Page 46 of Love You Still
“Stop thinking so hard, Vance. I don’t expect the place to be a perfect replica of what I wanted when I was a teenager. I just want to see your hard work. To see something that you created with your own two hands.”
“I created it for you,” I whisper as she bends down, wrapping her arms around my neck. “This is so much more than just a house to me.”
“I know.” She sniffles before planting a kiss on the top of my head and releasing me. “But I still want to see it.”
“As you wish,” I push away from the table, wrapping her hand in mine. “You’ve already seen the kitchen, so maybe we should start with the living room?” I motion for her to veer to the right before leading her down a hall toward the back of the house. I point out the half bathroom on the right side of thehall before ushering her into the living room. A large leather sectional takes up most of the room, opposite my sixty-inch flat-screen television.
“Now, I doubt this was for me.”
“No, the big-ass television is for me.” We both laugh as Selina pulls her hand from mine, sauntering around the room.
I scan the room, trying to imagine what it would be like to create a home for the two of us between these walls. We chose this house when we were just kids, saying that we wanted to grow old together while sitting on that old porch swing, watching the sun set behind the rolling hills on the outskirts of town, but I wonder if she still has the same dream. And if she doesn’t, I wonder if whatever her dreams are could now also include me.
“I didn’t do much to this room, wanting to leave it as a blank canvas for when…” My voice trails off, not wanting to make her feel pressured or uncomfortable.
“When I came home,” she responds as she walks around the couch, her fingers brushing against the leather before she takes a seat. “I’m so sorry, Vance.”
“You have nothing to be sorry for. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t hurt that you didn’t believe in my feelings for you enough to talk to me about what you saw, but there was a lot going on back then. You’d just lost your best friend and were living a thousand miles away, struggling to keep your head above water,” I say before taking a seat beside her on the couch. “I believe everything happens for a reason. So, I know in my heart that we needed the time apart, and now fate has given us a second chance.”
“Vance,” Selina whispers, as tears collect in her eyes. “I don’t know what to say. What to do.”
I reach out and grip both of her hands in mine. “I know you only planned on being here for a short period, but I also thinkthere’s a part of you that misses Tyson’s Creek.” Selina tries to pull her hands from my grasp, but I hold them tightly between my hands. “Please don’t run from me. Just think about it, okay? I don’t want you to give up your dreams. I just want to be a part of them. Wherever they may lead us.”
“You’re too good to me, Vance,” she whispers as our bodies slowly drift closer to each other.
“No, I’m not. But I will strive, every day for the rest of my life, to deserve you,” I say before releasing her hand and pulling her toward me, capturing her lips with mine.
She moans quietly, opening her mouth enough for me to slide my tongue in. I use my other hand to grip her left leg, pulling it so she is straddling my waist. My cock instantly hardens as her warm center slides across my length. “Fuck. If you keep doing that, we won’t make it through the rest of the tour.”
“I wouldn’t mind if round two was a nice hard fuck bent over the couch.” She mewls as she grinds her pussy on my leg.
“So tempting.” I grip both her ass cheeks tightly in my hands before slapping them lightly, causing her to squeal in surprise as I lift her off my lap and place her on the couch beside me. “I promised you a tour, and a tour you’ll get. You haven’t seen my favorite room yet.” I wink at her before pushing to my feet and holding my hand toward her.
“You’re no fun,” she grumbles before grabbing my hand and allowing me to pull her to her feet.
I lead her back up the hallway to the stairs. We come to a stop just at the bottom of the stairs, in front of a set of double doors. “I’m plenty of fun.”
This is the one room in the house that I built with Selina in mind. I wanted her to have a place to be herself. A place where she can close herself off and forget about the rest of the world—her very own dance studio.
I never could’ve imagined that she’d come back to town and buy Barre Studio from Ms. Cassandra, giving her the perfect space to dance in. When I built this room, it was a proclamation of the love I feel for her and my commitment to love her for the rest of my life.
I could easily change the room into something else, an office or guest bedroom, but there was a part of me that always believed I’d have a chance to show this to Selina. It is my way of letting her know that even after all this time, she still holds an important place in my life and heart.
“Are you going to open the doors?” Selina’s voice brings my mind back to the present.
“Of course.” I chuckle humorously as I release her hand and pull the doors open before stepping inside.
“What’s this room supposed to be?” she asks as she steps inside.
I take a deep breath, trying to find the right words to explain what this room is meant for. “It’s one of the largest rooms in the house, so I figured it’d make a good man cave or guest room, but I built it for another reason.”
Selina nods slightly as she looks around the room. The left wall of the room is the front of the house. Two large windows allow the moonlight to filter into the room, giving it an ethereal glow. During the day, the sunlight fills the room with natural light, which creates tiny rainbows on the walls as it reflects off the crystals in the large chandelier hanging in the center of the room.
“This room is for you, Selina,” I whisper as I flick the light switch. The entire room is bathed in warm light. “This is your dance studio.”
Selina gasps in surprise as she takes in the large wall of mirrors in front of her. Tucked into the right corner of the room is a decent-sized closet with some storage. I covered thepale green walls with different photos of Selina dancing. Most of them are ones I took when we were younger, but there are a few professional ones her parents gave me to make the room perfect for her.
“I had planned on installing one of those fancy sound systems you have at the studio,” I say as I wrap my arms around her waist, pulling her tightly into my chest. “The entire room is also soundproofed, giving you the ability to crank the music up and dance your heart out.”