Nothing Like the First Time (9 page)

We lay snuggled together for a few minutes while we got our breathing under control. I was the one to break the spell when I decided to take a shower. I turned on the radio
, and as I walked away from Grey, the song “Locked out of Heaven” by Bruno Mars came on. I laughed and sang along.

I heard Grey laugh as he got up and put his boxers on. He went to make coffee while I showered.

The next song on the radio was “You Could Be Happy” by Snow Patrol. I couldn’t help the tears that fell silently down my cheeks as I was reminded of listening to this song endlessly. It was released after Grey was already gone but it summed up exactly how I felt.

Grey took
the coffee into the bedroom and then came to join me in the shower. He got in under the water and turned to face me.

“Why did I waste so much time being a dick before I came home?” he asked as he wrapped his arms around me.

“It wasn’t a waste, Grey,” I said honestly. “You needed to follow your career where it took you and if you hadn’t, if we’d stayed together, you might have resented me for keeping you here.”

“I would never resent you, Carls. I…” he trailed off and seemed lost in thought for a
moment before saying, “We could have gone together. I wish you had come with me.”

“I couldn’t abandon everything and come with you
, Grey, we knew this at the time. Things are different now, we’ve grown in ways we wouldn’t have if you’d stayed—I truly believe that everything that happened was for a reason, though we may not know that reason—I’m just glad you’re home.”

“I’m gla
d I’m home, but more than that—and I know this is selfish—I’m glad I didn’t come home to find you married to someone else,” he said as we stood letting the water wash over us.

“I had relationships since you left
, Grey, but I couldn’t keep any of them. How could I give my heart away when it wasn’t mine to give? You have always held my heart, whether you knew it or not.”

“That song,
“You Could be Happy”
reminded me of you when we were apart,” he said, shocking me that we had felt the same.

“Same here
,” I said before kissing him.

After we got out of the shower, I let my hair dry naturally as I got everything together to make the red velvet cake for Lizzie. Grey helped me ready the ingredients.

“I want to do something a bit different with the shape of the cake, Grey,” I said as I retrieved my silicone case to make a giant cupcake.

“I’m sure whatever you do
, it will be amazing. Your cakes were always the best,” he replied, showing me my favorite smile.

“Thanks
,” I said as I placed a chaste kiss against his soft lips.

I turned off the radio and p
lugged in my iPod dock. I put it on shuffle and the first song to play was “If I Knew Then” by Lady Antebellum. I began to sing along as I started mixing the cake batter. Grey smiled at me as he watched me singing and baking.

“You have a beautiful voice
. I was in awe at the Christmas pageant,” he said, dipping his finger into the batter.

“Thank you
, but it’s nothing compared to you. When you sang “Blue Christmas” I nearly cried,” I admitted. “It was like you were singing directly to me.”

“I was
,” he admitted as a blush crept across his face.

“I came backstage to try to find you, but you’d gone.”

“I sang my song and left, I couldn’t bear to be there knowing you were within touching distance and I couldn’t have you.”

“I’m sorry I wasted so much time ignoring you. I honestly thought you were with Maggie and I was feeling guilty and ashamed that we’d slept together.”

“It doesn’t matter now, Carls.” He looked me directly in the eye as he spoke.

“
We Belong Together” by Mariah Carey was the next song to play. My iPod seemed to know how I was feeling.

I put the cake in the oven and cleaned the kitchen so it was ready for me to decorate the cupcake.

“I’d better get to the florist,” Grey said as he helped me clean up.

“You getting Lizzie a nice bouquet?” I asked.

“I sure am. Her favorites are calla lilies, so I asked the florist to make up something special with them,” he said as he found his car keys.

“Okay
, well, I’ll see you later at the party then.”

“Don’t you want me to come back here
so we can go to the party together?” he asked, pausing at the front door.

“
You don’t have any clothes with you,” I said as I poured myself a glass of OJ from the jug in the fridge.

“No
, but I can go home, grab a change of clothes, and come back.”

“Grea
t. I’d love to go together—and you know Lizzie and Katrina will be pleased.”

“Pleased? That’s an understatement
.” He laughed.

“I’ll see you in a little while then
,” I said as he came to kiss me goodbye. He took me in his arms and kissed me passionately.

“Love you, Carls, baby
,” he said as he opened the front door.

“Love you too, Grey.”

He shut the door behind him and I smiled to myself. After all these years, Grey and I had a chance to be happy.

Chapter Eight

The cake was decorated and it was time for me to take a shower. Grey would be back soon and I wanted to find something special to wear to Lizzie’s party. My phone r
ang, flashing Jodie’s picture on the screen.

“Hey girl!” came
Jodie’s cheery tone.

“Hey yourself
,” I replied with a smile on my face. Jodie’s happiness was always infectious.

“I’m going out with Matt tonight and we wondered if you and Grey wanted to double date
.”

“Sorry
, Jodie, I’m going to Grey’s Aunt Lizzie’s birthday party with him tonight—can we take a rain check and come next time?”

