The Arrangement (New Hampshire Bears Novella)

by Mary Smith

  “Please, no more sex talk.” Dacey covers her ears.

  “I agree with Dacey.” I’m also hoping no one slips up and says the truth about my past.

  “Fine,” Robyn says loudly. “Let’s just keep you two together. Starting now.”

  I glance over at Dacey, and she’s looking back at me.

  “Okay,” she concedes.

  “Okay.” I repeat her word and figure it’s time for me to learn about my future wife.

  Chapter Five

  Dacey

  As everyone leaves, Vance and I agree to meet for brunch the next morning. We can’t meet for breakfast because he needs to go to the gym first.

  Now, I’m sitting in the restaurant alone, waiting on Vance, who’s fifteen minutes late.

  “Another water?” the waiter asks. I’m sure he’s thinking no one is coming to meet me and I’m just taking up space.

  “No, not right now.” I smile sadly. I’ll give him five more minutes and then head home.

  I check my phone again and try my best not to get upset. If he knew he’d be late then why doesn’t he send me a text? I’m about to flag down the waiter and get the check, when Vance finally walks through the door.

  He obviously sees I’m upset and immediately begins to apologize. “I’m sorry. I got caught up at the gym talking to some guys.”

  “You could have let me know.” I don’t mean to sound pissy, but I hear it in my tone. “Sorry. I’m hungry and cranky.”

  “It’s fine. It’s my fault.”

  The waiter returns and we order our food. We fall into silence, as always, and I figure someone needs to talk first.

  “Our siblings seem to be very intent on us remaining together.” I finally speak.

  “My brothers are deep on keeping up family traditions.” He seems displeased.

  “Aimee too.” I nod. “Um…well…I guess we need to give this a real go then.”

  “We do,” he agrees.

  “Okay, since we both know the severity of this, I’ll let you in on a secret.”

  “What’s that?” He furrows his brow.

  “I want this to work too.” I lower my voice as my nerves rattle. I’m not a fan of spilling my feelings, but this needs to be said. “I don’t want to be the black sheep of my family. I think, if we both work at this, it’ll be successful.” There, I told him.

  Vance looks down, running his hand through his shaggy, dark brown hair. When he gazes up, his light blue eyes seem more serious than sad, like I thought they might be.

  “I care too. Let’s put forth all of our effort and make it happen.”

  I give him a tiny smile. “Okay. Since we don’t know a lot about each other, I found a dating site on the internet that had a questionnaire to use on a first date and such.” I pull open my phone to the list to help us out.

  “You were on a dating sire?” He sounds hurt.

  “Yes, but I was just there to get the list.” I hold up my phone, showing him.

  “Oh,” he seems relieved.

  Before I can get out the first question our food arrives. After a few bites, I go back to my phone. “We can skip the family and travel ones since we already know all of those,” I start. “I’ll ask and we’ll both answer, sound good?”

  He agrees.

  “Okay, let’s start with favorite color.” It’s simple but not ground breaking.

  “I don’t really have. Although, I’ve bought a lot of red jumpers lately.” He shrugs.

  “I’m more of a purple or blue girl. Mum hates those colors because she says they’re too dark.” I refrain from rolling my eyes. Mum is constantly trying to put me in pinks and greens. “Next question: favorite book?”

  “Don’t have one,” he answers quickly.

  “Really?”

  “I’m not a big reader.”

  “Oh right. I knew that actually.” I remember his mum talking to mine about his difficulties in school. “Well mine is A Walk to Remember. It’s by Nicholas Sparks. He’s an American writer.” Vance doesn’t seem to care him about the details. I move on. “Well, we know your favorite sport,” I joke.

  “What’s yours?”

  “Mine?” I thought for a second. “Probably rugby. Although, I hockey is a close second, and I like watching it.”

  “You watch hockey?” He seems startled.

  “Yes. Why wouldn’t I?”

  “I just assumed you didn’t like it.”

