They were seated at a table towards the back of the restaurant where it was quiet enough that they could talk, and with a good view of the rest of the place so they could people watch. The walls inside were painted with murals, too, and there was art everywhere. Every tabletop was covered in a different painting, and the booths and chairs were upholstered in different coverings and colors and built in different styles, and somehow it all managed to work together. Several large screen televisions throughout the place played retro cartoons on them, and fun rockabilly music played softly in the background. They took off their coats and looked around the place, almost mesmerized.
"Wow, Fran! I think this was a good choice. I bet the children would love this place!"
"I know, right? It looked neat on the outside, but didn't see the inside. And it smells yummy in here! I'm really hungry now!"
"Well good, let's get you fed!" They looked over the hand-drawn menus at all of the fantastic burger choices, and read through all of the other grilled options, too. Barbecue, chicken, smoked salmon, their eyes were wide at all the options.
"Oh wow, Max! It all looks so good! We're gonna have to come back here if it's good."
"Yes, this might be a great place to bring the children, don't you think?" He asked.
"Yeah, if they haven't been here before. But I think this place is pretty new."
Just then, a waitress in an auto body shop work shirt, jeans with the hems folded up and Converse high-tops on came up to their table.
"Hello hello! My name is Debbie, and I'll be your waitress tonight. Can I start you off with some drinks while you drool over the yummy menu?" They both laughed, because it was exactly what they were doing.
"Sure!" Fran said. "What do you have that doesn't have caffeine?" Max nodded in agreement.
"Well, we do have decaf tea, and lemonade, but might I recommend our top seller which is the fruit water we make in house. If you'll have a look on the back of the menu, there's a list of flavors you can choose from. They aren't overly sweet, but are so delicious you could chug a gallon of it and still want more."
"Oh! That sounds good! I'll try one. Let me see…oh, raspberry pear? That sounds good! I'll have one of those!" Fran said excitedly.
"Yes, that does sound good. I think I'll try the strawberry peach. Thank you."
"You got it! I'll be right back with those, and then I'll get your order then." She smiled and hurried around to the other room where the bar was, and they went back to looking over the menu.
"Ooh- they have a 'teriyaki barbecue turkey burger.' With fries and… what's this? Jicama and broccoli slaw? That sounds interesting. Hmm… that might be good, actually. Or a Jamaican jerk turkey burger with blue cheese. Nice! Have you seen anything you might want?" He asked Fran.
"Oh gosh yes! Everything they have on here sounds like it would be good. But I think I'm in the mood for a burger. Like maybe a cheeseburger, you know?" She looked down through the list and saw something she'd never had before. "Oh my gosh, they have a bison burger! That's supposed to be really good! Hmm… they do a 'buffalo bison,' that might be too spicy. Mmm- bacon cheese. Oh! Blackened bacon and cheddar bison burger! Yes! With fries, and this one has a shredded iceberg lettuce, purple cabbage, and carrot slaw. Oh, okay! I know what I'm getting!" She clapped her hands together, eagerly anticipating her meal. "You know what you want?"
"Yes, I think I'm doing the Jamaican jerk turkey burger. I've got to see what that's like!" Fran patted Max's hand and they looked over the restaurant to see their waitress headed their way with their drinks.
"Hello again! Got your drinks here- this one is the raspberry pear, and for you, the strawberry peach. Have you two decided, or do you need a few more minutes?"
"I think we're ready. Fran-"
"Yes… I know what I want! And it sounds so good! I'd like the blackened bacon and cheddar bison burger, well done. I can't wait to try it!"
"Fantastic! And the fries and slaw are alright with you?"
"Yes, that'll do just fine, thank you!"
"And for you, sir?"
"I'd like the Jamaican jerk turkey burger, with the fries and slaw. That sounds good."
"Oh, it is good! I think you'll both love what you chose. I've had everything they make here, and it's a wonder I haven't doubled in size!" They all laughed. They handed her their menus. "Alright, then, if you don't need anything else, I'll get this order in!"
"Thank you," Max said. They both reached for their drinks and took a sip, wanting to know if they were really that good. They were. Their eyes lit up and they took another long sip.
"Oh, baby, that's good! Max, you gotta try this!" She handed her glass to him.
"You've got to try this one, it's fantastic!" He handed his glass to Fran and they both took sips of each other's drinks. "Mmm! That's good! I understand why that's so popular now."
"Oh, I know, right? Yours is really good, too! I could chug the whole glass right now, but I gotta save room for that burger! Oh, I need to put this down and save it or it's gonna be gone!"
Max laughed and took another sip of his and set it down on the table, and Fran set hers down at enough of a distance that she wouldn't keep picking it up. Max scooted his chair over a little closer to hers and reached for her hand and held it under the table. Fran leaned against him and they looked around the restaurant, looking at all of the art and design in every direction. Max looked over at Fran, who seemed like she was really enjoying everything.
"It seems like today's really turning out to be a day of art and design, and decor. Sounds perfect for you!" He smiled and squeezed her hand. She grabbed his upper arm and smiled back.
