Sweet Surrender
Part 11/?
By Elisabeth James
Tenshialexiel221@yahoo.com
Rated: PG for some swearing
Welcome to part 11 of Sweet Surrender! This chapter is
very WAFFy, seriously this time. Happy ending is in
sight, I promise! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon but I do own the
characters of Mehg and Antonio ^^
~* Part 11: Temptation Waits*~
"What just happened?" Serena whispered the words but
Mehg heard her anyway. She came up behind her friend
and put an arm around her shoulder.
"You just freaked the crap out of him; I could see it in his
eyes." Serena narrowed her eyes as Mehg grinned wildly
at her. "I think he's falling back in love with you."
Serena's brain shut down at the thought and the words
she was trying to form came out in a garbled mess. "Not
possible." She managed finally, pulling away from her
friend. "I need to go finish unpacking." She hoisted
herself out of the pool and walked over to the chair she
had abandoned her towel on and grabbed it.
"Deep down, you're hoping for this. Can't you just be
honest with yourself for once?" Serena stiffened for a
brief moment and without a word walked into the house.
She didn't dare even to look into the kitchen and ran
upstairs as quickly and as quietly as she could. She
darted into her bedroom and shut the door behind her and
clicked the lock. A deep sigh of relief slid out of her as
she leaned back against the cool wood. She was
supposed to be relaxing damnit, and right now she was
tenser than she had ever been at school.
She rolled her shoulders, trying to loosen the muscles that
had tensed up. How could she have been so shameless?
Darien must be furious with her right now, first she tried
to kiss him and now she had practically thrown herself at
him in the pool. She shook her head, deeply disappointed
with herself. Her plan to ignore Darien obviously wasn't
going to work; he wouldn't let her shut him out. But he
didn't seem to want to let her in either. She was stuck in
a limbo, caught between worlds.
She dropped to the floor and drew her knees up to her
chin. Didn't Mehg know that she was being honest with
herself? She had confessed her feelings to Darien and
had been shot down. She had accepted her fate. It would
take a miracle now and she wasn't sure if she believed in
things like that happening.
Serena ran her trembling fingers through her hair; she
didn't want to remember the way they had embraced in
the pool, his warmth surrounding her, his soft touch. For
a moment four years had disappeared and nothing had
changed.
Darien couldn't be falling for her again, that ship had
sailed, Mehg had to be wrong. It had been a simple
mistake, she would apologize before dinner and that
would be the end of it.
With new resolve Serena rose to her feet, glancing at the
clock, she still had time to shower before dinner.
Darien stood outside her bedroom door, hand lying flat
against the cool wood. He wanted to knock and make his
presence known but something kept holding him back.
He could hear her moving around inside and then the
bathroom door clicking shut. Mehg came up behind him;
a frown troubled her attractive features.
"Is there a reason you're just standing there, looking at
her door?" she asked softly, watching his intense
expression lighten the second he heard her voice.
He turned around, "I was going to apologize for how I
reacted down in the pool. She must think I hate her."
Mehg nodded, "Probably. Do you?" there was no
condescension in her voice, only concern. There was so
much tension and uncertainty between her brother and
best friend she wasn't sure how Darien really seemed to
feel.
Darien clenched his fists, "Of course not! How could I
hate Serena? She's the only woman I've ever really
loved."
Mehg remained perfectly calm in the wake of his outburst
and stared serenely at his face. "Why did you propose to
Rachael then, if you still have feelings for Serena?"
He leaned up against the wall and crossed his arms over
his chest, "It seemed like the right thing to do at the time.
But then I started having second thoughts, thinking about
Serena again. I've made a huge mistake."
Mehg sighed and shook her head, "You're in danger of
losing them both, you had better find a way to fix things
before they get any worse." She planted a quick kiss on
his smooth cheek and disappeared into her own room.
The sound of Serena's sweet voice carried from the
bathroom and he could her singing. He grinned and
shook his head in amusement. He had been stupid to let
her walk away from him four years ago; he should have
chased after her and never let her go.