  I shake my head. “No, I do. I watch all the highlights and your interviews and such.” My cheeks heats up, and I omit the part where I purchased a subscription to watch all his games on the internet.

  For the first time, Vance smiles. “I didn’t know.”

  I try to play it off as nothing, but my face is burning now. “Favorite movie or TV show?”

  “I’m not a fan of either. I don’t mind action movies every once in a while. I saw some while in Canada, they’re good.”

  “I’m more of a reader. But I don’t mind reality TV from time-to-time. Big Brother and such…” I take the last few bites of food, glancing over the list, but everything seems way too personal. Who asks such things on a first meeting?

  “What else?” Vance asks wiping his mouth. He pushes his empty plate away and stares at me.

  “I guess that’s it.”

  He tilts his head. “You’re lying. What is it?”

  “They…the…” I take a deep breath. “The rest of them are of a personal nature.”

  His quiet for a moment and the waiter comes by, taking our plates and leaving the bill. I try to give Vance money for the bill, but he just tells me no.

  “Come with me,” he says when we’re outside.

  “Where to?”

  He points down the street. “Let’s walk the park.”

  I agree and we stroll down the sidewalk until we reach the park. I’m unsure what Vance is thinking at this point, but I thought our brunch went okay. At least we spoke more than two sentences to each other.

  Vance suggests we take a seat on an empty bench. I’m surprised there are not more people out, but I guess they’re mostly at work considering it’s a weekday.

  “Let’s go over the rest of those questions,” he says as we sit down.

  “Huh?”

  “Come on Dacey. You and I both know these are questions and topics we need to discuss. Besides, I’ve had at least ten sex talks with my brothers. It can’t be much more embarrassing.”

  “I’m not so sure,” I mumble. My body is trembling thinking about having this talk with him.

  “We’re going to be married someday, right? This is going to be part of it. I feel as if we should…talk…you know,” he stammers; he’s nervous too.

  “It’s going to embarrass me,” I whisper.

  “Trust me, I feel the same way.” He sighs. “But we’re both twenty-one and we need to know about this topic.” He clears his throat and then turns on the bench to face me.

  I close my eyes, count to five, and realize he’s right. This is a big subject and one we’ve never discussed before. It’s important. I grab my phone from my purse and open the questions back up.

  “How many people have you kissed?” I began using the term kissed in the question.

  “One.” He answers quiet quickly. “And I regret the way I did it too.”

  “Apollo’s wedding,” I add sadly.

  “I was smashed that night,” he says in the same weak tone.

  “You grabbed me from my table, telling Mum and Dad we were going to dance,” I continue the story.

  “But I took you to the coat closet,” he inputs.

  He pushed me really. He held tightly to my face and pressed his lips to mine. I remember him smelling of ale. He shoved his tongue into my mouth before I was finally able to push him away.

  My first kiss equaled disaster, and he’s never tried again.

  “I’m so sorry for that night. It should have never happened.”

  “You apologized for it. I’ve forgiven you.” I try to
smile and reassure him. I told no one of our kiss and I’m sure he didn’t either. “The next one is: how many people have you slept with? Not sure I want to know this.” I mutter the last part.

  “Dacey.” Vance harshly says my name, making me lift me head. He’s mad. “I gave you my word a long time ago.” Even though he sounds serious, my heart tells me something is off.

  I remember the day before he left for Canada. He gave me his word that he would remain faithful. Part of me believed him, but the other part thought he might have been with others.

  “Thank you. I’m sure it couldn’t have been easy.”

  “What do you mean?” He squints.

  “I’m sure there were a lot of females around.” My blood rushes to my cheeks.

  “A few, but mainly with my teammates. I made it clear about you, and I took care of things on my own.”

  I whip my head up at him. Did he just say…

  “I meant, I just…” his face turns red now. “You know.”

  “I do know.”

  “You do?” Vance’s blue eyes widen.

  “I mean…I just…” Now, I can’t form a sentence. “I understand your meaning.”

  “So you don’t?” he questions and my face is about to catch fire.

