Inspire

Epilogue


Six Months Later…



Christmas Eve

“Happy Birthday baby! I’ve been sent up here to give you your wake-up call,” Travis said as he climbed into bed with me. He was dressed and ready for the day. Although we had actually spent the night together, Travis had snuck out earlier for appearance’s sake in front of our parents. He was trying to show my dad some respect, even though I’m sure my dad already assumed Travis slept over at my place in the city, which he did almost every night. But while our families were together in his parents’ house for the holidays, we had agreed to be publicly decent. Luckily, Travis’s house had a lot of places we could sneak to in the night where we could be completely indecent.

“So, do I get to give you one of your birthday presents now?” he asked, snuggling up against me, kissing my neck.

“There’s more than one?” I asked, nuzzling myself closer into his embrace.

“Well, there is one I want to give you now, which you can open,” he said, lightly kissing around my shoulder. “Then, there is one that requires me to take you somewhere later.” He continued kissing across my back and up my neck. “And then, there is one I want to give you that will have to wait until our parents go out for their nightly walk, because I’m pretty sure that one will have you screaming,” he whispered the end into my ear as he nibbled my lobe softly. “At least I hope.” He smiled against my skin causing the goosebumps to appear.

Travis always knew just what to do to get my body going, and I tended to have absolutely no control over my sexual cries. The anticipation of what he planned to do to me later had my insides begging already. “I don’t want to wait,” I said, turning to face him. “I want you now baby,” I purred, reaching down to touch him through his jeans.

“Uh-uh,” he said, shaking his head and pausing my hand. “Good things come to those who wait. And I mean come HARD to those who wait.” Tingles vibrated with his words, and I had to calm my heated state.

“Fine!” I huffed.

Travis smiled at my response, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small blue jewelry box which he placed in the palm of my hand. My heart fluttered for a minute, but he knew that I wanted to spare my dad the agony of knowing his daughter was engaged at nineteen, so I was pretty sure I was safe to open it. When I looked inside and saw the beautiful little charm, tears filled my eyes. It was a soup bowl with a little spoon inside.

I held it up to admire it, and then turned toward Travis. “Thank you babe! I absolutely love it,” I said, feeling the tears spilling down my cheeks.

“The day we made the bowls together was the day I admitted to myself that I was in love with you. From now on, my birthday will always mean so much more. I had that date engraved on the bottom, see,” he said, turning it over to show me the back.

I admired it and then leaned up to kiss him. “It’s perfect. Thank you Travis. I love you so much!”

“And I love you!” he said, kissing me again thoroughly. “Now, you need to get ready, birthday girl, for your big day. Our moms have prepared a special breakfast for you and then I get to take you out for present number two,” he said, giving me a sexy grin.

“Okay, let me go get showered and I will join you all downstairs,” I said, making my way off the bed.

The look in Travis’s eyes was one that I recognized. Lust. “Damn, do you know how badly I wanted to shower with you that day we were first here,” he said, shaking his head at the memory.

“Maybe later baby! Right now, you need to go downstairs and entertain our mammas,” I teased. Then I slipped off my clothes right in front of him and turned to make my way into the bathroom. His wanting expression reflected in the mirror and I smiled as I hopped into the shower. Unfortunately, Travis really did need to get downstairs before our parents started questioning what was going on, so I was thankful that he had behaved himself and left the room.

I threw on some black leggings, with my knee high black leather boots, and a white tank top, which I layered with a long gray off the shoulder sweater. Once my make-up and accessories were all set, I made my way downstairs. Travis popped off the couch in the media room as soon as he saw me and came to my side. “How am I supposed to get through the day when those pants are hugging your perfectly round ass so tight,” he said, squeezing my butt cheeks in his hands.

“Just remember your famous words ‘good things come to those who wait’.” I couldn’t help but giggle because I had purposely chosen this outfit to torture him all day.

“You don’t play fair!” he growled, picking me off the ground and throwing me over his shoulder.

“Travis!” I playfully shrieked. “Put me down!”

“Not until I give you nineteen spanks,” he teased, smacking my butt as he carried me down the hall toward the kitchen.

I giggled all the way as he playfully smacked each side. Then right before we entered the kitchen, Travis put me down and pinned me against the wall. Before I had a chance to react or say anything, he kissed me long and hard. I was left breathless and my cheeks, along with the rest of me, were flushed with heat. “Happy Birthday Sexy Girl! The real spanks will come later,” he whispered in my ear and then turned to enter the kitchen. I quickly pulled myself together and followed right behind him.

My mom and Lucille were sitting around the kitchen table giggling and snickering, while Travis wore an amused expression as he fixed himself a cup of coffee.

“Happy Birthday sweetie!” my mom cheered immediately, standing to give me a hug.

“Happy Birthday Paige!” Lucille rose to do the same.

“Thank you both!” I responded and then looked over to see the delicious spread laid out on the counter. “Wow, did you both make all of this?”

“Lucille was the chef, and let’s just say I was more of an assistant,” my mom admitted. “But I’m learning!”

“Well, thank you both! It looks delicious,” I praised. “Where are Barney and Dad? Are they going to join us?” I asked, wondering if we should wait.

