Sapphire (4 page)

With slow, calculated thrusts he’s bringing my already oversensitive body to the brink yet again.  I wrap my legs around his waist, digging my heels into his ass, encouraging him to go deeper.  Using him for leverage, I meet him thrust for thrust.

“Shit, Dallas.  You feel amazing,” he whispers into my neck.

“Holy shit, don’t fucking stop.”  My breaths are becoming heavier and my heart is beating out of control.  I’m either going to have the best orgasm in the history of orgasms or I’m having a heart attack.  Either way, at this point, I think I’m okay with either.

With every thrust I can almost feel myself tightening around his length.  Robbie wraps his arm behind my back, lifting me into him to the point where he’s leaning back on his calves and I’m straddling his middle.  The angle is amazing, but I lost the orgasm that was building.

“Shit.”  I climb off his lap and the shock written all over his face is funny as hell.  “No, we’re not done, not by a long shot.  Changing positions,” I giggle.

I flip myself over, climb up on my hands and knees, and spread my knees while over my shoulder. 

“Christ, you’re so fucking beautiful like this,” Robbie mutters before he slams into me.

His grip on my hips tightens and there’s no doubt I’ll be bruised by evening.  I feel his hand in my hair, wrapping it around his fist at least twice before he jerks so tightly that I’m sure he’s going to pull away with my locks still attached.  The pain mixed with the pleasure is almost unbearable and I know damn well he’s going to split me in two.

As my orgasm starts, I faintly hear a knocking sound in the background but brush it off as the headboard bangs against the wall.  “Oh. My. God!” I scream out, letting every emotion possible run through me as the sensation of my body convulsing overpowers me.  I feel terrible for Robbie’s neighbors that have to hear this at the ass crack of dawn, but there is no possible way I can contain myself, it’s just too amazing.  Suddenly, Robbie’s hand clamps down over my mouth, muffling my moans.

“Shhhh,” he leans down and whispers.  I’m beyond confused.  Most men like to hear a woman lose it due to their touch and he wants me to shut up. 
What the hell?

“Dude, open the fucking door,” Jack yells from outside the apartment.

“Fuck,” I say, scrambling to break loose of Robbie and find my clothes.  I’m worried that Robbie might think I’m being insensitive, but looking back, he’s doing the exact same thing.

“Wait, you get in the shower and I’ll get the door.  Your stuff is still in the living room, so I’ll say you slept on the couch and I was still sleeping in here.”  Robbie is scared, as he should be.  Jack was always the most badass guy I ever knew and extremely over protective of me, especially since what happened with Ralph.  That’s why I could never tell Jack what I was doing for work; he would have lost his mind and tried to kidnap me.  If he knows that Robbie and I fucked … I don’t even want to think about that right now.

I grab my jeans and hoodie and run naked into the bathroom across the hall from the bedroom.  I waste no time turning the water on and getting inside without waiting for the water to even get warm.  The cold is
exactly
what I need to take my mind off the orgasm I was robbed of, not once, but twice.  Not even to mention the impending shit show that’s bound to happen once Jack hears what we were doing. 
Fuck
.

I quickly shampoo my hair with whatever brand this is, but it’s still much more exciting than the generic dollar store brand I’m used to.  I didn’t think to grab a wash cloth, so I’m stuck using my hands to create a lather with the unscented bar soap on the rack.  Unlike the soap I’ve been using, this one doesn’t leave me feeling dry and I almost get lost touching my soft skin until I remember that I have Jack to deal with.

My whole shower must have lasted no more than five minutes and I’m out drying off with the softest towel I’ve ever touched.  As soon as my body’s dry, I dress in my jeans and hoodie, and then wrap my hair in the towel to dry.

I nonchalantly walk out of the bathroom, pretending that I don’t know Jack is there and I didn’t just have sex with Robbie.

“Jack, what are you doing here?” I ask, running up to him, giving him a tight hug.  As awkward as this is, I’m still excited to see him in the flesh.  Out of everything I ran away from, he’s the only thing I miss.

