I took Heidi for a walk down the beach, but we didn't swim, with or without clothes. She seemed edgy after sharing her anxieties with me, so I didn't push for more than a walk. I couldn't remember the last time I'd done something like this, just walking and talking with a woman, no flirting or sex involved. It felt good. Heidi clearly thought she was a flake, but I never saw her that way, not even when we'd first met months ago. Nobody who worked as a pharmacy technician could be a flake.
Heidi was smart and together, but she didn't seem to realize it.
Though I hadn't thought she would want to hear more about my happy family, she asked me to tell her stories about them. So I did. She seemed to like that, which surprised me, though maybe it shouldn't have. Maybe hearing about my family made her feel better or…something. She got more relaxed and at ease the longer we strolled down the beach and talked. She did tell me more about her family too—good things this time. Her parents weren't total jerks, I learned. When she was a kid, Heidi's parents always gave her everything she wanted for Christmas, except for the year when she wanted a hot-air balloon.
Yeah, I could understand not wanting to give a kid that for a present.
But I would never understand why her parents made her the center of their marital problems and made her feel like their divorce was her fault. Maybe they hadn't meant to, but everything they'd done made her feel that way.
On the way back to the resort, I told her funny stories about my parents and my brother.
"Does your family like Halloween?" Heidi asked after I'd finished one of my stories. "Or is that not part of gypsy culture?"
"We love Halloween, but it's not a gypsy tradition. We're Americans as well as gypsies, and Americans love dressing up and trying to scare each other."
Heidi smiled. "Yeah, we do. Well, not me, but lots of other people."
"You don't dress up for Halloween?"
"Sure, I do. But my costumes are sexy, not scary." Her smile turned teasing, and she bumped her shoulder into me. "Do you wear your hot gypsy outfit for Halloween?"
"No, I didn't start dressing that way until I came here and decided to play up my Ludar heritage for the tourists. Honestly, I haven't done the Halloween-costume thing in years."
"Seriously? I would've thought you'd love that holiday."
"I used to, but I kind of grew out of it."
She arched her brows. "Damian the gypsy vampire doesn't like Halloween anymore? Maybe you need to loosen up a little too."
I let go of her hand to sling my arm around her shoulders. "Maybe I do. A little. I have spent years working at a prison, which isn't the most relaxing environment."
As we reached the edge of the woods, with the lawn in sight, she stopped and looked at me. "Want to finish that palm reading?"
"Maybe later. Why don't we go into the entertainment room and play a game?"
"Like what?"
"Anything you want. Poker, Monopoly, Go Fish, Twister."
She laughed. "Does anybody play Twister anymore? I'm not sure that's a safe game to play with you."
We wandered across the lawn and into the guest house, with my arm still around her, and we played silly games for two hours. Nobody bothered us because Eve and Val had taken a big group into town for shopping and sightseeing. The rest of the guests were either in their rooms or on the lawn enjoying the sunshine. Heidi and I had the entertainment room to ourselves. I could've taken advantage of that fact and turned it into an afternoon of naughty games, but I didn't. Spending time with Heidi felt even better than sex.
Yeah, I actually thought that. Playing board games with Heidi was better than making love to her. Nobody would believe I could feel that way.
I wanted to take Heidi into town and buy her dinner at a nice restaurant, but I figured that might trigger her anxiety again. So instead, we got our food from the dining hall and took it outside for a moonlight picnic. I got a battery-powered lantern from the supply closet so we wouldn't need to hunt around in the dark for our food. After we ate, we turned off the lantern and enjoyed lying on our blanket on the lawn with the stars and the moon above us.
After that, I escorted her back to her room.
Yeah, there was a good-night kiss. A chaste one.
How long could I last without tasting her again? The flavor of her mouth drove me crazy, but the taste I hungered for the most was her luscious cream.
In the morning, I brought her breakfast in bed. Turned out she slept in short-sleeve pajamas, not sexy lingerie. Still, seeing her in PJs got me just as turned on as lingerie might have. We sat on the bed, side by side, to enjoy our meal and tease each other.
After we'd finished our French toast and bacon, Heidi turned to me. "You don't have to hold back. I'm not as fragile as you think. I know I acted like I am, but honestly, that's not the real me. I'd kind of forgotten who I am until you helped me remember."
"I didn't do anything. You found your way again all on your own."