Loving Lily Lavender (3 page)

“Oh
really, like what?” His expression didn’t show anger, only genuine curiosity.

“Well,
you look down a lot, you drop eye contact quickly, you hunch your shoulders
forward slightly, and you have a nervous habit of running your hand through
your hair.”

He
started to touch his hair but caught himself, chuckling. “It seems you’re
right. Funny, but I never realized I did that before. So how do you know so
much about this sort of thing? You sure don’t seem to be insecure yourself.”

“Me?
Oh no, I’m not. I studied psychology in high school and some in college. I was
going to be a psychologist.”

“You
were
going to be? What do you do now?”

“I’m
a wedding planner, and I love it. After all, it’s the most important day in a
girl’s life, and I get to make it perfect.” I’m sure my face was beaming.

“That
sounds very interesting.”

“You
have no idea.”

“And
if I
were
to be insecure—what kind of advice would you give to me to
help me out?” For a moment his eyes held mine and I was mesmerized by the
beautiful bluish-green color, maybe hazel even.

Just
as I was about to speak, two young women our age approached our table.

“Are
you Lucas Lavender?” they asked shyly.

“Yes
I am.”

“Can
we have your autograph please?” You could tell they were nervous; they were
both fidgeting.

“Sure,”
he agreed, taking their pen and paper, signing it, and handing it back.

“Thank
you,” they said in unison, giggling as they made their way quickly around the
corner.

“I’m
sorry, Lily. What were you about to say? You know, about advice for me.”

“Oh
yes, well the first thing I would suggest is for you to give up smoking.”  We
both eyed the pack of cigarettes on the table beside his drink. “Next, I would
advise you to get all areas of your life organized, starting with your personal
space. It really helps. Third, re-evaluate your goals and decide what you
really want to do, and then pursue it with all your heart. A few obvious things
would be to hold your head high and your shoulders back all the while keeping
eye contact. And last, but with the most immediate results, stop reading those
stinking tabloids.” I finished, smiling a pleasing smile.

He straightened
his shoulders, studying me with an odd expression. It was a look of awe, and it
made me feel a little strange.

“And
you did these things to help you?”

“Well,
I’ve never smoked, and I never read the tabloids, but yes, I did the other
things years ago. Before I started my business, I made a detailed list of the
things I wanted to accomplish and how to go about achieving them, and I’ve
followed that list closely ever since.”

“Hmm,”
was all he said. I wasn’t sure what that meant.

We continue
to talk for what seemed like hours. To be quite honest, it was extremely nice.
The conversation between us seemed to flow smoothly, effortlessly. He quizzed
me about some of the weddings I’ve done, and we laughed as I shared with him
some of my crazier experiences. I was surprised at how pleasing it felt to have
him interested in what I do.

We
were interrupted several more times from autograph seeking women, and I sensed
he was starting to get a little annoyed at the interruptions.

“Lily,
please don’t take this the wrong way, but would you consider accompanying me to
my place? I mean, I’ve enjoyed talking to you and would like to have more
conversation without all these interruptions.”

“Well,
I would like that too, but I’m not sure that’s such a good idea.”

“I
promise to be on my best behavior. You have my word.”

“I
don’t know.” I shrugged, feeling slightly unsure.

“Well,
how about this, you can have Meagan call you at a certain time to check on you.
That way, if you were to be in trouble she would know where you are and who
you’re with. But I promise you’re safe with me.” He smiled a dazzling smile that
instantly made my heart skip a beat or two or three.

“Umm,
well okay that sounds reasonable.” My mind was racing, hoping I wasn’t making a
mistake, but not quite ready for our time together to be over. “Are you staying
with Randall at his place?”

“No.
I’ve got my own place nearby. I didn’t want to get on his nerves. Plus, his
sofa would probably be uncomfortable after two weeks.”

“Good
point. I just need to let Meagan know I won’t be riding back with her—that is
if you don’t mind taking me home later.”

