Silk
Page 148
I nod. “Let’s go.”
My phone rings off and on the whole time we’re out. I finally answer it when we’re on the way back to Abe’s flat.
“Hello?”
“Where are you?” Adam thunders.
I sigh. “I’m on the way back right now. Can you please relax?”
“I called your parents. They want you to call them.”
Shit. “Way to overreact. Fine. I’ll call them as soon as Nigel drops me off. Bye.” I drop my phone into my purse and pinch the bridge of my nose.
“Everything okay?” Nigel asks sweetly.
I tilt my head, resting it against the headrest, and I smile at him. “I’m awesome. I can’t thank you enough for taking me.”
“It was a first for me too. Does it hurt?”
“I don’t plan on touching it anytime soon.”
He double-parks in front of Abe’s flat. I unhook my belt and turn to thank him once more. His face is right there, and his lips find mine. I feel a bit dazed when he pulls back.
“Don’t forget this.” He passes me a paper bag from the pharmacy. “I have to say, this was enlightening.”
He leans over to kiss me again. I jump at a sharp tap on my window. It’s a hulking, glaring Adam.
“I better go. I’ll email you,” I say to Nigel.
“You better,” he says. Only, his eyes are on Adam and not me.
I step out and am greeted with Adam losing it.
“You could have been killed.”
I raise a brow at him and wave in the direction of Nigel’s retreating car.
It’s then that Adam sees the bandage peeking out from the neck of my shirt. “What happened? You were hurt.”
His fingers are featherlight as they brush my hair to the side and ghost the edge of the bandage. I shrug away from his grasp and head up the stairs.
“Aubrey, wait. What happened to you?”
I turn and look down at him. “I got a tattoo. Happy? You acted like a lunatic and called my parents for nothing.”
I turn and keep walking, hearing his footsteps behind me.
“You can’t just take off like that. I’m responsible for you,” he says from behind me.
I turn quickly and lean back when I realize how close he is behind me. “That’s the whole issue. I’m calling my parents, so they can break it to you. I do not need a babysitter.”
I pull my phone out of my purse and call them. After a few moments of assuring them that I am fine and I only went out with a new friend, I tell them to set Adam straight.
I pass him the phone and cringe when he says, “Did she mention she got a tattoo?”
My mouth drops as he hands the phone back to me.
“Hi.”
It’s my dad. “A tattoo?”
“Mmhmm. Are you mad?”
He laughs. “People don’t get mad.”
I finish for him. “Animals do. But for real, are you?”
There’s a pause. “You are a grown woman, and we trust your judgment.”
“Thank you. Can you please tell that to Adam?”
He agrees, and I pass the phone back to Adam. They talk for a minute, and he passes the phone back to me, so I can tell him I love them both and say good-bye.
“Was there anything you wanted to say to my dad?” I ask, offering my phone.
Our fingers brush as he takes it. He turns his face from my heated gaze.
“I’m sorry for any misunderstanding Sir.” He offers quietly to my father.
It’s not lost on me that he didn’t offer me an apology. Adam follows me quietly the rest of the way up the stairs. Shelly and Abe must have heard us coming because they’re waiting in the doorway.
“Oi! Let me see it right now.” Shelly grins, pulling me into the flat.
I’m wearing a tank top under my T-shirt. It has a built-in bra, and I wore it on purpose. I slip my T-shirt off and ease my arm through the right strap of my tank. Shelly stands behind me, pulling the back of my top down to uncover the bandage. She gently peels it off to expose my tattoo. She pulls me to the bathroom, so I can look at it in the mirror at the same time. It’s not big—maybe four inches across and six inches down.
“Did you lose someone?”
I didn’t know Adam had followed us. He’s leaning on the doorway. His gray eyes lock on mine. I nod and look at the pair of angel wings reflected in the mirror.
He takes the bandage from Shelly and delicately smooths it back on my shoulder. “I could have taken you.”
