by Jodie Larson
Maybe they’ll change their mind and find a Dr. Seuss book instead. Unfortunately, there’s no luck in that happening.
“Yes, please. We love this book so much. Could you please read it to us?” says a little brown haired girl with glasses.
I sigh, resigned to my fate and pray I can get through reading this book with minimal tears shed. I quickly glance at Andrew and he gifts me with a tender smile that lights up his face. His hand covertly sneaks over to my leg as he brushes his thumb gently along the outer seam of my pants, silently reassuring me that I can read it.
Straightening my back, I prepare myself for the emotional ride that I know I’ll be taking when I start reading. It’s the lullaby part that kills me. But I always sing it in my head. It’s a soothing melody yet that’s part of the reason why I get emotional because it’s so endearing and sweet. And that’s exactly how I read it to them. I sing it.
All the kids listen as I read to them, the words sometimes getting stuck in my throat. I push them out anyway, just to see the smiles on their faces. Another round of applause is heard as I close the book. Andrew places his hand on my knee and it takes everything within me not to break down and cry. At least I managed to finish the book with minimal emotions showing. Andrew’s hand squeezes my knee, a reassuring gesture of a job well done. My chest is heavy once again and I take a shuddering breath. My eyes close as I exhale, letting all the tension go with it.
Andrew stands and holds his hand out to help me up from the floor. A collective groan is heard from the kids, letting me know their displeasure.
“Could you stay with us for a little bit longer? We like to listen to your voice when you read,” says one of the older looking girls as she pulls on my sweater.
Once again, my chest tightens as I remember the reason why the children are here. How I wish I could take each and every one of them home with me. I bend down and gently cup her cheek.
“I’m so sorry sweetheart, but I can’t stay anymore today. I do want to thank you for letting me read to you all. I enjoyed it so much.”
I stand up but not before they all gather around me, hugging me tightly, saying their goodbyes. A few of them land some sloppy kisses upon my cheeks, making me smile. Reluctantly I head to the staircase with a final wave goodbye. Andrew’s right behind me, his strong hand placed on the small of my back.
The air around us feels warm and I don’t know if it’s from Andrew’s close proximity or the emotional ride I just had from my little story time. I turn to Andrew in the hall, my lips twisted to the side.
“I could use some fresh air. How about you?”
My voice is full of unshed tears as I’m unable to hide them anymore. Between my past memories creeping back into my head, the book, and the children I’m just an emotional mess.
“Sure, love. Let’s go this way.”
He places his hand in mine, leading me down the hall to a side door. It opens up to the playground area where we’re greeted with the laughter of the children playing on the equipment. I close my eyes and take a cleansing breath, blowing it out slowly.
“Thank you, Andrew,” I say, squeezing his hand.
My eyes open and are instantly greeted with his, shining with the emotions that I’m trying to fight.
“No need to thank me for anything, Tessa. To see the smile on your face is all I want.” He reaches up as his fingers tangle in my hair, dragging the strands slowly through them. “I never want to see anything but a smile on your face.”
His words cause my heart to beat faster as they bounce around in my head. Why did he have to be so sweet?
Unable to keep myself away from the laughter, I walk over to the swings as several little girls ask me to push them. Andrew joins me, both of us laughing and playing with the kids as they rotate from the swings to the slide to the merry-go-round. Andrew doesn’t dare follow them down the slide but of course he encourages me to do so. As if I could ever turn down a slide. It’s surprisingly fast and I’m flung into the air when I reach the bottom. Andrew is there to catch me though as I stumble into his chest. His arms wrap protectively around me and his reverberating laugh shakes my own chest.
There’s a small group of boys playing basketball nearby. Andrew raises his eyebrow to me and I shake my head. He laughs and pulls me toward the side door again.
“No basketball for me today. I’m still sore from yesterday,” I say, reaching up to rub a sore spot on my shoulders.
