by Sharlay
“You like?” I ask.
“Yes, it’s beautiful. Look at all of the lights.” She smiles as she looks up at the spot lights on the roof of the car and the ones that frame the leather chairs. I glance over at the driver but realize he has put up the partition that separates us from him.
“Only the best for you.” I wink. “Champagne?” I ask grabbing the bottle from the cooler along with the two glasses sitting next to it. She smiles over at me and that is my signal to pour us both a glass. Once I am done I put the bottle back in the cooler and hand Ned her glass. She lifts it to her nose and sniffs. A satisfied smile fills her face before she takes a small sip. Her eyes meet mine again and I see something I’ve never seen before. She looks at me as if I am her world and damn does it make me feel like I just found a purpose to live.
“Can I ask you a question?” she says as she leans back in the seat.
I take her free hand and entwine it with mine. Placing both of our hands in my lap, I nod.
“You can ask me anything.”
She takes a deep breath as if she is suddenly nervous. “How do you do it? How do you love me knowing everything you do?”
She still doesn’t get it.
I stare at her for a moment before taking her glass out of her hand. I place both glasses in the little slots that were made for them and turn to her. “Come here,” I whisper. She slides toward me and I pull her onto my lap so she is straddling me. I wrap my arms around her waist and breathe her in for a moment. “What makes you love your parents, Ned?” I ask calmly. She looks puzzled and shakes her head.
“I don’t know,” she says shrugging her shoulders. “It comes naturally, I don’t have a reason … I just love them, I always have I guess.”
“That’s exactly the way I feel about you. I can’t explain the reason that I love you. It’s like asking me why I breathe … I do it to survive.”
She’s silent. Then she nods her head.
“I get it,” she whispers. “I just needed to know if you felt it too or whether I was going crazy.”
“You’re definitely going crazy, you’re just not going crazy by yourself,” I chuckle. She laughs.
“Well, misery loves company so why shouldn’t crazy,” she teases.
“Exactly.”
“Doesn’t it scare you?” she asks seriously.
“What?”
“Knowing it’s all going to come to an end,” she says sadly.
“It terrifies me,” I say honestly. “I hate that I never found you sooner but I’d hate it if I never found you at all.”
“Yeah,” she breathes.
“Are you scared?” I ask.
“Yes, not of dying but of knowing that I’ll never feel anything like this again.”
“That’s ridiculous,” I scoff.
“What?” she asks in confusion.
“Babe, do you honestly think that when I get to heaven I’m not coming to find you — well after I thank the big guy for letting me in of course. But after that, your ass better be prepared to spend an eternity with me because if I’m going to live forever then I’m going to spend every day of it seeing that smile.”
She kisses me. I love it when she kisses me first. I am so in love I should have my balls cut off.
“I love you,” I whisper against her lips. I feel her smiling against mine.
“I love you more.”
“Impossible,” I scoff. I slide my hands across the back of her dress leisurely. “Are you wearing floss panties again?” I ask closing my eyes.
“I am.”
“You have no idea what you do to me.”
“Actually, I can feel exactly what I do,” she giggles as she slides off my lap. Before I can reply the car door opens. I flash Ned a knowing smile before looking up at our driver.
“We have arrived, Mr. Cole.”
“Thank you,” I say before stepping outside. I lean down and take Ned’s hand. I pull her gently out of the car and hear her gasp.
“You brought me here,” she says taking a step forward and releasing my hand. I hold up a finger to the driver before stepping toward Ned.
“I did. What do you think?” I ask.
“Cole, you have just brought me to the most exclusive gallery in the whole of Paris. I can barely breathe let alone think,” she chuckles. “It’s beautiful but it doesn’t look open,” she says sadly.
“It’s not. Not to anyone but you anyway.”
“What?” She spins around to face me. “What do you mean?”
“I mean that you have exactly two hours to stroll through the gallery without a single soul getting in your way or making a noise.”
“How did you do it?” She breathes excitedly.
