Chapter 19 You Are Here
Play Romeo & Juliet by Peter McPoland
The September air sneaks its way into my clothes as I step outside into the morning light. Abby and Luke are still fast asleep inside, but Jackson and Saint got up early to make some coffee.
As my feet crunch against the small rocks on the ground, Saint looks up to me. His light blue sweater is such a stark difference to his normal black attire, it catches me off guard. “Good morning!” He smiles.
I wrap my brown cardigan tighter against my skin as I make my way over to the fire. “Good morning,” I mumble back, sitting down on the picnic table bench. Jackson reaches over the fire, grabbing a small pot that had been sitting gently on top of the metal grill.
“Coffee?”
I give him a nod and watch as he pours a good amount into an old ceramic mug. It has Dad’s construction company logo painted on the side. I admire it, knowing that Uncle Ned had kept it, even through their turmoil.
“Want to go for a walk?” Saint asks me gently, setting his now empty mug onto the picnic table.
A gust of wind blows my hair around me as I respond, “I’d love to.”
As we stand, I ask Jackson if he’d like to join us. He politely declines, claiming it’s too cold to get any closer to the ocean right now.
“Suit yourself,” I respond with a shrug, allowing Saint to guide me away from the fire. The air instantly drops in temperature, and I start to think maybe Jackson was right.
“So I’ve had something on my mind,” Saint starts off. His breath turns to fog as the words leave his lips. “Why marigolds?”
I keep my eyes glued to the sand, hopeful to find a seashell or two to take home to Mom. “What do you mean?”
“Well I mean if they’re going to be my favorite color, I think I deserve to know why you like them so much.”
I gaze over at him, stopping us in place along the shore. He looks at me with nothing but admiration, reading to hang on to whatever words I come up with.
“Do you remember my favorite hobbies from when we were kids?” I start off, nervous that he’ll find my reasons to be silly.
He licks his bottom lip as his teeth show off with a smile. “How could I forget? If it wasn’t for me coming to bug you all the time, you would’ve spent your entire life tucked away in a book or a drawing pad.”
My cheeks flush with his words. He’s not wrong, although I’m not sure he quite understands why I did that.
“Well the first book that really got me into reading was Once Upon a Marigold. I found an escape within those pages. They whisked me away from the monster at home.” My eyes dart to the ground, finding it hard to put into words how I’m feeling.
Saint steps closer to me, wrapping his arms around my small body.
Before continuing, I take a deep breath.
With the exhale, I do my best to let go of the embarrassment.
My excitement for the stories found in books had always been dimmed down by Dad’s harsh words.
“You need to live in reality, Nova. Life isn’t like your stories.
” His opinion forced my love to become a secret, just another thing to be ashamed of.
“It’s a love story. One for kids, but a love story nonetheless. I would reread that book over and over again. It had become my home away from home. Always there for me whenever I needed to escape.”
His lips press against my forehead before he responds, “tell me about the plot.”
I nuzzle into him, thankful for his understanding. The smell of the ocean’s salt wafts around us. “Well, it’s about a boy who was raised by trolls. He falls in love with princess Marigold. A humorous take on Romeo and Juliet really.”
“So the marigolds are from that book?”
I shake my head, attempting to solve the riddle of how to explain their importance. “It’s more than that. It’s a reminder that nice things exist. That maybe if I try hard enough, someday I could have my own fairytale.”
I turn forward again, beginning our walk once more. Saint follows next to me, occasionally glancing down at me with a peculiar look.
“Do you think I could be part of your fairytale?” He finally asks.
I open my mouth to respond, but the words get over-ridden with excitement as I spot something in the wall of rock behind Saint. “Look!” I squeal out, pointing excitedly at the cave’s entrance.
Saint spins in place, attempting to find the source of my elation. He must notice the hole in the wall because he looks over at me with glee. “Should we go check it out?”
I nod my head enthusiastically, “please!”
Hand in hand we bound away from the shore. The black hole grows larger the closer we get. Vines crawl up the edges, giving the cave an ethereal look.
“Do you think we could climb up there?” I ponder out loud as we approach the base of the wall. It’s fairly steep, but the cave is only a few feet above us.
With a large side step, Saint begins taking in the layout of the wall, attempting to find a leg up. His hands coast along the smooth surface, running his fingertips along every nook and cranny.
“Here!” He calls out, motioning for me to join him.
There’s enough of a ledge in front of him for us to be able to pull ourselves up.
Saint lets me go first, using his strength to boost me up until I’m able to get both hands on the cave floor.
I look below me to see him underneath. His eyes stay fixated on my body, watching like a hawk to make sure I don’t drop.
The muscles throughout my arms warm as they pull my weight up.
With a few more wiggles, I’m able to get the top half of my body through the opening. The rest glides up with ease.
I drag my body into a sitting position and take in my surroundings.
Stalactites hang from the ceiling, mimicking icicles from a rain gutter on a winter’s day.
Below them sits a small, still pond. The water remains clear, untouched by outside sources.
Clear crystals are speckled along the inner walls, glimmering as the sun hits them.
It’s beyond mesmerizing. A whole world, hidden away from the outside.
Saint grunts behind me as he pulls himself the rest of the way up. Just like me, the cave leaves him stunned. I watch as his eyes glitter with awe. He takes in his surroundings slowly, not wanting to miss out on the beauty we have found.
“I love you.” I blurt out.
He slowly blinks before bringing his full attention to me. “I’m in love with you, Saint.” This time my tone stays hushed.
