Page 8 of Candy Coated Curves

“You’re always beautiful, Roni,” he says.

And I swear it’s like they say in the movies, my heart actually skips a beat. Oh no, I hope I’m not developing some kind of murmur.

“What else?” he asks.

“You should definitely kiss me on the nose.”

“On the nose?”

“Yes, that’s very sweet and romantic. But then you should try to get me underneath the mistletoe so you can kiss me on the mouth.” I waggle my eyebrows at him. “With tongue.”

Again he laughs like I am the most hilarious thing he’s ever seen. His laugh is big and glorious and just makes me smile.

“I love it when you laugh,” I can’t help but say. “It’s my favorite sound.”

He stares at me for a minute, then pats his stomach. “It’s all the extra padding, makes for good acoustics.”

I put my hand on his belly. “I like your extra padding too.” I’m done pretending that I don’t love everything about this man. “I like how big you are.” I lean close to whisper. “Are you big all over?”

“Christ,” he hisses. He links our fingers together so we’re holding hands. “Let’s do the market thing, my beautiful girlfriend, before I have to take you somewhere and spank your pretty little ass for being so damn naughty.”

We walk hand-in-hand for a while, just looking at the various booths and saying hello to people we know as we pass them.

“You know I agreed to do this in front of that tool, Pete, not just the town in general,” Nash mumbles. But he squeezes my hand nonetheless.

“Maybe I just want to flaunt you as my boyfriend.”

“Fake boyfriend,” he corrects.

“Yeah, totally what I meant.”

“Can I ask you a question?” he asks.

“You can ask me anything.”

“How many tattoos do you have?”

I frown at him. “I don’t have any tattoos. Why?”

“Ian. That fucker. He had me all convinced he’d inked you all up.”

“Oh,” I say with an awkward laugh. “Was that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“I don’t mind the ink. Just didn’t like the idea of his hands on you.”

Yes!

“Okay, how about this? And if it’s too personal, you don’t have to answer. Is there a particular reason you’re still a virgin? You saving yourself for someone special?”

“Haven’t ever wanted anyone that much,” I say. “And I’ve never trusted anyone enough.”

“I get that,” he says.

He stops walking abruptly and pulls me into a hug. We stand there holding one another for a few breaths where I swear everything around us stills, goes completely silent, and all that I hear is the sound our hearts beating in time together. Bum bum, bum bum. Then he looks down into my face and kisses me on the tip of my nose.

I nearly swallow my tongue forcing myself not to declare my undying love for this man. He is the absolute sweetest. I want to make babies with him so I can see him kneel down with our littles and kiss their boo-boos and wipe away their tears.

I want to rewatch every funny movie and television show I’ve ever seen, just so I can hear him laugh through them. I want to rewatch all the ones that make me cry so I can feel him wrap me in those big, sturdy arms, and press my face to his thick chest. He is comfort and love personified, and if he doesn’t feel the same way for me as I do for him, I think my soul might actually shrivel up and die.

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