Page 23 of Purgatory
Finally, I get ahold of myself and manage to calm down my giggle fit.Shaking my head at him in disbelief, I go back to work on my muffin, unable to remove the smile from my face.
“There you are. Missed you there for a second.” He smiles down at me and takes the seat next to mine, placing his elbow on the counter and resting his head in his hand.
“Why are you trying to cheer me up? And why, in the world, did saying the wordfalafeldo the trick?” I ask, finishing up my muffin and pushing the tray away.
He looks back at me, slowly walking his fingertips on the counter towards my hand and takes it in his. The movement sends sparks racing up my arm. His hand is so large compared to mine, that my hand practically disappears in his grasp. I’m notthatshort, but even at 5’4” these guys seem like giants. With the way I have to tilt my head to look up at them, they have to be pushing six feet or more each. Before my mind drifts to forbidden territory about what else is gigantic, Hawk answers.
“It worked because there are many crazy and weirdsounding words out there and falafel just so happens to be one of them. Fahrvergnugen is another.”
I laugh at that one also. How does he think of this stuff? Goofball...
Squeezing my hand lightly, he forces me to look into his eyes. “And I did it, because I absolutely love it when you smile. I saw you smile the other day when you were downing marshmallows like they were your own personal ticket to heaven and I never wanted to see you without that look on your face ever again, because that face... this face looking back at me right here...” he tips his chin to me, bites his lower lip and places his free hand against my cheek, brushing the stray strands of hair out of my eyes, “makes me forget about everything else going on in the world right now.”
Wow, this guy just leaped right out of a romance novel, didn’t he?
I lean into his hand and let out a small sigh as he smiles back at me. I could spend all day getting lost in his eyes. Beautiful, ocean blue eyes that don’t seem to have a care in the world, except to see me smile. I should be taken aback by how overly-flirtatious and confident he is but I think that’s just him. He doesn’t seem to be like those guys at bars that drop lines at unsuspecting girls just so he could get into their pants. You know the ones.Go ahead, feel my shirt. It’s made of boyfriend material. *eyeroll*orYou and I are like nachos with jalapenos. I’m super cheesy, you’re super hot. We belong together. Good grief.No, the way he speaks, it seems genuine, regardless of how cliché it might be. It makes me appreciate his quirkiness. My smile softens at the thought, his thumb brushes the side of my cheek. He takes a quick look at his watch and lets out a sigh and bites his lip again as his eyes drift back to me.
“Ready to see what we have to do today?” He cocks an eyebrow at me and moves to stand, keeping my hand in his.
“Ready as I’ll ever be...”
I stand and move to follow him, staying like that, hand in hand, as we make our way out the back door to our awaiting task.
Chapter 16
Hawk
“Fishing? We’re going fishing?” Her eyes widen and that smile I’ve grown to adore grows across her gorgeous face. I pick up our gear and we start to walk down the pathway towards the lake.
“Sure are. Maybe we’ll get lucky and catch something fresh for dinner. Have you ever been before?”
“Yea, loads of times... well... I mean... it’s been a while... but... I’m sure nothing has changed since so I should be ok.” She scuffs at the dirt as we walk.
About fifteen minutes later we come up to my favorite spot and start setting up our lines. I love it here. The view. The calm of it all. It’s just a bit up from the little beach and at the start of a nice little rocky cliff face. There’re some down trees in the water here so it’s nice and calm. Perfect for the fish to hang out.
She climbs up onto one of the large boulders and sits, taking it all in. She seems to get lost in the view just as much as I am. Little does she know, I’m not looking at the lake like she is, but rather something much more interesting. I watch as she pulls her knees into her chest, resting her chin on them as she sighs into the breeze. A small smile teases at the corner of her lips, begging for something more. I’d love to give that something to her, but strain to hold myself back, needing to remind myself that she’s been through a lot and doesn't need me breathing down her neck already, no matter how much she affects me. No matter how much I want her even after just afew days. Instead, I reach over and hand her a pole, already baited with a worm – because, yeah, I'm a gentleman.
“ Thanks. I still can’t believe how beautiful this place is. I can’t wait to see what else you guys are hiding here.”
I’ll show you anything you want, sweetheart, just ask.
We cast our lines, reeling in just a little and wait. She takes the time to enjoy the quiet, the sunlight dancing on the lake. I continue to take the time enjoying the view in front of me. The effortless beauty radiating out of her. I’m a firm believer that beauty shines from within and this woman is glowing, iridescent even, and I want to bask in her light.
That sounds crazy, right? Love at first sight can’t really be a thing. Like some illogically fated Romeo and Juliet kismet shit. I know. It sounds too improbable. But when I think back to when I first saw her through the window, and then watching her after, I can’t help but feelsomething.Like I have blinders on and she’s all that matters. I suddenly want to know everything about her.
I pick up a pebble and roll it between my fingers as I ask.
“So, where are you from?”
She sits up a bit, and thinks for a second. “Greenville”
“Greenville? Wow, that’s like a 2-hour drive North from here, right?”
Can only imagine how long it took her to hoof it.
“New York. And I walked most of it. Roads are too clogged with disabled vehicles to get any working ones through. Walking is just easier to navigate.”
Holy shit...
