Chapter twenty two

He had meant everything he said. Crystal thought as she stared out at the field from her balcony.
She recalled every last word he had uttered. She recalled every little and intense emotion that she had felt coursing through her when he had her pinned to the door. She was sure that he had been saying the truth.
And that made her.... happy.
It made her feel content in the greatest way imaginable. Yes, he had acted as if nothing had happened immediately after but still.. he cared.
A lot.
It was a Saturday and though she knew she ought to go to work, she did not feel like it. Plus her dad was away. He had some urgent matters to attend to out of State and he would be gone for quite some time.
And so here she was. Standing on her bedroom balcony fantasising about her bodyguard. Smiling to herself whenever she thought of him.
A few minutes into her daydream one of the staff came to inform her that she had a visitor. She wondered who she was since she was not expecting anyone. And she hoped it was not one of her old friends.
She made her trip down the stairs and into the living room where the supposed visitor was. And on realising who it was her face lit up on a bright smile.
" Aunty!! " she exclaimed as she approached the couch where her aunt was elegantly seated. A cup of coffee held delicately in her slender hand. On seeing her she placed the cup down and stood to return the embrace.
" Oh, there you are. My sweet little goddaughter ! " her aunt said sounding very emotional. As if she was seconds away from crying.
Technically, she was not Crystals real aunt.
Alma Diaz was Miguel's mother and Crystals godmother. But Crystal loved her the same way she would a real aunt.
At the moment she was exquisitely dressed in knee-length red dress and heels. Her jet black hair held in a tight bun and her make up perfectly done. She looked younger than what she really was. Back when they were in highschool Miguel had gotten into his first ever fight because he had overheard some boys talking about how ' hot ' his mom was. And how they would like to get a piece of her.
" Oh, I promised myself I wasn't going to cry, " Alma said as she dramatically fanned her eyes. Flattering her lashes to keep the tears back.
Crystal smiled as she sat next to her.
" I'm so sorry I never came to see you aunty. I was just so busy with work and - "
" Don't worry about it dear. I admit, I was a little heartbroken when I found out you were back but Miguel told me all about your new job. "
" Yeah. It's been a really stressful couple of weeks, "
Her aunt reached out and cupped her chin. Her brown eyes seeming both happy and sad.
" You look so much like your mother, "
They had been the best of friends. Her aunt had literally gone into depression when her mom had died. It had taken a lot to get her out of it. Those were times that Crystal would much rather forget.
" You still miss her, don't you? "
Her aunt leaned back and picked her coffee.
" Everyday sweetheart. I miss her every single day, " she then drank a sip of her coffee. Probably trying to get a hold of herself. So Crystal decided to change the subject.
" How's uncle doing? "
Her aunt shrugged and made a dismissive motion with her hand.
" You know how he is. He just wakes up one day and decided he wants to tour the world. He went to Africa two weeks ago, "
Crystal poured herself a cup of the remaining coffee. Regarding her attention to what her aunt was saying. She wasn't surprised. Miguel's dad had always been a very adventurous man.
She could not count the number of camping trips he had forced them into.
" Africa? Really? "
Her aunt nodded. Then she sighed, her shoulders hunching with the action.
" I would have gone with him but I doubt that the sun there is good for my skin, "
Crystal laughed and they talked for some minutes longer. Her aunt was shocked that she had chosen to follow after her dads footsteps and become a lawyer. She had bought Crystal a painting set when she was a child and she could still remember just how overjoyed she had been. She had known for a fact that that was what she wanted to become.
Everyone had known.
" I mean, Miguel I understand. The boy had the layout of his law firm sketched out when he was ten. But you? " Her aunt shook her head.
And Crystal told her that things just change. It was the only thing she could come up with. She had accepted her fate so there was no use to keep crying over it.
Some minutes into their conversation, Nick walked into the room.
Then he went and stood behind Crystal.
She felt his the air change when he was near. How erratic her heartbeat became. How her spine seemed to involuntarily stiffen and her palm started sweating. She wanted to then and steal a glance at him. Even if just for a second she wanted to gaze into his grey eyes and get lost in them. She wanted to explore their depth and relive each moment she had spent near him.
" .......We were so shocked when we found out! " were the only words she heard her aunt say.
She had missed everything else since she had been too busy acknowledging Nick's presence.
" What's that aunty?" she asked and her aunt repeated her statement. Apparently she had heard about the threat on their lives and was confessing just how alarmed she had been in hearing the news.
" It's why I decided to pay you a visit myself. I had to make sure you were okay, "
" Thank you for your concern. But we're fine. Dad said they have everything under control and Marcus will be caught soon, "
Crystal actually thought everyone was exaggerating about how much danger they were in. She was sure that if someone truly was out to get them, she would be dead right now. But she wasn't. So it was no big deal.
" I can see that, " Her aunt commented. Looking at Nick with what amounted to a flirtatious smile.
" Anyway, tell me, how do you feel now that you're going to be a grandma? "
Her aunt gasped and shushed her. Then she warned Crystal against using that word. She still thought of herself as too young to have a grandchild. And according to her, she was going to make sure that the baby referred to her by her name.
" Speaking of which, I have lunch date with Dahlia in a short while. I want us to discuss her future in my son's life. It's my duty to make sure those two do things right you know, "
Both Crystal and her aunt stood to say their goodbyes.
" Make sure you visit me okay? "
" I will. Come, I'll accompany you to the door, "
They made small talk on their way and on getting to the front door, Crystal gave her a quick hug. She had truly missed her and it felt great to see and talk to her again.
She watched as her aunt made her way to her car and got in after the driver held the door open. Then they drove off. Being with her was nice. But it also served to remind her a lot of the past. And of her mom, of all the things they had done together before some heartless bastards decided to end her life.
She leaned against the doorway. Then she chose not to think about that. It was a beautiful day and she wanted to spend it well before the weekend came to an end and she had to go to work again.
She turned to go to her room and came face to face with Nick. He was standing a few feet behind her. His face completely expressionless but his eyes were fixed on her.
It was odd. He could manage to keep his features void of any emotion but the minute one looked at his eyes, they were pulled down into a sea of unreadable thoughts. Held in a trance for the longest while with no way to get out.
" I'm gonna grab a jacket then head out to the garden, " she said and rushed past him and made her way to the stairs. Trying to convince herself that she was okay if he did not give her any attention for the entire day. Besides, theirs was a very dysfunctional relationship with absolutely no direction.
One fueled by lust and unidentified feelings which would do neither of them any good.
Though that did not mean that she would stop secretly wishing for the next time he kissed her or touched her or simply looked at her like she was all that he cared about.