“Because…” He paused. His intense eyes pierced through me. “I’d like to thank her for convincing you to come. Otherwise, how would I have met such an attractive and beautiful girl like you?” He grinned mischievously.
“Aside from being presumptuous, are you always this flirtatious?” I asked, but couldn’t hide my smile.
“No I am not. I don’t flirt. Usually, it’s the other way around. Girls flirt with me. You are a very intriguing exception.”
“I’m glad to be an exception.” I shook my head still smiling and got up. “Well, it was nice talking to you, but my tour is leaving and I need to go now.” I said curtly.
“Oh, come on. You cannot get rid of me that easily.” He frowned and studied me for several long seconds while thinking. “I wonder if I could join your tour as well.”
I hesitated to answer. Something about him made me perplexed. Part of me wanted him to leave but the other part wanted him to join us. He sounded like an interesting person and my gut told me that he was honest. He would be a better companion than the raucous college kids, that’s for sure. “I don’t see why not. It is a free tour. You’ve got to tip the guide at the end. I think the more the merrier for her.” I finally answered.
“Awesome!” He exclaimed happily. I couldn’t suppress my chuckle over his childish reaction. He was indeed sweet when he wasn’t so arrogant.
“Since we are going to be together for a while, would you mind telling me your name?” He asked.
“I’m Emma.” I said.
“It’s really nice to meet you Emma. I am Dylan.” He replied with a broad smile.
CHAPTER 2
DYLAN
I waved at Max, hollered and then whistled through my fingers, yet he still didn’t hear me. He was only up for a couple of hours but he was already rolling his third cigarette of the day. It frustrated me that all he wanted from this trip was to party and get high. I was so mad at him that I thought about leaving his miserable ass there to let him figure out his way back to hotel alone. Then, out of the blue, I heard Mrs. Donavon’s voice echoing in my head. “Take care of him Dylan. You are the only one he listens to. Don’t let him do anything too stupid,” she said. Well, that was some wishful thinking Mrs. Donavon had. I could only look after him so much. In the end, Max did whatever he wanted. Even I couldn’t stop him.
Maximilian Donavon and I were inseparable friends… for what felt like forever. The only heir of the billion dollar corporation, Max was the richest man under thirty in Manhattan. His net worth was estimated to be more than one billion dollars, increasing more every day. How did it feel to be the best friend and the business partner of the wealthiest, bad-ass bachelor in Manhattan? It was cool, but it also sucked. He was the classic definition of a bad friend. He was errant and irresponsible. Like any typical spoiled rich kid with a lot of money, he didn’t care much about anything, neither the rules nor the people around him. Despite his infamous notoriety, I knew Max was more than what people thought of him. He had a tough childhood and bad teenage years. I was the only one he trusted and didn’t push out of his life. There had been times when I was tired of him but regardless of his problems and troubles, he was still my best friend. He stood up for me when I needed it the most. I trusted Max with my life and he trusted me. I knew I had to take care of him.
“Will you wait here for me a minute?” I asked Emma. “I need to go and get Max.” I explained. Emma’s eyebrows went up and her face turned into a frown. Obviously she didn’t like the idea of Max joining us too. Maybe I shouldn’t have told her about him earlier but it was impossible to resist her judging eyes. They made me obliged to tell her the truth, at least some of it.
Honestly, I was exasperated and furious with Max for making me smoke that cigarette and go in there after him. He enticed me to do some reckless stuff before, but this last one was too much. Whatever weed he rolled this morning for us made me delusional. I was totally out of it when the girl unzipped my pants. Then suddenly, things became clear, and I felt nauseated. I stopped and told her I didn’t want it. She didn’t understand me at first and thought I wanted my money back. I assured her that she could keep the money. I just wanted to stay there, and do nothing. I wasn’t feeling good. Either I was going to vomit on the street or shake it off in there. Luckily, she was nice and understanding. While I held my head between my hands to stop the world from spinning, she tried to help me. She gave me some water, wiped my face, and then we talked. I didn’t know how long I stayed in that room. I was doing okay, until I got out of there and saw those two green eyes on me. They were intimidating. Judging. They spoke the unspoken words, accusing me furtively. I wanted to escape from her ‘I knew what you did in there’ looks. However, I stood there completely hypnotized as she continued glaring at me, her eyes gleaming wickedly. I felt as if the air was sucked out of my lungs. It was that intense.
