CHAPTER 15
Margaret juggled the folders in her arms and struggled with the lock on the door. No matter how she turned the key, the bolt refused to unlock. She switched her things over to her other arm and attempted to turn the key with her right hand. Finally after fighting with it for five minutes she managed to jiggle the key just right and open the door.
That was when it first hit her. For the first time since he'd moved in the apartment was positively dark. He'd always been there when she arrived home from work, except this time he wasn't, and he wasn't going to be. Margaret reached over and flipped on the light, looking sorrowfully at the empty apartment. Normally the odd light would have been on and she could've heard the TV from the other side of the wall of boxes. He'd call out to her as he made her way out to her, and then take her in his arms and give her a kiss.
Margaret stood in the door way, remembering how things had been, how she'd taken him for granted. Before any tears had the chance to fall she shook her head and put that out of her mind for a moment. She shut the door with her foot and then locked the dead bolt like Hawkeye had told her that morning. He had kept insisting that she lock the door as soon as she stepped in.
Margaret kicked off her shoes and sat the stack of papers on the coffee table. There was no one there to give her a kiss or ask how her day was. It was just her and all of the boxes. She hadn't been able to eat lunch that afternoon and she was starving. She decided that the work could wait and she would get something to eat. She untucked her shirt as she walked to the kitchen in her bare feet and smiled when she saw a bouquet of white roses sitting on the counter.
She walked over to them and smelled them and that's when she noticed that there was a letter on the counter next to them. It was Hawkeye's writing. She picked it up and read it through her tears. She missed him so much already. How was she going to live without him? She couldn't wait to get that call from him telling her that he had arrived safely. She glanced at the clock; it had to be soon. At least that's what she was hoping for.
Margaret made herself a light dinner and turned on the television to keep herself company as she worked. In doing it she almost felt like a hypocrite, after all she'd scolded Hawkeye almost a million times about watching TV while she was working. She couldn't stand the silence, she couldn't stand knowing he wasn't there, she had to have something other then her work to keep her mind occupied.
Around nine o'clock she turned off the TV and retired to the bedroom. She did her regular nightly routine and climbed into bed with her book to await his call. Some time around nine thirty the phone finally rang and Margaret rolled across his side of the bed and picked up the receiver.
"Hello?" Her heart was beating franticly; she needed to hear his voice.
"Hey there."
Margaret breathed a sigh of relief. "Hi."
Hawkeye knew she had been torturing herself waiting for him to call. "I promised I'd call."
Margaret nodded and pulled her knees up to her chest. "How are you? How was your drive?" She was eager to hear how his trip had gone.
"I didn't have too much trouble, with all things considered."
"All things considered?"
"I got caught in a little bit of traffic up around Portland; you know how things get in the evening."
"Yeah."
"But other then that, I didn't have any trouble. I'm okay," he reassured her.
Margaret let out an anxious breath, "I thought about you a lot today." She been holding back her emotions all day, it was hard not give in.
"Well, I thought about you too honey." Hawkeye could hear the tension in her voice, he knew she was trying not to cry. "Hey, I'm okay." Then with more reassurance he added, "We're past the worst now, I'll be home before you know it."
"I know."
Hawkeye wished he knew what to say to make her feel better; unfortunately no amount of words could make the pain go away. "How was work today?" He wanted to change the subject. Hearing the sadness in her voice was depressing him.
"Same old stuff. I hate it."
He could hear the tone in her voice. "A few more weeks. That's all."
"I know."
"Anything you want to talk about?"
She sighed. "No. Nothing new. I don't want to talk about my day. Tell me about yours." All she really wanted was to hear his voice. It didn't really matter what he said.
He chuckled slightly. "I was stuck in my car all day. I did a good bit of singing along to the radio, but that's about it. Most of the time I thought about you; about us."
"Oh?"
"Yeah."
"Well, tell me more."
He smiled. There really wasn't much to say. He had had so much time on his hands that his mind wandered a lot while he was driving. He thought about a lot of things. Things that he was a little embarrassed to say out loud. "Lets see," he paused for a moment thinking about what he should tell her. Something that would pick her mood up. "I thought about how much I love. How it's going to be to carry you across the threshold and start our life together. A real life, not living in limbo like right now."
She smiled on the other end listening to him. It was nice to hear him and know he thought about some of the same things she did, but it was also sad. As much as she wanted him to fold his arms around her and whisper those things in her ear, he couldn't.
Hawkeye tried to say goodbye around ten o'clock. She had a rough day and had to work in the morning. Each time he tried to hang up, she would stop him. Margaret just couldn't let go of him. Once she hung up that would mean that she was all alone again in that big empty bed. It took him ten minutes before he could get off the phone with her, and when he did he felt horrible about it.
Margaret sat all alone in their bed once again. She wiped a stray tear off her cheek and laid back down, turning the bedside lamp off. She found herself wishing she had a dog or some kind of animal. At least then she wouldn't really be alone. Her mind wandered, thinking mostly about Hawkeye, for another half an hour before she finally drifted off to sleep.
Hawkeye lay in bed for what seemed like an eternity before he too fell asleep. Her voice was still ringing in his head, the pain and loss for words crying out to him. He was torn up inside, he shouldn't have left her like that, he should've stayed home. What he had to do in Maine was important, but she was way more important then that.
It was hard for Margaret to go about getting ready for work the next morning. Every time she walked past the bed she glanced at it, expecting to see him lying there, and every time she was forced with the realization that he wasn't. Working wasn't as bad when it came to missing him. There was the odd occasion where she'd catch herself thinking about him, but that was quickly pushed aside by her busy schedule.
That night when she walked through the door she was greeted by yet another surprise, for the second night in a row there was a lovely arrangement of roses poised on the table. She had no idea how he'd done it, but she loved it.
She had some more work to do that night, but put it aside when the phone rang. She and Hawkeye talked for an hour before he made her get off the phone and get to her work. He'd call her later that night before she went to bed anyway. He didn't want to be to blamed when she didn't get her work done or if she had to stay up all night doing it because he stayed on the phone with her.
Her evening was pretty much like it was the night before. She was dealing with his absence a little better, but missed him more and more each minute that he was gone. It was hard to be alone. Living together, the two of them had almost become one; her other half was missing.
The next day was pretty much like the day before. She was alone, he was alone. He felt bad about leaving her and tried to get things together as fast as he could to get back home to her. For the first time in his life he realized home wasn't a place, home was where Margaret was.