“I can do anything if I know it puts a smile like that on your face.”
She throws her arms around me and holds tight. “Thank you,” she whispers.
“Now you can check ‘visiting an art gallery’ off your bucket list,” I smile.
“I can,” she nods. I see the tears filling her eyes but I don’t mention them.
“Come on,” I say taking her hand in mine and pulling her toward the double glass doors.
“It’s so beautiful, Cole.”
“It is,” I agree as I look through the glass. I know for a fact there are paintings in this gallery that cost more than Ned’s entire penthouse. When we reach the door a tall man, dressed in a navy-colored suit waits for us. Not a single strand of his brown hair is out of place and a perfect smile greets us.
“Miss Waters?” he asks as we stop in front of him.
“Yes,” she says softly. He smiles warmly at her before his eyes meet mine.
“You are perfectly on time. Are you ready to come inside now?” he asks as his gaze meets with hers again. She turns to look at me and I nod at him.
“She is,” I answer before letting go of her hand. She stares at me in confusion. “This is as far as I go, babe.”
“I don’t understand?”
I nod in the direction of the gallery and she turns to follow my gaze. She gasps as her eyes land on Jackson who is already standing inside of the gallery waiting for her.
“What’s going on?” she asks perplexed.
“Tonight is about you, Ned. It’s about your dreams coming true. Go and enjoy your evening and make-up with your friend. You have a lot to talk about.”
“What about you?”
“I’ll be waiting for you when you come back to the hotel.” I smile genuinely.
“I don’t understand.”
“Understand that I trust you and I want you to be happy. This is only part one of your night, enjoy it.” I step closer and whisper in her ear, “but save back some energy because part two is all about you making up for spending time with Jerkson.” I stand back and smirk. She has the biggest smile on her face.
“Ok,” she says quietly.
“Two hours and then you’re mine.”
“Counting down the minutes.” She giggles.
“Me too.” I wink at her and then watch as the man leads her inside of the gallery. My eyes quickly meet with Jackson’s and I mouth the words thank you to him. He smiles at me before I turn around and head to the car.
“She seems happy, sir,” the driver says as I stand next to the car and watch as Ned embraces Jackson. The biggest smile is on her face and she is holding Jackson so tight that I’m surprised he can even breathe. Strangely it doesn’t make me want to rip him apart. I know that Ned’s heart is mine and if she feels even a fraction of what I feel then there is absolutely nothing that can change that.
“Yeah, she does, doesn’t she?”
I’ve been swimming around in the hotel pool for the last thirty minutes waiting for Ned to walk through the doors. Getting the pool to myself for two hours was as simple as shoving a little extra cash in Pierre’s pocket. Did I mention that this guy should be fired? I’m pretty sure that taking cash from the guests is against some sort of hotel policy.
I swim to the other side of
the pool again, immersing myself in the water. I’m busy thinking about how Ned’s night at the gallery is going when I see her standing by the door with a smile on her face. I scan her body and take a slow intake of breath as she stands there in a black bikini.
“You made it?” I smile.
She bites her lip and nods. “I found your note and Pierre was more than happy to let me in,” she says with a knowing look on her face.
“Care to join me?”
She nods her head. She steps cautiously into the shallow end. She stays where the water only reaches her hips. I swim toward her and place my hands on the edge of the pool, caging her in. “You ok?” I ask. She nods. “How was the gallery?”
I can see she is nervous about being in the water but the fact she did it for me feels so good.
“It was everything I imagined and more,” she says as if she is remembering the experience.
“And what about you and Jackson?”
“We’re good. Thank you for that. So does this mean that you two are finally getting along?” She smiles.
“Nope, but I’ll be amicable if that’s what you need. Plus he really came through for me tonight so I guess he earned some extra points.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“We’re in love with the same woman and I don’t share.”
“Neither do I,” she grins.
“Good because you’ll never have to. Now, do you trust me?” I ask seriously.
“I do.”