"It is perfect! I've been having the best time ever with you, Max! So thank you. For everything."
"You're very welcome. So you're really having a good time?"
"The best time!" She leaned in closer to him, and he tilted his head down and gave her a soft kiss, then smiled.
"You know something? That's something I always thought I might be nervous about, or even maybe embarrassed about…"
"What?"
"Kissing you in public. You know, because I'm a bit- stuffy. A prude. But even though you can make my stomach do somersaults, I haven't been feeling nervous around you at all. You have some kind of effect on me. I don't care if anyone sees us kissing. In fact, I think I might feel a little proud about it. I want people to know you're with me. And that I'm with you. You know, all this overthinking things like I always do, I'm realizing how much I don't need to do that, especially with you. And I'm realizing that anytime I might feel nervous, or worried, I should just go to you. You take that all away. You have this way of comforting me, Fran. I like how that feels."
"Really? I mean, as long as I'm not doing anything stupid to exasperate you…?"
"You don't exasperate me Fran. All those times- it wasn't because of you. I know it wasn't. You just challenged me, like I've never been challenged before. And there was that- tension- too. I didn't know what to do. How I was supposed to handle that, you know? But it feels like we're making progress there, don't you think?"
Fran squeezed his hand and rubbed his arm. "We are. A lot of progress, Max. You really feel like I comfort you?"
"I do. I don't know what it is. Maybe part of it's because I'm not pushing you away. It feels a lot nicer to let you in. It's like you don't even have to try. That feeling just comes over me- like I can finally exhale, you know? And I hadn't even realized I'd been holding my breath."
Fran leaned back a little to look at him straight-on. "I'm glad I can make you feel that way. I guess I don't know that I'm doing anything differently, I just- I don't know, maybe it's because you've been more open to things. More open even to us just having that physical contact, you know? This physical contact…" she squeezed his hand again and rubbed his arm. "It just feels really nice. And maybe it helps me feel less nervous, too. But yeah, I get what you mean about feeling like you can finally exhale. Yeah. Maybe… maybe part of it was because of last night- talking about all that. Maybe part of it was that little exercise we did- acting like we were other people. We didn't have to put up a wall to do that. And we saw how much fun we could have together. That we can have together. I know how happy it makes me. So if I can do that for you- make you feel that way- comforted… and more secure… then it makes me really glad. I'm glad I can make you feel that way. Because I want you to feel that way. You deserve to. And I want to take care of you, if that's okay with you…" she gave him a look that went straight to his heart.
"It is okay with me, as long as I can take care of you, too." He smiled at her and stroked the back of her hand.
"I'd like that." He leaned towards her and kissed her again, and she reached up to caress his cheek.
"Mmm… that fruit water really is good, don't you think?" He grinned. Fran burst out laughing and swatted him, then turned to look at her glass. She reached for it and took another sip, and so did Max. They kept laughing for a few more minutes.
She rubbed Max's arm and looked up at him. "So, what do you think about the kids making bets with each other about us? I totally didn't see that coming."
"I'm not sure what to think about that. I mean, I guess it makes me feel good that Brighton thought we'd be together before the summer. And I guess it makes me feel good that they seemed to want that for us. But then, if Maggie thought I wasn't going to step up and do something when it came to you… that she didn't have any faith in me that way. That kind of hurts a bit."
"Aw, Max, I'm sure it wasn't like that. Maybe they all were sure we'd get together, but it was just betting on when it would happen. Maybe she thought we wouldn't take that chance until after school was out, and maybe not until we were on vacation. We do seem to be a lot nicer with each other when we go on vacations."
"True. I like how that sounds, a lot better than thinking she was betting against me. I mean, it did sound like they were all pretty happy about it when they found out."
"Yeah, they sounded really happy. That makes me feel good. That makes me happy. And I think everybody will be happy for us. Except maybe Ms. Babcock."
Max laughed. "I'm not worried about her. She'll get over it. I'm sure she'll be extra crabby for a while, but if she gets really annoying then I'll just send her to the lawyer's office, or to the theater to work. Then you can come hang out with me if you want."
"I'd love that. But I don't want to get in the way of you getting work done."
"You won't. If anything, I may get more work done. I tend to work pretty fast when I'm happy." He smiled at her and squeezed her hand, then wrapped his arm over the back of her chair.
"Well, then, I hope you're happy all the time so you can keep taking time off, and maybe we can go get into some trouble together!"
Max laughed. "Anytime, my darling! Any time!"
Fran laughed and patted his knee.
They looked back over the restaurant as they waited for their food, and watched as a waitress and a waiter with his hair greased up 50s style ran into each other and burst out into swing dancing to a rockabilly song that played over the speakers. Fran loved it and clapped her hands. Max grinned at her as she watched the two. The crowd in the restaurant began clapping to the beat as they watched the show.
"Oh, I love this! We have to bring the kids here!" Fran exclaimed.
"Absolutely. They'd love this!"
