so worldly. I felt like a student ready to soak in a guru’s knowledge. “I want to know everything.” The sun was just starting its creep toward the horizon, and people were packing up their towels and children and plastic toys. I was sure I’d gotten a burn. It was so rare to get out in the daytime for me since I worked at night. I once slept through the entire day, never seeing the sun at all.
“I’d only bore you,” he laughed, waving me off.
“You never bore me,” I protested, and it was true. I hung on every word that fell from his lips; I caught myself staring at him when we weren’t talking; and I basically watched my every move to make sure I impressed him as much as I could. I couldn’t really explain why I put him on such a pedestal, but his personality compelled me to do so. Ron seemed like the kind of person I’d always wanted to be. I didn’t want to question why I felt the way I did about him. I wanted to be him, and, short of that, I wanted to be with him at every second of every day.
“Tell me at least about the best place you’ve ever been,” I urged. “Your very favorite place.”
Ron made a sound in his throat and looked out to the ocean. It reflected beautifully on his sunglasses and would’ve made a lovely photo, but it also made him really hard to read.
“You really want to know my favorite place I’ve ever been?” he asked, turning back toward me. All I could see was my flushed face reflected in those sunglasses, my nose burned to resemble a cherry.
“Of course I do,” I said, easing the glasses off of his eyes and down over his own nose. I wanted to see his eyes; I craved wanting to know everything about him, his past travels especially. If I had the cash to travel everywhere, to range so far and wide that it didn’t make sense for me to have just one home in just one city, I probably wouldn’t ever shut up about it.
Ron took my hand and instant butterflies filled my stomach. I didn’t think that my physical reaction to him touching me would ever end.
“I’ve been to places you’ve only seen in movies, all around the world, for my entire life,” he said. “But my very favorite place is Miami, but only since I’ve met you.”
I blinked at him a couple of times, studying those intense blue eyes, before I snorted.
“Yeah, right,” I laughed. “You’ve been to crazy places, and I’m in your favorite place? You can stop making fun of me right now, please.”
“Parker, I’m serious,” he said, his hand tightening around mine. “You can see the most amazing places in the world—the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall of China, the Eiffel Tower—but they don’t mean anything if your heart isn’t there with you. Maybe I’d be able to pick a better place than Miami, but Miami has my heart right now. It has the heart of the woman I love.”
My mouth dropped open as tears sprung to my eyes. How could I have found this beautiful, beautiful man? He meant so much to me, and he was never afraid to tell me what I meant to him.
“I love you,” I breathed, certain of it as I brushed his lips with my own. “I would do anything for you.”
“Someday, I want to take you to all the places I’ve been before,” he said. “I want to open the world up to you, Parker, and to rediscover with you through your eyes.”
Every one of his words made me swoon, and we saw the sun sink down with our passionate kisses.
That night, in the apartment I had been tailoring so carefully to be worthy of the man I’d fallen in love with, we slowly undressed each other, not caring that our sandy swimsuits were befouling the soft, shaggy rug I’d spent so much money on, not caring that our skin tasted like salt and faintly of the limes we’d squeezed in our beers, not caring that our hair was still damp as we did a slow slide onto the couch, our mouths connected, breathing one breath for each other.
We took our time, at first, but the inevitable drumbeat in my chest quickened. I needed
“I’d only bore you,” he laughed, waving me off.
“You never bore me,” I protested, and it was true. I hung on every word that fell from his lips; I caught myself staring at him when we weren’t talking; and I basically watched my every move to make sure I impressed him as much as I could. I couldn’t really explain why I put him on such a pedestal, but his personality compelled me to do so. Ron seemed like the kind of person I’d always wanted to be. I didn’t want to question why I felt the way I did about him. I wanted to be him, and, short of that, I wanted to be with him at every second of every day.
“Tell me at least about the best place you’ve ever been,” I urged. “Your very favorite place.”
Ron made a sound in his throat and looked out to the ocean. It reflected beautifully on his sunglasses and would’ve made a lovely photo, but it also made him really hard to read.
“You really want to know my favorite place I’ve ever been?” he asked, turning back toward me. All I could see was my flushed face reflected in those sunglasses, my nose burned to resemble a cherry.
“Of course I do,” I said, easing the glasses off of his eyes and down over his own nose. I wanted to see his eyes; I craved wanting to know everything about him, his past travels especially. If I had the cash to travel everywhere, to range so far and wide that it didn’t make sense for me to have just one home in just one city, I probably wouldn’t ever shut up about it.
Ron took my hand and instant butterflies filled my stomach. I didn’t think that my physical reaction to him touching me would ever end.
“I’ve been to places you’ve only seen in movies, all around the world, for my entire life,” he said. “But my very favorite place is Miami, but only since I’ve met you.”
I blinked at him a couple of times, studying those intense blue eyes, before I snorted.
“Yeah, right,” I laughed. “You’ve been to crazy places, and I’m in your favorite place? You can stop making fun of me right now, please.”
“Parker, I’m serious,” he said, his hand tightening around mine. “You can see the most amazing places in the world—the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall of China, the Eiffel Tower—but they don’t mean anything if your heart isn’t there with you. Maybe I’d be able to pick a better place than Miami, but Miami has my heart right now. It has the heart of the woman I love.”
My mouth dropped open as tears sprung to my eyes. How could I have found this beautiful, beautiful man? He meant so much to me, and he was never afraid to tell me what I meant to him.
“I love you,” I breathed, certain of it as I brushed his lips with my own. “I would do anything for you.”
“Someday, I want to take you to all the places I’ve been before,” he said. “I want to open the world up to you, Parker, and to rediscover with you through your eyes.”
Every one of his words made me swoon, and we saw the sun sink down with our passionate kisses.
That night, in the apartment I had been tailoring so carefully to be worthy of the man I’d fallen in love with, we slowly undressed each other, not caring that our sandy swimsuits were befouling the soft, shaggy rug I’d spent so much money on, not caring that our skin tasted like salt and faintly of the limes we’d squeezed in our beers, not caring that our hair was still damp as we did a slow slide onto the couch, our mouths connected, breathing one breath for each other.
We took our time, at first, but the inevitable drumbeat in my chest quickened. I needed
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