Princess & the Player

thirteen: in which I say stupid things and she leaves me

Marco POV:

First morning after I met Maggie, I would have laid money that we'd never, ever have sex. Scottie's sister plus a virgin plus in high school. Big red "X" times a million. 

But after I'd seen her at Logan's, my balls perpetually ached. And I knew I was a total douche because she was vulnerable and completely clueless and all I could think about was how good it was gonna feel. How good Maggie already made me feel just touching my hand or leaning on my shoulder. Her touch was electric.

I was frigging obsessed. Like I had never been before with any chick in my life. 

So there we were, back on the road, she was riding next to me picking tunes and exchanging emails and texts and reading funny shit to me out loud. It was all good. Too good.

"So?" 

I tried to clear my head. "So...what?"

"So you think we can make Albany by Friday night?"

"Uh, yeah, you know what - let's pull in and get some lunch. We can talk." I turned off at the next major town and pulled in at the first non-gas station diner. We stretched as we hopped out of the truck and then headed in and found some seats.

Her phone rang. She looked down at the number and then back up at me, her eyes huge. 

"Hello? Yes, this is Maggie. Margaret Mary, yes. Hi..." 

She was smiling like she just learned how. "Uh huh. Uh, me too. No, of course. I'll email you when we know when we'll get there. Me, too. I really am," she sighed, almost happily, and hung up. 

"Good?"

Maggie nodded and dug into her french fries like a woman possessed. I passed over the ketchup. 

"That was my grandmother. She's Mary Margaret. Can you believe that? Um, so she and my aunt and I've got another aunt who is married and some cousins. I got a whole family I never knew and they all want to meet me."

"Whoa."

"RIGHT?!" 

The waitress stopped by and we ordered some shakes and some more fries. 

"Marco?" 

"Hmm?" I watched her dig in her shake for the cherry. It was strangely fascinating. 

"You wanted to tell me something?"

"Right. Look, uh...Maggie, this is...you and me...intense. I just want to make sure you know that I don't want to hurt you, OK? You're going through a lot. Don't get me wrong: this has been the great. I wish it didn't have to end. But it's going to. And before this goes any further, you know, we should talk."

She stopped and sucked on her straw and then put her finger over the top. When she pulled the straw from the shake, the cherry was stuck to the end. She ate it. Damn.

"This is about what I said about my birthday wish, right?"

I pushed my plate away. "Uh...full disclosure? The last time I seriously tried to date, I cheated. Everyone at school pretty much knew."

"Oh."

"Beginning of sophomore year. A friend of Queenie's. It was a weekend thing that shouldn't have gone any further. It was stupid. She showed up everywhere I went, harassed me online - especially on Facebook and Instagram where my whole family could read it, and cried whenever she saw me for weeks."

"I'd just kick you in the ass."

"Yeah, you would." I could picture it. "I want to be with you. Obviously. But I don't even know if I'll see you after this week, Maggie. And I'm crap at dating. It's your first time and I don't want to set up false expectations, OK?"