Some Things Never Change [SHAWN MENDES]

March 7, 2022

"Does that mean you'll consider my suggestion?"

She gave me a long kiss. "I owe it to you to  do that. Please don't take that as a yes. There are a lot of things I need to factor in before I can make a decision this big."

"I guess it's a little premature to go looking at houses tomorrow, eh? I've got us scheduled to spend the afternoon with a realtor," I said, knowing she might be furious that I'd jumped the gun.

I was relieved when she laughed. "Shawn! Were you that confident that I'd say yes to this?"

"No. It's just tough to book time to tour houses and I didn't want to risk you saying yes and us not being able to see any," I explained.

"I think we should do it because no matter what I decide, you should move forward with this plan. This is what works for your career and that means it's important. I refuse to hold you back."

I looked at this amazing woman with wonder as I thanked the stars above that she was mine. "Have I ever told you that you are my favorite person and that I love you for always supporting me?"

"Actually, yes. But I love hearing it."

I looked past her when the pool lights came on and distracted me. They lit up the water and the surrounding patio at nine on the dot every night.

"How about we go skinny-dipping," I whispered in her ear.

"What you're really suggesting is that we have sex in the pool, isn't it?"

I'd done it before and it was pretty fucking hot, but I didn't want to tell her that.

"I just think it would be a nice way to end the evening."

"Okay. I'm in. But maybe you should go grab a condom from the bedroom just in case. We don't want to slip up like we almost did this morning."

It was more that I'd almost slipped in this morning. We'd been in the shower together and things had turned very sexy, as they tended to do when we were naked. I had Ceci pressed up against the tiled wall and had gotten halfway inside her before we realized what was happening and stopped.

"I'll get the condom and maybe you could grab a bottle of champagne from the fridge," I said as we both got up.

We met back at the pool a minute later. I turned off the patio lights but kept the pool lights on. Then I took off my clothes and set them on one of the chairs before diving into the deepest part of the pool with the condom in one hand. When I surfaced, I saw that Ceci was taking her dress off, so I sat on an underwater ledge and enjoyed the show. She chose to walk in at the stairs, but then she swam across the pool to join me.

"Why does this feel a million times better than wearing a swimsuit?" she asked as she straddled me on my lap.

"I dunno, but it really does feel good."

I pulled her closer so that I could kiss her, and we started to make out pretty heavily as my hands glided over her curves under the water. I had to hop out to put the condom on, but soon we were back in position. She lowered herself down on me and I held her in place for a few moments to savor the unique pleasure I got every time I entered her. Then she started to bounce up and down, taking full advantage of how buoyant she was. The motion caused small waves to form and lap against the opposite end of the pool in and almost musical way. I helped her reach her climax with right hand as my left held onto her.

"Fuck...Ceci...so...so good," I managed to say as she started to bounce harder.

We both came explosively and loudly, and I hoped that the high brick wall and tall foliage blocked most of the sound, though the thrill of doing it outside in the water overshadowed the risk of being heard.

"I hope you're looking at houses with pools tomorrow," Ceci said afterwards as we drank the champagne straight from the bottle.

The next afternoon, Kaycee, the realtor my mom had found for me, took us to eight different houses. Three of them we didn't even go inside because they had no curb appeal. Another three we dismissed once we'd done a short tour. That left two that Ceci and I both felt had lots of charm. Both were off Laurel Canyon Boulevard and were similar in size. One was what Kaycee referred to as "move in ready" which meant it was up to date, stylish, and needed very little work. It had a sleek infinity pool in back as well as a pool house that could double as a guest room. The other was an older house with a larger wooded lot. It offered tons of privacy and had a beautifully landscaped yard, but the interior hadn't been renovated since the 1980's.

"I know that other one looks better at first glance," Ceci said as we stood in the backyard of the older home, "but from an architectural standpoint, this house is far superior. The building style is mid-century modern and you could do upgrades that coordinated with that look. You could even furnish it accordingly."

"What kind of renovations are you thinking?" I asked.

"Total kitchen overhaul. I'd gut it and open it up to the dining room. Based on the beams, my guess is that how it originally was and someone closed it off later. I'd remove all the wallpaper and go with a simple pale gray or beige paint throughout. I bet there's hardwood floors under that godawful carpet. Pull it up. Take down the heavy drapes and go with something lighter. The windows should be the focus."

"And put in a new pool," I said as I looked over at the cracked shell of what had once probably been an amazing feature of the home.

"Yes, but that's easy. They could use the same footprint."

"And why would I do all this instead of buying the other house that's perfect?"

"Because this house has more character. Plus, if you're thinking long term, this one is family friendly and has room for an addition if you need more than three bedrooms down the road. The stairway on the other place could be very dangerous with a toddler or small child."

That house had a wide staircase with open backs and no handrail. It looked stunning, but like Ceci, my first thought had been that it wasn't practical for a family.

"You think I should put a bid on it?" I asked.

"I'm leaving tomorrow. See if Kaycee can keep showing you homes. You can have me on FaceTime while you look at them and I can give you input. If nothing else is as great as this one, then you should consider buying it. The price is amazing, so it might sell quickly."

"Will you promise me one thing?" I asked.

"What?"

"If this is the one, will you oversee the renovations from either here or Toronto? I can tell you have a vision for it and I want that to be how it turns out."

"If you buy this one, then yes," she agreed.