Chapter 27

Iris

His eyes grew slightly provocative immediately. 'Why are you acting like this, why did you leave my socks and pants on the couch? What the hell is going on?' I asked angrily, folding my arms. 'Well, I didn't want to disturb you and Danny, you looked so cosy, I thought I'd better give you some privacy,' he said, his voice low and challenging. My eyes widened. 'Are you kidding me right now?' He folded his arms. 'I can't believe you right now, Drake,' I snapped. I started pacing, and clenched my fists. 'Danny said I had to go easy on you… that I had to understand your reasons for being mad at me… but frankly, I'm exceptionally mad at you instead.' At first, he seemed slightly surprised, but then his eyes turned to fire, as he walked closer to me. 'Why would you be mad at me?' We were staring at each other for a few moments, both breathing heavily, and my heart was pounding like crazy.

'Because apparently, Drake, you don't trust me,' I snapped, folding my arms. 'You don't trust me one bit, because if you knew what Danny and I talked about by the fire, you wouldn't have walked away.' I bit my lip, as a sudden lump in my throat confronted me harshly. 'If you knew about any of the things Danny and I talk about, you wouldn't have acted like a jealous jerk.' The fire in his eyes faded slowly. 'What do you mean?' 'We talked about my mother by the fire,' I said, my voice shakily, 'which is besides the point. You can't be impetuous like that, acting like a jealous boyfriend when you don't even talk to me about it in the first place, Drake. I'm mad because you just plainly assumed that I would ever do such a thing!'

The lump almost took over, and he seemed to notice too. 'Iris, I…' He sighed. 'The two of you have this chemistry, a chemistry I noticed immediately… something I was… am… struggling with, because I am not that easy.' My eyes widened… the anger inside my body faded away like a flood, and suddenly my heart was aching for him. 'That's what this is all about?' I paused and walked closer to him, until my body was almost touching his. The fire in his eyes had completely disappeared, and instead, I found a vulnerable man looking back at me. 'You're afraid I might leave you for someone else… because I connect with them on a deeper level?' I asked, softly, as I gazed into his eyes. He swallowed. 'Maybe. I… I don't know.' I grabbed his hand, causing him to look into my eyes. I'd never seen him look more vulnerable, than right at that moment.

'When are you going to realise that I'm completely and utterly yours, Drake Walker?' I whispered. He gritted his teeth, and swallowed hard, as if he was trying to fight a lump in his throat. I looked into his gorgeous brown eyes, and cupped his cheek with my hand. He let out a shaky breath. 'You don't have to be tough with me… If you'd just told me two days ago I would've told you that you are the only one for me, for now and ever,' I said softly, and put my forehead against his. His eyes teared up, and he took a deep breath. 'Every time I saw you with him… I just thought that maybe… you needed something easier. Something so simple like what you have with Danny and what Emma has with Jake. Your minds just seemed to connect somehow… it drove me insane,' he admitted, shaking his head. My heart skipped a beat and I tangled my hand into his hair. 'Drake, I'm sorry… I wish you would've told me sooner. Look,' I said as I pulled him towards the bed, and pushed him down gently.

I sat next to him and took his hand in mine. 'Danny and I have been through a lot together. Break ups, happiness, graduation, holidays… but also loss and pain. Besides Emma, he was my best friend in the world when I lived in the Netherlands.' I swallowed. 'That scene by the fire… we were talking about the night that Jake and I received a call that my mother's surgery had gone wrong, and that she'd slipped into a coma.' I scraped my throat, my voice was breaking the entire time. Drake's eyes gazed into mine, worried and sad. 'I'd called Danny that night, and Tim had called Jake. Tim and I were staying at Emma's. Well, you know the story, I was living there for a while, and Tim had come to visit… when we got the call from my dad. Danny and Jake raced over to us, and there we were. Five eighteen year olds, staring at the fireplace in Emma's house, not saying a word the entire night, until dad called with some news.'

