Tamsin

by D J Cook

  “I know I should have called first to make sure this was okay, but I wanted to surprise you. I’ve brought our date to you. Also, I want to meet Theresa.” He smiled and looked to the ground shyly. “I want you to know I’m here for you, no matter what. Whether you need help with your mum, whether we are a thousand miles apart or even if we argue and fall out, I will always be there to try to make everything right again.”

  I looked at him, startled by the bouquet that lay on his bicep and in awe that he wanted to meet Mum. Aside from Mum and Liam, I hadn't had someone want to be there for me this much. He was fast becoming my rock. I did wish I’d known he was coming; I was wearing a grey sweatshirt and joggers that I’d thrown on once I got home from work.

  “My favourite colour, they are gorgeous. Thank you.” I pressed a kiss to his lips after looking lustfully at him for an uncomfortable amount of time, and invited him in, taking the flowers out of his muscled embrace. He placed his bag in the hall after asking for permission, even though he had no reason to.

  “Who is it?” Mum croaked from the living room.

  “Just me, Miss Cross.” Callum stepped in ahead of me and leant over and kissed her on the cheek. At the time, I didn’t know how Mum would feel. She hadn’t seen anyone in months.

  “You must be Callum. Please, call me Tessa. Tamsin hasn’t stopped talking about you. She goes on and on…” She laughed. Her wit was still intact, at least.

  “MUM!” I said dramatically, and picked up Callum's things from the hall to take to my room. It was like she enjoyed embarrassing me, like most mums. I took his leather bag and black suit jacket upstairs, and quickly dashed around my room to tidy it before he came up.

  Gayboy x

  21st May 2018

  [19:56]

  Callum kissed Mum on the cheek when he met her!!! Isn't he a babe?

  Liam responded quickly, telling me that Callum better not steal his Tess from him. I continued to pick up after myself, laying his bag on my bed, and hung his suit jacket on the wardrobe as I admired the soft material. A small leather book had slipped from the bag and onto the bed. A ribbon marked the latest page of what seemed to be a journal.

  It’s been a while since I have written in here. There was a time I never thought about another person. Days I longed for your touch. Months I wanted you to get in touch. Almost a year I searched for you. Maybe I still want you. I don’t know. I do know that I’m falling hard for someone else, though.

  I dropped the book in shock as Callum yelled my name from downstairs.

  “Coming,” I shouted back, my voice a little high pitched after reading his journal.

  Did he still want her?

  I shouldn’t have read it; I had invaded his privacy. I walked downstairs to find Callum sat snugly next to mum on the sofa. I wanted to ask him about the journal, but I couldn't. It was personal. I could barely look him in the eye.

  “Just prepping Mum’s food. Be right back,” I said awkwardly, desperate to excuse myself.

  “Do you want help?” Callum said, about to get up from his seat.

  “No, no. You stay there. Relax. I’ll be back in a bit.”

  I swiftly made my way into the kitchen feeling more flustered than ever, leaving the door ajar. I couldn’t help but eavesdrop. I could hear them talking about his parents. Callum told her about how his parents had both grown up in Crewe, and they were a similar age. His mum had gone to the same all-girls school as mine before she moved down south; they were just a couple of years apart. Mum loved to reminisce, so I knew she was happy. I could hear it in the tone of her voice. He was making her smile and laugh, something I’d struggled to do myself.

  I guess it’s okay to ask for help.

  “You should meet my parents. They would love to meet you. Well, they need to meet Tamsin, too.”

  “That would be lovely, and you are too kind, but I don’t think I’ll have the energy to meet them, not yet. I'm embarrassed you’ve had to see me like this to be honest. If only you could have seen me, as me, and not consumed by this monster.”

  “It's only me.” Liam could always be heard before he was seen. I opened the kitchen door to see Mum’s smile grow wider. He greeted mum in the usual way, with a high-five and a kiss on each cheek. I just hoped he wouldn’t do that to Callum, and knowing Liam, he would have. I glared at him from the kitchen as a warning, and he smirked at me. Callum rose from the sofa and wrapped his arms around Liam like they’d known each other for years.

