Meant To Be by Karen Stivali

undo her garters, pulling aside her panties.
    “So hot.” His tongue assaulted her mouth. “Fucking my new wife in her wedding dress.”
    It was clearly Frank’s wedding fantasy. The fact the bride didn’t share the vision, or the enthusiasm, seemed irrelevant.
    Marienne squirmed, trying to break away, needing a moment to collect her thoughts or at least catch up.
    “Oh baby,” he said. “I love the way you move.”
    She tried to speak, but once again his tongue was deep inside her mouth. She tried to kiss him back. Really tried, desperate to feel something, anything. It didn’t work. For her at least. For Frank it worked too well.
    “Oh yeah.” He moaned, climbing on top of her.
    “Frank.” She attempted to tell him to stop, that she wasn’t ready, but it was too late, he was inside her.
    She gasped, not from pleasure, but from a combination of shock and pain. She was dry, and the friction of him pumping in and out rasped at her tender skin. She moaned in distress, but Frank mistook her cry for passion.
    “Oh baby.” He groaned, thrusting faster. And she stopped resisting.
    She squeezed her eyes closed, trying to block out what was happening, trying not to cry as he jerked harder against her now still body. Within a minute it was over. He shuddered once and collapsed on top of her, his sweaty forehead resting against her neck. She turned her face away.
    “Oh man.” He rolled off her. “I think I’m going to like married life.”
    Seconds later she heard the first breathy, rattling snore. Tears began to slide down her cheeks. How could this have gone so wrong? She went into the bathroom to undress.
    She struggled out of her gown, twisting and stretching to reach all the buttons. She needed someone to help her, but there was no one. When she managed to get enough undone she shimmied her way out. The dress puddled around her on the bathroom floor, and instead of wanting to hang it back up in its bag, she had the urge to stuff it in the trash. She didn’t even want to look at it. Her perfect wedding, her perfect day, had turned into a disaster.
    The wedding memories flooded Marienne’s mind with more anguish than she expected. She loaded the last dish into the dishwasher then hit the start button. She rinsed her hands and dried them, folding the towel when she was done, aware she was trying to buy herself time. She didn’t want Frank to be awake when she went up to bed. Her trip down memory lane was not the best aphrodisiac.
    It’s not my wedding night anymore, and Frank isn’t always in a selfish rush. Maybe tonight will be better. Or maybe he’ll already be sleeping. It bothered her that she couldn’t decide which she hoped for more as she climbed the stairs and headed for bed.

Chapter Ten

    Daniel arrived at the theater on time and was surprised to see that Marienne was already working. He guessed Johanna had asked for extra help, so he waved hello and went to work on the backdrop. He glanced over at Marienne. Her shoulders were slumped and she kept her head down. He was certain he hadn’t done anything to upset her, yet he got the distinct impression that she was avoiding him, which concerned him, greatly.
    The evening wound down, and people were leaving to go home. He finished up then grabbed two Cokes and walked over to Marienne.
    “Need some help?” He handed her a can.
    “No, I’ve got it.” Her voice sounded different. Now he was positive something was wrong.
    “Are you okay?” he asked.
    She smiled and nodded.
    “I don’t think you are.” He surprised himself with his directness. He wouldn’t normally call someone on an answer like that, but he was worried and unable to stop himself. “Talk to me.”
    “It’s nothing.” The tension was evident in her voice. Her eyes avoided his. “I’m just stressed. It’s a longstanding problem, with my mother.”
    He heard another change in her voice the minute the topic of her mother came up, a cold edginess. He didn’t recall her