620 The Picnic
âNice ride for a nice day?â Arianna commented as soon as she stepped out watching as Marcel loaded the basket of food into the convertible, âSo a picnic, huh?â
âYeah, donât you like it?â Marcel said, busy with the food and making sure it doesnât spill on his car.
âI do. Thatâs quite nice of you. The house has been quite stuffy lately.â Arianna muttered, stretching out her body.
âExactly, thatâs the point. I donât want you to feel like a prisoner in...â Marcel finally turned only for his words to trail off. His eyes fell on Arianna and he took in what she was wearing.
Arianna was wearing a crop top with a high-rise fitted denim bum short with a hat on her head and paired it with sneakers. She looked sexually appealing and although her bum wasnât revealing, Arianna still flaunted her back view.
Marcelâs throat went dry as his eyes traveled from her head to her feet and then back up again, taking in her exposed midriff and her silhouette that was highlighted, especially her toned thighs. There was no way she wasnât going to turn heads in that outfit. And with the way she was stretching out her body, it was seductive.
âWell?â Arianna asked with a knowing look when she saw the way his gaze lingered on her. She stood up straight and twirled around for him, âHow do I look, fantastic, right?â
Marcel released a frustrated growl in his throat and her smile only grew wider. He liked it and hated it at the same time.
âIâm all dressed up for you,â Arianna reminded him. He canât force her to go change, it was for him.
.....
Marcel walked over to her, wrapping his arm around her waist possessively. He pressed her body flush against his, his chest rubbing against her softness.
He enunciated into her ears, âYouâd be the death of me,â
âYou complain too much, love, Iâm only here to put colors into your life.â Arianna smiled against his skin, speaking softly into his ear.
âReally?â Marcel took her earlobe into his mouth, grazing it with his teeth before he bit down on it.
âOuch!â Arianna yelped, âYou cannibal!â She accused him playfully.
âDonât worry, I very much like you alive. Eating you out is much more tasteful, flesh-eating canât compare to it.â
âSeriously!â Arianna hit him on the chest and pushed him away, however, he didnât let go of her and still held her waist securely.
âWhat now?â She groaned, knowing that it wasnât over yet. The distraction didnât help. Damn, why did he have to be so smart?
âI have a much better idea,â Marcel said, taking off his long sleeve shirt and wrapping it around her waist while Arianna threw her head back and sighed. She shook her head mentally, what a life.
Marcel took a step back and examined his handâs work, a grin grew at the corner of his lips, âMuch better now.â
Arianna rolled her eyes and stared at him instead. Having given up his shirt to her, Marcel was only wearing a sleeveless sports tank top, revealing his muscled arms and yummylicious body. Alright, mind out of the gutter, Arianna chided herself.
Focus on the picnic!
âLetâs go!â Marcel took her hand and led her to the car. He helped her climb into the car before walking around to his side of the car and entering the driver seat and started the car.
âAre we the only ones leaving?â Arianna turned back, finding out there was no other car following after them as they left the car.
Marcel looked through the side view mirror to understand what she was talking about. He nodded at her, âYes, no oneâs coming with us. I know how uncomfortable you get when I have someone follow after us. So I thought, it would be better just the both of us this time.â
âReally?â Arianna was touched by his consideration, âThank you so much,â She smooched him on the cheeks and Marcel was grinning from ear to ear like a kid who stumbled on a penny on the way.
There was a comfortable silence between them, smiles on each of their faces until Marcel turned on the radio, a tune blasting out and Arianna sang to it.
âThis is nice!â Arianna shouted at the top of her lungs, spreading her arms wide, the wind whipping her hair around her face.
Marcel looked at her contentedly, a smile appearing on his face without even knowing it. If he had the power, Marcel would freeze this moment and let it play in a loop forever. It was just peaceful and there was no one to ruin their happiness. Just the both of them spending time together.
However, even if he had the power to freeze time, Marcel knew he wouldnât do it. As much as the unknown was scary and the road ahead looked dark, he would love to know how the future turned out between the both of them. The good and the bad memories, he would treasure them all.
The journey was fun and by the time they arrived at their destination, Arianna was surprised to discover that it was a public park. It had been a long time since she was free in the open like this with a lot of people.
âWhy?â She asked him, her brows furrowed with confusion. Marcel always kept her close to him and carefully protected her at the base because he was scared of Elijah or any of his enemies coming after her.
âThis is a public setting, none of them would be stupid enough to attack in broad daylight. As much as we have a few of the police force eating out of our palm, we are still not above the law,â said Marcel.
So in one word, they were safe because they were in the crowd?
âAlso, do you not have faith in my abilities?â Marcel asked her. He stepped closer and clasped her cheeks, âI would rather die than let anyone get to you, I promise you.â He said with so much conviction Arianna did not tempt his words.
âNo oneâs dying today,â Was all Arianna told him before she went to the car and took out the basket while Marcel handled the others.
They found a suitable spot and Arianna spread the picnic blanket on the floor. Together, they worked as a team and helped set up the picnic to Marcelâs taste â yeah, he was that picky.
âBabe, come here, letâs take a picture,â Arianna said, crawling over to his side and pulling out her phone.
âWhy?â Marcel looked at the phone suspiciously. Was it compulsory to take pictures on a picnic?
âUgh, men,â Arianna rolled her eyes. However, she didnât give up till she was sitting beside him and posed beside him while switching on to the front camera. She said, âBecause thatâs what couples on a date do. Now, say cheeseâ
Arianna took a picture of the both of them, their cheeks pressed together cutely.
When she was done, Arianna stared at the photo, pouting, âWhy do you look so much prettier than me?â
âIs that a crime?â Marcel asked without thinking while eating strawberries straight away from a bowl.
When he didnât get a response after a while, Marcel turned around suddenly only to see Arianna glaring at him. Damn, that was scary.
Marcel swallowed, what did he say wrong? He was merely correcting the stereotype that women had to be prettier than a man. It was a miracle Marcel didnât choke on the strawberry that made its way down his throat from the shock.
He blinked, âHow about we take another picture?â
And Arianna jumped at the offer.
Just like that, Marcel found himself taking over a hundred pictures in different postures just to satisfy his woman. Although he had to admit that it was fun â and even managed to steal a kiss from her lips right before the camera went off. So while Arianna was sorting the photos, Marcel was busy feeding her.
âWhich of them do you think looks better?â Arianna showed him some of the best photos while he fed her midway.
Honestly, none of the pictures looked as good as the one where he stole a kiss from her. Her eyes were wide during the surprise and it looked pretty hilarious, not that Marcel was going to tell her that â although he was going to use it for his wallpaper later.
âWhat are you even going to do with that?â Marcel was curious. She was serious about it.
âPost them online and brag about my handsome boyfriend,â Arianna muttered, while typing down. âDone.â She showed the post to him.
[Picnic with Mr. Handsome] She tagged it.
Marcel smiled at her and returned her phone. He said without looking at her, âYou, women are fascinating creatures, âHe didnât point out that he was touched by the gesture â and almost moved to tears.
Damn, he wasnât this emotional.
This was the first time a woman was bragging about him online. This was his first attempt at dating and it felt surprisingly good.