Chapter Fifteen
Joshua was on his knees with his face in his hands, soaking them with his tears. The waitress from The Broken Bottle sat on the bed in front of him. “She must have been an incredible woman,” she said. He nodded. He did not share the story with the woman, but she felt his pain nonetheless. She thought for a moment what to do and decided to climb off the bed and give the man some comfort. She put her arms around his strong, shaking body and kissed his forehead. “It’s okay,” she whispered. “It’s all over now. Whatever happened to her, it’s all over. You can’t change anything.” She kissed his head again and held the weeping man in her arms.
She did not have any idea as to what he had been through in his long life, certainly not the story of Laetitia. Immortality was not to be shared. If it was told, it would only lead to trouble if the information fell into the wrong hands. No doubt Hek would surely enjoy watching Joshua squirm in an institution being poked with needles and studied for a millennium, but not Joshua. This woman knew nothing of his sorrows but her arms felt nice wrapped around him. It was very comforting, soothing. He allowed himself to relax some and reached around the small of her back as well.
“See?” she said, “Everything will be all right.” She kissed his forehead again and he looked up at her. His eyes were red and his face streaked with tears. She hardly knew the man but she felt warmth in her heart for him even so. “It’s okay,” she whispered as she leaned forward for a kiss. It was passionate and just what he had needed, lasting several long minutes. She eased his back to the floor and crawled on top of his chest, kissing him still. “I’m going to make this all better. You just wait and see.” She moved his hands up her stomach until they found the lace tie that held the corset together. “Untie me,” she whispered. He did as he was told, exposing her breasts. She sat still on top of him and looked at his face for a moment. His mood was changing quickly and he even bore a smile. She released a pleased, short laugh and kissed his lips once more as she undid the buttons of his shirt. She began kissing his chest and then his hard abs as he lay still, looking at the ceiling, imaging what could happen next. He felt one hand unzipping his pants while her other hand was caressing his cheek. Her tongue trailed back up his stomach and kissed his mouth once more before she smiled and whispered “hang on.” He kissed the top of her head and then she moved downward again. He felt her hot breath and one small kiss before hearing a couple of steps enter the room.
“Joshua?”
He looked behind him and saw Theresa. She stood just at the edge of the bedroom and was dressed in a beautiful red evening dress. Her hair was straightened and beaded and hung just below her collarbone. In her hand she held two tickets. Her face was in shock and a single tear fell from one eye. He was ashamed at what she had walked in on though they had made no formal expression of their feelings. He was in love with her still but did not want to get involved. This should be okay, he should not be embarrassed or ashamed, but he was. “Theresa, I am sorry--” he began.
“It’s okay,” she said, trying to hold back any more tears, “I’ll just go.”
“No, wait,” he said. “I know you did not expect this but give me just a moment and we can discuss it, please?”
