“Carli, this is perfect. Just like you.” Leaning over, he kissed her, only a tiny kiss at first but then it grew. So much so that her box fell out of her hands and onto the floor.
“Oops. Hope it’s not breakable.” Why did she lose it when he touched her? Nobody else had ever made her completely forget where she was and what she’d been doing with a single kiss.
He cracked a smile as he picked it up. “We’ll see.”
As she unwrapped the gift, he stared at her. Was he nervous she wouldn’t like it? Unless it was a package of spiders, he was probably all set.
Lifting the cover of the square box, she pulled out a clear, plastic ball like the ones he and Maddie had been making. The glitter was so thick on the outside she couldn’t see if he’d put a little toy in it.
“Did you make this with Maddie? I love it. Thank you.” She eased in and pressed her lips to his. Every kiss with him was an adventure. It was exciting to think she could do this whenever she wanted.
“You need to check out your prize inside.”
Looking closer, she found some paper but couldn’t see what it was exactly.
“You can unscrew the ornament. It comes apart to get inside.”
“I don’t want to ruin the glitter. Maddie must have worked hard on it.”
His gaze rose to the ceiling. “I did it. Not as good as yours, I know, but I’m a doctor not an artist. Now, open it.Please.”He signed the last word. He knew the way to her heart.
When she got the two sides apart, she revealed the item inside. Tickets.
“A Broadway show?” This was so sweet, but she’d gone to one before and it had been extremely difficult to understand what had been going on. The sound system had totally screwed with her processors, and she’d had to turn them down very low.
“It’s to see 42nd Street. It’s mostly dancing. I figured you’d be able to enjoy it.”
She stared at the tickets closer. This show was lots of tap dancing from what she’d seen. “I love this. I always wanted to be a dancer growing up. Like most little girls, I suppose. There were a few Deaf dance troupes for older people, but you had to have already taken lessons, and there wasn’t any place around us that would take a deaf child.”
They’d never had the extra money for something as frivolous as dance lessons either. “Thank you, so much.” This deserved another kiss. “I can’t believe how thoughtful this is.”
“I can’t take all the credit.” His shoulder lifted as he looked away. “I called Mercedes to ask what she thought.”
“The tickets were her idea?”
“No, I already knew I wanted to take you to a show. I just wasn’t sure what kind or if there were some you’d already seen. I wanted to give you a new experience. Mercedes simply suggested it be something without a lot of dialogue, and she mentioned you loved watching dance. I figured tap dancing would be something I could endure better than ballet.”
Carli fell back laughing. “That’s too cute. I’m glad it was your idea. It means more to me because of that. Did you not want to see dance?” She picked up the two tickets and waved them at him. “Because I’ll bet I could find someone else to use the other one.”
Shock transformed his face before he realized she was joking. He grabbed her around the waist and play-wrestled her. “Oh, no you don’t. You can’t get rid of me that easily. If you’re going to the show, then I’m coming with you.”
Pursing her lips, she teased, “So this gift comes with conditions, huh?”
Sighing, he lifted his gaze skyward. “No, it doesn’t come with conditions. If you want to take someone else, you’re perfectly welcome to.”
“Good.” Tucking the tickets in her purse, she slanted a peek at him. He was pouting. In the most manly of ways. God, he was adorable.
“Blake?”
“Yes?”
“I got these great tickets to a show. Would you like to come with me?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
“I didn’t even look. When are they for? What if I’m working or busy?”
“You aren’t.” He looked smug.
