“. . . and that’s not even mentioning La Breve Vita. I think they’re Italian. She loves ’em. She always closes her eyes when she listens to music, ’cause she’s a little weird like that. I kinda like it, though. Every time I walked into her room, she’d be sitting there, earphones in, eyes closed. Half the time I don’t think she even knew I was even there. She never looked up, but she looked cute as hell. Still weird, though.”
I don’t remember the exact moment I wake up. It feels gradual, and I slowly become aware of words facing in from somewhere around me. I’m wrapped up in Tyler’s comforter and I lay there for a minute or two as I adjust. I don’t even fully absorb what’s going on until I hear Tyler’s voice softly say, “Hey, you’re finally awake.”
My eyes flicker open slowly, taking in the brightness of the room, and I glance to my right. Tyler’s by my side and he’s smiling down at me, wide awake, with a camcorder in his hand. He’s pointing it at me.
“What are you doing?” I murmur suspiciously. The red light is flashing.
“Just messing around,” he says. However, he doesn’t turn the camera off. He keeps recording me. “Happy Fourth of July, baby.”
I sit up a little and rub at my eyes, but I’m still aware that I’m being recorded. My eyes drift to the camcorder and I smile at the lens. “Happy July Fourth.”
“The Fourth of July is my favorite event of the year,” Tyler tells the camera as he turns it on himself. He flashes me a dazzling grin. “I think Eden knows why.” Stretching over me, he places the camera on the bedside table.
The curtains are drawn open, so there’s a warm morning glow to the room. The warmth is perfect and calming as Tyler silently runs his hand down my arm, taking my hands in his. He nuzzles his face into my neck as he breathes against my skin, and I let out a small sigh of satisfaction. I could get used to waking up to him every morning. Reaching up, I loop my arms loosely around the back of his neck, my hands resting in his hair, and I pull him toward me. My lips find his, and for once, Tyler relaxes and lets me take control, but it feels so odd that I only end up laughing against his mouth. Smiling back at me, he grips my waist and pulls my body onto his. I sit up on his lap, strands of hair falling out of my messy bun and into my eyes, so I tuck them behind my ears and lean forward again, planting a series of kisses on Tyler’s lips.
“Mmm,” he murmurs.
“I think you better switch that off,” I whisper. Throwing a glance at the camcorder on the bedside table, I kiss the edge of his jaw.
Tyler smirks, expression full of mischief. “How about we keep it on?”
“Hmm.” Playfully, I lean back and sit up. “Never mind then.” I swing my body off his and slide out the bed, getting to my feet.
“Okay, okay, I’ll turn it off,” Tyler says, leaning over to grab the camera. He shuts it off within a split second.
“Too late now,” I say with a shrug, teasingly. It feels slightly odd looking at him in his own bed rather than the couch for once, and I decide right then and there that I’m going to let him sleep next to me every night from now on. I want to wake up like this each and every day. “Coffee?”
“You know it.”
Late afternoon, thunder and scattered rainstorms began to torment the city. Dark skies and rain have hung over Manhattan ever since, and just as Tyler and I are deciding whether or not we’re still going to head out to view the celebrations, the power suddenly cuts out.
The apartment plunges into darkness and there’s no noise besides the sound of the rain rolling down the windows. Outside, the usual lights of New York City are just as they should be. It’s only Tyler’s building that’s lost all power.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I mutter in disbelief. I edge my body closer to Tyler’s and reach out to touch his arm through the limited lighting.
“What a mess,” he says, taking a few steps back. “July Fourth and it’s raining like hell and now we don’t have power?” I feel him grasping at our surroundings as he begins to edge his way through the living room. My fingers tighten around the hem of his tee and I follow slowly at his heels. “I think there are candles in the laundry room somewhere. Never thought we’d ever use them.”
