Within seconds, we’re both standing in just our underwear, taking each other in. “You know what I want to do?” he finally speaks.
“What’s that?”
He indicates the bathroom. “I want to take a shower with you. There are so many things that we haven’t done, Li, and that’s at the top of my list. I want to memorize every single part of this night. The way you looked when I opened the door to pick you up, our conversation at dinner, our promises for the future on the beach, and this right here.” He reaches for me and I go, his soft tone making me want to cry again. “Right here, right now, my life is perfect. I love you, Liane Kelly.”
I reach up and touch his face like he does to me so often. Pulling him down to me, right before our lips are about to touch, I whisper, “I love you, Blake McIntyre. Now let’s head for that shower.”
He lifts me without warning and I start laughing, wrapping my legs around his waist as we enter the bathroom. The shower looks like something I’ve only ever seen on television, with two shower heads and what looks like some jets coming out from the wall. He uses one hand to turn on the water for it to heat up and one to keep holding me.
“Did you just buy this underwear? Because I have to say, I love black lace on you. This is something that will be imprinted in my brain for years to come, right here.” Blake turns me so I can see our reflection in the mirror. The blush on my cheeks and the smile on both of our faces show me what I already feel inside: we’re meant to be. There are so many things about my relationship with Blake that are just the same as before, the things I’ve always loved about him: the way we kid with each other, our unwavering support for each other, and our ability to talk about anything without qualms. But this Blake, the one whose hand is caressing me as he unhooks my new bra, he’s addictive. There’s no way in the world I can ever get enough of him.
“You’re pretty good at that,” I tease as he flings my bra over my head. “Wonder why that is.”
He touches me, and I forget that I was teasing him. “What was that?”
“N-nothing,” I stammer as he slides me down his body and helps me step out of my underwear.
“That’s what I thought,” he teases back, letting me go so he can test the water. I watch him, my nerves taking back over. I’ve never taken a shower with a guy before, or been alone in a hotel room. It feels like I’m doing something wrong. I love it. “Ready, baby? The water’s hot, and so are you.”
I smirk, stepping into the water and immediately groan. “Wow. I need one of these at home.”
Blake watches me from the glass door of the shower. “Uh, yeah. So do I.” And I don’t think we’re talking about the same thing.
LIANE REALLY DOESN’T understand just how much she affects me. Standing in the doorway of the shower and watching her as she allows the water to run down her body, I memorize this moment just like I have tried every moment of the last three hours. For me, there’s nothing that tops seeing the girl that I love right in front of me like a present I just unwrapped. Because that’s how I feel every time I look at her.
When we had been on the beach and she had admitted she wants a family with me, and to buy a time share here someday? It made me want to weep with happiness. I’ve never wanted to cry as much as I do when I’m with her. I may only be eighteen, but I know what I want. Being here in the ‘honeymoon suite’ with her only makes me want it faster, sooner, now. I want to see those rings on both of our fingers and know that I never have to be away from her again. I’m going to make that happen, no matter what I have to do. I can be a mechanic and own a garage anywhere.
Stepping into the warm water with her, I need her like I need my next breath. I snake my arms around her and pull her to me. I can’t stop the groan that comes out when her wet skin hits mine. I’m a guy; I know all about showers. However, a shower with Liane is beyond my wildest fantasies. Our tongues come together as I step us backwards and press her gently into the wall, hoping it’s not cold. She doesn’t make a sound, so she either doesn’t care or it’s warm enough. I smooth her wet hair away from her face as I deepen our kiss, tilting my head so I can tell her everything I want with my mouth.
She moans, her hands finding me and making my eyes roll in my head. Yeah, this entire night is going to be what saves me for the next few months, thinking about all of this right here. I slow down our kiss and pull away, putting my lips at her ears. “Wanna race?” I tease. I love playing with her; it’s one of my favorite things to do.
