Heartbeats in Moonlight

Chapter 34

By the time it came to the semis for the tug of war, the field was a quagmire of mud, having been churned up by the previous rounds and the rain downpour. But much to Ben's disappointment, two of their team members had headed home with their very young families because of the on going threat of rain. So Ella was back on side. She was not happy that the sporadic downpours turned the pitted ground muddy. But David thought it made for a very interesting competition.

"It's alright for you guys." Ben teased as he watched first Jack and Amelia leisurely untangle their limbs and then watched David slowly get off Ella. Caked in mud, Ella's gaze met David's gaze. The adrenalin wasn't just about the tug. David's chest rose and fell. Ella's licked her lips as her breath hitched. Still staring at each other, David and Ella stayed where they were, while the others laughed and joked, "We lose, but you get to mud wrestle with two gorgeous women." Jack and Amelia paid him no attention as they brushed up against each other and snuck in a quick kiss. Ben continued, "I get Peter over here! No offence," He looked across at the burly man, "but you're not my type!"

David's head was spinning, like a tornado, while his world stopped. What had just happened? He moved, slowly. He blinked as if that would help. He tried to recover his breath. But he was still panting.

"You ok?" David asked Ella as he rolled sideways. They were both covered in mud.

His question roused her. What had just happened? Her head was whirling, but her world put distance between it and the real world.  It can be just the tug, or falling into the mud. That contact, albeit with clothes on and smeared in mud, felt like a branding iron. It marked her. 

"Yes." Her tunic shirt was stuck to her. Her hair was plastered against her face and down her neck. Her trousers were absolutely caked in mud. She looked adorable. In her eyes he saw the girl of ten years ago. The girl he had fallen in love with. And that memory dredged up feelings that he thought he had lost, ten years ago. Lust. Just lust, he thought. 

"Here." He reached forward to remove some grass from her face. She tensed as his hand touched her skin. He stopped, his hand still cupping her face, his eyes on hers. 

Again, the world stopped. 

If felt as if they were in a different realm. Just the two of them. The rest were outside, they could barely hear what the others said. Just the two of them. He saw her tongue peek out and nervously moisten her lips. The tornado picked up speed. Without any thought his fingers gently stroked her jawline and his thumb brushed softly against her cheek. A gentle, quiet sigh escaped and Ella watched his eyes. Were they here alone? Was this a dream? Her lips parted on a soft sigh, his eyes moved to track the movement as she gently bit her lower lip. Then his eyes flashed back to hers and without volition he began to lean in. He was going to kiss her, she could see it in his eyes. Time outside of their realm froze while their jurisdiction took them to a different reality. Mud was ignored, people were overlooked, and the situation was a fantasy. It must be a fantasy, her head said as her head recognised his move. He was moving towards her. He was going to kiss her. She leaned forward.

"Dave?" Lise's voice cut through the moment. She was not happy at all. Of course she knew she and David were not a couple, but she also knew that David and Ella were not a couple either. But from her position, she was pretty sure that David was about to kiss Ella. She bit her lips, David doesn't do public displays of affection, but he looked like he was about to engage in PDA. With Ella. Lise took a step forward, "Darling! Are you alright?" She pushed past some of the guys. David dropped his hand. Ella scooted back. "Look at you guys." Lise bobbed down beside David and ostentatiously began to pick off bits of grass.

Ella rolled onto her knees and slowly got to her feet. She tried to pry her clothing off her skin, but it just clung wetly whenever she released the material. She was a sodden muddy mess. With her thoughts on her state of attire, she felt an inexcusable pull to look at him. Their eyes flashed to each other. Though Lise continued to dust him off and though people milled around them, none of it registered as they simply made eye contact. The environment faded into a hazy backdrop, as a spark of electricity kept them focussed on each other.

"Come on." Amelia called totally oblivious to their appearance, and totally uncaring. "Come on, everyone, it is just mud!" Several laughed. David and Ella were quiet. But the spell was broken.

With a fair amount of muttering beneath her breath Ella moved toward Amelia, who was heading for the other side, ready to pull again. Better to move away from David, before she thought about that last few seconds with David. She was breathless. It must be the tug, she told her heart.

Amelia glanced over at Ella, and saw that Ella was breathing hard. "You ok?" 

Ella nodded and used her hands to shield her face and eyes while she removed the mud from her face. Amelia had left the mud on her face, and wondered why Ella was paying so much attention to the mud on her face given she was covered in mud.

"One more to tug!" Amelia ignored the groans and went for all out emotional blackmail. "I've never won a trophy for any sport. This one has my name on it." Jack and Ben looked at each other and grinned. Ben had her measure from years of company, but he was pleased to see that Jack had also got her measure. The other team members muttered. "We are going to win." Amelia told the men as they straggled past her. Resigned they trekked through the mud and headed for the rope on the other side. "No more sliding." Amelia told them firmly, "You guys need to dig in. The mud is soft, so dig in!"

"That's why we get dragged through it." Jack teased her as he took up his position behind her,and placed his hand on Amelia's hips, and nuzzled her neck. 

Amelia turned around and threw him a speaking look. "Jack! Focus! I need you to win this!" Jack smirked and kissed her on her lips.

Ella was slower to take her spot. She waited for David to walk past her, made a show of dusting off chunks of mud, though why any one would bother was beyond her. She knew they were about to get caked again. It seemed like the opposition wanted to loose more desperately, for they slipped and slid at each tug that Amelia called.

So her team made it into the finals.

A final that they won.

The whole team were ecstatic. Hugging and slapping each other on the back as if they had won an Olympic event. The two women were kissed by all the guys on the team. Some gave them a peck on the cheek while others planted a smacker on their lips. But the only kiss that Ella registered was David's. Albeit, it was fleeting, and mistimed, so it caught her on the corner of her mouth. But then she had turned her face and met his kiss. Her lips parted and for the briefest second their tongues fenced. 

Then someone slapped David on the back and teasingly told him to move on. But neither moved.

David and Ella, once again, just watched each other. The voices of their team faded away. The milieu vanished like a mirage as their gazes locked, until Greg stood between them. Ella sighed and looked around, she wondered if anyone noted her reaction. Behind Greg's back, David ran his fingers through his hair and locked his fingers behind his head. He wondered if anyone noted his reaction.

"Dave?" Lise's voice cut through the moment. She repeated David's name. "Dave?" Nothing. The frustration was evident in her word, "David?"

He blinked, came back to this universe, blinked again. "Sorry?"

"You ok?"

"Yeah." He watched as Ella and Amelia walked away, with Jack in tow. David wiped a muddy hand across his face and released a sigh.

"Here." Lise handed over a tissue. "You are covered in mud." David was tempted to laugh at that statement. He was pretty sure he'd need more than a tissue.

"Thanks." David said. He looked around, and said as if that would give him time, "I need a shower." He said firmly.

"Why would you need a shower?" She said with sarcasm. Of course he definitely need a shower, he was covered in mud.

That statement, and the sarcasm. was missed by David as his mind was still on Ella.