My Monster *On Hold

Chapter 6

The picnic basket contained chicken kabobs, some fruit, and champagne. I sipped at the bubbly liquid and was pleasantly surprised. I normally wasn't a fan of alcoholic beverages, but this had a sweet, almost fruity, flavor that was quite nice. The chicken was cooked and seasoned to perfection, and the fruit was ripe and sweet.

"How did you find this place," I looked over at Titus curiously.

"It's pretty close to my house, actually. I found it while I was going on a walk. After we eat, I was thinking we could take a walk ourselves."

"That sounds nice," I said. For a few minutes afterwards, we sat in silence and admired the scenery around us while snacking on our food. I smiled contentedly and glanced over at Titus. He was staring back at me. I half expected him to look away, but he just smiled back at me.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked him.

"You. How beautiful you are, and how lucky I am to be sitting here next to you," he replied. I looked down embarrassed by the compliment.

"You're sweet," I said, "and I'm just as lucky to be here with you."

"I think I got the better deal out of this relationship, though."

My blush deepened. He laughed, "You are just so cute."

By this time we had finished eating, so instead of remarking on his comment I suggested we go on that walk he was talking about. He just chuckled, got up, and held his hand out for me. I grabbed his outstretched hand, and he pulled me up. Instead of letting go of my hand, though, he interlocked our fingers and led me down the bank of the creek.

"So, what made you want to get into your line of work," I asked. I was curious as to what his response would be, due to his unusual job. Weapons manufacturer wasn't exactly a common line of employment.

"I used to be in the military myself, but I had to come home after an injury. I know how dangerous it can be out there, and I want to give our soldiers any type of advantage they can get." He had a thoughtful yet serious expression, and I could tell he was very passionate about his work.

"I can respect that. That's a very noble cause to work for." He looked down at me and smiled slightly, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. I wondered if something was bothering him, but decided not to question it. It might have just been my imagination after all.

By that point we were coming up to a cute little bridge that led across the creek. The flowers in this part of the woods looked more groomed and less like the untamed wildflowers from where we had come. They were incredible beautiful, and you could tell that a lot of time and energy had been put into their care.

"Wow," I breathed out, "It's so pretty."

Titus kept his eyes on me and replied," Yes it is."

"Who takes care of this?"

"I have a gardener that comes around here once a week to keep things nice. He does the work around my house as well."

"Where is you're house exactly?"

We had come to a stand still while I admired the lovely view in front of us, but now Titus gently tugged at my hand, leading my forward. "If you follow me this way, we'll be coming up to it in about a minute."

We crossed the bridge, and continued down a small pathway that showed that this was a well worn route. There were more trees on this side of the creek, but after a minute or two they cleared to show an enormous house with an immaculately trimmed yard.

"You don't do thing halfway, do you?" I asked.

Titus smiled and said, "Not if I can help it."

A/N I would have updated sooner, but I was out of town and without Internet for about a week. traveling did give me some good ideas for where I want this story to go, however. I was so excited when I got back, and I saw that this book has passed 1k reads. Thank you all so much!

Please remember to vote and comment. If you're looking for other good books, my reading list is full of all of my absolute favorite books on wattpad, so I would encourage you to check those out.