Carter yawned as he allowed Elaina to do her thing.
There was a roar from the television. Carter’s football team had just scored a touchdown. He began debating if he should just take over as Elaina took forever to make her way down his body. He could go ahead and give her an orgasm or two and be done.
Carter yawned again, and his eyes began to drift low.
Elaina was doing her best to work her magic. Just as she arrived at her destination, she heard a small snore. When she glanced up, Carter had fallen asleep. Elaina couldn’t believe it. She wanted to scream, he doesn’t deserve me. Angrily, she climbed back up to the head of the bed and snatched the sheet, wrapping it around her body and leaving him butt naked.
Her night was a bust.
Elaina remembered she’d brought up two glasses of wine. She glanced over at the nightstand and then picked up her glass. She then proceeded to drain it.
*****
Elaina couldn’t sleep, so she was up early. She had run her situation with Carter through her mind over and over. Elaina wasn’t accustomed to losing anything, and she had no plans to lose Carter to Harlem. She was mulling over ways to get Carter to stop seeing her as St. Harlem. Elaina figured getting pregnant would at least put her on even footing.
Elaina was pouring herself a cup of orange juice when Carter walked into the kitchen. He walked up behind her and attempted to kiss her on the side of the head. Elaina was still seething from his rejection. She couldn’t control herself and blurted out her thoughts. “Are you fuckin’ her?”
Carter had no intention of starting his day with this bullshit. “I’ve got an early meeting. I’ll call you later.” He turned to walk away, but Elaina grabbed his arm. Now that she had brought up the subject, she was not about to let him leave without discussing it. “I need to know what I’m up against so that I know how to fight for you.”
“Fight for me? What the hell are you talking about?” He yelled. “Harlem and I are not sleeping together!”
“What am I supposed to think? We’ve never had a problem in the bedroom. You spend a weekend with her, and now I can’t even get you hard?”
Carter ran a frustrated hand down his face. “Elaina! I just fuckin’ put my best friend in the ground barely two months ago, and Saturday was his birthday. You’re accusing me of already sleeping with his girlfriend? What is wrong with you?”
“What’s wrong with me? I’ve been more than patient and supportive.” She glanced heavenward. “It probably didn’t even occur to you that I should have been there with you this weekend!”
Elaina wasn’t entirely wrong. As a matter of fact, she was much closer to the truth than she even realized. “I am not sleeping with Harlem.”
Elaina pressed her hand against her chest. “I’m your girlfriend. Yet, I can’t seem to get close to you because she occupies the space that should be mine. Every time I turn around, it’s Harlem this and Harlem that. I’m sick of it!”
Carter took a breath. He spoke calmly. “I told you that Harlem is pregnant. She is my priority.”
“And, I’m not?” Elaina asked pointedly.
“I didn’t say that.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “Look . . . if we are going to work, you must figure out how to deal with the facts as they are, not how you want them to be. I would certainly understand if you wanted to walk away from all of this. It’s a tough situation, especially for you. I don’t know why you’d even want to put up with it.”
“You don’t? Then, let me spell it out for you. I’ve fallen in love with you. It’s as simple as that.”
Her words hit him hard in the chest. He wasn’t expecting it. They hadn’t uttered those kinds of feelings for one another. Carter liked Elaina, but he for sure knew he wasn’t in love with her. Her words made him want to be a better man and to work harder at their relationship. He owed Elaina that much. “I’m doing my best to figure out how to balance everything. I’m bound to make mistakes. I won’t get it right every time.”
Elaina held his gaze. She shook her head. “I won’t give up on us, and I will not let Harlem win.”
Carter was thrown by her choice of words. “Win?” The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. “This isn’t a game.”
Elaina began to backtrack. “I-I know, and I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just that . . . I want us to work so badly, and I don’t want to always feel like I’m always taking a backseat to her.”
Carter could understand that. He needed to step it up and really go all out if he wanted this relationship to work. He placed his hands on her shoulders. “How about we clear our schedules this weekend and go up to Door County? We can spend all of our time
