As Max was shifting boxes out of the way in the attic, Fran came in behind him, carrying several videotapes.
"Okay, I'm all sorted out, sweetie! You found the dart board! I didn't find the darts in Brighton's room, though," she said.
"Oh, that's alright, darling, I found another set with the dartboard. Just one set, though, so we'll have to share…" Fran came up to him and gave him a soft kiss.
"Sharing is good, as long as it's with each other."
"You found some movies to watch?"
"Possibly, if you like them. Unless there's something on TV. We don't have to watch all of them, I thought I'd just grab a few and we can pick. So, you gonna teach me how to play darts?"
"I thought first we'd just practice throwing them. Unless you want to try to go for scoring a few rounds?"
"Well," she looked over at the dart board hanging from the wall. "Maybe we should just do throwing right now. Aiming for the bullseye. I think if I hit anything outside of the bullseye, it wouldn't be because I was aiming for it!" Max chuckled.
"Alright then, we can pretend we're at Coney Island, popping balloons!"
"Okay! That would be kinda fun if we had some balloons. Only I wouldn't want to have to clean up the mess from popping them all!" Max laughed.
"We'll just pretend, then. Have you thought about what you'd like for dinner?"
"I think you should pick it out this time, since I picked lunch. By the way, did you like it?"
"I did! Perfect for lounging and watching movies with my girlfriend! That chicken was fantastic!"
"It was pretty good, wasn't it?"
"Mmm hmm! Here you go, you go first. And don't worry if you miss and hit the wall. I won't get upset, it's just the attic." Fran laughed.
"Okay, but if I hit the wall, just know I wasn't aiming for it!" Max laughed and handed her the three darts he had found.
"Should we have any incentives for if we do hit the bullseye?" He asked.
"Hmm… How about a kiss? That would at least get me to try really hard to hit the bullseye!"
"Me too! But hey, any restrictions on the kiss? Like, would it have to just be a cheek kiss, or…"
"Hey, baby, I'm not restricting any kisses anymore. That's too hard to do. How about- the person who gets the bullseye decides what kind of kiss and where, as long as they aren't trying to force anything on the other person…"
"Oh no, no- I'd never do anything like that! No, just nice, loving kisses. Sweet kisses…" he smiled, imagining all the ways he might kiss her. He knew he had to be at the top of his game and make sure he hit that bullseye.
"That sounds good to me! Now, don't laugh if I throw really stupid, okay? I'm still new at it."
"Well, then, here- remember when we were at Coney Island?" He stepped over behind her and put his hands on her hips, moving her back to the right distance away from the dartboard. She smiled and turned towards him. "You can imagine a balloon over that bullseye, if you want. Now remember- pretend the dart is like a little rocket or airplane, and it's going to slide across a string that runs from just over your shoulder straight to the middle of the bullseye, alright? Just check how you're holding the dart, make sure it feels just a little loose, and remember when you need to let go of it. You're gonna give that little rocket a quick push and let go. Then depending on where it goes, you'll know how you might need to adjust your next throw."
"I can do that. But not if you've got your hands on my hips, I can't think straight when you do that!"
"I'm sorry, darling, I'll move away from you."
"Hey, not that I minded. Because I sure didn't!" Max smiled at her and tugged at the belt loop on her pants, then stepped away so she could have room to throw the darts.
Fran lifted the first dart and remembered what Max said, and practiced moving her arm the right way, then took a chance and threw it. It hit the upper left edge of the dart boart and stuck.
"I hit the board! And it didn't fall off! Okay, okay, let me try again. Let me adjust a little bit…" Max smiled and watched her, staying silent so he didn't distract her. She wound up and tried again, hitting the board a little lower than the first throw. "Damn!"
"It's alright, darling, you're doing good! Imagine that balloon, see if that helps."
