Fated Dreams (Book One In The Affinity series) (17 page)

While I was
talking, he was snapping pictures of me at different angles. I felt
self-conscious at first, but figured I would have to get used to it if I was
going to date a photographer. “You are so beautiful,” he said quietly to
himself.

Finally setting
the camera down, he lay down beside me. I felt him absently play with my hair
as we watched a couple of finches flapping around on a branch about ten feet up
in the tree. From our spot on the ground, I couldn’t see them clearly, but I
could hear the loud chirps.

“Here, sit up,”
he said, suddenly pulling me into a sitting position.

After placing
the camera on a rock, he hit the timer and then positioned us so the waterfall
would be in the background.

After I heard
the click of the camera, I relaxed. “What’s in the basket?”

“I asked my mom
to make some sandwiches. There’s also some fruit, cheese, and crackers. And a
bottle of wine I took from my dad’s wine cellar. One glass won’t hurt us.”

I didn’t like
wine, but I couldn’t tell him. The gesture was so sweet and romantic I didn’t
have the heart to. He took out the plates and food, setting them in the center
of the blanket. I placed the food on each plate while he poured the wine.

“So, how did
you get interested in taking pictures?” I asked him, leaning back on my elbows.

He chuckled.
“When Logan and I were about twelve, we started playing practical jokes on each
other. It began because he was mad about me getting better grades than him. So
one night I went into my room and crawled into bed, only I wasn’t alone. I
touched something slimy with my foot.”

“Ooh, what was
it?”

“A big
bullfrog.”

“Gross. Why did
he do that?”

“Cause he was
mad, and a twelve-year-old boy. But I got him back. I stuck two-way-tape to the
toilet in the bathroom we share. You should have heard him howl when he stood
up.”

I laughed.
“What does that have to do with taking pictures?”

“Well, a few
months later, after I found my copy of
Huck Finn
floating in the toilet,
I snuck in his room and waited in the closet. I took a picture of him in his
underwear singing into a hair brush, and pinned it up at the community center.
Everyone knew it was him because I wore glasses and his hair was shorter.” He
grinned. “Anyway, for some reason I loved taking the picture and I started
taking more, mostly to get embarrassing shots of him, but that’s how it
started.” He took a sip of his wine. “What about you, how did you start playing
the piano?”

I smiled. “My
grandmother. She used to be a concert pianist.” He raised a brow. “She really
was. She retired when she became pregnant with my mom. But for as long as I can
remember she used to sit in front of her grand piano and play. I loved hearing
the beautiful songs. When we went home after a visit, I missed the twinkle of
the music. One time for Christmas she made a CD for me. I wore it out. When I
was five, I asked her if she would teach me. So she did. She died a year ago,
and left me the piano.”

“I’m sorry, you
must miss her.”

I nodded, my
mind full of thoughts of my grandma. “Yeah, I do.” Swallowing the lump in my
throat with a sip of wine, I choked from the strong bitter taste. I tried to
smile and act as if I liked it, but he saw through me and drank the rest for
me.

We ate our
sandwiches as we watched the waterfall. A comfortable silence fell upon us. I
enjoyed the crisp breeze that lightly blew across my face and hair.

He leaned in to
nudge me down, so that I was lying on the blanket with him angled above me. We
kissed for a while, exploring each other. His lips tasted sweet, like the fruit
from the wine. He reached for my coat to pull it off. I let him, and then I
pulled off his. Although it was warm out without my jacket I noticed a slight
chill coming from the water, but his body heat kept me warm.

He returned his
lips to mine and then traveled down to my neck and throat. His lips were cool
against my skin; a tingle glided up my spine from his touch. I gripped his hair
with my fingers, not sure where this was going. He lifted his head up and gazed
into my eyes as if reading them, looking for an answer to an unspoken question.
I don’t know what he read from my eyes, but he suddenly smiled and chuckled.

“We should go
back to the house before it gets dark.”

“Why, what’s
wrong? Did I do something?”

