Switchblade Romance (6/?)

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VI.  Mermaid Island

Malcolm knocked on Shantreyl’s door at exactly 9:15 Saturday morning.  She opened it, fully ready, and stepped out, locking the door.  The sun was out and bright and she quickly donned her sunglasses.  She wore denim shorts, a Nubia T-shirt and a pair of red Chuck Taylors.  Her hair was in two Afro puffs and she sported large gold hoops.  Malcolm gave her an appreciative glance.  The woman was a dime, pure and simple.  He liked her “around the way girl” look.

As they walked to his car, Shantreyl took a moment to apply lip gloss.  Malcolm looked at her legs and then at her shoes.  “You sure you want to wear a pair of All-Stars to an amusement park?”

Shantreyl nodded.  “All of my Chucks have comfy gel inserts.  I’m good.”

“All right then.  Let’s go.”  He unlocked his Range Rover, walked around to the passenger side and opened the door for Shantreyl.  She thanked him and got in, and soon they were on their way.

“I hate that we didn’t get to talk very long last night,” Malcolm said.  “I was really tired.  I work 12 to 13-hour days five days a week.  Running a hotel and casino—two of them—isn’t easy.  There’s always something going on.  Yesterday afternoon, some Russian high-rollers showed up without warning and making sure they were comfortable and tended to took up a large portion of my evening.”

“So you’re like Terry Benedict.”

“Who?”

“Terry Benedict.  Andy Garcia’s character in Ocean’s Eleven.  He had three casinos.”

“Oh.  Well, I guess you can say that.”

“Do you have to run back and forth between the casinos?  That sounds utterly exhausting.  Do you take a boat across the river or do you drive?”

Malcolm chuckled.  He had a nice smile.  “Oh hell no.  I take care of the Vermilion and Kaphiri runs the Solar Fountain.”

Shantreyl remembered the odd name.  “That’s your business partner, right?”

“Kaphiri and I have been friends for thirty-two years.  We’re more like brothers, actually.  His parents call me son and my mother claims him as one of her boys.”

“Thirty-two years?  So that means y’all were kids when you met.  How did that happen?”

Malcolm handled the Range Rover with ease as he got on the highway.  “I used to be a scrawny kid.  I mean, I’m still skinny, but when I was younger…I might have weighed eighty pounds soaking wet.  One day, I was getting my ass beat by two bullies and Kap intervened.  He beat both of them up and took me to his house so that his mother could take care of me.  He hates bullies.  I had a fat lip, a black eye, a busted nose and bruises everywhere.  It scared the shit out of my mother to see me like that.”

“Damn, they got you good,” Shantreyl said, imagining it.

“They did.  Kap’s mother cleaned and bandaged me up.  I kind of fell in love with her; she’s a knockout.  Kaphiri started teaching me how to fight so I could defend myself, and we became friends.”

“What happened after that?  Did you still get bullied?”

“Not as much as I used to.  I put Kap’s lessons to good use and eventually, they left me alone.”

“Good for you,” Shantreyl said.  “Do you have any other family?”

“My mother and two brothers.  Melvin’s the oldest, and Michael’s the youngest.  We’re all two years apart.  My mother lives in a condo in West Magnolia, and she’s completely taken care of.”

“Are you and your brothers close?”

“Yeah.  Melvin’s in security and works with me at the casino, and Michael is an accountant for Ngenge, Nave & Nguyen.  Which, of course, means that he’s my accountant.”

“Cool.  I like that.” 

“What about you, pretty lady?  Tell me something.”

“I’ve got an older sister named Zuri.  She’s married with three children.  They live in Virginia, along with my parents.  My mother didn’t want to live too far away from her grandchildren.”

“What would that mean if you had kids?  Suva Oriana’s nowhere near Virginia.”

“I’m not sure,” Shantreyl said.  “I imagine she’ll rack up airline miles traveling back and forth.  Assuming I have a kid.”

“Do you want children?”

Shantreyl thought about her most recent relationship.  She and Miles talked about having two or three children, but then…

“I’d prefer to be married if that happens,” she said after a very long moment.

Malcolm looked at her out of the corner of his eye.  Her face had clouded over.

“Did I just strike a nerve, Shantreyl?”

“Yeah, kind of.”

“Something you want to tell me about?”

“No,” she said. 

Malcolm nodded.  “So, tell me about your two friends.  They seem like chill people.”

