Chapter 74

~ Franklin ~

We arrived at a fancy, prestigious restaurant downtown on the island. The attendant showed us to our table.

"Thank you," Octavia and I said in unison.

She nodded and left. We settled in.

"This restaurant is very beautiful and fancy," Octavia said, gazing around.

"It is. I heard how good the restaurant is... the facilities are excellent," I said, then reached across the table to hold her hand. "You look beautiful."

"Even though I didn’t wear a fancy dress for this occasion?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Yes. Though the dress you’re wearing looks wonderful on you," I assured her.

"You sure?" she asked, still uncertain.

"One hundred percent sure," I nodded.

She smiled.

A waiter approached our table. "Are you both ready to order?" he asked.

"Yeah," we chorused.

"Okay," the waiter said.

"Wow, there are a lot of foreign foods I don’t know on this menu... except the pasta. Okay, well, I’ll have the lobster ravioli with iced tea," Octavia said, then handed the menu to the waiter.

"Very well. And you, sir?" he turned to me.

"Seared scallops risotto with a side salad," I said, handing him my menu. "Oh! And get us a bottle of your best wine."

"What name of wine, to be exact?" the waiter asked.

"Why don’t you surprise us with your best wine?" I smiled.

"Okay, sir. Your meal will be brought to you shortly."

The waiter bowed low and left.

"What are we celebrating that you ordered wine?" Octavia asked.

"Do we have to celebrate anything when we order wine?" I countered.

"No, not really," she shrugged.

I smiled, my hand still on hers.

"Quick question—what’s your favorite flower?" I asked. "You said roses aren’t your favorite, so what is?"

"Oh, I love orchids and sunflowers. They look so beautiful. I love orchids because of their scent, and I love sunflowers because they look so stunning. So both combined together make it incredibly amazing," she said with a huge grin.

"I’ll put that in mind then," I told her.

"But I thought you ladies love roses. It’s stunning too," I added.

"It is. It’s just not my favorite. That’s Victoria’s favorite flower," she said.

Our dinner was brought to us, hot and fresh.

"Allow me to introduce you both to a vintage Château Lafite Rothschild—known for its rich taste," the waiter said as he produced a wine opener and began opening the bottle.

As he corked it open and prepared to pour, I held up a hand. "Yeah, thank you. We’ll manage."

"Okay, sir. Let me know if you both need anything."

"Thank you," we both said.

The waiter nodded and left.

I poured the wine for both of us and handed one glass to Octavia.

"On one of my trips to Italy—when I went wine tasting at a vineyard in Tuscany—I was told that to taste the richness of the wine, you have to first swirl the glass to mix it well before drinking. That’s how you enjoy it best," I told her.

"Wow, that’s surprising. I didn’t know that," Octavia laughed as she swirled her glass. I joined her.

"Cheers. Here’s to a new beginning with you, Octavia," I said, raising my glass.

"Cheers," she smiled.

We clinked our glasses and took a sip.

"Mmm... I can taste the richness," she said, smacking her tongue lightly.

"See what I said?" I chuckled.

"Let’s eat up," I told her.

We dug in.

"You know, I never really got to know you better—who you really are. And I would love for you to tell me all about yourself," I said.

"Okay, well..." She looked down sheepishly, then back up at me. "What do you want to know about me?"

"Everything," I said quickly. "I want to know everything about you... down to your soul and everything."

She blushed. I loved it when she blushed.

"Well, I was born on October 26th, to be precise. That’s days before Halloween," she laughed.

I leaned in to listen. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"My favorite holiday is Christmas. Favorite colors are red and blue. I lost my virginity when I was eighteen," she began.

"Oh yeah?" I had been smirking, but it faded slightly when she mentioned her ex.

"Yeah, to my first boyfriend in college. When I was a freshman, to be exact. We dated for like three years and then we broke up," she told me.

"Oh," I said.

"I saw that," she narrowed her eyes.

"Saw what?" I asked.

"When I mentioned my ex, you looked jealous," she said.

"Okay, fine. I admit it. I am. Just so you know now, I’m a jealous man, and I hate it when the woman I love talks about another man she had a romantic relationship with. That’s one of the reasons I don’t like you mingling with Clinton Harrington," I said.

"Come on, Franklin. You have to get used to the fact that people like Clinton Harrington will come my way. Though I understand your jealousy. I would feel the same way you’re feeling right now if I saw you talking romantically to another woman. It’s how I felt when you were with Bella," she told me.

