Do Over

Tyrone went to the kitchen, which she could easily see from her position in the living room. He opened and closed the doors of a few cabinets. “You’re not going to believe this, but I’m out of coffee. Can I get you something else to drink?”

She hadn’t really wanted coffee but was so nervous, her throat had become parched. She couldn’t figure out why she was so nervous with him. It’s not as if she hadn’t slept with anyone since her divorce.

“Do you have juice?”

“Orange juice in the fridge. Cranberry juice cocktail in the cabinets. I could drop a few cubes of ice in to chill it.”

“Cranberry juice sounds perfect.”

In short order, Tyrone brought out two glasses. He kept the one filled with orange juice and handed her the other filled with ice and cranberry juice. “I didn’t deliver on the coffee, but I can deliver on the view. Right this way.”

He seemed so at ease that Ella relaxed a little. She followed him out the sliding glass door to the balcony. The entire city lay before them, twinkling lights with the familiar building of Bank of America Plaza in the distance.

“This really is a lovely view,” she commented.

“You can see the whole city from here.” Tyrone took a sip of the juice and then rested his forearms on the metal railing. “The neighborhood might be a dump, the apartment might be a dump, but this view is everything.”

Ella watched him from the corner of her eye. “It’s not a dump. It’s actually quite…quaint.”

“Quaint, huh?”

“Yes.” She sipped her cranberry juice and avoided his eyes.

Tyrone chuckled softly. “Normally you’re direct, but you were being polite just then. You’re used to nicer places than this.”

“I can adapt. I’m not a snob or difficult to please.”

“I didn’t think you were.”

They fell silent for a little bit.

“I have a confession to make,” he said.

Oh boy. Ella’s stomach tightened.

“I haven’t had a real date in a long time.”

She laughed, a combination of relief and understanding. “Me either,” she admitted quietly.

“So what does that mean?” Tyrone asked.

“Nothing, really. Just two people who haven’t dated in a while figuring things out together.”

Tyrone stepped behind her, and she held her breath. He didn’t touch her.

“I may be rusty on the dating scene, but there’s one thing I’m not rusty on.” He spoke into her left ear.

“Oh really? Had lots of practice, have you?”

“Some practice,” he amended, laughter in his voice.

Tyrone dropped a cool, moist kiss on the side of her neck. “Nervous?”

She laughed shakily. “A little.”

“Believe me, I understand. I can’t tell you how many outfits I changed into before meeting you tonight.”

His admission made her laugh out loud. “And there I was, thinking you were this confident, assured man.”

“Oh, I’m confident and assured. Just not as much when I’m with you.”

“So I make you feel…what, exactly?”

He turned her around so they faced each other and placed her glass on the table next to his. He looked deeply into her eyes. “I feel not so confident. Not so assured.”

He lowered his head, and her heart raced when his lips brushed hers. “You taste like cranberry juice,” he whispered.

“You taste like orange juice,” she whispered back.

He kissed her again, this time with more passion. Cupping the back of her head, he pressed his mouth harder against hers, and she leaned into him, slipping her hands onto his shoulders. She angled her head to the right and tasted fully of his lips.

Goodness, he was a great kisser. Just the right amount of pressure. When he slipped his tongue between her teeth, she moaned. The invasion made her toes tingle, and she locked her arms around his neck.

The kiss ended when Tyrone released her mouth and looked down at her from eyes that were dark with passion. “Are you sure? You ready?” He breathed hard as he tugged her blouse from her pants.

“Yes, I’m positive.” Ella stood on tiptoe and pressed her mouth to his again, anxious to get more of his taste and the pleasure of his kiss.

Tyrone groaned and splayed his hand across the bare skin of her back.

“I don’t want you to think I’m easy. You know, the kind of man who puts out on the first date with every woman he meets.” He nipped her bottom lip.

Ella smiled against his mouth. “I promise I won’t judge you.”

Tyrone cradled her jaw in his hands and gazed down into her eyes. “I feel like I’m the luckiest man in the world tonight.”

Before she could respond, he kissed her again. Slowly but surely, desire spiraled up through her body. This time the kiss was soft and sweet. He guided the direction of it without making her feel any pressure at all. In fact, she suspected that he was holding back, so she pressed a little closer to let him know that she was all-in and wanted this as much as he did.

Her normal reservations simply dissolved with him, and besides, hadn’t he seen her at her weakest point? Crying, vulnerable, and listened to her on the phone while he whispered encouraging words to make her feel better and help her feel less victimized. His words had given her strength, and right now his kisses made her feel more desired than she had in a while. There didn’t seem to be any agenda with Tyrone.

Her arms slipped back around his neck. She kissed him thoroughly and hard, and he met her enthusiasm with a chest-deep groan.

His mouth lowered to her neck, and his hands fixed to her waist. Moving backwards slowly, he guided them inside the apartment. From what seemed like a faraway place, she heard the sliding glass door close, as he continued to drop tender kisses to her neck. He couldn’t get very far, though, because of the high neckline of the shirt, and she cursed herself for wearing this outfit, one that she thought looked classy at the beginning of the night, but now proved to be a hindrance as they moved toward more intimacy.

He lifted his head. “It’s much more comfortable in the bedroom.”

“Then take me to the bedroom.”