I reached up with one hand cupping it around his ear to let him know how much I loved having his head right there over my heart. We sat there for what must have been a full minute, enjoying the relief that came with finally being in each other's arms. I knew he was as relieved as I was. I could tangibly feel it radiating off of him, and I was sure he could feel the same from me.
"I've been wanting to do this all week," he said, after we sat like that in silence for a long time.
"Why didn't you?" I asked.
Another extended pause happened before he answered. "I don't know," he said, finally. "I just didn't."
His head was still resting at the top of my chest, and I absolutely relished the feel of it. I ran my fingertips over the closely cropped hair above his ears, feeling almost numb and out of body with the sensations created by finally being able to touch him and hold him near me.
He sighed again. "I don't think I'm good enough for you, Mia," he said thoughtfully.
I didn't respond right away, but he didn’t continue, so I said, "Why are you saying that?"
He shook his head but didn’t answer verbally. I started to ask the question again, but before I could, he picked up his head so that he could look at me. Because of the way I was sitting on his knee, we were eye to eye, I might have even been a little taller than him. His arms were still wrapped around my waist, and our faces were about ten or so inches apart.
"How are you feeling?" It wasn't until he said that that I remembered I had a stomach ache.
"Better now," I said, smiling and glancing down shyly.
"Mia," he said with a slight squeeze.
I glanced at him. "What?" I asked when he didn’t continue.
"Kiss me."
A gut-clenching ache washed over me at the sound of his voice saying those words. It was so overwhelming that I physically cringed from it.
"What?" he asked, noticing my reaction.
"Nothing," I said. "I just was feeling like I was riding a roller coaster for a second."
His face morphed into a grin at my words. Watching his mouth turned upward into a smile was like true magic. He was the most handsome creature I had ever seen. I wanted to smash my face next to his and wiggle it until we became one person—stuck together for life by the face. It was so irresistible that I pulled back just far enough to free my hands so that I could put them on each side of his face.
"I think you're pretty cute," I said, since I was unable to come up with anything better than that.
I wanted to say, you're the love of my life, and I've known it since I was in second grade, but obviously I didn't.
His smile widened at my comment, and I could feel the movement of his cheeks under my palms. "I think you're pretty cute, too," he said. "But you're stubborn."
"What?" I asked, pulling back to stare at him with a light-hearted, offended expression.
"You are," he said staring at me sideways.
"And what makes you say that?" I asked, enjoying the feel of his stubble under my fingertips as I held his face gently.
"Because I told you to kiss me like five minutes ago, and you're being really stubborn about it."
"That was like five seconds ago, and I'm not being stubborn about it."
"Then what's it called when I ask you to do something and you sit here refusing to do it."
"Scared," I said. My voice came out sounding as vulnerable as I felt.
He studied me with his light green eyes. Even in the dark I could appreciate their intensity. "Don't be scared of me, baby girl," he said.
I smiled. "That's easier said than done."
He squeezed me. "Why?"
"Because I like you, and sometimes liking someone is scary."
"Well then I'm scared of you, too," he said.
"Nico?" I asked, dropping my hands from the sides of his face.
He made a disapproving noise that made me look at him. "I liked your hands right there," he said. "Don't go taking them away."
I smiled as I put my palms on his face again, but this time I allowed myself to really touch him, letting my fingertips gently explore his hairline, and ears, and jaw. I could see his chest rise and fall out of the bottom of my eyes, and I smiled internally since I knew he was enjoying himself. I could feel the ocean breeze and hear the sounds of waves crashing as we sat there, staring at each other. I wanted to freeze this moment in time.
"What were you going to say?" he asked.
"What do you mean?"
"You said my name like you were about to tell me something."
I tried to think back, but I couldn’t remember. "I don't know," I said.
"You were probably about to say you love me," he said.
I giggled, since what else was I supposed to do at a statement like that? "I was not," I said honestly, even though it totally would have been the truth if I had been about to say it.
He smiled and shrugged confidently. "You were probably gonna tell me you were about to kiss me, then."
Chapter 13
My hands were still holding Nico's face when he told me he thought I was going to kiss him. It was an open invitation, but I still couldn't bring myself to do it.
"Mia?"
"Yeah?"
He gave me a stomach-flipping smile. "I'm waiting."
"I'm scared," I said.
"Of what?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows.
I took my hands off of his face ran them over the top of his head, letting them come to rest on the back of his head. "Of everything and nothing at the same time," I said.
"It's just a kiss," he said, smiling and relaxing into my grasp like he enjoyed the feel of my hands on the back of his head.
I came really close to saying, "It's not just a kiss to me," because that's how I felt, but instead I just smiled back at him.
"You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," he said with a sweet half-smile aimed at me.
"I'll bet you've seen a lot of beautiful things," I said, feeling shy.
He shook his head almost imperceptibly—I could only tell he was doing it because I was holding onto his head. "Not like you," he said.
