Chapter 26- Just Sookie
You've asked so here it is…
Eric's POV
A few days later I found myself, along with Sophie, standing on the Stackhouse's front porch about to knock, letting my Lover know of my presence. It was Christmas Day and Ms. Stackhouse had asked Sookie, more like demanded of her, to extend an invitation to Christmas brunch to us. It wasn't that I didn't want to meet Sookie's Grandmother. On the contrary, I wanted to meet the woman who had molded such a spectacular person as my Sookie, but she meant so much to Sookie that I was afraid that if I didn't garner her approval, my Sookie would slip right through my fingers.
So I stood there on Sookie's front porch with my hand hovering in the air, but unable to knock. I felt like I was back on the runway in Paris again, modeling for a new fashion designer, knowing that this moment would be the one to either make or break me; I would either have Sookie in my life forever or she'd be torn out from my very grasp.
Sophie's innocence brought me out of my internal struggle, "Aren't you gonna knock?"
"Yes," I answered as my hand still hovered in the air like time had frozen still.
"So…whatcha 'fraid of? The door won't bite," she asked.
No but, the woman behind it might, I thought to myself.
My intuitive little sister had enough of my indecisive behavior, either that or she was really cold; but nevertheless, her little hand reached for the doorbell.
My brain let out a girly-ass scream as my fingers fumbled for the little, cold slippery hand that could start the spiraling down of the out-of-control train wreck that had inevitably become my life. Sookie had been my only light in that gloomy tunnel and I wasn't about to let it get snuffed out by impatient doorbell fingers. But, instead of entrapping Sophie's hands before she reached the bell, I ended up shoving her fingers, and mine into it, getting the bell stuck. Instead of it chiming once, the ding dong was never ending, repeating over and over again.
Ding dong….ding dong….
Throwing the flowers, and the Christmas presents that I brought for the ladies down on the ground, I smashed my finger against the malfunctioning socket to see if I could dislodge it.
Ding dong….ding dong….
A fury of commotion sounded from inside the house; a loud crash with what sounded like a flood of mumbled curse words, another person's voice reprimanding said foul language, and the not-so pitter-patter of heavy elephant feet, stomping towards the door.
Ding dong….ding dong….
The door flew open and I was caught like a deer in headlights with my fingers jammed in the inside of the doorbell socket, looking as guilty as if I committed the most unforgivable sin of stealing fruit off of a forbidden tree. Did an apology work with God? I couldn't remember.
Ding dong….ding dong….
"I think ya broke it," Sophie said, stating the obvious.
Ya think?
Ding dong….ding dong….
"What the fuck do you think you're doing, man?" said an exasperating little punk, one that was much shorter than me and that resembled Sookie.
"Language Jason, there is a child present," Sookie said breathlessly as she smack him upside the head. Jason at least had the presence of mind to look abashed as his eyes trailed down to Sophie standing beside me.
Ding dong….ding dong….
"Don't worry; I've heard the 'F' word before. Eric sometimes lets that bomb drop when I'm around," Sophie said so mater-of-factly that I wanted to crawl in a hole and not come out for six more weeks- damn lucky groundhog.
What was that saying; silence is golden, but duct tape is silver? Now, if only I could remember where I put it, Eric thought to himself.
Ding dong….ding dong….
"I think I broke your doorbell," I stated sheepishly, I always was a big fan of Captain Obvious. So my first introduction to the Stackhouse family went about as painless as getting kicked in the balls, really hard, and I hadn't even met Gran yet.
Ding dong….ding dong….
"I'll get the screwdriver, sometimes it just gets stuck," Sookie said, running off, leaving me still outside, staring at a dumbfounded Jason.
"Hi, I'm Eric and this is my sister Sophie," I said introducing myself while I stuck my hand out to shake his. He gripped it firmly, like he was testing my strength, sizing me up.
"That your sister?" he asked, as I witnessed a flash of light brighten up his eyes, almost like he turned on the switch for the bogyman upstairs.
Didn't I just say that? Was he dumb and deaf? No wonder Sookie didn't speak much of him.
Thank God, Sookie saved the day when she came running back with the screwdriver. "Jason, go see if Gran needs help with anything, I got it covered here." Jason walked away in an almost obedient dog fashion and I wondered again if Sookie had magical powers. I raised my eyebrow in question; not only wondering why she sent him away, but also wondering why the hell he obeyed without an argument.