I took a deep breath, and tried to ignore my eyes which were stinging like crazy. 'Danny and Jake are like my brothers… we've been through everything. They could never be more… no one besides you could ever be more, Drake.' I looked up at him, and noticed a few teardrops had fallen onto his cheeks as well. 'Maybe you and I do finish our conversations, and you may not know my every thought because you don't have ADD like me, Danny or Tim… but there is something you and I have that I could never have with anyone else.' I paused as I wiped away a few tears. 'I love you and this baby more than anything, and nothing could ever come between us.'

His eyes were blurry. 'I'm sorry about what happened to your mom.. and I'm so sorry I fucked up, Valentine… I just…' he took a deep breath. 'I've never been more scared in my life of losing someone like the past couple days.' I shook my head and pressed my forehead against his. 'Please talk to me about it, Drake… we're getting married. You don't have to tell me everything, but… these things.' I sniffed and tangled my hand in his hair. 'I promise,' he whispered, and gripped the fabric of my shirt onto my lower back. 'Can I kiss you, please?' His eyes were almost pleading, and I couldn't take it anymore either. I gripped his shirt and pulled his lips towards mine, in a desperate manor. All our angry, painful and loving feelings were thrown into our kiss… which grew heated quite soon as our desperation made room for lust. Extreme lust. My heart was pounding immensely as he lifted me onto his lap, making me straddle him. My stomach exploded into tiny butterflies as his tongue found mine.

I let my hands travel over his arms and his toned chest, moaning in pleasure as he broke our kiss and his lips made their way to my neck. His hips bucked slightly beneath me, and I grinned at him, shaking my head slowly as I saw the longing look in his eyes. He wanted me naked, and I was going to make him work for it. 'How could you ever think that I'd ever stop loving this,' I said, with a seductive smile on my lips as I let my nails scratch over his chest softly, beneath his shirt, avoiding his wound.

His lips curled up into a smile. 'Good.' His hands slid down to the hem of my shirt, but I grabbed them and smiled at him, teasingly. 'You're going to have to work harder than that, Walker.' He cocked an eyebrow. 'Is that really how you want to play it?' I bit my lip and leaned closer to his ear. 'Show me how much you want me.' He smiled playfully and shook his head. 'Bad move, Valentine.' I raised my eyebrows. 'Why?' He grinned and flipped me over while hovering over me in one smooth move, causing my breath to hitch. 'I'm going to drive you insane.' I smiled up from under my eyelashes, and shot him a cheeky smile. 'We'll see about that.'

He lowered himself onto me, taking excruciatingly long to meet my lips, a teasing sparkle in his eyes. Usually I would've definitely told him to get the hell down and kiss me already, but I talked the talk, and now I had walk the walk. I waited, and finally, he grinned and let his lips travel to my neck, kissing me, letting his tongue slide up to my earlobe. I let out a slight moan, making him look up. 'I'm not there yet, am I?' He asked, a smug smile on his face. I grinned. 'Moans equal love. Screams equal insanity.' His eyes grew darker as his hands gripped my hair even tighter. 'Let's see what I can do, Valentine.' His lips found mine, hungrily, and his kisses were dire. With every kiss, I grew more lustful and I lost myself in him completely.

I was his. Completely and utterly his.

Later, once we were curled up in each other's arms, limbs entangled, no clue which were his and which were mine, he gently brushed a strand of hair out of my face. 'I can't believe I was such a jerk,' he said, as his eyes caught mine. I shook my head softly and pecked his lips. 'I thought you weren't the possessive type, that's what you said during our first date,' I said jokingly. He let out a soft laugh and his cheeks coloured slightly rosy. 'Well, I guess I never thought of someone as that important to begin with, so I'd never felt the need to be jealous in the first place.' I smiled and kissed his lips. 'To be honest, if you were acting like that with any other woman… I'd probably freaked out already.'

