"amor vincit omnia
[ahh-mohr weeny-kit 
ohm-nee-ah]"

—

(Latin) Love conquers all things. This is one of the few Latin phrases, over the centuries, which has been widely used enough to be included in the English language dictionary.

Shortly before the start of the first millennium, the Roman poet Virgil wrote "love conquers all things; let us too surrender to Love."The phrase and the concept (in Latin and in English) caught on: a character in Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, written in the late 1300s, wore a brooch engraved Amor Vincit Omnia; Caravaggio used the phrase as the title of his painting of Cupid in the early seventeenth century; the twentieth century poet Edgar Bowers reinterpreted the phrase all over again in the poem with that title.

❄️❄️❄️❄

I let Zach's kiss completely consume me. I kiss him back with full force, transforming all my (newly found) feelings into that one kiss.

Zach feels I gave in. He grabs my waist with his hand, squeezing it, moulding our bodies together. I feel the hard ridges of his muscles underneath his clothes, inviting my hands to touch them.

I give in into the temptation, putting my palms flat on his chest, remembering how good he looks without clothes. Almost as good as with them.

I smile into the kiss, feeling happy and emotionally carefree. It's an amazing feeling.

When Zach leans back, ending our kiss, he looks down at me with a smile, mixed emotions shining from his eyes that are really bright in this dark night. "Can I hope that means you've changed your mind about us?" he asks hopefully.

I bite my lip, giving him a shy smile. "Maybe," I tell suggestively, trying to hide my true emotions.

"What made you change your mind?" Zach wants to know.

Oh, well. Isn't that a million dollar question? "I don't know. You look pretty good. I already found out that you're a good kisser. The bag that you're holding with the delicious food helps, too," I joke, trying hard not to laugh.

Zach cocks his head to the side, his hands suddenly on my sides, tickling me. I yelp out, trying to get away from him, but the fence behind me is preventing me from falling down from the roof. Zach notices it and quickly pulls me to him. "Let's not get too close to the fence, yeah?" he says a little breathless. 

I'm breathing hard, my giggles falling quiet on my lips as I just stare at Zach's face in the dark night. This moment right here with him feels unreal. I almost can't believe that I'm here, kissing Zach Crawford on the rooftop, deciding to willingly give my heart to him. 

"Are we going to eat now before the food gets cold?" I suggest. 

Zach wraps his arm around my shoulders, kissing my temple. "Sure." And we both go down to his flat with the biggest smiles on our faces. 

We eat in the living room. Zach doesn't care about getting his couch dirty, I see. "Since you told me about your family I think it's only fair if I tell you about mine," Zach suddenly hits me with his words, stopping me mid-chewing and I turn to look at him with wide eyes.

I swallow down as quickly as I can, clearing my throat. "Your family? Your father is your coach, right?"

Zach sighs. "He is. But we're not close, as I mentioned before."

I nod. "You just didn't tell me the reason." 

"My father isn't a good man, Analeigh, even though many people would think so. Mainly the ones who don't know how he is behind the closed door. The public image is easy to maintain. He isn't a good father and he wasn't a good husband. He was cheating on my mother with multiple women, even in front of her eyes. He often took them home with him. Growing up, it was normal for me to see my father with so many different women. It was also normal to see my parents arguing. Even as a child, I could see how much my mother loved him and how much he was breaking her.

"But then, when I was 9, she committed suicide. She couldn't do it anymore, she wrote in her letter. It was painful to selfishly leave everything behind and she declared her unconditional love for me, but she wrote she decided to be a coward and end the pain she was feeling. She said she couldn't live with the man who treated her like dirt. And it was hard for her watching me transforming into my father. Not in the actions, but everyone tells me I look just like him. Unfortunately." Zach lets out a bitter laugh.

