Page 59 of The Lake House

He grabs my hand and leads me to his car. He helps me in and buckles my seat belt for me.

Once he’s settled in his seat, he then starts the engine and says, “This is not a very long ride. We’ll be there real soon.”

“Okay,” I respond with a smile. Although he could have told me we were hours away from our destination. I still would have loved sitting in the car with him.

The radio plays softly, but I’m not listening. My mind is tuning out the words. The beating of my heart is really the only thing I hear. I’m excited and nervous all at the same time.

The ride over to wherever it is he takes me doesn’t last more than three or four minutes, and as the car comes to a halt, he says, “Okay, we’re here.”

I hear the unbuckling of his seat belt, and so I unbuckle mine as well. Moments later, he’s opening my door and helping me out of the car.

“I’ll take this blindfold off of you in just a sec,” he says as he closes the car door on my side.

With my hand still in his, he leads me a couple of steps forward. I can’t tell where we are, but a sense of calm and serenity immediately takes over me. There’s a fresh breeze swishing by that licks my cheek.

I feel him walk behind me as he lets go of my hand and begins undoing my blindfold. “Keep your eyes closed for just a moment,” he says as he pulls it away from my eyes.

“Okay,” I respond with a small smile.

Now he comes to stand next to me and once more, he grabs my hand in his. I will never get over the way it feels every time he takes my hand. Every time he touches me. I love the feel of him.

He clears his throat. “Okay… open your eyes, Giules.”

I suck in a deep breath, and as I open my eyes, I’m speechless.

Although I’ve been here many times before, this is the absolute most perfect thing he could have ever done for me.

“Oh, my,” I finally manage to speak as my eyes bask in the sight before me. A beautiful white rowboat sits in Silver Mist Lake.

“It was my grandparents’ boat a long time ago.” He lets go of my hand and gets on the boat. Holding out his hand, he says, “Come on, Giules.”

I’m about to protest and say that I can’t because that’s something I typically would do. But instead of that, I suck in a deep breath and willingly place my hand in his.

Stepping off the pier as he pulls me onto the boat, it rocks back and forth a few times before settling. I’m not nervous. If I were to fall overboard, I wouldn’t panic. I know how to swim with all the summers I spent out here in Silver Mist. But it’s not the rocking of the boat that’s causing what’s inside of me to feel shaky. Something about this whole evening with Declan, the way he brought me here, the way he held my hand, makes it all that much more exciting and causes my heart to beat faster with each breath I take.

I sit on the bench across from him and feel myself relaxing the slightest bit.

“Ready?” he asks with a smile.

I nod. “Ready.”

Taking the two wooden oars into his hands, he rows, and we pull further and further away from the pier.

The whole scenery is beautiful… peaceful… serenity at its finest. Willow trees line the borders of the lake. In the distance, I can make out my backyard, Liv’s, and all of our neighbors’ as well. To my right, up ahead, green and brown ducks swim peacefully around. Pink and white lilies sway from side to side as the evening breeze swishes through. It’s a beautiful night, and I couldn’t ask for a better way to spend it.

When we’re far enough out, he stops rowing, placing the oars down, and stares at me with his dashing smile. He’s so damn handsome, and every time he looks at me the way he’s looking at me now, it does something to my insides I can’t describe. Damn, he’s so fine, and I can’t control my emotions right now. I want him so badly.

“Giules, you’re so far away,” he whispers.

I chuckle lightly. “Oh, am I?”

He nods. “Uh-huh. I think you should come sit here beside me.” He moves over a bit and pats the spot next to him.

My heart races at the thought, but before I can stop myself or even consider anything further, I get up—cautiously, so that I don’t go overboard—and walk over to the other side. Then I sit beside him.

Immediately, his arm wraps around me and my heart speeds up once more. The butterflies in the pit of my stomach are fluttering around crazily right now. This, the right here and right now, is the moment I’ve been waiting so long for. Everything is perfect. Everything feels right.

I feel Declan suck in a deep breath and after a few moments, he lets it go. “This is everything I could have ever wished for,” he whispers close to my ear.

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