Page 61 of Broken Melody
“No. No, I understand. They’ve all been through enough,” I say and guilt creeps into his eyes. “I just mean that I’m sure they have all been very worried about you. Let’s not add to their worries for now.”
“How the hell did I get so lucky to find you?” he asks.
“Well technically Rick and Jace found me.”
He sighs deeply and dramatically and I laugh. “And hell yes you can cook in here, but only if it’s for me.”
“Deal,” I tell him.
We sit and eat a wonderful dinner of baked chicken breast, asparagus, and wild rice. It’s fantastic, especially the white wine that couples with our meal. We keep the conversation simple, talking about the upcoming tour since we leave in one week. When we’re finished I stand and take our plates to the sink to wash them, but he stops me. “My housekeeper will be here in the morning and she’ll handle that.”
“You are so spoiled,” I tell him.
“Hey, I pay her well. She comes every day.”
“You’re that messy?”
“No, just that needy,” he says and I roll my eyes. “I was thinking we could take a dip in the swimming pool since it’s almost dark,” he says walking to the back door of his house and pulling open the heavy navy blue curtains that cover the door. The view of the backyard at dusk is breathtaking. A large patio, the width of the house, leads out to a huge swimming pool. Chaise loungers and chairs adorned with thick cushions surround it. There’s a tall fence around the perimeter of the property offering privacy and beautiful flowers and plants run along the entire back wall. It’s beautiful.
“I didn’t bring a suit,” I tell him absently.
He turns to me and his smile grows even wider, “I know.”
“Skinny dipping?” I ask while excitement curls my belly.
“Hey, I remember our game at the bar. You said it’s on your bucket list. I thought that I’d help you cross it off your list. If you want to - no pressure,” he says softly.
Smiling, I open the sliding glass door and walk out to the swimming pool. Once there, I slip off my shoe and dip my foot into the water. “Nice and warm.”
“Perfect swimming temperature,” he says and I know without looking he’s smiling.
After kicking the water a little, I turn and look at him and find him reclining on a lounge chair. Moving to him, I sit in between his spread legs and lean back against his chest. “Sounds good to me.”
“Yeah?”
“Yes,” I reply, feeling nervous yet excited. The feeling of his hard body behind mine is the perfect foreplay to what’s coming tonight. I want to be with him. Completely. And I can’t wait.
“While we wait for it to get darker, I have a question for you,” he says into my ear and I nod. “What else is on your bucket list?”
“Hmm, let’s see. I want to swim with dolphins.”
He kisses the top of my head, “What else?”
“I want to travel. There are all kinds of places I’d like to go like Ireland and Tahiti, but Paris has always been at the top of the list too. I want to sip coffee and eat a croissant at one of those little corner cafés. I want to see the Eiffel tour and shop of course. I want to revel in the architecture, visit the Louvre, and other less known museums too. I know it’s probably cliché but I really would love to see the City of Lights. Have you ever been?”
“I haven’t. Not yet. What else is on your list?”
“I want to shower in a waterfall, go horse back riding, be an extra in a film, try to make a guard laugh at Buckingham Palace,” he laughs when I say that one. “I want to see the Northern Lights, get a standing ovation, look out the window from the top of a lighthouse, own my own home, and sleep in a hammock by the ocean to name a few.”
“That’s a really good list.”
“What’s on yours?”
“I’ve never really thought about it.”
“What?” I turn to face him wide-eyed. “Seriously?”
He shrugs, “Not really.”
