Page 38 of The First Time

I try to picture what the hell I must look like, grinning like a fool with black teeth, but the thought of it makes me laugh myself. I’m sure I’m giving Layla more lovely views of my teeth because she just laughs harder and then holds her camera up and takes a picture.

I grab a glass of water and try to swirl it around my teeth.

“Better?” I ask with a smile.

“Better.” She takes a bite of her own pasta. “I think that’s going to be my screensaver from now on.”

I shrug. “If it makes you smile every day, I’m okay with it.”

After lunch, we walk over to the famous St. Mark’s Square to get some gelato and see St. Marks Basilica. We stroll around throughthe streets, hand in hand, as we walk into shops and buy some souvenirs.

It’s a slow day where we wander around seeing nothing and yet everything. It seems like every turn you make, there’s another bridge, another small canal, an alleyway. Gondolas float by, and I hear the gondolier serenading his passengers.

We get dinner after we check into our hotel, the place recommended by our hotel concierge.

Venice, as the sun is starting to set, is truly something else. We happen to walk by a canal with several gondoliers standing next to their gondolas.

“You wanna be cheesy and take a ride?” I ask Layla.

“You’d take a ride with me? I’d love to do that!” she bounces on her toes with excitement.

I walk up to one of the gondoliers to see if he’s available. He looks over at Layla behind me and winks. “I was done for the day, but I can make an exception.”

I thank him profusely and pay him the obscenely expensive amount for a ride and a bottle of champagne to accompany it. We sit down on the red, velvety seats as our gondolier hops on the back and begins to paddle away from the dock.

“Ah, Venice. The city of love,” he says as we move along the water. “Perfect for a couple like you.”

Neither of us correct him. This time, being called a couple seems fitting. I hand her a champagne flute and wrap my arm around her. The lights are beginning to shine brighter, reflecting off the water as the sun goes further down.

She leans her entire body into mine and we sit in silence as we drink and watch the scenery pass us by.

“I’ll never forget this trip,” she whispers to me as her hand rests on my thigh. “Thank you for making it so perfect.”

I smile down at her. “Even with all the fighting?”

Her hand starts to run up and down my leg. “It’s kind of been like a little bit of foreplay. Don’t you think?”

She leans up and kisses me softly on the lips.

“Fuck, Freckles. You’re creating a bit of a situation for me in my pants.”

Her hand lifts a bit higher until it grazes my dick. My jaw falls as I suppress the groan I want to release.

“Over here. Bridge of Sighs,” our gondolier shouts. “Legend has it that if you kiss while passing underneath, you will enjoy eternal love.”

He turns down the canal for us and starts singing some song in Italian while we approach the bridge. Layla seems a bit uncomfortable.

“You don’t have to kiss me,” she fidgets in the seat. “Eternity is a long time.”

I raise my eyebrow. “You don’t want to spend eternity with me? Am I that annoying?”

She loosens up and laughs lightly. “No. I just wouldn’t think you would want to spend eternity with me. You know, it’s me. Just your best friend’s little sister.”

Everything gets darker as we head further into the small canal. The bridge is approaching, and I don’t know what makes me do it, but I lean in and kiss her while we glide under the bridge.

My hand reaches for her cheek and tilts her head so I have the perfect angle to open my mouth and deepen the kiss. Her tongue against mine sends shivers of desire racing through me.

I pull away slowly. “You’re more than just my best friend’s little sister, Freckles.”

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