"Well hell, that makes me feel a bit better," he jokes, looking relieved.
We look at each other and smile and he squeezes my hand. It feels nice holding his hand. I hear a river, or a stream or some form of water, so we head towards it. It's so picturesque. There is a grass walkway mowed into the landscape so we start to walk down it but it is sodden wet and I stop.
"Darn, I'm wearing Susie's shoes, I'm so sorry, I don't want to ruin them. Would you mind if we just admire the view and then stick to the gravel paths?" I feel a bit pathetic, but I can’t ruin Susie’s shoes. I wish I had my wellies with me as I’d love to trek further downstream.
"Of course not," he turns to face me. "This place is so pretty, even in this weather, Jen. I can see why you remembered it. It's like a postcard."
I watch his mouth as he speaks, then look up to his eyes as I realise I'm starting to shiver. There is a definite autumnal feel now, but I’m not sure if it is just the cold that is making me shiver. He is already looking down at me, his striking green eyes have darkened and he pulls me closer to him.
"I want to kiss you so bad, Jen," his voice has deepened and I feel his hands circle my waist. "May I?" He asks.
He really didn’t need to ask.
I feel my head nod slightly, and I instinctively bite my bottom lip, he pulls me in closer still and lowers his mouth to mine. His touch is so gentle and warm, he kisses me once lightly, then again, lingering, then he pulls back and looks at me as if asking if it is ok. His touch is so soft.
Oh please just kiss me again, I beg him silently.
He doesn’t waste any more time, he again lowers his mouth to mine, but this time his touch is more firm. This is a real kiss, his lips are on mine, they feel hot and moist, they feel perfect against mine. His tongue pries my mouth open and I feel him enter my mouth and explore. I have no idea what heaven feels like, but this, has to be up there. He tastes minty, I never noticed him chewing gum, or eating mints, but he must have been. I don't want him to stop. Like, ever. We kiss for I have no idea how long. His hands leave my waist and travel down my back pulling me up on my tiptoes and hard against him. I wrap my arms around his neck and I can feel his arousal through his jeans, it instantly ignites a fire within me and we instinctually start to move in motion together. We kiss like this for a while longer, before he eventually pulls back and touches his forehead to mine.
"Wow," he grins, sheepishly.
"Yeah....." I reply, breathlessly. Not really wanting to stop.
He runs his hands up and down my arms then pulls me hard against him again, "Come on, you're cold. Let's get back in the car, warm up, and grab some lunch."
“Hmm,” I reply, not really wanting to move, but reluctantly stepping out of his embrace.
He takes my hand and we walk quickly back to the gravel path and follow it in the opposite direction to the way we came in. As it winds round, we finally see the castle come into view. It’s breathtakingly pretty, and we both stop to admire it from afar. Virginia Creeper is turning from green to beautiful shades of pink and red and is running up the side of the castle, the muted soft brown colour of the walls is exactly as I remember it. The grass which runs around the castle is cut to immaculate precision. Jack pulls his phone out and we pose together for a photo with the castle in the background. At this point, I feel too cold to converse any longer, my teeth are chattering and I can’t even feel my finger tips or toes. Susie's beautiful jacket is not made for country walks, although admittedly, maybe I should have worn more than a summer top underneath.
We get back to the limo and Norman has seen us coming as he steps out to open the door for us. I am immediately grateful as I feel the warm seats inside. Who would have thought there would be heated seats in the back. Jack clambers in after me and pulls out a cosy blanket which he wraps around me.
"It's amazing how quickly the weather has changed up here. We can't even see the hills now with this fog," he says. "Have you ever been to Houston?"
I unclamp my jaw to answer him, "No, I h-h-aven't. I g-guess it is a l-l-lot d-different to h-here though? W-w-warmer?!" I ask, my teeth are chattering so much, I can’t stop them.
He laughs at me and rubs my hands in his to warm them up, "Yeah, it's quite different, good and bad. I'd love for you to see it, I think we would have fun there too."