“Of
course, I don’t mind.”

As
we were getting up, Meagan and Randall returned from the dance floor, sweaty
and out of breath.

“So,
where are you guys off to?” Randall asked in a sly tone. I noticed Lucas left
the pack of cigarettes on the table.
He was taking my advice already—sweet.

“Well,
Lily has agreed to accompany me to my place since our conversations keep
getting interrupted.”

“Well,
that’s the breaks when you’re famous,” Randall teased, patting him on the back.

I
glanced over to Meagan, who was giving me an incredulous look. I just shrugged
innocently.

As
we were leaving, I leaned over and whispered in her ear, “Call me in one hour.”
She nodded, smiling widely.

Lucas
took my hand and led me through the crowd toward the door.

It
was then that someone slammed into me with enough force that I had to release
Lucas’s hand. He turned quickly to find me. The young man who bumped me,
immediately began to cuss at me, words of which I won’t repeat.

“Hey!”
Lucas said sternly. “Watch your mouth around the lady, and you ran into her,
you wanker!”

The
man then stopped and looked me up and down. “Hey baby. Why don’t you ditch this
foreign loser and come home with me? I’m American, and I’ll show you a real
good time.” As he spoke, I could feel his breath on my face, and I cringed away
from the smell of alcohol and garlic.

Without
warning, Lucas reached over and grabbed the guy by the collar, lifting him onto
his toes, meeting him eye to eye. “The lady has no intentions of accompanying
you anywhere, American or not, so I strongly suggest you leave peacefully right
now!”

“Relax
man. My mistake,” the man said with both hands raised in surrender. Lucas
released him, and he quickly turned and went in the other direction.

I
realized I was holding my breath and let out a deep sigh.

“Are you okay?” he asked, facing me.

“Yes,
I’m fine. Thank you, Lucas. That was sweet of you to defend me like that
.”
Oh, and by the way, I am now extremely infatuated with you
.

“You’re
welcome. I’m just glad it didn’t turn into a fight. I’ve never been in a fight
in my life. Although, considering the fact that the bugger was drunk I probably
would have had the upper hand.” He smiled down at me, his light eyes shining, and
I knew I was in trouble.

Fifteen minutes later, we were walking through the front door of
his apartment. He was staying in a nice building, much nicer than anything I
could afford.

Once inside, I took stock of my surroundings and noticed a
beautiful black and gold guitar leaning against a chair by the sofa. I don’t know
much about guitars I confess, but it looked very expensive.

I didn’t notice any more personal belongings in the room. Maybe
everything was in his bedroom, though that was a room I was planning to avoid
altogether. I imagined he had a different idea, and I began to question my
decision to come.

“This is a very nice apartment.”

“Thanks. It’s going to be my home for the next two weeks so I
wanted it to be comfortable. Can I get you something to drink?”

“Umm, no thank you. I’m fine.” Suddenly nervous, I could feel
small beads of sweat gathering on my upper lip and reached up, wiping it off
with the back of my hand.

“Actually, I’m glad you said that because I don’t have anything,”
he said, laughing apologetically.

I glanced at him with eyebrows raised.

“What?” He shrugged. “I just got here yesterday.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at him. He looked so cute and innocent
at that very moment, but I had a feeling that was about to change and my
laughing stopped short as he slowly scaled the distance between us. He stopped
right in front of me, his face just inches from mine, his expression all of a
sudden serious.

“I have something I’ve wanted to tell you all night, but I’m
afraid you’ll think it’s just a come on.” His gaze was so intense I felt I
should look away but was unable to escape his penetrating eyes.

“You’ve given me no reason not to believe anything you tell me.”

He glanced down for a moment, as if collecting his thoughts, then
met my gaze again. “Your green eyes are mesmerizing, and well—you are the most beautiful
woman I have ever met.” His expression was genuinely sincere.

