"Pretty, right?"
Sara turned her head when she heard Charles' voice behind her. "Yeah, it is," she muttered, looking in front of her again. It was early in the morning, and she couldn't sleep in anymore, so, Sara had gotten out of bed and decided to watch the sunrise. After they shared the moment in the bathtub last night, they seemed to agree on forgetting about it, at least temporarily. They went to dinner as if nothing had happened, and Sara called it an early night as she still felt exhausted. Charles had joined her in bed later. They hadn't cuddled, they hadn't kissed again, there was just a friendly distance between them. Which she wanted to keep that way. Or not. She didn't really know at the moment. Sara didn't expect Charles to wake up as well, and she was aware that she was wearing just a lacy thong and a top, no bra. She shook it off, deciding not to care about it. It's not like he was wearing a lot either, he showed up next to her in just some sweats. And they had just seen each other like this last night anyway.
Sara wasn't sure if her palms were a little sweaty because she was uneasy, but she crossed her arms over her chest, silently wiping her palms across her top. She took in a deep breath, leaning her head against the wall while looking out over the skyline of Las Vegas, the beautiful colours of the sunrise stretching across the horizon. "You're up early," Charles mentioned, moving to lean against the other side of the window, mimicking her position. "Couldn't sleep anymore. Probably the jet lag," Sara shrugged. He nodded, directing his eyes to the view. She looked at him briefly, but she wished she didn't. His abs - God, his abs, defined as he was slightly stretching his upper body. His skin was tanned from the time he spent outside in Monte Carlo. His jaw was slightly locked, the stubble over them fitted him perfectly, and with this morning light his eyes seemed to be even lighter. Sara pushed herself off the wall. "I'm going to take a shower," she announced. "Want me to order breakfast meanwhile?" Charles asked. "Sure," Sara replied, making her way out of the living room to head to the bathroom.
She closed the door behind her, twisting the lock, and she started the water to make sure it would be on temperature when she got in. Sara stripped herself from the two pieces of clothing she was wearing, and she moved the hair tie out of her hair, leaving it on the sink while opening the glass shower door to get under the running water. Sara splashed the water in her face and raked her fingers through her hair. She took a deep breath, trying to define whatever she was feeling right now. When he asked her last night if she felt anything, and she said nothing, was she lying? What did she feel? Aroused, but that didn't mean a lot. Would sex mean anything to him? In those four weeks, she had never seen him looking at another girl, or even hinting at any wanting physical intimacy. Last night was the first time he kissed her and touched her like he meant it, like he wanted to kiss her and hold her like had done. It's complicated. It's exactly that. And she couldn't say anything else about it.
Sara couldn't really get a hold of her thoughts and feelings, she had never felt this conflicted before. All because the way they were brought together was forced, and she couldn't figure out if anything she felt was real, and not because she was forced into this situation. But the things they did together, going out for diner, this trip to Las Vegas now, that wasn't forced. Hell, she even came up with this trip herself. Sara tilted her head back to splash some water in her face again, and she finally reached out for the shower gel to wash her body. She decided to leave it, and see whatever would come at her. Sara stopped the water not much later, squeezed the water out of her hair and stepped out of the cubicle. She wrapped one of the towels around her hair and the other around her body. Sara unlocked the bathroom door and walked out, making her way over to the bedroom, where her suitcase laid opened on the floor. She took a mint green top from her suitcase, and a white pair of jeans, some clean underwear, and reminded herself to unpack her suitcase as soon as she got dressed.
Sara returned to the bathroom, dropping the towel and getting dressed. She blow-dried her hair, and applied some make-up. She brushed her teeth and then spritzed on some perfume. She left the towels to dry and made her way back to the bedroom. Sara placed her suitcase on the bed and opened it up again. She put her clothes in the closet, putting the dresses she took on some hangers, and put her shoes there as well. There was nothing in her suitcase, so she rolled it into a corner. Charles had gotten dressed while she was in the shower, and he wore some jeans and a plain, white shirt. He had ordered breakfast, and it arrived at their loft already. The table was made, and he was scrolling on his phone, waiting for her. "Took you long enough," Charles mentioned as she sat down. "Beauty takes some time, Charles," Sara replied, moving her hair over her shoulder what her words. "If beauty takes time, you wouldn't even need a second," he answered, and she was about to feel offended until she got what he meant. She snorted, reaching for the pancakes, not responding to his flirty remark.
