Chapter 21: And the Winner Is

Love isn't a decision. It's a feeling. If we could decide who we loved, it would be much simpler, but much less magical.

Trey Parker and Matt Stone, South Park, Chef Aid, 1998

Grindelwald, in the Bernese Oberland, Sw itzerland, Friday, June 29

Azalea answered the first knock, too excited and guileless to keep him waiting needlessly in the hall. When she opened the door, Darryl entered wearing a chef's hat and apron over his silk pajamas. He brought in a cart with two fondue pots, one filled with hot chocolate, the other hot oil, plus a selection of various fresh fruits and toppings. He pulled the cart up to the table and set out two plates and a selection of colorful fondue forks. He escorted her to her seat with the elegant ease of a Parisian maitre d'.

"Oh, Darryl," she laughed delightedly. "You always know how to make me smile. It is impossible to be sad when I'm with you. So what exotic treat do you have for us?"

"Have you ever had a chocolate dessert fondue? I persuaded the kitchen staff to help me make one up for us."

"No, never, but it looks wonderful. How do you do it?"

"Allow me to demonstrate. Take the fork, and choose a fruit." He artfully speared a piece of pineapple. "Then dip it in this bowl of crepe batter. Dip it in the hot oil, just long enough to get the crepe shell golden brown. Then dip it in the chocolate and get it coated. Take it out and slowly rotate the fork until the chocolate quits dripping. Then finish it off with your choice of toppings; let's see... I'll use a little confectioner's sugar and some coconut. Now open wide."

Azalea complied, and he held the fork out for her. She took a bite and beamed approvingly. "It's delicious. What a wonderful treat."

"And for a light refreshment," Darryl announced as he unveiled yet another serving dish, "Fresh melon."

"My favorite!" Azalea's delight was charmingly obvious in someone who had spent much of her life in a war zone. "And just the perfect touch to offset the heavier sweetness of the chocolate."

Darryl now walked back to the door and retrieved another cart from the hall. This one carried a selection of liquid refreshments, ranging from vintage champagne to hot tea, fresh mango juice to Coke.

"And now, beautiful lady, what can I get you for a beverage this evening? I can vouch for the freshness of the orange juice; squeezed it myself in the last hour. The coffee is the same that they serve in the Inn next door."

"May I be so bold as to inquire what the gentleman will be having?"

"The lady may. I was planning to have some Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame Champagne; with your permission of course. If it would offend you for me to drink alcohol, I'm sorry, I didn't think."

Azalea laughed. "Relax, Darryl, I'm not offended; I was going to ask you if I could join you. I'd like to try it, too."

Darryl looked startled. "Well of course, if you want to... if you're sure. I just thought..."

Azalea couldn't help smiling at his confusion. "It's all right Darryl. You are right, of course; I should not drink alcohol. But being alone with a man whom I'm not related to is such a huge sin that I don't think a little champagne is going to matter."

"You mean that just being with me is a sin, even though all we've done is have a snack together."

"It is assumed that the only relationship possible between a man and a woman is lust; that given a chance, they will have sex. Mohammed said 'If a man and a woman are alone in one place, the third person present is the devil.' So you see, I'm already a ruined woman just for being here."

"Well, if you're condemned anyway, you might as well make it worth your while." It was obvious that Darryl regretted the words as quickly as they came out. "I'm sorry, Azalea, that was entirely inappropriate. It's hard for me to take such attitudes seriously, but I'm sure they are serious to you."

"Don't apologize, my love, you are right on both, but I've also spent many years in your culture and I understand why you see things the way you do. Now, I refuse to talk any more unless I have a glass of champagne in my hand and I'm fed chocolate treats on a regular basis."

Both wishes were quickly fulfilled, and the residue of chocolate on the lips was shared each time the lovers kissed.

Azalea signaled for a break. The champagne and the kisses were starting to go to her head. She wanted to finish their conversation first. "Earlier you said that these attitudes were strange to you but important to me. The truth is that they are important to me, because of how I was raised, and yet strange to me because I have been exposed to other ways of thinking. I feel caught between to worlds, and sometimes it's confusing and even painful. But I know that I prefer being with a man like you who treats me as an equal and not a possession."

Azalea paused for a minute and let her words sink in. She took a sip of the wine and reached out for his hand. Sensing that she had more to say, Darryl kept silent.

