Redeeming Her Love

Chapter Nine:

Sarah’s POV:

I smile and bite my lip as I stare out into the ocean view of my room. Today is humid, but the sun is hiding behind the thick clouds in the sky. Last night at the carnival felt like something out of a movie scene for me. I have never been the girl on the Ferris wheel who gets kissed by the tall and handsome guy. My chest feels warm and my mind is swimming with love-filled thoughts. I know I may seem like a naïve girl, who is probably overtrusting, but how can I control what my heart feels? Lucas has been my interest since I was a child and FINALLY he is seeing me for me, instead of looking through me. He seems completely genuine and even admitted to his friends that he is on a date with me, meaning he is acknowledging his feelings. I smile again at the thought. A soft knocking pulls me out of my thoughts.

“Come in.” I respond and Lucas peeps through the door. His dark eyes look happy and his hair is still ruffled from his sleep in. I offer him a smile as well.

“Morning babe.” He smiles and edges closer to me, pulling me into his warm and strong embrace. I feel my body melting into his, as he squeezes me against his bare chest. My heart jolts at the nickname he has given me. Babe.

“Good morning, Lucas.” I whisper into his chest and plant a small kiss on it. This makes him hold me closer and I feel my insides becoming hotter. After a few seconds of just embracing one another, we let go with happy eyes.

“I would like to know if you will go on a date with me tonight?” Lucas says finally and my eyes light up at the idea. A date?

“Really?” I ask, a little too excited at the invitation. He chuckles and then pulls me back into his vibrating chest. He sounds so amazing when he laughs.

“Yes, really. So, what do you say?” He asks again and then kisses my cheek, making his way down my neck. A current runs down my spine at the feeling of his hot lips against my skin.

“Y-yes…” I breathe out and when he looks at me, my knees become weak at the look of his smirk. How does he manage to do this?

“Perfect. We will leave at seven then.” He says and I lift my eyebrow.

“Where will we be going?” I ask and he chuckles again and starts walking out.

“That’s a surprise babe.” He smirks again and I reach down to throw a pillow at him. He is too quick for me and walks out of the room before the pillow reaches him. My body flops down in a heated mess as the door closes. Wow, Lucas really has a way of bringing my body to life. I decided to quickly put on my costume. A dip in the pool will do me good around now, even with the clouds the air is hot. The house is pretty quiet today so I walk down with the teeny bikini and throw my towel on the pool chair.

“Sarah, goodness darling, look at you.” A familiar voice says from behind me. I quickly turn and Mrs. Murray is standing there and smiling at my bikini.

“Mrs. Murray?” I say, greet or ask. I am not sure what tone I was taking. This makes her laugh out loud at me.

“Sorry sweetie, I didn’t mean for it to come out so brash. I just mean that you look stunning! Not that you haven’t been stunning all these years.” She admits and I sit down on the pool bench with blushed cheeks. She comes and joins me, also pulling off her kimono and lying down in humid air against her towel.

“No wonder my son is so taken with you…” She whispers and my eyes go wide. This makes her laugh again.

“Don’t look so shocked. You are a beautiful girl, Sarah, inside and out. Don’t you ever change, you hear me? I was waiting for the day my son finally realizes what a good catch you are.” She says with a smile. Mrs. Murray has always been so kind to me. Sometimes kinder than my own mother really.

“Lucas spoke to you about me?” I ask and she nods softly.

“He told me he is taking you on a date tonight and was asking me for advice. I haven’t ever heard him speak of girls before you.” She retorts and I feel my heart rate increasing.

“He hardly noticed me before this holiday…” I say and her smile fades a little.

“I have never condoned how he behaves, especially in social situations. I blame his father…” She says the last part very softly. What does she mean though?

“Mrs. Murray?” I try to clarify and she smiles at me, this time a little more stiffly.

“Just don’t assume that all is as it seems, my darling. Lucas didn’t have the best male advice growing up and his father has always been his greatest role model, you know? I hope one day he will be able to open up to you about it all. The both of you are a lot more alike than you think.” She says and I nod. Perhaps I have been too harsh on my own opinions of Lucas? Mrs. Murray gets up and decides to jump in the pool, adding light to my serious thoughts. I laugh and quickly jump in too.

The remainder of the day goes by pretty quickly and I manage to get some serious chill-time in, which is exactly what I need. I finished my novel and I took a nap. A perfect holiday for me. When I looked at the clock, I noticed it’s six in the evening, leaving me with an hour to get ready for the date. Perfect!

“Hmm, what should I wear?” I say into the air and when I look out the window, I notice it’s still humid and the air is clear. When I scrounge through my cupboard, none of the clothes are really speaking to me and I find myself feeling frustrated because the only items of clothing I have for a date are the same ones I wore to the bonfire. I huff out and decide to head towards Milly’s room, knowing she may be able to help. Don’t get me wrong, I am by no means wanting to change my style, but I just want to feel pretty on my first ever date.

“Milly, can you help me with an outfit for tonight?” I ask into the open door. She is sitting on her bed and painting her nails. She looks up at me with a confused expression.

