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“Shut the front door!” she shouts dramatically.
I groan, “I don’t think the neighbors heard you. Do you want to repeat that louder?”
She links her arm with mine, leaning into my cheek, murmuring, “Already moving on to meeting the family. You aren’t keeping me nowhere near up-to-date on your love life, my friend.”
Gwendoline’s phone pings. She releases me before checking her phone screen.
Tucker jumps down from his perch and swaggers toward us.
I think I need to fan myself.
Cripes, he’s a sexy Adonis!
Thirty-Five
THIS ONION HAS LAYERS
Tucker
I stepped away, giving myself a front-row seat to their reuniting shenanigans, and boy was it worth tagging along with Ophelia.
The females are oblivious to me filming their song and dance show, and I’m not at all sorry for doing it.
As I sit here on the floor of the helicopter’s cabin, viewing the footage for the second time around, I can’t wipe the smile off my face.
The one thing Ophelia hasn’t let me see is therealOphelia. She’s been too busy sassing me at every turn until I got her underneath me, and then I got to see and feel the wilder side of Ophelia, but I didn’t get to see the laid-back side of her, where she has no guards up. Until now.
Gwendoline unveiled another side of Ophelia, and I admit I took a couple of keepsake candid photos. Sorry, not sorry.
All Ophelia’s carefully built walls dropped like a house of cards in a stiff wind right in front of me, and I became a voyeur watching the two best friends be themselves, comfortable to ham it up in front of each other.
I may even feel envious of this power Gwendoline possesses, which brings out this side of Ophelia in the blink of an eye.
I caught a glimpse of this part of Ophelia’s nature when she was singing to Earth, Wind and Fire at Peace Café, and then in my presence, it got snuffed out, and she became the pocket rocket spitfire.
Ophelia’s been hiding behind her grief, and I’ve only let those I truly trust see the layers underneath my cockiness. Nobody looks any deeper if you only give them one side of your personality. They accept you’re a cocky bastard, leave it at that, and believe the crap I spew.
I want to see more of this natural, carefree side of her. She blossomed before my eyes.
Glancing at my phone, I note our window of spare time is running out. I quickly sent Shamus a message letting him know to come on over, although he would have been looking out for the helicopter.
He will be arriving any moment now, and then I will be flying my sisters and him back to Redondo Beach away from Ophelia.
And doesn’t that thought cramp my gut?
There will be no more sassy times with Hamlet-Spitfire-Shakespeare-Shagspeare. I will miss how far we have come. And that pun just laid itself out bare.
I can see I am leaving Ophelia with a good friend to keep her company until I can make my way back to Temecula to re-connect with this beautiful woman, but I will make sure there is my backup of trusted friends. And what a coincidence they live next door.
Spending time with family is essential, and helping friends when needed is important. I have to keep reminding myself Ophelia is a long game for me. I must respect her rule book for the moment, but once I’m back from Alaska, I’m going to work on my short game.
I will move mountains for this woman.
I steal glances at the two of them, keeping my head bowed, looking at my phone, but I can hear every hushed word because they aren’t talking as quietly as they think. Ophelia’s friend is hilarious. Their excitement to see each other again propels the volume up; the more Ophelia tries to get her friend to stop talking about me, the more Gwendoline has no fucks to give.
I jump down from my perch. It is time to introduce myself.
I meet Ophelia and her pretty friend halfway, extending my hand. “Hi, I’m Tucker Royal, and that was the best impromptu song and dance routine I haveeverhad the pleasure of watching, and that’s a nice ride.”