"Okay, okay. The balloon. Right in the middle. Gonna pop that balloon…" she shook her hand out, then lifted the last dart, imagined the string, imagined the balloon, then threw it. This time it hit the board closer to the center, but not in the bullseye.
"Oh! So close!" Max exclaimed.
"Aw, damn! It's right there! So close to it! I can't believe I did that!"
Max stepped over to the dartboard and removed the darts, and went back to Fran. "One thing you could try is stepping to the side just a little bit, see if that gets things in better alignment. Do you want to go again?"
"No, it's your turn now. I want to see how good you can do. Show me whatcha got, mister!" Fran stepped out of his way and ran her hand across his back as she passed him. The feel of her hand gave Max such a rush, he was certain he would mess up his throws now.
He stepped onto the spot where Fran had been standing and picked out a dart from his hand. Fran watched as he sized up the dartboard, practiced a moment, and then made the throw. It hit two inches below the bullseye.
"Damn! That wasn't good," he said.
"Hey, that's not bad, either! You can do it, Max!" She watched him get the next dart, take a deep breath and exhale, then he lifted the dart up and pointed it straight at the bullseye. He moved his arm back and forth, getting ready, then flicked it fast. It made a light thunk as it hit the dartboard- in the bullseye.
"Ha! I did it! That's one kiss, my dear!"
"Yes, sir! That was fantastic, and it's only your second throw! Now, see if you can do it again!" Max smiled at her, then looked back at the dartboard. He raised the last dart in his hand and tried to repeat the exact same moves. Thunk! Back in the bullseye, less than an inch from the previous dart. Max grinned and clapped his hands together.
"Two kisses! Coming up!" Fran made a face at him, then smiled, and stepped over to pull the darts out of the board. She walked over to Max, ready to face her punishment. Max looked her over, letting his face get closer to hers. Fran pretended she didn't want a kiss, but she couldn't stand the tension. She really wanted him to kiss her, and not platonically.
Max rested his forehead against hers, and they both closed their eyes. The anticipation was killing her. Then slowly he moved and kissed her softly on the left cheek, then moved again and lingered a moment, making Fran ache, and then he kissed her the same way on her right cheek. Fran realized that was it- he'd given her his two required kisses. She opened her eyes to see him grinning at her.
"You tease! I thought you were really gonna kiss me!"
"But I did kiss you! You didn't like that?" He teased her some more.
"Oh, stop! Of course I liked it, but you're killing me. I was hoping for something, you know, more…"
"Ohhh…" he raised his eyebrows like he understood. "Something more…" he grinned again. She swatted him playfully and moved him out of the way.
"Now I have to hit that bullseye! Over and over! Then I'll show you what I was expecting." Max chuckled and stepped back so she could take her turn. Fran shook her head and and mumbled her disapproval at him, but couldn't hide the grin on her face. She got into position and got ready to throw the dart, trying to remember all of the little things they practiced. But she was flustered. She tossed the first dart and missed the bullseye, landing it in the upper left of the board. She growled. Since she was left-handed, she stepped over to the right slightly, and sized up the board again. Max watched her intently, and hoped he didn't make her mad by teasing her. He really did want to kiss her, but didn't want to take advantage of her.
Fran tossed the second dart and missed the bullseye again, this time hitting the lower right of the board. She scrunched up her face and growled again.
"Darling, it's alright. Deep breath. Remember Coney Island. Remember all those balloons you popped."
"Yeah, yeah. You know those games are rigged," she gave him a look, then he gave her one back, and they both laughed. "I think I made myself choke, I thought about it too much."
"Well, then, just throw it without thinking and see what happens. Act like none of it matters."
"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt. Now watch I hit the wall." She shook her arms out, looked at the dartboard then quickly threw the last dart in her hand. It hit near the center of the board, right outside of the bullseye. "Oh, now come on! You gotta be kidding me! But that counts, doesn't it? Can't it count? It's right there!"