Serena embodied everything he had ever wanted in a
woman. It had taken him four years of hardening his
heart against the very thought of her to make him realize
that he could never truly extract it from her grasp. It
wouldn't be fair to marry Rachael when he was still
practically in love with Serena.
He would fix things tonight, it had to be done.
***
"Rachael, would you just listen to me!" Darien ran his
fingers through his hair as he paced around his bedroom.
His soon to be ex-fiancée wouldn't stop shrieking in his
ear.
"You did this on purpose you jerk! You strung me along,
filling me with false hope! This was your revenge on me
dumping you years ago." Rachael sobbed.
"Look, asking you to marry me was a mistake. I've never
gotten over Serena…" he drew in a deep breath, "You
deserve someone so much better than someone who can't
fully devote their love and their heart to you exclusively.
Please try to understand Rachael, I never wanted to hurt
you like this."
Rachael fell silent for a moment and Darien thought she
might have hung up when her cultured voice spoke the
last words she would ever say to him, "We could have
been wonderful together. But you'll never know. Have a
great life with her Darien." With a soft click, she was
gone.
***
Dinner was a somber affair, Serena kept her eyes focused
on the plate in front of her for the entire meal and Mehg's
attempts at lightening the mood fell on deaf ears. Darien
was thoughtfully silent and Mehg was confident that he
had finally made a decision about what to do about the
situation.
"So how about we watch a movie tonight?" Mehg tried to
get a response from her friend and brother one last time.
Serena glanced up at the question and shrugged, she had
been planning to spend the night in her room anyways, it
didn't matter to her what Mehg and Darien did.
Darien stood up to put his plate in the dishwasher, "A
movie sounds great Mehg, I'll even let you pick." Mehg
grinned as she cleared her plate and followed him back
into the kitchen. Serena watched the two of them through
the open door, joking around as they loaded the
dishwasher. She hadn't eaten a thing really, just pushed
the food around her plate. She wasn't hungry and Darien
had been staring at her since dinner began.
She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. She
had been on the brink of tears all afternoon and if she
didn't get out of this horribly stifling atmosphere soon
she would go insane with wanting. He hadn't come right
out and said that he didn't want to speak to her anymore,
his silence made things more than clear.
Deep breaths, she told herself over and over again. This
was nothing; she had been without him for the last four
years, what was the rest of eternity? She brushed a stray
lock of hair away from her eyes and took one last
composing gulp of air.
She had just picked up her plate when the sound of bells
made her put it back down. Someone was at the door.
Serena glanced into the kitchen and saw that Mehg and
Darien had disappeared. She wandered out of the dining
room and toward the foyer, looking around for another
person, this wasn't her house and she felt strange about
just opening the door.
The bells echoed throughout the house once more,
somehow managing to sound more impatient than before.
She sighed in annoyance and walked over to the large oak
door herself. Brushing aside the lacy curtain over the
front window, Serena peered out into the darkness. A
tall, well-built, dark haired man waved back at her. She
almost hit herself for her stupidity; it was Darien's
business associate, Antonio.
"I'm so sorry! I don't know what happened to Darien
and Mehg and I'm a guest here. I didn't want to open to
door and let someone in without their knowledge." The
sentence flew from her mouth the second she pulled open
the heavy door. "Please come in."
"Don't worry Miss. No harm done." His accent was
heavenly and he had a killer grin that showed off
gleaming white teeth to perfection. "I don't think I
caught your name in that little apology of yours."
Serena couldn't help the blush that heated her cheeks, the
man oozed charm and she wasn't immune to it. "I'm
Serena, Mehg's best friend."
He took her hand and raised it swiftly to his lips, placing
a gentle kiss on its back. "I am Antonio Gonzalez,
Darien's business colleague." He grinned again, "I
thought for a moment you might be Rachael, Darien
always tells me that his girlfriend is as beautiful as a
fallen angel."
Serena smiled warmly at the backward compliment.
