Awake in Cheshire Bay

by H. M. Shander

  “I can only imagine.”

  “Some day, I will show off.” His fingers entwined with mine.

  As much as I’d like to hold him to that, I knew it would never happen. Tonight was a one-off thing. There’s no way the likes of him would purposely come back here, and there’s no way the likes of me could ever afford to go where he was. We were like oil and vinegar; sure we were mixing, but it wouldn’t take long for us to separate.

  We stepped off the wooden docks and back onto the gravel paths. “Well, what else would you like to see?”

  He lifted his shoulders high. “I do not know what is here.”

  Hmm. We were on the eastern edge of the peninsula. There wasn’t much out this way aside from a lighthouse, and a tiny bridge which if we walked across, would put us close to the road leading him back his motel.

  There was one other place. “Do you like dancing?”

  “Ja.”

  “Then, let’s check out The Cowboy Den.” It was a nice easy walk to the western pub.

  “Like yours?”

  “No.” I laughed and didn’t even try to contain myself. “There’s no dance floor in mine. Just a cozy little place for people to socialize and unwind. We keep the music volume at a respectable level. It’s peaceful.”

  In the heat of the summer months, the outdoor patio was a complete 180 to the inside. The music was much louder, but the clientele was different too. Younger and full of energy. They often had their own dance parties in the sand just off the gigantic porch.

  “Peaceful good.”

  “Yes. It’s the best way to unwind.” Especially after a long day, and thankfully, this area was chalk full of places to relax. Not that we needed it really, the town itself was fairly laid back. It was a great draw for the tourists though, a nice change from their urban lives.

  We walked in a comfortable silence down the road, the occasional car driving by.

  Antonio squeezed my hand and faced me as we approached the road leading to the den. “You like being boss?”

  “I don’t mind it. The worst part is having to fire someone, but thankfully…” I ran to the nearest tree and rapped my knuckles against the trunk. “I’ve only had to do it twice. But yeah, for the most part, I like being in charge. I like the control.”

  “Me too.”

  “You’re the boss? Of your real estate company?”

  “Ja.” He nodded, a sly smile inching out the left side. Damn it was cute.

  “In… Italy?”

  He chuckled at my weak attempt to discover more about him. “The boss of many.”

  “Of many? Like a hundred employees?”

  He pointed up.

  “A thousand?” The whites of my eyes grew.

  “More.”

  Wow. I didn’t need to know how many more. If he had that many employees, his hourly income was far superior to my yearly income. “No wonder you can travel so much. I have five, six including myself, on payroll.”

  “We all start small.” He stopped and lifted my hand, planting a tender, toe-curling kiss on my hand. The tingling sensations firing away in my body were a pleasant surprise and I fought to breathe out normally.

  “I suppose we do.”

  We stopped outside the busiest bar in town, a true country and western gem, complete with guys and gals donning traditional cowboy hats and boots, and huge, shiny belt buckles. It tickled me to see the scene because most of the islanders were laid back beach types, but with the people mingling out and about the main doors, you’d never know it.

  The music blared when the old-fashioned saloon-styled door opened, and a patron stumbled out.

  “Care to check it out?” I asked, curious to see if this was his jam. Somehow, I highly suspected he was more of a jazz music fan.

  He tipped his head to the side. “Ja, sure.”

  A drunk cowboy staggered out the door as we were passing by. “Evenin’ miss.” His words were slurred, and his breath reeked of too much gin.

  I tried my best to ignore him, but he grabbed my arm.

  “I said, evenin’.”

  “You’d better let go of me.” I bored into his eyes, determination tightening my muscles as I readied for action. He was taller than me and thick through the shoulders, but if he didn’t let go, he was going to find himself in a world of pain.

  Instead, the jerk laughed.

  Before I had a chance to show this guy he messed with the wrong gal, Antonio grabbed the guy by the shirt collar. Unfortunately, in my surprise reaction, I had not anticipated on Antonio pushing me out of the way, and I misstepped, slamming into the wall and cracking my head. As the guys roared, I slid down to the ground, covering myself.

