Of Royal Descent (12 page)

The world seem
ed to hold its breath as we all waited for Kai's response.

"Damn, that was hot," she said, grabbing Chuck by
his hair and pulling him down to insert her tongue into his mouth.  It didn't take even a nanosecond for Chuck to switch gears.  Before I could register what was happening and look away, he had picked her up off the ground and was kissing her deeply back, with her legs wrapped around his waist.

"Are you sure you're not contagious?" asked Kai in ragged breaths.

Chuck paused long enough to cup her chin and force her to look at his face, "It's a birthmark.  Don't make me tell you again."

"God, you're hot," Kai breathed before
she lunged for him again, fusing their bodies together into a mass of panting and sweating public indecency.

11

"Sooo...," I began awkwardly.  "You guys about ready?"

Chuck and Kai remained oblivious to both me and Addy
.  Actually, I'm pretty sure they were oblivious to the world in general as they went on frantically pawing at one another.

I stuffed my hands in my pockets and rocked back on my heels.  I glanced at Addy and smiled uncomfortably.  She gave a small smile before looking down at the ground. 

I cleared my throat.  When that didn't produce any desired results, I said, "Chuck, man, c'mon.  Don't make me throw a shoe."

Chuck let Kai
slowly slide down his body until her feet were once again planted firmly on the ground.  She whimpered in protest and wove her hands in his hair, trying to pull his mouth back down to hers.  He covered her hands with his and gently pushed them lower until he broke the connection. 

In a low, husky voice near her ear, he said, "Baby, let's get them on their way
, and we can do this right."

Kai relented, letting her hands slide to around his waist, her face flushed and lips swollen. 
              My embarrassment at the situation was fervently renewed, and I felt guilty of eavesdropping.  I softly took Addy's hand and began walking back to the Dodge.  I heard Chuck and Kai follow suit behind us.

I unlocked the car and held Addy's door open for her.  When I came around to the driver's side, Chuck was holding the door for Kai to climb in.  He
followed behind her, not even pausing to give me a thumbs-up, or a wink, or any of the signs I had come to expect when he’d won over a girl. 
Interesting
.

I reclaimed my seat behind the wheel and snuck a quick glance in the rear-view mirror.  Kai was snuggling up against Chuck with his arm around her
, but otherwise, they were behaving.

I started the car
, and off we motored down the road, toward Emily's restaurant, where Addy's car was parked.

"I understand if you're tired, but I would really love to spend more time with you," I said to Addy.  Smiling, she reached over to take my hand.

"I don't get tired.  I work night shift.  We could go back to my apartment and give our friends some time alone." 

"Yes!" Kai shouted, startling us.  She cleared her throat.  "I mean, yes, I think that would be a fine idea."

I gulped.  I wanted to spend some time alone with Addy, but at the same time, I was terrified.  What if I passed out again?  What if I started shrieking uncontrollably?

"Doyle?" asked Addy, eyes wide, lips parted.

On the other hand, wasn't mine the generation of carpe diem? 
No, wait, actually my generation was the YOLO generation, but I thought that lacked a certain panache.

I glanced up at the road before returning my gaze back to Addy. 
"Sounds perfect."

She licked her lips slowly and purposefully.  If any of my body parts possessed the ability to constrict, they constricted immediately.

Within a few minutes, we reached Emily's.  I parked and cut the ignition.  We all filed out of the Dodge, and I handed over the keys to Chuck.  The girls were saying something to one another on the other side of the car, and Chuck took the opportunity to give me some last minute advice.

"If you start to feel dizzy, do whatever you did at the restaurant to make yourself stop.  I'm pretty sure you're going to want to remain conscious tonight.  And, of course, call me if an emergency arises.  But God help you if it's not an emergency," he said calmly.

I laughed.  "I hereby do so solemnly swear not to interrupt you for any reason other than that of a true emergency."

Chuck smiled.  "Ok then.  Have a good night and hopefully I won't see you until tomorrow morning."

After a quick fist bump, he side-stepped me and slid into the driver's seat.  I closed the door and took a step back as Kai climbed in on the other side.  Addy walked around the hood of the car to stand next to me, and we watched as the Charger reversed out of the parking spot.  Chuck put it in forward and after a quick wave, headed out into the night.

Addy hugged her arms closer together
, and I realized the temperature had dropped.  I pulled my hoodie off over my head and held it poised for Addy to slip her head into.  She smiled and ducked into the neck opening, threading her arms through the sleeves. 

"You look good in my clothes," I said softly, pushing a strand of hair away from her cheek.  Her skin felt soft under my fingertips
, and she leaned her face into my palm.

"But now you'll be cold.  That t-shirt doesn't look like it's too warm," she said.

"Guess we'll just have to figure out a way to get my body temperature up."

"I have a few ideas," she smiled, "but they all involve us getting to my apartment."

I felt a warmth begin to creep through my body.  If I didn't reel this in a little, there was no way I was going to make it past her front door before I went unconscious.

She led me by the hand across the lot to a metallic blue Toyota Camry.  I smiled.  "Nice car."

"Yeah, I like it."

She unlocked the doors with the keyless entry remote
, and we got in.  The interior smelled of flowers - honeysuckle, I thought.

Now that I wasn't the one driving, I took the liberty of admiring Addy at length. 

"What?" she smiled.

"I just didn't get enough time to look at you tonight."

She lowered her gaze, and a slight redness bloomed in her cheeks.

"Are you sure you don't have a girlfriend back home?" she asked me, composing herself.

"Positive.  And there's no boyfriend for you here?"

"No," she assured me.

She started the car, and we backed out of the parking space. 

"Do you live far from here?" I asked while we rolled through the lot. 

