flames of passion (Book 1 Series 1)

Chapter 21 Jackson

"I wont cry. ready to go?" I let out a sigh when I hear her response. I know that she's not being completely honest with me, but at least she's not outright saying 'no' and denying the fact that something's wrong. I keep my arms around her, holding her securely against me as I respond

"baby... I can tell you want to cry right now... but you don't have to if you don't want to. I'm ready to go, if you are."

"I'll cry later, now lets go please." I can't help the sigh that escapes my lips when I hear her  say that she's gonna cry later. It still makes me sad that she's going to cry but if she wants to cry later, I cant force it earlier than she wants. I gently rub her back a couple of times before I finally let go of her and step back.

"alright, baby..... lets go." She smiles.

The sight of that smile on her face makes it easier for me to ignore the pain of knowing that she's not feeling okay. I smile back at her and gently grab her hand in mine, leading her towards the front door. She makes a little spin. 

The sight of her spinning around in my hold makes my heart feel much lighter. I cant help the genuine smile that comes up to my face when I see her having fun even though I know that something's wrong. I follow her around and keep holding her hand as I respond to her in a softer tone.

"you're so damn cute, you know that?"

"thanks." I scoff when I see the cute blush on her face in response to my compliment. She makes it incredibly easy for me to fall in love with her over and over again. I gently squeeze her hand in mine as I respond. 

"you're welcome, baby. keep being cute."

I feel myself get slightly nervous when we get into the car, unsure of how she'd  react to the surprise. I know she'll probably like it, but I'm still feeling a little bit anxious. I look over at her when we're both inside the car and I smile at her.

"are you ready?" 

"yess." I feel a sense of relief when she responds 'yes'.  at least she's  ready. I return my focus back onto the road as I start up the car and start driving. 

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I park the car once we arrive at our destination, feeling my heart start to speed up as I finally get ready to surprise her. I reach over and gently squeeze her hand before I speak up.

"okay... close your eyes." 

I feel my heart start to race a little faster when I see that she has closed her eyes. I know that she wont know what the surprise is when she opens her eyes again, which makes me slightly nervous.

"okay... keep them closed and hold my hand."

I feel her hand in mine. I take a minute to take one more deep breath before I turn off the engine and finally speak up after a moment of silence. 

"okay.... I'm gonna lead you to the surprise now... don't open your eyes until I say you can, okay?"

I let out a quiet sigh when I see her nodding. I unclick my seatbelt before getting out of the car and making my way to the other side to open the door for her. I reach down and gently grab her hand, starting to lead her away.

"okay, baby... just follow me. keep your eyes closed."

I keep my firm yet gentle hold of her hand as I carefully lead her away from the car and towards the destination of the surprise. I'm feeling slightly anxious because she hasn't opened her eyes yet, but I know that the surprise I'm about to show her will be worth the wait.

"you're doing well... just keep your eyes closed and keep walking, okay?" 

I continue to lead her carefully, my eyes on our surroundings to avoid anything that might make her trip or lose balance. My heart is still racing slightly as I bring her closer and closer to the surprise. 

"we're almost there, baby. just a little bit more further."

We finally arrive at the spot where I intend to surprise her. We come to a stop and I look at her face for a moment, admiring how peaceful and pretty her expression looks when her eyes are closed. I take a quick look around the area, satisfied that everything looks just right, before finally speaking up to her. 

"okay, open your eyes now, baby." 

I watch closely when she opens her eyes, wanting to see her reaction to the surprise. I feel a sense of satisfaction when I see her eyes widen and her mouth open slightly, even though she didn't make a sound. I gently squeeze her hand in mine and I speak up in a calm and gentle tone.

"what do you think, baby?" 

"I love it.. I love you." I feel myself melt when I hear her words. Hearing her say that she loves the surprise is already enough to make me happy, but hearing her say that she loves me makes my heart feel like its floating. A gentle smile spreads across my face and I feel a rush of affection for her as I respond back.

"good.... and I love you too, beautiful." 

"Jackson what is all this?" I smile slightly when she asks me what all this is. I bring her closer to me and I bring my other arm up to wrap it around her waist.

"its a little surprise I prepared just for you, darling."

"you didn't have to." I can't help the scoff that escapes my lips when she responds with saying that I didn't have to. I tighten my arm around her waist, pulling her against my chest and I shake my head fondly at her.

"but I wanted to. I've been planning this for a little while now." 

It was a wonderful night spent with each other. I put effort into this surprise for her and I'm so glad that she liked it. after we finish eating the dinner that I prepared, I cant help but stare at her, admiring how beautiful she looks in the dim lighting. it was hard to resist the urge to pull her to my lap and keep you pressed against me all night, but I hold back until we finally end the night with a soft gentle kiss.