Big hugs and thanks to Laney Evelyn Jade for her editing efforts.

I also wanted to give a big thanks to EZZA4EVA for making me a banner for this story. You can check it out at the following link: http://i60 (dot) photobucket (dot) com/albums/h37/cutiecheerleader1306/AWorldApart (dot) png

Follow me on twitter for teasers of upcoming chapters, I'm KEMac1901.

Just a warning, there's a bit of lemony goodness towards the beginning.

Thomas and I laid in bed that night talking and exchanging stolen kisses in the dark.

"Did you have a good time tonight?" Thomas asked as he twirled a strand of my hair around his finger.

"I did," I smiled, "I really liked your parents."

"They were quite taken with you too," he said with a chuckle. "Pop actually told me that regardless of what happened he was keeping you," Thomas confided.

"That's a good thing, right?" I asked with a laugh.

"I think it's just cuz you can talk baseball with him," Thomas noted.

"Yeah, he said you had something against Jeter," I told him remembering Rex' comment.

"Most overpaid player in the game," Thomas muttered in annoyance.

"Have you ever met the guy?" I asked knowing I might be stepping into dangerous territory.

"No, but I've seen him play," Thomas said and I knew he could tell there was more that I was going to say.

"If you've never met him how can you pass judgment on him like that?" I questioned carefully.

"I've seen him play," Thomas restated.

"You know," I paused hoping he wouldn't take what I was about to say the wrong way, "some people might think you're over paid for what you do."

"I think I'm overpaid for what I do," Thomas responded with a laugh and I knew he wasn't upset about my comment. "I see your point though," he conceded with a kiss to my forehead.

"You know, I think Mum was just happy that you got me to shave," Thomas told me with a smirk.

"I never asked you to shave," I replied indignantly.

"No, but I know you like it better when I do," he pointed out.

"I do enjoy it," I said as I ran my hand along his smooth cheek. "There are some perks at having you a bit scruffy too though," I said mischievously.

"Oh?" Thomas replied, "What would those perks be?"

"The way it feels when you brush against my thigh," I said as I licked his bottom lip.

"Don't start something you're not prepared to finish," Thomas warned me. I pouted at him, but knew he was right. The odd hours were still wearing a bit on me and I was tired.

"Lindsay sure is a bundle of energy," I observed changing the subject back to his family.

"That she certainly is," Thomas agreed.

"I think she'd give Amy a run for her money," I told him with a laugh.

"She actually tires Amy out," Thomas said continuing to twirl my hair. "When Lindsay came out while I was filming the first movie, she and Amy hung out and Amy was exhausted afterwards," he continued.

"It's hard to imagine that," I said thinking of Amy. It had been too long since I had last spoken to her and knew that I should email or call her soon. I hadn't thought that our friendship would go beyond when I visited Thomas, but we spoke as often as our schedules would allow.

"I'll tell you what," Thomas began again, "Lindsay really liked you."

"Really?" I asked somewhat surprised, I didn't feel like I'd spent much time with her.

"Oh yes, Lindsay's big thing is shoes and for her to complement yours was big," he informed me.

"Well, they're no Manolo's, but they work," I replied knowing that Thomas wouldn't know that I had been wearing Jimmy Choos. Thomas laughed in response and touched my face softly.

"It's good to know at least one sister likes me," I said referring to the cold reception I had gotten from Thomas' older sister.

"Valerie is a different kind of cookie," Thomas said.

"Did I do something to offend her that I don't know about?" I queried.

"Not to my knowledge," Thomas replied, "she's always been a bit standoffish though."

"She kept looking at me," I told him thinking of all the times I had caught her staring at me. "I think she was checking out my butt," I said thinking of the last time that I had caught her.

"My sister is not a lesbian," Thomas said with a confused look on his face.

"No, I didn't mean that way," I clarified immediately, "I thought maybe I had sat in something, but I don't' remember sitting down at all."

"I don't know why she'd be checking out your bum then," Thomas said still looking confused. "I mean, I know why I do," he laughed and squeezed it.

"Hey, I have a question," I said after a little while.

"Hmm?" Thomas answered.

"Why does Lindsay have blond hair?" I asked, "You and your mom have the same color and your dad's and Valerie's is a bit darker, but Lindsay is blond blond."

"Come on now Courtney," he said like he couldn't believe I didn't know the answer. I continued to just stare at him. "I know girls in California bleach their hair," Thomas said matter-of-factly.

"Oh, duh," I said feeling like an idiot.

"What's up with her and Stu though?" I asked knowing it couldn't be something simple that I'd missed.

"Lindsay's had a crush on Stu for years," Thomas confirmed the same thing Stu had told me.

"Last New Year's Stu made two mistakes, well three really, but the second led to the third," he clarified. "Stu took Lindsay out on New Year's with us last year seeing as he was the only one dateless," Thomas began.

I noticed he'd said 'us' and then that Stu was the only one without a date. "Who was your date?" I asked carefully.

