St. James

CHAPTER 49

-NOVEMBER-

Before I realized it, my birthday was around the corner and Brian and I had been living together for almost three months already. I managed to land a fulltime job with a local metal/rock enterprise much like the one I was with in Georgia as well as my seasonal work with the guys when they were doing something band-wise so all in all I was content as content could be. Sure, we weren't rich by any means but for the two of us we lived quite comfortably in Brian's condo on the beach.

Zoe, Allie and myself worked diligently on merchandise for the band once they had a logo established and put all our time and energy into making the merchandise the best we could, often wearing the shirts and purses we designed around town as a way of promoting them. The guys were hard at work on their first serious album and often were in the studio for 18 hours of the day so on the day of my birthday I was pleasantly surprised when I woke up and found Brian still asleep beside me, snoring softly as he lay on his side facing me. I scurried out into the kitchen quietly and began cooking an elaborate breakfast for the two of us, humming under my breath as I did so. Twenty minutes later I jumped as a pair of brightly colored, muscular forearms went around my waist and pulled me backwards. "Good morning gorgeous" Brian mumbled sleepily in my hair as he kissed my head and made a path down my neck and onto my shoulder with his mouth. "Mmm...good morning handsome" I gushed happily as I tipped my head off to the side to give him easier access to my flesh. "I should be cooking you breakfast you know? It's your birthday after all" he mumbled against my shoulder as kissed and nipped at the flesh there creating a sea of goose bumps along the way. "Oh, I know you, I'm sure you have something up your sleeve" I teased breathlessly as I turned in his arms so I could run my hands up and down his bare chest while we began kissing.

Brian easily picked me up and set me on the counter next to the stove, walking in between my legs as he did so and slowly pulled away from me, a sneaky smile on his face "Oh I do...and I hope it will be one hell of a memorable birthday for you" he chuckled before letting me finish making our breakfast. Once we finished eating and got dressed Brian blindfolded me before leading me out to the car and helping me into my seat. "No, I'm not taking it off" he laughed as I begged him to uncover my eyes "It's a surprise baby girl so just sit back and relax." We drove for what I thought was about ten minutes before Brian finally came to a stop and uncovered my eyes. I blinked against the bright sun before glancing over at the building and smiling happily "You didn't..." I exclaimed emotionally as happy memories flooded my mind and tears slipped past my eyes. We were sitting in the parking lot of the skating rink he had taken me to on my 17th birthday our senior year. "Oh...I did" he laughed as we climbed out of the car and headed towards the entrance doors hand in hand. My excitement grew as Brian paid for our skates and teased me that he could help me lace up skates again if I forgot how to. "Oh Brian...I have a surprise of my own for you" I crooned with a sneaky laugh as we walked towards the ice. Brian hopped on like before and held his hand out for me but unlike last time I jumped out after Brian and skated easily around him before taking his hands and skating backwards in front of him. "Why you lil shit! You learned how to skate didn't you?" he laughed as we raced around the ice, me backwards and him in front of me. "I did...I decided that I needed to learn how to skate properly, for you" I stated loudly as I skated further past him and went into the center of the ice before spinning in a tight, fast circle, showing off what I learned over in Europe.

Once I quit spinning I found Brian standing close by with a shocked but cocky look on his face, his arms crossed over his chest. "My sneaky lil angel" he teased softly after I skated back over to him and leaned up to kiss his cool lips quickly. I laughed lightly as we skated off side by side "It kept me distracted from the pain of missing you" I admitted quietly as we made our way around the rink a few times. Brian stopped me near the exit opening to the rink and nudged me off the ice before following after me. "That will never happen again baby" he said with a slight frown as he held my face in both his hands "I mean it. I'm not letting you go...ever" he stated firmly before kissing my forehead and winking at me. "Come on...let's get ready for your next surprise" he stated with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes as we returned our skates and slipped back into our shoes. "Another one?! Brian you never cease to amaze me!" I gushed happily as I slid into the passenger seat and buckled my belt. "I think you'll really like this one" he stated as he drove on through Huntington Beach, a smirk on his face the whole time till we arrived at Central Park of Huntington Beach. I squealed happily as I leaned over and kissed his cheek excitedly before climbing out of the car. Taking his hand in mine we walked down the familiar paths of the park till I spotted our willow tree at the edge of the pond with Jimmy standing close by.