She shrugged her shoulders and my Mighty Temptress stated in explanation, "He's about as handy as a back pocket on a shirt."
I broke out in booming laughter. Sookie always knew what to say to lighten the tension and I felt it lift away from my body, setting me completely at ease.
She handed me the screwdriver after that, whipping it out like it was a deadly weapon. Hesitantly I took it from her and worked on prodding the bell out of the socket. In all of two seconds I accomplished what my large fingers were unable to do.
Sookie looked as if she were about to say something, but stopped in mid-thought to look down at Sophie before a crimson blush spread from the top of her cleavage all the way up to her forehead.
"Care to share?" I asked with a leer, knowing damn well that if I wanted in on her private thoughts it would have to be out of present company.
"Not particularly. Eric and Sophie, won't you please come in," she declared loud and clear with her best southern manners. You'd think with that formal and somewhat blatant statement that we required an invitation in order to obtain admittance.
As I reached for the door I realized that both my hands were empty. Slyly looking down on the ground I cringed as I saw what was left of the flowers that I had brought for the two Stackhouse women. Lying next to the heap of flower petals were two gift-wrapped presents, both of which were now absolutely soaked as they sat in a puddle completely saturated with water. Ignoring the presents completely, I attempted to engage Sookie in conversation as I shoved them into a nearby bush with my foot.
"It's so nice of you to have the both of us for Christmas brunch," I stated sincerely as I leaned down to give Sookie a kiss which gave me just enough leg extension to send the ruined gifts off the edge of the porch, hiding them from view.
I pulled back reluctantly from her, not wanting to let her go. After holding her close, unhindered by clothing only two nights before, my desire to be near her grew to an almost epic proportion. The last two nights spent without her in my bed were utter torture. Her floral scent lingered on my pillow, trapping me in my bed simply because her essence was needed for my very survival. At night I curled up with a pillow in my arms, imagining it was her form lulling me into sleep. This had to end. It seemed that once I had gotten a taste of my Sookie, my body became like a starved addict, only thinking of its next hit.
Sookie, my Mighty Temptress- such a fitting name for one so innocent and intoxicating, pulled Sophie into a warm and welcoming hug. Taking Sophie's hand and one of mine, Sookie pulled the both of us inside as a genuine smile lit up her entire face.
"Eric," Sophie firmly stated, trying to garner my attention. Where was that damn duct tape? We were all safely inside and the door was almost shut, only mere inches from reaching that goal.
"Eric, you left the presents outside!" Sophie practically yelled as she hung from my arm jumping up and down, refusing to be ignored. Unfortunately Sookie's hearing was excellent and I couldn't pretend to ignore Sophie any longer. Feeling defeated, I hung my head and watched as everything I had wanted with Sookie, especially the approval of her Gran- the most important person in her life, got flushed down the proverbial toilet in three seconds flat.
So as the door flung back open and Sophie dragged me back outside, holding my hand, she pointed out exactly where I had 'left' the presents.
"They fell under the bush Eric, while you were kissing Sookie," she told me in the most innocent voice.
With a deeply defeated sigh I slowly walked down the porch steps and took off my leather jacket, refusing to let it suffer through the leaves and dirt and draped it over the railing. Taking one last look at Sophie, who was not going to let this go as she manically pointed her finger, I crawled under the bushes to retrieve the gifts, leaving the flowers behind because there was nothing left of them to salvage.
"You forgot the flowers!" she reminded me loudly as I tried to shush her, which alerted Sookie, who was now making her way back onto the porch.
"What's all this talk about flowers?" Sookie asked grinning wickedly with her hands on her hips, which I would swear was just to bask in my humiliation.
My own personal cheering squad was quick to answer, "Right there on the ground…see, Sookie! Eric accidentally left them behind!"
Accidentally my ass! Did they prescribe medication for diarrhea of the mouth? Maybe ImodiumAD had an OTC for this problem…
As much as I loved my sister this was one time that I felt like wringing her neck. This was my first visit to Sookie's farmhouse and I really wanted to make a good impression; soaked presents and massacred flowers were not going to do it.