He quickly moves behind me, rubbing the spot with his thumbs as I moan in pleasure. He hits a rather tender area then gently kneads the knot until it loosens. Another moan escapes me and he quickly drags me around the corner of the building, away from the prying eyes of the children.
Andrew presses me against the hard wall, his face nuzzling into the crook of my neck. My arms reach up and wrap around his shoulders, holding him close to me as he trails his lips gently up and down my skin. A mewling sound comes from the back of my throat and he rewards me with that possessive noise of his.
“Maybe later I can give you a full body massage to alleviate your sore muscles.”
A shot of heat runs directly to my groin and I almost buckle underneath him. He keeps a firm grip around my waist, leaning into me further. His hip presses against mine and I feel a twitching underneath his pants.
“Mmm, that would be heavenly. But I have a meeting with Christopher and Kara tonight and I don’t know when I’ll be done.”
“I understand, love. Don’t worry. We have all day tomorrow to spend together. And I plan on spending every single minute of it with you.”
My eyes find his as I attempt to find the words I want to say to him. But I must tread lightly because I don’t want him to see the sorrow and pain I feel, knowing that tomorrow is our last day together and I don’t want to let him go. Not yet. I’m tied to him, so completely and emotionally attached that I know I will shatter into a million pieces when I leave.
He runs his nose along mine, giving the tip of it a kiss. It’s my most favorite gesture from him, so intimate and loving. My heart melts every time he does it.
A shiver causes my body to tremble and he wraps his arms around me tighter. “Come, let’s get you inside. I’m sure Charles is pacing the halls by now, wondering where we are.”
He tries to pull back, but I squeeze him tighter, unable to let him go just yet. He laughs and strokes the back of my head, kissing my forehead while doing so.
“Comfortable?” he asks.
My lips find the underside of his jaw before I pull my face away. His eyes are alight with fire as I nod my head and smile.
“Very.” My eyes bounce back and forth across his face, burning it into my memory. I don’t want to lose this. I want to live in this moment forever as he looks at me with his bright, beautiful eyes. The same eyes that I lose myself in every time that he’s near me. Eyes that I want to look at me, exactly as they do now, for the rest of my life. I’m so gone. I can’t fight it anymore. All I can do is admit the truth to myself and pray that I come out in one piece.
I’m falling for him. No, scratch that. I’ve already fallen head over heels for him. The thought alone scares and excites me though I try to hide it from him, unsure if he returns the sentiment. All I can do right now is reach up to caress his face. “I don’t ever want to leave.”
And with that, the last of my walls crumble down around me as his lips press against mine, bringing with them a warmth and promise of more to come. “Neither do I.”
CHARLES SMILES AS WE ENTER the office hand in hand, unable to pull ourselves away from each other for even the briefest of moments. My head is still up in the clouds after my realization of how deep my feelings for him indeed go. I shouldn’t be so careless to let my emotions run away from me as they are. But the intense feeling of belonging is one that I cannot keep bottled up inside, pretending that it doesn’t exist.
But as his thumb rhythmically strokes the back of my hand I know that my willpower has lost the battle. I haven’t quite got the
semantics of how this is going to work, him living here and me living there, but it can’t just end after tomorrow. My heart won’t be able to take it.
“How did the reading go? The children seemed very excited to have you up there,” Priscilla asks.
“It went well. I had such a fun time reading to them. Thank you so much for allowing me to do that.”
Charles waves his hand in front of his face. “Think nothing of it. Anything to bring them joy is what this is all about.”
Kara turns to smile at me as she reads my face. I know I’m unable to keep it from showing every single emotion running through me, but I’m at the peak of my happiness after my low point from this morning. She gives me a knowing wink and I wish I weren’t so easy to read. She knows what’s going through my head.
“Well I believe we’ve seen enough for one day, don’t you agree? Tessa and I need to get back to the hotel so we can hammer out these contracts for tomorrow’s meeting.”