“Race?” She looks at me, a gleam in her eye. “We’re starting a new kind of race?” Her hands are still caressing me, and I can barely form words at the sensation.
“Yeah,” I mutter, putting my hands over hers so she will stop for a second. “We’ve raced our whole lives, right? It’s part of who we are. So why not have a race now?”
“What are we racing to?” She looks me up and down, her eyes stopping at the evidence of my desire for her.
I lean over and whisper in her ear, and she giggles, looking up at me with wide eyes. “Really? And what does the winner—or loser—get?”
I wink at her. “The winner gets to pick the next location.” She gets exactly what I mean, and I see the competitive gleam come into her eye.
“Well, let the best man—or in this case, woman—win,” she says. All I know is, I’m not losing because I already have the grand prize. Her.
“YOU CAN’T HELP it, honey,” she teases, lying next to me on the massive bed, her body barely covered in a robe she had brought with her. “I’m just a better racer than you.” I groan in mock embarrassment, using my hand to move her robe away from her beautiful body so I can see it again. I really could care less that I lost. And when I say I lost, it was like 100-0 loss. My girl makes it very hard to win a race like that, and I make a mental note not to race her like that again. She can add it to the list of the ways she can beat me, right up there with swimming and ice cream eating.
All I care about is that it was incredible, beyond anything I could’ve ever conjured up in my head. And now, she gets to pick what she wants next. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with. “So, what are we doing now?”
“You ready again?” she teases, looking me up and down. I nod, and she laughs. “You’re incredible.”
“Hey,” I pull her onto me, the robe moving just enough that I can feel her skin against mine. “Have you seen yourself lately? And you wonder why I’m ready again? I have to get my fill of you tonight, and I plan to.”
I say something wrong; tears fill her eyes and she rolls off of me, turning away from me. What did I say? “Li,” I roll so my front is to her back. “What happened? What did I say?”
She sniffles, and my stomach drops. “Li, don’t cry baby. Talk to me. I’m sorry.”
She shakes her head, reaching back and gripping my hand like I’d disappear if she didn’t. And just like that, I get it. I wrap my arms around her and kiss her neck, taking in the smell of her shampoo. Sobs shake her body, and I feel helpless. Why does it have to be so complicated? I wrack my brain to try to come up with something that can make us both feel better, but I don’t know what I can say that will make it easier for us to walk away from each other in the next two days. We can promise and plan and hope, but we have no idea what is going to happen once we leave this little bubble of Sanibel Island.
“It sucks,” I say finally, deciding to go the route of honesty. “But if we’re both committed to being together, nothing is going to stop us.” I turn her so I can see her beautiful face, and it makes my heart hurt to see the tears on her cheeks.
“It won’t be like this again,” she says, indicating around us. “When’s the next time we’re going to be able to get together? It’s not like we live around the corner. And we’re both going to start school, and what if…”
“No,” I silence her. “We won’t be in this amazing hotel room together, alone, for awhile. And we both have some decisions to make. But I don’t care if I have to drive to you every weekend; I’m not g
iving up on us. Are you?”
“No,” she cries. “I’m never giving up. Not now. Not after all of this. I can’t say goodbye to you.”
“You aren’t saying goodbye to me,” I say. “When we leave here, it isn’t goodbye, Li. It’s just ‘see you later’. Because I’m going to see you. You’re going to be sick of me I’m going to see you so much.”
That gets a laugh out of her. “I’ll never be sick of you. You know, we’ve spent our whole lives only seeing each other fifteen times. Do you know that? And really, the ones as little kids don’t count because we don’t remember them.”
I scoff. “What do you mean, don’t remember? When I was a newborn? I totally dug you. When I was barely one? I remember the hot older chick eating my baby food, but being okay with it because she was super cute.”
She snorts, covering her mouth with her hand, causing us both to laugh. “Oh, yeah. I’m sure you remember that. No, but seriously. We’ve been used to seeing each other and leaving every year.”
