Written in the Stars (17 page)

“Sei bellissima.” He kissed my cheek.

“Grazie,
”

“That’s mean you’re beautiful.” Erin told me.

“Wow, maybe there is hope for you still.” I smiled at her.

“He says it to me all the time.” She replied.

“Are you ready?” Geoff asked me.

“Heck, yeah, let’s get this party started,” Erin answered.

“What she said.” I smiled.

“What in the world.” Erin giggled when she walked out of the house. “Please tell me that monster of a ride is for us.” She pointed to a black Hummer limo.

“It’s for us,” he replied.

“Nah, that shouldn’t draw very much attention.” I playfully glared at him.

“I got this.” He winked at me.

I was more than impressed to see the line of people that stood outside of Mario’s club. The scene reminded me of something straight out
Sex in the City
. People waiting, hoping to be picked to go inside and dance the night away with what looked like people you only dreamed of partying with. Even more impressively terrifying was the paparazzi, who lined the red carpet leading into the club, waiting to capture the money-making picture.

“They knew you were coming,” I told Geoff with a fearful look on my face.

“This isn’t for me.” He grabbed my hand.

“You seem to think Geoff is the only celebrity who comes to my club,” Mario said.

“Really? Who comes here?” Erin got excited.

“You’ll see.” Mario grasped Erin’s hand and kissed the back of it just as we came to a stop in the front of his club. “Are you ready to be amazed?” He smiled at her.

“So ready.” She could hardly contain herself.

Geoff’s grip on my hand tightened as I looked out the window at all the people who were trying to look through our tinted windows. My anxiety grew as I watched Antonio and some other large security clear a path for Erin and Mario to walk down. It didn’t matter how worried I was; watching Erin stop and pose for almost all the cameras pointing at her made me laugh. 

“Did I tell you how amazing you look?” Geoff turned my face towards him.

“Yes, I believe you did.” I smiled at him.

“Oh, well then, did I tell you how I lucky I am to be with you?”

“No, that you didn’t do.”

The hunger in his eyes as he moved closer to me made me not only forget where I was, but who I was.

“I’m the luckiest man in the world,” he whispered. I felt electricity shoot through me when I felt his soft lips gently kiss my neck. I snapped out of the trance in which he put me
under, when Antonio got back into the truck and slammed the door.

“You know where to go,” Geoff told the driver.

We drove around the corner and pulled into an underground parking lot that was located across the street from Mario’s club. We stayed in the car as Antonio walked the whole floor, making sure we were alone. 

“I know what you were doing back there.” I looked at Geoff.

“What was I doing back there?”

“You were taking my attention off the crowd so I wouldn’t worry,” I told him.

“Did it work?” He smiled.

“More than I want to admit,” I replied.

“Good.” He leaned into me. “But that’s not what I was doing.”

“Then what were you doing?”

“I was seizing the moment.” The door opened before he could kiss me again.

“All clear boss,” Antonio said.

“Give us a minute will you please?” Geoff closed the door again. “Where was I?”

“You were seizing the moment,” I mumbled feverishly.

The way the corners of his mouth curled up to form an alluring smile made my core temperature rise at least a hundred degrees, which the passion in his kiss didn’t help. It wasn’t until he pulled away that I had any sense of my surroundings.

“Mario’s waiting for us,” he said with his lips still touching mine.

“Okay.”

“We should head in.”

“Okay.”

“So you’re okay with that.” I could feel his mouth form a smile.

“Okay.”

He grabbed my hand and got out of the truck. I got a little leery when we followed Ant down a dark stairwell, and into an underground tunnel that actually had a medieval-torch lighting system.

“I feel like I’m being lead into Dracula’s lair,” I told Geoff.

“Don’t worry; I won’t bite.” He smiled and knocked on a huge wooden door.

“Welcome to
Exclusivio
,” Mario said as he opened the door.

“I should have known you would have some kind of dramatic entrance for people to make,” I said.

“This is my secret entrance for my VIPs. Do you like it?” Mario asked.

“It is pretty cool.” I smiled.

“Right this way.” He motioned for us to follow him.

