Threshold of Forever

Cleaning the kitchen and packing were the easy parts; menial tasks that kept my hands busy while my mind spun. The hard part came when I finally slid into bed, the loft dark and quiet except for the distant hum of the city. I lay there, eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling. My brain refused to shut down, replaying tomorrow on an endless loop. How would she react? Would Emily cry? Go speechless? Scream with joy? All three? A grin tugged at my lips in the dark, but beneath it ran a current of nervous energy I hadn’t felt in a long time.

Until Kate walked into my office, I hadn’t realized how creatively stuck I’d been; trapped in a comfortable rut with the agency, even though my contract left room for freelance work. Kate handed me the freedom I craved, and the domain… the domain had scratched an itch I didn’t even know existed. Building worlds, commanding desire; it had unlocked something primal in me. A sharp pang of guilt followed the thought. The Voyeurs had been clear: the domain was mine alone. I couldn’t share it with Emily, no matter how much I wanted to. Her recent comments about the sketches, that teasing “what if I joined them?”, they made me wonder. Would the truth arouse her the same way it did me? Or would it change everything?

I must have drifted off eventually, because the dream came sharp and vivid.

The endless black of the domain stretched around us, vast yet strangely inviting. Emily stood beside me, eyes wide with wonder as I conjured worlds at a thought. Then the women appeared; familiar faces I’d captured through my lens over the years: Zoe Saldana, Zendaya, Kate. They materialized naked, eager, bodies arching toward me. Emily watched, unflinching, as I took them; skin slapping skin, moans filling the void, my thrusts hard and relentless. She didn’t look away. She urged me on, voice low and hungry: “Fuck them, Joe. Harder. Faster. Deeper.” The fire in her eyes was the same one I saw when she herself was beneath me in the real world.

My alarm buzzed, yanking me awake, heart pounding, sheets tangled. I groaned, rubbing my face. Perfect timing, I thought.

The Uber rolled up at exactly 6:00 a.m., Iris already in the back seat, travel mug in hand. I tossed my bag next to hers and slid in beside her.

“Get any sleep?” she asked, eyeing me.

“Little bit,” I said with a tired smile, clicking my seatbelt. The driver pulled into early-morning traffic, and Iris let me lean my head back, the morning lights blurring as I dozed.

Security was a breeze. Iris kept a hawk-like watch on my jacket pocket; the ring box tucked safely inside; while I went through the scanner. We found our gate with time to spare; most shops were still dark, our flight an hour out.

“I’m gonna grab coffees,” I said. “Two sugars?”

She smirked up from her phone. “I know a lot about you too, Irie.”

“And two madeleines if they have them,” she called after me.

Iris let me sleep the whole flight; smart woman. If I showed up with bags under my eyes, I’d joked earlier, she’d have to break out the concealer. When we touched down in Fort Lauderdale just after 9:00 a.m., the Florida sun was already bright and warm.

My phone buzzed with texts from Emily: “Good luck with those meetings today, handsome bear Love you.”

I smiled, typing back: “Love you more, Boo-Boo ❤ Miss you so much.”

Iris caught the glow on my face. “I’m so glad this is happening,” she said quietly, eyes glistening. “You two were made for each other.”

I was in the same city as Emily; and she had no idea.

Iris ordered the Uber to Emily’s hotel while I adjusted the ring box in my pocket, its small weight anchoring me.

Tonight, I thought, heart steady despite the adrenaline.

It’s all happening tonight.