Forever: A Lobster Kind Of Love (21 page)

Oh, please say you’re cooking and I won’t starve
! “Why are you buying things for Thanksgiving? I don’t know how to cook,” I looked at the soups and bread mix, "‘Cream of Mushroom soup and Corn Bread Stuffing mix’”
Please, say you will, please say you will
.

“You don’t have to. Besides, we still have to figure out how to get you into the kitchen. So until that happens, I’m cooking. We can’t have Thanksgiving dinner without green bean casserole, cornbread and sausage stuffing!” she said cheerfully with a broad smile. I loved Lydia's cooking.

Then, she stiffened and turned to me with a concerned frown. “Did you have other plans? You didn’t mention…I just assumed…”

“No worries. My big plans consisted of sitting here and watching the parade in New York City followed by football and stuffing my face with whatever you leave for me in the mini-fridge. I figured you would be going to Pennsylvania for the holidays to visit your family?”

“Tonya invited me to her house for dinner, but it’s an awful long drive just for a meal. She just moved into a new house and it’s smaller than her old one, so there isn’t a lot of room. And Jill, well, she has a new boyfriend. I have never met him and I don’t know if I want that to be the first time we meet. It’s just awkward. Besides, that is my normal day to work anyway and these nurses are not giving up their holiday so the new kid on the block can have a day off. So, you are stuck with me!”

“I would hardly call it being ’stuck‘ with you. More like you are stuck with me!” I stuck my tongue out and her facial expression softened.

“So, you don’t want me to cook?” she asked with an eyebrow raised.

“NO, no, by all means! Cook away! What else you got in those bags?”

I think she planned to cook for an army because there were enough groceries here to feed about twenty people and I couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to have a house full during the holiday.

The only crowded kitchen I really knew was on my boat, “Wicked Lobster” The guys and I ventured out to make some money and eventually, ended up crowded around the cramped galley and chow down.

“So Cap, is it safe to eat?” Dougie asked.

“Heck yeah, we got over sixty pounds of lobster already and we still have all weekend. Cha-ching boys! Cha-ching! We can afford to eat good tonight!”

And with that Dougie and another deckhand had gone below and pulled out four of the biggest lobsters they could get their hands on before their hands went numb digging in the cold icy water.  

We usually only ate whatever groceries we brought aboard. But it was Thanksgiving after all, so we were going to eat well. These men were my family here at sea. They worked hard and deserved some luxury. Hard to believe that most of these guys rarely ate lobster? Nope, lobster was money. 

‘We don’t eat our paychecks, we cash them in.’ Dougie announced. “But today, Cap is buying.”

“Ryan?” Lydia prompted me out of my memory. 

“Yeah, what did I miss?”

“I asked you what you wanted for dinner?” she said, cocking her head to the side.

“Umm, I don't know, whatever you are making?” I laughed. I began to wonder what the guys were up to. 

Were they fishing this year? 

Would my crew be eating lobster or turkey this year? Would they be at sea or home with their families? I wanted a lobster dinner, cracking shells and clarified butter and tossing the remnants back into the sea for shark bait with my men. I missed the sea.

“Ryan!” Lydia yelled. 

“Huh? Yeah, that’s fine.”

“Fine, Alpo it is!” she smirked.

“Alpo? Why am I in the dog house?” I questioned. 

“You didn’t hear a word I said, did you?” she said as she stomped her feet in her boots. 

“Sorry. Why are we eating Alpo, when we have all this food?” I pleaded.

“Not me, just you. Because I asked you like fourteen times and you didn’t answer me until I said Alpo. So I will be having Mac and Cheese with Kielbasa and you, Sir, can chow down on Ground Beef bits in gravy.” 

What the hell? “I’m sorry, Lyds. I spaced out. I would love to have some Mac and Cheese with Kielbasa.” I gave her the puppy dog eyes. “Besides, my chair doesn’t fit in the dog house. Are you going to really make me crawl?” And the lip pout. Come on…

“Well okay, I guess. I can’t have you crawling around. What will they think of me as a nurse? I guess I can share the Kielbasa with you.” She tried not to smile. She couldn’t resist the lip and now the clincher. 

