Free Victim of Deception by Lynn LaFleur Page B

get them to stay in here so they’d talk longer, but they ignored me.”
    “Too bad we can’t just ask them what happened between them.”
    “That’s true.”
    She lay back on the bed and linked her fingers together on her stomach. Her position let Aaron clearly see the soft swell of her breasts inside her neckline. His mouth watered with the desire to run his tongue over her creamy flesh.
    “Aaron, stop,” Mary said softly.
    He raised his gaze back to her face. Sadness filled her eyes. “Stop what?”
    “We can’t be together. Stop looking at me like you want to make love to me.”
    “I do want to make love to you. I want to kiss you, touch you, lick every inch of your skin…”
    Mary abruptly sat up, her back to him and her head lowered. Aaron bent down so he could see into her face. “Mary, we can still pleasure each other.”
    “I know that. We’ve been masturbating for almost one hundred years.”
    “Do you think that’s wrong?”
    She pushed her hair back from her face and turned to look at him. “No, I don’t think it’s wrong. I know it pleases you when I touch myself. I enjoy looking at you, too, when you touch yourself.” Tears flooded her eyes. “I’m just tired, Aaron. I want to be with you . I don’t want to rely on my own hand for an orgasm.”
    Her tears made him feel helpless. “Mary—”
    “They’re the key, Aaron. Karessa and Max are the key to breaking the spell. I know that. That’s why we have to get them back together.”
    If she felt so strongly about it, then he’d do everything he could to help. “What do you want me to do?”

 
Nine
     
     
    June 27, 1925—He kissed me today. It was the first kiss I have ever received from a boy. I was so nervous, I did not know what to do. I was afraid he would think me foolish. He only smiled and kissed me again.
      It was wonderful.
      Mrs. Lewis knows how I feel about him. She helped me set up a meeting with him by telling my mother she needed my help with a project at her home. My mother gave Mrs. Lewis what I call “the look,” but Mrs. Lewis did not back down like most people do. She said it would be good for me to get out of the store for a while and earn a little spending money. With so many people in the store, my mother could not refuse.
      I did go to Mrs. Lewis’ house and help her finish sewing her new curtains, but left long before my mother expected me back at the store. That is when I met him by the creek. We were totally alone and talked for almost an hour. He said he would meet me again the first chance he could. Then he kissed me. I thought I might faint, the feelings inside me were so strong. They became even stronger when he touched my breast.
      My mother has taught me it is wrong to let a boy touch me before marriage. This did not feel wrong. I wanted him to touch me, and I would have let him touch me any way he wanted to. Being a perfect gentleman, he pulled back with a smile and said we needed to leave before my mother came looking for me.
      I know she suspected something. She did not ask any questions, but I could tell by the anger in her eyes. I refuse to let her destroy my happiness. I have found the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. I will not let my mother or anyone else stop me from being with him.
      I hid the money Mrs. Lewis gave me in my secret place. I know my mother searches my room. She tries to be careful, but I can tell that items have been moved. She does not like me having money of my own and has often asked how much I have. I will not tell her. I will not tell her about any of the things I have found hidden in the house.
      Some of those things make me wonder all over again if she is truly my mother.
     
    A soft knock on the door made Karessa look up from her great-grandmother’s diary. “Yes?”
    Max opened the door and peered inside. “Feeling better?”
    “Yes, thank you.”
    “May I come in?” He held up two