Page 17 of Blueberry Cake
“You don’t have to justify yourself. Ice cream sounds great.”
This time, he stood back and let Queenie pay. It felt odd, but he wanted to respect her wishes. She clearly wouldn’t offer to spoil him if she wasn’t interested. Enjoying their cool treat, they took their time strolling around the enclosures. They walked from the giraffes to the cheetahs, then stopped by the lions, who were lazily basking in the sun.
“You keep taking pictures of me,” she commented.
“Does it make you feel uncomfortable? If it does, I’ll stop.”
“No, but now you have so many of me and we don’t have one together.”
He scanned their surroundings, landing on a man guarding the strollers while his family peered at the animals. Boyd took Queenie’s hand, marching over to the young man and asking if he minded taking their picture.
He happily agreed, and Boyd laid his arm around her waist and kissed her hair before smiling at the camera. Thanking the man, he handed his phone over to her and let her inspect the pictures.
“Oh, I like them.” Boyd looked down, watching as Queenie texted the pictures to herself. “Thank you.”
“That was a very easy demand to please.” He hooked a finger under her chin, tipping her head back. “I enjoy seeing youhappy. You make it rather pleasing for myself too.”
Queenie worried her lower lip, and he didn’t hesitate to tug it free. Leaning down, he pressed a gentle kiss to her lips, suppressing the urge to groan. Her hand clutched his shirt, as if she needed his support to stay standing.
“I told you I would want to spoil you,” he murmured against her mouth. “That doesn’t just include money.”
“Can you stop being so sweet?”
“Can you stop being adorable and so unbelievably grateful?” Boyd countered.
Queenie chuckled lightly and took his hand in hers. “I’ll try to be uglier about the things you do that make me happy.”
“Perfect. I’ll be less pleasant to be around.”
They grinned at each other, her eyes sparkling in the sunlight. Slowly, the couple ambled towards the restaurant, ready for lunch and a break from the heat.
As they waited for their food, he asked, “So what other activities are on your to-do list?”
“I still have not been back to NASA.”
“But you have been?”
“I have, but they have two tours you can take and I’ve only done one of them. Are you asking so you can join me there as well?”
“I am. Would you like that?”
Queenie blushed and took a sip of her lemonade. “I would.”
“How about next weekend?”
“What works better for you? Saturday or Sunday?”
“Sunday.”
She immediately jumped on her phone to begin planning. This date hadn’t even come close to an end, andhe was already looking forward to the next. “I’ve never had anyone who wanted to do these things with me.”
“I’m here now so you’d better keep adding to your list.”
Queenie looked up from her phone, melting his heart with a single look. “I’m sure you have a few things you want to do too.”
“Kemah,” Boyd answered without hesitation.
“Oh, that’s on my list too!” she cheered. “I hope you love rollercoasters.”
