I look at her in confusion. “What, never?”
She shakes her head. “No, that dream died a long time ago. My career, that’s what I’m focusing on now, I’m happy, Noah, I promise.”
I decide not to push the conversation. Her words hurt more than I thought they would because all I had dreamed of was a life and a family with her, but this isn’t the time or place to try and discuss them.
She tugs my hand and begins walking, taking me with her. “Come on. It’s a party. Let’s go enjoy ourselves. I hear they have poker.”
I won both games of poker, sank three shots of whiskey, and now we are sitting around a fire pit, us guys smoking cigars whilethe girls drink more pink champagne, listening to the DJ, who has been playing on the top deck. The yacht is incredible. It can sleep ten and has a full staff. Brad and Gabby are staying here tonight. They didn’t want to do the traditional sleeping apart the night before, much to Gabby’s mom’s dismay. They said they waited long enough to be together; why spend any more time apart than necessary? I understood their reasoning. If I ever had the chance to have Tori in my life, I’d never want to be away from her, but it’s clear from our conversations this evening that we are leading two different lives and going two separate paths. Maybe some things, no matter how badly we want them, just aren’t meant to be.
It’s been a beautiful evening full of laughter and love, but my focus has been on Tori. I think I believe her when she says she’s happy. She carries herself with a new confidence she didn’t have before, and it only makes me yearn for her more. There are so many unfinished conversations and moments between us. I wonder if we cleared the air, said what we needed to say, finished what we tried to start, that maybe, if we got it out of our systems, we, or more to the point, I, could move on.
The DJ announces we have one hour left on the yacht, and it’s time to party.Pitbullsounds out of the speakers,and everyone is on their feet, heading to the main deck, where people have started dancing.
The DJ’s voice booms once again through the speaker, startling me.
“Where are the future Mr and Mrs Russo?”
The crowd cheers and whistles. I follow the noise and watch as Brad lifts Gabby onto his shoulders. She leans down to kiss him. I’m so happy for them, but a part of me can’t help but feel a little envious of what they have. Gabby pops a bottle of champagne, spraying it over the crowd.
“Now it’s a party,” Ali screams. She climbs onto a table, dancing away.
“Oh God, no,” Tori yells over the music. I follow her line of sight, and I laugh when I spot Harry climbing up beside Ali. He’s wearing a pair of dark sunglasses, his cigar hanging out of his mouth, and he’s started to unbutton his shirt. The crowd screams and cheers when Ali starts dancing around him as if he were a pole.
I lean into Tori and shout to be heard. “They really are the male and female version of each other, aren’t they?”
She beams. “They’re soulmates.”
“Come on, let’s dance,” Tori yells, taking my hand and moving us closer to the main part of the crowd. I forgot what a good dancer Tori is. She rolls her body and turns, backing up into me. My hands find her waist, and we move together as we get lost in the music. I forget where I am; all I see, all I can feel is her. When she rotates her hips against my cock, not once, not twice, but three times, my hands glide over the curve of her hips down her thighs and back up.
She repeats the movement, covering her hands over mine that are now splayed across her stomach.
I move my mouth near her ear, “If you keep doing that, darlin’, we’re going to have a problem.” I nip her earlobe, and she winces. She turns to face me, her hooded, buzzed eyes lock with mine, and my gaze falls to her plump lips as she wraps her arms around my neck.
“What kind of a problem? Do you want me to stop?” she asks, grinning.
“Tori,” I warn, and she looks at me with angelic eyes as if she hasn’t just turned my cock into an iron rod.
“Yes, Noah.” The way she purrs my name has me growling.
“You’ll regret this tomorrow. You don’t want this. Us.” I remind her.
“What if we just lived in the moment for once. I’m tired of worrying. Can’t we just do something without it meaning something? I wanna live in the moment with you, Noah.”
She’s right. What if we just lived in the moment? Life is for living, after all. Why am I denying her when I want this just as much as she does? I can do a casual thing with her, right?
I glance around the crowd, making sure that everyone is thankfully busy with their other halves. I drag Tori through the crowd to a narrow staircase. We race down it, hand in hand, like two giddy teenagers.
“In here,” I say, giving one quick look around the cabin. I don’t bother with the lights. There’s enough light pouring in through the blind-covered windows to give the room a soft glow. I waste no time, pinning her to the cabin wall.
“What are we doing here, darlin’.” I close my eyes, bracing myself for her to realize the error she’s made and give her the opportunity to walk away, but it doesn’t come. Instead, she wraps her arms around my waist and pulls me flush to her. I know this will only be a moment before she’s gone again.
This is a pattern, a bad habit we keep falling into, but still I have no desire to stop. I know the risk, but I can’t stop, because a part of me clings to the hope that things could be different for us one day.
“We’re living, Noah.” She cups my jaw, and I’m forced to open my eyes and look at her.
“I’m not making any promises for tomorrow, but I can give you tonight,” she admits.
I swallow the heavy lump in my throat, hating her words but appreciating the honesty.
