13. Greer #2
“Whenever we would go somewhere new, I’d love to toss my shoes off and wade in.
It almost made me feel like I was immersing myself in a place, kind of becoming one with it, I guess.
If I couldn’t wade in it, I’d at least try to touch it.
Dip my fingers in the Mediterranean, the Black Sea.
One time, I was out in California, and there was this fountain fed from the Pacific, and I wound up catching a blast of mist when the wind changed.
I stood there with my mouth open like you do when you’re trying to catch raindrops or snowflakes. ”
That one did make Greer laugh.
“It was just for the experience. It was… fun for me.”
“Then I think we should do it,” Greer said, sliding his box to the sand next to him.
She shook her head. “We don’t have to.”
“Of course, we do,” he said, pulling her box out of her lap and safely depositing it beside his. Next, he reached for her sneakers, prying one off her foot with ease.
“Greer!” She yelped on an eruption of uncontrollable laughter. “Greer, what are you doing?”
“We’re going wading, baby!” he said, pulling after her other small shoe as he managed to kick his own off. Scooping her up, bridal style, he lifted her into the air and walked them to the edge of the water where the surf was coming in, washing a cold wave over his now bare feet.
“Holy crap, that’s cold,” he said, feeling the icy water cover his feet entirely, and then pulling away. “You sure you want to do this?”
“I’m sure,” she said, her arms comfortable around his neck now, looking like she didn’t have any desire to leave her spot.
Well, that made two of them.
Except, if he’d learned anything on this trip, it was that seizing the day wasn’t going to happen by accident.
Leaning in for a quick, soft kiss, he gently set her down in the water next to him.
She held onto his arms as the next wave washed over them, bringing all the sand, silt, rocks, and seashells that were in microscopic pieces on the ocean floor.
Greer knew they’d need to get back to the bed and breakfast soon.
Otherwise she’d freeze out here in her sundress.
But for the moment, she looked perfectly content.
“It’s been a while since I’ve felt this free,” she quietly voiced her confession. Greer felt it almost sacred, to be bestowed with that kind of trust from someone he’d come to care for so deeply.
Something he would never take for granted.
“It’s been amazing, watching you come back into yourself on this trip,” he said. “Which sounds kind of weird, given I didn’t know you before.”
“No, you’re right,” she said, shaking her head and letting out a sigh. “I’ve spent far too long cowering. Living a shell of a life. Turns out I really needed this trip to get away. Remember who I was before everything happened.”
Greer watched her for a moment, taking in everything that she was again. Vivacious. Full of life. Ready to take on the world.
Everything he knew was just beneath the surface.
“Do you think you might want to come to a Bruins game with me sometime?”
The look on her face was slightly confused, and why wouldn’t she be? He’d just blurted out something that sounded so random she was probably anticipating a joke and a punchline to follow. “We’ve already been to a game?”
“Sorry,” he said, laughing at himself and his lack of chill around her.
He’d always been the kind of guy to charm a woman, but just like everything else he thought he knew a few weeks back, it all went flying out the window when he met Tessa.
“I was just thinking about that game, and how much fun we had. I wondered if maybe you’d like to go and see one for real sometime.
Not in a cushy, VIP skybox, but right down in the arena with hundreds of other fans.
We can freeze our butts off while screaming and eating hot dogs. ”
She seemed to ponder the idea. He thought she’d go for the obvious joke, given how appealing that all sounded. But instead, “You want to take me on a real date?”
“Well… yeah,” he said, thinking of all the places they’d already gone together. “It wouldn’t be our first, not by now.”
“It would be, though,” she said, her eyes lighting up. “Up to now, all of our dates have been for show. Every touch, every kiss…”
He let her words sit on his brain, the weight of them leaving practical indents.
Up until this past week, everything had been orchestrated for them.
At every event they attended, they were expected to play the part of a couple in love.
Every time Greer slung his arm around her, it sent a message to her ex that Tessa was over him and had moved on.
Plus, it messed with his opponent’s mind, which was pure gold in the octagon.
Win-win for both of them.
Except…
“Tess, it was never for show for me,” he admitted for the first time out loud. It’d been embedded deep in his heart since probably the first moment he’d laid eyes on her.
She paused just for a beat, her eyes darting as she paginated through memories of their time together. He knew without asking she was already thinking back to every moment they’d spent in one another’s company. Every time he’d held her close. Kissed her. Showed off that she was his.
Now she knew the biggest secret of all.
“You’ve cared for me all this time?” she asked, as if it was almost incomprehensible for her to figure. “Really cared?”
He nodded, not trusting his words at the moment. He’d never felt so vulnerable before. There was no smile to hide behind, no opponent to conquer. He stood there, stripped of every last piece of armor he had. But he wanted to take it all off.
For her.
He leaned in toward her, meeting her halfway.
And as their lips touched this time, it felt like everything had changed.
The spark he always felt before now felt like a lightning bolt.
It took his breath away and surged through him, lighting up everywhere that their bodies touched.
Her hand was behind his neck, the other pressed to his chest. His arms were around her, pulling her close.
“I can’t say that I fell for you at the same time,” she said, pulling just an inch away with her eyes still closed. He could feel her panting breaths feathering against him. “But I feel the exact same way about you.”
The confession brought out an immediate smile to his face as he brought his hands up to her cheeks, her eyes fluttering open in response. Smoothing away her hair to take her in fully, he had to know. “Was it ever pretend for you?”
“Only at first, but that’s because I was trying too hard to protect my heart,” she confirmed, sliding her hand over the back of his, her other hand still pressed to his heart. “I couldn’t help but fall in love with you. I’m sure you’ve had plenty of women tell you that.”
“Nobody’s ever been in love with me, Tess,” he said, wanting to wipe any insecurity she might have about any women before her. “And I’ve never been in love with anyone either. Not until now.”
“Me neither,” she admitted, turning her bright eyes up to him, sparkling more now than he’d ever seen them before. “You love me?”
He nodded, his heart nearly stalling out at the words he knew he was going to speak for the very first time. “I love you, Tess.”
The smile she gifted him was enough to light up the beach like dawn breaking. “I love you too, Greer.”