“But everything’s different now,” I interject for her.
“Completely different.” She runs her fingers through my wet hair. “I love everything about you, Blake. I love your spiky blonde hair, your milk chocolate eyes that look at me like you really get me,” she pauses, her gaze flicking to my lips. “I love those lips. The way you kiss me, it’s like I can feel everything that you feel. I love the way you look at me when you don’t think I’m looking. How you’re always holding doors for me, or pulling out my seat. I love the way we joke with each other and play. I’ve never felt the way I feel about you for anyone. This is the real deal for me. No matter that we’re both young, I know we can make it if we’re both in all the way.”
I blink, her admissions of love to me are almost more than I can take before losing it completely in front of her. I have to be strong, for her. To show her that I’m not worried about us and we can manage anything that comes up.
“You’re my best friend,” I say to her. We’ve said that so many times over so many years, but now it means something more than that. “And the love of my life. I know that it won’t be easy, no matter if we get to live in the same city soon or not. But I know this. I’ll never love anyone the way I love you. I don’t need to wait a certain number of years to know what I want. Just as you said to me, I could say the same thing. You’re one of the very few people that look at me and believe that I can make my dreams come true. Most people think that my dream isn’t worthy enough; that turning a wrench isn’t what I should strive for. They may not say that, but I see it in their eyes. But not you. You and my parents are really the only ones that listen to what I want. It seems like it was forever ago and just yesterday at the same time when you flung yourself into my arms and kissed me. That was the beginning of the best days of my life.” I kiss her softly, then pull away so I can continue. “This right here? I could die a happy man.”
“Hey, no dying,” she says, turning so she’s pressed up against me, her face in the crook of my neck. “I’m sorry for losing it. We should be enjoying our night, and here you are having to comfort your emotional wreck of a girlfriend.”
I’ll never tire of her saying that. That makes me think of the night we were at the club and she introduced herself as my girlfriend. The only thing better than that title will be fiancée and then wife. Someday. “Li, don’t be sorry. I’m not just here for when things are good and positive and… hot…” I wiggle my eyebrows, making her laugh again. “No, but seriously. I don’t want you to ever be afraid to show me how you’re feeling. Our friendship didn’t stop because we’re together. You would’ve never worried before about telling me what was wrong, so don’t start now. Okay?”
She nods. “I think I’m ready for what’s next.” She pushes herself up so she can whisper in my ear, and what she says blows my mind.
WAKING UP NEXT to Liane has to be the best feeling in the world. I have no idea how long I’ve been awake, but I know I didn’t sleep much. I watched the moonlight dance on her face, then the sun come up and illuminate her beauty. She is facing me, her hands tucked up under her face. Every once and a while, she smiles in her sleep. I would pay any amount of money to be in those dreams and know what is going through her head. There has been a few times that I hadn’t been able to stop myself, and I had kissed her. But she was exhausted, and hadn’t even moved.
Since she is asleep and I don’t have to be brave for a few minutes, I allow the crippling fear and sadness to take over me. I feel the prickles behind my eyes, and I don’t fight them this time. I have twenty-four hours left with her, and most of that will be spent with our families. On our last day at the beach, we always have a huge feast (mostly to clean out the refrigerators so we don’t have to throw away all the food). We play games, eat, and have a huge sleepover in one of our condos. It’s been tradition as long as I can remember. But a sleepover for me means something totally different now. I halfway wonder if I will be allowed to sleep over with her tonight, but I also know I’m not letting her out of my sight. Not until I am forced to.
