Whispers on a Wind Chapter 4

He lowered her on the ground as she caught her breath and he stared at her red cheeks. When she finally realized she was holding him, she jerked free from him and the shower curtain fell from her hands. When it dropped, he sucked in a breath and she covered herself with her hands. She had her eyes closed as she lowered her face from his stare. He picked up the shower curtain and wrapped it around her shoulders. When she finally looked up at him, he smiled.

“I think you scared the spider. He's gone.”

Nxtoua walked out of the bathroom closing the door. He sat on the edge of the bed and smiled as he thought of the memory of her naked. Shaking his head, he picked up his shirt and pulled it over his head. He picked up the phone and thought about calling her mother, but then went against it. She'd consider it betrayal and the last thing he wanted to do was become her enemy after she'd warmed up to him. He listened as the shower came on and a smile spread across his face as he imagined her standing underneath the shower head. A few moments later, she walked out fully dressed and ignoring his gaze.

“You saw me naked. You don't see me acting all loopy,” he said.

Pa Nyia jerked her head toward him. “I'm not acting loopy.”

“Really? I'd beg to differ.”

She rolled her eyes. “Let's go home.”

Pa Nyia was standing next to her car with Nxtoua when her mother's car arrived. She took a deep breath and thanked God that her father wasn't with her. When her mother parked the car and came out, she had tears rolling down her face as she pulled Pa Nyia in for a hug.

“Why'd you scare me like that?” Iris asked.

“I'm sorry,” Pa Nyia said as she pulled away from her mother's hold.

Iris turned to Nxtoua. “And you! You said you were going to get her. Why'd you keep her away from me?”

“Mom,” Pa Nyia said. “It's not his fault. I asked him not to call you.”

Shocked, Iris asked, “Why?”

Pa Nyia started crying and before she could lose control, Nxtoua stepped forward. “Mrs. Summerton, might I suggest we do this at home? Pa Nyia has had a rough night.”

Nodding, Iris pulled out her spare set of keys, unlocked both cars, and they drove home.

 

“Tell me,” Iris demanded as soon as they were alone.

Pa Nyia stared at her mother and swallowed. How could she tell her mother? How could she explain what she saw? She looked at her feet and then looked up at her mother with bravery. If her mother was brave enough to endure this for this long, she'd be able to tell her mother the truth.

“I saw father at the mall with another woman. Then later in the parking lot, I saw them kissing each other.”

Iris sat down on the stool and lowered her gaze. She was quiet for a moment and when she looked up, she had tears in her eyes. “I'm sorry, sweetheart, that you had to witness that. It breaks my heart that he'd do that in public. I wish I could do something to hurt him, I do. But since I can't, the only thing I can do is to endure it and hope that you'll forgive me.”

Pa Nyia wiped her tears. “I'm sorry for you, mother. I can leave this place and start new. You can't.”

Iris smiled and shrugged. “It doesn't matter. I've lived with it for far too long to let it affect me.”

Pa Nyia smiled and walked to give her mother a hug. “What are you going to do about it?”

Iris pulled away and sighed deeply. “What I always do when it comes to your father, nothing.”

“But wouldn’t that kill you slowly?”

“No, because I have learned that I am better than him and I will not let him hurt me any longer. Don’t you worry about me, Pa Nyia. I’m stronger than that.”

Pa Nyia walked down the stairs to the kitchen and found it empty. No one was around and she pulled open the fridge. She grabbed a bottle of water and when she closed the door, Nxtoua was standing next to her. She almost jumped at his presence as he stared at her with his dark eyes. The image of her lying on top of him came to her mind and then suddenly her heart felt light and fluttery.

“Did you find what you were looking for?” he asked.

She nodded and showed him the bottle of water. “Sure.”

He leaned against the wall and crossed his arms; a lazy grin on his face. “Why do I get the feeling that you haven’t really forgiven me for what happened last night or this morning?”

Pa Nyia blushed and opened the bottle of water. “What makes you say that?”

“Possibly because you’re looking at me like you want to kill me?”

