chapter 6

MARK

THEY sat at another table and left us by ourselves.

"Did they tell you why they were going to sit at another table?" I asked

"Yeah. They said they wanted us to spend time together by ourselves." she responded. "Do they know something we don't?" she asked,

"I think so. But let's not worry about that right now Darlin'. Let's just worry about right now."

We spent the next hour just talking and making jokes and laughing. I can't remember the last time I had this much fun with a girl since I got divorced a couple of years ago. It's so easy to have a conversation with Aurora. Everything just comes natural.

We were going to leave to San Diego right after this. Everyone came up to us and suggested that me and Aurora ride together.

"Come on, Mark. I know you want her to spend time with her friends, but you like her. So how about this...when you two finally decide to act on your feelings for each other, then you two can decide who you want to hang out with and what you want to do. But do not act on those feelings because you get to do whatever you want afterwards. Trust me Mark. Ride to San Diego with her." said Glen.

AURORA

"COME on, Aurora. Ride with him. You need to act on your feelings for him. That's that. It's what you are going to do. This is like every girl's dream, getting to hang out with their crush. Just the two of them. Only thing with this situation is, that you are going to act on your feelings for him." said Natalya

"Does everyone know my feelings for him?" I asked.

"We know. As for everyone else, they think that there might be some feelings, but they might not be sure. Probably 'cause they don't spend as much time with you two like we do." said Eve.

"Sweetie, don't worry about it. We're a phone call away if you need us. Its not the end of the world." said Beth

So I went with Mark in his truck after I put my bags in his truck.

"You okay Darlin'?" he asked when we were ready to start driving.

"Yeah. I'm fine." I said calming down when I looked into his green eyes. He smiled.

While we were driving, I suddenly asked him "Is there anyone that you like as more than a friend?"

"Uh, yeah. There is this one girl."

"Oh. What's she like?" I asked.

"Tall, funny, smart as hell, beautiful. She's adorable. She makes me want to improve. She makes me want to accomplish more things than what I thought I could these past couple of weeks. What about you?" He responded.

"Tall, funny, gorgeous. He's sweet. He treats me nice and he respects me. We have things in common. I look in his eyes, and I calm down. I get butterflies when I'm with him and he makes my heart race at 100 miles an hour. It can feel like a rush. But then, I don't want it to stop."

"Oh." he responded quietly.

I have a problem telling people how I feel about them. I've been hurt by guys so many times in the past, that I just get afraid of it happening again. But I don't know how much longer I can go without letting him know. I don't want to miss my opportunity of what could be if I act on my feelings.

SAN DIEGO

MARK

WHEN we got to the hotel, I looked over at Aurora and smiled. She was still sleeping. I got out of the car and walked over to her side and opened the door.

"Aurora," I said softly. "Come on, Darlin'. We're here."

She started sitrring. "Mark?" she said quietly.

"Yea. Its Mark. Come on, Darlin'. We're at the hotel."

She woke up and put her arms around my neck. I put my hands on her waist and helped her down. She yawned quietly and rubbed her eyes. I chuckled.

"You alright?" I asked keeping her close to me.

"Yes. Do we have a room yet?" she asked.

"No. We're going to go in and get the room."

"Okay."

We asked for a room with two beds.

*0.0*

"You should keep your hair out." said Aurora when I came out of the shower. "I like how you look with your hair out."

"Really?" I asked. She nodded smiling. I chuckled.

"It's still light out. Wanna go do something?" I asked

"Let's go to the boardwalk." she said looking up at me. "Please."

"Come on." I had put on some shorts with a MMA t-shirt and some sandles. It was to hot to be wearing boots. I let my hair out. Just for Aurora. But I told her that she had to do the same. She had changed into shorts with a white thin strap shirt with flip-flops and sunglasses.

When we got to the boardwalk, I went to go grab her hand. I expected her to let go and avoid having that happen again. But she didn't. She let me hold her hand. I smiled lightly. We went to the railing and she leaned in against me. I put my hands on her waist and slightly pulled her closer towards me. I breathed in deeply. She smelled like strawberries. I don't mind staying like this for a while.

AURORA

I looked up at Mark and noticed that he was looking around. I took my sunglasses off.

"You like what you see?" I asked.

He looked down at me and smiled. "More than you think."

He suddenly leaned down and kissed me. When we both pulled away, we were both smiling from ear to ear. This could be the start of something that I'm going to really, really love.

THE NEXT DAY

I was at the gym with Eve, Beth, and Natalya.

"So, what happened yesterday with you and Mark?" they asked.

"Well, yesterday we went to the boardwalk and we held hands." I replied.

"Ohmigod! Seriously?" asked Eve excited.

"Yes. And...we kissed." I said quietly.

"You kissed?" exclaimed Beth. I nodded smiling.

"How was it?" asked Natalya.

"It was nice. I liked it."

"Aww." I heard them say. I felt my face grow warm.