“You are why I am celebrating tonight. I would never be here without you.” I reached across the table to cover his hand with mine, feeling sparks against my skin as our gazes locked. “You gave up your life for me.”
“I did the only thing I knew how to. I gave up nothing,” Perry insisted as I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. The waitress set the bottle down as she eyed our joined hands, pouring it for us as she asked if we needed a moment to decide. I noticed that Perry didn’t make any effort to separate from me, giving the woman the distinct idea that this was a date. I could only imagine what she must think with both of us looking so emotional. “Yes, we’d like that.” She disappeared, and we parted slowly as I licked my lips, his eyes following the movement.
I looked at the necklace again for a long moment before securing it around my neck only to trace it with my fingertips. Perry handed me one of the glasses and paused as he seemed to think about what to say. “Here is to all of your hard work and your focus, Caroline. You have made me so proud, and I know that they can see all of this. Here’s to the future that you are going to have and all of your future success.” I raised my glass, and we clinked them together as a tear slid down my cheek.
“Again, because of you. You didn’t leave me alone,” I said with a trembling voice. “I love you for that, Perry.”
“I love you, too. Always have,” Perry told me, reminding me of how long we’d known each other and what he meant to me. We sipped the bubbly, dry liquid and I laughed as I set it down to dry my eyes.
I opened my menu to read the selections, still playing with the pendant. I went with the usual choice of steak and crab legs while Perry chose the Shrimp Alfredo. The waitress smiled as she glanced between us, assuring us that she’d bring the food over soon.
“Thank you for this…all of this.” I had gestured with my hand before I took a long swallow of the champagne. “I have no idea how to ever thank you properly.” I had many ideas, but they were nothing that I would admit to him.
“It’s a pleasure to see you smile,” Perry told me as I swallowed the lump in my throat. Would my parents hate me for feeling this way about him? Would they support me? “I took a closer look at The Brando. There is a lot to do. Think you’ll be up to most of it?”
I hated talking about it sometimes. I felt like I was taking advantage of his already generous nature when I told Perry yes to the trip. “I think so. Scuba diving might not happen, but I do want to snorkel over the coral and all the sea life. I want to swim at Mermaid Beach and explore every inch of the grounds.”
“That all sounds great to me,” Perry agreed as he slowly sipped from his glass. I knew that he was going to stop since he was driving us home, leaving me to drink most of the bottle. “It is a lovely area and sounds like we’ll have a lot of it to ourselves.”
“I like that idea better than a crowded beach with a million people,” I murmured with some regret as he smiled at me.
“I prefer it as well.” I touched the necklace again, feeling it rest against the burgundy material of the cocktail dress that I wore underneath the gown. All my friends and I went shopping for them together and planned on meeting up later if we weren’t too drunk. That was not possible as I eyed the bottle and took another sip. We had a lot of plans before leaving on the trip.
I was good and buzzed when we finished eating, and I held onto Perry’s arm as we walked to his car. I giggled and chatted as I leaned closer to inhale his scent, wondering if I was imagining things as he stiffened beside me. Perry opened the door to his car, helping me inside as his hand brushed against my bare back.
I shivered, feeling my nipples harden against the dress before he jerked his hand away. I wanted him to keep touching me, to slip my dress off when we arrived home and do it everywhere.
Once we arrived home, Perry told me that he had something to do and left quickly. Of course, he made sure that I didn’t need anything first. I stumbled up to my room and slipped off the dress, managing to find a tank top and some shorts before I stumbled downstairs. I turned on the television, finding something on one of the movie channels that I watched with blurry eyes.
I wanted Perry here with me. Sober, my need for him was strong, but after a little alcohol, it was nearly unbearable. I stared at the people on the screen as they dropped all their clothes and started to have sex, making me moan as I slid my hand between my legs. I didn’t know if I was alone other than the memory of his leaving so fast, but I stroked my clit as the man drove his cock into the woman hard and rough.