In Love With You

TWO-3

A movement in the corner of the room catches my eye, and I see Julie discreetly walk out towards the toilet. I go after her and arrive at the moment when she closes the door. I tap lightly and she opens it, looking scared.

- Friend, is everything okay? - I ask, trying not to sound too worried.

- Yes, it is. I just came to wash my face. Hormones are killing me. - She laughs. - And seeing Daniel dancing with Maggie, was too much for my emotions.

I smile as I remember the scene.

- I have to confess that I also felt like crying.

- You? - she asks, amazed.

- I have a heart, too - I say, laughing. My reputation as a tough girl is well known. - Jenny told me that the girl has never had a male figure in her life... and it"s necessary, isn"t it?

Julie nods. She, more than anyone, knows how much the presence of parents is needed.

- Besides, it was so beautiful to see Daniel dancing with her. - I remember the pictures I took. - Ah! Look what I got. - I take my phone out of my pocket and show it to her.

Julie looks at the screen with a silly smile on her face, moving from one picture to the next.

- Can you send it to me? I want to print and put in a picture frame. They turned out so beautiful. - She smiles and looks up at me, while extending the phone.

- Sure. - I pick up my phone and smile back at her. - You"re a lucky woman. He will be a great father, just as he has already become a great husband.

- Husband? - she asks, looking confused. - But we"re not married yet.

- I know. But you already live together and it"s not a piece of paper that"s going to make Daniel more of your husband than he already is. Trust me. I see this kind of thing every day at work. I have several celebrities as clients, who get married and get married faster than George sniffs out gossip.

We both laugh but are interrupted by a light knock on the door. I open, believing it to be Danny, but upon bumping into George, Julie and I burst out laughing.

He looks at us with an arched eyebrow, understanding that he missed a joke, but does not lose the waist game. He pulls up his famous makeup case that he never leaves at home.

- Is there anyone out there who needs urgent care? - he asks, making me laugh a little more. I make way for him, who enters the small bathroom space and stares at Julie with a frown. - Little girl, this time you didn"t lose your panties, did you? - he asks Julie, remembering the last time he needed to make an emergency care, as he calls it, when they were at After Dark, and she and Daniel had their first moment together.

emergency caremoment together- No, the panties are in place - she answers, and we all laugh. I watch her as George makes her sit down to begin her "magic" and realize how different she is too. She remains the sweetest creature I know, but it"s funny to see how she grow in a short time. Her worries now are no longer with weekend outings, clothes and the like. Her focus is on the baby in her womb, the home she is building with my brother and the love they share.

growA reality far removed from mine. To be honest, I don"t believe I can love someone so fully, to the point of giving up my independence, to be with the other. I"m not the kind of woman who needs company to be happy. I value my personal space too much, to dream of having someone share the day to day with me... the image of Zach in the kitchen of my apartment, preparing breakfast, comes to mind. I close my eyes and shake my head, pushing the temptation out of my thoughts. None of that, I scold myself. You know very well that your thing is casual. s*x without commitment and nothing more. I open my eyes, taking the blue eyes out of my head and shake my head lightly. That"s right. No ties. No links. My commitment is to myself, my family and friends, and my career. This is really important.

None of thatYou know very well that your thing is casual. s*x without commitment and nothing moreThat"s right. No ties. No links. My commitment is to myself, my family and friends, and my career. This is really importantGeorge closes the briefcase, catching my attention. I didn"t realize he was done. I look at Julie through the mirror and smile. She looks beautiful. Without any sign of tears on her face. He claps his hands when he sees the result of his work and looks at the two of us, opening his arms for a collective hug.

- Thanks, friend. I don"t know what I would do without you - Julie murmurs, her voice muffled against his arm.

- Me neither - I complete. I love him so much that I can"t imagine my life without George.

- You"d have to find me anyway, babes. Or your lives wouldn"t be so exciting - he talks and blinks.

We burst out of the bathroom laughing, back to the party. George for sure is the best friend a girl could have.

***

I look away from Daniel, who is in a lively discussion with Rafe about the last basketball season, and look down the hall, where a movement catches my eye. Of course, it could only be her. There is no one else who awakens my senses in this way, so immediately. Jo is walking towards the room, with her arm around George, who is also accompanied by Julie. The three of them are laughing, with their faces leaning toward each other, as if telling a secret. It is almost impossible to hold back the smile at the sight of the union of the three.

I moisten my lips as I focus on her, who looks incredibly beautiful in her dress printed with red flowers, her very high-heeled beige - or nude, as she would say - sandal, and the gift I gave her: a white gold necklace with a drop-shaped emerald. The stone is exactly the color of her eyes.

The three friends stop by the dining table, and I watch her take her hand to the pendant. I noticed that she did this several times unconsciously during the day and I love knowing that my gift, given last night after we made love, is constantly remembered by her. I feel like I"m in his thoughts all the time. Which is good, since she doesn"t leave mine.

- My son, this hair is getting big. - I hear Mary"s soft voice next to me, and I turn around, smiling at her. Daniel and Jo"s mum is like a mum to all of us. A sweet and caring woman, who is always taking care of everyone.

- That"s true - I answer, running my hand through my hair. - I should cut it off...

- Don"t cut, no... you have beautiful hair - she says and smiles, as I bring the glass of wine to my lips. - It"s long, but it suits you. As well as the people from whom you do not take your eyes. You would make a beautiful pair.

people

When I hear it, the drink goes down the wrong place and I choke. As I cough, she pats me on the back with a smile on her face.

When I recover, I speak quickly:

Mary, that"s not what you"re thinking. There"s nothing...