It’s only a matter of seconds before Tyler clashes into the kitchen worktop, the noise of his hip hitting the edge enough to make even me flinch. He groans but doesn’t stop for long, and leads me into the laundry room. I’m only wearing underwear and an oversized T-shirt, so I stretch my hand under my shirt to retrieve my phone from my bra. Although the light given off by my phone is limited, it helps Tyler to locate a collection of wax candles on one of the shelves above the dryer.
“Here,” he says, handing me a couple of them. “Set them up in the living room for me?”
I do as he asks, and I squirm my way back through the darkness and set the candles down on the coffee table. My eyes are slowly adjusting to the lack of light and I’m beginning to make out the outlines of the furniture and even Tyler’s body as he walks over to join me. “Over here,” I say. Extending both my arms, I reach for his wrist and pull him over.
Setting down a few more candles, he stuffs his hands into the pockets of his jeans and there’s a jingling noise of keys and loose change as he pulls out a lighter. He runs his thumb over the spark wheel and a burning flame flickers to life, illuminating a tiny proportion of the room. Lighting the candles we’ve brought through, he puts the lighter back in his pocket and picks up two of the six candles, carrying them back over to the kitchen. He positions one on each worktop, and as he approaches me again, I can see his entire face. There’s an orange glow cast over the room, and despite the fact that it’s raining outside the apartment feels warm and cozy.
“How about we just stay here?” he asks, arching an eyebrow. “I mean, you’re not even dressed yet. We’re gonna get soaked. Who knows, they might even cancel the display.”
Snake and Emily headed out earlier to claim a decent viewing spot for the display over the Hudson River, and we’re supposed to be meeting them within the next half-hour. I’m not sure they’d be too impressed if we didn’t show up, especially when it was Tyler who was adamant we stayed in Manhattan.
“Are we making it a tradition to skip the fireworks?” I ask teasingly.
“I’ve got an idea,” he says quietly, ignoring my question, setting the two candles down on the table and making his way back toward me. He picks up another two, firing his eyes in the direction of his room. So I head over there, carrying a third candle with me.
“What’s your idea?” I ask, placing the candle down onto one of the bedside tables. The room is dark and the weather outside is thunderous, yet the three small candles we’ve brought through provide us with some light, enough to see each other.
Only one half of Tyler’s face is lit up, and as he moves toward his bed, I watch his shadow dance across the walls. “Baby, come here,” he murmurs, and a lump rises in my throat as I follow his order. “I want to play a game.”
“A game?” I echo. I try my hardest to appear calm and confident and cool, but it seems impossible. My voice is almost a squeak. However, it doesn’t stop me from softly gripping the sheets as I crawl onto the bed next to him and sit on my knees.
Tyler licks his lips as he studies me, as if wondering if I’m too delicate, too fragile for what he has in mind. I’m not. Just slightly nervous. “Turn around,” he says quietly but firmly.
“Turn around?” I repeat, swallowing. I analyze his features as I try to figure out what he’s thinking, but he isn’t giving anything away. He’s just looking at me, expression nonchalant.
“Eden,” he says again.
I loosen up, relaxing as I take a deep breath. In the candlelight, I twist my body around so that my back is to him and my legs are crossed, and I say nothing more. I just wait.
“Take your shirt off,” he orders gently, and even against the rain, his voice seems like the most powerful thing around me right now.
It takes me by surprise, but I don’t panic. Everything feels so comfortable and just right. Closing my eyes, I exhale slowly as I reach down for the hem of my T-shirt. My heart is beating fast, but it’s not pounding against my chest and my pulse isn’t racing, so I pull it off with ease and drop it to the floor. I’m not sure what Tyler’s doing.
I suddenly shiver and I’m not sure if it’s because I’m almost completely bare and slightly cold or if it’s because I’m almost completely bare in front Tyler. Either way, I don’t feel uncomfortable.
“And this,” Tyler murmurs, the mattress beneath us shifting as he moves his body closer to mine. Carefully, he gathers my hair, moving it to one side and pressing his cool lips to the back of my shoulder, breathing heavily against my skin. His opposite hand runs along the clasp of my bra.
