Loving David (8 page)

“Huh. That doesn’t sound half bad,” Charlotte muttered, surprised. David started to sing along, and Charlotte was impressed not only that he knew the song but also by his singing voice, which was actually pretty good.

“Well, that’s a little before your time. So you like old songs, huh?” Charlotte asked.

“I like classics,” David clarified as he picked up a dish to start drying it. “Like I told you, my dad gave me real appreciation for music.
Good
music.”

They continued
with their task, the ancient transistor radio spitting out everything from the Beach Boys to Jerry Lee Lewis to Elvis Presley, a lively soundtrack to the drudgery of scouring the kitchen. David knew the lyrics to every song and even provided her with a few bits of trivia. Before long the kitchen started to sparkle again, what with the abundance of dishes, wine, and music, they were getting a little slap-happy. “The Twist” came on and David twirled Charlotte’s hips from side to side, both in hysterics by this point. Just as they managed to settle down a bit, the unmistakable strains of “You Really Got a Hold on Me,” poured through the radio. David yanked Charlotte to him.

“Come on! Dance with me.”

Before she knew it, their bodies had melted into one another with ease. His breath, pungent with the tang of wine and chicken, was hot against her ear. Charlotte inhaled his scent, the sheer joy threatening to make her crumple to the floor. Sensing her near collapse, David put one arm around her waist and held her hand against his chest. They began to sway in time to the music, though the truth was the only sound Charlotte could hear was the beating of his heart. She closed her eyes and let him move her around the little kitchen.

“You’re very tall,” Charlotte whispered.

“And you are not,” David replied.

They continued to move, and David was careful to lead her so that her rhythm matched his. She felt the tip of his nose burrow in her hair.

“Strawberries,” he said.

“Strawberries,” she responded as she ran her hands up and down the length of his arms. The soft skin she felt beneath her fingers belied the massive strength rippling under the surface. The song ended, and David pulled away and bent down to look at her face.

“I think we’re done in here.” he said, his voice whisper-soft.

“Agreed.”

David turned the radio off and flipped the switch to the kitchen lights. David grabbed her hand, and she tried to keep her grip light, afraid of scaring him off by squeezing too hard. They arrived at the cabin, and as Charlotte reached into her pocket for the key, David stopped her.

“What? What’s wrong?”

David stayed one porch step below Charlotte so they were eye-to-eye. Fireflies buzzed around David’s head like a halo, and the lights from the moon cast a warm glow across his chiseled face.

“Charlotte,” David whispered, his finger trailing up her arm, sending a tingle up her spine. She gulped.

“Yes?

“May I kiss you?” he asked, the words tumbling out like coins dropping into a slot.

Charlotte blinked, certain she hadn’t heard that right. Why would he want to kiss her? He was gorgeous, one of the most beautiful creatures of this or any world. Not to mention she was almost fourteen years older than he was and looked
nothing
like those magnificent blonde gazelles she often saw glued to his arm in magazines. She wasn’t a great beauty, and she’d always been proud of her age. Now they were both staring her in the face like the drop on a 500-foot- high roller coaster. Suddenly she felt like an awkward, gangly teenager scared and unsure of herself. God, she hated feeling this way.

“Charlotte,” David repeated.

“Why?” she asked.

David recoiled. “What do you mean ‘why’?”

“Why do you want to kiss me?” she asked.

“Why
wouldn’t
I want to kiss you?” he laughed, puzzled. “You’re a beautiful, amazing woman, and I’m dying to know what it feels like to kiss you.” He pulled her by the elbows closer to him. “I’ll ask you again. May I kiss you?”

Charlotte took a deep breath, her teeth trembling. “Yes. Kiss me.”

David slid his hands around Charlotte’s face and held them there for what seemed like a lifetime. He began to move toward her, but Charlotte was impatient. She leaned in and took his lips in hers. Their tongues swirled around each other in sexy, dreamy circles. Much like their dance in the kitchen, David slowed Charlotte’s movements to match his own, as he teased her with long languid kisses and more sensual nibbles. Charlotte’s insides were like runny chocolate oozing out of her toes. She’d forgotten what it was like to feel this way. Had she ever felt this way? David pulled back, his lips shining in the moonlight. Fumbling for the doorknob, Charlotte flung the door open, and David gave her a gentle push inside, planting yet more soft kisses across her lips. They kept the lights out.