“I am going on my first date ever…” I admit and her eyes widen with surprise.

“Who are you and what have you done with my sister?” She gasps and I roll my eyes.

“Come on, Milly, please?” I ask again and she jumps up with excitement. I should have known that something like this would excite her.

“I have so many killer heels and you have great legs, so perhaps…” She begins and I grab her shoulders with a pointed look.

“Milly, I still need to look like me. I am into simplicity. No heels, no frills, no flowers, no overly exposed things.” I say and Milly nods with a serious expression that makes me giggle. When she breaks free from my hold, she makes her way to the cupboard and my eyes widen at the enormous variety of clothes she has hidden behind the closed doors.

“My word, Milly, how many dresses do you own?” I ask in wonder as I move closer. She rolls her eyes now and huffs out before pulling out a number of items and throwing them onto her bed. I also look through some of her dresses, not really intending to actually wear one. Everything Milly is putting on the bed is pants and tops. Milly has so many feminine dresses that are adjourned with patterns and flowers, my eyes skip over them all as they are far too colorful. Just as I was about to give up, a hidden gem appears and my eyes look at it with curiosity. I have never cared much for dresses, but this one is really beautiful. My eyes take in the way the burgundy satin shines in the light. There is no detail or patterns, but this isn’t needed with how magnificent the dress is in itself. The cut is simple with its strappy top and its refined, cut lines that make it fitting, but also elegantly simple.

“What about this one?” I breathe out, hardly believing my own words as I rub the soft material between my fingers. Milly eyes me with disbelief.

“You want to wear this dress?” She asks with amazement and I quickly look at her with bright cheeks. She smiles and lifts the dress from the hanger. It is even more beautiful out of the cupboard. I nod at her and she pulls it off the hanger.

“Well, let us see how it looks on then!” She squeals and I laugh. Milly really can be dramatic sometimes. I quickly walk to my room and slide on the dress, being extra careful to not crease or damage anything. It slips onto me like a glove and I smile at the feeling of the silky material against my legs. When I walk back into Milly’s room, she looks at me with a mouth open and full of astonishment.

“Damn, Sarah! That looks better on you than it does on me!” She gasps and I walk closer to the mirror. My eyes immediately light up at how stunning this color is against my skin, which seems to be glowing right now. Even more beautiful, is how the auburn dances against the green of my eyes and makes them shimmer even more vividly. The dress is really simple, but the way it fits perfectly against my body is enough detail to the eye. It is loose enough to be comfortable, but tight enough to show my figure. The perfect combination of showing my feminine curves, but also remaining conservative. I smile as I run my fingers down my legs.

“I love it, Milly.” I say and then look back at my sister. She is beaming as she looks at me and I roll my eyes as she claps her hands vibrantly.

“I never thought the day would come where I would see you in a dress!” She announces and then starts moving to her shoes. I start shaking my head as she whips out different sets of heels.

“I want to wear flats, Milly.” I say and she huffs out before bringing out a pair of black pumps that will go perfectly with the dress. I thank her and then try them on, thinking they finish off the look well.

“Who is the lucky guy, by the way?” She asks and wiggles her eyebrows. I feel my mouth run dry. This whole time I have been running around with Lucas and my family has no idea. Do I tell them, yet? I feel myself becoming uncomfortable at the idea.

“Just a guy I met at the beach. If it gets serious then I will tell you, okay?” I say and Milly nods in disappointment. I know I should be more open, but I feel that my family may become too invested and I still need to establish my relationship with Lucas. Besides, Milly has been busy with her new crush and hasn’t really spoken to me about him, so why should I? With this, I make my way out of the room and head into the shower, washing my hair and then lathering my body with cream. I slip on the dress and smile again at how stunning it is, then I add on the pumps and blow wave my hair so that it looks a bit less frizzy. I am not really the makeup type, so I only add on some mascara and lip gloss before I am done.

“Sarah, are you do…” Lucas asks as he walks into my bedroom. As I stand up, he stops mid-sentence and his eyes rake up and down my body. I feel my skin erupting into goosebumps at the way his dark eyes linger on all my curves.

“Wow, Sarah.” He husks out and starts moving closer. All I can see is the slow steps of his long, strong legs in their beige chinos and the way his arm muscles and chest is pulling at the white shirt he has on. He has gone for a sort of smart-casual look and his hair is messed in perfectly placed beach waves. Even his short stubble makes him look like someone out of a magazine. Wow, indeed.

“Huh?” I say as I hear him chuckling.

“Are you done checking me out?” He asks and I find myself blushing. How long was I looking at him? This makes him laugh more before leaning down to give me a kiss on the cheek.

“You look absolutely beautiful, Sarah. I am a lucky man.” He says and I feel my body leaning into his. He always knows what to say to get my body hot.

“Thank you. You aren’t so bad yourself, Lucas.” I admit and then smile as I look into his dark pools.

“Ready to go on our date?” He asks and I nod.

I have been ready to go on a date with him for years.