Chapter 24 - Chocolate and Cream

KTH POV

I stretched as I woke up, eyes focusing on the sleeping form of Marley tucked in next to me. I took a moment just to watch her, lying on her stomach, arms tucked under her head like a pillow. In sleep she looked relaxed, any of the stresses she was dealing with the last year falling away. I'd woken in the middle of the night as she moved about a little, fresh tears on her face, still fast asleep. Pulling her close, I had felt her calm against me and fell back into slumber wondering how many things were still hurting her that she would cry without waking. It seemed to be a regular thing and I wanted to help her through the pain and be there on the other side.

Reaching out, I carefully tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and snuggled down next to her, feeling the sleepy warmth coming off her skin. While she was asleep I could be fearless and I gently kissed her arm where it rested against her face, thinking about the last few weeks and how she already meant so much to me.

Whether she felt the kiss or was disturbed by me coming close, her eyes fluttered open, eyelashes opening and closing a few times as she came to consciousness. "Morning," she said sleepily, propping herself up on her elbows and running her hands through her hair as she finished waking up.

"Good morning," I answered, clearing my throat a few times after I spoke as my voice came out a little croaky in the morning, even deeper than normal. She reached a hand up to my neck, rubbing it a little and causing things to move in my body.

"Do you need me to get you water?" she asked and I marvelled at her again, that she was thinking of how to take care of me.

I shook my head. "I'm OK, in fact, I'm very OK," and her face lit up. I wanted to make sure she was fine after last night. "Are you? I mean, last night..."

"Tae, you have been the sweetest, most patient man. I am more than fine."

"Just sweet and patient?" I asked, fishing for a compliment.

"And cute, funny, sexy. I could go on you know," she said, laughing at my Tata Mic face.

"I'm satisfied with those," I replied, sliding my lips lightly across hers, and she shivered. I wondered if it was because of me or if she was cold, pulling her in against me as we relaxed together.

"I like that you don't feel you need to rush off first thing in the morning to brush your teeth anymore," I said with a grin. She pulled away from me, covering her mouth with her hand, eyes huge. "No, no, I like the way you taste in the morning," I continued, pulling her hand away and stroking her lips with my thumb. She pursed them in tightly and I laughed, leaning in to capture them in mine as I felt her resistance give way under my mouth.

"Baby, I do have something to ask though," I said as I pulled away, taking her hand in mine, playing with her fingers. "Do you know that you cry in your sleep?"

She looked confused, turning to me with a frown. "I do? Sometimes I wake and feel like I haven't slept well but I don't remember ever waking up crying."

"You don't remember a bad dream you have in the night or anything like that?"

"No, I mustn't wake properly."

"It happened again last night, I thought about waking you but when I hugged you close to me, it seemed to help."

"You hugging me always helps," she answered, pulling herself up to look at me. We were laying on the pillows and her hair was tousled from sleep. She looked incredible in the mornings, it was a sight I wanted to wake up to all the time. I reached up stroking her hair as I spoke again.

"I don't want you to be hurting, ever. Next time, shall I wake you? Maybe talking about it would help?"

"If you think so, it's happened more than once when we've been together?"

"Yes, that first night I was at your house, when Sophia woke up. I didn't say anything as we were just getting to know each other. But now, I feel like we need to be there for each other for everything. And I want to help if I can."

"Maybe I'm still grieving while I sleep because I hold it in during the day. I can honestly say that having you around makes me feel more peaceful though. The loss will always be there but things are easier now."

"Do you think," I started before pausing to think of how to phrase my question. "Do you think there is room for love to grow through all the sadness?" My heart was beating a little faster as I waited for her answer.

"Tae, I've not felt this way for anyone in a long time, you make things better just by being near me so yes, there is definitely room for us."

"I'll do all I can to keep making you feel that way aein," and she curled against me again, resting her head on my chest as it swelled with feelings.

"OK," I said, treasuring the feel of her resting on me, "we need to choose what to do today before it gets any later." I didn't want the day to go by without experiencing some more moments with her and she nodded reaching for her phone to look for things to do.

Marley POV

I was scrolling though my phone, Googling things to do in Sydney. Then I added the word Private when I realised everything was very public and not likely to be something we could do together, ever. "The Sydney Harbour Bridge offers private climbing tours, I wish that was something we could do."

"Sounds great, apart from the climbing part, that thing is high."

"It says Private Tours are booked out weeks in advance so I don't think we can, not today anyway."

"I have money," he said with a shrug.

"Oh, are you going to buy the Bridge then?" I laughed.

"If you want me to."

"Oh ha ha."

"But seriously, I can find out if they can organise one at short notice, it's worth asking. A nice donation on top of the usual fee might help."

"Yes, yes please, that sounds fantastic. I'm terrified of heights so that part will be fun but the view would be impressive."

