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Everything Your Heart Desires Chapter 28 After changing from her conservative pant suit to matching green satin boxers and a pajama top, Cheryl told Howie about the �Toy Story� conference call over bites of cashew chicken and Hunan vegetables. He noticed how animated she was describing all the marketing ideas the team had developed. It was then that Howie realized how much she thoroughly enjoyed her job and how successful she was at what she did. There it was again. Howie felt that strange feeling rising in his chest as he gazed at the charming redhead beside him. He stopped the thought as soon as it began, unwilling to accept what his heart kept trying to tell him. �It�s too soon,� he chastised himself silently. But his subconscious wouldn�t allow him to deny it. His eyes fell upon the bouquet of roses, now a dozen - thanks to the inclusion of those that Cheryl had picked up in the house that night. Somehow among the pink, peach, yellow and white blossoms, his mind could focus only on the red. Howie stared once again at Cheryl trying to clear his mind. "Howie?" He heard her voice and felt the touch of her hand on his. Looking into her eyes, he saw the concern in their depths. "I�m okay," he said reassuring himself more than her. He cupped her chin in his hand caressing her cheek with his thumb. "I am going to miss you, you know?" She only nodded � the warmth of his touch leaving her unable to speak. "I have something for you." Howie rose, retrieved a box from his duffel bag and presented it to her. Her eyes questioned him silently. "Go ahead." Cheryl lifted the lid to find two smaller boxes and opened the first. A cellphone. "I know that Disney will probably provide you with one but I want to know that I can reach you whenever I feel the need to hear your voice." He turned on the phone. "Howie," he said. Suddenly the shrill ring of his own cellphone broke the silence. Giving her the new phone, he answered his. "See I already programmed my cell number into your phone. And for my next trick�" He clicked both phones off then turned his on again. "Sparky." This time her new phone rang. Looking her in the eye but talking into the mouthpiece, he said, "No matter where I am, you�ll always be just seconds away." Brown eyes still locked with hazel, Cheryl leaned toward him and brought their lips together. The kiss deepened. She felt his tongue enter her mouth and sighed. Howie needed to memorize everything about her. All of his senses were reeling trying to process her every characteristic. The smell of her perfume. The taste of her skin. The look of pleasure on her face. The sound of her moan. The warmth of her body. Everything he would need to remember during those lonely nights on the road.The room was filled with music from a tape Kristy had made with some of her favorite songs, and she was humming along as she continued to pack Kevin�s things. She sat on Kevin�s bed, now wrapped in his terrycloth robe � her bare legs tucked beneath her. He grinned as she rolled one of the cuffs over several times so the long sleeves didn�t completely obscure her hands. She folded a pair of pajama bottoms and added them to Kevin�s suitcase. �Not those... I was gonna wear them tonight.� Kristy smiled slightly and stood to leave the room, calling out over her shoulder, �Hold that thought.� Kevin stared after her, beyond curious about what she was up to. She returned moments later, just as �In Your Eyes� � one of her all-time favorite songs � started playing, and presented Kevin with a gift bag. �Consider it a small token of my love for you,� she said with a grin. He smiled at her comment and the appropriateness of the song... he could get lost in her eyes. He took the decorated bag and removed several pieces of tissue paper and rolled his eyes as confetti fell on the bed. �Women and their gift wrapping.� He finally removed a pair of black silk pajama bottoms. �Nice.� The feel of the soft material against his skin made him smile as he looked into the now empty gift bag. �What?� Kristy asked, noticing he was looking back in the bag. �Oh... ah, nothing,� Kevin tried to cover, guessing she�d decided to only buy the pajama bottoms since he never wore the tops anyway. �Were you looking for this?� Kevin raised his eyes at the unmistakable seductive laughter in her voice. Kristy smiled at the look on Kevin�s face as she removed his robe, revealing the missing black silk men�s pajama top. Kevin felt his knees go weak. He wasn�t sure who first realized how sexy women looked in men�s clothes, but he had to say that he�d never liked a fashion trend as much as he did right then. Kristy stood before him, the shirt � his shirt � falling to her mid thigh. The sleeves � like those of his robe � were too long for her, but he thought she looked absolutely adorable. She�d missed � or ignored � the top few buttons and the shirt fell open at her throat, revealing the soft skin of her neck and shoulders. Kevin made a sound partway between a groan and a growl as he pulled her to him for a deep kiss. Kristy smiled against his mouth as she placed her hands � still lost in the long sleeves � against his chest. Kevin lowered his head to kiss her neck, his hands caressing her back through the silk of the pajama top. It was now Kristy�s turn to go weak-kneed as he ran his tongue and lips along the crook of her neck, nipping the sensitive skin with his teeth. Kevin scooped her up into his arms and gently set her on his bed, never letting his lips leave hers. His hands ran up and down her arms; the soft material and his warm touch setting Kristy�s skin on fire. Kevin�s lips and tongue tasted and explored every part of Kristy�s mouth, as she did the same to him. Kevin held her closely to him, and if possible, deepened the kiss. He felt a rush of desire as a sound � something like a combination of a whimper