Thomas laughed quietly, "Amy," he said before kissing my forehead, "So no worries okay?"

"Okay," I agreed realizing it didn't matter anyways; I was the one in his bed now.

"That was his first mistake," Thomas said getting back to the story, "then he proceeded to get himself totally pissed and started making out with her at midnight."

"Oh wow," I said. "He knew how much she liked him though," I said feeling bad for Lindsay immediately.

"Yeah, like I said big mistake," he said.

"What happened afterwards?" I wanted to know because Stu didn't seem to be giving off the impression that he was interested in her.

"The next morning Stu called her to explain what had happened, but she insisted she wasn't buying any of it no matter how hard he tried to tell her the truth. She said she knew he was into her and she didn't care how long she had to wait for him to realize it," Thomas told me.

"So now Stu goes on and pretends that Lindsay is over him and Lindsay convinces herself that the reason he doesn't call is because he's busy with his own stuff," Thomas said letting out a breath of air, "It's a never ending cycle really."

"You didn't say anything to Stu about it?" I asked slightly surprised. Most guys I knew were so protective of their sisters it was ridiculous, even when it came to their friends.

"I stay out of my sisters' lives," he said and I sensed there was more. "What they do and who they do it with is none of my concern," he added.

"Why do I get the feeling you didn't always think this way?" I asked brushing a few bits of hair off his forehead.

"I didn't," he admitted letting out another breath. "When I was in high school this guy broke Valerie's heart by cheating on her," Thomas began explaining. "I, being the brother and all, confronted him about it and ended up getting into a fight with him. He kicked my arse, I've never been that big of a guy, but the worst part was that Valerie was livid with me and proceeded to take the guy back," Thomas said and I could tell how much it had hurt him. "Ever since then I've just decided to let them lead their own lives," he finished.

"I know some guys just go around thinking with their nob all the time, but there's nothing I can do about it," Thomas added a minute later.

"Some guys?" I asked with a laugh.

"Okay, most," he acquiesced.

"You're different though," I said as I touched his cheek. He let out a small laugh.

"You've never pushed me for anything," I responded.

"I may never have pushed you for anything, but you can be assured that making love to you crosses my mind at least once every two minutes," Thomas responded with a chuckle.

"Okay, but you've still been incredibly patient with me about it," I said running my fingers in odd patterns along his chest.

"You've never just toyed with me either," he reminded me.

"True," I agreed knowing he had a point. "I'll wait for as long as you need me to though love," Thomas said turning serious again.

His words melted my heart and I kissed him with all I had. The wait won't be too much longer, I promised myself as we kissed. I didn't know how much longer I would be able to wait and I wasn't sure I wanted to anymore. I loved Thomas and knew he loved me. With the way his body felt against mine I knew I couldn't wait much longer.

Thomas woke me the next morning by placing light kisses along the nape of my neck.

"Hey you," I replied sleepily as he continued to kiss on me.

"Good morning," he greeted me in response.

"I have to say that I think this is my favorite way to wake up," I said smiling as I rolled over towards him and wrapped him into a delicious kiss.

"You know this is my favorite way to wake up too," he told me placing light kisses on my face.

"By kissing my neck?" I asked tracing his jaw line with my finger tips.

"Yes, but no," he said with a smile. "I like waking up next to you," he said with deep emotion.

"What's the plan today?" I asked him still tracing lines on his bare skin.

"I was thinking maybe you'd like to do some sightseeing?" Thomas asked leaving the option completely open to me.

"That sounds like fun," I agreed wanting to see some of London while I was here although just seeing Thomas' bedroom was great too.

"I could take you to the Palace and Big Ben and all that," he offered. Something seemed off though and while I knew the offer was genuine, Thomas had a look on his face that told me he'd rather go anywhere but to the tourist places he had just mentioned.

"I'll tell you what," I said a new plan formulating in my mind, "Why don't you show me the London you'd like to show me. If that includes the Palace and Big Ben, great, if not, I am completely okay with that too," I assured him with a smile.

"No offense to the great features of London, but I'd love to show you different things," Thomas said smiling my favorite smile.

"Plus," I said as I began to sit up, "If you took me to the Palace I might have to steal a tiara." Thomas laughed and kissed my shoulder.

"I am going to take a shower and then I am going to show you my London," Thomas said placing another kiss on my shoulder as he hopped out of bed.

He slowly inched his pajama pants over his hips as he walked away from me and into the bathroom.

"You don't want to join me do you?" he asked turning back and giving me a seductive look as he dropped his pants to the floor.

"I may take you up on that," I grinned back at him.

"Give me five?" he requested and I nodded as I watched his bare butt walk away from me. I pulled my knees up to my chest and decided that tonight would be the night.

I brushed my teeth and began applying my make-up as I wondered where Thomas would take me today. Then, being me, I wondered what I should wear. I hollered to Thomas who was in the other room getting dressed and waited for a response.