For the next two days when Margaret walked into their apartment, she found fresh bouquets of roses. Each day they were a different color and each day she asked him how they got inside. He wouldn't tell her no matter how much she begged. It did bring a smile to her face and that was what he wanted to do.
Each day she must have asked him five times when he was coming back. He never had a strait answer for her because he didn't have one himself. His plan was to catch the first plane that he could and fly back to her. He wanted to see her with his own eyes and hold her in his arms. Hawkeye needed to know that his fiancé was safe. He never felt right about leaving her, but he didn't see that he had a choice. If he had it his way, they would have been together no matter what. One day, when she was out of the army, they would have more freedom to do such things.
Margaret felt like her life was becoming a television rerun, every day she did the same thing, followed the same pattern. She'd get up, go to work, come home, work a little more, and go then to bed. Normally it was enough to make her scream, but it was tolerable, at least then she had him.
&&&&&&&
Margaret sighed heavily as she trudged up the stairs towards their apartment. It was going to be another lonely night. Normally she had her work to keep her company, but tonight she didn't even have that. She opened the door and set her things on the floor before turning and locking the bolt. Margaret had already expected that there was going to be yet another bouquet of roses on the table, there always was, but when she turned around she was greeted by a pleasant surprise."That sweet man," she said aloud as she walked across the room, she hadn't guessed he'd go to such extravagant lengths. Sitting in a crystal vase on the kitchen table were at least two dozen long stemmed roses, each a deep, lustrous red.
She put her face to them and took in their scent. This time there was no card with the flowers. She turned the vase around looking for it, but found nothing. "I guess the delivery boy must have lost it." It was then that she saw a card on the table. It had been hiding underneath the vase. She picked it up and read the simple note, smiling to herself. "You better come back to me soon. I don't know how much more I can take." She sighed. "I miss you so much."
It was then that she heard a voice from behind her say, "Why? I'm right here."
Her blue eyes widened and she turned around looking at his smiling face. She didn't say anything and ran into his arms practically attaching her body to his, burring her face in his neck. "Oh, Hawkeye!"
He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight to him finally relaxing for the first time since he had left her four days ago. She was safe back in his arms. "Damn, you feel good."
She pulled her head off of him and looked into his eyes. "What are you doing here?" Her eyes were sparkling with joy and excitement.
He smiled and kissed her soft pink lips. "I missed you! I had to get here as soon as I could."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"I wanted to surprise you, and I didn't know I was leaving until a few hours ago. I just got here about a half an hour ago."
"You flew in? What about your car?"
"I don't need it." He brushed some hair off of her face. "All I need is you."
Margaret eyes started to tear up again, "I missed you so much." The past four days had been something of a living hell to her; she couldn't put her emotions into words.
"Hey, I'm right here." He tightened his grip on her and held her closer. The tears in her eyes were threatening to spill over.
"I'm okay," she told him as she wiped her eyes. She didn't want to start crying, not when he had just returned home.
Hawkeye laughed softly and used his thumb to wipe away her smeared mascara. "I promise I'm not going anywhere, I'm home for good."
Margaret's heart was racing; she couldn't believe he was actually there. She'd known he could come back one day, but subconsciously she had started to doubt herself. She pulled his head down and kissed him deeply, venting out all her emotions to him. "I'm not letting go again," she told him when they pulled back.
He smiled and kissed her softly. "Good, because I don't plan on letting you go all weekend."
"I wouldn't let you," she smiled.
"Let's go sit down. You must be tired after working all day." By Friday night she was ready to be in bed as soon as she walked in the door. The work week had really taken a lot out of her. She shook her head no in response. "You're not tired at all?" He was a little surprised.
"Nope," she reached up and kissed him.
He wasn't going to argue with her. "I brought you something."
"All I need is you, but thank you for the flowers. They're gorgeous."
"That's not what I was talking about." He gave her a small kiss and then let go of her, but she wouldn't let go of him.
"Don't go."
"Honey," he chuckled. "I'm just going to the bedroom."
"I'm going with you."
"Okay." He took her by the hand and led the way to their bedroom. "I really wasn't sure what to get you."
"You don't need to get me anything. Having you back in once piece is enough for me." She paused for a moment and then said softly. "It's everything to me. You're everything to me."
Hawkeye turned and gave her a gentle smile. Her picked up both her hands and looked at them as he ran his thumbs over her fingers. Hawkeye laced his fingers through hers and pulled her close to him again. "Every night we were apart, I'd lie awake and think about your hands."
"That's funny, every night I'd like awake and think about your arms," she said softly.
They shared a loving look and kissed once more before he moved away and unzipped his suit case. "Like I said before, I wasn't exactly sure what to get you."
Margaret watched him contently, she didn't care what he got her, she was just happy he was home. "I'm sure I'll love it."
He pulled a black box from his bag and approached her again. "Well, just remember, if you don't like it, I can take it back," he said as he handed it to her
Margaret smiled, "You didn't have to do this, the flowers were more then enough."
Hawkeye crossed his arms and watched her, he knew she was stalling. "Go on, open it."
She gave him a curious glance and then opened the lid. Margaret gave a small gasp when she saw what was inside. "Honey..." She looked at him in disbelief. "I can't believe you did this, it's too much," she protested.
"Nothing is too much for you." He watched her pull out the bracelet. "Do you like it?"
"It's so extravagant." She was in awe.
The diamond bracelet was draped across her hand as she examined it. "Do you like it?" She hadn't answered his earlier question.
"I love it, but you didn't need to..."
He took her hands in his. "I know I didn't need to; I wanted to. It'll look great on you." He took the bracelet from her hand and clasped it on her wrist. "What do you think?"
She held her hand out and looked at it for a moment. On one finger was a beautiful diamond engagement ring, something more than she ever dreamed of, and on her wrist was a sparkling diamond bracelet. He was too good to her. She smiled looking into his eyes and then hugged him, attaching herself to his body. "Thank you, honey."
"You're welcome." He rubbed her back and gave her a kiss on the head. "I bought you something else."
She pulled away and looked up at him. "Hawkeye, are you trying to buy me?"
He was puzzled for a moment, but then laughed when she smiled at him. "I don't have to buy your love. I just do it because I love you."
"Wow, what a good answer."
"Yes." He dropped a kiss on her lips and then moved back to his suitcase. "This isn't something I bought. At least not yet."
"What?"
She watched him pull out a brown envelope and look inside. "Wrong one," he muttered. He grabbed the other one and handed it to her. "Take a look."