  Chapter Eight

  I looked up and stared around Antonio, over to the cowboy who had his fists up, ready for a fight.

  “Leave. Now.” His voice commanded attention, as the murmuring ceased, and all eyes readied for a showdown. Antonio inched closer to me, putting distance between him and the cowjerk.

  Apparently, cowjerk had an ounce of smarts as he skedaddled away.

  Antonio bent down to help me up. “Let us get help.”

  I rubbed the back of my skull and blinked a few times to focus. It smarted, but there was no blood. “I’m okay. Stunned, but okay.”

  He shielded me from the crowd and pointed to a nearby lookout. “There.” Arm wrapped tightly around my shoulders, he guided me over to one of the unoccupied benches. “Sit.”

  It was a good idea as my legs were quivering from the adrenaline my body was trying to burn off.

  I really should’ve gotten into a better stance; it would’ve prevented me from making contact with the wall, but I’d been ready for the cowjerk’s move, not Antonio’s. I pulled my legs up under me and tucked my head onto my knees.

  Antonio’s hand rested between my shoulder blades. “You safe now.”

  Tears I didn’t want to fall betrayed that request, and silently slipped down over my cheeks, although there was no reason for them. Nothing had happened, and nothing likely would’ve happened. Still, I kept my head hidden from Antonio, but no doubt, he felt the shaking in my chest since he pressed himself into me and wrapped me tighter in his arms. It only took a minute to gain control, but it was enough for the fault in my armour to have shown.

  I needed a distraction. “Tell me about your family. Anything.”

  His chest rose and fell beneath my cheek, and his fingers rubbed my arm. “Mother and Father live Malta, in Mediterranean Sea. My sister, Maia, live in Naples.”

  Oh geez, he was Italian. My heart pounded at the thought of sitting beside a rich, handsome, and charming Italian.

  “I baby in Barcelona but live in Germany most of life.”

  “Wow. You’re really a world traveller.” I stayed in his arms even though I desperately wanted to look up into his eyes.

  “Ja. German was language one, Spanish two, Croatian three.”

  “Croatian?” Geography wasn’t at the top of my favourite subjects, so I tried hard to picture where that was in relation to the others. I wasn’t successful because I didn’t think it was anywhere near the Mediterranean Sea. “How many languages do you speak?”

  “Nine.”

  Nine? Wowsers. How unskilled was I? I knew English and a little bit of the local Haida language, but only what was common knowledge, and I only knew the written words. If someone spoke it to me, I was lost in translation.

  “I learned English for girl.”

  I pushed out of the embrace and stared at him. “Oh yeah? A romantic, are you? Picked up a new language to impress a girl?” It was sweet.

  “Emelia was to be wife.”

  Wife. The word echoed in my brain and even though he said he didn’t cheat, words rolled off my tongue. “You are married?”

  “No.” Even though he continued to keep his arm around me, a far away expression shadowed his face. “Emelia died.”

  “Oh.” My tone softened as his face pinched in pain. “You don’t need to talk abou
t it. It’s okay. I’m sorry I brought it up.”

  As if I hadn’t spoke, he carried on. “She died two years ago. Car crash.”

  I rubbed his cooled hand. “I’m sorry. That must’ve been hard to get over.”

  “It is.”

  I snuggled deep into him. “Can I ask you something?”

  “Ja.”

  There were a million questions swirling in my head. “Never mind.”

  I didn’t want to really know the answers anyway. It was only curiosity to things that weren’t any of my business, and he’d soon be gone, never to come back to the likes of this tiny town.

  Instead of talking, I listened to him breathe, slowly and rhythmically, like he didn’t have a care in the world, something I envied.

  He interrupted my thoughts with a question. “Want dance?”

  My cheek rubbed against the soft material of his shirt. “No, thank you. I’d rather not go back in there.”

  “No, here. Under stars?”

  I gazed up into the sky. A million pinpricks of light danced overhead, and the rise of a full moon was just beginning. Dancing under the stars would be so romantic, corny, and only something that happened in the movies.

