by Lydia Rose
“I’ll have a white wine,” Meg said now looking at Brielle.
“I’ll have the same.”
The waitress smiled and walked away.
“Where’s Nancy tonight?” Meg asked before her brain could keep her mouth from asking the question.
Brielle grinned and looked up from the menu. “No idea,” she said before looking down again.
Meg picked up the menu and tried to concentrate on the words before her.
The waitress returned with their wine and asked, “Are you ready to order?”
Brielle looked at Meg who nodded. “I’ll have the lobster bisque and the seared scallops.”
“The bisque for me too, and the filet medium.”
The waitress reached for the menus. “I’ll be back with your appetizers.”
“So how do you like your job?” Brielle asked breaking the silence at the table.
“I like it very much.” Meg smiled. “I do miss dressing casually as I did with Steve’s company. Now I’m back to business suits,” she said fanning her hand down her front.
“You look great when you’re dressed up, but better when you’re in casual clothes,” Brielle said with a smile. “I should have taken you to the café so you could have put on a pair of comfortable jeans.”
“No, this is very nice, Bri.” Meg looked around the restaurant. “I’m sure the food will be as impressive as the restaurant.”
“I guess we will find out and here’s the first course,” Brielle said as the waitress brought over their bowls of soup.
The soup was delicious. It was filled with lobster and the taste of sherry was heaven. They both finished their bowls and looked at one another with a grin.
“That was excellent,” Meg said. “I’ve never had bisque that tasted so good.”
“Yeah, it was good.”
The waitress took their plates and the silence took over again.
“Bri, why is it so hard for us to talk anymore?” Meg asked leaning toward Brielle.
“I keep thinking the same thing. We fell in,” Brielle paused. “We began talking on the train and then never stopped. I want that again.”
“I do too, Bri. I miss my friend.”
“I missed you calling me Bri,” Brielle said never losing eye contact with Meg. She watched as Meg’s mouth moved into a wide smile.
The ride home was still quiet, but this time there was no tension. Meg reached over and took Brielle’s hand in her own. As she did she looked at Brielle’s face waiting for a pull or rejection. When there was none, she squeezed the hand and brought it over to her lap.
“Thank you again for going to dinner with me,” Meg said softly.
“Thank you, Meg for giving me another chance.” She turned glancing at her. “You are giving me another chance, right?”
Meg smiled. “I never wanted you to leave me, Bri. I told you I needed time to think, but really I wanted to give you time to think. I wasn’t sure you really wanted to be with me and when I told you,” her voice choked, “you ran all the way to Connecticut.”
Brielle pulled the car over, flipped off the seat belt, and turned in her seat. “I felt like such a disappointment to you. I came into your life and screwed it all up.”
Meg put her finger to Brielle’s lips. “When you came into my life you opened a whole new world to me. I came out of my shell and you made me feel beautiful and--”
Brielle interrupted. “You are beautiful.”
“For the first time in my life, I felt beautiful and desired.” Meg put her palm to Brielle’s cheek.
Brielle smiled and started the car. “Let’s get you home.”
“Will you come to lunch tomorrow?” Meg asked still grasping Brielle’s hand.
Brielle nodded. “Of course,” she said, disappointed that she would not be spending the night with Meg. “You know, I caught hell from my mother when we stopped seeing each other.”
Meg laughed out loud. “Well, you can tell her we’re seeing each other again.”
Brielle smiled. “My parents really care for you, Meg. They think of you like another daughter.”
“I love them too, Bri. They treated me like family from that first Christmas.”
Brielle pulled into the driveway and walked Meg to the side door. “I had a good time, Meg.”
“I did too,” Meg said smiling. She stepped forward and cupped Brielle’s cheek. Her lips touched Brielle’s ever so softly and then pulled away. “I’ll see you tomorrow at one o’clock.”
“I’ll be here. Can I bring something?”
Meg shook her head. “Just yourself. Good night, Bri.”