Just as the song finished and the crowd settled down, the waiter and waitress went back to work, and their own waitress came around the corner with a large tray with their food on top. Fran and Max got excited, and quickly made room for everything on their table.
"Here you are! I hope you're hungry!" The waitress said.
"Oh, we are! I can't wait!" Fran said. The waitress lowered the tray and set their plates of food in front of them.
"Now, here's your ketchup. Is there anything else I can get you? More fruit waters yet?"
"Maybe not just yet, but I have a feeling we will want another round at some point. This looks great!" Max said.
"Alright, then, enjoy! I'll be back around in a little bit to check on you. So if you don't need anything else, I'll let you get to it!"
"Thank you, I think we've got everything we need for the moment," Fran said, spreading her napkin across her lap. Max did the same and the waitress left them to their meal. "Oh, I think I need to cut this in half so I don't dump it all over myself!"
"Good idea, these are pretty big. And they smell so good!" Max popped a french fry in his mouth and he and Fran grabbed their knives and cut their burgers in half. They both took a bite at the same time and savored it. Max nodded his head up and down as he chewed his food, then Fran copied him. They both grinned. Fran wiped her mouth with her napkin.
"So good! You gotta try this!"
"You should try this one, too! Here…" he reached his turkey burger over to her so she could take a bite, then she held hers out for him. They both closed their eyes from happiness. "Okay," Max said, "We're coming back here again and again to try all the other burgers, too!"
Fran laughed. "I gotta try this slaw, I might put some on the burger if it's good." She set her burger down on the plate and picked up her fork, then took a bite of her slaw, and Max did the same. They both loved it. They swapped their small bowls of slaw to try each other's, then handed them back.
"Niles needs to come here, too. Maybe he can get some new ideas for things to make at home. Oh, try the fries, too. They're really good." Fran popped a couple fries into her mouth as she put some of her slaw in her burger, then picked it up for another bite. Max took another bite of his burger and reached for the ketchup, pouring out a small puddle of it to dip his fries into. They ate for a while in happy silence, stealing glances at each other and smiling.
The waitress came back around soon after they finished the first halves of their burgers and set down two fresh glasses of fruit waters and checked to see how they were doing. They were still happily stuffing their faces so all they could do was give her the thumbs up and smile. The waitress left them to finish their meal, and Max wiped his mouth with his napkin and leaned back in his chair, then reached for his glass and took several sips. He looked back over at Fran who was so immersed in her food that it made him chuckle.
"Good?" He asked. Fran smiled and raised her hands, palms up, like she was praising her food and the restaurant it came from. She finished chewing and wiped her mouth.
"So… stinking… good! Max, I wish I had a huge stomach and could eat like four more of these! How about you? Are you liking yours?"
"I'm loving it! You know, I think I've only had a turkey burger maybe once before, and it was nothing like this! And your bison burger seems great, too. I might have to get that next time!"
Fran smiled and patted the back of his hand, then reached for her glass and chugged some down. She started in on the rest of her fries, then swiped some of Max's ketchup. Max smiled.
"You need some ketchup?" He asked.
"I just wanted to try them with it. But they don't really need any, this seasoning is just right. But maybe just one more…!" She picked up a fry and dabbed it in his ketchup one more time, and he laughed.
"So, I was thinking about tomorrow. Why don't we get up for breakfast, and then after breakfast we can get everything cleared out in the livingroom and ready to go. Like clear off the tables, the magazines and knick knacks, all of that. Make sure the couch and chairs are clean. Oh, and we need to move the entry table out of the way, too. And then I was thinking, once they pick up the furniture and have it out of the way, do you think we'd have time to roll up the rug and maybe sweep and mop there before they bring the new one?"
"Oh, that's a good idea," Fran said, thinking about it. "Yeah, we should probably do that, shouldn't we? Niles would appreciate it. That way the new one is going down on a clean floor. Not that Niles isn't good at keeping everything clean, but I know for a fact he never cleans under that rug. Yeah, let's do that. But will we have enough time before the truck with the rug shows up? I mean, will the floor be dry in time?"
"I hope so. We may need to grab a fan from the attic just in case. But, yes, we might be scrambling pretty fast. Unless there was a way to move the furniture off of the rug so we can roll it up before anyone shows up? And maybe do a little cleaning before they come?"
"Maybe. Hmm… we could try that. Oh, what about the chair by the fireplace? Should we just leave that until after they move the other stuff out? And what did you want to do with it?"
"Oh, I just figured we'd maybe put it in a guest bedroom at least for now. It won't take up too much space."
"Okay, yeah, that sounds good. Oh, if we can't get lunch before they show up, we might be having a late lunch tomorrow. But that's okay. We've got plenty of food at home, we should be able to heat something up."
"Okay, that sounds good. But yes, maybe if we can get that cleaning started early, that would be good. Then we'd only have to clean up any footprints the movers made after that, if they leave any."
Fran took another sip of tea and looked around the restaurant and smiled. It made Max smile.