"Well Rachael far surpasses my beauty any day. I'm
flattered though." They walked into the dining room, she
was hoping that Darien or Mehg had reappeared but they
were still MIA. "We already ate, but I can fix you
something if you're hungry."
Antonio shook his head, "I dined with some friends
before leaving, I will be fine until breakfast." Tense
silence washed over them, Serena was at a loss for what
to say.
"Antonio! Finally, I was wondering when you were
going to show up!" Darien's voice carried from the
kitchen as he came back inside from the patio. Serena
stiffened for a moment as he brushed past her on his way
to greet his friend.
"I got lost, amigo, your house is too hard to find!" the
two exchanged a handshake and a brief hug. Darien
gestured toward the living room and the group made their
way into the more comfortable setting. Serena cast a
longing look toward the stairs but it would have been
rude to excuse herself so soon. She would just have to
stick it out as best she could.
She caught her best friend staring openly at Mr.
Gonzalez, Mehg never bothered to hide her feelings when
she was interested in a man. But Antonio didn't seem to
mind, he seemed just as taken with Mehg. Darien
seemed oblivious to the heated gaze between the two and
offered his friend an introduction to his sister. "Antonio,
this is my little sister Mehg. Mehg, this is my good
friend Antonio." Antonio gave Mehg the same sweet kiss
on the hand he had given Serena but his lips lingered
against her skin longer. She let out a giggle and
reddened. Mehg plopped down onto the overstuffed
loveseat and Antonio occupied the seat next to her. The
two appeared to be in their own little world.
Serena kept her distance from the intimate affair, she
didn't really feel apart of the group at all. Darien had
ceased to make eye contact with her since he had come
back and didn't want to interrupt her best friend's
conversation. She cast a fleeting glimpse at the clock on
the mantle, five more minutes and then she could
disappear.
Serena wasn't aware of how miserable she looked seated
away from the group but Mehg knew that her friend was
on the verge of breaking down into tears. She could read
Serena's face like an open book when she was upset and
Mehg politely tried to include her friend in the
discussion.
"So Serena, what are you going to do in Chicago besides
the art show next week?" Mehg turned to Antonio,
"Serena's a fantastic artist, and her work is some of the
best I've ever seen."
Antonio narrowed his eyes a little, "Serena, what is your
last name?" Darien sat forward a little and cleared his
throat. Antonio glanced his way and then snapped his
attention back to Serena.
"It's Bancroft." She replied softly. Darien shook his head
at her. She didn't understand, she wasn't allowed to
speak now?
"That's why your name sounds familiar to me; Darien
showed me some of your paintings at his apartment in
New York. They are beautiful works of art, you should
be proud."
Serena felt the tears jump into her eyes at the poignancy
of Antonio's words. He had her work hanging in his
home; he passed by it every day. She was still a part of
his life, even if it was only through inanimate objects.
"That's… wonderful." She quickly yawned, trying to
make her exit look authentic. "I really am exhausted; I
should head up to bed. It was very nice to meet you Mr.
Gonzalez. Goodnight Mehg, Darien." She whispered his
name almost like an afterthought before climbing up the
stairs and vanishing into her room.
The silence hung like a pall over the room as the three
studied what had just taken place. Mehg was the first to
regain speaking ability, "Go up there." Antonio nodded
his agreement.
Darien scowled, still angry about Serena finding out that
he had bought her paintings, "Why? I didn't do
anything."
His sister groaned, "Exactly! You ignored her during
dinner; you ignored her while we were talking just now.
Stop being an asshole about things and fix them!" When
Darien didn't budge from his chair, Mehg tried a different
approach, "I know that look of hers Darien, she's
heartbroken and you owe her the truth. Tell her that you
called Rachael and ended things. She needs to know
what's in your heart and the longer you wait, the harder
it's going to be to win her back."
Antonio felt the need to put his own two cents in, "Your
beautiful sister makes an excellent point, go and make up
with the girl you love." Mehg smiled coyly at the man
next to her on the sofa, she couldn't help but blush a little
from his compliment.
