With the music playing softly in the background, Vincent came back across the room. He gently took hold of me by placing his trembling hands on my hips.
“Vincent, what the fu...” I started.
“Shhh,” he hushed, “or I’ll never say what it is I need to tell you.”
“The truth, you mean?” I said sarcastically.
“Yes,” he nodded and closed his eyes. Swallowing hard, he said, “Here goes nothing.” Opening his dark black eyes, he looked at me as he gently swayed me from side to side in time with the music. “Mac never asked me to bring your iPod over here. I lied about that.”
“Is that it?” I asked, not knowing whether I should feel relieved or not.
“I heard your father ask Mac to bring it over to you,” he said, taking another deep breath. “I could tell Mac was busy, so I offered to bring it here.”
“Why?” I asked over the music.
“I saw that picture of you in the newspaper,” Vincent said, as if preparing to confess some great sin.
“The picture where I look fat, you mean?” I shot back.
“Yes...no!” he said. “I didn’t mean it to sound like that the other night. I saw that picture of you and thought you looked...” he trailed off.
“You thought what?” I pushed.
“I thought...I thought...oh, God,” he sighed, closing his eyes. “I thought you looked beautiful... and I wanted to meet you to see if you could really look as beautiful in real life as you looked in the picture...and on the way over here...I checked out your iPod because I didn’t know what to say...so I thought if I knew what sort of music you liked...then we would have something to talk about...because I’m not very good at talking to girls...I always end up making myself look stupid and I was looking for something romantic that I could play...and I saw the song Every Breath You Take so I downloaded it...then I thought that perhaps that song with the words ‘every breath you take I’ll be watching you’ would sound kinda creepy...and you would think I was a pervert...and...” Vincent finally ran out of breath.
I felt stunned by his sudden confession. “Slow down,” I said, looking at him as he continued to sway me gently to the music.
“I’m sorry,” he breathed deeply. “I shouldn’t have said anything...I’ve gone and made a fool of myself...and embarrassed you...”
“You haven’t made a fool of yourself,” I said. “And you haven’t embarrassed me. I’m a little shocked, but...”
“You want me to go...I can understand that...” he said, taking his hands from my hips. “I should’ve never come back...It was a mistake...I shouldn’t have said anything...You must think I’m a right...”
“Shhh,” I said, placing a finger against his lips. “I’m kinda used to men coming on strong...but nothing like this.”
“I’m sorry,” he said again.
“You don’t have to be sorry,” I smiled. “You have no idea how nice it is to have someone do what you’ve just done.”
“What have I just done?” he said, a confused look on his face.
“The most romantic thing any guy has ever done for me,” I said, as James Morrison continued to sing in the background. “Most guys just grab my arse, stare at my tits, and do whatever they can to get me into bed on the very first date. No guy has ever wanted to dance with me...not like this.”
Vincent placed his hands on my hips again and pulled me close. With our bodies pressed gently together, we stood in my living room and danced.
“If there’s love just feel it...and if there’s life we’ll see it...” Vincent sung softly against my cheek. “This is no time to be alone...I won’t let you go...” he continued to sing just above a whisper to the music.
Was this for real? I wondered. Vincent was a little odd – unconventional in his own way. But did this man really just want to dance with me? Just hold me in his arms? Had a man come into my life who wanted more from me than just sex? To be with him like this made me wonder if I had finally met someone who liked me enough to fumble their words, make a fool of themselves, come back in the middle of the night not to fuck me, but hold me – dance with me – tell me how much they really liked me. To be with Vincent like this made me realise what it was I’d really been searching for. Deep in my heart, I knew I was tired of those shallow relationships which never went further than the bedroom. With tears beginning to stand in my eyes, I wanted to tell Vincent how wonderful it had been to hear him say I was beautiful – and not just a good fuck.