A Valentine’s Day Surprise

Monday, February 14^th

Diana Belden smoothed the last of the buttercream icing on the homemade red velvet cake that she’d made earlier that afternoon. Satisfied with her work, she licked the remaining frosting from the knife.

“Yum,” she murmured appreciatively. “Not bad if I do say so myself.”

Once she’d placed the glass cover over the cake stand, she shifted her attention to the main entrée. A quick peek in the oven told her that the garlic bread had browned nicely and the lasagna had cooked to perfection. She took out the bread and turned the oven down to the warm setting. The lasagna would be fine in there until after they’d exchanged gifts. After placing the loaf on a wooden cutting board, she sliced it up and then transferred the pieces to a basket. Since it would be another few minutes before Mart came home, she tucked a linen napkin over the bread to trap in the warmth.

She’d already made the salad, and the table was set, so there wasn’t anything left to do except wait for Mart to get home. She hoped he wouldn’t be late. Since they’d gone out on their Valentine’s Day date the previous weekend, he wouldn’t be expecting a candlelight dinner. However, that’s what made planning something like this so much fun. It was hard to surprise Mart; he was too much like Trixie.

Mart’s Valentine treats—a sappy Hallmark card and an oversized heart-shaped box of gourmet chocolates—were on the coffee table in the living room. She was curious what Mart had gotten for her. He usually sent her roses, but not a single flower had been delivered to the museum.

He must be planning something really good, she thought to herself. Maybe it’s a ruby necklace to match the earrings he got me last year.

Valentine’s Day had always been a special day for the couple. That’s when they’d had their first date. During the first year or two of their marriage, they had been as poor as church mice, but Mart had always managed to make Valentine’s Day special. She still had the card he’d made for her when they were newlyweds. Mart had worked for hours to make it pretty, and on the inside he’d written her a love poem. Diana was certain that it was best poem ever composed, and sometimes when she was particularly down, she’d get out that card to remind herself how blessed she truly was.

She heard clomping outside the front door. Mart was home! She took off her apron and cast it aside. After smoothing her red cashmere sweater and fluffing her hair, she went into the living room to wait for him. To her annoyance, it seemed to take him much longer than usual to make his grand entrance.

His hands are probably full, she reasoned, imagining all sorts of goodies. However, when the front door opened and Mart walked inside, she couldn’t help but notice that he was empty-handed.

My gift must be in his pocket, she deduced. And the best things really do come in small packages, especially when those little things are sparkly and trimmed in 24-Karat gold.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, sweetheart,” she said, greeting him with a kiss on his cheek.

“Happy Valentine’s Day to you, Kitten,” he returned. He sniffed the air once, twice, and a third time. “Something sure does smell good.”

“Weeeeell,” she drawled, “I once heard that the way to a man’s heart was through his stomach. I figured that would go double for you.”

Mart sighed with contentment. “Is it any wonder that I love you so much, Mrs. Belden? You may look like a pinup girl, but you cook like Paula Dean.”

“Thank you for that, Mr. Belden,” Diana chuckled.

“Is that spaghetti I smell?”

“Lasagna,” she corrected.

“With garlic bread?”

“Have we ever had lasagna without garlic bread?”

“And by any chance did you make a salad with your special homemade house dressing?” Mart inquired hopefully.

“Mmm…Maybe.”

Mart grunted like a contented caveman gnawing on a T-Rex leg bone. “I’ve got acid reflux just thinking about it!” he exclaimed as he patted his growling stomach.

“Just make sure that you save room for dessert.” Diana paused dramatically, knowing she had a captive audience. “There’s a red velvet cake with buttercream icing in the kitchen, and I certainly don’t want to eat the whole thing myself.”

Mart picked up his bride and swung her around. “Have I told you lately how crazy I am about you?” he asked once her feet had touched the ground.

“Not since this morning, but I could always stand hearing it again,” she said coyly. “But first, come into the living room. I want to give you something.”

“This evening just keeps getting better and better,” he teased, a wicked gleam in his blue eyes.

“Calm down, lover boy. You aren’t getting that… well, not yet anyway,” she hastily amended. She led him to the couch and motioned for him to sit down. Once he was comfortable, she handed him a red envelope. “Open it!”

Grinning, Mart ripped open the envelope and pulled out his card. He read it to himself, chuckling as he read the funny lines and then smiling as he read the sappy ones. “You always pick out the best cards, Kitten.”

“That’s because the best husband in the world deserves the best card.” She reached over and grabbed the heart-shaped box. “And because I know you love them so much…”

“Chocolate truffle hearts!” Mart finished. “My favorites!”

Diana smiled at her husband’s delight. Sixty dollars for thirty pieces of candy had cost her dearly, but seeing the gleeful look on Mart’s face made it worth it.

“Thank you so much, sweetheart.” Mart kissed her soundly on the lips. “I can’t wait to dig in this later tonight.”

“I hope you realize that you’ll have to give me one or two.”

“All right, but it’ll cost you.”

“Cost me what?”

