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“Then let me take your photo,” he laughed, tilting his head back.
“Fine,” Sarah rolled her eyes. “Take it.”
He brought the camera down to his face, focussing it for a moment. She smiled into the lens, her best smile, but as his finger compressed the button, she looked at the tip of her nose, emulating his silly face.
“Sarah,” he laughed, shaking his head. “A proper one.” He looked into the screen, laughing anew as he saw the image. “Here you look…”
“What do I look?” She moved to stand beside him. The photo was beyond-silly. Her long blonde hair was fluffed around her head, her cheeks were pink, her eyes-crossed and her mouth pouted.
“You look good enough to eat.” Something cracked in his voice. “May I have a copy of this?”
“Of this?” She husked, a frown pulling at her lips. “You want a copy of this photo?”
“Mmm.” He put the camera down carefully on the small table to his right and then turned to face her. His body was large; his frame easily dwarfed hers. “Yes, please.”
“Okay. But it seems like kind of a weird picture to keep.”
“Not to me.” He reached up, placing a hand on either side of her face.
Sarah’s breath hitched in her throat, her eyes enormous. He was looking at her as though she was the answer to every question in the universe. Confusion throbbed inside of her, and something else. Something new and foreign.
“I want to remember this night,” he said quietly, his hands dropping to her shoulders. His fingers were confident as they slid beneath the straps of her dress, guiding it gently down her arms.
Sarah sucked in a deep, shaking breath as he paused, the straps around her upper arms, his eyes silently questioning hers.
“I want to make love to you,” he said, bringing his hands to her hips and holding her close. “I want to kiss your body all over; I want to be your first.”
“You already are,” she groaned, lifting up and curling her hands around his neck. “I love you.”
*
Present Day
“Butter?”
Sarah nodded absent-mindedly, pushing the cart towards the fridges out the back. “Yep, butter.” She slowed in front of the brand they bought and waited patiently while Lexi extended a hand into the glass cabinet, selecting a parcel and placing it in the wire basket.
“What else?” Sarah asked, watching as Lexi climbed back onto the front so that she could ride shotgun through the store.
“Milk?”
“We have milk,” Sarah shook her head. Was he wondering why she hadn’t called? Was he even still in the country?
He hadn’t given her a time limit. But they’d both known his request was for immediate response.
“Chocolate?”
“Chocolate?” The cheek of the request broke through Sarah’s troubled recollection. “We don’t need chocolate.”
“We always need chocolate, mama,” Lexi giggled.
Sarah shook her head, wishing she could stretch their budget to at least a small candy bar. But pay day was still a week away, and they were down to financial fumes. “Maybe next week,” she said softly, pushing the cart into the next aisle.
It was a mistake. Cream buns, donuts, churros, tacos. The baked goods section was mouth-wateringly tempting. She lifted a loaf of bread off the rack and kept walking, moving faster and winking at Lexi.
She had the sweetest temperament. Far from complaining at the rather utilitarian assembly of goods in their cart, Lexi forgot about chocolate and cream buns and simply enjoyed the ride.
It made Sarah feel even worse. If Lexi had thrown the occasional tantrum, Sarah could have put the hard-line stance on groceries down to a disciplinary technique. As it was, she felt like a cruel miser.
