Layers Peeled (24 page)

I wished we
had more space so I could kneel down to taste him. I’d lock my lips
below the crown and suck him like the best lollipop ever.

Tristan sped
the movement of his fingers. His heavy breath rested against my
neck and mine against his chest. Tucked away in the closet we were
like two horny teens, hiding as if we didn’t have access to a
bedroom, in a place where anyone could open the door and see
us.

I increased
the rhythm and pumped him with vigor as my own keenness to come
began to reach a threshold. A few more strokes and flicks, right
there in the center where he strummed my clit so flawlessly, and
I’d be done.

And then it
happened all at once. My toes curled and I pressed my mouth to his
chest trying to muffle the scream that wanted to escape. Tristan
lowered his shirt over my hand, his hips stilled, and he jetted a
hot stream against the fabric.

Our breathing
eased and my senses slowly returned. I removed my hand from his
pants, pulled my own up, and started laughing uncontrollably,
trying so hard to be quiet… yet I couldn’t.

“Shhh.” I felt
his chest vibrate against mine.

“Zip up,” I
whispered. “And clean up.”

A few voices
echoed in the hallway, and I froze, pulling my wet fingers to my
lips with a mouthed
Shhhh
. The smell of his excitement
lingered on my skin.

He leaned
toward my ear with a whisper, “If we go out right now, everyone
will know.”

“Stay. Be
quiet.”

“Come on,
Allie, we’re adults.”

“Which means
we should be saving our hanky-panky for the bedroom,” I gritted
through my teeth quietly enough so that no one could hear. “What if
Emma stepped into the hall?”

And without
seeing his face, I knew he’d sobered up from his frivolous thoughts
and returned from La La Land.

“Okay, just be
quiet.”

We waited
until whoever was walking by had left. Tristan peeked out the door
and pulled me out with him. We closed the closet and snuck up the
stairs to our bedroom.

“I can’t
believe we did that! We’re supposed to leave in five minutes.”

“Then you
better hurry.” Tristan removed his soiled clothes and quickly
jumped in the shower.

“Wanna join
me?”

“Yes, but if I
do, we won’t come out!” I laughed, and instead used the bidet to
clean myself.

We rushed to
change and headed downstairs to meet the rest of the family for a
beautiful day out in town. And little did I know our closet
escapade was the first of many surprises I would get that day.

It was the
warmest winter day I could remember for a long time. We strolled
through the village’s town square with cups of hot chocolate in our
hands. Why was it that chocolate only reminded me of our adventure
in our home with the ice cream? I got a pleasurable tingle at the
thought and couldn’t wait until we went back home to New Jersey in
a week. But for now, I made every effort possible to enjoy the few
days we had remaining in Austria. Somewhere mid-town we separated
from the family and enjoyed our walk alone. Apparently Tristan had
also booked a hotel for us for tonight, so we could get some
privacy away from the cabin and the family. As monstrous as the
chalet was, lodging there with seven other guests, even if everyone
had their own full-sized bathroom, didn’t really allow us to be as
frivolous as we were used to. And this morning was a perfect
example of that.

At the edge of
town square we passed an old church with a staircase higher than
any I’d seen before. The building looked like it was up on a hill.
I stopped, admiring its enormous wooden doors.

“If I ever get
married, I’d want it to be a small wedding, like Sam and Gabe’s.
But in a church like this one.”

“They have
small churches in New Jersey,” Tristan joked.

“Are you
suggesting something, Mr. Cross?” I wrapped my arm around his waist
as he tightened his over my shoulder.

“No, just
making an observation.”

I detected a
hint of nerves in his voice; or perhaps it was the chills I’d just
felt running through my body. The wind picked up some flakes,
lifting them off the ground.

We passed the
church. Down the road, an area opened up, its space resembling a
park. The mature trees appeared to have been here since before the
town was built, creating a small forest right in the middle. My
boots squeaked under the fresh layer of snow, blending in with the
white color. In my color coordinated outfit, courtesy of Emma
insisting I wear white, I felt like a snow bunny today.

