Page 22 of You & Me: Part One

“What?”

Why did I open my mouth when I don’t want to go there?

“Emily, you can tell me anything. As long as it’s the truth, there isn’t anything you can’t tell me.”

On a heavy exhale I lift my eyes to his, “I don’t know what is about you, Jonathan. You just make me feel things I haven’t felt before. I feel like my emotions are all over the place. Not in a negative way, just in a new and scary way that I’m not used to. You’re the kind of risk I never take, but I feel like I’ll regret it if I don’t. I promised Cami, and myself, more importantly, no regrets. I know I’m probably not making any sense. It’s just overwhelming but incredible at the same time,” with a shrug I turn my face to the waves of the Pacific in the hopes that I don’t see rejection or regret on his face.

The silence that follows is deafening as I turn my body to face the ocean and take a couple of steps towards the incoming waves so that my feet get wet. This feeling, that is starting to overtake me, is exactly why I don’t get involved. It hurts too bad and I have only known him for a matter of days.

I hear movement behind me and figure he’s picking up the blanket and my shoes that were dropped from my hands during the moment we just shared. But not a second later I feel his warmth on my back as his arms come around my waist and pull me tight to him. As I wrap my arms around his, I look down and see that his shoes are now off and his feet are bare and getting wet with mine.

With his lips just above my ear, so that I can feel his warm breath, he speaks and takes my breath away. “Em, if you are feeling even half of what I’m feeling in this moment or hell, any time I touch you, then baby you are making perfect sense to me. What you do to me and how you make me feel is unreal, unexpected, and all-consuming. I’m not sure why I agreed to one week because I have a feeling it’s going to kill me to let you go, but right now I need to be with you, right here, in this moment. I want to get to know you. To explore everything about you, that you’ll let me. I want to make you feel as special as you deserve to feel. I want to make it so hard for you to say goodbye to me at the end of our time together that you just don’t,” I try to speak but he gives me a little squeeze and says gently, “No. We aren’t talking about the reasons you can’t give me more than a week tonight, so please don’t go there.”

I nod. Agreeing to leave the fact that he wouldn’t be saying these words or want me at all if he knew the things I’m not telling him. Instead, I say the only thing I have the strength for.

“Thank you.”

Treasure

Emily

The California sun feels so good on my skin. After a day of power shopping with Sam, Steph and Cami we’re in need of some serious relaxation time. It was really great spending the day with the girls. We slept in, went out to breakfast and then hit every little boutique store in San Clemente. Now, here we are, lounging on our sun-deck living the life of leisure.

Hearing the girl’s stories about the guys they met last night were hysterical. Sam and Steph met two guys from Oceanside that just happen to also be cousins ‘so you know it’s totally meant to be’, according to Steph. These girls are hopeless romantics and think they’re going to marry every guy they meet on the dance floor. Apparently, this means Sam has moved on from Matt already. Cami, on the other hand, is all about fun and living in the moment. She apparently hit it off with the step-brother of one of the ‘meant to be’ cousins and they’re all meeting up tonight after we meet Jonathan and the guys at Ole’s.

“You’re cool that we made plans tonight, right? I mean we just assumed you would want to be with Jonathan, but you know you’re always welcome. You know you don’t ever need an invitation. If I’m there, you’re there.”

“Of course, I know that, but you’re right. I would love to spend time with Jonathan. I feel so bad Cami. This is not the vacation we planned. If you want me to tell Jonathan I can’t spend so much time with him, I will. Hos before bros and all that.”

“You are so stupid!” She yells, swatting my arm as she reaches from her sun chair to mine. “You have the rest of your life to hang with me. You have one week with that fine ass man. I wouldn’t care if I don’t see you again for the rest of the week. That means I get the bed to myself—unless I make a new friend—and this way one of us will have a kick-ass story to tell on the drive home!”

“You sure, Cami? This wasn’t our plan and I feel terrible.”

“Listen to me, Em. You and I are going to be friends until we are old and senile, sitting in the nursing home checking out the hot, young, male nurses that are there to give us our sponge baths every night. So, of course I’m sure. I do have one word of advice for tonight though . . . say yes.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Cami. It’s not like he’s going to propose on day four. You’re crazy, but I love you and I don’t know how I would survive this crazy life without you. Thank you for every time you’ve been there for me since you forced me to be your best friend in fourth grade.”

“I’ve always known what was best for you, it’s true,” she says sticking her tongue out at me. “Now, let’s get back to the suite so we can go beautify ourselves and blow all those boys away tonight!”

The butterflies doing flips in my stomach multiply every time the door to Ole’s opens. I have never been so excited to see somebody in my life and I’m buzzing with nervous energy. We have our table up front in the window claimed, but I couldn’t just sit there and wait. So we decided to shoot some pool to pass the time.

It’s my turn and when I lean over to take my shot I have a sudden feeling of calm overtake me and I actually sink the striped thirteen ball in the left corner pocket. As I stand back up I shout, “YES!” and my left fist comes down, my right knee comes up, and I bite my lip in my best dude just sinking their ball impression.

Spinning around to get the high fives I have more than just earned, I land in the arms of the warmest, strongest, safest arms I have ever been in. Those arms are instantly picking me up so my legs go around his waist and then they set me on the nearest stool.

“Nice shot, Gracie,” he whispers in my ear and then gives me the best hello kiss in the history of hello kisses. Way too soon he pulls back and lifts his right hand and says, “I know what you were really looking for when you turned around, so here you go, little lady.”

When I just sit there looking at him in shock over the fact that he knows me so well already, he insists. “Don’t leave me hangin’, baby.”

All that is going through my head as my right hand connects with his left is that he just called me, baby. I feel like the smile taking over my face right now will never leave me as long as I’m in his presence.

“That’s my girl, now go take your next shot. I know you aren’t used to making your shot, but when you do, you get to go again,” he says like the smart-ass he is.

“Very funny,” I say jumping off the stool to head back to the table and am surprised by the slap on the ass he gives me on my way by him.

“Watch it, mister! You better be able to take what you can give.”

“Oh, I can take it, baby,” he says with one eyebrow lifted in that cocky way he does.

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