Scattered Landmines

sixteen

Just as I suspected, we pull up outside Theo's house. I had a feeling he would want to come here because he offered it first and to maintain the privacy of our date. Although I didn't speak up, I'm happy to be alone with him. Being in a loud pub wouldn't allow us an intimate setting with the opportunity to get to know each other.

Shrugging my coat off my shoulders, Theo hangs it on a rack next to the door beside his.

"Would you like more wine, love?" Theo directs as he kisses me on the cheek and wanders into the kitchen.

"Yes, please," I say, following closely behind him, and gawking at Theo's backside. I love how he looks in denim jeans. They sit low on his hips and hug his legs enough to see his detailed definition in them.

"Would you mind making a palate on the floor for us to sit on in front of the fireplace? You can use the pillows from the sofa, and there are blankets in the chest," he points to a wood antique chest that looks like something a pirate would hide buried treasure in, but Theo uses it as a coffee table. His taste in furniture and home decor is stylish and refined for a bachelor in his mid-twenties, but it also screams bachelor.

"Ok," I yell loud enough for him to hear me.

I remove two thick covers from the trunk and place them a couple feet from the fireplace. Grabbing all the pillows from the sofa, I stack them making a firm cushion to lean against and then take the last blanket out to cover up underneath.

"Brilliant," Theo says, placing our wine on the wood flooring behind the pillows. He takes wood from a metal bin, and strategically sets it into the fireplace, igniting a fire. A sea of flames crackles and shoots out embers and sparks onto the floor as he pokes at the wood with an iron rod.

Theo settles down next to me, taking the extra blanket and sliding it over our legs.

"Once this fire gets going, I don't think we'll be needing the blanket."

"You're probably right," I take a sip of my wine, savoring the slightly sweet and dry vintage flavor. "I think I'm going to like the snowy weather. Sitting by the fire, having a glass of wine and watching the snow makes me feel like I'm in a Hallmark movie."

"Hallmark movie?" Theo questions, pushing the hair from his face and scooting a little closer to me.

"It's a television station in the states that makes cheesy Christmas romance movies. They play a different one every night of the week during the holiday season."

"Sounds very interesting," he mocks, acting disinterested by fake yawning. I try to poke his yawn with my finger, and he chuckles, catching my hand playfully, but I yank it away from him.

"Yeah, you wouldn't like it. It's not geared towards the male gender."

"I would watch you watching it," Theo puts his glass down and places his hand on my waist, brushing the skin between my sweater and jeans with his thumb. "Another thing I like about you is that you don't fall at my feet." What?

"Of course I don't," I say, surprised that's a thing he likes about me and that he brought it up out of nowhere. "I'm guessing women must fall at your feet if that's something you like about me."

"Well, once they have my mobile number, they tend to text a lot or send pictures of themselves," he confides. "I think you're more confident and mature than any other woman I have ever been interested in, and I find that very attractive."

Theo's eyes are sweltering with intense heat. He bites his bottom lip, and I question how far I want this to go. I haven't been intimate with any man besides fuck-sake Jake. At the ripe age of thirty-five, I have only experienced one man: no flings, no liaisons, no illicit romances, and this is the longest I have gone without having sex since I was a teenager. I began my relationship with Jake when I was seventeen and lost my virginity soon after that. Two years later, you know the rest. Got pregnant, and became Jakes's wife. I guess Theo beats me by having more experience in that department.