Ignoring his gaze, she took a gulp of water and replaced the cap. “I’d like to kill you for many reasons, but what happened between us is far from it. Just so you know, I’ve kissed dozen of guys and you hardly come up as number one.”

Nxtoua smiled and placed his forefinger on his chin. “Oh, dozens? Let me see. Could it be Nick, the man who couldn’t understand you being blunt. Or was it Jack, the man you called slow? You know, you’ll have to refresh my memory because I can’t seem to place my finger on any one of those dozens of men.”

Pa Nyia scoffed and walked past him as she heard him chuckle. What a guy! She walked into the sunroom where she placed the bottle of water on the table. She picked up a magazine, but bored, placed it back. So she lied to Nxtoua. She’d never kissed anyone before. But she wasn’t about to admit to him that he took, actually stole, her first kiss. She’d never been kissed and having his lips on her last night was like…fireworks. It made her feel as if she was walking on air and she felt so light. Her heart had slammed against her ribs and she wanted more. It was amazing how a pair of lips could do that to someone.

“Where have you been? Do you know how worried your mother was?” George asked as he stepped into the sunroom.

Pa Nyia stood up and faced her father. She wasn’t going to let him win this battle. She was ready to rip everything out in the open. If he couldn’t handle it, he would have to man up and take responsibilities for his actions. The look on his face told her he was beyond angry, but he wasn’t anywhere near worried. It hurt her more than she expected it would.

“And you, father? Weren’t you worried?” she asked.

“Of course I was. What kind of daughter are you? You leave the house without a single word and disappear for hours. I didn’t raise you this way.”

Fighting back the tears in her eyes, she took a deep breath. “What kind of father are you?”

He frowned, his eyes narrowed, as he stepped closer to her. “How dare you turn this conversation on me? I’m not the one who is breaking the rules here. You live under my house, young lady!”

“Breaking rules?! Don’t push me, father, for I will not be kind.”

George laughed. “Kind? You’ve never been kind, Pa Nyia. You’re just like your mother; spoiled rotten and greedy.”

The tears rolled down her cheeks as she stared at him. The truth had come out and every single word hurt her as if he had slapped her. “Father, thank you for making this so much easier for me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“What kind of daughter am I, you ask. Well, I ask you, what kind of father are you, who goes to a public place and kisses another stranger for his daughter to see.”

George’s face paled and he took several steps back. “You-“

“I saw you! I saw you while you were flirting around with that married woman. Aren’t you ashamed? You wear a ring on your finger as a sign of a vow you made with your wife, the mother of your child, yet you are able to embrace another woman and kiss her. How can you do that and then call me spoiled and greedy? Perhaps I am greedy. Perhaps I am spoiled. But I am not a cheater like you.”

George walked to her and slapped her across the cheek. Pa Nyia sobbed and looked up as her father’s face broke into pain at what he’d done. She let out a cry and ran from the room. The pictures of their happy faces blurred as she dashed to the front door. She made her way out the door when she ran smack into Nxtoua’s chest. He caught her before she fell and she started crying when he held her.

“Pa Nyia!” George cried as he chased after her.

Pa Nyia looked behind her as her father appeared at the door. She grabbed Nxtoua’s hand and led him to his car. “Drive.”

“As you wish,” he said.

“Pa Nyia! You get back here!” George cried as Nxtoua’s car disappeared leaving only a cloud of dust.

 

Rain splattered across the front shield of the car as it parked on top of the hill overlooking the dark city. Lights from the high towers were lit up like blinking eyes in the distance. The only sound in the car was the sound of Pa Nyia’s muffled sobs as she lay against Nxtoua’s chest. Even after an hour of crying, he still hadn’t said a word to her. He’d let her cry until she was satisfied. She lay there, listening to the sound of his heart beating, and felt her throat on fire. The pain from inside tore at her and realizing that her own father had hit her was breaking her heart. How could he? She hadn’t thought he could, but when he did, the realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

She felt his hand move up her back to lay on her neck and she lifted her face. She looked up to find his dark eyes looking down at her. She moved away and wiped her eyes as he adjusted his position. When she turned back to look at him, he offered her a tissue. She took it and wiped her nose.

“Are you ok?” Nxtoua asked.

