Leah groaned as she rolled over, her eyes slowly opening and coming into contact with Nick's beautiful blue gaze. The night before suddenly came flooding back to her in a bundle of mixed emotions. Physically, her body was sore from the many hours of Nick ravaging her. How could so much energy be stored in one man? Well, he was young, she figured. She may as well let him have his fun. And yet, last night hadn't seemed to be for fun ... there had been a sense of urgency, on Nick's side, during their lovemaking and Leah didn't know exactly how to read that.
"Let's talk," Nick whispered out of the blue as he placed his arms gently around her waist and pulled her against him.
Leah sighed and put her arms around his neck, her fingers playing with his hair. "About what, Nick? It's only nine in the morning. What could a Carter possibly have to talk about before noon?"
Nick laughed sarcastically, though in reality he'd found her comment humorous and couldn't help but kiss her for it. "You're a funny one, aren't ya, y'brat?"
"Sure, why not? It adds some spice into an otherwise mundane existence."
Nick rolled his eyes, "Don't you think our lives are anything but mundane??"
"Yeah," Leah giggled, "maybe you're right. So ... what exactly was it that you wanted to talk with me about?"
Nick cast his gaze downward, his fingers running lazily across her stomach. Suddenly the needed discussion that had been hanging heavily in the air for days didn't seem so important. Maybe if I just seduce her, Nick thought, his hands traveling, she'll forget all about it.
"Don't even think about it, Carter," Leah laughed and moved his wandering hands from her body. "You said we were going to talk, so..." she grinned before quickly ducking underneath the covers and placing a kiss against the soft flesh of his stomach. Nick growled as she resurfaced, a smart-ass grin splayed perfectly across her face. "...talk."
"You're too playful," Nick laughed. "Way too playful for this conversation."
Leah's eyebrows rose. Nick, talking about being too playful? That was new. "Nah," she sat up and grabbed Nick's T-shirt from the foot of the bed, slipping it over her head. She turned to him, her previous silliness completely gone. "What is it, Nick? What did you want to talk to me about?"
Nick looked at her, amazed how she could change from one attitude to the next. But it was apparent to him that Leah knew she was about to get some answers to the questions looming around in her mind; that, of course, was enough incentive to calm down and be serious.
"Nick?"
"Okay, okay," Nick laughed. "Just because you give me a few seconds to compose my thoughts, doesn't mean I'm not gonna eventually talk about ... us."
Leah took a deep breath and slid her hands across the bedspread to meet his. She squeezed his hands gently in her own to show her support. She knew how hard it was for some men to talk about "deep issues" and Nick was certainly one of those men. But Leah needed some comforting too ... she had no idea what Nick was going to say. For all she knew, the night before was the last time she would sleep in the same bed with Nick. Just because they were finally going to discuss their future didn't mean she'd like the final outcome.
"I want to start off by apologizing," Nick spoke quietly and seriously, his eyes appearing older than his years, "for the way that I treated you the last two days," he continued. "I mean, you came to me, wanting to talk with me about something that you feel very strongly about, something that's important to you. And I let you think that it wasn't important to me, too, by pretty much giving you the silent treatment for a day. I'm ready, Lee, to talk about our future. I'm sorry I wasn't before, but now I've got my head cleared and I'm ready."
Leah nodded and smiled at him. He was a beautiful man and as much as she loved making love with him she loved talking with him, too. Almost every word from his mouth was music to her listening ears.
"I don't need the longest discussion known to man. I know this is hard for you," Leah couldn't help but laugh. "I just need to know two things."
"What's that?" Nick murmured, staring straight at her and completely feeding off of her strength. He remembered a conversation he'd had with Brian in his kitchen two years ago. He'd told him how ready he was to get married ... he'd told him that Leah wasn't ready ... and now it seemed as though the tables had completely turned.
Leah looked down for a second to collect her wits. Gazing back up at him, she asked, "What are your reasons for us not being married already? And will we ever be?"
There was nothing more than a moment's hesitation in Nick's response. "We've had so many things get in the way of our relationship, from the moment we met. I'm just afraid that we'll get married and something else will get in our way ... something we won't be able to get through ... together, at least."
"Oh, Nick," Leah sighed as she reached over and hugged him. "We can get through anything. Just believe that and we'll be fine. As long as we continue to be there for each other and we communicate, we'll overcome whatever hurdles come our way."
Nick sighed before pulling back from their embrace and smiling down at her. "I know. And that's why I'm proud to say, in answer to your second question, yes. Yes, we will get married. Now, I just need to wait for the right time. You'll get your ring, baby."
"Nicky," Leah grinned, pulling his face closer to hers, "when it comes to us ... any time's the right time."
After they finished talking, they got out of bed and got ready, going into town for a day of shopping in the sun. They drove back to the house at dusk, watching the sunset as they drove. And as they fell into bed together later that night, they felt as though their hearts were connected more than ever. That night there was more than a physical connection. For the first time in Leah's life, she saw stars; bright lights and stars.
"Happy Fourth, baby."
"It's not even July."
"Really?" Nick laughed. "Coulda fooled me. What were all those fireworks for then?"
Leah smiled. Yeah, that was exactly what they were. Fireworks.
-Independence Day; Martina McBride
