I will myself to stop giggling, but I can’t help it. I feel like such a floozy.
We turn before we reach the pavement and start heading back the way we came. His arm drops from my shoulder but he remains close as we walk silently along the yellow sand. The air bites at the skin where his arm kept it sheltered moments ago.
I want his arm back.
“We’re going to meet at this spot…” He stops us again after a few minutes of peaceful walking and stamps his foot on the sand before throwing his arm out to show me the area. “At the same time tomorrow.” He leans in, dipping his head so his eyes catch mine. “Is that okay with you, Gwenny?”
“Don’t you want my number?” I’m sure that’s the normal way to do things.
He shakes his head. “I have a feeling I’ll get an apologetic text. I figure if you don’t have a way to let me down, you won’t.”
“Crafty.” I grin. He seems to be good at reading people because that sounds exactly like something I would do. “I like it.”
“Good, come on. Ice cream. My treat.”
“You’re not dressed,” I announce, pointing at his dark blue, flower motif shorts and lack of shirt.
He seems to contemplate this for a moment before his mischievous eyes come back to mine. “You don’t miss a beat, do you?” I shrug in response. He continues. “You have the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen.”
Throb. Throb. Throb. Goes my heart.
“W… what does that have to do with you being half naked?” I stammer, trying to calm my heated self.
“If me being half naked means I get to have your eyes on me like they are now, I’ll never get dressed again.”
A giggle pushes up and out and I swing my face to the side, letting my hair be a partition between us. He brushes it behind my ear, his smile back. His scent is still strong and the warmth from his body is making my virginal self heat in ways that would make a nun blush.
“So… ice cream?”
“Sure.”
“I know a great place just up there near the rocks; we won’t even have to leave the sand.” His head dips and his eyes twinkle with humour. “It’s a public area of course.”
“I’d like to, thank you.”
He takes me for ice cream and sits across from me on the sand. Every so often he feeds me some of the chocolate treat on the end of a wafer. It’s cute; he’s cute. This situation is so surreal. Things like this just don’t happen to me. I’m nothing special. I’ve always been practically invisible to the opposite sex, so this is a totally new experience. I’m not sure if it’s my naivety, innocence or lack of experience that is making me fall so easily for him.
He’s so sweet and charming and happy. Being around him makes me feel as he feels. His smile and laughter are contagious, his clear love for life even more so. If he asked me right now to jump out of a plane with him for the adrenaline rush, I’d do it. He’s dangerous, he’s addictive and every second I spend with him I lose a piece of my heart and attach it to his.
My mum would probably freak out if she knew how easily I’ve wandered off with a man I barely know and even accepted food from him. It’s not a safe thing to do but for some reason I trust him. Even though I probably shouldn’t, I do. He has yet to take me out of a public space.
He’s so charming and friendly, not to mention completely gorgeous. Ridiculously so.
I’ve never been much of a giggler but he makes me giggle… a lot. Too much. I must look like an idiot.
Every time he gets a happy response from me he smiles wide, looking proud of himself.
“It’s getting late. I’m going to walk you to your street,” he states and holds out his hand for me to take. I do. “And then I’ll meet you at the same place tomorrow. If you don’t show, there are no hard feelings.”
Oh I’ll show. I’ll definitely show. “Okay. And if you don’t show…”
He puts his finger over my lips. “Don’t speak such nonsense. I’ll show.”
This warms my heart to dangerous temperatures.
We walk hand in hand along the cracked pavement, finally stopping five minutes later on the corner of my street.
His hand skims up my arm and cups the back of my neck as he brings our laced fingers up to press against his chest. “Tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow,” I gulp and shudder as his lips touch my cheek. He releases me, much to my disappointment, and starts walking back towards the beach. I see him smile at me over his shoulder before I turn on my heel and run to my house.
“Mum!” I shout as I race through the door, up the stairs and throw myself on my bed. My phone, which has been charging for the day, lights up the second I swipe my finger across the screen. I’m unsurprised to see a lack of notifications. My list of friends is a short one.
“What?” She snaps and enters my room looking tired and irritated. “What is it?”
“I met a guy!” Grinning, I cross my legs beneath me and hold a pillow tight to my chest, forgetting about my phone and lack of social life. “Mum, he’s absolutely gorgeous.”
She rolls her eyes. “Good for you. Don’t get pregnant.” She slams my bedroom door behind her.
Note to self: don’t wake mum up to tell her about guys after she’s been on a night shift. It may piss her off.
My mum can be a bit of a bitch at times, but what mum can’t? Sure she loves me, but mostly I’m an inconvenience. I know she’s provided for me all of my life and I know she’s proud of me for living the life she wanted but never had. She works hard for it too; it’s not like I’m fending for myself. I want to go to university when I finish college. I finish in the summer and I’ve been accepted to a few universities nearby. The problem I have is money. I’m getting student loans but I don’t want to get a high amount and put myself in a ton of debt.
As it is, my mum and I are working our butts off to save up for my time in University, not only my living expenses but my class expenses too.
I get an hour’s nap, have a shower and get ready for work. Tonight I’m working at Chicago’s, which is a club in town. Tomorrow I’m at a cafe for the better part of the morning and then I’ll be at the beach with Caleb.
A busy night and a busy day. Brilliant.
******
I’m sitting on the sand enjoying the breeze when I feel him sit beside me. “You came.” Why do I hear relief in his voice and an undertone of shock?
“Of course I did,” I tell him, like any other option would be abhorrent. It would have been. There was no way I was standing him up, even though I know that this can’t go anywhere. I don’t want to miss my chance to get to know him better.
We sit in silence for a moment and watch the waves hit the shore.
His hand slowly closes over mine. “You look lost in thought.”
“I’m just tired.” I prove it by yawning.
“Would you like to go home?”
“No.” Honestly I wouldn’t. I want to stay here forever. I feel comfortable, happy. “What’s your last name?”
“Are you profiling?” He jests and I tap him on the arm playfully. “Oh dear, we have an abuser! Medic! Medic.”