She’s eating maple-bacon popcorn. It’s her new obsession. She doesn’t even bother with a bowl, just eats it right out of the bag.
“Valentine’s Day is coming up,” I say.
She shoves a handful of popcorn in her mouth and makes an affirmative noise.
“We should go out to dinner.”
She swallows the popcorn and glances at me. “If you want.”
“Well, yeah, I mean, it’s, like, a special day, right?”
She shrugs. “I guess.”
I know exactly what that means. The ex asshole definitely didn’t do anything nice for her for Valentine’s Day. Now I really wish I would’ve kicked his ass at Waters’ cottage when I had the chance.
I’m about to go on a fishing expedition using my classic Ballistic charm. Of all the traits I inherited from my dickhead dad, my ability to smooth talk is one I don’t mind. It gets me what I want a lot of the time. I run a hand up her bare shin to her knee and knead the spot there. She sighs and slides down a little lower. I adjust with her movement so my hand doesn’t go any higher, like I’m sure she wants it to.
“You don’t want to do anything for Valentine’s Day?”
She stops shoveling popcorn into her mouth and sets the bag down. She regards me carefully.
“You think you’re so charming, don’t you?”
I grin. “Uh-huh.”
Lily rolls her eyes. “How many women have fallen for that look?”
“Only one who matters.” I walk my fingers a little higher.
“Right answer.”
I don’t get any further with the Valentine’s Day conversation. I get distracted when she takes her shirt off and we start making out. We end up having sex on the couch, then on the floor, then in bed. Additional information is unnecessary anyway. Her reaction, or lack thereof, tells me more than words could.
Lily needs to be treated like the delicate flower she sometimes is. And I’m going to make that happen.
_______________
Five days before Valentine’s Day, and just before I get on the plane, I call Lily’s favorite restaurant. She’s spent most of her life not having enough, or sacrificing herself for the sake of other people, so I want to give her the luxuries she’s never been able to afford.
I discover that Valentine’s Day is a kind of a big damn deal, especially when it falls on a weekend, so getting a table ends up being a huge fucking hassle. I have contacts, though, so I manage to work it out. It’ll be a late dinner, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
I secure us an excellent table and order flowers—lilies, of course—that will be delivered first thing in the morning to my place, since she stays with me when I’m home. A box of chocolates is scheduled to arrive around lunch time, because Lily loves chocolate almost as much as she loves sex. Then I shop online for jewelry because I don’t have time to go to an actual store. I also call Sunny to get the name of the spa they go to. I confer with Miller, and we set up appointments for both of them.
There’s a fine line with extravagance where Lily’s concerned. If something’s too expensive, she gets antsy about it. I’m learning where her lines are, and slowly erasing them. She’s going to have to deal with excess at some point, because I want to give her everything.
Lily may be independent, but she likes pretty things, and while she might not say it outright, I see how she gets when I buy her stuff. I’m sly about it. I don’t shower her with gifts. She doesn’t like that. Instead I play it off like I just saw something and liked it and thought she should have it. Or I’ll hang it up with the things that have found a home in my closet or my dresser like it’s been there the whole time.
Her eyes light up every time I bring her a present, or she finds something new hanging in the closet. And I like it. I like taking care of her like that. But I would never say that out loud to her face. I know better.
_______________
The only thing I tell Lily about Valentine’s Day is that we have dinner plans. Everything else is going to be a surprise. Thankfully I have the day off and no practice or workout because we flew in late last night.
Usually after a few days away, Lily and I have a lot of sex, but I want to hold off until tomorrow for that, so we only go a couple of rounds before bed. I don’t wake her up in the middle of the night like I normally would. Then I get up early and make her breakfast.
Okay, I don’t exactly make breakfast on my own, but I pour the batter into the waffle iron and hull the strawberries, so it counts in my mind.
I get everything ready, put it on a tray, and bring it to the bedroom. She’s migrated to my side of the bed and curled herself around my pillow. Her hair’s all fucked up in the back from the sex last night.
I stroke her cheek. “Luscious Lily, time to get up.”
She makes a little noise and burrows deeper into my pillow. She’s totally awake. I get up on the bed, straddle her, and rub my nose and beard against her cheek. I feel her grin as she squirms to get away.
“I’m sleeping,” she mumbles.
“I made you breakfast in bed.”
She stops squirming and rolls over on her back. The covers fall away from her chest, exposing her little pink nipples. I resist the urge to kiss them. For now.
She blinks. “Really?”
“Uh-huh.” I gesture to the tray on the dresser.
“You didn’t have to do that.” Her smile tells me I did the right thing.
“I know. I wanted to. Hungry?”
She nods, so I bring the tray over, and we eat until we’re full and her eyes get heavy like she’s ready for a nap.
After I take the leftovers to the kitchen, I get the present I ordered online from its hiding place. It came pre-wrapped. I keep it behind my back and climb into bed with her, ready for a lazy day of indulgence, lots of sex, and possibly a nap, if required. “I have something for you.”
Her eyes light up. “You do?”
“Uh-huh.”
“What is it?”
I hold out my hand. The box fits in my palm. “Open it and find out.”
Lily blinks and looks at the box, then at me, then at the box. Her eyes are wide. “Randy.”
“It’s just something small.” Literally, it’s tiny. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t expensive.
Since she hasn’t taken the box from me, I set it on her lap and wait. I’m nervous. Maybe she won’t like it. Maybe I guessed wrong.
Her hands are a little shaky as she pulls the red ribbon and the bow unfurls. I have to clasp mine together so I don’t start biting my thumbnail, which is a leftover nervous habit from when I was a kid and my parents used to fight.
Lily takes the long satin ribbon and wraps it around her neck. “Wanna tie that back up for me?”
I’m instantly hard. A few weeks ago Lily surprised me after an away game by answering my door with nothing but a ribbon tied around her throat. It was awesome, though Lance was with me, which was not awesome. But he’s smart enough not to have commented on it, ever.
Maybe it was the ribbon, or my irrational, but somewhat justified anger over Lance seeing her naked, or coming home to her after a long stretch away, or the combination of all three, but I’ve been fantasizing about that damn scenario a lot since then. I skim the column of her throat and tie it nice and loose.