Page 59 of Where We Fall

"Damn, that sounds pretty good. I'm definitely trying some of yours."

"I'll allow it."

He leans and kisses my neck. "Gee, thanks."

I laugh. "What kind of pizza are you gonna make?"

He looks around at the options. "There's too many toppings. My stomach is getting greedy and wants it all."

His inner child seems to be appearing as he continues to stare at all the options in front of him, unable to make a decision.

I get to work on my pizza while he stands there looking confused.

"It's a pizza, babe. Just pick some toppings. Anything will be good."

I feel his eyes on me. "You've never called me babe before."

"No?" I stop and look at him. "I guess I haven't."

He smiles innocently. "I like it."

He leans in for a kiss, slowly gliding his tongue against mine. His mouth has this interesting ability to make me forget about everything but him. I let his tongue mix with mine until he pulls away.

I feel slightly wobbly and off-keel from it.

"I like you," he says. "A lot."

We both get back to our pizzas, both grinning foolishly.

When we're done with our toppings, Marcus settling for every meat option with marinara sauce, Nicholas comes over to help us get our pizzas into a real wood-burning oven.

"I have a booth set up for you two while your pizzas cook. Follow me."

Nicholas motions for us to follow him from the kitchen to the main dining area. He directs us to a booth by the window, which overlooks the city street. A candle flickers in the middle of the table next to a bottle of wine opened and ready for us.

"Enjoy your evening," he says, retreating to the kitchen, giving us space.

"This has been the best date ever," I tell Marcus as we sit down.

"We haven't even eaten yet, and this night gets the honor of best date. Not too bad."

"It was such a creative idea. That was so much fun. I've never been in the kitchen of a restaurant before, let alone made my own dinner there."

I rest my hands on the table. Marcus reaches across and grabs one of them.

"Everything I do with you is fun. I didn't realize it could all be this easy."

"I know. It's never been this easy for me either. Honestly? I keep waiting for you to show some side of you that is wildly unattractive."

He laughs. "I'm sure I have plenty of those, babe. Just wait. I'm still waiting for you to think I'm a total fuck up and walk away."

"Why would you say that?" I lean in, wondering why he thinks that's even a remote possibility.

He shrugs. "I don't know. It's been my motto since I was younger. I guess I'm used to people thinking that way about me."

"At the risk of intruding, I'm gonna say something." His eyebrow raises. I'm not sure if it's a good idea to talk about this with him, but I feel compelled to. "Why do you let your siblings get away with treating you like you are still that young, immature person?

He opens his mouth to speak but closes it. It seems like he's contemplating how to respond. I wonder if anyone has ever asked him this question.

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