We have a podium!! Absolutely gutted for Carlos and Oscar with what happened at the start of the race though ewfbjfnwn
Anyway, we have songs for this chapter 😉 You guys will know when to play it. Trust me.
I Was Never There by The Weeknd, Gesaffelstein
Renegade by Aaryan Shah
High (& Dua Lipa) by Whethan, Dua Lipa
Under The Influence by Chris Brown
warning: mature content
Enjoy!
*****
July 22, 2028 - Hungary
"Where are we going?" Charles asked as I pulled his hand, my other occupied by my phone which I was using for GPS.
"You'll see in a few minutes." I said, turning right by the corner of the street. Thankfully, there weren't that many people in this town. When we arrived in Hungary yesterday, a lot of fans were waiting for the drivers to arrive, some of them even hanging out by the streets of the airport, the hotel, and the circuit. Charles and I were having dinner with Pierre and Kika just across the street from the hotel, and it took us half an hour to get to the lobby because of the number of people asking for their pictures and autographs. There was nothing wrong with it, I thought, as Kika and I waited patiently for the boys. But I wanted some privacy for us tonight.
When the red door came into view, I grew excited when I saw that the orange tulips were still there. I knocked on the door twice before turning to Charles with a smile on my face.
"Is there where I find out you're a CIA agent who's been covering as a UN lawyer?" He asked, placing his hands inside the pocket of his hoodie, including mine that was clasped around his.
"Stop being dramatic and just wait."
The door opened and Mrs. Olah let out a gasp before she opened it all the way, her face lighting up as soon she sees me and Charles. "Ms. Kaplan!" She greeted, giving me a hug before moving to Charles who was looking at the woman with wide eyes. "Mr. Leclerc! Lovely to see you two. I was worried I would never see you again."
"That'll never happen, Mrs. Olah." I said, squeezing Charles' hand. He gave her a smile of his own although this was more tentative. We can't really tell her that Charles doesn't remember who she was because we can't risk anyone else knowing about his memory loss.
"Everything's ready for you. Why don't you go ahead and I'll follow? Your order is almost ready." She gave me a gentle push on my back, wringing her hands together as she watched Charles and I walk through the hallway.
I turned to Charles and was surprised when I saw a smile on his face. We haven't even gone past the door. What's he smiling about?
"Is this a date?" He asked, stopping me and grabbing my shoulders so that I was facing him.
I gave him a smile of my own and nodded my head. "When you're married, everything is a date." I winked at him before opening the door, feeling Charles stop as he stood underneath the doorframe.
The coffee shop looked as beautiful as ever, with walls lined up with books. I could see a few things that had changed, though. Mrs. Olah added a few more lights and there was now a section on the right corner that was filled with blankets and pillows.
I sighed in contentment, turning around to see Charles' reaction. His eyes were drinking in every little detail— from the titles written on the spine of the books to the different kinds of furniture placed all throughout the room.
"How did you find this?" He asked, walking forward and brushing a finger against one of the shelves.
"You found this, actually." I replied, making his eyes snap up to mine. "It was one of the very few dates we had that wasn't for PR or filled with us worrying about the agreement."
A soft knock interrupted us and Mrs. Olah entered holding a tray. I ordered two drinks in advance which were actually milkshakes since Charles can't have any caffeine this late with the last practice session happening tomorrow morning. What surprised me was the plate filled with pastries because she told me they only offered those in the morning.
"I baked a batch for you." She said when she saw my face. Mrs. Olah set down the tray and clapped her hands. "Alright, then. Enjoy the night." She gave us one last smile before she left the room and closed the door behind her.
"Where do you want to sit?" I asked him, raising my arms as I gestured to the entire room.
"The chairs are beautiful," Charles started and I grinned at how he glanced at the corner I noticed earlier. "But those blankets look like they're the most comfortable ones in the world."
We ate in silence, the two of us sitting beside each other with the bookshelf pressed against our book. It wasn't comfortable since the books created a flat space for us to lean on. Charles was completely enamored, eyes still taking in his surroundings.
I lightly tapped his forehead, making him turn to me. "What's going on in there?"
"I'm just trying to absorb it. It's a bit sad that I can't remember this place."
"You will now." I smiled, nudging his shoulder with mine.
"You know, you're a very patient person." I almost choked on the milkshake I was drinking, making me cough as Charles patted my back.
"Savor it because that's not a word people would use to describe me."
Charles leaned his head back as he laughed, the sound of it echoing in the room and I kept a mental image of how happy he looked in my mind. "You're talking about your stubbornness. Now, that's one of the best words that can be used to describe you."
"You have a funny way of giving compliments." I playfully glared at him and Charles smiled, eyes glancing at my lips as if he was debating if he should kiss me or not.