He smiled. 'I only want you.' I smiled back, and let my hand slide over his back. 'I only want you.' His hand stroke my back, leaving little tingles everywhere. 'You know, Jimmy and I were talking about the wedding, yesterday, and he actually had an idea I supported,' he said, as his thumb stroke my cheek. 'What is it?' I asked nosily. 'He said, maybe it would be fun if he and I sang a song for you and Emma, and you girls for us,' he said, a slight smile on his face. I shrieked softly and smiled big, 'that would be adorable!' He cocked his eyebrows, 'we weren't going for adorable, Valentine, we were going for romantic.' I giggled. 'Same thing, isn't it?' He rolled his eyes and shook his head at me.

'Speaking of romantic, walk with me, Valentine,' he said, as he popped himself up onto one elbow. I tugged on the blanket. 'But it's so cosy here.' He chuckled and kissed my forehead. 'You'll like it, I promise.' I raised my eyebrows. 'What is it?' He shook his head. 'You'll have to come with me first, love.' My eyes widened. 'You've never called me love before. I have to take a moment, Drake.' I rolled onto my back and stared up at the ceiling, a smile slowly spreading onto my lips. His face was amused, eyes lit up with love as he looked at me. 'I can get used to it,' I said cheekily. He laughed and shook his head. 'We're getting married in two and a half weeks. Can't keep calling you Valentine forever.' I chuckled and pecked his lips. 'I guess you're right.'

I stepped out of bed, and grabbed my clothes. 'Okay, let's go, I'm curious to see what you want to show me.' As he stepped out of bed, I couldn't help but look at him. The moonlight shone onto his body, making his muscles light up in the most sensual way imaginable. His broad shoulders were lit, and it slowly ran down, to his bare back, onto the curve of his legs. He turned around and faced me, smiling as he saw my gaze. 'What's up?' I shook my head and my heart skipped a beat. I walked up to him, and let my hands slide over his shoulders, his muscular arms… his toned chest.

His breath grew hitched as my hands kept sliding over his body, feeling him close to me, feeling his body heat warm my hands. I felt so safe near him, and I couldn't help but kiss him. 'Don't ever forget how much I love you, Drake Walker,' I whispered, against his lips. His hands found my lower back, and he dug his fingers in my skin. His eyes were like honey as he replied the words that would, forever, be my favourite. The words that our future marriage would be based on.
'I'll make sure to deserve it, every day.'

Once we were fully clothed, he led me outside, dodging every room so we could have pure privacy. 'Zip your coat, Valentine, against the snow. It's pretty cold,' he said, which made me smile. He didn't think his words impacted me that much, but his concern about my wellbeing would always make me smile. I did what he said, and put on my gloves. 'Ready?' He smiled. I nodded, and put my hand in his. He led me down to an open field, which was about a five minute walk. It had gone dark, and the open field first felt like a perfect place to be found and murdered relentlessly without anyone finding us any time soon.

I shivered, causing Drake to look up to me. 'You okay, not too cold?' I smiled and shook my head. 'Was only imagining our unruly deaths here.' He chuckled and looked down at me with a grin. 'I thought you were a fierce Valentine.' I frowned. 'Damn it, I am. Come at me!' Now he laughed, and pressed a kiss onto my lips. 'I'll never come at you. I will, however, come on to you.' I giggled. 'Dang, that's a bad pun, Walker.' I kissed him. 'You get points for that.' He chuckled, and raised his hands. 'This is it. This is where I wanted to take you.'

I raised my eyebrows. 'A cold field full of snow? Honey, if you like those I should take you to the Netherlands.' He grinned. 'No, Valentine. Here, let me.' He lifted me up, put the hood of my jacket over my head, and put me down gently, laying me down into the snow. The hood was preventing the snow to soak everything, yet I felt the coldness spread through my legs, soaking my pants within seconds. At first I was shivering, but then Drake lay down next to me, and pointed up. My eyes were drawn to the sky, and my breath hitched. No clouds in the sky, the stars were shining like diamonds in the sun. 'Wow, Drake… it's lovely.' 'I feel the same,' he said. I felt his eyes on me, so I turned my head and caught his eyes. He was smiling at me.
He was talking about me.
My heart skipped a beat and I smiled back. 'You're too sweet.' He winked and looked back up at the stars. I took the glove off my left hand and put my hand in his. 'How did you find this place?' He was silent for a bit, I imagined he was thinking about how he'd best put his answer.