  Are we really going here?

  I guess so, and I should be honest with him, right? But this is private. The most private topic ever. It’s not even proper to talk about.

  Wait, this is the twenty-first century. I’m an adult woman talking to my future spouse. Is it embarrassing? Sure, but I’ve read articles and read books about women who are capable of speaking on these subject matters. Their faces probably aren’t bright red doing it.

  “I do.” I rush the words out and don’t look him in the eyes.

  “A lot?”

  Of course, he’s more engaging on the sex topics. “I guess a couple times a week.” I’m barely audible. My eyes flick to his and then away.

  Vance chuckles. “Now, I’m dying to know more.” But he asks nothing else.

  I’m going to be that girl. The brave, confident, extremely blusher girl. “Two questions,” I say, still not looking at him.

  “What?” He seems alert now.

  “You can ask me two questions about that topic and I’ll answer them.”

  “Are you joking?” He’s in shock.

  “No, just…” I wave my hand. “Hurry before I lose my nerve.”

  “Do you think of me?”

  My whole body is on fire now; this isn’t the topic I figured we’d discuss. At least not this in-depth.

  “Sometimes. It depends.” I pick at the bottom of my shirt keep my eyes diverted.

  “Do you use…items?” He stammers over his words, but still asks.

  I nod. I have a vibrator. I’d die if Mum and Aimee ever found it. Vance laughs, and I’m not sure what’s so funny. He stops, and I know I’m glaring at him.

  “I’m sorry. I’m laughing because I didn’t think you’d be this open with me. It’s nice you trust me.”

  I nod. “You’re welcome.”

  “Um…” he looks down at his watch. “I promised some mates I’d meet up with them this afternoon, but I want to have dinner with you.”

  I nod. “Send me a text.” I prayed our dinner conversation would not be this intense.

  Chapter Six

  Vance

  I can’t believe how brunch went. Never in a million years did I think Dacey and I would get into a shag discussion. I’m glad she opened up. Besides the sex, I did learn new things about her.

  We made progress.

  Now, it’s my turn to be just as open with her. I don’t want her to think I won’t be as open with her. Maybe I won’t go into great details, but some. I definitely won’t be saying anything about the other girls. I know I lied to her, but she won’t find out.

  “I’m heading out.” I pass Apollo in the hall.

  “Hey, Mum wants dinner with all of us tomorrow. Tell Dacey.”

  “Will do.” I shut the door and make my way to her apartment.

  I can’t decide where to take her. I thought somewhere fancy, but that would need reservations and I made none.

  I knock on her door and my mouth waters at the smells. Someone is going to have a delicious dinner. I knock again and Dacey opens the door.

  My heart stops.

  She’s wearing a red dress. A tight, figure shaping red dress.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yes.” I exhale, checking out her body more.

  “Come in.” She holds out her arm.

  I inhale and smell the same aroma from the hallway.

  “Did you make reservations?”

  I shake my head. “No, actually I’m not real sure where to go.”

  “Perfect.” She beams. Her entire face lights up when she smiles. Almost glowing. “I mean, I cooked, and I thought we’d eat here.”

  “You cook?” I had no clue.

  “Oh, yes.” She’s still smiling. “I love to cook and bake.”

  I’m impressed. I can barely heat up soup correctly, let alone make a meal. “I’m starving, and I can’t wait to taste it.”

  She nods. “Come on.” She heads toward the kitchen. “And don’t worry, Aimee’s in her room. So we’re not alone.”

  The thought hadn’t crossed my mind actually. My focus had been on Dacey’s body and food. I guess I know where my priorities are.

  The table is set up with fancy china and candles. It’s as if we were at a big time restaurant. “Wow, you went all in?”

  Dacey turns to me. “Too much? I can dial it back.” She goes to reach for the candles, but I touch her bare arm.

  “It’s great. You can leave it all as is.” I sweep my fingers down her arm felling her soft, smooth skin.

