Chapter 68

Jon’s meeting was finally winding down, and they were just running through a list of which merchandise had sold well, and what they’d maybe drop for the next season. He knew that, when he’d become involved in the Soul, a lot of people had expected him to be just a figurehead, but if he was putting his name to something, he wanted to put in his ten cents’ worth, into every aspect of the business. His attention to the minutiae had surprised a lot of people at first, but they had soon come to respect his business acumen, and his wholehearted participation in the meetings was welcomed.

His attention was beginning to stray now though, his thoughts turning to Sara, and he was glad when they finally broke for the day. As he said his goodbyes, he turned his cellphone back on - one of the few rules of their meetings was that all phones were turned off - and the tone sounded to tell him he had a message, so he clicked through the menu to listen.

Sara’s sweet voice rang in his ear as he listened to the message.

“Hey, Jon, it’s me. I just talked to Richie, and he said dinner would be great. I’ve said we’ll call when we’re on our way over. Guess you’re still in your meeting - call me when you get the chance. Bye.”

Just hearing her voice made him grin, and he dialled the studio as he headed out to the car. Paul answered the phone.

“Hey Paul, it’s Jon. Boss lady around?”

“Hi Jon. Yeah, she’s here. Hold on.”

There was a muffled clatter as the phone was laid down, then he heard Paul calling to Sara, telling her there was a call. A moment or two later, Sara picked up.

“Hi Jon.”

“Hey baby. Miss me?”

“You’ve only been gone a few hours!” She laughed, but continued quietly. “Of course I did.”

“Good, ‘cause I missed you too. I got your message, and I’m just on my way back to the studio. Are you finished for the day?”

“I guess so. How long will you be?”

Jon couldn’t resist, and his dirty, sexy laugh came through the phone. “Baby, you know how long I am!”

“JON! You and Richie have the same dirty mind, don’t you?”

“Naw - he’s worse than me.”

“Funny - that’s what he said, too.”

As they spoke, Jon had finally reached the Chevelle and he turned the ignition as he replied, revving the engine to warm it up.

“Aw, there’s my girl.” Sara purred as she heard the engine snarling. Jon revved again, much harder.

“She misses you too, babe. Okay - I’ll be with you in a half hour or so. Why don’t you send Paul home early?”

“Why?” She teased.

“Because I missed you……and because it’s been hours since I’ve held you, since I could touch you. Hours since we made love……..hours since I’ve felt you around me…….”

Now Sara was blushing furiously, feeling the wetness between her thighs as Jon spoke, and very glad that Paul had disappeared into the kitchen again.

“That must’ve been quite a meeting, if that’s the mood it put you in.”

Jon chucked again. “Baby, I was fine until I heard your voice. Now all I want to do is get to you, and I even remember where the bed is in the studio, so you could always just wait there for me, save some time!”

“You don’t have a key to the studio, though. I’ll need to let you in, but I’m sure I can do something to save time. You said half an hour?”

“Yeah. Less if I drive faster, so you’d better get Paul outta there before he sees things he doesn’t need to see his boss doing……”

“Okay. I’ll see you soon, baby.”

Sara hung up the phone and tried to bring her racing heart under control, praying that the blush had faded as she went to find Paul. He was in the kitchen, cleaning out the coffee pot, and his eyes lit up when Sara suggested he go home early.

“You sure, Sara?” She nodded. “That’s great - I’m taking Tina out tonight, so that’ll give me time to get home first.”

“Tina? I thought you were seeing Carrie?”

Paul had the decency to redden a little as he answered. “Well, I am, just not tonight. I’m seeing Tina tonight.”

Shaking her head, Sara pushed him toward the door. “Okay, Casanova, go! I just hope they don’t find out you’re two-timing them. Hell hath no fury and all that.”

Grabbing his jacket, Paul said goodbye and ran downstairs before Sara could change her mind.

Standing alone in the studio, Sara couldn’t subdue the sense of excitement she had about seeing Jon, though she tried to clamp down on it, feeling a little childish - for God’s sake - she’d only seen the guy a few hours ago! She went through to the small bedroom, flipping the top cover off the bed and smoothing the sheet slowly before sitting down on the edge of the bed, looking across the room at the large mirror. After a few minutes staring aimlessly at her reflection, Sara got to her feet again, taking a few steps toward the mirror.