"It's a sh-shame it is so f-far away," I’m starting to thaw out, slowly.
"Only a couple flights, it's not so bad," he says, pulling the blanket tighter around me.
"Maybe someday," I smile, loving the fact he is taking care of me.
He leans over and kisses me again. I don't think I will ever get tired of him doing that. It definitely helped to warm me up some more too. Hmm, I gaze up at him, I am definitely swooning right now.
"Are you hungry?" He asks, pulling away from me.
I’d happily eat you, I think to myself as I contemplate my answer. "Now you mention it, yes, I am. You’re a good distraction though. What did you bring?" I ask watching him pull some filled plates and bowls out of the mini fridge, while he smirks at my compliment.
"Well, I wasn't sure what you liked, so I made a selection of sandwiches, some salad, pasta salad, crisps, nuts, fruit. Take your pick, sweetie," he smiles.
Again, there he goes with the ‘sweetie’, the way it falls off his tongue so easily, such a simple endearment, but I'm getting way too used to it. I'm falling for this guy, and I've already breached my one simple rule to myself. Don't mix business with pleasure. I wonder if he is like this with other girls, but I push that thought to the back of my mind. When did I become such a skeptic? I’m annoying myself.
I pick a couple of sandwiches out and am pretty impressed, "You actually made these?" They look like a top chef made them, they look and smell divine. Ok, maybe I’m a LOT impressed, the guy has talent.
"I sure did. I love to cook, though these admittedly didn't take much cooking, more putting together. I had to make sure everything would fit in this little refrigerator."
"This is all so thoughtful, Jack. Thank you so much for such a great day. This has been beyond lovely," my heart feels so warm.
He smiles proudly at me as he digs into his sandwiches. We eat in silence as I think we are both hungrier than either of us realised. We watch the now fog lined roads and hills as we eat and Jack has put on some music which I gather is his country favourites. It's actually really good and relaxing. Once we are done eating, he clears up and pulls me into his arms. I could snuggle with him forever, his arms feel so strong and he smells so good.
“Hmm, for being so fit, Jack, you’re surprisingly very cuddly,” I gladly snuggle into his manly arms as he lays his chin on top of my head. I literally can’t stop smiling and it feels so good.
I hear his throat rumble as he squeezes me tighter.
Chapter 12
“OH MY GOD,” I startle as the car jolts, inadvertently throwing my arm upwards to grab onto something and accidently whacking Jack on the chin.
“Oopff,” he turns his face away from me and quickly grabs my hands pulling them down. “Woah there, Tyson!” he pulls me back to him, my back resting against his cosy chest again and I feel his heart racing. I must’ve scared him.
I shake my hair out of my eyes refocusing on my surroundings and remembering where I am.
“It’s ok, it was just a bump in the road,” Jack speaks quietly into my ear and I shiver at the deep throaty sound of his voice.
“Sorry...I...sorry...” I pull to sit up and turn to look at him and stroke his chin. “Hopefully you won’t have a bruise,” I feel awful that I hit him, albeit by mistake.
“Well as punches go, that was pretty good, but nowhere near hard enough to leave a mark,” he goes all macho on me.
“Huh, really? Should we have a do-over?” I ask with a serious expression.
He smirks and cups my face in his hands, “The only do-over we will be experiencing is this,” and he pulls me in for another sensational kissing session. Did I mention he is a sensa
tional kisser?
As we pull apart, I curl into his side feeling happier than I have in a while, “I’m so sorry I fell asleep. I don’t know what came over me.”
I’m a little embarrassed but I enjoyed being held by him. Obviously a little too much.
“It’s fine, I enjoyed cuddling with you, you look so pretty when you sleep. Must be all this fresh country air, I was dozing myself,” he replies, with a lazy yawn. “You look cute when you snore,” he adds, and taps my nose with his index finger.
I smack his hand away and bolt upright again, “I do NOT snore,” I reply, indignantly.
“Yes, you do,” he sniggers.
“I do not,” I laugh and playfully shove him.
