A pain shot through my chest again at the disbelief plastered on his handsome face.
“Not as the man who took you, but the man you see now…”
That did it, my eyes misted over. I hated how conflicted and hard it was for Kenric to process my offer.
“Mira, I have to tell you what I did out of impulse while we were away from each other.” He reached out gently to wipe the lone tear that fell down my right cheek.
“What did you do?” I asked nervously.
“I had a tattoo artist do some creative work to my chest. I wanted something that reminded me of you…I tried to convince myself to let you go because I feel like I don’t deserve you.”
Kenric bit into his bottom lip and looked away from me.
“Let me see.” I asked not believing what he just said.
He turned to me then reached for the top button of his black shirt. He unbuttoned it slowly at his own speed. I held my breath as anticipation got the best of me. Soon as the expensive fabric peeled away from his broad chest, I leaned forward and blinked rapidly. His entire chest was covered in ink dedicated to me.
At the center was three owls, two of them had their wings spread wide, while a white owl sat perched on a branch made of broken musical notes where my name in big bold cursive letters‘Mira’.Right across the middle of his chest was a queen chess piece with a big crown at the top. Below the chess piece were dark carved words.
‘The melody that calmed my war.’
My eyes shifted back to the owls; I took in every detail. Their wings stretched across his pecs like guardians. Behind the owls were storm clouds that broke open into a halo of stars. Between the feathers were tiny violin strings woven in, so small you’d miss them if you weren’t looking.
“It was impulsive, but I?—”
“I love it Kenric…it’s beautiful.”
My hands shook as I reached out and touched it. His skin was warm; the tattoo was raised like it was still fresh.
“It’s permanent, Mira just like this obsession that I have for you.” He stated, his raspy voice dropped to a deeper tone.
“Why did you include the owls?” I asked as my fingertips grazed over the owl that I assumed had to be Josie.
“Because they’re always watching,” he said. “Always waiting. Silently, just like I was with you.”
“You got my name on your chest…” I whispered.
I blinked through tears I hadn’t realized I formed again. I’d probably never fully understand how deep this man’s infatuation went for me. I had to admit that I admired and loved it. It made me feel claimed and adored.
“That’s where it belongs…so if you’re sure, I’ll stay the night. The weekend, and just maybe the whole damn week if you ask me too…I’d have to leave to handle work and check on my owls, but I’ll come back as promised.”
He slowly buttoned his shirt back up then closed up his suit jacket buttoning the first two buttons. My heart flipped in my chest; I had this strong urge to jump over the seat and kiss him deeply. I wanted to take things slow and really peel back more layers to him. Kenric and his impulsive behavior made me want to throw caution to the wind.
“I won’t ruin it either,” he continued, voice filled with slight panic. “No matter how bad my obsession to you feels, I’ll try my hardest to not be too impulsive…the medicine my friend gave me has been working. I talked to him the other day and he told me to up my dosage if I feel like I need to. I’ve been in the lab studying the disk he gave me to create more and make it stronger and?—”
“I don’t need you perfect, I want you real…yourself Kenric. I love the tattoo. It makes me feel special.” I smiled.
It was bad enough that I was out of control of my emotions. Seeing him again, being in his presence and him willing to spend the weekend moved something inside of me. Suddenly I felt mushy and super excited with anxiety swirling around inside ofme. Kenric turned in his seat then pressed his forehead against mine. For a couple of seconds, our breaths mingled together before he spoke.
“If I ruin this, Mira…it’s because I never learned how to love something that I didn’t-”
“You won’t ruin it, trust in yourself.” I stopped him from getting in his head.
“Let’s eat, then go back to my house.” I shifted gears easily.
Kenric was vulnerable and didn’t realize it. I didn’t want to highlight that nor make him get too far deep into his head. I was scared my damn self, scared that he’d shut back down and stay away like he did all these past weeks. It was crazy to me how I thought I needed space from him to clear my mind when in reverse it made me crave him even more.
Kenric hopped out of his truck and walked smoothly around to my side of the door and opened it for me. When I stepped out, the first thing I did was stand on my tippy toes to wrap my arms around his neck. I breathed his tantalizing scent in and held him closely as he slowly wrapped his long arms around my lower back and pulled me closer.
