Champagne and Chocolate
part 2 by Gin
Caitlyn had begun to walk out on the sand
when Luka caught up in two steps and reached for her free hand,
holding it tightly. They walked in silence, letting
the steady roar of the surf lull them into peace. Cait
felt more comfortable out here walking; there was less intensity
between them.
“It’s been a long time since I
walked on the beach. I’d forgotten how peaceful it is,
especially at dawn or dusk.” Luka offered.
“I try to walk everyday to unwind.
I love the water. I couldn’t imagine not living near
the ocean.” Cait replied.
The breeze blew her hair into her eyes and
she stopped. Luka reached over to smooth it out of her
face. She moved as if to continue, but his hand held hers
still, causing her stop and face him, a questioning look on her
face. He was obviously struggling with something that he
wanted to say. She waited. Luka looked out at the
ocean. “I’m sorry I didn’t stay in touch
like I should have these past three years. You were a good
friend, and you didn’t deserve to be treated like that.
“
“It’s all right, Luka. You
were trying to protect yourself, and not let anyone get too
close. I can understand that feeling.” She
reached up to softly stroke his cheek. “Don’t
worry about it.”
Luka put his arms around her, holding her
tightly. She put her arms around his waist, resting her
head against his cheek. They stood looking out over the
darkened water for quite sometime, neither speaking, yet saying
so much with their silence. Finally Cait pulled
away, “Let’s go back. I’m not on vacation,
and I’m due in early tomorrow morning for some meetings.”
They leisurely strolled the 15 minutes it took to reach Caitlyn’s
house where she had left a small lamp burning in the window.
She searched for her house keys, wondering what to do now. “Would
you like to come in for a drink?” She guessed
her uncertainty must have been evident when Luka only smiled and
declined. She felt flushed; glad the light was dim.
“What are you doing after work
tomorrow? Want to come over and have a swim, try out Jack’s
toys? He’s got a sauna, steam room, whirlpool, pool.
Jack never did believe in doing things halfway.” Luka
said laughingly.
“That sounds nice. Do you mind if
I drop by later in the evening, say around 6 or so? I
should be finished at the hospital by then, barring any
emergencies, of course. “
“That will be fine. Don’t
eat, I’ll fix us something.” Luka replied.
“And when did you learn to cook?”
Caitlyn teased. “Are you sure you don’t want me
to bring something?”
“Just yourself.” Luka took
hold of her hand, reaching over to gently kiss her on the mouth.
“Sleep well.” He said, releasing her hand,
turning and walking down the path to the street without looking
back.
She watched him walk away, turned and shut
the door, locking it behind her. She walked directly
to her bedroom. Isis joined her on the bed as she sat
removing her sandals. Her hand gently petted
the cat, listening to her purr loudly in the silence.
This was simply not going to work. Its
all well and good for him to come here to rest up a bit, but I’m
not having my heart turned inside out again. He doesn’t
have a clue how I felt about him then and he’s not going to
either if I can help it, Caitlyn thought. She stood
up abruptly, removing her dress to hang it in the closet. As
she scrubbed her face, she told the image in the mirror, that was
years ago, I’m older now, I can handle this.
Lying in the darkness, Caitlyn replayed the
evening in her head. You’re not going to go there and
jump on his bod, and he’s certainly not going to jump on
you, tonight proved that, so just chill out. Just treat him
like any other of your friends, she thought. Caitlyn
reached out a hand to scratch the cat’s head. Loud
purring filled the silence. She tried to slow her breathing
down, trying to fall asleep, but the only thing that she could
think of was the way his hand had felt on her back and neck; the
feeling of his gentle touch on her hand, causing the tender skin
between each finger to feel as if he had been making love to it.
The sensation of his muscles flexing and moving under the warm
silk of his shirt, the way his body had felt on the dance floor
when he kissed her ear and pulled her close. She’d
felt him next to her softness, his reaction to their closeness
beginning to become apparent.
Caitlyn sat up abruptly, trying to stop the
sensations that were whirling inside her. She already knew
it was useless to try. She swung her legs out of bed.
If she wasn’t going to sleep, she might as well be doing
something useful instead of wasting time on fruitless longings.
Luka walked back to Jack’s house
slowly, enjoying the warm night air. He felt good,
having slept almost around the clock and then a good meal.
A week or so like this would go along way towards bringing some
balance back into his life. The grief he still
carried at the loss of his family, combined with the tragedies
that had taken place at County, Lucy dead and Carter now in a
drug rehab program, the fights with Benton, everything had
descended upon him, draining him completely. When he
had run into Jack at that Emergency Medicine Seminar Kerry had
insisted he attend, he gratefully accepted the offer of a place
to stay for a couple weeks. It felt good to get away from
Chicago. It also felt good to visit with an old
friend, one whom he’d neglected these past three years.
He arrived at the house, let himself in the
door and wondered for a moment what to do. The whirpool on
the back deck beckoned to him and he headed for the doors. Towels
were still there from his earlier soak and he stripped of his
clothes in the dark and turned on the jets. As the water
began to bubble, he slipped into its depths, letting the heat
relax his body. He lay down on a shelf, stretching his legs
out completely, resting his head on a folded beach towel.
He closed his eyes, feeling the hot water caressing his skin.
The sensuousness of it reminded him of the feel of Caitlyn in his
arms while they were dancing. He’d always tried hard
not to think of Caitlyn in that sense before. Not because
she wasn’t beautiful or attractive, but they had been
colleagues, and Luka had always believed that work place romances
were to be avoided. It was interesting seeing Cait
now though, perhaps they could work out a new relationship.
He smiled in the dark. It wasn’t difficult to
contemplate. The picture of Caitlyn enjoying the pieces of
chocolate came into his mind. She’d looked like a
woman in the throes of passion. It had stunned him into
asking her to dance. He really had no thought to do so
until then, but with that one act his perspective of Caitlyn was
altered and the worrisome and wholly male part of himself had
been awakened with no real desire to go back to sleep. If
she had responded to that inanimate piece of food that way, the
maleness of him wanted to know what that response would be like
on a personal level.
He remembered the softness of her skin, the
smell of her, a combination of lavender and musk. As he had
caressed her back he could feel ripples under her skin as her
muscles responded to the stroking. When he’d kissed
her ear, her body had betrayed her and he’d felt the thrill
that had raced through her. Luka had responded
instinctively by pulling her against his hardening body. Her
body had felt soft against his, her breasts with the nipples
hardening against his chest.
She seemed to back off from the intensity
between them. She had been obviously nervous as they walked
home. Maybe she thought he would expect more from her than
she was willing to give. He needed to move slowly, to let
her adjust to the idea of a different type of relationship
between them. He had time, and no real reason to leave
soon. He smiled, anticipating the slow seduction of the
beautiful but shy Dr. Caitlyn. Yes, he thought, it would
prove stimulating for both of them.
End Part 2