Just One Night

Harmony blushed as she took the flowers, her teary eyes glistening. “They’re beautiful,” she whispered. With one hand she tenderly, lightly, stroked the rose petals.

“It’s only the best for my girl,” Gary boomed. His husky voice, low and resounding, echoed through the old building’s entryway corridor.

Harmony swallowed hard, trying not to look directly at him. “Thank you,” she mumbled.

“I can take those, dear,” her mother interjected, reaching around Harmony to grab at them. “You two need to practice your dancing.”

“So do you and Dad,” Harmony reminded her. “In fact, I think the two of you need it more than we do.” She glanced over to Payton, who sat unusually silent in one of the large sofas, toying with her long ashen hair. “Gary, why don’t you hand these over to Payton? She can hold them while we dance.”

His face gave a brief nervous twitch before he clenched the bouquet and turned to hurry across to where Payton sat.

“The two of you will be so happy together,” her mother beamed, whispering into Harmony’s ear. She laid a heavy hand on Harmony’s shoulder. “How are you feeling about the wedding? You can’t tell me you don’t love a man who gives you flowers like that.”

Harmony clenched her jaw for a moment, watching Gary as he strode across the hallway. He was large and powerful, but as gentle with her as if she were delicate blown glass. “Sometimes I do, I think,” Harmony agreed. “I care for him more each day.”

She felt her mother’s grip tighten, then drop away. “You’re doing the right thing marrying him,” she assured Harmony. “He’s a catch. He’s from an excellent family, and truly a righteous man himself. His ancestors joined the church generations ago. They were part of the pilgrimage that crossed the plains. They have a wonderful heritage, Harmony.”

“Besides,” Harmony’s dad towered over the two of them as he quietly came up from behind, “You’re not getting any younger. This is probably your best chance, if not your last.”

“I’m… only twenty, and…” Harmony stammered, stopping as she realized that in public was not a place to have the same old discussion again. Her brow furrowed as she watched Payton look up at Gary, her face suddenly flush as he handed her the flowers.

“Don’t forget you have chunky calves,” her mother poked her in the ribs. “Men like really slender legs. You’re lucky Gary doesn’t seem to notice.”

Harmony looked at the floor to hide a pained grimace, absently pulling down on her long skirt.

“You care about him,” Harmony’s mother whispered quietly. “You will learn to love him, and the two of you will be happy. I promise.”

Harmony squelched a long, frustrated sigh and went to meet Gary on his way back to her. He took her hand warmly and led her into the dance hall.

“Just a couple more hours of dance lessons,” she heard her mother crowing behind her. “The wedding is going to be simply perfect.”

“I’m going to be glad when the wedding’s over,” Gary whispered, putting his arm around Harmony as they stood to wait for the instructor. “I’m just a bit concerned that your mother thinks she’s the one getting married.”

Harmony choked back her laugh. “That could make for an awkward honeymoon,” she agreed.

Gary went dead quiet, and Harmony scrunched her nose in remorse.

“Have you thought any more about what you’d like to do for our honeymoon?” he prodded after a long, uncomfortable moment.

Harmony felt the familiar knot in her stomach. She shook her head. “I’ve been trying not to,” she confessed.

Gary gave an aggravated sigh. “I don’t see what the big deal is. We don’t have to spend the entire time at the hotel. All I said is we should get a room with a nice hot tub and a king-sized bed.”

Harmony blushed, hoping desperately that no one else was listening. “And,” she grumbled, “all I’m saying is that I don’t think we’re going to spend that much time in the room. I’d like to get out and see some sights or something. I don’t want our marriage to be all about…” The word stuck in her throat.

“It’s not,” Gary objected. “But the honeymoon typically is.”

“A marriage is like a cake,” Harmony informed him judiciously. “And sex is just the frosting. That’s my point.”

“And my point,” Gary glanced up to see Harmony’s mother walking over to the CD player, “is I want to spend my honeymoon licking the icing.”

“I think the instructor is running late,” Harmony’s mother called out. Harmony was grateful for the interruption. “While we’re waiting let’s put on some music and try practicing what we learned last week.”

In a moment a quiet song echoed through the large room. Harmony’s dad rushed over to join her mother, and they began to jostle clumsily over the floor. Harmony took a deep breath and rested one hand on Gary’s shoulder and the other in his grasp.

She waited, watching Gary count out the beats, his knees bending on every other one.

He stepped towards her and she hurried to step out of his way. He pulled her back, trying awkwardly to swing her around himself.

“Ow” Harmony squawked, jerking her foot out from under Gary’s.

“Sorry,” he grunted. He stopped, counting the beats again.

Harmony glanced to the doorway, hoping the instructor would arrive soon and save her. He hadn’t yet. But someone else had.

He stood there, watching, his piercing dark eyes showing an intense humor. He leaned casually against the doorway, chuckling to himself. Gary saw Harmony’s stare and turned.

“That’s not the instructor, is it?” he asked.

Harmony shook her head. “It’s not who was here last time.” She turned her head away, but watched the stranger from the corner of her eye, swallowing back her uncomfortable interest. His broad shoulders filled his black tailored suit perfectly. His thick, full hair was an obsidian forest of desire, his skin a rugged, sweet mocha. His lips curved over his chiseled face in a contagious grin.

“What are you laughing at?” Harmony’s mother broke the silence, staring in contempt at the stranger.

“I’m sorry,” he laughed as he stepped into the room, his stance tall and confident, his words rich and strangely enticing with the hint of a foreign accent. “Am I not supposed to laugh?”

“We’re learning to dance,” Harmony’s mother chided.

“Oh no,” he chortled, “I may not know what it is you are doing, but that is certainly not it.”

Harmony’s mother straightened her back defiantly. “Who do you think you are?” she retorted.

He stopped, offering a polite smile and genteel bow. “Just who do you think I am?”

“Are you the dance instructor?” Harmony’s dad joined in. “Could the other instructor not make it?”

“Don’t you think he would have been here by now if he could?” the stranger offered. “But not to worry, I can teach you what you need to know. My name is Stelian, and I will teach you how to actually dance this evening. But first,” he glided over to the CD player, quickly shutting off the music, “we need some good music.”

“That was a beautiful song,” Harmony’s mother objected. She turned to face the man, giving him her most offended glare. “I chose that one, I’ll have you know.”

Stelian gave her a puzzled glance, then started sorting among the CDs. “Have you considered getting a hearing aid?” he joked.

“What?!” Harmony’s mother screeched.

Stelian stopped abruptly and looked up at her, his face instantly sullen. “I’m so sorry,” he groveled. “Have… you… considered… a… hearing… aid!?” he repeated loudly.

Harmony felt Gary gripping her hand, and she became aware how intently she was watching Stelian. She felt her body growing hot, but subdued the urge to start fanning herself. She looked away, searching for a window to stare out of while they waited.

“This one’s garbage,” Stelian mumbled. Harmony could hear a CD clatter across the room. “And this one, and this one…”

Every word he spoke dripped with that maddening accent, reverberating deep inside Harmony until she felt her insides trembling.

She looked over to watch Stelian slinging CD after CD across the room, muttering to himself as he sorted through the selection. “If the music isn’t right,” he explained calmly, “no one can dance properly.”

Harmony tried to look back at Gary, but found herself unable to look away from the enchanting stranger. She watched the CDs twirl through the air, one after another.

“Someone should probably watch where those land,” Stelian remarked casually. “The other instructor may want to use them for something. Drink coasters maybe?”

His face brightened in triumph as he pulled out one of the CDs. “Voilà,” he announced, “A slow rumba. That’s perfect.” He inserted the CD in the player and stepped around the little table.

“What difference does it make what song we play?” Harmony’s mother objected. “As long as we learn the steps it will look the same.”

Stelian gave her a brief glance, then his eyes roamed to take Harmony in. She fidgeted as his gaze studied her face. “A rumba has power. It has passion, and sensuality.”

Harmony’s mother clenched her jaw, her glare sharpening.

“If you can’t breathe the music, it doesn’t get into your soul,” Stelian swooped his hands dramatically as he motioned for Harmony to join him.

Harmony’s breath caught in her throat, a long shiver crawling up her spine and her heart racing as she stumbled over next to him. As she came up to him she inhaled his scent, a warm balsamic that swam through her.

“The problem isn’t with the music,” Gary grumbled. “You need to teach her some grace.”

Harmony fought back the grimace, and glanced morosely up at Stelian. His deep walnut eyes sparkled with humor. He turned, his gaze tracing over every inch of Harmony’s quivering body as she fidgeted nervously.

“It would be impossible,” his rolling accent filled the air with melodious tones, “for such a magnificent creature to lack grace to any measure. It would defy nature itself.” He pointed to her high heels. “But the shoes must come off. They are not meant to be used for gliding over the floor. Bared feet will work far better.”

