A Crowe's Song Page 17

  “What if these people never meet? What if they’re on opposite sides of the world?”

  “They’ll find each other. Fate will make sure of it.”

  “What if one dies young and the other lives for a hundred years?”

  His lips curled into the sexiest grin, causing the anxiety—brought on by this conversation—to wane. It was a teasing smirk, one that offered comfort and warmth. “Fate will always make it right. I have to believe that. I have to trust that there is at least one higher power that rights wrongs and balances the bad with the good. If not, then what are we doing here? What’s our purpose?”

  “Isn’t that the lifelong question no one’s figured out?”

  “If that’s how you want to see it. Or…you could trust that we are all living our purpose, and we’ll understand exactly what it was when we make it to the other side.”

  I sorted through my memory of our previous conversation, wondering where his curiosity stemmed from. Except I couldn’t find a connection. I couldn’t come up with a single link between the movie The Quiet Man and the concept of soulmates. Then again, I’d never seen the movie. “What made you ask about that?”

  He gave another awkward half-shrug and said, “There’s something about you that keeps giving me déjà vu, and I don’t know what it is. It’s like we’ve met before…but without realizing it.”

  It wasn’t like I hadn’t felt the same—about the familiarity, not the possibility of being soulmates; that one was news to me. Needless to say, I was a little stumped as to how to respond. So instead of overthinking it, I went with the first thought that crossed my mind. “Wouldn’t they recognize each other? Like, wouldn’t they just know?”

  “It’s not like there’s a secret handshake you suddenly remember when you’re in front of one another. I believe there is some sort of recognition, just not a conscious one.”

  “Are you saying you think we’re soulmates?” I hoped he would assume that my giggles were because I found the idea preposterous, and not because the possibility of it made me extremely uncomfortable. It was more awkwardness than discomfort, but regardless, embarrassment burned my skin all the same.

  “Of course not,” he said, amusement rumbling through his words. “That’s ridiculous.”

  Everything that happened next all seemed to transpire simultaneously.

  His laughter cloaked me in relief at the knowledge that he didn’t find my reaction odd. However, his words hit me like a thousand tiny arrows penetrating my chest and deflating my lungs. It made no sense—he said the same thing I did, he agreed with me, so why did hearing him say it have this kind of effect on me? It was a rejection I’d never experienced. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to process it before the electricity cut out.

  The soft hum, that I hadn’t realized was even there until it wasn’t, shut off. The lamp next to the couch, as well as the Edison-style droplights over his breakfast bar, went dark. It was strange, considering we hadn’t heard thunder in a while. The rain still beat against his roof and windows, and the clouds continued to conceal any remnants of daylight left in the sky, yet the lightning and thunder had been noticeably absent for at least half an hour.

  When nothing came back on after nearly a minute, Drew pushed himself off the floor and said, “That’s weird. I’m going to check the breaker box. I’ll be right back.” And with that, he disappeared out of the room.

  While I waited for either the electricity or Drew to return, I contemplated his theory. Honestly, I’d never given the concept of soulmates much thought. To me, it was a given, seeing that we connected to some people better than others. I didn’t necessarily disagree with the notion that we all have just one person out there for us; I’d simply never questioned the subject before tonight. And now that it was in my head, I couldn’t seem to ignore it.

  From the moment he showed up on the dock my first night here, I’d felt this unexplainable pull toward him, as if we were strung together, and someone out of sight tightened those strings more and more every day that passed. Most times, it felt like it was every hour, and if I stepped back and looked deeper into it, it seemed as though my being here had been divinely orchestrated.

  It had been years since my mom and I had gone through my grandfather’s attic. The diary I’d found had been shoved in a box that I’d stored on the top shelf of my closet. There had never been any desire to go through the box…until a few months ago. And the only item that called to me was the well-worn brown leather journal that sat buried beneath trinkets and a few faded photos.

  Of the handful of pictures I’d found, all but one were of groups of people in various places. No person or place looked remotely familiar. None of them resembled me in the slightest, leaving me to wonder whose photos they were. One had been taken at a fairground, and another was of three girls wearing beach attire in front of what appeared to be an auto shop. However, there was one that caught my attention. Oddly enough, it wasn’t of anyone.

  The square, slightly yellowed picture was of a riverbank. In the frame was a signpost, the words LOWER CREEK carved into the wood. On the back, in loopy script, someone had written “our spot.” Nothing else. And after reading the diary, which could have been labeled as the most amazing love story ever told, I wanted to know more. I’d felt a need unlike any other to find out all I could about the people in the journal, and thanks to the landmark in the photo, I had a starting point.

  Using what was written on the signpost, plus as many other keywords as I could think of to narrow the results, I ended up here. Technically, there were several locations that the search engine had generated. Yet for some reason, I was continually enticed back to this one, even though that particular stretch of the river no longer existed. Lower Creek and other portions of the area were lost when they redirected the water flow for the reservoir.