He ran his hand through his hand and sighed. Antonio
and Mehg both gave him a big grin when he started to
rise from the chair. Each step seemed to instill him with
more fear than the one before it but this was something he
had to do. He needed Serena more than anything else in
the entire world, she was like oxygen to him and he had
spent years in deprivation. He crept through the dark
hallway and stopped at her door, frozen in the same
position from earlier that day.
She was crying inside, he could hear her heartbreaking
sobs from outside. He had done this to her, caused her
pain and suffering. But she had done the same when she
had left him; it was a vicious cycle of hurt. All he had to
do was knock on that door and end it.
The soft rapping on her door quieted her for a moment.
She stared at it, wondering if it was Mehg and if she
wanted to let her friend inside the room. Finally she
brushed the tears from her eyes and climbed off the bed.
She undid the lock and pulled open the door, and then
had the urge to slam it closed again.
Serena couldn't pull her eyes from his troubled gaze. He
was aching too; she could see it in the way he was
shaking. But it wasn't for her; it couldn't possibly be for
her.
"Can I come in?" his voice was low and husky, and she
was weak against the persuasiveness in his voice. She
opened the door a little wider and he stepped inside the
room. She took a small step back, needing to put distance
between them. But he wouldn't let her and countered her
move with a swift one of his own. He gently grabbed her
arm and pulled her closer. One arm snaked around her
back, gathering her up against him.
She could barely breathe; she was choked by the
memories of being held by him, the way he smelled
brought her back to a time she never hoped to visit again.
Serena allowed herself to melt against him, unable to
fight against the weakness in her legs any longer. He was
there to support when she rested her cheek against his
chest, feeling his torso rise and fall against her face. And
she let the tears fall.
Neither one knew how long they stood like that in the
darkness, just holding onto one another for dear life,
terrified of drowning in the moment. He stroked her hair
as she wept and shuddered up against him. He bided his
time to speak, waiting until she was ready to truly hear
his words.
"It's over…" she stilled up against him, "with Rachael
that is. I talked to her today; things just wouldn't work
out between us." Serena could barely contain her joy, this
was real, he wasn't going to turn around and walk out of
her life after this. She pulled away from him slightly, her
heart pounding a fierce tattoo on her chest.
She drew in a shaky breath, "I still love you Darien, I
don't think that I ever stopped." He could only stare at
her for a moment, taking in every feature, breathing in the
sweet fragrance of her hair. Tears still clung to her
lashes, and her eyes were deliciously navy. She was
offering him everything that he would ever need for the
rest of his life.
The centimeters between their lips were closed in a
fraction of a second as he bent down to kiss her. The
same electric shock that had passed between them in the
restaurant parking lot crackled around them now. The air
hummed with attraction as he tenderly parted her lips
under his own. He started to push her backward toward
the bed until she fell back onto it, him on top of her.
She entwined her arms around his neck, ran her hands
through his soft hair. She felt as if she had been
aimlessly wandering for years and now had finally found
her home, in the arms of her ex-lover. There was only
this moment in time; nothing else mattered except for
him…
She savored every touch, every stroke of his fingers
against her sensitive flesh. Then he stilled above her, and
moved his head over her heart. She tried to catch her
breath as he rested his head against her breast. His words
suddenly broke the silence and her heart.
"I need you Serena. When you left me… I never thought
that I would live past that first week. But I know why I
did now, because deep down I knew that someday, we
would be together again. I only lived to touch to you
again, to hold you like this."
There was peace in her heart for the first time in years.
The world around her finally made sense again and she
felt like she was soaring through the clouds. The pressure
lifted from her chest as she lifted her head to look into her
eyes, a silent question echoing in their depths.
Once again, this was right and she felt like she had that
night after the party, where nothing could go wrong. She
giggled and pecked his forehead, "A thousand times yes
Darien."
He wasted no time.
~* To Be Continued *~
FEEDBACK ME! *sweet smile* Please?
