The Invitation

I begin to strip the moment I step onto the roof.

I can’t breathe.

My wrap is the first to go, lifted from my shoulders and taken by the brisk fall air. As I make my way towards the ledge, I drop my purse, kicking away the contents as they scatter from the broken clasp. I rip off the suffocating cluster of pearls and diamonds that choke my neck. Diamond teardrop earrings disappear onto the black tar that coats the surface of the roof. Jeweled pins are yanked from my head, pulling several thick brown strands of hair along with them. I lose the battle with the zipper on the back of my dress and instead yank the straps down and push the stretchy velvet material off of my hips.

By the time I reach the railing I am down to a strapless bra, black satin thong and four inch heels. Placing my hands on the painted white barrier, I breathe in and out. My body is trembling, yet it has nothing to do with the twenty degree temperature. A bead of sweat slides down my temple and is kissed away by the blustery wind.

It’s not enough.

The railing is only waist high. I have been blessed with long legs and I gracefully maneuver my lithe body to the opposite side, locking my heels on the base of the rail. I entwine my fingers around the iron barrier, close my eyes, and angle my body towards the bustling street below me. I am careful with my grip.

This isn’t a suicide mission.

I just need…to feel clean again. To breathe again.

I need to feel alive.

Because I was stupid and foolish and I allowed that man to break me with only his words.

“You are nothing but a piece of ass, just like your mother. That’s all you will ever be, mon cherie.” He said more. So much more. Of that, I’m sure. But then he touched me and I lost all sense of self. His words were drowned out and I disappeared into myself as his lascivious thoughts were drunkenly slurred into my ear.

That’s when it happened. When I felt that first crack in my armor.

But I’m not broken. Not yet.

I lean over a bit further, still feeling nothing but this hollow shell of emptiness that I’ve allowed that man to leave inside of me. The wind whips loudly around my body, the unyielding cacophony on the busy street below me a constant hum of screeching tires and blaring sirens, and yet I hear her loudest of them all.

Even over the incessant drone of the city life below me, I know it is a woman that approaches me from behind. It’s not the click of her heels or the complex feminine fragrance that overpowers the urban air. The atmosphere changes around me. A charge of electricity hovers and settles, raising goose-bumps across my flesh, making my hair stand on end.

She says nothing until she stops behind me, slightly to my left and peers over the edge. “A word of advice, my beauty: if you must die young, leave behind of beautiful corpse.” She points a red lacquered nail towards the pavement. “There is no beauty down there, my love.”

I noticeably shiver as this woman turns to me and lightly strokes my cheek with a manicured nail. This stranger’s touch sends a flush of heat racing throughout my body. And it’s too quickly that she take her hand away. I shake my head, trying the break whatever spell she’s cast over me. “It’s not high enough.” I don’t recognize my own voice. It’s numb. Empty. Devoid of emotion.

The woman stands close enough to me that I can feel the heat radiating off of her body. She brushes away the hair that falls past my shoulders, exposing my neck. She leans closely, her tongue practically caressing my ear. “Not high enough for what, sweetheart?”

Her voice is heavily accented. She repeats the phrase in French, her native tongue, as if that alone will bring about the answer she seeks. And she is right.

“La ruée vers l'.” I respond in her native language.

She chuckles softly and moans. “Why do you need a rush, my goddess?”

I shake my head and swallow thickly, unsuccessfully hiding the shivers that ripple throughout my body. “He made me feel—“ I choke on those words because he didn’t make me feel. If anything, he took that ability away from me. “He made me feel like I am nothing. I allowed him do that to me.” I breathe in deeply. “And that’s fine. He can have it. But now I don’t feel anything. And I need it. I need to feel that—“

“Rush.”

I nod, because whoever this stranger is, she seems to understand. She gets me. I close my eyes as one of her arms encircles my chest, just below my breasts. Her other hand caresses the goose-bumps that line my flesh, down my shoulder, to my elbow. Her destination ends with her fingers entwined over mine, holding on to the railing.

“I promise to never let you go,” she whispers, her grip surprisingly firm as her soft lips leave a trail of kisses up and down my neck.

My heartbeat accelerates and my breathing quickens as this stranger blatantly explores my body. Her grip around my waist is firm, keeping me from falling over the edge, but her hold is surprisingly gentle as well. This is what I’ve been aching for and I am unashamed in my plea. “More.”

The woman chuckles, holding me firm so that I won’t slip, her tongue trailing long, deep kisses up and down my throat. Her free hand slips inside the top of my bra, cupping my breast. I can’t help but moan as she grips hard and tweaks my nipple. I’m unable to control my reaction and my knees give out. If it weren’t for her firm grasp, we both would have tumbled over the edge to bloody death.

That thought alone spurs my desire and I press against her, silently begging for release. Her teeth tease my neck before she bites down hard on my flesh. Her tongue gently soothes the marked love bite and she chuckles at the moan I can’t fight from escaping my throat. I can’t catch my breath. My heartbeat is erratic, pounding a hypnotic cadence that dances in the deepest recesses of my ears.

My body shakes in both fear and ecstasy. She’s given me what I wanted.

I feel alive again.

Still, I am greedy. “More,” I demand.

Much to my chagrin, she stops her sensual ministrations, causing me to involuntarily moan in frustration. I am ashamed to admit that I am near tears. “How does this make you feel, my goddess?” she whispers against my ear. She allows her hand to leisurely wander over the bare flesh of my thigh before her fingers lightly trace the minute satin strap of my thong.

Instinctively I bite my lip before responding. I don’t need to lean forward to feel it. She’s already taken me there. “Like I’m flying.”

I can’t see her, but I know she’s smiling. “Good girl,” she hums against my ear, allowing one delicate finger to push aside the satin barrier. She slides one finger inside of me before asking, “Do you want to feel like this forever, my goddess? Do you want to fly forever?”

Once again she punishes me with her withdrawal.

I moan in protest, struggling to regain my composure as she pulls back, stepping away from me. My knees nearly give out but she does nothing to assist me as I fight to steady myself. Heart pounding, body trembling, I turn my head toward this breathtakingly beautiful woman. She asks again.

“Do you want to fly forever?”

Unable to conjure the words, I can only nod my head.

She holds out her hand and flashes a dimpled smile. “Then come with me.”