Page 9 of He Likes it Spicy
THOR
I finally get to bring Sam breakfast in bed.
This girl can sleep , and that’s fine by me.
She doesn’t even wake up when I roll out from under her and cover her with the sheet.
I whip up eggs, a hollandaise sauce, sausage, bacon, English muffins to drench in the sauce, and a bowl of watermelon and strawberries.
Maybe it’s a little much, but I want to spoil her.
By the time I come back up the stairs with a tray full of food, Sam is sitting up in bed waiting for me.
She kicks her feet under the sheet and squeals.
“The smell woke me up,” she says. “I was hoping you’d bring it to me in bed.”
“Your hopes are my dreams.”
“I don’t even care that that doesn’t make sense.”
“Sure, it does.”
“Nope.” She snaps her fingers and points to the empty space next to her. “Get back in here.”
We don’t care much about spilling crumbs in bed.
Last night, we pretty much ruined the sheets.
Sam devours everything again, washing it down with hot coffee.
She always retreats into herself after a meal, pleasantly stuffed and taking a moment to zone out.
She stares at the open balcony doors, watching the creamy drapes dance in the breeze.
“It’s perfect here,” she says.
“I was wondering what you were thinking.”
“Is it always this nice? Does the sun always light up the room like this in the morning?”
I run my fingers through her silky hair. “It’s never this nice, Sam.”
She rolls her eyes. “Cheese ball.”
The fact that it’s the last day of the fair hangs over us like an unwanted guest. Whatever this is, it ends soon.
I know she’s thinking it, too. I know it haunts her the same way it haunts me.
“What are you afraid of, Thor?” She puts her hand on my lap, absentmindedly tracing circles on my thigh. “You’ve got all those photos down there. You’ve done so much with your life. Does anything scare you anymore? Do you feel dread or anxiety? Or is life just… easy?”
“Do you feel dread?”
“Every day,” she laughs. “I don’t know how much longer I can do this show. And that scares me because I don’t know what I’m supposed to do next. I’m not good enough for the big leagues—“
“You’re crazy. You’re so good.”
She nods just to hush me. “The prestige shows are different. You have to be perfect, Thor. I’m the star of a cheap circus run by a man in a purple suit.
I’d have to quit, really master my craft, and get through grueling tryouts.
And even then, I’m not sure it would be the right fit for me…
didn’t you ever feel like this? When you were younger, I mean. ”
“Ouch. You know I retired early, right? I’m forty-six…”
“You know what I mean.”
“When I was younger…” I sigh, remembering my days of feeling rudderless. “I felt dread, yes. I didn’t always know what I wanted.”
“So,” she says, hanging on my words. “How did you get through it? How’d you make the right decisions?”
“I figured out what I was really afraid of.”
I run my thumb along Sam’s delicate chin. She looks worried, and I wish I could fix that for her.
“I realized that what I feared most was getting old, looking back, and realizing that I’d lived a dull, empty, vapid life.
I was afraid of having no pictures on my walls, no memories, nothing to think back fondly on.
Nothing to be proud of. Once I knew that, I just took the first steps.
The direction didn’t matter. If it didn’t make me happy, I took another step.
And another. That’s all life is, Sam, picking a direction and walking surefooted. ”
“Walking the tightrope is less stressful than the stepping stones of life.”
“Well, you might have a career as a poet.”
She laughs. “I’ll be poor forever, then.”
“Let me be your benefactor.”
Sam looks at me like I need to stop saying everything that pops into my head.
“I’m serious,” I say. “I’ve got this big house, all alone. If you quit the circus today, if you decided you were done, I wouldn’t mind sharing it all with you.”
“Oh, you wouldn’t mind?”
“Nope.” I lace my fingers in hers. “I’d be thrilled. Because, if I’m being honest, I’ve been dreading the moment you leave town since I met you.”
“Stop! You can’t be so damn charming all the time…”
Sam’s cheeks turn bright red. I pull her into a kiss, taking some of that heat from her, sharing it.