Harmony’s mother scurried up close so no one else could hear. “She’s a bit short,” she scolded. “She needs the shoes.”

“Nonsense,” Stelian refuted, his eyes meeting Harmony’s as he smiled passionately. “She’s perfect as she is. Let the woman be herself, and step back so I can help her experience music.”

He held a hand out for Harmony as she pulled her shoes from her aching feet. The rest of the room melted away as she hesitated, then reached up trembling fingers to his. As she felt his gentle touch on her skin a heat poured into her, sending her heart skipping.

His gaze held her own eyes captive, almost unwillingly. She was only vaguely aware that he reached over his other hand to press the play button before grasping her hip and pulling her closer to him. Harmony’s mind reeled in confusion, unaware that she reached up to grip his shoulder until she felt the firm muscle in her palm, flexing beneath his jacket.

Music swelled to fill the air, the beat reverberating powerfully within her, choking her fears beneath their weight. The notes echoed and swam around them, pressing with pulsating need at their bodies. His face, the strong angles and firm eyes, became her one desire. She was standing, her naked feet planted, and then she was floating over the floor, spinning, flowing like warm butter. The sound of her mother crying out in horrified dismay blended with the haunting musical tones like distant seagulls.

She tightened her hold on his strong shoulder as the pace quickened, pulling him closer still. She drank in his presence, touched his arm with hers, felt his breath against her cheek. A thrill rose from deep inside to fill her chest. And suddenly she was twirling, the room racing around her until she alone existed, her heart missing a beat each time she caught sight of him.

She was soaring, rising and swimming in a heated sea of sweetness, and the world fluttered wildly somewhere beyond her. Her feet felt above the ground now, no longer restricted to rest her weight on them. The music rippled and surged, lifting her and sending her flying as Stelian twirled her, caught her into the strength of his embrace, and sent her twirling once more.

The song ascended to pounding climax and she was suddenly falling breathlessly, landing in Stelian’s safe embrace, but leaning back in helpless submission. His face loomed inches from hers, his full, moist lips little more than a breath from her own, a kiss glistening only a mere…

“That’s quite enough,” her father barked.

Stelian grinned warmly at her as he raised her upright. Her knees quivered beneath her, and the realization of the dance they had just shared began to sink in. She forced her eyes away from his hypnotic stare and down to the floor.

“I see no lack of grace with her,” Stelian announced. “Quite the contrary, I find she’s…”

“This lesson is over!” Harmony’s mother shouted, grabbing Harmony by her upper arm and tearing her roughly away from Stelian. Briskly her mother escorted her from the dance hall and back into the corridor, tossing Harmony’s high heels at her feet. She yanked the bouquet from Payton’s arms and shoved them into Harmony’s. Choking back her brewing emotions, Harmony crammed her feet back into her shoes. They pinched.

“Why don’t Payton and you go out to the car and wait for us there?” her mother’s voice was tense, but controlled. “Your father and I need to have a word with the instructor.”

Payton slipped up to Harmony, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders. Harmony turned to watch her mother stomp back into the dance hall, pointing to Gary and Harmony’s father to follow her.

“What were you thinking?” Payton whispered as she led Harmony outside.

The sun was warm. Harmony followed Payton to the car and leaned against it. “You should have seen the hurt in Gary’s face while he stood there to watch you like that. How could you do that to him?”

Harmony shook her head, wiping at a stray tear as she struggled to understand it. “I…” She looked around at the trees, feeling a light breeze tickling her face. “I guess I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry.” She gave Payton a pained look. “You’ve always been a good friend, Payton, thank you. I was just swept up in the moment. But, he was just…”

Her words stuck in her throat. A wave of guilt filled her stomach.

“He was just using you,” Payton insisted. “You need to get your head on straight, girl. You’re getting married next week.”

Harmony took a long, cleansing breath. “I know. I promise it’s not going to happen again. It’s just…” Harmony felt a shiver caress her skin, and turned away. “I guess I don’t understand how I can feel such a sudden, intense need for someone, and the frustration at not being able to explore it. I suppose you don’t understand it either.”

It was silent for a long, painful moment. “I understand far more than you realize,” Payton breathed. “Far more than I should – at least the frustration part.”

Harmony looked quizzically up at her. Payton looked sharply away, her deep blue eyes misty, her face fallen.

“What do you…” The words caught in Harmony’s throat as she spotted the dark figure.

It was him, strolling towards them across the parking lot. He smiled to her as she looked up, and she felt her soul interlock with his once more. He held his broad shoulders back, and for an instant she imagined him to be royalty.

Harmony didn’t notice as Payton saw him, her face cringing in dismay. He came directly up to them.

“Did my parents talk with you already?” Harmony asked, her weak voice nearly inaudible.

Stelian shook his head. “They must have missed me. I slipped outside through the back doors. They’re probably still inside looking for me. What did they need?”

Harmony gave a sheepish grin as she shrugged. “They didn’t say. I assume they wanted to thank you.”

He chuckled. The sound of it was invigorating, thrilling. “I’m sure that was it,” he mused. “They seemed very grateful as they stormed from the room.”

“Well I’d like to thank you for… for the lesson today,” Harmony offered. She felt Payton jab at her arm, but ignored her.

“You’re a marvelous dancer,” he said. Hot shivers flooded inside her with his voice. “But you really need a better dress. That one restricts you far too much. I could feel it holding you back as we danced.”

Harmony swallowed. It took a moment before his words made sense to her. She glanced down at her skirt. “All of my dresses are pretty much like this.”

“On your wedding day,” Payton interrupted, “you’ll be in your wedding dress. What you’re wearing now won’t matter.”

“Would you like me to help you find a better dancing dress?” Stelian offered gallantly.

Harmony stared back at him in surprise, her chest fluttering inside. “You’d do that for me?”

“I could never leave an angel such as yourself fettered as you are if I can help it.”

“You can’t help it,” Payton growled. “She is engaged.”

“I take that to mean ‘yes’.” Harmony replied, ignoring Payton. “But I could never…”

“I insist,” Stelian motioned to a gleaming black Mercedes a few spots further down. “I’m parked just over there. I would be honored to help you find attire more fitting a young lady such as yourself.”

“There’s no way,” Payton protested sternly as she gripped Harmony’s arm. “Your mother would never want you running off with a stranger like that.”

Harmony couldn’t help her beaming smile. “Just tell her I left to go shopping. It only makes sense that I get the right dress. After all, the wedding must be perfect.”

“If Gary finds out there might not be a wedding,” Payton baulked. “Don’t you even care?”

Harmony shoved the bouquet back into Payton’s arms, took Stelian’s hand and followed him to his car. “I won’t be that long,” she assured Payton. “Just cover for me, okay?”

Stelian opened her door for her before climbing in behind the wheel. “Your family seems a bit controlling, don’t they?” he mused.

“They’re just concerned about me, that’s all.”

“If you’re old enough to get married, you should be old enough to make your own decisions,” Stelian shrugged as he started up the car. The engine purred evenly. He pulled out onto the street.

“They’re trying to protect me,” Harmony sighed.

“From me?” Stelian laughed.

Harmony went silent, staring down at her hands before allowing the moment alone with him to wash over her. “I love your accent,” she offered. “Are you Russian?”

“Romanian,” he grinned.

She felt flush as his smile seemed to pour inside of her. She looked down sharply. “So we’re going dress shopping?”

“I know the perfect store, too,” Stelian assured her. “The styles are fashionable, but classy.”

Harmony fidgeted as her eyes grew wide. “I can’t afford anything too fashionable. Actually, I don’t know that I can…”

“It’s my treat,” he grinned. “You don’t need to worry about a thing.”

Her brow furrowed. “This is part of the dance lessons – having the instructor buy a dress?”

He chuckled. “I have no idea. I don’t work there.”

“But… I thought you said you were the dance instructor.”

Stelian shrugged. “It was your tenacious parents who said that’s who they thought I was. Do you think a dance instructor could afford a car like this?”

“I was wondering,” Harmony confessed.

“I only said I could teach you how to dance, and I can. But first you need a dress you can dance in.”

“Okay, but…” Harmony looked out the window nervously, “who are you?”

“The name,” he presented gallantly, “is Stelian Lungu the third, from Romania. We live in Portland currently. I’m here for a few days with my parents for business. They’re preparing for a party that starts in an hour, and I’m avoiding having to help by wandering the streets. I came across the little dance studio and was curious about the architecture. Needless to say I saw your fiancé tossing you around over the dance floor. I know a damsel in distress, and you’re one of them.”

“I was fine,” Harmony objected. “Gary is a wonderful man; he’s just not a good dancer yet. A few more lessons, some patience and…”

She sighed and threw her hands in the air. “And he would have broken my leg. He’s a clumsy horse on the dance floor. You were right.”

