Between Friends and Lovers

(33) Alexandria

“Come on, Alex,” Ricky said with his hands clasped.

“Are you serious?” I looked at him.

Maverick Bouras was an enigma. As much as I knew him well enough, there were times that he amazed me in ways that I didn’t expect. When he suggested that we go out and get dessert—which caught me by surprise since Ricky didn’t have that much of a sweet tooth—I thought he might want to go to one of the ice cream shops in town or the Mayberry ice cream shop that had a beautiful rooftop and was opened until midnight, but it turned out that Ricky wasn’t planning to go to any of them. He was planning to go to Waterview, the town closest to ours, to the art festival.

The art festivals in Waterview were different from the ones in Middleworth. For the most part, the ones in Waterview happened at night—which, to this day, I still didn’t understand why. But they were amazing, and I’ve only been there once with my sisters, but I was fifteen then. The following year, Anita and I got into an accident when we were going to the festival to pick up Rosana after she stormed out after an argument with Mom.

I haven’t gone back to the art festival or Waterview ever since then. Which wasn’t that hard to imagine. Middleworth, as its name suggested, was in the middle and was surrounded by other towns. As much as we called Middleworth a town, some referred to it as a small city. It had three exits. One led to Waterview, which anyone who wanted to get to Shadowfall in four hours—which was the fastest compared to the other ways—used. The other one led to Stormhaven, and it was an hour away, just like Waterview. The last exit led to Seraph’s Falls, where Quinn is from, which was the farthest with five hours to get there, and that was because the drive was scenic and had a lot of mountains. However, back to my point, all that made it easy for me to avoid going back to Waterview.

But the problem with all of this was that I’d never told Ricky that I hadn’t been to Waterview ever since the accident. Although I’ve talked to Ricky about the accident, I may have kept to myself why the accident happened and that I’ve never gone back to the place where it happened.

“Yes.” He nodded. “I promise to get you anything you want. But we have to leave now and we’ll get there at what... 8:30. That will be enough time.”

“Uh, yeah.” I walked by him, making my way to my car. I didn’t want him to see my face because knowing Ricky, he’d be able to read my expression.

“Is there a problem?” he asked, following me.

“No. I’d drive.” I made my way to the driver’s side and opened the door.

But before I could fully open it, a hand reached out and slowly closed it. I stood up straight, not wanting to turn around since I knew that he’d be able to see the fear written on my face. But it turned out that Ricky had other plans. He placed his hand on my waist, and I felt the warmth of his hand through my dress. He gave me a little squeeze before slowly turning me around. Once I faced him, I leaned back on the car door, and Ricky might have taken that as an invitation before he got closer, leaning his body on mine. As I felt his body on mine, I had to fight the urge to pull him even closer because I found myself loving the feel of his body on mine.

But that was pushed to the back of my mind when I looked into his eyes. There was that look again. The same look that was forever imprinted into my mind. And that look, paired with the feel of his body and the warmth coming from his hand on my waist, made my knees feel like they were made of lead. This moment convinced me that I wasn’t delusional when I thought that Ricky felt some type of way about me.

But there was a voice at the back of my head that warned me that he might be playing the long game. Maybe he was just making sure that I trusted him before he showed his true colours.

But that’s not true. There was no way he could fake the look in his eyes as he looked at me now.

“What’s the problem?” he asked, bringing me out of my thoughts.

I sighed. “I haven’t been to Waterview... since that night.”

“The night of the accident.” Even if he tried to pose it as a question, it came out as a statement.

When I nodded, I swear I could feel his hand tighten around my waist. Almost in a protective way.

“Yeah, I haven’t been there in quite some time, and I don’t know if I’m ready to go back,” I admitted, absentmindedly wrapping my hands around his neck.

Ricky lowered his head and leaned his forehead on mine. I took in a deep breath and bit my lip. It was crazy how the desire to kiss him overwhelmed me. Honestly, all it would take would be a slight lean-in, but I didn’t know how he’d react to that. And the fear of rejection had me squashing that desire.

“So what do you want to do?” he asked, giving me an Eskimo kiss.

“I don’t know.” I shrugged, closing my eyes to enjoy the moment. “But I’m not sure I want to go to Waterview. Maybe another day.”