"You're excited about all this, aren't you?" He asked.
"Yes! I'm not used to this sort of thing, redecorating like this. It's so much fun! I can't wait to see how it all looks when we're done." She was beaming.
"It'll be fantastic, I just know it! And I can't wait to flop down on that new couch with you, and maybe be lazy for a few days. We've been running around quite a bit, so maybe it would be nice to just have some quiet time together for a while."
Fran reached for his hand and held it. "I'd like that. We can snuggle up on the couch and enjoy everything. And maybe sit in front of the fireplace, too. On the nice, new loveseat!"
Max squeezed the tips of her fingers in his. "Yeah…"
They finished their meals and their drinks, and the waitress came back to drop off the bill and remove their dishes. Max made sure to leave a really good tip.
"You ready to head home?" Max asked.
"Yep. And ready to go look at what we bought, and all those catalogs!" Max laughed and they got up from their seats, and Max helped Fran on with her coat, then put his on. She grabbed him by the hand and led him out of the restaurant and back out onto the street. Max wrapped his arm over her shoulders and pulled her close.
"You know, I'm glad we made it to Coney Island last night. The temperature feels like it dropped a bit."
"Yeah, we lucked out pretty good. I wonder if it's because of that snow that might be coming."
"It might. But at least now it means I have an excuse to cuddle up with you when we get back…"
"You don't need an excuse to do that. I'll cuddle up with you anytime, sweetie!" She wrapped her arms around his waist and they continued walking slowly down the sidewalk, grinning from ear to ear. "Thank you for dinner, Max. I really enjoyed that."
"I'm glad, and I did, too. So thank you for the suggestion."
"Aw, you're welcome. I'd like to take the credit for knowing it was gonna be that good, but there was no way for me to be sure. So I'm really glad it worked out.
"So am I." Max stopped their walk for a moment and gave her a kiss on the lips, then he took her hand and pulled her with him. "C'mon, it's cold out here! Let's get home as fast as we can!"
Fran hurried along with him as they dodged the other people in their path, and briefly jumped up on a low wall and hurried along it, holding onto Max's shoulder for balance. They both laughed as Fran kept losing her balance, but he kept a hand on her to keep her safe. Fran jumped from the little wall right before they rounded the corner onto Park Avenue.
They started settling down after the silliness, and swung their arms back and forth as they held hands. Max was feeling fantastic, and very happy. Everything he had been afraid of before was just fading away from his mind. Just the one act of opening up to Fran- of letting her in- was allowing Fran to relax and be herself, too. They really were best friends, and Max felt like he was really falling for her, too. She really did make him happy.
Fran was having such a good time with Max. It felt like they were still playing Jack and Eliza, but she knew they weren't. Max had just decided not to keep her at arm's length anymore. She still couldn't believe that they were dating- and that he was her boyfriend. She glanced over at him and their eyes met, and they smiled at each other.
"I still can't believe it," she said.
"Believe what?"
"That you're my boyfriend!" She pulled his arm against her and clutched it.
"I can't believe you're my girlfriend!" He pulled her hand up to his lips and kissed the back of it. "So, now that we've had our first date, I'd like to ask you out for our second. Will you go out with me again, Fran?"
"You bet I will! And we don't have to go out, we could stay in, too. And this first date doesn't have to be over yet…" she tugged on his sleeve.
"Okay. I'd love to hang out with you some more tonight. And maybe tomorrow… maybe I could make dinner for you, and maybe we could watch a movie or something?"
"A movie? But we won't have any furniture in the living room."
"Well, we don't have to watch it there. Um, I do have a big television in my room. I mean, well we- just to watch a movie, you know, um-"
"It's okay, Max. Remember, we're best friends, too. And you know, if we were in college and hanging out in the dorms, we'd have to use a bed like a couch, wouldn't we?"
"True. Are you still thinking about Jack and Eliza?" He asked.
"Well, I was thinking about that earlier. It kind of seems like maybe… I don't know… maybe they're a part of us now. Maybe they always were. We don't have to pretend to be those people because they're part of who we are. You know? I mean, today, we've been having so much fun, and we weren't pretending. Of course we sort of planned to tease sales people, but that kind of backfired. But in a good way. And it didn't feel like we were pretending."
"No, it didn't. That was a lot of fun. It really was. And so was dinner. And now. It's really nice to have a best friend to spend time with. And it's even better when you're dating them, too." He wrapped his arm over her shoulders and she wrapped her arms around his waist.
"Yeah, it sure is…"
They walked slowly up to the house and Max unlocked the door and followed Fran inside. He locked the door behind him and helped her off with her coat, then took his off and hung them both up.
"Well, I don't know about you, but I need to run to the little girl's room!" She set her purse on the bannister and headed for the downstairs bathroom.
"I'll get the fire going, alright? Warm it up a bit."