I was thankful for the darkness because his sincerity had me blushing. "I probably think you're sort of beautiful, too," I said, glancing down since it was a ridiculous statement. What, I'd like to know, happened to my English-speaking skills when I was around this guy? I was so embarrassed that I let my hands fall from the back of his head, letting them come to rest on his shoulders.
"Mia," he said, causing me to look at him again. His light eyes shone in the moonlight, and I stared into them. "Put your mouth on my mouth, baby girl." It wasn't a request, it was a command, and the sound of it coming out of his mouth left me breathless. I drew in an unsteady breath as I continued to stare at him. I was scared to death, but I leaned toward him with every intention of letting my lips touch his. He noticed my movement, and leaned forward as well, meeting me in the middle. Our lips touched with spine-tingling tenderness—one, two, and then three times before he pulled back no more than an inch. They were still almost touching when he said, "I'm gonna do that again."
"Uh-huh," I whispered breathlessly, wishing he would go ahead and do it already.
"Yeah, but I'm gonna do it differently this time," he said with his mouth still only an inch from mine.
"Uh-huh," I whispered again even though I wasn't sure what he was talking about.
He took one of his hands from around my waist and ran it over and then behind my ear, letting it come to rest on the back of my head. I let out a tiny little whimper at the feel of it, and he smiled at the sound. Without another word, Nico brought his mouth to mine. He used the hand on the back of my head to pull me toward him, and I opened my mouth to him instantly. He let his tongue dip into me, and I tilted my face to the side in an effort to let it go deeper. He knew what I was doing, and I felt his grip on the back of my head tighten as he deepened the kiss even further. Another whimper escaped my lips as he pulled back, and the sound made h
im kiss me again.
No kiss in the history of the universe had ever felt like this one. A week's worth of pent up frustration came out as he kissed me like I was his and nobody else's. He started to pull away, and I bit at his bottom lip for an extra second before letting him go. He must have been the best kisser in the entire world because I couldn't imagine anything feeling better than that. Our mouths were created to come together. He stared at the ground and rubbed his eyebrows as he cleared his throat. We were both struggling to regulate our breathing. Our chests were both rising and falling as we tried to calm ourselves down.
"Baby girl, I might have to put you in my luggage," he said.
And just like that, the spell was broken. The stark reality that he would be leaving in the morning set in, causing my heart to drop. It dropped and shattered like a heart-shaped piece of glass hitting the pavement. I swallowed hard, but otherwise tried to seem unaffected.
"I don't fit in duffle bags," I whispered.
"How about Charlotte's suitcase?" he said, giving me a smile that was laced with regret.
I shook my head.
"One of Logan's movies is on HBO," we heard from the top of the stairs. I knew it was Evan speaking before I ever looked up.
"He's not gonna want to watch that," Nico said without turning to look at Evan.
"It's one Rachel and Cub haven't seen, and they want to watch it," he said. "They already talked him into it. It's getting ready to start."
"We'll be there in a second," Nico said.
"We should go," I whispered once Evan walked away.
Nico nodded reluctantly. "I guess we should," he said.
I got to my feet, and Nico did the same. We were standing on the stairs when he reached up and gently pulled the little tiara from my head. The feeling of it running up the sides of my head gave me the chills, and my shoulders wiggled as I took a shuttering breath.
"I'm keeping this," he said.
"You can't," I said. "It's Ryan's."
He shrugged. "I'll buy her a hundred of them," he said. "This one's mine."
Nico gripped it in his hand in such a way that said it was a done deal as he smiled at me and turned to walk up the steps. He reached back to hold my hand and make sure I was following.
We walked into the house still holding hands, but I let go once we crossed the kitchen and were approaching the living room. Evan, Logan, Rachel, and Cub were sitting around on couches and in recliners.
"I'm going upstairs to shower and change," I said.
"Charlotte's up there doing the same thing, but she's probably done by now," Cub said.
Nico decided to come with me, but only to grab some pajama pants and a T-shirt out of his bag. He said he'd use the downstairs shower and meet me in the living room once I was done.
The bathroom door was cracked open, so I cautiously went inside once Nico was on his way back downstairs. "Knock, knock," I said, barely opening it some more.
"Come in," Charlotte said. "I'm done in here."
I opened the door to find that she was fully dressed and standing in front of the mirror with a towel wrapped around her head. She leaned toward the mirror and wiped underneath her eye as if making sure she had washed off all of the makeup.
I set my clothes on the counter next to her, and she turned to face me. I didn't know until I looked at her that she was wearing a wide-eyed expression.
"Is he up here?" she whispered, pointing at the open door.
I shook my head. "He's downstairs."
"What happened?" she asked.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"What do you mean, what do I mean?" she asked with an incredulous expression.
"What happened just now when y'all stayed outside?"
She paused and glanced down at my mouth. "And where did your lip-gloss go?"
I instantly shifted to stare at myself in the mirror, touching my mouth in the process. Charlotte giggled quietly as she pushed at my shoulder. "I'm just messing with you," she said. "But did you kiss him?"
"Probably," I said, regarding her through our reflections in the mirror.