Liz
Part 11/?
By Elisabeth James
Tenshialexiel221@yahoo.com
Rated: PG for some swearing
Welcome to part 11 of Sweet Surrender! This chapter is
very WAFFy, seriously this time. Happy ending is in
sight, I promise! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon but I do own the
characters of Mehg and Antonio ^^
~* Part 11: Temptation Waits*~
"What just happened?" Serena whispered the words but
Mehg heard her anyway. She came up behind her friend
and put an arm around her shoulder.
"You just freaked the crap out of him; I could see it in his
eyes." Serena narrowed her eyes as Mehg grinned wildly
at her. "I think he's falling back in love with you."
Serena's brain shut down at the thought and the words
she was trying to form came out in a garbled mess. "Not
possible." She managed finally, pulling away from her
friend. "I need to go finish unpacking." She hoisted
herself out of the pool and walked over to the chair she
had abandoned her towel on and grabbed it.
"Deep down, you're hoping for this. Can't you just be
honest with yourself for once?" Serena stiffened for a
brief moment and without a word walked into the house.
She didn't dare even to look into the kitchen and ran
upstairs as quickly and as quietly as she could. She
darted into her bedroom and shut the door behind her and
clicked the lock. A deep sigh of relief slid out of her as
she leaned back against the cool wood. She was
supposed to be relaxing damnit, and right now she was
tenser than she had ever been at school.
She rolled her shoulders, trying to loosen the muscles that
had tensed up. How could she have been so shameless?
Darien must be furious with her right now, first she tried
to kiss him and now she had practically thrown herself at
him in the pool. She shook her head, deeply disappointed
with herself. Her plan to ignore Darien obviously wasn't
going to work; he wouldn't let her shut him out. But he
didn't seem to want to let her in either. She was stuck in
a limbo, caught between worlds.
She dropped to the floor and drew her knees up to her
chin. Didn't Mehg know that she was being honest with
herself? She had confessed her feelings to Darien and
had been shot down. She had accepted her fate. It would
take a miracle now and she wasn't sure if she believed in
things like that happening.
Serena ran her trembling fingers through her hair; she
didn't want to remember the way they had embraced in
the pool, his warmth surrounding her, his soft touch. For
a moment four years had disappeared and nothing had
changed.
Darien couldn't be falling for her again, that ship had
sailed, Mehg had to be wrong. It had been a simple
mistake, she would apologize before dinner and that
would be the end of it.
With new resolve Serena rose to her feet, glancing at the
clock, she still had time to shower before dinner.
Darien stood outside her bedroom door, hand lying flat
against the cool wood. He wanted to knock and make his
presence known but something kept holding him back.
He could hear her moving around inside and then the
bathroom door clicking shut. Mehg came up behind him;
a frown troubled her attractive features.
"Is there a reason you're just standing there, looking at
her door?" she asked softly, watching his intense
expression lighten the second he heard her voice.
He turned around, "I was going to apologize for how I
reacted down in the pool. She must think I hate her."
Mehg nodded, "Probably. Do you?" there was no
condescension in her voice, only concern. There was so
much tension and uncertainty between her brother and
best friend she wasn't sure how Darien really seemed to
feel.
Darien clenched his fists, "Of course not! How could I
hate Serena? She's the only woman I've ever really
loved."
Mehg remained perfectly calm in the wake of his outburst
and stared serenely at his face. "Why did you propose to
Rachael then, if you still have feelings for Serena?"
He leaned up against the wall and crossed his arms over
his chest, "It seemed like the right thing to do at the time.
But then I started having second thoughts, thinking about
Serena again. I've made a huge mistake."
Mehg sighed and shook her head, "You're in danger of
losing them both, you had better find a way to fix things
before they get any worse." She planted a quick kiss on
his smooth cheek and disappeared into her own room.
The sound of Serena's sweet voice carried from the
bathroom and he could her singing. He grinned and
shook his head in amusement. He had been stupid to let
her walk away from him four years ago; he should have
chased after her and never let her go.
