by Emma Nichols
*
Soph spat out the breathing tube, pulled the goggles from her eyes and raced out of the shallow water onto the safety of the warm beach. ‘That was brilliant,’ she said, her face shining with the broad smile that spanned from ear-to-ear.
Gianna giggled, dropped her snorkel, and slumped her wet body onto the soft sand. She had known Soph would love snorkelling, but seeing the joy on her face and hearing the excitement in her voice made her feel all kinds of strange things, feelings with which she didn’t quite know what to do. ‘It was aaaamaaazing,’ she said.
‘So many fish,’ Soph said, slumping down next to Gianna and staring out to sea. ‘I didn’t realise it was so rocky out there,’ she added.
Gianna watched Soph’s eyes, darting, sparkling; replaying the images that had captured her imagination. The warmth in her heart bathed her eyes, her soft gaze shifting to Soph’s shoulder, trailing down to the pert breasts, the blue piercing in her bellybutton, and the glistening beads of seawater resting on the taut, tanned stomach. Her mouth dry, her heart racing, she glanced away to control her urges.
‘I’ve never seen a jellyfish before,’ Soph said, turning to look at Gianna. ‘They’re so…’ she squirmed, her eyes drawn back to the sea, images flooding her mind.
Gianna laughed, then stopped. She couldn’t help herself. She reached out and traced a line down the side of Soph’s back, her finger admiring the slight curve at her waist, amused by the skin rising along the trail of her touch.
Soph shivered, her mind stopped and her mouth dried. The tingling sensation down her back, creating a sense of urgency so powerful, she froze. She gulped for air. Gianna’s finger tracking along the line of her shorts and up the centre of her spine wasn’t helping. It was driving her wild. She tried to speak, but all that came out was a guttural groan. She could hear Gianna moaning softly too, and that wasn’t helping. She couldn’t get involved with her, even though she wanted to. She couldn’t hurt Gianna.
Gianna’s heart racing, her fingers captivated by the touch of Soph’s soft skin, she reached her free hand up and turned Soph to face her. Soph’s eyes were darker than the darkest sea, almost black, and the way she was staring at her touched her deeply. She held her gaze steadily and allowed the feelings to build, the fluttering in her chest, the fire in her belly, and the pulsing even lower. She tried to swallow.
Soph inched closer.
Gianna gasped.
Soph stopped, her eyes seeking permission, her arousal driving her on. She was barely breathing, her heart pounding fiercely in her chest.
Gianna had stopped breathing altogether.
Soph hovered. Gianna moved towards her. There was no going back. Soph moved slowly, halted only by the feel of Gianna’s tender lips against hers. She groaned softly.
Gianna’s heart exploded with the light touch. The silky softness of Soph’s lips, the smoothness of the skin on her face. She had never experienced anything as exotic as this. She leaned into the kiss, her mouth responding intuitively to Soph’s lead. When Soph’s tongue touched hers, she moaned again.
Soph deepened the kiss, her tongue probing delicately, her hands gripping at the loose sand, exercising restraint. She eased out of the kiss, smiling.
Gianna opened her eyes and stared, lost in the blue headlights gazing at her, momentarily stunned. A smile started to grow, and she took a deep breath. ‘Mmm.’
Soph continued to stare at Gianna’s warm, happy smile and the glow that surrounded her; her cautious thoughts swept out to sea, her mind entranced by the blissful moment. ‘Mmm,’ she replied.
Gianna giggled, sucked her bottom lip into her mouth, and stared. ‘Wow!’ she exclaimed.
Soph gazed at Gianna’s profile, her fingers reaching across the sand and covering Gianna’s hand. Suddenly she jumped on top of her, pushed her flat to the sand, sprung to her feet and sprinted towards the water. ‘Race you to the rocks,’ she yelled.
Gianna struggled to her feet, laughing. ‘You!’ she yelled back, diving into the sea and gaining two yards on Soph in an instant.
Soph couldn’t swim for laughing, but flapped her arms and moved her body forward the best she could. By the time she arrived, Gianna was sat on the rock watching her. ‘I really like you,’ Soph said, squinting up at her.
*
Nikki smiled as she watched, a warm wave flowing into her chest, with the antics on the beach, memories of the time she and Ariana had spent together; teasing; playing around, having fun, flooding her awareness.