  “Missed you, babe,” Callum said in a clear flirtatious way. He’d already figured Liam out. The way to my heart was food. The way to Liam’s was hot guy flirting.

  “Sickening.” I laughed and looked at them both.

  “You're just jealous. If you aren't careful, I'm stealing your man.” Liam touched Callum seductively on the arm. Naturally, Callum didn’t flinch, like he was used to all of the attention.

  “Not before I do.” Mum laughed.

  “Hey, there is plenty of me to go round. I won’t leave anyone out. Especially you, Tessa.” Callum held onto Mum’s hand. He was serious about her, and serious about us. I beamed knowing that Mum approved of him. I had my three favourite people all in the same room. I couldn’t have been any happier.

  “Did you open the card?” Callum asked with a cheeky smile as I shook my head. Callum led me to the kitchen where I lay the flowers ready to place in a vase. A white envelope was hidden snugly between the stems of the lilies, which I quickly opened.

  T. It’s time you took some time out and looked after yourself. That’s why I’ve booked us a weekend at a spa retreat. It’s not until October, but I want you to know I’m serious about us. Callum xxx

  I was wrong. Three of my favourite people in the same room, and then a weekend away with one of them. My happiness grew uncontrollably. Was it the words written on the card that made me smile, or the thought of spending time away with Callum alone? It felt almost too good to be true.

  Mum…

  Dread filled me as I realised I’d be away from Mum again, for a whole weekend this time. I couldn’t go; there was no way.

  “Don’t worry. Liam is going to be here with Tessa. You have nothing to worry about. It’s handled.” Callum could read me like a book. He must have seen the rush of anxiety on my face.

  Callum called Liam into the kitchen, and in he came, enthusiastically skipping and jumping. He took the card from my hands and placed it to one side.

  “Callum and I have been talking behind your back to organise this, and you had no idea. Step one of operation steal Tamsin’s man is complete!”

  “Why are we even friends?” I said, the sarcasm rolling off my tongue.

  “Because you love me. And I love you. There is no getting rid of me, hun. Besides, Tess and me are going to have so much fun she’ll not want you to come back.”

  “Haha. Dick.” I couldn’t help myself.

  All I had to do now was wait. Patience had never been my strongest skill. October couldn’t come soon enough.

  CHAPTER NINE

  October 2018

  You’ve got to be kidding.

  Not even a pinch could wake me from the dream-like surrounding I gaped at in awe. The pool glistened under the sun as the cool autumn breeze left ripples in the water. Buildings surrounded the pool, made up of columns two storeys high and wrapped in vines. A couple emerged fresh from the pool. Liam would have thought the guy was fit and probably would have pounced like a dog in heat.

  “Oh god.” I let out a small squeal as Callum placed his hands on my waist from behind. I hadn't noticed him coming out of the changing rooms. I didn’t understand how I’d got ready quicker than him.

  Probably too busy doing his hair.

  The clean white cotton gown hugged his skin perfectly, like it had been tailored to him. His slight tan seemed darker, and his skin looked clearer than ever. His black swimming shorts clung to his thighs. As much as I loved his tight white boxers, I also liked that now there was nothing concealing his modesty bu
t a thin piece of polyester.

  “It's just something else, isn't it, T?” I nodded in agreement.

  “You’re telling me. What are we waiting for? Let’s go enjoy it before we go back to our room.”

  “We’ve got all day. It’s only eleven am.” Callum laughed as I pulled him excitedly to the closest of the spa experience rooms. I shut the door, trying not to let steam out, and then sat watching it fill the room around us. I could barely make out the shape of Callum sat next to me. He moved closer and placed his hand on my thigh, kissing my cheek, which was covered in water droplets. In my opinion, the first room was the best and not just because of the kiss, but because the steam smelled like Vapour Rub and it unblocked my allergy prone nose. I could breathe.