“Then come away from that wall.”
She shakes her head and I can see her face filling with dread. “I can’t,” she whispers.
“You can.”
“Just being in here makes my stomach tie into a thousand knots, Cole. I can’t swim, I’ve tried before and all it does is give me flashbacks of that day.” She stops to steady her voice. “I just don’t think I can.”
“What happened with your sister was not your fault, Ned.”
“I know that … it’s just the memories.”
“Then we’ll make new ones. Tonight we’ll make memories that make you smile every single time a drop of water touches your skin, I promise. Just trust me.”
She thinks for a moment before placing her arms around my neck. She holds me tight.
“You might want to loosen your grip if you want me to be able to breathe.”
“Sorry.”
“Close your eyes.”
“They’re already closed,” she replies nervously.
“I’m going to move backward slowly. Keep your eyes closed and don’t let go.” She nods against my shoulder. I take one step behind me, toward the middle of the pool. I can feel her heartbeat hammering against my chest and I hold her a little tighter. “I’ve got you, baby,” I whisper into her ear. I let my hand rub slowly up and down the middle of her back as I step back again. Her beating heart doesn’t slow down but I refuse to give up. “Do you really trust me?” I ask. She nods. “I need to hear you say it.”
“I trust you.”
“I need you to go back to the day Laura drowned.” Her whole body stiffens against me. “I want you to remember what was happening just before. Do you remember?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Tell me what’s happening. Describe it as if you are there now.”
“My mom hands us some bread crumbs and says we can feed the ducks. She tells us that she feels a little dizzy and is just going to sit on the bench. The bench isn’t far, she can still see us. Her face is so pale but she still manages to smile. I know she doesn’t want to say we have to go home and spoil our fun.” I keep stepping back farther into the pool. The water is getting deeper. “She tells me to keep an eye on my sister. She says that I’m a big girl now and she trusts me to do it. I feel so responsible. She tells me to make sure we stay away from the edge, I nod my head and then she walks over to the bench where my father is setting up our picnic. I turn my eyes back to Laura. I smile because she is having so much fun throwing the bread crumbs to the ducks. She giggles, every time they eat a piece of bread she’s thrown. She’s wearing a yellow dress and she keeps spinning around and saying that she looks like an umbrella.” She smiles at this thought.
“What else?”
“I shout to her to stop spinning and stay away from the edge. She nods her head and then starts throwing the crumbs again.”
“What kind of day is it?”
“Hot.” She takes a deep breath. “My hair keeps sticking to my brow and I have to keep peeling it off. It’s annoying.”
“Then what?”
“I keep my eye on Laura. I’m doing so well but it’s one of the hottest days in summer and there are so many flies. One of them starts buzzing around my head. I keep swatting it away but it won’t stop. Then I’m running around to get away from it. It chases me. I can hear Laura in the background, laughing. She’s watching me fight the fly. The more I fight the louder she laughs. I catch a glimpse of her pretending to swat away a fly like me and she just keeps laughing and laughing and then the laughing just stops. It’s not gradual … it doesn’t make sense … it just stops. Suddenly I get the strength to hit the fly hard. I see the ripples of water and I just know. I know she has fallen in. I look back up at my mom and dad. Pops is still setting up the picnic and Mom has her head in her hands trying to block out the sunlight. I know that if I can just get Laura back before either of them notices then it will all be ok. I jump. I don’t realize that jumping in the water will hurt but it does.” She’s shaking now. “The water is so cold against my skin and my body refuses to get used to the temperature. I open my eyes and try to find Laura but the water is so brown and I can’t see her. My eyes are burning. I flap my arms over and over again but I never seem to go in the right direction. I shout her name and suddenly my mouth is filled with water. I start to panic and I lose control. I’m sinking. Everything is getting darker. I’m down there for so long. I don’t know how to find my way back up and then I feel a strong grip on my arm. At first, I think something is trying to eat me and I start thrashing violently but then I am pulled to the surface and I realize that it’s Pops. He swims to the edge and my mother pulls me into her arms. But I can’t see Laura, and Pops has disappeared under the water again. He keeps coming up and then disappearing but all I can think is that I can’t see Laura.” She’s crying now and her voice has sped up. “I try to jump out of my mother’s arms and back into the lake. I’m screaming my sister’s name and shouting at my mom to let me go but she holds on tighter. I’m so mad. I keep slamming my fists against her chest and demanding that she lets me go but she never does. I still can’t see Laura.”