  “Dance. With. Me.” It was the first complete sentence he’d spoken, and the sweet grin on his face was so hard to resist. He rose and extended his hand.

  I darted my gaze around, checking for some hidden cameras ready announce how much of a fool I was for accepting his hand, but I saw nothing in the shadows of the tress.

  “Okay.” I timidly slipped my hand into his.

  He snagged an arm around my waist, and we shifted back and forth to the slow beat rolling out of the bar. I rested my head against his chest, and for good measure I pinched myself on the arm just to prove I wasn’t dreaming. I wasn’t. I don’t know how long we stayed locked together, but it was mesmerizing as it was just the two of us, shuffling our feet on the edge of a scenic outlook with the expanse of the Pacific Ocean steps away.

  At one point, I pulled back to gaze up into his face and he stared down into my eyes. I stretched up on my tippy toes to kiss him, and his mouth claimed mine when I parted my lips and gave him permission. The kiss heated me up, and pleasure waves radiated out to my fingers, down to my toes, and settled into my core like never before. I could’ve kissed him all night, and it wouldn’t have been enough. I wanted more. I needed more. And for the first time in a long while, I craved more.

  “Let’s go back to my place.” I breathed out as his kisses trailed over my chin and to the nape of my neck. I gripped his hand, and pulled him past the bar, and past the entrance to the wharf.

  Under the streetlight we stopped, where he kissed me again, the passion and fire burning brighter and more intensely than it had just ten minutes ago. My hand snaked under his jacket and touched his muscular back, releasing a groan from him and further fueling my desires.

  Ten more fast paced minutes and we were at the stairs to my loft. The parking lot deserted as the clock ticked past midnight. I stood on the stairs, putting myself eye to eye with him. I leaned forward and held his face between my hands and kissed him hard. He responded with a deep, guttural moan.

  “Let’s go in,” I panted.

  Racing up the stairs, I kicked off my shoes and tossed my jacket to the couch, Antonio doing the same. Slowly, I led him down the hall to my bedroom where a more luxurious bed than the one at his motel greeted us, and I turned Antonio, gently pushing him onto it. I straddled his legs and seductively planted a teaser beside his lips and kissed across his whiskery cheek and over to his ear lobe, where I proceeded to flick it with the tip of my tongue before I popped it into my mouth and gently sucked it.

  To my delight, he groaned and tightened his grip around my waist which spurred me on. I re-kissed the trail back to his mouth, the prickles of his whiskers tickling the nerve endings in my highly sensitive lips, and sending the energy into my heated core, which had turned from glowing embers into a full out fire.

  He parted his lips, allowing me full control, and I kissed with all my heart, probing the depths of him, and feeling a heat and ache swell within me. My hands threaded through his incredibly soft hair, pulling him as close as possible. I yanked on his shirt, trying to free it.

  In two quick moves, Antonio pulled the shirt free of his magnificent body, exposing me once again to a well-defined chest. He stared into my eyes as his hands settled upon my shoulders. Casually, I undid my shirt buttons, starting at the bottom and working my way up. When I reached the top, I opened and showed off my royal purple bra.

  Goosebumps decorated my skin, but this time, they weren’t from the cold. Tenderly, Antonio kept eye contact and caressed my shoulders as the material slipped further down to my hands, which I pulled free.

  His hands returned to my pants and gently shimmied them over my hips, puddling them on the floor beside his shirt. “You are sexy.”

  In that moment, I was feeling it too. My skin was on fire, and my chest was heaving at the possibility of what we were doing. For a heartbeat, I blinked and held my breath as he traced a finger across my collarbone, my mouth falling open in delight. With the greatest of care, he slipped it under my bra strap and pulled it over my shoulder.

  Reaching behind my back, I unhooked the purple ends, letting it fall down the length of my arms. Shielding myself, I ran my hands over his defined chest muscles and back up again, wrapping under his arms and exploring the rigidness of his back.

