“Aww, can you spare your boyfriend a half an hour to an hour?” He pulled me closer, holding up most of my weight for me.

“Does this mean you’re still my boyfriend?” I looked up to him.

He kissed the top of my head, “Let’s just see how it goes with your Dad.” He laughed and we continued walking.

He brought me to the bridge overlooking the river. “This is what you had planned?” I didn’t mean for my voice to sound disappointed, but Erich’s feet were a size to small, and we were already walking for twenty minutes, not to mention the dress was riding up.

“Hey, I had to make sure everything was perfect; as in making sure they stayed open late.”

I laughed, “Right, because a bridge with no doors and is open to the public has specific hours.”

“Yes, and there were other things. Like making sure the breeze is just right, it is February. Are you cold?” I shook my head. “And I had to make sure there was romantic lighting all around,” I nodded playing along. “You know, the stars,” I looked up, “Making sure there’s more than a million, less than a billion – didn’t want to make it to look too much of a movie. Couples scattered about, music in the background.”

“I didn’t know a stroll took so much planning.”

We ended up at a little corner restaurant with a band playing. He pulled out my chair and I sat down. “Thanks,” I smiled. He took a seat beside me.

“I know it’s late, but maybe you’re hungry.” Like it was on cue, the waiter arrived with a plate of strawberry covered strawberries. I laughed, “I told them only the dessert considering the time.”

He picked one up and held it up to my mouth. I opened up and he put it in my mouth. “Mmmm,” They are so good!”

I took one and fed him also. We were on our way to finishing the strawberry-filled plate. That’s when I saw writing on the plate. I stared at him, “What’s this?”

“Well, I kind of had this whole scavenger hunt planned for the entire day, but now I have to settle for the night. Just a couple clues, I promise.”

I nodded and read it out loud: “‘The first moment I saw you, you were wearing yellow shorts and a Hello Kitty T-shirt. You were by the pond staring away, that’s when you stole my heart’.” I chuckled. “What’s this supposed to mean?”

He stood up and took my hand. “Come on pretty girl.”

I followed him and I slipped under his arm again. We walked for a little while again. We came to a river and I spotted a little girl wearing the exact thing he described in a ‘clue.’ I smacked him on his chest, “You must be depriving her from her bedtime.”

We walked to her, and she was swiping her hands through the water, and then she pulled a bottle out of the water. She turned around and smiled at me. I smiled back and took the bottle she was holding out to me. I took out the piece of paper trapped inside, and read it out loud once again. “‘We spent countless hours searching for pearls, without realizing that the only rare and priceless pearl was standing right in front of me.’ Oh, you’re so cute. ‘The next clue is hidden where the largest pearl exists.” I laughed. “I’m never going to figure this out.”

He pulled me towards the right direction, but wasn’t saying a word. “You know, if you really want to make it up to me for yelling at me, than you can tell me what the hell ‘biggest pearl’ means. I don’t see anything.”

He went behind me, and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Try opening your eyes.” He breathed on my hair.

I turned around and it hit me. It was a restaurant with a big sign which said “The Pearl.” I laughed and pulled away from him walking to the sign. The was sticky note posted on the back of the letter A. I grabbed it. “How did you know someone wasn’t just going to pick it off and throw it out?” I asked.

“What did you think I was doing before I went to the dance to whisk you off your feet and bring you here?”

I chuckled, “Right. Okay, whatever. What does this one say?” I laughed. “‘Take your hot boyfriend’s hand and let him whisk you away to a happy ending.”

He looked around pretending to be looking for someone and than he made a surprised sound and pointed at himself, “I guess that means me.”

“Sayang,” I whispered. He put a hand over his chest like I hurt him. I grabbed his hand and he put it through his arm. “Are we going home now?”

He looked down at me and saw that I was limping. My toes seriously felt like they were about to fall off. He kissed my forehead and through me on his back. I held on tight as he ‘ran’ his way to the pool house.

He let me down and opened the door. I gasped. “You did all of this?” I took off my shoes and threw them to the corner. The pool house was full of candles and rose petals were scattered about.

“I know it’s cliché, but…”

I pulled on his shirt and he cupped my face in his hands. “It’s perfect.”

I pulled him along towards the bed and his hands fell to my waist. His lips became more urgent, more intense. He on my top lip while I nipped on his lower. My fingers began undoing the buttons on his shirt, pulling it off of him. To my disappointment, he was wearing a black tank top underneath. The feel of his shoulders under my hands were wide and rounded with muscle.

Despite the growing urgency, there was no rush. I felt his tongue trace my lips and I invited it in with my swollen, but parted lips. My hands returned to his face. I could feel the prickling sensation despite the close shave I knew he took every morning.