  We continued visiting each experience room, walking clockwise around the pool, only a couple of minutes before the anticipation of the next room took over.

  “Shall we go in the pool now?” I asked quietly, surrounded by people relaxing in the sauna, overlooking the pool.

  “Not yet, T. I have another surprise. Come with me.” I put my gown on over my bathing suit, and followed him into an open, modern restaurant connected to the spa itself. We weaved our way around the tables in the restaurant to have someone greet us near the exit.

  “Reservation for Dunn.” It wasn’t often he used his last name. Damn, it was sexy.

  Callum Dunn. Tamsin Dunn.

  “This way, please.” A small suited man escorted us to a secluded purpose-built cabin nestled between the burnt orange trees. Falling leaves made the area look like something out of a fairytale. We perched on the cushioned chairs and curled up next to each other underneath a fur blanket to hide from the bitter October weather. Heaters buzzed with a glowing heat so we didn’t feel the cold at all.

  “Surprise!” Callum kissed me again as I watched the man pour fizz into the champagne flutes on the table, then disappeared to get us some menus.

  “Do you want to know the best bit? We're booked onto a Rasul Mud Treatment later. We can lie there and relax and spread mud on each other. Together. Naked.” He looked at me seductively. I wanted to jump on him, and feel the fur on our bare skin, but I couldn’t. Not with the waiter already on his way back to the table. That would have been awkward.

  “We have the food that you pre-ordered. Can I assume there are no amendments?” the waiter asked. Callum nodded kindly, still oozing a sense of authority. A platter of food arrived not long after, and the champagne continued to flow, poured by a waitress who continued to check up on us. Callum's eyes followed her as she left the cabin for the second time. She was hot; there was no denying it. Her short blonde hair sat just above her shoulders, and her figure was the perfect hourglass shape.

  “You aren't very subtle, you know?”

  Callum looked at me and I grinned at him.

  “What do you mean?” He squirmed.

  “I saw you checking out that blonde. It's okay, though. She’s gorgeous.” He looked at me, puzzled. I assumed he was wondering why I wasn’t having a go at him, or trying not to look turned on that I had called another girl hot.

  “I don’t know what to say. You aren’t jealous?”

  “Why would I be jealous? I’m sat here with you, aren’t I? Besides, jealousy does not look good.”

  “Noted. I’ll bear that in mind if I see you checking out another guy.” He laughed, wiping a nervous bead of sweat from his forehead. Once we’d finished our platter of food, and the waitress resisted coming in and filling our glasses, I led him to the pool. I decided to save my three-some remark for another time. I didn’t want him to spontaneously combust with excitement. It would have shown way too easily in those skimpy black shorts of his.

  “Shut up! As if they have water beds,” I exclaimed, bouncing on the balls of my feet as I prepared to jump on one of the beds. Callum climbed onto the one next to me, and once he had covered up, his hand reached out to grab mine.

  “You are gorgeous. You know that, right?” Callum smiled at me, and I knew if I could have seen myself, I would have looked bright pink. A section of hair fell in front of my face, sodden by the steam from the last room we’d surrendered ourselves to. I moved my hair to the place it seemed to belong, and his eyes followed my every movement. I couldn’t help but want him to climb onto me. The water beneath me moved my body in a certain rhythm and it tempted me to run my finger down the hem of his gown, grazing his abs until I met the top of his swimming shorts.

  “Now, that’s teasing,” he said as his shorts began to bulge. His face filled with disappointment as I took my hand away. I wanted to carry on, I did, but I knew the women only a few beds away would undoubtedly wake at an inappropriate time. I couldn’t resist temptation for long, though. My hand returned to his shorts and I continued to trace my finger across them. I could feel his excitement rising at the lightest of touches. I couldn’t help but continue to play in that one area, making sure his gown covered his modesty. The more I held back, the more I wanted him, and seeing the pleasure on his face encouraged me further.

  “Our room. Now,” I commanded. I didn’t need to beg. I had him in the palm of my hands.