"No, not at all.  It's just a few minutes."

She turned left out of the lot, followed by a quick right
, and we wound our way down a few, quiet, back streets until we came out in front of a large, multi-unit apartment complex.  Her building was in the back and consisted of four one-story apartments with private entrances.  We parked in front of the last door on the right.

Addy p
ushed the ignition button, cutting the engine to the Camry.

"Shall we?" she asked
, turning to face me before opening her door.

"We shall," I answered, stepping out into the night.

Addy fumbled with her keys while we approached the door.  I briefly considered the possibility that she was as nervous as I was.  But I quickly dismissed it.  After all, she was older than I was, beautiful, and a nurse.  Not that I'd known many nurses, but it seemed logical to assume that those with nervous tendencies wouldn't make it out of nursing school.

The dead bolt slid back
, and Addy opened the front door.  As she stepped inside the apartment, she ran her left hand against the wall, turning on a switch and filling the room with soft lamp light.

"Please, come in," she said, stepping aside so that I had full access into her apartment.  I cleared the threshold and closed the door behind me.

The living area was small, but modern.  Wood flooring ran the length of the room.  A large, flat screen TV was mounted to the wall on my right.  To my left was an overstuffed, brown, suede couch with reclining seats on either end.  There were two small end tables, modestly decorated with a vase of flowers on one and two books on the other.  The center wall ahead of me showcased an electric fireplace with a large, ornate, gilded-framed mirror hanging above it.  There was a hallway to the right of the center wall and it looked as if the kitchen were through the archway to the left.

"It's small, but it serves its purpose," said Addy, looking as if she were trying to gauge my opinion.

"It's great," I answered honestly.  "It's very cozy."

I noticed two large duffel bags stacked up by the edge of the couch.  I raised an eyebrow.

"Kai's," Addy offered in way of explanation.  I nodded.

She hung her keys on a hook by the front door and turned to face me. 

"Would you like something to drink?  Coffee?  Pop?"

"No thanks, I'm good."

We both stood facing the other in the middle of the living room.

"
Let me show you the rest of the apartment," she said, fidgeting with her hands.

She moved passed me to enter the archway on the left side of the room.

"This is the kitchen," she said, turning on the overhead light.  The room opened up once we turned the corner, and I was surprised it was so large considering it was an apartment kitchen.  There was a small oak dining table shoved into the far corner, which I assume was referred to as the breakfast nook.  A back door was in the corner opposite and boasted two dead bolts.

Addy flipped the light switch off before turning back into the living room with me close behind her.

"Back here is the bathroom," she said, entering into the hallway off from the living room.  She gestured toward the left, and I peeked into the small area.  It also appeared to have been updated recently, as the floor and fixtures showed no signs of aging.

"And this is my bedroom," she said, turning through the door on the right and flipping on the light.  The queen-size bed took up an ample portion of the room, but left enough
space for a dresser and small computer table.  There was a sliding door to the closet against the left wall.

I did a slow 360 degree turn as I took in the decor.  The furniture was blonde and the bed frame looked brass, but everywhere else I looked, I was assaulted by the color lilac. 

Addy smiled at me.  I smiled back. 

"Very feminine," I said, putting it lightly.

"Too much?" she asked, looking it over as if for the first time.

"
Nooo," I drew out.  "Well, you know, maybe a little, but that's alright.  It's your room to have any way you like, right?"

She smiled.

"So... here we are," she said leaning against the footboard of the bed.

"Here we are," I repeated, taking a step closer to her.

She began to twirl her hair around her right index finger.

I took another step closer.

She looked up at me and absent-mindedly licked her lips.

I took the final remaining step that closed the distance separating us.

"We don't have to do anything you don't want to do.  We can just talk if you want," I said, refraining from touching her.

She exhaled softly, composing herself. 

"I know this sounds crazy," she began, "because I barely know you, and I'm not usually one for dramatics.  But, if you don't kiss me soon, I might actually explode, and that probably wouldn't be-"

Before she could finish her sentence, I leaned down and
hovered my mouth over hers.  I could feel electric sparks snapping against my lips and wondered if she could feel it too.  She waited beneath me, unmoving. 

A fire began in the pit of my stomach.  I brought my right hand up to wind through her hair and hold her at the nape of her neck.  My left hand slowly ventured under the hem of my oversized hoodie she was wearing.  When my fingertips met with exposed flesh at the waist of her jeans, the fire in my stomach fanned out in every direction.

"Doyle," she whispered, sounding more like a plea than my name.

I kissed her
then, and there was an explosion of blinding white light behind my eyelids.  The fire stoked to a critical level, consuming me like dry kindling.  I could feel the monster knocking at the door.

I snapped back from her, knowing if I waited any longer, I wouldn't be able to.

She stood breathless, staring at me.

"Addy, I'm sorry
.  I can't."

She remained silent while she caught her breath
, and it was driving me crazy trying to guess what she was thinking.  When she finally spoke, she sounded sad. 

"Is it me?"  She looked at me with those big dark eyes
, and I melted.

"Oh, God, no.
  It's hard to explain," I stammered, taken by surprise.  I was expecting her to be angry, or possibly confused, but never rejected.  I felt like an ass.

I could tell by her eyes that she didn't believe me.

"Look, it's that I really like you.  Like you said, I know it sounds crazy because we just met, but I really like you.  A lot.  And..."  I didn't know what else to say.  What
could
I say?  That kissing her put her in danger of unleashing a monster that may or may not exist?  I really didn't see the truth going over so well.  She stared at me expectantly, waiting for me to finish.

"And... it scares me," I finished.  There, at least it wasn't a lie.

A slow, understanding smile broke out on her face.