Lulu's Loves Read online

  “I haven’t had them, but I hear the red beans and rice is really good.”

  I peeked at him over the top of the menu. He laughed.

  “There will be no beans,” I said.

  “Huh?” he questioned. “It’s one of their specialties.”

  “No beans, your plate or mine. No beans.” At last, he realized what I was insinuating.

  Suddenly, he was attempting to contain a big belly laugh, and then I started to giggle.

  “Stop it or they’ll ask us to leave,” I said, between body shaking giggles.

  The waitress approached and Thom just laughed harder. She just looked at him. Finally, I put my head down on the table because I knew I was going to start laughing harder.

  “Sorry. Sorry,” he said. “She just said something, so surprising, that I lost it.” He pulled it together, sitting up straighter in the chair, attempting to keep a straight face.

  I peeked and the waitress was laughing. “Want me to come back?” she asked.

  He nodded. “In just a minute, so we get ourselves back on track,” he said, but I heard the gurgle of laughter he was trying to contain.

  When she walked away, I raised my head. I could see those around us stealing glances, wondering what on earth had us so tickled. I sat up straight, smoothed my napkin on my lap, and took a sip of water.

  “I’m good,” I said.

  “Yes. Yes, you are,” he said with a ‘chk’ and a wink, and I started to giggle again.

  He waved the waitress over, as I put my head down once again. He rose and pulled his wallet from his pocket. He handed her some cash.

  “We can’t keep it together, and we don’t want to disturb the other guests.” He reached for my elbow and helped me up, leading me to the door. We got to the street and both of us were laughing like idiots.

  “It wasn’t that funny! But watching you trying to keep from laughing out loud killed me!” I snorted.

  “And your face as you tried not to laugh–my God, your cheeks were puffed out. I was afraid if you didn’t laugh, you’d blow! Oh, how I love you, Lulu.”

  He grabbed me in a hug, lifting me off my feet to kiss me. “Let’s go order room service,” he whispered in my ear.

  “This is a much better idea anyway,” he said after he’d placed our order. “I don’t have to share you with anyone. I wish we could stay a week. I’ll hate seeing you leave.”

  “I don’t want to think about it yet,” I told him.

  “I don’t think I can explain how much I’m enjoying this time with you.”

  “I feel the same way.” I looked down, thinking. “I’m afraid about all of this.”

  “The distance?” he asked, as though he knew my thoughts.

  I nodded.

  “If you want it to work, we will make it work.”

  “What do you mean, if I want to?”

  “I already know that I have the will and there will be a way. I’m not sure what you want, Lulu. You have to tell me.”

  “You. I want you, Thom.”

  There was a knock at the door. Thom opened it and a young man with a pizza was waiting on the other side. When he returned, Thom grabbed a bottle of wine from the collection on the counter and opened it, pouring us each a glass.

  “St. Augustine,” he said while we ate. “It’s a place I’ve never been. I’ve read about it, read of places I want to explore there. We can go there. I can stop in Jacksonville and meet your dad, and then we can go to St. Augustine.”

  Meet my dad…

  “I’d like that.”

  “Soon, Lulu.”

  He set the pizza box aside and poured more wine in our glasses. He took my hand and led me to the sofa. I sat beside him. There was no conversation, just quiet. I wondered what he was thinking.

  I leaned closer and slipped my hand to the back of his head, drawing him close. “Penny for your thoughts,” I whispered in his ear.

  “Just you, Lulu. You consume me. You have become my every waking thought. I’ve never experienced anyone like you before. You hesitate, but when you let go, it’s so freeing. You are a beautiful woman. I want you like nothing I’ve ever wanted. I need you like nothing I’ve ever needed.”

  He pulled me closer, placing his lips on mine in a tender kiss. It was sweet, and then it was hot and desperate. “I want to make love with you.”

  “With?” I looked in his eyes and they seemed to smile back at me.

  “I want you to make love with me, too.”

  He led me to the bed. He began to shed his clothes quickly. I did the same. Joining me, he straddled me and leaned forward to kiss me. I could feel his erection touching my stomach. I reached for him. He sucked in a breath and rolled off to my side.