She continued to stare at the side of my face with a smile. "He was about to Judo flip Evan for butting in," she said.
"I was about to Judo flip Evan," I said, smiling and shaking my head. "I don't know what's wrong with him."
"He's just being a protective older brother," Charlotte said. "I don’t know how many guys Logan ran off when I was younger."
"Yeah, but I'm not younger," I said. I was about to add that I didn't want anyone running Nico off, but I kept that part inside.
"He'll always be your big brother," she said.
"I guess."
"Are you coming downstairs to watch the movie?" she asked as she grabbed her cosmetics bag and handful of dirty clothes.
"Yep," I said. "I'll meet you down there."
I showered and brushed my teeth and hair, braiding it loosely over one shoulder just to keep it out of my way. I knew I would want to get comfortable while watching the movie, so I grabbed a pillow and blanket before heading downstairs.
The movie had already gotten started by the time I made my way down. Nico was sitting in the corner of one of the sectional sofas with his feet propped out on one side. We made eye contact, and he patted the seat next to him.
"Why don't you get us some popcorn and M&M's while you're up?" Logan asked, teasing me as I came into the room.
"Why don't you get up and get your own." Nico said.
Neither of them had been serious, so I didn't bother responding. I just smiled as I crossed the room to sit next to Nico. I put the pillow and blanket beside me and settled into the space next to Nico.
I was sitting cross-legged, so my knee came into contact with his leg. He reached out and placed his hand on my knee, letting it rest there. I could feel the warmth of it through my pajama pants.
We sat in this positioned for the first half of the movie. We gave Logan a hard time about a few parts being farfetched or about using a stunt double, but we all knew what a gifted actor he was and were just messing around. We teased him because that's just what you do when your cousin acts in movies and you're watching one of them on HBO.
We were about halfway through the movie when I moved so that I could position the pillow where I had been sitting. My plan was to lay my head near Nico and stretch my legs out on the other side of the sectional.
By the time I got ready to lie down, I noticed that Nico had taken my pillow and repositioned it behind his own head. He was propped up with his hand behind his back like he didn’t have a care in the world.
"You took my pillow," I whispered where no one else could hear.
"This?" he asked, leaning forward just slightly and wearing a surprised expression. "This is mine."
"What am I supposed to use?" I asked.
Nico smiled and reached down and patted his stomach, indicating that I should rest my head on him. I smiled back and shook my head, giving him a you're impossible glare, even though I loved the idea of using him for a pillow. I snuggled up in the blanket and rested my head on his side.
"Can you see?" he asked, repositioning his knees.
I nodded even though half of the TV was obstructed by the armrest of the couch. I didn't care. I was too tired and comfortable to worry about watching the movie anyway. Nico put his hand on my head and absentmindedly ran his fingers over my hair. It was near the end of the movie when I finally drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 14
I had all these plans floating around in my head for how our goodbye would go the next morning.
I thought we'd sleep upstairs and I'd hear them when they got up to start getting ready. I imagined the possible scenarios in my head. I pictured myself being sleepy and sitting up on the couch with my blanket wrapped around my shoulders while they got their things together. Then, I'd go downstairs with them and wave goodbye from the front porch (all with the blanket still wrapped around me).
I thought of the conver
sation I'd have with Nico. Everyone else would be around, so it would be difficult to say anything too sentimental, but we'd find a few seconds to share a short, whispered conversation in which we would talk about having no regrets or something else equally as appropriate for the moment.
I had the whole scene worked up in my head, which was why it was so disorienting when I woke up downstairs with the California crew nowhere to be found.
"She's up!" I heard Ryan say the minute I opened my eyes.
I blinked, feeling disoriented. "Hey, Aunt Mia," Ryan said cheerfully as she came to stand in front of me. "We had to whisper till you woke up."
"You did?" I asked sleepily. "What time is it?"
Ryan glanced toward the kitchen with a confused expression. "What time is it?" she yelled, startling me.
I sat up on one elbow as I tried to gather my wits and remember what I wanted to say to Nico before he left.
"Ryan Diane, you were supposed to let Aunt Mia sleep." Paige said, coming to stand at the foot of my couch with an apologetic expression aimed at me.
"What time is it?" I asked her, sitting up more fully.
"Eight-thirty," she said.
I sat straight up and looked all around the living room and into the kitchen. Evan was sprawled out in a recliner, Dee-dee and my parents were at the table, and I could see my Uncle Dave on the deck, but none of the California crew were there. And why would they be since they had to leave at eight o'clock!
I swallowed hard at the idea that they were already gone. I was already frustrated enough that our goodbye would be rushed, and now I realized there would be no goodbye at all.
I looked at Paige. "Did Logan and them leave already?" I asked, hoping against hope that I had been wrong about the time.
She nodded from behind her coffee mug. "They left before eight, I guess. Ry and I came down here just in time to see them off. Everybody said to tell you goodbye."
I smiled, but it wasn't genuine at all. I felt sick knowing that Nico was on a plane headed to the other side of the country.
Back to the Beach (Hunt Family Book 4) Page 9