"What is it?"
"Just look." She pulled out the papers to see what it was. "It's houses that Jimmy got together for me to see."
"Jimmy?" She didn't know of a Jimmy.
"He's our realtor; an old friend of mine."
"Oh."
She didn't sound very enthusiastic about it. "Don't you want to look at them?"
"Well, not really." She paused. "I just want to be with you." She wrapped her arms around him after dropping the package on the bed. "It was you missed."
"I know, but I thought you wanted to look at some houses."
"I do, just not right now." All she wanted was to be in his arms. "Maybe we'll look at them later."
"I haven't looked at them yet either."
"You mean you didn't go see them?"
"No, but I didn't look at these papers either. Jimmy gave them to me this morning."
"Oh." He must have been busy while he was there.
"I was supposed to stay another day. I had an appointment with him to go look at some today. I thought it was more important that I get back home to you."
She smiled. "I'm glad you did."
"Me too." He held her for a moment in silence. "Let me make you dinner."
"We'll do it together." She didn't want to be apart for him at all. She wanted to be as close to him as possible.
"What do we have for food here?"
"Not much I'm afraid. I didn't know when you would be back and I was so busy with work, and it was..."
"Its fine," he smiled.
"No. I wanted to make you a nice dinner the day you came home. You just caught me off guard."
"You didn't know I was going to be here tonight. We'll figure something out. Maybe we can do a little food shopping tomorrow."
"You hate grocery shopping."
"So?"
"You want to go?" She was a little surprised. He always complained when he had to go, and that meant that she was normally the one that did it herself.
"Listen, I'm not letting you out of my sight all weekend. You're stuck with me."
"That's good," she said as she tightened her arms around his waist. "Because I'm not letting you out of my grasp all weekend. You're stuck with me, literally."
Hawkeye chuckled and then leaned down and kissed her. He had only meant for it to last for a few moments, but he couldn't help himself. When they parted he smiled down at her and said, "Remind me to pick that up later."
Margaret smiled happily in response, she was feeling very good. After not being able to touch him in four long days, he was finally hers again. "Come on, I'm starving."
He let her guide the way as she held his hand. When they reached the kitchen she refused to let go of him even there. "Do you have any preferences?"
"No," she shook her head.
Hawkeye opened the cupboards and looked around. "Well, this isn't going to be an elaborate meal," he smiled.
"I don't care." She put her arms around him again.
"Baby," he was suddenly aware that she had attached herself to him once more. "I can't cook like this."
"I don't care."
He smiled and gave her a kiss. "Didn't you just say that you were starving?"
"Was that me?" She smiled. "It must have been you."
"No, I don't think so." He gave her another kiss and then moved out of her grasp. "I could make some rice."
"Doesn't matter." She looked at him for a moment and then moved back and put her arm around his waist. She had to touch him.
He pulled some out of the cabinet and set it on the counter. She was clinging right to him. It wasn't a bad thing, but it was a little awkward at the moment. "Do we have meat?"
"I don't know."
"How can you not know?" She shrugged her shoulders. She really didn't pay much attention to what he said. "Would you check for me?"
She pulled him by the hand and opened the door to the refrigerator. "Chicken breasts."
"Grab 'em."
She pulled them out and handed them to him. "Dinner is going to be kind of plain, isn't it?"
"I'll spice it up."
She smiled at him and kissed him. "I missed you so much. Don't you ever leave me again."
"I don't think I'll be able to." She was holding him so tight, it was almost impossible to move.
"Good," she kissed him.
"I can't cook like this," he told her.
"I don't care."
Hawkeye kissed her and unclasped her hands from around him in the process. "We'll pick this up right after dinner."
"I don't know if I can last that long," she told him with a smile.
He gave her a short kiss and then moved to prepare the food. "Why don't you go change while I'm doing this."
Margaret gave him one more kiss, "I'll be right back, don't go anywhere."
"Don't worry, I won't."
She smiled and left the room, almost running to get to the bedroom. She didn't want to be away from him at all. Hawkeye was getting a kick out of her. She really did miss him; more than he thought she would anyway. He got dinner started while she was gone. He wanted to get that out of the way because once she attached herself to him; it was going to be a little difficult.
"I'm back," she said.
Hawkeye turned around and smiled. He walked over to her and pulled her hand along. He took a seat at the kitchen table and pulled her on his lap. He wasn't going to pass up this. It was a rare mood that he caught her in. "I missed you."
She smiled brightly, letting her fingers brush his unshaven jaw. "You need to shave."
"If I would have shaved, I would have missed my plane."
"Oh, well then it's a good thing you didn't shave." She gave him a kiss. "It's kinda sexy like this anyway."
"Is that so?" He had considered shaving when he got home, but now that she had said that...
"Very sexy," she kissed him again. They kissed a little more passionately for a few moments and then pulled away.
"We shouldn't start something we can't finish." He knew if they did then they'd never get to the food.
"Who says we can't?" Margaret was enjoying this too much.
"I'm glad you're in such a good mood." It was a big step up from a few days ago.
Margaret fingered the collar on his shirt. "Well, why shouldn't I be? My handsome fiancé is home, I couldn't be any happier." She leaned in a kissed his unshaven jaw.
Hawkeye sighed. "Why do I have the feeling I made all that rice for nothing?"
"Who says we can't do both?" She said with a bright smile.
"Rice and chicken and..." He looked at her like she'd gone insane.
Margaret wiggled her eyebrows and gave him a suggestive smile. Before Hawkeye could say anything, she was off his lap on her feet and in the kitchen. "Are you scared?"
"Only of getting burned."
She chuckled. "Don't worry. I'll protect you."
"Margaret, maybe we should wait a little bit."
"Why?" She took hold of his hand and pulled him to his feet. "This will be more fun."
Hawkeye was a little nervous. Once he started, he wasn't going to be able to stop for dinner, or even to turn the stove off. "Let's just..."
Margaret had her arms around him and her lips on his silencing him. There was no need for words. She couldn't get enough of him and pressed herself against him as much as she could. She knew she had him right where she wanted him when she felt his hands roam down her back and to her ass. "Mmm," she moaned.
Hawkeye walked over to the counter and picked her up and sat her down. He stood between her legs and started to kiss her again. He was too far gone to care about the food right now. All he really cared about was her. She was finally back in his arms.