Watching herself, trying to look at herself like one of her subjects, Sara slowly pulled off her t shirt then slipped out of her jeans, throwing both items onto the floor. Impatiently, she shook her braids back over her shoulders, a frown creasing her forehead as she studied herself, grudgingly admitting to herself that maybe - just maybe - she looked okay. She still didn’t get what Jon saw in her, but she certainly felt better about herself since she’d met him, although the whole thing still felt kind of unreal to her.

She swivelled around to look over her shoulder, seeing for the first time the string of bruises that had worried Jon so much. Every single vertebra had it’s own bruise, making a chain of dark dots down her back, but they didn’t hurt, so she wasn’t too bothered. The silence of the studio was broken by a knocking at the door. Since the only person she was expecting was Jon, Sara didn’t bother to dress, just grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders as she left the bedroom.

At the door, she checked through the peephole, and it was Jon, standing with his hands thrust into the pockets of his jeans. Sara pulled the blanket tighter around herself then unlocked the door, pulling it slightly open. Jon pushed it wide and stepped inside, grinning when he saw her wrapped in the blanket.

“I guess Paul’s gone, then?” He kicked the door shut, leaning against it.

“What makes you think that?”

“Well, if he’s still here, and all you’re wearing is that blanket, I’ll have to beat the shit outta him.”

Sara laughed. “Yes, he’s gone, but I’m not only wearing a blanket.”

“Really?” Jon pushed himself off the door and took a step toward her, grinning as Sara backed away from him. “What else are you wearing?”

Still backing up, Sara flashed the blanket open quickly, pulling it around herself again instantly, so Jon caught only a glimpse of pale skin and black underwear. Her pigtails fell forward, giving her a mischievous look, and with the teasing smile on her lips she looked like a naughty schoolgirl.

“C’mere, you!” Jon muttered, lunging for her, but Sara evaded him with a giggle, turning and running out of his reach, vanishing behind the backdrop and into the bedroom.

Grinning, Jon followed her, a little taken aback when he entered the bedroom and found that the lights were off. There were no windows in the room, and Jon stopped short as the door swung closed behind him, shutting off the faint light from the studio, plunging him into complete darkness. He heard a whisper of movement behind him, the sound of the blanket brushing across the floor, then Sara’s voice, pitched low so he couldn’t tell where she was.

“I hope you’re not afraid of the dark.”

“Nope.” As he replied, Jon squeezed his eyes tightly shut, trying to increase his night vision.

While his eyes were closed, Jon felt a light touch on his face, but Sara was gone before he could catch her. Obviously her eyes had already adjusted to the darkness, and she was moving around the room fairly easily. When he opened his eyes, Jon found he could make out outlines of the bed and chair, but his hearing was still his best guide as he heard Sara move again, behind him. This time, though, she wasn’t quick enough, and his arm lashed around her waist, discovering as he did so that she’d discarded the blanket.

“Got you, you little hussy!”

Even as he pulled her right up close, Jon could barely see Sara, just the barest outline of her black underwear showing against the paler skin, and the glittering of her eyes in the darkness. He saw her teeth sparkle as she laughed at him, and with that as his lead, Jon crushed his mouth onto hers, feeling her still smiling as his tongue pushed into her mouth. His hands slid up from her waist, smoothing across her breasts and around her back, blindly unhooking her bra with practiced fingers. He pulled the thin fabric off and dropped it to the floor, then his hands found the pigtails and he wrapped them around his fingers, holding tight as Sara pushed at his t shirt.

“Take it off.” She murmured, and Jon let go of her hair as he pulled the shirt over his head.

Dropping his shirt, Jon reached forward for Sara, but she was gone.

“Shit!” He exclaimed in surprise. “Where’d you go, hussy?”

A deliciously sexy giggle was the only response, then she spoke.

“Take off your jeans.”

“You want to play games, huh? Okay, baby, we’ll play.”

Taking off his boots, Jon unzipped his jeans and let them fall to the floor, stepping free from the folds of denim as he listened hard, trying to pinpoint where Sara was. She startled him, though, when her nails raked across his bare butt, and he was too slow to catch hold of her again, just hearing that giggle as he swung around.

Jon’s hearing was pretty acute, but Sara moved like a cat, and he couldn’t even hear her footfalls on the wood floor as he turned slowly, searching the darkness for any hint of her. He was looking over to his right when he felt her tongue on his left shoulder, just where the faded old Superman tattoo was, and he swung round fast, managing to catch hold of a pigtail with the tips of his fingers this time. Luckily, Sara didn’t pull away, and Jon used the pigtail to tug her toward him.

“Put the lights on.” He whispered, and he felt the pigtail move as she shook her head.

“Thought you weren’t afraid of the dark?”