Winning Hollywood's Goodest Girl

She shakes her head. “Well, now that you’ve ruined my joke, I guess all that’s left to do is eat.”

I shrug before grabbing a couple more pillows and artfully arranging them behind her back to give her some much-needed support. The picnic on the floor is only romantic if you can manage to make sure nobody’s limbs go numb. Once she’s comfy and set, I slide down in front of her, stretch out on my side, and lean into one of my elbows across from her.

She giggles. “If I get down into that kind of position, I’ll never get up.”

“Sure, you would. I would help you,” I tease with a wink.

She peels open the lid on the basket and roots around until she stumbles on the answer to her cravings. Spaghetti Bolognese from Cesarino’s, one of her favorite restaurants in the city, is apparently the winner.

“Oh my Gaaawd. This is…” She scarfs a bite down and chews manically. “Mmm,” she hums through an exhale. “Oh my God.”

A smile climbs from the corners of my mouth all the way to my eyes. “That good, huh?”

She nods frantically, all the while putting several more bites into her mouth.

“If I bribe you with food like this, would I be able to convince you to come see me here at my place every night?”

Her eyebrows pull together as she chews more.

“I’ve missed you, Rock.” I admit the full truth, not holding back anymore. “This week, especially. But if I’m honest, I’ve missed being alone with you since the moment you left my apartment…in New York…in August.”

Her head jerks up, and for the first time since she found the spaghetti, she stops chewing, attempts to clear her mouth with a big swallow, and sets down the container of pasta.

“Harrison,” she whispers, clearly taking me seriously enough that I’ve ruined the mood. In an effort to change that, I keep the main point of my topic but lighten up the subject matter considerably.

“I don’t understand. I mean, there are always people around. When do you fart?”

“Excuse me? I do not fart!”

I roll my eyes. “Right. No farting. I’m sure that’s humanly possible without, I don’t know, exploding from the gases.”

A giggle jumps from her lips. “I know not of these gases of which you speak.”

“Sure, sure. You are a gasless being. Got it.”

“Whatever,” she says with the cutest roll of her eyes. “And do you know what I want to know? Since you’re an expert on the human body.”

I chuckle. “Man, this could go so many ways. Is it a question about your body? Because I’d really love to answer a question about it, but I’m going to need to do a little review, probably something that would require hours and hours’ worth of studying every blessed, beautiful inch, if I’m going to ace the quiz.”

She snorts. “No. It’s about…well, kind of the baby’s body, kind of just bodies in general.” She sinks her head into her hands and groans. “You know what, never mind.”

“No, no. Go on,” I push. “Now you have me intrigued, and you can’t leave me hanging.”

“Okay, so boys are born with penises, right?”

“Is this you agreeing that you also think our baby is a boy?”

She sighs. “Just answer the question.”

I grin. “Yes, that’s usually what happens. Boys are born with penises,” I confirm, trying really hard not to laugh.

“Well, it’s little, obviously, and then as you grow, it gets bigger.” I raise my eyebrows, and she squeaks. “Shut up!”

“I didn’t say anything,” I contest, pulling my fingers across my lips like a zipper.

“Well, I just want to know…like, when would someone with a below average penis start to notice that it’s below average? What about above? Like, is there some kind of marker in time where you start to wonder if it’s growing proportionately?”

“Me, personally?” I say. “Not really. But I can’t speak for the entire population.”

“I feel like you have to wonder!”

I shake my head as I search for an analogy she’ll understand. “It’s kind of like getting a puppy when you’re a kid. You grow, but the dog grows at the same time, and you never really think about if the dog is smaller or bigger than other dogs. He’s just your dog, and you’re used to him in every size.”

“Oh my God!” she shrieks, unable to control her laughter.

I watch, enraptured, as her whole face lights up and sucks me in. She’s so fucking gorgeous.

There’s absolutely no stopping me.

Two hands at once, I reach out and pull her face toward mine, sealing our lips together while she’s still in the middle of a laugh. Her open mouth provides opportunity for my tongue, but it’s the feel of her laughter as it slides down my throat that really does me in.

Shifting to my knees, I slide my hands down the column of her neck, along the length of her arms, and over the curves of her sides until they settle on her hips.