“Hi, honey. I’m home!” I shout as I walk in the front door.
Addy, who is sitting on the sofa reading a book, looks up in surprise. Then his expression breaks, and he looks at me fondly before laughing. While he gets a hold of himself, I put the box I’m carrying down on the table and take off my coat and shoes.
“Damn, it’s cold out there,” I grumble.
It’s been a mild winter. So mild there’s even blossom on some of the trees. Until today, when the weather decided to become unbearably and unreasonably cold.
“Your nose is a little red,” Addy says as he comes over. “And your cheeks are looking a little chapped.” He crooks his forefinger and rubs it gently over one cheek, then the other, warming me.
I smile up at him. Unless he stoops down, I can’t reach up and kiss him. Why do I have to be so short? I blink at myself. Twenty-four hours ago, I wouldn’t have thought about kissing him. I’d have been showing him the cupcakes by now. However, I do want to kiss him, which is kind of astonishing but also comforting because I’m sure it means that we didn’t make a mistake last night.
If I can’t reach him, he’ll have to come to me. I grab his shirt and tug him down. He raises his eyebrows in surprise but then takes charge the moment our lips meet. He puts one hand on the back of my head and wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me to him. I keep a tight hold of his shirt and stroke his face with my other hand. He’s warm, and I soon forget the cold outside.
“How was work?” he asks, nuzzling my nose.
“Great, and Ifinallygot time to make those pink champagne cupcakes.” I gesture to the box on the table. “I brought some home for you to try.”
“Yum.”
He kisses me again, making me wonder if his comment referred to the cupcakes or me.
“I’m not sure wanting to kiss me so much is going to be good for you,” I muse.
“Why not?”
“Having to lean down all the time is going to give you a bad back.”
He chuckles and then claims my mouth again. “It’ll be worth it. But I can also do this.”
I yelp as he picks me up, marches me over to the kitchen, and sits me on the worktop.
“Better,” he decides, nudging my knees apart so he can stand between my legs. Then he kisses me again without having to stoop.
I wrap my arms around his neck and enjoy his warmth and tenderness.
“This is nice.” I lean against his chest with my head on his shoulder. “Why didn’t we get around to doing this before?”
“No idea,” Addy says, running his hand firmly over my back. “I’m pretty sure we’re the two most oblivious people on the planet.”
I chuckle. “We really are.”
“I cancelled my Valentine’s date.”
I’m amazed at how relieved I feel.
“But I still want you to cook. For us. But I’ll deal with the extras.”
“The extras?”
“You know, candles, roses, all that romantic stuff,” he says, quoting me.
“Ooh, romantic stuff. I can’t wait.”
I decide to scrap the entire menu I planned for him and Beatrice and think of something different. Somethingreallyspecial.
I sit upright. “Would you fetch the cupcakes?” I swing my legs. “I can’t get down.”
“Rubbish. Of course you can.”
