Crossroads · Part 1

Crossroads · Part 1 (1/2)
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Chapter

One: Revelations

Extraordinary experiences seemed to have a habit of arising from otherwise mundane circumstances.

Dene mulled over that bit of wisdom as she turned her wrists against the insides of her polished handcuffs. She let her eyes slip closed and relished feeling their inescapable grip. If by some feat of precognition the events of this evening had been revealed to her, she surely would have dismissed the prediction as an impossible hallucination. At least as impossible as her escape from the steel that held her right now.

As she pondered the events of the day, Dene could not recall any specific hint or indication of what lay in store for her. She recalled the tedious but necessary preparations for hosting a party at her apartment, and was busily tidying up lest her friends witness the random accumulation of clutter and trash around her place. As she ran her hands under the couch cushions her fingers banged against, then wrapped around a cold, hard object. As she slid her hand out, a set of handcuffs, her handcuffs, came into view and she paused a moment, looking on them with a mixture of desire and regret.

She slid her fingers along the polished arc of the restraints, admiring the cool, smooth surface and chime of the connecting chain. Her familiar yearn came calling, stiffening her nipples against her cotton shirt.

Dene felt the butterflies start to flutter deep in her belly as she rolled the cuffs over in her hands, glancing at the clock, wishing the clock to stop, to afford her the opportunity to indulge the impulse gnawing inside her. Alas the clock did not stop, nor even slow, and with a resigned sigh she folded the cuffs together and took them along with an armload of belongings to her room. She deposited the cuffs into their customary home in her dresser drawer. "Not now, darling. I have miles to go before

I sleep." she thought to herself as she closed the dresser.

Dene relaxed a moment and silently reflected on the array of friends and acquaintances she had invited over for that night, mentally ticking off the names of those who had indicated their intent to attend. Her brow furrowed and she frowned when she came to one particular name, betraying her disappointment that he had chosen not to come. Brad had been her good friend for years, but had been through a pretty rough time recently with the rapid departure of his fiancé.

Dene still felt guilty about the role she had played in that episode, even though Brad had no idea that she had any involvement. Dene viewed the party as a way to help make it up to him, and perhaps as a way to help assuage her own guilt. After all, she had gone out of her way to invite a number of eligible bachelorettes in the hopes that Brad might click with someone to break him out of his recent funk.

Dene could not have known that although Brad had let her know that intended to stay far away from the party that night, fate would step in and Brad would attend after all.

Brad reclined in his apartment, contemplating another evening of self-imposed isolation and found the prospect distasteful. Unable to come up with a better alternative, Dene's "small gathering" now seemed his best option.

Brad had largely disengaged socially, tending to keep to himself as he mourned his murdered engagement. His free time had lately been spent alternately in tears and in rage, grieving over the recent and abrupt departure of Lisa, his lover and until recently his fiancé. "I know now that I am better off without her, but damn if she didn't screw me over,"

thought Brad. He caught his train of thought and snuffed it out quickly, avoiding another conflagration in his private woodpile of angst.

Silently he chided himself for dwelling on Lisa and promised, yet again, to put her in his past and not to look back. Little did he know by the end of the evening how distant her memory would become.

Arriving fashionably late at the party, Brad was greeted by friends and acquaintances, most offering the obligatory condolences for his recent misfortune. As he scanned the apartment, he noticed quite a few people he did not recognize, including a few knockout women. As he turned to see behind him he bumped someone, and when he spun around to offer an apology, his victim turned out to be Dene. Surprised as much as pleased to see him, Dene threw Brad a big hug then grabbed his hand and led him about, introducing

Brad to some of the strangers he had noticed earlier.

Brad had previously delivered

Dene the news of his breakup with Lisa, which did not surprise Dene in the slightest. She was interested to note that he had held back the details surrounding his discovery of Lisa's dalliances and her subsequent abrupt exit from his life. But Dene already knew. Her role in the breakup and her continued pretension that she was not involved were a poison of guilt that had plagued her ever since. She had agonized over it, but could never bring herself to come clean and confess the part she had played. But she was determined to help him get over it, to put the scales back in balance. She had broken his heart, so she would put it back together again.

So she set about personally introducing and extolling Brad to each of the single ladies in the room. After the first couple of uncomfortable encounters, Brad led Dene aside and quietly said, "Look, I appreciate what you are trying to do. But I am just here to have a good time. I am so not ready to get back in the dating saddle yet."

"That's the best way I know of to stay miserable, Brad, and you know it," Dene countered. "If you don't meet new people, how do you ever expect to find someone you like?

An introduction is just that, an initial greeting. It's not like

I am arranging your marriage or anything…"

Dene caught the pained expression on Brad's face and immediately regretted having mentioned a wedding. As much as she wanted to try to take back her hasty words, she knew trying to do so would just make things worse. Instead, she took a different angle and said, "I don't think there is any harm in meeting new people, do you?" Brad had to reluctantly agree. He had, in fact, not even tried to meet anyone new since the breakup and had already privately come the realization that he really did need to get out and mingle.