He hugs me back just as tight, then pulls me back to look me over, “Look at my little Dallas, all grown up.  I’ve missed you.”

“I missed you, too,” I whisper, leaning back into his embrace.  Standing a good foot taller than me, I fit perfectly into his chest and feel the safety of his arms wrapped around me.  Jack has always been the one person that I could depend on, and all of a sudden I feel so stupid for living the life I have because I didn’t want to ask for help.

I know that Jack would have been there for me and sacrificed everything to keep me safe.  I guess that’s part of it.  Even at sixteen, I knew that I could lean on him and he would protect me.  He told me he was going to kill Ralph, but that would have only landed him in jail, me still with my mom and ruined any chance of him ever making something of himself. 

“I’m sorry, Jack.  So sorry.”  I can’t help but let every iota of guilt and sadness spill over.  My body starts shaking and the tears are falling freely onto his chest.  All I had to do was let him tell his mom and I wouldn’t have had to go through the last four years.  I could have had a home and gone to college, but I was stupid and thought I knew everything.

“Shh, Dallas, you have nothing to be sorry for.  What’s going on?”  I look up at him and he’s scanning my eyes for the truth and then staring at Robbie, waiting for one of us to tell him what’s going on.

“I’m going to give you guys some time.  I’ll be back with coffee in a little while,” Robbie says, walking past Jack and me.  He squeezes my arm, reassuring me that everything will be okay without having to say anything.  Robbie throws on his shoes, grabs his keys and he’s out the door, leaving me to deal with Jack on my own.

We sit down on the couch that Robbie made up for himself last night.  I cross my legs and face him, trying to prepare myself to delve into the life I’ve led, and praying that he doesn’t think I’m a terrible, disgusting person. 

I start at the beginning, right after I ran away, and recount the nights I slept on the street and was almost raped by a crack head.  Right before Robbie walks back in the door, I’m telling him about what happened last night, excluding the fact that Robbie paid me for sex, but I tell him everything else.  He pulls me across the couch and into his lap, holding me like a small child. 

“Dal, I’m so fucking sorry.  I had no idea.  You never told me, you should have.”  I feel moisture falling onto my lap so I pull back and realize that Jack’s crying.  The guilt is too much and I’m crying right along side of him when Robbie walks in, carrying coffee for all of us.

“Do I need to come back?”  He hesitantly walks over the threshold, but doesn’t shut the door behind him, anticipating needing to leave.

“No, it’s okay, we’re good.”  Jack dries his face with the back of his sleeve and I scoot to the cushion right next to him. 

Robbie distributes the coffee and we’re all sitting in the living room in an uncomfortable silence.  I don’t want to be the first to talk, but someone has to say something.

“I really should be getting back to my room.  If I’m gone too long, the owner will consider it abandoned and have everything cleaned out.”

Jack’s head pops up and the look in his eyes is terrifying.  “There’s absolutely
no way
you’re going back to that fucking dump.  I’ll take you to get your stuff, but then you’re coming back to Mom’s with me.”  Robbie looks like he wants to interject, but must see the steam billowing out of Jack’s ears and decides against it.

“I can’t go back to your mom’s, Jack.  I appreciate the offer, but I can’t mooch off her
or
you.  I’ll be okay, I promise.”

“Fucking right, you’ll be okay.  You’re coming home with me.  That’s the end of it.”  I know Jack well enough that once he has his mind set to something, there’s no taking him off course.  He’s right, that’s the end of it; this life is over for me and I’m going home with him.

I stand up and walk over to Robbie.  He stands and I wrap my arms around his waist.  He kisses my head and whispers in my ear, “It’s nice to have you back, Dallas.  Take care of yourself, yeah?”  His words almost seem like goodbye, but it’s a fresh start for me and I can’t help but be grateful for him walking into the club last night.  He might not be my Prince Charming but he saved me.  He saved my life.