“Not to worry,” Stelian promised, “we’ll take care of it.”

Harmony laughed, shaking her head. “A new dress for me isn’t going to help him dance any better.”

“Again, here you are worrying,” Stelian smiled. “Try to relax and let me take care of it. It’s going to be alright. And you still haven’t told me your name.”

Harmony blushed. “It’s Harmony,” she whispered.

He was quiet for a moment. “That’s a beautiful name. It’s strong, but charming, and classic.”

“Thank you,” Harmony only managed to mouth the words. Stelian’s attention was on the road, the car swooping over the pavement with a low growl, and she wasn’t sure he even noticed she said it.

Harmony jumped as her cell phone cracked the warm silence. Her hands felt awkward as she pulled the phone from her purse.

She cringed as she saw the caller. “Hi,” she tried hard to sound casual.

“What the heck do you think you’re doing?” her mother’s piercing voice yelled.

“Dress shopping.” Harmony swallowed hard, fighting not to crumble under the weight of her mother’s demanding screams.

“The real instructor showed up a few minutes ago,” her mother yelled. “That man you’re with doesn’t even work here. You have no idea who he is. Tell him to bring you back this minute, or we’re calling the police.”

Harmony felt herself bristle. “And tell them what? That I’m shopping and I must be stopped? Be realistic, Mom. I know Stelian doesn’t work there. He’s here on business from Portland. You don’t have to worry. I’ll be home soon, okay?”

“You’ll get back here right now, young lady, if you know what’s good for you.”

She clenched her jaw until it hurt. “I’m sorry, my battery is dying,” she lied. “I have to go, otherwise I can’t call you if there’s an emergency. Goodbye.”

“Are you going to…”

Harmony cut her mother off as she ended the call. She stared nervously at the phone before turning it off.

“Your mother?” Stelian asked.

Harmony felt her face go warm. “You caught that, huh?”

He nodded. “Not your fiancé?”

She furrowed her brow as she stared at her phone. “No,” she half shrugged. “Not him.” She sighed before stuffing her cell back in her purse.

“We’re here,” Stelian announced as he pulled up in front of a small shop.

Harmony waited as Stelian pulled himself from the car and opened her door. As she stepped into the store she felt herself starting to shiver. She reached out and touched one of the dresses, feeling the rich fabric in her fingers. She couldn’t see any price tags.

“Ah, Stelian,” the saleswoman greeted him as she slipped calmly into the room. “How are you these days?”

“I’m well, thank you,” he smiled back at her before motioning to Harmony, “except I have a young lady here, Harmony, with a great deal of talent and beauty mummified into some ancient ensemble of torture. Can you help us out?”

The saleswoman scrutinized Harmony with a humorous expression. “I would hope so,” she agreed. “Did she just escape from the fifties?”

“Not quite yet,” Stelian gave her a knowing wink. “But I’m still hopeful.”

“I’m Stacie,” the saleswoman offered Harmony a warm, strong handshake. “I’ll be helping you this afternoon.”

“What do you have?” Stelian asked.

Stacie studied Harmony more intently, her eyes narrowing as they scanned her body. At last she put a finger in the air. “I have just the thing for her,” she announced before slipping into a back room.

Harmony shifted her weight nervously, feeling suddenly out of place as she looked over the lavish gowns.

“It’s a Valentino,” Stacie declared as she returned, a sleek black dress cradled in her hands. She held it up along Harmony’s body, comparing the two. “It’s a cross-strap slit style, perfect for her.”

Harmony stared in horror at the dress, noting the low cuts and the looming slit up the skirt. “I could never…” She choked back on the words, fighting herself to keep from running away.

Stacie gave her an assuring smile. “It’s okay dear. We can simply try it on and see if I’m right — that it’s practically made for you.” She glanced over to Stelian. “I really think the cut will accentuate her form beautifully,” she glanced over Harmony’s body, “especially her breasts.”

Harmony swallowed back on a gasp, looking briefly down at her own chest before giving a begging look at the saleswoman.

The glimmer in Stelian’s eyes captured Harmony’s attention, and held it. His eyes were soft, understanding. They were also excited as they took both her and the dress in eagerly. She suddenly longed to have him keep looking at her like that.

“Shall we step in the back and give it a try?” Stacie offered.

Harmony only nodded. She didn’t try to speak, afraid of what might come out.

She followed Stacie into the back. Stacie handed her the gown and a sleek pair of Manolo Blahnik heels. “You won’t wear anything beneath the gown,” she explained. “And you can set the clothes you’re wearing on the bench in the dressing room.”

Harmony felt her heart pounding wildly. “What about my bra, and…”

“Absolutely nothing beneath it,” Stacie repeated quietly. “The dress won’t properly cover anything underneath. And you should remove your nylon stockings as well. Are your breasts perky?”

Harmony stared back at her in shock. “Perky?” she repeated.

Stacie smiled with amusement. “Try on the gown. If it’s not right, we’ll find another one. But I’m fairly confident it will look amazing on you.” She ushered Harmony into a booth and slid the curtain closed.

It was hard to ignore that Stelian, the dark stranger she’d only known for twenty minutes now, was waiting just outside the thin curtain for her as she took all of her clothes off. Her fingers trembled as she unbuttoned her dress and slid out of it. She folded it loosely and set it on the bench. She slipped her shoes off and shoved them to the side. Hurriedly she pulled off her bra, stockings and panties and stuffed them beneath her other clothes.

She was shaking as she rushed to slip into the dress. She stuck her feet into the new high heels, suddenly surprised by how comfortable they were.

“I need some help with the straps,” Harmony requested, sticking her head around the curtain.

Stacie slid the curtain back and motioned Harmony to step out. Swallowing back hard at the lump in her throat Harmony walked from the booth, catching her reflection in the mirror. She turned in shock at the woman who stared back at her, the dress slipping up to her body as Stacie adjusted the straps. It felt to her as though she were staring at another woman, a young woman wearing a dress that swooped low to expose exquisitely shaped, round curves.

“Wow,” Stacie breathed, “you’re a real vision of beauty.”

Stacie’s awed reaction echoed inside Harmony. She stared in confused amazement at her own image.

She could hear Stelian step into the room, and she turned to face him.

The look on his face sent waves of electric shivers clambering up her spine. His mouth fell open and his eyes widened as he stared, unable to look away. “We… we’ll take it,” he stammered.

“Not so fast, Stelian,” Stacie put a quieting hand to his shoulder. “Remember the woman beneath the beauty. She needs to feel right in the dress.” She looked over to Harmony, her eyes glinting. “What do you think, Harmony?”

Harmony studied Stelian’s face, his fervent attention drawing her in, melting her until she felt helpless. “I like it,” she managed to breathe.

Stelian’s smile grew excitedly. “Put it on our tab, Stacie.”

“But…” Harmony felt a panic swell inside, “but how much…”

“It’s a gift,” Stelian calmed her. “You don’t need to worry about a thing, Harmony.”

She put a quieting hand to her chest, unable to calm the uneasy confusion. “Okay,” she submitted. “Thank you so much. It’s unbelievable. Give me a minute to change back.”

“Not quite yet,” Stelian stopped her. “There’s the party tonight. I would be devastated if you didn’t attend with me.”

Harmony looked back at her reflection. “You mean, go outside where people can see me in the dress?”

Stacie laid a soothing hand to Harmony’s arm. “That’s the idea of possessing such beauty,” she murmured too quietly for Stelian to hear it, “to drive other women crazy with envy. Now, I’ll slip your other clothes into a bag to take with you.”

As Stacie slipped into the changing booth Harmony turned back to Stelian. “I would be honored to attend the party with you,” she agreed. She forced the thought of how Gary was going to react from her mind.

Stacie handed Harmony a shopping bag, and Stelian led Harmony back to the car, opening the door for her.

“You understand I’m getting married next week, right?” Harmony reminded Stelian as he slid behind the wheel. She twitched nervously.

He looked over to her, reaching a warm hand to her cheek, caressing her as she involuntarily poured herself into his touch. “I understand,” his voice was low, mellow, like honey rolling over his tongue. “One evening of dancing within my arms, one enchanted night of magic for me, of luxury and charm, and then a lifetime with your husband.”

The moment shrank in pain. “Actually,” Harmony tried to sound excited, “it’s forever.” The final word cracked. “In our church we marry forever.” She could see the hope gleam in Stelian’s deep eyes, and fear of his intentions swelled in her stomach.

But her smile couldn’t be contained. “One evening,” she agreed.

