Scarred till you

Chapter 9 - Jerrica

I was thinking about going out and checking out some of the sights around Atlanta. After getting ready, I opened the door to find Sean standing there, one hand raised, ready to ring the doorbell, and the other with a bouquet of beautiful wildflowers.

“Hi, great timing. I just wanted to drop these off. I saw them and thought of you. These are Georgia’s wildflowers. It was the only thing I could find that was almost as beautiful as you. My favorite has to be the Fire Pink” he said while smiling at me with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

“They are breathtaking Sean, thank you, and the smell is amazing. I will say you are wrong though; the flowers are definitely prettier than me. Crap, I don’t think I have a vase for them though.”

“Not a problem, I came prepared”. He ran back out to the truck and returned quickly with a beautiful lead crystal vase. “Here you go. They will look amazing in this."

He followed me into the house after taking the vase from him. I started the kitchen sink and got out the scissors to cut the ends. “You know, I am really doing OK on my own. You don’t need to keep checking on me”, I said while I arranged the flowers and put them in the middle of the kitchen table.

“I like looking after you, plus what are friends for?” he grinned at me.

This man was the real deal. Sweet, sexy, and the feelings he invoked in me. I swear I was feeling Cupid’s arrow hitting my heart.

“Looks like you were headed out. Did you have plans?” he asked while watching my every move.

“Not really. The house is in order. Everything is done here but I won’t start work for another week, so I thought I would take a drive around”, I told him, even though with him here now I had no desire to leave.

“I wanted to invite you over for a barbecue later tonight at my parents’ house. My mom took quite a shine to you. I will tell you upfront though that my sisters will all be there with their husbands and kiddos. It will be a full house.”

Considering the only people I really knew in town were him and his mom, it might be fun to meet his sisters I thought. “Sure, what time and what can I bring?”

“How about we spend the day together and then I will just take you over with me tonight. I would love to take you to one of my favorite spots. I think you will love it. Although you will probably want to change” he said as he reached up to push a strand of hair out of my face and tucked it behind my ear.

His touch sent an electrical current throughout my entire body and I could feel myself leaning into him before I stopped myself. His eyes never left mine as I asked, “what should I wear?”

“I would put on some jeans or shorts and maybe some hiking boots, if you have some, or tennis shoes.”

“What kind of gal do you take me for? No Montana girl would be caught dead without a pair of hiking boots in her closet. So I am guessing that you don’t think the skirt would cut it?” I replied while smoothing down the simple denim skirt that I had paired with a pink crepe blouse and a nice pair of pink sandals. I can’t believe here I am fishing for compliments. Damn Jerri, get your head on straight.

“Actually, I think you look beautiful, but where we are going, let’s just say you would be overdressed, and I would hate to have that outfit ruined. You could put it back on after we get back though", he replied with a mischievous gleam in his eye that wasn't to hard to discern.

I tore my gaze away from him as I headed to the bedroom to get changed. It only took me about 10 mins to come back out in a pair of shorts, tank top, hiking boots and my hair up in a ponytail. “Better?” I said as I grabbed my sweater and wrapped it around my waist. Living in Montana, I knew better than to leave home without one when going up the trails.

“For where we are going? Definitely. Come on, let's head” he said as he grabbed my hand and started pulling me towards the door.

I grabbed my purse and was able to let go of his hand so I could lock up the house. As soon as the door was shut, he grabbed my hand again and we walked to the truck like it was normal for him to hold my hand. He opened the door for me and I hopped in and got my seatbelt on before he got in the truck. Damn, the man was fine and as much as I loved drooling over his perfectly sculpted body, I had to remind myself that we could only be friends. Maybe I was being a little selfish wanting to spend time with him and I hoped he didn’t think I was leading him on, but it was hard to say no to him. I had a feeling he was used to getting what he wanted.

As we headed north out of town, I had to wonder where we were going, but having spent time with Sean before, I knew it was pointless to ask. He did tell me to put on my hiking boots, so I knew we were going to be outside, and I couldn’t wait to get back to nature. That is one of the things I missed about Montana. I could hike up in the mountains and be alone with my thoughts and just recharge my soul when needed. I didn't think there was anything like that out here.

About a half an hour later, we pulled into a parking area and my gaze fell on a log building. “This is one of my favorite trails. I come up here when I need to get away from everything and want to lose myself for a little while”, he said while reaching over to put his hand on my thigh for just a moment before pulling it back to shut the truck off.

Getting out of the truck, I looked around at the pure beauty of the area. It was so hard to believe we were only about a half hour from Atlanta and all the hustle and bustle. It was pristine and the only thing that alluded to it being so close to Atlanta was the traffic you could here off in the distance. It was like a little piece of paradise, and I couldn’t wait to explore it.

“This is the visitors' center. It was originally built by a prominent attorney in the 30s and, after changing hands a few times, it is now the Visitors Center. They have a few different trails, so everyone can enjoy it. I figured I would take you on the North trail today.” He grabbed my hand as we started to head to the trail-head.

As we walked leisurely along the trail, my eyes took everything in. There was no rush and Sean let me set the pace. The river could be heard in the distance along with other people outside enjoying what nature had to offer, but I was in a world all to myself as I felt the calm tranquility come over my body. “My father instilled a love of nature in me from the time I could walk. I love being outdoors and surrounded by trees, rivers, wild animals, and hell, even the insects” I laughed. “I seem to find peace when I am in the middle of the woods. It just seems to calm my spirit down” I whispered almost to myself.

“I can understand that. I think it gets me back to the basics. I don’t have to worry about jobs, responsibilities, or any of the other s**t life seems too through at me when I come out here. I can think more clearly without all the other crap muddling it up and it reminds me of what is really important in life” he said as he smiled down at me with a look of contentment.

My hand was still in his and I could feel him lean in ever so slightly, our eyes never breaking contact, and then his lips grazed so very lightly over mine. The butterflies in my stomach took off all at once with that one gentle touch of our lips. It was like nothing I had ever felt before.

What was happening to my no complicated planned life?