“Dean, I can’t swim very well, much less ride a surfboard. There’s no way I’m getting on that thing,” Piper protested as Dean’s car sputtered along towards the beach.
“Don’t worry. Just leave everything to me,” he replied reassuringly.
“That’s what scares me!”
“You do have your bathing suit on underneath your clothes, right?”
“Yes, but I’m still not getting in the water.” Piper crossed her arms to emphasize her point.
Chuckling, Dean didn’t answer. He just found a place to park and pulled into it.
Even though it was a lovely July afternoon, Trebarwith Strand wasn’t very crowded. There were a few people here and there, but not many. Breathing in the salty sea air, Dean climbed out of the car and grabbed the board off the top of it. He glanced over at Piper and saw her looking nervously at the ocean. Clutching the board, he walked around the car and took her hand.
“It’ll be all right. I promise,” he smiled.
Even though she still didn’t look very convinced, the worried veterinarian allowed herself to be led closer to the sea.
When they reached the sand, they pulled off their shoes and socks and sunk their toes into the warm grains. Then they continued on down to the edge of the shore. Finding a nice cozy spot near the ocean, but far enough away for Piper, they set down their stuff and stripped down to their bathing suits. Dean pulled off his shirt while Piper slathered herself with sunscreen. When she was finished, he picked up his board.
She looked down at it nervously. “Dean, I don’t know about this.”
“Trust me,” the surfer grinned. “I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”
He then took her hand again and led her to the edge of the shore. He watched as she gingerly stuck her foot into the water and chose not to go any further. He set down his surfboard and stepped on it.
Piper looked up and giggled when she saw this. “What are you doing?”
“I told you. We’re going surfing. But for this kind of surfing, we don’t have to actually be in the water. Want to join me?”
For a moment he thought she would turn around and run back to the car. To his surprise, though, she stepped onto the board in front of him.
“Now, in order to surf with two people on a board, I’ve got to put my arms around your waist.”
She glanced back at him, suspicion in her green eyes. “Are you trying to make a pass at me?”
“Maybe,” he winked.
“Dean, I’ve seen enough of those cheesy American beach movies to know you can’t stand on the surfboard while holding onto someone’s waist.”
He snapped his fingers. “Damn, I’ve been caught.”
She just laughed and turned back around. “All right, Mr. Know-it-all, what do we do for real?”
Dean removed his arms from around her waist, but left his hands on her back. Leaning in close, he whispered, “Now, imagine we’ve paddled out into the ocean. The sea is calm; the wind is warm. Before we know it, a large wave is making its way right towards us. We turn around and start paddling ahead of it. As it gets closer, we grab the board and stand up in one swift move.” At this point, he gently took Piper’s arms and lifted them out to the sides. “Now we have to keep our balance.”
Piper snickered, but he knew that she was going along with it. Standing there, imagining they were surfing a wave, Dean closed his eyes and allowed himself to breathe in her scent. Lavender, just like he remembered. Why did he let her stay away for four years? Why had he been so stupid to lose her in the first place? In that place, in that moment, he was the happiest he had ever been. It was so right.
Just then, a small wave rolled up onto the beach and pushed their surfboard forward, the movement catching them both by surprise. Losing his balance, Dean’s eyes popped open as he fell forward, knocking Piper down onto her back in the warm sand. He landed on top of her. For a moment, they lay there, just looking at each other. No one said a word, and they each barely took a breath.
There she was in his arms, and she wasn’t pulling away. It had been so long since he felt those lips; surely, she wouldn’t mind if he… But Dean didn’t get to finish the thought. All of a sudden a beach ball smacked him on the side of the head and knocked him sideways. For a minute, he just lay there, dazed and staring at the blue sky.
“Hey, mister! I’m sorry about that!” An unfamiliar kid’s voice hollered.
“Dean? Are you all right?” Piper asked as she peered over him.
Blinking a couple of times, Dean sat up and shook the sand out of his hair. “Yeah, I’m all right. I think.”
Piper smiled as she stood up and held out her hand to him. “That kid has a bad aim,” she commented.
Dean chuckled as he took her hand and stood up. “Yeah, but that ball had some strength behind it.” Once he caught his balance, he leaned over and picked up the board. Turning back to Piper, he grinned again. “How about some dinner? I’m cooking.”
The veterinarian’s eyes widened. “Didn’t you almost burn down your apartment the last time you did that?”
“Ah, but that was four years ago. I’ve gotten a little better since then.”
They walked over to their place in the sand and gathered up their stuff.
“All right, I’m in.” With that, they headed to the car.
* * * *
“Now brace yourself. Once you see this place, you won’t be able to go back to London,” Dean warned as he unlocked his apartment door.
Piper chuckled. “I’ll try to control myself,” she teased.
“All right, but I just wanted to let you know.” With that, Dean opened the door and led the way into his place. It was very nice and comfortable with a homey feel to it. The feeling was more permanent than the small place he had had in London. His furniture was soft and beige and matched the green carpeting well. Covering his walls were various movie posters and surfing memorabilia; there was even an advanced poster of Josh’s upcoming fifth CD, the cover of which Dean had designed.
“It’s lovely,” Piper smiled as she stepped inside.
“Wait ‘til you see the rest of it.” Dean took her hand and led her into the kitchen.
The kitchen was small and was directly attached to the living room. The cabinets were brown and the counters were white; the perfect size for a bachelor.
Next was the bathroom, which was almost bare except for the necessities like shampoo and soap. He didn’t have any fluffy coverings or even a theme, but that didn’t surprise Piper at all.
Finally came the bedroom. Just like in the living room, the walls were covered with posters. The king-sized, unmade bed sat in the center of the room with a brown dresser against the left wall, under a window.