Serena embodied everything he had ever wanted in a
woman. It had taken him four years of hardening his
heart against the very thought of her to make him realize
that he could never truly extract it from her grasp. It
wouldn't be fair to marry Rachael when he was still
practically in love with Serena.
He would fix things tonight, it had to be done.
***
"Rachael, would you just listen to me!" Darien ran his
fingers through his hair as he paced around his bedroom.
His soon to be ex-fiancée wouldn't stop shrieking in his
ear.
"You did this on purpose you jerk! You strung me along,
filling me with false hope! This was your revenge on me
dumping you years ago." Rachael sobbed.
"Look, asking you to marry me was a mistake. I've never
gotten over Serena…" he drew in a deep breath, "You
deserve someone so much better than someone who can't
fully devote their love and their heart to you exclusively.
Please try to understand Rachael, I never wanted to hurt
you like this."
Rachael fell silent for a moment and Darien thought she
might have hung up when her cultured voice spoke the
last words she would ever say to him, "We could have
been wonderful together. But you'll never know. Have a
great life with her Darien." With a soft click, she was
gone.
***
Dinner was a somber affair, Serena kept her eyes focused
on the plate in front of her for the entire meal and Mehg's
attempts at lightening the mood fell on deaf ears. Darien
was thoughtfully silent and Mehg was confident that he
had finally made a decision about what to do about the
situation.
"So how about we watch a movie tonight?" Mehg tried to
get a response from her friend and brother one last time.
Serena glanced up at the question and shrugged, she had
been planning to spend the night in her room anyways, it
didn't matter to her what Mehg and Darien did.
Darien stood up to put his plate in the dishwasher, "A
movie sounds great Mehg, I'll even let you pick." Mehg
grinned as she cleared her plate and followed him back
into the kitchen. Serena watched the two of them through
the open door, joking around as they loaded the
dishwasher. She hadn't eaten a thing really, just pushed
the food around her plate. She wasn't hungry and Darien
had been staring at her since dinner began.
She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. She
had been on the brink of tears all afternoon and if she
didn't get out of this horribly stifling atmosphere soon
she would go insane with wanting. He hadn't come right
out and said that he didn't want to speak to her anymore,
his silence made things more than clear.
Deep breaths, she told herself over and over again. This
was nothing; she had been without him for the last four
years, what was the rest of eternity? She brushed a stray
lock of hair away from her eyes and took one last
composing gulp of air.
She had just picked up her plate when the sound of bells
made her put it back down. Someone was at the door.
Serena glanced into the kitchen and saw that Mehg and
Darien had disappeared. She wandered out of the dining
room and toward the foyer, looking around for another
person, this wasn't her house and she felt strange about
just opening the door.
The bells echoed throughout the house once more,
somehow managing to sound more impatient than before.
She sighed in annoyance and walked over to the large oak
door herself. Brushing aside the lacy curtain over the
front window, Serena peered out into the darkness. A
tall, well-built, dark haired man waved back at her. She
almost hit herself for her stupidity; it was Darien's
business associate, Antonio.
"I'm so sorry! I don't know what happened to Darien
and Mehg and I'm a guest here. I didn't want to open to
door and let someone in without their knowledge." The
sentence flew from her mouth the second she pulled open
the heavy door. "Please come in."
"Don't worry Miss. No harm done." His accent was
heavenly and he had a killer grin that showed off
gleaming white teeth to perfection. "I don't think I
caught your name in that little apology of yours."
Serena couldn't help the blush that heated her cheeks, the
man oozed charm and she wasn't immune to it. "I'm
Serena, Mehg's best friend."
He took her hand and raised it swiftly to his lips, placing
a gentle kiss on its back. "I am Antonio Gonzalez,
Darien's business colleague." He grinned again, "I
thought for a moment you might be Rachael, Darien
always tells me that his girlfriend is as beautiful as a
fallen angel."
Serena smiled warmly at the backward compliment.
