The Big Day

NOTE: this chapter contains no sex, but it advances the plot of the story.

CHAPTER 3—Dinner and a Thunderstorm

"That was incredible," she whispered softly as she wrapped her arms around me and put her head on my chest.

"I could tell. Ready for a shower?" I asked as I walked towards the ladder out, collecting her floating swimsuit pieces as I went.

"No evening swim?" she asked me, eyes still closed. She was hanging on me in the water, legs wrapped around my waist, arms around my neck, head on my shoulder. As if to answer for me, a deep roll of thunder came floating in from off in the distance, where a storm had been gathering for a little while.

"Don't think so. That storm won't be past until late tonight."

"Rats. Evening swims are nice." She muttered as she clung to me and I carefully climbed up the ladder onto the pool deck. I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her as best I could. She must have finally realized that we had to dry off before we could wander through the house to the shower, and she dropped her legs and then grabbed the towel around her shoulders.

"I'm gonna go shower, and you can hop in after me, because we

won't beat the storm otherwise." She leaned forward and kissed me then turned and walked down the stairs of the pool deck to the patio and into the house, drying off as flirtatiously as possible as she went.

A roll of thunder broke my trance, and I dried off quickly. The storm was getting closer, and realized I needed to move the patio and deck furniture so the storm wouldn't blow them around. I grabbed the two pool loungers one at a time and took the down and around to underneath the pool deck. They liked to blow into the pool otherwise, and that wasn't good. Then I grabbed the patio chairs, stacked them, and moved them under the pool deck, then slid the table over so it was snug in the corner the pool and the gated stairs to the pool deck made. As I grabbed a few extraneous towels and headed inside it started spitting rain. Wanting to shower before the main part of the storm hit, I dropped the towels by the back door and rushed upstairs.

Nicole was still in the hall bath, so I nocked and yelled through the door that the storm was about here. I knew if I opened the door I would be tempted into joining her. She acknowledged and I grabbed a towel from the hall closet and headed for the bathroom downstairs, which had a shower too.

* *

I heard Nicole walk into the kitchen but I didn't look up because I was using a knife to break two chicken breasts off of a frozen together block of them. "You weren't in the shower that whole time, were you?" I asked, still struggling with the chicken.

"No, I was almost out when you warned me it was raining, but I didn't want to run into you when I wasn't ready."

Having succeeded against the chicken, I dropped the extras into the bag and looked up—and almost dropped the knife. She was stunning. She was wearing a simple, dull red, summer dress, but it was beautiful. It was tasteful yet tantalizing, with just a hint of plunging neckline and a short skirt. And she had done something beautiful with her hair, which framed her face nicely. She spun and walked around the island to give me a kiss.

"Wow," was all I could get out. I suddenly felt very much underdressed with my sleeves rolled up and my tie tucked into my shirt so it wouldn't dangle into the food I was just starting to prep. Though, I suspect that even had I been in a tuxedo, I probably would have felt underdressed.

"You don't look too shabby yourself, mister," she said, smiling. She gave me a kiss, and then I passed by her and put the chicken away, then stepped back around her to wash my hands. As I washed my hands, she wrapped her arms around me and hugged me from behind.

"What are you making for dinner?"

When we planned the day, I told Nicole that I would cook a nice meal and we would have a romantic dinner on the patio. The patio was out because of the storm, but I hadn't planned on using the grill anyways, so it didn't affect the cooking.

"Uh, I actually don't know if it has a name," I said as I dried my hands. I turned and kissed her before I continued. "Poach the chicken. Sauté the bell peppers, then add the chicken and pan-fry that with some spices and the diced tomato. Then add a little white wine and cream and let it cook. Sound good?"

"Sounds fantastic."

"We'll have to eat inside though," I bobbed my head to the sliding glass back door as I diced a tomato and sliced the bell peppers I had picked that morning. Outside rain was lashing the house in heavy sheets of water, accompanied by brilliant flashes of lightning and deep, strong rolls of thunder that started with a crack.

"Wow it's really coming down," she said as she walked over to look outside.

* *

Forty-five minutes later I had just finished the chicken and was about to pull the noodles off when the lights flickered once, then went out. The room sank into darkness.

"Don't move," I said as I slid the noodles onto the back burner. Even though the electric range was out, the coils stayed hot for some time. I reached up into the cupboard above the stove and microwave where we kept our candles and matches and such. I felt around for a candle and a holder, then a matchbox.

A flash of lightning lit up the room for a second, then plunged us into darkness again. I took a step over to the island and waited for another flash so I could find a spot to set down the candle. There was another flash and I set down the candle. Now I had a free hand and I struck a match and lit the candle.

In the flickering light I looked at Nicole. If I had thought she looked beautiful before, but now in the dim light she was even more so. But for whatever reason, that's not what I said.

"Perfect timing. Any sooner and we'd have no spaghetti."

"Shush. No talking unless it's necessary. You'll ruin the mood of the storm." I wasn't really sure what Nicole was talking about, but I understood the no talking bit.

I stepped over the window over the sink and opened it just a crack, since the A/C went out with the power, and it would get really stuffy quick. Then I stepped over to the stove and put the noodles and chicken into serving dishes. I picked them up and looked at Nicole. She picked up the candle and followed me out into the dining room where we had two places set already. I set the dishes down and she set the candle down.

Then I reached over and pulled her chair out for her and we sat. Since we didn't talk, we ate in silence, except for the sound of the rain lashing the house and the not quite constant rolls of thunder. (It was oddly quite romantic, I must admit.)