Love Immortal (17 page)

The piano player left for his third break.
Collin looked down at his watch. It was ten o’clock. He left his
untouched drink and a ten dollar bill on the table and walked
out.

He turned towards the Mississippi and started
walking not sure where he was going, though he knew where he wasn’t
going. Collin pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed his
uncle.

“Collin? Need a ride kid?”

“Nah. Listen, I think I’m just going to stay
in the city tonight. I’ll get a room at the Omni or something. Is
that okay with you?”

“Okay kid. I guess we’ll see you sometime
tomorrow then.”

“Thanks Uncle Percy. I knew you’d understand.
I should be home by lunch.”

“No problem. Have fun.”

He checked in at the Omni, and walked up to
his room. He flipped on the television and stripped down to his
underwear. He could buy a new outfit tomorrow. He lay down on the
bed and set his alarm for five thirty, he wanted to be at the
hospital when Jewell got off work, and went to sleep.

Collin was waiting outside the hospital when
Jewell and Ashley left from work. Ashley didn’t bother to ask
Jewell if she was going with her or Collin. She took Jewell’s bag
from her, gave her a brief hug, and walked to Jewell’s car to head
for home.

Collin held out his hand and Jewell took it
happily, ready for the tingle in her stomach that she got every
time she touched him. They walked hand in hand to his car. As
before, the perfect gentleman, he opened her door, waited for her
to get in, and shut the door with a smile. Then he walked around to
the driver’s side and got in.

“Ummm…I don’t want to be rude or weird or
anything, but…isn’t that the same thing that you were wearing last
night?” Jewell asked timidly.

“Not rude – true. I didn’t go home last
night. I thought we’d start the morning out with some shopping.
How’s that sound?”

“Um, fine, I guess. I’m not a really big
shopper.”

“Neither am I” he said excitedly. “This
should be fun.”

“Well, the stores aren’t going to open for…”
he glanced at his watch, “about three more hours. How does
breakfast sound?”

“Sounds good. Beignets and coffee?”

“Of course.” He turned and smiled at her. His
smile sent a pleasant shiver through her body.

They drove to the Omni hotel, where Collin
parked his car. “Why are we here?” Jewell asked, a little nervous
about being at a hotel with a man.

“This is where I stayed last night, which is
why I need some clothes. I didn’t feel like going home, so I just
stayed in town.”

“Oh, I see.”

He got out of the car and walked around to
the passenger door. He opened it, and held out his hand to help her
out. She took it hesitantly. They walked through the lobby and onto
the street towards Café du Monde.

After breakfast, they started walking towards
Canal. By the time they reached Canal Street, the stores were just
starting to open. Jewell stared. She was definitely out of her
element. As a general rule, she shopped at Wal-Mart or Target if
she was looking for something really nice.

They started at Banana Republic where Collin
bought himself a gray t-shirt, a pair of jeans, socks, and
underwear. He didn’t bother to try anything on. After he had paid,
he took her over to the women’s clothes where he picked out four
tops, two pairs of slacks, a pair of jeans, and a pair of strappy
flat sandals.

“Oh, I…um, I can’t afford these.” She told
him, a little embarrassed.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s on me.”

“I…can’t.”

“You can, and you will.” He bought her
everything. Next, he took her to Francesca's Collections. There he
bought her three shirts and a pair of pants. He tried to take her
into Ann Taylor, but Jewell refused.

“Collin, this is really nice, but…well, you
hardly know me.”

“I know your soul, and I know that our souls
belong together.” He took her hands. “I’ve never felt like this
about anyone Jewell. I’m so worried I’m going to lose you.”

“You won’t, not if I can help it.”

He gave her a quick hug, and took her hand.
They walked back to the hotel. “Hey, I’ve got to shower and change
out of these clothes. You’re welcome to come up with me, or you can
wait down here if you prefer. I don’t want to make you feel
pressured or anything.”

