Side Dishes - Chapter 3
That first meal set the precedence for all the others Delane and Sage shared over that hot summer with temperatures reaching up to one hundred eight degrees. Yet despite the sizzling weather, every time Delane came to collect the rent, Sage always had a hot meal and lots of pleasant conversation waiting for him. He, in turn, always made sure that she knew how much he appreciated her efforts by leaving her a generous tip. It was a tip that Sage steadfastly put away in her secret liberation stash.
Though there was no hugging, kissing, or anything else physical going on between them, Delane and Sage were still becoming very intimate with one another, except in a different way. In fact, they shared things with each other that they’d never told anyone else.
Delane told Sage about his happy childhood with his mature parents, his tumultuous grade and middle school years of being ridiculed about his weight until he finally turned the tables on his enemies by using that very weight to intimidate them. How even though his high school years were lonely and contained very few dates, no one dared mess with him the wrong way again since they knew that he was capable of adequately defending himself.
Delane also told Sage about the esteemed job he’d had at the energy company before taking over his family’s business. A job that garnered him lots of media attention because he’d been the youngest CFO to have ever worked for that company and in fact had been one of the youngest CFOs in the whole country.
Lastly, Delane told Sage about how he had hopes of starting a family of his own before he turned thirty-five. For some unknown reason, that particular disclosure had sent happy chills up and down her spine and for a moment there, Sage imagined him starting that family with her.
Then following his lead, Sage told Delane about her lonely days at the boarding school, of constantly not knowing where to send letters to her mother because Sivilla moved around so much, of never having really known her father except for the monthly phone calls he made to her from wherever he was in the world and how that left a big hole in her life. She even told him about losing her virginity to a young man from the male boarding school across the lake on prom night and how awkward it was. Although Sage was unaware of it, that last bit of information had produced an unexpected spasm of jealousy within Delane at the thought of any man touching her body.
Even though she’d shared how clumsy her first sexual experience was with him, Sage failed to tell Delane that since then she’d been taught all the finer points of pleasing a man. Things that included, but were not limited to ministering to a man’s body better than a masseuse, not to mention the Hawaiian and Latin dance classes her mother insisted that she take in order to make the most of intimacy.
By September, Delane and Sage began to discuss other things like going out to dinner so that someone could cook for her for a change and so that he could officially began his courtship of her. They decided to dine in one of the waterfront hotel restaurants since Sage hadn’t been to one yet.
The night of their first date, the weather was a mild seventy-five degrees. Sage dressed in a peach-colored surplice slip dress with an asymmetrical hemline and a flower appliqué at the left spaghetti strap. She looked absolutely ravishing and Delane couldn’t take his caramel eyes off of her, not that he ever could. Unfortunately, other men couldn’t seem to take their eyes off of Sage either and after they left the restaurant area of the hotel and journeyed towards the social club for a time of dancing, one of those ogling men got bold enough to approach her.
“Sweet thing, you deserve better than this behemoth you’re with. You need a man that you can get your arms around,” the obnoxious stranger affirmed, looking Sage up and down with lust and then turning to look Delane up and down with disgust.
Before Delane could respond in anger, Sage faced him, wrapped her arms lovingly about his thick neck, and stole a kiss right there in the hotel lobby in front of everyone present. As Sage molded her body intimately up against Delane’s large frame, she felt all the anger leave his body and be replaced with months of passion that he’d been holding inside. What started out as a brief kiss, soon escalated into a toe-curling kiss-fest as they ravished each other’s mouths, completely forgetting about the obnoxious stranger standing near them as well as anyone else around them.
When the kiss was finally over, a breathless Sage turned to find the obnoxious man hightailing it away from them in embarrassment. When she turned back to Delane, she saw deep desire and even deeper love shining in his caramel eyes. That mixture warmed her heart and stirred hot desire in her loins.
“Shall we continue with our date, handsome?” Sage asked, linking her arm through his. Inside, she was a bundle of desire ready to unravel. No man had kissed her so thoroughly in her life and she couldn’t wait to repeat that action as soon as possible.
Delane nodded and proceeded towards the social club. Inwardly, he felt like the most blessed man on the planet, and his body felt two hundred pounds lighter as his feet moved upon the eggplant-colored Persian carpeting of the busy lobby.
******
Although Sage had been taught by her mother all the finer points of seducing a man, her plan to seduce Delane backfired big time. Yes, she’d successfully gotten him to fall in love with her, but due to the caring soul that lay within her mammoth of a landlord, she was falling head over heels in love with him, too. In fact, those public hugs and kisses she continued to administer to him on a regular basis were all real. So were all the compliments Sage issued to Delane since the day they shared that first meal together.
How could Sage not fall in love with a man that was thoughtful, kind, and extremely romantic, often sending her flowers and gifts just because? He was a man that made her feel special just by listening to the things she said and by encouraging her to pursue her dream. A dream that Sage’s mother still knew nothing about. And the fact that Delane hadn’t even tried to sleep with her yet, despite the fact that he was clearly attracted to her, simply put him over the top in Sage’s book.
Sivilla thoroughly approved of her daughter’s involvement with Delane. However, she did not approve of how emotionally involved Sage had become in the process. She learned a long time ago about the dangers of falling in love and had strictly warned her daughter against it.
Since Sage was unwilling to heed that particular piece of advice, Sivilla decided to leave the subject alone for a while. After all, not only was Delane allowing them to stay in the duplex rent-free now, he was also now talking marriage. This meant that Sage would be privy to half of a large portion of his sizable assets in the case of divorce since they lived in a community property state.
