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“Lettie lives right down the street.” Marlowe pointed. “There.”
Did she know that her breast was brushing against me even more? I looked down. Her face was red again as she tried to pull away. Yep, she noticed. I kept her close to my side.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
“For what? Honey, haven’t you figured out yet that I want to get to know you better? And that includes touching you?”
“But I don’t want you to think I was doing that on purpose.”
“All you have to do is tell me you weren’t, and I’ll believe you. I’ll be sad, but I’ll believe you.”
A little giggle popped out of her mouth. “Sad?”
“Big time sad. I’m hoping one day to have a whole hell of a lot of you pressed up against me.”
Her eyes got wide. “But this is our first date,” she squeaked out.
God, she was adorable.
I gave her a squeeze. “Us guys, we operate this way. We make our decisions pretty quick. A woman who fits in our arms, has a pretty smile, smells good, and is interested in us, will usually do it for us.”
“That’s not true,” she protested.
“Well, okay, it is when you’re seventeen. Now, when you hit twenty, it’s the same criteria, only you want to make sure she puts out.”
Marlowe pushed against my chest so that she could look up at me, eyebrow raised. “Are you saying you weren’t looking for girls to put out when you were seventeen?”
“I was absolutely looking for that when I was seventeen, but there were only so many girls who would put out at that age, and if you weren’t on the varsity squad, you probably weren’t getting yourself some. But by the time you’re twenty, it’s a co-ed free-for-all.”
“And when is the next big milestone?” she asked me.
“Twenty-five. That seems to be when all the guys who came from functional families wanted to get married, and marry a woman like their mom.”
Marlowe winced.
“Yeah, a lot of times it was a problem. The guys never asked their dad what qualities their mom had. Instead they looked at their mom through a child’s lens. Often times they ended up marrying a really good housekeeper, who picked up after them, cooked their meals and didn’t let him step a foot out of line. When in actuality, his dad might have married a lawyer who did nothing but pro bono work, and he loved her gentle soul. I’ve seen marriages like that crash and burn.”
“You’ve really thought this through, haven’t you?” Marlowe snuggled closer to my side.
“Yeah. In my unit, we would be called out of the country at a moment’s notice. Anybody who was married couldn’t tell their wife where they were going, how long they would be gone or when they would be back. Occasionally, we could sneak in a phone call, but that would be it. I’ve watched marriages implode under these circumstances, but I’ve seen some of my friends choose right, and their marriages are rock solid.”
She was quiet for a moment, while I could hear my heart beating. Finally, she asked, “Is that what you want?”
I huffed out a laugh. “Before I was injured the thought of getting married was always something to do in the future. I was having fun on my leaves, doing stuff with my friends. Mountain climbing, base jumping. My team got invited to surf at Cape Solander, so that was fun.”
Marlowe’s eyes grew round. “Was there a possibility of death with all of these things?”
“Not for a person who knew what they were doing.” I grinned.
She giggled. But then, she grew serious. “Are you okay knowing you might not be able to do those things after your injuries?”
Her concern touched me. How many women would ask such a thoughtful question?
“Marlowe, I’ve got to be. I refuse to live my life pissing and moaning about something I can’t change. That’s just plain stupid.”
“Makes sense.” Then that humorous spark returned to her eyes. “So tell me, oh wise one, what does a man look for in his thirties?”
“A man will always look for a woman who fits in his arms and smells good. Those are must-haves. So is a pretty smile that goes all the way to her eyes. In your thirties you should be smart enough to know that if you marry someone who is kind, you’ll have a partner who consistently acts with integrity and compassion. Plus, they’ll be caring and considerate during the good and bad times. And for fuck’s sake, you need to have someone intelligent.”
