"It happened more than ten years ago. How would they?" Chantelle's voice was more hopeful than convinced. She knew all it took was them finding the right person.
"Your parent's friends, or their neighbors, or the young man's parents-you'd be surprised what people say and do for money or the chance to be quoted in the news. Your father and his lover may have struggled financially after uprooting themselves and moving to another part of the country. They may need the money. They would be paid well for an exclusive story. Even if they are now separated, either or both of them could make money from telling their story."
"I would prefer them not to print the story," Chantelle admitted. "Shawn and Cerise know what happened, but we've never told Charmine, so she thinks that Dad's her father, too. If the story came out I would explain to her … I think she'd be fine. And," she continued with a hint of defiance, "my father is not the first gay man to father children nor is my mother the first alcoholic!"
"I have several contacts in the media. If I get wind of the story before it broke, I will do my best to suppress it," he promised. "But we have to expect the worst case scenario."
"I know."
He cleared his throat before continuing, "They may also print stories of my previous relationships."
"I think most of them are mentioned on your Wiki page. Black, white, Chinese, Indian … they're like a rainbow coalition! Do you actually have a type?"
"Beauty for me isn't defined by race. It's the way my body responds to a woman that matters to me. " He squeezed her fingers again and she tensed, waiting for his next revelation. "I've remained friends with many of them and they can be enthusiastic in their greetings when we meet. You have to take my word that I'm not sleeping with any of them. I won't shun a woman who once shared my bed."
"Provided you don't expect me to stand meekly beside you while some woman tries to suck your face off!"
"They're much more subtle than that," he assured her. "I'm eager to take you to my little island and see your reaction. Some of my friends have unusual tastes and desires. I don't judge anything they do, once it's legal. A few are bi-sexual, even gay I suspect, but publicly they date women to keep up appearances. I have no interest in other men. I don't even indulge in anal-"
"Well thank God!" Chantelle said with feeling. "I thought we'd have a huge fight over that!"
"You have a very pretty ass, but you can rest assured I have no interest in fucking it." He smacked the left cheek of her behind playfully. "Though, you may have to dress in school uniform and be spanked by a sexy headmaster who looks remarkably like me."
Instead of feeling scandalized as she may have been mere months ago, Chantelle laughed and asked tartly, "Doctor, headmaster-how many professions do you practice?"
"I've been pastor, pilot, plumber … Prince Charles, The Rock-"
"Prince Charles?" Chantelle almost fell over in astonishment.
"I'll have you know some women find me quite sexy." Dominic's delivery of the Prince's aristocratic tones was flawless. Chantelle clutched her stomach and slid to the floor laughing. She almost expired when he continued, "Should one call Rogers to assist you up, my dear?"
"Stop. My stomach hurts," she protested. "Please don't make me laugh anymore!"
"You don't laugh enough." He pulled her to her feet and slid his finger under the top button of her denim dress and expertly popped it open before moving to the other. "When Rogers showed you in today, I thought you were going to tell me that you wanted to end the relationship."
"Wait!" She stilled his hands and locked gazes with him. "If I walked away from us, I know I would regret it for the rest of my life, so I'm going to give us a chance and see where life takes us. All I ask that you be honest with me." Chantelle stepped out of his reach, picked up the remote control from the side of his bed that looked like something out of a Sci-Fi novel and pointed it at a small glass-fronted panel in the wall. He patiently let her fumble her way around the unfamiliar menu until she found what she wanted. "I want you to listen to this song which pretty much sums up my feelings."
"I know A Woman's Worth," he said as the introduction of the song flowed around them, perfectly illustrating the term ‘surround sound'. "I've even heard Alicia sing it live."
"In concert?" Chantelle would give an eye tooth to see the woman perform live.
"In my friend's lounge." Dominic smiled. "It was his wife's thirtieth birthday. She was stressed that she was getting old and worried he would find some eighteen-year-old to replace her. She didn't want people to know how old she was and didn't want a big party. He threw her an intimate party with just twenty of us and hired her favorite singer as a special treat."
"Damn, you guys know how to party right!" She slowly undid the second button on her dress. "I can't afford Alicia live, but I want you to listen to the words." They conveyed everything she wanted to say to him and more. She held his gaze as she slowly and provocatively stripped down to her lacy bra and panties.
"I need to hold you." He got off the bed, now stripped down to skimpy black underwear and placed his hands on her lower abdomen and followed the movement of her hips. Chantelle threw her head back onto his shoulder and gripped his arms for balance as he matched his moves to hers. They continued to sway to the music, his delicious hardness throbbing impatiently against her behind. "I do know your worth, baby, and I promise I'll never take you for granted."
He nibbled on her earlobe when the song ended and brought his right hand up to the smooth curve of her stomach. He stilled in surprise as he encountered the new addition to her body. "What's this?"
She was turning to face him even as he was spinning her around.
"I've always liked the look of them, so I thought I'd start with a less sensitive part first," she explained as he admired her newly-pierced navel.
"It's so beautiful!" He fingered the stud carefully. "When did you get it done?"
"Five days ago."
"It's still tender, then. Remind me if I get carried away and jar it." He lifted her bodily and marched to the bed. "I need to be inside you right now, baby."
Laying her on the bed, he ripped off her lace-trimmed sheer bra and then snapped the sides of the matching panties.
"I bought these only yesterday!" she complained, reveling in his caveman tactics.
"Next time don't wear any," he advised, barely taking a moment to push his briefs down and sheath himself before sliding inside her with one powerful lunge. "I missed you so much, baby."
"Just one thing, honey." Chantelle held his head between her palms and stared straight into his eyes. "I'm a real woman and all that, but don't you dare come before me!"
Dominic's laughter echoed in the room.
Then he got down to the business of pleasuring his woman.