by Aria R. Blue
But it’s real now.
My hand drops to my belly. His child- a baby girl or baby boy- is growing inside me right this moment.
I want to cry and laugh at the same time. More than anything, I want to tell Leo about it.
I don’t see him all day.
I don’t see him for breakfast. He doesn’t visit me at the library like he usually does. He doesn’t whisk me away to the rose garden for a late lunch.
Nothing.
For the first time in six weeks, I don’t see my boss all day.
And…it guts me.
It affects me much more than I thought it would.
I haven’t realized how much I’ve grown attached to him. So much so that his absence makes me feel hollow and empty.
When I get back to my bedroom that evening, I find the door ajar. I carefully push it open all the way.
He was here.
And he left a gift.
19
Belle
There’s a small envelope on the bed with my name on it.
It’s in his handwriting.
I like the way he wrote my name. I trace it with my thumb over and over again like a lovesick idiot.
I flip the envelope over, and pull out the note it contains.
You didn’t think I could ever forget, did you?
My spirits soar.
I levitate a few feet above the ground.
My heart floats inside my chest cavity.
This man. He can make me go through a whole spectrum of emotions in a single day.
I put the note down, and look at the matte black box on the bed. It has a sky blue satin bow holding it together. I tug on it, and watch as it falls open. Slowly, I remove the lid as well.
My heart flutters when I see what’s inside.
Versace.
He got me a gorgeous black Versace dress, and he wants me to wear it. The possessiveness behind the act makes me yearn for him even more.
I crave his rough kisses. His calloused hands gripping my breasts and squeezing my ass like he owns me.
Like my body belongs to him.
Like it’s his to use and abuse as he pleases.
I’m careful as I lay the dress down on the bed. It’s so delicate that I’m afraid I will ruin it just by holding it too tightly.
I take a quick shower and then do my hair and makeup with a towel wrapped around my body.
Citrus-scented steam wafts from the shower panel, fogging up the mirror in front of me. I have to keep wiping at it to see my face, but I manage to get the job done.
With the dress draped over my arm, I tip-toe from the bathroom to the walk-in closet.
The dress glides smoothly down my body, fitting me like a second skin.
It’s an off-shoulder dress with long lace sleeves. The bodice is partly sheer, with whorls of velvety black fabric covering my breasts.
From the waist down, the dress transforms into a flowing river, impossibly soft and brilliantly black all the way down to my toes.
I look at myself in the floor-to-ceiling wall mirror.
I barely recognize the woman staring back at me.
The dress isn’t even zipped up yet, but it makes me look like a walking goddess.
I try to reach the zipper that rests at the base of my spine, but it’s too tiny. I can’t seem to get a proper grip on it.
“Belle.”
The throaty growl makes me look up.
Our eyes lock in the mirror.
He’s here. In my closet while I’m only half-dressed.
We’re not even touching, but my whole body is thrumming with need already.
He takes his time checking me out, eyes lingering on all of his favorite places. I’m very conscious of the way my back is completely bared to him, halfway down the split of my ass.
He takes a few steps forward, and grips my waist in his hands.
His mouth rests against the shell of my ear as he says, “You look painfully beautiful.”
He doesn’t hide his swollen length. It digs into my ass, telling me exactly where it pains him most.
His hands move down to my lower back, finding that fiendish zipper. He drags it up my spine slowly.
My heart feels like it’s about to beat right out of my chest.
“You look painfully handsome too,” I say, gulping at the sight of his body.
I’ve never seen him in a suit before.
Even looking at him right now feels like sinning.
The midnight black suit has been tailored to fit his body. It stretches over the planes of his chest and the bulk of his shoulders. Everything he’s wearing is black, from his bespoke dress shirt to his shiny shoes.
And it looks insanely sexy on him.
He places a deliberate kiss against my bare shoulder. It’s only when his arms wrap around my waist that I remember.
The baby.
I should tell him. Right now is a good time.
But something holds me back.
What if he’s not ready for it? What if we’re not there yet? The last thing I want is for him to feel like he’s stuck with me.
He’s done everything to prove his devotion to me, but a baby is a big responsibility.
Is he ready for his life to change so drastically? Am I?
But the baby is his.
He deserves to know.
And tonight’s the night I’m going to tell him.
He’s oblivious to the thoughts passing through my mind. His focus is trained on kissing my neck now.
I twist my fingers in his hair, his hunger starting to rub off on me.
“You just zipped me up,” I say. “I want to keep the dress on for longer than thirty seconds.”
He answers by leaning down and slipping a hand underneath my dress. He squeezes my calf possessively, and drags that wicked hand up my thighs.
“I don’t need to take your dress off to take you,” he purrs.
I look at myself in the mirror.