'You know me and court life,' he started, which almost covered the load already. 'One day, a few years ago, Olivia and I had this major fight. She and I weren't a good match, but you already knew that.' I pinched his hand. 'It was around the time I felt like I was losing grip on Savannah, and I wasn't in a good place, really. You guys think you've seen grumpy me, that was a time people actually saw grumpy me. I think that, over the course of a year, I maybe… smiled about six times. All when with Jimmy.' I frowned, and turned my head towards him. 'Usually I didn't care what Olivia had to say one bit, but this time… it was different. She'd commented on me leaving college, because I was nothing without court to save my ass.' He sighed. 'That's not the reason why I left college, of course. Jimmy was about to stick up for me, when I just stood up and left. I walked outside, and walked for a while, until I found this place. I've come here ever since, just taking the time to look up.'

I brought his hand up to my lips and kissed it. 'What's the last time you were here?' He wavered. 'I've been here two times, last time we were in Lythikos. I went here the moment after we'd sent you that video, after you'd left Lythikos to see Tim and your parents. I felt extremely bad about the night before, how we'd left things, because I wanted nothing more than you in my arms. I came here and thought about it all afternoon, how screwed I was and how badly I just wanted to be with you.' He smiled as he turned his head to look into my eyes. 'And the last night in Lythikos, and came here too, to think about how badly I needed to see you again. I missed you like crazy, and I could only hope that you would be at that beach party.'

I pouted, feeling moved to hear his thoughts about me. 'You really are a marshmallow, aren't you?' He chuckled and stroke my hand with his thumb. 'Only when we're alone.' His smile grew bigger. 'And to our baby.' My heart skipped a beat.

'I've made an appointment, to see whether everything's fine, in two weeks. It will still be so small by then, we will only be able to see a small little… blob.' He chuckled. 'Blob would actually be a cool name.' I chuckled. 'You sound like my dad. He wanted to call Bella… Burp.' Drake laughed. 'Okay, fine, I won't be that bad.' He narrowed his eyes, and made a thinking noise. 'Hm. Well I still like the name Elena, and according to Emma, that's your go to name… so I guess we're set on a girls name.' I popped myself onto my elbow and smiled at him. 'I was thinking… you didn't know this yet, but when I grew up in the Netherlands, my mother's name wasn't Bree. She'd changed it so people knew how to pronounce it.' He raised his eyebrows, 'to what did she change it?' I smiled 'To our child's middle name if it's a girl? Elena… Bianca… Walker.'

His head almost shot up. 'Wait, her name was Bianca?' I smiled and nodded. 'Just like your mom.' He smiled big. 'Deal, Valentine. Elena Bianca.' He pecked my lips lovingly. He gazed into my eyes. 'Any good ideas for a boys name? Because I'm truly terribly at picking names or… even thinking of names.' I chuckled and lay back in the snow. 'I'd like a tough name. A tough name for a fierce prince if it were to be a boy.' He nodded. I looked up at the stars and my thoughts were racing at a thousand miles per hour speed. 'I'd like his name to start with a D, like yours,' I said, with a soft giggle, 'how cute would that be?' Drake grinned. 'Not cute, Valentine. Fierce!' I laughed and nodded. 'What about… Dax?' He suggested. I smiled big as I looked up at him. 'You know I don't say this often, but… perfect.'

He smiled. 'Just like you and me?' I gazed up into his eyes, and pulled him closer.
'Just like you and me, Drake.'