Four
I roll over in bed and grab my cell phone off the charger. Time to turn it back on and re-enter reality.
“What time is your sister bringing the kids by again?” Clarke asks me as he tugs my body back to him and snuggles up against me.
I didn’t know when I was in college that I would be spending the rest of my life with this man, but I am so glad that I agreed to go on that first date with him.
After my horrific heartbreak, which in retrospect was a blessing in disguise, my best friend Natalie convinced me to go to a frat party with her.
I was never into the whole Greek life thing, but she was pledging a sorority and wanted my support.
In five inch heels, we walked ten blocks to the frat house because she had no idea where we were going and got lost multiple times.
Those were the days back before everyone had GPS on their cell phones.
After nearly breaking my ankle multiple times, we stumbled up the steps to the very loud party and I found the man laying next to me nursing a beer on the front steps.
Clarke was dragged to the party by his best friend. We bonded over our mother’s similar love for Gone With the Wind and laughed at our equally silly names. Only mom’s like ours would name their children Tara Savannah Scott and Clarke Gable Taylor.
“They should be back soonish. Tinley told me she has a whole day of baking ahead of her. She has a retirement party, sweet sixteen, and bridal shower this next week to bake for.”
“That’s awesome that her business is booming so much. I’m really happy for her.”
“Yeah, me too. She seems really happy these days. I’m proud of her.”
“How did the acquisition go yesterday?” he asks as he feathers kisses along my neck and shoulders.
I laugh thinking about the hours I spent on my presentation and then finally presenting it yesterday.
“The church finally relented and gave us the okay to rent out their auditorium for Liv and Luna’s dance recital.
All the negotiations were starting to get heated and I was worried we were going to have to find a new location. ”
“I was never worried.”
“That’s because you didn’t have to talk to those people.”
Clarke pulls my face toward him and in the most earnest way he says, “No, because I know my baby is a master negotiator. Nobody can ever shut you down. Always pulling out the big guns.”
He kisses me and I get lost in his mouth as I wonder if we have time for another round this morning. As we break our kiss, reality comes slamming right back to us.
“Mommy,” I hear as little feet pad stampede down the hallway toward the bedroom. It’s only a few moments before our door is ripped open and our little boy jumps into bed with us and cuddles up in the middle.
I know Olivia won’t follow her little brother into here, but I am so grateful Landon is still small and loves his mommy snuggles. And of course the minute I think the thought, he rolls over and latches onto his dad in a giant bearhug.
“I told him to wait until you were both up,” Tinley says from the doorway.
I laugh as my sister watches the three of us in bed and ask her, “Did you really think that would work?”
“Of course not, but I at least had to say it, right?”
I roll over and slide out of bed as Landon and Clarke get absorbed into a conversation about the latest superhero movie that our little boy wants to see.
“How about some coffee?” I ask my sister as I reach for my robe draped over the end of my bed.
“Sure,” she says, “but I can’t stay too long. Marek has the kids and when I left them, they were making a mess of my kitchen.”
As we head down the hallway, I can hear Olivia in her room working on her dance routine. My not so little girl has always been a perfectionist when it comes to everything she does, so I’m not surprised that she’s right back to it as soon as coming back home.
“So what did you end up doing last night?” Tinley asks from the other side of the island as I work on making coffee.
“Oh you know us. Went to our favorite restaurant for dinner and then watched some Netflix. Nothing too crazy,” I tell her as I think about our actual date night.
I can’t remember the first time Clarke and I decided to try roleplaying.
Pretending to be strangers meeting in the most random of places and letting ourselves get sucked into the fantasy of being someone else for a night but always ending up right back at the same place. Back at home with crazy hot sex.
It might not be for everyone, but I love every second of it. In some ways, we have fallen even more in love with each other over the years. Life can get stagnant and boring but our lives are anything but that.
As if reading my mind, my sister asks, “And that never gets boring? I don’t know how you don’t get sick of each other.”
If she only knew the truth. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned over the decade of marriage, some things you just have to keep to yourself. And as far as I’m concerned, the spark between Clarke and me only burns brighter the longer we’re together.
You’ve met Tara’s sister Tinley,
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Dating in the Dark.