“Oh. Yeah, sure
.” She sounded disappointed.

“Sorry
, honey, if we weren’t going, then we’d come with you for sure.”

“Sure, it’s late notice
, anyway. Matt didn’t know he had the night off until he checked the rota last night.”

“Next time, I promise, we’ll make it up to you
.”

“Okay
, sweetie, no big deal. Enjoy your party, I have to go in to work for a couple of hours now.”

“Speak
to you later, honey.”

I turned my iPod dock on and selected an old album b
y a band called Another Level—I skipped to my favorite song “Freak Me” and took another shower, knowing I had gotten flour in my hair while making the cake. I couldn’t help but think about when Grey and I were in there together—I closed my eyes and got lost in the memory.

After my shower, I sat at my vanity to do my hair and makeup. When that was done, I went to my wardrobe to select an outfit. I had a nice purple wrap dress that I hadn’t worn in quite a while.

Another favorite track started playing—“From the Heart”
—
I couldn’t help but love the lyrics and began to sing along
.

I finished getting dressed. I put a pair of stockings on then found out my nude shoes and clutch. Hopefully my choice of outfit would please Grey.

I picked up my phone and was surprised to see no texts or missed calls from him. I went to make myself a coffee and put my iPhone on the kitchen island.

My phone rang about fifteen minutes later. I smiled as I saw the photo of Grey on the screen.

“Hey, babe,” I greeted.

“Hey
, Carls. I’ve got the flowers but Mother sent me on another errand so I’m only just finished. I’ll be back in about ten minutes, sorry I couldn’t ring you before,” he said, sounding a little frantic.

“No problem
, baby. I’m ready, so all you have to do is shower and change.”

“Great, how’s the cake?”

“It looks awesome, even if I do say so myself. Now get off the phone and get your sexy ass back home.”

“Okay, see you in a few minutes. Love you
.”

“Love you too
, Grey.”

I selected a favo
rite track—“Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now”
—
on my iPod and turned the volume up. It was the main song from a great film I’d watched repeatedly over the years,
Mannequin
. Andrew McCarthy was seriously good eye candy.

A few minutes later, Grey knocked on the door. I let him in and pulled him for a kiss. It started off as quite soft and gentle but then his tongue sought out mine and the kiss quickly turned hot and passionate. I
pulled away breathless, I still forgot to breathe whenever I kissed him.

“Wow
,” he said as he finally got to look me over.

“You like?” I asked as I
spun round for him to see the full effect.

“Like? Oh
, I more than like it and when we get home later, I’m going to show you exactly how much I
like
it,” he said as he pulled me in for another kiss.

“Go and grab a shower, there’s no time for being
naughty before we have to go—blame your mother for the other errand she sent you on.” I laughed as I smacked that great ass of his.

“Yes
, Miss!” He mock saluted and then went for a shower.

I
picked up my iPod and selected “Locked out of Heaven”
again and turned it up so Grey could hear. One thing true about the song is his sex does take me to paradise. I sang along as I put on a fresh pot of coffee.

As Grey came out of my room, what I saw completely stole my breath.

He was wearing a black tailored suit with a purple shirt. He looked beyond gorgeous—he was clean shaven, his hair had that sexy look about it like he’d just combed his fingers through it—I couldn’t help the gasp that came from my mouth.

“See something you like, Miss Summers?” he asked, giving me a smile that showed his perfect white teeth.

“Hell yeah!” I exclaimed as I rose from my seat.

He came over and took my hand in his.  He twirled me around and then dipped me down over his arm before bringing me up to meet his lips. The kiss was slow and sens
ual. I could smell cologne and a hint of whatever it was that made Grey always smell so good.

“Ready to go?” he asked.

“Yeah, just one last coat of lip gloss, as you kissed off the last lot.” I laughed as I reached for my lip gloss from my clutch.

“The flowers are in the car. I don’t think I’m forgetting anything
,” he said as he reached for his car keys.

“Let me grab the cake and we can go
,” I said as I walked over to the sideboard closest to the fridge. I picked it up and placed it on the kitchen island.

“Wow
, that looks amazing, Carls,” Grey said as he saw the cake for the first time.

“Thank you. I tried to do something different
,” I said as I admired my handiwork.

I had decided to take the giant cupcake from the
silicone case I cooked it in—then I had dirty iced it before rolling out the pink fondant icing I had made. I had made that pink fondant look like the case of the cupcake—then I had set about decorating the top. I had bought pink, glittery, edible butterflies. Aunt Lizzie loved butterflies and had a collection of rare ones that she had bought at an auction many years ago. I had whipped up a batch of pale pink buttercream—I had spread this over the top of the cake and then used purple edible glitter—adding the butterflies as the final touch.

“Need help getting it into the box?” Grey offered.

“That’d be great. If you can hold the cake, I will carefully slip the box around it,” I said, picking up the box.

I held the cake on my lap in the car to save it from being damaged on the ride over to Katrina’s house.

