Chapter Eleven
That night, Christian takes me out to dinner to celebrate my graduation. We eat at one of the nicer restaurants on the waterfront and the food is fresh and delicious. And I'm ravenous after skipping both breakfast and lunch. When I'm finally full, I sit back and just take in the view. The water, the mountains, the sunset... this gorgeous man sitting across from me. Watching me. Again.
"What?" I ask.
"I like watching you eat," he says. "When you're nervous or stressed, you don't eat. So when you do, I know you're happy."
Oh... hmm, I guess that's true. "Well, you never seem to have a problem eating. Does that mean you're happy too?"
He smirks. "Very. And... I'm a man. I'm always ready for two things. Food and..."
And we laugh. I look up and his eyes go from amused to smoldering. Oh here we go...
I'm brushing my teeth when he comes up behind me, grasping my hips. And he still has that look in his eyes. I spit and rinse and then look at him in the mirror. "Not so fast. Tonight we are having pillow talk."
"Pillow talk?"
"Yes, pillow talk. We tend to... you know... first and then talk later."
He starts to protest and then stops. He really can't argue this, can he? I do have a point.
"So brush your teeth and come to bed," I say, and leave him to it.
I put on one of his t-shirts and clean panties and climb into bed. He joins me a few minutes later, wearing just boxer briefs. Oh, well this is a little distracting... No. I tug up the sheet between us. We are face-to-face, but not touching.
"So," I begin. "The interviews..." I am still not done with this.
"Anna," he says, "I told you I was sorry about that... I already..."
"I know. I'm talking about the fact that your family funded the new wing at the library. Where I went to interview and could be working. You didn't think to mention it?"
"I don't want to interfere in your career... I know it's important for you to be independent."
I sigh. "Okay. So if I get this job - and I really hope I do - I'm not going to tell anyone about us... not right away. I mean, I'm just starting out… and you guys have a library wing. I need to establish myself...be my own person."
"Absolutely. Now, can I say something?"
I eye him suspiciously, "Fine, go ahead."
"I love you."
Oh Christian... I just look at him and he looks so exposed - vulnerable - and my heart flips. Yes, I love him too. It's happened so fast and these last few weeks have been such a crazy ride. But yes... "I love you too, Christian. I've fallen for you."
He leans in and kisses me softly. "I love your smart mouth." And then he trails kisses down my neck to my chest. "And your kind heart." He moves to my breasts, kissing each nipple. "And I really love these," He says, cupping them in his hands.
Ah! I wince and pull back. Mmmm...
"Tender?" He asks. And I nod. "Your body's changing... I like it." He leaves my breasts and continues on down, skimming my belly with his hand. "And I love our little... What is it this week?"
I grin. "A blueberry."
"I love our little blueberry." And he leans in to kiss it, then pulls back. "And I want you to meet my girls. I want us to be a family."
Oh! Oh boy. I mean, I knew this was coming… eventually.
"Tomorrow?" He asks.
My belly tightens and I'm suddenly nervous, but I agree. "Yes, tomorrow."
He smiles. "Good. Now are we done talking?"
"Yes," I say. And before I can even finish the word, he's pulling my t-shirt off and our bodies are doing all the talking...
...
The next morning, Christian takes me home before he goes to pick up the girls. He suggested that his mom could just drop them off, but... NO. I am not going to be at his house - in the morning - when his mom drops off his girls. No thank you. I have agreed to come over later in the day. It's supposed to be nice, so we're going to go down to the beach and then grill out.
I arrive at 4:00 and ring the doorbell and Christian answers, his younger daughter - Ellie - peeking out from behind his legs. Hmmm... daddy Christian...
"Hello Ana," he says, "Please come in." I do, and he introduces us.
"Ana, this is Ellie... Ellie this is Ana, my - um - new friend I've been wanting you to meet."
Ellie looks up at me, her hazel eyes considering me. "She looks like Rachel."
Christian chuckles and looks a little... embarrassed? I can't tell.
"Um, who's Rachel?"
"She's our... um... teenaged babysitter. You do kind of look alike."
Oh! Hmmm... Nope, I am definitely not the babysitter...
I laugh and then say hello to Ellie and shake her hand. It's warm and a little sticky. Christian asks her to go find Marissa. She gives me a grin and trots off, yelling for sister. We move through the kitchen into the living area and Marissa appears, coming shyly into the room, glancing quickly at me and then looking down. She has a paperback in her hand - Stuart Little.
"Hello Marissa," I say, "Hey… Stuart Little. That's one of my favorite books."
She looks up at me in surprise. "It is?"
"Yep. I love books too. In fact, I have a new job - in the children's department - at the library."
Her face lights up. "Really? I love the library..."
"Well maybe you can come visit me there? Get a behind-the-scenes tour?"
She nods vigorously. Yes! The ice is broken. I look up at Christian and his jaw has dropped. He looks back at me and a slow grin spreads across his face. "Marissa," he says. "Go get changed for the beach. Help your sister."
When she's gone, he pulls me in close. "Congratulations, baby! This is news to me. When did you..."
"When I got home, I found an email from yesterday. They said that they'd love to have me... that I'm supposed to call tomorrow and set up a formal meeting..." I pull back and shrug. "I told you books were my thing. What I didn't know is that they're also your daughter's!" We laugh, and suddenly I feel a whole lot lighter. Maybe things are falling into place...
We spend a lazy afternoon on the beach - collecting shells and rocks, walking along the water. Christian and Ellie build a sand castle while Marissa and I read our books.
The light changes and I look up. The sky has darkened and then it suddenly opens up, drenching us. We run shrieking to the house - dumping our stuff inside the door and laughing. Oh, we are soaked... dripping on the floor. And I don't have a change of clothes.
Half an hour later, we are all dry and changed. I am wearing one of Christian's t-shirts and a pair of his sweatpants with the waistband rolled over. The rain has stopped, so Christian heads out to start the grill. He comes back in with the propane cannister. "Sorry... I guess it's out. Do you mind if I run out to exchange it?" He looks from me to the girls, who are perched at the breakfast bar. We were about to make fruit salad.
"Sure," I say confidently, "We'll be fine..." And I shoo him out the door.
I head back to the kitchen and start slicing up the watermelon. We all take samples, the sweet juice running onto our chins. The doorbell rings... Did Christian forget his keys? I go to answer it, Ellie trailing me. I wipe off my chin with the back of my hand and open the door.
Oh. It's not Christian... Two red-headed women are at the door – one about mid-fifties, one closer to my age. "Hello..." I say, and Ellie scoots past me.
"Grandma!" She squeals. "Aunt Molly!" Oh shit...
