La Rosa Gialla

Chapter 29

March 2024

I woke up in a white-sheeted hotel bed that had certainly seen better days. The blankets were strewn about as if a life-and-death battle was going on in the night. Instead, the best sex of my life happened here a few hours ago. It was like we were made for each other, he knew exactly where to touch me, when to kiss me and what to say. And I was able to tell from his eyes what he likes and what I can leave out next time. It was simply a dream come true night in many ways.

I turned on my side and supported my head with my hand. I looked at the sleeping Charles, at his perfect angelic face, messy hair, long dark eyelashes, and parted full lips. I slid my gaze to his bare back and trailed my gaze down his spine to his exposed firm ass. I breathed out quietly. "Are you enjoying what you see?" Charles smirked and opened one eye. I flinched a bit in shock, but then smiled and grunted in agreement. He looked at me, his eyes shining as usual. I reached out to perform my favorite cheek-caressing ritual and then snuggled up to him like he was a big teddy bear and closed my eyes for a little while longer.

"Thank you for the dress. They're beautiful," I said to Charlie when we finally got out of bed before lunch and I noticed a pile of sparkly red fabric on the floor. "A dress is just a dress. You're beautiful," he blurted out as if that wasn't one of the nicest things a guy could say to you. "You should get ready soon," he called to me from the bathroom with a mouth full of toothpaste. "Why?" I asked confused.

"I have planned an exciting afternoon for us." Through the crack in the door I could see him slyly squinting.

"What afternoon?"

"Exciting," he repeated without giving me any further details.

"No, I'm definitely not doing this," I crossed my arms over my chest and dug my heels into the warm light sand. He took me to the beach about an hour outside of Melbourne and thought it would be a great idea. "You can't be that much worse than me," he tried to boost my confidence as he slipped into a tight wetsuit. He finally managed to pull it over his shoulders as he bent down to the bench and threw a similar garment at me. I grabbed it in my hands and shook my head violently. "There..." I dramatically pointed to the restless sea. "...you'll never get me there."

"You look ridiculous," I laughed as I lay on my stomach on my purple surfboard and Charles slapped himself very inelegantly into the water for about the seventieth time. "Maybe you could stop laughing at me and try standing up instead," he scolded me as he swam closer to me. "No," I protested again. "Come on. We practiced it for about an hour. You can do it." He gave me his dazzling smile and waited patiently for me to finally make up my mind. "Okay. But when I drown, I want everyone to know it's your fault," I grumbled. "Good. I'll take all the blame," he smirked.

"There you go. I knew you would be good," he hugged me and patted me on the back like a proud boyfriend. "Those are a bit strong words," I disagreed. To say that I was good was really an exaggeration. I managed to stay on my feet for a total of about 20 seconds, and that's only if we add all the two-second intervals together. I was only reassured by the fact that Charles was only slightly better. And unlike me, this wasn't his first experience with surfing. If I hadn't witnessed his efforts today, I would probably have to worry that he is really perfect in everything he does. Now I know that's not the case.

"When are we flying to..." I stopped and thought for a moment. Classically, I lost track of which Grand Prix was next.

"Japan," Charles smirked.

"Yes, exactly. When are we flying to Japan?"

He shrugged. "I thought we'd spend a few days here. The weather here is better, so I can train more with Andrea and we can fly to Japan later."

Filling the free time between races was still all Greek to me. Especially in races outside of Europe. I have never traveled so much and when I was studying in London, all I had to do was get on a plane and I was home in Italy in no time. This was all so new and so different that I still couldn't get my bearings and couldn't come to terms with the fact that I was so colossally useless.