I had to get Max but I didn’t want to leave Emma out of my sight, even if it was for a few minutes. I had this uncanny feeling that she was hesitating about her decision. I didn’t want her to change her mind while I was trying to find my idiot friend. In a hurry, I grabbed Emma’s backpack off the ground and put it on my shoulder. I wasn’t trying to act chivalrously. It was more for me than her. I just wanted to make sure she didn’t leave without me. “It won’t take long, I promise.” I said and left in a hurry to find Max.
Since the instant our eyes met, I couldn’t stop looking at her. I took in her immaculate beauty, the curves of her body, her auburn hair and her milky white skin. She was innocently attractive; making me question how someone could look so innocent and attractive at the same time, but she was. Her green sundress tied around her neck left her skin bare in the back and on the shoulders. It also deepened the color of her green eyes, framed by full, long eyelashes. While we were talking, sitting side by side, our arms so close, almost brushing against each other, I imagined myself touching her soft skin and tracing my fingers starting from her nape down to the small of her back. With every breeze, jasmine and vanilla scent effused the air. It was impossible not be affected by her beauty, elevated even more so by her heavenly scent. Although I felt intimated by her intense gaze, blocked by her long wavy hair every now and then, I wanted to swirl my fingers around a strand and tuck it behind her ear. God, she was so beautiful.
Emma was completely different than the girls I’d met before. Probably because she didn’t know who I was but I had a feeling even if she knew, it wouldn’t have changed her attitude. She was blunt. She spoke her mind and didn’t hold back. I didn’t mind that. Strangely, I didn’t want her to speak like the girls I hooked up with before: the vapid ones who buttered me up all the time or the slutty ones who sucked up to me just to spend a night with the most eligible and famous bachelors of Manhattan: Dylan and Max. Oh, how I hated those girls. Emma, she was just the opposite. I enjoyed her frankness, especially no-bullshit answers and curt replies. Her disparate style was so unique that I was determined to get to know her more.
I found Max just around the corner, and of course he was about to go into another coffee shop to get more weed.
“Hey man, I signed us up for a tour. Come on, we’re leaving!” I explained quickly.
“Tour? I am not going on a tour. It’s hot out there. I’d like to stay inside,” replied Max.
“Well, too bad, because I am going. You can either come with me and enjoy more than the cannabis shops and brothels, or stay here and get high until you puke your guts out. Your choice!” I scolded him. “But, so you know, I won’t be here to save your ass if you are in trouble.”
“What the hell, Dylan. What’s gotten into you?” He asked. “You were perfectly fine this morning.”
“Well, it was before you made me smoke that shit. Oh, by the way…never do that again. You understand me! It wasn’t like what we smoked back home, it was something else. It made me sick and delusional. Now, you have two choices. Stay or come with me. What will it be Max?”
“Fine, I am coming.”
“Hurry
up then. They are waiting for us.”
“They! Who are they?” He asked and paused, looking confused. “Since when are you carrying a backpack?”
“It’s not mine. It’s Emma’s and she’s waiting for us. Come on now.”
“Oh, it all makes sense now. We’re becoming boring tourists because my dear friend wants to bang a girl with a backpack.”
“Just shut up Max, and let’s go.”
When we got closer to the church, I saw Emma anxiously waiting and talking to her friend. I wondered what they were talking so passionately about. I could see Emma’s eyebrows furrowing and her body getting tense. She pursed her lips. I wanted to kiss those lips so badly. Her indignation and furious expression were somehow turning me on. What the hell was wrong with me? Why was I fantasizing about this girl I just met?
I picked up the pace when I saw that the group was about to leave. Max grunted but followed me. I was sure Emma was pissed at me since we were late.