“I’m afraid it’s not extremely large, but it suits me just fine,” Dean smiled as Piper took in the room.
“It’s wonderful, Dean,” she told him, meaning every word. As her eyes swept across the dresser, she noticed the picture sitting on top of it. “What’s that?” Walking over to it, she picked it up. Slowly, she sat down on the bed, her eyes widening the minute she saw her smiling face glancing back at her.
She looked back at Dean, who slowly followed her inside. “You kept this? After all these years?”
Dean shrugged as he sat down beside her. “Why not? You were a big part of my life.”
“Dean…” She glanced back down at it and laughed. “Wow, was I really that young once?”
He nodded. “Oh, yeah, but you haven’t aged a bit.”
Playfully, she swatted him on the arm. “Sweet talker.” She stood up and placed the picture back on the dresser. Turning to face Dean, she rubbed her stomach. “So, when’s dinner going to be ready?”
Grinning, Dean stood up as well. “Changing the subject already? Well, let’s see what I have, shall we?”
Together, they made their way back to the kitchen.
While Dean cooked, Piper glanced through an old shoebox filled with photos that he had left in the living room. In one, they were both wearing goofy hats and striking matching poses. In another, she was waving at the camera with a green, lush countryside behind her. Finally, she came across one where Dean was standing behind her with his arms around her. They looked so happy. What had happened?
Dean’s job had happened. For every happy moment in there relationship, there was one where Dean showed up with a black eye or a broken bone. Or sometimes he didn’t even show up at all. Peering over at the man who was currently fighting a small flame on his stove, she smiled. All of that seemed to be behind him. Not once had they run into someone who wanted to beat him up. Not once did he pull someone aside and try to make a deal. Not once had he broken a date with her. Also, at the same time, she found herself remembering why she had fallen in love with him in the first place.
He was getting to her. Oh, who was she fooling? He had gotten to her the first day he showed up in her office. Piper glanced down at her hands and studied the engagement ring that adorned her finger. Why did it all of a sudden feel so heavy?
* * *
The flame defeated and dinner served, it turned out to be very delicious. She never knew how good a cook he actually was, once he figured out how to work the stove.
After dinner, they sat on the couch and continued to look over the pictures.
“I can’t believe you actually wore that hat. I hated that hat!” Piper laughed, referring to a picture of Dean in a black toboggan with a small logo that read “Stussy” on it.
“Hey, that was a comfortable hat,” he protested.
“I’m sure.”
As she calmed down, she glanced over at him to find the humor in his blue-green eyes had disappeared. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
Pointing to her diamond, he simply questioned, “Do you love him?”
The question caught her off guard. “What?”
“Do you love Emerson?”
“Oh.” It wasn’t a loaded question, but it certainly felt like it. “Well, he’s a wonderful man. He’s responsible and handsome and dependable.”
Dean leaned forward, his look more intense. “I didn’t ask what kind of guy he was; I asked if you loved him.”
“That’s a personal question,” she answered, sounding a little more defensive than she had intended. “You know, I think I need to get back to my hotel room.” With that, she stood up and started gathering her things.
“That’s it. I’m tired of tip toeing around this.”
“What are you talking about?”
Dean stood up and turned Piper to face him, his eyes meeting hers. “If I don’t say this now, I never will. I made a lot of stupid mistakes when we were together. I couldn’t see past my own stupidity. I couldn’t see you. But if there was ever anyone else on my mind, it was you. I can honestly say I fell in love with you, Piper.” He paused as he pushed a stray brown curl out of her eyes. “I’m still in love with you.”
Her mouth dropped open as her heart beat a little quicker. What could she say to that? Of all the things she had expected him to say, that had not been one of them.
Without saying another word, Dean gently reached out and touched Piper’s face, turning it to look at him. Sliding his hands under her jaw, he rubbed a callused thumb along her cheek. I have to stop him, a part of her brain told her. I have to. But all logical thought stopped when his lips brushed hers. To her surprise, as the kiss deepened, she didn’t stop him. In fact, she wanted it to go on.
Slowly, his left hand drifted from her face down her neck and across her back. The touch was light and left goosebumps on her skin where it passed. It was soft and warm, and it tickled. When he pulled away, her knees buckled and she sank down onto the couch.
“Dean…” she breathed.
He sat down next to her and trailed his fingers from her neck down her arm to her hand. “I had to,” was all he said.
Slowly, she turned to look at him and all thoughts of Emerson or her life in London left her brain. All she could think was that she wanted him to do that again.
Not knowing what to do, she planted her lips on his, his facial hair lightly tickling her chin and upper lip. Leaning back, Dean’s kisses left her lips and delicately trailed down her throat. Reaching up under her shirt, his passionate touch found her breast, cupping it. Her pulse quickened as did her breathing. God, how she had missed this. How she had missed HIM.
Dean’s kisses continued their descent all the way to her stomach. His lips and facial hair tickled, and her stomach involuntarily trembled.
In response, Piper placed her hands under his chin and lifted his face to hers. She kissed his forehead, then began to leave a trail of kisses all her own. When she reached the base of his throat, she stopped and looked into his blue-green eyes.
“Are you sure you want this?” he asked simply.
It was a serious question, and it called for a decision right then. Upon reflection, Piper realized she had made the choice the minute she had hung up on Emerson. Once again, she was going to trust her heart.
“Yes,” she whispered.
Slipping off her engagement ring, she placed it on a nearby table. She would tell Emerson on Monday, face to face, she decided. For now, though, she turned her attention back to Dean and wrapped her arms around him.
“I love you,” she whispered as she bent down to kiss him.