Chapter 1: Candle Light
Candles. They were everywhere. Lit in every possible corner, every
nook, every counter and
shelf. They were plain or tall, short or stout, red, blue, vanilla
scented, adorned with fake jewels.
They created a dim glow in a room other wise deprived of light. There
was nothing to disturb
peaceful thought here, in this room. It was silent, save the quiet
sniffling in the middle of the
floor on white carpeting. The room was calming, and the candles’s
dull incandescence seemed
to grow heavy on the shoulders of the mourner until it was as if her
otherwise strong bones
splinter under one more ounce of impact.
She let her mind race,
curling into a ball there in that
space she occupied. She was ready to let the memories crush her while
she was by herself and
could lay in the silence. She was listening to her mind when her
vision changed. It was erupted
with a thundering knock. She zoned back to time and place and
realized the banging was real- at
her door.
She dragged herself to the blue door and creaked it open. She peered
into the eyes of Luis,
letting her own eyes ask questions, questions she didn’t want answers
to. What would he do
now? Now that he knew? She opened the door wider, so he could step
into the room she had set
up to make herself feel better. He looked around......... “Sheridan,
what the hell are you doing?”
he mused groping for a light switch? He let his hands roam around in
front of him, waiting for
the breaking point when his eyes would adjust to this overshadowed
room, when he made the
mistake that would forever alter the Crane/ Lopez-Fitzgerald rivalry
To Be Continued...
Chapter 2: Star Light
Luis reached around in front of himself to find a light switch,
simply because he was blind in the
dark. The candles weren’t doing him much good as far as seeing went.
He turned to his left,
hoping his hand would touch onto the wall. He made contact with
something warm and soft.
Sheridan hit the light switch which was just next to Luis’s ear. She
looked down at he waist. The
white flared sweat-pants she wore were low on her waist and the gray
baby tee shirt with the tiny
bow at the neckline left about 10 cm. Of her milky toned stomach
showing and short of finding
the light Luis had planted his hands firmly on the spot of velvet
skin between the top of her shirt
and the waistline of her pants.
She looked at his long fingers and
couldn’t help but wonder ....
‘You know what they say about men with long fingers and big feet,
Sheridan!’ Gwen had teased
her a week ago. She dropped her hands on top of his and in one fluid
motion, slid them between
the triangles his arms were making and wrapped them around his back.
They hugged tightly for a
long time, just holding, smelling, reveling in being that close to
the other.
Sheridan broke the catalepsy by sliding out of his grasp and blowing
out her candles wordlessly.
Luis just watched her, absorbed in the way her movements rolled
together, like sheets on a
clothesline barely trembling in a summer breeze. She went up some
stairs and Luis waited....
She never came down and Luis began to worry so he followed the steps
she had taken and found
himself looking at her lying beside a hot tub on the second story of
the cottage. She wore now a
purple and pink tankini in a design that mesmerized him. “You Ok
Sheridan? You haven’t said
two words since I got here.” he was concerned.
“I’m fine Luis...Why
are you here?” she had to
ask...she assumed they’d already told him.
“I’m here....”he thought twice and lowered his voice to nothing shy
of a whisper and began
again. “I’m here...to tell you...I love You. Yup, that’s right, you!
Sheridan Crane, I love you.” he
was unsure of her reaction, it was too fast to tell. All he knew was
that two hours later, in the
Jacuzzi he was playing with her hair and that somewhere between them
confessing their love
and consummating it- they had broken rules centuries old by making
love to each other.
“I love you Sheridan, please know, I always will...Don’t you see? I
love you!” he smiled.
“I love you to Luis, and I swear it by all the starlight tonight, I
love you!”
To Be Continued...
Chapter 3: Sun Light
They went to the bedroom and crawled beneath the sheets of her bed,
billowy and white. He
loved her silky pajama’s brushing against his arms when he hugged
her. She loved his feathery
hair brushing against her face when she nuzzled close to him. She
turned to face him, wondering
why he had come to her if he knew. Maybe he didn’t. It was too
confusing, and under the
influence of his cologne, it was boggling. She decided to let it go.
