***Please be sure to read our first story in the "series" before this one. Find it here: https://www.swingingheaven.za.com/story-6278.html*** “You are here! At last… you are here!” The excitement was crystal clear in his voice and on his face. “Are you hungry? Or would you like some good Cape coffee?” His dark eyes smiled down at her as he asked with what seemed to be affection in his voice. “Well, I won’t be able to check in to the apartment before 12, so perhaps we should have coffee. I’ll never say no to coffee. Coffee is good, as long as it’s good coffee…” She stopped abruptly as she realised that she was babbling. Why is she babbling? Why can’t she just be her self-assured and mentally organised self? She blushed again when she saw that his smile broadened. “Coffee would be nice, thanks.” “Would you mind walking? I know this wonderful place that I’m sure you would like, but it’s not that close.” He asked the question as though he wanted her to go on some kind of jungle expedition with him. “Not at all! I like walking… lead the way!” As they walked side by side in the city that was still in a daze of waking up, he pointed out all kinds of interesting places. A real tour guide with a love for this place, without a doubt. She was at a loss for words. She grew up in a small town and has always been scared to travel to busy cities because of the traffic, the people, the downright danger it all posed. This place, however, was more than just a city. It was a place with history with lovely monuments, old buildings, a majestic mountain watching over it and wonderful people. The streets were clean and strangers greeted. It was unlike any other city that she has ever been to. “Am I walking too fast?” “Do I look like I’m not keeping up?” He smiled and only slowed down for a minute, though she was right next to him all the way. Though his legs were almost twice as long as hers and his strides at least double the ones she made, she enjoyed walking like this and seeing as much of Cape Town as she could in the short amount of time that she will be there. She was curious about the next place that he would show her and was excited about the fact that he has suddenly become her own personal tour guide. Informative and interesting… not to mention a real tall, dark and handsome hunk! “Would you mind a bit of a detour?” “Please! I love this!” There was a giggle in her voice. They walked into a mall – the Golden Acre – and for a moment she wondered if this was where they would drink coffee. Instead, he walked towards a part of the walkway that led to a second level. A part of the one corner was covered in glass instead of plaster, so that you could see what was inside the wall. She was mesmerised. “What is this?” She asked, as her eyes and thoughts were captured by the interesting monument in front of her. “This is part of the brick channel built to drain the reservoir that was built higher up, close to the mountain. When they built the mall and doing excavation work, they came across this and decided to keep it and make a bit of a monument out of it.” She stared at the clay brickwork that was still intact in places, the old broken channel, the broken pieces towards the front of the channel... She always had a love and passion for architecture and everything that went along with it, and she never saw anything like this before. “I love this. Thank you for showing me!” As she stood in front of the glass wall, she felt him moving closer to her. His hand went around her middle and her hand naturally went around his. He softly turned her towards him. “Actually, this was the only place that I could think of to bring you and steal a kiss…” He leaned forward and as their lips touched, she started to tremble in excitement. His kiss was nothing more than a soft touch of his lips on hers; almost as if he was asking permission. And she longingly gave him permission, as she reached up around his back and allowed his lips to linger on hers for just a little while longer. In an instant, he pulled her closer to him and kissed her properly. The taste of his tongue was sweet… the held back passion that she could feel in his body was something she craved to help unleash. People talking loudly at the bottom of the stairs caused her to rip herself away from him. She looked at him with questions, attempting to see if he felt as much attraction and passion as she did, but in that moment, he was like a closed book. “I’ve been wanting to do that for so long.” His voice was soft and she felt like she was dreaming. Then he straightened up and smiled a bit differently than he had before. “I’m sorry. Let’s go get coffee.” As they walked ever so quickly and got a seat in a corner at the coffee bar, she started to wonder what actually just happened. She hasn’t kissed too many men before, but did not know what to make of his silence. Maybe she was just a silly little girl to him, someone who liked someone that was completely out of her league… maybe she wasn’t a good kisser… maybe he realised in that moment that he made a mistake in meeting her and that he didn’t want anything more than a heart-felt hug and one soft kiss… These thoughts rambled through her mind, but it never stopped them from talking like two old friends who met up after years! They talked about the interesting décor in the coffee shop, the cool steam-punk design, the menu and its play on words… they spoke about the site that they met on and the people they’ve chatted to and the friends they made… they spoke about almost everything. After they’ve finished their coffee, she insisted to pay and he insisted to buy her something sweet at a bakery around the corner. Again, he surprised her with one of the landmark places that she always wanted to visit. The bakery was a colourful delight and it smelled of sugar and freshly baked cake. He spoiled her with his choice of a dark chocolate cupcake – one for him and one for her – and suggested they walk go to her apartment for check-in and eat it there, as it was almost 12 o’clock already and he had to get back to work. On their way, they walked past another couple of interesting statues, an old cathedral, and lovely inner-city gardens. She almost didn’t realise when she linked her arm with his and just enjoyed the scenery in his good company. It is okay, she thought to herself, if he only wants to be friends after that kiss. He’ll be a good friend and we’ll get along well. When he took her hand and weaved his finger through hers, as if he knew what she was thinking, her heart skipped a beat. She continued to remind herself that hand-holding meant nothing and that she needed to act like a grownup now… not a silly teenager. The apartment was small, but sufficient for one or two people. It was neat and clean and decorated tastefully. She lingered in the door for only a short while to take the layout in, before she put her bag down, showed him where to place her overnight bag. She then walked towards the window, opened the blinds and took in the view. It was beautiful… better even than she expected or saw on the place’s marketing photos. The Company Gardens stretched out in front of her with its green leafy trees, encapsulated by the tall buildings. Even further, she could even see Lion’s Head and a small part of Table Mountain. He came to stand next to her in silence. Then he took his pen out of his shirt’s pocket and put it on the desk in front of them. He then turned towards her. “The view is lovely.” His voice was soft and velvety sexy. “Isn’t it beautiful!” She was still lost in the view. He pushed a stubborn curl out of her face, and she realised that he was not looking at the view in front of them anymore, but at her. “That’s not the view I was referring to.” He took a step closer and she could feel her heart pounding in her chest. He lowered his face to hers once more, but this time he didn’t ask permission. He claimed her mouth and drew her closer. Breathless, she moaned softly, as if she did not want him to stop this caress. He took her reaction as an invitation and pulled her hips towards him, so that she could feel just how aroused he was. His fingers harshly pulling her even closer to him made her crave to be with him even more than she already has been craving it before. The kiss grew hypnotising and intense… more intense than she could ever have imagined a kiss to be… and this was only the beginning of one of the most sensual afternoons of her life.