Temptation Island

Chapter 1: Melody

The feel of his succulent lips brushed against my dark areola, sending chills from the roots of my hair to the cuticles of my toes. My arms wrapped around his strong back as he thrust powerfully into my love canal. The air was filled with a sound very similar to macaroni and cheese being stirred. My moans were loud, but so were his as we untidied what had once been a tidy bed.

"Melody."

His whisper in my ear alone was enough to send me to the edge of my orgasm. I held it at bay, knowing that once I released, he would too. But it was right there, just begging to come out and make me feel better than I had in a month.

"Melody?"

"Wait, I can't yet," I told him.

"You can't what?"

Wait. My lover's voice had changed. Not only did it change, but it was one I recognized. Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I blinked out of my daydream. No longer was I in my comfortable bed. Instead, I was seated at a table inside of my favorite brunch spot staring into the confused face of my husband, Tyrese. Standing near the table, holding the check for our food, was the very same man I'd been daydreaming about. The sexy young waiter looked to be in his mid-twenties, maybe 25. He was a decade younger than me, but old enough to evoke an unwarranted lust inside of me. I was a sucker for his chocolatey skin tone and full lips. My fingers truly felt as though they'd massaged the back of his tapered fade, and my body felt as if it really knew the weight of his. Tyrese raised his brow at me and pointed at my stomach. It was then that I realized I was clutching it with one of my hands.

"You need to go to the bathroom, babe?" he asked.

"No!" I cleared my throat and sat up straight. "No, I, uhh, I'm fine. I think I just had one too many mimosas. Is it time to go?"

"Yeah, I was trying to get your attention, but you were zoned out. Jamal here"—Tyrese paused and pointed at the server—"just brought over the check, and I just realized I left my wallet on the dresser. I must have been rushing."

"No worries. I'll get it," I said and reached into my Louis Vuitton.

"You sure?"

"Well, unless you want to be in the back doing dishes, I don't have a choice. Here you go. Keep the change." I handed Jamal a crisp $100 bill.

"Oh, wow. Thank you, ma'am. You two have a lovely day."

I gave a fake smile as Tyrese and I got up and left the restaurant. As always, he held every door for me, a gesture that used to give me butterflies. But now it didn't do much for me. And it might have had something to do with the fact that it seemed to be all he did lately. After I was safely in his Corvette, I fought with myself to not say anything as he was walking around the back of the car. I smoothed my dress down over my thick thighs and told myself to let it go. However, in my thirty-five years of life, holding my tongue had never been my strong point. To me there was no great good in holding back the things I needed to say. All that ever did was babysit someone else's feelings, and that was something I never cared to do. Especially when I was a person in the equation. When he got in the car and drove away from the restaurant, I turned in my seat to face him.

"That's the third time in a month that you left your wallet at home when we went out somewhere."

"Yeah, so? I'm forgetful sometimes." He shrugged like it was no big deal.

"I've never known you to be this forgetful. I guess I just want to make sure everything is all right on your end."

When Tyrese and I got married, we made the decision to keep separate bank accounts. The one we shared was only used to deposit money so that our bills could be taken out. But it seemed as though recently it was I who was putting more money in that account to cover all of our necessities. It wasn't something we'd talked about, because when we first moved to North Carolina. it was I who was short, and Tyrese covered for me. However, I was short because I hadn't yet found a storefront for my growing clothing line. That was also years ago though. Tyrese, on the other hand, was the VP of an industrial company and made good money, a lot of it, too. Which was why I couldn't understand what was going on with him.