Behind Closed Curtains (Desires of the Forbidden)

Chapter 18

"Alright, see you all tomorrow! Get some rest and prepare to pick up right where we left off! Good work!"

Dave's dismissal drove an instant spear of nerves directly to into the pit of my swirling stomach.

Without having to guess, I knew Kaleb would be watching me. My eyes fluttered close and I reveled in the momentary solitude the darkness brought me.

Here we go.

I wasn't even the slightest bit surprised to find Kaleb standing tall in front of me. I rose my chin up, letting my head crane to connect my stare to his.

For once, our stares seemed to reflect the others in their misery. Both of us dreaded the talk that would soon conspire and yet both of us knew how absolutely necessary it was.

Languidly, I rose from my seat in the audience, feeling the muscles in my legs stretch and cry out in relief as I had been sitting for a good hour now and they yearned for a bit of action.

Mindlessly, I followed Kaleb as he led the way through the winding halls and out the back door of the theater to a place I had never visited before.

I dared to let my brows rise in shock and awe as I stepped past the threshold of the theater and into the most random, yet heartwarming sight I ever could have imagined.

Sitting behind one of the aged theater, was a garden.

A small one, but a garden nonetheless.

There was a tall, black rimmed archway that both Kaleb and I walked under in order to step fully into the lively colored garden. There were two wooden benches sitting parallel to each other and it was almost impossible to let your eyes wander anywhere in the garden without stumbling upon a set of exquisitely beautiful flowers.

Reds, pinks, whites and yellows of every shade littered across the garden. My eyes were wide and greedy as they took in every inch of the breathless, natural beauty around me.

"I take it you didn't know this was here?" his deep voice mused lightly, breaking me from my awe inspired trance.

Steering my gaze towards Kaleb, I slowly shook my head.

"Meg has a big thing for gardens apparently and she's here so much with Dave she just started coming out here on her breaks a year or so ago and went a little overboard, like Meg tends to do," Kaleb said with a chuckle as he disconnected our stares to move closer into the garden, shoving his hands into the front pockets of his jeans as he observed the plants and trees around him.

Gradually, Kaleb turned back to me. His eyes met mine in an electrifying stare that startled my heart with a great jolt.

"Do you like it?"

I gave him a tentative nod.

The side of Kaleb's mouth quirked up just the slightest, his eyes glowing with contentment.

"I thought you might."

I averted my gaze from him and stood awkwardly in middle of the garden, pulling my bottom lip in between my teeth and chewing on the sensitive skin as I waited for Kaleb to make his next move.

My eyes had drifted over the same patch of wiry green grass numerous times before Kaleb finally broke the silence.

"You gonna stand there all day, Peaches?"

My eyes snapped up to find his, only to realize that he had taken his place on one of the wooden benches and was staring up at me expectantly.

"Oh, uh, yeah," I mumbled out shyly as I let my legs stroll across the garden, mashing down the sections of grass that my feet came in contact with until I made it to the bench that Kaleb was perched upon.