Charming: A Modern Day Sexy Cinderella Story (20 page)

Stars. I see stars. I’m so high, I can see them, touch them, pluck them right from the sky and hold onto the light I’m seeing forever. “Asher!” I yell his name, mindless with passion. He’s there with me every step of the way, riding it out, making sure I feel every last drop of pleasure he pulls from me.

When he rises above my body and looks down at me, his eyes are the darkest blue I’ve ever seen them. Full of desire, I’ve never seen anything so beautiful and I know I’ll desperately try to find a shade of something, anything, that will match it so I can remember it when I’m gone.

Working to catch my breath, I smile lazily at him, “That was…”

“Amazing? The best ever? Astonishing? Exciting? Brilliant?”

“Okay, okay,” I cut him off with a laugh, “You’re right. It was all of those things.”

“For me too,” he says and leans down to place a light kiss against my nose. His hardness is pressed against my thigh and my brow furrows. Running my hands down his chest and to his stomach, I intend to brush the front of his briefs and ask to return the favor, but before I can do so, he shakes his head. “Not tonight.”

“But, why?”

“I wanted tonight to be all about you. We’ll talk more tomorrow. For now, I just want to hold you in my arms until we fall asleep. Okay?”

“Okay.” We move onto the pillows and his arms wrap around me. I’ve never ever had an experience with a man where all they cared about was taking care of me. It seems I’m experiencing some firsts with this man, and it feels amazing. I feel, safe, happy and content in his arms.

I feel beautiful.

When I wake the next morning, it’s to find Asher already dressed and sitting on the side of the bed. “Hey.”

“Hey,” he smiles and he’s looking at me in a way I can’t decipher, but I like it.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“I was going to in another half hour or so if you didn’t wake on your own. There was no need to get you up before I had to.”

“Why are you up already?”

“I couldn’t sleep, had some business to deal with, and I needed to arrange our day.”

“Yeah? What are we going to do?” In response he simply shrugs and gives me a mischievous look. “You’re not telling me again?” I push my lower lip out and pout but he’s unfazed and only reaches out and grabs my lip.

“Nope. I like surprising you.”

“Well, I was thinking-”

“Uh-oh, that sounds ominous.”

His cheesy retort deserves one of my own so I stick my tongue out at him and he tries to grab that too. I smack his hand away playfully. “Very funny. But seriously, I was thinking that maybe we should do something with your friends this week too. I know you said they probably don’t even notice that you’re gone, but we both know that’s not true.” His expression gives no inkling to his thoughts yet, so I press on, “I don’t want them to be angry that I’m taking up all of your time. We can meet them for dinner maybe, or by the pool again, or go into town, whatever you want. It’s up to you. But I don’t think you should alienate them for some chick you’ve only known a short time and will only be with for one week.”

His nostrils flare and his jaw tightens and he looks rather annoyed. He gets control of his emotions quickly, but not before it’s clear how he feels and I think I’ve made a mistake bringing it up. I wasn’t trying to suggest he’s a bad friend or something, but when I’m not here, they will be. And who knows what they had planned for the week; plans that I interrupted. I don’t want to create any kind of dissension, so it’s the right thing to do. Or at least to offer. “We can do that I guess, although I don’t enjoy the thought of sharing you with anyone.”

“Oh, it won’t be that bad. What’s an hour or two of our time?”

“No, don’t say that. Time,” he begins, but stops and pulls me from bed standing me before him. Running his hands up and down my arms he’s looking to the side and I can almost see the thoughts trying to form in his mind. “Time is everything. Some people take it for granted, and some would give anything for more of it. For some their time is only beginning and others, it’s ending forever. Time is probably one of the most significant things we can own in our entire lives.”

“I never thought about it that way.”

“I didn’t either until I started feeling like I didn’t have a whole lot of time to myself. I’ve learned to appreciate it in a way I never had. Two hours of time we give to my friends matters. That’s one hundred and twenty minutes. It takes what…a moment for things to happen? An event to occur, a word to be said, an action you didn’t want to miss. Just one single moment in time could create a memory that lasts a life time, and I want to share all of those minutes and moments this week with you.”

There’s an ache in my chest at his words and if I could melt into a puddle on the floor, I would. Pressing my lips to his, I try to pour every emotion I’m feeling into our kiss. Everything I’m feeling and everything I’m not sure how to define. I kiss him gently on the lips, then the cheek, his chin, then back on his mouth once more. Pulling back I smile softly, “There, I gave myself a moment with you that I will always remember. Sweet kisses on the day I began to appreciate time in a way I never had before. Thank you for that. And, to be clear, I want to share every possible minute with you too,” I tell him honestly, not even realizing how much until that moment. “But I just want you to know that if you change your mind, I would be more than happy to share a little bit of our time with your friends. But only a little,” I smile.

“I’ll think about it.”

“Okay,” I nod, then change the subject. “Alright, so tell me. What the heck should I wear for whatever we’re going to do today?”

“What else? A swimsuit.”

Nodding, I go off to get ready. The whole time I can’t help but think about how I’m enjoying time with Asher. It’s jarring how close I feel to someone I’ve technically only met, even though it feels like we’ve known each other a while. It’s strange. We’re so compatible. And genuinely enjoy being together. If I had to leave tomorrow I’d be devastated. I’m glad we still have some precious time together because I’m not ready to even think about going home.

Once I’ve got my black suit on, I throw the sarong around my waist that Asher bought me and take a look in the mirror, admiring how it looks. How I look. After I slip on some silver flip-flops, Asher walks into the bathroom. I smile at him and he returns it, then checks his hair out in the mirror. Turning his head side to side, he begins styling it to perfection and I find myself momentarily staring, cognitive of how genuinely handsome he is.