"No, no. It's not inside the bullseye, Fran. You might have popped the balloon, but you just missed the bullseye. But that was a fantastic throw, darling! Don't get upset." Max pulled the darts off the board and walked over to Fran, who had a huge frown on her face and was clenching her fists. Max reached for her arm and stroked it. "It was a great throw, sweetheart. So close!"
"Yeah, yeah." She stepped aside for Max's turn. Maybe he would miss them all this time, and would feel some of her frustration. He cleared his throat, and gingerly tossed a dart. Bullseye. Fran swatted him.
"Hey, now, no harassing the thrower!"
"How do you do that, though? You look like you aren't even trying!"
"Years of practice, my dear. In England, there are some expectations that people like me need to acquire certain skills, and playing darts was one of them. It's like playing chess, or snooker, or poker. I'm decent at chess and darts, but never got very good at poker or the billiard table."
"Really? Well, good. Maybe I can kick your butt at those!"
"Well, you can try!" He smiled. Fran giggled, feeling a little better. She watched as Max got the next dart ready, then threw. Bullseye again.
"Ah!" Fran yelled, throwing her hands out and turning around in a circle. She shook her head and looked over at him.
"Sorry…" he said, then let out a laugh. She watched him raise the last dart and aim. The flick of his wrist in that familiar fashion sent the dart straight for the bullseye. Fran squinted her eyes at him and locked her arms straight at her sides.
"Do your worst," she huffed.
"My worst?" He stuck his bottom lip out and walked over to her. "It's alright, sweetheart. We're just playing." He reached for her left hand and raised it to his lips, then seductively kissed the back of it, dragging his lower lip softly across it as he looked into her eyes. It gave her butterflies. He took her right hand in his left, and repeated- lifting it to his lips as his gaze penetrated into her. His kissed the back of her hand sensually as she watched.
"Ahh… I'm out of hands."
"Mmm hmm…"
"I thought we were supposed to at least kiss each other on the face somewhere for a bullseye…" she said softly, watching his lips.
"Uh uh. The person who gets the bullseye gets to decide where to kiss the other person. And how." His gaze wandered over her, driving her crazy. Where was his last kiss going to be? She felt her heart racing. Max looked over her face, then to her lips. Slowly, he leaned in to her, letting his lips graze hers. She closed her eyes, waiting. She felt the tickle of his lips across hers, then softly, gently, he kissed her upper lip and stopped. She waited in anticipation for a moment, then opened her eyes. He was smiling at her.
"Oh, come on, Max! That's it?" She pushed him back.
"What? No good?" He pulled back from her, expecting to be swatted again.
"That drives me crazy!" She walked over to the dartboard and grabbed the darts off in a huff, shaking her head. "Can we do something else now? I think I'm done with the darts."
"I'm sorry, Fran, really. I didn't mean to push it so far. Really. We can stop if you aren't having fun."
"Oh, it's not so much the darts as it is the kissing thing. Maybe we shouldn't have done that. You just got me all worked up is all." She stepped over next to him and looked at the dartboard. "That damned dartboard! I just can't hit it where I think I'm aiming. Damned darts!" She looked at the darts in her hand and squeezed them tight in the tips of her fingers, then she threw them hard towards the dartboard. All three of them stuck, the center one directly in the center of the bullseye. Her jaw dropped and they looked at each other.
"Holy cow, Fran! You did it!"
"Does that count? Can it count? I mean, I didn't do it one at a time, but I'm standing in the right place, right?" She looked at him wide-eyed, hopeful. Max looked down at where she was standing, then back at the dartboard, then back at her.
"Well, I suppose, I mean, technically- you did throw from the right spot. We didn't make a rule that it had to be one dart at a time…" He cocked his head to the side, and a slight grin formed on his face. Fran's eyes lit up, and she clutched the back of his head with one hand and threw her other arm around his waist and pulled him to her, then planted the biggest kiss on his lips she could muster. Max froze in place as she kissed him so deeply that he forgot to breathe. She reached for his tongue with hers and maneuvered around his mouth and his lips with an almost fierce suction. Max finally remembered to breathe, then wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly, letting her continue her passionate kiss.