"You also made a joke about making it worthwhile being condemned. It's no joke. For me to be alone with you in my bedroom is a huge step. It condemns me as a whore in my own society. In my mind, it marks my first love as a woman." She blushed. "It's too big a commitment to not make it worthwhile. So as they say in your country, you play the game right, you're likely to get pretty lucky tonight sailor."

Darryl almost choked on his champagne, so unexpected was this last statement. Concerned, she rushed to his side and patted him on the back. "Are you all right?"

Cough, cough, gasp, "Yes, I'm fine; you just surprised me."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not!"

They ended up just hanging on to each other and laughing and laughing. Finding they like the closeness, she climbed onto his lap, and they resumed their chocolate party. It was more fun but also more awkward and chocolate started to splatter.

"This is fun, but too messy." I don't want to ruin my new gown with hot chocolate."

"Ah but that's the clever part of my nefarious ploy. At this point I suggest that the best way to avoid chocolate stains on your dress is to remove it. Then any drips can be cleaned up later in the shower... or licked off," he added slyly.

He had meant this mostly as a joke, but to his delight and amazement, Azalea nodded. "That seems a good idea, but only if you will join me."

"Azalea, you don't have to do this if you don't want to. I wasn't really serious."

"But I am. I'm pretty new at this, but I believe a love affair sooner or later requires us to remove our clothing. Now is as good as later; and before I lose my nerve. She grasped the hem of her gown and without ceremony pulled it over her head and off.

Darryl gasped; her figure was classical perfection in a rich tan complexion. Her breasts were perfect half globes barely concealed by a very sheer white camisole. Otherwise she wore only sheer white panties and white knee highs. The contrast between her black hair and the white lingerie over the flawless dusky skin made her almost unbearably beautiful to Darryl.

Separated by only two layers of very thin cloth, Darryl realized that she must be aware of his increasing excitement, since it was definitely poking her in the center of her lovely backside where she sat on his lap. If she did, her only acknowledgement was to wiggle her way to even more contact. The party continued, but kissing was becoming more and more the main point, and the chocolate just provided the excuse to kiss and lick even more. The champagne was also disappearing quickly, and although Darryl was undoubtedly drinking the lion's share, Azalea was feeling it far more. Also unaccustomed to being touched and caressed, she was getting very turned on.

Darryl found he had a lap full of squirming affection and need. She wanted to be touched and kissed just about everywhere, and in turn was driving him wild with nibbling on his neck.

"Oh, oh!" she announced, as what looked suspiciously like a staged spill got chocolate sauce on her camisole, "Maybe I better get this off as well."

His eyes confirmed what the sheer camisole had hinted. Her breasts were perfect firm half globes capped with large milk- chocolate colored nipples. Darryl hesitated, afraid to touch her. Azalea took his hands and placed them on her breasts. Then she took her hands and unbuttoned his pajama top. She removed it and caressed his chest, while he continued to fondle her nipples.

She dipped a cherry in the chocolate, and when he leaned forward to bite it, she touched it to the tip of his nose before feeding it to him. Then she leaned forward and playfully kissed away the spot. Darryl dipped his finger in the hot chocolate and marked her cheek which she then turned to him to clean. Then she dipped her finger and marked her ear and waited again for him to kiss away the sweetness. She moaned quietly as he did.

Then looking him directly in the eye, she took a finger full of chocolate and deposited it on her nipple. She sprinkled the confection with sugar and a few flakes of coconut before closing her eyes, waiting. Darryl leaned forward and began to gently lick at the chocolate covered nipple. She lifted her hands and held his head firmly to her breast while she lightly stroked his hair. Azalea groaned her approval as his lips and tongue remained gently suckling long after the last smudge of chocolate was gone. She began to feel an unfamiliar sensation of tension and fullness centered in her groin but radiating warmth through her whole body.

Darryl dipped his fingers in the bowl and scooped up enough chocolate to drizzle on her other breast like the icing on a Bunt cake. He began to attend to cleaning it as well, while the strange but delightful warmth began to overwhelm her.

As his lips moved back and forth between her breasts and his hands caressed her sides and outer thighs, Azalea found herself getting lost in the sensations and warmth. She began rubbing her thighs together and squirming in his embrace.

"Darryl," she gasped, "stop please. I feel strange, dizzy and almost like I need to use the bathroom, but I don't. I feel so warm; it's like I have a fever. Your lips on my breast feel so good they almost seem to burn my skin. My whole body is tingling."