I leaned closer to him. There was something in his hoodie that made me furrow my brow. I didn’t see him put anything in his pocket, but there was some sort of box in his hoodie pocket.

“How about we make our dessert,” he suggested, pulling back.

I opened my eyes and looked at him. “You want us to bake something?”

“Not really.” He paused before taking a few steps back. “Momma Bouras loves everything sugary, so we just need to raid her stash.”

I laughed and stood up straight. “She’ll let you raid her stash?”

“Not me.” He snorted. “But she loves you, so what do you say?”

I smiled before nodding.

*  *  *  *  *  *

Kicking my feet while sitting on the counter, I licked the caramel syrup from the spoon. I held in my hand a bowl filled with vanilla ice cream with caramel syrup and chocolate chips. This dessert ended up being sweeter than I expected, but I was glad that I stayed.

“Come on, pick one,” I said, looking over at Ricky as he leaned on the counter next to me, his ice cream bowl in his hand.

“It’s a hard choice.” He turned his head looking at me. “There are so many characters to choose from.”

“It’s not that hard,” I scoffed before laughing. “Which movie character would you like to be?”

He whistled quietly. “Screw it. I choose Jason Bourne.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” He nodded like it was the most simple thing in the world. “He might have amnesia or whatever it’s called, but if I can fight like that... some people might have to fear.”

I rolled my eyes. “People already fear you, Ricky.”

Instead of answering, he simply winked with a lopsided grin. Spending this time with Ricky felt like something that I needed. Despite what happened outside, everything else had been lighthearted. After convincing Momma Bouras of letting us into her ice cream and chocolate stash, we decided to sit in the kitchen and ask each other questions.

They’ve all been funny and lighthearted. Ranging from ‘What would you do if you were invincible for a day?’ to ‘Which fictional movie character would you like to be?’. The last hour reminded me why it had been easy for me to trust Ricky in the first place. Even though he was intense most of the time, there were times when he was funny and just living in the moment. And I loved them. To be quite honest, I loved all the times that I spent with Ricky.

After we finished with the ice cream, Ricky placed the bowls into the sink and led me back to his room. When we got into his room, he closed the door and beeline for his closet. I stood by his desk and leaned on it.

“Now what?” I asked, looking at the general direction he disappeared to.

“I have something I want to give you,” he replied, still in the closet.

“Ooh.” I grinned, knowing that he was probably rolling his eyes. “You got me a gift.”

He was quiet after that. My grin fell when time passed, and he still didn’t say anything. I was about to say something when he walked out of the closet and gave me the most vulnerable look I’ve ever seen on him. My heart dropped, and I feared what he was about to say.

“The day at the store, you told me that if you were the girl I wanted to be with, then I’d show you,” he began before looking down at the two bracelets. “So I got you something to show you that I meant what I said.”

My breath hitched as I slowly processed his words. He was saying what I wished to hear from him, but I didn’t know how to go forward with this. What did he mean by that?

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, Alex, I know that you still need time, and this isn’t what you want to hear, but I do care about you.”

The way he said that made me pause. Did Maverick not think that I’d ever want him? That would be insane, though, right? He had to know by now that if he said the word, I’d willingly jump his bones. If he said what I had thought he’d never say, then I’d say yes in a split second.

But were we ready for something like that? The thought passed through my mind, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. In my mind, I knew that even if Ricky would say what I wished to hear, I wasn’t ready for it. There were things that I needed to work through within myself, and if I were to get into the relationship now, then I’d drag him down with me, and my Ricky didn’t deserve that.

“Alex.” He stood in front of me. “Don’t think too hard about it. I know that you need some time, and I’d never force you to agree to anything, I promise you that. But I just want you to know the truth.”

“Ricky,” I said softly, but he shook his head.

“I got you a bond bracelet.” He held it up, and I looked at it. “Since I’m terrible at communicating and you don’t seem to like to text or call me first... I thought that this might help.”

I wanted to tell him that it wasn’t that I didn’t like to text or call him first, but it was more than that. That was one of the many reasons why I wasn’t ready for a relationship or anything in that direction. But in that moment, all I wanted more than anything was to forget all about these insecurities and the trauma and just take a step forward.