Shantreyl smiled; glad to change the subject.  “They are.  Jaya’s the one who wore the pink and white Adidas suit.  She teaches math and science at Bruce Lee Elementary in Ashwood.  We met thirteen years ago; we were both teachers at Siren Heights Middle School.  Jaya taught sixth grade math and I taught sixth grade science.  We’ve been thick as thieves ever since.  The one in Cross Colours is her wife, Renee.  Renee is a forensic sculptor; she does sculptures of missing people and is an on-call police sketch artist.  She’s in high demand because she’s so damn talented and her work always leads to instant victim identification.”

“Really?” Malcolm said.

“Really.  Jaya and Renee knew each other in high school; reconnected ten years ago and got married eight years ago.  They’re so happy and so in love, and they’re expecting.”

“I imagine they want the same for you,” he said, getting off the highway. 

“They do.  When I told them about the gifts you sent, they were so thrilled.  It was Renee’s idea that we go to the Zodiac that night.  It was Jaya’s idea that I have a one-night stand.  They were so elated when you invited me up to the VIP.”

“I admit, I was surprised when you asked if you could come home with me.  I just wanted to talk to you; I had no other intentions…but when you asked, I wasn’t about to say no.  I mean, look at you.” He couldn’t stop looking.

“Just for the record,” Shantreyl said, “that’s not something I do often.  Matter of fact, that’s the first time I’ve ever done anything like that.  I mean, it could have gone a bunch of different ways, but you turned out to be a stand-up guy.  Renee asked me if I would be willing to do it all again and I said no.  I got lucky that night.  Chances are that things would go way wrong if I tried to do it again.”

Malcolm made a right turn onto the bridge that spanned the river and led to the amusement park.  “Maybe we both got lucky,” he said.  “Like I told you before, I’m normally at the Vermilion on Friday nights.  But that particular evening, I was compelled to go.  When I laid eyes on you…well, you know what happened.  And like I told you last night, when I woke up to find you gone, I wasn’t pleased.  So I had to rectify the situation.  And here we are, you and I.  About to ride rollercoasters.”

“I’m so looking forward to it,” Shantreyl said.  It was the truth.

Mermaid Island was an enormous amusement park featuring both land and water rides.  Malcolm had a parking pass and was able to park near the main entrance.  When Shantreyl started to open the car door, he stopped her and said, “That’s my responsibility.”  He then got out of the Range Rover and opened her car door.

“Thank you,” she said, hopping out.  “Been a while since a man opened a car door for me.”

“You’re welcome,” he replied as they started walking towards the gate.  “My mother raised my brothers and me to be gentlemen.  It stuck with two of us.  Wait here.”

Malcolm went to the ticket booth and got tickets, a map, and a ZoomPass.  A few minutes later, he handed Shantreyl a large pager-like device and said, “You need to clip this to your waistband.”

“What is it?” she asked as she clipped the device to her shorts.

“It’s a ZoomPass.  It allows us to skip the line for popular rides.  All we have to do is decide which ride we want and key it in.  The device tells you how long the wait is.  When it’s close to time for us to ride, we get a page that it’s time to get in line, and when we get there, we’re at the front.  Very little wait time.  I never come here without getting a ZoomPass.  My time is extremely valuable.”

“How often do you come here?”

“Once or twice a year.  I like rollercoasters.  They’re good for relieving stress.  I’m a front rider.  What about you?”

Shantreyl smiled as they entered the park.  It was practically deserted, but it wouldn’t be that way for long.  “I haven’t ridden a rollercoaster in maybe 14 or 15 years, maybe even longer.”

“Oh.  Well I will do my best to make sure you have a good time.”

She smiled at him.  “I already am having a good time.”

“Good,” he said.  “So, will you be all right with me choosing the rides since you haven’t been here in a while?”

“I’m fine with that.  Just no water rides, okay?  I don’t want to mess up my hair.”  She decided to be extra cute that morning and didn’t want that to change.

“I’m not big on the water rides either, unless I’m prepared for them.”

“Good,” she said.  “What ride is first?”

“The Comet.  It’s right over there.  We don’t need the ZoomPass for that one, because the park’s empty right now.  But it won’t be that way for long.  After this, we’re going to ride Vertigo and then Dragon.  Go ahead and input them into the ZoomPass.  By the time we’re done with The Comet, we’ll be ready to ride Vertigo with hardly any wait.  Just so you know, we’re riding coasters in order of their location.  It’s easier that way.  I intend for us to ride every single one.”

