The Ashton's Christmas Ball was an annual charity ball organised by the Ashton Foundation for Troubled Teens. Though Jess seldom made a public appearance but she always made an exception for this particular ball for it was something quite close to her heart. Almost half of the proceeds she gets from her books make their way into the assets of the ball.
This year the ball was held at the Pinebrook Estates, a little way beyond the hub and dub of the city. The Estate was converted to a resort not too long ago but it still stood tall on a high densely wooded hillside boasting of shaded terraces, flower-filled gardens and an array of fountains highlighting a display of lights which was truly captivating.
The theme of the ball this year was a Masquerade ball and this was Jess first attendance alone for the years before she was always accompanied by David. Dressed in a waist hugging glimmering black evening gown topped with a black domino, she looked quite engaging.
After the obligatory round of idle mingling within the crowd, Jess finally escaped to a quiet corner on the side to catch her breath. She felt more at ease observing from the sidelines than being a part of the crowd.
"Hey beautiful"
Jess was startled by a deep husky voice in her ear. She glanced up meeting a pair of steel grey eyes hidden behind a black domino that complimented the midnight black suit the stranger was wearing.
"You look lost and out of place. Care to join me for a drink?" He asked as he handed me a glass of champagne offering a toast.
"Why? You don't even know me. Excuse me but I have to leave" Jess declined.
"Wait" he said as he blocked her way. "Don't let me scare you. I just felt you're lonely and so am I. I thought maybe we could keep each other company"
"You don't look like the lonely sort" Jess countered. He was an attractive male specimen with a charismatic aura that would attract onlookers wherever he went, both male and female dying to jump his bones.
"Well lately I find such gatherings more a formality and less amusing" he replied truthfully.
Jess wanted to leave but she found herself unable to do so. Something in his voice, in his eyes held her back.
"So what comes after a drink?" She finally conceded.
"We get to know each other next" he offered.
"Easier said than done with this being a masquerade ball and all. For all you know I could lie to you about myself right now without you being none the wiser" Jess pointed out.
"Something tells me you would not be a good liar... Your eyes reveal your every thought.... I have rarely notice eyes that shade before...." he said.
"I'd like to think I got them from my Mom, something to remember her by" Jess answered but he was lost in thoughts that she doubted if he heard her or not.
"So what do you do when you are not attending a ball? He asked after a while.
"I'm a recluse with an interest in literature"
"Why does that not surprise me" he said "No wonder you hugged the farthest corner the first chance you got."
"And what about you? What are your interests?" Jess asked genuinely curious about the stranger standing before her.
"I'm an entrepreneur of sort... currently on the hunt for the latest challenge" he replied.
"That puts me firmly in place. Do you realize that all this while we have been talking in riddles with neither of us any wiser on who the other person truly is" She pointed out.
"And that sums up a masquerade ball for you" he countered. "So how about you and me ditching the ball here and now and driving out for a breath of fresh air?"
Jess was surprised at his boldness but she enjoyed bantering with him too much to end the night there. So she took up on his offer for a ride. She hadn't done such an impulsive thing for quite a long while.
She soon found herself seated besides him as he drove off in a blue Rolls Royce with the top down.
"I thought we were done pretending. Let me look at the face that lurks behind the mask" Jess pleaded.
He stared at her fixedly before finally lifting the mask off revealing a ruggedly handsome face with high cheekbones and a strong chin. There was something hauntingly familiar about the man though she knew she had never met him before.
"Satisfied" he asked "Now my turn"
Before she could protest, he reached out and lifted the mask off her face too.
He was silent for quite a while, his face masking his thoughts.
"Disappointed?" Jess ventured at last.
"No....just overwhelmed" he replied staring at the road straight ahead.
"Where are we going?" Jess asked changing the subject.
"Someplace nice" he offered before driving on in silence except for the roar of the powerful engine.
They swept away one signpost after another as Jess closed her eyes feeling the wind on her face playing with the hair behind her back.
The car finally came to a halt as Jess opened her eyes to behold a vast expanse of blue as far as the horizon beyond. They were in a beach with the sand bathed in moonlight, the stars reflecting over the water surface as the waves crashed the shores.
"Its breathtaking" Jess exclaimed "I have never been to the beach at night"
"Take off your shoes" he instructed. "Feel the sand beneath your feet"
He grasped her hand and pulled her towards the shore letting the waves brush their feet, walking hand in hand. No sooner they were playing in the waves like kids splashing around wetting themselves through.
At last spent, they rested on the beach beneath the moonlight.
"Care for a dance?" he asked as he looked into her eyes.
"No music" Jess pointed out.
"We'll dance to the melancholy notes of the wind as it sweeps through the trees" he offered.
He pulled her up in his arms until they were but a breath away. They swayed to the tune of nature in that secluded spot lost to all thoughts and surroundings.
Jess sensed the exact moment he brought his lips down to meet hers and she felt it was the most natural thing in the world to kiss him back. In his arms she forgot her doubts and worries as the virility of the man she was with clouded her senses.
The kiss was slow, almost lazy, an unhurried exploration of her lips before plunging to become a punishing passionate one.
Lifting her effortlessly, he laid her down on the sand. Her hair fanned out as he touch the silky strands allowing them to slip through his fingers. His eyes were drawn to her mouth, bruised by the kiss they'd shared, as his fingers traced the curves of her body.
"I don't even know your name" she said as she gazed up at him.
"Its Jake" he said.
"My name is Jess" she whispered as once again she lost herself in the magic of his kiss.
"Jess, my beautiful Jess" he murmured as he drown himself in her body, filling his senses with her smell, savoring the taste of her as he teared down the barriers that still held them apart.
Jess was lost and she knew it. Just this one night she wanted to throw caution out the window and live in the moment. In his arms she felt safe as if she belonged there, she never felt this way before with anyone. So she let herself get caught in the magic of the night as she lost herself in the haven of his embrace.