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“Anything for you, beautiful.”
When we descended, it was in the rear empty mall parking lot. Her eyes widened again as she looked at me and then at the mall.
“Chill. We’re at South Heights,” I whispered and pointed to the mall sign. “Do you think that Bethany would ever show her face on this side of town?” I asked.
South Heights was in Old Barrington Heights, the poorest community in Cherokee Springs. In short, it was the hood and not a place that Bethany or anyone affiliated with her might be.
When we climbed out and thanked Rod, I grabbed her hand and headed to one of the trucks that had arrived. One of Rod’s crewmen drove us back to Giselle’s car where I once again drove us home.
We rode with chill Lo-fi music playing in the background. The sun had already begun to set, and the streetlights were coming on. I reached across the console and reached for her hand. She turned her head my way and smiled at me. I couldn’t see her eyes through her sunglasses, but I imagined they held the same smile.
She closed her fingers around mine and lifted them to her lips. I relished the warm touch of her lips against my knuckles.
“Baby, you’re going to have to learn to relax and to trust me.”
“I do trust you.”
“Not going out in public, you don’t. I don’t want to hide you away. I want to take you places and enjoy our time together, and I don’t want that to be marred by you worrying about Beth jumping out of a tree.”
“Hey, don’t get me wrong, but it’s not like I’m scared of your ex-wife. I am worried about what will happen if she decides to report us.”
“Let me handle that.”
Giselle nodded. “One more thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Everything that I heard you say, Cas, was about what you wanted, not about what I wanted. With me, you’ll never have to fight for your rights or wants. I’m not her.”
“I know that, sweetheart. I know.”
We pulled up to the front of our building and handed the keys to the valet attendant to park her car. They would return them in an envelope to our floor when the car was finished.
“I’m starving,” she stated as we walked into the penthouse.
“Don’t worry. I thought maybe we could head downstairs to the club area and grab something to eat.”
Giselle had already toed off her shoes.
“I think I can handle that.”
I wiggled my fingers, she slid her shoes back on, and we headed downstairs hand-in-hand. I ordered grilled chicken sandwiches for both of us, kettle chips for me, a Caesar salad for her, and two Mike’s Hard Lemonades for both of us.
We chilled in the outdoor area, ate our dinner, and watched as the stars came out to shine in the night sky.
“This is living,” Giselle commented as she lay back in her lounge chair after we’d finished eating.
I turned my head sideways, reached for her hand, and clasped our hands together. “It is, and I want to do it with you.”
Her smile faltered briefly, and she looked up at the stars again. Today had been a perfect day, but I also knew all hell had broken loose. I just wanted to keep it at bay for as long as possible. Tomorrow, I would answer the hundreds of phone calls, text messages, and emails that I had received since I left Glenco earlier in the day. Tomorrow, I would tell Giselle what I had done. But tonight, I just wanted to enjoy time with this beautiful lady.
Giselle
When I woke up, Casimir was already gone. The night before was beautiful, and I enjoyed our time together. I knew that I was falling for him, and the logical part of me, with my medical background, knew that it was foolish and unsafe. But the romantic in me kept nudging me over the edge with every memory, every touch, and every taste of him.
After dinner, we returned to the penthouse, and we showered together. Casimir had washed my body, constantly kissing me, but he didn’t make love to me. He told me that he was tempted, but he wanted so much more from me. After our shower, I had fallen hard asleep, exhausted by the day’s events.
I only had two clients on the calendar for today, and both of those were virtual meetings. They struggled with agoraphobia and seldom stepped outside. I had just concluded the second one on Zoom when I heard the doorbell ring.