“Done.”  Shantreyl fiddled with the ZoomPass as they started walking towards the ride.  “I trust you.”

The Comet was a wooden roller coaster with a 150-ft high and 80-degree drop.  Malcolm looked at Shantreyl. 

“You want to ride in the front?”

“Are you serious?”

“I am.”  He held out his hand.  “Come on.  Don’t be afraid.  Are your shades on tight?  If they’re loose, you may want to take them off.  I didn’t see a purse or a bag—did you bring one?”

“I didn’t,” she said.  “I didn’t want to have to be bothered.  My shades are on tight and my money’s safe and secure.”

“Not that you’ll need it,” he said.  “Come on.  Ride in the front with me.”  He took her hand.  As they got in the car, Malcolm said, “There’s a camera near the end; you’ll want to pose for your picture as we pass by.”

“Are you serious?” she said again.

“Yep.  I’ll let you know when,” he said as the attendant locked them into the ride.

Thirty seconds later, Shantreyl was screaming like a lunatic as the near-empty car shot down the 150-ft high drop at 60 miles an hour.  Malcolm had his hands up, laughing.  About 90 seconds into the ride, Malcolm pointed ahead, indicating the camera’s location, but Shantreyl was shrieking and holding on to the bar for dear life, and was unable to strike a pose.

After they got off The Comet, Malcolm looked around.  The park was starting to fill up.  “Come on,” he said, looking at the ZoomPass.  “Vertigo’s ready and waiting.”

* * *

A little while later, the park was crowded, but it wasn’t an inconvenience because of the ZoomPass.  Shantreyl appreciated the time saving device.  She and Malcolm were able to ride Vertigo and Dragon three times, Galaxy twice, Nemesis twice and Renegade once.  After having screamed her throat raw, Shantreyl needed a break. 

“It’s almost one,” Malcolm said, looking at his watch.  “Are you hungry?”

“I could do with a meal,” she said, rubbing her throat.  “I hope I won’t be hoarse tomorrow.”

“You’ll be fine.  What are you in the mood for?”

“Pizza,” she said.  “A hot, gooey slab of pizza.”

“Okay,” Malcolm said, looking at the map of the amusement park.  “We’ll have a ten-minute walk if you want the best pizza in the park.  Is that all right?”

“That’s all right,” she said, and they headed towards the location.

After a minute or two, Shantreyl said, “I don’t think I’ve ever screamed so loud or so much.”  She rubbed her throat.

“But you’re having fun, right?”

She looked at him and held out her hand.  “I’m having a blast!”

Malcolm took her hand.  “So am I, Miss Troy.”

“Stop,” she teased.  “You sound like one of my students.”

“I bet a lot of them got a crush on you,” he said.  “You’re not the average science teacher.”

“There are plenty of sistahs in this city who teach science, Malcolm.”

“Sure, I get that,” he said.  “But I’m just saying…when I was in school, my science teacher was an old white man and I didn’t learn shit from him.  I bet that’s not the case with some of the boys in your class.  I know I would have passed your class with flying colors, cause I would have sat in the front and wouldn’t have missed a day.”

Shantreyl thought of Brinton and Darlene, one of her physics students.  “I’ve got a couple of admirers,” she said.  “But I keep it professional and keep them in line.”

“You can’t blame them, though.”  Malcolm gave her another once-over.  He was so glad she wore shorts; her legs were phenomenal.  And of course, dat ass.

“Where did you grow up?” she asked.  “Where did you attend school?”

“I grew up downtown,” he said.  “In Kanzhao, near the river.  I went to Walker High.  Warriors, class of 1997.  Graduated third in my class.  I go to Homecoming almost every year.  Walker's marching band is one of the best in the city,” he said proudly.  "They've won six consecutive Battle of the Bands."

“Oh that’s cool,” Shantreyl said.  “Did you go to college?”

“I did.  Got a BBA in management from City U, then went back a few years later and got an MBA.”

Shantreyl nodded, smiling.  “Good to know you’re not an idiot, but I knew that the moment you said you ran a casino.”

“Where did you go to college?”

“I had a full scholarship to Dawnstar State and double-majored in chemistry and physics.  Then I went back and got a master’s and a specialist’s in science education.  Advanced degrees mean a higher salary in my profession.”

Malcolm said, “You’ve got one of those big brains.  I love it.”  Smart women were a serious turn-on.

“I don’t know about all that,” she said.  “I love science and I always wanted to be a science teacher.”

