Love and Truth (28 page)

“
Shhh,
it’s okay. I’ll be good now, I promise. But I had to check.”

I gaped at him. “You had to check what? Check if you could make your date pass out from a panic attack?”

“No, I had to check for myself to see if you had panties on.”

I cocked my head at him. “You could’ve just asked. You nearly gave me a heart attack.”

He reached out and glided his fingers through a few strands of my hair before tucking it behind my ear.

“But it was much more fun my way.”

“You’re insane, you know that?” I finally took a sip of my blueberry soda and started eating. A boyish grin spread over his face as he watched me eat.

“Insane for you, sweetheart.”

We laughed and I shook my head.

“This is really good,” I said, smiling. Everything tasted so fresh and crisp. As sweet as it all looked, it was surprisingly light; not at all heavy on the sugar. I loved it and thanked him for sharing it with me.

In my mind, the idea of a date was always about having dinner and seeing a movie. My first date couldn't have been farther from that. We went to the American Village in Chatan. It was the same area where Emiko took me to the arcade and mall. I didn't tell him I had already been here, since he seemed so excited to take me. Emiko explained to me that it was called American Village because of the many Americanized eateries in the area, such as Starbucks, A&W, Baskin Robbins and Tony Roma’s. We pulled into the parking lot and I scanned the area noticing how different it looked at night. There were so many bright lights and the huge ferris wheel that I marveled at last time was lit up with bright, fun colors. Jonathan ran around and opened my door after parking.

“I have a few things here I want to show you. Come on.” He wore a boyish grin. He seemed different tonight, overly happy. I loved knowing that being with me could make him so happy. I hoped he was leading me to the ferris wheel, but he guided me in the opposite direction.

”I love it down here,” I said. “All the lights and commotion is exciting.”

We walked along the sidewalk and I heard live music from somewhere. There was also a small crowd of people ahead of us.

”Are we going to see a band or something?” I asked.

”No, but that sounds fun,” he laughed. “We should do that sometime. What you hear is a street performer. It's sanshin music. The sanshin is an instrument indigenous to Okinawa. It resembles a banjo, but the body of it is covered in snakeskin. It has a really unique sound. I love it because my grandfather would play the sanshin for me as a kid.”

We approached the crowd and weaved through the bodies to get a closer look. We finally saw a youngish Japanese guy sitting on a stool playing the banjo-looking instrument. The sound was so interesting and different. I did love it. It was like nothing I heard before. On the ground at the foot of his stool was a stack of CDs and a donation hat.

”Are those CDs of his music?” I asked Jonathan.

”Yes, lots of the different street performers sell their work out here. There are street vendors as well that sell all sorts of trinkets. Do you want one of the CDs?”

I smiled at him. “Yes, I do.”

“He reached in his pocket and pulled out a few yen, placing it in the hat. He grabbed one of the CDs and handed it to me. “Here you go, babe. Now you’ll always have the sound of Okinawa to listen to.”

He guided me out of the crowd and we strolled along the sidewalk. We passed many vendors and one caught my eye.

”Wow, what are all of those?” I pointed to a table full of beautiful glass objects.

“It’s blown glass. Glass blowing is a traditional handicraft of Okinawa.”

“I love the look of it.”

“Would you like to pick to one out?” he asked. I already had the CD and didn’t want to be greedy. “No that’s okay. I just like admiring the look of them.” He smiled seductively.

“Well, usually when I admire the way something looks I don’t stop until it’s mine,” he whispered. There was nothing he wouldn’t say to me.

“Well, I prefer to shop around just to make sure I’m not missing out on something better.”

“Really, well I’ll just have to make sure that what’s in front of you only gets better and better, till everything else pales in comparison.”

He gripped my hand as we crossed the street away from the crowd.

“How are your feet feeling in those shoes with all of this walking?”

“They’re okay I guess. I didn’t expect to be walking this much tonight or I would’ve worn flats, but I’m fine.” It was sweet of him to ask, but I thought it was funny at the same time.

He placed his hand at the small of my back and guided me toward a building I didn’t recognize. We walked off to the side of it and I saw running water flowing out of a brick wall. There were tiny individual waterfalls lined in the wall. It was odd to be sitting out here like this.

“Come over here. I want to show you something.” He pulled me toward the waterfalls. “Right over there is Terme Villa Chula-U.” He pointed to the big building to the side of us. “It’s a bath house and spa. They use natural hot springs. The water coming from these fountains is from natural springs as well. The spring water has natural health benefits and it’s supposed to reenergize tired muscles.”

We walked closer and he knelt down in front of me. My face flushed as my eyes darted around, embarrassed that he was doing this in public.

“Lift your foot, sweetheart.”