"Okie doke!" Fran ran into the bathroom and Max headed for the fireplace after he turned on the lights. He moved things out of the way, flipped the switches on the fireplace, and lit the gas flames, then adjusted the blower to send the warm air in their direction. He wandered over to the coffee table to look into the bags Fran had lined up, and smiled as he remembered their adventure.
Fran hurried back out of the bathroom to him, and grabbed him around the waist.
"My turn! Do you want to find something to watch on the television? I can grab us some water or something."
"Sure! I'll see what I can find, and I'll start getting everything out of the bags so we can see where it all needs to go."
"Alright, I'll be right back." Max hurried to the bathroom, and then went to the kitchen to get them drinks, and to bring the box with the last apple fritter with him for their dessert. He grabbed a fork and a knife so they could cut it up. He put everything on a tray and then headed back to Fran in the living room, where she had found an old movie on the TV, and was emptying the shopping bags onto the coffee table. She had already made a stack of catalogs on the end of the table. Max came over to the table, handed her a drink, set the box for the fritter down on the coffee table with the silverware, and set his drink down. He left the tray on the floor, leaning against the coffee table so it was out if the way.
"Come sit, sweetie! Get your shoes off and let's look at all these goodies!" Fran said. Max came and sat down next to her on the couch, then kicked off his shoes under the table next to hers. They began opening boxes and unwrapping things, and lined them up across the table. Fran had left the TV on an episode of "This is Your Life" and it played in the background as they looked through the things they bought.
"These two I want to put in the office, but these others I'm not exactly sure. I might swap them out with some other pieces over by the piano," Max said as he set his small art pieces on the table.
"Oh, I like those! I was looking at those, too, but I wasn't sure where they might fit. You know, those might look nice over the fireplace, after we put that painting up there. We could see how that looks."
"That's not a bad idea. Here, let me go set them on the piano for now, and I'll put these on my desk. I can figure out where I want them to go tomorrow when the sun is out." Max gathered all of the pieces and took several of them over to the piano, and the rest to his office where he set them on his desk. He hurried back to Fran in his sock feet, and sat back down on the couch with her. He put his arm around her back and leaned over to see the things she had picked out.
"Okay, I thought the girls would really like these two, but they might have to fight over who gets which one. But I hope they don't fight. They can always go back and get two more if they really like them. And these two sculptures for Brighton and Niles. The naked lady for Niles, obviously, so we probably shouldn't let B see that or he will want it," Fran said, moving the sculpture to the side. Max laughed.
"Are you sure you want Niles to have that naked lady though?"
"Well, I don't think I want you having it! And it's nice, I mean, it's not crude or anything. I think Niles would appreciate it, I think he'd like it."
"He will. I know he'll like it a lot. But yes, keep it away from Brighton. What did you find for yourself?" He asked, giving her side a squeeze.
Fran smiled and reached for two boxes and slid them across the table. She opened the first one and took out a wrapped object, and began to unwrap it. She took the tissue paper off and held it in her hands to show him.
"Oh! My goodness! That's wonderful!" He said. She let him take it from her so he could get a closer look. It was a black stone carving of a female form, with a stylized shape and soft facial features. The eyes were closed, mere soft white lines, and the face was turned upwards. It gave a feeling of longing to look at it. Max was beaming. "I don't think I saw this one. It came from that same shop as the others?" He asked, looking over at Fran.
"Yeah. It was on a low shelf, on the end of a row. Isn't it pretty? Here, set it right here on the table, I want to show you something else." Max set the figure down on the table next to the box, and Fran opened the remaining box. She carefully took out the wrapped bundle and took off the tissue paper from around it, then held it in her hands. It made her smile even bigger, then she looked up at Max.
"Oh! The same style? Can I see?" She handed it to him and he looked at it, and ran his fingers over the surface. It was as beautiful as the female figure, but this one was clearly a male. It was carved in the same style from black stone, with soft white facial features. His eyes were also closed, but his head was tilted down.
"Here, let me show you something…" she gently took the figure from him and stood it on the table, facing the female figure. Then she slowly pushed the two figures together. Max's eyes lit up and he grinned, then looked at Fran.
"They're kissing!" He rubbed her back and looked at the two figures again.
"They are! Isn't it sweet? They're perfect! I just love them! They look nice by themselves, but once they're together, oh I just love how it makes me feel!" Fran ran a finger down the back of the male figure.
"It's very sweet. They're very sweet. So subtle, but yes, it does make you feel something, doesn't it? It's almost like they know each other deeply, and it doesn't take much for them to connect with each other. There's so much in that gentle kiss. They don't need to wrap their arms around each other to express the message. I'm sure they could, they would, but if all they can do in that moment was a kiss- well, that says everything. I really like them, Fran. I understand why you picked them out. Where did you want to put them?"
Fran picked them up and held them in her hands and looked at them fondly. "I don't know. I want to see them every day, you know? But I don't want to put them where they'll get knocked over or anything. I'm not sure."
"I think I might know where they could go. That is, if you want…" Max stroked her back a little.
"Where is that?" She asked, curious.
