Free The Beautiful People by E. J. Fechenda Page A

and my hair fell around me in waves, dark
against my fair skin. My lips were fuller from all of the kissing and my eyes
were bright – wide awake. I watched Dominic’s reflection walk up behind mine.
His was close to a foot taller and had a swagger to his walk. His body was
muscular and his olive skin was smooth, flawless except for the tattoo. He had pulled
a blanket off of the couch and wrapped it around us as we watched the sun rise,
basking in the golden glow.
    As the sun rose higher
into the sky, reality began to sink in. The day was putting an end to a perfect
night. I had classes to attend and a roommate to check in with. With a heavy
sigh I turned towards Dominic. He looked down at me with understanding.
    “Come
on, I’ll get you home.”
    He went into his
bedroom to get a new shirt and I followed him in to investigate as we hadn’t
made it that far. The spicy scent of his cologne was more concentrated here and
I inhaled deeply. A king sized bed pressed up against the window and the
Delaware River sparkled below through the slats of dark wood blinds. The master
bathroom was like a spa retreat in itself. A giant Jacuzzi tub called my name
and I stared at it longingly.
    “Next
time we’ll try that out.”
    “Next
time?”
    “Oh
there’ll be a next time, although I don’t want this to end.”
    “Me
either,” I admitted, running through my class schedule in my head and
determining I couldn’t miss any today.
    The Mustang was waiting
for us when we got down to the lobby, the interior already warm – high rent had
its perks. My purse vibrated so I reached inside and pulled out my cell phone.
The display read that I had three new messages. There were two text messages
and a voice mail all from Chelsea. Ever since Chelsea had broken up with her
boyfriend she had a little too much time on her hands and had started living
vicariously through my life. The first text message came in at 1:00 am – What
time r u coming home? The next text message came in at 3:00 am and I perceived
the annoyed tone – I’m going 2 bed . The voicemail had just been left for
me at 8:24 am – Nat, I’m really worried and hope you are ok. Please call me!
    Dominic overheard and
chuckled. “You better call her before she calls the National Guard.”
    “Yeah,
seriously,” I laughed as I dialed Chelsea’s cell. She picked up after the first
ring.
    “Nat!
Are you okay?”
    “Yes,
I am more than okay,” I winked at Dominic and he smiled back. “I had my phone
on vibrate and didn’t even hear it. I’m sorry to have worried you.”
    “You
should have called to let me know you weren’t coming home.” She sounded sullen.
I pictured her sulking, her lower lip sticking out in a pout.
    “You’re
right and I will try to remember next time. I was just a little…preoccupied.” Dominic
reached for my left hand and squeezed it.
    “Oh. Oh !” Chelsea gasped, picking up on what I was alluding to and I knew all
would be forgiven if she wanted the details. “Are you on your way back?” she
asked, no longer sulking by the sound of her voice.
    “I’ll
be there in a few minutes.” I hung up the phone and glanced over at Dominic. 
He was trying to keep a straight face.
    “What?”
    “Preoccupied?
Is that what it’s called nowadays?”
    “I
was trying to be discreet.”
    “What
we did to each other last night was definitely not discreet!” He squeezed my
hand and a warm flush washed over my body.
    The trip to my
apartment was too brief and it was hard to say goodbye. Dominic promised to
call me to make arrangements for later that night. As I was getting ready to
open the car door he pulled me towards him and into a kiss.  His stubble
bristled against my cheek, but I didn’t mind because his lips were soft and
gentle against mine. I could feel Chelsea’s eyes burning into my back from the
living room window so I slowly pulled away from Dominic and somehow managed to
get out of the car.
    Just as I had
anticipated, Chelsea was