They neared a red and white open-air building with the name of Pizza Palace and Shantreyl smelled the pizza from twenty feet away.  Her stomach seemed to roll over and beg.  “Oh man, that smells so good!”

“It’s going to be good,” Malcolm said.  “The Palace has the best pizza in the park, and some would argue, in the city.”

Shantreyl saw a restroom.  “Can we stop there real quick?  I really gotta go.  All that zipping back and forth and up and down shook my bladder.”

“Of course.  I’ll meet you out in front, all right?”

After a few minutes, Shantreyl and Malcolm were on their way to the Pizza Palace when she heard her name.  She stopped and looked around.  Malcolm stopped too.

“Did you hear someone call my name?” she asked.

“I did,” he said.  “It was a man’s voice.”

“Who in the world—” She kept looking around and heard her name again.  To her surprise, Miles was walking towards her from the restroom.

Shantreyl gasped and subconsciously grabbed Malcolm’s hand.  He looked at her.  “Who’s that?”

Shantreyl murmured, “My ex.”

Malcolm linked her fingers with his, noticing how she stiffened and the expression on her face.  He couldn’t see her eyes due to the shades, but he knew that she was either sad or angry.  He didn’t like it.

Miles had a smile on his face.  “Shan!”

“Miles,” she said, her tone clipped.

“So,” he said, stopping in front of her and brazenly giving her the once-over.  “How are you?  How’s things?  You look good.”

Shantreyl looked at Malcolm.  “Malcolm, this is Miles.  Miles, this is Malcolm.”

Miles held out a hand to shake and Malcolm released Shantreyl’s hand, shook his, and took her hand once more. 

“Nice to meet you,” Miles said.  Then he looked at Shantreyl again, dismissing Malcolm.  “How have you been?”

“Really?” she said, trying to keep the snark out of her tone and failing.  “Are you really asking me how I’ve been?  You really got the balls to ask me that after what you did?”

“Shan, I told you that I was sorry.  I admit, I could have handled all that better than I did.  There are a lot of things I would do differently if I had it to do all over again, but I never meant to hurt you.  I confess, I was a little intimidated.  I couldn’t keep up with you.”

“Oh please,” she said, holding Malcolm’s hand in a tight grip.  “You’re so full of shit!  I wish to God I never met you!”

“Come on now, Shan.  It wasn’t all bad…it wasn’t bad at all.  We had a good time.”

Shantreyl’s rage was pure.  She jabbed her index finger into his chest.  “Miles, you are the biggest and worst mistake I ever made!  You wasted four years of my life and I hate your sorry ass for it!  I! Hate! You!”

Malcolm watched them carefully, ready to intervene if and when needed.  She was squeezing the hell out of his hand. 

Someone shouted, “Miles!”

Shantreyl looked over in the direction of the voice, as did Malcolm and Miles.  A fat dishwater blonde pushing a stroller was headed in their direction.  Malcolm heard Shantreyl make some sort of strangled sound.

“Miles!  Who are you talking to?”

Miles turned in the direction of the voice.  “Susan,” he said.

Malcolm looked at Shantreyl, whose back was ramrod straight.  The grip on his hand was iron.  “Are you okay?” he asked in a low voice.  “Should we go?  We can go, you know.”

Miles looked back at Shantreyl, a strange expression on his face.  “I really am sorry, Shan.  I hope that you can forgive me.  I’m sorry that I hurt you, and I’m sorry that you’re still upset with me.  I really do want the best for you, and it seems that you’ve moved on.”  He gave Malcolm a veiled look—one Malcolm interpreted with ease—and said, “You have moved on, right?”

“You know what—” Shantreyl began but then changed her mind.  She looked at Malcolm.  “Let’s go.  I’m starving.”

Malcolm wasted no time.  When she turned away from Miles, Malcolm put a hand on the small of her back, glared at Miles, and did not miss the hungry look he was giving Shantreyl’s retreating form.

She found a table inside the Pizza Palace and sat down.  Malcolm sat in front of her and took her hands, which were in fists.  On principle, he wanted to go over and knock the hell out of Miles, who was talking to the fat dishwater blonde with the stroller, but he put his attention on the person it needed to be on.

“What kind of pizza do you want, Shantreyl?”

She freed one of her hands and removed her sunglasses.  Her eyes were wet.  “Do we have to order whole pies or slices?”

“You can order either one, but one slice won’t hold me.  We can split a pie, if you like.”

