Chapter 17

She must have been watching for him because he had barely pulled the vehicle over, parked it and come around to the gate before she came down the steps.

Gabrielle was in a white dress that skimmed her shapely figure and had him itching to find out what she wore beneath it. Her lightly tanned skin glowed with good health against the fabric. Her makeup was kept to a minimum which was sensible in this heat.

What was crazy was how just the vision of a little bit of her cleavage aroused him and it reminded him of his time in Japan. The culture was very conservative and wrists, ankles and even the back of the neck was considered very erotic.

Seeing her delicate collarbones made him want to place a ring of kisses around her throat and anywhere else she would allow him roam. The sight of the tops of her round breasts peaking a little above the white cotton dress had caused his body to stir and he was glad he wore his shirt over his pants to hide the way she was making his body react.

“You look lovely Gabrielle.” K.C. said his voice deeper than usual when she was seated, her jacket and a big tan hobo bag at her feet.

She loved the sound of her name coming off his lips, her body thrilling to his . Her nipples had hardened when she smelled his cologne and Rielle could feel his eyes on her behind the dark lenses of his glasses.

“You look pretty nice yourself.” She replied looking over at him in a short sleeved white Tommy Bahama button down shirt with khaki short pants and he had surprisingly nice looking long feet in dark brown thong sandals.  

He was very handsome in a white shirt with light blue floral pattern on the front panels made him look sophisticated and his thick sandy blond hair was brushed back and he had flipped his sunglasses on top of his head.

The air conditioning was on for which Gabrielle was thankful although she had a colorful silk scarf in her bag to protect her hair the air had stilled outside and she thought they might get some rain later in the evening .

“You know we look like a couple.” He said easily as he pulled away from her gate.

K.C. was not so focused on staying on the left that he didn't know how those words would go down with her.

Rielle nearly got whiplash as she turned to look at him in shock because she had thought it but would never have said it.

They were barely on their first date and he was using words like that already, either he was a really smooth playa who had all the words down pat and she needed to run as far and as fast as she could away from him. The other explanation was that he really felt what was going on between them and he wanted to explore it with her.

“When a man knows what he wants why should he beat around the bush?” He replied smiling at her shocked expression before he returned his attention to road.

Oh my, he’s talking about beating around the bush she thought immediately followed by girl get your mind out of the gutter.

“Do I get to have a say in this as the potential female partner?”  Was what she said huskily knowing she was busting his chops.  

Rielle’s heart was jumping in her chest as she looked at his strong profile and she held her breath as she waited for his response to her words.

“Just from talking with you last night and today I know you are the type of woman who is not only beautiful but has something going on behind those fabulous eyes. I haven’t met anyone like you ever Gabrielle and I think we would be special together.” K.C. said as he reached the stop light at the bottom of Mt. Elizabeth and turned his head to meet her eyes.

He seemed so certain that they could have a relationship after only knowing each other for such a short time that she believed it was possible too. He had done something that no man had been able to do in a long time which was engage her physically, emotionally as well as mentally. That had to count for something and she made the decision to see where this thing between them could go.

“I – I’m willing to give this a chance.” Gabrielle replied with a confident smile.

K.C. reached for her hand and she gave it to him and he gave her a squeeze. The cd he was playing was one of her favorites and they enjoyed the cool vibe as he drove and she pointed out some of the sights on the island.

It was really too early for her to be feeling so much for him but she got warm all over listening to him talk about them. She had had a few serious relationships but none of them had taken off so quickly and just from one really great conversation.

Rielle had begun dating at seventeen and her father and brother had vetted her boyfriends but her mother was usually the one who had the final say on the guys she went out with. The only one Magdalena hadn’t met was Jon who had been her college boyfriend and even though they had parted as friends Rielle knew the relationship had nowhere to go.

She wondered what her mother was going to think of K.C. and knowing Graham and Christopher Hall they would give him a hard time but they would do so only with her best interests in mind. The two men had been known to intimidate the most ardent suitors and only a few of the local guys had been brave enough to ask her on a date when they knew they had to pass inspection from the Hall men.

The biggest obstacle wouldn’t be the fact that K.C. was white she knew, but the fact that he did not live permanently on the island and the thought gave her a moment’s pause until he glanced over at her and smiled at her his eyes twinkling.

His eyes dropped to her mouth and he wanted to lick her plump lips and then nibble all over her smooth skin. Down boy he thought, it was not going to look cool if he got out of the Rover with a boner tenting his pants.

He was a good driver not going too fast as he maneuvered the narrow island roads that were a leftover of colonial times until he came to the stone pillar where a sign indicated they had reached Royal Palm Estates.

K.C. turned into the entryway and onto Grapetree Road and they saw the rose pink oleander bushes that lined the left hand side of the road as it slowly descended and most of the large homes were on the right behind tall stone faced walls. Gabrielle remembered as a child the Sunday afternoon drives where her father would pile them into the car and they would go sightseeing and visiting friends and family.

She started talking, telling K.C. about those experiences and didn’t worry that she was revealing too much it was so easy to talk to him. He interjected sometimes sharing his own childhood experiences including one of his favorite memories when he had gone skiing with his grandmother who had considered herself a feisty woman.

During the summer Gabrielle’s family would go to the beach and spend the day sometimes even camping on the beach especially at Easter time. Those were some of her most treasured memories because sometimes her paternal grandparents would come along and tell stories about the different places and people.

Her maternal grandparents had moved back to Puerto Rico but visited occasionally and she was very aware that having both sets of grandparents still alive and in reasonably good health was a blessing. Visiting during the holidays whether Carnival or Christmas meant that music was always playing and food and drink flowed even more freely.

Despite the fact that she had lived on St. Sebastian for most of her life Gabrielle had never been to this part of Essex. They drove for about a mile before coming to the sign on the wall that said Moonlight Cove and he smoothly pulled up to a tall black wrought iron gate and he finally released her hand as he leaned over to speak into the callbox.

“Jarrod open the gate your other guest of honor is here.” He said and smiled when he heard Gabrielle laugh.

The laughter disappeared and Rielle’s mouth formed an O a few minutes later as they drove through the gate, up the wide pale brick drive, under a wide portico covered in salmon and white bougainvillea to a large brick parking area and stopped next to Georgie’s car.

The two story pale yellow house main building had several wings branching off; with white trim, a tan roof and was partially faced in stone with lush tropical landscaping that was in keeping with the grandness of the house.

She had known that Jarrod Stewart’s place would be gorgeous but had somehow not expected this level of grandeur. The place looked like a hotel and was way big for a single man.

“K.C. oh my God, why didn’t you tell me we were going to Mar a Lago. I’m not dressed properly for this.” She squealed turning to him as she anxiously smoothed down her simple cotton dress.