“Good night, Meg.”
CHAPTER TWENTY NINE
Saturday morning Meg made the chicken salad for the lunch she and Brielle would have. The soup that she had made during the week was put into a pot to heat up. By one o’clock the table was set in the kitchen and Brielle knocked on the side door.
“Hi,” Meg greeted as she stepped out of the way for Brielle to enter.
“Hi.” Brielle entered moving her eyes to Meg’s lips. She touched her lips softly to Meg’s mouth and took her hand as the kiss ended.
“Let me feed you,” Meg said wearing a wide smile.
They ate their lunch and then put the dishes in the dishwasher.
“What are you doing for the rest of day?” Meg asked shyly.
Brielle smiled at the sudden shyness. “Whatever you would like to do.” She moved closer to Meg and kissed her mouth again. This time the kiss deepened and neither woman held back their passion. When they broke away, Brielle said, “I think we may have found what to do.”
Meg took Brielle’s hand and led her up the stairs to her room. As they entered the bedroom, Brielle stopped.
“I almost forgot.” She dropped Meg’s hand and went to the doorway. “Don’t go away,” she said with a wide smile.
“Where are you going?” Meg asked as she heard Brielle storm down the stairs. She heard the side door slam. “Is she leaving?” Meg asked to the empty room, but then she heard the door slam again and her feet on the staircase.
Brielle stopped in the doorway still panting with a square package in her one hand. She walked closer to Meg and handed her the package. “Open it,” she said with a smile.
Meg looked at the wrapping paper before she began to tear the paper. “Oh, Bri, this is amazing.”
Brielle came over and sat next to Meg on the edge of the bed. “I’ve been working on this for months.”
Meg looked at the painting of herself lying on a bed with the covers drawn up to her waist. Her hair was draped over the side of her face with her hands tucked gently under her head.
“I started that one morning after we...” she said with a grin, “and kept working on it until I was satisfied. Do you like it?”
Meg turned to Brielle. Tears were evident in her eyes. “I love it,” Meg said wrapping one arm around Brielle’s neck.
Brielle kissed Meg’s lips softly. “And I love you, Meg.”
Meg’s smile opened wide. “I’ve waited so long to hear you say that again. I love you too, Bri.”
Brielle began unbuttoning Meg’s blouse trying to keep her hands from shaking. She had waited so long to touch her again and the excitement was building as their clothes hit the floor. A moan left Meg’s mouth as Brielle’s body settled over her own. Meg opened her legs wide so their cores would touch. Brielle kissed her mouth deeply as her hands went to Meg’s firm breasts. Their breaths came out in puffs as Brielle pumped her core against Meg. Brielle’s mouth sucked on her stiff nipple, tasting, teasing until she felt Meg lift in one more movement before the crest of the orgasm took her. Brielle wasn’t far behind and they lay panting in the afterglow.
“Magical,” Meg said reaching for Brielle’s mouth. “I missed you so much, Bri.”
“I missed you too, honey.”
“Can we do that again except this time you touch me?” Meg asked with a giggle.
“Anything you want, Meg. Anythi
ng you want.”
They spent the afternoon and the early part of the evening in bed together until Brielle’s stomach growled.
“I guess I should feed that angry monster,” she said, rubbing her hand along Brielle’s firm stomach. Meg sat up and picked up her clothes. She went to the closet and grabbed a pair of sweats and a t-shirt. “I’ll heat up some more soup and order a pizza.”
Brielle was already out of the bed reaching for her clothes.
“Get something comfortable from my closet to put on, Bri.” Meg grinned. “I don’t plan on letting you keep your clothes on too long.”
“Really?” Brielle asked smiling.
“Really,” Meg said laughing as she went down the stairs.
When they finished their meal, Meg led Brielle to the living room. They both took a seat on the sofa and Meg took Brielle’s hand in her own. Do you really like the house, Bri?”
“I do, honey.”