"It sounds like you're just getting close to an orgasm. Isn't that a good thing?"

"I don't know; it feels wonderful and scary. I always wondered what an orgasm would feel like."

Darryl was startled. "You mean you've never had an orgasm?"

"You're the first man that has ever touched me so intimately."

"You don't ever masturbate?"

"No, Darryl, I've thought about it, but traditional Islamic teaching regards masturbation as haram, or forbidden. I may not have been very devout or strict in my religion, at least in recent years, but it still influences me."

"Oh, Azalea, darling, I think the time has come for you to cum, if you'll pardon the pun. He laughed and continued, "And you've come to the right place. I'm coming to be an expert. I want you to come here and lie back on the bed, and just enjoy the ride."

They both stood up and moved over to sit on the bed. This was it. Decision time, did she trust him or didn't she? What did she want from this night? She reached out for his hands. "I want to be with you, but I'm afraid."

"Azalea, don't be. I promised you. We'll stop anytime you want. I mean that. You're in control."

She kissed him tenderly. "Thanks for understanding; I love you."

She lay back, and Darryl climbed up on the bed beside her. Wanting to move things to a new level, he immediately reached for her panties. After the slightest hesitation, she raised her hips to help him and he pulled them on off. Looking back at what the garment had concealed, he drew in his breath sharply. Again this woman astonished him. First, because he was surprised at the level of her excitement. Her labia were open and engorged and awash in her juices. But also because he realized that her luxurious black hair and eyebrows were the only hair on her body.

Azalea blushed when she realized where he was looking. "It's part of our religion to remove all body hair. I hope you don't find that offensive."

"You are incredibly beautiful, Azalea, you take my breath away. Now lie back and close your eyes, and just let your feelings go."

Azalea hesitated, but her desire to experience more of this marvelous new feeling, and her desire to be a good lover for Darryl overcame her shyness. She did as he asked, and Darryl, starting with her forehead, he began to slowly and very gently kiss his way over ever inch of her beautiful body. His lips were as delicate as a butterfly's wings, as he meandered over her eyes, lingered at her lips, nuzzled her neck, in a lazy path towards her breast, but with a route that left her guessing to where that wonderful butterfly would touch her next. He brushed his lips across her nipples which now were so hard and erect that they reminded him of Hershey's chocolate kisses. She thrust her chest upward in an effort to achieve even more contact, but the elusive butterfly would evade her, only to return moments later to tease her again.

Darryl noticed her fingernails starting to claw at the sheets and her head beginning to roll from side to side. He realized she was getting close, so he started down her abdomen, stopping to lavish extra attention on her belly button. He felt the tension and fluttering in her abdominal muscles which spurred him on his way. He gently touched her inner thighs to urge her to open her legs. Azalea hesitated a moment, before she allowed him to open her up and reveal her most intimate secrets to his hungry gaze. Her beauty in turn took his breath away. Her delightful labia were blossoming open to reveal her very wet bright coral pink inner lips. This was a beautiful sight and he had to continue. Starting just above her knee, he gently kissed his way up her inner thigh, and her breathing almost stopped as he approached the apex. He blew gently on her pussy, and she responded with a sharp gasp and tremor.

'My God, he thought, if this woman has never had an orgasm, it's not because she's unresponsive. I've hardly touched her, and she's ready to explode.' Listening to her labored breathing and feeling her muscle tension, Darryl decided that he would end her misery as quickly as possible without any more teasing. As he brought his face closer to her, a good whiff of her womanly aroma sealed the decision, and he could no more wait than walk away. Moving to her center, he licked her once straight up ending with a little flick of her emerging clitoris.

"Oh yes, YES! So good, it feels so good. Don't stop, please don't stop," she gasped.

He didn't stop. He started licking her like a cat lapping up milk, alternating with sucking on her lips, then extending his tongue to probe her opening and tickle that magical little button. When she arched her back so that she rose off the bed, Darryl realized that it was time for the fireworks. Taking her now fully aroused clitoris with his lips, he gently sucked to draw it out and swirled just the tip of his tongue against it. Azalea gave out a strangled little screech and started spasms that racked her entire body. Darryl hung on and continued his stimulation as her orgasm led immediately into another and another that merged into one prolonged event until suddenly she collapsed with a gasp and lay still, seemingly unconscious.