I shake my head. “I was angry at you.” I press the front of my tank top to my chest as I slip my arm back through the strap.
Adam holds the strap away from my shoulder, so it doesn’t push against my bandage. Shelly looks back and forth between us before excusing herself. I turn around to face him. He picks up my hand and sets my phone in it.
“What did my dad say?”
He looks up at the ceiling. “It appears I have been a bit overly protective.”
I touch his arm, and he looks down at me.
“I just don’t want to feel smothered.”
When he nods, I drop my hand.
“I saw him kiss you.”
I gulp and take a step back, bumping into the sink.
“Do you like him?” He steps closer to me.
I lick my lips and watch his gray eyes flick to them. “I don’t even know him.”
“But you let him kiss you.”
I can feel Adam’s breath on my cheek. I blink. “I did.”
“Did you like it?” He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.
I feel all the tiny hairs on my earlobe stand straight up as the pad of his fingertip grazes it. My whole body is buzzing.
“I don’t know.”
His mouth twitches. “Why don’t you know, Aubrey?”
I break our gaze. “I can’t remember it.”
He lifts his hand to my chin, tilting my face back to look at his. The pad of his thumb brushes across my lower lip. “Must not have been much of a kiss.”
I’m frozen. I have no response.
I watch the tip of his tongue grace the edge of his bottom lip. My lips part when he drops his hand.
“You should always be able to remember a kiss,” he says before walking out of the bathroom.
Chapter 12
I stand there, leaning against the sink, and pant. It felt like Adam was going to kiss me. I thought he was going to kiss me. I wanted him to kiss me.
I still can’t even remember Nigel’s lips on mine. A pair of gray eyes erased them. I walk back into the living room, avoiding those eyes, as I pick up my T-shirt and put it back on.
“I’m going to go to bed.”
“Oh, don’t, love,” Shelly calls out. “Please don’t mind Adam. Come, and let’s have a chat.”
I glance over at Adam and Abe and hesitate.
She stands, grabbing my hand. She passes me a drink before grabbing one for herself. “We’re going up to the roof.” She holds her hand up when Abe moves to follow us. “No, my love. Girls only.”
I’m relieved to be away from Adam, and I gratefully take a gulp from my beer once we’re on the roof. “What’s his problem?”
“Adam?” she guesses.
I nod before taking a healthy swig of my drink.
“He’s a nice enough guy. I don’t remember him being so tense the last time he was in town.”
“He needs to chill out,” I fume, still shaken by his intensity.
“He’s usually the first to suggest a mad plan, YOLO and all that. I’m surprised he went mental over you going out.”
I lean toward her. “What do you mean?”
With the exception of Abe and some other random friends they tweet-meet with, she’s always considered Adam a loner. Sure, he’ll meet up with people for a day here and there, but she was shocked when Abe said Adam would be going around the world with a girl.
“We totally assumed you guys were dating.”
I shake my head too quickly and av
oid her eyes after I see her brows rise. We end up staying on the roof for a couple of hours—gossiping about boys, school, parents, and not knowing what we want to be when we grow up.
Adam and I are leaving in the morning for Belgium. We’ll spend a couple of nights there before we continue on to Paris. In three days, I will be in Paris.
I lock the bedroom door and get changed. I hurry to pull my shirt over my head when Adam knocks. I unlock the door and quickly slip into bed. Adam doesn’t turn off the light, and he has his back to me when he pulls off his shirt. There, on his left shoulder, is his own tattoo—a cross wrapped in a pink ribbon.
I’m clambering out of my bed before I can stop myself. My fingertips trace the tattoo’s outline. He stills under my touch.
“Who?”
I feel his back expand under my hand as he sucks in a deep breath. He turns, capturing my hands at the wrists and holding them between us.
“My mom.”
“I’m so sorry,” I rasp.
He lets go of my hands. “It was a long time ago.”
My heart breaks. “How old were you?”