He did, and the smile on my face as he pulled away didn't disappear.
"I'm trying to say thank you and you're making it very hard to do that." Charles turned around a bit so that his body was facing mine. He bent his knees and placed his elbows over it, linking his hands together. "Not everyone would be willing to do things like this. Not even couples who have been together for years." I nodded my head in agreement, knowing that some marriages don't last. "You thanked me before for staying. Thank you for asking me to and not giving up on me."
"In all our lifetimes, remember?" I asked him, caressing the side of his face with my hand.
Charles bit his lip and nodded his head. "In all our lifetimes."
We spent the remainder of the night reading together with Charles' arm resting over my shoulder, sometimes playing with my hair. We couldn't stay out that late and headed back to the hotel at around nine in the evening.
Charles had to talk to Andre about tomorrow morning's schedule so I headed to the en suite bathroom to make myself a bath. I let the warm water run as I grabbed some clothes from my suitcase before adding some soap into the tub.
I was about to strip off my clothes when a knock came on the door. "Yeah?" I asked Charles as I opened the door. "Everything okay?" I asked again when I saw the confused look on his face.
Charles nodded his head, pursing his lips. "Yeah, I just remembered something. We said in all our lifetimes during our wedding, right?"
I scrunched my eyebrows, not knowing where he was heading with this. I glanced at the tub and quickly turned off the water before it poured over. "Yes."
"What about the I am with you?"
My body stilled, eyes on Charles as he pushed open the door of the bathroom, unaware of my reaction.
I've never told him that.
Wherever you are, I am with you. Wherever I am, you are with me.
Those were the words that my parents would always tell me and Esma, but I don't remember sharing that with Charles. I've talked about my family hundreds of times, sharing random stories about them, but never this. I don't think I've even told Gabby about what those words mean to my family because it felt too important to share with someone outside of it.
"How do you know those words?" I asked him, my voice low. This caught Charles' attention and he met my eyes.
"I was going through our closet back home when I saw this. I don't remember buying it, so I thought you gave it to me." He pulled something out of his pocket and as soon as I saw the silver ring I thought I had lost three years ago, thoughts swarmed my head. He held it up, the light reflecting against the small diamonds before I saw the four words engraved inside.
"Oh my god."
"What? What's going on?" Charles asked as I began pacing, trying to rack my brain and remember when I gave it to him. I thought I lost it after we went out that summer.
"Do you really want to give this to me or are you just drunk?"
"If I wasn't drunk and things were okay between us, I think I would've given it to you anyway."
It's been with him all along. For three years, Charles kept the matching silver ring that I always kept in my wallet. I stopped wearing it since every time my eyes landed on my finger, I'd remember how I lost the matching ring.
"I think I gave that to you when I was drunk."
"You think?"
"Charles, I was drunk. I think I blacked out that night." I rolled my eyes at him as he chuckled at me. "This is not funny." I said, running a hand through my hair.
"It's a little funny." He smiled, moving closer to me as he brushed away a few strands that had fallen over my eyes.
"We weren't on speaking terms when I bought that. It's actually part of a set."
"Where's yours?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at me.
"In my wallet." I replied, and before I could even utter another word, he was walking out of the bathroom. He came back a few seconds later with my ring in his hands.
"It's ironic how you gave me this even if we weren't speaking." He placed the two rings on his palm, the two of us eyeing it.
"I was sad, drunk, and hopelessly in love with you. Besides, I think I was still hoping back then that if I ever got the chance to give it to someone, I'd give it to you." My heart was practically beating out of my chest and I wondered if he could hear it from where he was standing.
"Well," Charles smiled, grabbing my hand. "This is your second chance." My breath hitched when he placed the silver ring on my other ring finger, thumb caressing the space above it as he smiled down at my hand. "My turn." He passed the ring to me and with shaky fingers, I did the same with his. "Nadia." Charles called my name and I looked up to see him analyzing me. "Why are your hands shaking?"
"Because this doesn't feel real." I whispered and Charles closed the distance between us. He held my face in his hands, causing me to look up at him. He no longer had that smile on his face. Instead, an intense expression had overcome him, green eyes bright and boring into mine.
"It's real for me." Charles whispered before he leaned forward and pressed his lips against mine.
This kiss was different. Aside from that weekend we spent in Nice, all of the other kisses I've shared with Charles were either too short or filled with sweetness.
This wasn't.
My hands moved to his shoulders before snaking up to the back of his neck where my fingers grazed the ends of his hair. Charles sighed against my mouth as he pulled me closer to him, my body practically flushed against his.
"Charles." I breathed out as I pulled away and he used this as the perfect moment to glide his lips against my jaw before moving down. "Oh." I heard myself saying when I felt his lips graze against my collarbone. "We need to stop."
