All of Me

She laughed loudly as he popped an eye open to look at her. “Good morning, handsome.”

“Good?” he questioned as he rolled onto his back and stretched, letting out a baby dinosaur scream as he did so. He locked his hands behind his head and narrowed his eyes at Diana.

“It’s about to be,” she informed him. “Can’t you smell the deliciousness I’ve made for you?”

He inhaled deeply, sighed loudly, and whispered, “Pancakes and sausage?”

“And eggs! I thought you might need a little extra protein after last night,” she giggled, running a hand down his chest.

He nodded, a sly smile on his face. “Oh yeah. You are welcome.” She scoffed and tweaked his nip*le playfully. “Ouch! Okay, okay.”

“Do you want your breakfast in bed, or on your head?” Diana asked with her perfectly sculpted eyebrow raised.

“In bed, please, love of my life,” he replied with faux shame in his voice and expression.

Diana rolled her eyes as she rolled off the bed and sauntered to the windows to open the curtains. The sun shone into the room, lighting every corner, and Marty groaned as his eyes closed reflectively. Diana lifted the tray off the dresser and returned to the bed with it. Marty had adjusted the pillows so she could place the tray between them and sit next to him while they ate.

He made yummy noises and rubbed his hands together as he lifted his plate to hold on his lap. He slathered the pancakes with maple syrup, careful not to get any on his eggs. As he forked a huge bite of pancakes into his mouth, he mumbled, “Special occasion?”

She swallowed her eggs before answering. “No. Just wanted to give you a treat, my sweet man. And don’t talk with your mouth full.”

“Yes, Mom,” he teased as he bit into his sausage. “What time were you up?”

“Seven or so,” she replied. “I saw a doe in the vineyard. Beautiful.”

“Picture?”

“No, dammit,” she grumbled. “I left my camera inside. Grabbed my journal instead and made a list of all the crap I still have to do for the wedding.”

“Sounds fun,” Marty deadpanned, grinning when she glared at him. “What? I’ve offered to help, you told me you’d handle it.”

“Because you’d bi*ch the whole time,” she replied haughtily.

“Probably, but I’d do it because I love you,” Marty told her, blowing her kisses with a mouthful of eggs.

A laugh escaped her. “So disgusting!”

“You love it,” he chuckled. “What are we doing today?”

“I don’t think we have plans, which is fine by me. We’ve been busy every weekend this month.”

“Movie night?” he asked, smiling.

“I’d like that. Here or theater?”

“Oh, here. We’ll make popcorn and have wine,” Marty said, grinning as he ate the last bit of pancakes.

“Popcorn and wine? A healthy snack,” Diana laughed.

“I have some work this afternoon, but the evening is yours.”

“Perfect.”

*****

Marty offered to clean the dishes after breakfast, and Diana was more than willing to let him. She had a little bit of work to do, especially since her boss, Janice had texted her to check her email for details on her next job. After a quick kiss for Marty, she meandered to the desk where she worked in the living room. Although Marty had offered her space in his work office, she preferred to work in the living room with the television playing Friends reruns in the background.

With a fresh glass of juice in her hand, she plopped down in the office chair she’d purchased for herself with her first paycheck from the firm she worked for. Diana had snagged a position as a party planner with one of the top firms in the city. Because of where she lived, she worked most of the parties in the suburbs, which meant she had an event pretty much every weekend. In fact, this was the first Saturday in six weeks she didn’t have an event to attend.

As she skimmed the email from Janice, she frowned. A sweet sixteen. Grumbling under her breath, she replied that she would contact the parents within the hour to plan a meeting so they could begin the preliminary plans. More than anything, Diana hated planning parties for children, and teenagers were the worst. Indecisive and often rude, the spoiled brats of rich parents were truly a force to be reckoned with.

With a sigh, she sent her standard email to the parents, switching words to make it appropriate for a sweet sixteen and asking about possible themes. Within minutes of sending it, she received a notification that the mother had responded. She wanted to meet the next day for brunch. Rolling her eyes, she agreed to the time and place, frowning because, again, she had to work on a Sunday.

I think it’s time to chat with Marty about going part time, she mused as she sipped her juice and read the idea the girl had for a theme. Diamonds and Tiaras. With another roll of her eyes and a groan, she hoped the girl wasn’t horrible. She had planned a party for a thirteen-year-old girl once with a similar theme and had nearly killed the child when she threw the punch bowl across the room because it wasn’t encrusted with diamonds, as she’d requested.

Because of Marty’s job as a stock broker, he had become a millionaire by the age of twenty-three, almost immediately after graduating from college. He had instinct many admired, though some believed he might have an inside track. But his record was spotless; he really was that good. By his twenty-fifth birthday a few months ago, he had passed the billion mark and was still making money hand over fist.