“I’d like that,” she said.  “I’m really hungry.  I’d like a supreme with extra olives.  And please get me a large Coke.  Do they serve funnel cakes here or do we need to go elsewhere?  I'm also gonna want cotton candy and fried ice cream later on.”

“Done,” he said.  “We’ll have to get funnel cakes somewhere else, and I'll buy you whatever you want.  Will you be all right?”

“I’ll be right as rain by the time you get back.”

By the time Malcolm returned with their drinks and some napkins, he could see that she wasn’t as upset as she was a little while ago.

“It’s going to take about fifteen minutes for the pizza.  Is that fine?”

“It’s fine,” she said.  “I’m all right now.”

“Your eyes are a little red,” he said.

“I didn’t expect that,” she said.  “We were having a great time until he showed up.”

“And we are going to continue to have a good time,” Malcolm said.  “You can’t let him take your joy like that.”

“I won’t,” she said.  “But I need to feel my feelings for a few minutes, all right?”

“All right,” he said.  “Is that the nerve I struck earlier?”

“Yes,” she said.

“Want to talk about it?”

“May as well,” Shantreyl said.  “It’s not a long story.  Jaya met Miles shortly after she transferred to Bruce Lee Elementary and she thought we would make a good couple.  We hit it off like a house on fire and dated for four years.  I was in the process of getting my specialist’s degree and he was working on his master’s.  I trusted him completely.  I loved him.  I thought he loved me.  We made plans for the future.  We talked about having a couple of kids, where we wanted to live and things of that nature.  We even set a wedding date.”

Malcolm listened attentively.  Shantreyl continued.  “In the fourth year of our association, I discovered that he had a whole other relationship with another woman—that woman—and he decided to marry her instead.  He had been with her for two of our four years.  I had no clue.  I didn’t have any idea he had stepped out on me.  I was completely oblivious.  I didn’t know I wasn’t enough.  Maybe I wasn't light enough.  I haven’t trusted my judgment since.  All that mess about being intimidated by me…it’s a bunch of horseshit!”

Malcolm made a face, mentally comparing the two women.  “He married her instead of you?  For the love of God, why?”

“He told me he loved her and that she was pregnant and that he wanted to be a father to their baby.  That baby.”

“Maybe he was intimidated, Shantreyl.  You teach hard sciences and you’ve got multiple degrees.  Some men just can’t handle smart women and they have to coddle themselves with women who are less than, just to appease their fragile egos.  Sounds like your ex.”

“I guess.  I’m glad I got to say what I needed to say.”

Malcolm looked over to see if the couple was still standing near the restrooms, but they weren’t.  He turned his attention back to Shantreyl and noticed that she looked a lot better.  Her eyes weren’t as red and she didn’t appear to be angry anymore.

“It’s been nine months since our relationship abruptly ended,” Shantreyl said, taking a long swig of Coke.  “It’s why Jaya and Renee were so keen on me going out with you.  They think I need to move on and they’re right.  Which leads me to you.”

“What about me?”

Shantreyl sighed.  “What are you doing with me?  What do you want?  What are you looking for?  What is this?  Are you wasting my time?  Is this going to be all about sex?  I’m almost 36 years old and I don’t have time for games, lies, or bullshit.  So, what do you want?  What is this we’re doing?”

Malcolm calmly took a long sip of his beer.  “We’re talking honest talk, right?  Real conversation?”

“Please,” Shantreyl said.  “I deserve that.  I’m not going to waste my time with any man who isn’t real about what he wants.”

“Then let me be real, Shantreyl Troy.  I’m sitting here with you because I am really, really interested in getting to know you better.  What I want—eventually, but it damn sure won’t take four years—is to get married and have a kid.  I’m forty years old.  My game-playing days are over with.  The kind of woman I want is smart, loyal, beautiful and fine.  I told you that before.  I don’t need her to do anything except love me, be loyal to me, take care of me and be by my side.  Anything after that is a bonus.  As far as I’m concerned, I’m courting you.  Will you allow me to do that?  I like you, a lot, and the more time I spend with you, the more I like you.  Now you tell me something.  What do you want?  What are we doing?  Are you wasting my time?  I told you it was valuable.”

Shantreyl took another gulp of Coke.  “To be honest, I was just going with the flow to see what happens.  I’m enjoying getting to know you and I do like you,” she said.  It was the truth.  “I was nervous because I wasn’t 100% sure of your intentions.  I didn’t know if this was going to be all about sex.  But now that I know what you want, I can relax a little bit and allow you to woo me, if that’s your objective.”