Ariana’s eyes were flickering, and the light of the sun made her lashes look almost white, against her sun-bronzed skin. Her nostrils made the smallest of movements with the movement of her breath, her full red lips resting closed. She looked as peaceful as an angel; her hair sprawled out freely on the sand. Nikki couldn’t take her eyes off the girl she had just kissed. Ariana’s lips twitched, forming a broad smile, and then a chuckle, her white teeth, brighter in the sunlight. Nikki wanted to kiss her again, and again. She wanted to feel that soft, warm pressure against her lips forever.
Ariana squinted one eye open. ‘What?’ she said, her body moving with the laughter that had gripped her.
‘You’re beautiful,’ Nikki said, grinning broadly.
Ariana harrumphed.
Nikki closed the space, pressed her mouth to Ariana’s, excited by the fiery contact she groaned into the kiss, daring to explore further.
Ariana fell into the kiss, lost in the tenderness of the touch, the taste of Nikki on her lips, the feel of her tongue teasing her, probing her. The sensations were building, hot like a white flame and sparking like a firecracker, and like nothing she had ever experienced. She groaned.
Nikki eased out of the kiss and resumed staring. Ariana’s eyes remained shut. I’m in love with you. Nikki’s words never reached Ariana’s ears.
Ariana stirred with the squealing sounds from the sea and opened her eyes. She eased away from Nikki’s shoulder looking slightly disorientated.
‘Hey,’ Nikki said, smiling at Ariana’s ruffled look, the sleep marks lightly marking her cheek, her drowsy eyes endearing.
‘Sorry, I drifted,’ Ariana apologised.
Nikki shrugged. ‘It was nice,’ she said.
Ariana’s smile was tight, and she suddenly pulled herself up to stand. ‘They’re still playing?’ she asked, with unwarranted urgency.
Nikki nodded. ‘They’re into each other,’ she said, standing, facing Ariana, her eyes asking the question. What about you, Ariana?
Ariana fidgeted her hands, unsure of what to do with them. ‘I need to get back, I’ve got things I need to do,’ she said, reactively, defensively.
Nikki tilted her head and stared at Ariana, willing her to open up. Her heart ached at the pain in those dark eyes, the distance that seemed permanent, but for a few brief glimpses into the person she knew existed beneath it all. Nothing was that urgent, she mused, and especially not this late in the day. ‘Sure,’ she said, smiling warmly, heading up the path to the white house.
Ariana followed a pace behind, her eyes settling on the very short, denim shorts, swaying tantalisingly in front of her. Try as she might, to look away, they kept drifting back to the slightly faded blue material, and the golden-brown muscular legs below. Still somewhat drowsy from the short sleep, her guard partly down, and driven by something beyond rational thought, her imagination kept presenting her with images of Nikki, naked. She shook her head to chase the pictures away and gain some composure, but Nikki’s perfume, drifting down the slope, just enhanced the desire to touch her. By the time she reached the house, her pulse was racing, and her hands were clammy. Her eyes skittered everywhere, avoiding Nikki’s curious gaze.
Ariana looked edgy. ‘You okay?’ Nikki asked.
Ariana nodded, but the tears forming in her eyes betrayed her.
Nikki stepped closer and pulled her into her arms confidently. ‘Hey,’ she whispered, her hand holding Ariana’s head into her chest. ‘It’s okay, you can talk to me,’ Ni
kki said.
Ariana stiffened at the feel of Nikki’s bare skin against her cheek, the scent of her stronger, the warmth hotter. The comfort she had felt with the first embrace, just days ago, had been replaced by something far more uncomfortable. The truth. She was in love with Nikki. She still wanted her. As she pulled out of Nikki’s arms and locked onto the hazel eyes, her resolve faltered. She was shaking.
Nikki had felt Ariana initially flinch at the close contact, but something else had given her an entirely different message. Intuitively, instinctively, whatever it was driving her sense of knowing, she knew. She definitely knew. She didn’t want to stop gazing into those dark eyes. ‘Hey, I’m going fishing later, you want to come?’ she asked, hoping to shift the energy between them.
Ariana shook her head.
‘Go on; it will be fun. It’s so peaceful at night,’ she said.