Play I Found by Amber Run
“Nova Harper,” he begins, pulling his body until he’s damn near on top of me. “I am utterly in love with you.” He places a gentle kiss along my lips. “You saved me.” Another kiss. “And I’ll spend the rest of my life showing you how deeply in love I am with you.”
I choke on a whimper as I kiss him back. Saint’s hands gently tug at my cardigan, silently pleading with me to remove the fabric. Once it’s fallen from my arms, he breaks our connected lips, laying the fabric down on the cold ground. With a gentle push against my shoulder, he has me laying down.
“I want to be your happy ending,” he whispers, looming over me. “I want to play a part in your fairytale.”
I exhale roughly as the weight of his words fall onto my body. “The spots open,” I smile back, reaching up to pull him by his neck.
“Tell me this is forever,” he mumbles against my tongue. With instinct, my back arches and pushes my chest into him. It’s as if we’re both magnets, constantly drawn to each other, no matter the circumstance.
My core aches as his body weight pushes me back into the ground. “You’re my forever, Saint.” I cry out, feeling my love for him become too much to hold on my own. My tears nosedive to the ground below us.
He reaches in between us, yanking the sweats I had on down my thighs. “I need you baby.”
I give him the okay as I hiccup around another sob. His fingers press against my core, slowly dipping into me. A moan slips from my mouth as he drives my pleasure further.
“Do you hear that, my star?” He asks, still twisting his fingers to hit the right spot every time. I shake my head no, pulling my eyebrows together in confusion. His other hand comes up, cupping itself over my mouth to keep me silent. “Listen baby.”
The sound of my juices leaving me around his fingers bounces off the cave walls. “Do you hear how much you love me?”
My eyes roll back with pleasure as I listen to the sounds of our love. They heighten my euphoria as Saint begins to pick up speed. His fingers dance along my inner walls, searching for my release like it’s his life’s mission.
A muffled scream escapes me as the orgasm hammers into me. My body jolts under Saint’s. “Shh baby,” he coos out. “I know. You’re doing so good.”
Once he’s satisfied with the extent of my finishing, he pulls out, slowly dragging his finger along my now uncovered lips. “Taste how much you love me, Nova.”
The cool breeze is welcomed as it drifts across my burning body. My tongue darts out, collecting my arousal before disappearing back into my mouth.
Saint pulls his jeans and underwear down, allowing his cock to spring free. His tip is red and angry, pulsing with the need to be inside of me. “Open up for me, star,” he growls out.
I yank my pants the rest of the way off, tossing them to the side of our makeshift blanket. My legs fall open, leaving my pussy completely vulnerable to him. Saint strokes his length, squeezing the tip before sliding his hand back down.
The first inch of him squeezes into me and I grip onto the cardigan to keep myself steady. He’s still in a high kneeling position, picking up the lower half of my body to spear me on his cock.
My eyelashes flutter as lust swims around my pupils. I watch as he spits down, adding more moisture to where we’re connected. “I need to feel you!” I choke out, wiggling in his hold with desperation. “Please Saint. Please show me how this fairy tale will feel.”
His grip on my hip bones turns bruising as he shoves into me. This man could rip me in half.
“Such a pretty girl,” he groans out, diving in and out of my slit. “You take me so fucking well, Nova.”
My second orgasm hits out of nowhere, tearing through me like a tsunami. My fluids douse Saint’s legs. I gasp as he moans while taking in the sight below him.
He lets go of my left hip, using the thumb from that hand to roll against my clit. “One more for me baby. One more before I cum.”
The tears spill endlessly from my eyes. My love for Saint mixes with the overstimulation he’s gifting my body, creating a turmoil of emotions. “Saint! I can’t!” I whine out.
“Yes you can,” he fights back, slamming into me hard enough to have my head pushing the material below us around.
I bite down on my arm, concealing the scream that tears through my throat as the third wave of pleasure crashes down around me. My body twitches with each stroke until Saint is pulling out, spilling onto my stomach.
“You did so good for me,” he whispers, helping me slide my sweats back on. I crawl into his lap, letting Saint cradle me as if I was a child. He places light kisses from my forehead down to my shoulder blade.
I bury my head into his sweater, breathing in his scent. “What do you want out of our fairytale?” I ask softly.
He pauses for a moment, giving himself some time to think. “A dog. Children, maybe. Anything else is up to you. The only thing that matters to me, is that we do it together.”
I grip onto him as though his touch is my lifeline, and the fear of losing him consumes me. “Promise?”
“I promise, baby.”
We stay like that until the afternoon sun is beating down onto the ocean. If it was up to me, we could’ve stayed there for the rest of our lives. Becoming a hermit wouldn’t be so bad if I could share my cave with him.
“We should probably get back,” Saint sighs as he tilts my chin up. His blue eyes are consumed with bliss. “Don’t want the others thinking we were eaten by a shark or something.”
I snort at his words, letting a goofy smile pull at my lips. With little to no enthusiasm, I untangle my limbs from Saint, and climb out of our secret sanctuary. He drops down behind me, and instantly sweeps me off my feet.
“Since it’s official that I get to be your knight in shining armor, I thought it was only right that I whisked you away, back to our castle.”
My head hangs back as my giggles burst from me. “Saint! I can walk!”
“What kind of prince charming would that make me?” He pretends to sound absolutely appalled that I would even suggest walking, making my happiness crack through me even harder.
“You’re crazy!” I smile up at him.
The campsite begins to appear in the distance, the flame still roaring. Only two bodies come into view as they surround the pit.
“For you? Always.” Saint responds, giving my forehead a final kiss.