Her body was so warm against his, his arms were so encouraging, neither of them could barely contain themselves. Hands roamed over bodies, fingers caressed skin, mouths fought the losing battle. Margaret wrapped her legs around his waist and held him against her as she looped her arms around his neck. They knew they shouldn't be doing this, not now. The food was probably burning, yet neither of them were willing to stop.
"Hawkeye..." Margaret mumbled between kisses.
"I know," Hawkeye muttered as he turned his head to breathe. Despite the obvious knowledge that the food was beginning to burn, they both kept on kissing. Hawkeye's hands moved from her hips and pulled her into a strong embrace. After another few minutes he suddenly pulled away, "The chicken." It was burning.
Margaret watched him as he turned off the oven and opened the door. "I wasn't in the mood for chicken all that much anyway."
Hawkeye examined the chicken and then looked at her. "Well, I'm glad you're not disappointed."
"The only thing I'm disappointed about is that you're over there and not over here." She had promised herself that she wouldn't let him get away from her, and yet he was on the other side of the room.
Hawkeye stood up and walked back over to her. "We don't have anything else to eat."
"I don't care." She opened her arms to him and pulled him close. "We'll think of something."
Margaret kissed him lightly on the lips and Hawkeye reciprocated. "I have the feeling it's going to be a late dinner," he said before kissing her again.
"I'm sure we'll find something we can mix in."
"Mix in?" He stopped for a moment.
"You know, in between."
"In between?"
"Yes."
Hawkeye smiled and went back to kissing her. He wasn't going to argue with that. His hands moved to her hips and pulled her to the edge of the counter. He wanted to feel as much of her as he could. "Mmmm," he moaned and pulled away.
"What?"
"The rice." He turned off the stove and moved the pot back. "We'll order out later."
"Good." She pulled him close and started to kiss him, her hands now roaming all over his back and started to wander up his shirt. The feel of his hard body felt like home.
"Baby," he mumbled against her lips. She moaned in response. "We..." He didn't want to talk, but he did have something to say. "Bed."
"Doesn't matter." She grabbed the bottom of his shirt and started to lift it over his head.
He really wanted to be back in their bed. He missed it. He wanted to make love to her in their bed and hold her there afterwards. "Yes." He waited until his shirt was off and then pulled her off the counter forcing her to wrap her legs and arms around him.
"Ahh," she screamed in surprise. She giggled a little and then relaxed, letting him take her to their room. "God, I missed you."
"You have no idea." He sat her down on the bed and pushed his suitcase off in one swoop and let it fall to the floor. Then he lay down over her going back to kissing her.
Margaret cradled his head in her hands and kissed him back. She had spent one too many nights alone in bed; she had missed him so much. "It feels like it's been years," she whispered into the darkness as he moved to kiss her neck. Hawkeye muttered something incoherently in response. "You have no idea how much I thought about you, about this."
Hawkeye stopped and moved so he could see her face. "It felt so terrible leaving you the way I did, I'm sorry."
"Oh Hawkeye, you don't need to apologize, I knew you had to go, I understand that."
"No," Hawkeye caressed her cheek with his finger tips. "I shouldn't have left you, not now, not when there's so much going on between us."
Margaret kissed him, "All that matters now is that we're back together."
Hawkeye reciprocated her kiss. "You're all I care about."
"Did you really mean it when said we could spend the entire weekend in each other's arms?"
"The entire weekend," he told her with a smile. Margaret sighed happily, she loved touching him, she wasn't going to let him go for anything.
Hawkeye was lying on his back staring up at the ceiling. Margaret was wrapped in his arms and they were both content in that silence for a while. It felt so good to be together again. "Honey?"
"Yeah?" Hawkeye asked.
"You can't leave me again. Ever."
"Sounds good, but I'm liking my welcome home."
She had a lot of time to think while he was gone. She had gotten some things strait in her head and heart during that time. "You'll get more of it. I promise."
"Really?"
"Yes. And I promise not to snap at you so easily."
"I know you work hard, baby. I don't expect you to always be in a good mood when you come home from a job that you don't like."
"I know, but I tend to take out a lot of my frustrations on you. I don't mean to. I don't want to do anything to push you away."
He smiled, and pulled her tight. "Nothing on this earth could push me away from you."
"Good, but I'm still going to try to get better about being so mean to you."
"And I'm going to try to be more patient," he told her seriously. "I know I can be a little selfish when it comes to you."
Margaret smiled against his chest, "That's not a bad thing."
"In most instances not, but sometimes it just makes things more complicated."
"You are the most important thing to me." She put a finger on his chest. "I could never be mad with you over something like that."
Hawkeye rubbed her back comfortingly and smiled, "Neither could I."
They snuggled for almost another half an hour before Margaret sat up and pulled him to join her. "Come on, I'm starving." Hawkeye stumbled out of bed as she guided him by the hand across the room.
"Can't I at least get my robe?"
"Do you need a robe to call for take out?" She asked as she led him through the living room.
"Well no, but its cold."
"You're such a baby."
"A baby? I don't think I've been called that since I was in grade school."
She smiled. "Well, whoever called you that was right."
"Thanks a lot."
When they reached the kitchen she let go of his hand and started to go through the junk drawer to find some menus. Hawkeye usually had them on top of the refrigerator, but she used them while he was gone and put them in what she thought was a better place. "What are you in the mood for?"
He looked at her standing there naked with her back turned to him as she rummaged through the drawer. "Just you." He wrapped his arms around her from behind and nuzzled her neck. "You look good enough to eat." He started to nip at her shoulder.
"Hawkeye!" She spun around. "I can't believe you just said that!"
"Said what?"
"You ... you ... never mind." She turned around and grabbed some menus.
Hawkeye grinned and let his hands roam around her stomach and her chest. "I'll have whatever you're having."
"You don't have anything that you want?"
"Honey, all I want food for is fuel. I don't want to be full; I just want to be energized."
She handed him a menu. "Order from here."
He took it and looked it over. It was burgers and wings. "Looks good to me. What do you want?"
She looked at him with a smile. "I want what you're having." It had been four long days since she could eat off of his plate.
Hawkeye bent down and gave her a kiss. "Okay." He picked up the phone and dialed the number. Once he ordered and hung up, he found that her arms were wrapped around him once again. He pulled her tight, enjoying her clinginess for the moment. "You know how you wanted to make me a welcome home dinner?" She nodded. "I like this better."
"Me too." She kissed his chest. Her hands traveled up his chest and came to rest on his shoulders. "How long until the food gets here?"
"Thirty minutes."
She looked hopefully into his eyes. "Do we have time?"
