Chapter 4
Marnie didn’t have enough words to describe how thrilled she was that Nathan had asked her on a date that was not just another trip around the town or being huddled off in a dark corner of some club while ducking out of the view of the paparazzi. She had lovingly taken the roses he gave her and placed them in glass vase she had tucked away in her hall closet. After he left, she grilled Dominique about her sneaky suspicion that she was the reason he finally made his mind up to step up.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Dominique said with a giggle. Marnie gave her a knowing look. “Ok, you got me,” she finally had to admit. She walked over to Marnie and gave her a big, warm hug.
“I’m not mad. I’m actually glad you stepped in, Niecey. If you hadn’t, we probably would just keep going in circles,” Marnie said as she hugged her dear friend.
She broke their hug then and with glee headed up the hallway to her room to see what she could find to wear for the occasion.
Later that night, Marnie was dressed in a pair of dark blue jeans, with a white tank top that had gold sequined embellishments shaped like a lotus across the front. She paired the casual outfit with large gold hoop earrings and chose to wear her hair up in a high bun that almost sat like a braided crown on her head. Her doorbell rang, and she nearly skipped up the hallway. As soon as she opened it, there was Nathan. His clothes were simple but, of course, native chic. He wore a white linen shirt with black buttons up the front and a pair of black cargo shorts and sandals.
“Ms. Hall,” he said, with a playful bow. As he stood back up straight, he and Marnie both laughed, and he gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek. She ushered him in and shut the door behind him.
“I’ll be ready in just a moment. Let me get my shoes,” she said from up the hallway.
Marnie grabbed a pair of flats, put them on, and grabbed her purse from off the bed. Shortly after, her and Nathan were on their way to one of the most romantic dates either of them had had in years.
The ride was actually quite lengthy. Nathan had told her earlier that he had found a great outdoor event that he was certain she would love but didn’t give many other details than that. She tried to sneak a peek inside a large lunch tote that sat on the floorboard, thinking if she could see what it was he had packed she could take a guess at what he had up his sleeve. Nope. Just some containers that looked like they held fresh fruit, some deli meats, sliced french bread, and typical picnic fare. There was also a bottle of wine in a separate insulated tote to keep it chilled, with some wine glasses safely tucked away as well. She could tell they were headed toward the beach, but no idea exactly what he had in mind.
When they finally arrived, she noticed they were pulling into a wildlife-reserve-type park. They parked the car and Marnie gave Nathan a questioning look.
“So, how are we getting into a wildlife reserve at night? Pretty sure they are closed.”
“I’ll grab the food, you grab the wine, and you are in for a great treat,” he said with a wink.
Marnie was skeptical but curious. They grabbed the things they needed and made their way up to the entrance. She was surprised to see they were, in fact, still open. As they neared the entrance, she could see people inside the lobby of the main entrance hall. At the information desk, there were two windows open with attendants to assist the long line of people waiting to enter the event.
She finally spotted a sign that said “Creature Feature: Movies in the Park” near one of the windows. Nathan guided her through the line of people who were purchasing tickets to the window where the attendant was taking the tickets of those who had purchased their tickets ahead of time. Nathan reached into his shirt pocket and materialized two passes, slipping them into the slot in the window to the male attendant on the other side.
“Thank you, sir,” the young man said. “You two enjoy the evening.”
Marnie was totally surprised by this choice of a date but equally excited. They walked under an arched carriageway entrance and followed a lit path and signs guiding patrons to a wide field in the park that was where park goers could often sit on benches, concrete picnic tables, or even on the ground during their visit. She saw people had brought their own things to dine on for the evening during the film, as well as folding chairs and blankets.
She finally realized the rolled up towel in the tote carrying the wine and glasses wasn’t just placed in there with ice packs to keep the glasses safe, but it was what they were going to sit on together.
“Now you see why I rushed to grab you today for a date,” he explained as they found a perfect spot on the grass. “I was looking online for something unique and saw this listed. When I realized it was tonight, I knew I didn’t want to waste the opportunity.
“You sneaky devil, you.” Marnie giggled.
They rolled out the large beach towel, and Nathan helped Marnie gently seat herself on it. She looked over at the immense projection screen that had been set up and around at the small number of couples that were also there.
It dawned on her that it would been dark soon, and it was likely even if someone did recognize them, taking a quality photo of the two would be nearly impossible. She also had a feeling most of these couples were more focused on their own relationships and time together. Her thoughts soon turned to what the movie was they were going to be seeing.
As everyone finally got settled, the park attendants who were apparently in charge of this particular picnic and picture event made a few announcements before starting the film. Nathan had popped open their bottle of white wine and filled up both their glasses, while Marnie ate a few strawberries. Digging further down in the bag, she found more and more goodies he had brought along that.
“You didn’t go cheap did you?” She laughed, finding a container of caviar, melba toast, brie cheese, and what appeared to be some kind of ceramic utensil specifically for spreading. She also found a small container of imported chocolates.
“No, I did not. But I’ve been doing really good about finding a balance between decadence and the simple things,” he said while smearing some sour cream onto a piece of dried bread for his caviar.
The movie began, with Marnie realizing she missed them announcing which film it was. But she soon realized it was one of her favorite black and white classics, “The Lady from Shanghai.” Her eyes lit up, and she looked at Nathan with a huge grin.
“You know I love these kinds of films,” she whispered.
“I know.” He smiled.
They toasted their glasses of wine to one another and snuggled up for a film noir date to remember. At different moments in the film, Marnie would playfully feed Nathan a strawberry or other fruit, and he even got to give her a piece of one of the imported chocolates right from his fingertips. This wasn’t new for them, this food flirtation they often teased each other with, but it was somehow more seductive.