I glanced down to find my tube of mascara and when I looked up I noticed Thomas leaning against the door frame that led into the bathroom. His chest was bare and he wore nothing but jeans on his bottom half. His hair was still damp and hung over his forehead in the sexiest way I didn't know was possible. His arms and chest were a bit more defined since he had been working out since returning home and I couldn't keep my eyes off of him.

"As much as I enjoy you ogling me," Thomas began with a smirk, "I assume that's not why you called me in here."

I continued to watch him in the mirror. "How do you know?" I asked with a sly smile, "Maybe I didn't get my fill in the shower."

"In that case," he replied as he moved towards me, "should I remove the rest of my clothing?"

I let out a shaky breath, "We might not leave if you do that."

"If you keep standing here in nothing but the lacy undergarments you have on, we might not leave either," he growled against my neck.

His mention of my clothing brought me back to why I had called out to him in the first place and I pushed him away slightly to regain my train of though.

"That's actually why I called you in here, what should I wear today?" I asked moving as he tried to reattach his lips to my neck.

"Mmm business casual?" Thomas asked as he leaned against the counter.

"Business casual?" I asked with a laugh.

"Sorry, I can't think straight with you standing here looking all switched on," he said as he continued to eye me appreciatively.

"Fine," I said with a small smile as I grabbed one of his belt loops. The look on his face was hopeful expecting me to attack him I think, but instead I pushed him back towards the bedroom.

"You better go back in the other room then so you can think straight," I said with another laugh.

"Tease," Thomas muttered as he left.

I had just finished buttoning up my black collared and cuffed shirt that I had paired with a dark wash pair of jeans when I heard Thomas' cell ring.

"Can you get that love?" Thomas asked with a mouthful of toothpaste. I felt a little apprehensive at answering his phone, but I knew it wasn't that big of a deal.

"Hello?" I answered tentatively.

"I know you've got a girlie voice Mase, but come on!" the guy on the other end answered.

"This is Courtney, not Thomas," I said trying to hold in a laugh.

"Oh, sorry Totty," the voice said and I realized it must be Stu.

"Thomas is brushing his teeth Stu, do you want to wait or should I have him call you back?" I asked as I slid on a comfortable pair of boots.

"How'd you know it was me?" Stu asked slightly surprised.

"Who else has been calling me Totty since I got here?" I asked in what I was sure was a 'duh' voice.

"True, true," he conceded.

"Actually, I can talk to you cuz I assume he'd just ask you anyways," Stu began.

"Shoot," I told him as I zipped the boot.

"Brad and I are about to head out to the pub grub and wanted to see if you guys wanted to tag along," Stu offered.

"What's a pub grub?" I asked confused.

"I forget you're not from around here," Stu replied with a laugh. "What's it sound like?" he asked.

"A pub with grub?" I asked tentatively.

"And Bob's your uncle!" Stu exclaimed into the phone.

"You guys have the oddest speech patterns," I said shaking my head as I stood. "I'll check with Thomas," I said as I walked into the bathroom.

"Who is it?" Thomas asked as he wiped his face with a towel.

"Stu, he wants to know if we want to join him and Brad at the pub grub," I said trying to sound like Stu had when he'd said it.

Thomas grinned at my terrible accent. "Listen to you trying to sound British," Thomas smiled as he kissed me lightly.

"Ew," Stu said in my ear, "I can hear you snogging."

"Well, you'll be seeing it in a bit anyways," I teased him.

"So you're going then?" Stu asked.

"I don't know," I replied back to Stu, "do you wanna go?" I asked Thomas.

"We need to eat, but it's your call," Thomas told me.

"Did you have a plan for food?" I asked hoping this wouldn't ruin any plans he'd made.

"Not for lunch, and then we can just go on our own afterwards," Thomas assured me as we walked back into the bedroom.

"Okay, sounds good," I informed Stu as Thomas put his shoes on.

"Alright, we'll meet you there shortly, Mase knows the place," he assured me before hanging up.

We entered the pub and quickly found Brad and Stu at a booth near the back. Thomas and I slid in after quick hellos.

"What can I get'cha?" a cute girl with extremely curly hair asked shortly after we sat down.

Thomas, Brad, and Stu all ordered a pint while I tried to think of something to order without getting razzed like I had the last time I had been out with them.

"Can I get a cider?" I finally asked trying to remember something from the research I had done online regarding British food. The girl nodded and headed back to the bar.

"No appletini today?" Stu asked with a grin.

"It's too early for that," I said shrugging.

"Ye drink enough of that cider and you'll be pissy eyed all the same," Brad said with a laugh.

"You do speak!" I said incredulously gaining laughs from Stu and Thomas.

"Baby Brad is the quiet one of the bunch," Stu acknowledged rubbing Brad's curls playfully.

"Sod off," Brad said good naturedly as he shoved Stu away.

"What would you like to eat?" Thomas asked his eyes twinkling.

I tried to think of something that I knew I could eat without freaking out. Everything that I had looked up online sounded so odd, but I didn't want to stick out like a sore thumb and ask for a hamburger. I tried to go simple and told him I'd like a sandwich figuring since it was lunch time I couldn't get too much grief about it.