"I know. I assure you that Bella is gone for good—out of my life, to be precise—and she isn’t coming back. It’s going to be you and me. You and me together forever," I assured her.

"Okay," she said, sipping her wine again.

"Tell you what? Let’s just stop talking about Clinton and Bella for the rest of the night. How about that?" I suggested.

"Sounds like a deal," she shrugged.

She continued telling me about herself, and for the first time since I met her, I truly felt like I was getting to know who she really was tonight. I was glad.

"I have just one question to ask you," I said.

"Question? Okay... shoot," she said.

"I want to ask—when will you come back to the estate? Olga, the maids, and Clarence miss you. It’s been lonely at the mansion without your presence there," I told her.

"Am I fully welcomed there if I move back in?" she asked, sounding skeptical—but her question gave me hope that she was at least considering it.

"Yes, you are. You are fully welcomed back to the mansion. And even if you move in, you’re going to share my bedroom with me—like the married couple we are," I told her.

"Hmm," she thought it over, then beamed. "Okay."

"Really?" I clarified.

"Yes. I just have to pack up my things, then move back in. But there’s one problem," she said.

"Which is?" I asked cautiously.

"Nola," she said simply.

"Your cat?" I frowned.

"Yes. Clarence told me that you’re allergic to cats and dogs, and I don’t want you to have an allergic reaction when I bring Nola into the estate... your bedroom, to be precise," she told me.

"First of all, it will be our bedroom. And secondly, I can go to the hospital to see if getting allergy shots can work so it prevents me from reacting to your cat Nola," I told her.

"Or we can find another way," I added.

"Yeah, maybe we shouldn’t share your bedroom. I can go back to my old room so it won’t complicate things," she said.

"Nonsense. We aren’t going to sleep in separate beds just because of Nola, your cat. It will be fine. We’ll make it work," I assured her.

"Okay," she smiled.

We enjoyed the rest of the evening, then finally left the restaurant. We decided to take a stroll on the beach that night.

"Have a déjà vu?" Octavia said.

We were still dressed in our evening outfits.

"Yep," I nodded.

"How about a swim?" she said, unzipping her dress.

"What? This night?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah, the water will be refreshing. Don’t worry," she assured me.

"Can you swim?" I asked, unbuttoning my suit jacket.

"I’m a pro. I took swimming lessons years back. Don’t worry," she said as she stepped out of her dress.

"What about you?" she asked.

"Me? I’ve known how to swim since I was a baby. Ever wonder why there’s a pool at the estate?" I said.

"Touché," she chuckled.

"Race you to the shore," she said, and she ran quickly.

"Oh, hell no," I said, stripping off the rest of my clothing and racing after her.

We began splashing water at each other, giggling like high-school teenagers. She swam to the shallow part of the beach.

"That was fun!" she exclaimed as I turned to her, our heads bobbing with the calm waves in the cool evening.

"It was," I admitted.

I reached to kiss her, and in no time, she kissed me back.

"I want you," she said as we pulled apart.

"Now?" I clarified.

"Yes. There’s no one here on the beach. It’s the perfect place for us to be here, making love," she bit her lower lip.

I said nothing. I scooped her out of the water, her arms wrapping around my neck for support. I quietly walked to the shore where our discarded clothing lay and gently laid her down on it.

Our naked bodies glistened under the full moonlight.

She reached up to kiss me, and I responded immediately. I straddled her legs apart and thrust into her. She was already wet for me—overly horny. She was always wet for me, which I loved the most.

Her moans were music to my ears, and when we climaxed together, it was a wonderful blast.

We cuddled up afterward, still naked, staring at the beach with its calm waves. The moonlight and the quiet environment were so peaceful.

"Do we ever have to go back to the city and leave this piece of paradise behind?" I heard her sigh as I spooned her, her ass pressed against my groin.

"I’m afraid so, my love," I said, kissing her now-damp hair.

She sighed.

"My happiness is that I’m leaving here with you, knowing fully well that we love each other," I said.

"Me too," she said, then turned to face me. "Promise me this is forever," she said softly.

I leaned in and kissed her forehead.

"I promise."

And with that, we sealed the promise with a kiss.

Then we quietly stared at the beach, hoping our love would last forevermore.