Page 185 of Seasons of Love
“If I was already in love with you, I’m even more now. I have no doubt you are the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, but now I know you will always be there for me and Sara because you want it as much as I do.”
We hold on to each other tight.
“You better let me spend the night here with you because there’s no way I’m sleeping on my own when all I want to do is hold you all night,” I say.
“Cook breakfast for me in the morning, and you have yourself a deal.”
I kiss him with all the love I have for him.
When the time comes for us to head out to the soup kitchen, I want to go but also not because staying at home with Milo and Sara is my absolute favorite thing to do.
“Don’t pout,” he says as we walk to the hall together. “I promise I’ll eat your ass like a starved anteater approaching a termite’s nest.”
“I’m not sure if I’m turned on or not.”
“Oh, you will be. I bet I can make you come twice just by teasing your ass with my mouth,” he says.
“Are you sure you want to volunteer tonight? We can still go back.”
His laugh fills my heart, and I make a new promise to myself.
I’ll make Milo laugh like that at least once a day for the rest of our lives.
32
MILO
“Milo, baby, come have some food,” Ellis calls from the kitchen door.
“In a minute.”
I’m planting all the flowers Ellis had delivered from a local garden center. The deck is finished, and the furniture will be delivered this week. The only thing that’s left to do is the porch.
Max has a pressure washer, so tomorrow, I’m going to wash the porch so it has time to dry before I paint.
And that will be the end of my work for Ellis, which is why I’m at war with myself.
Part of me wants to see it all done. Ellis goes back to work in three weeks, so he’ll have less time to enjoy his new backyard.
But at the same time, once I finish, there’s no easy excuse to be with him for the whole weekend.
I mean, he introduced himself to Gloria as my boyfriend, but even though we’ve declared our feelings for each other, we haven’t spent any time together except at the soup kitchen or when I’m working in his backyard.
We haven’t had any dates since the crab-roll lunch, but we’ve spent a few nights together, and the sex…fuck me, it’s the best sex I’ve ever had.
It’s like we can read each other’s needs so well that we barely need to exchange words. But it’s hot, fast, and even though we always cuddle and talk afterward, I’m still left feeling a little empty.
When did I become so needy for affection and attention?
I plant the last flowers in the row and go inside.
Since the work I’m doing is less physical, I wash my hands and return to the kitchen.
Sara is chewing on a piece of apple, sucking all the juice out. It looks sticky, but she seems happy with it.
Ellis fills my cup with coffee and gives me a plate with pancakes and some fruit.
“You really don’t have to go to so much trouble to feed me. I’m happy with my sandwich,” I say.
