Tennessee Rose

Part 23 - Rose

Written by ehux02

Meeting Marshall's family went so well. I can’t believe how anxious I was and how welcoming they were. As soon as he pulled the door open, the sound in the house amplified as everyone rushed in. It wasn’t quiet the rest of the day.

His daughters were intimidatingly beautiful but so down to earth. Whitney was a crazy ball of energy and she asked a thousand questions. She has a serious passion for animals and just life in general. Alaina is really sweet, but I could tell she is the protective one. Hailie was overly curious about her dad and me, but I didn’t mind. She was also being cautious around me at first, but as the day went on, she opened up to me.  His brother is just like him and it made for some very funny conversation over dinner. Ashley, Nate's wife, is an amazing person and their kids were the cutest. They all made me feel, not only welcome, but also like I've known them forever. Of course, there was so much chatter about Marshall having a girl. I got the feeling that he didn’t bring women around them often.

Marshall and I exchanged gifts along with everyone else and he about died when he opened his first gift from me. It was a keychain engraved with the words, "Ryan ❤'s Rose". He had to explain to the room why it said Ryan and everyone was beside themselves with laughter. His daughters gave him such a hard time with his flirting skills and spent the rest of the day calling him Ryan too.
I also printed and framed the first selfie Marshall took with me. The first time I came to Detroit, we were sitting on a couch in his studio and he snapped the picture on my phone. Only the right half of his face is visible and again his daughters gave him such a hard time over his selfie skills. They all three reassured me that they had tried countless times to show him how to take a proper selfie.  The last gift was a lifetime membership to play Hillbilly Golf whenever he wanted which resulted in me telling the story of Marshall getting stuck in the outhouse.  

Everyone was laughing their asses off at Marshall’s expense. Marshall said he wasn’t sure if they were actually gifts for him or for me.  He acted hurt, but I knew he was joking as I watched him put the keychain on his keys when he thought no one was looking.

That gift was just a joke, I didn’t actually expect him to use it, but it was incredibly sweet that he did. 

For me, Marshall gave a bracelet that matched the earrings. It had a small charm with an "A" on it. When I opened it, he whispered to me, "For Aiden." My heart swooned in that moment. This man truly cares for every piece of me the broken and all...and I loved it.  He too gave me a picture in a desk-sized frame. Only the picture was of Tristan and me at the restaurant we met at before playing Hillbilly Golf. He must have taken it before we knew he was there. It was a completely candid shot of Tristan and I laughing hysterically at something and it captured the bond between Tristan and I. When I open that one he said, "The first time I had seen you laugh like that and it was beautiful sight. I use that photo as a goal. I wanna make you that happy all the time." I was grinning at him like a fool.  What is this man doing to me?

Now, it's nearly midnight and everyone else has long since gone home. Marshall and I cleaned everything up and now we were sitting on the couch as we often do when we are together. I'm lying in his arms, my head tucked under his chin. "Thank you for today baby." I said to Marshall. He pushed me up and turned my face to his while looking at me with a shocked expression. "What?" I asked with concern evident in my voice.
He lightly chuckled and replied, "That may be the first time you called me baby. Say it again."   I giggled, "Once a day is all you get Mathers." He clutched at his heart with a fake offended look and we both burst out laughing. "I should be thanking you for joining me and meeting my kids and family. So thank you baby girl."  The way he said baby girl did things to me and I think he knew it too based on the smirk plastered to his face. "Seriously, Marsh you and your family made me feel like I belonged here and I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else today."   He gave me a half grin and said, "That was all you. You fit in nicely."  I just smiled and rested my head on his chest. He placed a few kisses into my hair and then on my neck moving to my jaw. He stopped abruptly and sighed. "You ready for bed, Rose? It's been a long ass day."

I stood up and stretched. As I turned to walk away, I threw a, "Yes, baby," over my shoulder. I heard Marshall mutter, “Fuck,” under his breath as jumped up and I took off running toward his room. He quickly caught up to me and hugged me from behind as we walked the rest of the way toward his bedroom.

"On second thought," he whispered right into my ear, "maybe you shouldn't call me baby. Does something to me that makes me wanna do something to you."  I shivered at the thought, which caused Marshall to lightly chuckle in the sexiest way I have ever heard. I want him there is no denying that. I'm just terrified to take that step. Once we were in the bedroom, Marshall turned me to face him and gave me a very lust filled kiss. He broke away, leaving me nearly breathless and went to take a shower. I sighed and climbed into bed, intending to wait for him to come back, but I was asleep before Marshall came to bed.

The next morning I woke up in Marshall’s arms. I could get used to this. I love it. I carefully slid out of his arms and decided to take a shower. It felt too weird to shower in his room so I went to the guest room I had been staying in prior to this visit. While I was in the shower, my mind was overwhelmed with thoughts. Thoughts of my family and the dynamic that has changed.

After Marshall arrived at my house, I helped my mom clean the kitchen in silence. She didn’t speak and neither did Olivia. I’m sure mom is pissed at my dad too. My mom has never tried to tell me what to do, she might offer advice, but she has never been upset with me if I didn’t take it. So I’m curious what Olivia is actually saying to my mom when no one is around.  My thoughts then landed on Marshall. He was too good to me. I feel like I’ve know him all my life, but there is so much more about him I don’t know. Mostly, I want to know what he wants. I know what he said to my dad and I’m sure he means it now, but would he really want those things if I did?  I rolled my eyes at myself. It is far too soon to start thinking those things. If I had to choose right now, I wouldn’t want to have a child again. It was hard enough the first time.  

However, the burning question in my mind had nothing to do with those things. It was such a basic question, but the answer could and probably would be so complicated. I didn’t want to ask Marshall. I didn’t want to ruin whatever we have, but I’m going to have to ask it. I need to know.   How would the distance affect our relationship? How would we even work? Eventually, only seeing each other, maybe once a month, won’t be enough at least not for me.

After my shower, I dried my hair and made my way back toward Marshall’s room. My original plan was to make breakfast, but right now I just wanted to lay with him some more. I had managed to upset myself and I needed Marshall to comfort me.  Marshall was still asleep when I went back into his room. I laid down beside him and he immediately wrapped his arm around me. I rested my head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat. He mumbled something about me smelling good as he played with the ends of my hair. I could tell he was half-asleep still. I laid there with my mind racing. My head wants to know how a relationship with us could work, but my heart doesn’t care it just wants the relationship. My head won the internal debate I was having and with my voice barely audible I asked, "How could we make a relationship work?" His eyes flew open and I braced myself for an answer not sure, if I really wanted one.

I raised my head slightly to look at him. His eyes were piercing and full of question as he looked back at me. He then closed his eyes again and let out a deep sigh. With one hand he pushed, my head back to his chest and returned to playing with the ends of my hair and with the other; he grabbed my hand and kissed it. The silence was excruciating, but I couldn’t bring myself to speak. I just wanted to know what he was thinking. My self-doubt was kicking in and I started to move away from him, but his grip on me tightened. I looked up at Marshall, his eyes closed, with an expression suggesting that he was deep in thought. I have no idea how much time had passed but it felt like hours. I laid there silently begging him to speak and tell me something that wouldn’t crush me.

Marshall quietly and with a troubled tone of voice said, “Rose, I really don’t know how we are going to work but we gotta try. I want you in my life. I wanna be with you. We can figure everything else out.” He raised up to kiss the top of my head.  Shyly I whispered, “I wanna be with you too.”