“Hmm,” he grins, and pulls me back to him.
I smile lazily and look out the window. We are in a lovely little town called Banchory which is about twenty miles outside of Aberdeen. The driver must have come back into town a different route. Either that or he got majorly lost. Who knows, I was out for the count. We are stopped at some traffic lights.
“Hold on a minute,” I turn to look properly out of the window. “Have you ever seen salmon jumping?”
“What?” He looks at me like I’ve gone mad. “What do you mean?” he asks, tentatively.
“You know, salmon? As in fish? When they jump up the river to spawn?”
“Oh, right! Sorry, yeah, I was just thinking about fish spawning!” he laughs, while frowning at me. “Umm, no, I actually haven’t ever seen that, well other than on the Discovery Channel,” he is looking at me perplexed.
“Would you like to see them?” I ask.
“What, now?”
“Yes! Right now!”
“Sure....” He looks unsure.
“Can you lower the divide so I can give Norman directions?”
“Are you for real?!” He smiles as he lowers the divide. “Hey Norm, some more directions...”
“Hi again Norman!” I smile at him in the rearview mirror and give him directions to go to the Bridge of Feugh. We aren’t far so it only takes us a few minutes to drive there. We pull into the car park which is relatively empty. I check my watch, it’s about 4pm now and will be getting dark soon.
“Come on!” I open the car door before both men get the chance to move, and wait for Jack to climb out. I love seeing the salmon jumping.
Jack climbs out after me and I quickly grab his hand and pull him down to the road. We run over to the bridge and walk into the middle of it. There are a couple of other people there already watching and just as we approach we hear some ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’. I grin up at Jack and we look down at the noisy waterfalls to see some black shiny bodies jumping with all their might back up the river.
“You weren’t joking!” he looks down in amazement. “This is AWESOME, Jen! LOOK....!” He points at another one.
I smile to myself and watch him enjoy the show like a little kid. I’ve been coming here since I was little and it never ceases to amaze me. It’s the little things in life that make you happy for sure. I lean on the bridge and look for some more salmon. I feel Jack move behind me and wrap his arms around me to keep me warm. Well, either that or to cop a feel, I smile wickedly to myself knowing he can’t see my face. I love how easy we are with each other in such a short time, it’s natural and it feels so good.
It’s pretty cold out now. It’s not raining but the ground is still wet from previous showers, and there is a cold damp chill in the air.
“This is amazing, Jen. I thought you were insane when you started harping on about fish!” I feel him snigger behind me.
“Hmm, I may have looked sleepy, but I’m definitely not insane!” I snuggle backwards into him and hear him groan as he gives me a little squeeze.
“It’s like, how do they know to do that?” he asks quietly, almost to himself. “Nature sure it amazing.”
I look along the bridge and see people have started attaching love locks to it. I lift one that is beside me and read the names of four people engraved on it, at a guess, I think it must be a family trip.
Jack does the same, “This must be a new tradition for this bridge seeing as there are only a few padlocks on here?” he asks.
“Yeah, I’ve been coming here since I was little and I’ve never seen them before. It’s a nice idea,” I read another with two names and a love heart written with a black marker.
“My parents took us to San Francisco in Cali when we were kids and my mom had one made for us which she surprised us with when we walked across the Golden Gate Bridge. She managed to get all six of our names on it. I think I was about eight years old,” he reminisces. “I remember thinking it was the coolest thing ever. I was there on business a few years ago and tried to find it, but that bridge is freaking enormous!”
“Did you manage to find it?” I ask, loving how animated he is.
“No. I was so disappointed, but I felt like a total loser standing there in my smart suit, shirt and tie going through them all. My mom said she has found it before, her and my dad took a vacation there a couple years ago, but I guess she probably knew exactly where we put it. Being that I was eight at the time, I don’t remember exactly. I didn’t ask mom either, she’d probably think I’ve gone soft. It’s kind of cool though to think there is a little bit of our history still there,” he smiles fondly. “Doesn’t seem like it was twenty years ago.”
