If Only She'd Loved Him

Chapter 56

Saturday 2:40 pm

Erik fingered the letter in his pocket as he drove. It was all about to come together. Once Jean read what the note said, she'd stop looking for Megan. He and she would be free to live the life they deserved. He smiled, imagining the blissful life they'd have together, but less pleasant thoughts kept creeping into his mind. He felt the tiny lump in the envelope. Megan had looked so upset when he'd taken her necklace. Should he have let her keep it? He didn't really need it, did he? Had he done it just to punish her, to reassert his control? No, he shook his head. He needed the necklace to prove that Megan wrote the note. He'd done the right thing. Besides, he'd make it up to her, buy her something nice on the trip back. He began to picture himself lifting up her heavy hair, baring her throat to his lips, then sliding a gold chain around her neck, fastening it in place. She'd spin around, lips, red and moist.

"Thank you, Erik. It's beautiful," she'd purr. Her fingers would caress the necklace then move towards his cheek, reaching out with a touch so soft he'd barely feel it. But he'd hear what she said. Her lips would curve as she whispered in his ear, "You know I love you, don't you? I was just testing you before. It's you I've always loved, and only you."

He'd take those lips and smother them against his. It was all going to be perfect, absolutely perfect. Reaching down under the seat, Erik pulled out Megan's coat. The supple leather was cool under his fingers, but better than that, the jacket smelled like her. He breathed it in deeply, loving her scent. Tucking her coat back under his seat, Erik drove down the road. He was close now. His eyes began scanning to the left, and then the right, for Jean's car, but it was nowhere to be seen. Fate was smiling on him because he was doing the right thing. Quickly, Erik pulled up in front of Jean and Megan's house. Opening the mailbox, he centered the letter inside. One final touch. He just couldn't resist flipping up the flag to let Jean know that she had mail. After carefully surveying the street, he got back into his car and drove off. He'd stop at a jewelry store on his way back to the cabin. Maybe he'd get Megan another charm, one that would remind her of him. Perhaps a raindrop, a perfect golden raindrop.

If anyone had told Erik that he'd be taking a history seminar in his junior year, he would have laughed at them. But when his advisor gravely informed him that he was missing a credit in the Humanities and was in danger of not graduating without it, Erik signed up for From Kings to Cardinals: French History after the Revolution, because it fit into his schedule. He had no idea it would change his life.

From the start there was something about the blonde who sat in front of him. Initially, he chalked it up to her body. She wore some of the shortest skirts he'd ever seen. Sometimes, he'd find his fingers drifting towards the back of her shoulders, just so he could touch the warmth that called out to him. But there was more to his attraction than looks. She was smart. When she spoke she made sense, even if she blushed when she had to speak in front of the class. Only he saw the way her neck would tighten, raising tiny goosebumps as she answered a question, then relax as she sat back down. He wanted to massage that neck, take away the tension it felt. Sometimes he'd miss hearing his own name just because he was staring at her. He felt drawn to this girl like he'd never felt to anyone. A scientist at heart, he wanted to know why. So he began to observe her in class. He hoped to analyze his feelings and thereby understand them. But it didn't work that way. To his frustration, he found himself studying her, arriving early just so he could watch her come in, and staying late, so he could see her walk down the hall. She'd smile at him as she sat down, but she didn't know him, so she'd talk to other friends in the class. Even her polite smile, though, made his day, so he didn't give up hope. He expanded his vigil, watching her day and night as he waited for his chance.