If You Love Me

Sixty Eight: I Think I Like It

Pulling the front door closed behind him, Gerard rested against it for a moment, his ears filled with the distant sound of voices. It wasn’t the first time, since he had returned to training a couple of weeks previous, he had come home to find Nora’s mother or sister in his home more than once, and whilst it had the potential to disrupt his plans for a quiet afternoon with Nora and Alba, he knew that their presence was a good sign. It was still early days, with him and Nora yet to select a date, no plans had been made, but he liked the idea that she was thinking about it, even if nothing was concrete, he was pleased that she was starting to think about putting plans in place.

Closing his eyes, he enjoyed a couple of seconds of quiet before he willed himself away from the door, settling his bag down on the floor before he quietly stepped through towards the living room, his eyes settling on Maria who sat on the couch, a pile of wedding magazines at her side. “Hola, Maria” he greeted “It’s good to see you again” he added, offering her a small smile.

Maria, who’d been flicking through a magazine, lifted her head at the sound of his voice before she offered him a small smile. “It’s good to see you too, Gerard” she enthused “And I hope you don’t mind me being here. I had the morning off and Nora suggested that I come by for coffee, but I shouldn’t be here for too much longer” she fussed, peeking up at him sheepishly.

Gerard, who’d moved to sit down in the armchair, spotted the nervous expression on her face before he shook his head, a warm smile on his lips. “You know that you’re more than welcome here, Maria” he enthused “Besides, I know that Nora is thinking about starting to make wedding plans and I figure that I am likely to see a lot of you over the next few months. I should probably just get used to it” he teased, trying to encourage the older woman to relax slightly. It wasn’t unusual, since Maria had first broached the subject of him proposing to Nora, things had been a little awkward between the two of them, and Gerard wanted to encourage Maria to relax around him, not wanting her to feel awkward about something that she had no need to feel bad about.

Maria let out a soft laugh before the sound of Alba’s babbling filled the air, something which caused Gerard to turn, watching as Nora stepped into the room with Alba settled on her hip. Quirking a small smile, he watched them into the room before he pushed himself up to his feet, moving to press a soft kiss against Alba’s cheek before he lifted his head, offering Nora a small smile. “Hola” he mused.

“Hola” Nora replied “I didn’t hear you come in” she added, kissing his cheek in greeting.

Gerard, who’d moved to lift Alba into his arms, shrugged. “I’ve only been here for a couple of minutes” he noted “But if you want me to duck back out, I can” he added, an impish smile on his face.

Nora feigned thought for a moment before she shook her head. “I’m sure you sticking around won’t bother me too much” she quipped playfully.

Gerard offered her a playful glare, something which made Nora flash him a bright grin before she stepped towards the couch, settling down in the seat beside her mother before she lifted a magazine into her hand, flicking through a couple of pages.

Gerard, who’d moved to sit down a little away from her, watched her flicked through the magazine briefly before he quirked a small smile, something which Nora was quick to notice. “You’re smiling at me” she pointed out.

“I am” Gerard confirmed with a small nod “It’s a little strange seeing you, flicking through wedding magazines, but I think I kind of like it” he enthused. It still felt a little strange, the idea that he and Nora were engaged was one which had yet to settle in, but he was confident that it would, even if it did take a little while for him to wrap his head around it. He liked the idea that they were looking to take the next step in their relationship.

Nora spared him a small look before she shook her head. “I doubt you’ll be saying that when I am asking you to choose between fabric swatches for table cloths or cake flavors” she quipped, her voice warm and teasing.

Gerard shrugged. “It could be fun” he quipped “Besides, you plan events for a living. I have little doubt that you’ll be able handle wedding planning” he added with a grin.

Nora admired the grin on his face for a moment before she rolled her eyes, something which made Maria shake her head, a warm smile on her lips. It wasn’t the first time, since Alba had arrived, both Gerard and Nora seemed to have grown into their relationship, and it pleased Maria who, for a long time, had been convinced that neither one of them would ever work up the nerve to tell the other how they felt about them.

Admiring their interaction, she shook her head gently before she nudged Nora’s side, pulling her attention towards her. “Have you two even thought about a date yet?” she posed.

Nora shrugged. “We want to do it this year” she noted “But when? We’ve not decided” she added.

“I like the idea of summer” Gerard contributed “But we’d have to look at July rather than June. I’m likely to be away with Spain for at least a couple of weeks” he added.

Nora looked at him curiously. “You like July?” she posed.

Gerard smiled a little before he nodded. “I do” he noted “I like the idea of doing it during the summer, rather than during the winter, but if you have something else in mind, we can talk about it. We’ve got some time, Nora, and we don’t have to decide anything right now” he added gently.

Nora was quiet for a moment, mulling over his words, before she quirked a soft smile, something which made Gerard tilt his head. “What are you smiling about?” he posed, a small frown on his face.

Nora laughed at the confused expression he wore before she shook her head. “I think we might have just made a wedding plan” she quipped impishly.

“We have?” Gerard asked.

Nora nodded. “A summer wedding sounds pretty good to me” she enthused sheepishly.

Gerard tilted his head, wordlessly asking if she was sure, something which made Nora giggle before she nodded her head. Gerard watched her nod before he carefully pushed himself up, moving to press a soft kiss against her lips.

Maria, who was sat beside her daughter, watched the interaction between the couple before she excused herself, a soft smile playing on her lips. It had been a long time coming, for years, both Gerard and Nora had skirted around the elephant in the room, and Maria was pleased to see it working out for the two of them. They were good together, Maria had always thought it, and she was pleased that they’d finally put things together.
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