"I don't think so. In fact I know we don't." Her lower lip stuck out in a pouting motion. "I'm sure we could find something else to do."
"Like what?"
"We could take a look at some of those houses," he suggested.
That wasn't exactly what Margaret had in mind, but they really didn't have any other options at the moment. Besides, Margaret was eager to see what he had brought back. "Sure," she told him.
Hawkeye kissed her and then picked up her hand and led her back to the bedroom. Margaret sat on the bed as he rummaged through his suitcase. Eventually he found the tan folder he had been looking for and handed it to her. "I think there are some nice ones in there that you might like."
She took the packet from him and opened it, pulling out its contents and spreading them across the bed. Hawkeye lay down next to her and watched her face as she sifted through the pile. "Hawkeye," she turned her head to already find him looking at her. "These look really expensive."
"Don't worry about that. We're just looking at the moment, decide which ones you like," he told her.
"They're all so...I can't choose right now."
"And I'm not asking you to."
"Hawkeye, I'd just be dreaming. We can't afford any of these."
He smiled looking into her eyes. "Well dream, baby. There's nothing wrong with that."
"Yes, but..."
"Margaret, just look at them. That's all I'm asking you to do."
She glanced down at the papers. There were some beautiful houses there. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to look."
He smiled. "There you go." He moved so he could see them too. He wanted to see what her taste was in houses. "You like this one?" It was brick.
"It's nice, and it's not overly expensive, but since I'm dreaming, no." Hawkeye chuckled. "I wanted stone. I love those old New England homes. They stand so strong."
"Oh, well we may as well throw this one out." He took the paper and tossed it aside.
"Oh my," she gasped. "Look at this one."
Hawkeye was familiar with the old house. "You should see the inside."
"I thought you didn't go look at any of these."
"I didn't. I was in it once when I was a kid. It was for sale and a bunch of us decided that we'd take a look. We had always been curious what it looked like."
She smiled thinking about him as a boy. "Must have been nice." He nodded. "It has so much land."
"It's pretty secluded. I don't know if you like that or not."
"I don't think I could live in a house that was separated by six feet of grass from the next. I want room for our children to play, security and privacy for us," she told him.
Hawkeye smiled, he loved it when she talked about their children. "I like that."
"To which? The fact that you could walk around naked without the neighbors watching?"
Hawkeye grinned and scratched his head, "I wasn't thinking about that."
Margaret laughed and looked at the picture again, "I really like this one. It's even on the beach."
"There's a really big back yard, and when you reach the edge of the grass that's where the beach starts."
She smiled at him again. "Well, since we're dreaming here, I think this is the house I want."
"But you haven't even seen the others."
"I know, but I don't need to, this is my dream house."
Hawkeye laughed. "Okay." He leaned over and gave her a kiss.
"Well, maybe I'll look at the others later. Just for fun."
"Okay," he grinned. "You do what you want."
"I do wish you would have brought some houses back that we could afford."
"Margaret, there's nothing wrong with these. The price may be a little steep, but that's about it."
"I know."
He gave her another kiss. "Where's my robe?"
"In your suitcase, I guess. Why?"
"I need to answer the door and I don't want to do it in my birthday suit."
She smiled. "That wouldn't be quite right." She stood up and grabbed her own robe and tied it securely around her waist. "I'm really hungry."
"Don't tell me you forgot to eat lunch again."
"No, I ate. I just didn't eat that much." She bent down and grabbed his robe out of his suitcase and tossed it to him. "You're really the reason I'm so hungry. I don't know when the last time we made love like that was."
He smiled. "I really out did myself, didn't I?"
"I wouldn't go that far," she teased.
"Are you saying that every other time we've made love I've been less then up to standard?" He asked as he slipped on his robe. "Because that's what it sounds like."
"I never said that, I just said I wouldn't go so far as to say you out did yourself."
"Is that the reason why our sex life has been drowning lately? Am I not satisfying you?"
"You know that's not true," she stood up and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I have never been with such a generous lover."
Hawkeye looked at her carefully, "I want you tell me if I'm not doing something right."
"Hawkeye!" She disentangled herself from him. "You're being ridiculous."
"So then what happened here this evening...what you said..." He pointed to the bed. "All of that was a ploy?"
"Of course!" Why was he being so insecure all of a sudden? "Why do you even have to ask?"
A relieved smile spread across his face. "Baby, you know you're not the easiest person to read, let alone please."
"What?!"
Uh oh; he said the wrong thing. "I didn't mean it the way it sounded. Its just that you... well ... "
She waved her hand. "I know what you meant. Don't worry, you've never left me unsatisfied and I'll be sure to let you know the first time that you do."
He chuckled. "Okay."
She moved back into his arms and pressed herself up against him lovingly. "There's no reason that you can't always try to out do yourself. I have a feeling you haven't reached your full potential yet."
"Is that so?"
"Uh huh," she nodded.
"I'm going to take that as a compliment." He kissed the top of her head.
"You should. That's how it was meant."
"Good." He moved away from her and walked out to the living area with her right behind him.
"I do have one question though...."
"What's that?"
"Did you mean what you said about our sex life... how did you put it? Drowning?"
He continued walking to the couch. "I don't know." He really didn't want to get into things with her now. He wanted the two of them to at least have one perfect night without fighting. He sat down on the couch and then stood back up when she sat down next to him. "I should get some money to pay for the food."
"I'll get it." She jumped to her feet. He sat back down hoping that he had evaded that conversation. "Damn." He heard after a moment.
"What?"
"I'm short on cash."
"I have some in my wallet. It's in my pants' pocket in the bedroom."
"Oh. I'll get it." Margaret didn't wait around for a response and quickly dashed into the bedroom. Hawkeye sat idly on the couch and waited, he knew what she was doing. Margaret picked up his pants off the floor, pulled his wallet out of the back pocket, and walked back out into the living room. "Here," she said and tossed it to him. She was curious, but she had promised she wouldn't go snooping through his wallet.
Hawkeye eyed her and then pulled out a ten dollar bill. "That was close," he said as he set it down on the coffee table. "That's all I have left." Margaret tried not to look surprised; she would have guessed he'd had more cash on him, especially if he was traveling. "We'll have to stop off at the bank tomorrow before we go to the store."
"I should probably withdrawal some cash too," she said as she sat down beside him. Hawkeye was going to let her go with him to the bank; this got her a little bit excited. Maybe now she would be able to see how extravagant he really was.
