I Remember You.

Chapter 15 - Slap in the Face.

New Year's Eve...
Kevin (Vin) Creekman...

My whole life I have been in control, and I have never placed any energy into second guessing myself. Some might say that I place unnecessary stress on myself by being as methodical as I am. But for me the stress comes when I don't keep hold of that control and think my actions through. So, you can imagine just how on edge I am with my decision to bring Carrie here tonight.

I had actually almost cancelled, typed up the message and everything but something stopped me from sending it.

What a joke, here I am trying to make it sound like I had no idea why I didn't send that text.

Lorelei.

That was what stopped me. The thought that she was going to be all loved-up with Alex was what put the brakes on what I knew was a bad idea. A part of me wanted her to see that I was a man that was worthy of dating. Maybe this isn't the right way to go about that but the thought of having to watch her all over Alex was enough to make me feel more than a little murderous.

Lorelei was mine.

Lorelei belonged to me.

Just as I was hers.

Just as I belonged to her.

Carrie was waiting for me when I knocked on her front door. I had told her that it was just a casual party, and being that it was by the beach, it was probably a good idea to wear something that would keep her warm, but she had presented herself in a long black dress that showed way more skin than needed. I mean Carrie was a beautiful woman in her own right, there was no need for her to put everything on display. Rich Auburn hair was different to her profile picture, which was what had drawn me to her in the first place because it had reminded me of the way Lorelei's had been before dying it. When I asked Carrie about it, she claimed that the auburn was her natural colour and had only just returned it to the way God intended it.

Great. A God-fearing woman. Don't get me wrong, I am of the belief that everyone has the right to believe as they wish but my experience with religious people was not at all positive.

The dark shimmer around her eyes made the brown in hers pop in a way that drew all of the attention. A beautiful bow-shaped mouth that was painted Scarlett-red made her look more like Lorelei than I was suddenly comfortable with. This was a bad idea. I knew it. I felt it deep in my gut but what could I do? This woman had paid for a babysitter for the night and from experience I knew that New Year's Eve prices were not cheap.

Great.

I am an idiot.

I could feel the dread leaking into my gut with all of the precision of a deadly poison. I had thankfully had the foresight to take my truck tonight because with the dress that Carrie was wearing there was no way she would have managed to fit on the back of my bike. However, in the confined space of the cabin of the truck I was suddenly drowning in the sweetly-sick scent of Carrie's perfume – fuck, did she bathe in it? It was so pungent and reminiscent of a childish perfume the girls used to wear, candies and flowers. I ended up having to roll the window down before it caused a blinding headache. The more I looked at her, the more I could see that she couldn't even hold a candle to Lorelei. My girl was an original, a one-off and that was what made her so completely special that I feel like a moron for ever thinking that Carrie looked anything like my girl.

By the time we reached the trailer-park I was a raw-bundle of nerves.

The closer I got to Lorelei the more I could feel that tug at my core. Beckoning me forward - desperate for just a glance at her. Just to be in her presence could calm me quicker than almost anything else. My flesh came alive with a swarm of tingles as I caught sight of the trailer. Was she in there?