Nineteen

by E. S. Carter

  Talking so much about myself normally makes me uncomfortable but his genuine interest and enjoyment of my stories, leads me to share far more than normal.

  Story time is over as soon as Max informs us that we have arrived at our destination.

  I turn my head to look out over the side of the boat and immediately spot the stunning, deserted, bay Max calls ‘Agua Secreto’.

  Secret Waters looks as romantic as it sounds, I am eager to get off the boat and explore all its delights.

  By the time we get to the beach my dress is soaked almost up to my pantyline, from wading through the calm waves.

  Saturated and completely see through, it’s a good job the water isn’t any higher or it would not only be Liam talking about the ‘My Little Pony’ knickers I sometimes wear.

  Jake seems hesitant as we watch Max and the boat leave the bay.

  I hope he is not regretting being here with me, I’m not sure how to break the tension that has crept between us so I fall back on my old fail safe, humour.

  I tease him about getting him here all alone and having my wicked way with him.

  His posture immediately eases, the glint in his eye returns and he takes my teasing and gives it back to me tenfold, causing me to blush profusely.

  While Jake empties out the goodies from the picnic basket, I busy myself trying to find some music on a small radio that Max has kindly provided for us.

  The first few stations I find are entirely in Spanish, the music sounds local but in an old fashioned way.

  I hit gold when I pick up the signal of a station playing more contemporary, up to date songs and I turn it up slightly, conveniently finding a small, flat, rock to place the radio on right beside our blanket.

  Stretching out to enjoy the music while the sun dries my dress, I can feel Jake’s perusal of my body even though I have my eyes closed.

  I smile to myself, secretly loving that I have caught and seemingly kept his attention.

  I still cannot get over that a man like Jake, would even look twice at a girl like me.

  He’s about to become a superstar for Christ’s sake!

  After sharing a blissful few hours, gorging ourselves on delicious food and wine, while sharing an easy flowing, if somewhat eclectic conversation, I gasp when I spot pod of Dolphins out in the bay.

  ‘Jake, do you see them? Look, Look!’ I cannot help but sound like a kid at Christmas and I almost clap my hands in glee.

  He stares at me contemplatively for what feels like an age before turning and watching the dolphins at play.

  We sit in awe, entrance by the display they put on for us. It truly is a magical end to the perfect day and that is when it hits me. He is leaving tomorrow.

  By tomorrow night this will all have been a dream, one I will undoubtedly replay in my head over and over, until I squeeze every last drop from this memory.

  My life is here in Ibiza, he will become a worldwide star.

  Women already throw themselves at his feet, give it a couple of weeks and he will have his pick of every single, beautiful, woman on the planet and probably a few of the non-single ones too.

  If this is the only chance I get to spend with this amazing man, I need to make sure I do not waste it.

  Still watching the dolphins, I mull over how to let Jake know I want things to go further with us, without appearing brazen and definitely without the shame of having him knock me back.

  The familiar opening chords of a guitar break through my thoughts and a gravelly voice answers my musing.

  The words are out of my mouth before I have chance to change my mind.

  ‘Dance with me?’

  He does not hesitate; he stands and reaches out for my hand, sweeping me into his arms effortlessly.

  The words of this song could be coming from my lips, I need to get closer to him, to feel him all around me, to absorb this moment into my skin, so it imprints on my very being.

  Laying my head on his chest I listen to his solid heartbeat while revelling in the warmth of his skin and the fluttering in my belly from his fingers caressing my back.

  I need to feel his lips on mine; I need to taste him fully so that the memories of today carry me through the heartbreak of him leaving me tomorrow.

  I gaze up at him, imploring him to kiss me.

  Unable to wait any longer and not wanting this moment to pass, I stretch up and gently place my lips against his, not moving them, just waiting.

  The heat from his smooth mouth sends a shiver down my spine and I instinctively begin kissing him, gently, reverently, burning this memory into my brain.

  Needing more, needing to taste him I open my mouth to lick across his plump, bottom lip and that is the instant Jake explodes in a riotous burst of desire.

  He attacks my mouth like a man starved, like a man submerged underwater and I am his oxygen.

  I can do nothing but match his kiss, revelling in the tightness of his strong body pressed up against me and his hot, wet, tongue devilishly pillaging my mouth.

  Bloody hell, can this man kiss!

  The kiss goes on forever yet still ends too soon.

  I don’t know if we have been kissing for minutes or hours but when we finally separate, it feels bittersweet.

  It feels like he has just told me Goodbye.

  My mind is a storm of emotions.

  My thoughts race with ways to keep this connection with Emma going and plans form in my head for ideas on how to make this work between us. My only conclusion, she has to come with me.

  Does that sound crazy? Will she think I am crazy to even suggest it?

  I do not care, I will not lose her again.

  We stand in each others embrace until the sky darkens further and a chill rolls in off the ocean.

  I pull her tightly against me, cocooning her body with mine.