So back I went, under the bush as all the droplets from the branches coated my shirt. Reaching my arm under the bush I pulled out the two bouquets, but ended up snagging them on a low branch, pulling the nicely wrapped plastic completely off. So between the brute force of throwing the flowers onto the ground, shoving them off the edge of the porch, and wrestling them out from under the wet underbrush, all I pulled out were petal-less buds with bent stems covered in gooey wet pink paper. Talk about a first impression! If Sookie wasn't looking I would have disposed of the flowers quickly, preferable in a place where they could never be found.
"See Eric, you forgot the flowers," my sister reiterated and as I started to make my way back into the house; dead flowers in one hand and jacket in the other, Sophie continued, "I got the presents." Having said that, she scooped up the sopping wet gifts off of the ground and proudly followed me inside.
Sookie took my jacket and opened the hall closet to hang it up. I couldn't help notice a barrel loaded shotgun leaning up against the wall on the inside of the closet. My eyes bore into the shotgun as I wondered how good of a shot Ms. Stackhouse was. After Sookie shut the closet door she took me by the hand and led me through to the kitchen while Sophie trailed behind us.
"Gran, I'd like you to meet Eric and his sister Sophie. Eric and Sophie, this is my Gran, Adele Stackhouse," she introduced us and proudly placed my hand in her grandmother's. It was an oddly sweet gesture as the excitement rolled off of Sookie in waves, but once I grasped Ms. Stackhouse's hand my anxiety returned.
"So this is the gentleman, Mr. Northman?" she asked, scaling me up and down, scrutinizing me as if she were looking for defects on a plate she was buying. "What is that you got in your hands there, boy?" she asked me firmly, almost with a hint of discord. I looked down, following her gaze to my right hand which was closed around a horrible monstrosity of tacky pink wet paper with absolutely putrid unrecognizable flowers peeking through the gaps.
"Um…" I eloquently stated as I tried to thrust them behind my back out of view.
Sookie attempting to save me from embarrassment stated, "Eric brought us flowers, but they sort of got ruined from the rain outside." She flashed me an apologetic smile with a slight shrug.
"Well, let me have a look?" Gran demanded with her hands outstretched with a seemingly flat expression. I had no idea what to make of this woman, the woman to whom Sookie looked up to so incredibly. She seemed hell bent on making me uncomfortable and I didn't like it one iota.
For Sookie's sake, I did what Gran asked. I tentatively brought the flowers from around my back and held them out to her stiffly. I had nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about, and no one, not even Sookie's beloved Gran was going to get in my way of what I wanted.
That speech sounded great in my head, but as I held out the flowers they bent completely over, withering before my eyes like a dying beast sent to the slaughter. The irony was not lost on me because that was exactly how I felt; like an unprepared bull that was being sent to the butcher.
"They are…lovely….I'll…just put them in water," Ms. Stackhouse stated, though you could tell by the lack of emotion in her voice they were anything but lovely.
Gran took the flowers from my hands and some of the soggy pink tissue paper refused to depart from my fingers; my hand was coated in pink dye and as I futilely tried to remove it with the opposite hand, it spread, like a bad case of poison ivy. I stepped over to the sink and tried to scrub the dye off my hands. What the hell kind of pink dye did they use? Apparently it wasn't non-toxic because the fucking pink coloring refused to come off.
"Eric, your hands are pink; that's my favorite color, just like My Little Pony!" Sophie exclaimed with wide-eyed wonder.
Gran took the opportunity to turn to Sophie, greeting her and hence, diverting attention away from me. I saw the pink bundle of dead flowers on the counter and quickly tossed them in the trash-can hopefully unbeknownst to anyone.
"…It's nice to meet you Sophie," I heard Gran say.
"Oh, Eric brought you a present. Why don't you open it?" Sophie encouraged excitedly.
My shoulders hunched and my entire body lurched forward like I was about to do a forward roll, springing into action like I had inhuman speed to rip that present from her clutches. But of course, I didn't have superhuman abilities and the soggy present landed right into Ms. Stackhouse's hands.
Apparently I needed more than mere duct tape or Imodium to shut Sophie up tonight.
I actually gazed outside wondering if the moon would be full tonight from all the craziness after the last five minutes. How many things could go wrong in one afternoon? Oh wait; she hadn't opened the gift yet.
