The Soldier Next Door

…Ana POV…

I have not heard from Ethan in two days now, apart from a brief message that he will speak to me later. I am starting to fear what I thought would happen, that he would grow away from me. I always knew it would have been hard for him to focus his mind on both his dream and his heart. The thing I never knew was which was more important to him? But what I did know is that I knew that this would have come sooner or later.

With this all turmoiling in my mind, I am off to go shopping as what I do almost every day in this place. If I am not with Mary, then I find myself here in the city shopping for god knows what that I don’t need. The plain fact is that I am lonely, and John and Mary are only so much company. It is on days such as these that I wish that I did stay back in that little town, then at least I would have Katarina with me now.

So, as with any other day, I make my way through to some other beauty store, which by now I have an over surplus of beauty products. The urgency in my steps is very clear as you can hear them echo through the deserted streets. But the echo is not loud enough, for suddenly, I find myself walking straight into someone.

“Ouch! Damn, are you made of bricks? Can you not see where you are walking?”

“Sorry, miss. I am afraid I was not paying attention to where my steps were taking me.”

“Hahaha, your steps,” I burst out laughing. But then I pause for a second and raise my voice in pure excitement. “Wait! Your voice sounds very familiar. Did I…?”

“Did you…?”

I slowly move away from his body, his heat leaving the closeness of mine too soon. He has the most piercing deep sparkle in his eyes. He looks at me, and I swear it feels like he is looking straight into my soul.

“Oh shit!” he utters in surprise, “I walked into you again!”

I look at him with a mischievous smile, “I must say this time I was doing the walking.”

“What are you doing in the alley again? Do you live here or something?”

“I think I can ask the same of you?”

“A beautiful woman like you should not wander the streets alone.”

“Well, I have a handsome man to walk into, so I am not really alone.”

He studies me closely, the alley might be dark, but from the shadow of the streetlight that is falling on him, I can see he is gorgeous. 

“Can I be so forward?” he asks.

“Well, we have been very intimately close twice already.”

And as I watch James, whom I have now walked into twice for the past two days, I know that he is going to try what he could never finish the other day.

“I would like to ask you a question? Will you please come with me for a drink?”

…James POV…Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

If only she will say yes, I want to spend more time with her. Being in her presence makes me feel alive. The waves of emotions she brings to my body just make me beg and scream for more. I know I should not, I know I should turn around and go home, but I cannot. She captivates me; she draws me in with every inch of my skin.

Looking at her beauty does not only take my breath away; it knocks all the air out from my chest. Now she is standing here and doing this damn seductive thing with those supple pink lips. I have never been known as a man that loses control, but I would lose every bit that keeps me together just to spend tonight with her.

I feel like a complete fool every time I speak to her. The only thing I seem to mutter out is one simple word. “Soooo.”

“I… I should not be doing this,” she stutters.

“It is only one drink, please,” I beg. “I can take you to my pub. You can see I am not taking any chances.”

She pauses for a minute and looks at me as to survey me up and down. I know what she is thinking, I should be the bad boy of the town if she can only give me an hour to prove myself to her.

After carefully studying me for the better part of a minute, she speaks to me but not before she nips at her own bottom lip. “Oh, so you have a pub?”

“Yes, I am not a bad guy either. I promise.”

“I never said you are bad; I do recall saying to you that I am married.”

“And I recall that I said you are engaged.”

“Engaged, meaning that I am still taken.”

“I am not saying you are a cheater; I would love to spend more time in your company.”

“You are stating your case pretty strong here. You are sure you are not a lawyer?”

“I am in property, in fact, but that is not what we are talking here about.”

“What are we talking about?”

I look down at my feet as I step one step closer. I am doing this again, and I know I should not. But I am like a moth that is being drawn to a flame, and nothing is telling me I am in danger.

“We are…” I step one more step closer, close enough so I can reach my arms and fold them around her waist. The closer I get, the softer my voice becomes.

“Talking about…” I step closer and closer, close enough to feel her warmth radiate from her skin.

“If you will say yes,” I look up into her eyes; her lips are but less than an eye wink away. All I need to do is lean an inch forward, and mine would be against them. But mine is trembling and how I would love us to tremble together.

I take a lock of her hair and twirl it around my finger, then gently pull it closer. The scent of honey fills my nostrils as I feel the soft touch of her hair against my skin.

“If I knew what the scent of an angel was, then I would say it was you.”

“Flirting is not going to get me to come with you.”

“You would know when I am flirting with you, and this is not it,” I lean in closer. “Do you want to know something else?” My lips touch the delicate tips of her ear. I hear her gasp, and the pace of her breath increases. If she is feeling anything as much as I do now, then she knows how much I need to be with her.

“Plea… please tell me”, she says through stuttered breaths.

“That I can so easily kiss you right now, but I won’t.”

“Why, why not?” she asks.

“Because you have a ring on my finger. Now, please, will you come to have a drink with me” I pull away and hear her softly whimper.

“Okay, but only for an hour.”

I can hardly contain my visible excitement as I lace my fingers between hers, and we make our way out the alley.

“I thought you said I have a ring on your finger?” she looks and points to our hands.

“I said I was not going to kiss you,” I explain. “I never mentioned anything about your hand.

“Are you perhaps holding onto it because you are scared I would run away?”

“No, but now that you mention it,” I laugh, holding tighter onto her hand. “I am merely making sure you get out of the darkness to save.”

“Well, I am happy you are the one taking me away from it,” she says.

What she does not know is that she, too, is leading me away from the darkness, not the darkness of this alley but the darkness of my heart. I know that I cannot be with her, but this, whatever this is, for the next hour, all I want is this.

As we get to the main road, I let go of her hand; I almost immediately miss the warmth. I reach out to take it back again, but she slowly pulls it away. Even though we walk in silence the entire walk, there is something in the air that lingers between us.

As we reach the pub’s entrance, I turn to her and smile, not a normal little smile but one more the mischievous kind.

She frowns and slightly tilts her head to the side; when she speaks, her voice is soft and gentle, “What are you up to, James?”

“Ana, I am afraid you are going to have to take my hand again. You see, it is extremely packed inside, and I would hate to lose you in there.”

“Oh, I am sure you hate it a lot,” she laughs.

“Believe me when I say it does kill me when I have your hand in mine.”

“Just not the bad killing kind,” she remarks.

“You do catch on quite quickly, don’t you? So, what do you say,” I ask. “You feel like killing me with kindness?”

“As long as I affect you, then yes,” she accepts. For so many times tonight, I feel the tip of her fingers as they are pressing into my palm.

“Ana.”

“Yes, James?”

“Please let me.”

“Let you…”