Memories never to share

Jane’s POV

He didn’t wait for a response before pulling me with him away from the beach. He was running and so was I, my feet hitting the ground, the sand gliding off underneath them.

Mr. Cooper held me firmly enough that I wasn’t going to fall. But even if I didn’t feel the light squeeze on my wrist, I would still have trusted him with my life.

I should be ashamed of myself. Yet, I felt none of those emotions.

He tripped over his long legs near the entrance of the beach and brought me along with him, tumbling into the sand. The laugher from the depths of his stomach was unexpected, and it made me laugh too.

My shoulders bobbed with every movement. My eyes stung from how hard I laughed. There was nothing funny, yet I felt so light. So alive.

“Let’s blame the beer,” he laughed as he got on his feet, stretching his hand to me. I took them, the giggle still on my tongue.

“You haven’t even been drinking.”

He pointed to the forgotten bottle in my hand. “We don’t need to drink it to be high.”

It made no sense. One look at those dark eyes and I knew he was messing around. I hit him on the chest playfully, and he pushed back a little, a twinkle in his eyes. He held out his hand again, and I took it.

The streets were quiet. I was still barefoot. I needed to think about blisters, but how could I when everything felt so perfect right now? The streets had more colors in the night, and Mr. Cooper was still holding on to my hand.

“There,” he muttered, pointing to the high crucifix hanging bold in the skies. We were standing in front of a museum that looked like a cathedral, the stained glass looking breathtaking even in the night. The streetlights bounced off the walls, creating an ethereal look.

“It’s so beautiful,” I whispered, looking up at it.

“Wait till you get inside.”

He tugged me again, and soon, we were crossing the street, walking up the cobblestone steps. He brought out a single key from his pocket, and I narrowed my eyes.

“Mr. Cooper, did you steal that?” Now that I thought about it, I saw no security around. A museum this delightful, the place would ordinarily be crawling with uniformed and plain-clothed officers.

“Steal?” The doors groaned as he pushed them open, a testament to their age. “Coopers don’t steal, Jane. We take.”

“Oh.” It was dark inside, huddled items pushed into corners, making it look scary. A sudden flick echoed softly beside me, filling the space with a dim light.

“Come.”

He took my hand again, leading me to the centre of the room. I looked at the paintings on my sides until I stopped, finally realizing why I was here.

“It’s breathtaking,” I breathed, staring at the wooden work of a woman standing in front of a beach. There was a shadow behind her. It was meant to be obscure, but the woman knew who he was. She was relaxed in his presence.

Like me.

He nodded slowly. “It belongs to my family. An ancestor whom I really can’t bother to remember right now. But she looks a lot like you.”

I turned to face him. “Because of the beach?”

“No, Joan. Because you are too trusting. Because you seem to have a lot on your mind. Because I am interested in knowing who made you think it is okay for you to feel invincible.”

That feeling returned. The chill, despite the fact that the heating system was on. “I’m not trusting,” I laughed awkwardly, seeing how I was in a museum with a man I didn’t know. “I’m just…”

“Exhausted?”

“No.” My voice was hushed, and in that moment, I wondered if I was trying to convince myself so badly. “Just exhausted. It’s been a long day.”

He nodded slowly. I could still feel those dark eyes on me, as if trying to read into my mind. For the umpteenth time, I reminded myself that I needed to leave.

“Is this …”

“You are not invincible, Jane.” I had no idea when he drew this close. I turned to face him, fighting the chill so hard. “When you get back to your life, remember that. Even if you hide under a rock, you are still not invincible.”

The words were on my lips. I wanted to tell this stranger about how I thought my husband had fallen out of love with me. How I thought he was cheating on me with his secretary, even though he’d never admitted it. How my home had become so silent. A mixture of beauty and quiet.

An odd quiet.

But suddenly, the lights went out, and darkness snuck in. Still, I didn’t move, almost like I knew what was going to happen. Hours later, I would think of the many ways I could have stopped it. Because my pulse raced so fast. Because I found it hard to breathe.

His warm breath teased my face when he stepped closer, when his fingers pinched my chin delicately, gearing me to look up at him. His eyes shone in the dark, and without thinking, I raised my hand, bringing my fingers to his hair.

A shaky sigh left my lips as he took an impossible step closer. He looked at me dead in the eye, as if giving me the chance to run off.

The last chance.

I should have taken it.

I was glad I didn’t,

Because I stood on my toes in the dark, meeting him halfway. His lips met mine, uncertain at first. We pulled away for a second, shocked at the passion that seared through me. And then, in another second, his lips were on mine again.

Mr. Cooper took, not because it was handed over to him, but because he knew I wanted it. And I let him. One hand snaked around my waist, and the other was buried in the silky strands of my hair.

I drank him in with everything I had in me. I clung to his shirt, not trusting my jelly legs to hold me up much longer. He prodded gently until my lips fell wider apart. I sighed into his mouth when our tongues met, and a moan escaped my lips when my back hit the pillar.

He held both my hands above my head, trapping me in the heat of his presence.

But as his hand moved to my side, the lights in my head seemed to turn on in that moment.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, pulling away from him. He let me go, watching from the same spot as I raced towards the door.

The last thing I heard before I went out into the night was his name.

Orion.