“Relax completely, Shantreyl.  If this were all about sex, I would have never tried to find you.  If all I wanted was sex, there are a dozen women I could call.  I’m tired of that.  I need something more than arm candy.”

“So you’ve had a lot of candy, have you?”

“Not as much as you might think.  Yes, I’ve dated plenty of beautiful women, but something always appeared to be lacking in our relationships.  I haven’t decided yet if it was them or if it was me.”

Shantreyl perked up as a server brought their pizza.  It smelled heavenly.  The server placed it between them and she reached for a slice.

“Careful ma’am.  It’s fresh out of the oven.”

“And it looks fantastic,” she said, carefully pulling a slice away from the pan.  She bit into it and closed her eyes.

Malcolm smiled at her and got his own slice.  A few minutes passed where they ate in companionable silence.  After three slices and a second Coke, Shantreyl wiped her mouth and burped.

“Oooh, sorry!” she said.

“Compliments to the chef,” Malcolm said as he finished his half of the pie.  “I told you the pizza here is delicious.”

“I’ll never doubt you.”

Malcolm waited a moment before saying, “You know he still wants you, right?”

“Who?”  She frowned.  “You mean Miles?”

“Yes.”

“Why would you say that?”

“You didn’t see how he looked at you.  I’m a man; I recognize that gaze.  He married a woman far inferior to you and he knows it, otherwise he would not have stared at you like he wanted to devour you.”

“You’re serious?”

“As a stroke.  His eyes were crawling over you like hands.  You didn’t feel it?”

“Nope.  I was angry.  I didn’t see anything but red.”

“Well, I saw it.  I also saw the way he looked when his wife called his name.  Dude had regret written all over his face.  Oh well.  His fuckup is my benefit.  I should go and thank the guy, because all of this just got a whole lot easier.”

Shantreyl grinned at Malcolm.  Her face was lit up and he stared at her, captivated by her smile.  Then she said, “Okay.  What are we riding next?”

* * *

It was going on ten o’clock at night when Malcolm pulled up next to Shantreyl’s car in Fallon Station.  Shantreyl checked her phone; both Renee and Jaya had texted her and she told them that all was well and she was having a good time.

Malcolm opened the passenger side door and helped her out of the Range Rover.  He walked her to the door.  She turned to face him.

“I had a really good time today, Malcolm,” she said.  “I haven’t had that much fun in a very long time.  I’m so exhausted, but it’s the good kind of tiredness.  Definitely sleeping in tomorrow.”

“Good to hear,” he said, taking her hand.  “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.  I must tell you that I typically work most Fridays and Saturdays and I’m usually off on Sundays and Mondays.  I know that you work a regular schedule and it might normally mean that we may not be able to see each other on a regular basis.  But I will make time for you, Shantreyl, because I want to be with you.  I want to be your man and I’ll do whatever I have to do.”

“There’s nothing wrong with us spending time on Sundays or Monday evenings,” she said.  “Unless you’re tired.”

“I usually am, but I’ll never use that excuse with you, baby,” he said.  “What I can do is give you my schedule from week to week and when the weeks aren’t super-busy, I can be with you.”

“Well, I’ve got a month before I’m off for summer break, so we’ll have plenty of time soon enough.”

“That’s good to know, but I’m hoping to see you again sometime next week.”

“Tell you what,” she said.  “I’ll leave it all up to you.  Your actions will speak louder than your words will.  All I ask is that if you have plans for us, please let me know a few days ahead of time so I can plan accordingly.  Spontaneity is good, but not all the time.  I like consistency.”

“Fair enough,” he said.  “Give me your key so I can unlock your door.”

Shantreyl handed him the key and he opened her door.  Then she smiled at him.  She was waiting for him to kiss her, but she wasn’t about to tell him that.  Malcolm moved closer, staring at her lips, staring into her eyes. 

“Can I give you a good night kiss?” he asked.

“Sure,” she said.  He took her arms and pulled her close before putting his hands on her cheeks.  He kissed her and was deliberate about it, using his tongue in wicked ways before releasing her lips.

“Good night, Shantreyl.”

She swallowed, trying to hide her horniness.  “Good night, Malcolm.  Sleep well.”

“You do the same,” he said.  “Go into your house and let me hear you lock the door.”

Shantreyl nodded and followed his instructions, but waited at the door until she heard him get into his car and drive away. 

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