"I am too but I'll hold your hand and it will be alright. We'll probably have to ask to do it at night time, I'm not sure if they even do those but that's less chance of being seen. The city lights across the water would be very beautiful too."

"Yes, if you think we can then I'd love to do that with you."

"Your wish is my wish too then." He squeezed my hand as he let go to make some phone calls to staff.

"I've left it with the staff to sort and I've also asked them to organise something else which I think will be fun. That will be arriving in about an hour."

"So, time for a shower then."

"If you insist," he answered, tongue between his teeth as he smirked at me. I reached out to tap his arm and he grabbed me and pulled me close again. "But I'm not ready to let you go yet."

"It's not like I'm trying to get away from you," I replied, sinking into his embrace. Our lips found each other and he held my face, pressing us as close as we could get to each other. His hands moved down my sides and went to settle on my back when he seemed to second guess himself, leaving them on my waist instead. I knew he was thinking of last night so I reached down and moved them to my lower back, not breaking the kiss, wanting to reassure him that it was OK to touch me still. He pulled away from my mouth and I frowned at the loss of contact but he bent his face to press his eyelashes to my cheek, butterfly kisses fluttering against my skin and butterflies surging in my stomach.

"Do you want the first shower or me?" he asked, his lips against my neck.

"Yes," I replied.

"Marley," he cracked up. Then he raised an eyebrow as I bit my lip, leaning down as if to pick me up and throw me over his shoulder. While I was realising I would totally be OK with that, I knew we didn't have enough time to explore anything right now.

"OK, OK, I'll go first, it will take me longer to choose what to wear anyway."

"Dress in old clothes," he called as he walked out of the room, settling on the couch and I climbed out of bed, wondering what I had in my suitcase that would be suitable for whatever he had planned.

There was a knock on the door at 11am and I went to answer it, putting on a mask as I did. Tae had explained that the man coming was told there were VIPs wanting their services, he was not allowed to take photos and had also signed an NDA but just to be safe, Tae thought it best to put on a mask anyway. The band had pictures all over the city on billboards and bus stops and you just never knew. I personally didn't think it would be a good enough disguise, he was incredibly noticeable, his eyes dark and hypnotising above the mask as he fitted it into place.

"Good morning, you've booked a painting session?" a man asked when I opened the door.

"Apparently we have," I replied, ushering him in and wondering what that entailed. He was wheeling a large storage box and pulled it into the middle of the room. Tae stood up and went to bow, second guessing himself with a handshake instead.

"Nice to meet you, my name is Dax. I'm here to give you a painting lesson," he said.

Tae smiled at me, as I heard what we'd be doing that morning. I could design but had never been good at art so this would be interesting. "Have you painted before?" I asked Tae.

"I've done a few paintings over the years and I am interested in art but I'm not very good. This will be fun," he replied.

We watched as the storage box revealed some decent size canvases, paint, easels folded up and work shirts for us to put over our clothing. Handing those to us, we helped each other put them on, doing them up at the back. His hand lingered on my neck for a moment when he did up the final dome and pressed a kiss on my neck when Dax wasn't looking. I'd tied me hair up in a bun out the way and the skin had goosebumps under his touch when he pulled away, his hand trailing down my back as he did, settling there for a moment before moving away.

"So, you have to decide what you want to paint. Often with two, they choose paintings that are complimentary to each other but it's completely up to you. I'll leave you for a few minutes to decide what you'd like to do," and he walked over to this box, busying himself with setting up to give us the semblance of privacy.

"I know what I'd like to paint," Tae whispered near my ear and I leaned in so I could hear."I've watched Titanic recently," he continued, smirking.

"I'm not French," I blushed in reply, realising I was actually loving this banter and the hints of what could be in store for us.

"I really do love that shade of pink on you," he said quietly, touching my cheek. "No matter, I have also heard you can cover yourself in paint and 'play' on the canvases together?"

"You are incorrigible!" I hissed laughing as his hand grabbed my waist, pulling me close.

"I don't know what that means but I'm sure it's true," he answered, leaning in as if to kiss me before remembering Dax and the masks that hampered our embrace. "Later," he said.

"And later on to the covering ourselves in paint too because that sounds very, very interesting. Although," I said, lowering my voice, "it doesn't have to be paint. I'm OK with using your body as a canvas with chocolate or cream for that matter," taking his hand and squeezing it as his mouth fell open. I really didn't know what had come over me, flirting this openly, but I think the events of the night before and admitting my feelings to myself allowed me to be free with what I actually wanted to say. "Another thing to raincheck? We probably need to get back on track," I laughed as he slowly nodded, in a daze. "So, as to what we actually will paint today, how about we paint what we're feeling? I know it would be different today compared to if I'd done this a month ago."