Snapping out of it, I turn to do my own hair and pull it back into a sleek ponytail. When I’m satisfied, I grab the toothpaste and my toothbrush and run it over my teeth. I smile around the brush when Asher’s reflection in the mirror shows that he’s brushing his teeth too. There’s something intimate in the motions of getting ready together, side by side. We continue to embrace each other’s reflection, unable to stop smiling. I’m not even embarrassed when I have to spit.

As soon as we finish brushing our teeth Asher pulls me into his arms and kisses me with his minty mouth. “Are you sure you want to go out and not just stay here?” I ask him with a flirty smile.

Groaning he runs his hands over my back and grabs my bottom. “Don’t tempt me.”

Laughing, he takes my hand, “You look great. You ready to go?”

“Yes, do I need anything?”

“Nope. I’ve got everything taken care of.”

Asher leads me from the room and it isn’t long before our taxi pulls up at a marina. Boats are parked at a wooden pier as far as the eye can see. The ocean is to our right and to the left are quaint looking restaurants and shops, clearly a touristy area. Asher takes me to a restaurant called Tico’s which he claims has an excellent brunch. We’re seated at the window and given menus. One glance and my mouth waters while my stomach quietly emits a hungry growl. Given my love for cooking, I don’t eat out too often and I’ve already eaten out more on this vacation than I have in months. I’m loving it, although part of me is itching to get in the kitchen and create something.

After we order, Asher takes my hand and smiles. He opens his mouth to say something, but before he can I finally give voice to something on my mind. “Why didn’t you want to have sex last night?” I’m almost embarrassed for the way I blurt it out, but I’m so curious I hardly care what he thinks about my inquisition. I can’t wrap my brain around the fact that he didn’t want to get something in return for the pleasure he showed me – it’s an anomaly.

“Did you not enjoy last night?”

“You know that I did,” I smile shyly. “It’s just, I was ready and certainly willing to do more, and I guess I was surprised that you didn’t feel the same way.”

“You’re wrong, I do feel the same way, but I don’t want to push you into something you aren’t ready for.”

“Wait, are you not hearing me? I was more than ready. I
am
ready. I’m ready
right now.
We can forget eating and go back to our room if you want
.
” I know I’m sounding nuts but I can’t help it. Thankfully he laughs at my enthusiasm.

“Look, other than the night we were married, we haven’t spoken at all about what happened to you. And well… alcohol was involved that night, so we didn’t delve into the subject too deeply.”

“What happened to me? What are you talking about?”

“I’m referring to your ex.”

I don’t know why but of all the things he could say, that’s not at all what I was expecting. “What does he have to do with you and me?”

“Look, Ella,” he lets go of my hand to run it through his hair. “I know that you were hurt. And the fact is, it happened very recently. I would feel like the world’s biggest douchebag if I took advantage of that. I’m worried that you could sleep with me...again,” he adds with the flash of a smirk, “and regret it. I would hate that. For you and for me. It’s a risk I wasn’t willing to take last night, but it wasn’t the moment to talk about it.”

Seriously, who the hell is this guy? He’s the complete package - considerate, fun, intriguing, charming, and hot as hell. I’m completely taken back by his words and certainly not in a bad way. I’m bowled over that he’s even given thought to this, let alone that he would even care. I mean this is a summer fling - a rebound. I guess I never really took into account that he would be worried about my feelings. It takes me a few beats before I’m able to put coherent words together. When I do, I reach forward and take his hands. Blinking rapidly to keep the tears burning behind my eyes at bay, I shake my head in wonder, “I can’t even believe that you were worried about this.”

Frowning he squeezes my hands, “Why?”

“I don’t know, I guess I’ve never had a guy really consider my feelings before.”

“Never? Seriously?”

“No,” I shake my head as if it emphasizes my response. “Never.” I hesitate only briefly before I decide to dive in and lay it all out there. “You are only the third person that I’ve ever been with…intimately. And I don’t mean only as if that’s a bad thing, it’s just… well… I guess I’m trying to say that it isn’t as if I’m really experienced and the experience I’ve had isn’t the best.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I had a high school boyfriend and it wasn’t anything other than adolescent lust at its worst. We hooked up at a party. All of my friends had had sex already and I guess I gave into the pressure of thinking I should be having sex too. One night I was making out with a guy at a party and, I’ll spare you the details, but losing my virginity was an awkward moment of inept limbs, sloppy kisses, and inappropriate giggles. Definitely not an experience I cared to repeat.”

Laughing a little I look at Asher and see that he’s not laughing, he just looks, contemplative. Taking a deep breath I push on – discussing Jeremy with Asher was never even a thought in my mind, but I know that it needs to be done so that Asher understands. The fact that it’s something I need to do speaks to Asher’s character because this matters to him, so I find that it also matters to me. “Jeremy, my ex, was my college boyfriend, but we met through our fathers, ironically, even though mine was gone by that time. You see, his father worked with mine, and when my father died and left me the company, while I didn’t take it over immediately, I was still involved on a small scale until I graduated college. At a work function I attended, Jeremy was also there with his father; we started talking that night, and then began dating. His family loved my father, and I knew my dad valued Jeremy’s father – his was a name I’d heard before. So, a relationship with Jeremy was something that just… happened. But the truth is, it shouldn’t have. I realize that now. And I guess I knew it most of the time, but thought it might eventually evolve to something that my dad would have liked or wanted. It’s amazing how a little distance and well, finding out your ex got another woman pregnant, gives you validation.” I laugh bitterly, but Asher’s jaw only tightens in response.