Crystal's One Night of Love

Henry found himself engulfed in the constant swirl of his demanding job and the social obligations that came with it.

Frustrated, he drank, letting the intoxicating liquid cloud his thoughts more than he should have. The world seemed to sway as he staggered toward his car.

His driver, unfamiliar with his personal life, remarked as he opened the door for Henry, “Mr. Miller, you’ve had one too many. Miss Winters won’t be pleased. Women seldom are when their men are inebriated.”

Leaning into the plush upholstery of the backseat, Henry pulled out a cigarette, letting its familiar scent wrap around him.

He lit the cigarette. As the smoke danced from his lips, he murmured with a hint of irony, “As if she cares.”

Being married to Crystal felt as lonely as being single.

Crystal was indifferent toward him.

It had been a few months since they were intimate with each other.

She refused to let him touch her.

It was only normal for couples to fight every now and then. However, she had resolved to move to another room. It wasn’t just the lack of physical connection. Even a mere conversation with her felt like scaling a mountain.

Not wanting to wade into those deep waters, the driver simply resumed his place behind the wheel.

Just as he was about to depart, a mellifluous voice floated through the air. “Mr. Miller!”

Henry turned, and there, limping unevenly with a cane, was Lara.

She traced his gaze that landed on her injured leg. “The doctor says it’ll heal in a couple of months with no lasting damage.”

She flashed him a woeful smile, expecting, perhaps, even hoping, that he might have visited her during his wife’s cold spell.

Yet, he never did.

However, that was all right. If he wouldn’t come to me, I’ll just find a way to him.

Acknowledging her with a nod, Henry instructed his driver to drive away.

The driver nodded and turned the car around. Lara’s lips twisted into a smirk as the luxurious car pulled away.

She released her grip on the cane, crumbling to the ground in a display of vulnerability.

Henry caught sight of it. He furrowed his brows slightly and ordered to stop the car after a brief moment. of consideration.

The driver was stumped.

In an impassive voice, he ordered, “Help her into the car and send her back home.”

The driver replied hesitatingly, “Miss Winters won’t be pleased if she knows of this.”

Intoxicated, Henry said in a rather exasperated tone, “She won’t know if you keep your mouth shut. Besides, I’m only asking you to send her home.”

The driver bit his tongue and got out of the car to help Lara.

Lara sat beside Henry.

He closed his eyes and did not speak to her, but they were in such close proximity to each other that she could smell the faint scent of pine on him.

She stealthily turned aside to sneak a peek at him, drinking in Henry’s chiseled features.

His side profile was perfect, exuding an air of nobility.

Lara couldn’t help but eye in wonder at the luxurious interior of the car.

She pictured herself being together with Henry. Her cheeks were tinged pink as she leaned in to take in his heavenly scent, imagining herself underneath him…

Will his face contort in ecstasy as he presses down on me?

Lara felt warm tingles all over her body just thinking about it.

An audacious thought flitted across her mind as she leaned in and pressed a soft kiss on his pristine white shirt, leaving behind the faintest trace of her coral lipstick.

would easily escape one’s eyes if one

opened his eyes, making

hour later, the car stopped in front of a condominium in a nice

out of

sending me home. If… if you need me to explain to Mrs. Miller, please do not hesitate to ask me. Nothing happened

merely stared at her petite face and smiled faintly,

not have the heart

young woman, so eerily reminiscent of

with just the barest embrace,

a young and compliant lover, using her as a substitute.

those few seconds of intimacy were a test he set for

much he

was Crystal, of her vulnerability when her eyes were closed, lost in her music. The

options, and

He chose Crystal.

his car, he glanced up at the house. In the deepening. night, most of the lights had been

the stairs at a leisurely pace.

he took a look at Skyler and Remi, he

locked it. The door yielded effortlessly.

silk nightgown that shimmered under the lamplight. Her skin

entranced

and the prolonged dry spell

down, held her close, and

not

more docile in her dreams.

hands began to wander

eyes hazy with sleep, and

of coral lipstick on his

a mark of another

was fixed, unwavering, even as his passion seemed undiminished, his hands already working at the buttons of her

was pale, as if drained of all

as mere coyness, whispered against the soft spot behind her

vision of allure, yet her voice was chilling. “You met Lara today,

His movements faltered.

her eyes and admitted, “It was a chance meeting. I gave

nightgown, her slender fingers deftly undoing two of his shirt buttons to

shade was

The

on him as well. He removed the tainted shirt, discarding it in the

face Crystal, he declared,

too exhausted even to be angry.

her studies, rented her a condominium, paid her tuition,

tensed. “I don’t have such intentions.”

refused to look at

the night, and murmured. “You let her get close to you and allowed her to challenge your lawful wife. Your relationship with her has already crossed the line. If the driver hadn’t been there today, you would have tested yourself further. You might have followed her back to her condominium, let her remove your coat, perhaps even indulged her advances. She could have become your lover, a substitute

was lighting a cigarette when the heat from the ember burned his finger.

moment, he said, “Why do you paint it so

is often harsh. Henry, you have only come! tonight because I’ve been giving you the cold shoulder. If our relationship was going well, an like Lara showed up, I doubt that you’ll

Crystal to speak her

could

too much that his head

discussing it further tonight. Rubbing his temple, he said. “Let’s talk

when he was about to exit.

your shirt

in her posture, and he

ever really

Crystal found herself padding back to

novel, her face

in Lara’s matters, she

Audrey from years ago was a hard one to crase.

yet his first crush had regrettably passed, what man could

Henry had in mind.

the love for her children, she