“And… you can’t…” she whispers, staring into my eyes, “just do that whenever you want…”
“Yes, I can.”
“Yeah.” She nods and noses brush together. “Maybe you’re right.”
“Stay with me.”
“I can’t.”
“Why?” I growl.
Sam groans and hides under the sheet. “Even if that was a good idea… which it isn’t—“
“It is.”
“— is not. I could never abandon the show in the middle of the summer season. They’d be screwed without the main act.
Setting us aside, I know that I need to move on, but I won’t quit like that.
” She takes a deep breath, making her decision.
“I’m going to tell Charles that I’m done after our summer tour.
That’ll give him time to find a new act. ”
I rub her back through the sheet. The fact that she values her coworkers so much warms my heart. “You’re doing it right. And after summer’s over? What then?”
Sam peeks her perfect face out from under the sheet, smiling like a massive weight has been lifted off her shoulders.
“I have no idea.”
I laugh and pull her into my lap.
The acrobat feels as light as a feather to me, as delicate as a rose.
“I believe in you. Whatever you do, you’ll be amazing.”
She rests her head against mine. “How do you know?”
“After the things you did last night…”
“Those contortions are just for you .”
“You’ll be amazing because you’re you , Sam. You’re special. And I’m going to support you in whatever step you decide to take.”
Sam’s face droops. “That’s nice, Thor. Truly. But I’m not even sure when we’ll see each other again.”
“What do you mean?” I smile mischievously. “I already have a ticket for your next show.”
“Tonight? You’re a VIP. You didn’t need to buy a ticket if you wanted to come again.”
“Not tonight. Next week. At the Sun Lake County Fair.”
“W-what?”
I take her hand, bringing her fingers to my lips. “I can’t just let you go. Suddenly, I have the urge to visit every fair hosting Charles’s Magnificent Traveling Circus for the rest of the summer…”
“You’re gonna follow the circus?” she laughs but tears well in her eyes. “Just to… to see me?”
“I’ll follow you anywhere if you’ll let me: Thor and his Valkyrie.”
Now, the tears roll down her cheeks.
I run my thumb through their tracks, holding her misty gaze.
“Where will you sleep?” she asks.
“Hotels. Airbnbs. I’ll sleep in my truck. It doesn’t matter.”
Sam shakes her head, takes my face in her hands, and smiles. “ We’ll sleep in your truck. I’m sure there will be chili cook-offs for you to check out.”
“Ah, who cares?”
My heart pumps so hard that I have to move. I sweep Sam off the bed with me, carrying her like my bride onto the balcony.
The morning air welcomes us, a chill that can’t defy our heat. Sam kisses my neck, whimpers softly as I touch her, and whispers against the wind, “I’m still mad that you ruined my surprise last night. I had a whole dance routine planned. A tight dress. Heels. It was going to be so sexy.”
I let her down, hugging her from behind, pressing her belly against the railing. We stare at the golden fields, watching the sun rise just for us. It’s casting its light on our future, our lives, and illuminating things one step at a time.
“You don’t need to perform for me,” I say, kissing her ear. “You are the sexiest woman alive. Everything you do turns me on. I get hard watching you eat breakfast…”
“There’s a kink I’ve never heard before.”
I reach around and fill my big hands with her perfect breasts.
“ You are my kink. And I want you to be my everything.”
“Keep talking to me like that, and I won’t have a choice.”
Sam reaches back, running her fingers through my bristly hair.
I let my fingers creep down between her legs, and she rubs her body against my aching cock.
“Keep making love to me the way you do,” she whispers, “and I’m yours…”
I do as I’m told.
On my balcony, I lift Sam into the air like the flying acrobat she is, railing her against the railing, showing her just how badly I need her in my life. She screams my name, not concerned if the breeze carries it to anyone’s ears.
Nothing in my life has ever felt so fulfilling.
I pray she feels it, too.