“Drink?” he asked.

Charlotte swallowed, various and sordid thoughts bouncing around her head like rogue pin balls. “I don’t know. I’m trying to keep my head on straight,” she murmured.

David took her hand and traced the lines of her palm with her fingertips. “Drink or not, my head’s a little potty as well.”

“Your head’s what?”

“Ah, potty,
potty
----like loopy, out of sorts.” He cupped her face in his hands again. “God, I love kissing you,” he said as he drew her into another soulful kiss. Finally he planted a kiss on her forehead and smiled. Charlotte felt her knees buckle, and as she looked into those perfect emerald eyes she dissolved into goo. She pulled away from him, her breath ragged.

“I need a minute,” Charlotte said as she sat down on the couch, her whole body a mass of Jell-O. David joined her.

He reached out and rubbed her shoulder, the gesture sending another shock through Charlotte. “Why don’t you turn in and sleep on it, Charlotte? I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable about anything. Your friendship is too important to me.”

“You kiss all your friends like that?”

“The ones I want to keep.”

“You have referred to me as your ‘friend’ quite a bit these past few days. You really think we’ll keep in touch after we leave here?”

As soon as the words slipped out, Charlotte wished she could grab them and stuff them back in her mouth. She sounded like a high school girl who worries that Johnny won’t call her after she made out with him in the backseat of his convertible.

David cocked his head to the side, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. He touched the side of her face. “I knew I made a lifelong friend the minute we met. The fact that you didn’t mace me sealed the deal.”

They both chuckled before Charlotte resumed her serious tone. “David, I don’t want you to get the wrong idea about me. I’m not like the women in my books. I haven’t been in a relationship in a while…a long while. I don’t consider myself a sexy, steamy lover type.”

He put his finger over her mouth to shush her. “I am well aware of who you are,” David replied. “Besides, I’m not the suave action guy, go-all-night Romeo you see on the screen. I haven’t been in a relationship in quite some time either.”

Charlotte looked at him, stunned. “Shut the front door.”

“I’m quite serious.” He picked up her hand again. “Listen; what I do know about you is that you are a kind, smart, and funny woman who I want to get to know better. I know there is something between us, and I know you feel it too. But if it makes you feel uncomfortable taking it further, we won’t.”

Charlotte shook her head, still reeling from this turn of events.

“What?” he asked.

“I’m just going to spit this out.”

“Go ahead,” he replied, unsure of what to expect.

She took a deep breath and plunged in. “David, I’m forty-three. I’m
nothing
like the women you’re used to dating. I don’t wear sexy lingerie ---- boxer briefs and tank tops are my preferred sleepwear. Bras irritate me. I snore; I shave my armpits and legs every few days ----if I remember. My idea of a romantic evening is to stay home, watch a movie, and be in bed by nine. I don’t go to bars; I
don’t
sleep around. I find most people your age annoying and spoiled. I’m set in my ways and never in my wildest dreams did I expect someone like you to show up in my life. If I had known you were coming; I would’ve dropped a few pounds, and truthfully… I never thought of myself as getting old until I met you. Kissing you excites me to no end and makes me want to run screaming at the same time.”

Charlotte realized she was rambling, and she snapped her mouth together to make herself shut up. She looked at David, waiting for a response.

Nothing.

“David?”

He stared at her.

Charlotte’s heart jack-hammered against her chest. “David? Say something.”

More silence. Charlotte realized he’d pressed his mouth into a thin line, and even in the moonlight he looked mad. Furious, in fact.

David unfolded himself from the couch and stood over her, his voice shaking as he spoke in careful, measured tones.

