A Deadly Affair

Twenty-one

I wake the next morning to someone pressing kisses across my face; starting at my left cheek, to my forehead, my nose, my right cheek, then softly on my lips. Talk about a wake up call- so much better than a blaring alarm clock. "Can you wake me up like this every morning?" I whisper sleepily, smiling with my eyes still closed. His deep chuckle warms me despite how cold it is in his room, and I feel another soft kiss on my forehead.

"I think that can be arranged." He muses, a smile in his voice. I open my eyes, finding it to be true, and finding him clothed, looking handsome as ever. "You and I need a normal day. So get up, get dressed because I'm taking you on a real date." He winks, gripping my hand and pulling me up. I grin sleepily, leaning my forehead against his chest.

"Can't we just stay in bed all day?" I wager; causing him to pause. I smile up at him, and he shakes his head, snapping out of the thought.

"No, you're a lady Jules, and you deserve a real date." He states diplomatically.

I laugh softly, rubbing my tired eyes and throwing the blankets off of me. "Alright, alright, I'm going."

When Ryan told me he was taking me on a real date, I thought we'd go see a movie or eat at a fancy restaurant; so I was very surprised when he pulled into the zoo parking lot. I raise a brow, a surprised grin forming on my face. "The zoo?"

He nods, turning off the car. "It's going to warm up, I checked: and the zoo has a low entry fee in the winter months." He winks, before exiting the car, and I follow suite, meeting him at the front. "I'm glad you dressed warm though." He comments, taking my hand and leading me to the entrance.

"Why?" I inquire, looking around at all the designs at the entrance. I'm met with purple and orange at every turn; which adds to the environment despite the chilly air and desolate park.

"You get sick easy, weak immune system." He says casually as he grabs his wallet to pay for our tickets, which would normally be thirty, but end up being ten.

"How do you know that?" I raise a suspicious brow. I take vitamin C every morning for my weak immune system: but I never told him. Did he just figure it out because of the bottle I keep on the counter?

"Your Mom told me when you were moving in." He grins down at me, openly enjoying this secret.

I groan, knowing that can't be the end of it. "Anything else?"

He chuckles, "You can't sleep without some type of sound, and you're allergic to grape." Okay that isn't too embarrassing, still it seems to good to be true.

"That's it?"

He scratches his chin, grinning to himself; that definitely wasn't it. I eye him warily, "Well, spit it out."

"She did mention that you talk in your sleep." He admits, his grin growing. I gape up at him, as we walk across the large bridge leading to the lion exhibit.

"I do not" I furrow my brow in annoyance; Charlie used to say I talked in my sleep, since we had many nights where we'd sleep together in the game room. It was a running joke in our family, in the long list of topics that mortify Julie.

"You're forgetting, I sleep in the same bed with you every night." He reminds me, that handsome yet annoying grin on his face. "I even took a recording."

"You did not!" I exclaim in horror, making him laugh now. I shoot him a blank look, making him laugh harder. "I'll delete it while you're snoring."

He smiles to himself, "I'm not an amateur. I put it on a flash drive, and my laptop." He tells me, and I gape. "Checkmate."

"No fair, I need to video you snoring." I tap my chin, making him tickle me, earning a laugh.