  “I want to touch you,” I whispered.

  “Where do you want to touch, Lulu?”

  “Where it pleases you most,” I answered. “Because it matters to me. I don’t want to be a selfish lover.”

  “Lulu. That’s one of the sexiest things anyone has ever said to me.”

  The kiss we shared was sweet. It was romantic. I moved to straddle him, my knees at his sides. I leaned forward to kiss behind his ear. He tightened his arms around me. I wriggled free and moved to kiss his shoulder. His fingers lightly brushed my back and I could feel him getting harder. Moving to his chest, I raised up to watch his reaction. I traced feathery light circles around his nipples. At first, he seemed surprised, and then he smiled. Feeling brave, I leaned toward him and brushed his nipple with my tongue. His hands on my shoulders tightened and I looked up. His face showed pleasure, so I moved and did the same to the other nipple. He was getting harder and I flashed a smile.

  “Lulu,” he whispered.

  I moved to his side and lightly sucked the nipple into my mouth, running my tongue around it. When I was done, I took his hand and kissed the palm.

  “Jesus, Lulu.”

  At the same time, I reached for him. I heard his breathing change. He was getting anxious. He reached for my hand to guide it to his erection, moving it so that I was pleasing him. He quickened the pace and I felt his body tense. All of a sudden, I felt him touching me. He was pleasing me while I was pleasing him. I closed my eyes because I couldn’t concentrate.

  “Lulu, I’m ready.” His breathless declaration excited me. Suddenly, he exploded in an orgasm as he yelled my name, “Lulu!”

  At last, I was there, and shook as I had my own orgasm. All I could do was moan, I had no energy left to yell out. He pulled me to his side. I lay my head on his chest, trying to catch my breath.

  We lay there, quietly for a few minutes. But we weren’t done.

  “I want inside you.”

  “Don’t make me beg,” I laughed, teasingly.

  He kissed me and rolled me on top of him.

  “Wait.” I said. It felt like panic. “I’ve never done it this way.”

  “Good,” he grinned. I felt him move under me. He took my hand and helped me guide his erection into me.

  “Oh my…” His hands on my hips brought me lower. I sighed as he went deeper.

  “On your knees, slowly, kind of rock back and forth.”

  “Thom,” I moaned his name.

  I quickened my pace. He raised my hips just a little and brought them back down, showing me what he wanted me to do. It was awkward, at first. Finally I found a groove that was right for both of us. It felt good, and I threw my head back, moaning. I could tell he was about to lose it, so I moved quicker.

  “Lulu!” he yelled my name.

  Breathless, I rolled to his side.

  He moved his hand back to me. “Now I have to make you cry out,” he said, with a devilish smile.

  If I weren’t so close, I would have stopped him. I was exhausted, but I wanted what he was giving me. A moment later, my body was shaking with an orgasm like I’d never experienced. “Thom! Oh my God!” He scooted closer and wrapped his arms around me.

  “Damn. I’ve never experienced anything like that,” he said kissing me.
>
  “Me, neither.” I was wet with sweat. I was breathless.

  “I told you, you would do this to me,” he said, kissing the top of my head.

  “Do what?”

  “Make me an addict. I don’t know what I’ll do without you.” He nuzzled my neck, kissing where his lips touched.

  I needed to say something funny or I knew I would cry. “You’ll just have to jack off.”

  Thom roared at my comment. “Lulu, you’re adorable.” We lay wrapped in each other’s arms for a bit.

  Finally, he announced, “I’m starving. Pizza?”

  “Yes.”

  We sat in the bed naked, eating cold pizza. I was heading home in the morning. Suddenly, I was overcome with emotion, fighting tears. Thom noticed and put his arms around me.

  “I know. I don’t show it the same as you, but I feel the same way. I told you, Lulu. If you want this, we can make it happen.”

  I didn’t say anything; I slipped from his arms and went to find my purse. I looked over my shoulder and saw him watching, wondering. When I found it, I took my phone and went back to the bed. I pulled up my calendar. I’d added all of the university meetings, my classes, personal commitments, and holidays. I handed it to Thom. He looked over the dates and took a screen shot of the calendar.

