“I’m really glad, Skylar. I hope you two can make it work.”
My breath caught in my chest at the sound of my mother’s voice calling my name. As Skylar stepped toward the door, I shook my head and pleaded with my eyes. Using his head, he pointed to the other side of the door. Quietly, I hurried behind him milliseconds before he opened the door, obscuring me from Mom’s view.
“Ana, are you ready for me?” he asked.
“Not yet. Um, did you see Julia?”
Afraid to breathe, I stood stock-still as Skylar explained he’d been waiting in the guest room the entire time and offered to help with the search. The smile I saw as he closed the door reminded me of the boy I knew when we were kids. There’d been no pressure for forever back then. We were just two friends.
Maybe we could be again.
I waited for the footsteps and voices to fade.
Slowly, I opened the door, only hearing the din from commotion below. Approaching my bedroom door that stood slightly ajar, I paused. The photographer’s equipment was still present, yet there wasn’t anyone within my suite.
Closing the door, I engaged the lock before stripping from the robe and quickly donning the same clothes from this morning. In the bathroom, my fingers worked the clasp on the string of pearls. Coiling the necklace in the palm of my hand, I debated its fate. There was nothing about them that appealed to me.
Why wouldn’t Van bring them himself?
Why did he send them with Vicki?
While I couldn’t comprehend what was happening, I knew without a doubt I didn’t want to be a part of it. I also didn’t need a reminder.
I couldn’t think about Van, his intentions, or his thoughts regarding Marlin’s declaration. The sledgehammer continued to rain down on our snow globe, scattering the shards of glass to obliteration.
Holding back tears at the total decimation of my world, I left the pearls on the bathroom counter, pulled on my boots and coat, and grabbed my purse. Begging my own pulse to slow, I leaned against the bedroom door. As I turned the knob, I gasped.
Green eyes shining from a handsome face met mine.
Telling Van I was sorry but I wasn’t going to marry him today or in this house was on the tip of my tongue. I’d anticipated the hardness in his tone from downstairs. I’d feared the lack of emotion from our kiss in the car. My mind swirled with the possibilities that all led to our demise, and yet…
Before any of that could happen, my world took another flip.
“Thank fuck.” Van’s deep voice sent a tremor to my tummy as his palms landed on my cheeks, pulling me toward him.
The principle of conservation of energy stated that the energy of two interacting bodies within a closed system remains constant. In the car, I didn’t believe it. The energy between us was gone. However, applying the principle, perhaps it wasn’t gone but in a resting state because here, within a millisecond, I knew the principle to be true.
The energy was back.
Much as magnets of polar opposites, we came together.
My body melted against Van’s; my soft curves landed upon his hard planes. While he held me close, my arms went around his torso, wanting and needing to be within our own closed system.
My lips opened, welcoming Van’s tongue as my heart beat in triple time.
I couldn’t get enough as I pressed into his kiss with his heart pounding against mine.
When our kiss ended, my vision blurred as tears teetered upon my lower lids. “I don’t understand what’s happening,” I admitted.
“Fuck.” Van’s one word played on repeat as he ran his fingers over my face and his hands down my arms and torso. As if I were a sculpture or a piece of art he needed to inspect, his touch was possessive and gentle at the same time. “Tell me that you’re all right.”
Nodding, I said, “I am now. Why were you acting—”
His finger landed on my lips. “Julia, I’m so sorry. I’ll explain everything.”
It was at that moment that reality returned.
Voices in the distance came into range accompanied by the calling of my name. It was my turn to lay a finger upon his strong, firm lips. “Not now, Van. We need to get out of here. Once we’re gone, I want to know everything.”