The car roared to life and Harmony’s mind reeled. She watched Stelian as he pulled away from the curb, his skill evident in how he shifted and how he handled the wheel. In a moment he was one with the car and they bounded over the ground like a panther racing across the African plains. She watched his strong hands grasp the shift knob, slipping it from one gear to the next, his other hand swiveling as the car swerved amid traffic. Her gaze lit on his caring face, his piercing but kind eyes as they constantly scanned the road ahead. She drank in his protruding cheek bones, his stern jaw. Her gaze roamed over his large chest, and, finally, stared with insistent attentiveness at the large bulge lower down.

She forced her eyes away, looking out at the passing buildings as she struggled with her gathering, tingling desires. She felt an unusual ticklish sensation filling her lower stomach, her thoughts drifting against her will to how he might look with different clothes on.

She looked down to where her dress was falling open to reveal her thigh, the sight of it somehow enticing as she sat so near Stelian. She wondered who she had become for that one night, her body exposed and open to this unusual man, and her uncomfortable sensation of being so happy that it was.

“Why are you doing this for me?” Harmony finally couldn’t stop herself from asking. “You don’t know me at all.”

Stelian gave her a quick smile. “That’s true,” he admitted. “I would like to, however — get to know you. And, maybe I don’t know myself just why I’m so enthralled with you. It’s just that I saw you trying so hard to dance, but chained to someone with several left feet. At that moment I felt as though I saw something in you I could not resist. Possibly something you don’t see in yourself.”

Her eyes narrowed as she watched his face. “Are you…” she cringed as she tried to force the words out, “are you expecting something from me tonight?”

His look softened, and he shook his head. “Everything I do is because I want to, Harmony. You don’t owe me anything in return. I only hope you enjoy the evening, and that you enjoy spending time with me.”

“Really?” she prodded. “You don’t expect anything in return?”

“Just relax and enjoy yourself,” he assured her. “To me a woman isn’t an animal to be captured, or a beast to be contained. To me a woman is meant to be free, to act for herself, to be wild. Anything she does from obligation is insincere, almost dishonest, as much to herself as to anyone else.”

“You feel that way about all women?”

He nodded enthusiastically. “I don’t usually buy them dresses, but yes. To me all women are unconquerable goddesses.” He scrunched his face. “Except my mother,” he corrected. “She’s a manipulative bitch. But you’ll see for yourself as you meet her tonight. Don’t worry; I’m pretty certain she’s had her shots.”

Her eyes grew wide as Stelian pulled up to the lumbering old building that sprawled upward with stone walls, the sign high on the wall announcing it was The Graystand Hotel. A valet opened her door for her, and Harmony slipped nervously out.

“This place is huge,” Harmony gasped as Stelian came up from behind her and slipped his arm into hers. “And it’s beautiful.”

“And it looks like the party is just starting,” Stelian noted. Quickly he led her up along the stone steps and into the front entryway.

The rooms rose high overhead to ornate ceilings. Huge draperies hung over the tall windows, pulled to the sides with tasseled ropes. The marble floor shone with mirrored reflections, making the huge rooms appear even larger. Harmony stared in lost dismay at the mansion.

“Stelian,” a woman grabbed his elbow from behind, “I’m so glad you decided to show, now that everything has been taken care of.”

“Mother,” Stelian turned to meet her. “This is Harmony, a new acquaintance of mine,” he offered as introduction. “And Harmony, this is my mother.”

“I see,” the elderly woman chortled with disquieting disapproval. “You don’t have time to plan the ball, but you can find the time to scour the neighborhood for tramps.”

“Mother,” Stelian sharply interrupted her, “they call them skanks these days. Besides, Harmony isn’t one of those. She’s the type of girl a man feels comfortable bringing home to meet his family.”

His mother pursed her lips as she glared at Harmony. “I’m sure,” she bit. “Mr. Torrel is looking for you, by the way. He has some concerns about the latest product versions. Maybe you could leave this tart with me for a few brief moments and do some marketing? Would you have that much time?”

“They’re called skanks, mother – please try to learn modern English. And yes, I’ll make an appearance. Please play nice, alright?”

Stelian slipped into the crowd. Harmony straightened herself and braced for his mother’s assault. She could already feel the tears welling up behind her eyes. The old woman gave a long, careful sigh.

“So you have just met my son then?”

Harmony nodded as she swallowed. “Actually, no more than an hour or so ago.”

The old woman took Harmony’s arm and guided her deeper into the room. “And did he even mention his aging mother to you?”

Harmony raised her eyebrows. “Actually, he did tell me about you, yes.”

She chuckled, motioning to the buffet table with her head. “He told you I’m a rabid bitch, didn’t he?”

Harmony shook her head vigorously, but the old woman’s heavy, knowing glare rattled her. “He never once mentioned that you were rabid,” Harmony offered sheepishly.

She grinned in amusement. “Not everything is as it seems,” she mused. “He actually loves me more than he lets on. And I him, I’m sure. Please don’t let the brass exterior fool you.” She plucked a plate from a stack. “And join me for some food, will you? I’m starved and I hate to eat alone.”

“Of course,” Harmony agreed, following behind her with a clean plate.

The food was magnificent. Harmony hadn’t realized how hungry she was until she sat with Stelian’s mother and began to eat.

“Stelian tells me you’re from Portland,” Harmony attempted conversation.

“Yes, only in town briefly for business – very droll stuff, to be sure. But he seems to be making the best of the trip.”

Harmony shifted in her chair uneasily. “Does he often meet strange girls like this? I mean, does he…”

“You mean is Stelian a playboy?” his mother taunted her. Then she shook her head. “I tease him, but he’s always a gentleman. He always has been. And no, he doesn’t often meet someone like it seems he has you. If you don’t mind my asking, where did you meet?”

Harmony couldn’t hide the grimace. “Actually, it was at a dance lesson. The instructor didn’t show, and Stelian offered to teach us.”

“Us?” she prodded.

Harmony sighed. “My parents, my fiancé, and me. I’m getting married next week.”

The old woman’s eyes widened in shock. “You’re engaged?” she affirmed.

Harmony nodded. “It’s weird, I know, but he seemed so insistent. I just assumed he did this kind of thing all the time. I take it he doesn’t then?”

She shook her head slowly. “No. No, he’s not like that. Typically he’s quite reserved.”

“There you two are,” Stelian remarked as he came up to them. “I see you’ve found some food.”

“Just finishing up,” Harmony smiled, searching his face now for some expression that would betray his interests in her.

“Maybe I could save you then from dealing with my mother, if you’d care to join me for a walk in the gardens?”

Harmony noticed a glimmer of nervous doubt in his eyes, hiding behind the debonair façade. She nodded. “I’d like that.”

He took her hand and helped her to her feet. Slipping his arm in hers he calmly led her out through a back door and down into the dusky gardens. Harmony looked up to see a large moon peering over the distant mountains, pouring ghostly light down into the treetops.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispered as they stopped on a bridge and stared down into the water. Dim lights illuminated the water below, and several large fish swam through the depths.

“So tell me about Harmony,” Stelian asked, his voice low and lush. “My mother had you to herself for several minutes, so I’m sure you know all about me now. At least the embarrassing parts, I would imagine. But I know very little about you. I only know that your parents like to keep you in their pockets.”

Harmony shrugged. “There’s not really much to know, I guess.”

“Well, what do you do for work?”

She gave a half-smile, her attention still fixed on the fish below. “Right now I work at a local department store, stocking shelves. But I’ve already given notice that I’m quitting, and won’t be working at all anymore after I’m married.”

“Really?” Stelian mused. “What will you be doing then?”

“Having children,” Harmony sighed. “Gary will support the family, and I’ll stay home and raise the kids.”

“Oh,” he mused. “That’s your dream – to be a mother?”

Harmony swallowed. “Yes,” she said simply, her voice stern.

He looked over at her, raising one eyebrow. “Yes?” he repeated.

Harmony nodded. His eyes narrowed, looking deeply into her. She turned her head away and stared down at the fish again, surprised at how anxious she suddenly felt.

“Tell me,” Stelian persisted, “tell me about your future dreams.”

Harmony felt the lump in her throat growing. “It’s the American dream, isn’t it?” she gave a forced smile. “A little cottage with a white picket fence and several young children screaming as they run through the yard. Maybe a large dog. And me at home fixing dinner and cleaning the house.”

He shifted closer, until their arms touched. “You like dogs?” he asked.

Harmony nodded emphatically. “I love dogs,” she choked only a little on the words. “They love you no matter what. And they’ll help protect the house and the children, and then they go outside and leave duties all over the yard. They shed on the sofa and drool on the kitchen table when no one is looking.” She sighed heavily. “I can’t stand dogs, or pets at all. They’re filthy things that don’t belong in a house, or living with me.”

She bit her lower lip, looking sheepishly over at Stelian.

“And children?” he continued.

She grimaced, looking down at her hands as she fiddled with her fingers. “I don’t want kids – not yet. I really just don’t. I know that’s horrible to say, but I feel like they’re going to trap me, and I’ll just have the rest of my life planned out. I’m going to be married next week, and the rest of my life is going to be wiping noses and changing diapers. Is it so awful to want some time for myself first?”