“Could you see yourself living in a house like this?” Meg asked rubbing Brielle’s fingers.
“I’m not too sure about the neighborhood,” she said with a grin. “My aunt and mother on the same street.” Brielle shrugged. “They’ll be inviting us to dinner all the time and they’ll stop by unannounced.”
“And that would bother you?” Meg asked, raising her eyebrows.
“Wouldn’t it bother you?” Brielle asked, surprised by Meg’s question.
“I’ve never been close to my family and when my mother found out I was gay, we became even more distant. I have not seen any member of my family in years. I don’t call them, they don’t call me,” Meg sighed. “I see the way your family cares for you. You think they smother you, but when you’ve been on the other side of the fence,” she smiled, “I think it’s sweet.”
“You know they’ll smother you, too?” Brielle said with a grin.
“I’m counting on it. Bri, I’ve missed you so much and you told me you missed me, too. I don’t want us to spend a few nights a week together. I want to be with you every night. If you think that’s too much for now, just tell me.”
Brielle’s smile opened wide and she touched Meg’s cheek. “I want to spend every night in bed with you. It’s all I’ve ever wanted.” Brielle stood and pulled Meg up with her. “And I’ll try to get the folks to call before they come over. Don’t want them catching us in bed and ruining our fun.”
Meg put her arm around Brielle and led her to the stairs. “Speaking of fun, let’s get back upstairs.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
“Are you dressed yet?” Meg asked from the bottom of the stairs. “Your aunt is expecting us in half an hour.”
“I’ll be right there,” Brielle yelled as she went to the dresser and took out a box. She had moved in with Meg right after their talk and it had been wonderful. Christmas Eve was the anniversary of the day she met Brielle and she wanted to make it special. Brielle had on a pair of dress slacks and black boots. The lavender silk blouse had the top two buttons open to show just enough cleavage. She came down the stairs and saw Meg wearing the black cocktail dress with sparkles that she loved on her. Meg had worn it the weekend they spent in New York City. “You look beautiful,” Brielle said as she stood in front of Meg.
“Thank you. You look beautiful, too.” Meg pulled on Brielle’s hand. “We’re going to be late if we don’t get going.”
Brielle held Meg in place and dropped to one knee. “Meg, I think I fell in love with you the first weekend you were here. I thought I lost you all those miserable months ago, but you brought us back together. I don’t ever want to lose you. Margaret Wilson will you marry me?” Brielle reached into her pocket and pulled out the box. She opened it and watched the tears form in Meg’s eyes.
“Yes, Bri, I will marry you and I love you too, with all my heart.”
Brielle slipped the round diamond ring onto Meg’s finger and stood up. “I will always love you, Meg.” She kissed her lips softly and they hugged each other until Meg pulled away.
“Now how is my gift ever going to top this?” Meg asked with a laugh.
“It’s not a competition, honey,” Brielle said with a laugh. She reached for Meg’s hand and they went to the coat closet for their coats.
As they walked down the street to Brielle’s aunt and uncle’s house, Meg put her arm through Brielle’s.
“I can’t wait until we get home so I can show you how much I love my ring and your question.”
“Hey, we can go back now and tell them we can’t make it,” Brielle said with a squeeze of Meg’s hand.
Meg chuckled. “I think you can wait a few hours. Besides, the anticipation will make it so much better.”
“Seeing you all evening in that dress will make me think of the last time you had that on and how I ran my hand up your leg and what we did afterwards.”
They stood on the porch reaching their destination and Meg kissed Brielle’s mouth. The door swung open before their lips parted.
“Where have you two been?” Melanie Sanders asked as she opened the door. “You two live the closest and you’re the last ones here.”
“Mom, we’re not late. We’re right on time,” Brielle said walking into the foyer.
“Well, you would have been late if you two continued kissing out there.”
Meg took her coat off and as soon as she did, Melanie shrieked. “What’s that?” she asked grabbing Meg’s hand.