I lifted my foot and he gently pulled off my shoe, then he pulled off my other shoe. We got a few random stares from passersby’s and he noticed my apprehension.

“Stop worrying about what other people think. Now sit down, right here on the ledge, and put your foot down into the water. You’ll love it. It feels amazing.” He set my shoes down beside me and started removing his shoes and socks. He rolled up his pant legs and sat down next to me, placing his feet in the water with me. I was expecting cool water, but it was warm to the touch and felt wonderful. The sound of the falling water was equally relaxing. He splashed his feet toward me and grinned like a kid.

“Hey, don’t you dare get me all wet in this dress, mister.”

He leaned in to me and kissed my shoulder softly. “I love your smile, Nicole. Your entire face lights up, but it’s even more beautiful when I know I had something to do with it. I hope I get to make you smile for a very long time.”

He looked at me and back to the water. He reached over with his foot and our feet intertwined with each other in the warm water. He brought his arm up around me and we sat silently, listening to the water fall down before us. It was such a simple moment, but for some reason it felt profound.

“When I was little, my mom would bring me here sometimes. She told me a story about her and my dad; they were on a date once and he was being silly, swinging her around to the music of street performers. She stepped on him by accident, crushing his toe with her shoe. He was wearing flip-flops, so she said it really hurt even though he tried to blow it off. She walked him over here and told him about the hot spring and they sat here together, soaking their feet. She said she would bring me here to feel closer to him and have a connection between the three of us.”

He pulled his feet from the water and spun around, and I did the same. I was quiet for a minute.

“Thank you for sharing memories with me that are important to you.”

He smiled softly. “You’re welcome. I never thought I could have what my dad had with mom, but meeting you has given me hope that I can.” He had a hopeful gleam in his eyes. He looked up in the opposite direction of where we were sitting. “We can sit here for a minute and let our feet dry out, but then we’re going up there.”

He pointed to the ferris wheel and I gasped. I was hoping he was going to take me on it while we were here.

“I hope you’re not afraid of heights.”

“Nope. I love theme parks and will ride anything, so a ferris wheel doesn’t faze me.“

He grabbed my shoes and held them out for me one by one as I slipped them back on. This night had been so unexpected; dessert for dinner, hot spring waterfall foot baths, and a ferris wheel ride.

“When we get to the top, you can see all over the island. It’s really beautiful at night with the lights of the city illuminated.”

We handed over our tickets and stepped into the car. He closed the door and we sat down. The ferris wheel had fully enclosed viewing cabins, as opposed to the open ones I was used to. The windows were large so we could see out perfectly. We started to move slowly.

“It takes about half an hour to make the complete circle,” he said, pulling me into him. He put his forehead to mine. The entire scene was romantic and intoxicating. We sat in our own tiny love bubble, floating above a beautiful tropical island. He leaned in and grazed his lips against mine.

“Tonight has been perfect,” he whispered and heat caressed my face. His hand reached around the back of my neck as he returned his lips to mine. His warm tongue slipped inside my mouth and I got lost in his kiss. He slid his hands down and cupped them underneath me, pulling me onto his lap so that I straddled him. My lips protested as he pulled away. He looked into my eyes passionately, reaching up and smoothing my hair back from each side of my face. A shiver ran through me and I twitched. I leaned forward and pressed my chest into his, trailing kisses up his neck to his earlobe. My tongue glided over it as I nibbled it with my teeth. He tensed under me and his hands skimmed down toward my backside. He gripped onto it firmly, pulling me closer. A moan escaped his lips and I heard him suck in a deep breath of air.

“Sweetheart, we’re going to have to put the brakes on this before I lose my mind. Your kisses and sexy body are driving me wild right now.” He said it in a feral tone and I melted. I ignored him and reached up, running my fingers through his hair and kissing his neck. He smelled of the ocean and cinnamon and I breathed in every ounce of him. He turned his head and our mouths met. My thighs scissored his legs and my body desperately wanted more. His hands moved up and gripped my hips, leaving a path of heat along my skin through the thin material of my dress. He pushed me firmly into his lap and I felt his need for me. My thighs clenched onto

him and I felt like I was going to implode. I writhed against him, curving my hips up, and a surge of heat ran through my veins. He hissed and I knew he was going mad, fighting his urge to take me right here right now. He retreated suddenly from our kiss, panting. He rested his forehead against mine, chest heaving.

“We have to stop, sweetheart. You’re killing me here.”

He gripped my waist and lifted me off of him, setting me down in my seat.

“I’m sorry for getting out of control like that, baby,” he continued, “but you’re just so damn irresistible. I can’t help myself sometimes, I want you so badly.”

“It’s okay. I liked it.”