The Hateful Heavy Heart | 18+

34 - Perfect Little Toys

Ruggiero

I hated making Jace wait, but her giddiness almost made it worth it. She had no clue what I had in the tote bag, and while it wasn't very much, I could tell the ambiguity of it excited her. Honestly, most of it was just papers. Most of it.

She sat properly on the edge of the bed, feet flat against the grown, knees pressed together, hands clasped. All I wanted to do was drop down to my knees and part her legs, but I knew that would be selfish; I had put her off long enough. Her curiosity was bound to make her explode.

Tote bag in arm, I stood in front of her, a few feet in between us. I, too, tried to appear proper, keen on making sure I stood up straight. "Are you ready?" I asked.

She nodded eagerly. "Can't you tell?"

"Yes, amorino, I can tell," I assured her. Smiling, I removed the bag from my shoulder and handed it to her. "Explore it, dolcezza. Everything in this bag has been handpicked for you."

Specifically, there were five things in the bag, each of them with significance to our trip. The trip that she unknowingly prepared a perfect meal for.

I kept quiet as she reached her hand into it. Jace was magnificent. Radiant. Gorgeous. I loved the way her eyes and nose crinkled with excitement as she pulled the first item from the bag. She furrowed her brow as she unfolded the piece of paper: a plane ticket.

"I'm going to Venice?" she asked slowly. I nodded. "We are going to Venice?"

"Yes, baby, but keep going. There's more," I told her.

She dug her hand back into the bag and rummaged somewhere. I couldn't help but smile as she pulled out the next item: a brochure. She crossed her legs as she unfolded the pamphlet and read its contents.

"Okay, I'm confused," Jace said after a while. "According to this, we're going to Friuli, but the plane ticket says Venice."

I laughed lightly. "I know what it says. What do you think it means, Jace?"

"That maybe I'll find more clues in the bag?" she guessed.

I said nothing more, only shrugged.

Jace rolled her eyes at me and continued to look. She opened the bag fully so that she could look at its contents. This time, she pulled out a box. Because I loved to annoy her and keep her guessing, I'd wrapped it in baby blue paper.

She set the bag aside and focused on unwrapping the box. "Y'know, every time you give me a box, I'm scared it's a ring," she revealed.

I frowned. "I doubt you want to marry me less than six months in. It's not a ring, dolcezza. It's something a lot less serious, so don't worry."

"I do, just so you know, but I'm happy to know it's not a ring. I'm not ready for that yet," Jace said. She stuck her finger into a flap and pulled down, tearing the paper away from the box.

I tried not to show how much the conversation was affecting me. "I do, too," I admitted, "but I'm not ready either."

Jace sent me a smile. "That's okay. There's no rush."