One hot tear slides down my cheek, and I leave it there. I put my hand lightly on hers. When I convinced Liane to come this year, never in my life did I think this is where we would be. Had I dreamed it? Of course. I’d been dreaming it for four years, that one day she would just turn to me and start kissing me. And essentially, she had. I smile as I remember that sandy first kiss on the beach. My eyes flit to her lips, wanting to taste her so badly right now. Then I think back to the letter she shredded into pieces and rained over us. I want to believe that we are untouchable now; indestructible. But I’m not dumb, either. She’s spent two years with Ronan for a reason. I know she loves him in some way. Maybe not how she feels about me now, but she felt something for him at one time. Once she’s away from me, will she forget? I don’t think she would intentionally hurt me, but that doesn’t stop me from worrying over her seeing him again. I have no doubt that he will be at her house the second they get in tomorrow. And I’ll be in the car and unable to talk to her at all. My parents have a cell phone now; maybe I can convince them to let me call her just once.
Nature calls, so I get up carefully. When I come back out, she hasn’t moved. The clock says it’s just after eight. Opening the door to the patio, I step out, the warm Florida air hitting me instantly. It has to be a heat index of at least 90 degrees, and it’s still early. Leaning over the railing, I look at the sand and water, stretching beyond where my eye can see. I catch sight of a young couple, probably not much older than Liane and I, jogging together on the beach. I wonder if they are vacationing here together, and if they are married or not. They probably don’t have to worry about being without each other after tomorrow.
“Now this is a sight I could wake up to every day,” her voice comes from behind me. I turn, grinning as I see her in my USC shirt. It barely covers her backside, and I know I’ll never look at that shirt the same again.
“Ditto,” I say, turning so she can step into my arms. When I kiss her, I taste her toothpaste. So she isn’t into first thing in the morning kisses. “That shirt looks hot on you.” I’m sure glad that our patio is private and we’re on the tenth floor, because the shirt sure doesn’t hide her assets.
“The lack of shirt looks hot on you,” she retorts, running her hands along my stomach. It’s one of her favorite things to do, and it’s not so bad for me, either. “No matter how much I touch you and see this amazing body, I still can’t believe how different you look from a few years ago. What have you done?”
“Well, I could say the same thing,” I tease, cupping her backside. “Last time I saw you, you were a skinny little girl. Now, these curves…” I break off, my thoughts immediately going back to what those curves did to me last night.
She smacks my chest playfully. “Where’s your mind going?”
“Hmmm,” I murmur, kissing her neck. “I think you know.” She giggles as I tickle her neck with my morning scruff. “But really, I just started lifting weights
at the gym and had a friend that helped me with an eating plan. So I went from a too-skinny boy to a cut beast.” I flex my arms and abs. She rolls her eyes, but her body tells me something different. I walk her into the room and shut the porch door behind us. Time to make good use of the next few hours.
“Let’s check out that bathtub.”
BLAKE AND I walk up to the condo door. I try to wipe the goofy grin off of my face, but I don’t know if I can. What a way to finish out our two weeks together. We need to do that again, and very soon.
“Is that a satisfied smile on your face, Li?” Blake winks, unlocking the door to his condo. I cover my mouth, trying but failing to stop smiling.
“More than satisfied, Mr. McIntyre,” I flirt, stepping up and kissing him again.
“Well don’t you two look like honeymooners,” Brooke steps from the condo and shuts the door behind her. “You’re all good, by the way. No one suspects.”
I breathe out in relief. “Thanks so much, Brooke.”
She looks back and forth between us. “I hope someday I find someone that makes me look like that,” she says. “You two are absolutely glowing. You better come up with a good story about last night, because the two of you don’t look like you went to a party with friends.”
“Where are Mom and Dad?” Blake asks.
“Walking the beach. Enjoying our last full day here. Bri’s at the pool and I’m going there. You guys want to change and come on down? Did you eat lunch? There’s leftover pizza in there if you want it.”
“We didn’t eat. I’ll grab something and we’ll meet you guys at the pool. Sound good, Li?”
I nod, still in a stupor over the images burned in my head. Brooke hugs me and walks away, but I still see the tears shining in her eyes. Looks like we aren’t the only ones sad to leave tomorrow.
Twisted Souls Page 10
