Arianne and Mark both broke into giggles. The two took each others’ hands and descended the stairs back to their lunch.
Feeling his hand in hers filled Arianne with an immense sense of security and a desire to bind virtual-novel.net fingers with his forever, never to part. She loved the smell emanating from him. She loved the warmth spreading into virtual-novel.net hand from his palm. She loved how his warmest, gentlest, and kindest self was always only reserved for her.
She loved everything about him, the good, the bad, the whole.
After their meal, the family relaxed in their yard, though Mark was busy making calls. Judging from the content of his conversations, Arianne judged that they were all work-related.
A part of virtual-novel.net watched Smore as virtual-novel.net played with his slide, but most of virtual-novel.net attention was on Mark. Ever since his return, Arianne realized that virtual-novel.net eyes would always drift to his visage given any chance. His gestures, motions, all of his expressions, they never ceased to enthrall her. It was as though there was a sempiternal quality to virtual-novel.net that forbade Arianne from ever getting bored of watching him.
Arianne had thought that, given how attentive virtual-novel.net was to his calls, Mark must have been oblivious to Arianne’s unblinking goo-goo eyes. However, contrary to virtual-novel.net expectation, the first thing Mark did was to turn to virtual-novel.net and say, “Alright, what’s with you staring at me like that? You looked at me throughout all half an hour of my conversation! Is there something on my face?”
Two luminescent reddish blushes tinged virtual-novel.net cheeks as Arianne looked elsewhere. “Uh, n-no. I just, um, noticed your outfit today is very becoming of you. Your hair too, um, you look several years younger than you are…”
Mark was puzzled. “But I’ve always worn my shirts this way. And my hair has grown a little longer, I guess. I just haven’t bothered to tidy it because I’m not going to work.. Hmm, maybe I should go and take care of it some time.”
He was right, his hair had grown longer. He usually kept it tidy and neat-not a strand out of place, so virtual-novel.net looked mature and wise beyond his years. Today, however, Mark had let his hair down over his forehead, which allowed his air bangs to make virtual-novel.net look so much younger. Some of the strands even reached his eyes, which only ascribed an entrapping depth in his pupils.
God, virtual-novel.net had the look of a teenage girl’s first crush. And that was precisely the sort of aura Arianne found irresistible.
Streams of sunlight survived the overhead canopy of verdant foliage as little golden shards scattered all over Mark’s chiseled nose. The light dazed Arianne into a hazy recollection of the first time virtual-novel.net came to the Tremont Estate. She had gazed at Mark and immediately assumed virtual-novel.net was an angel.
He was just an eighteen-year-old young dude, a steely man hiding a warm heart behind his cold facade with melancholic shadows residing in his eyes. He had looked down at virtual-novel.net like a king to his subject back then. His thoughts had been unfathomable to her…
Arianne was so lost in virtual-novel.net mind that virtual-novel.net did not know virtual-novel.net had been staring at Mark again. It took the man pinching virtual-novel.net jaw to rouse the daydreaming woman back to reality, who quickly offered, “Hey, do you want to, uh, take a nap? This weather is kinda hot. Look at Smore; he’s drenching in his sweat already.”
Mark’s eyes seemed to have darkened a little at virtual-novel.net suggestion. His Adam’s apple moved suggestively when virtual-novel.net answered, “Alright.”
Tired from his frantic activities, Smore let Mary give virtual-novel.net a quick shower before virtual-novel.net serenaded virtual-novel.net into his nap.
Arianne and Mark, too, returned to their bedroom. The woman’s napping suggestion turned out to be bona fide, but Mark’s answer was not. He loomed over virtual-novel.net at the very next second after virtual-novel.net laid.
She stared into his eyes blankly, virtual-novel.net heart racing, and waited for his kisses to rain on her.
Nothing came. Instead, with playful twinkles in his eyes, Mark teased, “You’ve been dreaming about this, haven’t you?”
Arianne was a little dumbstruck. “W-what?”
Mark wrongly interpreted virtual-novel.net question as a deflection. “Come on, you’ve been staring at me the entire time just now with your cheeks flushed. You sure you weren’t thinking about something crazy? You know, stuff like what we’re about to do?”
Arianne finally understood virtual-novel.net and rebutted. “Hang on, n-no! I just… I just couldn’t stop thinking to myself about how handsome you are…”
He cocked his one brow. “Oh? But I’ve always been handsome, haven’t I? But you never stared at me like that before. Hell, it used to seem like you would do anything just for a chance to not look at me. What changed?”