making my heart swell.
“You made us a picnic?” she whispered. “On an imaginary beach?”
“I might have made a call. Or maybe a picnic just magically happened. Brunch in a
restaurant would be too loud, and I want you to know more about you.”
She curled up on a cushion, tucking her legs under her elegantly. I sat cross-legged, uncomfortable, but happy that she was still smiling like that.
I poured her coffee while asking her questions about university, her friends, and work. Her
dynamic energy was absolutely inspiring. I couldn’t get enough of this adorable girl.
Once she seemed to have had her fill of the fruit, cheese, croissants, and muffins, I set
down my napkin and crawled around the coffee table to her corner.
She reached for me instantly, slipping under me as I crawled over her, kissing her softly as
it felt like she was melting beneath me.
Then she giggled, pressing her nose to mine. “I can’t believe you just appeared,” she
laughed. “One minute I was thinking about finding a guy, and the next minute, you simply
walked into the restaurant.”
“Maybe you manifested me,” I said, pulling her up to sit beside me. “Don’t some people say
that if you speak something out loud, it will just appear, and all that?”
Her sweet little nose crinkled. “I’m not sure if that stuff works. Or if it does, there’s a lot
more to it.”
“You thought of me, and I appeared.” Running my thumb along her cheek, I stared into her
wide, precious eyes. “I always want to be here for you when you need me. I want to be
your man. I want to be the one you always come to. Is that too fast?”
She shook her head, as I reached out to smooth her hair back. “I think I’d like to–”
A ring came from the bedroom, and she jumped up, racing to grab her phone. I couldn’t help
being slightly jealous of whoever she would run to that fast.
I could hear her speaking excitedly in the other room, and quickly cleared our plates,
wrapping up the leftovers but setting all of the fancy rented dishes back in their travel box
for the caterer.
I was just sitting down to another coffee when Kim came out of the bedroom looking a bit
stunned.
“That was my boss. He was very sorry to bother me on my week off, but Terrence and Cliff