Since I Saw Him Last: A Gary Barlow Fanfic

Chapter Sixty One

"What part of the country is this?" I asked. We were winding round a country lane. The sun beaming through the passenger window. So lucky this car has air con. Gary still hadn't told me where we were going or how long it was going to take to arrive at our destination. My question went unanswered again. Gary decided to drive his Audi Q4 instead of Tony driving us. Gary hadn't driven me anywhere for what seemed like ages. We were chauffeured a lot recently and so it turned me on to see him take control of the wheel. "You should drive more often Gary." I glanced over to see his reaction. "You what?" Gary questioned. Even looking at his side profile I could tell he was raising his eyebrow. "It would be lovely to have you drive more often than be driven by Tony all the time." I answered coquettishly. "You know it's easier for me to have a chauffeur than it is for me to drive myself." He shrugged. "I know. I can trust that Tony keeps everything we discuss confidential but it would be nice not to have someone else in the car with us." I glanced sideways again to see his reaction. Gary turned to me for a second and gave me half a smile. He turned his eyes back on the road. "But if I drove all the time, I wouldn't be able to do this..." Gary leant his arm across to the passenger's side, slid his hand all the way up my thigh underneath my dress and rested his hand by my weak spot. "Gary!" I flung his arm back to the wheel. "Focus on driving!" "Well, beautiful. It proves my point though doesn't it?" Gary turned to wink and quickly looked back. "We've been driving for ages now. Are we there yet?" I pestered. "You sound like a little brat." He retorted. "Well, if you'd tell me where we were going then I wouldn't keep asking, would I?" I crossed my arms in the most stubborn way. "Throwing a tantrum now are we?" I looked at Gary's reflection in the rearview mirror. He looked smug. "If you were clever enough you'd have worked it out from the road signs." He chuckled. I stayed silent. "Oh come on, don't be like that. I'll put some of my tunes on to cheer you up." He switched on the CD player. A wistful tune started to play. My icy facade started to melt a little. "I've not heard this before. Is this is a new one?" I shot him a bemused look in the rearview mirror. He looked back at my reflection too and smiled modestly. "Yeah. We're bringing out the new album again but as a deluxe version. We'll be adding an extra couple of songs to it. This is the first one. Listen." I sat there perplexed as I let the song sink in. An acoustic guitar played a few chords until Gary's soothing voice started the first verse. The hairs on my neck stood on end. I rested my head back and closed my eyes. I listened carefully to every word Gary sung. His voice was clear and crisp. I could feel my heart thud as the second verse came in. I think Gary has surpassed himself. I didn't think it were possible for him to create a more beautiful song than some of his classics like Nobody Else and Forever Love. My body tingled at the climax of the song. I could feel a tear burst from my eye and stream down my cheek. I'd never felt such emotion for a song after a first hearing. "Right, turn that off. You're only getting one listen." Gary switched off the CD player. "How many more?" I said as I attempted to dry my eyes discretely. "Another three." Gary looked over at me quickly. "You crying?" He leant over, placed his hand on my knee and gave it a small squeeze. "Maybe." I answered. "You're so cute." Gary laughed. "You write so beautifully. And your voice, it's so inviting. It's perfect." I paused to wipe my eyes again. "What's the song called?" I asked eagerly. "It's called Will You Be There For Me."

An hour or so later we'd arrived at our destination. We were situated deep into a forest with nothing but nature surrounding us. "I didn't expect Devon to be like this. Where's the quaint villages and the gorgeous beaches?" I wasn't impressed. We'd played a guessing game in the car after listening to the demo. I'd finally guessed the right place after Gary offered many clues. Gary slammed his car door shut, walked over and hung his arm around my shoulders. "There's a beach about ten minutes in that direction. And if we grab the bags I can show you where we'll be staying." We grabbed our bags from the boot. Gary locked the car doors and then showed the way. We walked down a gap in the trees for a couple of minutes and came to an expanse wooded area. Trees had been cleared to make way for what looked like a massive cabin. "This isn't camping Gary. This is glamping!" I shouted with amazement. "Glamping?" His voice travelled. "You know, glamorous camping." We reached the cabin, walked up some steps which led to a porch. There were table and chairs to one side and the other a cosy love seat. "Where did you find a place like this? It's stunning." Gary placed his bag down, grabbed me and said "I made it." I looked stunned, "You made it?" "No not me silly. I had it made. This is my post gig hideaway. It's exactly where I need to be. I usually come here alone but I wanted to share it with you. No one else knows this exists. Just you." Gary tapped my nose before rubbing his against mine lovingly. My stomach flipped. How does he do it? The little things he does. It takes me right back to the moment I met him. Gary looked up at me, "What do you think?" He searched my eyes. "Do you need to ask? I love it. I didn't expect this at all." Gary turned to face the front door. There was a sign on the door that read 'Barlow's Lodge'. I giggled, "You're such a modest guy." I then burst into laughter. "Oh, shush you." Gary grabbed my behind and squeezed hard. "Come on then cheeky." We walked into a vast room with a tall ceiling. Two sofas sat in the middle of the room which were centred by a marble fireplace. To the right, was a glass wall looking out to the greenery. To the left, a modest kitchenette. The air smelt of wood and dust. Gary walked over to the fireplace where three cream chunky candles sat. He lit them one by one with a match. "That should get rid of the smell in here." I walked over to the kitchen bar to admire a bouquet of flowers that had been presented there. There was a note attached to the flowers:

For my sunflower,
Pretty, bright and blythe,
You're like the sweet summer sun,
Thank you for bringing me back to life.

"A poet too Gary?" I smiled cheerfully. He raised his eyebrow. "I'm a man of many talents." He winked. "Such beautiful flowers. Thank you." Gary walked over and I kissed him tenderly. "Why sunflowers? You know they're not my flower of choice." I asked inquisitively. "I know. They just remind me of you." Gary rested his forehead on mine and closed his eyes. My heart was skipping a hundred miles an hour. Gary pulled away, grabbed my hand and led me to the back of the cabin. "Here's the bathroom." The bathroom held a massive tub which I found odd, "Thought you didn't like baths?" I cajoled. "This cabin is for ultimate relaxation. This bathroom needs a tub." He explained. He led me to a corridor which held four other bedrooms. "Quite the party cabin this!" I exclaimed. "I've only ever had the boys here. You know I'm not one for parties." Gary smirked. "This is my room." Again, Gary walked over to the window ledge and lit a candle. "As much as I want to devour you, we haven't got much sun left for today. Fancy a dip in the sea?" The corners of his mouth turned upwards, "You brought your bikini didn't you?"