My cheeks are flushed, and my perfect dress is scrunched up with his hand between my thighs.
I’m his.
And it feels divine.
I should tell him about the baby. By putting it off, I’m walking into dangerous territory.
It’s just that it’s all happening so fast.
Meeting him, falling for him, everything. We haven’t even said ‘I love you’ to each other, and now, I’m having his baby.
It’s been so uncomplicated and fun until now. What if the child changes things between us?
I have all these questions, but I keep them locked away in my heart. I don’t voice them. I don’t have the guts to.
This time, he notices.
His hands come to rest on my waist again, and he turns me around so that I’m facing him.
I can’t look at him.
So my eyes remain low. I admire his thighs—his powerful, sturdy thighs that I spent a good amount of time sitting on these past few weeks.
Everything about him is solid.
Everything about me is fragile.
He touches the underside of my chin. He doesn’t force me to look at him, but it’s a silent invitation to.
“Kiss me,” I whisper.
I need to feel his lips on mine. I need to feel like everything is going to be alright.
He does, gently brushing his lips against mine.
But I need to be kissed harder.
I part my lips wider, opening myself up to him.
His answering growl of approval rumbles all the down to my toes, making me heady. Good thing he’s got strong arms, because he scoops me up like I’m a doll.
I lose myself in his kisses.
Everything that’s been bothering me is forgotten, even if it’s just for the moment.
The pregnancy, the red-haired witch, the prophecies.
They’ll still be waiting for me, but right now, I’m going to savor the taste of this man and the way his hands are gripping my ass.
His mouth pulls away, but he stays w
here he is, keeping our bodies intertwined. “Happy birthday, Belle.”
My stupid heart starts to hammer again. “You remembered.”
“I remember every single thing you’ve told me,” he says, brushing his lips against mine again. “Every single thing, baby.”
I exhale, “I hadn’t seen you all day, and I thought I would have to go the whole day without talking to you.”
I know I sound pathetic, but that’s just how I feel.
Tears prick the back of my eyelids. These pregnancy hormones are making me all sensitive, but I know I can’t blame these emotions solely on them.
My eyes become blurry. “I don’t know, Leo. You mean so much to me, and it made me sad to think that I would spend the whole day without you.”
He kisses me again, rougher this time.
He’s claiming me, branding me with his heat. Showing his own vulnerability.
And right there, right against my lips, he says it for the very first time. “I love you.”
I don’t say it back.
I feel it with every fiber of my being, with every atom in my body, but I don’t say it.
I’m not brave enough.
Not right now.
Because if I tell him that I love him, I’ll end up telling him about the baby too. And mind-numbing fear of how that will change things between us holds me back.
I don’t want things to change.
He doesn’t seem disappointed that I don’t say the three words back.
If anything, he appears to be liberated. As if it’s the greatest pleasure of his life to tell me that he loves me.
His lips press down on mine once more, sweeping me into his magic, filling me with this vibrant energy. Love.
I love you too, Leo.
I don’t voice it, but I show him through the kiss that I feel the same. That I’ve felt the same since the first time I heard his voice.
He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear, and hands me a rectangular box.
Another gift.
Jewelry. Emeralds in white gold setting.
Like the dress, the necklace and matching earrings are elegant, nearly weightless on my body.
He helps me put them on, rubbing his knuckles down the sides of my neck when he’s done. His touch sends goosebumps all the way down to my wrists.
“Stunning,” he whispers, studying every inch of me in the mirror.
I blush. “Where are you taking me?”
He presses another kiss on my shoulder. “On a date.”
“Do you like it?”
“Are you kidding me? I love it.”
I twirl in place, trying to memorize everything.
The sight of him in that well-fitted suit. The silver moonlight lining the clouds. The roaring of the waterfall.
He brought me to Silver Falls, the collection of waterfalls that give our town the name. They’re set between majestic mountains that seem to stretch out as far as the eye can see.
All around us, there’s lush greenery and nature’s music.
And that’s all there is.
Not another soul in sight. No sign of civilization whatsoever.
Just Leo and me and the night.
The air here is misty, water vapor present even in the air I breathe. Since it’s nighttime, it’s chilly as well.
I wrap my arms around myself to ward off the cold.
Leo notices this, and promptly removes his black suit jacket, placing it over my shoulders. It still has his warmth to it.
I tug on the ends of it, wrapping it tighter around my body and trapping his warmth.
“It’s the best birthday gift anyone has ever given me.” I have to shout to be heard over the deafening roar of the falls.
Leo just smiles at me, a hint of mischief tugging at his lips.
He raises his palm into the air, a silent command. And just like that, the ground in front of us lights up.
A path.
A path with glowing orbs of bright white light on either side of it.
