Awakened

Twenty-Seven

The last few days have been nice. A father and son hired Beau to take them out on the sailboat. While he's been away all of my time has been spent with Sam and Thomas. Helping Cynthia and the other women on the board with the fundraiser has devoured most of our time, and I have been grateful for the distraction.

"Katherine, what do you think of these for the silent auction?" Cynthia asks as she holds up two crystal champagne flutes.

"I think they are perfect, we could package them with a bottle of Dom Perignon. The bidders would go nuts." I say in response. Cynthia beams.

"That is brilliant!" Her bright blue eyes sparkle as she speaks. "What would I do without you."

I have grown so fond of her after all this time spent together. She is truly remarkable. One look and you would think she is the average wealthy trophy wife, concerned only with keeping up appearances. This could not be farther from the truth. Her nature is kind, and her heart immense.

Sam rushes in carrying a box full of golden fabric swatches. "Got them!" she exclaims. "Giovanni said as long as you make your selections by tomorrow he can meet the deadline." Cynthia exhales loudly at Sam's statement, feeling relieved no doubt.

"Have you found a dress yet?" Cynthia asks me. I shake my head and frown. I have had absolutely no luck at any of the local shops. Sam found her's at a boutique, and I think that about cleaned out the area. This was one major downfall to receiving a last minute invitation. "Hm, how about you let me handle it?" her voice is sweet.

"I can't put that on you, there is so much left to get done. I can check out the next town over tomorrow." I am appreciative of her offer, but I don't want to be a burden.

She shakes her head, "I want to do it, please? We can get you measured at Giovanni's store." There is no way she is going to take no for an answer, and I can't help but smile.

I nod my head, and thank her again for being so kind to me. For a moment I had almost forgotten about the secrets lurking within the walls of her perfect life, but like always it creeps back into my mind. It no longer makes me sad, instead now I feel anger. Anger at Frederick for cheating on his amazing wife, and for allowing his son to live with keeping his dirty secret.

Giovanni's place is decorated immaculately. His taste is simple yet elegant, and I can't help but smile when he approaches me with outstretched arms. He hugs me tightly, and plants a kiss on each of my cheeks. "Come honey, into this room here." he ushers me to a curtained off room that looks to be used for fittings. He takes down all of my measurements using a fabric tape measure, and scribbles them down onto a small notepad.

We walk back out into the main area, and Giovanni turns his attention to Cynthia. "I'll make some calls, dear. It shouldn't be hard to get my hands on one! I'll call you when I know something." He wraps an arm around her shoulders and squeezes gently.

"I can always count on you." she regards him fondly. I thank him again as we leave. On the drive back to the condos Cynthia plays the radio loudly and we sing together. Shania Twain's Man! I Feel like a Woman blaring, the windows down, and sunroof open make for the perfect ending to our day.

When we arrive back to the Dalton's condo I help Cynthia bring a few things inside. Thomas jumps up to help, and takes the items from my arms. "Let me get that," he says warmly. Once the boxes are stacked onto the counter he turns back to me. "Can I take you somewhere tonight?" I can feel my cheeks blushing, and Cynthia looks at the two of us with pure joy. There is no way I can say no with her watching.

"Sure, that sounds nice. What did you have in mind?" I ask curiously, and he winks.

"It's a surprise." The twinkle in his eyes makes me giggle. "Do you need to run to your place for anything?" I should let Shelly know.

"I just need to tell my aunt, then we can go." I say.

"Oh you two go ahead. I was about to walk over there anyway, I'll let her know. Frederick is working late." She swats her hand towards the door playfully, "Go, go have fun."

Thomas' white Toyota 4runner pulls up to a small ticket booth and rolls down the window. "Two please." A friendly looking man greets us, and hands Thomas two orange tickets.

"What are we doing?" I ask excitedly. He pulls the SUV forward and a large white screen comes into view. "Is this a drive-in theater? I had no clue these still existed!!" I exclaim. There are cars parked in rows along the length of the screen. "What is playing?"

Thomas pulls into an open spot and puts the car in park. "You are probably going to think this is cheesy, but its Grease. You know, with John Travolta?" His voice is unsure, but I think this whole thing is adorable.

"No, I love it. I promise. This is amazing!" I say to reassure him. I mean it though, this is perfect. "Thank you for bringing me here." His smile warms my heart. He is so genuine, and I can't help the battle going on within my head.

You could never have this with Beau. He would never take you to a drive-in movie, especially not to see a classic chick flick.

"I'm going to run to the concession stand, have any requests?" he asks while exiting the car.

"Surprise me, you're good at that." My response makes his smile grow even larger. As I watch him walk towards the stand I realize how attracted to him I am. It is different than with his brother.

Beau brings something out of me I can only describe as pure primal attraction. The way my body craves his is overwhelming, and the only release for the ache is his touch. I thought it was all physical until he told me about his parents. Seeing the pain and hurt in his eyes... all I wanted to do was hold him. I wanted to take his hurt away. I don't think that I can though, I don't think he will let me.

Then there is Thomas. He is kind, genuine, and treats me amazingly. He is constantly showing me how he feels instead of making me guess. There are no games, just honesty and tenderness. Things would be easy with him.

He is handsome too. Without Beau around to distract me I am really seeing Thomas. When I look at him I see dinners and romantic dates to the drive-in theater. I can't help but smile.

"Hope you didn't miss me too much." He jokes as he slides back into the drivers seat. He holds up several candy bars and a large drink. "I settled on Sprite, but I just couldn't make up my mind on snacks." I laugh and take the Reeces from his hand.

The youthful innocence of what is happening between us is in direct contrast with what I've experienced with Beau. I look over at the boy sitting next to me. His blue eyes are shining.

"Thomas," I begin, "I'm really glad it's you here with me tonight."

"Me too." And he places his hand on my knee. The title credits begin to roll, and for the first time since arriving in Florida Beau Dalton is not on my mind.