Foul Ball

Macey was mesmerized the whole time, her hand tightening around mine with glee every time we spotted something new. It was fantastic, being on the sailboat and closer to the water. Jack, as promised, was an amazing sailor and guide, and the ride through Sloan's Lake came and went far too quickly. I didn't mind though, because I knew what was still coming.

"Captain Jack, thank you for the lovely ride," I said as we pulled up to the dock, taking Macey's hand to help her out of the boat and to solid ground.

"Truly," Macey said, reaching her hand out to shake the man's hand. "That was beautiful. I never thought I'd have the opportunity to get so up close and personal."

"It was a pleasure," Jack said, shaking my hand next. "Enjoy your romantic evening."

I tipped the sailor and we bid him a goodbye, shrugging our backpacks over our shoulder as we walked together up the dock and towards another small building I knew would be here.

"Bike rentals?" asked Macey, and her eyes lit up. "Did you rent us bikes?"

"Only if you're okay with that," I said. "There are a handful of Ubers in this area, and even some taxis."

"Are you kidding? What's the fun in that?" Grinning, Macey tightened the backpack around her shoulders and picked up her pace, now dragging me along with her with unbridled excitement and a pep in her step. "Hi," she said, reaching the rental window before I did. "Can we rent two bikes?"

"I have a reservation under Gregory," I said breathlessly, and the woman behind the register nodded her head and smiled, pushing over a clipboard with papers for us to sign. We rented two helmets and got fitted for two bikes. Macey didn't stop grinning the entire time.

"I don't know how you do it," she said, reaching over to adjust the chin strap on my helmet. "It seems like everything you do for me, everything you plan, is exactly what I would have planned for myself. How do you do that?" "Maybe we're more alike than we thought we were," I said with a shrug, grabbing Macey's shoulders to bring her into me for a kiss. Our helmets bumped and we bounced off one another, laughing.

"You look sexy in that helmet," Macey said, lowering her voice to a mere whisper. "I might have to take you right here and right now."

I mounted the bike and Macey did the same to hers. We both still had our backpacks over our shoulders. We looked kind of cool, actually. "As much as I'd love that-like, really love that-the night isn't over yet, milady. Hopefully this bike ride brings out your appetite."

"Are you kidding?" Macey teased. "I'm always hungry, Jayce. Now, this is your plan, so I'll follow you. But don't judge me if I stop a few times to take some pictures."

"I hoped you would," I said earnestly, and we started to bike away from the docks and in the direction of town. It wasn't a long way, but it would be a lovely ride.

The early spring nip in the air cut through my jacket as we pedaled, but even then, I didn't mind. When I looked back over my shoulder at Macey, she was bright eyed and excited, her head swiveling in every direction as she pedaled, taking in the beauty of the lake, the shore, and the water before us. Great fir trees loomed above us, swaying in the crisp breeze, but God it was magical. Three- or four-times Macey stopped pedaling and pulled over her bike to snap some photos of an orange-leaf tree glimmering in the water, and the final time I was the one who stopped. I walked up to Macey on her bike, threw my arm around her, and we took our very first selfie together.

"Look at the sunset," Macey said, curling her body against mine as we walked our bikes to the edge of the shore. The rolling waves caressed the edges of the sand, the water dark and yet somehow still enveloped in the brightness of the sunset above it. We propped our bikes up off the road and I took Macey's hand down the sandy hill and to the flat beach.

A single table sat in the sand, draped with a white cloth and strewn with rose petals. In the middle of the table was a lit candle, flickering in the breeze, and next to the table was a picnic basket filled to the brim. In the sand next to the picnic basket was a tub of ice, where chilled champagne waited for us.

"Oh my God," Macey breathed, her hand tightening in my own. "Is this for us? Did you do this for us?"

"I considered just taking you back to the restaurant we loved so much the first time," I said, pulling out one of the chairs so Macey could sit. Her jaw hung open as she looked around at the set up. She seemed speechless, which could have been a good or bad thing, I couldn't tell. I opened the picnic basket next to my feet, withdrawing a large quilt that I wrapped around her shoulders. Then I took out the food and laid it out on the table. "But then I figured that a picnic on the beach would be more fun, and that we could just order in, yeah?"

"Jayce." Macey picked up a single rose from the table, her skin flushing bright under the warm glow of the tabletop candle. She put the flower to her nose and inhaled, watching me under hooded, sexy eyelids as I sat down across from her. "You've outdone yourself tonight," she said gently. "How do you expect to beat this every time?" She smiled to show me she was kidding, and that cute dimple appeared in her left cheek. Hair tumbled stray from the braid she wore over her shoulder, and I longed to reach over and brush it away.

"Honestly, girl, I'm running out of moves," I said, reaching for the bottle of champagne and two flutes from the basket. "So you better enjoy this, because it's all you're getting. I'm fresh out."

Macey giggled, just like I hoped she would, and it was music to my ears, a beautiful melody I wanted to hear every day for the rest of my life.

"I don't know what I could possibly say to try and give you the credit you deserve," she said, reaching her hand over the table to take mine. "Just...thank you. This is unbelievable."

"Don't thank me yet." I popped the cork on the bottle and poured us two glasses, clinking Macey over the table. "The night isn't over."

"I literally can't even fathom what else could possibly happen tonight," Macey said, taking a sip of her champagne. She giggled again as the bubbles tickled her nose, wrinkling it from side to side.

"I guess you'll just have to see." I slid Macey's food over to her, the same five-cheese fettuccine chicken alfredo that she claimed was the best she'd ever tasted on our last date, as well as a box of cheesy breadsticks, seasoned and cheesed to perfection.

"I'm ravenous," she said, twirling the noodles around her plastic fork. "And this is fantastic, Jayce."

"Not bad, eh?" I shoved some lasagna into my mouth, savoring the subtly spicy taste of the marinara against my tongue. "The food, I mean. Not me."

With a smile, Macey shook her head and lowered her fork, focusing on me. "You don't give yourself enough credit," she said. "You're not like other guys, Jayce. You're so...genuine. And not just as a man, or as a boyfriend, but as a person. How did I get so lucky to find you?" She chuckled, but it sounded almost sad. "I keep on wondering how I got so lucky. When is the other shoe going to drop?"

"Do you believe that will happen?" I asked, and when Macey didn't answer immediately, I already knew what she was thinking. Shaking my head, I scooted the dishes out of the way and reached across the table to take Macey's hands in mine, squeezing them. "This isn't a teenage comedy," I said softly. "I don't intend to make you fall for me and then leave, or break your heart, or any of that other crap that happens in movies, and sometimes even in real life." "I know, Jayce," Macey said. "I know."