She ran her fingers through her hair. “Not really.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“No, but I know how it feels to be rejected.”

She looked up at him. “Will you tell me about your father?”

He swallowed hard. He remained silent for a moment, but then he opened his arms and she went to lay her head on his shoulder. “My father, where do I even begin? He had been fooling around when my mother was pregnant with me. He accused her of cheating and that the baby she carried wasn’t his. She worked full-time and took care of everything. When she had me, he took off. She worked two jobs to support us and as soon as I got older, I worked to help her out.

“When I turned sixteen, he came to visit us out of the blue. When he saw me, he realized he’d made a mistake and wanted to come back. My mother gave in, but I refused. I told her that if she allowed him back, I would leave. She didn’t listen to me and let him stay the night. She had saved up ten thousand dollars for a new car. The next morning, he was gone and so was the money.”

Pa Nyia heard the emotion in his voice.

“That money, my mother worked her entire life for. When he did that, it only made me hate him more. I tracked him down without my mother knowing. I got the money back and told him that if he ever came back into our life, I’d kill him. My mother was upset about it, but I know I did the right thing. Every now and then, he still tries to contact us. But only when he’s low on money and only when my mother speaks to him. If I answer, he hangs up. Since that one day, he hasn’t called since.”

Pa Nyia pulled away and looked into his eyes. They showed no emotion and she realized he’d buried the past. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault.”

She lowered her gaze. “How do I get through this?”

He reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “One day at a time, that’s all you can do.”

Pa Nyia stared at his eyes and felt herself being drawn to him. In his car, with the rain pouring around them, the sound of desire seemed to call out to her. She found her arm on his thigh and when their lips touched, magic exploded before her. If she had been waiting to be kissed where she was lifted off of her feet, this was it. His hands came to hold her neck and he arched her neck for a better taste of her mouth. She ran her hands up his shoulders to his neck and held him. She let out a soft moan and he pulled away, out of breath. She stared at him as he slowly pushed her away from him.

“Was it me?” she asked embarrassed.

He smiled and shook his head. “God no, Pa Nyia, I could kiss you forever.”

His words made her blush and she lowered her gaze. He lifted her face up with his finger and she saw that he was smiling at her. He ran a finger down her cheek and across her bottom lip, which was swollen from his lovemaking.

“Pa Nyia, I meant what I said. But you know this can’t go anywhere. You and I are from different worlds,” he said.

She grabbed his hand. “But I chose to be with you. There’s no wrong in that.”

“Isn’t there? What would your parents think? I can’t give you what you’re used to. The most I could give you is a roof over your head and that roof would be nowhere near the one you live in now. I’m not rich, Pa Nyia. I don’t have that luxury.”

“I don’t need it to survive.”

He laughed. “You say that now, but when you are looking around for loose change just to feed your belly, you’d think different. Forget about me, Pa Nyia. Marry someone who can afford to give you the same riches you grew up with. Come on, I’ll take you home.”

 

Nxtoua lay in bed staring at the rain pouring down the window. It had been a little over an hour that he returned home with Pa Nyia. He hadn’t said a word to her since and he felt as if she was throwing daggers toward him. He knew where he stood and he knew that if he dared offered marriage, her parents would laugh at him. Here he was a servant in their home, who had fancied their daughter. Ok, so a little bit more than fancy. He wanted her in ways only a man could want a woman. He wasn’t sure when that feeling developed, maybe it was during that night they spent together in the hotel, but it sure was hard to maintain a distant from her. And damn, those lips were so desirable; kissing her once wouldn’t be enough. If it was up to him, he’d kiss her forever until she swooned with faint.

