I couldn’t look at him so I looked away, but I was aware of all his masculinity right in front of me. There was a knock on the door and he went to answer it. I saw the muscles in his back flex, and I needed to turn around.

“Hi, you called the front desk for some extra clothing?” It was a high-pitched cheerleader voice. A girl I already hated without knowing what she looked like.

I could see Gerald treat her to friendly smile, and I cleared my throat, but he didn’t seem to notice. I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms. “Thank you very much.” He took a plastic bag from her.

I stood up and pushed him out of the way, “If you don’t mind, you can bring us some ice also. Thank you.” I said, shutting the door in her face.

When I faced Gerald, his back was facing me and I saw bruises on his back, something I didn’t notice before – possibly because I was intrigued by his flexing planes of his back instead of the injuries. “You have bruises on your back,” I said touching them.

He chuckled, and pulled a t-shirt on from the bag. “You should see the other guy.”

“They’re fresh,” I said, turning him around so he could look at me. “Where did you get them?” I knew they were fresh for the yellowish-green tones of the skin instead of purplish-blue.

He shrugged his shoulders, “There was a fight back at the bar. I was trying to pull some people apart, got involved,” he saw my eyes widen, “in self-defense,” he assured me.

I put my hands on where they should be under the clothing, “Does it hurt?”

He sighed, “Not as much as it did. Kim, I’m okay. Just go get dressed, and maybe we could get some sleep.”

I walked back into the washroom and changed into the jeans that he left in there for me, which were at least two sizes too small, and a zip-up sweatshirt. When I looked into the mirror, I gasped at my reflection. I looked like a drowned rat! I took my wristlet and reapplied eyeliner, blush and lipgloss. That was the only way I was leaving this tiny room.

When I walked out, the door was open and Gerald was laughing, along with the same high-pitched voice I heard earlier. How long was I possibly in there for? I looked over at the table next to the TV and saw that there was a bowl full of ice and water and a wash cloth.

Well, she brought what we needed, there was no point in staying. And I knew exactly how to make her leave. I shimmied myself out of the jeans and pulled the sweatshirt to its full length which barely covered my thighs, but did cover the necessary regions.

I walked over to Gerald and put a hand around his shoulders in a sort of possessive way, and leaned my body against his. “Gerald, it’s late. We should get to bed.” I said in a seductive tone and looked over to the cheerleader girl. “Sorry, but we have an early morning. Thanks for the ice.”

She obviously got the hint because she scowled at me. “Nice sweatshirt.” She said, giving me a once-over. “Well, if you need anything else, don’t hesitate to call.” She smiled at Gerald. This comment was towards only him apparently.

“We won’t.” I said, taking hold of the door once again, and shutting it in her face for the second time. I sighed and walked towards the bed, “My, my, front desk girls could be such a nuisance sometimes.” I chuckled.

He stared at me confused, “Am I missing something? Are you mad at her?”

“Her? Of course not!” I smiled, “I don’t even know her.”

“Then you’re mad at me,” he concluded.

I shook my head, “No why would you think of something like that?’

“Because you practically pushed her out when we were having an innocent conversation.”

“Innocent, my . Did you see the look in her eyes?” I said. “She was totally coming on to you. And she didn’t even care that you had a girl in your room. I could’ve been your…” I trailed off looking down.

He laughed. “We were talking about the storm. It was purely innocent.”

Gerald put a hand on my shoulder, but I got out of it and walked towards the bowl of water. “We should get you cleaned up before you go to bed.”

I wringed the cloth and brought it back to wipe off the blood on his lip. “The conversation was probably innocent, but she wasn’t.”

He allowed me to continue to treat his bruised eye and cut lip without resignations. “And how would you know?”

“Because I’m a girl. And I know what you look like.” I chuckled. “She was thinking how amazing you looked and probably even wanted you to kiss her somehow.”

“Would that be a problem…if I kissed her?” He looked up at me.

I looked back at him, and hit his shoulder pretty hard. “Ow, what was that for?!”

“Because you’re an !” I said, bringing the cloth back for more water. “Do you know who I am? I am your ex-girlfriend, and you’re telling me that you wanted to kiss her!” I groaned. “I’m still not ready to know that you’ve moved on. That you’re ready to be with someone else.” I sighed.

I was now playing with the water instead of wringing the water out. And then I felt him behind me. His body was directly behind mine, and his hands were on mine in the water. He took the cloth out of my hands, and wrung it himself. He began wiping my skin with the cool water, and I felt his lips on my hair. “I haven’t moved on.” He whispered.

My eyes fluttered closed. “I’m not ready to be with someone else,” he continued. My breath came out all uneven. “Chris is right…we can’t be friends. After everything we’ve been through…” he paused and began touching my neck with his cool fingers. “I still love you.”

My eyes slowly opened, and I turned around to look into his eyes. He tangled his fingers in my hair. “I’m always going to love you. I can’t stop. I tried…I tried to push you away, but it only pulled you closer.” His lips brushed against mine, and I kissed back.

He picked me off the ground and I wrapped my legs around his waist. He dropped me on the bed, but not alone.

I pushed him away for just a second…when I came back to find out this was really happening. “Ge…Ge, maybe we shouldn’t be doing this.” He cupped his face. “I just…I don’t want to make a mistake. I don’t want this to happen, and then wake-up and realize you’re not there anymore.” My voice broke, and I closed my eyes because I didn’t want to see his expression.

He kissed my lips one last time and then came to my side to hold me in his arms. He nuzzled in the crook of my neck, with his body molded beside mine. “I’m going to be here…always.” He kissed my cheek.

Even though this wasn’t exactly what I pictures we’d be doing, it’s so much more. It’s been so long since I longed to be in his arms, and now I was finally there. The only place where I felt safe, the only place I wanted to be. Gerald was the only one I ever wanted to be with, the only man I’d ever love.