  It wasn’t like any of that was too far out of the ordinary. Definitely nothing that deterred me or made me stop and question it. Neither was finding this resort. And when I discovered that they had one cabin available, I considered myself lucky. Even luckier that it was one of the cheaper ones thanks to its lack of a lakeside view. I didn’t once question the chances of there being a vacancy over a major holiday, not even after Drew had told me that this was their busiest week of the entire year.

  In fact, it wasn’t until this very moment that any of it felt coordinated by powers beyond my control. Like a perfectly composed script that had already been penned, and I was only here to play the part. It was as if Fate had schemed with Destiny, devising this elaborate plot just to bring us together.

  I had no way of knowing if Drew was my soulmate. These deep, unfamiliar feelings could’ve easily been dismissed as intense, emotionally-driven lust masking as something more profound, something divine. Or maybe I was on a high from the storm and the setting and his closeness as we lay in front of the fire.

  Then again, he could’ve possibly been behind on getting his chimney swept, and we were both slowly being poisoned by carbon monoxide. At least with this option, we’d know soon enough.

  I pushed up on my knees and craned my neck to peer around the corner, trying to see where Drew had disappeared to. Except I couldn’t see anything; the hallway was dark and quiet. So I stood and slowly made my way toward the back of the house, which was where I’d changed my clothes after we got inside.

  Before I reached the end of the hallway, I found him in his bedroom, standing in front of a wall of windows. The room was dark, the sky outside was a gloomy composition of night and storm clouds. But every couple of seconds, brightness flashed through the glass and lit up the space around him. There were windows in the living room, but I hadn’t seen one blip of lightning since the thunder stopped. Yet here it was, hypnotizing him while he stared outside as if in a trance.

  I made my way to him, not purposely keeping quiet yet not making any effort to ensure I was heard, either. As soon as I settled at his side, another burst of light dashed across the sky, casting our reflection onto the
windowpane. However, it almost looked as though we were two different people. The likeness was obvious, except something about the image that flashed in front of us made me feel like it wasn’t a reflection but a picture. A hologram.

  Then again, it had only lasted a split second. There was no way to know what I had seen in such a short amount of time. Not to mention, I was still in Drew’s clothes, so it was entirely possible that I just didn’t recognize myself.

  I began to give more credence to the carbon monoxide theory.

  It started to make a lot of sense—and it would explain so much.

  Without looking at me, Drew found my hand and laced our fingers together. “It’s so beautiful, isn’t it?”

  The scene in front of me was more than beautiful. I didn’t have words for it. As each flicker of lightning shot through the sky, it painted more and more of the picture past the window. A smoky haze smudged the reservoir's surface; beyond that was the mountainside, dotted with dark-green trees. And the sky, between flashes, was brushed with strokes of greys.

  “It’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen,” I finally said, even though I wasn’t sure he could even hear me. My words were soft and filled with air. “I would give up almost anything to have this as my view every day.”

  Realizing what I’d said, I quickly closed my mouth and began to nibble on the inside of my cheek. With each passing day, each memorable night, the prospect of leaving became harder and harder. In less than a week, I’d fallen in love with this piece of earth tucked into the side of this mountain. There was no denying any of that. But I had no intention of moving here, and I worried that I’d given Drew the impression that I was waiting for him to ask me to stay.

  That would be utterly preposterous.

  First of all, if I wanted to live here, I’d do it on my own. I wouldn’t need to be asked or invited. Very few things in life required permission; beyond that, I believed people should do what they wanted. Secondly, I wasn’t the type of girl to make life-long decisions based on a guy. Actually, I wasn’t the type of girl to even make non-consequential decisions based on one, either. My grandmother had raised my mom on her own, and my mom had done the same with me. I was never brought up believing that I needed a man for anything—other than the obvious, but even that had workarounds.

  Although, right now, I doubted a workaround would scratch the itch Drew caused.

  “I designed it this way for that exact reason,” he said, his voice sounding closer than before. And when I turned my head to the side, I understood why—he was looking right at me. “I knew I would need reasons to stay other than making my dad happy. And this view serves that purpose. I insisted on floor-to-ceiling windows in here, because staring at four walls made me feel even more trapped. At least this way, I have some sense of freedom…even if it is a smokescreen.”

  With my left hand still entwined with his, I lifted my right and grazed his cheekbone with the tips of my fingers, as though wiping away an invisible tear. It wasn’t until he pivoted on his feet to completely face me that I realized I had, at some point, turned my entire body toward him.

  Even in the dark room, I could see that his eyes were locked on mine. I could practically feel his touch all over, even though he was only physically touching my hand and barely my hip. The only other part of us with physical contact was my hand on his face, which now cupped his cheek. Regardless, I felt his touch everywhere.

  Erotic warmth sizzled in the air around us, while at the same time, innate confidence charged through me. It filled my chest, making it easier to breathe than ever before. And it didn’t stop there. I felt weightless, as if I would float away if he let me go yet completely grounded at the same time. As though inherent certainty rooted my feet to the floor.

  Taking control of the situation, Drew tightened his hold on my hip and pulled me into him. Then his lips were on mine. And like he had attempted to do earlier at the waterfall, he pressed me against the window, though this time, having a solid surface to do so.