“Seven.” He lifts his hand to the top of my bandage. “Who is this for?”
I close my eyes. “My aunt.”
“When?”
I shake my head, feeling tears slip free. His thumbs brush them away, and he pulls me to him. My palms flatten on his chest as I press my face into his neck. His arms circle me, careful not to touch my bandage.
We stand like that for an eternity before I push off of him and back away in search of a tissue. There are some on a shelf by the window. I feel his eyes on me as I dry my tears.
“I’m sorry about that. I don’t know what came over me.”
“It’s okay.”
I turn and look at him, giving him a half smile, before I climb back into bed. I lie with my back to him.
***
The next morning, he’s up and dressed before I awake. I’m greeted with fresh pastries when I walk out of our room. Adam must have walked to the bakery while I slept.
I take my shower and get changed before I eat. Abe isn’t awake yet, but the train doesn’t leave for a couple of hours.
When I sit, Adam turns on the microwave. When it dings, he pulls out a coffee mug and passes it to me.
“Thank you.”
The silence is awkward between us. I secretly wish for Abe’s or Shelly’s presence to dilute the tension. The wait is not long.
Abe smells the pastries and comes out with Shelly trailing him in search of them. They’re both still in their sleep clothes. I watch the affectionate way they cuddle and feed each other. I hug myself, enviously wanting to feel arms around me. Adam’s arms.
“Did you change your bandage yet?”
I shake my head. Adam puts his hand out to help me stand.
“I’ll help you.”
We walk into the bedroom. I pull the pharmacy bag out and spread out the cream, gauze, and tape on top of the dresser. Adam steps out to wash his hands.
He closes the door behind him when he comes back in. The room instantly feels warmer. There’s a mirror over the dresser. I watch him as he stands behind me. My shirt is loose. His eyes meet mine as he pulls it up and rests it over my shoulders. Goose bumps ripple across my skin when his thumb hits my skin right above my bra. I can’t look away from him as he eases my right strap down.
He slowly peels the bandage from my skin. I flinch when he cleans my tattoo. He pauses, eyes never leaving mine, as he lowers his head and blows on it. My mouth drops open, and I grip the edge of the dresser. If it had not been right in front of me, I would have fallen over.
He lightly coats my tattoo in cream before he tapes a piece of gauze over it. Once he’s done, he gently drags the strap of my bra back up my arm. I close my eyes and dip my head back as he lowers my shirt to cover my back.
My eyes flutter open when I hear the door open and close. I’m breathing heavily. I look at my flushed reflection in the mirror.
What just happened?
***
Neither of us speaks about it. Abe and Shelly take us to the train station. We say our good-byes and queue up for the train.
Once we’re seated, I lose myself in a book. Adam is quiet, mainly looking out the window. It takes less than two hours to get to Bruges. We’re staying in a small inn just outside the city. Thankfully, we have separate rooms with a connecting door. After this morning, I don’t think I can sleep in the same room as him. We drop off our things and walk into the city.
“Hungry?”
I nod, sidestepping a man who stepped out into my path. Adam takes my arm, and my skin tingles underneath his fingers.
“Want a gaufre?”
It sounded like he said gopher. “Like the animal? No, not really.”
He almost smiles. “It’s French for waffle. It’s one of three things you have to try in Belgium.”
I knock my elbow lightly into his side. “Only three? What are the other two?”
He rubs his chin. He didn’t shave this morning, and he is looking deliciously scruffy. “Normally, I’d say four things, but you don’t like seafood, so for you, only three.” He counts them off on his fingers. “Waffles, beer, and chocolate.”
“What would the fourth be?”
He nods. “Mussels.”
I make a face. “Yuck. Yeah, none of those for me.”
He looks down at me. “No pressure, but if I order some and you decide randomly that you want to try a bite, just ask.”
I purse my lips. Not going to happen.