She interrupts me, keeping her voice low but steady, and that look that seems to see inside us:

- My dear, I know you like the back of my hand. A mother is never wrong. - She holds my arm lightly and continues: - but take your time to sort things out. She"s worth it - Mary speaks knowingly and winks at me, before walking away in Paul"s direction.

God, if Jo knew her mother was thinking anything about us, she"d run for the hills. The woman is aloof than anyone I"ve ever met.

I look at her again as she continues to talk to her three friends. But Mary"s right. She"s worth it. She"s worth a lot.

***

After dinner, it is time to exchange the gifts. We all brought gifts for everyone, and I already got a shirt, books, a watch and new headphones for my cell phone. I gave Jo a voucher to a famous SPA on Hollywood Boulevard, the same gift I chose for George and Julie, after all, the Three Musketeers were not going anywhere if they were not together. And by the animation of the little group, I see that I got the present right. But I couldn"t help it: as I handed the envelope to Jo, I didn"t take my eyes off the necklace on her neck, which made her blush and brought a smile to my lips.

As she is about to sit down, George clears his throat and arches his eyebrow at her, while holding out a box in her direction. She smiles, blandly, takes the box, wishes me Merry Christmas in a low grumble and hands it to me. I thank her, feeling surprised that she is giving me such a gift... bulky – by the size of the box – in front of her family. I sit on the couch, curiously open the large box with a beautiful red bow and come across... socks. Did she give me socks as a gift?

Did she give me socks as a gift?- What did you get, my son? - Mary asks me, the sharp curiosity in her voice.

- Socks - I answer, unable to disguise the disappointment. Did she give me socks? - Did you give me Christmas stockings? - I ask, unable to believe it. Do I look like the kind of guy who likes to win socks?

Did she give me socks?Do I look like the kind of guy who likes to win socks?- Oh, socks are very useful. And since we don"t have much intimacy, I thought it was more of a gift... suitable - she answers, smiling lightly. Appropriate. I stare at her green eyes suspiciously and they glow, as if I"m internally laughing at a joke that only she knows.

- Christmas socks? - I ask, only with the movement of my lips, disappointed, so that no one would see. Can you believe this?

- Are those white socks? - George asks, and I nod, agreeing. - You can use them to make a performance like Tom Cruise"s in Risky Business. It would be successful! - he says and shrugs his shoulders, while the entire room collapses with laughter and even I can"t hold back my laughter. I look to the side and see Julie crying with laughter.

Risky BusinessWhen the group calms down and the exchange of gifts continues, I get up and go to the dining table, to pour myself a glass of champagne. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jo reach out and grab a cup. I smile at her and serve her, as our gazes meet.

I ask quietly once again:

- Socks, Princess?

- You know - she moistens her lips and takes a sip of champagne - that often not everything is as it seems. You have to investigate the evidence very well, before proceeding with the accusation - she speaks, with a smile on her lips and gives me that malicious look of when she is horny.

- What do you mean by that? - I ask, arching an eyebrow. - What"s that look like? You"re not implying that I should tie you up with all these socks, are you?

She laughs, brings the cup to her lips again and, after taking a sip of the drink, speaks:

- It would be tempting, but I, if I were you, would examine your gift better.

With that, she turns away from me and goes in the direction of Julie and Jenny. I return to the sofa, open the box again and resolve to look at her gift, more carefully. It"s a big box and has about twenty pairs of socks, rolled up. I take one of them and decide to unroll it, to see what is so different about it that it needs a “closer examination”.

- It"s a beautiful sock - Rafe speaks with a laugh, sitting next to me, while everyone talks.

Why would she give me stocking for Christmas? I wonder, still puzzled.

Why would she give me stocking for Christmas? - Uncle, can you help me, - the voice of the cute little girl, sounds near us and I see her extend the box of a doll so that Rafe opens it for her.

- Of course, Sweetie - he replies, with a smile and takes the box from Maggie"s hands, distracting himself. I decide to look inside the sock and find a folded paper. When I open it, I almost fall off the couch. It is written in red pen cursive:

You won a naughty voucher.

Choose your game and exchange it for this voucher.

Naughty Voucher?! This woman wants to kill me. I quietly get up and go to one of the guest rooms of the house, carrying all the gifts I have won, telling no one in particular that I will keep them. I go into the room, turn on the light and lock the door. I start unrolling all the socks quickly and find the most diverse types of vouchers, one on each stocking foot. It ranges from quickie in the kitchen voucher up voucher for s*x in the back of After Dark. At the end of my “accurate investigation” I have forty little papers, that guarantee me the most diverse fantasies. I keep the papers in my wallet, so I don"t run the risk of someone messing around and reading what they shouldn"t.

vouchersquickie in the kitchen vouchervoucher for s*x in the back of After DarkI return to the room, feeling my whole body vibrate. When she looks at me again, I watch her maliciously and smile, but leave it to make plans which one I"ll use first later, before I embarrass myself in front of the whole group.

The night is still fun. Alan and Julie sing some songs and we all accompany them. Much later, the time comes for us to leave. Although Daniel insists that we stay, I know that there are not so many guest rooms in the house and the most viable thing is that Jenny stays with her daughter, in addition to Mary and Paul. We said goodbye to everyone and got into the car. I look at Jo, who smiles at me, but I remain serious, looking at her. Despite wanting so much, I don"t lean towards her to kiss her, as George is in Ben"s car, just behind us, watching everything with his eagle eyes.

- Zach? Is everything okay? - she asks, becoming serious, noticing my gaze.

- Oh, yes, Princess. Everything"s great. I"m just deciding which voucher I"m going to use first tonight.

- Ohhhh.

Ohhhh