“Most people my age irritate me too. I couldn’t care less how old you are. I would bet money I snore ten times louder than you do. Sexy lingerie
is
a huge waste of money because you usually have it on only for a minute or two. And believe it or not, I don’t sleep around either. And why would you comment on your weight? Do you think that because I’m an actor I’m only attracted to toothpicks? Most of the actresses I work with look ill. Don’t forget the camera adds ten pounds, so can you imagine what I look at all day? Skeletons…who wants to make love to a skeleton? And Charlotte, I don’t care if you’re fat, skinny or somewhere in between. I want you because I think you’re smart and strong and brave and funny and fun. I hate to think that I may have brought out your insecurities because of who I am. If your appearance and your age didn’t bother you before I came around, then I guess you think I’m pretty damn shallow.”

David stopped, realizing he was ranting as she had. He took a deep breath and brushed a chunk of hair out of his eyes.

“I need some air,” he spat as he turned on his heel and stormed out the door.

“David! David, wait!” Charlotte jumped off the couch and ran after him. But it was too late.

He was gone.

CHAPTER 4

Charlotte stared at herself in the bathroom mirror and sighed. It had been a half hour since David had fled the cabin, and Charlotte was worried and mad at herself. Why had she opened her big mouth anyway? It was a trait that had irritated Ben and had been pointed out by more than one well-meaning friend. As Charlotte half-heartedly brushed her teeth, she realized David was right; deep down she
had
thought he had to be shallow and concerned only with how a woman looked, not who she was. Charlotte pulled her ponytail holder out of her hair and with methodical strokes ran her brush through the liberated curls. Charlotte let out another sigh before she ran a tube of gloss across her lips.

It was the damn age difference that was screwing with her head. It didn’t seem to bother him, so why did it bother her? He was acting more grown up than she was at the moment. Charlotte snorted as she made her way back in the living room. She leaned against the window frame and spotted his moonlit silhouette sitting near the lake. She placed her palm against the cool glass.

“He must be freezing,” she murmured to herself. She grabbed two blankets from the couch and opened the door; the contrast between the warm cocoon of the cabin and the frigid night air was like a slap in the face. She had it coming. She walked over and could see goose bumps lining David’s arms. Charlotte slipped one of the blankets around his shoulders before she wrapped the other around herself and sat down next to him.

“Thanks.” he whispered.

“I’m sorry.” Charlotte replied as she put her head on his shoulder. He draped one arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.

“Strawberries.” he said.

“Strawberries.”

They sat like that for a few moments, enjoying the stillness.

“Just so you know, I can be real a jerk sometimes.” Charlotte said.

“I hadn’t noticed.”

They both laughed and continued to stare out at the water. David rubbed Charlotte’s arm, and she shivered. He stood and pulled her up and led her back to the cabin. Once inside, they locked arms around each other and shared more passionate kisses.

“I don’t know how I’m going to sleep tonight.” Charlotte said as she looked up at him.

“Indeed. You think anyone would notice if I tunneled into your room?”

“Or you could walk through the door.”

David drew her close and sniffed her hair again. “What fun would that be?”

“Right, right.” Charlotte grinned as she leaned back for another kiss. David obliged, and they held onto each other for a few moments more. He walked her to her bedroom door and played with her hands.

“Is this the part where I say I’ll call you tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I think it is. Don’t lose my number.”

“Oh don’t you worry. It’s imprinted on my brain.”

Charlotte and David hugged one last time before reluctantly breaking apart.

“Sleep tight,” Charlotte said.

“You too.”

#

Charlotte tossed and turned all night, her circuits overloaded with desire. Her feet got into a wrestling match with the covers. The covers lost the battle and landed in a heap on the floor. Around dawn, David’s door crept open, and she held her breath, wondering if he would rap on her door. Instead, he passed into the kitchen, and within moments the smell of fresh coffee wafted into the room. Charlotte heard the front door open and close, and she knew he was headed for his early morning workout. She expelled her breath and lay in bed, contemplating the idea of embarking on a romance with a younger man. And not just any younger man. A younger man who was an international movie star surrounded by beautiful women and—

Charlotte stopped herself. She was doing it again, letting all those insecurities chip away at her self-confidence. She sat up and yawned before she shuffled into the kitchen. She poured herself a cup of coffee and leaned against the counter, the lake visible through the window from the kitchen. She didn’t see David, but Karen was sitting on her usual perch by the lake. Charlotte left the coffee on the table and went to slip on a pair of jeans and flip-flops. She came back for her coffee and joined Karen outside.