Chapter 153

"There you are. I was worried." Erik said.

"I'm fine, Lancelot." Pearl said.

"I am both Arthur and Lancelot to you, M'Lady Guinevere." He said, picking her up and spinning her around. They heard a throat clear behind them. Erik put her down and Pearl adjusted her dress. Pearl whispered to Erik "She's got a whole little speech for you. It's adorable."

Phoebe curtsied and said "Your highness, crown prince Friederike Pilsen-Chamberlain, it is an honor and a privilege to meet you. I am Phoebe Davies, a friend of his highness prince Augustus Pilsen-Chamberlain." She curtsied again. Erik, in full form, looked formal and stern and took her hand and kissed it. "It is lovely to meet you, Phoebe Davies." Then, to her and everyone else's surprise, he picked her up and twirled her around too, giving her a hug. "Any friend of my brother's is a friend of mine. Welcome and make yourself at home." He said, then turning back to Pearl. "Now where were we? Ah yes." He said, picking her up gain "I missed you! And I need a drink. Let's go." He said as he carried her to the kitchen. Pearl laughed and beat his back. Auggie smiled and gave Phoebe a hug. "He's much nicer than you described" Phoebe said.

"He has a reason to be nicer now, I think." Auggie said.

Dinner was served and they all sat at the long table in the yard. It was beautiful night and Pearl couldn't take her eyes off of Erik. His smile was perfect with his full lips and strong jaw. He smiled with his eyes also. So when you made him laugh, his entire face lit up. His hair was the best when it was a bit messy. He caught her looking at him. "What? What's on your mind, nightingale?" He asked, kissing her cheek.

"I was thinking about the breeze tonight." She said.

"The breeze. Figures. You're looking at me and dreaming about the wind. A fella can't win." He joked.

"No. I was thinking that I was jealous of the wind tonight. That it, and not I, gets the privilege of properly messing up your hair." She said, looking into his eyes. His smile faded and his eyes looked as if they were starved for her. He kissed her, intensely. Everyone at the table giggled and continued their conversation without them. He broke the kiss and looked at her. He wanted to say so much but he didn't. He just looked into her eyes and smiled, letting her know as much as he could with his eyes. She smiled back.

"So, Phoebe. What are you studying at the university?" Erik asked.

"English literature." She said.

"That's what I majored in for two years." Pearl said.

"Really?" Erik seemed surprised.

"Yes. I got into marketing as an afterthought. Writing has always been my passion. I wrote, with my friend Dylan, all of the songs on our album." She said. Erik realized just then that he had barely tipped the iceberg when it came to the wonderful and interesting qualities this woman possessed.

"Who is your favorite writer?" Pearl asked Phoebe.

"Austen, for sure." She said. Pearl smiled. "Yes. She was an phenomenal writer. Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorites." Pearl said.

"Oh yes. Mr. Darcy. The man that ruined all men for every woman, for hundreds of years later, even. That's why I love literature so much. One thing, one person created in a woman's mind has the ability to affect the lives of so many for centuries later, just because of how she was able to write about it." Phoebe said. Auggie looked at her adoringly and kissed her hand. Pearl could see he was head over heels for her and she could see why. The girl was lovely. "What about you?" She asked Pearl.

Pearl started to say Bukowski but Rhys had ruined that for her. She thought about it and she remembered as a young girl the novel that truly changed her life. "Jane Eyre." She said. "The Brontës. It was Mr. Rochester that truly ruined me. A man and his ghosts. And a woman strong enough to love him despite them." She said. Erik looked at her. It took everything he had to stop himself from telling her right there and then she owned his heart.

"Dinner was lovely. Thank you for having me." Phoebe said, as she helped Pearl pour Auggie and Erik another glass of wine.

"Of course. You're not leaving are you? I was hoping you would stay the weekend." Pearl said.

"Really? That would be ok?" Phoebe asked.

"I insist." Pearl said.

"Yay! I'll get my bag. Thank you. You and Erik are so perfect together. He loves you so much, you can see it when he looks at you. It's so beautiful to see and be around. I hope Auggie and I can be like that someday." She said as she trotted away. Pearl started to explain to her that they were just..but she was gone. And what could she say? She didn't even know what they were.

"She seems perfect for my brother." Erik said, taking the glass from Pearl's hand.

"She is sweet. I like her very much." Pearl said.

"I like you very much." Erik smiled, kissing her after he said it.

"I like you very much as well." Pearl said, kissing his neck and running her hand down to his bottom and squeezing it. He grunted and clenched his jaw. He took her hand and led her around the house to a dark area of the lawn. He picked her up and pinned her against the wall of the house. Lifting her leg and pulling her panties off, he picked her up and she wrapped her legs around his body. "Pearl you drive me absolutely crazy." He said. She reached down and unfastened his pants, freeing him to enter her. He grabbed her hands and pinned her arms over her head and he slid into her. "Erik. Erik you feel so good inside of me." She said. He thrusted harder, rocking her against the wall. "I want to feel you cum all around me. I want to feel what I do to you." He said. She closed her eyes and moved her pelvis forward so he could hit her clit harder. She came almost instantly. "Fuck..." she whispered. He felt her pulsate and tighten around him which pushed him over the edge. He filled her with his orgasm and cried out her name. He held her against the wall, looking into her eyes, catching his breath, the moonlight shining on them and making her look like an angel. His angel that had arrived to make him whole again. That understood his pain. He kissed her and put her down. "Are you ok?" She asked, putting her panties back on.

"I have never been quite this ok in my entire life." He said, smiling.

They rejoined the party and invited everyone for a dip in the hot tub.