I shuffled in my seat feeling the pearls of my thong rolling against my puckered hole.
“A scarf,” he clarified, saving my blushes. I lifted it from the seat between us. He took it from me, rolling it into a long thin shape, before looking at me apologetically. “Matt asked that you wear this.”
“Wear it? What, round my neck or something? Hell, no. It’s not very Cosmic God, is it? It’s bad enough I’m wearing white. I don’t think I’ve worn white since I was about six.”
Eli coughed. “No, Frankie. He wants you to wear it over your eyes. He wants where you’re going to be a surprise.”
I stared at him, shaking my head.
“Please, Frankie. If you don’t, he’ll kill me and probably fire my ass. We’ll be there soon. I promise, it’s not some weird practical joke.”
“Fine, but then get him on the phone. I want to know what’s going on.”
“I can’t. He’s still tied up with the band. Just put it on. I promise it won’t be for long. Ten minutes, max”
I huffed loudly, before tying the scarf over my eyes, blinding me. Eli shuffled next to me. “He also asked that I put these in. The soppy bugger made you a playlist.” Eli slipped some earbuds in, music filling my ears. I laughed as The Spice Girls,If you want to be my loverplayed out.
I didn’t know how long we’d been traveling but I knew it was longer than the ten minutes Eli promised because I was on the eighth song on Matt’s cheesy as hell playlist as Bett Midler’sWing Beneath my Wingsfinished. I felt the car slow and stop and then a hand guided me out. I stood, waiting for someone to take the blindfold off, but they didn’t. Instead, I felt unfamiliar hands in mine and more on my hips.
“What the hell is going on? If you’re trying to kidnap me, you should know I have a scary fiancé who will track you down and kill you and I also eat a lot, so you better be prepared to feed me. I’m not nice if I get hungry.”
Someone squeezed my hand tightly, but I couldn’t see or hear anything exceptMore than wordsby Extreame playing in my ears.
The hands on my hips guided me forward, and I was glad Matt left me new white sneakers with my outfit and not heels because I’d probably have broken my neck. I was turned around and eased backward. I wondered where on earth I was because this didn’t feel like a restaurant. Suddenly, my seat rocked, making me scream. Then we lurched forward, and I felt like I was flying.
“Fuck. What is going on? This isn’t funny. Matt, if you can hear me, I’m freaking out. Please.”
The earbuds vanished, and I was met with what sounded like the crashing of waves. Then a hand cupped my face. A hand I would recognize even in the blackest of nights.
“Bear, where are we?”
He moved his hand to untie the scarf, letting it fall from my face. It takes a minute for my eyes to adjust and when they did, I screamed again, only this time louder. “Why the fuck are we in the sky?” I cried, my chest heaving with fear.
Matt took my hand in his, stoking my jaw.
“Look at me, Rogue. Just breath. You’re safe. You’re always safe with me. Take a breath and look where we are.”
Gripping onto his hand while I tried to calm the panic in my chest, I looked around. At the pier. Overlooking the ocean. On a Ferris Wheel.
“Do you remember when you asked me to take you on a date to woo you? You told me you wanted a Ferris Wheel and to be kissed until your knees went weak?”
“I did,” I gasped as a huge tear rolled down my cheek.
“Well, this is me taking you on a date, because I realized we never got our first date.”
I looked down at the Santa Monica Pier and noticed it was empty.
“There’s no one else here.”
“It’s closed. I hired the place. I don’t want loads of excited fans of yours interrupting us.”
“You did all this for me?”
“All of it. The problem with the band. It was a bit of a fib to get you here. I’ve been planning this for weeks.”
I stared at him, loving the wide smile that beamed from his face. “Why?”
“Because I love you. Because I want to give you anything and everything you want. Because I want to see that smile forever on your lips and know that I put it there.”