  ‘Where’s Max?’ she lifts her head to look at me, a soft dreamy expression on her face.

  Reaching into my back pocket I pull out my phone, it doesn’t have a signal but it informs me that it is just past 9pm.

  We have been so engrossed with each other that neither one of us has realised that Max and his boat are over two hours late.

  ‘I’m not sure Em but he had better get his arse back here soon or we are going to be late for Nate’s party.’

  The dreamy expression falls from her face to be replaced by worry, ‘Two hours? Oh God Liv is going to kill me if I’m not back in time, she has plans for us to both get ready together, trust me when I tell you it is not safe to piss Liv off. Do we have a way of contacting the boat?’

  ‘I haven’t got a signal, do you have your phone with you?’

  She extracts herself from my arms and bends to retrieve her small bag.

  ‘Shit Jake, I haven’t got a signal either, maybe we need to be on higher ground?’ she looks up at me like I have all the answers and a quick glance around the cove makes us aware that the steep cliffs surrounding this hidden bay are not for scaling.

  ‘Let’s not panic yet, maybe he is just having boat trouble. Let’s sit back down and wait a little longer before we consider what other options we have.’

  The look of worry on her face has transformed to panic, ‘I hate to tell you this but if he doesn’t come back Jake, we are out of other options.’

  She looks terrified now and the need to protect her rages through me, so I tug her back into my arms and lay a soft kiss on the side of her forehead.

  ‘I’m a strong swimmer, I’m sure I could get back to the mainland no problem at all.’

  I am not sure of that at all, I have no idea the direction of the mainland and it’s not like it’s signposted but I feel the need to try and soothe her however I can.

  ‘Jake we sailed for an hour, I paid no attention to the direction we travelled so unless the mainland is just around the corner, there is no way in hell I’m letting you get into that water.’

  Her voice is determined and I find it quite hot, which is an inappropriate feeling to have at this prec
ise moment.

  ‘Are you disbelieving of my swimming prowess Miss Campbell? I’ll have you know that I was county swimming champion when I was fourteen, I have the medals to prove it and everything.’

  I squeeze her slightly, trying to allay her fears with humour.

  If needs be I will have to attempt a swim back to the mainland and no matter how weak I am when I get there, I am going to find that smarmy, Captain Max and put my fist in his face.

  We sit together in silence. I cradle Emma between my open legs with her back to my chest and my arms wrapped tightly around her waist. My chin rests lightly on her shoulder as we stare out at the calm, dark waters.

  Every so often she checks the time on her phone, mumbling curses to herself before leaning back into me for warmth and support.

  By 11pm I am pacing the sand at the waters edge, frantically tugging at my hair because of how shit this blissful day has ended.

  Glancing up at Emma’s shadowed form, sitting wrapped with the blanket over her shoulders, I wonder exactly why this is happening to us, where the fuck Max is and how much trouble will I be in when I find him and smash his face in.

  Should we just shelter further up by the cliffs and wait until morning? Can I bear to leave Emma here if I go to get us help?

  My decision is made when I hear muffled sobs being carried by the wind.

  After everything she has been through she does not to deserve to be petrified and stranded out here with me.

  I kneel down besides her and gather her in my arms.

  She attempts to hide her tears and inhales a shaky breath.

  ‘I’m going to get help.’

  She startles, her face inches from mine, her stare boring through me.

  ‘No Jake, you need to stay here with me, he’ll be back soon, we can wait until morning, don’t go leaving in the dark.’ Her eyes implore me, beg me not to go but the wet tracks from her tears mar her beautiful face, bolstering my resolve to get us off this fucking beach tonight.

  ‘Emma I have to, everyone will be worried sick about you, I have my flight early in the morning with important meetings in London I cannot miss. My agent will skin me alive if I don’t show. Please trust me. I will swim to the nearest boat or another beach if come across one and I promise to come back as soon as I possibly can.’

  I stroke her hair gently away from her face and trace the trail her tears have left with my fingertip.

  She shakes her head vigorously, ‘No Jake it’s too dark now, just stay here, please just stay here with me. We can leave together as soon as the sun rises.’

  I give her a gentle kiss on the lips which are salty from her tears.

  ‘Emma I have to go, I promise I will be back for you. Do you trust me?’

  She kisses me back with a firm mouth before opening it slightly and inhaling against my pliant lips.

  ‘Yes Jake I trust you, I just could not live with myself if something happened to you so please…… Stay?’

  She rests her forehead against mine and takes in a shaky breath. I give her a moment, hoping to convey everything I feel for her in this one, comforting touch.

  When her breath steadies, I stand, taking her hand to my lips and placing a soft kiss on her knuckles.

  ‘Stay warm Em, I’ll be back before you know it.’

  Turning quickly away from her so she doesn’t change my mind, I stride into the now cooler waters and when they reach my thighs I take a deep breath and dive under the surface, coming up for air a few feet away. I do not turn back to look at her, I focus all my efforts on swimming out of the bay, knowing that there is nothing on this entire planet that could keep me from coming back for her.