"What kind of bread?" the girl asked after Thomas had ordered for us.

"Wheat please," I told her with a smile. She looked at me strangely and Stu and Brad burst into laughter.

"What?" I asked feeling incredibly self conscious.

"Brown," Thomas told the girl as he tried to hide his smile.

"What's so funny?" I asked knowing my face was turning red. "I let you order and didn't even try to say 'sarny,'" I defended myself.

"It's white or brown love," Thomas explained still trying not to laugh, "There's no wheat here."

"Whatever," I huffed sinking back into the booth. "Maybe we should've just gone to a chip shop," I muttered. This, of course, elicited more laughter from the guys.

"How much time did you spend on Google before you left?" Thomas asked me as he ran his fingers over the side of my face.

"Yahoo," I corrected with a small smile of my own.

"You do realize how odd you sound trying to use British words with your clearly American accent, right?" Stu said still laughing.

"Do you know what the sad thing is though?" I asked still using my incredibly fake accent.

"What's that?" Stu asked trying to sound as terrible as I did.

"My accent is still a million times better than Emma Watson's," I continued.

"And she actually is British," Brad agreed with a laugh.

"She's a nice girl, but bollocks can she get annoying to listen to," Thomas agreed.

"I forgot that you were in that movie with her," Stu said remembering.

A short while later the waitress had brought our food and we were all enjoying noshing on it.

"How's the sarny?" Stu asked as I took my second bite.

"It's pretty decent actually," I said after swallowing. "I have to admit that I'm a bit nervous about British food," I said looking a bit ashamed.

"Some of it's not so different," Brad informed me. "You have mash back home, right?" Brad asked indicating the pile of potatoes on his plate.

"You just call them mash?" I asked.

"Yup," he said taking a big bite.

"Well I wish I would have known that," I said, "I didn't know what was mashed when I looked at the menu. I would have ordered that."

"She's a sucker for potatoes," Thomas told them with a grin.

"Mash it, fry it, bake it, stuff it, au gratin it; I will eat it!" I said with a smile.

"You can have some of mine if you'd like," Thomas offered pushing his plate a little closer to me. "I don't mind sharing my food," Thomas smirked teasing me about when we had first met.

"You were the one who didn't want to order dessert and then wanted mine when it came," I pointed out.

"You still could've shared," Thomas said smiling.

"You could have ordered your own," I reiterated.

"Do you want some or not?" Thomas asked referring back to the potatoes.

"You think they have any fudge?" I asked looking around for the waitress. I knew I'd turn back to at least two confused faces. I was not disappointed.

"What?" I asked doing my best to feign innocence.

"Fudge?" Brad asked.

"On mash?" Stu finished for him.

"What, you've never had it?" I asked trying to make them think it was incredibly normal.

"Don't buy it," Thomas told his friends, "She's odd," he added shaking his head.

"Oh," Stu and Brad both sat back with relieved looks on their faces.

"I don't think it's odd," I defended myself taking another bite of my food.

"That's odd," Stu said giving me a strange look.

"You guys eat intestines and other weird parts and my fudge on mash is odd?" I asked looking indignant. "Isn't that like the pot calling the kettle black," I said with a smile to make sure they knew I was just giving them a hard time.

"Did she just call us cookware?" Stu asked Brad turning to him.

"Sounded like it to me," Brad agreed with a confused look on his face.

"It's an expression," I told them shaking my head while Thomas just laughed at the whole exchange.

About an hour later Thomas and I had left Brad and Stu and were walking along the bank of the Thames.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked as we continued to walk.

"It's not too far ahead," Thomas told me as I cuddled into his side.

We continued to walk and I took in the beautiful landscape. Within ten minutes we arrived in a little area that was essentially hidden from everything else but had a fabulous view of the river and the bridge.

"This is it," Thomas said as he spread out a blanket I hadn't noticed him holding.

He sat down on the blanket and then pulled me down so I was sitting between his legs as we both faced the river. We watched the boats sail along the river and the different people walking along the opposite bank and the bridge for quite awhile without speaking. I figured there was a reason that Thomas had brought me here and knew he would get to it in his own time.

"This is my favorite place in London," he finally said speaking softly as if he were afraid of disturbing the quiet. "There are a lot of places in London that I could have taken you today, and a couple I will, but there are none more important to me than this place," Thomas continued.

"It's beautiful here," I acknowledged not understanding why it was so special to him.

"This was always my favorite place," he began. "When I was young I would come here in the afternoons and just sit by myself when I needed to think. It was always the place that I could come and not worry about anything," Thomas told me wistfully.

"I'm sure you know this, but I'm going to tell you anyways," Thomas told me. "After I filmed that first movie," he said and I knew the one he was referring to, "my whole life changed. I felt like I couldn't go anywhere or do anything without someone noticing me and coming up to me. It got to a point where I felt like I couldn't breathe, so to speak," Thomas said and I could feel how painful it must have been for him.