His gaze was
intense as he answered, “No, but it’s going to get dark soon. We should go
before it does, unless you want to wander around in the woods at night.”

I had never
been in the woods at night, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to.

I helped him
pick everything up and put it back in the picnic basket. Then we started back
down the path.

“So did I upset
you last night when I reacted the way I did, about the picture?” I asked as we
strolled through the brush.

“I was a little
worried that I had scared you away, but I felt better after you called me last
night.” He stopped walking and turned to me. “Don’t worry, Sarah, I know how
you feel.” He stretched out his fingers to gently caress my cheek. I leaned
into him and closed my eyes, loving the feel of his touch on my skin.

He dropped his
hand, placing it in mine, and together we made our way back to the house.

His mom and Logan were sitting at the
kitchen table eating some kind of pork and seasoned potatoes when we let
ourselves in the back door. “You guys hungry? I can warm up some of the food I
brought home from the restaurant,” his mother asked.

“No thanks,
Mom, we had the sandwiches you made for us.”

“Yes, they were
very good, thank you.” I took a few steps forward and leaned against the
counter. “Karen, if you’d like I could give you a piano lesson before I go
home.”

She smiled
widely. “Are you sure? You’re not in a hurry?”

“No, I brought
some song books just in case.”

She sat her
fork down on her plate. “Thank you, I would love that.”

After giving
her a lesson on the different notes, I gave her basic songs to practice and
then Lucas took me home.

“Sarah, is that
you, I didn’t recognize you. I haven’t seen you in so long,” my dad said with
sarcasm as I walked into the living room after Lucas dropped me off.

“I just saw you
this morning, and last night, so nice try.” I sat on the arm of the couch they
were sitting on. My mom was reading, and my dad was playing a video game.

My mom glanced
up at me and smiled. “Did you have a nice time?”

“Yes, I’m
starting to give his mother piano lessons. She’s always wanted to learn.”

“Good for you.
How is your original piece going for music class?”

“Pretty good
actually. I already wrote it, and now I’m just practicing it along with Miss
Fitzgerald. I’m going to get a half hour in before I go to bed.”

She smiled.
“Good, I don’t want you to forget your responsibilities now that you’re dating
Lucas.”

“I won’t. In
fact, I have homework I need to finish. I’ll see you later.”

“See ya,” my
parents said absently. Mom had started to read again, and my dad took the game
off pause. I could hear the bleeps and toots from the game all the way
upstairs.

My homework
took longer than I thought; I got stuck on a chemistry problem and almost gave
up. But a call to Derrick solved it; he was a genius when it came to science.
But by the time I had finished, it was too late to practice. Instead, I crawled
into bed.

The next morning I woke up excited about
our trip. We carpooled in Derrick’s car, a big four-door green SUV. It had more
room for all of our stuff. As soon as the bell rang at the end of the day, we
hurried to the car, ready to start on our journey.

“How was your dad this morning? Is he
nervous about this?” Lucas asked once we were on our way. We were sitting in
the back seat. Derrick was driving while Emma fiddled with the radio trying to
find a station she liked.

“Um, he was
quiet all through breakfast, and when he left for work, he gave me a big bear
hug and told me how much he loved and trusted me. I think it’s a tactic, so I don’t
disappoint him.”

He wrapped his
arm around my shoulders and rubbed my arm. We were so close I could smell the
lemon scented laundry soap from his shirt. “We won’t,” he said, kissing the top
of my head.

The drive took
about three hours. We checked into our hotel rooms, they were next to each
other with a connecting door between the two. The plan was to lounge around our
room until it was time to go to the arena where the concert was being held.

“Let’s order
some food,” Lucas said. He was leaning back on the bed beside me, watching TV,
with the remote in his hand.

“Sounds good to
me,” Derrick agreed while Emma took out the phone book, flipping through it
looking for a pizza place.

Once she placed
our order, Emma and I each showered. I used our bathroom, while Emma used the
boys', since they weren't using it. We each chose short dresses with black
tights. Mine was a silvery grey, and hers was red. It took about an hour for us
to do our hair and makeup, and get dressed.

