Open Heart AU 1 (Ethan Ramsey x Valerie Valentine)

What We Could Be: AU1 Chapter 37

Ethan

After getting changed from the softball game, I took V back to my apartment. For many reasons, one I want to talk to her about whats on her mind, two there are obvious things we need to talk about...

and three, she won our bet, so a small 'friendly' date is what we are doing....

We walked inside and she smiled, saying "I will never ever tire of the view from here..."

"Hm. It's definitely a perk..." I said as we walked over to gaze out over the boston skyline.

She took a deep breath, and I watched in the reflection as she slowly began to relax, her shoulders falling down from the tense high there were at...

"So, what is this recipe you want to try?" she turned to me.

"Georgian stuffed chicken." I smiled.

she raised a brow and laughed gently "On a random week night?"

I laughed under my breath and nodded as I started to go to the kitchen. "Correct. Come over here..."

Valentine

I leaned against the counter as Ethan pushed over a full chicken in a tray over to me.

My eyes widened as he sent over a bowl of butter too. "...Ethan? What am I supposed to do with this?"

He rolled up his sleeves and said "get massaging.", with a smile.

I tilted my head and inspected the chicken in front of me as I rolled up my own sleeves.

"I can safely say that I have never massaged butter into a chicken."

"Then this will be a new experience for you."

I rolled my eyes with a smile and went to wash my hands at the other sink.

"Do you have any...words of advise?" I looked over to him.

"It's a chicken, Valentine." he laughed.

"Yeah! but I'm massaging a chicken! Do you even know how weird that sounds?" I took my hands out from under the faucet and went to dry them.

I stood in front of the chicken tray, my hands hovering above, and I felt Ethan stand close behind me.

"Alright, all we're going to do, is take some of the butter..." he scooped up some, his arms going around me.

"...and move back and forth with your fingertips over the skin..."

His voice was close to my ear, causing the hairs to stand up on the back of my neck at his deep and calming tone....

"Hm...seems easy enough..."

I took some butter myself and started to massage the middle bit as ethan done the sides..."

"this feels funny..." I laughed, feeling it slip and slide.

he laughed under his breath and said "that it does..."

I turned my head to look at him and asked "so, do you massage butter into chickens often?"

"No, but more often than you obviously."

"I would say I'm doing a great job for my first time actually.." I smiled as I looked back to the...buttery chicken in front of us.

"...you can move closer you know.." I said softly.

He did so, so our bodies were pressed together, his beard against my neck making my heart beat race...

slowly we had both stopped with the chicken, I felt his head moved against my neck and I looked to him, our eyes meeting, causing my breath to hitch...