  “Text that picture to me, but it’s a no brainer; Labor Day. The question is are you coming to me, or am I coming to you?”

  “The pub?”

  “Can manage without me. Even if you come to Kiawah, I’ll take the time off. I want every minute with you that I can get.”

  “If I come to Kiawah, there’s no hotel, no eating out every meal…” I said my thoughts aloud.

  “Money isn’t a concern, but I see what you’re thinking. Are you okay with being the one who’s making the road trip? I’ll come to you next time. We’ll take that weekend in St. Augustine.”

  “I can be on the road by 2:30, putting me there around seven.” I felt happy. We had a plan.

  Thom took my phone and put it aside. He slid down in the bed and motioned for me to join him. He pulled the covers over us and wrapped me in his arms. He kissed me behind my ear and snuggled closer. Skin on skin, I felt my heart beat a little faster. I felt myself fall in love with this man. I knew with no question that my heart beat only for Thom Miller.

  I had my bags packed, ready to put in the car. I was leaving right from the university. My dad came to help finish loading the car.

  “Be safe, Lulu.” He kissed my cheek and slipped something in my hand. When I looked, I found a gas card.

  “You didn’t have to do that, but thank you.”

  “Lulu, I know you need to hurry off to work, but I want to tell you what I’ve observed.” I cocked my head his way to hear him. “You’re happy. It’s something that I’ve wanted to see in you for a long time. I love you.”

  “I’ll call you as soon as I get to Thom’s. I love you, Dad.”

  It was the end of my second week at the university, and I already loved my new career. I loved sharing my love and knowledge of literature with others. I loved taking a story and breaking it into pieces to analyze what the story means, or how we interpret the writer’s intentions. I loved when the students would come to me to talk about what they’d read. But what I loved the most was reading a paper by a student who’d found a story that moved them or a writer who they connected with.

  “Ms. Welk, I’ve noticed that you are always anxious for Friday,” Professor Wynn noted as he joined me for a cup of coffee after my first class of the day.

  I grinned.

  “No words needed,” he chuckled.

  At the end of my second class, I had a text from Thom.

  Hello, beautiful. Can’t wait to put my arms around you.

  I called him when I was on my way. “I just hit the interstate heading north.”

  “Come straight to the pub. I’ll be waiting.”

  When I arrived, I called my dad to let him know I was there. I put some fresh lipstick on and walked into the pub. I looked around. The place was packed. I made my way through the crowd to the bar.

  “She’s here!” Danno yelled, banging on the bell on the bar when he spotted me. He pointed to a stool. I laughed when I noticed my name on it. I sat down and he set a glass of wine in front of me. “Sissy white.”

  “Thanks,” I laughed.

  The kitchen door swung open, and there he was wiping his hands on the apron wrapped around his waist. When he reached me, he pulled me to my feet and smothered me with kisses.

  “Get a room,” someone yelled, causing Thom to come up for air.

  “Did you miss me or something?” I laughed.

  “Or something,” he said. “Are you hungry?”

  “Are you cooking?”

  “Flounder. It’s ready to throw in the skillet. Ten minutes tops. I’ll be right back.”

  “Speedy Gonzales,” Danno laughed.

  Finally, Thom returned and set two places at the bar with placemats and silverware. He nodded to Danno, who topped off my glass. Thom went back to the kitchen and returned with two plates. He set them down and ripped the apron off, tossing it on the end of the bar. Sitting on the stool beside me, he leaned in for a kiss.

  “Hey, beautiful.”

  “Hey, yourself. What’s this?” I asked looking at my plate.

  “Fresh caught flounder with lemon butter sauce and fried eggplant.”

  “I’ve never had eggplant.”

  “Local farmer had an abundance; I bartered a dinner for two for three dozen of them. Are you going to try it?” he asked, with a laugh.

  I took a bite of the fish first. It tasted wonderful. A bite of the eggplant let me know that this was something I’d eat again. “It’s delicious!”