Erin was waiting for us at the end of the long hall, with a huge smile on her face. I wanted to pull her off to the side and tell her everything that just happened, but I controlled myself as we walked unnoticed through a very large and loud nightclub.

We were led to the VIP section, which was lined with security guards and a few lingering girls, who were hoping to get a glance of whoever was sitting in there. They started screaming as soon as they saw Geoff and, by instinct, I let go of his hand and backed away from him.

He stopped and turned to look at me. Panic ran through me when he grabbed my hand again and pulled me back to him.

“Don’t ever let go of my hand when we’re in a crowded place,” he said into my ear.

“I don’t want people to know I’m with you!” I yelled into his ear.

“We don’t have to worry about those girls.” He guided me to our seats.

“What if they tell someone they saw us together?” I asked him.

“Who’s going to believe them?” 

“What is that supposed to mean?” I asked, puzzled.

“No, I didn’t mean they wouldn’t believe I’m with you; I meant no one will believe that I’m here.” He started backpedaling. “What I meant is, they’re drunk and, being stupid, no one will listen to their babbling, but if you want, I will happily stand up on that stage and announce I’m here with the most beautiful girl in the world.”

“Okay, go for it.”

“I will.” He smiled and stood up.

“I was only joking.” I pulled him back down.

“Sophie, you’re the one thing in my life the public won’t have access to.”

“Thank you.”

“Sophie, let’s go freshen up.” Erin grabbed my hand and pulled me away from Geoff.

“Ant.” Geoff nodded towards us.

“I’m on it, boss.” Ant followed us.

We waited patiently until the three girls that were fixing their makeup left, and I laughed as I watched Erin peek underneath the stalls to make sure we were truly alone. It felt like high school all over again, except for the part of having Ant stand guard outside the bathroom door.

“Okay, spill it.,” she said giddily.

“Spill what?”

“Come on, Sophie. I saw the goofy look on your face when you walked in.”

“It wasn’t goofy.” I scowled.

“Yes, it was, so spill it, and don’t leave anything out,” she said. “He kissed you again, didn’t he?”

“Fine, yes, he kissed me.”

“Did you feel it in your toes?” She pushed for more.

“I felt it everywhere.”

“I can’t believe my best friend is going to marry Geoff Mann!” she screamed.

“Marry? We’ve only been dating a few days.”

“Still, you know I’m right. I’ve been right about everything so far. I think I’m physic.” She smiled.

“I doubt you’re….” We both froze when one of the stall doors flew open and we were blinded by flashing lights.

“Get out of here!” Erin yelled as she tried to grab the camera from the man taking our picture. “Sophie, lock the door.” She shoved me into the open stall.

Before I could lock the stall all the way, Ant came bursting into the bathroom and yanked the camera from the man’s hand, and forced him to the floor. I actually kind of felt bad for the man since Ant was more than double his size, but then I remembered that the man not only knew I was dating Geoff, and knew my name, but he now had pictures of me.

I stood frozen as terror ripped through me and I watched the scene unfold in slow motion. I no longer heard Erin yelling at the man now pinned to the floor or Geoff when he was asking me if I was okay. All I heard were the voices in my head telling me
I told you so
.

“Sophie,” Geoff shouted louder than the voices.

“He has my picture,” I stuttered.

“Don’t worry about that. Let’s get you out of here.” Geoff wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “You know what to do.” He told Ant once we were in the hall.

“What kind of man hides in a girl’s bathroom?” Erin shouted at the man. “You’re disgusting!”

“Come on, Erin. Let’s go.” I looked back at her.

“I’m not even close to being done with this pathetic excuse for a human. I’ll see you later.” She hugged me.

“I’m not leaving without you.”

“I’m not meant to go with you,” she whispered. “Remember to keep an open heart.”

“What?” I asked.

Mario handed Geoff my purse and coat just as Geoff started to lead me back to the Hummer.

“My pictures are going to be in magazines in the mo
rning, aren’t they?” I asked Geoff once we were safely in the truck.

“I promised you tha
t would never happen.” He showed me the camera.

“How did you get that? Is that man okay?” I was stunned.

