIGHT: 183
STATUS: COMMITTED
Caleb and I got ready for bed in a manner reminiscent to old married couples. We each brushed our teeth, put on pajamas, and did all the routine things people completed before going to sleep. That confused me. We weren’t going to sleep, were we?
I slipped beneath the cool sheets lying on my back trying to determine if I should say something to Caleb or I should just make a move.
“You should probably wake up every two hours to make sure you’re rousable. You know, because of your concussion. Why don’t you set the alarm?” he suggested.
“I can think of a better way to wake up,” I teased.
“I thought you’d be too tired.”
“I’m not sleepy at all.” I flipped over on my side to face him and placed my hand on his crotch pleased to find him already erect.
“Oh God, Sara,” he cried and started to kiss me.
As he kissed me, Goldman’s face flashed in my mind and I replayed our conversation, analyzing everything for hidden meaning. What did he mean when he said I wasn’t like other women? In what way? I didn’t buy his lame explanation about Caleb not being Jewish. What did that matter?
The more I thought about it, the more I began to fill in the blanks.
After I said “Why is Caleb wrong for me?” he would answer “Because you need someone who’s passionate. Someone to make your toes curl when he kisses you. Someone who will make love to you thoroughly until you’re blissfully sated. Someone who will challenge you and at the same time understand you. A man like me.” Then, he would have claimed me with a passionate kiss, without caring who saw us.
“Are you sure you want to do this?”
“What?” Snapping back into the present, I found Caleb regarding me tentatively, again worried about my concussion. Right now, I just really needed to get laid so I could forget all about Goldman.
“Yes, I really do. Only ... ” Now seemed like as good as time as any to bring up orgasms.
“I understand your position about ... um… ... going down on me ... but if I don’t come from sex, then we need to ... figure out another way for me to have an orgasm,” I spit out before I lost my nerve.
“What do you suggest?” he asked, not sounding at all insulted. In fact, he sounded like he might be sort of into it.