“I have needs, you know,” she says playfully.
“Ew, Mom.” I gag. “I don’t want to know that.”
“Oh, come on, you’re old enough to know this,” she says, sipping her wine.
“It’s just weird coming from you.”
“What do you think? That I’ve been celibate since I left your dad?”
I tilt my head, slightly narrowing my gaze to her. “I’ve never thought about it. How long did you date these men for? You never brought them around.”
She lets out a long breath, shrugging. “Ah, they weren’t ever worth my time. It was fun while it lasted, but I was content never having a serious relationship or living with a man again.”
At one point, I thought I would end up all alone. I struggled with that realization at first, but as I started dating, I began to see that I didn’t need the drama in my life. Each failed date made me appreciate my own company. It helped me understand that having peace was more important than being in a chaotic relationship.
Blakely
“Where are you taking me?” I ask Liam. It’s Saturday night, and he said he planned a date for us. But before we left, he blindfolded me. It’s been a while since we’ve been on a date. Once you move in with someone, it becomes comfortable to stay home, curl up on the couch, and watch a movie.
“We’re almost there.”
Good thing I trust him, otherwise, I’d think he was taking me somewhere to murder me.
The hum of the engine quiets as it comes to a stop, and I gently lurch forward. Liam’s fingertips brush against my forehead as he takes the blindfold off of my head. My eyes adjust to the light as I look around, realizing he took me toourspot. The spot we used to meet up when we were keeping our relationship a secret. It’s a secluded spot near a river, surrounded by trees and bushes, giving it privacy.
The reflections of the sunset cast a golden glow on the river. It creates shimmering streaks of orange and pink that dance across the gentle ripples.
“Oh, my God. We haven’t been here in forever.”
“I know. It’s like we forgot about this place.”
We were always so nervous about people seeing us in public. We would try to find places to go so no one would see us, but it wasn’t enough. Until, that is, we found this spot. I remember when we first found it, and we both looked at each other with the same idea. Thisis our spot.Every time we wanted to see each other, we would come here.
“Why did we stop coming here?” I ask.
“Probably because we didn’t have to hide our relationship anymore.”
We get out of the car, and I reach into the back and get the blanket we’ve kept in here since we declared this as our spot. “I’m surprised the blanket is still here.”
“I never took it out. I saw it the other day and thought about coming here for our date night.”
I lay the blanket down on the ground, and Liam follows behind me. He sets down a charcuterie board, two wine glasses, and a bottle of red wine.
“You’re not on call tonight?” All the surgeons at the practice rotate being on call at the local hospitals in our area in case someone comes in with a gastro emergency.
“Nope. I’m all yours tonight.”
I kiss him on the lips. “Good.” Sometimes, even though he’s not on call, he gets called in because they need extra help. Hopefully that doesn’t happen tonight.
“Can you believe how far we’ve come?” he says.
“Seems like yesterday we were sneaking around.”
He pours us both a glass of wine. “Crazy how time flies. We’re coming up on a year.”
I spread brie and a fig spread on top of a cracker and then place a piece of prosciutto on top. The combination melts in my mouth. “Remember when we were so unsure about everything?”
He chuckles. “Yeah, I remember. We were so nervous about going anywhere, but we were desperate to hang out.”
