Bride of the Moso Prince (31 page)

“Hi Uncle Nobul and Aunt Sharon!” the children almost flew to Nobul. And each claimed a lap as soon as they got to him.

“Can you take us to Panda’s hometown again?”

“Sure. When would you like to go?”

Sharon stopped chewing and smiled as she looked at the children. They were adorable and beautiful. Their skins were fair like Pierre’s, but both had a healthy complexion on their cheeks, gotten from the powerful sun of the area. Azalea, the girl, had long narrow eyes typical of the Nakhi, while Yulong, the boy, had curly hair and rounded eyes from Pierre.

Evidently the children adored Nobul. They pulled his arm and touched his ears, and of course, making it impossible for him to eat.

And then they heard a woman’s voice coming in from door.

“Mama is back!” They abandoned Nobul instantly and went to meet their mother.

“Mama, uncle Nobul is here!”

“Oh really?”

A slender, tall woman waved at them as she came closer.

She looked just like Namu but without her toughness. Instead, her features were all smoothed and supple. Her cheekbones were high but not sharp.  Her back was straight but not rigid. Under her carefully plucked eyebrows, the ends of her eyes curled up, and rendered her a kind and mellow look.

“Nobul! Long time no see
!” Then her eyes fell on Sharon

and she nodded. “Hello!”

“Limei, this is Sharon. She is Charlene’s sister.” Nobul greeted her.

“Nice to meet you.” Limei shook hands with Sharon. “I like your necklace. It’s gorgeous.”

“Thank you,” Sharon wanted to return a compliment on the jade earrings that Limei wore, but Azalea grabbed her mother’s arm for attention.

“Mama, when can we go to Panda hometown again?”

“Um, not before the summer vacation, I don’t think? Go ask your Papa.”

The girl growled and went into the kitchen.

“He spoiled them,” Limei said to Sharon, “always take them here and there in his helicopter. Now they complain after sitting in the car for more than two hours.”

Then she left them to finish their dinner.

Sharon remembered Binma’s excitement when he talked about going to the zoo with uncle Nobul.  She said to Nobul, “You’re good at buying over the affection of the kids.”

“It’s not hard. Children want so little.” Nobul gulped in some wine and then sighed, “It’s much harder to buy over the affection of a woman.”

Sharon’s lips curled, “Really? I wouldn’t imagine hearing it from you, Prince.”

He smiled, gazed into her eyes and said in a low and ardent voice, “Let me correct myself. I mean it’s hard with a particular woman.”

Sharon was instantly stirred. Not at all! She wanted to say to him, but checked her impulse. She avoided his eyes too, for the affection she held for him was overwhelming even at that moment. The rate their relationship was progressing was scaring her. Every
day she breathed in happiness. The affection so intoxicated her that she was afraid that she couldn’t live without it. If she let herself slip deeper she would have difficulty to get out of it. It was only a love affair and it didn’t mean to last. But unknowing
ly
she was wishing it to. How could she not? The man was hopelessly attractive. He was simply exceptional. In fact, he was too good to be real. Sharon looked at Nobul and could hardly contain her fascination for him. She longed to sit on his laps just like the children had done, and she wanted to feel him. She wanted to run her finger
s
through his ferociously dark hair and rubbed against his defiantly chiseled chins. And she craved for those tough looking lips that could be so soft when they brushed against hers. She yearned to be in his arms, to be petted, and to hear his gentle whispers. She wanted to get out of the restaurant and be alone with him in a hotel.

Nobul was aware of her silent gazes. “What’s wrong?” He asked with a playful look, “jealous of the kids now?”

“No!” She looked away and sighed. That playful look reminded her who he was. Prince and playboy. He was not destined to settle on any woman. Once she left, he would easily find himself a substitute, a woman ten times gorgeous than herself: a Moso, a Nakhi, a Han, a Tibetan, or even a French. And he would forget her in no time, just like Jason, who had never even called her after the breakup. While she had more or less waited for him to come back to her one day. Silly! She swallowed a mouthful of wine and sighed heavily. She wouldn’t be sentimental. She was not a high school girl any more! She didn’t let Douglass get anywhere deep. She could do it again. She was independent!

When she put her folk aside, Pierre came back to the table.

“What would you like to have for dessert?”

Sharon was full but did
n’t want to pass the dessert. “Do you have crème brulee?”

“Of course. A French restaurant without crème brulee is not a French restaurant. What flavor would you like? We’ve got strawberry, vanilla, and red tea.”

“Red tea?”

“Yes. It’s a house special. Made of Yunna Tippy from the tea gardens thirty miles away.”

“I’ll have that please!”

It turned out to be the best crème brulee Sharon had ever had. The aroma of the red tea blended in seamlessly with the flavor of burnish brown sugar.

“This is so good! You want some?” Sharon asked Nobul, who was having a cup of milk tea.

He smiled, “I’ve had it before. It is very good. Pierre called it the master piece of all his art work.”

“Really?” Sharon laughed.

When Nobul asked for the check, Pierre frowned, “What are you talking about? It’s on me. You never charge me anything when I stay in your six-start hotel. You sure you’re leaving tomorrow? We should get together really. I want to go to Marble City to get some marbles to remodel my counter. If you could stay for one more day…”

“Well,
I would love to but,
” Nobul said, “Sharon is helping me with the museum. And she wants to have the main exhibition room done before she returns to America.”

“Return to America?” Pierre looked surprised. “Can’t it wait?”

“Uh…” Sharon hesitated, “no...”

“I don’t understand. Didn’t we agree a moment ago that Lugu Lake was a paradise on earth?”

“Yes, but I live and work in LA.”

“Oh yeah. But you can live and work in Lugu Lake too. It’s up to you.”

Sharon blushed, “I don’t know. It’s not that simple.”