Stelian chuckled warmly. “I thought I detected some frustration in your voice when you said you wanted children. And no, it’s okay that you don’t. What’s not okay is to let people believe it’s what you want in life, and get yourself locked into a situation you want out of. Why aren’t you honest with your fiancé about it? Don’t you think he’d understand?”

Harmony winced. “I don’t know. I wish I could believe that he would. But then there’s my parents, too. They want grandchildren right away, and my religion says that I’m supposed to, and I really don’t know how to get out of it.”

“Well,” Stelian shrugged, “it won’t be easier after you have children. It’s better now than later.”

Harmony nodded. “But if it’s something I should do, does it matter what I want?”

“It should,” Stelian stated. “You’re the one most affected by what you do.” They stood in awkward silence for several minutes. “So, tell me more about you.”

Harmony huffed. “That wasn’t enough?”

“Oh, I imagine that’s only the very beginning,” Stelian laughed.

“What else do you want to know? I’ve just told you my deepest, darkest secrets.”

“Really?” he gasped. “I certainly hope that’s not true.”

“What more do you want to know?”

“Well, there’s the obvious dark secrets,” Stelian suggested. “What is your most wild sexual fantasy?”

Harmony gasped so hard she sputtered. “I can’t believe you just asked me that! I don’t even really know you.”

He laughed, rubbing his chin with one hand. “Sometimes it’s easier to talk with strangers, isn’t it?”

“Well, I don’t know your secret sex fantasy,” Harmony objected. “Somehow, your mother never thought to bring that up.”

“Oh, I have many sex fantasies,” he grinned.

“Really? Like what?”

Stelian thought for a moment. “I’ve always wanted to make love to a beautiful woman while we were sitting around a campfire, late at night. We’d just be sitting there, her and I alone, and she’d get up, walk over to me without saying a word, and take off all of her clothes.”

Harmony felt a tingling sensation fill her, growing quickly as she imagined stripping for him and feeling the heat from the fire against her bared skin.

“Then,” he went on, “she’d pull my clothes off, sit me down on a log, and straddle me. She’d stare into my eyes as she worked herself on top of me, never looking away or saying a word.”

Harmony felt strangely enticed, her heart pounding, as she allowed the image to linger in her mind.

“Or maybe going to a masseuse for a massage. There’s something oddly erotic about being stretched out naked while a gorgeous woman touches me.”

Harmony had to close her eyes, battling to clear the thoughts of leaning over him, his body stripped and exposed, toying with his large penis with oils as he groaned. All the while she was dressed, but in a skimpy outfit, his eyes watching her, undressing her.

“Would you like to hear some more?”

“No,” Harmony grunted, her voice painfully hoarse and strained. “I think I have the idea.”

The night air was slightly chilled, and Harmony welcomed the feel of it bringing down her sudden fever. She turned away from Stelian, terrified he might see how flush she was.

The fish swished beneath them, seeming unaware of their presence. Harmony glanced around at the trees as they swayed in the breeze. A dimly lit path fell out of sight in the darkness beyond them, lost amid the shadows. Harmony began to relax, and wondered how she could be willing to discuss things so inappropriate with a stranger.

“I’d be tied,” she heard herself say, the words surprising her as she heard them spoken.

“What?” Stelian asked softly.

Harmony took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Sometimes when I’m alone in bed, I imagine what it might be like to have my hands tied behind my back while a strong, caring man made love to me,” she confessed. “It wouldn’t be like rape or anything – I just wonder what it would be like to be helpless.” She shrugged with embarrassment. “I guess I just mostly want to find out what he’d do to me if he could do anything at all, and I couldn’t stop him.”

“You imagine Gary on top of you?”

Harmony cringed. The painful truth drove deep, piercing into her stomach. She shook her head. She couldn’t bring herself to say it, though.

The silence was awkward.

“Do you love him?” Stelian pried.

Harmony felt a tear slip down along her cheek. She shook her head. “I know I can learn to love him, though. He’s a good man, and he’s right for me. Of course I can learn to love him.”

Again an uncomfortable silence filled the air. His arm still pressed against hers, and she reveled in the feel of it.

“Maybe it’s not my business,” Stelian finally broke the silence, his voice strained. “I’m certain it’s not. But love isn’t something you learn, like mathematics. It’s not a science or even an art. It’s a beast.”

Harmony gave him a puzzled stare, her tears now dripping freely from her face.

“It’s true,” he went on. “People hunt it, some their entire lives. You can track it, try to understand it, and sooner or later most people begin to believe it’s only a mythical creature, and it doesn’t really exist. And then, when you’re no longer stalking it, it creeps up behind you. It waits, silent, still, just out of view. One day you turn around and find yourself face-to-face with it. Some people are thrilled to see it, others are horrified. Either way, if you wait too long it will pounce, and then devour you.”

“It sounds horrible,” Harmony heard herself laugh between muffled sobs. “Can’t we eradicate it?”

He grinned, glancing up to the moon and back at her. His eyes were hot and deep, drawing her inside. “You’ve never been in love before even once, have you?” It was more a statement than a question.

She looked sharply away, her face scrunching.

“Oh,” he gasped. “You have been in love before. You forgot to mention that.”

Harmony tried to shake her head, but couldn’t. “It was years ago,” she admitted. “I was really young, and he wasn’t right for me.”

“He wasn’t right for you, or for your parents?”

She gritted her teeth. “Either, I suppose. He wasn’t what they would consider a good man, and he was too old for me anyway. But… but my heart hurt so badly when I wasn’t with him. And then he moved away. I’ve never seen him again, but I still think about him sometimes.”

“Did he love you back?”

Harmony shrugged. “I never told him I was in love with him.” Her heart bounced as she heard herself admit how she’d felt. “I was too scared to say it. Besides, what would have been the point? But I always imagined he loved me back. And sometimes I thought I saw it in his eyes.”

“And now you’ve forgotten what it felt like? Is that why you’re willing to marry someone you don’t love?”

Harmony offered him a pained look before she confessed. “I did forget.” She hesitated, her voice going suddenly low. “But I think I might be starting to remember now.”

He was quiet, but his eyes showed a deep understanding. Harmony looked back into the water, enthralled by the large fish.

Shivers raced through her as Stelian stepped up behind her, wrapping her up into his arms. She swooned back into him, unable to resist, and overwhelmed in the thrill of his embrace. The distant whimpering sound was her own voice, and she relished it. Eagerly she turned her face into his chest, burying her cheek, and her pain, into him.

She drew in a long breath, tasting his warm scent, loving him as he held her. A dark, deep sorrow rose inside her and cried out, her body trembling as it was freed, and she fought back the ensuing tears.

Her eyes clenched tight as one of his hands drew up beneath her breast. Her breath caught in her throat, and she was lost in confusion. She knew she should pull away, that she needed to break free. But her body throbbed with interest, and she swayed in his arms to brush herself against his touch.

She gasped, her heart stopping, as his palm caressed over her breast. He cupped it from beneath, hefting its weight in his hand. In her mind she screamed for him to stop, to leave her pure and undefiled, but the words never reached her lips. Instead she swallowed them back and reached her hands behind her to grasp his legs, the taut muscle flexing in her grip.

He fondled her breast lavishly, the quiet of the world around them lost in the roar of excitement that blazed through her mind. She reached a hand up to caress his arm as he touched her. She caressed his leg with her other hand, and her fingers soon discovered the stiff erection beneath his pants. Guilt squeezed at her heart, but she savored the feel of his penis, and toyed playfully with him anyway, squeezing the thickness of it between her fingers.

His other hand slid down, and her body stiffened with breathless anticipation, every part of her quivering, and a heat rising deep down inside. By the time his hand clasped over her hip she could feel the beat of her terrified heart in the deepest depths of her softness. It throbbed with aching need, and she tossed her head back as his fingers crept closer.

Stelian’s touch slithered down her hip to the slit in her dress, and brazenly delved beneath. Harmony whimpered loudly as his hand touched her naked skin. She was gasping for air, each needful breath desperate for him to take her.

His hand stopped and he held her tight. She waited, her entire body feverish with relentless craving, but his hands had stopped. The needs inside screamed through her, and she heard herself growl with frustration.

His hand slid further inside, the fingers lighting into her wispy down. Her voice only managed a gurgling sound as he tickled her, the giddy sensations overrunning any semblance of common sense that remained. She lifted herself up and down on her toes, brushing her fur into his hand, each motion driving the elation deeper into her soul.