Brad sighed deeply, then replied, "We both know that you're right, that I should get to know new people, but I'm going to do it at my own speed. I don't mind an introduction but lay off the match-making, OK?" Dene agreed, and they waded back into the party where she proceeded to resume her interrupted introduction of Brad, extolling him again with great enthusiasm. Halfway through the first pitch, Brad shot Dene a look of disgust, wheeled and walked toward the hall to at least be out of earshot. "What has gotten into her?

There are a couple of very attractive women here that I wouldn't mind getting to know, but there is no way I am going to get anywhere with them if she goes prattling on about me like that," he fumed as he slipped away.

When Dene realized that Brad was no longer standing next to her, her voice trailed off as she looked around for him. She caught a glimpse of his back as he walked into the hallway. She offered an excuse to the people gathered around her and slipped over and into the hallway. A guy standing outside the bathroom caught her eye and pointed towards the closed door of Dene's bedroom. She quietly slipped inside and closed the door behind her, and as she did she caught a scathing look from Brad. He was clearly upset as he turned to her and slowly spoke. "I thought we agreed that I would take things at my own speed." Dene took a step back, surprised by the emotion in Brad's voice. "Just what do you think you are doing?"

Brad queried in a quiet growl.

"I… I just thought that… I only wanted to…" stammered Dene, finally realizing that she had actually been embarrassing Brad in front of their friends. Not to mention what used to be his potential new dates. "Oh… I'm sorry, Brad. I didn't mean to upset you. I know you are a great guy, and I just wanted them to know that too. Can you forgive me?"

Brad thought a moment then softened and said, "Of course I forgive you. But I think I'm going to leave now. This night has already been a train wreck, so I'd rather just cut my losses and go home. Once I'm gone you can talk me up all night and it won't seem like you are hawking a used car."

Dene giggled at this thought, then looked over to Brad and realized that he was serious and actually intended leave. Having him depart now, so soon after he arrived, just would not do. Dene stamped her foot petulantly and declared, "I won't hear of it. You came to have a good time and I think you should stay and enjoy yourself."

Brad thought about this a moment. He was, after all, already at the party, and was catching up with folks he had not seen in a while. Other than Dene's annoying sales pitches, Brad realized he was actually enjoying himself. He decided to give Dene one more chance and said, "All right, I will stay a while. But if you keep up like you have been, I won't have a chance with any of the ladies here tonight."

Hearing this, Dene paused and realized that the opportunity she had been praying for was right in front of her. Brad was available. He was interested in meeting someone new. He was right here, right now. It dawned on her why she had been so obnoxious out in the party. Her deep-seated desire for him had played harmony with her guilt, and without consciously intending it, the net result was to bury any chance Brad might have with anybody else. "What should I do? Do I dare?" thought Dene. In that instant, she decided to act on her long-suppressed desire to try to take their relationship to a new level. She quickly weighed the risks.

"Was it too soon? How will he react? How will I react?

Fortune favors the foolish, I hope."

Keeping her gaze fixed on his, she turned her body oblique to him, arching her back every so subtly, striking a pose that she was hopeful would succeed in her attempt to accentuate her assets. Her heart was attempting to escape her body and had climbed up and lodged itself firmly in her throat. She swallowed hard, regaining the ability to speak, and replied in her best sultry voice, "Then I would get you all to myself, now wouldn't I."

Brad blinked hard and did a double take at Dene. He was taken completely by surprise.

Up until now, their friendship had been just that, two people that were good friends. He had known Dene for years. After they first met on the job they had hit it off and spent some very enjoyable time together.

Brad had met Lisa and Dene at about the same time, and throughout his relationship and engagement with Lisa, Dene was a friend he turned to when he needed a sympathetic ear or a friendly smile. He loved Dene like a sister.

Sweet Jesus! It never entered his mind until just then that Dene saw something more in him than just a friend, and he was at a loss to explain to himself how he could have overlooked that same possibility in her.

Looking on Dene from this new perspective, Brad came to the conclusion that while she was not drop-dead gorgeous like some of the other women at the party, she was definitely easy on the eyes. As he looked her up and down, he found himself surprised to notice that she had a flattering figure and natural blonde hair, as usual kept short. She was a bit shorter than Brad, and he now came to appreciate the appeal of her moderately large and perky breasts and firm butt, both of which she kept in check by regular exercise. She had a cute round face, set off by big blue eyes and full lips, which were currently curled up in a half smile.

Dene took the opportunity to drink in Brad as well. She had done an artful job of concealing her true feelings for him, but his assets had never been lost on her.

