Page 34 of Shattered Echoes

"There's a hidden waterfall just outside of town," she explains, her voice conspiratorial. "It's a perfect place to escape the noise and just…be."

The way she says "be" makes my heart skip a beat. Is she suggesting what I think she is? The thought both terrifies and exhilarates me. Taking a deep breath, I decide to plunge into the unknown. "Let's go," I say, my voice firmer than I feel.

We walk in comfortable silence for a while. All we can hear is the sound of our shoes crunching on the gravel path. The sun climbs in the sky, painting the world with its golden light. The air carries the sweet scent of wildflowers.

As we walk, we talk about our childhood memories of this town, the dreams we once held, and the ways life has taken us on unexpected detours.

We don’t speak, though. Our small talk touches nothing too personal. It’s almost a shared understanding about an unwillingness to unearth each other’s pain. Her voice is a soothing balm, washing away the anxieties that have been plaguing me. For the first time in a long time, I feel heard, understood.

She stops, pointing towards a visible path hidden beneath a canopy of trees. "This way," she whispers, a hint of excitement in her voice.

We push through the undergrowth, the path wide enough for two people to walk side-by-side. The air turns cooler, damp with the spray of unseen water. Then we break through the foliage, and the sight before me takes my breath away.

A cascading waterfall tumbles down a moss-covered rock face, forming a crystal-clear pool at its base. Sunlight filters through the leaves overhead, dappling the water with shimmering diamonds. The sound of rushing water and the chirping of birds fill the air.

The beauty of this place is breathtaking. The serenity created by a hidden oasis untouched by the chaos of the world. I wish more places like this existed in cities.

We sit on a flat rock by the pool's edge, our shoulders brushing. The silence wraps around like a warm blanket, soothing and comforting. I steal a glance at Colette. She closes her eyes and drinks into the scene; her face bathed in the soft glow of the sun, with a curious smile playing on her lips.

At this moment, with the sound of the waterfall filling the air and smelling damp earth and wildflowers surrounding us, I feel a sense of peace I haven't felt in a long time. It's a peace that has nothing to do with escaping reality, but a peace that comes from feeling being present, connected.

My gaze drifts to her lips, the memory of our encounter still fresh in my mind. The urge to feel her touch again, to lose myself in the warmth of her kiss, is a tidal wave threatening to drown out all reason. She opens her eyes and looks at me, cocking her head to the side almost expectantly.

Before I can stop myself, I lean in, drawn by an invisible force. Our eyes meet, hers filled with a mixture of surprise and something deeper, something that mirrors the yearning in my heart.

The kiss is tentative at first, a brush of lips that ignites my soul. Then, as if a dam has broken, it deepens. It's a kiss that speaks of a connection that transcends logic. We hold on to each other, as if afraid to let return to the reality we're both trying to escape.

The world fades away. The only things real are the taste of her lips and the frantic rhythm of our hearts.

11

Colette

Oh shit, not again! I think, as my lips latch onto Antonio’s. What in the world was I thinking of bringing him here?

His kiss is like wildfire, scorching, but inviting, filling me with warmth and tearing my very weak walls down, reducing them to rubble.

It's a betrayal, a delicious sin against the promise I made to myself–to stay away from Antonio Amato. But the way his hand dips into the small of my back, the heat of his touch and the way his gaze devours mine, melts it all away.

When we break apart, I'm breathless, my head spinning. A traitorous part of me hopes he'll kiss me again, right here, right now, with the roar of the waterfall drowning out any lingering thought.

He hesitates, though, his jaw clenched, a battle raging behind his eyes. "We shouldn't," he rasps, breathless, the sound rough against the cascading water.

My voice fails me for a moment. What should I say? That the dam holding back my desires has well and burst? That this stolen moment by the waterfall - just like last night - feels like the only solace I've had in months?

"Come home with me," I blurt out instead, betrayed by my deep desire for the sweetness of his touch.

Antonio's eyes widen in surprise, then narrow with suspicion. He sees the struggle written all over my face, the battle between my want and knowing better.

For an endless moment, I think he’s going to battle past the urges I know are raging inside him, too. Instead, he sighs, a deep rumble that vibrates through me.

"Alright," he says, his voice laced with a hint of defeat. "Let's go."

I’m so stunned by how quickly he agrees. I blink at him like an absolute idiot. “Umm, sure.”

We make our way back up the narrow, hidden track that leads to the road. The silence is comfortable, a silence that speaks volumes like a shared secret between us. We steal glances at each other, both of us grappling with our decision. I almost burst out laughing at what we are doing. If we had left it at our one-night stand, we could have called it a mistake. We are well past that now, though, a fact that has dawned on him almost as clearly as it has dawned on me.

The game trail through the forest opens, and as I climb over a rock, I lose my footing and stagger forward. I exclaim in surprise, but Antonio is there, his arm gripping me around the waist almost immediately. I’m both shocked and impressed at how quickly he reacted. His touch sends sparks through my body as blood rushes to my head.

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