radicalducati 120. Gracious Guest
120. Gracious Guest
EMMA's POV :
Elliott wants to send me a message?
I had not spoken to Elliott in a long while. The last time we spoke was maybe a year ago, right after he got back to Paris. Looking back, I realized I was a horrible girlfriend to Elliott. He gave everything up in his life to be with me, and I couldn't love him the way he deserved.
After he went back, Ian and I got back together. Elliott asked me how I was doing and I thought he deserved to know the truth. So, I told him everything. I told him about Ian and how he was the reason why I could never fully love someone else. Elliott was surprisingly very kind and supportive when I told him that I was back with Ian. And then he told me about his life and how he got a job teaching in Nice. But that was it, that was all we talked about and we never spoke again since.
What does he want to tell me now?
Curiosity got the best of me. It was late at night and I should be asleep, but instead, I opened his message.
Hi Emma,
How are you? I hope you are doing well. I've seen your updates and I saw that you are in Florence right now.
I'm sending you this message because I want to let you know that I will be getting married next week. Since you are nearby (I count Italy as being close enough), I want to invite you to come to our wedding.
Date: Saturday, July 14, 2021
Place: Hôtel de la Fontaine Nice France
Time: 5 PM
Click here to RSVP.
Anyway, I really hope you can make it. It'd be great to catch up.
Cheers,
Elliott.
Oh. Elliott was getting married? Well, that was unexpected. If I wasn't sleepy before, I was definitely wide awake now. Don't get me wrong, I was happy for Elliott. He was such an amazing person, he deserved the very best.
But there's just something about your ex getting married before you that makes you think stupid thoughts like... why is he getting married first? Would I be married to him right now if things had worked out between us?
"Baby girl, it's late. Go to sleep," Ian murmured and stirred in his sleep.
I thought he was fast asleep, but apparently not. With his eyes half closed, he took my phone and put it away. Then he wrapped his arms around me again and pulled me closer to his chest.
"No good thoughts come at 2 AM. Sleep," he ordered.
"Okay, okay," I breathed and snuggled into his chest.
Ian was right. Staying up late with my stupid thoughts wasn't gonna do me any good. So, I let his warm embrace took over me, closed my eyes, and drifted into sleep.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The next morning, I opened my eyes to see Ian already awake. Normally, when he was up first, he would kiss me good morning when I got up. But he was too engrossed in something else this morning. My phone.
"Ian...? What are you doing?" I croaked.
With a stoic look on his face, he held my phone up to my face and said, "This was why you were up all night? You were talking to this guy?"
I rolled my eyes and sighed. Grabbing the phone back, I told him, "First of all, I wasn't talking to Elliott. He sent me a message and I read it, that's it," I paused for a moment to gauge his reaction and said, "Second of all, Ian, are you jealous?"
"No," he scoffed. He said no, but his eyes said another thing.
Reaching out for his face, I cupped his cheek with my hand and said, "He's getting married in a week, and I'm here with you. You have no reason to be jealous of Elliott,"
Ian let out a sigh, but he was still sulking a little. He pretended to act all cool, but I could taste the bitterness in his words when he asked, "Do you guys still talk a lot?"
"No," I replied firmly.
"Why is he inviting you to his wedding then?"
"Because he saw that I'm in Florence and Nice is only a few hours drive away,"
"Do you wanna go to his wedding?" he asked.
That was the thing that I was thinking about last night as I fell asleep. Honestly, it wouldn't be so bad if we go. I wanted to be there for Elliott. For what it's worth, I did care about him, and I wanted to support him.
"Can we? It's on Saturday. We could leave in the morning and maybe stay one night?" I asked him. "Nice is beautiful, you'd love the place,"
"So, it's true? You do wanna go to the wedding?" Ian asked back.
"Just as a supportive ex-girlfriend. Nothing more," I said calmly. "And I'd love it if you would be my plus one,"
Ian looked reluctant. He narrowed my eyes at me and said, "Are you sure, you really wanna go?"
"Yeah!" I beamed and nodded my head in excitement. "We can dress up a little. Dance a little. It's gonna be great,"
Ian let out a long sigh and said, "Fine, if that's what you wanna do. I guess we're going to France,"
"Oh, it'll be fun. We can take a little road trip," I said as I hugged him tight. "A honeymoon within our honeymoon,"
For some reason, Ian still had a glint of worry in his eyes. So, I linked my arms around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss.
"Hmm... Speaking of honeymoon..." he murmured into my lips.
I opened my eyes to see him smirking that mega-watt smile. The Ian I know and love was back. With a playful smile, Ian flipped our bodies over in one swift move. With my hands above my head, I was completely pinned down underneath him. Then and without warning, he leaned down and his lips began attacking the sweet spot on my neck.
"Ian, you're insatiable!" I laughed as I felt his length harden, pressed against my stomach.
"You say it like it's a bad thing," he chuckled lowly to my ear.
Dang, just the sound of his voice was enough to send shivers up and down my spine!
Not wanting to let him have it so easily, I decided to tease him a little. Using all my strength, I pushed him back on the bed and squirmed away. Laughing and giggling as I did.
"You little minx," he snarled playfully. "Come here you,"
Ian grabbed me before I could leave the bed and tossed me back down. My stomach was flat against the bed. He sat on top of me, holding my legs in place with his weight. With both hands, he captured my hands and pinned them around my waist.
