Chapter 19 — The Spa

Richard called at eight o’clock the next morning. “Are you up yet, sleepyhead? How about breakfast in my room?”

It took Tess a moment to gather her thoughts. She was relieved there was no mention of last night’s conversation, but breakfast in his room implied something more. It seemed too intimate being she had not yet decided about being his mistress. “I don’t know; I think I would be more comfortable in the dining room.”

“Come now. How are we going to have a private conversation in the dining room? I promise I won’t ravish you—yet.”

She couldn’t argue with his logic, and something was appealing about being wanted this way. Thirty minutes later, she’d eaten a hearty breakfast of bacon, eggs, and toast. Tess sat across from Richard sipping her coffee—content. They’d talked about a lot of things: the play they were going to see tonight; what they would do after the theater; and he’d told her about his law practice. He said that he wanted to know everything about her.

 “Do you like butter on your toast? Jelly?” he asked.

She’d laughed. She’d never been asked such trivial things. “Yes, to both. My favorite jam is cherry, and I make it every year. I have a small orchard on my property, mostly apple and cherry, and a few peach trees.”

“You amaze me,” Richard said. “You have so many interests, but I’ve noticed that everything you do seems to involve work. What do you do for relaxation?”

“It’s been so long since I’ve had any free time, but I usually read before I go to sleep. I used to paint and go horseback riding. I have had little time lately, but I enjoy renovating the houses. It’s work, but I like what I’m doing.”

“I want you to relax and enjoy yourself this weekend,” Richard said. “They have a great spa at the hotel, but I thought it would be even better to have them come to the room. I’ve ordered us a couple’s massage at ten o’clock.”

Tess’s expression was dubious. “I don’t know you well enough to do something like that, Richard. It doesn’t seem like something a married man should be doing.”

“That’s the point,” Richard said. He leaned forward and placed his hand over hers. “I’m doing everything possible to get to know you, and you’re making it difficult. It is not my wish to be celibate, Tess, but I have been for months. I don’t want just any woman; I want you.”

Tess sipped her coffee pensively. He’d seduced her weeks ago, but he was married, and she didn’t want to get hurt or be part of a love triangle. She’d had little experience with aggressive men and wasn’t sure how to handle the situation. “What do you want from me, Richard?” she asked, her amber eyes searching his.

“Everything. I want all of you,” Richard murmured. “Not just today, tomorrow or the next day, but forever. You know as well as I do that this may never happen again. I feel like I’ve been blessed with another chance at love. I don’t think we should let a little piece of paper stop us. Life is short, Tess. We have to go for it.”

Richard’s words sent a mountain of emotions through Tess: her heart raced, her body tingled. He had a way with words that drew her in. And he was romantic. A man like him happened once in a lifetime. If she said ‘no,’ it could prove to be the biggest mistake of her life. There would never be another man like Richard Cooper, and she knew it. Throwing caution to the wind, she tossed her hair over her shoulder and said, “I’m saying ‘yes’ to the massage, but I’ve not made up my mind about being your mistress, so don’t get any ideas.”

Tess lay naked on the table next to Richard with a plush white towel covering her derriere with her breasts pushed into the table. The masseurs, two Japanese women, had lit candles that sent a glow over the elegantly decorated room. A faint smell of incense filled the room along with tones of chimes. Tess’s face was turned toward Richard, and in the flickering candlelight, he wore a pleased expression. He was drinking in her body. And she was discretely doing the same. She thought he must work out every day. His muscles were taut.

“Hold my hand,” he whispered, reaching over.

Tess tentatively extended her hand. Richard’s hand was soft, but his grip was solid. She was calm and relaxed until she felt the masseuse dig her elbows into her shoulder blades. Richard had felt her tense up.

“Lighter touch for my wife, please,” he said firmly.

Tess liked the way he’d said the words, but a little voice in her head wondered how he had gone from mistress to a wife in a matter of one day. Maybe it was foolish of her to entertain the idea of being his wife knowing full well he was married. But she’d observed Stephanie with Thomas, and it was evident that Stephanie was in love with Thomas, not Richard. She chose to ignore the fact that Richard had said there had never been a divorce in the family.

“You have a beautiful wife,” the masseuse said to Richard. “You are a lucky man.”

“Yes, I am a lucky man,” he said, squeezing Tess’s hand.

Tess was uninhibited. Massage had always relaxed her, and she was in the zone. She’d had many massages, but it was her first couple’s massage. The sheet had fallen away. She’d been kneaded and pounded for what seemed like an hour, and then soft hands had applied lotion in a long sweeping motion. She was as weak as a kitten when she felt the sheet being pulled up over her, and the table moved closer to Richard.

