Page 83 of Delicious (Delicious #1)
Chapter Four
Martin
I pushed the plate back and sighed. “I need to unpop every button that I have. That was…”
“As good as you remembered?”
“Maybe even better.” I grinned. “I… You said something about cake?”
“Is that a subject or thought change, or are you just really wanting to gorge yourself until you pop?”
“Maybe both?”
“How about another glass of wine, and we wait for a bit before we explode.”
“Deal. I guess we have to… You know.”
“Yeah. Are you having second thoughts?”
“I’m thinking about how much I want to kiss you, but I don’t think I can handle it with all this garlic. I love you, but… no. That may be a step too far.”
“You can brush your teeth.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I think you misunderstood me. I can handle my garlic breath. It’s yours that would destroy me,” I teased.
“I’m Italian. Garlic is a way of life,” he chuckled deeply. My toes curled.
“I think as much as I want to make out with you right now, I think we need to actually talk about it.”
“That sounds boring compared to what I think we should be doing.”
“I just ate way too much lasagna to get naked. Dream on,” I giggled.
“Alright,” he grinned. “Let’s have another drink and digest.” He pushed himself back from the table and stood up.
“Grab the wine.” I slowly freed myself from the chair and popped the button on my jeans. “I did warn you. These are not my eating pants.”
I followed him into the living room, and as much as I wanted to sit beside him, I chose the chair across from him. I held out my empty glass. “Marti needs yum juice.”
“If we’re going to do this, you have to promise to call it that every day.” His smile made my heart skip a beat. “You always find a way to surprise me.”
“What if I stop surprising you? What if you start to think I’m as boring as I feel?”
“What if I get a beer gut? I’m tired of working so hard to stay in shape.”
“What if I get as bitchy as you know I am and you get tired of dealing with my shit?”
“What if I spiral into depression and mope around and stop being me for a while?”
“We’ve dealt with that off and on since I first met you.”
“We’ve dealt with both of us going through boring moments.”
“We’ve… You’ve always stayed in shape, but I don’t love you because of your pecs. I mean… I am sure they are very nice, but they are not you.”
“You’ve always been a bitch. It’s one of the reasons I love you. I adore your snark and sass.”
“What if…”
“What if we stop worrying about the future? Life and a happy ending are never guaranteed. But I can promise something.”
“What?”
“I love you and I will always love you. I can’t imagine my life without you in it – involved in a very meaningful way as it has been for over twenty years. I will not allow you to lose me. No matter what. Do you understand?”
“I… I do.”
“I know everything about you, Marti. Every sick little detail of your sordid, amazing life, and I am not worried. You are the same. You know me in ways I probably don’t even realize myself. I trust you more than I have ever trusted anyone, and I know you feel the same.”
“I do. But doesn’t it scare you? I’m terrified.”
“What are you so scared of, Marti?”
“You have to answer my question first.”
“I’m not scared… but I’m… I want us to be honest with each other every day. I just can’t believe it’s real, and… I want this. Now you.”
“I’m scared of losing you. I’m scared that you’ll realize you’re dating a nut and want to run away.”
“Marti… Honey, I know you’re a nut. I’ve always known that.”
“Smartass.”
“Look, we’ve both been the problem with some of our… dalliances or… dates. But it hasn’t always been our fault. We’re not to blame for every failed relationship that we’ve had.”
“A few of them. More me than you, I think.”
“Anyone who wouldn’t fight for you was a fool. Except for Thomas. He really was sweet, wasn’t he?”
“I scared him away easily enough. He was wonderful, but I didn’t love him. I let him go without a thought. I probably turned him straight.”
“No way. He was just too green and couldn’t handle the sass of all of us.”
“We really are a pair, aren’t we?”
“Most definitely. But I am ready to see where this goes.”
“You promise we’ll… no matter what… That we’ll still be us if… That this won’t destroy us if we fail?”
“With all my heart. I will never let you go, even if we decide to let each other go.”
“Promise.”
“Would you like to cross swords or have it written in sperm?” He stood up and walked over to me. He knelt down and took my face in his hands.
I could feel the blush splash across my face. “Not with garlic breath.”
He leaned in and placed his lips gently on mine. “This is happening.”
“At least grab a mint.”