Jewell looked at the comfortable chairs in
the hotel lobby. She would be comfortable there, that would
probably be the best thing to do. Her father would kill her if he
found out she had gone up to a hotel room with a guy. Even worse,
he would probably kill Collin despite her being twenty-one. She
paused for only a moment, and then followed him to the
elevator.

In his room, she stood uncomfortably in the
doorway.

“Don’t worry, I promise, you are perfectly
safe.” He took her hand and led her over to a chair and gently sat
her down. He grabbed the remote for the TV and flipped it on, then
handed her the remote. He took his Banana Republic bag into the
bathroom and shut the door.

Jewell sat, uncomfortably, on the edge of the
chair. She flipped through the channels once, and finally settled
on The Powerpuff Girls. She heard the shower turn on in the
bathroom. She tried not to think about what he looked like standing
in the shower.

After about fifteen minutes, Collin emerged,
freshly shaven, wearing his new outfit. He looked stunning. He ran
his hand over his head like he was pushing his hair away from his
face, as if from habit, then grabbed the towel and rubbed his close
cut hair dry.

After he was finished, he brushed his teeth
and turned to look at Jewell. “I guess it’s about time to get you
home. You look like you’re about to fall asleep in that chair.”

“No, I’m fine.” She tried to stifle a
yawn.

“No, I need to get you home, and I probably
better check in with my uncle.” He walked over to the chair where
she was sitting. He held out his hands and pulled her up. He
wrapped his arms around her and held her, gently against his body.
Her head only came up to his chest. She turned her head and laid it
on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.

Too soon, he let go. He placed his hand under
her chin and looked into her eyes. “Would it…I mean, well, would it
be okay if I kissed you?”

She couldn’t answer. She only nodded her
head, barely able to move it against his hand under her chin. He
slowly bent down, watching her eyes as he lowered his lips to hers.
At first, the kiss was gentle, hesitant. His lips gently pushed
against hers, their soft warmth radiating through her. He let his
lips leave hers, but kept his mouth so close that she could still
feel his breath as it came in quick pulls.

She could barely breathe. She wanted more, it
wasn’t enough. She had to feel more of him. As if hearing her
thoughts, he pushed his lips against hers again, this time, harder,
with more certainty. She pushed herself against him hungrily. Her
mouth, moving with his was so natural, so perfect. His hand moved
down her body, pulling her hard against him. Before she knew it,
she was laying on her back, on the bed, his fingers moving down her
hips, her hands tangled in his hair, pulling him closer.

Suddenly, he stopped. He stood up quickly,
wiping his lips with the back of his hand. “I’m sorry.” He turned
from her, unable to face her. “I’m so sorry. I should…I really
think I need to take you home now.” He walked toward the door and
opened it, waiting for her to follow.

Jewell pushed herself up on her elbows on the
bed and looked at Collin standing in the open door. He wouldn’t
look at her; he kept his eyes focused in her direction, but not on
her. She stood up. “Did I do something wrong?” She asked
hesitantly.

“No, I just can’t. I can’t get too close,
I…C’mon. I’ll take you home.”

Jewell walked slowly past him as she walked
out the door. She felt the heat of his body, radiating toward her.
She felt the pull of his body against hers. She turned, moving her
hand up to touch his face. He grabbed her wrist. “No,” he said.
“You don’t understand.”

“Then explain it to me.”

“I can’t. I don’t understand either.”

He closed the door and turned his back on her
as he started walking down the hall.

Collin was silent, the whole ride home. At
first, Jewell tried to ask questions, to try to find out what was
wrong. She gave up when he refused to answer; his brooding face
looking only at the road ahead.

At Jewell’s house, ever the gentleman, Collin
got out of the car and walked around to open Jewell’s door. She
took his hand, held it, not wanting to let go. “I will see you
again.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement that she thought,
if she said it out loud might make it true.

Collin pulled his hand to her lips, turned it
palm up, and kissed her wrist. He dropped her hand and walked
around the car, got in and drove away without answering.

