AN: Lost a little steam writing this chapter, so apologies if it's shorter than expected. I've got all sorts of ideas for how the rest of the story is going to go, and I think that, on top of all the S6 hype has got me totally distracted. But enjoy, and, as always, review are appreciated! 😊
Liza awoke slowly the next morning, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the bright light streaming through the window. The bed was elevated on a platform, giving her an unobstructed view of the glistening water outside. A glimpse at the clock on the bedside table told her that it was 7:30 in the morning. She rolled over, expecting to curl back up into Charles, but was met with an empty bed. Sitting up, she rubbed her eyes and looked around, catching sight of a folded piece of hotel stationary sitting on his abandoned pillow.
Woke up early and didn't want to wake you, my sleeping beauty. Went for a jog. I'll be back soon, love.
Liza smiled, letting her head fall back onto her pillow. She had absolutely no idea what he had planned for them today, having given up on her questioning him about a week and a half ago. If he was anyone else, she thought, she would be incredibly nervous about the lack of information, but he wasn't anyone else and she had absolute faith that he had planned out this trip carefully. Even if Charles hadn't planned any activities for them, she would be more than happy to spend the next week ensconced in their hotel room.
Deciding to be productive rather than fall back asleep, she slipped out of bed, padding across the tile floor to her luggage. She spent the next few minutes unpacking, taking their clothes out and hanging them in the closet and laying out their toiletries in the bathroom. Charles had brought an iPad and his cell phone with him so that they could video chat with the girls, and Liza plugged both in to charge. She sent a quick email to Maggie, attaching a few pictures she had taken of the view outside of their room and letting her know that they were safe and sound. Charles still hadn't returned by the time she finished up her email, so she jumped in the shower to freshen up, feeling herself flush as she remembered their activities of the night before.
"Good Morning, beautiful."
Liza yelped, almost dropping her towel as she stepped back into the bedroom. Turning, she saw Charles closing the hotel room door and kicking off his sneakers.
"Jesus, you almost gave me a heart attack."
"Well, we can't have that, can we?" He took a couple strides towards her, leaning down to kiss her. "Am I forgiven?"
"I suppose. Especially if you're carrying breakfast on that tray in your hand." Her eyes flickered over to the covered plate in his hand.
"I guess I am. I made a pit stop on my way back up." He lifted the cover, laughing as Liza grabbed the plate from him and sat on the edge of the bed, digging into a dish of fruit.
"You're my favorite person ever."
"Ditto." He leaned over to kiss her cheek and grabbed a strawberry from the dish and walking into the bathroom to turn the shower on. He had taken a quick jog through the area around the hotel, scoping out restaurants and cafes and other places he thought might be fun to go, and despite the early hour the temperature quickly had him drenched in sweat.
"So, what's on the agenda for today? If I'm going to get dressed at some point, I should probably know what to wear."
He stuck his head back into the room. "I like the towel look. Very minimal."
She stuck her tongue out at him and threw a berry at him, which he caught in his mouth. "Charles. Seriously, I need a hint."
"We're getting picked up in…" He paused, glancing at the clock, "about an hour. I booked us on a catamaran cruise. Swimming, scuba diving, that kind of stuff."
"That sounds awesome. Especially getting to see you without a shirt all day long." She stood, walking over to where he stood shirtless in the doorway. She leaned into him, pulling him down into a searing kiss. She reached down with her other hand and pulled her towel loose, pressing it into his chest. "You better hurry up or there won't be any warm water left." She whispered to him, her eyes twinkling as she stepped backwards away from the door. This was going to be fun.
"Wow." Liza was speechless as Charles helped her up onto the boat. Not a boat, more a yacht than anything else. It was glistening white, bobbing up and down steadily in the aqua blue water. David's boat looked like a pile of scrap in comparison to this.
The next 5 hours were pure bliss for Liza and Charles. There were 3 other couples who joined them on the tour, but the only ones that spoke English were an adorable older Irish couple that Liza was instantly enamored with. She bantered with the husband, Timothy, about Irish literature and blushed when the wife, Rosalie, asked if they were on their honeymoon. They were well into their seventies but had jumped into the water to swim to the hot springs with surprising agility. Charles and Liza followed close behind but quickly overtook the rest of the group with their long limbs.
Liza pulled herself out of the water for a few minutes, perching on a rock and letting the sun rays soak into her skin as she watched Charles swim through the water, his long arms cutting through the water liked knives. Every time he rose up out of the water his torso glistened, and Liza had the perfect view to admire it. He had decided not to keep up with usually strict shaving regime, opting to let his stubble grow out, and Liza thought that he looked even sexier with the facial hair, if that was possible. He was the most handsome man she had ever met, and she couldn't believe that he was all hers.
They returned to the boat and joined their new Irish friends for lunch before curling up together on a lounge chair partially covered by a canopy. Charles wrapped his arms around Liza, loving how happy and sun kissed she looked. He leaned down, kissing her shoulder as she leaned against him.
"What do you think so far?"
"I love it. I think I could stay here forever." Liza replied sleepily.
"Yeah, it's pretty perfect. But I'm pretty sure I would think that anywhere, as long as you were with me."
Liza turned her head up and looked at him, her heart full of love. She was so lucky. She didn't think that there was any way that she could love him anymore, but he was continuing to surprise her. "I love you, Charles Brooks." She whispered, grazing his lips lightly with her.
"I love you too." He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tighter to him. He never wanted to let her go, and he hoped he'd never have to.