“You know what would be super awesome? Some of that Peanut Butter mousse Oreo pie. Mmm, can this poor dog get some pie?” Puppy dog eyes, full-blown pout, and batting eyelashes in full effect. “Pleeeeeeaaassse!”

“Well, since you asked nicely. I guess….”

I roll myself over to her and quickly hugged her around the waist. 

“Whoa, easy tiger! You almost took me out!” she said as she caught her balance.

Good lord, she smelled good. I could inhale her. I wonder if she tasted like coconuts.

“Ryan, you can let go now. If you want pie, I need to get it started.” She looked down and patted my hair down.

“Oh yeah, sorry, that would help. I will just stay out of your way.” I began to roll away when she stopped me.

“Not so fast, cowboy. You’re going to help.” She tossed me the Peanut Butter Oreo package. “Twist and scrape. Cream in one bowl, cookies in the other. When you are done, I will give you the mortar and pestle and you can crush the cookies while I get dinner rolling.”

“Yes, ma’am!” I straightened in my chair and gave her a salute. She grinned and walked into the kitchen to start dinner. I started my task of separating the cookies. 

About half an hour later, Lydia came out the kitchen with two steaming bowls of Mac and Cheese with fried Kielbasa in it. She looked at my completed project. 

“Ryan? Um why are there two bowls of cookies?” she asked, setting my bowl in front of me. 

“This one is the scraped cookies and ones that twisted off clean, and these are the ones I had to lick the cream off.” I grinned and waited for her reaction.

“WHAT?! Eww Ryan! Really? I needed those for the crust!” She was so predictable.

“Just kidding! Relax! I ate the ones I licked!” I couldn’t control my laughter and I saw her inspecting the cookies looking for lick marks or sogginess.

“But I did eat the cream though.” I added sheepishly.

She huffed. “Well, that I can get around, I like it with regular peanut butter anyway. I can’t believe you! Well, I hope you didn’t ruin your dinner.”

“Nope! That was just an appetizer. Let’s eat!” With that, we sat and ate. I would have never thought to put the two together. 

We finished our dinner, and I finished crushing the Oreos for Lyds. The rest of the magic happened in the kitchen. She would blend the cookies in with light vanilla custard, then topped if with a mountain of peanut butter and whipped topping blended like a meringue. 

If I didn’t work out first thing in the morning and have to roll my ass around all day, I swear with her cooking, I would be 600 pounds. Her cooking skills were top notch. 

Rolling out into the living room, I unbuckled myself, and did some dips in my chair. It was going to be a full-bellied holiday season, and I wanted to enjoy it all but didn’t want to gain a million pounds in the process. 

The next two weeks were a blur of shopping, groceries, and test recipes. I started to think Lydia missed her true calling as a chef. She made four different kinds of stuffing, three batches of cranberry sauce, some with raisins, and some without, and roasted every kind of squash she could find, looking for the perfect blend for pies. I am not complaining. My house had never smelled more delicious. 

“Ryan, are you ready?” she bellowed from the kitchen. 

“Uh oh. What am I supposed to be ready for?” I hollered back. She had been bringing me spoonfuls of this and that as she cooked. I wanted more than a spoonful, dammit. I didn’t dare say a word because she fed me plenty. I had been waking up an extra hour early every day to work out, just to stay in shape. 

She came out of the kitchen with a spoon, but I couldn’t see what it was from here as she blocked my view with her hand. “I think this is it. Here, go ahead and have a taste. Close your eyes.” 

I closed my eyes and opened my mouth; ready to receive whatever treat was on the end of that spoon. 

She kneeled down and landed the slightly warm spoon on my awaiting tongue and I wrapped my mouth around it. My taste buds exploded as the flavors of sweet pumpkin and spice danced across my tongue. I knew it wasn’t just pumpkin, she had at least three different kinds of squash in the kitchen, but whatever it was, it’s the best pumpkin pie I have ever had. I didn’t even want to swallow because then it would be over. Instead, I rolled the morsel around my mouth, savoring every second as the flavors blended. 

