couldn't speak. Standing in front of me, Robert
unbuttoned his shirt and took it off, dropping it on the
chair. My fingers, as if they had minds of their own,
went to my blouse and, though trembling, undid each
button. Slowly, I took off my blouse and let it drop
beside Robert's shirt on the chair. He smiled and
stepped forward to kiss me, his hands moving behind
my back to undo my bra.
My heart pounded.
Robert undid his pants and sat on the bed to
take off his shoes and socks. I watched him with eyes
wide as he removed his pants and folded them over
the back of the chair.
The wind made the curtains dance and the
ocean outside roared against the beach, but all I really
heard was the thumping of my own heart.
I unzipped my skirt, slipped it down my legs and placed it over Robert's pants. Then I took off my sandals and he rose to embrace me. We kissed again, and again it was a long, demanding kiss that took our
breath away.
"Laura," he whispered.
I didn't look down, but I felt him move his
hands to his waist. I kept my eyes closed as he
stepped out of his briefs and then gently lowered my
panties. I stepped out of them as if I were stepping
gingerly into a warm bath.
For a long moment, we didn't touch, we didn't
move. It was as if we had brought each other to the
brink, to the cliff from which we could never turn
back once we stepped forward.
"You're the most beautiful woman in the world,
Laura. I love you so much, my heart aches." Wave after wave of warnings drifted over me,