We turn, and our surroundings suddenly feel older. We’re in a courtyard. There are benches around a statue of two monks. They’re standing, their bodies facing each other, but their heads are bent, foreheads resting on the other monk’s shoulder. I circle it. It’s simple—gray stone with lines so smooth. The vision is so sad. These monks are grieving together. I just don’t know why.
I look up to see Adam lowering his camera.
“Do you know the story behind this?”
He shakes his head. I follow him along a path to another courtyard. The brickwork everywhere is beautiful. I’ve never seen anything like it. The detail so intricate, even in unexpected places like around windows and doorways.
There are canal boat tours and horse-drawn carriages. The clip-clop of the horses’ hooves on the cobblestones makes me feel like I’ve stepped back in time.
We eat lunch on the patio of a restaurant across the square from where people queue up to take a carriage ride. There is a lovely bronze fountain with a horse head on each side where the horses drink.
As promised, Adam orders his mussels. They come out in a black cauldron-looking bowl with a lid. He flips the lid over to put the shells in.
He tilts his head. “Sure you don’t want to try a bite?”
I shake my head, looking down at my gigantic serving of spaghetti. So, portion control is an issue here as well. Adam’s meal comes with french fries, or pommes frites, as they call them here. They’re delicious. He almost smiles when I steal some.
After lunch, the wind picks up. We’re near the coast, and I’m cold. Adam shrugs off his sweater and gives it to me.
“But you’ll be cold,” I argue, already slipping it over my head.
As his scent surrounds me, I remember when it was his arms, not his shirt, wrapped around me. I try to take my mind off of him by popping into a shop.
I buy a piece of Belgian lace for my mom. The lace isn’t heavy so I won’t need to worry about the added weight to my bags. We pass a troubadour, a young girl playing the violin, as we explore. Adam puts some euros in her case.
We cross the canal and go to an area where there are warning signs to be quiet because women of God live there. It’s behind a church. These women aren’t nuns but simple holy women. The houses are like cottages, whitewashed with green shutters. There’s a park area between the cottages and the church with paths and plaques that give information about the women who live here.
As we walk, I watch Adam and the things he takes pictures of. He takes lots of extreme close-ups of simple things—doorknobs, hinges, iron rings, and fastenings.
We spend the rest of the day like that, exploring.
By the time we make it back to the inn, I’m exhausted. Adam runs out to get us dinner. He promises he’ll get something simple.
The bags he returns with smell delicious.
“God, that smells good,” I sigh when he walks into my room. “What did you get?”
“Ever had a croque-monsieur?” he asks.
“In English?”
He almost smiles as he passes me something wrapped in deli paper. “A grilled ham and cheese.”
“Yum. Thank you so much,” I say, tearing open the wrapping.
He also got us some bottled water. “Tomorrow, Belgian beer,” he says solemnly.
I shake my head at him and inhale my sandwich. After we eat, he goes to his room, closing the door between us, so I can change for bed. I’m settling under the covers when I hear a light tap on the door.
“Come in.”
Adam slowly opens the door, pausing when he sees I’m in bed. “Your tattoo. You probably need to…”
“Oh,” I groan, sitting up. “I completely forgot.” I start to push off the covers.
“Stay there. Where’s the bag that had everything in it?”
I point to the dresser on the other side of the room. He gets it, and then he comes and sits next to me. I scoot over to give him more room. I slip my arm out of the sleeve of my T-shirt, holding the front of it tight to my chest. Cool air hits my back, making me shiver. He carefully pulls off my old dressing. It doesn’t sting much this time when he cleans it.
His fingertips stroke my shoulder as he covers it with cream. Unwelcome desire blooms within my gut. Thank God he can’t see my face. I’m sure I must be flushed. I cringe, wondering if my neck is red too. I try to think of anything else. I start wondering about what my parents are doing right now.
Before I know it, I’m nodding off. A combination of his gentle touch and all the walking we did today sends me over the edge. I don’t remember falling asleep.