章 22: First Official Date

Amanda wasn't sure what was keeping her comfortable, but she savored the scent of a man's aftershave and snuggled against where she was at rest. While she felt the sea breeze against her face, it was the jumping motion of the boat that awoke her.

She opened her eyes to see more of water and rock formations ahead of her. She realized she was riding on a speedboat and she was resting on someone else. Someone she felt rather very comfortable with.

She hastily sat up and found Christopher looking at her with regard in his eyes. He said, "You were pretty tired. We literally went around the island five times already... This is all due to your odd fetish."

Her mouth fell open, realizing she had fallen asleep during the entire boat ride and had been for god knows how long. This was not like Amanda. She was always looking over her shoulders, but being with Christopher was different and she had begun to recognize this well.

She asked, "What - what time is it?"

"It's almost ten in the morning. You slept for two hours - "

"Why didn't you wake me?!" She scolded, hearing that she had practically wasted time on a boat.

He just gave her his most alluring smile and reached for her hand and said, "You looked even more beautiful asleep. That and I wasn't really sure if you were enjoying sleeping in my arms - Ahh! Woah, woman. That was some punch!"

She gave him a good fist in his arm after he presumed she was sleeping on purpose.

Karoo island was a rock island, known for its unique cliff formations and the bountiful seagulls that frequently visited the region. It was a good place for hiking and just appreciate the view of the ocean and boulders of rocks from below its highest peak. It was where the boatman brought the two for their first date.

Christopher wanted Amanda's undivided attention. So the best place was on an uninhabited island with only very few visitors who would come to disturb their privacy.

The first part of their date involved hiking to the top-most part of the rock formation and along the way, they met seagulls, pausing their trek. They both gave the seagulls a little treat of bread as Christopher brought an entire loaf only for the birds.

Just before reaching the peak, Amanda and Christopher came by an injured bird.

Amanda was blabbering about how amazing birds fly together when Christopher just walked ahead of her, finding himself standing in front of one seagull that seemed to be just sitting.

"Is something wrong with it?" Amanda asked, seeing Christopher reached for the bird.

"I'm checking," he said. Christopher felt the bird's wings, slowly pressing his fingers against its elbow. He repeatedly did this process while flipping the bird to lie on its back and turning it back up again. "Yeah, it has a wound just right here."

He allowed Amanda to take a look at the seagull before he added, "See this? He is completely bruised."

"Poor birdie," she said while pouting her lips.

She watched as Christopher reached for his backpack and took out a small first aid kit. He treated the bird with a small amount of anti-septic before moving it to a shaded area, letting it rest on its own.

"We'll check on him when we get back and if he needs more help, I'll probably take him back to the Trinity Bay," he said, just right after letting the seagull take its rest.

"You have a soft spot for birds? I remember you had a falcon painting in your house." Amanda asked with a smile. "Amazing how quickly you noticed it was injured."

He shrugged and said, "It's as closing his eyes and obviously tired. I just had to take a look."

Finishing the trail, Christopher offered his hand to Amanda. While she knew getting close to him was trouble, she ultimately gave her hand.

Finally, being able to touch someone in years, everything about Christopher was intriguing to Amanda. At that point, she no longer cared for what Trisha or the other masters will think of her.

As they walked, she frequently looked at his hand and how he clasped hers like he was worried of losing her. She thought he had very manly hands, seeing how the veins took its shape, but what she admired the most were his long and slender fingers.

That, on top of clean fingers, she concluded it was good how he took care of the minor things about himself. She frowned and asked herself, 'Why am I studying his hands?'

By the time they reached the peak, no one else was around. It was common for most visitors on this island to linger early in the morning. However, since Amanda fell asleep, they were late for their morning hike.

Inside Christopher's backpack were sandwiches that Martin made for them. He said, "We can have a heavy meal when we return."

She smiled and said, "This is fine." She peeked inside the bread and saw slices of ham and cheese, and she was satisfied with it. "I like convenient food."

Since over the past few days, it was Christopher who kept on asking about Amanda that she determined it was her turn to pry.

"So what business is your father into? And Where exactly?" She asked before biting on her food.

She watched as Christopher scratched his head and said, "A lot. Umm... We have weaponry shops - "

"Woah, really? What kind?" She could not help but cut him off. Amanda liked weapons.

"More of blades - Hey, did anybody tell you, you have a pair of such beautiful green eyes and it really matches the glow of your skin - I'm so envious how you look so healthy whereas I am so pale," It was Christopher's best effort to keep her away from asking more about his family.

Amanda had to agree. She had a good complexion, but that was because the weather in Trinity Bay never made her feel cold. Whereas Christopher was very easy to feel its chills. Still, his compliments made her nose turn red and so did her cheeks.

She coughed and look away, but unfortunately for her, Christopher saw it. He said, "I like how your cheeks turn red because of me."

Out of nowhere, he leaned closer and reached for the corner of her mouth. With his thumbed, he wiped away a stain of mustard. It was a simple gesture, yet Amanda felt her heart flutter. She gasped as soon as she felt his touch.

Amanda felt like time stopped for a second, seeing him inches away from her. All the more, seeing how his thin lips curved into a smirk while his blue eyes look adoringly at her lips and shifted directly into her own eyes.

She gulped and said, "You could have just told me. I can wipe it myself."

"Why? That would leave me with no excuse to look at you up close - even touch you," he said outright before grabbing a bottle of water and handing it to her. "Thank you, Amanda, for coming with me."

For the rest of their stay at Karoo island, Amanda and Christopher just sat or slept over the sight of the cloudy skies above them while frequently appreciating the view of the cliffs from below. They covered very little about themselves except for likes and dislikes, both trying to hide their secret lives.

However, when Amanda asked about his future, his answer took her by surprise. Christopher said, "I have to run the family business, I suppose - have a family of my own. I just want two kids, like me and Cassy, my sister. What about you, Amanda? How do you feel about having a family someday?"

She lowered her head and wondered how nice it would be to have a family, one she never had, being an orphan. She nearly wet her eyes as she said, "Would be nice to have a family. Seriously nice."

He cleared his throat and said, "Well, Amanda. You don't need to look very far." He nearly snorted at his own words and added, "You know right next to you -"

"I know what you mean, silly," Amanda said while turning red again at his words.