Page 8 of Painting Him Mine

Chapter Nine

MAURICIO

After we made ourselves presentable,we headed to the nearby grocery store to shop for dinner. Ezra held the basket as we wandered around together to collect the ingredients I needed to make tequila steak tacos. It was one of my favorite things to make, especially since it was fairly easy to make but really impressed people with the strong flavors. Holding hands as we walked through the aisles was a surprisingly intimate way to spend a first date. Who knew grocery shopping could be so romantic?

We had almost finished when he seemed to read my mind. “Doesn’t this kinda make it feel like we’re dating for real? Not to weird you out, but I’m seriously loving every second of it.”

I picked up a package of skirt steak to inspect it. Finding it satisfactory, I handed it to him to put in the basket. “No, it doesn’t weird me out. I’m also amazed at how natural it feels to be together like this. We feel more like an old married couple than two strangers on a first date.”

He squeezed my hand with a happy noise and put a slight flounce in his step. “I’m so glad it’s not just me who feels that way. I know a grocery isn’t the best place to have this conversation, but I’mveryopen to being your boyfriend instead of a random hookup whenever one of us is horny.”

I chuckled at his reaction. “That was almost romantic.”

Ezra stopped to look up at me with an earnest expression. “I’m being serious, which is rare. Everything feels right when I’m with you. And I told you yesterday: I’m fucking selfish and want more. I can already tell that once will never be enough with you. I don’t just want you for tonight; I want all of your tomorrows, too.”

“That wasactuallyromantic.” His declaration filled me with an unexpected glow. I kissed him in reward, with a sweet, lingering show of affection rather than a demanding claim. It made the warm fuzzies inside me bloom. “I want that, too.”

Our next kiss was a little more passionate. “Good, because while I’m impulsive, my instincts are almost never wrong.”

We began heading toward checkout since the steak was the last thing we needed to get for dinner. “And your instincts are telling you to be my boyfriend?”

“No, they’re telling me to aim higher than that, so I shouldn’t settle for anything less than your husband.”

My eyebrows arched in surprise as I glanced over at him. “And that doesn’t bother you?”

“You’re drop-dead gorgeous, an artist, cook, baker, and have a mouth that would put a vacuum cleaner to shame when it comes to sucking my dick. Whywouldn’tI want to sign up for a lifetimeof being with you?” We both laughed before he turned serious. “Not to get all woo-woo on you, but fate obviously brought you to me for a reason. I’m not going to reject that gift by letting the best thing that’s ever happened to me walk out of my life.”

I used the self-checkout so we didn’t have to wait in line for a cashier. “Well, then I guess it’s a good thing I feel the same way about you.”

“It is,” he said before impishly adding, “and I’m not just saying that because I’m excited that I’m finally going to be able to enjoy delicious food on a regular basis.”

After bagging my items, I fed the machine my money to pay for them. “For all you know, I could be a terrible cook.”

“If you were boasting about how you’re the best chef in the whole wide world, maybe I’d have some doubts. But you have the quiet confidence of a man who doesn’t need to brag about how good he is. That’s sexy as fuck.”

I chuckled as we collected the bags so we could head back to his apartment. “I’m starting to think thateverythingis sexy as fuck to you.”

“It is with you,” he said, making us both laugh. “I’ll show you after dinner how sexy I think your cooking is.”

That was something I wasverymuch looking forward to later.

Chapter Ten

EZRA

“Wow,my kitchen has never smelled this good before.” I inhaled deeply as I savored the delectable scents wafting from Mauricio’s cooking. “If this tastes half as amazing as it smells, I’m about to have the best meal of my life.”

He chuckled as he stirred the sautéed peppers that would go in our tacos. “If you think this is great, wait until you try my Italian food.”

I wrapped my arms around his waist and snuggled against his back with a happy hum. “Something tells me I’mreallygoing to enjoy being spoiled by you.”

“Hopefully, since I have a tendency to be overly indulgent with my partners. I love spoiling people.”

His words got my hopes up. “Does that mean you’ll do sweet things like bring me breakfast in bed?”

“Yes, especially if I’ve worn you out the night before.” He glanced at me over his shoulder with a sexy smirk. “I enjoy taking care of people ineverysense of the word.”

I squeezed him tighter with a delighted noise. “How did I get so lucky?”

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