With a nod, Charles leads the way out of the building toward the waiting cars outside. He smirks as we all shakes hands goodbye.
“I assume you arrived with Andrew?”
“Yes, Andrew was gracious enough to drive us again today. We’re very thankful for his excellent chauffeur skills,” Kara laughs.
Andrew shakes his head but gives a small laugh. “It’s always a pleasure to escort two beautiful women around.”
He releases my hand and pulls me to his side instead. My hand rests on his firm stomach and I refrain from flexing my fingers to feel the taut muscles underneath. My head turns as Charles laughs while helping Priscilla into their car.
“I couldn’t agree with you more, Andrew. Until tomorrow ladies,” he says before climbing into his car and driving away.
My perfect gentleman opens the doors for me and Kara before taking us back to our hotel. Kara is busy clicking away on her phone in the back while I stare out my window, Andrew’s hand resting lightly on my knee.
“I think Chris will be landing later this evening since he left at five this morning. But we’ll already have our heads together and hopefully finished by the time he gets here, just to irritate him.”
“I still find it funny when you call him Chris. He just doesn’t seem like a Chris to me. But that could also be because he’s my boss.”
“I think it’s weird that you call him Christopher. He’s so not a Christopher. The only time I ever use his full name is when he’s in trouble or I want to annoy the shit out of him.”
We laugh and I notice Andrew’s smile out of the corner of my eye. He’s concentrating on the rush hour traffic and hasn’t said much since we left. Then again, he hasn’t said much today to begin with. I wonder if he’s working out a plan in his head just like I am, wondering if there’s a way we can make a transcontinental relationship work. I roll the word transcontinental around in my head over and over and each time I do, another weight gets added to my heart, allowing it to sink further into my stomach. I don’t want to leave. My hand reaches out, seeking his, looking for the comfort that his touch brings.
Kara begins cackling in the back and I turn my head, throwing her a quizzical look. She thrusts her phone in my face and I have to tilt it back slightly so I can see what’s on the screen.
“Get this! Okay, so you know how Collins was all pissy when I got this account? Apparently he went and pitched a fit to Chris about it. And you know how much Chris tolerates childishness. As punishment, he gave Collins the animal shelter contract and the new gastrointestinal surgery center account.”
She retracts her phone and clutches her stomach, almost doubled over in her seat. I join in and let out a loud, embarrassing snort in the process. My hands clamp over my mouth at the sound, causing me to snort again. Unable to resist, Andrew begins laughing as well, shaking his head. I look behind at Kara and this time she is fully on her side, lying across the back seat.
I wipe a few happy tears from my eyes as I calm down enough to talk. “That’s too much. Hasn’t Collins learned that he won’t get his way by doing that?”
Kara sits back up and straightens herself out. “Apparently not. Oh, that was the best email I’ve had in a while. I’ll have to thank Chris later for that.”
My eyes roll to the ceiling and I can only imagine what she’ll do to thank him. I’m sure it’ll be completely dirty, knowing those two.
Soon enough, we’re back to the hotel and Andrew escorts us to the lobby again. It still amazes me how perfect his manners are. I wonder if it’s a European thing because the guys back home are never this polite and caring. Or maybe it’s just me and the fact that I’ve never been with a man like that before.
“I’m going straight to my room to relax a little before we get cracking. Give me about a half hour before you come knocking Tess. Better yet, I’ll text you to let you know when I’m ready for you.” Kara turns her attention to Andrew and shakes his hand. “Andrew, thank you again for everything. I’m so glad we got to meet each other. Hopefully, I’ll be seeing more of you in the future, outside of business that is.”
“My pleasure Kara. I’m definitely sure we will see more of each other soon,” he says.
There’s a secret smile that passes between the two of them and my suspicions rise. What are they scheming? She winks at me before turning on her heel toward the elevators.
Andrew turns me to face him, wearing that goofy grin that I adore. He looks like the cat that ate the canary.