  We lay in our circular bed, which stretched further than I could reach, yet we couldn’t have been any closer if we’d tried. The room was quirky, with pictures of animals dressed in suits hung precisely on the walls. My head rested on Callum's chest along with my hand, which was stroking his bare abdomen.

  “I’m having the best time here with you. Thank you.” I exhaled, lifting my head to kiss him for the thousandth time. I was smothering him with affection, but I didn’t care and he didn’t either. He was the first guy, in my experience, to want to show me how much he loved me. We pulled the cold duvet over us to cover our bare skin to help cool us down. Nothing could have made us separate, not even the sweat between us that I would usually have avoided by tucking the covers between our bodies.

  “Tell me about it.” He paused. “You're my weakness, my kryptonite. Do you know that?”

  “Isn’t a weakness something you want to get rid of?” I looked at him in horror.

  “Most of the time, yes. Everyone wants to become stronger and not have any weaknesses, but you aren't a weakness in the conventional sense. You affect me like kryptonite, but in a good way. You make me open up. I've told you things I’ve not told my closest friends. You affect me in a way I never thought was possible. I don’t ever want you to stop.” In my mind, I begged for him to never stop talking.

  “I love it when you speak romantic nerd to me.” I held him tighter than I had before. I couldn’t help but laugh and mock him a little.

  “Speaking of nerds… I brought my laptop with me.” Callum eagerly pulled out his laptop.

  Who brings work with them to a spa retreat?

  I rolled my eyes. He proceeded to plug an HDMI cable into the back of the hotel room TV and opened a collection of films. He really was a nerd.

  “I think the most important question I’m yet to ask you is Marvel or DC? Which do you prefer?” I hesitated, knowing it was a test. I’d always thought DC had the edge years before, but you couldn’t beat Marvel. Their films were something else. And then there was my love for Chris Evans as Captain America, though. I didn’t think I should tell him about that.

  “Old DC, new Marvel,” I said in an uncertain voice. Callum smiled at me.

  Did I pass?

  I must have been right, especially as he then went and put on Thor: Ragnarok. Chris Hemsworth was another hunk I wouldn’t have kicked out of bed, and I had to sit there trying not to imagine him all over me. Me, Thor and Callum all in the same room. I must have been dreaming.

  A dull hum from the room opposite woke me, with what must have been a vacuum cleaner banging on the skirting boards. I glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table, which read '12.30'. Light crept in between the gaps in the blinds. I hadn’t slept until the afternoon since the last time Liam and I had been to Tuesgay. Guilt choked me; we should have been making the most o
f the spa.

  “Clearly that ‘shhhh, we're sleeping’ sign we put on the door handle last night was a figment of our imagination.” I turned to Callum who was also awake. He smirked at me and kissed my forehead. I went in to kiss his lips, but he pulled away.

  What had I done?

  I racked my brain for a reason why he didn’t want to kiss me. I worried that I’d probably been screaming Chris Hemsworth's name in my sleep.

  “Sorry, T. I must have some rank breath at the moment.” He jumped up wearing nothing but his skin. I tried to pull him back onto the bed playfully, but I lacked energy and effort. He walked around the bed, teasing me unintentionally. I wanted him, bad breath and all. I reached to the floor for my phone to try to snap a picture, to find I had three recent missed calls from Liam.

  “Oh god, who's he slept with now?” I said to myself while the phone dialled out and rang continuously.

  “Liam is not available to take your call at the moment. Please leave a–” I hung up.

  I fell back into the pillows, my head sinking deep into them, and then scrolled through my phone when a picture of Liam flashed up as he returned my call. There was a lot of background noise, and Liam’s voice was muffled. I could hear voices I didn’t recognise in between sirens. I could hear sirens.

  “I didn’t want to call you, Tams, but you need to come home. I'm with your mum, and we're heading to the hospital.”

  I dropped the phone instantly, without responding. The smile that had lingered all weekend had disappeared. My world slowly came to a grinding halt, and there was nothing I could do. I was two hours away from home.