Attempting to stall I offered, "I thought we could open the presents after brunch, you know, around the tree?" I hadn't meant for my statement to come out as a question, but apparently my voice rose at the end, giving off that illusion.
"No, I think right here is good," Ms. Stackhouse answered, ripping off the wet wrapping paper. Closing my eyes I wallowed in self-pity, having this nagging fear that I had misjudged and bought the wrong gift. "Uncle Tom's Cabin," she said with distain, confirming my worst fears.
Trying to redeem myself I humbly explained, "I heard Ms. Stackhouse, that you love to read, and I've also been told that you are an active member of the Descendants of the Glorious Dead, so I thought you might appreciate the gesture of a book written around the time of the Civil War."
Sookie piped up, "Eric that was so thoughtful, isn't it Gran?" Sookie looked at her Gran with hopefully eyes, trying to dispel the heady atmosphere.
Suddenly the kitchen felt awfully crowded, either that, or Ms. Stackhouse looked a whole lot bigger with the fire that blazed in her eyes.
"Jason, why don't you take Sophie and set up that Monopoly Game?" Gran stated sweetly, flashing a smile that could make the Devil's own skin crawl.
"Whatever you say Gran. Come on Sophie, let's set up that game."
Gran watched Jason take Sophie into the other room and waited for a few more agonizing seconds before she turned that devilish smile into an all-out scowl.
Setting her torrent blue sights on me, she asked in a low, frightening voice, "Eric, did you know that the Stackhouse's owned slaves during the war?"
At that moment I literally felt all the blood drain from my body as if it were completely sucked dry. My lips were parched as I stumbled to answer, "N-o…ma'am."
"Gran…" Sookie said, trying to intervene.
"Sookie Stackhouse, go join your brother in the other room. Mr. Northman and I need to chat." Sookie looked as if she were about to argue, but one look from her Gran had her running into the other room with her tail between her legs.
As soon as Sookie was gone, I thought that the best thing I could do would be to apologize to hopefully salvage even a small semblance of the afternoon. "Ms. Stackhouse, I didn't mean to offend…"
She raised her pitch, cutting off my words by saying in a voice barely above a whisper, "You didn't mean to offend, so you decided that I would appreciate a book that virtually started the Civil War, killing my kin folk in the process?"
Ms. Stackhouse seemed to grow another foot taller, either that or I just appeared to be shrinking as I shook in my boots. Taking a deep breath I knew that arguing with this woman would get me nowhere, and I wanted to get somewhere.
Inhaling deeply I respectfully said, "I know that I'm not perfect and I'm going to make mistakes, sometimes big ones, but I love your granddaughter. I love Sookie with all my heart, and because of how much I love her, I want to keep the peace. I was trying to impress you with my gift, but apparently I did a piss poor job and I'm sorry for offending you."
Her gaze bore into mine as if she were searched for something deep within my soul. Instead of badgering me or accepting my apology she came out with, "What are you intentions with my granddaughter?"
After being thrown about by the torrent wind, fear spiked within my chest, but after a second, I knew that the truth was the only thing worth saying. "Ms. Stackhouse, I didn't get to ask your permission to date your granddaughter, and I apologize for that, but I would love to have your blessing so I can ask Sookie, when the time is right, to be my wife."
Instead of cursing and swearing or telling me that I was a no good SOB, she asked, "When will the time be right, Mr. Northman?"
I thought for a minute about how I wanted to phrase my next answer. "I want to be able to provide for Sookie, and give her a decent home. Our occupation, what we do now, is not what I want for her or myself. I've been working on opening my own upscale club and have already asked Sookie to work there with me. Though what I really want is for her to not only to be my business partner, but my partner in life as well. I want her to be my wife."
I watched different facial expressions dance all over Ms. Stackhouse's face, before finally settling on a grin that was as wide as the psychotic Joker in Batman and I was totally unsure if it was a good or a bad thing.
She opened her arms to me in a welcoming gesture and said, "Welcome to the family Eric." I awkwardly allowed her to pull me in as I confusedly wrapped my arms around her frame. In about 3.2 seconds I had gone from Mr. Northman, to Eric and a member of the family. Mood swings were apparently commonplace among the Stackhouse women.