It took the
guys about fifteen minutes to shower, change their clothes, and put goop in
their hair. Life wasn’t fair.

While we waited
for Derrick and Lucas, Emma and I took some pictures of each other in our room.
I wanted evidence of us in our separate rooms so when the boys were finished, I
took some goofy pictures of them making stupid faces at me. After we were
finished fooling around with the camera, it was time to leave.

The concert was awesome, and I was glad
Emma talked us into coming. There were two bands, the first was an all girls
group called The Pink Ladies, who played cover songs from eighties girl bands.
The second was an indie band called Monster Ball.

Afterward, when
the guys were getting something to eat again, I bought Lucas a black T-shirt
with Monster Ball’s logo on it. I put it in my purse to give him later.

Back at our
hotel I said good night to Luke and slipped into our room.

“I get the
bathroom first,” I called out to Emma, who was lying on the bed holding the
remote, flipping through the channels on the TV.

“Whatever,” she
said absently, leaning back on the pillows. She was still wearing her dress,
minus the tights and spiked heels, which were tossed on the middle of the
floor.

I changed into
my pj’s and brushed my teeth, then headed back out to the room. I tripped over
her heels and kicked them under the bed. “Your turn,” I said, smacking the lump
under the covers. She didn’t move. “Emma, are you asleep—” I gasped as I pulled
the blankets off of her. It wasn’t Emma. It was Lucas. “What are you doing
here?”

He gave me a
mischievous smile. “Emma asked me to switch with her. Actually, she asked me on
Sunday.” I gave him a cold stare, and he continued. “She said not to tell you.
She knows how honest you are, and she didn’t think you’d agree to lie to your
parents.”

I wasn’t sure
about the honest part, but she was right; it would have worried me all week.
Apparently, all three of them were in on it, so who was I to argue? “Fine, but
if my father asks, he’ll know I’m hiding something.”

“I doubt he’ll
ask if we slept together.”

I gulped.
“We’re going to sleep together?” I didn’t mean to, but when I spoke, my voice
was full of panic.

He chuckled.
“You look terrified. Relax, I just want to fall asleep with you in my arms.”

It did sound
nice. I sighed. “Fine, but first I have something for you.”

I went to my
purse, pulled out the T-shirt, and handed it to him.

He smiled.
“Thank you, I love it. I’ll sleep in it every night and think of you. And
hopefully you’ll do the same.” He picked up a plastic bag off the nightstand that
I hadn’t noticed when I came out of the bathroom, and handed it to me. I opened
it and pulled out a ball of pink material.

It was a Pink
Ladies T-shirt. “I guess great minds think alike,” I said as I leaned in to
kiss him. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.
I’m going to change for bed.”

When he said
that, I felt butterflies doing somersaults inside my stomach.

Once he was in
the bathroom with the door firmly shut, I quickly changed shirts and was
sitting on the bed when he came out.

“I was right, I
knew you’d look good in that,” he said with a slight smile. “Although you’d
look good in anything.” He had changed into plaid cotton pants and his new
T-shirt. He leaned over to turn out the lights as I crawled under the blankets.

It was
pitch-dark, so I only felt when he climbed in beside me. “Sarah, don’t be
nervous, we’re just going to sleep. You know I won’t rush you.”

“How do you
know I’m nervous?”

“You’re tense.
Relax.” He rubbed my back in a soft, circular motion. His hands felt gentle and
strong at the same time.

It worked; I
was suddenly comfortable, and snuggled into him. I lay on my side, with him
spooning me. We were quiet for a while, both lost in our own thoughts. “I’m so
comfortable. I’ve never slept with anyone like this. Can you sneak in at night
and do this at home?” I asked, finally breaking the silence, and only half
kidding.

“Don’t tempt
me.”

“Are you
tired?” I lifted my head to look at him.

“Yeah, kind of,
I had a nightmare last night, and I couldn’t go back to sleep.”

I guessed what
his dream was, but I asked him anyway. “What was it about?”