Jack drives me back to the motel to gather the little bit of belongings that I have.  It doesn’t take more than a duffle back to pack my life away.  I had to beg Jack to stay in the car so he doesn’t have to see the way I’ve been living.  I’ve never been embarrassed by my life until recently, and if that says anything, it should tell you that I’ve been selling myself short and realizing self worth is such an amazing concept.  I recommend that everyone does it at least once in their life.

Of course, Jack’s mom, my aunt, has no problem taking me in.  Giving her a brief rundown of the last four years, much like her son, she’s in tears and hugging me relentlessly.  She’s telling me what a pathetic excuse for a mother my mom is and how I should have come to her and told her what was going on.  I really thought I was saving everyone from the pain of my story by not telling; now I realize that I did more damage than good.

Apparently, my mother and Ralph moved to Florida a few weeks ago for Ralph to follow a job.  I should be upset that I had to hear this from my biological father’s sister, but knowing that they’re not in the same town as me leaves me in a state of peace.  The whole ride back here, I was terrified of running into one or both of them. 

Jack moved out of his mom’s house last year when he graduated from college.  He had an amazing little apartment in the basement that his mom graciously handed over to me.  It has its own entrance, a little kitchenette, bedroom, living area and bathroom.  Really, it’s like I’m living on my own with the safety of my aunt living upstairs and Jack only a few miles away.  She wants me to get my GED, enroll in school and then work on getting a job.  She says that under no circumstances will she accept any rent from me, that my payment to her will be my grades. 
How the hell did I get so fucking lucky?

The very next week, I enroll in a GED prep program that basically goes over all the stuff that will be on each test.  I’m shocked when I test out of every class there is to take.  I forgot how smart I am and all the information came back to me so quickly, I aced every single pre-test.  They signed me up to take the actual state mandated test a few weeks later.

It really was no surprise that I didn’t need the entire allotted time given to finish the testing and walked out of the classroom with the unofficial reports that said I passed and am the proud carrier of a GED.  I’m sure that the other people in the room were looking at me like I had lost my mind, but the smile plastered all over my face as I walked out to the car is so damn bright, I could light the night.  This is the very first milestone I’ve ever completed that means something to me.  I’m on my way.

Here it is, two months since Robbie walked into that dirty strip club with his buddies and saved my life.  Looking into the floor-length mirror on the back on my bedroom door, I’m astonished at how far I’ve come in such a short amount of time.  My hair is no longer lifeless, but perfectly curled blonde locks are pinned back away from my face and hanging casually down my back. My skin has cleared up and the porcelain look is back, and more importantly, the sparkle in my sapphire blue eyes shines bright.  I’ve gained some weight back, in all the right places might I add, and the pale pink dress hangs perfectly on my body.

I’m me again.  Well, not really me, but the
new
me.  The person that I always wanted to be—accomplished and going somewhere in life. 

Since I received my GED in the mail last week, my aunt decided it was only appropriate to have some sort of party, since I never got an actual graduation party.  I don’t know that many people around here anymore, but she’s invited Jack over and we’re going to grill out and celebrate my small accomplishment that means the world to me.

Satisfied with my appearance, I walk up the stairs and out the private door leading to the back yard.  I’m taken aback when I see the balloons and cake—more importantly, when I see Jack and Robbie sitting at the picnic table, each with a beer in hand and looking at me with pride in their eyes.  I walk over to where they’re sitting and grab a beer from the cooler.

“Wait a second there, Dallas.  You won’t be twenty-one for another few weeks, I don’t think you’re allowed to have one of those,” Jack jokes, trying to take the beer from my hand.

“I’m drinking this beer and you’re gonna watch me.  Plus, I earned this,” I retort, jerking the beer away from his grasp and sitting next to Robbie.

He takes the drink from my hand, turns the cap and hands back the open bottle.  I take a quick swig and set it down in front of me.

“So, what are you guys up to?  I didn’t know you were coming, too,” I say to Robbie, nudging his leg under the table.

“Well, Robbie here thinks he needs my permission for something.”  My eyes shoot to Jack, then back to Robbie and back to Jack again.