His body stilled against mine before he angled his face so that I could see him. "Why?"
"Are you ready for this? If we don't stop, this is going to be such a huge step and if you're not ready, I don't think I'll–"
"Nadia, look at me." I stopped rambling and met his eyes. He gave me a soft smile before bumping my nose with his. "I have no intentions of stopping."
That was the only green light I needed.
His shirt was the first piece of clothing to go followed by mine. Then my bra. Charles stepped forward until my back hit the countertop, the cold tile making me hiss as it made contact with my skin. Charles took this opportunity to deepen the kiss, hands squeezing my hips as he pulled them close to his.
The two of us practically moaned and for just a second, the only thing you could hear in the bathroom were our harsh breaths. Without another word, Charles gripped my thighs and lifted me to sit on top of the countertop, my hands tightly gripping his shoulders because he caught me by surprise.
"Tell me what to do." He whispered against my mouth, my hands moving down his chest before I grabbed onto the waistband of his jeans.
"Hands." I said, not trusting myself to form a complete sentence. My right hand grabbed his and I guided it to the button of my pants, hoping that he would get the idea.
He did, and I smiled against his neck as I did the same with his.
There's a moment– a pause– that you'd feel after making the first form of contact that made you feel that this was really happening. With my other hand that wasn't occupied with him, I moved it back to run my fingers against his hair before lightly pulling on it. Charles' eyes darkened and my grip tightened when he curled his fingers, causing my hand to stop moving against him. He repeated the motion and I closed my eyes, arching my back as a satisfied sigh escaped my lips.
He used this perfect moment to pepper kisses against my neck. "Like that?" He asked before doing it again.
"Yes, please." Charles groaned against my neck as he focused on a specific spot on my neck.
It had been so long. Eight months. It's been eight months since I've been this intimate with him and having his skin against mine felt like a torch that would inevitably cause a chain reaction and light a path that's been dormant for years.
"I need this off." He grunted before pulling the rest of my pants down. He began pushing his own pants down and while he was doing this, I pulled him against me by wrapping my leg around his waist. "Nadia." Charles moaned and I felt him squeeze my leg when I planted a soft kiss on the spot behind his ear. "We need to move or else I'm going to–"
"We're not moving." I could feel him against me. I pulled Charles closer and the two of us let out deep groans when his lower body came into contact with mine, only two thin layers of clothing separating us. I placed a palm on his chest, lightly pushing him away. Charles looked at me confused as I hopped off of the counter. "Right here is perfect." I said, my fingers tracing the lines by his hips before I hooked them against the waistband of the only article of clothing I was wearing.
I could feel Charles' heated gaze on me the entire time and I only looked away for a second to remove it. Next, my hands moved to his waist and I push down the only cloth in between us.
"Fucking beautiful." He whispered to himself as his eyes raked over me. I grabbed his hand and guided him to the bathtub, big enough for the both of us. Charles got in first and I followed, my thighs placed over his as he wrapped his arms around my waist. The warm water moved with every action we made, surely dripping over the edge and onto the tiled floor. I moved my hips over him and stilled as a wave of pleasure washed over me, making me press my fingernails against his back. "God, I can't get enough of you." He said, lifting his hips to meet mine and I held on tightly to the edge of the tub that was behind him.
"Charles, please." I begged, moving my hips again. "Please."
He gave in to my pleas and everything hit me all at once.
It felt like heaven and hell in one. Every time his hips met mine, pleasure flowed through my veins and my lips parted as I lost control, words of praise and passion escaping me. He'd drive me to the edge, speeding up before slowing down as if to savor the feeling. "Nadia, fuck." He said against my ear as I moved my hips and met every push he made. "Fuck. Fuck. Fuck."
"I'm–" I whimpered, my fingernails pressing harder onto his back. Charles hissed in pain but that didn't stop him from fastening his pace. "Oh my god."
"Are you close?"
"Yes." I answered immediately, feeling the warmth growing with every second. It spread all throughout my body when Charles increased his speed even more as I felt myself on the brink of falling. He leaned forward and kissed my collarbone again, and that was all it took for me to come crashing down. A loud groan escaped Charles as he followed right after me, the two of us wrapped up in bliss as my body sagged against his, leaning my head against the side of his own.
We were both silent as we tried to catch our breaths, one of Charles' hands moving up and down my spine. "Next time," He breathed out, making me turn my head and meet his eyes, a smile on his lips. "there will be no asking me to stop. Okay?"
"Absolutely."
*****
Once again, I'd like to say that I am not an expert when it comes to writing these scenes.
Nevertheless, hehe
✧Reese✧