"Therefore, I never forgave my father for his actions. During the years, he's been trying to get me on his good side, but I just can't. And after my mother's death, I've held some hope that he would change. He didn't. It was even worse when she wasn't in his way anymore. He was neglecting me, paying for a nanny to look after me because he wasn't capable. I also found my love in ice skating. Mother and I would often go to the ice hall when my father wasn't at home. Even though it would be more logical that my father took me since he's a coach. 

"Anyways, I promised myself to never turn into my father. I have that bad luck that he ended up being my coach when he wanted to come back into my life, but I didn't let him. I still see him as the one responsible for ruining my mother's life." 

I stare at him in shock, my mouth parted open, the food before me completely forgotten. "Dear God," I breathe out. I can barely believe what Zach told me. And to think how judgmental I was towards him when I first met him, thinking how easy he has it just because he's rich. 

But after all, I'm starting to see that money doesn't mean anything to you if you don't have any love in your life. Money can't buy you loving parents and a perfect life. It can buy you material things, but that does not equal happiness. 

And knowing Zach a little bit more now, I realise how much he deserves to be loved. I crawl to him on the couch and throw myself on him, hugging him, unverbally showing him how much he means to me. And also showing him everything words fail to say in this moment. 

The move comes completely natural to me, the need to comfort him and show him he is loved. Even though I fear my love won't be enough because of how fucked up as a person I am and how afraid I am to involve my emotions in any form of relationship I make with other people. 

But with Zach, I'm teaching myself to let it go and finally let myself feel. Although I have to admit that it's pretty hard not to feel something for Zach. Not because of his social status, but because he's an amazing and kind person who's helped me a lot - emotionally and financially. And I'm finally realising how unfair it would be of me to hide my feelings for him and push him away when he hinted that he somehow feels the same for me. 

Zach squeezes me to him, our bodies pressed together. He seeks the comfort I offer him. And it feels nice. Laying in his embrace, trying to make him feel a little better. 

Zach wraps his both arms around of my frame, squeezing me to him and burying his head into my neck. It feels so nice. I'm so overwhelmed with emotions I could start crying from the relief and happiness that I finally decided to let myself trust another person enough to give my heart to them. 

"Fuck, it felt good to let that out," Zach breathes. 

I smile into his shoulder. "Yeah, I hear you." I remember how relieved I felt when I told Zach about my father and my brother. And my mother. 

"You know ... you're actually the only one I've ever told that story to." 

I slightly move my head so I can see a part of Zach's face. "What do you mean? Didn't you have friends to talk to them about it?" 

Zach shrugs. "Not really. I was pretty emotionally unavailable when I was younger. And my fame quickly grew, meaning there were less and less people in my life I could trust. Especially with something so sensitive like this. Anyone could sell the story out."

This touches the depths of my soul. "But you trust me enough to tell me this," I say my thoughts out loud, my head swirling. Oh, wow. 

Zach turns his head so he looks me straight into my eyes. "Yes. I trust you. Completely," he confirms. 

Oh, wow! I search Zach's hand and entwine them together, squeezing his. "I trust you, too, Zachary," I admit truthfully. 

It's funny how easy Zach became one of the most important people in my life. And how patient he's been with me all this time when I couldn't trust him. 

We lie there on the couch for a long time, enjoying the silence, both of us admiring the view before us. I could honestly see the view from Zach's living room every day and would never get tired of it. 

"Are you going to take me home soon?" I murmur. I'm already getting pretty sleepy and it's already getting very late.

Zach tightens his hold on me. "No." 

I try to get out of his hold, but he doesn't release me. "What do you mean no?" I ask, looking at him seriously. 

"I finally got you where I want you to be and I'm not letting you go any time soon. That's what I mean," he explains cockily. 

I'm proud of myself for not blushing like a tomato. "It's not like this is the last time I'll be here," I mumble.

Zach lays us down on the couch, cuddling me from behind, even throwing his leg over mine so I'm not able to even move. "No. You're not going anywhere," he says firmly, sighing contently.