"Well Rachael far surpasses my beauty any day. I'm
flattered though." They walked into the dining room, she
was hoping that Darien or Mehg had reappeared but they
were still MIA. "We already ate, but I can fix you
something if you're hungry."
Antonio shook his head, "I dined with some friends
before leaving, I will be fine until breakfast." Tense
silence washed over them, Serena was at a loss for what
to say.
"Antonio! Finally, I was wondering when you were
going to show up!" Darien's voice carried from the
kitchen as he came back inside from the patio. Serena
stiffened for a moment as he brushed past her on his way
to greet his friend.
"I got lost, amigo, your house is too hard to find!" the
two exchanged a handshake and a brief hug. Darien
gestured toward the living room and the group made their
way into the more comfortable setting. Serena cast a
longing look toward the stairs but it would have been
rude to excuse herself so soon. She would just have to
stick it out as best she could.
She caught her best friend staring openly at Mr.
Gonzalez, Mehg never bothered to hide her feelings when
she was interested in a man. But Antonio didn't seem to
mind, he seemed just as taken with Mehg. Darien
seemed oblivious to the heated gaze between the two and
offered his friend an introduction to his sister. "Antonio,
this is my little sister Mehg. Mehg, this is my good
friend Antonio." Antonio gave Mehg the same sweet kiss
on the hand he had given Serena but his lips lingered
against her skin longer. She let out a giggle and
reddened. Mehg plopped down onto the overstuffed
loveseat and Antonio occupied the seat next to her. The
two appeared to be in their own little world.
Serena kept her distance from the intimate affair, she
didn't really feel apart of the group at all. Darien had
ceased to make eye contact with her since he had come
back and didn't want to interrupt her best friend's
conversation. She cast a fleeting glimpse at the clock on
the mantle, five more minutes and then she could
disappear.
Serena wasn't aware of how miserable she looked seated
away from the group but Mehg knew that her friend was
on the verge of breaking down into tears. She could read
Serena's face like an open book when she was upset and
Mehg politely tried to include her friend in the
discussion.
"So Serena, what are you going to do in Chicago besides
the art show next week?" Mehg turned to Antonio,
"Serena's a fantastic artist, and her work is some of the
best I've ever seen."
Antonio narrowed his eyes a little, "Serena, what is your
last name?" Darien sat forward a little and cleared his
throat. Antonio glanced his way and then snapped his
attention back to Serena.
"It's Bancroft." She replied softly. Darien shook his head
at her. She didn't understand, she wasn't allowed to
speak now?
"That's why your name sounds familiar to me; Darien
showed me some of your paintings at his apartment in
New York. They are beautiful works of art, you should
be proud."
Serena felt the tears jump into her eyes at the poignancy
of Antonio's words. He had her work hanging in his
home; he passed by it every day. She was still a part of
his life, even if it was only through inanimate objects.
"That's… wonderful." She quickly yawned, trying to
make her exit look authentic. "I really am exhausted; I
should head up to bed. It was very nice to meet you Mr.
Gonzalez. Goodnight Mehg, Darien." She whispered his
name almost like an afterthought before climbing up the
stairs and vanishing into her room.
The silence hung like a pall over the room as the three
studied what had just taken place. Mehg was the first to
regain speaking ability, "Go up there." Antonio nodded
his agreement.
Darien scowled, still angry about Serena finding out that
he had bought her paintings, "Why? I didn't do
anything."
His sister groaned, "Exactly! You ignored her during
dinner; you ignored her while we were talking just now.
Stop being an asshole about things and fix them!" When
Darien didn't budge from his chair, Mehg tried a different
approach, "I know that look of hers Darien, she's
heartbroken and you owe her the truth. Tell her that you
called Rachael and ended things. She needs to know
what's in your heart and the longer you wait, the harder
it's going to be to win her back."
Antonio felt the need to put his own two cents in, "Your
beautiful sister makes an excellent point, go and make up
with the girl you love." Mehg smiled coyly at the man
next to her on the sofa, she couldn't help but blush a little
from his compliment.