“What?” I whisper.
“Take it off,” he urges, his lips running across the back of my neck.
Reaching behind me, I feebly fumble around with the clasp and release it. My chest relaxes and my breath finally hitches. Now I’m anxious. It’s been so long. Two years, specifically. I don’t know what to expect, but I do know that I don’t want to say no. The sexual tension between us has been building up ever since the Yankees game, from the moment Tyler mentioned Derek Jeter and home runs. And I think, Maybe this is it. Maybe our home run is here. Maybe it’s time. I have been waiting, always too awkward to bring it up, having assumed that Tyler had forgotten about the deal we made, and now that the moment has arrived I’m suddenly terrified. It feels like our first time all over again. And so I might be terrified and I might be nauseous, but I don’t think I’ve ever wanted anything more than I want this.
Numbly, I push my bra onto the floor and close my eyes. I’m so glad I’m not facing him. I don’t think I’d be able to meet his gaze right now. He doesn’t say anything, though. We just sit in silence for a moment, and then I feel the tips of his fingers against my skin. Softly, he traces patterns on my back.
I say nothing either, mostly because I don’t think I’m capable of stringing a decent sentence together right now, and I sit still, my eyes resting on the candle in front of me. Tyler moves for a second but quickly falls back into his position behind me, and I hear the clicking of a pen lid as he pops it off. I want to turn around or at least glance back at him to see what he’s doing, but I get the feeling that he doesn’t want me to look.
Suddenly, he presses the tip of the pen to my back and the ink feels strange against my skin. For a moment or two, I almost feel like giggling at the feeling. I avoid the temptation to move and I allow Tyler to write whatever it is he’s writing. The pen tip swirls against my skin and the sensation of curves and dots forming is fascinating as he marks words on my body, an entire string of them.
“Done,” Tyler announces, sounding satisfied. “Eden.”
“Tyler?”
“Turn around,” he orders again. His voice is completely hushed and I can feel the intensity of his eyes on me.
Now I’m shaking a little. Not because I’m nervous, but because I know it’s wrong to turn around. I know it’s unfaithful to Dean. I know. That’s the worst part about this. I know this is wrong and I know it’s unfaithful, yet I do it anyway. Squeezing my eyes shut, I turn my body around to face Tyler directly, and by the time I stop moving my pulse really is racing and my heart really is pounding like hell. Slowly, I open my eyes.
Tyler’s gazing at me, his glowing eyes analyzing my body. They rest on my breasts for several long seconds, and then they drift back up to meet mine. “ ‘The nakedness of thy sister, the daughter of thy father, or daughter of thy mother, whether she be born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover,’ ” Tyler murmurs, his eyes never leaving mine, forever smoldering. “Leviticus, chapter eighteen, verse nine.”
I’m surprised at myself for remaining there, unflinching and without feeling the natural reflex to cover my chest. Instead, I just play with my fingers in my lap as I raise my eyebrows at him.
His lips quirk up into a devious grin, revealing the tips of his teeth. His entire face is still glowing. “In other words,” he says, “I am most definitely going to hell.”
“Did you go to church or something?” I ask, holding back laughter. I never in my entire life believed that one day Tyler would be quoting the Bible. Even if it is with sarcasm.
“Googled it,” Tyler deadpans. “I was making sure that I can’t end up in jail for any of this and the good news is that I can’t.”
I do let out a laugh now, grinning back at him as he chuckles along with me, and I realize that I don’t even mind that we’re missing the fireworks. We missed them two years ago and we’re missing them again now, but it’s okay. Having intimate moments with Tyler is always much better, and as I think about this, a shiver shoots down my spine. Never do I think I’ll be able to get over any of these moments. I’m not sure I’ll be able to get over Tyler, either. Thankfully, I no longer have to.