"I can give you some. What's mine is yours." He said nonchalantly. He never had a problem sharing, and she was going to be his wife very soon, so what did it matter?
"No, honey. I have some money."
"It's not a problem."
"Its fine," she smiled.
"If you're sure."
"I am."
He gave her a soft kiss. Hawkeye wondered why she hadn't just opened up his wallet. If she was that curious about it, he would have expected her to look. She was alone in the room. "I'll get the groceries tomorrow."
"Okay."
"I wonder where that food is."
"You know how they are. That place is always slow."
"Then why did you order from there?" He asked.
"That was why, but you said we didn't have enough time."
"That's a good thing," he reminded her. "Maybe this time I'll out do myself."
She chuckled. "I wish."
"Just you wait," he told as he gave her challenging look. "The night's not over."
Margaret moved so her arm was resting on the back of the couch. "I'm regretting looking at those houses now," she said lightly.
Hawkeye leaned in a kissed her. "If only someone would have told me they were slow earlier," he teased.
She held onto the collar of his robe and forced him to move closer to her. "It's probably been thirty or so minutes, we probably have another half an hour." Knowing their delivery service, they still had a while to go. She pulled him down and kissed him slowly. Hawkeye moved in closer and her hands moved to the back of his neck.
"You know," Hawkeye said when they parted lips. "I don't think this is a very good idea." He knew that if they got started he wouldn't be able to stop, even for the door.
"What's wrong with a little harmless kissing while we're waiting for the food?" She massaged the back of his neck gently.
Hawkeye grinned; he couldn't help but give in when it came to her. "Fine, but you're answering the door."
"Fine." She kissed him, her hands roaming all around his back and neck.
He pressed his body against hers and got lost in her once again. He had never known that he could love someone so much before. Being without her for four days and knowing how much that hurt her was amazing to him. Someone loved him that much.
Margaret suddenly pushed him away. They were both a little breathless. "The door."
"I thought you said they would be late."
"They usually are." She straitened out her hair. "Would you get the door?"
"No. You're getting the door, remember?"
She looked into his eyes and smiled. "Then maybe you should get off me." Hawkeye grinned and kissed her. Then he moved off. "Thank you." She grabbed the cash off of the side table and went to the door. She checked herself in the mirror to make sure she was somewhat presentable and then opened the door and paid for their food.
Hawkeye stood up and helped her bring the food and the soda to the coffee table. "You think this is enough?"
"I'm pretty sure. This would be enough for six people."
"You said you were hungry."
"Yes, but I'm not an animal. I can't eat all of this." She started opening things to see what it was.
"And no one said you had to," he said as he joined her. "What we don't eat now we'll save as leftovers."
"We won't need to go grocery shopping with all of this."
Hawkeye opened the other boxes and then got out two plates. "I'm making you a romantic dinner tomorrow night."
"I'll probably be too full from all of this to eat tomorrow night," she said as she looked at it all.
Hawkeye set a plate down in front of her. "Remember what I said, pace yourself. You don't want to be full; you just want to feel good."
"Isn't that your department?" She asked with a grin on her face.
Hawkeye put a fry in her mouth. "Eat."
She smiled accepting the food that was put in her mouth. She could have sat there all night with him just looking at him. Although, teasing him was much more fun. She was able to see that smile on his face and that sparkle in his eye again. Four days was a long time to go without seeing him.
"How is it?" He asked.
"Great," she smiled.
"You call this food great?" He wasn't aware that she wasn't speaking of the food, but of her own thoughts. She shrugged her shoulders. "You just wait for tomorrow night."
"Oh, I can't wait," she said taking a bite out of a chicken wing.
Hawkeye looked at her oddly for a moment trying to understand why she was acting so dreamy. That was just her though. No one ever knew what went through her mind. He thought about trying to understand that, but it only brought him more confusion. He shrugged off the curiosity and began to eat his own meal. He didn't realize how hungry he was until he took that first bite out of his hamburger. "Mmmm, oh," he moaned.
Margaret chuckled slightly. "It must be good."
"Oh, it is." He still had a mouth full of food.
"Can I try?"
Hawkeye swallowed his food and took a sip of his soda. "I knew you'd want some." He leaned over and gave her a tender kiss and then held up his burger for her to take a bite out of. Each night he was gone he always had some left over food on his plate. Subconsciously he was saving it for her even though he knew she wasn't there. It was just something that he had grown accustomed to. "Good?"
She nodded and held out a piece of her chicken sandwich for him to try. He leaned over and took a bite and decided that his burger was better. "You want to trade?" He asked.
"Are you sure?"
He nodded. He knew that she wanted his food, but she didn't want to ask. "Yes. I like yours better."
"You do?"
"Yes. Now hand it over." It was a lie, but it was only a small one. It wouldn't hurt anyone.
Margaret smiled and graciously accepted the burger. "I don't know why, but yours always tastes better."
"Maybe you just have an infatuation with my mouth," he said as he took a bite out her chicken sandwich.
Margaret leaned over and gave him a kiss. "Maybe I do."
Hawkeye chuckled to himself and took another sip of soda. "So do we have any other plans for tomorrow, other then shopping?"
"Well I didn't know you were coming home today. I really didn't have anything planned."
"Good, let's keep it that way."
Margaret smiled, she was glad he felt the same way. "So you won't be too disappointed if we spend most of the day in bed?"
"I wouldn't be disappointed even if you walked around naked all day," he told her.
She chuckled. "Of course you wouldn't. That goes without saying."
He smiled. "What are you trying to say, huh?"
"You know what I mean."
"So, I love your body. That's a good thing."
"Yeah, now it is."
"What do you mean?" He took a bite of the sandwich.
"You used to lust after my body all the time. Now its okay, because we're together, but before that...."
"You're just a great specimen of the human body. I am a doctor, Margaret. I should notice these things." She rolled her eyes. "Ah, I even missed that!"
"What?" She looked at him with confusion.
"You always roll your eyes at me. I missed that." She smiled and leaned in for a kiss. "I missed that even more though."
"Me too." She brushed some bread crumbs off of his chin. "You're a messy eater."
Hawkeye just laughed. "So, you almost finished?"
"Not yet."
He narrowed his eyes looking at her. "You didn't eat lunch, did you?"
"Yes I did!" She protested.
"Then what did you have?"
"Um... some chips."
"Margaret!"
"I was busy." She hated when he got on her about eating a healthy lunch. She just didn't have the time while she was at work. "It's not like I want to skip lunch. I like to eat just as much as the next person."