I follow the trail of lights with my eyes. My breath hitches in my throat when I see it.
It’s like something out of a dream.
A square white tent has been set up on the earth itself. All around it, long gauzy white curtains billow with the breeze.
I can smell it now.
The scent of fresh flowers and vanilla candles. The aroma of hot dinner. It’s all waiting for us inside that tent.
Also, I was wrong about us being the only people here. There are two servers in white uniforms setting the dining table for us.
This is his version of a date.
And honestly, I would’ve been happy if he took me to a movie, and bought me popcorn with extra butter on top.
I glance up at Leo Blackwood.
He’s a man who makes things happen.
He might have been born into wealth, but he’s also a man who knows the importance of hard work. Not just in his business, but in his relationships as well.
And I adore him for it.
Not just this, but literally everything he does for me. For everything he naturally is.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
Somehow, he hears it, and squeezes my shoulder in reply.
We step into the tent together. All of my senses are assaulted at once. In the best way possible.
Everything is white—the floor, the curtains, the dining table, the bed.
But there are pops of bright color scattered in between.
The multi-colored wildflowers in mason jars. The classic vanilla birthday cake in the middle of the dining table with rainbow sugar sprinkles on top.
Long ivory candles cast a golden glow over the whole space. There are like five hundred of them.
“Are you trying to set fire to the whole town?” I joke.
“I’ve got better things to burn tonight,” he says, tugging my body closer.
I tilt my head towards the bed. “Are you assuming that I sleep with men on the first date?”
The hand on my waist tightens, his fingers digging into my skin. “Careful, Belle. Keep talking about other males, and I might as well set fire to the whole town.”
“Nobody has ever done anything like this for me,” I swallow. “How…how did you even manage something like this all by yourself?”
“I had help. And besides, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you,” he says. His grip on me relaxes, but only a little.
He’s such a sweet man. He deserves to know about the baby. But some scared, selfish part of me begs me not to tell him.
And I listen to that voice.
I’ll tell him tomorrow.
Tonight, it’s about us. Just Leo and me.
I let him pull my chair out for me. The two servers are still hovering around us, and Leo dismisses them with a thick roll of cash, insisting on serving me himself.
I let him spoil me.
The majestic waterfalls and the sea of stars over our heads keep us company.
Tonight, the world exists just for us.
We’re the first people of this world, discovering what it means to be living.
What it means to fall in love.
20
Leo
“Have you heard of the legend?” I ask, turning to Belle.
Her eyes are closed. A soft smile dances on her lips as mist from the falls kisses her face.
She opens her eyes, and looks straight at the waterfalls in front of us.
Almost reluctantly, she turns to me. “Which one?”
When I look at her blankly, she explains, “There are multiple legends about these waterfalls. But I do have a favorite.”
“Let me guess, it’s the one about the woman who grants wishes.”
She nods excitedly. “How’d you know?”
“You’re kind of predictable, you know,” I say, bumping my shoulder against hers.
She opens her mouth to show that she’s insulted, but I grab her waist again.
She looks delicious in this flowy bla
ck dress. The material is soft to the touch. I can’t wait to rip it to shreds tonight.
“That story is my favorite too,” I say, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
Silver Falls is said to be a holy location by some.
It’s said to have ancient powers.
Legend has it that there was once a water nymph who fell in love with a mortal man.
It was a love that was cursed from the start.
She was an immortal who belonged to the water, and he was a creature of land. But all of their differences couldn’t stop them.
They fell in love.
The man used to sit on a rock in the riverbank all day just to talk to her. She would be perched at the edge of the river, as her body had to remain inside the water at all times.
One fateful morning, the nymph asked the man to join her for a swim. He agreed.
Just as they were about to kiss for the first time, the water snatched the man away.
The nymph had overestimated her mortal lover’s strength.
Because it wasn’t just any river.
It was a river that fell over a steep cliff.
The mortal man didn’t stand a chance. The whitewater rapids threw him over the edge of the cliff.
The nymph swam to him with tears streaming down her eyes. She was heartbroken as she held his lifeless body in her arms.
He was the only man she ever loved.
The tears she shed were relentless. They fell on the man and into the river.
Mother Nature witnessed this.
It couldn’t stand to have one of its own children so sorrowful.
So the nymph was bestowed with a blessing—a healing power. Every tear of the nymph took on healing properties.
As she cried on her lover’s body, each tear mended broken bones and pumped vitality back into his heart.
He was turned into an immortal.
The nymph’s joy was so great that she started to shed tears of happiness.
She vowed then that the rest of her healing tears were for other people who desired something with their whole heart.
So it’s said that if you come to Silver Falls with a wish, it will be granted. The only condition is that you should want it with your whole heart.
