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His genuine appreciation of her work made Rory delirious. Only an artist hungry for adulation knows the worth of every little praise. Her grandmother had encouraged her like this, till her dying day. On days when she was tempted to give it all up for a regular job, her granny had egged her on.
“Which is why I am gifting this T-shirt to you.” She smiled.
“For real? Whoa! That’s so cool.” He was excited. “Y’know, Rory, ever since I was a child, I liked camper vans and I was obsessed with space.” He chuckled. “For a while, I really wanted to be an astronaut. This T-shirt reminds me of my childhood. Thank you for this.”
“My pleasure.” Rory beamed. This was the best compliment for an artist. That others could relate to their work in their own unique way.
Arsen was like a curious child, noticing every little detail of every small thing in the room. Rory found herself reminiscing as she broke through her exterior shell and told Arsen anecdotes and stories about the different objects that populated the room. Memories of her grandmother that she deeply cherished and kept hidden deep inside of her came rushing out and she unabashedly shared them with him. As Rory got lost in her narrative, Arsen listened with patient interest.
“You really miss her, don’t you?” he said after Rory had paused and had become visibly emotional at the thought of her dead grandmother.
“More than anything.” Rory raised her hand to her mouth to stop any sobs from escaping. Damn this sangria.
“You are lucky, Rory, that you were able to spend so much time with her. Not many of us get enough time with the ones we love. And from what you told me today, she did indeed live a great life. It seems to me that in her later years, it was made all the greater because of your presence by her side. In an age where old people die alone and ignored, you’ve been a great gift for her. The greatest she could’ve aske
d for.”
At his words, Rory was overwhelmed by a rush of emotions, but she did not want Arsen to see her like that. Neither could she stop the single tear that slid out of her eyes and rushed down her cheek. Arsen quickly engulfed her into his arms.
When was the last time that I have been held like this? Rory hugged him tightly in return, burying her face in his broad chest. She wanted to cry, to let all the emotions out, but the way he patted the back of her head, the calmness and the surety with which he held her close, soothed her greatly. Her breathing eased and the tornado of emotions that was rolling through her passed over.
“Thank you,” she said as they parted. For what seemed like forever, they just stared into each other’s eyes. Arsen’s eyes moved gently down to her lips, and back to look into her eyes again. Rory wasn’t sure which one of them took the step forward, but they were closer to each other than before.
Her hands moved and brushed his. As they did, Arsen held them and his fingers gently clasped hers. His other hand glided down her forearm to her fingers, his thumb brushing her palm. His eyes were on her lips and hers were busy taking in the masculine beauty of this man’s face. A wickedly sexy smile curved his lips. His face was lit by the natural light of the room, showcasing the hard set to his jaw, the dark lines of his close beard.
His gaze shifted between her mouth and her eyes. They had picked up right where they left off in that room in the villa. That moment of spark that Rory never thought would appear again was well within their grasp. Rory wanted to move, to step up and kiss this man deep and hard, but she froze still.
Arsen’s dark eyes stared into hers as he moved his hand softly along her delicate jawline, an electric sensation rushing down her spine as her heart screamed at her to make the move and kiss him. He didn’t take his gaze off of her, taking his own time to drink her in. She felt desire, attraction, and after the longest time, she felt awareness of the fact that she was a woman.
The space between them lessened. A slight smile crept up on his face as he moved in slowly. She exhaled gently and closed her eyes, ready for him to take her, to claim her as his own. And then the room came alive with the sound of music. More precisely, with the sound emanating from Arsen’s phone as it started ringing.
Goddammit. She screamed in her head. Another perfect moment ruined. Arsen let the phone ring a few times, hoping it would cut off on its own, before he took it out of his jeans pocket. He looked down at the phone and then looked up at Rory.
“Gimme a moment.” As Arsen turned around to talk on the phone, Rory composed herself. Out of the corner of her eye she had seen that the name on the caller ID was Tanya Cox. For the second time in a row, Tanya had spoiled a moment between her and Arsen.
Maybe it’s just not meant to be. In a matter of minutes, she had gone from feeling hopeful and happy to feeling jealous and inadequate.
I wonder what is going on between these two? She bit her nails. Rory hated that she was thinking and feeling this way. This rollercoaster of emotions was eating at her.
“When I didn’t go with the band back to LA, Tanya offered me a ride on her own private plane. I thought we were to leave later, but I guess they’ve decided to leave right away,” Arsen said as he turned back to her.
Why is he going on a plane with her? Why didn’t he leave with his band? Suddenly a lot of questions rushed through her head.
He came closer and gently put his hands on her shoulder.
“I guess this is goodbye. For now.” The smile was melancholic. Rory’s heart sank, but she wasn’t sure if it was because Arsen was leaving or because something had changed inside of her. She hated Tanya Cox more than ever in that moment.
“I’ll walk you out,” was all she said. She was trying to speak in as calm a tone as possible, but finding it difficult to make eye contact. As she was about to turn, Arsen leaned in gently and kissed her forehead. Oh, don’t do this now. Her heart began to melt, but she ordered herself not to dissolve into his embrace. She quickly turned away and walked out toward the outer living room.
“I would invite you out to LA to our big award show gig, but you have already told me that you hate LA.” He smiled. Yeah, that is some invitation. Rory preferred that he stay quiet. A part of her realized that the distress building within her was unjustified, but she couldn’t help but be angry at him.
“Well…” she said as they approached the garden exit that was right next to the wall where Arsen had created a hole with his Ferrari. The place where they had met for the very first time.
“Well…” he replied, not smiling this time.
“Have a safe flight, Arsen,” she said with an impassive face and a neutral tone. She had no doubt that Arsen had picked up on the change in her mood.
“Take care, Rory,” he replied, stone-faced. “Good luck with everything.”