“Of course. I don’t want to be sued. Let’s just say he won’t have to work for a long time.” He started deleting the pictures.

“You bought his camera?”

“It was money well spent.” He smiled at me as he broke the camera.

“I’ll pay you back.”

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear you say that, and then I’m going to ask you to keep a very open mind about what I’m going to ask you to do next.” He slid over to me.

“You’re kind of scaring me.”

“No reason to be scared.” He pulled out what looked like a black bandanna. “I’m just going to blindfold you, if that’s okay.”

“Uh, no, it’s most definitely not okay.” I scooted away from him.

“It’s nothing like that. I just don’t want you to see where we’re going.” He pulled me back to him, and carefully tied it around my eyes.

“Nothing about this feels right.” He pulled my hands away from the blindfold.

“Nothing?”

I jumped slightly when I felt the softness of his lips on mine. He kissed me until my body fell to ease.

“Okay, maybe one thing feels right,” I said in just above a whisper.

“I’m just going to put these in your ears.” He let me feel the headphones that he was holding.

“Not only am I not allowed to see where you’re taking me, but now I’m not allowed to hear either?”

“I don’t want anything to ruin the surprise,” he replied.

“I hate being surprised. The whole ‘not knowing’ has never set well with me.”

“You’ll like this one.” He made sure the headphones were secure before turning on the music.

I tried getting lost in the music so I wouldn’t let myself get too excited about the night, but it didn’t work. My head was spinning with thoughts of what Geoff had in store for me. The sky was the limit when it came to possibilities with him.

It wasn’t long before I felt the car come to a stop, and Geoff took my hand to help me out. Still blind and deaf to my surroundings, it was hard to trust in his ability to guide me safely to where we were going.

Trying to get some sense of where I was, I tried to use my other senses to help me. It was easy to know we were by the ocean, since I could smell the salt water, and when we started walking up an incline, I was pretty sure he was taking me on the yacht Erin told me about.

“Can I take these out?” I asked about the headphones when we stopped walking.

“Not yet. Wait here.” Geoff took out one of the headphones long enough to reply and then put in.

My anticipation got the best of me, and after what felt like hours of waiting, I reached up to pull off my blindfold, but was stopped before I could grasp it, and the headphones were taken out instead.

“Sophie, if you only knew how much you mean to me, this would be so much easier.” The nervousness in his voice worried me. “The first time I looked into your eyes, I knew the stories were true. That there is one person we’re meant to be with, and that nothing in this world, not even death, can keep us apart. You’re that person, my other half and I don’t only want to be the man of your dreams. I want to be the man who gets to see all your dreams come true.” He gently lifted off the blindfold. “This is where our story begins.” My heart dropped when I saw my dad standing across the deck when Geoff moved aside.

Even though I was more confused than anything, I still ran to my dad’s awaiting arms. I didn’t realize how much I missed him until he was holding me in his arms again.

“I’ve missed you so much,” he said as he embraced me.

“I’ve missed you too.” I got teary eyed. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, someone had to accompany your mom.”

Okay, now I was more confused than ever. I looked at him, baffled, as I tried to understand what he meant by accompany my mom. My stomach knotted up when my dad handed me her urn.

“What’s…why…will someone please explain what’s going on?” A tear fell on my mom’s urn.

“This will help.” Geoff took the urn and handed me a piece of paper that had coordinates on it.

“I still don’t understand,” I said.

“Keep reading.”

I took a deep breath and started reading. A sea of emotion rushed through me as I read every word on the paper.

“You bought the island.” I looked at Geoff. My tears made him nothing more than a blur.

“Yes,” he replied simply.

“Why?”

“Because I knew how much it meant to you, and now I hope you know how much you mean to me.”

“I can never repay you!” I cried.

“You’re the only thing I want.” He wrapped his arms around me.

“Um,” my dad mumbled. “I know this is a very loving moment, but I feel the need to remind you that I’m still here.”

“Thanks, Dad.” I glared at him.

“I’ll just go see if the captain is ready to leave.” Geoff was actually blushing.

“That was awkward,” my dad said once Geoff was gone.