“Luis, I can’t sleep.” she
whispered. “Hmm...” he was groggy- she could tell he was about to
doze off. “Sing to me” she
wanted to hear his voice.
Im never gonna say goodbye
Cos I never wanna see you cry
I swore to you my love would remain
and I swear it all over again and I
I'm never gonna treat you bad
Cos I never wanna see you sad
I swore to share your joy and your pain
And I swear it all over again
All over again
He looked at the angel asleep in his arms and smiled. That had done
the trick. He fell asleep, her
breathing his lullaby, sweet and rhythmic. It was late before either
stirred, and he was the first to
open his eyes. He felt something cradled in his arms and knew by the
celestial feeling he had
that he was holding a fast asleep Sheridan. He tried to move so as
not to wake her but he did.
She was surprised at how great it felt to be in his arms. They both
recalled that night, and her
little seance with the ghosts that haunted her, but somehow, they
seemed to have vanished.
They
remembered the hot-tub, and the love making, and the promise by all
the starlight to Love
forever. “Good morning.” Luis said, clearing his throat. “Good
morning, Luis” she wondered if
he thought it was a mistake...not for long. He rolled her over and
kissed her, sweetly, yet leaving
nothing to be desired.
Someone broke the reverie of silent emotion between the two by
rapping lightly on the door of
the cottage. Sheridan hurried to open it, so she could get back to
Luis, who was still in her bed.
“Dammit! Im coming!” she yelled, expecting Julian. She was surprised
to find Pilar, looking a
mess, and very distraught. “I’m sorry Pilar. I thought you may be
Julian. Forgive the outburst.”
she apologized to the motherly woman. “It’s ok, mi Sheridan. DO you
have any idea where Luis
is I haven’t seen him since yesterday evening when he came to the
mansion. I am afraid of what
Julian may have done, you know how hot blooded Luis can be, and if
Julian had a pinch of
Brandy....” she trailed off letting tears resurface on her already
red eyes. “I...um...Luis...he
uh....Well....” she didn’t have to say more because he walked out of
her room then looking
incredibly sexy in his boxers. “Sheridan whose....” he saw his mother
in the room. “there..” he
finished. He grimaced at the sight of his mom, and Sheridan in her
sky blue satin&lace
nightgown, and him in his boxers.
[*this next line is from Shakespeare in Love, sorry, but it
fits....please work with me here*]
Pilar nodded, and putting two and two together, gave a weak smile.
Luis and Sheridan were jelly
legged, like deer in a headlight. “Good morning, mi hijo....it is a
new day.” Sheridan turned to
Luis. “It is a whole new world” He wrapped her in his arms. Pilar
left, satisfied. “Luis, there is
something you need to know about. It will be Julian and Father’s
first defense against us..me.”
She poured the coffee into large mugs and the went to the deck.
Sheridan explained “That
Night” and to her surprise Luis was very supportive. “Sheridan, I’ll
love you forever. You are too
sweet and kind to be a murderess.” he held her and kissed her face.
“Thank you Luis. That was
my dark secret. Deep and dark.” She smiled at him. The first time
since she had begun to tell the
story. “And now that you’re free of it you can bask in the sun
light cos the clouds are gone .”
To Be Continued...
Chapter 4: Love Light
Luis walked into the kitchen of his family’s house with a wide grin.
He turned to face his girlfriend of 7 months, Sheridan Crane,
and laughed. “Sheridan, come here.” he opened his arms, a gesture for
her to come hug him. They began kissing slowly, and
passionately. “Ahem...” Theresa interrupted the kiss and caused them
to move away from each others faces and stand with their
arms around each others backs, smiling shyly. Everyone in the
immediate families {except Julian and Alistair, who were currently
in Zimbabwe at an AA meeting for Julian...} knew about Sheridan and
Luis, as did Sam Bennett and Grace.
