---8---
In the weeks following, they engrossed themselves in each other. Hour long dinners would stretch to three. A missed phone call was returned immediately. Doors were opened, hands were held, and Kate was sublimely happy, a feeling she assumed had been deprogrammed in her years ago. Still, there was a trickle of fear left in this oasis of beatitude. She still kept a hint of detachment from him at all times. This was the part she hated most. The waiting. Waiting for something to go wrong. Something that would take this feeling away from her. She decided she had to postpone the inevitable for as long as possible, thus leading her to what she deemed the perfect plan.
"Roman...," she began one night in her apartment. Roman turned his head away from the already in progress football game, which she took note of and was vastly impressed. "I was thinking how we both lead such hectic lives, when do we ever get a chance to just sit back and enjoy something?"
"We're doing that right now."
"Ah yes," she said with a dry twinge of sarcasm. "ESPN, the ultimate pleasure."
"What're you getting at, Kate?"
"Well, I thought it would be nice if the two of us could go somewhere for a few days," she said looking down at her hands, trying to play this as innocent as possible. She didn't want him picking up on any of her insecurities. He immediately knew she was up to something.
With narrow eyes, he replied, "OK, what's this about?"
"What?"
"You have a weird tone in your voice...like there's more to this or something."
She acted offended, when in all actuality, she was just annoyed that he was the one person who could always tell when she was hiding something. "What? I can't have honorable intentions? I can't just want to go somewhere with you just for the hell of it?"
He gave her a look and decided to play along. He'd figure it all out eventually. He always did. "OK, so where are we going?"
"Well, I was thinking New York. I have a huge meeting there in two weeks. It's on a Friday, so I thought we could just fly out together, and stay the weekend." She bit her bottom lip in nervous anticipation.
He was silent for a minute, realizing she was serious about this, wondering if he should question her again. He decided against it, shrugged his shoulders and replied, "Sure."
Her elation was evident as a huge smile spread across her face. Leaning over, she kissed him. What began as a soft "thank you" kiss soon turned into one much harder and starving for affection. His hand held her cheek, and he could feel her getting flushed. She forcefully pulled him on top of her, but she could sense his hesitance. Once their kiss was broken, she looked at him cautiously.
"What's wrong?" Her eyes searched his face for an answer.
"I was just about to ask you actually."
"Nothing," she whispered. "Just make love to me." There was a certain desperation in her voice that worried him, but his desire for her pushed it toward the back of his head. Too impatient to deal with buttons, he pulled open her shirt, ripping two of them off. She pulled it off entirely, and lay back down on the couch. She stroked the back of his arms as he continued to kiss her. For the next hour, both of them forgot all about blurred lines and work deadlines, kept secrets or hesitations, painful endings or happily ever after's. They focused solely on each other.
The moment came to her without warning. His fingertips brushed over her stomach as he said in a low voice that would be forever engraved in her mind, "I love you." He had wanted her to surrender to this all on her own...admit her feelings first without any persuading on his part, but he had held back from those three words for too long. The saturated passion in the room became his ultimate downfall.
Outside, dark clouds suddenly burst into the seemingly perfect night sky.
In the weeks following, they engrossed themselves in each other. Hour long dinners would stretch to three. A missed phone call was returned immediately. Doors were opened, hands were held, and Kate was sublimely happy, a feeling she assumed had been deprogrammed in her years ago. Still, there was a trickle of fear left in this oasis of beatitude. She still kept a hint of detachment from him at all times. This was the part she hated most. The waiting. Waiting for something to go wrong. Something that would take this feeling away from her. She decided she had to postpone the inevitable for as long as possible, thus leading her to what she deemed the perfect plan.
"Roman...," she began one night in her apartment. Roman turned his head away from the already in progress football game, which she took note of and was vastly impressed. "I was thinking how we both lead such hectic lives, when do we ever get a chance to just sit back and enjoy something?"
"We're doing that right now."
"Ah yes," she said with a dry twinge of sarcasm. "ESPN, the ultimate pleasure."
"What're you getting at, Kate?"
"Well, I thought it would be nice if the two of us could go somewhere for a few days," she said looking down at her hands, trying to play this as innocent as possible. She didn't want him picking up on any of her insecurities. He immediately knew she was up to something.
With narrow eyes, he replied, "OK, what's this about?"
"What?"
"You have a weird tone in your voice...like there's more to this or something."
She acted offended, when in all actuality, she was just annoyed that he was the one person who could always tell when she was hiding something. "What? I can't have honorable intentions? I can't just want to go somewhere with you just for the hell of it?"
He gave her a look and decided to play along. He'd figure it all out eventually. He always did. "OK, so where are we going?"
"Well, I was thinking New York. I have a huge meeting there in two weeks. It's on a Friday, so I thought we could just fly out together, and stay the weekend." She bit her bottom lip in nervous anticipation.
He was silent for a minute, realizing she was serious about this, wondering if he should question her again. He decided against it, shrugged his shoulders and replied, "Sure."
Her elation was evident as a huge smile spread across her face. Leaning over, she kissed him. What began as a soft "thank you" kiss soon turned into one much harder and starving for affection. His hand held her cheek, and he could feel her getting flushed. She forcefully pulled him on top of her, but she could sense his hesitance. Once their kiss was broken, she looked at him cautiously.
"What's wrong?" Her eyes searched his face for an answer.
"I was just about to ask you actually."
"Nothing," she whispered. "Just make love to me." There was a certain desperation in her voice that worried him, but his desire for her pushed it toward the back of his head. Too impatient to deal with buttons, he pulled open her shirt, ripping two of them off. She pulled it off entirely, and lay back down on the couch. She stroked the back of his arms as he continued to kiss her. For the next hour, both of them forgot all about blurred lines and work deadlines, kept secrets or hesitations, painful endings or happily ever after's. They focused solely on each other.
The moment came to her without warning. His fingertips brushed over her stomach as he said in a low voice that would be forever engraved in her mind, "I love you." He had wanted her to surrender to this all on her own...admit her feelings first without any persuading on his part, but he had held back from those three words for too long. The saturated passion in the room became his ultimate downfall.
Outside, dark clouds suddenly burst into the seemingly perfect night sky.