She pulled back with a look of glee on her face and said, "I had to make sure that you were worthy enough for my Sookie. If you ran at the first sign of conflict what kind of a husband would you make? But just so we're clear Eric Northman, if you break my little girl's heart, I have a shotgun and I'm trained to use it." She paused, letting her threat sink in before continuing, "Come, and let us join the others."
So I asked, completely dumbfounded after her sudden attitude change, "So this was a …test?" That was the only word I could think of and it brought me right back to high school when girls would ask me idiotic questions to find out if I liked them.
"More like an interview. I had to see if you were suited for my Sookie."
Curiosity got the best of me and I had to ask, "And if I didn't pass?"
"I knew you would dear, otherwise Sookie would never have brought you home." She patted my chest knowingly and she walked into the other room, leaving me standing there with my mouth gapped open, catching flies.
And that was my introduction to Sookie's family.
Almost six months later
It was Memorial Day weekend and the club was set to open July first, giving me about a month more to get everything ready. But the one thing I had not done was make good on my promise to Ms. Stackhouse, and to myself, if truth be told.
Because Hooligans was closed on Monday nights, we moved Sunday night dinners to Monday and Sophie, Sookie, Gran, Jason, and myself would all convene for a family supper. As the club's opening grew near, the once subtle marriage hints from Gran became not so subtle.
At first there were miniscule reminders, hardly noticed by anyone but me. Gran would buy wedding dresses for Sophie's Barbie's and even bought Ken a tux. Then, Gran started laying out different catalogs for home-stores like Ikea, Pottery Barn, JCPenny, and other notable ones. She'd ask Sookie about patterns, colors, and the functionality of appliances.
About a month ago the catalogs were switched out for issues of Modern Bride and Bride Monthly, and although Gran did not specifically draw Sookie's attention to those magazines, she left them on the sofa.
"Oh, pardon me. Look at the mess I left," Gran said one evening as Sookie was about to take her seat on the couch. Gran moved the bridal magazines to the coffee table still in plain view.
"Gran, what are those for?" Sookie asked clearly perplexed that her Gran would have purchased such magazines.
"Oh you know the Sheriff, Andy Bellefleur, is finally getting married to that school teacher of his," she stated sweetly before picking up a tray of crumpets and offering it to us. Jason dug in as usual, stuffing his face while Sookie took one and casually nibbled on it while deep in thought.
Jason had to get his two cents in when he walked out with me to the car that night. "I was captain of the football team in high school and football players love to hit. So if you break my little sister's heart, I'm gonna mess up your face. Have a good night Eric," and then he walked away, kicking up dirt as he went. I shook my head warily as I watched him walk. I was still amazed that he could walk and talk at the same time most days, so I didn't exactly expect him to make tons of sense to anyone but himself, though it was nice to know that he was so protective of his sister's happiness.
It was time, not because I felt pressured by Gran or Jason, quite the contrary. I longed for Sookie to stand by my side as we walked down the aisle together and have her accept me as her man forever in front of an altar. As much as I wanted to make Sookie mine, I desperately wanted to be hers also.
The question of how plagued me for months. It wasn't that Sookie was the kind of girl that needed fanfare or extravagance, but I wanted something memorable, something that clearly defined us in every way.
Sookie and I didn't do serious; we both lived a supposed life of debauchery, not a life filled with cartwheels and rainbows. I couldn't picture myself just showing up with champagne and having her diamond floating at the bottom of her glass. No, I needed something that would put my feelings on the line, something big and bold, but was still something that said, "Sookie and Eric."
Sookie came over every Sunday morning for breakfast, and we would sit out on the veranda; her with her morning puzzle from the paper, and me plowing through the Wall Street Journal checking stock values.
Sophie had gone to a friend's house Saturday night and Sookie came to spend the night with me. Several times during our love trysts I almost prematurely spilled the beans, but only because I could barely contain what I felt. I wanted her beside me forever as my wife, and the next morning was almost too long to wait.
My entire naked body cocooned Sookie; my right leg casually draped over hers as one of my arms held her tight against my side. However, I had no control over my other hand as it wandered through the desert colored plains of Sookie's flesh as if it were drawing lazy circles in the tantalizing sand.
We spoke whispers of love and affection throughout the night, but I knew that Sookie felt as if I was holding something back, and she was right.