When she opened her eyes, Richard was gazing into her eyes; his hand tunneled into her thick red hair. “You are incredibly beautiful,” he said. “You look so relaxed. You went to sleep.” He kissed her hand. “I want to remember this moment forever.”

Layers of stress and tension had dissipated. The masseuse helped her off the table, and she tumbled onto the bed, pulling the fresh sheet over her. She could hear the masseuses packing up their things, and then she heard the door open and shut behind them. She might have got up and gone back to her room, but she could hardly move.

 Tess closed her eyes for just a moment, but fell into a deep sleep and slept for two hours. She awoke to Richard’s hand on her shoulder, shaking her lightly. “Honey, it’s almost noon. Do you want me to order lunch? Everyone else is having sushi, but it would take us too long to get ready. I told them to go ahead, and we would catch up later.”

Tess couldn’t remember sleeping that soundly for years. “I’m not hungry,” she said, yawning, amazed that she’d felt comfortable enough with Richard to go to sleep in his bed. She sat up and bunched a pillow behind her. Richard handed her a bottle of water, and she took a long swallow. “Did you go to sleep?” Tess asked.

“After a while,” he said. “You looked so peaceful, serene, and contented. I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. All I wanted to do was hold you in my arms and cover you with kisses, but I know you’re not ready. Eventually, I dozed off.”

Tess pulled the sheet up. “I think I need to be perfectly honest with you,” she said, taking a deep breath. “It’s scary. I’m afraid I’m going to get hurt. Everyone knows you shouldn’t get involved with a married man. I could be making a big mistake, and I have reservations because I haven’t ended it with Sawyer.”

“Getting involved with Sawyer was a mistake,” Richard said. “You had to be desperate.”

“Not at all. I admit, I was in dire circumstances, but Sawyer has a lot of admirable traits. There’s an attraction. We’re in a romantic relationship.”

“I know, and I don’t care,” Richard said.

“Of course, I didn’t know he was an accused murderer when I got in the car,” Tess said. She hesitated, not wanting to ask, but she had to know. “Was it horrible? How did it happen?”

“Sawyer beat a man to death,” Richard said his face drawn. “There was a buggy accident. A man on drugs rear-ended a buggy going sixty miles an hour. It was a family. Sawyer was the first one upon the accident. Someone called 911 and said there were bodies strewn all over the highway. And by the time they arrived, there was another man dead. I read the report. It was grotesque.”

Tess paled, and scrunched down in the bed, knotting the sheet in her hands. “Oh, my God. It’s worse than I thought. It wasn’t manslaughter?”

“No, it wasn’t,” Richard said. “But the jury wouldn’t convict Sawyer due to extenuating circumstances. There were witnesses. The man was on drugs and hallucinating. He was out of his head—laughing. Sawyer lost it. It took two deputies to pull him off. The Mennonite Church made bail for him.”

“I wish he would have told me,” Tess said, gripping the twisted sheet. “It’s hard hearing it from someone else.”

“Daniel was the presiding judge. It was before Daniel knew Sawyer was his son. Had Sawyer gone to prison, Daniel would never have known Sawyer was his son.”

Tess was trembling, and she didn’t know why—maybe it was because the hands she had thought so gentle were the hands of a murderer. And then Richard was holding her, caressing her, calming her, holding her tightly as if he never wanted to let her go.

Her voice trembled. “It’s a lot to digest, Richard. Finding out that Sawyer murdered a man is almost more than I can bear, but I can’t judge him. God must do that. And I can’t let the murder influence my decision about becoming your mistress.”

“Neither of us wants to spend our lives alone when we could be happy together, do we? Richard asked. “It would be foolish. You’re all alone in the world, Tess. I adore you. My parents adore you. I want to take care of you.”

Tess knew Richard was waiting for her to say ‘yes.’ He was persuasive. He’d never lost a case, but he was about to lose this one. “I can’t be your mistress, Richard. I’m a virgin. I want a ring. I want to be married in the church like my mother and father.”

White knuckled, Richard’s stunned expression turned to disbelief. He slowly took her in his arms and buried his face in her neck. Her hair was wet with Richard’s tears when they broke apart. She’d never seen this side of him. Finally, he spoke in a broken voice. “I didn’t know you were a virgin. Sawyer’s car was there until late at night. I feel like an idiot.”

Tess pulled away from him and slid out of bed. “I care for you so much, but I cannot be your mistress.”