I couldn’t
think of a better way to celebrate New Year’s Eve than here,
enjoying the culture and peace of Austria. This quiet town was the
perfect getaway from Times Square. I wondered what Laura was up to
and whether she would be spending the evening with James. She’d
thanked me for her gift in an email and mentioned she’d got a lead
on the guy who’d bought Marissa. New DNA evidence from the murder
scene has just been processed as well. I couldn’t wait to get back
to work to find the bastard who let her die – or had perhaps even
killed her.

Taking the
last sip of my hot chocolate, I finally asked Tristan, “Why are you
nervous?”

“Am not.”

Yeah, and I’m
the Queen of England.

“You insisted
on heading north and now you’ve stopped here. Why?” I pointed to
the forest-like park.

“You’re the
perfect woman for me,” he said in a mysterious tone, and then took
me into his arms and plopped down into the snow, right by one of
the tall spruce trees. “You fit into the Cross family like a fish
in water.”

“Why, Mr.
Cross, are you getting soft on me?”

“It seems I
never get soft around you.” He kissed the tip of my nose. The
warmth of his lips remained on my chilled skin for longer than
usual. I giggled freely.

“Are we done
sightseeing for today?” I asked leaning back against his chest.
“I’m looking forward to seeing the hotel room.”

“I love those
hormones of yours, but there’s just one more place I want to take
you to.” I heard that vibration in his voice again. Tristan had
been composed thus far, his gaze never leaving mine, as if he
didn’t want me to know where he would be taking me.

“Why the
nerves?”

“If you
weren’t pregnant, I’d roll around with you in this snow.”

I knew he’d
changed the subject, but I’d let it go… for now.

“I’m not
handicapped. I can still roll around with you.”

“We’ll get
busted for public indecency. The minute you’re under me I won’t be
able to restrain myself.”

“I think we
already established in our kitchen you have much more strength than
you admit, Mr. Cross.”

“But you have
no idea how much self-control it takes not to strip you down every
time I look at you.”

I felt my
nipples turn into little grains. Partly due to the cold, but mostly
because of what Tristan had said.

“I had to
think about everything from Emma spying nearby to our parents in
the dinette.”

“Geez, I
didn’t realize it had gone that far.”

His phone
buzzed and Tristan reached into his pocket. After reading the text,
Tristan bit his lip. He’d never done that before.

“Okay, I have
one more place to show you, and then we can go back to the hotel
room.” His eyebrows rose up and down as he tried to sway my
attention from the fact that he had just received a mystery text he
wasn’t willing to share and now he was in a bigger hurry than
before. I was certain it wasn’t a text from work, either. He never
made that face when he received emails or texts from the
office.

We left the
park and walked back toward city square. Passing the same local
church, Tristan skipped up to the top of the steps, saying, “Come,
the view from here is breathtaking.”

I followed him
up what seemed like a staircase to heaven (as that’s how long the
steps felt) and turned to look at the scenery of mountains just
beyond the red rooftops of center square. The snow made them appear
as if they’d faded. Tristan was right. The view was postcard
perfect. With the bright sun shining down, the white fluff
reflected its beams, and I reached up to shade my eyes. He wrapped
his arms around me from behind. I loved when Tristan had smoothed
his hands over my growing belly.

The church
bells chimed through the city, part of their echo getting lost in
the distant Alps, but part of it managed to bounce off the
buildings, creating the most beautiful harmony I’d heard.

“They always
ring them at noon,” he whispered into my ear.

“To
commemorate a victory against an invasion,” I told him.

“I didn’t
expect you to know that.”

I turned
around to face him. Tristan’s hands were at my waist, and mine
around his; except I couldn’t quite reach all the way.

“There are a
lot of things you don’t know about me, Mr. Cross.”

“I thought I
had everything on you in that thick file in my office,” he
teased.

“But some
things aren’t written. They’re in here.” I touched his chest, just
above the heart. Even through his winter jacket I could feel its
beating. His pulse nearly raced.

“You couldn’t
be more correct.” He took a deep breath in and let out a long
exhale which resembled a whistle.