Their tension dissolved and they ran their hands across each other's backs, Fran caressed his neck as she kept him close, not wanting to end the kiss. Max let Fran guide the kiss, back and forth between the sensual play of their tongues, to the soft affection of her light kisses over his lips. His legs were turning to jello.
Finally, she loosened her grip on him, caressed his cheek with her thumb, then wrapped both arms around his neck. As they slowly parted their lips, he ran his hands across her back and her waist and then held her as he tried to catch his breath.
"My goodness, Fran…" he sighed. She ran her fingers through the hair on the back of his head and kissed him softly several more times. "I'm sorry for teasing you, I shouldn't have done that," he whispered, resting his forehead against hers.
"I'm sorry I got a little- touchy. I really wanted to kiss you. I needed to. Baby, I love being your best friend, but- can we be the kind of best friends that… make out? Like, a whole lot? We can do the best friends stuff and still kiss each other a lot, can't we?" She looked into his eyes.
"Of course we can, darling, of course. You're still my girlfriend, I'm your boyfriend. We're partners. I think maybe we've held back enough. We did really good today, didn't we?"
"We did. We did really good. And we can still do all of that, hanging out like that. But when we need a kiss- we should, you know? I love you, Max. I can't help but want to kiss you. Even just have my lips on you or something. We'll think of something else we can play for if we want to do darts again. Or whatever we play. I shouldn't have gotten so frustrated. I really wanted you to kiss me. And I really wanted a chance to kiss you."
"To kiss me like you just did?"
"Yeah."
"I wish I'd gone ahead and kissed you like that. Maybe a little teasing would have been okay if I'd finished by kissing you like that."
"Yeah… yeah, that would have been good… really good…"
They hugged each other some more, and kissed each other's cheeks. Max enveloped her in his arms, stroking her back, comforting her.
"Darling? Do you want to go back downstairs now? Are you getting hungry at all?" He asked.
"Yeah, let's do that. And you know me, I can always eat. We can pick out a movie to start with, and you can order us some food. And then later, when we go to bed, we can cuddle up in our pajamas and get a really good night's sleep."
"Oh yes- I almost forgot about that part! I'm really looking forward to that part." They smiled at each other and kissed softly on the lips. Fran slid her arms down to his waist.
"Let's go down and pick a movie, and figure out some food."
"Alright. Oh, darling- I was thinking earlier about something," he looked around at all the boxes and things in the attic with them. "There are a lot of things up here- things I'd like to show you. That you might like to see. Maybe later this week we could go through some of it? I mean, if you want to?" Fran looked around the room.
"Sure, I'd like that. Do you mean like pictures and things? Mementos?"
"Yes. Lots of things. The children's old things. There's even a trunk over there that was mine- the one I took to boarding school. It has all my old things in it. And who knows what other things we might find. I just thought if maybe you might be interested in seeing any of it, Then I'd like to show you."
"I would. I would like to see it. Maybe sometime I can see what I have left over at my parents' place, and show you. It might not be all that interesting, but there should at least be some pictures or something."
"I would like to see it, whatever it is. If it helps us get to know each other even better, then I'd love to see it. And maybe the children would, too." She smiled at him and gave him a squeeze. She grabbed the stack of videos and they headed out of the attic, shutting the light off behind them.
Max and Fran were cuddled on the couch watching Parenthood with Steve Martin, the remnants of their meal on the ottoman in front of them. Max was lounging against Fran, her arm over his shoulders as he held her hand at his chest, occasionally kissing it softly. Fran held on to his other arm and pressed her lips against his temple.
"My gosh, those kids!" She said. "Thank goodness our kids are so easy. Can you imagine?"