“Well, then.” I took one of the bracelets. “Let’s live for a moment.”

I placed the bracelet on my wrist and glanced at him as he put his on. Once it was on, he touched it, and mine vibrated. I bit my lip before I could giggle, knowing it was going to sound so girly that all I’d ever have to do was kick my legs before I looked like a lovesick girl.

“This way,” he began taking my hand. “I’ll always be with you.”

I could hear what he was saying, but my attention was on his face. I stood up straight and got close to him, and he slowly looked down at me. I didn’t know whether it was the fact that I was slowly accepting that I had feelings for Ricky or what, but I wanted to take a step forward between us. And judging by the look he was giving me, he felt the same way. The voice at the back of my mind was trying to get my attention, trying to get me to reconsider, but the desire was also burning within me.

The desire was also fuelled by the anger. Anger at the trauma that made me wary of trusting, wary of moving forward in any relationship. For now, though, screw all of that, and I was going to be selfish for once.

“I’d like to kiss you right now,” I said quietly.

I wasn’t sure if he heard me, but when he placed his hands on my waist and pulled me to him, I got my confirmation. He buried his head in my neck and kissed me softly, I breathed through my mouth before biting my lip. He brought his head back up and looked at me. He groaned before kissing the corner of my mouth.

Without warning, he picked me up and placed me on his desk, standing between my legs. He placed his forehead on mine, and I nearly melted when he looked at me as if I was the only thing that mattered. By now, I should be used to these looks that Ricky gives me, but I wasn’t, and I didn’t think there would be a point where I would get used to them. I didn’t know if that was because I still wasn’t sure if I should even be giving in to this desire.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked, his voice hoarse. “There will be no turning back after this.”

“Maverick...” I stopped, placed my right hand around his neck while my left stayed on his chest, and I pulled him in.

The minute our lips met everything else seized to exist. My heart flipped. My eyes closed as his lips slowly moved against mine. I could feel a fire being ignited from the pit of my stomach and spreading all over. The butterflies went crazy. To be honest, it wasn’t just butterflies. It felt more like a stampede going on in my stomach. The voice of reason disappeared, and in its place was the ‘I want more’ voice. It was an explosion of emotions, and I could feel myself getting drugged up by the feel of his mouth moving against mine. All my senses were heightened, and I wanted more of Ricky.

He cupped the side of my face and tilted my head back a little. His other hand went to my waist, and I started wishing I could that I could feel the warmth of his hand on my skin. But still, the warmth coming from his hand made me gasp, and he took that as a chance to deepen the kiss. When his tongue took control, I let him have it—too drugged up by the moment. His fingers began massaging my scalp, and I felt a shiver go through, and I couldn’t help but moan. I used my hand to pull him even closer even though we were already meshed together.

The kiss moved from being slow to being passionate, and my body tingled. My entire being felt like it was on fire, and it was so addictive that I didn’t want it to end. I wanted more of it. I wanted it to consume me fully. My left hand moved to his hair and pulled on it, causing him to groan and pull me even closer to him—practically bruising our lips—even though that wasn’t possible at all. Finally, he pulled away and didn’t move until I opened my eyes. He smirked when he noticed that he had my attention. His hair was messed up, his cheeks were flushed, his lips were bruised, and the look in his eyes made my butterflies go crazy once again.

“Damn, that was electric,” he said before giving me a peck.

I groaned. “Actions, not words, Ricky.”

He laughed before cupping my face with both his hands. “If only you knew how long I’ve wanted this.”

He didn’t give me a chance to reply before he kissed me gently. This one was different from the first one. It was gentle and still passionate just a bit differently. It was so gentle and slow, almost as if he was trying to make me understand his need, his desire. I felt like he was pouring what he felt into this kiss.

Kissing Maverick felt different than what I thought it was going to be. It was something I should have expected, but it hit me during the kiss. But as I held him close as the kiss deepened, I knew that this kiss was enough to ruin me. I don’t think that someone could make me feel the way he makes me feel with a kiss alone.

Maverick Bouras may just ruin other guys for me.



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Enjoy!

Stay safe🤍