“I don’t want
to talk about it, if you don’t mind.”

“I don’t. I’ll
be quiet, so you can sleep.” I waited for him to answer. Nothing. “Lucas?” I
heard his heavy breathing. Wow, that was fast. I glanced at the clock and saw
that it was after one in the morning. Although I was tired, I didn’t know how I
would manage to fall asleep with Lucas in bed with me.

I awoke sometime later in a different
position. Lucas was on his back, and I was curled into him, my head on his
chest and his arm around me. He didn’t have a shirt on. I lifted my head to
look at him.

“I’m sorry, did
I wake you?” he said in the darkness.

My brain felt
foggy, I blinked a couple of times trying to clear it. “I don’t know. I just
lifted my head.”

“I had to take
my shirt off. I’m not used to wearing one, and I was hot. I thought I could put
it back on before you woke up. I was afraid to freak you out.”

“Why would that
freak me out, you still have your pants on, right?”

He laughed.
“Yes.”

I don’t know
what came over me, but I started to rub his chest. Surprisingly, he was very
muscular. I knew he had arm muscles, from when we used the heavy bag, but I had
no idea that his chest and stomach were so defined. I’d always considered him
to be a bookworm, which he was. I was just surprised to find out that there was
so much more to him.

I continued to
move my hand along his torso. The contrast of the bumps and rises from his
muscles against his soft skin was intriguing. I softened my touch to caress his
skin. When I looked up into his eyes, they were smoldering. “What are you
doing?” he whispered.

“I love the
feel of your chest, your skin is so soft, but underneath is hard. I would never
have guessed you were so muscular,” I whispered back.

“Is it the
glasses?”

“Maybe, why
don’t you wear them anymore? Aren’t you afraid of those big bad girls?”

He laughed. “I
don’t get confused for Logan, now that I’m with you.”

“Well, if they
bug you, just let me know, and I’ll protect you,” I said, continuing to rub his
chest. He leaned in to kiss me softly.

 “I love you,
Sarah.” His words were a soft whisper, but I heard him loud and clear.

Happiness
wasn’t a strong enough word for what I felt at this moment. He had spoken what
I had been feeling almost since the day I bumped into him. “I love you too,
Lucas.”

He smiled,
leaning down to kiss me again. This kiss was not as gentle. It was raw with
emotion. Every feeling we had for each other went into it. By the time we
pulled away, we were breathless.

For the next
few hours, we cuddled, kissed, and expressed our feelings. It was the best
night of my life, and I didn’t want it to end.

Of course it
did, but at least I had the pleasure of falling asleep in his arms.

I awoke completely warm and content, with
strong arms wrapped around me. The curtains were drawn tightly, letting in no
light; it wasn’t dark though, so I knew it was morning. The events of last
night came back to my mind, creating a giddy feeling shimmering inside me. The
feeling made me want to wake up like this every day.

“Good morning,”
he said as he kissed the top of my head.

I looked up at
him. “Good morning.”

“What time do
we have to leave? I really don’t want to get out of this bed.”

“I know what
you mean. Do you think housekeeping would notice a couple of lumps under the
covers?”

He laughed.
“They might.”

I snuggled in
to the nook of his shoulder, wrapping my arms tightly around him. “I think Emma
said checkout was eleven. What time is it?” I asked, unwilling to move.

He lifted his
head slightly to look at the clock. “Ten o’clock. I guess we should get up. Do
you think they’re awake yet?”

“I’ll wake
them. If we get back too late for me to get my car, I’ll have Derrick drop me
off at work. Do you want to pick me up? I’m off at nine. Maybe we can hang out
at my place for a change. We’ve been at your house most of the week.” A thought
occurred to me. “Unless you don’t want to hang out tonight, you might want to
spend some time with Andy and Kyle, it’s been awhile.”

“Of course I’ll
pick you up, and we’ll hang out at your place. But soon I would like to do
something with the guys. I’d like them to get to know you.”

“Sure, sounds
fun.”