Beginning with Forever (21 page)

“Just
long enough to hear that you miss your mom and want to see her and your friends. I’ll take you the next time you’re able to visit her. Save your scholarship money for yourself. You’ve earned it.” His tone is tenderly sincere.

“
Carson, I appreciate your generous offer, but you already know how I feel about your money. I’m a big girl. I can handle this without your help,” I proudly back myself up. I was fine before him, so I don’t expect anything to change just because he can afford more than I can.

“Alright,
I’ll drop it for now.” His tone is slightly perturbed.

“How about forever?”
I taunt him, feeling bolder.

“Don’t push your luck, Miss Ly.
I can be quite intimidating.” He smiles and narrows his beautiful green eyes at me. “Remember being tickled?” he smirks. I stick my tongue out and crinkle my nose at him, recalling how awful it was. I better not push him just in case.

____________________

“Hiking and swimming are the fun activities planned for today. Are you all ready to go, Angel?” he hollers from the kitchen while packing our goods. I’m not quite sure what method he’ll use to teach me to swim because I’ve failed miserably to master it for the past twenty-two years.

“Yes, you’re the tour guide.
I’m just going along for the ride.” I try my best to sound enthusiastic.

With
picnic lunches tucked into his backpack and a couple of water bottles, he leads the way through a thick foliage path with vines, hanging from every which way. He never once looked lost and only occasionally glanced at the compass on his watch for direction confirmation. He was probably a well decorated boy scout, I jokingly think to myself. I, on the other hand, have no clue where we are at or how I’d never return to civilization if I got separated from him. Just the fearful thought of it, makes me want to squeeze his hand and arm even tighter. I know I would die if I got lost in this scary jungle all by myself, especially with my unexplainable fear of snakes, real or fake. I swear we must’ve hiked for at least an hour or longer. I’m worn out, but he doesn’t even look the least bit tired. Damn, he’s in great shape.

“Hey J
ailbait, can’t you keep up with this Senior?” he banters me with my own age harassment.

“Ha, ha, you’re funny
,” I respond with a frown. I’m breathlessly tired and terribly out of shape as I heave over, resting my hands on my thighs.

“I
promise it’ll be worth the trouble when we get there,” he convinces me while rubbing my back.

“I hope so because these mosquitoes are eating me
up like a Thanksgiving feast,” I reply bluntly as I smack another mosquito off my thigh.
He better be right about this being worth it or…
and then he interrupts my thoughts.

“
Lily, your sassy sense of humor is something else,” he laughs, shakes his head and then drags my hand to follow.

Cars
on was absolutely right. It’s truly worth the long, grueling hike. We’re standing in front of an awe-inspiring waterfall, cascading down hundreds of feet into a clear, blue, spring-water pond. I can hear loud splashing echoes like thunder from water, crashing against rock cliffs.

“OMGeez
, I’ve never seen anything this awesome. Thank you for sharing this with me,” I tell him with my shrilling voice while my eyes remain fixed on the entrancing waterfall which looks like silky, white clouds, flowing over rocks and boulders.

“You’re welcome.
I love seeing your beautiful smile. It motivates me to find more ways to capture them.” There he goes again, saying the perfect things to make my heart flutter.

“OMGeez
? I’ve never heard that expression before,” he inquires in amusement.

“It’s a Midwest thing
I guess. My two friends and I coined it in high school. I know it’s silly, but I never outgrew it.” I shrug my shoulders and grin.

“I see.
We have much to learn about each other.” He looks at me as if he’s trying to read me by the cover.

“Indeed we do Mr.
Carson,” I respond coyly. There’s plenty I still need to know about him. Ever since he told me he rather discuss us instead of work, I haven’t really pushed him to share anything about his employment. I figure he will tell me when it comes up again.

He
helps me unload my backpack and lays a blanket down for me to rest and catch my breath. I absorb the picturesque view in front of me as I chug down an entire bottle of chilled water, thanks to Carson for being so prepared.

Carson
walks towards the edge of the water and begins to undress down to his swimming trunks, shirt first and then his shorts. Oh yeah, keep taking it all off, handsome. I’ll never get tired of looking at his slender, ripped body. He signs for me to do the same, but I shake my head. He takes an abrupt plunge into the water and splashes me. “Lil, come on in. The water feels great.” He lures me in with his waving arm.

“It feels cold to me.
” I wrap my arms around my body, pretending to shiver.

“Don’t be a prude.
Take your clothes off and join me,” he encourages me, shaking his head impatiently.

“Okay!”
I shout back as I reluctantly slip out of my top layers. His mesmerizing, green eyes remain focused on my barely-dressed body, courtesy of Carson for buying only skimpy bathing suits. I apprehensively walk towards the edge of the pond near him and slowly sink my body into the water. The initial coldness is a shock, but as soon as I adjust to it, I welcome it.

He swim
s towards me and offers me his hands, “I want you to hang on and trust me.”

“I do trust you
Carson,” I assure him even though the endless depth of water terrifies me to no end. He takes me across the pond and underneath the waterfall. The water around this area is shallow, so he attempts to have me float with the support of his arms. I’m distracted by his defined chest, rippling abs and toned shoulders. There’s no chance I’m ever going to learn how to swim from him. He’s way too distracting. My bikini string tie accidentally gets caught on his fingers, and I find myself topless. With this terrible mishap, my swimming lesson immediately comes to an end.

Carson’s eyes turn
a deep, lusty shade of green and pure blue due to the reflection from the water. I’m quite familiar with this look now. He easily glides my body closer and presses it tightly against his. My legs straddle around his fit waist under water. He nestles his face into the crook of my neck, breathing in my scent. “Lil, I’ve never known this kind of affection. With you, I see the world differently, brighter, fuller.” His tone is serious, confident and sincere. There’s no doubt in my heart that these words came directly from his. He seals his delicate emotion into an intense kiss.

