A/N: Sooner or later they'd have to leave Paris, but don't be too sad about that Spain promises a lot of heat, and not just because of the weather. Thank you all for the lovely feedback, it seriously had blown us away... - Naidoo
They made it back to their hotel way past midnight, deciding on taking a little stroll along the promenade off the river Seine. Their intention was just to walk a bit to the next metro stop, but they got so lost in each other, stopping for more kisses along the way, that they ended up walking the whole distance between their hotel and the Eiffel tower. It was a good half hour walk, but neither of them really minded in the end. They walked along the promenade and the well-lit streets and avenues, tangled up in each other, with Morgan having his arms wrapped tightly around Penelope and she leaning close into him with every step. Never before had she felt so safe as she did in that very moment. Tomorrow they would make their way towards Spain, the last stop before going back home, but tonight that was still several hours away and that's what counted for Penelope. She was here, with Morgan, in this incredible city, exploring the hidden depths of their relationship.
The next morning was a rather hard one for Penelope. She'd woken up in Morgan's bed, in which she had fallen sleep the night before. They hadn't had sex; they didn't want to rush things, although they both really wanted each other, and they were consenting adults. However, what they did have last night was almost better-total, complete, intimate closeness.
They had ordered some late night snack from room service and got comfortable in his bed, with the TV running and him not understanding a thing. He'd tugged her over so close, she was nearly laying on top of him. She'd laughed about the shows, while he'd just laid beneath her, holding her close, stroking her hair and letting his hands generously roam over her body. That's how they fell asleep, with the TV still running and his arms wrapped around her. However, when she'd awakened, he was nowhere to be found.
"Derek?" she asked sleepily into the large room, but there was no answer. One glance at the clock told her it was just shortly past 8. She had slept a bit less than 6 hours if she wasn't entirely wrong. Penelope was about to get up when she heard clinging of china, and a moment later, her missing companion stood in the door of his bedroom, carrying a large tray in his hands.
"Good morning, sunshine. How do you feel this morning?"
As cute as he was, she grimaced. He was way too cheerful. Penelope certainly was not a morning person.
"Why are you so happy at 8am?" Penelope asked grumpily, getting herself up a bit more.
"Seeing you in the morning always makes me happy," Derek responded, making his way now over to her and placing the tray on the bedside table, before leaning over her and kissing her softly.
Her intention was to wrap her arms around his neck and pull him back into bed with her, but he was too quick, and before she could even just loop one arm around his neck, he was standing again.
He placed the tray in front of her before sliding in behind her, pulling her against him so she was sitting with her back against his chest.
"Why can't every morning start like this?" she murmured, ripping a piece of croissant off and dunking it in her orange juice.
"Well, stick around and you might get this every single morning, gorgeous," he said, kissing the back of her head.
Penelope just laughed at that, poured herself a coffee and enjoyed how this day had already started so very good.
"I called the airline. As far as they are concerned, there are no delays or cancellations, so we are ready to go to Spain this afternoon. You looking forward to that, cupcake?" Morgan asked, kissing her neck softly.
Penelope simply sighed as an answer.
"What kind of answer is that?" She could feel him smiling against her skin.
"The kind of answer you get when you keep doing that. But no... well, I kind of look forward to Spain, but I am also sad to leave Paris already. It feels as if we just got here yesterday."
"Hmm … I might need to find a way then to convince you Spain is not too bad either," he whispered against her ear and Penelope could already feel the goose-bumps rising on her arms. "But I can always do that in Spain, right? No need for me to find ways now."
He stood, leaving the bed, in spite of her protests. He laughed and winked at her.
This man was such a tease; Penelope wondered how he was still able to keep teasing her after all these years. She should by now have found ways to make him stop teasing and start delivering, but so far she was out of luck.
She finished breakfast, before taking a shower, and then making sure afterwards she had all her belongings packed up and securely stored. She wanted to make sure none of her purchases could break, like her Italian crystal had on previous occasions.
