Paul apparently loved Amelia too. In a flash, he fanned out his feathers, the whoosh of air the rapid movement created making Amelia’s hair fly in the wind. Amelia let out a yelp to wake the dead and took off running straight at me. I couldn’t help the bark of laughter this time. Sheer terror was on Amelia’s face when she reached me, spun me around, and then climbed up my body like a tree. Her arms banded around my neck and she shouted in my ear.
“Run!”
She dug her bare feet into my thighs like she thought I was a racehorse who needed prodding. It worked, though. I took off running, my laughter hooting into the night as I ran, Amelia bouncing on me, whooping and hollering the whole way. I made it all the way to the bottom of the trail leading down to the beach before she pulled me to a stop.
I stood there looking at the ocean in the dark, the woman I loved on my back with a pounding heart and ripped dress from her flight from a peacock. This. This was why I’d take a friendship over nothing with Amelia. She made me feel alive in ways no one else could.
“You know I’m not a horse, right?” I asked her, the laughter still in my voice.
She blew out a deep breath and peeled her arms off my neck. In the next breath, she slid down my back and nearly fell over the minute her feet hit the ground. I spun around and caught her to me.
“Sit down before you kill yourself.” I helped her down to the sand, figuring her dress was already ruined when she straddled me and ripped the hem up the side. I sat next to her, not giving a shit if I ruined my dress pants. I hated them anyway.
“Did that just fucking happen?” she said out loud.
I snorted and she let out a gasping wheeze. She bent at the waist and nearly had her forehead touching her legs. For a second I thought she might be throwing up, what with the amount of alcohol she had to have in her system right about then. I put a hand on her back and then heard the first sounds of hysterical laughter hit my ears.
Not puking. Laughing.
She straightened quickly and tossed her head back, cackling loudly in between wheezy inhales. Tears of laughter were rolling down her cheeks and she’d never looked more beautiful to me. I watched her, a small smile on my face as I took her in and absorbed this moment with her. After all, if perfect moments stretched between bland existence would be all I got with Amelia, I’d take them and savor them like the treasures they were.
The waves rolled in and crashed on the shore, a background to Amelia’s drunken mirth. Eventually she quieted, her gaze trained on the white foam trailing higher on the sand but still far enough away we were in no danger of getting wet. The bubble of anger that seemed to cling to her like perfume drifted away in the breeze.
While she attempted to sober up, I sat with my thoughts. I didn’t try to avoid them like usual. I didn’t shut them down or let them fester, making me bitter and resentful. The thing was, Amelia owed me nothing. I could love her beyond all reason and she didn’t owe me a damn thing in return. My love didn’t come with shackles. She wasn’t responsible for my feelings; I was. And so I’d choose to love her freely and unconditionally. I’d quit being mad at her for not loving me back, for not seeing how much better I’d treat her than any other man she settled for. No matter how she responded or didn’t, I’d simply love her.
A huge weight came off my chest, leaving me feeling peaceful for the first time in years.
“My life is shit, T.” Amelia’s voice was so soft I barely heard her above the crash of waves.
I startled, forgetting we sat so close while I came to my epiphany. Amelia rarely talked softly. Hell, she rarely sat silently either. Maybe the ocean was magical tonight, leading us both to new ideas and resolutions. Maybe Charlie was right and the moonlight held some sort of power that transcended logic.
“Is it so bad?” I asked. My chest ached for her.
“Yeah. It really is. I just wanted to be a badass boss bitch and somehow I’ve let my life flush down the toilet.” She sounded lost. Beaten down.
I chanced a glance at her, not wanting to break the spell that kept her sharing openly with me. A tear slid down her cheek and I had a suspicion it wasn’t from laughter this time.
Lead with love.
I scooted closer and slid my arm around her shoulders, pulling her face into my chest. I couldn’t fix things for her, no matter how badly I wanted to, but I could show her I cared. She came willingly, accepting the comfort and putting her hand on my chest. We stayed that way until my legs went numb and her breathing evened out. Trying not to jostle her, I picked her up and stood, heading back up the trail and to my truck.
She stirred when I put her in the truck, her eyelids fluttering open. As soon as she focused on my face, she smiled and went back to sleep. My heart squeezed in my chest at her trust. On the drive to the hotel, I doubled down on my vow. I’d love her unconditionally. I’d get her to her room and in bed and then I’d leave her.