I
reluctantly pull away from him and place one finger over his lips to silence them. “Carson, I can’t imagine it any other way, now that I know what it’s like to have you in my life.” My eyes stare into his, wanting him to understand that I don’t want to be without him.

“
Good, because I don’t plan on letting you go.” He unlaces my bikini bottom, removes his swimming trunks and tosses them on top of an adjacent rock. He dives deep into my flesh, lodging my buoyant body against a smooth boulder.

“Ah…
,” I cry, feeling his hardness pierce through my aching, tender channel. His kisses are full of love and tenderness. There’s no lust in the way he’s making love to me, just conviction of how much he needs me. We’re completely lost in each other as our bodies intertwine into one, floating in clear, cool water.

“Mine…always
,” he gasps, and I feel his cum exploding inside me, filling me. My insides constrict around him, holding onto him and refusing to let go. We stay bounded to each other for several minutes before he pulls himself out. The slight warmth of his fluid, contrasting the surrounding cool water, flows down my thighs and immediately brings me back to reality.
What the hell did I just do?
In the heat of our passion, I let him come inside me unprotected. I panic, thinking about the repercussions; I can’t allow this kind of carelessness to happen again. Pregnancy isn’t part of my 5-year plan and neither is disappointing my mother with failure. I’ll have to find another method of contraception, in addition to condoms when I get back or resume abstinence. The latter will not be an option for me, now that I’m addicted to his body.

Guilt is written all over Carson’s
face. “God, I’m sorry Lil. I… I lost myself in the moment. Is there any chance you might be on birth control?” I shake my head, and he looks even guiltier. “Stupid, stupid, stupid!” he grumbles, blaming himself.

“
Don’t, Carson. Chances of me getting pregnant aren’t high from one encounter, but then all it takes is just one time. We can’t let this happen again, alright?” he nods his head with guilt still clearly plastered on his face.

“I
promise it won’t happen again,” He tips my chin up and kisses my lips tenderly. “I’m sorry, baby.” His eyes lock on mine, making sure I see he’s dead serious and that he means every bit of his promise.

“I’m guilty, too. It takes two to tang
o, right?” I tease, attempting to lessen our stress as a tiny seed slowly burrows inside my head with pregnancy anxiety.

____________________

The hike back was as excruciating as the hike there. I’m completely exhausted by the time we walk through the front door, so we both agree to call it a night. After a much needed hot shower, we eat dinner prepared for us by Chef Calvino at the kitchen bar. Carson and I share a glass of red wine while relaxing in front of a man-sized approved LED screen. I lean comfortably against his chest with his arms around me. He hands me the remote, prompting me to give him an ‘Are you crazy?’ look. No man ever gives up this privilege or right. Now I know he’s too good to be true. “Why don’t you choose a movie? I don’t have any favorites and to be honest, I haven’t sat through an entire movie for years.” I can’t imagine anyone not making time to watch at least one entire movie. Poor guy, he must work way too hard.

I
flip through the channels and stumble upon
’50 First Dates’
. “I have to warn you. It’s a corny, chick flick, but one of my favorites. I’ve seen it at least fifty times.” My light tone should tell him that I’m all about this movie. He rolls his eyes, but doesn’t oppose. Growing up, I only loved romantic comedies and hated horror or sad movies. I don’t know if it has anything to do with my mother’s contempt for romance, but I didn’t want to watch anything that incited tears. Maybe I thought that if I saw enough of those movies, I would eventually believe romantic, happy endings can really exist.

It’
s nice to kick back and enjoy a relaxing evening, especially after such an active day. I love watching him laugh and appreciate Adam Sandler’s crazy humor like I do. “I can completely relate to that kind of devotion. I’d go through any lengths to keep you with me. There’s no chance in heaven or hell I’d ever let you go,” he explains. I can’t believe he’s being absolutely serious, referring to the movie and paralleling our relationship to it. This is a first for anyone to pull a real, life’s lesson from an Adam Sandler, cheesy, comedy movie. I think it’s so adorable and uncharacteristic of him.

“I take it that you enjoy
ed my selection,” I inquire with a sappy grin on my face.

“
It wasn’t as painful as I thought it would be. Plus, I’ve always had a soft spot for Drew Barrymore,” he replies in a sassy, sultry voice.

I nudge my elbow against his iron cl
ad abs to show my disapproval. He pretends to flinch in pain. “Really?  She’s blonde. Is that your preference?” I sound faintly jealous with my inquiry of hair color.

“You didn’t let me finish
. I was going to say it’s too bad that she isn’t brunette. I could never resist a feisty brunette.” He laughs and squeezes his arms even tighter around me.

“If that’s the case
, then I’m okay with that.” I look up at him with smiling eyes.

The next movie comes on
, but my exhaustion conquers me, and I happily fall asleep in his arms. I wake up in the middle of the night to find Carson’s warm body wrapped around mine. He must’ve carried me back into the bedroom when I dozed off. I nuzzle my bottom against his pelvis and immediately feel his firm erection. “Are you asleep?” I whisper to him. He gently tucks my hair over to one side, exposing my neck for his warm lips. His trailing kisses send jolts of renewed energy down my spine, stirring all my senses, making me ready for him again.

“It’s difficult for me to sleep when
I’m lying next to your irresistible body,” he murmurs breathlessly into my ears.

“Well
then, what are you waiting for? Let’s make the most of your insomnia,” I playfully encourage him and giggle. He rolls me onto my back and settles himself on top of me.

“With you in my bed, I might never sleep again.”
He buries his face into my hair, inhales my scent and begins making love to me.