Max looked over at the fireplace. "On the mantle. Right in the middle. Then it will be right by the new love seat, and by that painting of the couple. I think it would be very romantic."
Fran smiled and looked over at the mantle over the fireplace, trying to imagine them there, and imagine the painting and the new love seat. She turned back to look at Max. "I think that would be a really nice place to put them. I'd like that." She looked over the figures again, and then carefully set them back in their boxes. She put the two boxes into a bag, and then put away the figures for the children and Niles into two other bags.
"Here, let me set those on the piano for now, and we can take care of them after the furniture is delivered. Is that alright?"
"Yes, thank you sweetie." She watched him as he picked up the bags and got up from the couch.
"Oh, what's this other one? Oh, the blanket! Do you want me to put that over there as well? Just for now?"
"Sure, that should be fine. Then we can look at these catalogs. I was thinking of sending those extra ones over to Ma's with the furniture, so she and Val could get them quicker. Val should be able to stop by there a lot easier than coming here, or us going back there."
"Sure, whatever you like. But they can come over if you want, I don't want everyone feeling excluded from coming here."
"Well, I kinda do… I mean, just for this week. I like not having to share you. Having you all to myself…" she smiled at him as he walked back over to the couch and sat down next to her.
"Well, then, I guess that means it's okay to say that I like having you all to myself, too." He put his arm around her again and looked lovingly into her eyes. She caressed his cheek and kissed him softly, then wrapped her arms around his neck and they kissed more deeply. They rested their foreheads together and she stroked the back of his neck with her fingers. "I like it when you do that, Fran. Gives me goosebumps," he smiled, and kissed her again.
"Mmm… I can't help it… I have to play with your curly hair. I love your hair." She ran her fingers through his hair slowly and he closed his eyes. He nuzzled into her neck and then hugged her close.
Max cleared his throat and leaned back to look at her. "Why don't you grab those catalogs and let's curl up here and look at them. See if there's anything else we might want to redecorate with."
Fran smiled, remembering how much fun they had shopping earlier. She let go of him and grabbed the pile of catalogs, then they shifted back on the couch and she set the pile in his lap. She pulled her legs up onto the couch and leaned against him as he put his arm around her again. She pulled the first catalog off the top of the stack and they began looking through it together.
They went through each catalog in detail, folding over the corners of pages that had things they liked. Fran curled up against Max and turned the pages, and they talked about each item and why they liked it. Max unconsciously pressed his lips against her shoulder and got lost in thinking about buying a few more things from these catalogs. He liked thinking about his shopping adventure with Fran, and knew there would be a lot more adventures like that with her in the future.
"Hey…" he said softly. "What do you think about maybe working on the rest of the house, too? I mean, not all at once. But- I don't know… upstairs. The hallways… maybe see if the children want to make some changes. Maybe you could help them. And maybe even the dining room and kitchen. They could use some sprucing up. But maybe talk to Niles first, see if there are some changes he might like to make, too. What do you think?"
"Really? You really want to do more than just in here?" Fran asked, turning towards him, smiling.
"Sure. Why not? Maybe make the whole house a little more cohesive, you know? I mean, you and Niles had some great ideas with changing the colors down here- and in the stairwell. It really made a huge difference. But upstairs- well, all of that is still the same. It could use some updating." Fran lifted her arm and wrapped it over his shoulders. She rested her forehead against him.
"I think I might like that. I might like that a lot." She kissed him lightly on the forehead and stroked his cheek.
"Good. Good," he smiled and clutched her waist. "Can I ask you something else?"
"Of course you can."
"When you came to work here, you hadn't been a nanny before. And if- well, if Niles hadn't invited you in… what do you think you'd be doing right now? I mean, would you have stayed in some kind of sales, like makeup, or clothing?"
"Gosh… I don't know. I imagine I would have kept that door to door job for a little longer, but I would have probably tried to find something similar at a store. Maybe at a department store, if I could get it. Why do you ask?"
"Well, I was just wondering what you might do if you weren't a nanny. Or… if you stopped being a nanny…"
"Stopped being a nanny?"
"Yes. I- well, I was kind of thinking about how I would introduce you to people. Because that's going to happen, and probably really soon. I don't want to tell them you're my nanny. I want to tell them you're my girlfriend."
"Yeah? I'd like that. But wouldn't they still eventually find out that I'm your nanny, too?"
"Well, that's the thing… I mean, I still need you to help with the children, but, well, what if you weren't a nanny anymore? If we change that dynamic a little… would there be something else you might like to do, or work at? I mean, oh I don't know what I'm saying, or how to say it the right way…"
"You're fine, Max. I get it. I know that you feel weird about telling people your girlfriend is your nanny. But are you also asking if I stopped doing that, would I try to go get a job doing something else?"
"Yeah, maybe…?"
"Well, I could think about it. I mean, I'd still need to earn some money somehow. I still have bills to pay. But it couldn't interfere with helping with the kids."