  “You are incredibly handsome,” I purred before I lowered my head to kiss him, to keep the flames burning, and he did not disappoint. The velvety softness greeted me and heated me up, despite how cold I was.

  He stood, breaking our kiss, but in another quick move, his pants were on the floor and he stood there in his tight boxer briefs which left nothing to the imagination. The sight of him was incredible, and a thing of dreams.

  “Wow…” There wasn’t a right word for it.

  He lowered and whispered, his breath tickling my ear and warming me at the same time. “I want you.”

  “I’m all yours.” I swallowed and stared into his pools of blue, knowing he was going to be sweet, going to be patient, and above all, he was going to rock my world.

  Like fine china, he hooked me under my knees and shoulders, carrying me to the bed, his eyes taking in my mostly naked body and filling with desire. I sat and touched his chest, which shook beneath my hand and glided my fingers down to his waistband.

  A low groan grew in his throat. “Ember.” My name had never sounded so sweet.

  I hooked into his underwear and slowly pulled them down, the heat and ache in my core building the longer I took, but his skin was so firm and fine, I purposely took my time relishing the tightness beneath my sensitive fingertips. Desire spread across Antonio’s face and it bulged out of him as the underwear lowered.

  “Oh, God.” He whispered as he hovered over me in all his naked glory. He lowered his head to claim my lips with a kiss that threatened to undo all my restraint as his hand threaded through mine and drew it over to his chest. His hand followed the length of mine, trailed across my neck, and stopped just above the swell of my chest.

  I gave him a slow nod, and his finger moved further south, between my breasts and teasing across a nipple. I arched my back and pushed myself closer.

  He lifted me to the edge of the bed and lowered himself onto the floor, placing his hands on my hips, fingers under the waistband.

  From deep inside, a heavy moan poured out of me.

  He kissed the inside of my quivering knees. “You okay?”

  “I’ve just never…” I couldn’t even say the words out loud, only having ever been kissed in one place before.

  “Never?”

  I shook my head and covered my chest.

  “You enjoy.” His eyes flashed and he expertly lifted my butt and pulled off my panties.

  Slowly, he caressed the insides of my thighs, and each movement upwards, I opened a little more. And each time, h
e planted more kisses inside my knees. It drove me wild.

  When his mouth made the trek to my core, I was ready to fall apart from the intense buildup, and it didn’t take long for me to grab his head and scream out his name while my body shuddered from the most sensual feelings I’d ever felt. It was wave after wave of glorious heart-pounding sensations. Breathless, I begged him to be with me, to join me, to connect with me.

  Antonio did not disappoint, and after rolling on a condom, he teased me with his tip, in and out, groaning as he went. Finally, he inched into me slowly, and I gasped at the size of him, breathing hard. Gently, he rocked in and out, each time the connection deeper until he was as deep as he could go. Together, we moved in time and he kissed me, a sweet scent and taste upon his lips. His hand covered a breast, giving it a little squeeze.

  He dropped his hand suddenly and thrust once, twice, three times, calling out. “Ember.”

  “Yeah?” I closed my eyes and let the name swim in my head, as I drifted away in an ecstasy fueled fog.

  “Ember. Look. At. Me.”

  I did.

  “You. Okay?” There was a sheen of sweat on his forehead, but I focused on his eyes.

  “Never better.” I pulled him close and kissed him on the lips. “Never better.” I repeated when we broke apart. I never believed sex truly had an element of love to it but I sure as hell felt it for the first time in my life. “Thank you.” I breathed out.

  Chapter Nine

  The illumination from my bedside table was enough to pierce the darkness when I blinked awake and rolled over.

  Antonio stirred beside me, and I reminded myself it hadn’t been a dream. It had been reality, one I never thought I’d have.

  “Shh,” I whispered and patted his strong chest. “Go back to sleep.”

  “You leave?”

  At this hour, even a whisper seemed to echo off the walls.

  “I’m going to go make coffee and take you out to meet a sunrise.” I planted a kiss upon his whiskery cheek.

  “Time?” He was fading in and out.

  “It’s 4:51 in the morning.”