Page 5 of Marriage (Red, White &) Blues

“Blake Parker.”

“Blake Parker?” I threw my hand to my chest. “How very boyband of you.”

“Well, my mother might’ve liked boy bands. Don’t most girls go through a boy band phase? I’ll make sure to tell her you said that next time I see her.”

His eyes twinkled and he showed off a dimple at the side of his mouth every time he smiled. I made it my goal to make him smile as much as humanly possible before we parted ways.

“I see you have a wine glass. Would you like to share a bottle?” I pointed to my Pinot Grigio. “I already popped the cork.”

“Thank you. I’d love to share a bottle. This couldn’t have turned out better for me.”

“Why is that?” I asked while pouring myself some.

“Because I saw a beautiful woman sitting by the river all alone and I knew I had to meet her. Why do you think I dropped down so close?”

“That’s a little creepy.” I poured him a glass, handing it off.

“I like to think of it as sweet. Seriously, your red hair caught my eye and then you turned your face in my direction and I sort of couldn’t breathe for a moment. That’s never happened to me before.”

His response took me so off guard that I didn’t know what to think. I was fairly certain I’d never taken a man’s breath away before. Of course, I couldn’t let him know that. As I struggled to figure out what to say, my mouth began speaking—worse,flirting—without my permission. But Ineverflirted. I didn’t even know how. Still, the words sounded kind of flirty.

“Aw… flattery will get you everywhere,” I said before popping a grape into my mouth.

“So, tell me, what brings a beautiful red-headed Michigander to Paris?” He sipped his drink.

“Probably the same thing that brought an utterly handsome Vermonter. It’s Paris. Does one need a specific reason?”

“For clarity, am I the handsome Vermonter in this scenario?”

“Utterlyhandsome,” I reminded him, flirting again. Blake smiled at me. That meant he like it right? Ah well, in for a penny. In for a pound. “Since we’re the only ones here, it’s a safe assumption.” God, I loved this brave new Gloria. I needed to get to know her better.

The formerly christened Mr. Greatness, Blake Parker, held me enthralled as he tore off a hunk of baguette, smeared it with some brie, folded a piece of ham on top, and bit down. He chewed with purpose and that purpose seemed clearly to leave me wet and panting. If it wouldn’t have called attention to my flushed face, I’d have fanned myself. All that chewing brought attention to his mouth making me think of kissing andothersuch activities one might use a mouth for. Yes, it was safe to say I needed a good romp through fornication forest.

“So… tell me about yourself,” he thankfully said, helping to pull my mind out of the gutter.

I shrugged. “You first.”

When he smiled, that was all she wrote. We talked and ate until the sun looked lower in the sky and a chill drifted over the air.

“How long have we been here?” I asked, looking down at my phone.

It turned out we’d spent the last four hours talking about everything and nothing of importance at the same time. Four hours?!

“I suppose we should get going now,” Blake said and my heart sank. Even after four hours, I still felt like we deserved more time together.

He helped me clean up the trash and then stood. Blake held his hand out to me to help me up.

“Are you up for doing anything else together?” he asked.

Yes.

Yes.

All the yes.

I welcomed my next adventure.

Chapter Two

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