“Are you
okay?” I asked.

“Better than
okay. I’ve never done this before, so please bear with me.”

“Done what?” I
looked up into his hazels. Seeing him so vulnerable and helpless
was rare. Tristan had never allowed too many people to reach this
deeply into his emotions. Up until recently, I hadn’t thought I’d
ever peel those layers of protection away. And now, looking at him,
I knew I was looking right into his soul. What was he thinking? And
why was he so nervous?

And then it
all happened so fast. I could swear someone pressed a forward
button on my life. But I’d fainted before I could say a word.
Thankfully Tristan caught me, and the only vision in my mind that
kept playing over and over again was of Tristan getting down on his
knee, saying, “Allie Green, will you do me the honor of becoming my
wife and marry me?” Well, at least I remembered the most important
part of his longer monologue. I’m sure he had it memorized, so as I
lay there in his arms, on top of the staircase of a church with
crystal-like snowflakes falling from the sky, I made a mental note
to ask him to write it all down for me. But I couldn’t get a word
out. For a longer while the only sound I heard was the church
bells… although they’d stopped ringing a minute ago.

“That’s not
quite the response I was looking for, Ms. Green.” He looked at me
from above with that beautiful lopsided smile which lifted the scar
on his lip. “Are you all right?”

I nodded,
finally saying, “Did you just ask me to marry you?”

“Yes, and I
didn’t get an answer.”

I lifted my
hands up to his neck and pulled him down to kiss me. His tender
mouth enveloped mine as if it was that first kiss all over again
that we’d shared in his car months ago. His lips were soft and
passionate at the same time, melting me from the inside out. Their
warmth slowly thawed everything inside me, reaching deep into my
heart. My head spun and before I ran out of air, I said into his
mouth, “Yes, Tristan, I’ll marry you.”

“Today?”

“What?!”

Then he looked
at his watch. “Actually, in fifteen minutes.”

I’d normally
panic, but somehow, this proposal and Tristan here with me, it all
fit. Marrying Tristan not only made sense, but seemed like the
easiest decision I’d had to make: ever. There was no doubt or
fear.

“Next you’re
going to tell me the priest is booked too.”

“He is.”

Of course he
was.

He bit his lip
again. “Are you all right to get up?”

“I think so.”
I lifted myself up, using Tristan’s arms for support.

His steady
grip didn’t let go until he was certain I wouldn’t fall again. He
took my hand into his asking, “May I?”

I just nodded
as he slipped a ring on my finger. It was a simple stone, one that
reminded me so much of Bedrock and the Flintstones – it was
unbelievable. The glistening gem was carved to resemble a rock, yet
so meticulously. The diamond was one of a kind.

“We have no
witnesses,” I said, admiring the stone.

“Come,” he
pulled on my hand and I got the feeling we were about to get a few
more witnesses than I suspected. He pushed open the church
entrance. I couldn’t help but giggle with happiness. Was this
really happening? Had Tristan planned a proposal and a wedding all
in one day? And I was okay with that?

Abso-frickin-lutely.

There was
nothing more that I wanted than for us to be one big happy
family.

Stepping into
the small foyer, Tristan announced, “She said yes!”

The first
squeak I heard came from Emma. She rammed into me, pleading, “Can I
be your maid of honor? Pleeeeeaaase?”

Stunned, but
not shocked, I scanned the small room, which contained our family
from the cabin. My mother was crying along with Mrs. Cross, and Mr.
Cross kept passing tissues to one, then the other.

“It would be
my honor,” I said to her.

“Yay! I knew
asking you to wear all white this morning would pay off.”

“And I presume
you have a best man?” I asked.

Julian raised
his hand. He stood there with Kendra under his arm, and for the
first time since I’d met her, I saw her at peace. Both of them
appeared happy. It seemed her recovery finally was having its
effects. The family, including Tristan, has been worried about her.
But with Julian’s help, it seemed the couple was beginning to find
each other.

The priest
cleared his throat and said with a thick German accent, “Are we
ready?”