Spreading her legs for him, she groaned as his fingers traced down beneath her, his heated touch tickling her labia with maddening sensations. He explored her sex lightly, delicately, the feel of him nearly imperceptible. The thin ticklish sensations rose into crazed exhilaration, his fingers roaming down to the lower crack of her bum cheeks and back up to where he would glaze so lightly over her clit that she wasn’t certain he was touching her there at all. He kept stroking her, each touch building into crashing waves of livid passion, until her entire body exploded with unexpected, sudden ecstasy, filling her quivering muscles with an electric burning sensation. She tried gasping but the air only caught in her throat. She trembled, then convulsed wildly, only vaguely aware that Stelian was clasping tightly to her with one hand while still stimulating her shivering pussy with the other.

Harmony released a low, grumbling scream, her body falling slowly limp amid the spasms. His touch became unbearable and she grabbed his hand, pressing her thighs tightly together. She laughed as a warm contentment swam into her, even as she still felt the tremors rolling up and down inside.

“Oh my… oh my gosh. Oh my gosh!” she wheezed over and over.

Stelian toyed sweetly with her pussy fur. It tickled, and she let him keep doing it.

“Gosh?” he whispered in her ear. “All that shaking and all I got was a ‘gosh’?”

Harmony giggled.

“Maybe we should try again?” Stelian prodded.

Harmony squealed, her every muscle stiffening in shock as Stelian ran his finger between her dripping lips and over her sensitive clitoris.

“Oh my god,” she moaned. “Oh my god, oh my god!” she grabbed his hand and desperately pulled him away from her.

She gasped for air as he stopped touching her. He leaned his head over her shoulder, his breath hot in her ear. “Gosh Harmony, do you kiss your mother with that mouth?”

Harmony sputtered a delicious laugh. “You’re kind of a jerk, did you know that?”

He nibbled her ear. “So I’ve been told, many times.”

“What did you just do to me?” Harmony shivered. The chill in the air was settling in.

He gave her a puzzled look. “You’ve never had an orgasm before?”

Her eyes grew large. “Apparently not,” she muttered. “I’ve never felt like that before. I thought only guys had orgasms, though.”

Stelian kissed her cheek softly. “Wow!” he chortled. “You didn’t know? You’ve been really sheltered.”

“More like incarcerated,” Harmony muttered. “This seems like something a girls should be told before she gets married.”

Stelian smiled warmly. “Yes, girls have orgasms. In fact, they can have more than guys do.”

“Well, it’s no wonder guys like having sex,” Harmony puffed.

She forced herself around and wrapped him up in her arms, kissing his neck tenderly. She felt his large chest pressing into hers, his muscular back and arms, and the hard erection pushing deep against her pelvis.

“Oh god,” she groaned, pushing away. “Oh Stelian, oh god!”

“What is it?”

Harmony swallowed, the lump again lodging in her throat. “I can’t…”

“Can’t what?”

She pushed herself from his grasp, stepping a few feet from him. “Oh god, Stelian, I know this isn’t fair, but I can’t… I have to be a virgin when I’m married next week.” She cringed in regret and despair. “I can’t have sex with you, I’m so sorry. I know… I know I’ve led you on, but…”

He smiled calmly. “It’s okay.”

She shook her head. “No, I shouldn’t have even let you do that to me. I shouldn’t have…”

“You didn’t like it?”

“I loved it, oh god I loved it, but it’s a sin.”

Stelian grinned broadly. “That’s half the fun, Harmony.”

She grimaced again, her voice filling with a dark, haunting despair. “But now what am I going to tell the bishop when he asks if I’m worthy to go into the temple?”

Stelian’s brow furrowed. “They won’t let you in your church just because of what we did?”

Her eyes burned with tears. “I’ll have to confess and tell them everything. How am I going to do that?”

Stelian drew in a long, disparaging breath. “You could lie,” he grimly suggested. “I’m sure your bishop has lied to you many times before.”

“But he says God tells him if I’m lying,” Harmony groaned.

“See, there’s a perfect example,” Stelian chuckled grimly. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, but what’s the concern about being a virgin?”

Harmony dropped her head into her hands, then looked up at Stelian, surrendering to her situation. She took his hand and laid her head against his shoulder. “It’s like my wedding gift to him. I give him my virginity.”

Stelian shrugged. “You couldn’t just get him a toaster?”

She couldn’t squelch her laugh. “It’s what I’m supposed to do, I guess.”

“And does he give you his virginity?”

Harmony shrugged. “I suppose he does. It’s hard to tell with men, isn’t it?”

“Either way,” Stelian mused, his hands stroking her back as she swooned into him, “it seems a strange thing to me to submit yourself to anyone like that as a gift. Isn’t it your body, not his?”

Harmony sighed and shook her head. “I don’t know. It does seem strange doesn’t it?”

He lifted her chin with his hand and smiled, his eyes warm and caring as he looked at her. Harmony cried inside, succumbing to the realization that she longed for him so desperately. He leaned in, and their lips pressed together. His mouth was warm and wet, his kiss burrowing deep into her heart, smothering the pain and fears. She cradled his head with her hand, drinking him in. Guilt burned in her stomach, but kissing him felt more natural than anything she’d done before.

“We should get back to the party,” he suggested. “We shouldn’t be gone too long, or they’ll miss us.” He took her hand and led her back towards the house.

“I only hope no one heard us out here,” Harmony giggled. “That could be embarrassing.

She straightened her back as they stepped into the hotel. Stelian took her for a tour of the building, introducing her to business associates as they went. Harmony felt a deep relaxation fill her, and her smile felt oddly natural. Stelian showed her the indoor pool, and the fountain garden. From the balcony she could see the city lights below, glistening in the night.

“The only room you haven’t seen yet is mine,” he teased, pulling her close to him.

She leaned into him, briefly resting her head on his shoulder. “I think we’d better not see that tonight,” she coughed. “That could only lead to trouble.”

“Would you like to have some desert?” he offered. “I believe there’s some cakes or puddings available back in the ballroom.”

Harmony shook her head. “No, thanks, not for me. Right now the night is absolutely perfect.” She scanned over the horizon of glistening lights. “I just really don’t want this to end.”

He held her close, and she let the memories swim in her mind. She felt the disturbing giddiness inside as she recalled their time on the bridge, and let the feeling invade her thoughts. After a moment she could sense the yearning tickling her sex. Arousing warmth filled her pussy as it swelled with renewed lust. She wrapped her arms around him, and sank her mouth against his shoulder. He pulled her body against his, and she felt him stiffen tensely. Her heart fluttered with excitement and she longed to grab him.

“Maybe we should get back to the party,” she suggested.

Stelian cleared his throat uncomfortably. “I suppose you’re right, of course,” he agreed.

He took her back to the ballroom and they wandered amid the guests. Harmony nodded to those people she had met, noticing how some of the men would glance quickly to her exposed cleavage as they passed. She enjoyed the feel of Stelian’s hand in her own, his fingers intertwining hers, and the tickling sensation of his caress. She hoped the needful feelings inside her would dissipate, but instead they brewed deeper and stronger, until each movement of her thighs stimulated her with an irritating itch that began to drive her insane. The delight she secretly harbored in being with Stelian became an uncomfortable hunger she couldn’t ignore.

“Stelian,” she whispered to him as they stood alone to look out a towering window.

“Yes?” he replied, leaning into her.

She harbored the deep thrill in her lower stomach in silence until it ebbed enough for her to speak. “You said you fantasized about a massage, right? A girl touching you?”

He nodded, smiling. “Oh yes.”

She swallowed the looming lump. Her heart thumped hard at the thoughts of seeing his penis, touching it, playing with it. “In your fantasy, do you orgasm while she’s just touching you with her hands?”

He hesitated, glancing down at her. “Sometimes.” His voice was tense and excited. “Why?”

“Well,” Harmony could hardly keep her heart from jumping out, “if I did that for you, I would still be a virgin, right?”

He nodded. “You would.”

She fought to conceal her grin. “And I’m already in trouble, so what’s a little more?”

“You make a wonderful point.”

His rolling accent sent shivers up her spine once again. “Before we leave, could you…” She couldn’t bring herself to ask him.

“Could I what?”

She felt like her chest was going to explode, or her pussy was going to implode, but she didn’t know which would happen first. She shook her head, but the ache inside wouldn’t quiet down.

“Would you do that thing to me again, like you did on the bridge? Oh god, I’d love that. And I’ll give you a massage. Is that…”

Her words got stuck. He was quiet, his eyes searching her eager gaze, enjoying it immensely.

“Let’s go do that now,” He suggested after a long pause. “Let’s go to my room, okay?”

Harmony felt like her nod was overly eager, but Stelian grasped her hand and led her quickly to the elevator. On the ride up they had the car to themselves, and they stood in heated excitement, silent, holding hands as the tension became nearly audible.

“Oh, thank god,” Harmony exclaimed when they at last burst into the room. Stelian closed the door behind them, whisked her up into his arms, and flung her to the bed. She flopped into the blankets, laughing. She kicked her shoes off and heard them clunking to the floor.