Ariana looked up, entranced by the genuine kindness and consideration Nikki conveyed. She was perfect.
‘And, you did promise you’d chill out for a bit while you’re here,’ she persisted, with a doe-eyed look in her eye.
The doe-eyed look caused Ariana to chuckle. That was so not Nikki! ‘Okay,’ she conceded, secretly enjoying the thought of the tranquillity that came with the night, and just being with Nikki.
‘Great! I’ll meet you at the rocks about eight,’ Nikki said, her feet suddenly filled with energy as she hopped excitedly from one foot to the other.
‘Okay.’ Ariana chuckled.
10.
‘Good lunch?’ Manos asked, sporting a broad grin and staring at the clock on the wall. ‘Is that the time?’ he teased.
Nikki poked her head up from inside the boat, her face sticky with grease and sweat. ‘I’ve been back an hour at least,’ she defended, waving her arms at him, holding back on the chuckle that was tickling her ribs.
‘Aye,’ he replied. ‘Here,’ he handed her a bottle of beer.
She took the drink and downed half of it in one slug. ‘Damn, that’s good,’ she said.
‘How’s she coming along?’ Manos asked.
Nikki frowned, heat flooded her body, and she took another slug of the beer.
‘The boat,’ Manos clarified, pointing to a large hole in its side that still sat, untouched. ‘Lot to do,’ he stated, biting on the toothpick in his mouth.
‘We’ve got some shutters to repair too,’ she said with a coy smile, her eyes indicating to the panels resting against the back wall of the workshop.
‘Aye,’ Manos quipped. He sucked through his teeth and twiddled the toothpick.
‘I said we’d help. She’s got a lot of work to do if she’s going to bring the house up to scratch,’ Nikki said.
‘Thought you were going to stop her selling,’ Manos said, matter-of-factly. He sipped at the clear liquid in his glass.
Nikki locked onto his calm, soft eyes. ‘I know,’ she said. He just smiled sweetly, approvingly.
‘Need any help?’ he asked, turning to the panels and studying them. ‘They all this bad?’ he asked, with a chuckle.
‘Can you help me shift them? If I can work up at the house I will, but some will need repairing here,’ she explained.
Manos nodded, twiddled the toothpick again and sipped from his glass. ‘Anything else?’ he asked, knowing there would be more to it than a few shutters in need of repair.
‘External walls; internal painting,’ Nikki replied with a tilt of her head. She sipped from the bottle and wiped the sticky sweat from her forehead.
‘Anything else?’ Manos continued.
‘Yeah, need to pick up more wood for this. Might have to get it from Lefkada,’ she said, appraising the inside of the boat, below her feet. ‘There’s no rush,’ she said, with a shrug.
‘How’s she doing then?’ he asked, referring to Ariana, with genuine concern.
Nikki’s eyes wandered with her thoughts. ‘Depends, I guess. She’s chilling out, a bit. Two-steps forward, one step back,’ she offered, her eyes scanning the sky.
‘Hmm! Shame to see her so withdrawn and… so uptight! She was always so light-hearted, high-spirited, mind,’ he said with a warm chuckle, ‘Like her mother,’ he added, with more than a hint of fondness.
‘Teresa, high spirited!’ Nikki challenged, shaking her head. As far as she could remember, the woman was stuck up, aloof, and hell was she uptight.
‘Teresa wasn’t always that stressed,’ he said, with affection. ‘When she was younger, she was good fun,’ he said, his eyes sparkling and his cheeks flushing with his recollections.
Nikki studied him curiously and smiled. ‘You had a soft spot for Teresa?’ she asked, her grin broadening.
‘Aye. A long time ago, mind,’ he said, with a tilt of his head.
Nikki chuckled. ‘Well I never knew,’ she remarked, tickled by the idea of Pops having a crush on someone. He’d never had a lady friend in all the time she’d known him. Then again, neither had she! Manos had been her father’s best friend, as had their father’s before them, and had a small share in the Kefalas business. When her parents died, he had taken guardianship of her and managed the businesses held in trust for her. They had had each other, and they had the taverna, the boat restoration, and the harbour management, and it worked.
He raised his hand as if to brush her off, in a jovial manner. ‘Long time ago,’ he said, sucking on the toothpick.