After kissing the delightful spot he'd just tortured, Darryl crawled up to cradle her head, feeling suddenly guilty at pushing her so far. In a moment she opened her eyes and gazed into his with great love and a slight embarrassment.

"Are you all right?" he asked with concern.

She took a moment to catch her breath. "Oh, so much more than all right; I feel wonderful. I guess all my life, I've wondered why all the fuss about sex. Why did people go to such extremes to get it? Why did everyone seem so obsessed with it? Movies, books, people risking their jobs, their lives, and their fortunes; I couldn't understand why anything could be so important... Now I understand. Now that I know what its like, I don't think I'll ever stop wanting more."

Darryl laughed. "Uh, oh. I may have created a monster. Does my beautiful monster want to play some more right now?"

"Please no, no more right now. I'm not used to it yet. I try to never pass out more than once a date." She giggled like a school girl. But then she turned more serious. "But what about you, Darryl? I'm not totally ignorant of men. You must need some loving attention, too."

"That's OK, sweetheart. Tonight is just about you. I'll deal with it."

"Indeed you will not, Darryl Sanders. I may be new at this, but even I know that sex is something we are supposed to do together. Not something you do to me. Besides, I want to bring you pleasure."

In a manner clearly indicating that she would not be refused, she grabbed the top of his pajamas bottoms, and with a minimum of ceremony yanked them to his knees. Then with the skill of a street fighter she yanked his feet out from under him, and tumbled him into the pile of pillows on the bed. Giggling like school children, they wrestled for possession of his final bit of modesty. Finally she won by grabbing his legs like a calf-roper and upending him. Before he could wiggle free she triumphantly yanked the garment off and waved it overhead like a battle flag. Darryl's retribution was swift, as he quickly pulled her legs out from under her tumbling them both into a heap on the pillows.

The laughter suddenly died when Azalea found herself staring at a very erect, and to her, an impossibly large penis, from inches away. She was mesmerized. Like a cobra which posses great beauty and yet is very frightening at the same time, it demanded that she conquer it and make it her own.

She reached out and wrapped her delicate hand around his very erect organ. She looked up at him and whispered in a husky voice, "You'll have to show me what to do. But I'm a fast learner, and this is a topic that interests me greatly."

Darryl showed her how to stroke him, and soon she was slowly and lovingly exploring the sensations she could give him. The feel and reaction of his penis fascinated her.

"As a nurse, I've seen penises before, but not erect, certainly not to touch. It's soft and hard at the same time; and it reacts to my touch in such an interesting way."

"It's a pretty important part of me, and it is definitely interested in you."

"Interested is good, but even knowing the mechanics the way I do, I still can't help but wonder how that thing would fit in that tiny little hole of mine."

"It's pretty average in size; it would fit, I promise."

She looked pensive. "At this moment, I'd actually like to find out, but Darryl, darling, I can't. I'm sorry, but I just can't. You know that I am a virgin, and as silly as it may sound, I want to stay that way for the man I will marry and who will father my children. We haven't gotten there yet." She sighed. "But this is fun for me. And by your goofy grin, I'd say for you too."

Suddenly, Azalea leaned over and slipped her mouth over the end of his cock, just for a moment. She looked up at his startled face.

"Azalea, you don't have to do that," he said.

"I know I don't have to. I want to. I was trying you on for size. I'm not ready to let you ejaculate in my mouth, not yet at least. But I want to someday. I know how special that is to a man, and I want to do it for you. You'll have to be a little patient."

She leaned over and took him into her mouth again for a few strokes. Darryl groaned. "Not too patient. I do rather like having you in my mouth."

She continued to gently stroke him with the occasional quick taste. Darryl found himself getting close to a release. "Sweetheart, ' he warned, "I'm about to cum."

"Go ahead, cum for me, cum for me," she whispered. She stroked faster now and carefully pointed his penis towards her breasts. "Cum on me, I want to feel it on me."

Her words took him right over the top and he started to ejaculate, his first shot hitting her right breast. Succeeding spasms went down her chest, the last going right on her mons.

Azalea beamed with the pride of having caused this in her man. Using her finger she wiped the fluid starting to run down her mons toward her slit. "It's a little dangerous there." Curious, she lifted her hand to her face and examined it, sniffing at it; finding nothing objectionable, she tentatively tasted it with the tip of her tongue, then smiled and licked her finger clean.