and a sigh � came from Kristy and she wrapped her arms around him tighter. Reluctantly, and exerting more willpower than he knew he possessed, Kevin broke the kiss � before he was too far gone to make his body listen to his head and heart. Kristy felt like every nerve ending in her body was hypersensitive from Kevin�s touch and nearness. Her eyes remained closed, as her brain attempted to reconnect to the rest of her being. Kevin kissed her eyelids, then her nose, then her lips � softly. �I love you,� he said before taking his gift into the bathroom. He emerged wearing the other half of the pajamas and slowly pulled her into his arms. They crawled under the covers and lay curled together, talking about anything � everything and nothing � late into the night."Cher� wait." Howie broke away from their kiss wanting to stop before their activities became too heated. "Don�t forget the other box." Giving him a quizzical glance, Cheryl reached for the smaller box. Inside she found an Ariel keychain personalized with her name. A single key hung from its ring. "The key to your heart?" she teased with a smile. He laughed. �Not far from the truth.� "Try my house. I want you to feel free to go in and use it whenever you need to." Cheryl thought back to the weekend before when Howie had shown her his home. Situated in a high middle class neighborhood, it was surprisingly non-descript and modest � not exactly the type of place you�d expect Michael Jackson or Mick Jagger to reside. The house was older with newly installed modern conveniences like central air and a microwave. It had been completely remodeled inside and even had a pool in the intricately landscaped backyard. Fans would never suspect that Howie D lived there, but it fit Howard Dorough's personality perfectly. Cheryl had felt at home instantly. Howie again found himself locked in a passionate kiss. "You would do this? Thank you, Sweetie," Cheryl said graciously. "It means so much to me that you would trust me like this." "I entrust you with a lot more than just my house," he whispered then openly teased her. "Besides, I needed someone to water my plants. Now come on. I need some sleep if I�m going to have enough energy to climb into the bus tomorrow morning." Cheryl climbed under the sheets and watched as Howie slid the new cd into her stereo system. With the sounds of Christina Aguilera accompanying him, he teasingly slipped off his robe and joined her.Can you hear it in my voice? Was it something I let slip Does the whole world know Isn�t it obvious? She snuggled close to him resting her head on his chest while he wrapped an arm around her. "You are okay with this, me staying the night?" "I�d say I�m more than okay with it," she replied running her left hand over his sculpted pectoral and abdominal muscles. "Do you really have to go?" she asked quietly. "If I don�t, millions of people will be disappointed." Howie felt her hot tears on his chest and leaned down to kiss her forehead. "We�ll be together again very soon, C." �Lord knows I can�t stay away from you for very long. A minute is too long,� he thought caressing her hair with the same measured strokes she was using on his chest. �Sparky, you�ve got me. I�m falling, I�m falling so hard.�Suddenly these emotions are in control of my heart Can you see it in my eyes Every glance, every smile must give me away And I feel so much I can�t hide. Lyrics never held more meaning than those of the song at that moment. �I could be wrong,� Howie thought. �I think I already love you.� He kissed her lips softly and both drifted to sleep. In the early morning hours, Kevin had finally drifted off to sleep, still holding Kristy in his arms as he had all night. Kristy lay awake; sleep unimportant to her as she watched Kevin�s sleeping form. She�d been lying beside him, just watching him for over an hour. She was trying to memorize every detail about his face, his breathing, his scent. Anything she could call on to keep her company during the next couple of lonely months. Kristy raised a hand and ran her fingertips along his jawline. As she had so many times before, she marveled at the beauty of the man next to her. Chiseled perfection. A smile touched her lips as she glanced at his torso. She remembered the first time she�d seen him � in person � without his shirt on at Typhoon Lagoon. He pretty much had the same effect on her each time. She smiled as Kevin pulled her closer in his sleep, but her heart cried out that tonight would be the last time for awhile. All the emotions she�d been holding back all day, came to the surface in the quiet of the night. She turned her face into the pillow and let the tears fall down her cheek silently. Before he�d met Kristy, the other guys had often teased him about his remarkable ability to sleep through just about anything... and on those nights when he slept alone, he still could. Yet when he slept with Kristy, everything changed. He woke more rested and content than he'd ever felt, but something else was different too. Even in his sleep, he'd know when she was snuggled up to him asleep, or if she was having trouble sleeping. He'd know immediately when she�d gotten out of bed. And now, he knew she was crying. He�d never felt so connected to someone before, and as he lay there, he sensed her unspoken sadness, fear and loneliness � and felt it too. Kevin very gently pulled Kristy closer to him and whispered comforting words as he stroked her hair. �Shhh... Angel, don�t cry.� He turned her face to his and used his thumb to brush away some tears from her cheek. �Shhh... You know I love you. You know nothing can touch what we have.� He searched her eyes and his heart swelled with love as he saw the look in her eyes. She nodded and kissed him softly. �I love you so much.� She leaned in and kissed him again � a kiss filled with love, uncertainty, passion and anticipation.Next: Chapter 29 |