Stella had insisted she wanted to give Adrian time to figure things out, and throughout the next week, he had plenty of opportunity to do just that, for she was all he thought about. During sessions with other clients, he remained distracted, and when he...
Adrian gently withdrew from Stella, and when she turned to face him, he couldn't meet her eyes. Instead, he left the bed and began getting dressed. "Adrian," she said. He kept his back to her while buttoning his shirt. "This shouldn't have happened. I'm y...
1: James = The school stroll, not in a Chelsea tractor but on Shanks' pony, is a daily routine for many living close to their local school. I’m a useful grandad, collecting Danny a couple of days each week from the infants' school. Well, it stops me from...
Adrian's smile faded into a frown of concern when he got a closer look at Stella's face. The young woman rose from a chair in the front waiting area, forcing her own smile as she approached him. "Hi, Adrian," she said. Even her voice was lackluster. It wa...
It's always the way, when you start a local club or society. In my case, it arose from a desire to get more exercise without going to a gym or buying a silly treadmill. If you've got Dartmoor on your doorstep why not go out and explore it? I shared the id...
A few months ago, I took a three-week vacation and drove back to Illinois for family visits. Usually, my wife accompanies me on these road trips, but this one she encouraged me to go alone and enjoy myself. As I left and she kissed me, she also winked and...
I lay in Nathan's arms, my head resting against his chest. This was one of my favorite times, I realized. In the moments after he came inside me, I grew relaxed and still, my mind mercifully quiet. His fingers caressed my skin. "If there's something I can...
My husband, Hossain, grew very concerned as my due date approached. It was a big baby and I felt like a whale. I was very uncomfortable and had to pee every few minutes. I called in and began my maternity leave. St. James called me a day later. “I’ve shor...
It started innocently enough with anonymous chats. You and I were both members of an online group of amateur artists, though you were, and still are, far more talented than I could ever hope to be. I liked the mellow vibe of the group; most members weren'...
As dusk fell, the shadows deepened in my car. Morgan sat in the passenger seat, and when I glanced over at her, I found she was watching me, a smile playing upon her glossed lips. She seemed perfectly at ease in the silence between us, whereas I was gripp...
"Will you let me?" Luke whispered in my ear. "You promised you would." I closed my eyes, trembling with anxiety. We were at his friend Finn's house for a party, and this was the first time I'd been introduced to Luke's social circle. While Luke was forty,...
I was awakened by a loud noise. I took a look at my phone. It was only a few minutes past midnight. While stretching and yawning, I discovered the noise was coming from the living room. "Who is it?" I mumbled to myself. "Is there a thief here?" I sprang u...
An hour after my parents went to bed on Christmas night, I crept down the hall past their closed door and then took the stairs, my steps swift and almost silent. I wore a pink babydoll nightie, which was way too skimpy for the end of December, but I knew...
Kara stood in the entryway, her eyes sweeping the room, and I closed the door behind us. "Wow, what a nice place,” she commented quietly. "Thank you. I like it." I took her hand and led her to the bedroom, telling her to put her purse on the dresser. She...
At eighteen going on nineteen, Jennie was in her last year of schooling at her sixth form college. Jennie went to a good private school and, although a lovely girl, kind and thoughtful, she was not academically gifted. Now, while saying that, I'm not sugg...