“No. They already ate. Barney got called in for an emergency, so your father joined him,” Lucille exclaimed.

“Sorry, sweetie. Your dad didn’t want you to be upset, but he wanted to make sure Barney was able to get home and spend the rest of the day with us so he offered his assistance,” my mom said.

“No worries. Travis wants to take me somewhere after breakfast anyway,” I replied.

“Oh, reeeeaaaally!” Lucille said and both of our moms looked at each other and giggled.

“Don’t get any ideas mom. You have a couple of years before you need to start planning our wedding,” Travis said, trying to diffuse his mother’s engagement speculation.

“Don’t worry sweetie, Maxine and I already have it all planned out,” she teased.

“No doubt!” he said grinning and shaking his head. I couldn’t help but smile. It was such an incredible feeling knowing how comfortable Travis was talking about our future and his feelings for me. He definitely didn’t hide it from anyone now.

After breakfast, I rose to clear my plate but Travis beat me to the punch. He then proceeded to clear the table and help put the food away. I loved the fact that he was such a gentleman.

“So where are you two headed?” Lucille asked.

“Nope! You’re not getting it out of me, mom. It’s a surprise,” Travis said with a sly little grin on his face. I thought he might be taking me back to the pottery place to recreate the day we’d fallen in love. I smiled at the possibility, and reminded myself that no matter what, I needed to act surprised.

We drove into Burlington and Travis parked on one of the side streets. I recognized the area, and knew that the old factory building was close by. I think I was right, I thought to myself as Travis helped me out of the car. “You ready for present number two?” he asked, pinning me to the car and devouring my lips.

“If you keep that up, then I’m going to demand present number three first!” I teased.

“Sorry, you are too irresistible, but since it’s Christmas Eve the place is going to close early so we have to stick with the plan,” he said.

“Okay.” I gave my fake pout and then let him take my hand and lead the way.

When we got to the front of the tattoo shop, I questioned if we had taken a detour so that Travis could stop in and wish Tye a merry Christmas. Then Travis said, “We’re here!”

A ball of nerves hit my stomach because there was no way I was going to get another tattoo, if that was supposed to be my second present. So, I quickly tried to figure out how to gently break it to Travis without hurting his feelings.

“Um… babe! You don’t expect me to get your name tattooed on my ass, do you?” I joked, trying hard to play off my nervousness.

“No! Although…” He paused making my face flush instantly in fear. “Relax babe! I’m just kidding. We are here because I know what I want my new art to be,” he said, pulling the door open for us to enter.

Once inside, I turned to him. “You aren’t getting my name tattooed to your ass, are you?”

Travis laughed out loud at my remark and then just shook his head.

“If I was going to brand anything with your name, it would be this,” he whispered, grabbing my hand and placing it on the front of his pants. I felt him hard and ready for me and I shivered at the discovery. “You own him,” he growled into my ear and then kissed the sweet spot underneath. “But no, today I have something else in mind.”

“Hey Trav!” A guy’s voice startled us out of our little sexual fog.

“Hey Matt! How’s it going?” Travis responded, bumping fists with the guy. “This is my girl Paige, Paige this is Matt. He works with Tye,” Travis said, making the introductions.

Matt was tall and built and covered with tattoos just like Tye. I sweetly said “Hi,” and shook Matt’s hand.

“Wow! Dude, I might have to convince Tye that we need to start looking in New York for our next space, if the girls are all this gorgeous.” Matt’s comment was sweet and, of course, made me blush on the spot.

“I don’t know what the others are like, because I’m pretty much blinded by my girl,” Travis said, giving me a wink. “So are you guys looking to open a second shop?” Travis asked, returning his attention to Matt.

“We might need a new place. It’s a long story. Tye doesn’t know what his dad is going to do now, so he’s keeping his options open,” Matt exclaimed.

“Huh, what’s going on?” Travis asked, sounding concerned. I didn’t know the details of anything, but it sounded like something might be wrong or at least there was more to the story.

“He’s in the back. I’ll let him fill you in on all the crap. Family shit!” Matt explained without divulging what seemed to be Tye’s personal business in front of me, a complete stranger.

“Gotcha!” Travis said, nodding in agreement.

“I’ll go let him know that you’re here,” Matt said and then turned and walked down the hall to the back.

I didn’t want to pry about the Tye stuff because it wasn’t any of my business, so I avoided the subject and asked Travis about his tattoo. “So, what are you going to get?”

Travis turned and his face shifted from one of concern back to a loving expression. “Well,” he said, taking my hand in his, “for your birthday I wanted to give you my heart. You already own it, but I wanted you know that it’s yours forever. So, I am getting the Chinese symbol for ‘Inspire’ right here.” He took my hand and placed it on the spot right over his heart. “Paige, you have inspired me to love fully and every day you inspire me to be a better man, and you will always own my heart.”

My heart soared through my chest. It was the most incredible gesture that I imagined anyone would do for me, and it meant more than a diamond ring could ever mean. “Travis,” I stuttered through my emotion. “That is absolutely the most amazing gift that anyone could give me. Thank you! I hope you know that you are the sole owner of my heart, forever.” The tears ran down my cheeks again and I leaned up to kiss him.