Sitting up, he sighed deeply. Sleep wasn’t going to come now, no matter how much he wanted it to. He got up and walked out of his room to the kitchen. He opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water. He closed the door and walked barefoot to the table when something caught the corner of his eyes. He turned to the living room and there, lying on the floor, in front of the fireplace was Pa Nyia, dressed in a silk slip that covered nothing. She had her legs up and crossed at the ankles, her hair falling over her shoulders, as she looked at a magazine. The strap on her shoulder slipped off and he sucked in a breath, wanting to pull that strap down even further. When she lifted her hand to run it through her hair, he got a peek at the swell of her breasts and he dropped the bottle of water. She gasped and stood up as he stood there, emotionless. The light from the fire played behind her, giving her a soft glow, showing her every curve. He’d remembered those curves quite well, but what he wanted more was to explore them. He wanted to know where she was ticklish, where she would shiver if his tongue should come in contact, and he wanted to know what would make her squirm and beg. Oh, damn, he was in trouble.

Pa Nyia walked to him, picked up his bottle of water, and handed it to him. Instead of taking the bottle, he reached for her wrist, pulled her in, and kissed her hard. The bottle dropped for the second time as he picked her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he forced her mouth open with his tongue. He brought her over to the fireplace where he laid her down and lifted her slip high enough for his hand to go underneath. He felt her skin, soft as the slip, and he smiled as she closed her eyes. She was giving herself to him and he…what was he going to do? With a sigh of frustration, he released her and sat up. He covered his face with his hands and groaned. He felt her hands on his shoulders and he released his hands. She was kneeling in front of him.

“I want you, Nxtoua, every part of you,” she whispered. “Make love to me.”

With a start, Nxtoua woke up in his bed…alone and extremely turned on. He cursed and sat up; realizing this was the first time in a long time since he’d had this kind of dream. He shook his head and stared out the window. It was still raining and it hadn’t reached morning yet. He flopped down on his bed. Damn, was he ever screwed.

The sun was hot as Nxtoua worked on putting the rocks into place in the front yard. He had taken his shirt off and was now sweating as he worked. A few other workers were working alongside him as he stopped to take a drink of water. It was then that he saw the black BMW drive up. The windows were tinted and he couldn’t see who was inside. But when it parked, a well- dressed man came out with a bouquet of flowers and Nxtoua knew it was another suitor for Pa Nyia. After her fight with her father, he’d left the house without a word. Iris had gone on with life as if nothing had happened and Pa Nyia had wondered around the house with no desire to do anything. Nxtoua knew this was a way to get Pa Nyia back into the game, but he didn’t like it one bit. He told the workers he was taking a break and followed the man into the house.

 

“He’s here!” Iris said as she entered Pa Nyia’s room.

Pa Nyia turned around and found her mother smiling. Her heart sunk as she thought of yet another suitor. This wouldn’t do, she thought, as she had been dreaming about Nxtoua all night long. And they weren’t dreams she could share with my mother. They woke her up with a desire so deep, she almost cried when she realized it wasn’t real.

“He’s a very well-mannered man. He comes from old money, but he’s nothing what you’d think. His name is Brandon Oxford. He just finished his law degree from Yale and got accepted into one of the most prestigious law firms. You’ll find him to your liking.”

Pa Nyia sighed and searched for a good shade of lipstick to wear. “I don’t know, mother, seeing as how your last few suitors weren’t to my taste at all.”

“That’s because you never gave any of them a chance. You take one look at them and turn on your ignorance. Give Brandon a chance.”

Pa Nyia walked down the stairs and found a tall man standing with his back to her. He had his hands crossed behind his back and was wearing a black shirt with a pair of gray pants. His hair was cut short and from behind, he looked quite attractive. She cleared her throat when she reached the bottom and he turned around. His handsome face broke into a smile and he walked to her. He was very handsome, indeed, and with an attraction that bit right at her heart. He came to her and took her hand, kissed her knuckles, and smiled.

“Hello Pa Nyia, it is a pleasure to meet you,” he said in a deep voice.

She smiled, suddenly feeling giddy. “You as well, Brandon. I hope my mother didn’t pressure you into this.”

“Nonsense. I insisted.”

“Shall we take a walk outside?”

“Lovely suggestion.”

As Pa Nyia walked behind Brandon to the front door, she caught Nxtoua leaning against the kitchen door frame staring at her without a shirt on. Last night’s dreams of them making love flashed through her mind and when he wiggled his brows, she tripped over her feet. Brandon caught her as she smiled shyly. When she looked up, Nxtoua was gone, damn him.