"I know you do."
"Now what's that supposed to mean?!" She set her burger down and looked at him.
"Nothing at all." He knew he shouldn't have said anything. "I was just agreeing with you."
"Sure you were," she narrowed her eyes at him and nodded her head sardonically.
"Baby, you have a terrific body." She really did.
"You better watch your mouth or you won't be seeing anymore of it," she said in a mock serious tone.
Hawkeye finished off his sandwich and wiped off his hands. He moved closer to her and untied the sash of robe. Before she could object he moved a hand inside and touched her bare skin. "I think you know how I feel about you," he said softly.
Margaret smiled and kissed him. "I'm still eating," she told him as she stuffed some French fries into her mouth.
"That's fine by me," he said as he moved closer and kissed her neck. "I'll just start working on desert while I'm waiting."
She moaned getting pleasure out of his kisses. She was enjoying it a little too much. "Ah... Hawk...honey."
"Hmm?"
"Stop please."
He looked into her eyes. "You can eat. I don't mind."
She smiled and gave him a kiss on the lips. "Let's get this cleaned up." She gave him another kiss. "And then we can have dessert."
Hawkeye grinned as he brush his hand across her bare stomach and stood up. "Good. I may need another rejuvenating snack later."
"Yes," she stood up and tied her robe again. "You may."
Hawkeye picked up as much food and containers as he could and walked off to the kitchen. Margaret was following tight behind him like she had done since he got home a few hours before. They shoved everything in the refrigerator and in the trash within minutes. "Done!"
"Yep." She placed her arms around his neck and gave him a kiss. "Should we have dessert in bed?"
Hawkeye shook his head, "I was taught never to eat in bed."
Margaret brushed a lock of hair out of his eyes. "Don't you think we can make an exception, just this one time?"
"I don't know, I know how you feel about getting crumbs on the sheets."
"I've been known to bend the rules every now and then," she said seductively as she loosened his robe.
"Then how about we mix it up," he said suggestively. "After all, where's a better place to have dessert other then the kitchen?"
Margaret's eyes widened, he was being awfully brave. They'd already spent one evening on the kitchen floor, she wasn't anxious to do it again. "I have a better idea," she said, taking his hand and pulling him from the kitchen.
He followed along with his robe flapping in the wind behind him. Any place was better than the bed at the moment. In fact, any place was fine at the moment. "Where...?"
Margaret reached the living room and stopped. She turned around and pushed his robe off of his shoulders looking at his naked body for a moment. "I think..." Her fingers played with the little bit of hair on his chest. "That this is as good of place as any."
"The floor?"
"Or the chair, or the couch, or the coffee table..."
"Really?"
"Uh huh." She moved in to kiss him, but he stopped her and untied the sash on her robe. He placed his hands on her bare hips and pressed her into him kissing her. She moaned into his mouth. The combination of his kisses and his naked body pressed against hers was almost too much to bear. Hawkeye was the one person on earth that she just couldn't get enough of.
His mouth traveled down to her neck and her chest while his hands moved to her shoulders and pushed her robe down. "Very nice," he smiled.
Margaret smiled as she led him to the couch. He sat down and she straddled his lap zeroing her mouth in on his. As far as their sex life was concerned, they were normally very conservative when it came to where they did it. On occasion they would try something new, but it was very rare. She gasped as his mouth moved to suck on her neck. "No marks..."
Hawkeye worked lower and kissed the underside of her throat. "No one will see," he breathed.
"Work..." she groaned, she couldn't help it when he kissed her like that. He nipped lightly at her skin and then moved lower to suck on her pulse. "Hawkeye," he was making things difficult.
Hawkeye moaned when he heard his name, "Shh..."
"Please..." She was practically begging him now.
Relentlessly he moved back to her mouth and kissed her deeply. "Damn work," he breathed into her mouth. Margaret groaned in agreement. Hawkeye's hands traveled up her back and then back down to force her hips further against his.
She gasped at the contact and relaxed against him. Her hands ruffled his hair as they kissed. She was trying to keep her mouth connected with his so he wouldn't wander back to her neck and make any marks. She didn't need that. "Ha...Haw...Hawk..."
"Mmmm?" His hands pressed her hips downward once again.
"Oh..."
"Yeah..." Hawkeye flipped her over onto her back and then climbed in between his legs. They didn't always need words to communicate.
"Better?" He nodded and moved to her neck. Her hands moved to cup his face and bring him up, but he wouldn't do that. Instead, he moved lower. She arched her back holding the back of his head. He did incredible things to her. He pressed his hips into her more and she gasped. "Ah," she squealed.
"Mmmm," he smiled and licked his way up her chest and across her chin until he made contact with her mouth. His aim was to finally out due himself, as Margaret put it earlier. She wanted a good time and he was planning on showing her that.
"Do we have any chicken wings left?"
"Is that all you think about? Chicken wings?"
Hawkeye was lying on top of her; his head was resting on her chest. Margaret rubbed his back soothingly as she looked up at the ceiling, she was feeling very good. "I don't smoke, you know that."
"I know, you eat."
"Hey!" She stopped and looked down at him.
"Well its true baby," he lifted his head and met her gaze. "It happens almost every time."
"I can't help it, I need something to nibble on," she defended.
Hawkeye grinned and nipped lightly at her skin, "As do I."
She giggled and pushed his head up. "I need something else."
"You are no fun."
"No fun?! You don't call what we just did, fun?"
He reached up and kissed her. "The most fun I've ever had." After a moment of silence he said, "Well...maybe not."
She slapped the back of his head. "What do you mean by that?!"
He winked at her and then got off of her. "I'm pretty sure we have some wings left."
Margaret stood up and grabbed her robe and then followed him into the kitchen. "You didn't answer my question."
"Yes I did. We do have wings." He pulled out a container and sat it on the counter. "Hey, you put your robe on."
She looked down. "I know." She grabbed the food from him and sat down at the table.
Hawkeye took a seat on a chair next to her. "Oh, this is cold." He jumped back up.
She grinned. "That's why I have my robe on."
"You could have at least told me to put mine on." He picked up a hand towel off of the counter and examined it before placing in on the chair to sit on it.
"I like you like this."
"Naked?" He looked down at himself.
"Vulnerable is a better word for it."
Hawkeye grinned, "So then you wouldn't mind if I just lounged around like this?" He sat back in the chair.
"Not at all," she smiled.
Hawkeye decided to be daring and test his luck, "Even if say...Lorraine came over?"