"I felt like I couldn't talk to anyone about it ether," he confided. "I thought that if I told someone how over whelmed I felt or how much it was wearing on me that they would tell me I was just whining and say something along the lines of 'you poor baby.' I didn't want anyone's sympathy or pity and I wasn't looking for it," Thomas said. My heart broke slightly at how much he went through and to have to go through it all on his own made me even sadder.

"When I was finally able to return home this was the first place I came," Thomas said and I could feel him smiling behind me. "I was able to come here and just be me; just be Tom," he finished.

"That's why I wanted to bring you here," he said and I did finally understand, "you're the only one I've ever brought here, and you're the only one I will." A small tear slid down my cheek at how much he was sharing with me, how much he was giving me whether he knew it or not.

"Promise me something," I said turning back to him. He looked surprised to see the tear on my face, but nodded his head saying nothing.

"Promise me that no matter what happens with us that you will always know that you can call and talk to me about anything. I would never want you to go through anything like that again and not have someone to talk to," I told him holding his face in my hands. He nodded his head and placed a gentle kiss on my lips in silent promise.

"Does it bother you that I always call you Thomas?" I asked thinking back to how he'd said he could come here and just be 'Tom.'

"No," he answered sounding confused, "Thomas is my name."

"Well, I just noticed you said that you could come here and be 'Tom,' and I know your mom called you Tommy and your friends call you Mase…" I trailed off, "Am I the only one that calls you Thomas?"

He looked thoughtful for a moment. "You might be, but I don't really notice it," Thomas replied honestly.

"I have to say," he paused with smirk on his face, "I prefer it when you accentuate the two syllables."

I felt confused for a moment. "When do I accentuate the two syllables?" I asked staring at him.

"There are times," Thomas said with a sly smile as he sensually ran his finger along my collarbone.

"Oh," I said blushing furiously.

"Don't be embarrassed," he leaned close to my ear, "I love it." His words only caused me to blush more.

"Do you ever regret it?" I asked thinking back to what he had told me in regards to taking on the famous role that he had.

"Do I ever regret what?" he asked obviously not following my train of thought.

"Taking on that role," I clarified for him.

"I've thought about that question a lot to be honest," Thomas replied. "I've thought about how different my life could have been if I had decided to turn the role down. The more I thought about it the more I realized it didn't matter," he said.

"Why's that?" I asked.

"It doesn't matter because I did take on the role and I am living the life that went a long with it. I can't go back and not take the role, so really there's no point in regretting something that I can't do anything to change," he answered.

"I've gotten some things out of it that I probably never would have if I hadn't taken it on," he continued on thoughtful. "I would never have made some of the friends that I've made and if I'm being really honest with myself," he paused and I wondered what he was going to say next, "I never would have met you."

"And that would be a bad thing?" I asked trying to be coy.

"Terrible," Thomas said turning my face towards his, his eyes penetrating mine.

"Speaking of regrets," Thomas said and I could tell this was going to be a loaded question.

"Do you ever regret getting married to Tate?" he asked.

We had talked about Tate and why we had split, so I knew he knew what had gone on, but I had wondered if he would ever broach the subject with me.

"I suppose I have to take a leaf out of your book when it comes to that," I said honestly, "There's really no point in regretting something that I can't go back and change and I'm sure I would be a very different person had I not married him. Do I wish I had done things differently? Yes, but I didn't so I can't spend all my time speculating as to where my life would have gone if I had," I responded. It was the most I had thought about my marriage to Tate in a long time and I found that my perspective on it had changed a bit.

"It may sound harsh," I began again as Thomas just let me continue to talk, "but I don't feel sad about ending things with Tate either. I truly feel like it was something that needed to be done in order for me to grow up and move on. If I had stayed with Tate then I never would have grown into the woman I am now. Splitting with him enabled me to not only know, but to see myself stand on my own two feet and decide what I wanted from life without having to take someone else into the equation. I know it sounds a bit selfish, but if you never live for yourself, how do you know what you need?" I asked.

"I actually understand what you're saying," Thomas assured me with a kiss to my temple. "That's one of the reasons that I'm glad I did take on that role, it made me figure out who I was and what I wanted," he told me as he began to play with my hand.

"It would have been very easy to just allow my agents to tell me exactly what to do and who to be, but I needed to decide those things for myself and taking on that role really pushed me to do it," Thomas finished letting out a deep breath.

"I felt like when I was younger I lived for my parents and for what they wanted and they expected of me, and then I got together with Tate and it was about what was best for us and not particularly me," I said, "I needed to discover what I wanted out of life first and then to find someone who complimented that instead of making me give it all up."

"You can never be exactly certain of that though," Thomas replied and I thought it was an odd statement.

"No," I replied agreeing with him, "but you can have a pretty good idea about it."

Thomas smiled in agreement before kissing my hand and pulling me to my feet. "We've been entirely too serious for awhile, it's time to go have some fun," Thomas told me.