“Sorry.” I smiled.

“It’s good to see you smile.” He hugged me again.

“I can’t believe he did this.”

“You know that as your father, I can’t like him, right?”

“Are you serious?” I was shocked that he would say something like that after what Geoff did for us.

“Very, however, as a father, I also couldn’t ask for a better man for my daughter.” He smiled.

“You had me worried there.” I scowled at him.

“Okay, we’re on our way.” Geoff returned.

“If you don’t mind, I think I’ll go see how this baby runs,” my dad asked Geoff.

“Not at all,” Geoff replied.

“I’ll see you when I see you.” He hugged me one more time.

“I’ll be here.”

“Good; he’s gone.” I wrapped my arms around Geoff’s neck. “Where were we?”

“What if your dad’s watching?” he mumbled quietly to me.

“He’s not.”

“I know, but it’s not good for me to kiss you in front of him, especially if he doesn’t like it.”

“But he’s not here,” I reminded him.

“We don’t know that,” he whispered.

“Fine, I can wait.” I smiled.

“Thank you.”

“I can’t believe you’re afraid of my dad.” I laughed.

“I’m not afraid of him. I just don’t want to do anything to mess this up.”

“Have I told you how wonderful you are?” I asked him.

“No, you haven’t.”

“You are by far the most amazing, the most incredible, the most wonderful, and without a doubt, the most gorgeous man I have ever met,” I said.

“Wow, you definitely know how to boost someone’s ego.” 

“I’m nothing compared to you
.” I smiled.

“Would you like to see your room?”

“You mean we’re not sharing a room?” I teased him.

“Sophie...”

“I’m just joking.” I laughed at the look on his face. “Lead the way.”

I was babbling about how exciting it must be to live on a yacht, and how I’ve never been on one, all the way to my room, enough that I was irritating myself, but as soon as he opened the door to what was to be my room, words left me.

It was the biggest room I had ever seen. It had to be at least two of my bedrooms put together, and that didn’t include the bathroom or very large walk-in closet that was attached. The room was made mostly out of mahogany, and the bathroom out of Italian marble. It was the type of room in which you didn’t want to touch anything, because you couldn’t afford to replace the door handles, let alone anything else, if broken.

“I’ve only seen rooms like this on TV.” I was in awe.

“There’s something for you in the closet.” Geoff brought me back to reality. “I’ll be waiting for you on the upper deck. Take all the time you need.” He left me standing alone in the middle of a dream.

“I can’t believe this!” I screamed and threw myself on the bed. “If this is a dream, then don’t wake me.”

I sat up and looked around one more time before making my way to the closet. My mouth dropped when I opened the doors and saw the only thing hanging was the yellow satin dress I had seen in Paris.

“Erin.” I smiled. I held it up to me and spun around.

I sat on the chaise couch that was in the closet and stared at the dress for almost twenty minutes before I got the nerve to put it on. A small part of me was terrified it wouldn’t look half as good on me as it did Erin, but considering it was the only dress I had, it didn’t matter.

I carefully slid into it, and closed my eyes as I stood in front of the mirror. “This is stupid,” I mumbled and opened them. I was shocked at how good it looked on me and, for the first time in my life, I felt pretty.

“Now all I have to do is conquer my makeup and I’ll be home free,” I said.

I tried to remember how Erin put on my makeup earlier and I pulled open the middle drawer of the vanity table. I laughed when I saw a note saying “W
asn’t sure what you needed, so I bought it all. Geoff. P.S. Don’t forget to look in the top right drawer,”
on top of what looked to be every kind of makeup ever made.

I carefully pulled open the top right drawer and found a black velvet jewelry box, with yet another note under it. “
As soon as I saw this, I saw it on you. Love, Geoff.”
I gasped when I opened the box and saw that inside the box sat a teardrop diamond necklace, not only one of the biggest diamonds I’ve ever seen, but also the most diamonds I’ve ever seen on one piece of jewelry.

An all-too-familiar fear resurfaced as I stared at a girl I no longer recognized in the mirror. The same love that once filled my heart was back, and all I could think about was how much
it hurt to lose it, and even though Geoff had given me my heart back, the fear of having it shattered again was still with me.