What she saw in front of her now was nothing more than confirmation of what she had known all along. Brad was a hunk. She allowed her eyes to wander from his face, slowly rolling down his well-defined chest and trim belly. Growing bolder still she said, "I am pleased to see that the idea of you and me alone is not altogether unappealing", eyeing the growing bulge in Brad's pants. She was right, of course.

Brad's newfound appreciation of her had aroused him to no small degree, but while his body did not hesitate his mind did. The years of platonic bliss were making it difficult to get comfortable with the idea of his friend as a love interest. Plus he still had the idea in the back of his head that he would like to meet some of Dene's guests, particularly the female ones. This time without the distraction of her sales pitch.

A plan began to congeal in the back of Brad's mind, weaving its way around deep in his hind brain until it spilled forward and up into his consciousness. He needed to occupy Dene for a little while, at least long enough to independently make the acquaintance of some the beauties out in the party. He figured that when the party quieted down later in the evening, he and Dene could find a quiet corner to try and figure out just where it was they might be headed. The apartment was pretty large as apartments go, but he knew there would be no way to avoid Dene in it for very long. He tried to come up with an excuse or a story that she would buy into that might get her to leave the apartment, even for a short time, but came up empty.

Brad cast his eyes around the room, feigning embarrassment over Dene's overt pass at him, while desperately racking his brain for some alternative when his gaze fell upon Dene's dresser.

His mind flashed back to a birthday party for Dene some years ago, when she had received a pair of police handcuffs intended as a prank.

The card read that since she was taking her sweet time finding her man, that they were to "capture" him so he wouldn't get away. Brad remembered the odd look she had cast on him after she read the card, the implication of that look now clear to him. A good-natured verbal battle ensued and the cuffs were demonstrated on not a few of the guests.

He had often teased her about the handcuffs, asking if she had the occasion to detain her a man, to which she would respond that the cuffs were ready in top dresser drawer, ready for her easy access "just in case".

All he had to do was get those cuffs and attach her to something in the room, then come back and let her go when he had made his introductions. She probably would be pissed off at him, but he weighed the risk and guessed that she would probably get over it. He spied the dresser, estimating the distance and angle he would need to get to it.

"Here goes nothing," Brad thought to himself, as he eased in closer to Dene. As he suspected, the blonde was unprepared for this physical parry to her verbal thrust, and she took a step back away from Brad to maintain her distance.

In doing so, she unwittingly was playing into Brad's hand by backing closer to her dresser. When he had closed the distance between them and the dresser, Brad reached out with one hand and slid it down low and around

Dene's waist and gathered her gently to him. At the same time Brad was reaching with his other hand into her top dresser drawer, fumbling past the panties and socks until he found what he was looking for.

He pulled Dene in close to him, and placed a soft kiss on the exposed nape of her neck. She sighed and closed her eyes, pleasantly surprised at how warmly Brad was reacting to her blatant sexual flirtation.

She relaxed and exposed more of her neck, expecting more nuzzling from

Brad.

Instead she felt the bite of the cold steel of the handcuff as Brad swung it around and closed it against one of her wrists. Dene's immediate reaction was to pull away but Brad had her firmly within his embrace. She pulled and twisted, trying to put some distance between them, but Brad was prepared for this and squeezed her waist closer to his and held onto the cuff around her imprisoned wrist making her escape deliciously impossible.

Dene began to panic as she recognized the familiar fluttering and rolling in her belly, her body beginning to betray the arousal coursing through her. "No, no, NO! Not here, not now! Not like this!" she screamed into her own head. She tried in vain to suppress the tide of pleasure rising within her, to appear unaffected as she stared down at her imprisoned wrist, to hide the bolts of energy flashing through her. She secretly hoped the feeling would subside, hoped she could conceal her deviancy from him, but she prayed she would not. She knew that she could not. She never could.

Unhindered, the tingling burn began first deep in her chest, shafts of heat racing and radiating out inside her. Her cheeks flushed, her breath came in shallow gasps and her heart beat strong and fast, betraying the tumult cascading within her. Her nipples hardened, struggling up from beneath her bra, points of pleasure playing at her. The walls of her her pussy were clenching, grasping for purchase on a shaft it could not find. She was lost in the moment, lost in the tide of pleasure and lust washing over her. Dene shuddered as she slid her eyes shut, cheeks burning, hesitant to break the spell. But she had to know, had to see him, and so turned to him and did open her eyes.

Dene expected to see the scorn and rejection she had received so often in the past. What she saw made her burn even more deeply. Brad's breathing was as shallow as Dene's and she felt that the tremors of lust and excitement came from within him as much as from within her. She slid her free hand around the front of his chest and laid it upon his sternum, felt his heart pound hard inside his chest, and leaned forward into him to feel it's echo in his fully engorged cock as it pulsed against her hip.

They stood there for what seemed to Dene to be an eternity, lost in the heat of their shared embrace.

Crossroads · Part 1 (1/2)
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