"No, I don't even want to think about it. But they got things sorted out in the end. I like it when they resolve things at the end of a movie, especially relationships."
"Yeah. I'm surprised you haven't seen this before. I thought you liked Steve Martin."
"I do. I think he's very funny. He was really good in this." Max reached over and picked up the case for the movie on the couch near them and looked over the description on the back. "Oh, that's why. It came out when we were going through everything. That's why I didn't see it. And it hasn't been until more recently when I've been getting back into watching comedies. I mean, even though this has quite a bit of drama, too."
"Did you like it?" Fran asked, rubbing his arm.
"I did. I liked it very much. Especially Steve Martin, he was a really good father in this. It makes me want to be a better one, you know? Maybe be more silly like that, even when things get hard. To be able to help lighten the mood when things get difficult- that would be a great skill to have." Fran smiled and kissed his cheek.
"I bet you could do that, I think you have it in you. Like dealing with Gracie's issues, you asked for help when you needed it. You didn't yell at her or anything for all of her quirks. You let her be herself as long as it wasn't causing her any harm, even if it made you a little uncomfortable. I know you did the best you knew how, and it gave them a really good foundation. They're good kids. Really good."
"They are, aren't they?" He turned his head to look at her.
"Mmm hmm…" Fran said as she reached up and ran her fingers through his hair over his ear, making him smile. She caressed his cheek and moved to kiss him on the lips. Max sat up and shifted back on the couch so he could put his arm around her, and kissed her again. The credits finished on the movie and the VCR began to rewind the tape.
"I like how you called them our children. Because they are yours, too. I love that they love you so much."
"Aw, I love them too. They're my babies. I like taking care of them. And now I get to take care of you, too."
"Yes, you do. And I get to take care of you," he kissed her cheek.
"Mmmm… Hey, why don't I get all this cleaned up real quick, and we can figure out the next movie. Oh, do you want any dessert? We still have those bon bons in the freezer."
"Ooh- yes. That would be nice. Alright. I'll get that tape out, and turn off the fireplace. I was thinking we could cuddle under the blanket again. Would you like to watch the next movie in the corner of the couch? I can turn the television a bit to make sure we can see it."
"Sure! Hey- do you want to see if there's another old movie on? Since we watched something not so old. If we can't find anything, then we can just pick one of the other videos."
"Alright, that sounds good. Here, let's get this stuff together, and I'll get things sorted in here, and you can get us a few bon bons!"
"Hey, I'm gettin' more than a few!"
Max laughed and they both got up from the couch. Max helped Fran sort out the bags and containers from their dinner, and she gathered it all in her hands and took it into the kitchen. Max hurried over to the fireplace and shut it off, then came back around the couch to take the tape out of the VCR and turn the television slightly to the side to make sure they could see it well. He picked up the blanket and climbed over the ottoman to get to the corner of the couch, grabbed the remote control, and went through the channels to get to the classic movies and see what was on. He watched the remainder of a commercial and then the channel showed the movie line up for the rest of the night.
"Oh! Yes! Oh, that could be a good one!" He said to himself. He pulled the blanket up over his legs, and then Fran hurried back into the room.
"Hey, you!" She said, smiling.
"Hey, yourself! Darling- do you want to shut off the light? Maybe leave the stair light on. It'll be a little like being in the theater."
"But much comfier! And with bon bons!" She almost squealed. Max laughed. She flipped off the light switches and came back over to Max, who was now lit with the light from the television.
"Come here, darling. Get in under the blanket, and we'll tuck into those before they start melting!" Fran leaned over and handed him the bowl and crawled up to him, then pulled the blanket over her legs.
"So, what's on TV tonight?" She asked.
"Well, you might like it. It's another one I haven't seen in ages, but it's very good. Should provide quite a bit of comic relief."
"Oh, good! Who's in it?"
"Your favorite - Cary Grant."
"Ooh! In a comedy? Like, a really funny comedy?"