It was by no accident that Sivilla only traveled to and resided in states where community property was law. Her hope was to snag a rich man that she could later divorce when the mood suited her, and then take half of the assets that he acquired during their marriage with her. Although this was her first time in Arizona, Sivilla had been to California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. Although Puerto Rico was a community property jurisdiction as well, Sivilla had not been there. Yet.
Though there was no hugging, kissing, or anything else physical going on between them, Delane and Sage were still becoming very intimate with one another, except in a different way. In fact, they shared things with each other that they’d never told anyone else.
Delane told Sage about his happy childhood with his mature parents, his tumultuous grade and middle school years of being ridiculed about his weight until he finally turned the tables on his enemies by using that very weight to intimidate them. How even though his high school years were lonely and contained very few dates, no one dared mess with him the wrong way again since they knew that he was capable of adequately defending himself.
Delane also told Sage about the esteemed job he’d had at the energy company before taking over his family’s business. A job that garnered him lots of media attention because he’d been the youngest CFO to have ever worked for that company and in fact had been one of the youngest CFOs in the whole country.
Lastly, Delane told Sage about how he had hopes of starting a family of his own before he turned thirty-five. For some unknown reason, that particular disclosure had sent happy chills up and down her spine and for a moment there, Sage imagined him starting that family with her.
Then following his lead, Sage told Delane about her lonely days at the boarding school, of constantly not knowing where to send letters to her mother because Sivilla moved around so much, of never having really known her father except for the monthly phone calls he made to her from wherever he was in the world and how that left a big hole in her life. She even told him about losing her virginity to a young man from the male boarding school across the lake on prom night and how awkward it was. Although Sage was unaware of it, that last bit of information had produced an unexpected spasm of jealousy within Delane at the thought of any man touching her body.
Even though she’d shared how clumsy her first sexual experience was with him, Sage failed to tell Delane that since then she’d been taught all the finer points of pleasing a man. Things that included, but were not limited to ministering to a man’s body better than a masseuse, not to mention the Hawaiian and Latin dance classes her mother insisted that she take in order to make the most of intimacy.
By September, Delane and Sage began to discuss other things like going out to dinner so that someone could cook for her for a change and so that he could officially began his courtship of her. They decided to dine in one of the waterfront hotel restaurants since Sage hadn’t been to one yet.
The night of their first date, the weather was a mild seventy-five degrees. Sage dressed in a peach-colored surplice slip dress with an asymmetrical hemline and a flower appliqué at the left spaghetti strap. She looked absolutely ravishing and Delane couldn’t take his caramel eyes off of her, not that he ever could. Unfortunately, other men couldn’t seem to take their eyes off of Sage either and after they left the restaurant area of the hotel and journeyed towards the social club for a time of dancing, one of those ogling men got bold enough to approach her.
“Sweet thing, you deserve better than this behemoth you’re with. You need a man that you can get your arms around,” the obnoxious stranger affirmed, looking Sage up and down with lust and then turning to look Delane up and down with disgust.
Before Delane could respond in anger, Sage faced him, wrapped her arms lovingly about his thick neck, and stole a kiss right there in the hotel lobby in front of everyone present. As Sage molded her body intimately up against Delane’s large frame, she felt all the anger leave his body and be replaced with months of passion that he’d been holding inside. What started out as a brief kiss, soon escalated into a toe-curling kiss-fest as they ravished each other’s mouths, completely forgetting about the obnoxious stranger standing near them as well as anyone else around them.
When the kiss was finally over, a breathless Sage turned to find the obnoxious man hightailing it away from them in embarrassment. When she turned back to Delane, she saw deep desire and even deeper love shining in his caramel eyes. That mixture warmed her heart and stirred hot desire in her loins.
“Shall we continue with our date, handsome?” Sage asked, linking her arm through his. Inside, she was a bundle of desire ready to unravel. No man had kissed her so thoroughly in her life and she couldn’t wait to repeat that action as soon as possible.
Delane nodded and proceeded towards the social club. Inwardly, he felt like the most blessed man on the planet, and his body felt two hundred pounds lighter as his feet moved upon the eggplant-colored Persian carpeting of the busy lobby.
******
Although Sage had been taught by her mother all the finer points of seducing a man, her plan to seduce Delane backfired big time. Yes, she’d successfully gotten him to fall in love with her, but due to the caring soul that lay within her mammoth of a landlord, she was falling head over heels in love with him, too. In fact, those public hugs and kisses she continued to administer to him on a regular basis were all real. So were all the compliments Sage issued to Delane since the day they shared that first meal together.
How could Sage not fall in love with a man that was thoughtful, kind, and extremely romantic, often sending her flowers and gifts just because? He was a man that made her feel special just by listening to the things she said and by encouraging her to pursue her dream. A dream that Sage’s mother still knew nothing about. And the fact that Delane hadn’t even tried to sleep with her yet, despite the fact that he was clearly attracted to her, simply put him over the top in Sage’s book.
Sivilla thoroughly approved of her daughter’s involvement with Delane. However, she did not approve of how emotionally involved Sage had become in the process. She learned a long time ago about the dangers of falling in love and had strictly warned her daughter against it.
Since Sage was unwilling to heed that particular piece of advice, Sivilla decided to leave the subject alone for a while. After all, not only was Delane allowing them to stay in the duplex rent-free now, he was also now talking marriage. This meant that Sage would be privy to half of a large portion of his sizable assets in the case of divorce since they lived in a community property state.
It was by no accident that Sivilla only traveled to and resided in states where community property was law. Her hope was to snag a rich man that she could later divorce when the mood suited her, and then take half of the assets that he acquired during their marriage with her. Although this was her first time in Arizona, Sivilla had been to California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. Although Puerto Rico was a community property jurisdiction as well, Sivilla had not been there. Yet.
© 2006 Suprina Frazier
Comments