Her eyes were teary.
It gutted me.
I took her hands in mine as I blurted, “I’m sorry.”
Her eyelids lifted, and her eyes met mine.
“First, I have absolutely nothing to do with Hanna. We once had a sexual encounter, but we’re nothing to each other.”
She sighed, looking away from me.
“I’m sorry for pushing you away repeatedly. I never meant to hurt you.”
Her eyes met mine again.
“I’m not a simple man, Marielle.”
“I noticed,” she muttered, a glint of amusement in her expression.
What I wouldn’t do to have the playful Marielle again.
“Just so you know, I feel every bit of what you feel toward me.”
“I don’t feel anything for you,” she argued, chuckling.
Instead of responding, I pulled her into me, and she hugged me back.
I held her there for a while, our hearts beating in sync without words.
“What do you say to another movie date? And then dinner,” I uttered.
“Okay.”
I led her to the bed, handing her the remote control as I settled beside her.
“You likedThe Martian, right?” she inquired.
“What’s that?”
“The movie we watched the other time,” she explained.
“Yes, I did.”
While that wasn’t false, I enjoyed the feel of her body on mine better. I liked the feel of her soft skin beneath my fingers. I cherished the moment she told me about her parents and what she was like as a teenager.
“Should we watch romance this time?” she asked, squinting her eyes at me.
“As long as you’re not thinking of setting the mood for something else,” I remarked, my cool voice contrasting the heat from the direction of my thought.
“What? Oh, I had nothing in mind,” she laughed before her voice dropped, and she threw me a soft smile. “What if we, you know…?”
“Baby, I’m not going to make love to you today. We just made up; I’m glad to have my arms around you today.”
“Alright, caveman,” she remarked.
I brought my lips to her ear.
“When it’s time to claim you, there’ll be nowhere for you to run to.”
