Chapter 20: Chapter 20

Blair

" Why did you accept this? " Dimitri muttered clearly displeased as I parked the car at the edge of the beach we were to visit before arriving in Carmel-by-the-sea.

All right, I wasn't happy either, it seems he didn't want to give his cousin the wrong impression, and I didn't get a single kiss in the last two hours we were traveling together.

" You saw the way they were treating him," I returned, "he was going to spend Thanksgiving alone.”

" He deals with it every day. He's used to it.”

" You can't be serious," I scolded, "and besides, look at this little face.”

We both turned around, staring at the young man who was sitting in the back seat of the car I was driving.

" You've let yourself be led astray by the puppy eyes, really?

" Don't be so mean, commander," I winked at him in the middle of a smile.

" You know I can hear everything you say, right? " Joe yawned, "We're going to go see this beach, or…”

" Let's go," Dimitri murmured, opening the car door and getting out.

I followed him, trying hard to keep up.

" The water must be freezing," Joe commented, following us.

" This is not a bathing beach," I warned, taking the lead to guide them, "I came here once.”

Dimitri watched me as we walked, keeping silent. His cousin, however, did not follow his example.

" What's the fun of a beach if it's not for swimming?”

" You'll see," I shrugged as I walked along, finally reaching the shore.

My smile was instantaneous when I saw the colorful dots that glistened in the sunlight.

" Watch your feet," I warned before stepping on the small crystals that stretched across the beach floor.

" What are these? " Dimitri frowned, kicking the colored dots that covered the sand.

" They are glass crystals," I explained, "the strip of sand is covered by them.”

" A glass beach? " Joe reached down and picked up one of the crystals.

" In the sixties this was a dump, the government decided to clean it up, but couldn't get rid of the bottles that had ended up at the bottom of the sea," I began to narrate, "the waves and the sand ended up lapping up the glass shards, spreading them all over the coast.

" It's an interesting story and a beautiful place," Dimitri commented, staring at me.

I wanted him. Why did I accept the damn 500 dollars?  I should have left the guy behind. He's too old to take care of himself!

" It was the first beach of this type that I visited after Australia.  I had just joined the company and was still on domestic flights," I explained, watching the waves breaking on the sand, causing a feeling of nostalgia to wash over me.

Dimitri finally came closer, stroking my face for a moment, making me forget about our unwanted guest. His touch was gentle, and he turned my face so that I looked into his eyes.

" Ohhh look... I want to sit down and I don't think it's a good idea to do it on a lot of broken pieces of glass," Joe commented bewildered, "I'd better go to the side of the road."

" Try not to get run over. Or kidnapped," Dimitri recommended without looking away from me.

We both remained silent until his footsteps crunching the shards of glass on the ground could no longer be heard.

I closed my eyes in anticipation of a kiss, and Dimitri did not disappoint. His fingers sank into my hair, while I rested both hands on his chest, hoping that this moment would last an eternity.

" You're good at this," I whispered as we moved apart minimally.

" I know," he winked, making me laugh, "this place is really beautiful.”

He put his arm around my shoulder and we walked together across the sand.

" I really like it here. But it's hard to get the opportunity to visit," I commented, making the most of his body heat.

Dimitri brought our bodies even closer together, remaining silent as the sun bathed our skin.

" Isn't it ironic to say the least?  I know amazing places all over the world. But one of the places I like the most is in my own country and I don't have time to come," I sighed.

" That's the price of the profession," he smiled.

I bent down, picking up a shard of red glass, holding it up to the sun. The crystal sparkled in my hand, and I quickly offered it to Dimitri.

" It's a beautiful color," he followed my lead.

" It's the color of passion," I teased him.

" It's more than that. It's the hottest and most intense of colors," he placed the crystal next to my face, "it exudes strength, determination, energy, passion, desire... danger...

He spoke each word looking into my eyes, making me feel hypnotized every second.

" What is this? Color psychology? " I scoffed, looking away as I felt my face heat up.

" Yes," he admitted with a small laugh, turning away from me.

I blinked dazedly before deciding to fight back.

" If that's how you want to play it, I'll find the perfect color for you," I challenged him, looking at the available colors on the floor.

" And do you know the psychology of colors? " he challenged, still holding the red fragment.

" No, but Google does " I smiled picking up my cell phone and doing a quick search " let's see, not this one... Nor this one…”

Dimitri crossed his arms, looking at me with amusement.

" Here…”

" What color? " he questioned, watching me bend down as I rummaged through the colored dots in the sand until I found a perfect one.

I stood up, watching the small blue crystal slightly tinged with turquoise. I held it in Dimitri's hand, placing it there in his palm, next to the red one.

" Blue, the color of calm and tranquility," I bit my lower lip without looking away from him, "conveys intelligence, security, fidelity.”

" Anything else? " he asked without breaking our eye contact.

" It's a very very beautiful color," I blinked, making him laugh.

His lips came to meet mine again, and I didn't waste any time, I soon wrapped both arms around his neck, feeling one of his hands around my waist. I let myself drift for a few minutes in his arms, until I forced myself to part us.

" As much as I love this place, and I'm loving it more than I ever did," I smiled with my lips still pressed against his, "we have to go, or we won't make it to dinner.”

" Yes, Joe has been alone long enough," he scoffed, interlacing our fingers as we parted, "it's not safe. He can get into the car of any stranger who offers a ride.”

I couldn't help but laugh at the comment. I could already understand some of Joe's personality and was finding the contrast with his cousin interesting.

We pulled into the parking lot and found Joe talking to three girls who had apparently gotten out of the car next door.

" Don't look now, there are the lovebirds I told you about," he whispered to the girls who looked in our direction.

And maybe I can understand why Dimitri finds him annoying and inconvenient at times.

" If you already have their phone numbers, get in the damn car. If not, hurry up. We have a long way to go," I warned, boarding the vehicle.