  Using his pelvis to pin my lower half to the cold glass, he released my hip and grabbed my free hand. With his fingers intertwined with mine, he lifted my arms to either side of my head, not once pulling his lips away. Now he had me completely pressed against his hard body.

  And everything about his body was hard.

  Somehow, in the shuffle of moving and pressing and touching, my shorts slid down my legs. They were loose as it was, so it wasn’t surprising that they fell off that easily. In any other situation, with anyone else, I would’ve been embarrassed, at the very least. But not now. Not with Drew.

  Desperation flooded my system, and it poured out in one long moan—against his lips, into his mouth, onto his tongue. It was like my body wanted him to feel and taste my desire for him. My permission. My plea.

  As if my moan was all he needed to move this along, he released my hands and quickly reached down to grip the backs of my bare thighs. Before I knew it, my feet were off the floor with his body situated between my inner thighs. His palms scorched my skin as he kneaded my muscles.

  Deep down, I knew I had been searching for this my entire life.

  I wasn’t entirely sure what this was, but I knew it was something.

  I didn’t think twice—didn’t need to. I wrapped my arms around him and locked my ankles behind his back. I never wanted him to let me go. Not once did I think about the reality of the situation—I was here on borrowed time; this couldn’t last beyond the coming weekend. In fact, I doubt if I thought about anything other than the ache between my legs and the undeniable desire to just be with this man.

  That was all I wanted…to just be with him.

  Drew must’ve read my mind, because a moment later, he pulled me away from the cold window. I didn’t care where he took me. I didn’t even care what happened after we got there. All I could think about was the intensity of his touch and relentlessness of his kisses. I had never experienced anything like this, and something in my gut told me I never would again.

  My back met with a soft, forgiving surface. I didn’t need to look around to know that he’d taken me to his bed on the other side of the room, causing my heart to practically sigh with relief. Nothing about any of this made a lick of sense. Not one thing. I knew I’d have to deal with the ramifications later, but I didn’t want to think about it right now. I didn’t want to think about anything. I wanted to enjoy the moment, and to hell with what would follow.

  As he settled himself between my knees, he slid his fiery palms up my sides, filling me with such intense heat that I wasn’t sure I could take much more without begging for it all. And the farther up his hands went, the more exposed I became. I couldn’t be bothered with much beyond touching him, feeling his skin beneath my hands. Feeling his body between my legs. That was until he needed me to lift my arms enough to pull the shirt over my head. And before I knew it, I was sprawled out beneath him, naked as the day I was born. Yet I had not one ounce of insecurity or doubt or hesitation. The voice in the back of my head refused to let me feel anything other than conviction.

  It was strange…that voice in my head. It wasn’t typical conscious thought, the good versus evil. It wasn’t the devil or the angel. It was just a voice, instructing me what to do, advising me that this was okay. This was right; it was meant to be. Giving me approval. And oddly enough, I trusted it. Regardless of how ridiculous it all was, I couldn’t question it. It was like I was powerless to doubt it. I felt this undeniable need to trust it. To trust all the things I would laugh at others for believing if they were in my situation. But that didn’t stop me from listening and following the advice it offered.

  Drew backed off the bed, though he never took his attention away from me. He went to his dresser only a few feet away, grabbed something out of the top drawer, and then quickly returned. With the room so dark, I had to rely on the brief flickers of light through the window, as well as sound, to know where he was. However, there was one flaw with only having intermittent sight and hearing
that was heavily compromised by the rain pounding against the roof—I missed things. Such as the moment he rid himself of his clothes.

  I had to rely on touch to discover that.

  He crawled back up the mattress, except he didn’t move all the way up. Instead, he situated himself between my thighs, hooking my legs over his shoulders. That was when I realized he was shirtless. His bare skin against the backs of my knees sent a wave of euphoria through me…although, not as much as when I felt the warmth of his tongue against me.

  It didn’t matter how dark the room was…I saw fireworks behind my closed eyelids.

  “Drew…” My voice seemed to have disappeared along with his clothes, because his name was nothing more than air on my lips.

  The nerve endings between my legs rang with immense gratification, shocking my system with intense jolts of pleasure. As if the lightning had come through the window and electrocuted me relentlessly…but in the most amazing way. He’d already made me explode once, yet he held me in place as though he wasn’t done. Except, I wasn’t sure I could survive coming unraveled on his tongue one more time.

  Needing to get his attention but lacking the ability to use my words, I threaded my fingers through his hair and tugged. Gently at first, yet when he continued to feast on me, I tugged harder. That seemed to work, except I almost immediately regretted it. The second he lifted his head, the room lit up, though this time, it lasted much longer than the typical flickers I’d grown accustomed to.

  And I fell victim to his stare as he consumed me with hungry eyes.

  “What is it, Kenny?” he asked, a hint of worry in his tone.

  I certainly didn’t want him to think I had changed my mind or that I wanted him to stop everything. So I shook my head and tried to catch my breath enough to speak. “I can’t… It’s all…” I covered my face with both hands to try to organize my thoughts. “That’s too much; I’m too sensitive.”