Margaret's eyes lit up, "Please, it was hard enough even when you had your clothes on." Hawkeye knew that Lorraine had been watching him, and Margaret was aware of that. She knew he was just trying to get under her skin.
Hawkeye chuckled to himself and put his hands behind his head, "Well can you blame her?"
Margaret looked over his body and smiled, "I guess not."
He grinned proudly. "I've found a new sense of self while I was away."
"No, you found your old confidence back. You felt useful while you were away. You don't here with me." Her eyes lowered to her food.
She was right. There was no denying that, but it wasn't her fault. "I'd still rather be here with you."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course," he smiled. "You're more important than I am."
"No I'm not."
"To me you are." He touched her hand. "The ideal situation would be for both of us to be happy with our work. That'll happen soon."
"Two weeks," she smiled brightly.
His eyes widened in that realization. That seemed so soon. "What about our wedding?"
"Oh no!" They hadn't done anything about that yet. "What are we going to do about that?"
"I don't know. I thought that was your department. You wanted to do it."
"Well, honey I don't have that much time."
"You tell me what you want and I'll do what I can to make it happen."
Margaret shook her head and shifted her food with her fork. "Two weeks isn't going to be enough time," she told him.
"If we know what we want it is," he tried to console her.
"But we don't know! We don't have any idea!"
"Honey," he scooted closer and put his arm around her. "It's going to be okay. We'll spend this week going over what we want, and then we'll call my dad and tell him. You'll see, everything is going to work out just fine."
"I was just so stressed out about work and...I completely forgot!" Margaret buried her face in her hands.
"It'll be fine," he kissed the top of her hair. "Trust me."
"I hope you're right."
"Of course I'm right. Now we have something to do this weekend."
"I didn't want to do anything. Now we have to get on the phone and make all kinds of calls and..."
"Margaret, slow down. All we have to do is figure out what we want for our wedding."
"How am I supposed to get a dress?"
"Do you know what you want?"
"Well, sort of."
"Look, we're going out tomorrow. I'm sure they have some sort of magazine that has that sort of thing. We'll start our planning."
"Okay."
"Tonight, we don't have to worry about any of that. I had to go without you for four of the longest days in my life. It may sound selfish of me to say this, but I want you to be with me tonight. Only you and I exist."
She smiled. "That sounds wonderful, but our wedding is about us."
"I know. Why are you in such a hurry to get married? We live together now. We could live together there and just plan our wedding for a later date."
"No," Margaret said quickly. "I don't want to wait any longer; I want to be your wife."
Hawkeye smiled lovingly at her, "So do I."
"I love you."
"I love you too," he leaned in and kissed her gently.
"Can we not talk about this anymore?" She asked when he pulled away. "I'm getting a headache."
"Of course. Come on, why don't we go get in bed."
Margaret nodded, "That sounds like a really good idea."
Hawkeye stood up and offered her his hand. "Did you get your fill of chicken?"
Margaret tried not to smile, "Yes."
Looking at the mess of boxes on the table he said, "We can clean this up in the morning." He put his arm around her and led her toward the bedroom.
Normally Margaret wouldn't be able to sleep with a mess on the table, but it didn't matter tonight. She let him lead her to the bedroom shutting all the lights off in the apartment as they went. Tonight she would be wrapped in his arms. "Let me go to the bathroom," she said.
"I want to brush my teeth too." He followed her in there. "Wait, my things are in my suitcase." He walked back into the bedroom and went through his suitcase trying to find what he was looking for. When he walked back into the bathroom Margaret was standing at the sink brushing her teeth. He kissed the side of her neck and then grabbed the toothpaste.
Margaret watched him bring the tooth brush to his mouth and brush every tooth up and down. That annoying habit was something that she missed. She wrapped her arms around him from behind and placed a kiss on his back before resting her head on him. "I'm so glad you're home."
"Yes." He spit in the sink and rinsed his mouth. He turned around and hugged her.
"Let's go to sleep," she sighed.
"I'll be there in moment," he told her. "I need to go to the bathroom first."
"Okay," she gave him a kiss.
As she was walking out the door Hawkeye called out to her. "And Margaret," she turned to look at him. "Don't you dare put any pajamas on." Margaret flashed him a smile and then disappeared into the bedroom.
A moment later Hawkeye turned off the light in the bathroom and walked out. He found Margaret standing beside the bed in attempt to straiten the sheets. "You pulled the entire top sheet out," she said as he walked up behind her.
"Me?"
"Well your legs are a lot longer and stronger than mine."
"That doesn't mean I did it all on my own, you were also there as I remember," he reminded her. "Besides, we've done worse."
Margaret turned her head so he couldn't see her blush. She made up her last hospital corner and then pulled up the comforter. "There."
Hawkeye wanted to laugh; she'd just remade the entire the bed for nothing. "Did you make the bed every morning?" He asked as he climbed in. Usually it was him who did that.
Margaret looked at him sheepishly. "No."
"You were the one that got me into the habit of making the bed."
"Yes," she smiled as she climbed in. "I got you into it and myself out of it."
Hawkeye reached across her and shut the lamp off. "So you're just getting me into all those good habits so you don't have to do it anymore, huh?"
"No. You're always the last one out of bed, so you should be the one to make the bed."
Hawkeye sighed; he could never win with her. "Uh huh."
"Would you do me a favor?"
"What's that?" He settled into bed.
"Would you unplug the phone?" She didn't want any interruptions. She wanted to be able to sleep in and not move from his arms until she was good and ready.
"Yeah." He smiled. He turned over and stretched across the bed to get to the phone. "Damn thing. Why do you have to have the nightstand pushed so far against the wall? I can't get to the cord." He moved closer to the edge of the bed and pushed out the nightstand.
"We have limited space, honey. I had to work with what I had."
Hawkeye unplugged the phone cord and then turned back over onto his side fully expecting her to have her back to him ready to spoon. He was pleasantly surprised to see that she was facing him. She watched him settled down onto his pillow and then she moved into his arms. Her face was buried in his neck, her arms around him and their legs entangled. "Oh, this is more like it."
She smiled at the feel of his warm arms holding her close. "This bed was so lonely without you."
"Mine was too."
"I didn't like it."
He kissed the top of her head. "Neither did I."
"I love you," she whispered.
Hawkeye kissed the top of her head. "I love you too. Goodnight, baby."
They made up, but this isn't the end of the story. Now its time to go to Maine and get ready for the wedding.