Chanel

 

 

Dario moved a few strands of my hair that had fallen along the side of my face and softly tucked them behind my ear. As he did so, his finger brushed against the bridge of my ear, causing my eyes to close briefly. “How often do you hear how beautiful you are?” Dario asked, catching me slightly off guard. After we collectively destroyed a party-sized Mountain Mike’s pizza, Rai and Freddie abandoned us to play with Dario’s dog, Lennox, and video games. “Don’t be shy, admit it,” he pushed, while tracing the area along my ear and down to my earlobe.

I swear I was on the verge of fainting. Can that even happen when you’re sitting down? I was laboring hard to pace my breathing to keep him from knowing that he had me flustered. I was sure he knew, though. He had to.

“Look at me, Chanel,” he said, from the side of me. And when I did, I was greeted with his intense glare and those nice, deep-pocketed eyes that looked at me like I belonged to him . . . belonged with him.

The only thing I could produce was a shake of my head in response to his question. I was praying for a save: gum, candy, a braid or something to play with.

“Yeah, right. I can’t even stop looking at you. You’re like the perfect view, so I know you get compliments wherever you go.”

I pointed to his arm. “So, umm, what’s your tattoo of? I didn’t see it before.”

Dario lifted his short sleeve over the top of his shoulder so that I could see the whole tattoo that pretty much covered his whole upper arm. It was a stunning work of art that was so clear and so detailed, that it made me want one. There were angel wings on either side of a sword. Instinctively, I reached over and ran my finger over the tips of the swords, and then along the wings.

“It’s beautiful,” I told him, pulling my hand back.

“Thanks,” he responded, pulling his sleeve back down and smoothing it out. “It’s something I got in honor of Lucas.”

“Your cousin, right?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s beautiful, Dario.”

“Thank you.”

“I think I get it . . .” I remarked, before I could stop the words from coming out of my mouth.

“What is it that you get?”

“The symbolism of the images you chose . . . the sword with the angel wings.” He looked at me with a blank stare; I wasn’t sure if the look was one of disinterest, or if it was one of curiosity of what my assessment would be. I wasn’t sure which it was, I only hoped that he didn’t find my probing to be a nuisance. “Am I overstepping?”

“Not at all. I’m curious to hear what you have to say.”

“Well, so . . .” I started, as I moved closer to him and raised the sleeve of his shirt once more. “The sword surrounded by the wings symbolizes your protection of Lucas in death.” I looked up into his eyes to read him and for a silent authorization for me to continue my analogy. He offered me a thin smile and I continued. “For some reason, you feel as though you didn’t protect him and that you lacked the power to do so. The sword tells that part of the story.” I looked away from the tattoo and into Dario’s eyes. “But you didn’t lack the power, Dario. You didn’t. You were there with him, you held him and he felt your protection, your strength, and your love.” I rubbed his arm as I slowly smoothed his sleeve back into place. “You loved your cousin very much, and this tattoo speaks to that love. I’m so sorry for your loss.”

When Dario’s lips pressed against mine, it was a feeling too natural to explain. It wasn’t awkward, it wasn’t rushed, it was right on time. For the second time since we met, we entered into a moment so endearing that it seemed to linger forever. His lips were so soft and so warm and so gentle. He effortlessly pulled me on top of his lap in the middle of the kiss. And although I felt myself being lifted, the momentum wasn’t lost.

I snaked my arms around his neck to keep him locked in place. I wanted him in more ways than one, but the timing wasn’t right even as much as it seemed that it was. Our tongues danced, and our sighs met in unison as we plowed our way through the passion with labored breaths. Dario’s hand moved up and down my thigh and around my hips while my hands caressed the back of his neck. The kiss was intense, and I wanted so much more. I really did. I wanted to feel him in the worst way, in the most intimate ways. I knew that with the way his hand felt along my thigh, it would be with ten times the emotion if it were skin to skin. All my womanly senses were awakened and I was fighting a strong urge to tell him to make love to me . . . a strong urge.

“We should stop,” I heard myself say after pulling back from our marathon tongue dance. I was surprised that the words even came out because they were so much the opposite of what I really wanted.

“Why?” Dario asked, moving his lips to my neck and kissing along other tender spots that caused me to release light, desire-filled whimpers.

“Be . . . cause. I just . . . th-th-think . . .”

“Don’t . . .” he interjected, palming my breasts through the thin material of my hoodie. My nipples had long ago made their plea for freedom as they pressed firmly against my bra from the inside.

“We . . . can’t . . .” I panted against his mouth. “We—”

“Woof! Woof!” I heard from across the room which caused me to snap my neck in the direction of the sound. When I locked eyes with not just Lennox, but both Freddie and Rai as well, my entire body shot to temperatures hot enough to produce a fever! I was beyond mortified! There I was sitting on top of Dario’s lap making out like some damn teenager with my son, Dario’s cousin, and his dog, as our audience.

“Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God,” I sighed on repeat, just above a whisper. It was like a bootleg version of the walk of shame as I slowly slid from Dario’s lap and took the seat next to him. I was wishing like hell the last few moments could be rewound to a time where none of the kiss happened. I needed a human-sized hole to crawl into and cower—like now.

But damn it felt so good!

“What are y’all doing?” Rai asked, as he and Freddie approached where we sat. Lennox had already made his way over, and was posted at Dario’s foot.

“Duhh,” Freddie said, before bursting into laughter. “Clearly, they were kissing.”

Mortified!

I couldn’t find my voice. There was nothing I could say. It was as though the roles were reversed and I was the child and Rai was the parent, catching me in the act. I didn’t know how to behave, and while I was trying to figure it out, the only thing that I could really do was think back to just how much passion was sealed in that kiss.

 “Duhh, I know that!” Rai retorted, but I was talking to my mother. “Ma, what’s going on with you and Dario?” he probed in what sounded like an authoritative tone. “Is that your boyfriend now?”

The whole room, Lennox included, fell into stillness, presumably awaiting a response from me.

“Yeah . . .” Dario joined in. “Am I your boyfriend now?”