During the cab drive to the airport, Penelope had to smile about what could change within a couple of days. She remembered the night three night ago when they'd come to Paris, how badly they had argued and made each other feel miserable. Now, three days later, they were in love, nonstop hugging and kissing, barely able to make it a moment without some sort of contact. A few days ago she had shed some tears over how stubborn and mean he could be, now she was all smiles and in love at how sweet and giving he could be.
And looking at Derek, who sat next to her in the backseat, holding her hand…he wasn't far behind!
They made it to the airport, Morgan taking care of their entire luggage as well as paying the cab driver, and navigated inside the terminal of Charles-de-Gaulle airport, ready for check-in.
Their flight to Mallorca was on time, no planned delays, and in just another hour they would be leaving magical Paris. Penelope never understood why everyone called this city the City of love until now. Now that she had fallen in love, in this wonderful city, she understood. The magic of Paris seemed to get to everyone in the end.
Three hours after they boarded the plane in Paris, they left it again in Palma de Mallorca. Their last stop brought them on this island for just relaxing. They didn't plan on doing much sightseeing, maybe exploring the coastal line around the place they would be staying at, but that would be it. No more churches and walking through big cities. She knew she put a lot on Morgan over the last few weeks, so this was the perfect finish: Just relaxing by the pool, catching some rays and doing nothing else. They had rented a little villa in the north of the island, which was supposed to be rather secluded and beautiful, not as touristy and party-like as the south. The south was known for its notorious party-miles that offered cheap booze, plenty of party and even more naked skin.
They also had rented a car to make it to their villa, which was an hour away by car. They'd made it there just before 10pm, having gotten the keys already from the renting agency which was conveniently located in the airport. The villa was at first glance gorgeous, one of these Mediterranean buildings that was built wide open. There was a large terrace with steps leading down to a pool area. The kitchen was big enough to spend hours in. In general, the whole ground floor very open with no actual doors. The living room was dominated by large plush looking couches and a big Flat -screen TV. All of the rooms gave access to the terrace outside, so they could enjoy the beautiful Spanish weather. The upstairs was consisting of two large bed rooms and two bathrooms as well as another living room. Who was supposed to live in all that space?
The bedrooms were next to each other, with French doors connecting them with each other. Both had balconies overlooking the garden and pool area and both looked exactly the same.
"Which one do you want, Baby?" she heard Morgan asking from the stairs. He had been busy getting their luggage from the car inside and then upstairs.
"I actually don't really mind. They are both more or less the same. How about I take this one," she decided, pointing towards the room she was currently standing in, "and you take the other one? I don't like waking up having the sun shining into my face."
"That's why curtains were invented, gorgeous," he laughed, unloading her luggage on the nearby luggage table for her to unpack whatever she needed.
"They stocked the fridge with all sort of things. I think we definitely won't have to worry about starving or dehydrating," Penelope quipped with a laugh, following Morgan outside the room and downstairs again. "I think we don't even need to leave this place for our entire stay to be honest."
"That's actually exactly what I had planned," he murmured, making Penelope look up at him questioningly.
"What was that?" she asked, not quite catching those words.
Morgan just shook his head. "Nothing," he answered with a smile, before falling down into one of the plush, deep couches, motioning for her to come next to him.
He wrapped his arm around her shoulders the moment she sat down, pulling her towards him so she was leaning partly against his shoulder and partly against his chest.
"You realize that is the last part of our little journey, right? In a couple of days we are back on our way to big, ol' Washington," Penelope whispered into the silence.
"Hmmmm…. I'm aware of that and I plan to make the best of our last few days," he responded kissing her forehead.
At that Penelope turned her head upwards, looking at him suspiciously. He had a devilish look on his face.
"Oh yeah? Care to fill me in on your plans?" she asked with a smile on her lips.
Morgan just kissed her softly, before smiling himself. "You're gonna have to wait and see, sweetness." With that, he leaned his head back, letting it fall on the back of the couch and smiled somewhat mysteriously.
Penelope decided on letting it go for now. After all she was certain that whatever he had planed she probably would like it. And maybe it was good for a change to have someone else be in charge. Over the last few weeks she had done most of their planning and guiding – not that she minded – but for their last few days, it seemed like a wonderful idea to put herself into Morgan's caring and capable hands.