“Here we are!” I said cheerfully when we reached them. “We are ready to go.”
The tall blonde girl standing next to Emma smiled, “Oh, wow! So, you are the hot guy who took Emma’s backpack and disappeared,” she uttered and burst into a big laughter. Emma rolled her eyes and shook her head. Was she blushing?
After hearing the hot guy comment, I couldn’t help but smile broadly. I figured out that Emma told her cousin, Sydney about me while I was gone looking for Max and I wondered if she told her that I was hot. Since Emma was avoiding making eye contact with me, I guessed that she did.
“Yes! That’s me. Sorry about being late.” I apologized quickly. “I’m Dylan, and this is my friend Max.”
“Nice to meet you, Dylan and Max… I am Sydney,” she said. Emma was still quiet. She was now studying Max intently. I was glad that I wasn’t at the receiving end of those withering eyes.
“So, how do we do this?” I asked trying to break the cold air.
“We follow the purple-haired girl with the umbrella. She is hard to miss. If you can’t see her, just follow the loud college kids,” Sydney explained quickly.
I really didn’t care where the tour guide was taking us. All I wanted was to spend more time with Emma. Wherever she wanted to go was fine with me. I followed the group next to Emma in the back. When we finally got out of ‘de Wallen’ and had left the red lights and the sinful rooms behind, I saw big relief in her eyes. We were now walking on the outer layers of the city, famous for its series of concentric and bisecting canals. Canals out here were wider and streets were cleaner. Within less than a mile, the entire atmosphere had changed. Paved streets were no longer full of cannabis shops or glass doors. Instead there were museums, art galleries and cafés where people just ordered coffee, not weed.
We stopped in front of the Royal Palace and our guide asked us to squeeze closer to hear her better. I actually didn’t care for all the tourist crap she was about to share. I couldn’t concentrate on anything anyway when Emma was standing in front me, so close, within my reach. With every breath, her alluring scent filled my nose. I wanted to grab her thin waist, wrap her in my arms and rest her head on my chest, though I didn’t dare to try. I was concerned that I would scare her away without getting a chance to know her. Instead, I just watched Emma, as our guide continued to talk about the history of the Netherlands. I didn’t give a damn about their recently crowned king, his beautiful queen and all that information about how the Orange family ruled Netherlands for years. While Emma attentively listened the stories about Dutch history, all I could think about was how to find a way to hold her in my arms, touch her soft skin and make it look like an accident. God… When did I become so desperate?
After five minutes of torture, I uncrossed my arms, tucked my hands in my pockets and fought every urge not to get closer to Emma… I finally gave up. I slowly raised my hand, and with the tip of my index finger, I slowly caressed her arm. At first, she cringed but she didn’t move away. Encouraged by her lack of demur, I slowly clasped my hand to hers.
Suddenly, she turned her head back. I was waiting for her to reprimand me or make a smart-ass remark for my bold action, however she did neither. She looked at me sweetly and continued holding my hand. Then, she stepped back a little and rested her head on my shoulder. Her soft, silk hair smelled like jasmine and vanilla was right by my face. Oh, my god, she smelt like heaven. Her complacent reaction had completely taken me by surprise. Now I wanted our chatty tour guide to talk more, so we could stay like that a bit longer. I felt like a teenager who just stole a kiss from the hottest girl in school. Unfortunately, purple-hair girl raised her umbrella up in the air and told everyone that we were moving on the next spot.
“What do you think about Louis Bonaparte? I guess he wasn’t as bad as his brother?” Emma asked as we walked. I was disappointed that she dropped my hand when we started walking… ‘Goddamnit. Come to your senses’, I scolded myself inwardly.
“What? Who is Louis Bonaparte?” I asked absentmindedly. I was startled by her question.
“Napoleon’s brother. You know…the one who became the King of Holland. Didn’t you listen?”
I wanted to admit to her that I didn’t. I was busy imagining things while she leaned on my shoulder. Like kissing her senselessly, moving my lips from her ear to her neck. I daydreamed about claiming every inch of her delicate body with my lips. The thought of Emma in my arms and her heat passing to my skin were giving me goose bumps.