The night sky was clear so every star in the Jamaican heavens could be seen they looked up. The movie on the screen added an extra element of romance and danger as only a film noir flick can; they had eaten their share of the amazing things Nathan’s more expensive taste had chosen to bring along and the wine was one of the best dry Chenin Blancs that either of them had ever had. It was then when all the wine was gone and all the stars were out that Nathan leaned over to Marnie.
“You look beautiful tonight, by the way,” he whispered in her ear.
“Aww,” she replied. “Well, thank you. You look quite handsome tonight yourself.”
The two of them looked at each other with warmth in their eyes. They had become such good friends and that bond was beaming from the two of them, and something more. Marnie held her gaze on Nathan. He looked to her lips, to that bright crimson lipstick she always wore, then back to her dark eyes. His right hand gently lifted to her cheek and Nathan slowly leaned close and kissed her with a gentleness that was part timidity and partly him just being a gentleman. That was what she adored about Nathan most, his respect for her. Even now, as she returned his kiss, she could tell he was being mindful of the fact that although it was dark they were still in a very public setting. They kissed again tenderly, softly as the credits played on the screen and others clapped around them.
Marnie broke their kiss to ask, “Should we get going, Mr. Gladwell?”
*****
Nathan didn’t think he had ever driven that fast in his life. He wasn’t even sure why he was racing up the highway back to Marnie’s home. Was it to drop her off and run for his life from his own desire? Or was it to carry her through the threshold of her own door and make the wildest love he had left in him since his divorce? By the time they were in Marnie’s living room, he could barely remember even pulling into the driveway.
Their coy kisses in the park had evolved to this maddening tasting and sucking of the lips, gripping and biting of tongues there in Marnie’s living room. Nathan collapsed onto the couch, catching Marnie on top of him and wrapping his arms around her. Her red lipstick was smudged all over their faces and neither one of them cared.
Her up do had cascaded down over them both; she was undoing his linen shirt only to expose the white tank he had on underneath. There was a lamp in the living room, but the light it cast was unnecessary. Their eyes were shut and mouths locked together, simply feeling with no need to see. Nathan tasted her neck and she let his hands roam under her shirt. She leaned closer to the arm of the chair as she glided above him, allowing him to leave kisses across her chest. As she leaned back to where they were eye to eye, he lifted her shirt up and over her head, revealing the black lace bra she had underneath.
Nathan could never deny Marnie was attractive. Never. He nearly buried his face in her cleavage to taste and feel what he had only snuck glances at for nearly a month now. He sat up straight, allowing her to straddle his lap, and she welcomed his lips across her chest as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Nathan was feeling like his whole being was on fire. Their lips soon reunited, and Nathan was rushing to feel for the clasp to undo her bra in the back. His newfound arousal was about to be cut short, however.
“Wait,” Marnie panted. “What are we doing, Nathan?”
His hands slid from their place on the bra and down her lower back. He wasn’t sure what to say because he wasn’t sure what she was really asking.
He could feel her hands rubbing on the back of his neck as they faced each other. Here she was, still sitting with her legs nearly wrapped around him, both of them fully clothed from the waist down but nearly naked from the waist up. He turned his face up to her and saw her face go from look of worry to a soft smile. Then, she kissed him the forehead, the nose, and lastly his lips.
He was confused.
“Yeah,” he sighed. “What are we doing?” His hands caressed her lower back, but even this was soon brought to an end as she maneuvered herself off his lap. He helped her get on her feet, then watched her walk over to her kitchen.
He was hoping maybe this was just a break. He didn’t want to be a jerk and push for them to resolve the awkwardness so they could get back to the intimacy, but he didn’t want to leave that night wondering what if he had stayed. He sat on the edge of the couch, frozen.
“Nathan,” she said as she leaned on the kitchen counter. “We just let ourselves get totally lost for a moment there.”
“Yeah, we did,” was all he could say. He was slowly feeling the creeping sensation of regret. Had he pushed too hard in coming here suddenly, and planning the date?
She turned back toward living room but kept her distance still. Her voice was soft and sweet, but Nathan kept getting the feeling her words were not going to be as gentle.
“Nathan, I want us to go about this the right way,” she said. “I’ve made this mistake so many times it’s not even funny. I don’t want to keep making that mistake.”
He could only assume she meant the heading-straight-to-bed aspect of the date. The more he tasted her lipstick on his own lips and realized his foot was near her shirt on the floor, he felt she may have been right. He reached down for the sequined top, picked it up, and made his way to the kitchen to hand it back to her.
She took it from him and put it back on. Nathan did agree they needed to slow down. He hadn’t ever really addressed it, but he had also been down that road on many dates. You wine, you dine, then it’s go time. But he wanted to change as much as Marnie did in every aspect of his life. He was ashamed to even look her in the eyes even once she put her shirt back on.
He saw his keys sitting on her dining room table where he tossed them earlier. There was no need to say much more. Yet, he turned to her anyway. They both looked as if they wanted to crawl under a rock out of guilt. They had let their lust get the better of them, and this is what they did not want. Nonetheless, he rubbed her cheek with his right hand and was relieved when she leaned her face into his touch.
She then rushed forward and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tight. Suddenly, there was the familiar bond they had grown. No awkwardness, just relief they still could hold one another. Maybe this was going to work after all, but just with a little more temperance and time. He planted a kiss on her forehead and stood there with her in his arms a while longer. He could feel his drive back home was going to feel like the longest one he had ever because part of him would still be wishing he had stayed with her that night.