"I like that and we won't see each others until the end? I already have ideas. And if you are OK with it, I'd like us to swap art at the end to take home. I want a piece of you on my wall."

"Yes, I'd like that Tae. Excuse me Dax, we're ready to start," I called and he stopped setting things up, coming over to begin.

It was cute watching Tae paint. The easels were set up facing each other so I could observe him without being noticed. He was absorbed in what he was doing, tongue sticking out between his lips while he concentrated. He used big brush strokes and moved his head a lot, like he was dancing to music playing silently in his head. He also chewed his lip when he stood back and looked as his work and I was very curious what he was painting. He met my eyes a few times, his expression cute as he acted out the part of an artist, his flare and acting ability making me laugh.

Dax had explained that his role was to guide our creations so after we had each quietly explained what we were wanting to try and create, he moved between us, encouraging and teaching us how to put our thoughts onto the canvas. I had decided I wanted to show how I was feeling now Tae had begun to infiltrate my life, sending the dark away. Half of the canvas was black but the top, flowing down was like a sunset and white light chasing the sadness away. It felt like that's what he was doing, coming into my life when I needed something bright to help me move forward. I was going to embrace that fully, I was ready for the light to cover the whole canvas but this is where I was at right now.

When we were finished, Tae suggested ladies first and I turned my artwork to face him, describing why I had painted what I had. I could see his eyes above the mask as I talked about my darkness starting to fall away as he entered my world, bringing light. His cheeks lifted, eyes smiling and he held my hand to his chest, "I love it, it's meaning is beautiful for me and I know exactly where I want to put it in my bedroom. OK, my painting now."

As he turned his easel round to face me, I looked at the big heart he'd painted, sectioned into 4 colours. "It shows all the things I have in my heart today. The purple is ARMY, they'll always be there. The green reminds me of my microphone and that part of my heart is performing. The blue is the river and sky when we sat and watched the world go by, I felt so peaceful that day with you. The pink reminds me of you, pretty and soft but also the sky when we watched the sunset. That is one of my favourite things we've done together because it felt so perfect."

"And what is the X here," I asked, pointing to the letter on the canvas.

"Oh, that's where you've marked my heart, stamping a kiss there forever," he said tenderly and I felt like I was floating in his eyes as he gazed at me with a look of pure devotion.

Dax had been hovering, ready to help us explain our art but he stepped away, sensing we needed a moment as we leaned into each other. Tae turned our bodies slightly so his back blocked us both from view, pulling his mask down a little before reaching over and doing the same to mine. "I really mean it Marley, I am forever carrying you in my heart."

I blinked a few times, tears threatening as my face broke into a smile, managing to keep them from falling, claiming his mouth in mine. It felt like we were claiming each other in all the little things we were saying and doing, that I belonged in his arms and I needed to stay there. He wrapped them around me, holding me so close I could feel his breathing against my chest as our kisses deepened.

There was a noise from off to the side as Dax cleared his throat a little and Tae broke quickly away, holding back his laughter as he pulled his mask back up and I did the same before we turned to where Dax was politely looking away from us.

"Ah, thank you, that was a fun exercise for us both," I said as Tae tucked me into his side.

"Excellent, I'll pack up and be on my way then. It was a pleasure to work with you both," and he started to put things in his box as Tae and I sat down on the couch together. He had propped our art up against the wall, careful of the parts that were still wet and we stared at them, glancing at each other with a smile and back to the canvases.

They were completely different artworks, representing us in the moment and another beautiful memory to add to my growing collection with Tae. I wanted to keep experiencing more with him, grateful we still l had a few more days after this to spend together. I had no doubts that some of the best memories were still to be created and I tingled at the thought.

KTH POV

We sat snuggled up, the efforts of our painting in front of us. As she leaned against me, turning to face me every now and again as we talked, I struggled to focus on our conversation. Her hazel eyes were huge, staring at me with a sparkle in them. I thought back to the first time we'd met in the park, to how beautiful she'd looked then. When I first saw her eyes, I'd been taken with how they sucked me into their depth, the colour a stark contrast to what I was used to. But there had been an underlying sadness to them which I now understood. It was replaced today by a shine that she said I had helped with and my gratitude to the Gods who had destined our meeting was immense.

I heard the door close as Dax let himself out and took Marley's hand, tugging her lightly so she would sit even closer. She surprised me by climbing onto my lap, swallowing quickly to keep myself in check.

"I actually know where I want your painting to go too. There is a space in my studio next to where I often look out the window and think while designing. I can see it going on that wall, something that I get to selfishly keep to myself since not many people go out there."

"Just knowing that you'll have my heart on your wall, I don't mind where you put it," as our lips gravitated back to each other, my mind switching off as my mouth took over.