Page 61 of Gideon
“Out of there, missy,” he teased, swatting me away. “Let a man have a few surprises, would you?”
“Gideon Temple, I think you have more than enough surprises already.” I quirked an eyebrow up at him and he chuckled loudly.
“True. Now, let’s get down to the dock. It’s a gorgeous day!” He was nearly skipping as we headed for the front door and out across the driveway.
We sat down on the dock; the waves lapping against the pilings as the breeze kept the warm early summer air nice and cool.
“So are you going to tell me now what’s in this mysterious picnic basket of goodies?” I asked, feeling the warmth of the sun on my skin invigorate me anew.
“I’ll do you one better,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “I’ll show you. I have prepared for us a masterpiece of culinary finery.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at his enthusiasm. That boyish charm may have been the source of most of my teasing, but I had to admit, it was growing on me. Quickly.
“I have prepared for you the finest of the fine,” he began, making quite a show of pulling out each item. “Up first, we have a beautiful sandwich comprised of delightful fruit puree and creamed nuts.”
I laughed so loudly I snorted. “You didnotjust say creamed nuts.” I nearly fell over, I laughed so hard.
“It is a culinary masterpiece. I’ll have you know,” he scoffed playfully.
“Oh, I see, I see,” I played along. “What’s next?”
“Next up is a beautiful display of fresh and exotic fruits, hand picked by Tibetan monks,” he opined, pulling out two ripe bananas.
“Oh, how incredible,” I played along, taking hold of the banana and holding it up like it was the most exotic fruit I had ever seen.
“Never before seen, might I add,” he winked at me. “Then we have — and prepare yourself for this — handcrafted sliced Yukon gold potatoes. Slowly roasted in the finest oil and lightly sprinkled with flaked salt that was carefully crafted. I mean it! Each granule, handmade and designed to perfection.” He made a show of pulling out the bag of Lay’s potato chips.
“I am dumbfounded. This is indeed quite the culinary feast! However did you manage it, good sir? And on such short notice?” I played along, gasping in mock amazement.
“With great difficulty, and much labor, rest assured. Shall we feast, my dear?” he asked, wagging his eyebrows suggestively.
“I’m pretty sure you already feasted today, Gideon,” I shot back, winking at him saucily.
“Ooh, there is that wicked wit I love,” he grinned infectiously. We dug into our food, enjoying the breeze on the water in silence as we filled our bellies happily.
“I wanted to thank you again for last night,” I stated, finishing the last of my sandwich and reaching for the banana.
“Last night is nothing to thank me for. I was simply showing you what it means to have a Dominant in your life. Showing you that you can, in fact, trust me,” he replied, as though it were no big thing. But we both knew the truth.
“Last night was a very big deal. You showed me that I can trust you. And while it’s not exactly as simple as all that, you did show me that I’m safe with you. At least in this, for now,” I continued.
“I should be thanking you, in all honesty,” he commented, taking another bite of sandwich.
“For what?”
“For putting your trust in me. I was being myself, nothing more and nothing less. I’m a good Dominant, Naomi. It’s the one thing I take more pride in than I do my boat,” he half laughed off. “But you, whew,” he whistled appreciatively. “You put your trust in me. That’s massive. And that is worthy of thanks. So, thank you.”
His words affected me more than I wanted to admit.
“I still don’t know how far I want to go down this whole rabbit hole,” I admitted, lowering my eyes to the food in my hands. It was hard to speak the words, but saying them while looking at him? That was veritably impossible.
“That’s okay. We don’t need to make any decisions right now,” he commented kindly, as though it were no big deal. But it felt huge to me.
“Gideon, I do want to continue, though. Just… could we go slow?” I asked, my eyes raising to meet his.
“Of course. We can go as slow as you wish,” he said with a smile. Then he took a massive bite of his sandwich, shoving the last of it into his mouth until his cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk.
“You look ridiculous,” I laughed.