Half an hour later we were driving through the London streets in Thomas' car with the top down. I smiled and laughed as he joked and told me different stories about his friends and the various places we passed.

I had no clue where we were going and Thomas would only smile and say 'you'll see' whenever I asked. I gasped when we turned onto Old Church Street hoping that we were going where I thought we were.

"What?" Thomas asked surprised at my sharp intake of air.

"Oh my potato," I said breathlessly.

"What?" Thomas asked again when I didn't answer him.

"Close your eyes," Thomas ordered.

"Why?" I asked with a smirk.

"Because I said so," he responded with a smile of his own. "Close them yourself or I'll blindfold them for you," he threatened playfully.

"Promise?" I asked seductively.

"Oh stop," Thomas said as he reached to cover my eyes.

"Okay, okay," I acquiesced and I felt him move his hand away. I kept my eyes closed at his request but continued to bounce in my seat at the excitement.

I felt him stop the car and turn off the motor.

"Now?" I asked.

"Not yet," he responded as he got out of the car.

"Now?" I asked again as he opened my door and took my hand.

"Not yet," he replied with a laugh. I let him pull me out of the car and help me step onto the pavement. "Now," he whispered into my ear, his voice warm on my neck. I opened my eyes and there before me was the Holy Grail of shoe stores, Manolo Blahnik.

I turned back towards him and threw my arms around him kissing him passionately. I felt his butt hit the car, but I couldn't find it in myself to care.

"Thank you so much for bringing me here," I replied my voice overflowing with happiness.

"If you're this excited with the store I can't wait to see the shoes you pick out," Thomas said with a laugh.

"You're buying me a pair of shoes?" I asked astonished. I was simply thrilled that he had brought me here; I certainly hadn't expected him to buy me a pair of Manolos.

He shook his head at me sadly, "No, I'm not buying you a pair of shoes."

I tried to reign my excitement back in and not look disappointed at my misunderstanding. Before I could say anything in the form of an apology though, Thomas held up three fingers.

"Three?" I asked not understanding.

A sexy smirk played on his lips as he spoke, "I'm not buying you a pair of shoes, I'm buying you three."

"Thomas," I said gasping for air, "that's too much! You can't!"

"Sure I can," he disagreed quickly.

"No, Thomas that's too much," I told him earnestly, "I won't let you."

"I sorry you seem to think you have a choice in the matter," he told me playfully.

"I won't accept them," I replied folding my arms across my chest.

"Sure you will," he said pulling my arms free and taking my hand.

"No, I won't," I replied as I attempted to drag my feet.

"Yes, you will," he said turning to me and looking very serious all of a sudden, "and here's why; I seem to remember this strange girl forcing a pink hat on my head in order to save me from a mob of fans that would have undoubtedly enveloped me and then buying a hat for me after I specifically told her not to." He had a point and he knew it, but I couldn't see how this was the same.
"A twenty dollar hat is not the same as not one, but three pairs of six hundred dollar shoes!" I cried to him quietly trying to not make a scene in front of Manolo Blahnik.

"No, it's not," he agreed softly taking my face into his hands, "but giving someone something they need is the same."

"I don't need Manolos," I refuted softly.

"Maybe not," Thomas said his voice still soft, "but I need to give them to you."

I found myself unable to argue with him any further and decided to give in just like he had all those months ago in a hat shop in Disneyland. He smiled lovingly at me as he open the door and we made our way inside.

Two hours and three pairs of shoes later we drove back to Thomas house in a content silence. We arrived at the house and he led me inside placing a soft kiss on my cheek in the process.

"We have dinner reservations in about an hour and a half, but I'd like to leave in an hour," Thomas told me still speaking in the same soft tone he had outside of Manolo Blahnik. "Can you be ready in an hour?" he asked.

I nodded still enjoying the silence. He smiled in response, "It's a bit formal, so I called in a favor and asked Carly to order a dress for you online."

I opened my mouth to object at what he had done, but he placed a finger to my lips silently asking me not to argue with him and to just go with it. I shut my mouth and let him continue on.

"The dress is hanging in my closet; it's in the black bag near the back. I moved my stuff into one of the guest rooms so you'll have the entire room to yourself," he told me.

I turned to go, but he called me back, "I imagine I'll be getting to see one of those new shoes tonight?" he asked and I smiled widely in response.

"One more thing," he said and I paused on the stairs before turning back to him. "I love you Courtney," he said his eyes and voice heavy with emotion.

"I love you too," I whispered back but I knew he had heard me.

The dress was exquisite. It was a sleeveless hunter green and black dress with a cute black jacket that would protect me from the cool London air. My favorite pair of Manolos that we had bought that day went perfectly with it. They were four inch black patent leather slingbacks with lacing that went from the toe to my ankle.

I had poofed the top of my hair and curled the bottom of it emptying practically an entire bottle of hair spray on it so it wouldn't frizz.

I was applying the last of my mascara when I heard a knock at the door realizing that my hour was up. I opened the door to find Thomas standing there in a pair of black slacks with a hunter green shirt that matched my dress.