Well. Alright, then. Am I really going to argue about that? I'm pretty comfortable where I am, too. "When's your figure skating competition, by the way?" Zach asks suddenly.

"Less than a month away now. Why?" 

"Just to make sure I clear my schedule for that day."

Zach lets me turn in his embrace so I'm facing him now. I put my hand on his cheek. I can't help it, I desire to feel his skin under my fingers. "You want to come?" I ask with a small smile. 

Zach's mouth curves into a smile. I press my fingers to his mouth now, finally doing what I've wanted to do for so long, feeling his soft lips - the same lips that kissed me so good not even that long ago. "Of course I do." He squeezes my waist. "I wouldn't miss seeing you compete. You're good, Analeigh, it's a pleasure to watch you." 

I attack Zach's mouth with my own, surprising him with the kiss, but I couldn't remember of a better way to show him how his words made me feel. Zach responds right away. He puts his arm on my back and slowly rolls me on it, him laying right on top of me, kissing me passionately.

His other hand starts wandering, going to the hem of my shirt and then slips under the shirt, touching my bare skin. I wrap my hands in Zach's hair - what I've wanted to do for a long time, too, feeling the softness of it. 

Zach settles between my legs, his hand coming to cup my breast over my bra now and I let out a soft moan in his mouth, slightly arching my back. 

He detaches our mouths and starts kissing down my neck, his tongue making love with the sensitive skin there. I close my eyes at the sensations he brings to me, never before experiencing a feeling similar to this one.

Zach takes his arm from under my back and lifts my jersey that he gave me up, taking it off me. I let him. Because a fog settled in my head and I can't think clearly. I can only focus on how good everything Zach does to me feels. 

Zach sits up a bit, looking down at me with lustful eyes, his hands settling on my hips. He licks his lips, his eyes flickering to my eyes, a suggestive look on his face. "I've dreamt of seeing you like this, babe, but the dreams didn't even close to the real thing. My God. My fucking God," he breathes before he leans down and his mouth is on mine again, kissing with his demanding mouth that takes everything he wants from me. 

His hands go back to unhook my bra and he pushes the straps off my shoulders, still kissing me. And then both of his hands are on my breasts, squeezing them, playing with my nipples, doing everything to make me crazy and almost scream out into his mouth. 

My hips are rolling around on themselves, grinding against his. I feel him hard between my legs and it only makes the fire in me grow. I want him. I need him. That, I am sure of.  

His mouth goes down, down then, stopping only when he comes into the contact with my breast. He sucks on my nipple, softly biting it afterwards, which makes my hips buck against his yet again, a loud groan escaping my mouth. 

"Fuck, you're beautiful. Breathtakingly gorgeous," Zach groans out against my chest. "Wrap your legs around me," he commands. I do what he says and he suddenly lifts me up. I wrap my arms tightly around his neck. 

But Zach doesn't give me any space to think about the situation we've found ourselves in. He presses his mouth to mine again and I faintly feel him walking. He presses me against the wall suddenly and when he leans back a bit, only then I open my eyes to look at the darkened hall. We're right next to the door that leads into his bedroom.

"I've wanted to fuck you for a very long time, Analeigh," Zach admits crudely, without any shame.

I hear him open the bedroom door and then the reality of what we're doing really hits me. Zach walks us in and lightly throws me on the bed, crawling on top of me right after, his mouth on mine yet again. 

I groan when he grinds against me, letting me feel how much he needs and wants me. I feel his hands starting to tug my sweatpants down and a slight panic settles inside of me. 

I put my hands on his arm, stopping him, ending the kiss. "Zach," I breathe out, trying to gain his attention. He stops and looks down at me with confusion. "Before we go any further, I think you should know something about me." Zach silently waits for me to continue, clearly impatient to continue with what we're doing. "I'm a virgin," I blurt out. 

Zach leans back, away from me, looking as if I just slapped him.

Well, uhm ... is it getting a little hot in here? Should I open the window?