"Aw!" I yelped and mewled. Ian responded by tickling and spanking my butt lightly.
"Ha ha ha!" I squirmed and I couldn't help the laughs coming out of me. "Stop, you're ticklish!"
"You're the one that wants to play dirty," he said lowly to my ears.
* SMACK! *
And he smacked my ass again, this time harder and rougher than before. I could only flinch and gulp in anticipation. That warm feeling in my stomach was starting to build and there was no escaping him now.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
- - - One Week Later - - -
It was Saturday morning, the day of Elliott's wedding. Ian and I got early and piled our bags into Mr. Rossi's red convertible. We were going to get a rental car, but Mr. Rossi was kind enough to let us borrow his car instead. He said he wasn't using it today anyway.
So, by 8 AM that morning, we set out on our drive to Nice. I checked Google maps, and the drive should take us about 5 hours. The best part about it though was that we would be driving along the Italian and France southern coast. Yes, we would be driving next to the ocean.
I had never seen a more beautiful road to drive on.
The day started out amazing. Ian and I got our coffee before the road and we put on some road trip music to help set the mood. The sun was shining warm and bright, so we decided to put the roof down and we just took in the wonderful fresh air, letting the breeze blow over our hair. The best part though, was that every time I looked to my side, I could see Ian's gorgeous face under those sunglasses with the wind blowing on his hair.
Dang, he looked so cool!
After about three hours of driving, we took a pit stop to fill up the gas and get some lunch. We stopped by this restaurant by the beach. It was such a lovely place. Sometimes I still couldn't believe that this was reality - that Ian and I were in southern Europe living life like nomads, like we were wild and free.
I thought living in our little apartment in New York City was the highlight of our relationship, but this just took things to a whole new level.
After lunch, we drove again for another two hours and we finally arrived in Nice. We had a few hours to kill before the wedding reception, and none of us were tired at all, so we decided to go sightseeing.
Ian was ecstatic to visit Musée Matisse, a museum that held a lot of Matisse's artworks. If he was reluctant about taking this trip before, he was absolutely overjoyed about it now. I always liked watching him geeking out about art. It was like seeing a kid in a candy store.
I love how passionate he is about art. His passion is contagious!
I realized that since I got back together with Ian, my creative juices were flowing like never before. He was always creating art and I found that so intriguing, so I started experimenting with creating things on my own, which was how I started writing about our story. I didn't know where this story would lead us, but I was excited to live it and find out.
He made me feel alive and excited about being alive.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
After spending an hour or so in the museum, we went to the hotel to check in and get dressed for the party. I wore a simple silk light blue dress and let my long hair curled loosely on the bottom. Ian wore a simple white dress shirt, a tie, and a black suit to match.
When we arrived at the wedding venue, the sun was hanging low as it was about to set. The wedding was being held at this outdoor garden overlooking the ocean. White linens and flowers were adorning the chairs and tables. The sky was a gorgeous hue of blue and purple. It was probably the most beautiful wedding reception venue I had ever laid my eyes on.
"Wow..." I gaped.
"You feeling okay?" Ian asked cautiously.
"Uh-huh," I nodded my head. "Of course,"
Ian and I were then led to our seats. My eyes wandered around the venue and I still couldn't get over how beautiful everything was. I had been through the wedding drill before, so I knew how hard it was to make something as beautiful as this happen. Everything was picked out meticulously and everything in this place looked... perfect.
Standing at the end of the garden and under the flower arch was Elliott in his all white tuxedo suit. Our eyes met for a second and we smiled at each other. Elliott looked so happy and I was glad for him. I felt nothing but joy because he truly deserved this. But for some unknown reason, a small part of me, a really small part of me, felt a little knot in my chest.
I decided to ignore that knot, whatever that was. I kept my smile and continued enjoying the wedding reception. And suddenly, the string quartet started playing a soft tune and everyone turned their heads around. I followed suit and I saw the bride standing at the other end of the path with her father holding her hand.
She looked exquisite. Her dress was amazing. She looked at Elliott and smiled brightly and Elliott smiled right back at her. She then turned to her father and they started walking down the aisle. Her father was holding back his tears as they walked closer and closer to the altar.
And then the knot in my heart grew tighter and tighter. Before I could stop myself, tears began to trickle down my face.
"Emma?" Ian turned to me and handed me his handkerchief. "Baby, why are you crying?"
"Nothing, it's just... such a... beautiful wedding," I replied in between sobs. I didn't know how, but my words sounded bitterer than I had expected.
Ian took my hand and squeezed it tight. I looked up at him with a sad smile and asked, "Do you think we'll ever have what they have?"
I didn't mean the question to sound so sad, but it sounded depressing as it left my mouth. Ian let out a deep sigh and raked his hair with his hand.
"See, this is why I didn't wanna come," he muttered under his breath. "I knew you'd get emotional,"
"I just... I really want it..." my voice came out in breaths, almost like a nonexistent whisper.
I didn't know what else to say, so I just put my head down and wiped the tears with my hand. Ian was quiet too. For a long while, we just sat there in awkward silence as we heard the officiant talking in French, probably about to officiate the wedding.
"Come on, let's just go," Ian said suddenly, whispering to my ear.
"But..."
"I'm not gonna sit here and just watch my baby cry," he said softly and wiped the last tear that fell with his thumb. Lending out his hand, he said again, "Come with me,"
- - - - - To Be Continued - - - - -