Okay, everyone, let me first apologize...I am soooo sorry it has been so long since I updated! I went on vacation and I have also been trying to get my house back in order after having it remodeled. So, things have been crazy!
Anyway, we pick back up here after Adrian and Natalie have just begun "going steady". :) I promise there will be more chapters coming soon!
The next two weeks were filled with excitement and curiosity for both Natalie and Adrian. They had gone from not seeing each other for almost a year to becoming a couple. Surprisingly for both of them, however, it seemed that everything just easily and naturally fell into place. They were spending every day together as they had before, only now there were kisses, hand holds, and sweet words involved where there hadn't been before. Natalie found Adrian's confidence with her refreshing. She had never realized he would be so gentlemanly and take-charge in a relationship. Things had shifted from her being the caretaker to them being more like equals, and Natalie loved every minute of it. Adrian found himself in a bit of a dreamland. He still hadn't quite wrapped his mind around the fact that he and Natalie were actually in a relationship. After all, he hadn't felt this strongly about someone since Trudy, so, it had been a very, very long time since he had allowed himself to be this close to another person. He had thought he might feel guilty, or uncomfortable, or self-conscious, but he had never expected he would feel so perfectly content. Adrian woke up each morning with a smile on his face, and that was something new and exciting for him.
This morning was no different. Adrian woke up smiling, ready to start his day. After getting dressed, he headed to the kitchen and began cooking breakfast for Natalie and himself. This had become their little routine over the past two weeks. He would cook breakfast and she would come over to his apartment to eat with him. Then they would each go their separate ways as Adrian went to a crime scene and Natalie went to her office job. They would then come back together at her house in the evening to have dinner and talk about their day.
Adrian had gotten the timing down perfectly so that he would have their breakfast ready just as Natalie arrived each morning. Sure enough, Adrian had just set their plates down as Natalie walked in the door.
"Oh, Adrian, it smells wonderful!" She remarked as she strolled into the kitchen.
Natalie wrapped her arms around Adrian and buried her head in his chest, relaxing into his arms as he pulled her close to him. The two of them stayed like that for a few moments, just enjoying each other's presence. Adrian pulled back slightly, enough to see Natalie's face without removing himself from her embrace.
"I really love this, you know." He said, his face beaming.
"Oh, honey," Natalie replied, touched by his openness, "so do I." She hugged him tightly again before going over to begin eating her breakfast.
The two of them ate in comfortable silence for a few moments before Natalie spoke up.
"So..." she began, hesitating as she thoughtfully considered how to proceed. "Are you going to tell Leland about us soon?"
Adrian tensed up slightly at the suggestion.
"I guess I have to, don't I?"
"You have to? Well, gee, not if it's a chore for you," Natalie retorted with a smirk, feigning offense.
"No, no, it's not that, I just...I feel a little anxious about telling Leland about us. Because I know he's going to give me such a hard time for it."
"Why?" Natalie asked, although she suspected she already knew the answer.
Adrian sighed, rubbing his temples.
"It's just that he teased me for the longest time about this whole thing. He always suspected that there was more between you and I than just friendship. He tried over and over again to get me to just come out and say I had feelings for you, and I would always deny it. Now I have to tell him he was right all along and he's going to be insufferable."
Natalie giggled, leaning over and squeezing his hand.
"Oh, honey, it will be okay! Leland loves us both. He'll be happy for us. Besides, he should get to gloat a little. I mean, he was right."
Adrian chuckled, relaxing slightly.
"I know, I know. I have to tell him. He's been onto me anyway. I haven't been able to go to work a single day without a smile on my face. He's already been pestering me, wanting to know "what's up". He'll find out eventually, so I might as well go ahead and tell him today. Besides, the sooner I tell him, the sooner you'll be able to come back to work with me. I mean, if you want to, that is..."
Natalie looked up from her plate, surprised by Adrian's suggestion. The moment they had run into each other on the street those several weeks ago, Natalie had immediately wanted to come back and work with him. She didn't hate her administrative assistant job, but it bored her to tears compared to working with Adrian. But now that they were in a relationship, she had worried that it might not be possible.
"Would you really want me to come back and work with you, Adrian? I mean, wouldn't you think it's weird to pay me now that we are together?"
Adrian sighed, realizing that this would be a sticky situation. He wanted Natalie to come back and work with him, but he did think it would be strange to have to pay Natalie as if she was his employee when he now saw them as equals. And he knew the department probably didn't have enough money to hire a second consultant.
"I guess so," He replied quietly, a little sad at the thought that perhaps they shouldn't work together after all.
"Hey," Natalie began, rubbing his arm gently, "Maybe you could talk to Leland about it? He might have some ideas about how we could make it work."
She smiled, squeezing his arm comfortingly.
"That's a good idea," he replied, smiling. "Well," he continued, rising from his seat, "I have to get going. Wish me luck."
Natalie got up from the table, clearing away the dishes and then quickly returning. She took both of Adrian's hands in hers and pulled him to her.
"You've got this, Adrian. Don't worry, Leland is going to be happy for us! And maybe he'll have some ideas on how we can go back to working together."
She leaned in and kissed him softly. They lost themselves for a moment, both feeling waves of electricity course through their bodies. They hadn't quite gotten over how wonderful it felt to kiss each other. Natalie pulled away, smiling as she saw that Adrian's face was flushed bright pink. She brushed his cheek softly with her fingertips and offered an encouraging smile. With his restored confidence, he headed off to work with a smile back on his face.