‘We’re going fishing tonight,’ Nikki said.
‘Aye,’ he replied, but he seemed to have wandered, and his focus was with another place and time. His white-haired face twitched, and his eyes shone.
She smiled.
*
Nikki sauntered across the sand, laden with her fishing gear and an extra rod. The sun sat low in the evening sky, shards of orange and red lazing on the horizon, and in places, the water looked as black as death. Heading to the rocks below the white house, a halo of white hovered above the rose garden. She smiled at the thought of Sophia’s on-going presence at the house and then started to chuckle. She was still smiling when she reached the rocks.
Ariana walked hastily down the path, heading for the water’s edge, her heart racing and her stomach tight. She didn’t know whether she felt nervous or excited, but she knew why. She had sat on the balcony for hours, working through the pros and cons of being with Nikki. There weren’t too many cons, but one of them was a big one. But that didn’t seem to make sense to her heart, which ignored the logical, rational approach entirely. The lightness and ease she felt around Nikki made her feel safe, secure. She hadn’t felt any pressure or rushed in any way since she’d arrived. She couldn’t remember the last time she had felt so at peace, if ever. In just three days it was as if some magical transformation process had taken place, and yet, she still hadn’t solved the real problem.
‘Hey.’ Ariana started chuckling. Nikki was chuckling. She didn’t know why they were chuckling and it didn’t matter. The sound of Nikki’s happy, giggly laughter was enough.
‘Hey. Have you seen that?’ Nikki asked, pointing up to the light hue over the rose garden above them.
Ariana looked up.
‘She’s watching you know,’ Nikki remarked, with a wry smile.
Ariana gazed at the sight. ‘I do believe she is,’ she said, with fondness. Suddenly struck by a wave of sadness, ‘I wish I’d seen her before she died,’ she said, softly.
Nikki reached out, placed a hand on Ariana’s shoulder. ‘She understood, you know,’ she said, reassuringly.
Ariana nodded. ‘Are we set then?’ she asked, switching her attention to the task of fishing.
‘Take this,’ Nikki said, handing her a rod. ‘You remember how to fish?’ she asked.
Ariana smiled mischievously. ‘I bet you…’ She paused, pondered an appropriate wager.
Nikki was laughing loudly. ‘I’ve had a few years practise you know.’
‘Twenty Euros?’ Ariana dared.
Nikki held out her hand. ‘Deal,’ she said.
Ariana shook it. En
joying the feel of Nikki’s fingers wrapped around her own, she continued to hold Nikki’s hand until Nikki released her. She coughed lightly to clear her throat, grabbed the pole from Nikki and stepped across the rocks. Finding a suitable spot, she eased the rod back and then whipped it forward, the reel spinning and the line unfolding.
‘Three-seconds,’ Nikki remarked, commenting on the time it had taken for the float to land. She chuckled, fixed her line, found her spot, and cast out. ‘Four seconds,’ she said, for Ariana to hear.
‘Twenty Euros,’ Ariana said, holding back a laugh. Nikki grinned.
Ariana rested her rod against the rocks and sat, drawn by the setting sun more than the bobbing float. In truth, the chances of them catching much would be slim. It wasn’t like their expeditions out at sea when they were younger, but it was still fun. ‘What’s it like living here?’ she asked, out of the blue.
Nikki startled. She didn’t quite know how to answer the question. Island life, with trips to the likes of Lefkada, which was just a bigger island, was pretty much all she knew, and it suited her. ‘I like it,’ she replied. ‘What was it like in London?’ she asked.
‘Not like this,’ Ariana said, glancing at the thin red line that represented the last of the setting sun. The soft whooshing of the waves was a stark contrast with the cacophony of noises on the City streets, the rumbling and grating of steel heard in the underground, and the ever-present oppressive fog of pollution. ‘This is so much more relaxing,’ she said, softly, the lightly salted air, fresh and enlivening, sitting on her tongue.
‘I guess,’ Nikki said. She had never thought of it as relaxing or otherwise. It was home. The pace of life was what it was. There was nothing to rush for, unless there was an accident of course, or someone was seriously ill, but even those events happened rarely. ‘I don’t have anything to compare it with,’ she added, having never lived anywhere else for any length of time.
‘Would you ever leave here?’ Ariana asked.