Mick settled into a chair as Lacey was swept into a sea of silks, satins, and chiffons. It certainly was nothing like buying clothes at the PX on base or even at a civilian mall. The staff-to-shopper ratio must have been about five to one here. But all the fuss was worth seeing Lacey’s face shining as bright as the moon that was already rising in the winter sky outside.
Twirling in front of him, she was showing off another dress just as her eyes fell to the price tag.
“No looking at price tags,” he reminded. “That was what we agreed.”
As the manager stepped away to find matching shoes, Lacey made a beeline for Mick. “This is really expensive.”
“You don’t like the dresses?”
“Of course I like them. But I can find something that costs a tenth of that at the mall,” she said, price tag in hand.
A quick glance down and he shrugged. “That’s doable, Lacey.”
“Mick…”
“Stop,” he said, planting a kiss on her lips. “You know all that hazardous duty I sign up for? There are certain pay bonuses you get with that. And when you’re deployed as often as I was, there’s not much opportunity to spend money. So this,” he said, pointing to the tag, “is nothing. One minor indulgence that I think I’m allowed after all these years. You’re not going to deprive me of that, are you?”
Lacey paused, her face softening. “You,” she began, cupping his head in her hands, “are a very generous man.”
I’m a very lucky man, Mick thought as the manager came back into the room carrying stacks of shoes in his arms.
***
Lacey felt slightly dizzy, and it wasn’t just from spinning around in front of the mirror so many times, watching expensive fabrics swirl at her feet. And it wasn’t the champagne that had mysteriously been refilled twice when her flute was running low.
It was Mick. It was the way he looked at her with such complete adoration. Lacey knew he wasn’t the type to settle down with a family. But what she learned this day was that Mick was the type who could truly cherish someone.
That should be enough for her, shouldn’t it?
After the shopping spree was deemed a success, Mick went to get the car so that Lacey would not have to walk any longer in the snow.
“It’s picking up out here, isn’t it?” Lacey said, sliding in beside him, a hint of sadness in her voice at the thought of the day coming to an end.
“They’re saying at least six more inches tonight.”
“Wow. We better get home before it piles up any more.”
“Actually, we’re not going home,” he said, pulling up to the front door of an historic hotel just a few blocks from the White House.
The doorman opened Mick’s door first. “Are you staying with us, sir?”
“Yes, we are. Reservations are under the name Riley,” Mick said, popping the trunk and handing the keys to the doorman.
Another doorman quickly opened Lacey’s door. She looked at Mick, confused.
“Mick, we’re not staying here, are we?”
“Surprise,” he said, taking her hand and leading her out of the car.
“But we can’t. I—I didn’t even pack anything, Mick.”
“Bess and Maeve took care of that for you,” he said as Lacey looked over her shoulder and recognized her own overnight bag being pulled from the trunk by the bellman. “I thought you needed a little spoiling.”
“As if you didn’t spoil me enough today.”
He swallowed her up in his huge arms. “That’s not all the spoiling I have planned for you.” He traced a finger across her chin and met his lips with hers.
***
The shades open, the morning sun glared through the hotel window. Stark naked, Lacey rose quickly from the bed to draw the shades shut, hoping not give the people in the office building across the street too much of a show.
“Mmm,” Mick murmured, half awake, as she slid back into bed with him.
“Shh. Go back to sleep,” she whispered, gently kissing his lips as she nuzzled back onto his chest.
He mumbled something inaudible as she stroked his hair. His jaw slacked a bit and he started to snore. She gently adjusted him so that he could breathe more easily, and the quiet returned. Lying silently beside him, she let her mind drift to the memories they made together the evening before. Mick had indulged her every fantasy, starting with a horse-drawn carriage ride down The Mall toward the Capitol Building where the grand architecture of the Smithsonian Museums were lit up in the night. Cuddled beneath a blanket with him, all of Lacey’s senses forever etched the experience into her mind: the storybook clip-clopping of the horse as it trotted down the busy street; the way the street lamps seemed to magnify each perfect snowflake as it cascaded toward the ground; the feel of Mick’s warmth alongside her with the scratchy wool blanket shielding them from the frosty air.