"So, what's on the schedule for today?" Sara asked, spreading some Nutella over her pancake. "We're picking up the rental car after breakfast, and then we're heading over to the Grand Canyon by helicopter. There's a walking tour as well, so I hope you're wearing something comfortable," Charles said. "I'll bring some leggings and blister tape," Sara said. "We have lunch there too, by the way," Charles added. She nodded as she approved of what he planned. It looks like they would have a nice afternoon.
Charles opened the door of the sleek black Ferrari for Sara, and she sat down in the leather passenger's seat. Of course, the rental car was nothing else but a Ferrari, and she wasn't complaining. The roof could be opened to let in more air and light, the interior looked luxurious. The car rumbled to life when Charles started it, his hand gliding over the smooth material of the steering wheel, the other moving the car from neutral to drive to get away from the parking lot and onto the road. Sara pushed her sunglasses up her nose, locking her seatbelt as they went. Charles wore some sunglasses as well, and after breakfast he had styled his hair with some gel, locked a shiny Richard Mille around his wrist, and decorated his fingers with some silver rings. Sara let her eyes glide over his appearance as he looked at the road in front of them, his fingers tapping on the steering wheel with the rhythm of the music that was softly playing in the background. It brought her thoughts back to the kiss of last night, once again.
The veins ran up his arms, bulging up a little on his hands, his fingers. His hands, - God, his hands, they were slightly calloused, which she had felt last night as he had squeezed her waist so tightly, soft at the same time, as he had caressed her cheek multiple times already. "Everything alright?" Charles suddenly ask, making her lift her head to look out of the window. "Perfectly fine," she breathed. "We're almost there," he said, deciding not to ask any further. He glanced over at her, as if they were pretending they didn't check each other out sometimes. Outside of Las Vegas, there was nothing. Just nature and long highways. If they took the car all the way to the Grand Canyon, it would take them four hours just to get there. And by helicopter it was just forty minutes. Sara was the first one to get out of the car when Charles parked it, and she looked around while swinging her bag over her shoulder. Charles locked the car, and they walked towards the building together. Behind it were the platforms, and they just had to get registered first.
Walking next to each other felt slightly awkward, and Sara held the strap of her bag with one hand while leaving the other next to her body, and Charles pushed both of his hands in the pockets of his jeans. Sara pulled on the door, and Charles followed her inside. Charles made sure they were the only two in the helicopter ride, and they were assigned to their helicopter right away. After the company got the information they needed, they were guided to the platform. The couple hopped inside and sat down, locking their seatbelts, and they received some headphones. The door on the side was open, so they could look outside. The helicopter ride was absolutely incredible, and they flew over the Hoover Dam. The captain was telling them all about the region they crossed, and Sara leaned her head against the side of the seat, looking outside. She had gathered her hair in the back of her neck to prevent it from blowing in her face all the way, and she clearly enjoyed it. Charles looked at her, the way her eyes seemed to be brighter, and the healthy blush on her face, her pretty features.
The helicopter flew over the Grand Canyon next, and Sara took her phone to take some pictures and videos. These were images she had usually seen on the internet, and now she was seeing it with her own eyes. Her family could easily make trips like these, but they rather did. They usually took business trips to luxurious hotels, and whenever her father wanted to go on a holiday, it was the family house in the south of Spain, and not leaving it for two weeks, while Sara loved traveling and sightseeing. The helicopter brought them down where the walking route would start, at the bottom. Sara was glad she brought two bottles of water and some sunscreen. There were some people ahead of them, and they could follow them up to the Grand Canyon sky deck, where they were having lunch too. They both liked this a lot, even though they didn't say much. Neither of them complained about the length of the hike, because at the end, it was all worth it. The view was stunning, and the skywalk with the glass floor was quite the experience. Sara was taking pictures, and Charles just watched her.
He leaned his hands on the balustrade, looking down at the canyon and the view that went miles ahead. "I can take a picture of the two of you, wouldn't that be nice?" Charles and Sara turned around when they heard one of the staff members behind them, a camera in her hand. "Oh, it's fi-..." "Come on, it's only ten dollars and supporting the national park!" She chirped, holding the camera up. Sara put her phone down and in her bag, moving a little closer to Charles. "Can I?" he softly asked, meaning to put his arm around her. She nodded, a shiver running up her spine when his hand curled around her hip. She automatically curved into him, placing one of her hands on his shoulder blade. The picture was snapped and the lady showed her the polaroid, to which Sara pulled ten dollars out of her bag and handed it over. "You're taking it with you?" Charles asked. "Yeah," Sara shrugged. "You're not so bad to be around, you know," she added. Charles let out a breathy chuckle. "Shall we head over to lunch? I feel your attitude coming up," Charles said, which made her scoff, however she smiled, looking down at the picture of the two of them again.