They returned to the hotel a few hours later, exhausted from an afternoon of swimming, scuba diving and drinking lots of wine. Charles had stumbled a bit getting off the boat and was leaning heavily on Liza as they made their way down the hallway to their hotel room. Liza pulled her keycard out, struggling to get the door open as Charles pawed at her playfully and couldn't help but laugh as he ran into the doorframe trying to walk into the room. He had indulged in several glasses of wine and a few cocktails before a crew member had offered them some ice cold limoncello, which they had sampled repeatedly. It occurred to her that she had never really seen Charles inebriated before, and it was quite amusing.
He landed on the bed, sighing contentedly as Liza slipped off her shoes and emptied her tote bag. She pulled out her camera and slipped the memory card into the adapter she had brought with her. She was bound and determined to photograph the heck out of this trip and wanted to send some of their pictures to Maggie. Pressing a few buttons, she started to upload the pictures to the iPad like Caitlin had shown her last week. She smiled, satisfied at her technical abilities and turned to glance back at Charles, only to find him fast asleep, his head resting on the fluffy white pillow.
She rose quietly and walked to him, running her hand through his hair. He looked so peaceful when he slept. She loved waking up before him and watching him sleep. So steady, so peaceful, so resolute. He was charming, even in sleep.
Charles awoke a few hours later to a darkened room. Only the lamp on the bedside table was lit, the warm light casting a sensual glow over the room. His eyes fell on Liza's sleeping form beside him and in the soft, amber lamplight, he could remember nothing in his life that looked quite as beautiful. She lay upon her back, the white sheet pulled over her breasts, but her shoulders were exposed to his view. Her right arm lay above her head, resting on a pillow of chestnut hair, gleaming with golden highlights. The strap of her chemise had slipped off her shoulder, leaving it bare. He watched her shift in her sleep, wanting to reach out and touch her but not wanting to wake her.
Liza turned on her side, pulling the sheet to the long, lean curves of her body. Charles let his eyes trace every inch of her sleeping form, in awe of her. He couldn't remember wanting anyone or anything as much as he wanted Liza, and how it was a miracle that she was his, all his. He needed her, exactly the same way he needed food, air or water. Like he wasn't fully him if he didn't have her. He rose quietly, slipping off his shoes and shirt before sitting back down on the edge of the mattress, his fingers moving to touch her hair, breathing in the scent of coconut, vanilla, and something he thought was sunscreen. Her eyes flickered open, looking up at him in a half sleep, making her look all the more seductive. Her tongue flickered across her lips, moistening them, and she swallowed, for a moment appearing to fall back asleep. Charles watched as she gently rolled to her back, opening her brown eyes to meet his. For a long moment they sat there, his hand still running through her hair as they looked at one another, letting their mutual desire take hold.
Liza raised her arm, her fingers tracing his jawline before his hand joined hers, moving her fingers to his lips in a kiss as his other hand moved from her hair to her face. He let his hand slide across her cheek, passing over the sensitive skin of her ear and neck, one of his favorite places to kiss her. He moved toward her, gently lowering his lips to hers, feeling them soften and respond warmly. He felt as Liza moved her hands to his exposed chest, gently raking her nails across his torso before wrapping around his neck and into his hair.
He needed no other encouragement, moving from his sitting position to stretch out across the bed, resting his weight on one elbow and drawing her full length to him as Liza moved her hands over his bare back. He pressed his lips to hers again, his tongue sliding into her parted mouth and entwining with hers. Her breath quickened, stirring something deep inside of him. She moved against him, a small sigh escaping her lips as he leaned down to nip gently at her ear, his hands moving slowly down the length of her, setting her skin on fire. His lips traveled over her face, moving down to her neck, to her breasts as her hands explored his body, adding fuel to the fire.
He rose again, moving his body to cover hers, Liza's legs parting willingly for him and wrapping around his waist, pulling him to her. Her lips sought his, her tongue sliding into his mouth as he pressed against her, into her, losing himself in her in his entirety.
The rest of the week carried on as perfectly as could be imagined. Charles and Liza spent their days exploring the island, hiking scenic vistas, touring magnificent wineries, swimming in the sparkling waters of the Aegean Sea. They ate and drank until they thought they would burst and spent their nights making slow, passionate love to one another. On Wednesday, they traveled to Oia, spending half the day at Atlantis Books, which they agreed was probably the most uniquely magnificent bookstores either of them had ever encountered. Charles had spent an hour conversing with the shop owner, who was thrilled to have the CEO of a publishing house in his midst. Liza had giggled, amused, as the squat man had pulled Charles around the shop, pointing out Empirical titles here and there. They had come away with some cool finds, including a first edition of Alice in Wonderland, which Charles intended to give to Nicole for her birthday in October.
It was the best trip either of them had ever been on and come Saturday morning they were both reluctant to rise and prepare for the return trip. Their flight out of Santorini left at 9:30, with them landing at JFK at 8 in the evening after layovers in Venice and Dusseldorf. Their moods picked up as they got closer to New York City, closer to their kids, and when they finally landed, they made their way through the airport quickly until they were stalled waiting for their baggage.
Liza took the few minutes while Charles waited for the last of her luggage to pull their phones out of her carry on, powering them on for the first time since the plane had left Santorini. Almost simultaneously both phones started buzzing, overloaded with texts, emails and notifications.
Charles pulled the final bag off the conveyor belt and turned back towards Liza. She stood, mouth agape, staring at something on her phone. She looked up at him, slowly, her eyes full of something that sent chills through Charles. Something was wrong. Very wrong.