"Well, we could talk about that, too. I mean, I don't want to say that you can't work, I want you to be happy. But also… well, I want us to be partners, you know? I want to share what I have with you. I know we're shifting the dynamic between us a good bit. But, you know, if maybe you want to do some other part time work, I wouldn't stop you. I'd still miss you if you weren't here. But maybe, if I was busy with work, and you had something you wanted to work at, then I think that might be alright. But you don't have to if you don't want to. I meant it when I said I want to take care of you. I do want to take care of you."
"You already take care of me. Very good care. I'll think about it. But if you don't want me to be your nanny anymore, how will that work?"
"Um, well, the paychecks would stop. But I'd make sure you had whatever money you needed. I'd pay for your health insurance." Fran thought about it as she stroked his cheek. "You know, Fran, I don't take this relationship lightly. I do think about the future."
Fran smiled at him and pulled his face to her. "I think about it, too. And yeah, I would rather you introduce me as your girlfriend instead of your nanny. But no disrespect to the nanny job. It was the best job I ever had. I mean that."
Max kissed her firmly on the lips. "Mmm… you're the best nanny the children ever had, but you know your relationship with them is so much more than that. So much more. And I'm kind of possessive about my nanny. It would hurt my feelings if you went to some other family to take care of someone else's children. I mean, I know you would be wonderful at it. But I think I could speak for all of us and say we want you to ourselves."
"Aw, that's so sweet! And I wouldn't want to be anybody else's nanny. These are my kids, and nothing will change that. But if it helps matters, I'll be okay with not working as the nanny. We can talk more about it. We'll figure it out."
"Alright. We can do that." They kissed again, then hugged. Max looked back down at the catalog they had been going through. "Have you ever thought about maybe being a decorator? Interior designer? I don't really know if that requires any kind of a degree or certification. I would think that it's all a matter of taste, and knowing how to manage a budget. I bet you would be good at that."
"Well, maybe if I do some work around here, and you like it, if everyone likes it, maybe that could be the start of a resume for me. We can see how it goes."
"That sounds good. Hey, are you getting hungry for that last fritter?"
"Sure!" Fran took the last few catalogs off of Max's lap and he leaned over to get the box with the fritter. He cut it up into a lot of small pieces, then sat back on the couch with it. He poked a piece with the fork and offered it to Fran. She took it enthusiastically, then Max got a bite for himself.
"Mmm! Still good!" He said. Fran chuckled, then they started looking at the catalogs again. "Keep an eye out for things that might work upstairs. Even if it's just bedding. But maybe if we get rid of carpeting, we might need to look at some more rugs, too."
"Oh, goodie!" She wrapped her arm over his shoulders again, and took another bite he offered.
When they finished the catalogs and the fritter, they both leaned over and put everything back on the coffee table, and then curled back up together on the couch. Fran wrapped her arms around his shoulders and rested her folded legs over his lap. He rested an arm across her thighs and his other hand on her knee. He loved the feeling of her arms around him- enveloping him- and holding her legs on his lap. He could smell her perfume and feel her soft breath on his temple. There was an episode of the $50,000 Pyramid playing on the TV, but he was having a very hard time paying attention to it. He stroked her knee and tried to fight the urge to close his eyes.
Fran kissed his forehead softly and tried to watch the show, but she really wasn't interested in it. She was cuddling with Max, her boyfriend, and it felt wonderful. His hair was soft against her cheek, and she liked the feel of his hand stroking her knee. She closed her eyes and pressed her lips against his temple and kissed him again, and then again. He sighed, and tilted his head slightly, as if he was asking her to kiss him some more. She kissed his cheek, near his ear, then clutched his face with her hand, and caressed his cheek. He tilted his head again, turning towards her. His eyes were closed. She grazed the tip of his nose with hers. He looked up at her through his eyelashes. It felt like he was looking deep into her soul. She ran her thumb across his cheekbone and smiled at him, then kissed him on the lips. She kissed him slowly, and carefully. She kissed his bottom lip, and the corners of his mouth.
Max was almost frozen in place as he let her kiss him. The way she made him feel was wonderful. He had to remind himself to take a breath because it was so easy to get lost in her kisses. He turned towards her and reached his arm around her waist to hold her close. She ran her fingers through his hair and clutched the back of his head, gently pulling him to her for a deeper kiss. He squeezed her back with his hand and tightened his grasp on her knee. He let her take the lead and responded to her kisses in kind.
They kissed for several minutes, lost in each other and completely unaware of their surroundings. Fran slowly drew back from the kiss and caressed his face, then rested her forehead against his. Max hugged her tightly to him.
"I could kiss you for hours and hours…"
"Mmmmm… okay…" he sighed. Fran chuckled, then stroked his cheek with her thumb, then ran the backs of her fingers along his jaw. He kissed her again, several times, and clutched her back. "Darling… I've been having just the best time with you. I really have."
"I've been having the best time with you, Max. The absolute best. I wish we could stay up all night, like this. But I know… I know we probably shouldn't. It's late, and tomorrow's another busy day. I just want time with you. Quiet time, like this. You know?"