My mouth fell open. “Lucas, I don’t know what to say. Umm, thank
you. That’s quite a compliment coming from someone who I’m sure has seen
hundreds of beautiful women.”

“Yes, I’ve seen many beautiful women, but the sad thing is, with
many of them, once they open their mouths to speak their beauty slips away.
It’s rare for me to meet a beautiful woman who’s just as lovely on the inside,
and I feel that way about you. I know that sounds silly since we hardly know
each other, huh?”

“No, it doesn’t sound silly at all. As a matter a fact, I feel
that way about you too, though I wouldn’t use the word beautiful—breathtakingly
handsome perhaps.” I laughed and he joined me.

Suddenly he became serious, reaching up and cupping my face with
his right hand. He slowly lowered his face to mine, inching his lips closer.
Uh
oh, here it comes
, I thought instantly
. The moment I’ve been dreading
and longing for at the same time. 

When his soft lips finally found mine, I almost swooned as my
legs turned to jelly beneath me. He pressed first one—then two small kisses. Our
breathing slowly picked up as we lingered on the third kiss, his lips gently
parting mine. Deeper and deeper the kiss grew. Placing his left hand on my
back, he drew me closer until I was pressed firmly against him. The word
‘ecstasy’ came to mind as the kiss turned hotter still and soon my resolve to
say no would be overtaken by passion and fire. And yet the kiss continued, our
lips moving together in perfect rhythm. We stumbled over and landed on the
sofa. I pulled my lips from his. “Lucas,” I breathed.

His hand pulled my hair aside and his lips found my neck. “Hmm?”
he moaned, his lips capturing mine once again. The kiss intensified almost to
the point of no return when I suddenly and abruptly pulled away.

“I’m sorry, Lucas. I can’t do this. I-I don’t think I should’ve
come here,” I said breathlessly.

“What—what do you mean?”

I stood and turned to look at him. My breath caught as I took in
his disheveled look, his twisted shirt and messy hair, and yet still
unbelievably gorgeous. “I’m so sorry, but I have a rule I’ve sworn to live by,
and I can’t break it now no matter how tempted I am.”

“What rule is that
?” He was curious. Well, at least he wasn’t
mad, not yet anyway.

“I’m—I’m a virgin, and I plan on keeping it that way.”

“Forever?” He smiled and it seemed that he was teasing me.

I sighed. “No—not forever, silly, just until I’m married. I know
that must sound strange to you, but it’s very important to me. I’m sorry if
I’ve misled you, coming here like this. I hope you’ll forgive me.”

A big smile stretched across his face. “Lily, don’t be
ridiculous. That’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard. How can I be mad at you
for your convictions—that would make me a monster?”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you. You’re very gracious.”

“Gracious I’m not, but honest I am.”

“Well, it’s just that I owe my husband the best part of me, and I
don’t want to corrupt it with memories and experiences from the past. That
sounds silly to you, doesn’t it?”

“No, actually, it sounds really nice. Your husband will be a very
lucky man. You’re very confident to say no to me. Most women, these days,
wouldn’t. I admire that quite a lot actually.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Absolutely.” He ran his hand through his hair making it even
more messy but still sexy somehow.
God help me,
I thought.

Meagan called to check on me. I reassured her that everything was
okay. I used a secret code we used when we were younger to let her know that I
was better than fine and not to call again.

I expected that he would take me home then, but he didn’t. We
spent the next three hours sitting on his sofa talking. He told me about the
movie he was in, all the friends he’d made on the set, and the crazy things
they did on their down time. He told me about the wild sea of young girls who
flocked to the premiers yelling things at him like, “marry me” or “have my
baby”. It all sounded so ridiculous to me. It was just a movie, for cryin’ out
loud, but as he was sharing, I could see just how overwhelming it all was for
him. I felt a strong sense of compassion for what he was going through. He was
clearly uncomfortable in the spotlight, which seemed ironic considering his
chosen profession. I suddenly had an urge to comfort him.