Chapter Seventy one

The kisses grew hot and intense and if not for a timely phone call that came through, I don't know what would have happened.

It was mom, she was calling to know if we had arrived and settled in. After the brief phone call, he turned back to me.

"I think we should get some rest, we'll be heading out later tonight." He informed me and I nodded, unable to meet his eyes.

***

Night rolled by soon and I found myself picking out a fancy dress for dinner at a restaurant named Le Corail, it was really fancy place and so beautiful. I looked forward to dining there the moment we got in. They had a warm reception and their meals were spectacular.

While we were in the middle of our main course, Damien spoke up, making me look up at him.

"I wanted to talk to you about something." He said looking nervous and even uncomfortable. I had never seen him like that and it sort of worried me.

"Is everything alright?" I asked, running my eyes over his face which seemed tense but was still trying to hold it together.

"Yeah sure." He cleared his throat and gulped his glass of water. My eyes followed his every move until he decided to speak again.

"So, uhm, we've been married for nearly four months now..." He trailed off while his eyes stayed glued to mine.

"Yeah..." I said slowly, wondering where this was going.

"Well, I don't know how to put this but..."

'Is he about to break up with me before the one year mark?!' I screamed on the inside but still kept a blank face on as he spoke.

I was already crushing on him and now he wanted to call things off while on my first vacation ever?! He had to be kidding me.

'I'm just going to keep it together and not cry in front of him.' That was what I told myself.

"Ariana? Did you hear what I just said?" He shook my hand a little, jolting me back to reality.

"I'm sorry, what now?" I said sheepishly.

He groaned and looked away before giving me a side glance and finally facing me squarely again.

"I said, I really like you Ariana." He dropped the bombshell.

I swear I heard glass shattering sounds in my head the moment he said that. I gaped.

"I think the jet lag is getting to my senses, I'm hearing things." I muttered loud enough for him to hear.

"No you're not." He chuckled nervously.

"Wait you mean 'like like' or 'just like'?" I asked for clarity emphasizing my words with air quotes.

"I enjoy having your lips on mine even when we're not in public as stipulated in the contract and of course for no reason at all. Does that sound like 'just like' to you?" He said, casually leaning back on his seat. The nervous Damien had disappeared into thin air and the confident one was back in full swing. I was the nervous one now.

I blinked rapidly and licked my chapped lips in a bid to regain my composure.

"I dunno how to reply to this. I for the life of me did not see this coming." I admitted honestly.

"I know and it's fine if you don't feel the same way, I just wanted to let you know." He said with an indecipherable expression on his face.

It hurt my heart to think that he felt rejected so I spewed how I felt before I could stop myself.

"I have a crush on you, Damien." I turned red as soon as I said that. I was so embarrassed, I had to drink water to avoid his gaze.

He leaned in and gestured for him to do same. I nervously did so, hoping he was not about to do what I was thinking in public.

He nuzzled me and I giggled, then he dropped a lingering kiss on my forehead. A content sigh left my lips. Forehead kisses had a way of making me feel cared for and respected.

A camera flashed from somewhere, interrupting our little moment. I panicked, thinking that paparazzi had spotted us here too. Damien and I broke apart and looked around for the photographer.

A young looking man walked over to us with his camera in hand while he grinned at us. Damien as usual had gone back to his bossy self at the presence of a stranger.

"Hello good evening." The dude bade.

"Good evening." I replied with a polite smile.

"Sorry for taking your pics without permission but that moment was just too beautiful to miss." He said with a nervous chuckle.

"You're a photographer?" I asked.

"Yes and I'd love to get a few shots of you two, it'll be great for my resume. Please?" He said pleadingly, darting his eyes between Damien and I.

"Babe?" I turned to Damien to ask for his opinion. His response would determine this.

"Sure whatever. But be sure to show us the photos before uploading on any social media platforms." He ordered, glaring at the dude who seemed to be shaking under his searing gaze.

The restaurant wasn't so crowded so we weren't exactly distracting everyonene with our photos. We soon found ourselves by the poolside and there we posed perfectly for Erin who turned out to be American just like us and was based in Bora Bora.

"Thank you so much sir, I'm such a fan of your hard work." Erin gushed after our brief photo session. Damien simply gave a nod and shook his head firmly. We had the photos checked out and they looked really good even without editing.

"Thank you ma'am." He turned to me and I responded with a smile he mirrored.

I soon found myself following him on Instagram just so he could send the photos to me from there since us exchanging contact numbers probably seemed inappropriate to Damien.

We left the restaurant soon after to avoid the prying gazes of visitors and indigenes alike. The attention was as a result of the black suited guards that stood at a distance from us as we walked around. Damien had made sure to bring with us some trusted bodyguards to be our security during our short stay.

We got back to the beach house in no time and we were soon laying in bed and not saying anything to each other.

His confession was just beginning to sink in. Damien had feelings for me, something I never thought possible.

I ensured that I did not get my hopes up so much cause he probably just wanted to hit it knowing fully well I would not allow him do so without anything real between us. And even if he did feel something, I assumed it was infatuation and would die a natural death in due time.

I looked over to the other side of the bed and saw that he was fast asleep. I sighed as I sat and stared up at the ceiling, deep in thought.

I was here to enjoy a vacation and I was not going to let anything ruin it.

"Just go with the flow Ariana, don't overthink it." I whispered to myself before falling into a deep slumber.

***

Damien's POV;

I was so nervous that night, I was sure she noticed. I just had to tell her how I felt to get it off my chest but my heart only raced faster when I heard what she had to say in return. It was no surprise that she no longer hated me because we had put our differences aside but her developing a crush for me no matter how small meant a lot to me considering all I had to put her through in the beginning.

Typically, I would not have agreed to that dude taking pictures of us or even taking it lightly that he had taken a shot without permission but somehow because Ariana was there I held it together.

We did not have the time to converse after dinner because my mind had gotten occupied with thoughts of how to execute what I came to Bora Bora for with ease.

I knew I had to sleep and regain energy because I was going to be up and away from the wee hours of the morning until what I had to do was done and over with. Unfortunately, I would have to leave Ariana in the house without letting her know my whereabouts.

As planned, I was up early, casually dressed and out of the house before my wife could wake up.

I drove myself for the sake of secrecy and wore my sun shades as well my face cap as a camouflage.

A bell jingled as I pushed the door and walked into the small cafe and was hit with the smell of freshly brewed coffee as well as pastries just out of the oven. It was pretty early when I walked in and the place was still empty.

I heard shuffling from behind the counter and someone's head popped up from behind it.

"Good morning sir. What can I get you?" The young, beautiful raven head I had been searching for for the most part of my life said to me. Overwhelmed by my emotions, I stood still in silence for several seconds.

"Hello sir?" She waved gently in front of me, tilting her head a little bit while her eyes ran all over the place in mild panic.

It was then I took off my hat and glasses and faced her squarely.

I saw her eyes go as wide as saucers.

"Hello Amy."