"You peeked," I accused with a smile as he handed me the bouquet of roses he had been holding.

"It looks much better on you than on the hanger," Thomas assured me with a smile.

"I certainly hope so," I laughed. He offered me his arm and I took it as he led me down the stairs and to the car.

"Where are we going?" I asked as he situated himself in the driver's seat.

"It's a surprise," Thomas told me with a wink.

"It always is with you," I replied with a laugh as he backed out of the garage.

Thomas led me down the walkway and up to something that looked like a gigantic Ferris wheel.

"Wow," I breathed taking in all the lights and the little pods that I could see people climbing into.

"Mr. Masen," a gentleman greeted us, "right this way," he escorted us into a private pod.

We stepped into a glass shaped pod that was set with a dinner for two. The attendant closed the door behind us and I looked out onto the same river that Thomas and I had sat at earlier that day.

"This is incredible," I breathed out as we started to move.

"Do you like it?" Thomas asked sounding somewhat unsure.

"Thomas, it's beautiful," I said grabbing his hand and pulling him to me.

We sat and ate dinner as we enjoyed the amazing view the London Eye had to offer. Thomas had arranged for a fairly American type meal of steak and vegetables knowing that I was gun shy about traditional English food.

"You will have to try it at some point," he warned me as we finished up.

"At some point," I smirked in agreement.

After dinner I leaned on the rail taking in the view with Thomas behind me as we sipped champagne.

"This has been the perfect day," I told him unable to keep the smile from my face.

"I'm glad," he answered and it sounded like his voice shook a little bit.

"I wanted to show you this amazing view," he said beginning what sounded like a speech, "but I also wanted to tell you that the beauty of it doesn't compare to what's in my arms." I turned around and pressed my hand gently to his face before kissing him slowly.

"Today has been one of the best days of my life," Thomas started again when I had released his lips. "It was everything the perfect day should be; we talked, we laughed, we confided in each other, I got to see that amazing smile that I love so much," he told me as he ran a hand slowly over my cheek.

"This is how I want every day to be," he said and this time it was me who took in a shaky breath. "I want to spend every day talking with you and laughing with you. I want to know all your dreams and I want to share mine with you. I want to make your silliest wishes come true," he said lifting the shoe on my foot with his own, "and I never want you to be afraid to share anything with me."

I continued to look out onto the river as Thomas spoke as his face being so close to my ear hindered me from turning to look at him. "Courtney," he said his voice heavy in my ear as he snaked his arms in front of me. "I want you to be my wife," he said as he flipped open the small box now in front of me.

My eyes were huge and I couldn't breathe as I stared at the diamond and emerald ring in front of me. I picked up the ring and examined the princess cut stone set in a cathedral setting with emeralds running up each side meeting the diamond in the middle.

I turned to look deep into his eyes and I realized for the first time that he looked a little scared.

"Thomas," I said touching his face with my hand, "I would love to be your wife."

I couldn't be certain, but I could have sworn I saw a small tear escape his eye before he crushed his lips to mine.

"I love you so much Courtney," Thomas whispered as he took the ring from me and placed it on my finger.

"As I love you," I said before kissing him again.

We arrived back to Thomas' house a short while later and we couldn't seem to keep from touching each other the whole way up the stairs. I would touch his arm, he would touch my face, I would kiss his neck, he would kiss my hand.

I sat on the edge of the bed as I watched Thomas remove the items from his pockets and begin to unbutton his shirt.

"Tonight was perfect," I said as I rose from the bed and walked towards him.

"I'm glad," he said smiling as he watched me in the mirror.

"No," I said realizing that he wasn't catching my meaning. "Tonight has been perfect," I said stressing the last word as I began to unbutton his shirt.

"Perfect?" he asked quirking an eyebrow at me as he turned around.

"Perfect," I acknowledged as I finished unbuttoning his shirt and pushed it off his shoulders.

He wrapped his arms around my waist and placed his lips on mine. He moved his mouth slowly at first simply tasting my lips. I felt his hands move to my front as he slowly undid the buttons on my jacket. As he slid it off my shoulders his mouth began tasting the newly exposed skin.

I pulled the jacket the rest of the way off and did my best to toss it onto the chair closest to me as he continued to lick along my collarbone. He moved his way back up my neck and began kissing me again. I immediately tasted his cinnamon flavor the moment our tongues met. There was no fight for dominance between us; it was simply our mouths moving together.

I ran my tongue along his bottom lip and felt him smirk in response. I grabbed his belt and began pulling him towards the bed with me. When I felt the bed hit the back of my knees I began to pull his belt through the loops removing it from his pants completely.

Thomas grabbed my wrists stilling them from the button of his pants and brought my right wrist to his lips kissing it with reverence as his eyes bore into mine. He slowly moved his lips along my arm, over my shoulder and up my neck before repeating the process with my left arm. Once he finished kissing every inch of my arms he placed them around his neck capturing my mouth with his own once again.