"Yes, a pretty good one. Have you seen Bringing Up Baby? It has Katherine Hepburn in it, too."
"Oh, we're going through the Hepburns, aren't we? Bringing Up Baby? I don't know if I saw that one…"
"It's an earlier one. He was much younger. Do you want to give it a try?"
"Absolutely! You know you don't have to twist my arm to watch Cary Grant! Now here, gimme one of those bon bons!" Max picked up the skewer she brought with the bowl, poked it into a bon bon, and fed it to her.
"Now don't get an ice cream headache, dear. Is that too much for one bite?" Fran shook her head, but didn't chomp down on it just yet. She took the skewer from him, poked a bon bon, then gave it to him. He was afraid to bite into the whole thing at once, too, so he held it on his tongue and let it melt through the chocolate, and then into the ice cream.
"Mmm!" They both said. Max put his arm over her shoulders and set the bowl on her lap. He turned to look at the TV and see if the movie was starting yet.
The intro music began to play, and they both got settled into comfortable positions and began to watch the movie as they fed each other the delicious ice cream bon bons.
They laughed as they watched, and Fran yelled at the characters and their frustrating antics. When they finished the bon bons, Max set the bowl to the side, and Fran wrapped her arms around his middle and rested against him. He pulled the blanket over her and held her close in his arms. They cuddled in the dark like that for the rest of the movie, giggling and getting frustrated at the characters, then giggling again.
Any time a more calm part of the movie took place, Max looked over at the outline of Fran's body under the blanket, and her arm wrapped tightly across his stomach. He felt time slow down again, felt the wash of bliss come over him. He couldn't believe how genuinely happy he was to be with her. He rested his head against hers and closed his eyes, and she gave his waist a soft tug. He loved the closeness she made him feel, and he hoped she was feeling it, too. He watched her body shake as she laughed, and she moved her hand to his chest. He put his hand on hers and kissed the top of her head. He adored her. He absolutely adored her.
Fran was really enjoying the movie, and especially the cuddling with Max. His strong arms held her close, and she liked the feeling when he kissed the top of her head. His chest was firm beneath her hand, and his hand on top of hers made her feel even more secure. She took a deep breath and sighed, and Max stroked the back of her shoulder. She imagined them in bed together later that night and wondered if this was how it was going to feel- only she would get to hold him all night long. She would get to sleep in his arms- all night. The thought of it made her smile.
Max slid his hand towards the back of her neck and played with her hair, twisting it around his fingertips, and then he stroked the skin of her neck. It felt so wonderful to her that she almost closed her eyes and forgot about the movie. She watched Cary Grant running around on the TV screen after Katherine Hepburn, and it almost reminded her of her and Max- the dumb situations she always found herself in, whether she created them or just found her way to them, and Max trying to clean up after her or getting upset with what she was doing. Cary Grant was so cute when he was young. Well, she thought, he was always cute, but maybe it was because he seemed so much more innocent when youth was on his side. There was something about him that always reminded her of Max. Though they didn't look alike, they were both British, both tall, both had a full head of dark hair. And they both certainly looked gorgeous in a tuxedo. Maybe it was their mannerisms, too- their British formality, their stern, straight-backed posture when they were trying to assert themselves or make a point. She grinned and giggled as she thought about it.
Max watched the ridiculousness play out on the TV, laughing as it went. He was so comfortable with Fran in his arms that he wasn't even conscious that he was still caressing her neck and shoulders. It had already become comfortably automatic to him.
As the movie wound down to it's conclusion, Fran sat up and pulled her legs up under the blanket, then wrapped her arms around Max's neck. He smiled at her and rested his hand on her knees.
"I really liked that one, Max. Thank you!" She kissed him on the lips.
"Well, I'd love to take all the credit, but I'm just glad we caught it on the television in time. I'm glad you liked it, it was pretty silly!"
