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.

one’s eyes if one didn’t pay attention to it.

eyes, making Lara fumble to set her back

front of a condominium in

out of

thank you for sending me home. If… if you need me to explain to Mrs. Miller, please

her petite face and smiled faintly,

the car started again, Henry did not have the heart to continue

a young woman, so eerily reminiscent of that other, and furthermore, she was Audrey’s

just the barest embrace, he could claim her.

and compliant lover, using her as

few seconds of intimacy were a test

at how much he truly cared for

he thought about was Crystal, of her vulnerability when her eyes were closed, lost in her music. The surge

options, and Henry chose his

He chose Crystal.

of his car, he glanced up at the house. In the deepening. night, most of the lights had been snuffed out, but the light from

the stairs at a

and Remi, he gently turned the knob of Crystal’s bedroom

The door

lamplight. Her skin

always entranced by her.

and the prolonged dry spell between them stirred a

leaned down, held her close, and kissed her tenderly

did not wake.

to be more docile in her dreams.

his hands began to

stirred, her eyes hazy with sleep, and met his, focusing on his handsome

it-the faint hint of coral lipstick

a mark

as his passion seemed undiminished, his hands

face was pale, as if drained of

her resistance as mere coyness, whispered against the soft spot

of allure, yet her voice was

His movements faltered.

beat, he looked into her eyes and admitted, “It was a chance

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

was

“It was just a ride. The driver was

him as well. He removed the

face Crystal, he declared, “I

even to be

rented her a condominium, paid her tuition, and found her a great job. Tell me, Henry, how is that different from

tensed. “I don’t

refused to look

and allowed her to challenge your lawful wife. Your relationship with her has already crossed the line. If the driver

cigarette when the heat

do you paint

tonight because I’ve been giving you the cold shoulder. If our relationship

Crystal to speak her

could be

bit too much that

felt no point in discussing it further tonight.

stood still, only speaking up when he was about to exit.

your shirt

and he couldn’t help but wonder if

ever really been in love?

left, Crystal found herself padding back to the

her fingertips over the novel, her face betraying little emotion.

in Lara’s matters, she knew this

Henry and Audrey from years

his memories, and yet his first crush had regrettably passed, what

what Henry had

and she wasn’t bound by the love for her children, she might have fought.