His kiss was urgent this time and I found myself fisting my hands into his hair immediately. I held his face to mine with fervor and was relentless in my response to his kiss.

I felt his hands move to the back of my dress and slowly unzip it. When it landed on the floor he picked me up and lifted me out of it before opening his eyes and taking in the lingerie I had chosen to wear this evening.

Even before his proposal I knew that tonight would be the night and had dressed accordingly. During a trip to La Perla, Carly had helped me pick out the stunning deep green number that I currently had on.

Thomas ran his fingers lithely over the edges of the lace his breath stuttering in the process. I took his preoccupation to my advantage and undid his pants. He must not have been oblivious as I thought he was because as his pants fell, he kicked off his shoes and stepped out of them quickly.

His erection was prominent in the black silk boxers he had chosen for the evening and I wondered if on some level he'd known tonight would be the night too. I slid the back of my fingers along his shaft and felt him shudder slightly in response. He dipped his fingers into the cups of my bra teasing my nipples in the process. I let out a light moan and gripped my hand along his head in the process.

With a loud grunt Thomas picked me up and fastened my legs around his waist pressing himself against me. I moaned at the contact and began kissing along his neck and collarbone. I felt him turn and sit on the bed as he unfastened my bra clasp and gently removed it from my body. I needed to feel his bare skin and reached for the bottom of his undershirt quickly pulling it over his head.

As soon as he was free of it he pressed my bare chest to his.

"Did you know this is one of my favorite feelings?" Thomas asked me breathing heavily.

"I think you may have a new one after tonight," I said pressing myself further against him.

"I won't object to that," he promised turning me around again and laying me on my back.

Thomas leaned my head against the soft pillows before beginning his exploration of my body with his lips. He took his time tasting my neck before moving down my chest. He lightly moved his fingers over my nipples and they hardened in response to his touch. I arched against him as he slipped his mouth around my other peak and flicked his tongue roughly against it. "Ungh!" I cried out as I reached to touch him again.

He tasted each peak in turn and explored them as if it were his first time. When he finally began kissing down my stomach I didn't know how much I'd be able to bare. He moved his mouth over my still covered center breathing his hot breath on me in the process before moving to my thighs.

"I know I shaved tonight, so I must apologize for the lack of friction," he said as he ran his face along my inner thighs.

"I'll survive," I stuttered out.

He unclasped the hooks on my garter and slid it over my hips along with my undergarments. He eyed me devilishly and I couldn't wait for him any longer. I pulled him down to me and flipped him over so that I was on top.

I felt his firm length against my slit and was trying hard to control the urge to have him inside me. I ground against him as I placed open mouthed kisses all over his chest and enjoyed watching his eyes roll back into his head.

I felt Thomas dig his fingers into my thighs pulling me as close to him as possible as I flicked my tongue over his nipples. He pulled my face to his and kissed me so hard I thought for sure I was going to pass out.

"Courtney," he gasped my name as he lightly bit the skin on my neck. "I need you now," he whispered with fervor.

I moved off of him so that he could get a condom and I reached to remove my shoes. "Leave them on," he growled as he dropped his boxers to the ground.

I eyed his cock with lust filled eyes and licked my lips in anticipation of finally having him inside of me. The sight of my tongue made his dick twitch and I crawled over to him taking him all the way into my mouth immediately.

"Oh God," he groaned out as he dug his fingers into my hair. I swirled his tip around in mouth a couple times before releasing him with a 'pop.'

He gently pulled me up so that we were at eye level before his lips found mine again. I felt him pick me up and lay me back against the pillows before I opened my eyes to see him hovering over me.

"You're sure?" Thomas asked.

"I love you Thomas," I told him as I pulled him closer to me and spread my legs.

He began slowly just barely moving his tip inside me. It was so good and not enough at the same time.

"I want you," I breathed into his ear as I lifted my hips to take him in.

Thomas shuddered as he finally let himself enter me fully. I moaned at the feeling of having him fill me completely. I lifted my hips to meet his every thrust and found myself orgasming quickly.

"I think that is my favorite new sight," he said breathlessly.

"What?" I asked still feeling the high as he continued to move in me, my second orgasm building already, "the sight of me underneath you?"

"No," he said as he rolled and moved me on top of him. "The sight of you orgasming around me," he said as he kissed my neck.

I ground into him over and over feeling the muscles in his legs tighten as I quickened my pace. Thomas moved his hand between us and began rubbing insistent circles on my clit.

"Come with me," he whispered into my neck.

The sound of his voice set off my second orgasm and sent me spasming around him. I felt Thomas' hands hold tightly to my hips as he released and I collapsed against his chest.

"I love you Thomas," I said into his neck.

"I love you, my future bride," he whispered turning to place a kiss on my temple.

His bride, I thought to myself with a smile. Yes, I was going to marry Thomas.

AN: I know you all have been waiting for their first time, so I hope I did it justice. Let me know what you think and receive a preview of chapter 42!