***
It had stoppedraining by the time they left the gallery. Hand in hand, they madetheir way out, taking a walk around the crazy intersection ofTrafalgar Square. Gwen hadn’t even had the chance to askwhere-to-next before Crispin tightened his grip on her hand and ranfor the double decker bus that would take them along the Strand.Still laughing at the expression on her face, Crispin slid into hisseat first and caught her as she fell into him when the bus lurchedand started off.
“Crispin, my heart’s practically in my throat!” she gasped,catching her breath.
“You wanted adventure, you’re getting it, aren’t you?” heteased, wrapping his arm around her.
“And then some.” She smiled, resting her head on his shoulder,nose in his hair, hand on his chest. They sat like that for alittle while and then suddenly he straightened up and pulled away.Gwen took the hint and sat up in her seat. He had turned quiet andpensive and she hadn’t missed that either. While his reaction wasless abrupt than when she had clung to him the night before, it wassimilar enough for her to wonder why he went from hot to cold whenshe held him. He had put his arm around her, and he had taken herhand more than once already that day. Yet the moment shereciprocated the affection, he would pull away.
Before long,she put it out of her mind. Taking in the view from the bus as theyweaved through the streets was quite the experience. “I can’tbelieve I’m seeing all this.” The architecture was awe inspiringand the streets themselves were so alive with activity.
“It’s different, that’s for sure,” Crispin said it about thescenery but he meant it about the turmoil stirring in his gut.Something in the way she clung to him scared the hell out of himand he wasn’t quite sure how to handle it.
“It’s like watching a motion picture or visiting a movie setbut in this case, it’s the real thing,” Gwen gushed. “And the realthing is incredible. I’m sorry, I’m babbling but it’s hard toconvey the right words.”
“Don’t apologize for your enthusiasm. Babble on, if it makesyou happy.”
“You make me happy,” she blurted, catching them both off guard.She hoped he wouldn’t take offence to her exuberance as he did hertouch, but she was so grateful for his company, she couldn’t helpherself. When he smiled sideways at her, she was glad her wordswere easier for him to accept.
“Cheeky monkey.” He chuckled and wrapped his arm around heragain. Not wanting him to draw away from her, she kept her hands onher lap and simply accepted his embrace.
They soonarrived at their intended stop and Crispin held tightly to Gwen’shand as they exited the bus. Her eyes nearly popped out of her headwhen she spotted the majestic dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral.
“You okay?” Crispin asked, seeing the look of awe on her face.When she smiled at him, he felt his defensive inner walls begin tocrumble yet again. Letting his guard down for the moment, heallowed her to cling tenaciously to his hand.
“Oh, my God, Crispin! I can’t believe I’m here. I can’t believeI’m seeing this.”
“Come on, let’s grab something to eat before we go in.” Crispinchuckled when she followed him blindly, still looking over hershoulder at the remarkable centuries-old cathedral. Her enthusiasmwas contagious, to say the least. As much as he would like to beindifferent, he couldn’t, not when she made everything sowonderfully awe inspiring.
After grabbingsandwiches and juice from the handy Marks and Spencer, Crispin ledher to the steps in front of St. Paul’s. Like others around them,they sat and ate while taking in the gorgeous view. They took turnstaking pictures with Gwen’s camera and, of course, a few selfies.Crispin’s long arms came in handy for those. She was quite pleasedhe had initiated the shots of them together here and there. Now andagain, passing couples like themselves would swap cameras to takepictures of each other.
After visitingthe Cathedral, they walked towards the River Thames and crossed thepedestrian-only steel suspension Millennium Bridge. Somewhere inthe middle, they stopped to have a look around.
“Are you glad you came, Crispin?” she asked, watchinghim.
“Yeah, I am,” he said with a wistful smile.
“You’re not still upset at me for tagging along?”
“Upset… I was never upsetwith you.” He chuckled and gave his head a smallshake. “I was furious.”
“Are you still furious?”
He looked ather and smirked. “Nah, turns out, I quite like your company.” Hetook her hand and started walking again.
“I’m glad because I love your company.” Gwen practicallyskipped as she walked. This was turning out to be the best tripever. Better than she could have ever imagined.
“Don’t be so sure of that,” Crispin said, clipping her thoughtsshort. “You may change your mind soon enough.”
She searchedhis handsome yet guarded profile for a clue as to what he wasgetting at. “Not possible,” she assured him.
He thentightened his grip on her fingers, almost painfully so. “Everyonesays that at first,” he gritted out before he abruptly dropped herhand and started walking on ahead. So quick and purposeful were hissteps, Gwen had to practically run to catch up.
There it wasagain, Gwen thought with a frown. He had switched from hot to cold.She didn’t know why but she suddenly recalled the day in thejewellery shop. His friend Becky had referred to him as her pricklyGoth. Gwen couldn’t agree more with that nickname. The title suitedhim perfectly. After reaching the other side, he once again slowedand allowed her to reach his side. When she’d caught up, she caughther breath, and then she lost it again at the sight ofShakespeare’s Globe theatre.
“Wow!” Gwen clapped with glee, momentarily forgetting herwoes.
“Wow, indeed,” Crispin grumbled, watching her run upahead.
Chapter 16
Following animpromptu tour of Shakespeare’s Globe theatre, Gwen and Crispinresumed walking alongside