His fingers found the zipper on my dress and slowly pulled it down. My arms wrapped around his neck, pressing my chest against his. When he pulled away from me, the dress fell to a puddle at my ankles. I was left in my strapless bra and matching . I immediately grew self conscious and felt the need to wrap my arms around my bare body. But the need disappeared when I realized he wasn’t staring at my body but into my eyes.

His finger went to my hair and removed the pins that were holding it in place. I shook it out with the help of his masculine hands. Then they trailed down to my neck and collarbone. I trembled at his touch, kissing it when it came back to my lips. It travelled back down, it across just above my s. His other hand went behind my hair and pulled my face back to his. He reclaimed my mouth into a mindless, drugging kiss which made my knees go weak.

I sat down on the bed and he went on his knees. In those few seconds that we were apart, he managed to remove the tank top and undo his belt buckle. He had the most powerful muscular frame I’ve ever seen, and it beneath my very own touch. I crawled back, and he was above me, putting all his weight on the smooth power of his muscled arms.

I pulled down on the resilient muscles of his back so I could feel his body against mine. I wrapped one leg around his narrow waist, lean hips and muscular thighs. One hand went to my back, finding my bra strap and my breath got caught in my throat. He pulled away, feeling this restraint. “Are you sure?”

It complete and utter honesty, I didn’t know. But how were you supposed to know if you were ready? Was there a huge flashing sign in your brain saying that you’re ready? Or are you supposed to just assume and hope that you were. But even if I wasn’t, was I supposed to say no now? I was half in his bed, his hands just about to reveal a part of my body that I kept to myself for my entire life. And then I realized that I must’ve kept him waiting for awhile. I closed my eyes and my swollen and throbbing [in a good way] lips. I nodded, pulling him back to me.

One arm went around me and he pulled hair away from one shoulder, and his lips travelled down my neck to my collarbone. The next thing I knew, he unbuckled my bra and his pants were gone. He wrapped me close in his arms, chest to chest, thigh laced with hard, steely thigh.

The sensation was heady, nearly as heady as his touch trailing lower to her collarbone, along one side. My eyes fluttered closed, and I moaned quietly.

I guess this is how I knew I was ready because I needed more, wanted more. His lips and hands trailing all over my body wasn’t enough anymore. I was scared, but at the same time excited. So far, this was way better than what I ever imagined, but I needed more.

Before anything got any further, he leaned over to get protection, and I took a deep breath, it was about to happen. There so many things going in on my mind that he wouldn’t even be able to know what I was thinking if he tried. He came back over me and brushed my hair back away from my face so softly, so gently. My hand was on his arm now, staring back at the gleam in his eye.

I could feel everything, every hard contour of his body lined up with mine, but he took this time to just stare. I was no longer self-conscious, I was no longer scared. This sort of yearning and desire was still held up in my throat, but again, there was no reason to rush.

His lips came over mine again gently but hard at the same time. He held me in place and with one swift motion, he eased himself into me. Our foreheads met, and I gasped, arching my back toward him, shuddering with feeling.

I clung onto him as he moved. Our breaths grew ragged and he buried his face in my neck. Each of his hips taking me higher into the expected ecstasy. But when it came, it was expected at all. I didn’t expect it to feel so…so…I didn’t expect to feel so complete, so satisfied.

Hours later, we woke up in all wrapped up in the covers. I woke up in his arms, my head resting on his chest. I felt his soft on my hair, and I looked up at him. “Good morning,” I whispered reaching up to kiss him.

“Hi,” he answered smiling, but I knew it was forced.

I traced the lines on his forehead, “What’s wrong? What happened?” I suddenly felt all scared. Maybe it was me, maybe it was last night. I pulled away and had every intention of getting up and leaving.

But he caught me, “Whoa, whoa, where are you going? It’s not you, it’s not.”

“I may not have been the most experienced, but…”

“Last night, I couldn’t ask for more. I promise it was perfect, it was better than perfect. I promise you,” He assured me.

“Okay, than what’s wrong?”

He wiped his eyes. I think he was crying. “Isabelle’s hurt.”

My jaw dropped, “What?”

“She got shot with an iron bullet, which is one of the things that can kill us. She’s fine, Chris is taking care of her, but she’s hurt.”

“When?”

He laughed, “Last night. Chris texted me, but I kind of didn’t get it.” He chuckled.

“Oh my gosh,” this time I went to the bathroom and changed quickly, threading my fingers through my hair. By the time I got out, he was changed too. “We need to go to her, get her safe. Get back at Jake.”

He grabbed my shoulders. “It wasn’t Jake who shot her, it’s someone else. Someone who’s not Jake, not Alessandra.”

“Who?”

Gerald shrugged, “But what I do know is that they have the upper hand now. They know I love you, and you’re going to be put in danger because of that.” My heart sank. “I need you to be safe at all times. I can’t lose you. This passed week and last night just reminded me of how important you are to me. Do you hear me, Kim, I can’t lose you.”

I hugged him tightly, “You need to be careful, too. Because…I love you.”