“I’ll tell you later,” Mart murmured huskily, leaving little doubt what the payment would be. He waggled his eyebrows. “Now let’s hurry up and eat dinner so we can begin the bow-chicka-wow-wow portion of our evening.”

Diana cast a discreet glance back at Mart’s winter jacket. She couldn’t see any lumps or bumps that would indicate that something had been hidden inside.

“So, is dinner ready?” Mart asked.

“Umm… The lasagna’s okay in the oven for now,” she faltered. “I wasn’t sure if there was anything else we needed to do…”

Mart shook his head. “No, I think we’re ready to eat.”

“Are you sure?” Diana narrowed her gaze and studied her husband for any indication that he was teasing. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any.

“Yeah, I’m sure. I’m starving, so let’s dig into that lasagna!”

Diana didn’t mean to pout, but her lower lip involuntarily inched forward. Her chin began to quiver, and it took some effort to blink back the tears that were stinging her eyes.

“Di, are you okay?”

“I-I’m fine,” she stammered, managing a wobbly smile.

“You don’t look ‘fine’. You look like you’re going to start bawling. Are you sure you’re all right?”

“As a matter of fact, I’m not all right,” Diana snapped. “Don’t you even have a card for me?”

“I would’ve brought you a card, but—”

Diana’s violet eyes froze over. “Then it’s true; I don’t have a card!”

“Well, no, but—”

“But nothing!” she interrupted. “After I came home early from work to make one of your favorite meals, and after I bought you a sixty-dollar box of chocolates, please tell me that you have something for me. Did you leave my flowers in the Jeep?”

“Not exactly…”

“Then please tell me that you have a small box in your pocket.”

“I wish I could tell you that,” Mart began, “but it wouldn’t be true.”

The tears that Diana had been struggling to hold back started trickling down her cheeks. “I can’t believe you didn’t get me anything,” she whispered. “Valentine’s Day has always been special for us.”

“I do have something extra special for you,” Mart announced. “It’s just not here right now…”

Diana snorted loudly. “If you want to live to see another day, my gift had better not be a promise of getting the best sex in the world. That might’ve worked when we were newlyweds, but after years of having the best sex in the world with you, I’ve come to expect something more tangible on Valentine’s Day.”

“Your gift isn’t sex,” Mart assured her, grinning sheepishly. “Well, I do plan to give you the best sex ever tonight, but that isn’t your only gift.”

“Mart Belden, you’d better quit babbling and give me my present right this minute!”

“Are you sure you don’t want to eat first? ‘Cuz I’m really hungry, and I wouldn’t want your lasagna to ruin…”

“Martin Andrew Belden!”

“Okay, okay!” he muttered. “I can take a hint. Stay here while I go get it.”

Diana squealed and clapped her hands in giddy delight as Mart opened the front door and went back outside. A few minutes later, he popped his head through the doorway.

“Shut your eyes,” he ordered.

“They’re shut,” she fibbed.

“Okay, now shut them for real or you’ll never get your gift.”

“They’re really closed now,” she promised. “You can come in.”

“Do you promise that you can’t see?”

“Yes!” she managed through a giggle. True to her word, her eyes were shut tightly, and she couldn’t see a thing. “Now hurry up and get in here! You’re letting out all our heat.”

Mart snuck back in the house, making sure to close the door behind him. “Okay, you can open your eyes.”

Diana’s eyes fluttered open. She looked expectantly to see what Mart was holding out for her, but his hands were behind his back.

“Well?” she prompted.

Mart took a deep breath and then offered an explanation. “It’s been a tough few months for us, Kitten. We’ve been trying so hard to have a baby, and there have been many disappointments along the way. So, this year for Valentine’s Day, I wanted to get you something that I know you’ve always wanted. This won’t take away all the pain you’ve had lately, but I’m hoping it will make things a little brighter. Happy Valentine’s Day, Di.”

He pulled his hand out from behind his back, and there, in the palm of his hand, sat a tiny Siamese kitten. Diana’s mouth formed an “O” as she beheld the baby cat.

“Do you like it?” Mart asked hopefully.

“Oh, Mart,” she whispered. “She’s beautiful!”

“Well, actually she’s a he,” Mart corrected. “I was going to get you a female, but there was just something about this little fellow that I couldn’t resist. Do you want to hold him?”

“Of course I do!” Diana eagerly accepted the fluffy kitten. She clasped him gently to her breast. “Oh, he’s so soft. Like a little piece of heaven.”

“I drove around all day from breeder to breeder, looking for just the right cat,” Mart explained. “I’d planned to get you a Himalayan like your mother’s, but when I saw the Siamese kittens, I knew it would be the perfect addition to our family.”

Diana gasped. “But Mart, before we were married, you swore we’d never have any pets in the house. You told me that pets were nice, as long as they stayed outside.”

“I used to feel that way, but I’ve always known that you missed having a cat.”

Diana nodded, inadvertently making her hair bounce around. She giggled as a tiny paw batted at an ebony curl.