Kissing the warmth of her shoulder, my mouth opened again on its own accord, "Sookie," I mumbled into her skin as I nibbled onto her soft flesh. But, just as I was about to say those life altering words, the smell of the strawberries in her hair and the taste of her salty skin brought me out of my 'Sookie Fog', for only her sultry wiles could put me in such a state.
Hesitating for only a split second, my mind looped to find another phrase and I finally said, "This is right; this is best." It was simple, direct and said with as much conviction as I could muster because those were not the words I wanted to offer up. No, I wanted to bare my soul upon the 'Sookie Altar' and see if she'd accept me as the man that I am.
Knowing Sookie as well as I did, I knew something that life changing, that life altering could not be said after a tumble beneath the sheets- no matter how good said tumble was. She wouldn't want something like that expressed in the heat of the moment and might even question my sincerity. I wouldn't want something that meant so much to me to get misconstrued, and maybe even blown so out of proportion that we'd end up fighting.
"You're right Eric, this is right. After all the sneaking around that we've done, I like this best because I can be me and you can be you, and we can love each other all night. There are no interruptions; no cock blocks in the names of Claudine, Pam, or Lafayette. It's just us," she mused, bring me back down to 'Planet Sookie'.
She leaned back for a kiss and our bodies magnetically molded together like the force of gravity was too great to keep us apart. Our limbs tangled together effortlessly as we came together as one, not even being able to tell where one of us began and the other ended.
Our passion was unhurried as I moved about her plains looking for any undiscovered nooks that I had yet to taste. Every inch of her I explored with not only my roving hands, but my lips as well as they nipped and tasted her savory skin.
Nothing gave me greater pleasure than to know that every moan, every breathy pant was because of my touch alone. Slowly I slid my length into her as her narrow tunnel swallowed me whole. Her molten heat constricted around me and as I buried myself deeper inside, her cervix greeted my tip warmly which responded in kind with a gracious hug, spurring me to drive harder into her.
As Sookie chanted my name in her own panting mantra, my actions became like a whirling hurricane as my cock gusted forcefully in and out of her tight cavern. As we reached the eye of the storm together my body exploded in a torrent outpouring as I screamed her name, quaking with a rippling of aftershocks. Clutching her closely to me, we rode the waves of pleasure together, her body trembling against mine.
A contented sigh fell from her lips as she curled into me and drifted off to sleep with a smile on her face. I too wore the same expression as I relaxed into sleeping, knowing that my lover, my mate, and my future wife lay next to me.
Nothing could have kept me in bed the next morning. As soon as the sky lightened and began turning into a hazy orange I rolled out of bed. I carefully unwrapped myself from Sookie, and placed my feet on the floor before looking over at my lover who peaceful slept. My cock stirred at just the sight of her as she slept; her hair spanned out in blonde tendrils across the pillow; her one leg hitched up, twisting the sheets around her upper torso, allowing her slender legs to be put on display; her hands supported her head as she slept on her side; and the sheets had lowered enough from our late night romp that the fleshy part of her breasts peeked through, teasing me with just a hint of nipple that begged to be touched.
"Cold shower; I need a cold shower," I surmised quietly to myself as my body refused to moved. Seeing Sookie in my bed, in our bed, I amended reverently, was a sight that I never wanted to be without.
After my glacially ice cold shower, I threw on a clean pair of lounge pants and a tank, before I meandered into the kitchen. The house was still dark because the early morning light had not yet seeped through. I padded outside barefoot to retrieve the morning papers; The Wall Street Journal for me and The Shreveport Times for her.
As soon as I closed my front door I removed the plastic sleeve from Sookie's paper. I had to see, I had to make sure that the favor I called in was executed in the way that I planned. I stared at the paper for a minute and wasn't filled with any amount of anxiety at all, but relief coursed through my veins. This was it; there was no backing down now especially since all who received this particular paper would know.
I folded the paper back up neatly and took it out onto the veranda, placing it on the table next to her chair. Sookie had become a fixture in my home and I wanted to meld our lives together, so it was her home as well.
Not wanting anything to disturb the morning, I set about shutting off our cell phones and unplugging the house phone. All I needed was for Maxine Fortenberry to start the gossip chain, calling Adele who would then immediately ring Sookie before she even came down to breakfast. No, that was not happening this morning; all the phones would be turned off. Not even a telegram was going to ruin the surprise this morning.