I opened my eyes and there she was, right in front of me, face to face. Her brows were raised waiting my reaction, but I was at a loss for words. Self-doubt scurried across her brow. I grabbed her from behind her neck and drew her mouth to mine, crushing my lips against hers. 

She stiffened then quickly softened. My tongue teased her lips, begging for entrance. She relaxed and granted me entrance through parted lips. I swooped my tongue into her mouth, tasting hers. 

She didn’t taste like pie; instead, she has remnants of her sweet caramel iced coffee. My heart warmed, and I moaned into her mouth. She’d allowed me have the first taste of her creation. 

Her breathing increased into small pants and she squirmed under my grasp. Taking her by her scrub pants, I held her to me as I took my last tastes of her sweet mouth, slowly withdrawing as I memorized every contour of her beautiful mouth. 

I gently released her from my grasp and she still had her eyes closed and lips slightly parted. Beauty, pure beauty; I wanted to kiss her again. 

Lydia's eyes fluttered open and as she locked on mine, she grinned. Pressing her lips together, she whispered, “I guess you liked it?” 

I couldn’t help but grin. “Yeah, I guess you can say that.”

Then, her hand flew to her mouth and her eyes widened as the reality of our kiss hit home. “Oh my God, Ryan, I’m sorry! I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to…I shouldn’t have…” Before she bolted, I grabbed her by the shoulders. Damn chair, if she got into the kitchen, I couldn’t reach her. 

“Lydia, STOP!” She was still on her knees as I held her firmly in place. God, she was so sexy. Did she even know how beautiful she was? My cock hardened under my seatbelt and I couldn’t control it. She was so soft and my dick had a mind of its own. 

“Lyds, please look at me.” Her eyes were squeezed shut, and she was shaking her head. “Lyds, please, just look at me.” I slowly moved my hands from her shoulders, across her collarbones, and up her neck, cupping her chin with both hands. I gently raised her chin, and she didn’t resist, but her eyes were still squeezed closed. Tears were leaking from the creases, and she trembled. 

“You didn’t do anything. You did nothing wrong. If being a beautiful sexy woman is wrong, the rules are messed up. Lydia, please look at me.” 

Her head leaned into my hands but she wouldn’t open her eyes. I leaned down and gently planted kisses on each of her eyelids, tasting the saltiness of her tears and pressed a firm kiss against her forehead. As I backed away, her eyes opened. Her eyes were a bright blue, cerulean like the Caribbean Sea and she met my gaze.

“Why did you do that?” she sobbed.

“Do what? Kiss you? Oh Lydia, I have wanted to kiss you for a long time now.” I watched the racing thoughts flash across her face. First, wonder as her eyes widened at my statement, then disbelief when her brows furrowed together, then curiosity as she tilted her head slightly to one side as she processed her thoughts. She wore her heart on her sleeve and I could read her so plainly. 

“You have?” she questioned. 

“Hell, yes, but I wasn’t sure after hearing about your family. I didn’t want to push you. Not to mention you were always buzzing around so quickly. You never sit still long enough. There are only so many places I can chase you.” I flash my million-dollar smile and her cheeks flushed. Good, she was smiling again. It broke my heart to see her cry. I was glad I could make her smile. I wanted to kiss her again. I wanted to kiss her all over and explore her body with my tongue. I wanted to taste her all over, not just her mouth, and devour her. 

“I…I don’t know what to say.” 

Here goes nothing. “Then don’t.” I kissed her again feverishly before she had the chance to over think it. I had seen her disconnect all the time, getting lost in her thoughts. I needed her to stay with me, not disengage; I needed her to give me a sign.

 Kiss me, Lyds. Please, show me the feeling is mutual. 

And then, her tongue moved with mine, probing my mouth, seeking purchase. I nipped at her lower lip; as she pulled away to catch her breath, she moaned. I planted soft kisses along her cheek to behind her ear and nipped at her earlobe. I wanted to undo the lap belt and throw her on the floor. I caressed her cheek, and she leaned her head into my hand, giving me access to her neck. I had to stop before I came in my pants like a schoolboy.