“That was really sweet of her, your mum sounds nice.”
I wish I had something like that. Just a little piece of history that everyone could see and know she once was here. If my mum had done something like that I would stand on the bridge all day until I found a little piece of her again.
“Oooh! There’s another one!” Jack exclaims. I look down just in time to see the little black tail disappear into the froth of the water.
I’m glad we unexpectedly landed up here and I got to share this with him. I’m doubly glad he seemed as amazed by it as I still am.
“Come on, it’s freezing out here now.”
Jack takes my hand and we saunter back to the car. Poor Norman is sitting waiting for us. I feel sorry for him waiting on us all day, but I guess it is his job and that’s what he does. It just feels alien to me being chauffeured around.
We climb back into the warm interior of the limo and chatter about nothing in particular the rest of the way home. He is so easy to be around, I feel like I am completely under his spell. A spell I hope doesn’t get broken any time soon.
"Thanks again for today. I don't know how work is going to be tomorrow, but I guess we just pretend nothing has changed?" I ask, sad to be thinking about work tomorrow. I’ve loved every minute of this most unexpected weekend. I don’t want it to end.
"Yeah, that's probably best," he hugs me. "But I want to see you again, right?”
“Of course!” I kiss him lightly on the mouth and he returns it more meaningfully. I eventually pull myself apart from him and reluctantly get out of the car as it pulls up outside our apartment block.
“Let me walk you upstairs. I've got some work I need to do this evening so I hope you don't mind me dropping you home?" he asks.
"Of course not," I lie, totally disappointed. But today went way better than I ever could have anticipated and I don’t want to ruin it. ‘All good things’, and all that.
Once we get to my front door he grabs me and turns me around looking needy, and walks me back against the wall. He leans down seductively and kisses me passionately, running his hand slowly through my long hair. He trails kisses down my neck and I have no idea how I manage to refrain from pulling him into my apartment. Thank goodness we don't have many neighbours right now. He pulls me hard against him and my leg automatically lifts to curl around him, I feel intoxicated by him. He pulls my leg higher pushing himself between my legs and as I feel the hard seam of my jeans rub against me I force myself not to start grinding against him. We don’t need to be going there in the hallway. I don’t want him to leave, but we slow down and as he pulls away smil
ing, I know this is just the beginning of something. We are both breathless and I think we mutually both want more, but it’s too soon, and, of course, not forgetting we are in the hallway.
"Goodnight, sweet Jen. I’ll see you in the morning," he cups my chin and kisses my forehead, then my mouth again. I wish he would kiss everywhere else too.
"Goodnight, Jack."
As I close the door behind me, once again, I can’t wipe the smile from my lips.
Chapter 13
It's Monday morning and I've been in the office for four hours and twenty three minutes. The stupid digital clock on the wall needs to do one. I guess I should be thankful it isn’t analog as I'd really be getting nothing done watching the seconds turn into minutes.
There's been no sign of Jack.
Zippo, zilch, zero, naught, nothing.
Ugh...
When I got in this morning there was an ‘eraser’ lying on my desk waiting for me with a sticky note attached to it and a little drawing of a smiley face blowing a kiss. I wish it had been a real kiss, I put the little note in my purse for safe keeping. It has admittedly been making me smile every now and again.
I've hauled out everything from Friday and have been working solidly on matching up the lease descriptions with the map drawings, marking everything as I go along. It's quite tedious but surprisingly interesting. When I did my placement I got to do a lease analyst course, so it is quite good looking at the leases from the geology side of things. I've found a few slight discrepancies but I've just come across one which must be wrong as it looks like we should own around three and a half thousand more acres than we are currently being credited with. I've repeatedly gone round and round all the surrounding lease properties and I can't see what I'm doing wrong, everything is showing me to be right. But I can't possibly be. This would mean hundreds of thousands of US dollars worth that our competitor would be owe us. I'll have to ask Tim about it this afternoon and surely he will be able to see where I've gone wrong. I make a note of everything just as my desk phone rings.
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