"Yes. I want that, too. I need time with you, I really do. And maybe we should do that, the next few days. We can stay home, enjoy the new furniture. Cuddle up like this. It's so quiet here, no interruptions. We should enjoy it while it lasts."
"I'd like that. I'd like that a lot." She grazed his nose with hers again, and kissed him softly, slowly. "God, Max!" She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him. "I love you so much!"
"I love you, too, Fran. I really do. Mmmm…" he kissed her cheek over and over and held her close. "You smell so good, you know?"
"So do you!" They laughed and she kissed his cheek. "Oh, Max, what time is it? It must be getting late."
Max looked at his watch. "Damn. It's almost eleven already."
"Aw!" She buried her face in his neck, and Max rubbed her back.
"It'll be okay, darling. Remember, we have all day tomorrow. And the day after that… and the day after…" he kissed her cheek, then her lips.
"Yeah… but I don't want to let go of you yet."
"I don't want you let let go of me either." They faced each other and Fran stroked his hair. "But we should probably stop, before we won't be able to. Maybe we should pick these things up, then head upstairs and get ready for bed. We have some work to do after breakfast."
"Yeah… I guess you're right. And it's been a long day. We should get some sleep," she said, disappointed.
"And when I see you first thing in the morning, I'm going to give you the biggest kiss!" Max smiled at her.
"You better!" They both laughed, then reluctantly loosened their hold on each other. "Here, I'll get all the catalogs back in this tote bag. I can keep it in my room until after the furniture gets delivered. Oh, and I'll leave these extra catalogs out to send to Ma."
"Alright. Let me gather up this box and silverware. Are you finished with your water?"
"Oh, actually I might get a refill on the way up."
"Good idea. We had a pretty good workout today, gotta keep hydrated!"
Fran stacked the catalogs back into the tote bag as Max closed up the now-empty box of fritters and picked up the silverware. He shut off the television and got up to go turn off the fireplace, then came back as Fran got up and grabbed her glass of water and her shoes. Max grabbed his glass and shoes and they headed for the kitchen, shutting the light off on the way as Fran grabbed her purse.
They carried their things through the hallway upstairs and then slowed to a stop at the corner where they would have to part ways to go to their rooms. Max tucked his shoes under his arm and turned to face Fran, whose arms were full.
"You need any help with all that?" He asked.
"I appreciate the offer, but all things considered… we should probably play it safe and, you know, say goodnight here. Otherwise, you know, things might get more difficult…"
"Yes," he looked over her face and reached for her waist. They stood close, looking into each other's eyes.
"Thank you for today, Max. I had a wonderful time. I really did."
"I'm glad. I had a wonderful time, too. I really loved spending time with you. I'd like to do a lot more of that. And not just this week, when we have the house to ourselves. I want to make sure we always have time together. I don't want to get caught up in work or anything and find myself neglecting you."
"Aw, sweetie! I don't think you will. I'll come find you. Or you come find me. We'll have lots of time together."
"I like the sound of that," he smiled. They leaned their foreheads against each other's and sighed. "So, tomorrow… shall we meet for breakfast? In the kitchen?"
"Sure. We can do that. What time?"
"Well, I guess by nine, maybe earlier if we're both up. I can see what I can put together for us to have. Make breakfast for you."
"You'd make breakfast for me? That's really sweet. So, we'll meet in the kitchen by nine at the latest?"
"Mmm hmm. Then after breakfast, we can start getting ready for the moving truck."
"Okay."
"Okay." They looked over each other's faces, a little bashfully, and then Fran moved to kiss him. They were careful to not let the kiss get too serious. Max clutched her waist with his free hand, almost forgetting he still held a glass of water in his other hand, and his shoes under his arm. Fran ached to wrap her arms around him, but they weren't free. She could easily have dropped everything if she wasn't careful.
"I wish I could wrap my arms around you…"
"You want to put those things down…?"
"I better not. Because I don't think I could let you go."
"Mmm…" he kissed her again. "That sounds nice. But I know what you mean. Yeah. I better let you get to bed. And we'll see each other in the morning. You can hug me then."
"I will!"
"And I'll kiss you again and again…"
"Okay…"
He kissed her softly on the lips, and then on the cheek.
"Uhmmm… okay, I'm going. I'll see you in the morning, sweetheart. First thing."
"First thing. I love you, Max," she said softly.
"I love you, Fran," he smiled. "Good night. Sleep well."
"You too…"
They slowly backed up from each other and moved down their respective hallways, glancing back at each other until they had to turn to their bedrooms. Fran went into her room, set everything down, and quietly shut her bedroom door. She fell back onto her bed, smiling from ear to ear. Max went into his bedroom and shut the door behind him, walked to his bedside and dropped his shoes next to his closet door, then was about to set his glass of water down when he stopped to think about it, then chugged half of it down, and set it on his bedside table. He ran a hand over his face, then both hands through his hair, waking himself out of his daze.
"God, she's wonderful!" He said to himself.