Her mind reeled as she watched him strip off his jacket and shirt, kicking his shoes to one side. Fear flooded her, blending with excitement so sweet it made her feel icky. As he began to unfasten his pants she put up a hand to ask him to stop, her heart fluttering in her chest so wildly she wasn’t certain she could handle anything more. But in a moment his pants were sliding down his thighs, leaving him standing in nothing more than his loose boxer shorts, and she stared in terrified amazement at the dark, luscious skin that covered his body. His chest was strewn lightly with tuffs of delicious black hair. She wriggled nervously, seeing his chiseled body, and the vague form of his large penis looming beneath a single layer of thin fabric. Her pussy was pulsing in eager longing in spite of the shock that filled her at seeing him so exposed.

Her heart stopped as he began to slide his boxers down past his narrow hips. She covered her mouth with both of her hands, her body shaking, until she saw the tuft of hair over his penis, his long shaft pointing out at her as it bent under the elastic band.

“Wait,” she yelped, covering her eyes. “It’s too much, I’m sorry. Can we wait for a few more minutes before you’re naked?”

“Of course,” he agreed, and Harmony peered out timidly between her fingers. His shorts were pulled back up, and he smiled warmly at her.

He toppled onto her, anxiously kissing her mouth, her face, her neck. She squealed helplessly as he slid the gown’s strap from her shoulder, pulling the dress down to reveal her right breast. She put a hand quickly over her boob, hiding it with an embarrassed grin.

Stelian smiled, his eyes glinting mischievously. He leapt from the bed and glanced around the room. Suddenly he slipped into the bathroom and came back out carrying a white robe in one hand, pulling the tie from it as he walked. Harmony pulled the strap up and covered her exposed breast with the dress.

His touch was firm, but gentle, as he rolled Harmony onto her stomach. He pulled her hands behind her, and wrapped the tie around them.

“Oh god, no!” she squirmed beneath him. “Oh my god, I don’t know if I can handle this.”

“I’m guessing you probably can,” he assured her.

She felt the fabric tighten on her wrists, and she was suddenly helpless with him on top of her, his body nearly naked.

He rolled her over onto her back and she struggled to break free of him, wriggling in desperation. She couldn’t get loose and in a few moments she collapsed into the mattress in exhaustion.

“Are you okay with this?” he asked as he reached up to grab the dress strap again.

No, her mind screamed. But the crazed drunken euphoria inside screamed even louder.

She nodded, grimacing as she wondered what she’d just submitted to, and if she could handle it.

His hand was slow as he tugged the strap down along her shoulder. He left it there as he studied her skin, and she squirmed with need and fear. At last he pulled a little more and Harmony whimpered as his eyes drank in her bared breast, the dark and tender nipple erect with glowering lust.

He pulled the other side down, slowly, tortuously, stripping her down to her belly button. She lay there, helpless, whimpering as he leaned over and tenderly ravished her nudity with his wet mouth. He sucked down over her breasts, her side, her stomach. She squealed as his mouth covered a nipple. His tongue flicked the erect flesh as he drew it deep into him. She wriggled and squirmed, grateful she wasn’t able to escape the dizzying, giddy sensations.

His hands roamed over her silken, tingling skin. She fought the giggles as his touch drove her to madness while he stroked her stomach, shoulders, and quavering breasts. Her world melted into him, his touch, his hungered affections. Her head was spinning and she soaked in the feel of him, each of her gasping breaths drawing in the essence of his strength.

“Oh god!” she shivered as he tugged down on her dress, pulling it a little over one hip. She closed her eyes tightly, unable to breathe.

“No,” she barely managed to whisper as she felt him pull the gown down a bit further. But she already felt the cool air tussling the wisps of hair on her mound.

He hesitated and she bit her lower lip, groaning with fevered anticipation.

She gasped as the dress slid down her thighs and along her calves. Stelian tugged her feet from the gown and left her naked on the blanket with the dress straps still caught around her wrists, her body shivering with excitement, her eyes closed as he stared at her.

She lay in the silence, bracing for his touch. Nothing moved. The only sound was that of her own racing heart. At long last she opened her eyes to see him watching her.

His stare studied her intently, his eyes roaming over every inch of her nudity. A fire blazed in his eyes, and her stomach churned with terror and thrill as she found herself helplessly captivated by it. It took her a moment to realize that the muffled shriek she heard was her own as her grasped her by the ankles and pulled her legs open. Her lips spread for him, her wetness dribbling out with merciless need.

A hot disgrace flooded through her as she felt herself being fully exposed, the dark lascivious enticement rumbling into her chest. Her pussy twitched excitedly.

She wriggled, tugging her legs as she weakly fought to break free of his grasp. But he only stiffened, his expression deepening with lust as he watched her. He forced her legs wider, and Harmony moaned in licentious despair. She submitted, the naughty exhilaration pounding through her blood. She lay still for him until he lay beside her, his fingers running with anxious taunting up her inner leg to within a fraction of an inch of her sensuality. He watched her eyes, and she stared back at him submissively, whimpering and shaking from his touch.

Harmony groaned noisily as his hand tumbled over her soft fleshy sex, exploring her shamelessly. Obediently she left her legs open for him, drinking in his heated caress, her pussy throbbing until the ecstasy poured through her like a confusing dream, her back arching with the orgasm. His fingers slowed, barely glazing over her tingling clitoris as she fell weightless back onto the bed.

He rolled on top of her, kissing her cheek, then her neck. His mouth roamed down along her body, experiencing her naked flesh, sucking it into his mouth and tasting her skin down over her breasts and stomach. His hands caressed her hips, her breasts, and her thighs. She quivered uncontrollably as his kiss lighted on her inner thigh.

A scream escaped her lips as his fell over her still-throbbing pussy. His tongue dug deep within her, lapping at her juices as he sucked her flesh into his mouth. Her legs flailed involuntarily around him, kicking in panicked thrill. Harmony’s body shook wildly, the fiery elation that still pulsed within her suddenly leaping to squealing heights of unbearable pleasures. She screamed over and over again, desperately squirming beneath him as he held her hips tightly to the bed with both hands, her wrists behind her back thrusting against her restraints vainly.

One last, long scream echoed from her to fill the room as every muscle in her body went stiff and trembling. There was nothing other than the frantic delight that penetrated every inch of her. She was aware of his kiss still over her sex as the blinding ecstasy drifted down into an enchantment that filled her with an inescapable fulfillment. A warmth washed over her, and she shivered helplessly until Stelian pulled away from her.

She lay, lost in a trance of panting contentment. Slowly, forcefully, she realized he was standing over her and staring down at her, her legs still open wide.

“Oh…” she gasped. “Oh…”

“Oh my gosh?” he teased as he knelt down. He stroked her legs with his hand. It felt like a thousand little orgasms shooting out from her skin wherever he touched her. He waited as she caught her breath.

“Oh my fucking hell!” she panted. “I’m sorry, but not even that comes close to doing it justice, Stelian. Oh god, we have got to do that again.”

His fingers ran up towards her pulsing pussy and she clasped her legs together to stop him. “Not now,” she laughed. “But…”

She looked up at him, his caring dark eyes scanning over her longingly. She smiled. She rolled over onto her stomach. “Untie me,” she breathed.

He pulled the tie from her wrists and she sat up and rubbed the feeling back into her hands. She stood up beside the bed, the gown tumbling to the floor. Holding Stelian’s heated gaze she laid him onto the bed, lying on his back. She touched his skin lightly, running ticklish fingers over his chest and stomach. Her fingers were trembling, and she grabbed handfuls of his muscle, squeezing it deliciously in her palms. She fondled his chest and shoulders, and her eyes roamed down to where his penis lay concealed beneath his boxers.

Her heart lodged in her throat once again. Slowly, tenderly, she reached a hand down and slid two fingers beneath the band.

She hesitated, her body shaking. “I’ve never…” She took a deep, calming breath. It didn’t help. “This is the first time…”

“You’ve never seen a man naked before, I take it.” His warm voice was soothing.

She nodded. “I’ve heard it’s like some kind of hose or something, but… I’ve always been curious. It’s okay that I look at you, isn’t it?”

“I’d be disappointed if you didn’t,” he laughed.

Tugging gingerly down she pulled his shorts off of the tip of his erect penis.

She gasped. The purplish bulbous end was oddly alien – the deep color and strange crease running up to a gooey slit at the tip – but the sight of it still stirred that familiar albeit slightly sickening yearning inside. She pulled his shorts down, slowly revealing the smooth skin on his long, springy shaft. To her surprise she could see curvatures beneath the surface that blended together and thick bluish veins that ran up the length of him. At last, as the boxers slid partway down along his thighs, she found a thin sack of skin, thinly covered with short dark hairs, concealing two bulging knobs. The sight of it all was somehow both revolting and titillating at the same time.