Turning the percolator on, I knew that it would slowly wake Sookie as the aroma whiffed thought the house because the 'best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup.' After that I scoured through the fridge to take out the necessary ingredients that I needed for breakfast. I planned on making Eggs Benedict, something a little more special than plain old scrambled eggs and toast.
I started with the bacon first because that took much longer. As the bacon simmered in the pan, I crossed the room and peered into a cabinet that I hadn't looked at in many years; my mother's fine china. My mother had taught me the proper etiquette for a set table, but also had instilled the value of fine china. We had dishes, and then we had china. My mother used to only bring out the fine china when we had guests that she deemed royalty, not in the sense where they were in line for the throne, but someone politically or socially important.
I could think of no one more important that Sookie and I was pretty sure that if my mother had the chance to meet her, she would have agreed. With great care I took the Astbury Wedgwood Bone China out from the safety of the glass cabinet and began to set a table fit for a Queen, my Queen, out on the veranda.
When I finally returned to the kitchen, I opened the breadbox where I had concealed her ring, and placed in into my pocket. The weight of it set me in the right frame of mind for what I wanted for my Sookie.
By the time Sookie graced me with her beautiful presence, I had everything almost cooked.
"What's all this?" she asked with a hint of surprise in her voice. She stood on her tips toes to greet me with a kiss and she melting in my arms; a perfect fit.
I pulled back and casually said, "Oh, nothing. I just thought that with Sophie gone we could have a nice breakfast together."
"With the fine china that I've never once seen out of that cabinet?" she asked with a raised brow, clearly not buying the act that I was selling.
I just shrugged my shoulders and carried the plates out onto the veranda as she quietly padded behind me.
She sat down as I placed her plate in front of her. I returned to the kitchen to get the coffee carafe and poured her a generous amount of coffee, well as generous as I could give her in a petite china cup.
"Thank you Eric, this looks wonderful," she said as she dabbed her eyes.
"You're welcome," I stated simply as I opened my Wall Street Journal hoping to persuade her with a hint to do the same. It took a few minutes, but I finally heard the paper rustling. I saw nothing of my own paper as the figures danced before my blurry unfocused eyes, taunting me with snide remarks. That moment was the first time I actually began to panic; what if she said no?
"That's strange. The answer to my cryptogram says, 'Turn to page twenty-nine.'"
That was it, the moment of truth. I set my paper down and lowered myself to one knee. I pulled out the little black box from my lounge pants and opened it for her to see.
The way she held the paper blocked her view of me, but I knew what she was staring at. It was a cartoon that I drew of us at that very moment; Sookie reading her paper out on the veranda; the fine china set masterfully; the coffee carafe centered in the middle of the table; and me down on bended knee, holding a little black box, waiting for the one word I wanted to hear.
The bubble above my cartoon drawing said simply, "Sookie Stackhouse, will you marry me?"
Her trembling hands lowered the newspaper and she looked at me with tear streaked eyes. I took her hand in mine and asked the question that I had yearned to ask since almost the first day I met her.
"Sookie Stackhouse, I love you with all my heart, but it's not enough for me. I want you by my side as not only my lover, but my partner in life. Will you please accept me and become my wife?"
Pause.
As I waited for her answer I wasn't sure what to do. This was the part where I thought she'd jump into my awaiting arms shouting 'yes', but nothing happened except for a few tears and some sniffles.
Finally she started to cry and I pulled her into my arms, caressing her tightly against me, rubbing her back with soothing circles and cooing softly into her ear.
"Sookie," I breathed her name, hoping that it would trigger an answer. Nothing. Finally I asked, "Why are you crying?"
"Because…I didn't shower this morning and I must smell…really bad," she sobbed with a hiccup.
That certainly hadn't gone the way that I planned.
TBC
A/N: *Ducks and Hides from Cyber Tomatoes*
Thank you to my better FF half, Sassyvampmama for holding my hand and fixing my screw-ups.
Thank you so much for the love and support for this story. I cherish each and every review.
So, I know I've said this before, but there is one more chapter left. This was supposed to be the last, but it got away from me.
I also started a new segment (can't really call it a story), called Scientific Method on the True Blood side. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a fly on Alan Ball's wall? Each installment follows episodes from season 4 and shows how the ideas came to Ball. If you need a good laugh, check it out!