“You’re really amazing, Carls. Did I tell you that?” Grey said, offering me a heart-warming smile.

I felt myself blush at the compliment.

“Thanks,” I whispered.

“I mean it. You’re s
o selfless, beautiful, caring—so much more than that. But your best attribute is that you don’t know how amazing you are.”

I felt my entire face heat in a blush. I was so in love with this man
and here he was telling me how he felt—I couldn’t have been happier.

“You’re pretty fantastic yourself
, Grey. I’m so happy you came home—I can’t put into words how much I love you,” I said as I looked at the man who felt like the missing piece of a jigsaw puzzle—the puzzle being me.

“Ti amo con tutto il mio cuore
,” Grey pronounced in perfect Italian.

“Si possiede il mio cuore e l’anima
,” I said. I’d been practicing the Italian phrase that means ‘you own my heart and soul’ over the last couple of weeks, knowing I couldn’t say it to him until I could pronounce it perfectly.

“What does that mean?” Grey asked, looking at me as we parked in Katrina’s driveway.

“I thought you knew Italian?” I asked.

I couldn’t miss the blush on his cheeks.

“No. I guess it’s time to admit that I practiced that one phrase to impress you when we were teenagers.”

I laughed
, I couldn’t help myself.

“You’re so sweet, I never knew that. I
practiced that phrase over and over—only to find you don’t know what it means,” I teased.

“So are you going to tell me?” he asked.

“It means you own my heart and soul” I said as I leaned over to kiss him.

He kissed me so fiercely, it was hot and dangerously sexy. Dangerously so because if he kept it up
, we wouldn’t be going inside—we’d be turning right round and going back to my place.

“Thank you
,” he said as he broke the kiss.

“For what?”

“For learning that just for me, and for the record, you own my heart and soul, too.”

Katrina opened the door and waved at us, cutting our conversation short. She walked towards the car and we got out to greet her. Grey helped me by taking the cake, which was heavier than the flowers.

“Is that the cake?” Katrina asked, kissing me on the cheek.

“It sure is
,” I said as I reached into the backseat to pick up the flowers.

“Can I peek?” she asked as she made her way to kiss her son on the cheek.

“Certainly not, Mother. Carly worked hard, as always, and the cake is incredible. Let’s get it into the house before I drop it and completely ruin the cake and the driveway,” Grey answered.

We went
inside and Grey put the cake down on the perfectly polished black granite kitchen island. Everything about Katrina’s home was immaculate. It had been when we were young, too. She had the money to pay a maid, but she chose to do it all herself—she was proud of her home and I couldn’t blame her.

“Let me get the box off
, Grey. Can you pick it up a moment, please?” I asked as I entered the kitchen.

He picked the box back up and I carefully took it off as he held the cake.

“Wow, Carly, this looks fabulous, darling,” Katrina said as she took in the sight of the giant pink and purple cupcake.

“Thank you
, Katrina.” I beamed, proud that I had created it rather getting a shop bought cake.

“What flavor is it inside?” she asked, still in awe.

“Red velvet, Aunt Lizzie’s favorite,” I replied as I set about putting the flowers in the sink with some water while Grey found a vase.

“Marvelous, she’s going to be so happy
,” she replied as she took my hand in hers. She twirled me round for a better look at my dress.

“You look absolutely stunning, darling. Doesn’t she
, Greyston?” Katrina looked at Grey for his response.

“Of course, Mother. She always looks incredible
,” he replied as he came to stand by me, vase in hand.

I filled the vase with water and arranged the bouquet.

“Well, the guests will be here shortly and the guest of honor is on her way over, too,” Katrina told us as she walked toward the kitchen door.

“Okay
, Mother, you go and do what you have to do, we’ll have a quick coffee, if that’s okay?”

“Of course, Greyston darling, you know where everything is.”

Grey put a pot of coffee on and we sat at the breakfast bar, as the island was full with the flowers and the enormous cake.

“Mother always gets edgy before parties
,” he said quietly.

“Why?”

“Just in case they don’t go to plan.” 

I smiled. Katrina’s parties always went to plan, she wouldn’t have it any other way. She’d been the same at all of Grey’s birthday parties. She was always throwing dinner parties f
or her friends too, so she was well practiced at perfection.

***

Lizzie arrived and the party officially started. When she saw Grey and me to
gether, she pulled me close in a hug.

“It’s about time you two got yourselves sorted out!” she exclaimed as sh
e pulled Grey in for a hug, too—she squeezed us both tight and we laughed.

“She finally saw the light
, Aunt Lizzie,” Grey joked.

“Oh I did, did I?” I asked.

“You must have done!” Grey tickled me as he spoke.

Lizzie looked at us both and smiled. It was good to see her in good health—the last time I’d see
n her, she had looked a little pale.

Grey left the room and
moments later returned with the cake with the candles in place. Lizzie’s eyes lit up at the sight of my creation.

“Did you do this
, Carly?”

“I did.”

“Wow, thank you so much,” she said as Grey walked towards her.