But one person was in
for the shock of their life. “Luis, Sheridan.... someone needs to see
you, Luis. Den..” Theresa left. Sheridan followed Luis into the
den that had housed may late night talks for her and Luis, not to
mention a few make out sessions, holding his hand tightly. She
nearly jumped a mile when she saw who was seated in the arm chair.
“Hank hey buddy.” Luis said slowly. “It’s been 7 months
man- where the hell did you go?” Luis forgot that Hank was none the
wiser of his relationship with Sheridan.
“I
had...um...business to attend to. Hey there, Sheridan! How’s my
girl?!” she looked at Luis’s doe eyes and smiled, shaking her
head. “Good....Hank- like Luis said...It’s been 7 months and Luis and
I are dating.” Hank frowned feigning indignance. “That’s
cool...me and Luis have dated the same girl before. Wanna go out
Friday?” he was persistent. “ I don’t think you understand
Hank. Luis and I are...um...serious, to say the least.” Hank got up
and left without a glance at either, slamming the door in a way
where the windows shook in protest.
“I think that went well.” Luis joked. Pilar walked in. “Luis,
Sheridan. Good afternoon. Sheridan, I thought you were going to go
to the mansion and ....look around while Julian and Alistair were
away.” “I am! Let’s go, honey.” she bubbled, reminded that
today she was going to cross forbidden boundaries and enter the Attic
of the Crane Estate. Luis shrugged his shoulders at his
mother and let her guide him through the kitchen.
They stopped a
moment to say hello to Theresa and Whitney. After they left out
the back door Whitney looked out the window. She witnessed a very
heated kiss between the two and turned to Theresa.
“Theresa, when did THIS happen” she said gesturing towards the police
cruiser turning the corner. “Oh. 7 months ago, I’d bet.
We’re used to it now. They’re practically married. He hardly lives
here anymore. But they’re always here.” “Gee, they’re really in
love aren’t they?” Whitney whispered. “Yup, just like me and Ethan
will be!” Whitney rolled her eyes.
Luis watched Sheridan sift through the millionth box she’d opened
that day. Her torn capri jeans and blue tank top accentuated
every curve of her body and he noticed the dirt streaked on her cheek
and her white shoes. She stood up holding a photo album
and running her hands all around the cover. It looked old and
magical, but was that too far fetched? She opened it up and could’ve
sworn the puffs of dust that had fallen when she turned a page
glistened. Luis put his hand on Sheridan’s back, and rubbed it in
circles.
‘He hasn’t done that since that first night after the hot
tub...’ “What did ya find, Sheridan?” he asked pensively. “This
book...Grand mama Crane’s photo journal.” she answered. “Let’s have a
look...” They flipped through the pages, and Luis
could’ve sworn.... “Sher, read that to me. Please.” “Ok, Luis. ‘I
will have a granddaughter. I can only image that if and when she
sees this what she’ll say. I know she will have a million questions,
as will her Latin lover.
I bet she has no idea that her
grandmother was clairvoyant....Darling, Sheridan.....and Luis: You
are in love, no? Don’t....don’t. Don’t let it go....’”Sheridan
shook- “Luis, she was psychic. She knew.....she knew!” “I love you
Sher” “I love you too!” “Sheridan, look at that picture...”
She looked into the photo and smiled it was a picture of her and Luis
under a pole, the top was cut off...they both looked hard into
the picture. Harder and harder concentrating on it, the scenery.
Suddenly they were sucked into the photo and the book landed
with a thud onto the dusty floor.
“Where are we Luis?” she clung tightly to his muscular body, and he
held her just as close. “I don’t know, honey.” They looked
around in amazement. It was a lamp post with old timey bulbs. He
kissed her. They kissed long and sweetly, chasing away the
fears with the warmth that washed over them. “How do we find our way
home, Luis?” she said planting another kiss on his
mouth? Before he had a chance to answer a voice flowed through the
blossoms of the trees.
“Sheridan, Luis...you must find home the long way....follow your
heart....home is where that is.....follow the love light” Sheridan
knew it was Grand Mama Crane. She looked up and a pinkish orb glowed
above her and Luis and as night set the in love couple
followed the ‘Love Light’ into the horizon.