“Besides, if we’re going to be parents someday, a cat would be good practice for us,” Mart added. “I mean, if we can handle a kitten, surely we can handle a baby.”

“Surely!”

“I already bought all the stuff we’ll need,” Mart told her. “Cat food, dishes, a litter box, litter, a scratching post… Of course, I probably should’ve added a cat carrier to my list.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Well, I thought it would be cute to give him to you in a decorative bag, but unfortunately, the kitten had a little accident in it.”

“Oh, Mart!”

He nodded. “And that’s why you don’t have a card. It was in the bag with the cat, so now it’s covered in pee.”

“Oh, did my little baby have an accident?” Diana cooed, rubbing her nose against the kitten’s black velvet one. “You shouldn’t pee in Daddy’s Jeep, no, you shouldn’t.”

Mart grinned. “So, do you have a name picked out, or is he going to answer to ‘that darned cat’?” he teased, recalled the name he had given the cat during their ride home.

Diana held the furry critter close to her face. Violet eyes met blue ones as she gazed lovingly at the newest member of the Belden family. “Ooh, just look at his blue eyes. They take up half his face.”

“Yeah, they are pretty, aren’t they?”

“I think I’ll call him Peepers. Mister Peepers!”

“Then Mister Peepers it is,” Mart said. “I’m glad you like him, sweetheart. I thought it was time my Kitten had a kitten of her own.”

An adoring smile played across Diana’s rosy lips. Careful not to squish Mister Peepers, she snaked her free arm around Mart’s neck. “Thank you, Mart. This was the best Valentine’s Day ever.”

“Well, then, surely you can thank me better than that,” Mart challenged, his voice husky.

“Yes, surely I can,” she whispered, her lips brushing against his.

Mart gave her no time to elaborate. He began kissing her thoroughly, and she was immediately overcome with passion. She and Mart had been married for five years and had dated for almost four. However, no matter how often she kissed him, the sensation never grew old. Their kisses just seemed to get hotter and hotter as the years passed, and their ardor only increased.

Needing to be closer to him, she wrapped her leg around his thigh. Mart’s wandering hands found their way under the hemline of her skirt, and one of them wiggled its way up to the lacy band of her black thigh-high stockings.

His breathing labored, Mart panted, “If you’re ready for that best sex in the world, I’m ready to give it to you.”

Diana’s laugh was sultry. “I thought you were hungry.”

“Right now, I’ve just got an appetite for you,” Mart said in between kisses. He picked her up, and, after pulling up her skirt, Diana wrapped her legs around his waist. Somehow he managed to get them safely to the couch without keeling over. Diana straddled him, moaning softly as he nuzzled her neck. As he reached for the bottom of her sweater to pull it over her head, he was stopped by a squeaky meow.

“Oh, Mister Peepers,” Diana soothed. “I forgot about you.”

“Forget about him some more and kiss me,” Mart panted.

She held her hands over the tiny cat’s ears. “Mart, we can’t do this in front of him.”

“Do what?” Mart asked as he trailed his tongue around Diana’s earlobe.

“Have S-E-X,” she whispered. “Mister Peepers is just a baby. He doesn’t need to see such things.”

Rolling his eyes in exasperation, Mart plucked the kitten from his wife’s hands and set him down beside them. He managed to wiggle out from under Diana, and after he stood, he picked her up off the couch. Instead of sweet nothings, he whispered all the ways he intended to please her as he carried her to the bedroom. Once inside, he shut the door behind him to keep out any uninvited furry guests.

Mister Peepers, curious like any cat would be, jumped onto the floor and followed his new mommy and daddy. He stared wide-eyed at the closed door in front of him. No matter how hard he nudged it with his itty bitty kitty nose, it wouldn’t budge. Tired from all the excitement, he curled in a tiny ball outside the door and purred himself to sleep.

And within the hour, Mister Peepers wasn’t the only Kitten purring on this Valentine’s Day.

Credits:

This story was self-edited, so all mistakes are mine and mine alone! However, I was inspired this morning to write a Valentine’s Day story, so I made it happen.

Damon and I had our first date on Valentine’s Day weekend, so that holiday is special for us, too.

Red velvet cake with buttercream icing is TO DIE FOR! I love it!!!

Paula Dean is a famous cook who has her own show, and I adore her.

On the television show “The Office”, Roy tells Pam that she would be getting “the best sex ever” for Valentine’s Day. I’m sure he didn’t deliver. J Ever since we heard that line, Damon and I have teased each other about it. And for the record… Pam finally ended up dumping Roy and is now married to Jim. *happy sigh* Best. TV. Couple. EVER!!! ♥

BTW, if you’re curious about the chocolates Di bought for Mart, you can see them here.

Mister Peepers is based on my own Siamese, Quincy Dense. I hope Diana ‘dores her kitty just as much as I ‘dore my Quincy, and I hope Mart ‘dores him more than Damon ‘dores Quincy. *g*

“That Darned Cat” was a Disney movie and it featured a Siamese.