baguettes and drinking tea (we both laughed at how British we had become with tea, tea, tea, and more tea!) when he looked longingly out into the daylight. The sun was high in the sky and there was no sign of clouds, so hopefully no rain was headed our way.
“I want to take you somewhere,” he said softly. “I want to show you something.”
“What is it?” I asked, as any normal person would. As any normal girl would who had gotten such a proposition from the extremely attractive and as equally mysterious Jack Stark. I remembered Lucy telling me that no one knew much about his personal life, or about his family. I wondered then why. Sure, she said, he’d been in public with all the starlets of the day, but it all seemed part of the act somehow. No one knew the real Jack. The man behind the enigma. And here he was right next to me, offering me something I did not even know existed. Comfort. Safety. Hope. I waited with bated breath for his reply, which came soon after I had voiced my question.
He looked deep into my eyes, and I in his. It was as if the world disappeared around us and we were the only two people on the island. No Lucy. No Henry. No diner. No Inn. There was nothing between us. Nothing to keep us apart except my own reluctance to let anyone get that close.
“It won’t be a surprise if I tell you,” he whispered softly, as his hand moved past my face. His fingers reached my head, and he put a strand of loose hair behind my ear. His caress, his warmth made me want to run, but also made me feel something stronger: desire. I closed my eyes and really felt his hand on my face. I rested my head and I breathed in the smell of him. A clean, but manly smell. I wondered what it would feel like to feel that hand sliding down my chest, and then further down.
“Fine,” I whispered back. “As long as I don’t have to get on that bike again.”
“I’m afraid I can’t promise you that,” he said, and as he did I opened my eyes and saw that irresistible smile. He had the most warm, the most beautiful smile I had seen on anyone. He might have been an actor, but right then and there it felt like he had given me the most genuine performance. I closed my eyes again. I did not want his hand to move, but eventually it did and the moment was broken.
“Make sure to dress warm. It’s quite chilly where we’re going,” he said as he got up to presumably get ready for our trip.
“Chillier than it always is?” I asked, not sure if I had gotten the joke.
“Yes, Sophie. Sometimes it’s a lot colder than it is by the sea right now.”
I wondered what kind of place he was taking me to as I dressed warm. I had to borrow a jacket of his because the one I had with me wasn’t enough. This reminded me that I needed to stop by my and Lucy’s place and pick up a couple of things. But not right now. Maybe not even today. Today was going to be about just me and Jack, and the rest of the world be damned.
I closed the oversize jacket around me, breathing in the masculine smell of it, imagining what it would be like if I let Jack put his arms around me. Instead, I was going to put my arms around him again. But not for any romantic reason, but because I was going to be holding on for dear life again.
As I climbed on the bike behind him, and as the engine came to life, very loudly I might add, I berated myself for getting on the darned thing again. But it had to be done. I had to see what Jack had to show me. I was intrigued by the idea of what he, new to the island, had to show me. Pretty soon, as I held on tightly, we were on our way to the mysterious destination, the sun high in the sky, making our path clear. But I couldn’t see most of it, because my body was full of fear, and my eyes were shut.
I spent the rest of the ride praying that we’d be there soon, but it seemed like our destination was never near enough, for we continued to ride and ride, until finally, we were there.
It took me a moment to adjust to the
“I want to take you somewhere,” he said softly. “I want to show you something.”
“What is it?” I asked, as any normal person would. As any normal girl would who had gotten such a proposition from the extremely attractive and as equally mysterious Jack Stark. I remembered Lucy telling me that no one knew much about his personal life, or about his family. I wondered then why. Sure, she said, he’d been in public with all the starlets of the day, but it all seemed part of the act somehow. No one knew the real Jack. The man behind the enigma. And here he was right next to me, offering me something I did not even know existed. Comfort. Safety. Hope. I waited with bated breath for his reply, which came soon after I had voiced my question.
He looked deep into my eyes, and I in his. It was as if the world disappeared around us and we were the only two people on the island. No Lucy. No Henry. No diner. No Inn. There was nothing between us. Nothing to keep us apart except my own reluctance to let anyone get that close.
“It won’t be a surprise if I tell you,” he whispered softly, as his hand moved past my face. His fingers reached my head, and he put a strand of loose hair behind my ear. His caress, his warmth made me want to run, but also made me feel something stronger: desire. I closed my eyes and really felt his hand on my face. I rested my head and I breathed in the smell of him. A clean, but manly smell. I wondered what it would feel like to feel that hand sliding down my chest, and then further down.
“Fine,” I whispered back. “As long as I don’t have to get on that bike again.”
“I’m afraid I can’t promise you that,” he said, and as he did I opened my eyes and saw that irresistible smile. He had the most warm, the most beautiful smile I had seen on anyone. He might have been an actor, but right then and there it felt like he had given me the most genuine performance. I closed my eyes again. I did not want his hand to move, but eventually it did and the moment was broken.
“Make sure to dress warm. It’s quite chilly where we’re going,” he said as he got up to presumably get ready for our trip.
“Chillier than it always is?” I asked, not sure if I had gotten the joke.
“Yes, Sophie. Sometimes it’s a lot colder than it is by the sea right now.”
I wondered what kind of place he was taking me to as I dressed warm. I had to borrow a jacket of his because the one I had with me wasn’t enough. This reminded me that I needed to stop by my and Lucy’s place and pick up a couple of things. But not right now. Maybe not even today. Today was going to be about just me and Jack, and the rest of the world be damned.
I closed the oversize jacket around me, breathing in the masculine smell of it, imagining what it would be like if I let Jack put his arms around me. Instead, I was going to put my arms around him again. But not for any romantic reason, but because I was going to be holding on for dear life again.
As I climbed on the bike behind him, and as the engine came to life, very loudly I might add, I berated myself for getting on the darned thing again. But it had to be done. I had to see what Jack had to show me. I was intrigued by the idea of what he, new to the island, had to show me. Pretty soon, as I held on tightly, we were on our way to the mysterious destination, the sun high in the sky, making our path clear. But I couldn’t see most of it, because my body was full of fear, and my eyes were shut.
I spent the rest of the ride praying that we’d be there soon, but it seemed like our destination was never near enough, for we continued to ride and ride, until finally, we were there.
It took me a moment to adjust to the
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