I pushed my wayward thoughts away. “Sorry, I guess I wasn’t paying attention.”
“Well, she explained that Dutch people didn’t have last names until Louis Bonaparte forced them to have them sometime in 1800’s.”
“Having last names, I guess it is a move in the right direction. Good job, brother Bonaparte!” I shrugged.
“But wait till you hear the last names the Dutch picked to piss off the King.”
“What? Something funny?”
“Oh, Yeah! Naaktgeboren for nakedborn, piest for pissed, and the best one is, of course, bigballs. Some of these last names even survived to this day. Can you image having the last name bigballs?”
“Seriously? That’s damn funny.”
“Dylan Bigballs…that could be a good name for you.” She teased me.
“Well that wouldn’t be a lie…” I chuckled and made a mental note…Emma was funny and she liked jokes. “Speaking of last names, what is yours?”
“I won’t tell a guy I met …hmm,” she checked her watch, “about an hour ago, my last name.”
“Why not? It’s not like I am asking for your social security number. I am not a criminal, I promise. I won’t hack into your personal information.”
“I think it’s better if we stay as Emma and Dylan.” She insisted.
I shook my head with an incredulous grin. I wondered if she was always this reserved, or was she doing this purposefully to make me more curious. “Fine! How about you tell me where you are from then.”
“The States…” she grinned playfully.
“Obviously! But where from in the States?”
“Are you always this inquisitive, Dylan?
“Are you always this difficult, Emma?”
“Why can’t we just be two Americans who met in Amsterdam and went on a tour together?” She asked nonchalantly.
“Alright, fine! No last names, no states! What else can’t we talk about?”
“What we do or where we work …Although, I kinda know that you work in investments.”
“I don’t mind telling you where I work. I work at …”
“No-No-No! Don’t tell me any of that. Let’s not talk about our lives in the States or the things we do every day. Instead let’s talk about things we like to do, things that we enjoy. ”
“You are certainly one-of- a-kind Ms. Emma.”
“I hope you mean that in a good way Mr. Dylan,” she smirked.
I crossed my arms over my chest and smiled showing that I meant it in a very good way. She was definitely something els
e. I was drawn more to her mysterious charm every passing minute.
After walking a couple more blocks, we stopped at Torensluis, the Widest Bridge, across from the Narrowest House. I tried to concentrate and listen to the guide this time, in case Emma decided to quiz me later on Amsterdam trivia. Fortunately, the information about Amsterdam’s canals, bridges and architectures wasn’t as boring. Torensluis was the oldest remaining bridge in Amsterdam and also happened to be the widest. The tower's foundations remained intact and the entrance and the barred windows of the tower's dungeon were still visible.
Across from the bridge was the narrowest house in Amsterdam. I’d say in the world as well because it was pretty damn narrow indeed, just three feet wide. Our guide explained the back of the house was bigger but the property taxes in Amsterdam were based on the width of the house overlooking the canals, thus one smart architect built a house in between regular houses and saved a lot of money. I thought I was smart, sparing my investor’s money from the government… Hell, no! This city was full of surprises.
We kept walking along streets full of bicycles and crossed a couple more bridges. Amsterdam, the Venice of the north, had more bridges and canals than Venice and they weren’t stinky like Venetian canals. I was totally amazed by the beauty of the city.
We took a short break at the famous ‘Iamsterdam’ sign before heading to our last spot. I was getting hot and tired but I didn’t want to stop or complain. Walking under the fervent sun in complete black wasn’t a good idea. I certainly didn’t dress for the occasion. ‘How could I have known that I was going to chase a girl in the streets of Amsterdam when I left my hotel this morning?’ I thought.
Emma probably sensed my discomfort and turned towards me. “You look like you are about to faint, Dylan. I have an extra bottle in my backpack if you need some water.” She pointed to the backpack that I was carrying for the last two hours.
“Yeah, that’s a good idea.” I was able to utter. I could feel the beads of sweat trailing down my neck.
One Night In Amsterdam Page 2