To Be Continued...
Chapter 5: Light In Your Eyes
Sheridan stepped onto what looked like a cobblestone pathway and
turned. “Sheridan, I wish you
would please be more cautious. Remember we have NO IDEA where we are
or what way is
home.” “I know that Luis...It’s just this force told me to bring you
down this path. This is where
the love light is leading us. Don’t you get it? I’m following my
heart, not my head.” “Fine, I
must admire your fearless ness...” He grasped her hand She led the
way, never once turning to
see what she had left behind and Luis found himself adapting to the
carefree style in which she
stepped.
Following her and gradually becoming more at ease with the
path they took. As the
bricks gave way to dirt and the dirt faded to grass Luis was entirely
comfortable with the way
they were headed. He was so relaxed he didn’t realize the had bloomed
into a field of pansy’s
and daisy’s and other flowers. Sheridan did however notice and bent
to pick up some blossoms.
“Look Luis, a butterfly...” Luis laughed a rumbling joyous laugh at
the sight of her jumping like
a kitten on the prowl. She chased the monarch into a patch of thick
grass and a million
butterflies swirled around her.
She skipped farther into the thicket
and stopped cold. Luis noticed
the change in her and frowned. He walked next to her and put his arms
around her. In a trance
she turned and kissed him. He kissed her back but asked if she was
OK, to which she began to
chant a song, in a high coloratura soprano voice....
I want to fly...freedom becomes us
I want to cry...tears of that we’ve come thus
Far in our journey, soon we will be
Stronger for the weak days
So say you’ll stay with me
Magical light, come on baby....I want to fly...cry...be with you
Sheridan sat in the grass unshaken from her quick daze. “Luis. Im
really tired.” “Me too. Do you
want to lay here for a while, it looks safe enough.” “Sure, good
thinking” Luis reclined in the
flowers and Sheridan settled herself within his arms. The gazed into
each others eyes and kissed.
The kiss, which started out innocently enough quickly got more
passionate and heated. The
flowers blended behind them as the kiss went on, neither wanting to
let go of the security it
brought.
Luis rolled Sheridan on top of him to deepen their embrace. She
looked up and noticed the field
was gone and they were laying on a muted green couch in the Crane’s
Attic. “We found our way
home...what does it mean though?” Sheridan asked before consuming
Luis in a kiss. A major
kiss (think locker room fantasy..mm..) Then they heard the now
familiar rustle “It means, my
dear, that you have found the dark man from your dreams, the one who
will love you forever,
you...Sheridan....”
“Oh...I could have told you that without the
special effects Gran” Luis
laughed cheekily and kissing Sheridan. “Well, I know that but
Sheridan didn’t. You will need
me to for see some problems like Beth Wallace but have no fear. Just
pick up the book, and
carry it out under your jacket. DO NOT LET JULIAN SEE IT!” her
usually soft disembodied
voice boomed. “Yes, Grand mama “ Sheridan chimed holding Luis’s arm.
They made their way
out of the house, and to Luis’s.
So Sheridan and Luis kissed and held each other while laying on
Luis’s bed. “Hey, Sher, do you
want to finish off that kiss....” “Yes..” They began kissing
passionately and Luis began to work
on the strap of her tank top. “Mm, Luis hold on” She said gasping at
sultry air. “Ok.” She got up
and reached out to the night table and put the book under the bed.
“Now where were we” “Here”
He grabbed her and kissed her again, and soon they made hot torrid
love. After Luis had to know
one thing...
“Sheridan, why did you put that book under the bed?” “I
didn’t want grams to see
how good you were in bed and try to steal you away....well, I didn’t
want her to see us in bed
anyway...” “Haha!” Luis was laughing softly “Oh, Sheridan you have no
idea how much I love
you....are you sure you don’t have any powers like your grandmother?”
“Yes, Why?” “Because
this, with you...” he kissed her “...was magical.” “Oh, Luis...I love
you....and I love...love being
able to be the one that puts the light in your eyes.” “I love you
too.”
THE happy END