Under the Elms

Act II

‘Good day, beautiful.’ Prince rarely said Good Morning, since they usually woke up around noon. He kissed his way down her body, causing his favorite sounds: the hitch of an inhaled breath, and the high pitched moans that were Sofia's alone. He used his hands and mouth to create an overwhelming storm with peak after peak, leaving them both completely satisfied. As they lay entwined, trying to catch their breath, he tried one last time.

‘Please stay? We're so happy together. I've never been this happy in my life.’

‘I gave my word,’ Sofia replied, a tear escaping her left eye, sliding toward her ear. ‘I was raised to be a woman of my word. I know you get that. I never thought it would be this hard.’

‘I get you. I'll be home in less than a month. We’ll make it work.’

They did make it work. Letters, phone calls, they found a way to communicate daily one way or the other. Sofia received a new bouquet of flowers daily, with cards containing secret messages that hinted at his heart being as committed as hers. Sometimes they were on the phone for hours, until one or both of them fell asleep.

Sunday, September 12, found Sofia at the airport, impatiently waiting to see her man emerge from the charter plane. He had promised he would be the first off the plane. She was surprised to see him hand in hand with his dancer, Mayte, as they descended the stairs. The minute he saw her, he dropped Mayte’s hand and rushed to her side, sweeping her off her feet and spinning her around in a circle. His exuberance upon seeing her pushed aside any doubts she had.

‘Longest month of my life,’ he whispered in her ear.

‘Same here,’ she replied.

Taking her by the hand, he rushed past everyone else and hustled her into the waiting limo. Lowering the window, he said, ‘Home, as fast as you can.’ Raising the window, he said, ‘I'm not removing a stitch of clothing until we're in our room. Come here, baby,’ he growled, as he pulled her down onto the long limo seat, melding their bodies together even as he captured her mouth in a kiss she hoped would never end.

Arriving at his home, he picked her up and carried her, bridal style, into the house, up the stairs, and into the bedroom. Suddenly his rush ceased, as he began slowly removing her clothing, kissing each inch of skin as it was exposed. ‘I've been planning this, night after night, day after day, ever since you left me,’ he said between kisses. ‘Never leave me again.’

‘Never,’ she breathed, unbuttoning his shirt, undoing his pants, grasping the skin beneath with a ferocity that surprised even her. Finally skin to skin, she gasped at the intensity of the feelings rushing through her.

Leading her to their bed, Prince laid her down and hovered over her. Suddenly smiling devilishly, he said, ‘Where to start? Such a dilemma. Should I begin here,’ he asked, stroking the outside boundary of a breast, ‘or here?’ letting his hand drift lower, barely brushing the skin below her navel.

Gripping him where she knew she'd get his attention, she murmured, ‘I don't care, just begin.’

Much later, she rolled over and groaned. ‘I've got to get to sleep so I can get up at 5.’

‘Mmmm, I don’t like you leaving me.’ Prince pulled her next to him, spooning her from behind, grasping one breast lightly. ‘Sleep, mama, but don’t wake me up in the morning.’

A new pattern emerged for Sofia, one that left her extremely happy but extremely sleep deprived. Every waking moment she wasn’t at school, she was with Prince. She wrote lesson plans and planned student performances while watching or listening to rehearsals, ate her meals with and shared a bed with Prince, not that they slept remotely the same hours. They spent magical Saturday and Sunday afternoons picnicking and pleasuring each other under the elms surrounding Prince’s home. It all worked out until the holiday season hit.

‘Where are you going this time?’ Prince whined one evening after dinner.

‘My students are performing tonight for a PTA meeting,’ Sofia replied. ‘It’s the trade off for never having to grade papers. I know it's the third time in three weeks. I’ll be home in two hours. I’m sure you’ll still be awake.’

‘I know, I’m just whiny. I don’t like it when you aren’t here.’

‘I don’t like it either, and I don’t see how this job is going to work with us and your career. Will you hang with me until the end of the school year?’

‘Why not turn in your resignation tonight for the end of the semester? Then you can be around all the time.’

‘But what would I do? You don’t need three keyboardists.’

‘You could be my backup singer. I don’t really have one right now. Mayte just dances.’

‘She dances beautifully when she’s doing her belly dancing moves. And she sure knows how to work that hair! Quick, give me a kiss so I can be gone and get back. I’ll think about your idea very hard, I promise.’

Performance over, Sofia returned to the house to find a note-’In the studio-see you tomorrow’. It wasn’t the first time that had happened, but this time it struck her as him trying to avoid her. She hoped she was wrong.

That weekend, she composed a letter of resignation. She knew what she really needed was to be with Prince, and living a teacher's life wasn’t going to sync with his world. She was willing to compromise her career to stay with him. He was the center of her life by that point, and the relationship they had made her happier than she’d ever been.

‘What am I seeing?’ Prince looked over her shoulder at the notebook she was writing in. ‘Is this what we talked about the other night?’

‘Yes, babe,’ Sofia looked up, reaching up to hold his hand. ‘I’ll turn it in on Monday.’

‘Go up to my office and use my computer to make it look professional, mama,’ Prince replied. ‘It’ll go over better that way.’

As Sofia was leaving, Mayte walked past on the way to the rehearsal area. ‘How are you?’ she asked, flashing a friendly smile.

‘I’m good. I’m going to resign from my job so I can spend more time with Prince and the rest of you.’

‘Wow, that’s a big decision. Good luck!’ she said, continuing to walk, flipping her hair over her shoulder as she continued on her way.

A/N-Should Sofia resign from her job early? Is Mayte as innocent as she seems? Please understand, this is fiction. I'm not casting any stones at real people.

Thanks for reading, commenting, and voting!