Page 79 of Love's Bloom
Laughing, she shook her head but didn’t respond.
Their meals were brought to the table.
She’d ordered a crispy chicken breast stuffed with mushrooms in a lemon-butter sauce. David, a typical male, asked for a strip steak. Both looked delicious. A mélange of fresh vegetables accompanied the entrées.
Misty took a bite of her chicken and sighed with pleasure. “Yum.”
“Mine, too,” said David. “If this restaurant is an indication, I think Refresh, the new restaurant in town, will do very well.”
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After a pleasant meal, they headed to Misty’s house. The closer they got, the more anticipation grew inside Misty. She hoped that this evening would prove the depth of their commitment to one another. It was both scary and exciting to have reached this stage in their relationship.
Sugar greeted them with her usual excitement, and Misty took the opportunity to suggest they sit out on the deck while Sugar roamed in the woods.
“Can I get you something to drink? Water? Coffee?” she asked David.
“A glass of water would be nice,” he replied. He stood at the deck railing and looked into the woods. “It's peaceful here. I love hearing the sound of the rushing river.”
“Yes, it’s very soothing,” said Misty. She went inside, fixed two glasses of water, and returned to the deck with them.
She handed David a glass and sat in one of the chairs. “Thanks again for a wonderful dinner. It was delicious.”
“I thought so too. More importantly, it was a chance for me to do something nice for you. I know you’ve had a rough beginning with your job at school.”
“It has been a big learning curve for me. I know my responsibilities as a teacher and a person, but I have to be careful how I use them.”
“Harley Kirk is a troubled man if he doesn’t want to admit he has a son or that he’s married. I don’t think we’ve heard the end of him yet, even with JoEllen breaking up with him. After all, he works at The Meadows.”
“I can’t help wondering what is going on with him. There’s got to be more to the story.”
“It’ll all work out the way it’s meant to be,” said David, sounding like his mother, making Misty smile.
His gaze remained fixed on her, and when Sugar came bounding back, Misty opted to go inside.
David followed her.
In the kitchen, they set down their glasses and faced one another.
“We teased about dessert earlier …”
“Yes,” said Misty, both commenting and answering his unspoken question.
“Are you sure?” David asked her.
She took his hand and walked with him to her bedroom.
“Not now,” she said to Sugar and closed the bedroom door.
David cupped her face in his strong hands, toughened by labor, and lowered his lips to hers. His kiss was sweet and soft until passion took over, and it grew hungry.
She responded and felt her knees weaken. His kisses told a unique story, one filled with both tenderness and passion, of caring and needing.
When they pulled apart, he murmured, “Wow,” in such a way she knew he felt the same awe.
Emboldened, aware of the importance of taking the next step, she moved toward the bed, draping her scarf across a chair in the bedroom.
He came up behind her and nuzzled her neck. “M-m-m, you smell good.”
