CHAPTER ONE
The engine made a choking noise.
"Ahhh duckcake!" Rad groaned, while turning the key without any result.
"Hey it's ok…", she said while caressing his shoulder gently.
"I'm sorry babe, but I don't think things are ok… we're in the middle of nowhere on the road to a National Park… the phone service is way too unstable, and the car will be an oven in half an hour… besides I had planned something for us…"
Frisky smiled, "Look on the bright side, would ya?"
He couldn't help but to return her smile, that smile that always sent jolts of happiness through all his being.
"After all, we are on a road surrounded by forest, the weather is mild and we have plenty of time for each other until a mechanic can find us… still sounds like a very good date to me!" she added mischievously.
Without him really noticing, she moved closer, to touch his shoulders freely.
"Ah Frisky!" he softly exclaimed, the expertise of her hands mingling with the feel of her breath near his ears about to make him purr like a tame big cat.
"There's no way you came so tense to a date with me, Rad! Look at these poor shoulders!" she chuckled while frowning. "No worries I'll fix you in a jiffy!"
He sighed "Ahh! The benefits of having a physical therapist girlfriend are unmatched!".
She laughed lightheartedly. "First, better you re-think that, I've grabbed the shoulders of half the men in Brisbane, mate!"
He looked at her above his shoulder, the sheer mischievousness on his stare and his smile made her skip a heart beat, and her joints felt like jello, but she didn't let it show.
"Ahhh… but you like my shoulders best, don't cha?!" he asked with playfulness.
"Well…. maybe" she conceded, hiding her grin with a quick peek at his cheek.
"And second?", he asked.
"Ah, yes! Well, second. I'm not your girlfriend yet, you have not asked!"
His chest tightened.
"Oh… true…", he said, while suddenly looking to the floor.
He felt her hands faltering for a second, her touch becoming more a caress than a remedy… Well, it was still a remedy for his fretful heart, nonetheless.
"I didn't mean to nag at you, Rad… I didn't say it to pressure you either…"
He grabbed her small, soft hand into his. "I know babe, you were just teasing, it's ok… but you're right, I haven't asked you yet…"
He sighed, and smiled while cupping her cheek. "Not that I don't mean to do it".
"Oh… Rad", she smiled while leaning her face into his hand.
"It's just… I think I need to know something, I would like to have a chat with you, but only if you are ok with it, you don't need to tell me if you don't want to…"
"About what?", the Spaniel said, her brows knitting together.
"Bosco"
She hissed internally. "Why?", she asked, her stance minutely changing to a defensive posture, her shoulders straight and her muscles taut.
"I want to know about him because I don't want to make the same mistakes as he… I want to make you happy, Frisky… and I really want us to work…"
She exhaled a long breath, and relaxed a bit. It still hurt her to hear his name… she wasn't expecting to hear it from Rad's mouth.
His heart was thumping wildly, his senses were overwhelmed in her presence and yet, he feared he had overstepped, and that Frisky would disappear as a reflection over calm waters once someone disturbed its surface. But no, she was still there, looking as afraid as himself, so he said what he needed to say for a long time.
"... because I love you, Frisky. I really do".
This was not the first time she heard those words.
Last time was… one year ago? yeah maybe, and she had not believed them for a bit, and oh! that had hurt, because she wanted so much to believe them…
But the man in front of her right now was Rad. Sweet, noble, honest, Rad Heeler; not Bosco.
Granted, Bosco had been good and honest once. Could she believe it now?
She closed her eyes and breathed in, searching for an answer.
Bluey's question from months ago still ringed in her head: "Is true love not forever?"
"You don't need to answer to my declaration right now, Frisky", Rad sighed. "It's ok, really… I - I" he stuttered "I - just needed to tell you what I feel, that's all"
She was silently looking at him, still wondering about her own feelings on the matter.
He breathed in deeply, and smiled ruefully. "Hell, I don't even need and answer, babe, I only need to love you as I do… that alone already makes me happy!", he chuckled.
Now, that tugged at her heart strings! "Oh, Rad!!" she exclaimed while flinging herself into his arms.
She wasn't as eloquent as Chilli was. She was a woman of action rather than words, therefore, she acted instead of trying to explain herself and what she felt.
She kissed him, conveying her heart into it.
Longing
Trust
Fear
Awe
Need
Love? maybe…
All was there, like in an open book. Maybe she was eloquent after all.