She reached down and let the hair over his gonads tickle her fingers. He wriggled and grunted with pleasure from her touch, sending hordes of butterflies through her stomach. She stifled a quick giggle and touched him more, her heart racing faster as he writhed on the bed.

“These are your balls?” she asked. The sound of her own voice saying the word ‘balls’ was weirdly enjoyable.

“Oh yeah,” he grunted.

She watched his face intently as she ran fingers up and down his parts.

“This really doesn’t look like a hose to me,” she mused as her eyes fixed once more between his legs.

The excitement built again as it flooded her chest and stomach. Determined, she pulled the shorts all the way down his legs and dropped them to the floor. She couldn’t look away from his long, naked body as it stretched over the blankets. The view of his dark skin, exposed from head to toe, gave her a strange but enticing sensation. Her fingers seemed to understand on their own as they ran over his legs and teasingly around his sex. She blew over his skin, the gust tussling the hairs on his balls.

He moaned as she at last tickled him over his penis. She leaned over him as she stood beside the bed, both hands now playing with him. She lifted his penis upright, bending it over until he groaned, then let go of it to watch it slap against his stomach. His gonads shifted and swayed as she fondled him, moving on their own within the large, wrinkly sack. She grasped his penis in one hand and ran it briskly up and down over him. His back arched, and she grinned in glee as his eyes rolled back into his head.

She felt the sticky fluid start to cover him, and she stopped, looking around for something she could use as massage oil.

The bedside table was pretty much empty. She glanced to the bathroom, but didn’t want to leave him while she hunted for something. And she wasn’t sure it was a good idea to wander the room with her fluids dribbling down along her leg.

Her eyes brightened, and she gave him a mischievous grin. She climbed onto the bed and straddled him, wedging his hard penis between her lips. Her clitoris sang as she rubbed herself over him, thrusting her pelvis back and forth. Her wet pussy dripped on him, leaving him soaked.

She climbed back beside the bed, gleefully rubbing her hand into her own wetness until it was damp with the slick fluids. At last she grabbed his penis again and plunged her hand up and down enthusiastically over it.

Stelian grappled with both hands at the blankets. He clenched harshly as his back arched, throwing his pelvis upward. For several long moments he moaned, his body trembling. Suddenly he cried out, almost as though he were in pain, and Harmony felt his penis pulsating in her grasp.

She watched, enthralled in what his body was doing. She yelped in surprise when his penis jerked and shot a glob of liquid out of the slit at the top. It landed on Stelian’s upper chest, just below his neck. A strange giddiness swelled inside her, and she kept pumping his penis.

Several more thick gobs shot out and splattered over his body. Some still oozed out after that, dribbling down his penis. Stelian reached up to grab her hand, breathing hard and still groaning. He rolled onto his side for a few minutes, then rolled onto his back and looked up at her with a boyish grin.

He sighed, touching her arm lovingly. “Did you enjoy that?” he laughed.

Harmony nodded. There was a peculiar, giddy grossness in her stomach, but she wanted to do it all again. “Did you?”

“You didn’t notice?” he chuckled.

She flopped onto the bed beside him and he wrapped her naked body up in his arms. The night swept over them. Harmony allowed the goofy smile to stretch over her face. She felt calm, relaxed, groggy.

“Oh shoot,” Harmony sat up, her head still foggy. “I think we went to sleep. Damn. Stelian, I need to get home. My parents are going to kill me.”

He leaned up onto his elbows, and Harmony stole another long look at his strong, nude body.

“You are over eighteen, right?” he asked, his eyes narrowing.

Harmony ran an anxious hand through her hair. “Of course I am,” she moaned. “But I don’t think my parents care.”

He chuckled, pushing himself up from the bed. “Okay, I understand. Let’s get dressed and I’ll get you back home.”

Harmony stared down at the evening gown where it lay on the floor. “I need my other dress,” she said sheepishly. “If I wear this home I’m never going to live it down.”

Stelian gave her a puzzled look. “Really?” he laughed. “But you look so much better in your new dress.”

“And that,” Harmony took a deep breath, “would be the problem in a nutshell. Would you mind getting my other dress from the car?”

Stelian pulled his pants on. “Of course,” he agreed reluctantly. “Of course.”

Harmony cringed when she slipped into her old dress. It seemed not to fit her now. But she fastened the buttons up the front with numb fingers, and Stelian led her out to his car.

She reached over and held his hand as he drove her home. But as she watched him she saw how evident the sorrow was in his face.

“You knew I was getting married next week,” she reminded him. Her words sounded weak.

He nodded. “I know,” was all he managed to say.

Harmony felt ashamed, the guilt burrowing in deeper the closer they got to her parent’s house. She swallowed back hard on the rising pain.

“We can never see each other again,” she spoke the words, but could barely hear them herself through the roar in her ears. “No one can ever know what we’ve done tonight.”

He gave her a warm smile, but tears welled up in his eyes. “I will never tell another soul, if you wish,” he agreed. “But I’ll never forget it myself. You just as well not ask me to.”

His eyes focused back on the road. Harmony choked back a cry. “At least it’s late, and everyone should be asleep by the time we get there.”

But as they rounded the last corner Harmony could see the house lights were still on. A sudden fear gripped her as she noticed faces peering out from behind the curtains while Stelian pulled into the driveway.

“I can’t offer you forever,” Stelian choked as he put the car in park.

Harmony swallowed hard on the anguish in her stomach. She grimaced at the approaching storm that awaited her inside. At last she heard what Stelian had said, and turned to him, puzzled.

“What?”

He cleared his throat gruffly. “I can’t offer you forever,” he repeated, “not like your fiancé has. I really don’t know that forever is mine to offer to you.”

Harmony’s heart thudded in her chest as she heard him. A tiny glistening on his cheek suggested a stray tear had escaped his eye.

“I’m not going to offer you the future at all,” he continued. “We’ve just met and, in spite of the earth-shattering ecstasy we’ve shared, I am not going to start making promises I don’t know I can keep. But I can offer you now, this instant, and we can take things as they come.”

Harmony smiled through her own tears. “Earth-shattering?” she repeated. The words trembled in her mouth, and she turned away to look back at the house that loomed in front of them, waiting.

As Gary burst out from the front door to meet them, his stance stern and angry, Harmony started to shake. She looked over to Stelian. “Just drive away, okay?” She leapt from the car and rushed to meet Gary.

“It’s not what you think,” she insisted as he grabbed her by the arms, glaring at her fiercely. “He just taught me some dance steps. It’s nothing bad, I swear.”

She glanced up to see Payton standing on the porch behind him, gripping the post with both hands as she watched.

“Do you know what a fool you’ve made of me?” he demanded.

Harmony heard Stelian backing the car from the drive. A dull ache filled her stomach, forming a hole inside of her. She nodded, allowing the tears to form.

She gasped as Gary shoved her backward, and she nearly lost her balance. She gave him a startled stare. “Why did you do that?”

Stelian stopped the car and clambered out. Harmony felt her world crumbling around her as she watched him stroll calmly up.

“Please, sir, try to relax,” he spoke in low, soothing tones. “Your fiancé is devoted to you, please don’t feel she’s done anything wrong tonight. It was entirely my fault, I was…”

Stelian yelped in surprise as Gary turned on him, throwing a slow, powerful fist directly at his face.

Stelian stepped aside, easily dodging the blow, but Gary fumbled with his footing and toppled forward. His head struck a rock as he fell and he cried out in pain.

Gary struggled to his feet, and Stelian stepped back, putting his hands up defensively. Harmony grimaced in despair as she watched, helpless and confused. Gary put a hand on the swelling lump on his head, glaring around in anger.

“Stop hurting him!” Payton screamed out, racing over to grab Gary, and helping him back toward the house. Harmony’s eyes widened as she watched, her friend wrapping her arms around Gary, his head falling into her shoulder.

Harmony scratched her head, and glanced over to Stelian. He gave her a weak shrug. “Yes, I think they’re in love with each other. I noticed how they were looking at each other at the dance studio.”

Harmony huffed. “Seriously?” she moaned.

Her mother burst from the house, pulling Payton away from Gary and shoving him up the porch steps before racing toward Harmony, yelling louder with each step.

Harmony swallowed hard and looked back at Stelian.

“Now is as good of a time to make a decision as any,” he mused. “All we ever have is right now.”

Harmony looked back to her mother, marching at them, her arms chugging back and forth furiously. It seemed at first threatening, and then at once it was comical, even sad. But then she saw herself reflected in her mother’s eyes. She recognized the desperation to live her life as she wanted to, even if it was through someone else. Suddenly the idea of the perfect wedding and learning to love soured as she saw her own future of regrets.