  “Okay.” Her voice is shaky. “Do you want to pour the wine?”

  “Sure.” I answer as she hands me the opener.

  As I pop the cork and carry the bottle to the glasses, I watch Dacey carefully place chicken and vegetables onto the plates. She then sits them down on the table. I put the wine bottle on the counter and then hold out her chair for her to sit.

  “I see the classes paid off,” she jokes.

  “Apollo has been more concerned than Gerald.” I scoot my chair closer to the table. “Apollo is all about it.”

  “Well, he trained you well,” she comments before cutting into her chicken.

  I do the same and the juicy, tender piece of meat practically melts in my mouth as hints of onion, garlic, and rosemary explode on my taste buds.

  “Shit,” I exclaim.

  “Is it bad?” She looks worried.

  “No, it’s fucking delicious.” I take another bite. “Have you always cooked?”

  “Pretty much. I use to try all sorts of recipes I’d find in books and such. Dad usually is my dummy to try it. Aimee is all about the cakes and sweets.”

  “Did you make some for tonight?”

  “I made a couple of cupcakes for us.”

  My fork stops mid-bite. “Cupcakes? What kind?”

  “Chocolate.” She answers apprehensively. “Why? Do you not like it?”

  “The opposite. I have an addiction to cupcakes and chocolate.”

  “Really?”

  I nod. “I’m not joking either. If I didn’t work out so much, I’d be huge.”

  Dacey softly chuckles. “I doubt it.”

  “I’m not. I love it all.” I go back to eating my food as does Dacey.

  The conversation is easier this time around. Mainly it’s about food, cooking, and what we don’t like. I try to focus on Dacey as much as possible, and I came to realize she has a real passion for cooking, almost as much as books.

  When we finish, I pick up the wine bottle and fill our glasses again. We agree to wait on dessert and Dacey suggests a movie. I follow her with our glasses to the den. After she rambles off a few titles, we settle on one and I get to admire her backside as she puts on the movie.

  Wow, what a
difference twenty-four house and a sex talk can make?

  I place the glasses on the table and take a seat at the end of the couch, still staring at Dacey. As she starts the movie, she nervously looks at me, and I know she’s contemplating where to sit. Finally, she takes the place next to me.

  Trying to concentrate on the movie when really I’m staring a Dacey’s legs is much harder to do. Plus, she keeps squirming around, making me look at her more.

  “You know.” I turn toward her more. I figure she’s more relaxed when she talks. “You never asked me my two questions.” Yes, I shouldn’t have brought up this particular topic again but…

  “Two questions?”

  “I asked you two questions about… you know.” Sure, I want to talk about sex, but can’t say wanking off. “You didn’t ask me.”

  “Oh.” Her face begins to turn blood red. “Um…”

  “You know you want to know.” I egg her on.

  “Do you think about me?”

  I barely hear her, but I’m used to her low tone of voice. Although, I notice she can be loud when needed. I know she told me the truth today, and I need to show her the same respect. “I have thought of you at times.”

  “Well…um…this isn’t a question about the same topic, but…um…do you think about properly kissing me?”

  I feel the sadness covering my face. I’d absolutely ruined out first kiss together. I’d been so shit-faced, I just remember smashing out faces together. I ruined it. “Yes. I’ve thought about properly kissing you.” I see her lips twitch slightly, and I’m glad the truthful answer pleases her.

  “Thank you.” Dacey looks up at me with her blue eyes.

  “For what?” Even though I know.

  “Answering them honestly.”

  I gave her a small smile. “You’re welcome.” I shift in my seat, now trying to hide my hard-on, and I stretch my arm over the couch behind Dacey’s head. Flicks of her hair tickle my arm. I’d completely forgotten about the movie by now.

  My mind commands my hand to move without me truly meaning it to, I take a strand of her light red hair and twirl it through my fingers. It’s soft, and I watch her reaction. She tries to watch the movie, but she keeps eyeing me. I thought she might move or tell me to stop, but she doesn’t, and I continue to play with her hair.