Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 36177 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 181(@200wpm)___ 145(@250wpm)___ 121(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36177 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 181(@200wpm)___ 145(@250wpm)___ 121(@300wpm)
Currently I was lying on a hotel bed, relaxing after my massage and a facial down in the spa. See, excellent decision. I’d stayed in four star hotels, but never a five star, and I could certainly appreciate the luxury.
Conor was out at the factory all day but later we planned on wandering down to the hotel restaurant for dinner before taking a walk on the nearby beach. I was just scanning the menu and trying to decide what I would order when I heard the door handle turn. Conor appeared a moment later, looking tired. I sat up, feeling a small bit guilty that I’d spent the day relaxing while he’d been busy working.
Then again, it wasn’t like I took breaks very often.
My hair was still wet from the shower and I was wrapped up in a thick hotel bathrobe. Conor let out a quiet groan when he saw me, running a hand over the stubble on his jaw.
“You look…can we just stay in and order room service tonight?” he asked, loosening his tie.
I laughed. “We did that last night, and the night before. Besides, you promised you’d take me for a walk on the beach.”
He threw off his suit jacket then began undoing the buttons on his shirt. His eyes never left me as he knelt, grabbing my knees and tugging me to the edge of the bed. “How was your day?” he asked, his voice low and husky as he ran his warm palms up my thighs. I shivered at his touch.
“Very enjoyable. I spent most of my time in the spa.”
Conor grinned. “Good. That means you must be nice and relaxed.”
“I’m relaxed, but I’m also hungry, so…”
He sighed and scowled at me playfully. “Fine. Let me take a quick shower and then we’ll head down to the restaurant.”
I smiled and he rose, continuing to undress before going into the bathroom. We’d been together for three months now and things felt incredibly natural between us. I was in love with him. I was sure of it, but I hadn’t found the courage to say it to him out loud yet. I wasn’t sure why I was so hesitant. Conor was in love with me. He told me numerous times, not to mention showed me in the kind and tender ways he treated me. It was just that I’d put it off for so long that it had become this big internal thing. I felt plugged up, a strange sort of fear keeping the words in.
I’d been in love before, or at least I thought I had been. But perhaps I wasn’t because how I felt for Conor was all-consuming. I thought about him constantly. He was always in my head, so much so that the feelings I had for him were a little overwhelming.
I went to the wardrobe where I’d hung the peach sundress I planned to wear to dinner. I paired it with some sandals then blow dried my hair. I was just finished getting ready when Conor came out of the bathroom with a towel tucked around his waist. I’d never get tired of seeing him like that. Sometimes I couldn’t believe my luck that I was with someone who looked like him. Not only was he kind and good and smart with a great personality, he was also pretty much physically perfect. Or at least that was how I saw him.
“Nice dress,” he said, eyes sweeping down my body.
“Thanks.”
He went to gather clean clothes from his suitcase and I sat on the bed, spraying some perfume on my wrists. I was still wearing the scent Conor gifted me on our first date. Synaesthesia. With its delicate notes of jasmine and bergamot, it had become my favourite.
I thought again about how much I loved him, and how terrible it was that I hadn’t said it to him yet. Conor threw a pair of jeans and a shirt down on the bed, his mouth lifting in a smirk when he saw I’d been looking at the restaurant menu.
“Why do you always have to decide what you’re going to eat ahead of time?”
“I love you,” I blurted suddenly and he blinked, his smirk fading. My heart was racing. I couldn’t believe I’d just said that. Was I sweating?
Conor’s eyes heated while my throat ran dry. “Oh, God, that was weird, wasn’t it? I don’t know why I said it like that. I’ve just been thinking it for a while now and I wanted to wait to say it to you in a more romantic setting but it just came out and—”
“Yvonne, calm down.” He gently took my hands as he lowered to sit next to me. “I’ve been telling you I love you for months. Why would you be so nervous about telling me you feel the same?”