Chapter 27 #2
“When we got married, that day as I was walking the pastor to the door, he told me that since we didn’t court before we were married, I should give you time to get used to me, not come on too strong.
I think he knows how men are. And that’s me.
It’s true. I definitely want the physical side of marriage, but I know that women aren’t the same as men.
And I asked him how long I should wait, and he told me a year. ”
“A year?” she cried out, unable to hold her words any longer, although she wanted to argue with him that women and men might be different, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t want the same thing that he did.
“It didn’t seem unreasonable to me. He said that was how long a lot of couples typically waited as they court and get to know each other, in fact that’s probably on the short end of modern day.”
“But we haven’t really done anything the way modern-day people do it.”
“I know. But I didn’t want to push you. I didn’t want you to be forced to do something you didn’t want to do.”
“I see.”
“I still don’t.”
“I haven’t had to do anything I didn’t want to do,” she said.
“That’s exactly how I wanted it.”
They stood staring at each other.
“But there were a lot of things I wanted to do but that didn’t happen.”
“Such as?” he asked immediately, his eyes narrowed, as though he were thinking back, trying to figure out how he had missed something.
“Like kissing. I really like kissing. I like cuddling. I like…the idea of doing it with you.”
His hand came up again, only this time, his knuckles brushed her cheek before his fingers wrapped around her neck, and he stepped closer.
“Are you serious? Are you just saying that because today has been all about me, and you think this is something I want too?”
“No. I’m saying it because I didn’t think you were attracted to me because you never touch me. We don’t kiss. There’s nothing.”
“And now you know why. Pastor Connelly said to wait. I didn’t want to do things on my own, he said that together you and I should build a strong foundation. That we wouldn’t regret waiting and building something that was built on more than physical.”
“Maybe you and I could decide that together?”
“I think so.”
“Okay. How do you feel about kissing?”
“I’ve wanted to for a long time. At first, it was all I could think about during the day, every time I saw you, and then I started dreaming about it at night. Now, that’s pretty much all I dream about.”
“Well,” she said, putting a hand on either side of his waist, and then taking a step closer, and moving one hand up so that she buried her fingers in his hair. “What do you say we start right now?”
Her breath was a little shaky, because she was afraid that he was still going to tell her no.
Maybe what the pastor had suggested would overrule what she did, but she thought they had a pretty solid foundation, and she didn’t see any reason why they couldn’t kiss.
Plus, she wanted to. And if he did too, that settled it in her mind.
“I suppose, if that’s what you want. After all, I’ve wanted it for a long time.
” His lips came down, and they brushed against her temple.
She closed her eyes, but she remembered the forehead kiss that he’d given her before.
It was sweet, and she liked it, but that wasn’t the kind of kissing she was talking about.
She rolled her head just a bit so that his lips moved down to her cheek.
She opened her eyes, and she said, “You’re almost there.”
She felt him smile against her cheek, and her lips turned up too.
“I’m trying to kiss someone. You have to stop making me laugh.”
“I think laughter is a part of it.”
“I think it’s an important part.”
They didn’t talk any more after that, as his lips came down on hers, and she didn’t even think that there might be people watching or that maybe they should have chosen a different time.
She just thought how bright and good it felt to finally be kissing her husband, Wilson, the man she loved.
With all her heart and soul and everything she had.
She lost track of time and couldn’t have said how long it was until he finally lifted his head and ran his lips across her cheek. “I love you. I’ve wanted you for a really long time, and can I just say I love kissing you?”
“Yeah. You can say that. And you can say the whole part about loving me again, I’m not going to argue about it.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too. I love kissing you and hope that we might get to do it a good bit more.”
“Maybe, if it’s okay with you, I’ll move upstairs today.”
“If I’d have known you were going to do that, I would have taken you to the sale barn in January.”
He let out a laugh. “Wife, those are the most romantic words anyone has ever said to me.”
“I try.” She smiled, and then his lips covered hers again, and they didn’t talk for a really long while.
Gilbert never intended to offer to allow Summer to live on the farm with his children and him.
But they love her and he soon finds himself drawn to her as well.
Will the holiday spirit help give these two a chance at love?