Cinderella
"Where are my shoes?"
Teresa bit her lip and just pretended she didn't hear him. This was going to be so fun…
A moment later Jane entered the kitchen – fully dressed in his usual three-piece suit, yet with no shoes on.
"Teresa, honey, did you happen to see my shoes? I can't find them anywhere."
"Nope. No shoes here, I'm sorry."
Suddenly he caught the hint of a smirk flashing across her face.
"You hid them", he said accusingly.
"Come on, Patrick…"
"That's cruel, woman. How can I go to work without my shoes?"
"Let me see… you could always wear your slippers."
"I'd never do that", he countered – clearly horrified at the prospect.
She shrugged. "Then you'll have to take the day off, I guess."
"I'm going to call Bertram. Tell him that my vicious wife kidnapped my shoes and is currently holding them hostages."
Teresa couldn't help laughing heartily. "Go ahead and call him – I dare you."
"Please, darling. I'm really fond of those shoes."
"Cinderella's lost both of her glass slippers this time", she teased him lightly. "Well, if you wait long enough, the prince is going to find you and give them back to you."
"You're really heartless, you know?"
"I know. And I have some bad news for you. Your shoes are probably in some dump by now."
"You didn't…"
"I did. Your shoes were at least ten years old – and they looked worn-out enough. It's high time for you to get a brand new pair of shoes."
"I might want to get a divorce, as a matter of fact."
The grimace he made was so comic that she burst out laughing again.
"You insufferable bore", she said as she shoved into his hands the box she had previously hidden under the kitchen sink. "Here you are. Try them on."
"I don't want a new pair of shoes", he whined. "I want my old ones back."
"Do I have to go and fetch my gun?"
He muttered something about bossy and merciless women before finally opening the box.
A broad grin spread over his face then.
"They're exactly like my old ones."
"Don't I know you well, you overgrown schoolboy? I had to search high and low for that horrible-looking shoes, by the way."
"Thank you, sweetheart."
He dropped the box on a chair, wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her for a kiss.
"You'd better put those shoes on, or else we'll be late", she murmured against his lips.
"Don't worry, my Prince Charming. Our coach is waiting just outside the door."
"Let's hope it's not going to turn into a pumpkin along the way."
"Not my faithful Citroën."
"You're right", she acknowledged with a smirk. "It'd probably fall apart instead."
"Don't you dare to insult my car, woman", he growled into her ear a moment before he started dropping kisses along her neck.
Looked like Cinderella and the prince were going to be late for the ball after all…