“So, tomorrow’s our last day together,” I start. He holds up his finger and places it gently over the tops of my lips, silencing me before I can get my full statement out.
“We will have more than tomorrow, love. My only regret right now is that we both must work tonight. I would give anything to ditch our responsibilities and just spend all my time with you.”
An idea hits me and I chastised myself for not thinking of it yesterday. Of course, this would make life so much easier. The smile brightens my face as I drag him across the lobby floor to the front desk.
I cannot believe I’m even considering this or what he may think it means. But with everything that’s swimming through my brain right now, it makes the most sense. It’s impulsive. It’s uncharacteristic. It’s something that Kara would do, which only furthers my resolve to just do it.
The desk clerk looks up from her computer and smiles at us. “How may I help you, Miss?”
I clear my throat once before I lose my nerve. “I’d like an extra key for my room, please. It’s room 816, should be under the name Martin.”
She clicks a few keys on her computer before looking back up to us, her eyes smiling. “Just one more key for you, Miss Martin?”
She bats her eyelashes at Andrew and I resist the urge to roll my eyes. Yes, he’s gorgeous and yes he’s getting my extra key. Back off chick.
“Yes, just the one.”
She swipes it through her machine and hands the key to me. “Is there anything else I can assist you with this evening?”
I shake my head and slowly smile at Andrew, giving him a glance that I hope he reads as seductive. “No, I have everything I need right here. Thank you.”
“Of course. Have a good evening, Miss Martin,” she says before going back to typing on her computer.
I press the key into the palm of Andrew’s hand, dragging my lower lip through my teeth.
“This is for you. Use it, don’t use it, it’s completely up to you. But I wanted to give you the option to use it since I won’t be able to see you until tomorrow. And that makes me sad.”
My hand caresses his cheek, feeling the prickle of the stubble starting to form underneath. His arms wrap around my waist, pulling me to him.
“What I wouldn’t give to steal you away and just lock ourselves in your room for the rest of the night. This key will be used, I can promise you that. But I’m not going to tell you when I will use it. You’ll just have to be surprised when you see me in your room.”
He hits the call button for the elevator as I struggle
with the urge to pull him in with me, letting him take me to my room and do with me as he pleases.
“I had a great time today. I know it wasn’t a date or anything like that but touring the school, playing with those kids, it really meant a lot to me. More than you will ever know.”
A single tear slides down my cheek as I’m unable to fight back the emotions from earlier in the day. I know he’s going to have to learn about my past sooner or later. My fear is that once he learns about how I grew up and the circumstances regarding my inability to surrender to my feelings or accept them from others, he won’t want me anymore. But he cannot go into this blind and I cannot hide this any longer.
He cups my cheek and places a kiss on my nose. “Why are you crying, love? Today was definitely a good day. I loved watching you play with all of the children. When you read those books up in the loft, it took my breath away. Seeing you surrounded by them, speaking gently and effortlessly with them, it seemed like it was the most natural thing in the world for you. It makes me think things that I shouldn’t since we’ve only just met.” He leans in close, bringing our faces mere inches apart. “But know this Tessa. I am making plans for the future. And they involve you.”
The elevator dings behind me and before I know it, he’s shoved me inside, pressing the button for my floor. We’re nothing but a whirlwind of hands and lips and arms and tongues, pulling at anything and everything we can on each other. His tongue dives into the warm heat of my mouth, licking and savoring as I do the same. Our hands wander the contours of each other’s bodies, feeling the steady pulse of lust and desire beneath the surface. His erection presses into my stomach and I moan in response. He wants me. And I want him. The buzzing current surrounding us is almost unbearable, but the spell is soon broken as the elevator doors open up to my floor.
We pull away in a breathless pant, almost as if we’d just run a marathon. He straightens my sweater, pulled askew in the heat of our unbridled passion before escorting me to my door. I smooth my hair with the hand not currently occupied by his then let it flutter to my chest, my heart pounding a punishing beat against it.