Only the best for you. In all seriousness, enjoy your night
Drinks soon, ok?
Of course. I need to hear all about this woman. So does the family, you're overdue for family dinner. You should come with mom tomorrow night, we're all going to be at the parent's house for pupusas
That sounds great, we'll be there. I still make curtido as well as any of you
You wish. Be there at 4 and we'll see if you've still got it
Done
The rest of the day crawls along, but eventually I get the last package delivered, drop off my truck, and run home to get ready. Quickly, I check in with my mom to see how her day was and make sure she's ok before I jump in the shower. Once I put on my favorite dark jeans, a light blue button down, my black lace up shoes, and a hit of cologne, I am out the door. The bar is busy since it's Saturday, but I could spot those purple curls anywhere. She spots me too and tentatively waves while I make my way over to her near the bar. She looks achingly gorgeous with those curls all wild around her face, her green eyes bright and warm, and a soft smile on her face. She has on a red and black dress with a cardigan thrown over it, and her legs look incredible in strappy type black heels. My heart is absolutely pounding just looking at her. As I get close, her face turns uncertain, and I can actually see her mind trying to figure out whether I want a hug or not. She's unsure of me until we can talk, but I make the decision by pulling her into me and hugging her hard. Her arms come around my waist, and I breathe in that rose scent of hers as I drop a chaste kiss to the top of her head.
“Hi,” she murmurs simply.
“Hey, Firecracker,” I say into her hair. She pulls back and looks up at me, searching my face, though her hands stay at my waist.
“Thanks for meeting me here. I'm glad you could make it after work.”
“Lyra, there's no need to thank me. I've been wanting to see you and talk more. I just also wanted to respect your need for space and time to think.”
She huffs a laugh at that. “If more men had that level of respect for a woman's boundaries the world would be a much less scary place.”
“There's no arguing with that.”
“Honestly, Taran, who even are you?” she blurts, seemingly without thinking because she looks embarrassed she said it the minute it leaves her mouth.
I'm the one huffing a laugh now.
“Just a guy who respects women, Firecracker. My mom would kick my ass if I didn't. So am I to assume your ex didn't respect your boundaries?”
“He was generally respectful until that whole pesky cheating part. If I told him I needed space and time to think, he'd get mad and try to force me to talk about things before I could process them, though. He'd say I was overthinking and that things should be talked out right away. I don't operate well like that. My mouth very much tends to outpace my brain,” she says with a shrug.
I smile because I am enjoying the hell out of how she is being more and more unfiltered with me. This insight into what makes her tick and how she operates is exactly what I was hoping to learn. I motion toward the bar and ask if she wants a drink and some food. She nods and we head over. Gage sees us from his perch on the end and gets the biggestsmile on his face. He doesn't seem shocked, though. Looks like Lyra and Gina were talking about tonight, and they told him we'd be here. That makes me smile even harder. Lyra looks at me with raised eyebrows, silently asking what I'm smiling about.
“I’m smiling because Gage is smiling at us.”
She rolls her eyes. “He and Gina are ridiculous.” There is so much fondness in her voice when she says it that it has zero bite. “He's also looking out for me, I still don't know you all that well,” she points out sassily, looking ahead of her as we make our way through the throng of people.
“I’m really hoping to change that,” I tell her quietly.
She looks up at me again quickly, then stays quiet as we find somewhere to sit, all sorts of thoughts and emotions clearly playing across her expressive face. We get to a high top table at the bar and order a round of drinks with some arepas. The live band doesn't start for another hour, so it's relatively quiet even with the crowds. Once we're settled, she breaks the heavy silence between us.
“That's what I don't understand, Taran. I don't get why you hope to change that. I'm an older, soon to be divorced woman, who can't offer you a family. It defies logic that you keep trying with me.”
The words come out soft and disbelieving. She's looking at me like I have to have ulterior motives, as if she's not inherently someone people could want. Time to get that out of her head quickly.
“What does logic have to do with it? You spark something in me, Lyra. Age and previous situations don't mean a whole lot to me compared to that. The more I spend time with you, the more I like you. My gut says this could be something fantastic. I've thought a lot about what you said at the farmer's market. More than anything I'm mad thatyour ex made you feel bad about yourself because you don't want kids. I love my niece and nephew a whole lot, but I don't need kids to have a fulfilling life. I'm the baby of my family, I wouldn't know the first thing about raising them.”
“You don't think you'll feel differently in a few years? This is something non-negotiable for me, Taran. I can't let you crush me down the road if we get serious, and then you decide to change your mind. Been there, done that, burned the t-shirt.” Her face is scrunched in suspicion, eyes narrowed.
“Honestly, no, my feelings won't change. I may be younger than you, but my dad passing made me grow up quickly, and figure out what was important. I like my quiet life, just like you said you do. My work hours are long, I want to go back to school soon, and I’d like my free time to be spent how I want it to be spent. Being an uncle to Seth and Sienna's kids, maybe having a couple of dogs is just fine with me. I've missed out on a whole lot since my Dad passed away. I want to travel, and do spontaneous things. Preferably with someone special. I know exactly what I want.” I give her a pointed glance when I tack on the last part.
She nods thoughtfully, obviously working through the absolute clusterfuck of emotion I just threw at her. Hey, in for a penny, in for a pound as they say. I am not going to hold back in trying to win this woman over. It's my turn for a question now. I ask it carefully and gently, trying to not make the question sound like an accusation.
“I’ve been curious since you said it at the Farmer's Market. You said you can't have children and never wanted them, anyway. Did something happen to make you find out you couldn't have them, even though you've neverwanted to try?”
She sucks in a breath, and for a second it looks like she might avoid answering or shut down. Then she closes her eyes for just a moment before she starts to talk.