  “You act surprised.”

  “Never!” I laughed.

  “I’m riding with you. I had Danno pick me up today so we wouldn’t have two cars,” he told me, when we got ready to leave. I handed him my keys and we headed for his place.

  “Are you staying in the apartment?” he asked with a sly smile.

  “Only if you are.”

  “I’m glad you’re here,” he said once we were inside and settled. He motioned for me to join him on the sofa. He slipped his arm around my shoulder, pulling me closer.

  “Me, too.”

  “What would you like to do tomorrow?” he asked.

  “Hang out with you, maybe lay on the beach.”

  “All right, we’ll go to Charleston on Sunday. Tomorrow we’ll relax. Tell me when you’re ready to go to bed. You’ve had a long day.”

  “I’d like to get a quick shower and wash the day away.”

  He showed me around and put clean towels out for me, while I grabbed my things.

  “I’ll be waiting for you,” he told me.

  ‘Waiting for you’ wasn’t what I expected when I came out of the bathroom, naked. I figured he’d be in the bed. “Where are you?”

  “In the living room. Do you need me?” he asked. I could hear him walking toward the bedroom.

  “What? Wow,” he said when he rounded the corner. “Lulu, I was going to give you tonight to rest.”

  “Why?” I asked.

  He reached out to touch me. “I thought you’d be tired. Jesus, Lulu. Jesus,” he said again, as his hands began to roam. “I wanted you the minute I saw you at the bar. I thought you’d be exhausted.”

  “I’d never be too tired for you,” I said, stepping closer.

  “You smell like love.”

  “Love?” I giggled. “It’s just my body wash.”

  “It smells like you. That’s love to me.” He stepped closer and kissed my shoulder. “Did I say that I’m glad you’re here?”

  He led me to his bed. I lay waiting while he stripped his clothes off.

  “298,” he said, as he lay down beside me.

  “What?” I laughed.

  “It’s been 298 hours been since I’ve held you.”

  “You counted?” I laughe
d.

  “Do you want me to tell you in minutes?” he chuckled. “I’ve missed you.” He kissed me passionately. Burying his face in my neck, I felt his breath on my skin. He kissed behind my ear and I shivered. He kissed my shoulder and held me tighter.

  “I just want to hold you. Is that okay? ‘Cause I’ll make crazy love to you all night, if that’s what you want, but I don’t want you to think that’s all this is.”

  I looked at him. My heart was melting into a pool of love for him. “What do you mean?” I needed his explanation.

  “Lulu,” he began and took a big breath. “Love has so many different meanings: I love pizza, I love Friday, I love you, Dad. Each use means something to someone, maybe not to anyone else and that makes me nervous right now. I want to say something, and I want you to understand how I mean it. I’ve never said these words to anyone this way before.”

  He paused and I felt my chest tighten with anticipation.

  “No one I’ve ever met has consumed my thoughts as you have. No one has filled my dreams like you. No one has ever made me feel like I couldn’t live without them…”

  Oh my God, what is happening?

  “I want you every minute of the day, but it’s not just the lovemaking. While, that pops in my head quite a lot, both heads actually.” He snickered at the words, as though he needed the dose of humor to continue. “You have captured a place in my heart that I didn’t know existed.”

  I rose up to look down at him. I had to see his face. I needed to look in his eyes, because you can’t hide the emotions he was pouring out. He smiled a smile that had my heart thumping like I’ve never felt before.

  “I know it’s soon. I know, for a while at least, that the distance will be an obstacle that we will have to work around.” Nervously, he fidgeted with my hair. “Lulu – Louisa Welk, I love you, but it’s more, I’m in love with you, and there’s no greater feeling I’ve ever known than telling you this.”

  My tears dripped onto his chest. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t move. I wanted this moment captured like a photograph in my mind. It seemed like a million minutes passed as I looked in his eyes to find love: real love, looking back at me. I lowered myself to kiss him. I pressed my body to his, snuggling into the warmth and love that was Thom Miller. I knew he was waiting for me to say something, but I prayed that, for just a moment, I could revel in this moment.