  My mind is a storm of emotions.

  Knowing that our time is coming to end devastates me but I am not willing to let those feeling overwhelm me, stripping me of the joy I feel from just being here, in Jake’s arms.

  Saying Goodbye to him, when the boat comes to take us back, is going to be harder than saying Goodbye to my father was when I left the UK to travel.

  Knowing that I will never get to be this close to him again, yet I will be able to follow his life through the media, guts me.

  I will be able to get constant glimpses of the man I want, yet he will be untouchable and I will be forced to watch from afar, like all his other adoring fans.

  The darkness around us thickens, the moon reflecting on the serene water in front of us, casts a spotlight on the very thing that will soon separate us; miles and miles of ocean.

  That is when it hits me, I have been so wrapped up in enjoying just being with him that it only now dawns on me that boat is late, very very late.

  ‘Where’s Max?’

  I look up at Jake’s calm face and wonder if he has lost track of time for the same reasons I have.

  He checks his phone, his brows creasing in confusion before he tells me that the boat is over two hours late in returning for us.

  His phone does not have a signal so I hastily grab mine, praying we can call someone to let them know our situation.

  Liv is probably going bloody bonkers about now, she was expecting me to go over to Nate’s place to get ready for the party and to debrief her on this afternoons events.

  But just like Jake’s, my phone has no signal whatsoever. A quick check of our surroundings confirms what I already know, there is no chance of getting to higher ground to try and call and there is no way to get out of here on foot.

  Jake catches my concern and tugs me into his embrace, promising me that everything is going to be ok. He even jokes with me about swimming out of here, saying he was a champion swimmer as a kid. I’d laugh, if it was funny but there is no way on earth I can let him do that.

  It is pitch black, there are no lights twinkling from a distant shore and we have no idea how far away from the mainland we currently are.

  Sitting together in silence, I take comfort from having his strength at my back and his warm arms around me.

  The longer we sit, the more I worry. People are going to realise that we are missing by now and I hate that I will cause any one of them more concern. They already worry about me, think that I am not yet over the events that happened a few months ago. That I am still weak, fragile, broken.

  It’s not just that though, I have Jake to consider too, he has important things going on in his life right now, he needs to get back to the UK and become the huge star he is destined to be.

  He has more on the line than me by being stranded here, I will only have to face the wrath of Liv, he will have to face the storm, his lack of arrival would cause, back in Britain.

  ‘I can’t believe this is happening, give us a break for fucks sake.’ I mumble under my breath; begging whoever has power over the universe to, for once, throw me a bone.

  Constantly checking my phone, hoping and praying for just one single bar of signal, I get frustrated when the display on screen remains the same. My battery is also about to die, not boding well for any chance of calling to be rescued.

  I discard my phone not caring where it lands and huff out a sigh of annoyance.

  Jake pulls me in tighter to his body, running his hands up and down my arms, causing goosebumps to form on my skin.

  As the minutes turn into another hour, I can feel Jake getting more and more tense, his posture no longer soothing but distressing.

  He releases me, wrapping the spare picnic blanket around my shoulders before walking down to the waters edge.

  Watching him march back and forth, over the same small patch of sand, is turning my stomach inside out.

  He is truly worried now and more than likely regretting ever bringing me here in the first place. Since the day we first met I have brought him nothing but drama and pain.

  Everything we shared today has been wiped out in this tsunami of a shit storm, the connection he felt with me, not just severed but obliterated.

  Before I even realise it I am softly sobbing, tears roll down my face before dripping from my chin and landing silentl
y on the blanket that surrounds me.

  The loss of the perfection of today causes me to grieve, the pain in my chest a physical manifestation of this.

  Can I not just be allowed this one perfect day? Have I not already lost enough?

  Strong arms wrap themselves around me and I immediately burrow into his chest in the hopes of hiding my tears from him.

  I do not want him to think me feeble, I am not crying about my fate but for his and for the loss of the flawless memories he gave me today.

  Memories that have now been marred by some bloke and his inability at remembering to collect us.

  I initially thought this bay was beautiful but its beauty is only skin deep.

  When Jake informs me he is going to get help I want to shake him and tell him not to be so bloody stupid!

  The words stick in my throat when he softly traces the path of my tears and instead I beg him to stay with me.

  I can see the resolve in his eyes and there is nothing I could say to make him stay here with me, he is determined to get help.

  Stupid, reckless, stubborn man!

  He kisses me gently, his lips barely touching mine.

  All the sadness, anger and frustration pours out of me the moment his lips graze mine and I return his kiss forcefully, not stopping until my lungs take in his exhale, absorbing him into my blood stream.

  I am so worried for him right now, strong swimmer or not it is madness to attempt to swim back at night. If something were to happen to him I am not sure I could cope with the guilt.

  I breathe deeply, steadying my nerves in order to appear strong for him to leave. If he is determined to attempt this, he needs to do so without worrying about leaving me behind.