“Please make the fear go away.” I closed my eyes and prayed for the first time since my mom died, but it was too late. The fear had once again taken over and, no matter how much I wanted to be loved again, I couldn’t risk it.

I turned away from my reflection and walked back into the closet to undress. Just as I reached for the necklace, I felt a hand grasping mine to stop me.

“Please don’t take it off,” Geoff whispered from behind me. My heart broke when I heard the sadness in his voice.

“I’m so sorry, but I can’t do this,” I replied softly.

He released my hands. I looked down when he repositioned himself in front of me so I couldn’t see the pain I was causing him.

“Sophie, I know how hard it is for you to love again, and for you trust someone with your heart, but I also know that no matter how hard you fight this, I’ll never stop trying to make you feel my love. I will hold onto you as long as it takes to fix your broken heart, and for you to love me back.”

“I’m so scared.” I started crying.

“I know, and I promise I’ll never hurt you.” He lifted my face so our eyes could meet. “I will never let your heart break again.”

“Is that possible?”

“I’ll make it possible.” He gently wiped the tears from my eyes.

I wanted to trust him and I wanted believe what he was saying. I needed to believe everything he was saying, but I also knew the lingering pain would always find a way of holding me back, and he didn’t deserve someone who would, in more than one way, always be broken.

“I can’t.” I broke away from his gaze and cried.

“I’ll make you a deal.” He made me face him again. “Just give me tonight, and if you still feel the same way in the morning, I’ll let you go.”  

“What happens with us if I still feel the same?”

“Let’s get through tonight, and worry about that tomorrow,” he said.

“I’ll try.”

“That’s all I can ask for.” He kissed my cheek. “I’ll be waiting for you.”

I waited until I heard the door to my room shut, before walking back to the mirror to see what kind of damage my tears had done. 

“You’re pathetic,” I muttered to my reflection before grabbing a damp towel to dab under my eyes. Just as I made myself presentable again, there was a small knock on my room door. “You can give him tonight. You at least owe him that,” I scolded myself, and then took one last deep breath before answering the door.

“Good evening, Miss Watters. I’m Walter, and I’m here to escort you to Mr. Mancini.” He offered his arm to me.

“Thank you.” I smiled and slid my hand into the crease of his waiting arm.

Once again, I was speechless when we reached the top deck of the yacht and saw that it was lined with candles, and that the floor was covered in rose petals. Walter led me to a table that sat in the middle of the deck, which just happened to be set beautifully for two. I had never imagined in my life such a romantic setting to what I hoped would be a night worth letting it all go for.

“Mr. Mancini will be with you in a moment,” Walter advised me as he pushed in my chair.

“Thank you, Walter.” I smiled up at him.

I was surprised how quiet being in the middle of the ocean actually was until I heard what sounded like a guitar playing
all around me. It didn’t take me long to figure out it was coming from the speakers that were nestled in the wooden floor of the deck.

Movement coming from the stairs to my right caught my attention, and I fell into a trance as I watched Geoff slowly make his way to me.

“May I have this dance?” He offered his hand.

“Of course.” I placed my hand into his for him to lead me a few feet away from the table.

The intensity in his eyes paralyzed me as his left hand slowly slid around my waist. I silently gasped when he pulled me into him, and held my breath as his right hand gently ran the length of my arm until it intertwined with mine. He rested our hands against his chest as we swayed to the music. It wasn’t until he started singing softly to me that I lost all control and melted into his embrace.

Breathing became an issue when I felt the hotness of his breath on my neck with each word he sang, immobilizing me to where I would have crumbled to the ground if he weren’t holding me. Not only did the world around us disappear, but so did I as I got lost in the moment – a moment that I found myself praying would never end. Every inch of my body tingled from his touch, and all I knew was that I never wanted this feeling to end. 

He didn’t let go when the music stopped. Instead, his grip tightened, and he held me as if he was afraid to let go. I could feel his breathing pick up, and wondered if he could feel the desire I had for him through my beating heart.

“I’m
in love with you, Sophie.” His voice trembled.