“All right, I have already made you cry twice today. I’m seriously hoping that the only crying you’ll be doing over my third present are cries of pleasure,” he said, smiling wide and lightening the mood.

“I can’t wait,” I purred and then gave him a wink.

As I wiped my tears away, and recovered myself, a loud shout came from the back completely startling us. “F*ck!” Tye came storming up the hall in our direction and the look on his face was mixed between pain and anger.

“Dude, you okay?” Travis asked, stepping in front of me and taking on a protective stance.

“Yeah, f*ck. Sorry! I’m just dealing with some shit right now. Listen, Matt’s going to take care of you. I have to run, but if you’re in town for a few days then maybe we can meet up,” Tye said, giving Travis a look.

“Yeah, I’m here for the week. Call me. You know I’m here for you man,” Travis said and Tye nodded his appreciation.

Tye grabbed his black leather jacket off the hook and then turned before he walked through the front door. “Hey Trav! If you hear from Britney, make sure she’s handling everything okay.”

“I will,” Travis responded, looking confused by the request. And with those words, Tye was gone.

“What did that mean? Is everything okay with Britney? Are Brit and Tye friends, why would he say that?” I asked, completely alarmed by his comment. “Come to think of it, I haven’t heard from her since she went home for winter break. Maybe I should call her,” I said and my voice relayed my worry for my friend. I didn’t know what Tye meant or what Britney was currently dealing with so I needed to find out.

“I don’t know. Tye is close friends with Corey, but other than that, I don’t know why he would be asking about Brit. Maybe it’s something with Corey?” Travis shrugged, just as baffled as me. “Why don’t you call her?” he suggested.

“Yeah, I’ll call her now.” I dialed Britney’s number, but there was no answer. So, I decided to send her a text just in case she was in a place where she couldn’t chat.

Me: Hey Brit! Is everything ok?

I stared at my phone waiting for a response. Come to think of it, out of all of my friends she was the only one who hadn’t called or sent me a text for my birthday. We had become really good friends, so I worried that something was wrong. Earlier in the fall, her parents had told her they were getting a divorce and I wondered if it had anything to do with that. “I really hope she is okay,” I spoke softly as I continued to wait for a response.

Travis squeezed my arms and tried to alleviate my worry. “I’m sure she’s okay. Don’t fret, we will get in touch with her, even if we have to drive back and track her down,” Travis said. He was always so sweet and his reassurance made my stomach calm.

“All right man, the room is ready for you!” Matt came out and announced.

We both stood and followed him into the back room. I got myself situated in the chair next to Travis’s spot while Travis and Matt discussed the tattoo and the exact location for its placement. As I sat there, I began to feel nervous for him. Although Travis had been through this many times before, I didn’t want to see my baby getting hurt.

Travis held my hand as the needle started buzzing. I knew that he was clinging to me for my sake more than his, but I liked being able to be there with him. It looked painful though, so I found myself turning away and admiring all of the artwork hanging on the walls. “Wow! These are amazing. All of the drawings are like beautiful paintings that should be in a museum,” I said, completely awed by them.

“Yeah, Tye did all of those. He’s definitely got talent, that’s for sure,” Matt shared.

“Wow! He drew all of these? That’s incredible.” I stood to take a closer look at some of them. There was one web of flowers so beautiful that if I were brave enough I would consider getting it tattooed on my body. “I love this one,” I said, admiring it closely.

“Yeah, that one he did about a year ago. Tye won’t let anyone have it done. He says that it’s meant for ‘one and only one’,” Matt declared, pausing his work to look up at it.

“Oh, does he already have someone in mind for it?” I asked, curious if maybe there was a special girl in his life.

“No. Well, at least not that I know of. Tye doesn’t share too much and none of the girls that he’s seeing would be worthy. So, I’m guessing not,” Matt said and then returned his attention to his work.

I continued to take them all in and then returned to my seat by Travis. He was staring at me and then gave me a wink. “You good?” I asked, making sure he wasn’t in too much pain.

“I’m thinking of how I’m going to enjoy you nursing my wounds later, so yeah, I’m good,” he teased. I just rolled my eyes and shook my head at him.

When it was all finished, Travis stood to take a look in the long mirror on the wall and inspect Matt’s work. “Nice man! Thanks, it’s exactly what I wanted,” Travis said, studying it closely.

I came to stand behind him and see it for myself. Travis turned to face me allowing me to get a closer look too. The tattoo was slightly red and puffy looking, but for the most part it looked perfect. As much as he claimed I inspire him, I would say the same. “You know, you inspire me every day too!” I whispered, running my finger outside the perimeter of the symbol. “Thank you Travis.”

Travis leaned down and took my lips between his. His tongue asked for entrance, and I immediately matched his thrusts. This beautiful man, with such a beautiful soul, now had the most beautiful heart. And it was mine. All mine!



About the Author


I love all things artistic and creative.

My favorite past times are to read and write.

And I strive to create books where people can escape into a romantic world where Fantasies do come true!