He reached down and
started to pull her chair out from the table.
She didn't surprise
him. True to form, Ridhima was stubborn and tried to dig her feet in, but
after a brief struggle she must have realized it was pointless. With a
sigh, she let him help her up and followed him out of the restaurant.
They walked for a block without speaking, but he had no problem reading
her thoughts. She had an expressive face, and he'd been translating it
for years.
Before long he was
unlocking the passenger door of his car. "Come on. Get in."
She pulled away
from him, then turned and lifted her head and looked into his eyes,
still not saying anything.
Sidd felt his lips
twitch. "What? Still mad at me?"
She settled her
butt back against the side of his car and shook her head, a sad look on
her face. "I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at myself ' or at
least disgusted with myself." His heart clenched as tears began to roll
down her face. "What's wrong with me, Sidd? Why is it so hard for me to
find someone who will care about me once in a while, instead of
thinking only of himself? Someone who can remember which night of the
week is my night, and which night is the night with the guys."
Taking a step
forward, she settled herself against his body, her arms around his
waist, the side of her face resting on his throat. His chin came down,
and using it, he gently rubbed the top of her head while his arms
surrounded her in a gesture of comfort and protection. Their movements
were fluid and natural, as if they'd stood like this many times before.
They had.
Ridhima mumbled into
the bare flesh beneath her mouth, "If you crack a joke, or make fun of
me, I swear I'll bite you."
Sid cupped the
back of her head, pulled back, and dropped a kiss on her forehead. "It
wouldn't be the first time, would it? All right, no jokes, no making
fun. Come on. Get in the car. Everything will be okay. I promise."
Frowning up at him, Ridhima said, "I have my own car here."
Lightly squeezing
her head, he said, "Sweetheart, I told you to get in the car. Now get
in!"
Wrenching
herself out of his hands, nearly hissing like the cat he'd just called
her, she said, "Don't call me that! And how many times have I told you, you
are not the boss of me!"
Grinning, he
replied, "I've lost count. But I do remember that you were six years old
the first time you said it."
Grumbling, crossing
her arms over her chest and staying her ground, she said, "For all the
good it's done me."
Exasperated, Sid
said, "Fine, I didn't want to do this here, but you leave me no choice."
With that, he pushed her back against the car, using the weight of his
pelvis to hold her there, letting her feel one facet of his desire, but
knowing he had to make her understand the extent of it. With a deep
breath, he said, "You've been a part of my life since you were six, and I
was eight. So I can speak with authority and say there is nothing wrong
with you, Honey." He paused. "I wanted to drive you to the park near
where we lived when we were kids. I was fourteen years old the first
time I told you I wanted to marry you, and that's where we were. Since
then I've told you four times. And each time, it was in that park."
He felt her gasp
and heard the wobble in her voice as she said, "I told you no jokes.
You're making fun of me again."
Sid leaned his
forehead on hers. "Sweetheart, it's never been a joke. But the way I
feel about you scares me, so every time I tried to tell you I
deliberately made it sound like I was teasing. But I was serious, even
when I was fourteen. Every time, I was standing there with my heart in
my palms, offering it to you."
Ridhima put her hands
on his chest and pushed him away, looking up into his face. "What are
you saying?"
He swallowed around
his heart, which had taken up lodging in his throat. "I guess I still
haven't said it, have I? I love you, I want you to be my wife. And
lately I've been thinking that, just maybe, you love me too."
She punched him on
the shoulder and then yelled in his face. "You moron! Of course I love
you. Why didn't you ever tell me?"
Laughing, Sid
grabbed her fist, and then pulled her tightly to him. Lowering his mouth
to hers, he said, "I've been asking you to marry me since I was
fourteen! What more do you want?"
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