“It is.” Pierre said, “I gave up my life in France ten years ago with much debate. At first it was a bit difficult but now? I spend the morning painting and the rest of the day working here. I’m happy and so are my wife and kids. I’ve gotten everything I want from life.”

“You’re lucky.” Sharon mumbled.

“You will be too, if you follow your heart.” Pierre said gave her a significant look, and then turning to Nobul he said, “Now, my friend, don’t you ever come back here without her!”

Nobul stood up, and they hugged each other. “Well, I’ll try. Thanks for the dinner.”

“If you change your mind about leaving tomorrow, give me a call tonight and we’ll go to Marble City together.”

When they approached the door the kids ran to Nobul and begged him to come again soon. Nobul held up both of them and kissed them
on the cheeks
. Limei came to say goodbye as well. Pierre pulled Sharon to the side while Nobul was still busy with the kids.
“I wouldn’t leave him if I were yo
u.”

“What do you mean?” Sharon blushed
.

“I mean, I’ve been dying to see my exceptional friend settle down with the right woman. And I’m glad he found her.”

“We’re not, it’s not like what you think,” Sharon
stammered
.

Pierre smiled, “There is no point to deny your heart, Sharon. I’m an artist. I not only have keen observation but also accurate intuition.”

             
In the center of the market square a group of Nahki women dressed in traditional clothes were dancing and singing traditional songs. Tourists stood watching and snapped photos. Sharon and Nobul joined the crowd and as soon as they did it Sharon noticed that Nobul had attracted attention from people around them. Women of all ages and all ethnicities would fix their eyes on him and ignored the dancers. They whispered to each other’s ear while eyeing him. And Sharon knew what they were saying. Pride mingled with jealousy possessed her. Suddenly she wanted to just be alone with him. If they lingered longer, someone might come up and snatched him away.

Nobul seemed to understand her concern for he whispered to her ear, “Let’s get out of here!” And he pulled her out of the crowd right away.

Chapter 12

             
It was nearly ten when they checked in at a small hotel near the Mu mansion in the center of the town. It was called Charming View, also designed by Nobul. Nobul said that it had the best view of the town. Indeed, when they got to their room on the third floor Sharon was stunned by the view in front of her. Being a corner room, two walls were made of glasses. Over the glasses there was a fence made of chiseled wood, for protective and artistic purposes. The pattern of the fence was predominantly diamond shapes but there were columns of waves every once in a while. The workmanship was so fine that from a distance the fence looked like a net. The buildings around them were mostly of single storage, and they got a complete view of the town filtered through an intricate frame.  Standing in front of the window, however, the frame wasn’t much of an obstruction to the view and Sharon felt like she was standing in air above the town. They could see clearly the market square, which was full of festivity at night. The red lanterns marked the waterways and the amber lights outlined the roofs of the stores along them. Mu Mansion itself was decorated with extravagant lights as well.  She could see the outline of the bridge in amber lights and the lotus pond in silver. And she could also see the activities on the square, including the dancing, the tourists posing for pictures, and the woman boiling corn in front of a store.

“Incredible!” Sharon exclaimed.

“Do you like it?” Nobul hugged her from behind, kissing her nape.

“Yes.” Sharon nodded. It reminded her of their apartment in Chinatown LA where they had lived until she went to college. That apartment offered a bird’s eye view of the ever busy Broadway street, only the view hadn’t been comparable to this one. She remembered instantly those restless days of high school, and of course, of Jason. One day from the window in her room she had seen him walking hand in hand with another girl. That gloomy memory dampened her spirit momentarily. It was only Nobul’s presence that dispelled the mood promptly.

“I’m glad.” Nobul whispered at her ear. His breaths tickled her. She shuddered as his hand moved to her front and felt her breast through the thin dress.

Putting her hand on his, she asked, “Can people see us?”

“Um,” he murmured, “I don’t think so. It’s dark in here. But I don’t mind if they do. I want everyone to know that you’re mine.”

Sharon’s cheeks burned as heat rose from the center of her body. She wanted everyone to know that he was hers too.

Yet still she felt shy to make love in a glassy room in the center of a town. She was stiff. But Nobul meant what he said. His hand had claimed her breasts through the low neck line of the dress. Sharon gasped.

“This dress is too sexy to be worn in public,” he said hoarsely. “The stares you got from those guys made me mad!”

So that was why he pulled her out of crowd in such a hurry? The thought flattered her and she forgot her surroundings. She moaned with pleasure as he unfastened her strapless bra and rubbed her nipples with subdued urgency.

Her knees were wobbling and she leant against him, instantly feeling his erection against her spine. She said weakly, “Oh Nobul, let’s go to bed. I’m afraid people are looking at us.”

“Don’t worry. They won’t be able to see a thing.” He said and his hand had slipped into her panty.

She squirmed in his arms. From the way his finger was moving she knew she was drenched. The excitement of making love in front of a window, even though no one could see them, was so great that after but a few rubbings she was on the verge of coming. His finger stopped moving and she thought she would go mad. H
e teased her with light kisses on
the earlobe and down her neck.

“Please!” She whimpered and squeezed his wrist.

His breaths went ragged with her plead. All of a sudden he turned her to face him, and pinned her on the glass. Unzipping the side zipper the moment he found it, he pulled the dress down to her waist and instantly her nipple was inside his warm moist mouth. “Oh!” Sharon
m
oaned, overwhelmed by the pleasure she was experiencing.

Then she murmured, “Nobul! People can see my bare back!”

“No they can’t!”

“How do you know?” She murmured.

Her question was answered by a stifling kiss. While she was still bewildered, he left her gasp for air and knelt on his knees, buried his head in her dress, rolled down her panties and charged her with a velvet touch that made her throw every concern out of her mind.