The smallest of pleasures

Maria gasped and covered her mouth with her free hand. Though she should have seen Steve's confession coming, she still felt surprised. She had been waiting for him to ask her again but she had told herself not to hope for it any time soon because she had rejected him many times in the past. The last time being not that long ago.

Now that the words had been said, she felt ecstatic. She was over the moon, but something inside her told her that she shouldn't make too big of a deal about this, while the other voice on her shoulder was squealing over his use of the word 'wife'. In the end, she stared at him in silence while her cheeks coloured a deep red and she had a weird grin on her face, one that was luckily hidden by her hand.

Steve was looking at Maria with a strong focus, watching her every twitch and listening to her every sound. His eyes screaming the words, "Well? Will you??", while his mouth remained silent in order to not push Maria into giving an answer. Maria by now bashfully averted her eyes, as Steve's piercing eyes made it even harder for her to speak. Using that small moment of looking away, to regain her some strength and then raise her eyes back up to answer his question. Like some shy little girl, Maria nodded to let Steve know she accepted his confession and that was the only reply Steve needed.

As soon as Steve saw Maria nod, he became overjoyed that he had finally gotten a yes from the girl of his dreams. In his excitement, which he could no longer control, he immediately leaped forward and pulled Maria in a hug. Making it the second time that day that they had been so physically close. He held her tightly as he expressed the happiness he was feeling in that moment. "I can't believe you finally said yes! I promise you won't regret it. Just know, there is no changing your mind in the morning. From now on you are my girlfriend and I will tell anyone who wants to hear it and even to those who don't."

Maria chuckled and felt herself become more calm after hearing all of that. After Steve had let out the words that expressed his initial feelings, he finally loosened the hug. He held Maria by her arms and looked in her eyes with an expression that showed the amount of joy he was feeling in that moment. Without looking away for a single second, Steve had gathered the courage to ask Maria a question. Though they were both adults and what he was about to ask shouldn't be too big of a deal, he knew that for Maria, agreeing to become his girlfriend was already a big step. So, he didn't want to be too greedy and push her away again.

But he had been holding his desires back for so long, that with this large barrier gone, they came flooding forward in need of an outlet. A need to commemorate this moment, a need to finally mark Maria as his own, a desire to have her claim him as hers and a desire to touch and feel. But for this evening, he would settle for the smallest of pleasures, if Maria would allow it. In a voice that sounded as calm as possible, Steve asked, "I know this might be bold, considering you only just accepted to be my girlfriend, but I really want to kiss you. Can I?"

Hearing Steve's question, Maria's already red face, grew even redder. She felt her face getting warm as her ears seemed to be filled with a ringing sound. She looked at Steve with a shocked expression but after lowering her eyes, she shyly nodded to let Steve know it was okay. She then raised her eyes back up and Steve responded by caressing her face before gently claiming his well earned kiss.

Steve's kiss was warm, soft and long. Maria's mind went completely blank and she could feel herself being swept up in the moment. Making her instinctively inch closer to him, so that the kiss could get deeper. But, not wanting things to move too fast and have Maria regret anything the next day, Steve ended their kiss before passion took over. He knew that if he continued any longer, he would get lost in his own desires and cross a boundary that Maria might not be ready to cross. Instead he unlocked their lips, looked at Maria with a love-filled eyes and placed another quick peck before pulling back. As he held her hand, Steve looked at Maria's face, which was still looking red, her breath sounded hasted and her eyes were a bit glazed over.

Seeing the slightly confused look in Maria's eyes and Steve not wanting her to get any crazy idea's, he clarified a question that hadn't been asked yet. "I like you so much. In fact, I love you and I am not afraid to say it. Deep down there is much more that I would like to do right now but I don't want to rush this. I want to take things slow with you. One step at a time. So, that you are absolutely sure that you want it and are ready for it. For that purpose, I am willing to hold myself back for however long I need to. I don't want you to feel any rush or any pressure. There is no deadline, there are no expectations. Just me, who wants to show you that I love you and be loved back."

Maria's eyes grew wide again, but for a very different reason this time. Again Steve had managed to surprise her, to amaze her. Not only did he love her, not only was he a great kisser, but he wanted to make sure that she knew that he was okay to take things at her pace, without her having to worry or ask about it. With a soft smile and a loving expression on her face, Maria nodded and squeezed Steve's hand to let him know that she had understood and felt the same.