"Yeah. I was thinkin' that he reminded me a bit of you."
"Cary Grant? Really? How?"
"I dunno, maybe it's a British thing. A high class thing. Some of his gestures, the way he was getting flustered with her. Do I fluster you like that?"
"You mean the way Katherine Hepburn flustered him? I don't know, you've flustered me in the past, I'll admit it. But she was way over the top. I half expected him to get a lot angrier, but I guess I'm glad he didn't. I guess I kind of had a soft spot for her character, I didn't want him to hurt her feelings. I mean, I know it's just a movie…"
"Aw, sweetie! But yeah, I know. I felt kind of bad for him, and I wanted to shake her and tell her to stop it, because she had to be doing that on purpose. I'm not used to seeing Cary Grant being so silly, that was good! And the movie went by so fast. What time is it?" She asked.
"It's getting there, nearly bedtime. But we can stay here a little longer. If you want."
"If I can kiss you, then yes, I do want."
"You can kiss me, I'd like that. And it might not be a good idea to do that once we go upstairs, you know. We could get carried away."
"Yeah, I know. But can I at least kiss you good night once we do go to bed?"
"Of course, sweetheart. I want that every night. And my arms around you every night."
"Mmm… I want that, too." She ran her fingers through the hair on the side of his head and he closed his eyes and smiled, then she caressed his cheek and guided his lips to hers and kissed him, slowly and carefully. She wanted to make it worth their while before they had to go upstairs and get ready for bed.
He gently offered his tongue and she took it, and gave him hers. They played lightly, kissing each other's lips, then she opened her mouth more and kissed him passionately. He slid his hand up the side of her thigh to her hip and clutched her, then let his other hand slide down to her waist. He let her take the lead, and followed her at every step.
Fran wanted to climb over him to sit on his lap, but she knew that might be going too far. But the thought of doing that made her ache for him. Max seemed to read her mind, and guided her leg to the other side of his lap. She moved closer to him, then sat down on his lap, still kissing him. He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist and pulled her close.
"God, Max, we're gonna get carried away like this!" She gasped, then kissed him again, passionately.
"Mmmm… I just want to hold you close, Fran! I need you to be close to me." He kissed her again. "But yes, I know, if we keep this up we might get in trouble. Maybe we should take it easy, and maybe head upstairs and get ready for bed." They grazed the tips of their noses together and looked into each other's eyes.
"Okay, in a minute…" she smiled, then grazed his cheek with the back of her fingers. She kissed him softly on the lips again, then kissed his forehead, and finally rested her forehead against his. "I love you, baby," she whispered, clutching his face in her hands.
"I love you, too, sweetheart," he smiled. Fran took a deep breath and groaned as she sighed.
"Okay, sweetie, we better get out of here or I won't be able to stop myself." She raised her head and stroked his cheek again.
"Okay, yes, we should. But tomorrow- can we… I mean, could we, maybe…"
"Get carried away?" She smiled at him, and a grin grew on his face.
"I'm not saying we have to, you know, go all the way, but if we could spend some more time together, like this. No movies. No television. Maybe we could turn on the stereo and play some of that music again…" Fran's eyes lit up.
"Yeah, I'd like that! And I'm gonna kiss you a whole bunch! A whole bunch!"
"And I'll make dinner this time. And we can even have candlelight again if you want. And if tonight goes well, you know- staying together- if it feels right, then maybe tomorrow night, maybe we can stay together again? And ease up on the rules a little?"
Fran clutched his cheek. "Yes. I'd like that. I really would! Now come on and take me upstairs. We still have that workout to do in the morning, so we should get some sleep."
Max sighed and ran his hands down her sides to her hips, then her thighs. He reached for the blanket and pulled it off of his legs, then Fran crawled off of him. He picked up the bowl from their bon bons, then they both got up from the couch. They shut everything off and headed to the kitchen, her arm around his waist and his over her shoulders.