Chapter 21

Jewell walked into her bedroom. She sat down
on her bed, her back against the wall. What had just happened? It
seemed to be something about the kiss that bothered him. She had
liked it. In fact, she had really liked it. She had kissed guys
before, but she had never imagined that it could feel like that.
The fire that she felt when he touched her, the fire that burned
and tingled throughout her body, was intensified. The difference
was like comparing a single match to the fireworks display at the
White House. The feelings that she had for him, the longing was so
strong at that moment, when his lips were on hers that she couldn’t
concentrate on anything else. It was total bliss. It was what she
thought heaven must feel like.

But what had gone wrong? Did she do something
she shouldn’t have? She didn’t have a lot of experience in this
type of thing; maybe something she did wasn’t right. Maybe what she
felt wasn’t the same as what he felt. Maybe when he kissed her, he
realized that his feelings for her weren’t as strong as he had
first thought. She closed her eyes, resting her head on her knees,
trying to imagine what went wrong.

She awoke to voices. She hadn’t even realized
that she had fallen asleep. She lifted her head and felt a shooting
pain race through her neck and down her back because of the
position in which she had slept. She slowly stretched out her legs,
feeling her knees pop. She stood up, arching her back, and rolling
her head, while she tried to hear the voices on the other side of
the door. It was two men; probably her dad and one of his buddies
from the firehouse. She glanced at the clock. It was almost nine.
She was shocked that she had slept for that long, she really was
tired. She guessed that there had been a game on TV or something,
or maybe some of the guys came over for a game of poker.

She sat back down on her bed and picked up a
book she had been reading. Twilight. It was the typical story about
star crossed lovers and unrequited love. A hundred year old vampire
had fallen in love with a human girl. Jewell wondered if at the
end, the girl would choose to become a vampire, to live with her
love forever. She read a couple of chapters and set the book down.
Could she give up everything, for someone she loved?

It didn’t sound like her dad’s friends would
be leaving anytime soon, and she was hungry, so she figured she
would just have to go out there. She didn’t like hanging around
when her dad’s friends were there. They always talked about things
she had no interest in, and tried to include her in the
conversation to be polite. Oh well, maybe she’d just make a
sandwich and come back to her room.

When she opened the door, she paused. She
recognized both voices. The first was her dad, but the second voice
was unexpected. She cocked her head to listen, to make sure she
wasn’t mistaken. She walked back into her room and looked out the
window. As she suspected, in the driveway sat a silver corvette.
She went back to the door and opened it, trying to hear the
conversation going on in the kitchen.

“Yes sir. We’ve been living in Louisiana for
about two years now. Our house is south of New Orleans, near
Houma.”

“So what do you do?” Her father was obviously
making sure that the man she brought home wasn’t a slacker. Her
father didn’t trust anyone who wasn’t willing to work.

“Well sir, I recently completed my bachelor’s
degree at Oxford University in England. I was considering
continuing my education, perhaps pursuing my PhD and finding a
position as a professor at a University.”

“That’s impressive. What does your father
do?”

“”Well, he’s a dual M.D., PhD. He practices
some, but for the most part he performs research. He’s interested
in cures for genetic mutations and anomalies.”

Jewell heard her father grunt. She knew this
meant that he was impressed, but not yet convinced.

“And what are your intentions with my
daughter?” This was what Jewell had been waiting for. She knew it
was coming, but she had hoped she had missed it. She quickly walked
to the kitchen to interrupt the conversation.

“Morning dad.” She was looking at Collin. His
eyes met hers, but then he looked at his hands, folded neatly on
the kitchen table in front of him. “I see you’ve met Collin.”

“Yes. He came by to see you, but since you
were asleep, I didn’t want to wake you. I invited Collin in to wait
until you woke up. He’s only been here about forty-five minutes.
We’ve had a nice conversation.” He looked markedly at Collin.
Jewell briefly wondered what her father had said to him before she
had started her eavesdropping. From the flush in Collin’s cheeks,
she assumed it hadn’t been mere pleasantries.

“Well,” her father said, pushing himself up
from the table. “I guess I’ll leave you kids alone.” He looked at
Jewell pointedly. “I’ll be right here in the living room, on the
couch, reading.”