Deep Surrendering (Episode Three) Read Online Free PDF Page A

tonight, and I hoped I’d make it there awake. He was used to staying up all night, but I could only go a day or two without proper sleep. Then I crashed.
    Downing my umpteenth cup of coffee, I got down to work, wondering if I could tape my eyelids open.
     

     
    Fin arrived at my door that evening as fresh and crisp as if he’d had a full night’s sleep, but I knew he hadn’t. He’d had a full day of work just like me.
    “How do you look this good?” I asked as he handed me another bouquet of lilacs.
    He just smiled in response to my question and then produced a clear glass purple vase from his other hand.
    “I remembered you didn’t have one, so I thought I’d pick one up for you. And can I say that you look lovely this evening.”
    I knew I didn’t. I’d had a wardrobe crisis since the dress I wanted to wear I couldn’t find, and by the time I did find it, there was no time to iron the creases out of it, so I’d had to go with a backup dress. And then there hadn’t had been much time to fix my hair, so I’d pinned it back in a bun and done the bare minimum of makeup, concentrating mostly on the puffiness and circles under my eyes.
    “I look pretty crappy, but you’re sweet. So, what are we doing tonight?” He walked to my kitchen, filled the vase with water, and then put the lilacs in it.
    “Well, tonight you have two options, depending on how you feel.” He held up two fingers.
    “Okay, hit me. What are the choices?”
    “Option one, we go out to dinner and then a late showing of the classic movie
Casablanca
followed by dessert.
Or
, option two, we could have dinner at my place, have a private showing of
Casablanca,
and then have dessert.”
    “So
Casablanca
and food are involved either way? What about sex?”
    A smile flitted across his face. “Well, sex is only involved if you’re up for it. We don’t have to have sex every night.” I stepped closer to him and grabbed the lapels on his jacket.
    “Says who? We only have a few days left and I want to make the most of them. With you.”
    He looked down at me and smiled darkly. “Then we should make the most of them,” he said, kissing my forehead.
     

     
    After some deliberation as we walked down to his car, we decided to go back to his apartment. Besides, it would be a lot easier and less frowned upon to make out at his abode than in the movie theater. Not that the idea didn’t also have an appeal. But I was tired, and his place was a more comfortable place to fall asleep than a movie theater.
    “So what are we having for dinner?” I asked as Carl drove us to Fin’s place.
    “That is up to you. I have an extensive collection of menus from the city’s finest establishments, and some of the
not
so fine ones, and you get to pick. Since I hijacked your Scrabble game and all.” He squeezed my hand and I gave him a quick kiss, breaking it off before it could turn into something else. I did have a fantasy of him having his way with me in a cab, but I didn’t think I could ever look at Carl again if we did that just now.
    “So you’re ceding control of the meal planning to me?” I tried to raise one eyebrow but failed. I’d never been able to do that.
    “I am. One thing at a time, Cherry. I’m trying.” He was. He was really trying to open up to me. I couldn’t ask for much more than that.
    I cuddled closer to him as Carl pulled in front of Fin’s building.
    “One thing at a time,” he whispered before getting out of the car and holding out his hand to help me.
     

     
    Fin wasn’t lying. He had what seemed like hundreds of restaurant menus, all organized in a drawer in his kitchen. I fanned them out on the counter and stared.
    “This is hard,” I said.
    “Well, when I’m trying to make a decision, I first try to find out what I don’t want and go from there.” I’d used that method myself.
    “Okay, I don’t feel like Chinese,” I said, discarding those menus. “And nothing that’s too hard to eat, or too spicy.”