Everyone hearing Melanie’s scream came into the foyer. “What’s going on?” Barbara asked.
Melanie was still holding Meg’s hand. “Is this what I think it is?”
“Yes. Brielle just asked me to marry her,” Meg said with a glance at Brielle.
“Finally,” Melanie said taking Meg into her arms. “I thought this would never happen. Welcome to the family, honey.”
Everyone gathered around giving each of them their congratulations.
“When is the wedding?” Helen Ramsey asked.
“Aunt Helen, we just got engaged. Can we have time to talk about that?”
“We can have it in our yard,” Melanie said looking at her sister. “Early summer would be a great time to have the ceremony.” She took Meg by the arm and led her to the kitchen. “Are you planning on having children?”
“Mom,” Brielle said admonishing her mother. “Leave my fiancé alone. You’ll scare her away.”
“Honey, it’s okay,” Meg said looking over her shoulder at Brielle.
“Melanie, I would love to marry your daughter first and then we’ll talk about the rest.” Her smile radiated her love for Brielle.
“Okay, we can talk about children after you’re married.”
Brielle rolled her eyes and Barbara took her arm. “Mothers.”
As they walked back to the house that evening, Meg said, “Well, everyone seemed happy for us.”
“Yeah, they were,” Brielle said with a squeeze of Meg’s hand. “Will you tell your parents?”
Meg shook her head. “I’m too happy to do that to myself. I don’t need to hear my mother tell me how sick I am.” She paused. “If she ever called me, I would tell her. Since that’s not going to happen...” she said with a shrug. “It doesn’t matter.”
They reached the front door. “Now what were you telling me earlier about showing me how much you love that ring?”
Meg smiled as she unlocked the door. “I don’t know what you are talking about,” she said as she ran into the house and up the stairs.
Brielle was close behind her and caught her as she stepped into the bedroom. She took Meg’s coat off and pushed her body close to her. Her right hand slid up Meg’s thigh.
“Oh, yeah, I remember,” Meg said with a moan.
After they were lying in bed later that night, Meg switched on the light on her night stand. “I want to tell you about one of your gifts.”
Brielle rolled onto her side and looked at Meg with questioning eyes.
“I spoke to my attorney and she’s drawing up a new deed and adding your name.”
/> “Oh, honey. You don’t have to do that. You make so much more money than I do.”
“The only reason I bought this house was to be near you. To catch a glimpse of you and hope that you would love me again someday. I want to do this, Bri. Even before you asked me to marry you.” Meg ran her hand over Brielle’s side. “You show me you love me every day in not just what you do for me, but how you look at me. I work late a lot of evenings and you always have a wonderful meal on the table when I come home.”
“That’s because when you’ve worked late, I’ve had my mom and aunt giving me cooking lessons,” Brielle said with a smile.
“I don’t care about the money. Whatever I have is yours. You are the only one I care about.”
“I feel the same way, Meg. You are my world.”
“The second part of my gift.” Meg reached into her nightstand and pulled out a wrapped box. “I know you don’t wear a lot of jewelry, but I hope you’ll wear this.” She handed the box to Brielle.
Brielle pulled off the wrapping paper and opened the box. “It is beautiful, Meg.” Brielle lifted the heart shaped diamond that was on a gold chain out of the box.
“You have my heart, Bri. You’ve had it for a long time. I thought you may as well wear it close to your heart.”
Brielle put it around her neck. “I will cherish it always.” She pressed her hand to Meg’s heart. “As I will cherish this one, too.”
Meg leaned over and kissed Brielle’s mouth deeply. She knew she would never have to worry if she was enough for Brielle. Everything Brielle did showed her how much this wonderful woman loved her. She would no longer ask herself if Brielle was the one because her heart told her that from the moment she met her on the train.
THE END
If you enjoyed reading my book, I hope you will leave me a review on Amazon
Other Books by Lydia Rose
The Summer of Our Love (2014)
What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life? (The Summer of Our Love Sequel) (2014)