It’s only then, while I’m laughing, that I catch sight of the pen Tyler has used lying on the sheets. Reaching for it, I grasp it between my fingers and I hold it up to the light. It’s permanent marker.
“Tyler!” I exclaim, immediately pushing myself up and hurling my bare body toward the door. Of all things, he had to use permanent marker? He’s probably scrawled profanities across my skin and I’m having terrible visions of the ink taking weeks to fade. “Get this off me!” Running across the apartment with Tyler close behind me, I grab a candle from the kitchen as I pass and throw myself into the bathroom. I dump the candle on the floor and reach for a hand towel, covering it completely in soap. Desperately, I attempt to reach around for my back.
“Calm down,” Tyler says, but he’s still laughing and he’s not even attempting to hide it. He takes the towel from my hand as he steps behind me. “I’ll get it.
He starts to rub at my skin as softly as he possibly can and out of the corner of my eye, I see our reflections in the mirror. I tilt my head slightly to get a better look at my back, at the writing before Tyler wipes it all away. The words look foreign to begin with and I think he might have written in Spanish, but I realize that the mirror is reflecting them backward. I concentrate hard on each letter until it hits me all at once what’s he’s done. There’s only one word. One word, but written over and over again, covering every single inch of my back from the tips of my shoulders straight down to the small of my back.
All it says is this: MINE.
Each letter capitalized. Each letter bold and sharp. Each letter significant.
I part my lips as I release the smallest of gasps. I feel satisfaction rippling through my entire body as I realise it’s true. I’m his. I’ve always been his, never quite Dean’s, and Tyler’s always been mine, too.
As Tyler applies more pressure to my skin, he also sighs. “I hate to break it you,” he eventually says, “but it’s not exactly working. How about this?”
Suddenly his firm hands are grasping at my body, pushing me backward into the shower. Within a split second, he’s flicked on the water. It pounds against my back, pouring over my face, drenching me. Tyler’s laughing at my expression, but as I glare up at him through the water, I find myself shaking my head. I really can’t bear this any longer.
“Screw it,” I murmur. Slapping my hand against his chest, I grab a fistful of his shirt and pull his body into mine beneath the water. I stretch up on my tiptoes, crashing my lips hard against his. This time, I definitely take advantage of being in control, and with my new power, I push him against the back of the shower wall and press my breasts against his chest, my mouth moving in sync with the flow of the water.
His polo tee clings to his body as his clothes begin to soak straight through, but he doesn’t appear to care in the slightest. His hands are in my hair; his lips are against mine. The water keeps sparkling down over us in an endless burst, powerful and heavy, and it reminds me of what it’s like to kiss in the rain. Heavy, fast rain. Eager, I drop one hand to the hem of his tee as I make a messy attempt to tug it upward, and I shift the other to his belt.
“Stop,” Tyler groans against my mouth. It takes him a while to tear his lips away from mine, but when he does, he pants against my ear. I’m studying him through the stream of water, perplexed and irritated, wondering why the hell he keeps shutting me down, until I realize exactly why he’s come to a standstill.
Somewhere in the apartment, I can hear Snake’s voice.
“Wait here,” Tyler whispers, breathing heavily, chest rising and sinking. Within a heartbeat, the water is shut off and Tyler is already by the bathroom door. He runs a hand through his dripping hair as he swings it open, peering around the frame. “Guys, guys, we’re here. Shower went weird again. Was trying to fix it for Eden. Water kinda burst everywhere.”
“Who cares about the shower?” I hear Snake mutter back. “The real question is this: Did you guys forget about something? You know, like the fucking fireworks?”
Sighing, I slide down against the shower wall. I’m absolutely drenched and my euphoric rush has quickly faded away. Hugging my knees to my chest, I throw my head back against the wall. All I can think about is the Bible verse Tyler quoted, and the more I repeat it in my head, the more my lips curve into a smile.
Sinners, indeed.