He ran his hand through his hand and sighed. Antonio
and Mehg both gave him a big grin when he started to
rise from the chair. Each step seemed to instill him with
more fear than the one before it but this was something he
had to do. He needed Serena more than anything else in
the entire world, she was like oxygen to him and he had
spent years in deprivation. He crept through the dark
hallway and stopped at her door, frozen in the same
position from earlier that day.
She was crying inside, he could hear her heartbreaking
sobs from outside. He had done this to her, caused her
pain and suffering. But she had done the same when she
had left him; it was a vicious cycle of hurt. All he had to
do was knock on that door and end it.
The soft rapping on her door quieted her for a moment.
She stared at it, wondering if it was Mehg and if she
wanted to let her friend inside the room. Finally she
brushed the tears from her eyes and climbed off the bed.
She undid the lock and pulled open the door, and then
had the urge to slam it closed again.
Serena couldn't pull her eyes from his troubled gaze. He
was aching too; she could see it in the way he was
shaking. But it wasn't for her; it couldn't possibly be for
her.
"Can I come in?" his voice was low and husky, and she
was weak against the persuasiveness in his voice. She
opened the door a little wider and he stepped inside the
room. She took a small step back, needing to put distance
between them. But he wouldn't let her and countered her
move with a swift one of his own. He gently grabbed her
arm and pulled her closer. One arm snaked around her
back, gathering her up against him.
She could barely breathe; she was choked by the
memories of being held by him, the way he smelled
brought her back to a time she never hoped to visit again.
Serena allowed herself to melt against him, unable to
fight against the weakness in her legs any longer. He was
there to support when she rested her cheek against his
chest, feeling his torso rise and fall against her face. And
she let the tears fall.
Neither one knew how long they stood like that in the
darkness, just holding onto one another for dear life,
terrified of drowning in the moment. He stroked her hair
as she wept and shuddered up against him. He bided his
time to speak, waiting until she was ready to truly hear
his words.
"It's over…" she stilled up against him, "with Rachael
that is. I talked to her today; things just wouldn't work
out between us." Serena could barely contain her joy, this
was real, he wasn't going to turn around and walk out of
her life after this. She pulled away from him slightly, her
heart pounding a fierce tattoo on her chest.
She drew in a shaky breath, "I still love you Darien, I
don't think that I ever stopped." He could only stare at
her for a moment, taking in every feature, breathing in the
sweet fragrance of her hair. Tears still clung to her
lashes, and her eyes were deliciously navy. She was
offering him everything that he would ever need for the
rest of his life.
The centimeters between their lips were closed in a
fraction of a second as he bent down to kiss her. The
same electric shock that had passed between them in the
restaurant parking lot crackled around them now. The air
hummed with attraction as he tenderly parted her lips
under his own. He started to push her backward toward
the bed until she fell back onto it, him on top of her.
She entwined her arms around his neck, ran her hands
through his soft hair. She felt as if she had been
aimlessly wandering for years and now had finally found
her home, in the arms of her ex-lover. There was only
this moment in time; nothing else mattered except for
him…
She savored every touch, every stroke of his fingers
against her sensitive flesh. Then he stilled above her, and
moved his head over her heart. She tried to catch her
breath as he rested his head against her breast. His words
suddenly broke the silence and her heart.
"I need you Serena. When you left me… I never thought
that I would live past that first week. But I know why I
did now, because deep down I knew that someday, we
would be together again. I only lived to touch to you
again, to hold you like this."
There was peace in her heart for the first time in years.
The world around her finally made sense again and she
felt like she was soaring through the clouds. The pressure
lifted from her chest as she lifted her head to look into her
eyes, a silent question echoing in their depths.
Once again, this was right and she felt like she had that
night after the party, where nothing could go wrong. She
giggled and pecked his forehead, "A thousand times yes
Darien."
He wasted no time.
~* To Be Continued *~
FEEDBACK ME! *sweet smile* Please?
Liz