Mark hadn't been idle all day while I'd been working my tail off in the casino. In fact, he'd been quite the busy man.
When I got back to his place, he'd cleaned it up nicely, but more than that, he'd actually laid out a real kitchen table complete with what looked like a real silk tablecloth. On top of this sat a pair of candles and some nice-looking china. "Welcome to Chateau Powers," he said in a terrible French accent, once we'd exchanged the obligatory kisses. "I hope you enjoy tonight's entrée, madame."
"Why, monsieur, you're quite the charmer," I replied, batting my eyes coquettishly. "If you cook as well as you make passes, I'm sure the meal will be spectacular!"
"Well, if you must know," he said, abandoning his weak attempt to sound French, "I didn't cook any of this. It's all room service. Expensive as hell, but you're worth it, my dear."
I laughed. "I just hope you didn't spend anything on fine wine or champagne," I said. "I'd rather just have a beer."
"I figured that," he told me, opening up the ice basket where a champagne bottle would normally be kept. Inside were two long-necked imported German lagers. He deftly popped the top and handed me one, then opened his bottle and tapped it against mine. "Here's to us," he said with a smile.
"To us," I agreed, sipping contentedly as I sat down at the table. "It's pretty scary how well you know me," I mentioned. "I wouldn't be surprised if there was a pizza under this tray, either."
"Oh, give me more credit than that! You like more than pizza for dinner, anyway. I know you're partial to steak, so, here you go." He slid open the covered tray, and my mouth watered at the sight of a thick-cut sirloin. It was even medium rare, just the way I liked it!
As we ate, talking easily among ourselves, I marveled once again just how comfortable I was being around Mark. This was a really strange kind of relationship, you know. Most people who are going to become lovers start down that path right away, soon after meeting. They don't spend years as friends or co-workers and then start dating, like Mark and I were doing right now. It was bizarre the way we already seemed to know what the other was thinking, and how we already understood what the other liked and wanted. The way he knew I'd love a thick, juicy steak and a beer for dinner, instead of something more fancy, was a perfect example.
It was almost surreal, in its own way.
After we'd finished eating, he cleaned off the table and put the dishes outside the hotel door. Then he came back inside, looked at me with a suggestive smile, and said, "So, want to take another crack at the virtual world?"
"Not tonight," I replied. "I have to go down to 5 tomorrow, so tonight, I think I'd just rather be normal sized for a change."
"I can live with that," he replied. "In fact, I was thinking you might want to see a movie. I've got a couple of possibilities right here."
I looked through his DVD selections, which he'd apparently rented earlier in the day. They were all dramas, much to my surprise, not the action stuff he usually seemed to prefer. Or, perhaps, he'd always liked this kind of film, but had never bothered to let me know about it before.
I guess there were still things we didn't know about each other, I thought, and maybe that was just as well. A little mystery in the relationship didn't hurt, after all.
I picked one of the older films and we watched it together, just snuggling together on the couch. It felt wonderful just being near him, being held in his arms like that. I'd never just sat still and allowed myself to be close to someone before, just happy to be in his presence, and it felt wonderful.
After the credits rolled, we realized it was getting late, so we went to bed. We were a little bit more subdued with our lovemaking this time, but it was still intense and exhausting, so much so that we all but collapsed in each other's embrace afterwards. There wasn't even time for any pillow talk before I'd dropped off into a deep, satisfied sleep.
I awoke about nine-thirty in the morning, and this time I was up before Mark, so I just lay there, watching his deep, even breaths. He looked so peaceful and content, and even though his hair was unkempt and his face unshaven, he looked as handsome and desirable as ever. Again, I felt a pang of regret that I hadn't trusted myself enough to open up to him before now. That was in the past, though. Now we had only the future to look forward to.
That started me thinking. What kind of future did we have, anyway? I was pretty sure now that I wanted to be with him all the time, but that wasn't going to be possible. There'd be no way to hide our tryst from the Bureau for long, probably not even past the end of this assignment (if not during it), and once they found out, we'd be split up for sure. The only way out of that was to quit the Bureau in order to be with him. I knew for certain I didn't want to do that--after all, it was everything I'd spent my life training for, and I loved my job with all my heart. I figured Mark was the same way, and no matter what happened, I wouldn't ask him to quit to be with me.
It seemed that we were in a catch-22 situation, didn't it? Something would have to give, one way or another.
While I was laying there worrying about that, Mark finally stirred and noticed me watching him. "Seeing anything you like?" he said, his voice scratchy from the long night's sleep.
"Everything," I replied. "I like everything I'm seeing right now."
Smiling, he leaned over and kissed me, and we curled up together for a few minutes, enjoying each other's body heat under the covers and listening to our heartbeats. It was so cozy I didn't ever want to leave, and though I knew I'd have to get up eventually, I was satisfied just enjoying the moment.
"You seem worried about something," he said after a few minutes, bringing my thoughts back to the present.
"Yeah," I admitted. "I just keep thinking about what's going to happen after this assignment's over. I'm just so happy right now, and I don't want it to ever end!"
He hesitated for a moment, as if gathering his thoughts, and then seemed to come to a decision. "It doesn't have to," he replied. "It doesn't ever have to be over, you know. There's a way we can be together forever."
"How?" I asked. "We can't keep this a secret much longer, and I don't think we can stretch out the case on a permanent basis."
"Come on, Agent McLeary," he said with a chuckle. "If you think about it for a minute, you'll know what I'm talking about."
I stared at his grinning, lightly whiskered face, wondering what he was getting at, and then it came to me all at once, making me sit up in bed in surprise. "You--you aren't serious, are you?" I asked suddenly. "It's completely crazy!"
"Of course it is," he replied, and I could tell from his tone that he was absolutely serious. "It's totally nuts. But this is Las Vegas, you know, and you can't ask for a better place than this!"
I'm sure I looked stupid with my mouth hanging open, but it didn't seem to matter much. Besides, he was right about it being an excellent answer to our problem. Once it was accomplished, there wasn't much the Bureau could do to stop it. One of us would probably be given a desk job, but they couldn't separate us again, not officially anyway. It was really the perfect solution, so perfect that I wondered why I hadn't already thought of it.
The only problem was accepting it for myself, and deciding whether or not it was really what I wanted. It just came on so suddenly it threw me completely for a loop. Mark, though, seemed to have already considered it, because he didn't waste any time pressing home the point, and asking the official question as directly as possible.
"Kate McLeary," he said, taking my hands in his, "will you marry me?"