She’s a mess. Her body has collapsed in my arms and I start to wonder if my method is even going to work but I keep pressing on.
“Remember that moment; remember the fear of the water, Ned. Can you?”
“I can,” she almost screams.
“Good, because this is the last time you are ever going to think about it whether you get into a pool, a lake or even an ocean for that matter. It’s the last time. Every bad memory the water triggers is about to be replaced. When you get into water from now on you’re going to think about the way my hands feel as they glide across your wet skin.”
I step back slightly and trace my fingers down the length of her stomach. She shivers but it’s not out of fear.
“You’re going to remember the feel of my lips on your neck.” I press my lips against her skin and hold them there for a moment. “Focus on it, Ned,” I whisper. Then I start to trail soft kisses down her neck, all the way to her collarbone. I kiss along her shoulders and down her chest. I speak slowly against her skin.
“Do you feel that?” I ask. She nods. “Good, don’t open your eyes until I tell you. I need you to focus on everything that you feel, ok?”
“Ok,” she whispers.
I bring my lips up to her mouth and press them gently against hers. I slip my hand to her back and slowly pull at the string that is holding her bikini top together whi
le walking us deeper into the pool. When the water is just covering her breasts I stop moving. I watch as the material falls apart before pulling it away from her skin and watching it float on the surface of the water. She gasps as the water touches her bare breasts. I slowly slip the edges of her bikini bottoms down and watch her face as her breath hitches. She is so damn beautiful. I slip my tongue inside of her mouth and explore every inch of it. My touch glides and slips in every gap until I pull away to give us some air. I let my head lean against hers. “Step out of them,” I whisper. I look down — through the water — as she steps out of her bikini bottoms. They sit somewhere at the bottom of the pool but my attention is back on her face.
“Still trust me?” I ask.
“With my life,” she whispers.
That’s all the encouragement I need. I tighten the hold I have around her waist and pull her closer to me if that’s even possible. I slip my free hand under the water and down between her thighs. Her lips part in a gasp. I stand still in the silence and just watch her as the anticipation drives her crazy. Her tongue darts out to wet her lips slightly and then I start moving my fingers. Slowly. Agonizingly slow. Her thighs tighten around my hand but that doesn’t stop me. She bites down on her lip as slow pants leave her mouth. I don’t say a word and I don’t move a muscle other than the hand between her thighs. Moments pass as her gasps and moans fill the room. She is gripping the arm that is holding her up. Her nails are digging into the flesh but none of it matters.
Her head falls into the dip of my neck and as my hand moves faster her breaths come out quicker and raspy. I feel the heat from her mouth against my skin as her body tries to sink deeper into the water. But I never let it. I hold her up, never letting her sink below the surface.
“Cole …” She whispers my name and it is almost my undoing. I want to tear my hand away and sink myself deep inside her but this moment isn’t about me. This isn’t about my pleasure. This is about her. Everything is about her.
Her voice gets louder as she repeats my name into the empty air over and over again. Her head falls back in pleasure and I cover her mouth with mine, muffling the sounds coming from deep within her. My hand moves faster and I feel the exact moment when she loses all control. She pulls away from my mouth and screams my name. Her legs become jelly and she starts shaking involuntarily. I slip my hand from between her thighs and wrap it around her waist. I hold her up, never letting her go. Her head rests on my chest as she gets her breath back. When her breathing has slowed down and she is standing up again, I rest my lips against her ear.