MUSE // A Harry Styles Story

Sail with Me

Calvin had left, and the band would go tomorrow, as would the studio trailer and Jimmy. Harry planned to spend his final two weeks in Pampelonne relaxing at the house and wouldn't need the full security detail. Louise would stay, working with Harry on his upcoming schedule. Lia hoped that the woman would actually take a break and enjoy some much deserved down time. As for herself, she planned to sort out her upside down life.

There was a celebratory sendoff dinner for the band. Several bottles of champagne were consumed, leading to six naked bodies in the pool at midnight. Mitch's cock was, in fact, huge.

When a fuzzy-headed Lia came downstairs mid-morning, the truck had already arrived and was hitched to the studio, the driver having coffee in the guest house with the Musketeers before making the drive to Paris. Jimmy and the rest would take the Rovers to the airport and turn them in before flying to London.

By three o'clock everyone had gone, the house was quiet, the parking area looked deserted, and Lia was ensconced in her room, working on a new project. For the first time since she arrived, Harry was playing the house piano, singing now and then, his voice indistinct, even with her door open. She was content.

As she worked, the wind came up. Looking out over the terrace to the sea, she felt its draw. It was time for a sail.

"Harry?" she joined him in the living room where he had switched to the guitar. As she approached, she recognized the tune and heard him singing so softly that it was nearly a whisper.

"You miss her, don't you? I know you meant for her and your mom to come. I wish you had invited them. It's not too late, and before you say anything about it being awkward, remember that I can go to the cottage if you'd like me to."

"I said it might be awkward because they've never seen me like this. This... attached. I'm afraid they'd have questions I can't, or don't want to, answer. They know about you, but I'm not quite ready to share you with them. Not yet.

"I'll see them in two weeks. I want this to be time for us. Just us. I still have work to do on a few songs, and having you all to myself, no distractions, will be good. Really good." He sat on the piano bench, arm around her waist, face nestled between her breasts. "I could stay right here forever."

For once, it was she who kissed the top of his head. She ran her knuckles softly, back and forth across his cheek.

"Would you sail with me? I want to be with you in my favorite place."

He tilted his head to look at her. "The look in your eyes, even when you're just talking about it, makes me jealous."

"What do you mean?"

"I'd like to see you looking like that when you talk about me."

"You're not with me when I talk about you, silly. Maybe this is exactly how I look. Come sail with me and see my face while I'm out there. You can compare that to my face when we're doing something else I'm passionate about."

"That's a good face, the one you make when we're passionate about things. Ok, let's go. I'll be paying attention."

*****

Lia loved watching the muscles in his arms and belly as he pulled against the sail, as much as she loved feeling her own body working in the same way. She caught a gust and a wave at just the right angle and brought her board out of the water, giving a whoop of joy as she jumped. Turning to look at Harry, she saw him smiling, his dimples cavernous in his cheeks, as he tried to follow suit. He did it. Not very high, but he did it. She had never been more proud of a student.

Out for over an hour, they were moving slowly as they carried the boards to the shed. I'll need to make sure I have all my gear when I leave, Lia thought as she spied an extra life vest that had slipped behind a stack of chairs.

She would also have to pack up her sewing room and take it all home, which would be a big job.

Home. That was the most difficult question. Would she move into the cottage permanently, or truly go home, to the home of her childhood? The village was not quite an hour and a half from Pampelonne, on a hilltop in the countryside, surrounded by vineyards, olive trees, and scrub pines. She loved it there, but without her mother the house no longer felt like a home.

Maybe she could teach at the local high school next year. The interest in her would have certainly faded by then, and she could come to the cottage as often as she'd like, to sail.

The cook left with the group, so Harry and Lia made a simple dinner for themselves, Louise, and the remaining two Musketeers. The others chose to spend the rest of the evening in their rooms, while Harry and Lia watched a movie. They were asleep on the sofa before the halfway mark, only waking when Louise dropped a spoon while eating ice cream in the kitchen.

As they got ready for bed, Harry's face lit up.

"Let's have a day for us tomorrow. Just us, no Louise, only Ed, keeping his distance. I want to go to the café. I want to sail again, and play for you again. I want to go out to eat. To be as normal as we can be. What do you think?"

"I think that sounds good, Harry, but no matter where we go you'll be recognized, unless you're completely covered up. And that won't feel like being normal. I don't know..."

"We'll try it. Ed will be there if we need him. Lia, I just want to have a nice day with you."

She thought about it, about the pros and cons, the risks. About where they could go and be less likely to be recognized. She had a brilliant idea.

"Harry, let's go to Valroux, my village. It'll be a great drive in the Corvette and Ed can follow in the Mercedes. There's a pretty lake and a nice little restaurant with a view across the water. You could see my home."

"Brilliant. Let's do it."