Marina had a blast over the next couple of days.  Getting to spend time with everyone and get to know them and how they were really different from what people thought they were.  The show in Houston was wonderful. After the show in Dallas, she went to Donnie’s Back Rub party.  She stayed close to Jon wherever they went because they were both so wary of crowds.  Jon was like the older brother she had never had but always wanted.  He looked out for her and made sure she was included in all the shenanigans.  Plus, Donnie was working.  The fans loved for him to pay attention to them and he thrived off of it.  She loved seeing him make the fans happy.   They had a few days off before a show in San Antonio and got to do some sight seeing there.  The River Walk was great.  The gang rented one of the boats that cruises down the River thru town.  There were fans along the side, but it was mostly calm.  Donnie made sure Marina was within arms reach of him almost all the time. He made sure she had everything she needed.  He flirted shamelessly with her and whispered dirty things to her all the time. Sometimes, he felt like she was interested in him, and sometimes he didn’t have a clue what she was thinking.  He had decided that she was very reserved about sex.  He figured that when a woman was shy and reserved about such things, you had to wear them down slowly.  And he wasn’t just after sex with Marina. The more he found out about her, the more he liked.  He wanted it all. Starting now. So he started with holding her hand.  When she looked up at him after he took her hand, he saw what he hoped was a trace of desire in her eyes. He brought her hand up and kissed it.  He didn’t miss the chill that went thru her no matter how she tried to hide it.  He stepped behind her and put his arms around her waist for the remainder of the ride.  He knew exactly what he was doing when he would lean down to whisper in her ear.  Judging by the way she was slow to answer his questions, she was having to compose herself before speaking.  He was so excited to finally have some sign that he was actually getting to her.

Donnie made arrangements for Officer and him to take Marina shopping when they got to LA.  He wanted to buy  her everything she liked, but she refused to let him do it. He still bought her two dresses with matching shoes, and some jewelry.  He bought her some other things, but wanted to surprise her with them later.  She bought a few things for herself. Officer, however, noticed the credit card, an American Express Black, she used when she paid for her things.  She realized he saw it and quickly asked him to keep it to himself.  He knew what that card meant and didn’t see how it could be a bad thing if no one else knew about it.

That evening, Donnie snuck Marina off for dinner before the concert. During dinner, he asked her about their relationship. “So, you have to know I’m more than a little bit interested in you, right?”
Marina smiled. “You’ve made it pretty clear, Donnie. I’d have to be blind and deaf to not notice.”
“I’m not really good at knowing what I want and not going after it. But I can’t tell if you are even remotely interested in me . . .”
“You know I get chills when you hold me or when you touch me . . .”
“What I know is that you are attracted to me. I can’t tell if it’s more than that. I’m used to things going differently. If a woman is interested in me, she’s physical with me.” He could tell she was about to say something. “Not just sex. I know that’s not who you are.” He ran his hand over his face.
Marina reached across the table and touched his hand. He quickly held onto her hand. “Donnie, you are a sweet man. I am enjoying spending time with you. More than I can ever tell you. It’s been a really long time since someone was interested enough to put more than a little effort into getting my attention. I had pretty much given up on that part of my life.” She leaned a little closer toward him at the table. “I’m sure you have been around enough people to know that not everyone shows how they care in the same way. And just because you do all the things you know to do for someone that you can think of that will show them how you feel, that doesn’t mean that they will perceive those things the way you intended them. Do you have any idea what I’m trying to say?”
“Can you give me an example? I think I know…but I want to be sure.”
“Let’s say you grew up with parents who bought you everything you ever wanted. Parents are supposed to love you. So you might associate giving gifts with showing love. But if the person you are interested in never had anything like that, but their parents worked 2 and 3 jobs to make sure they had clothes and a roof, they might see something as simple as a place to stay a way of showing that they care. So buying them a car isn’t going to prove anything to them, and if they let you have their favorite scarf when it’s cold outside, it’s not going to register with you that they are showing how much they care.”

“So what I need to do, is get to know you well enough that I figure out how you show you are interested in me?”
“Absolutely!”
“Can I ask a favor though?”
“I don’t see why not. It’s not something bad, is it?”
“No. I just really wanted to see if I could get you to dance with me tonight. Just one song.”
“How is this a favor for you exactly?”
“I’ve wanted to dance with you since that night I was in the hospital. Just watching you move around that room working with that guy getting me ready for my test, it was like it was orchestrated or something. I guess because you do that all the time.”
“Donnie, you are crazy. But I will dance with you tonight. It’s obviously something that matters to you. I’m not very good at dancing like that,” she said, indicating the dance floor.
He stands up and offers his hand. “You just never had the right partner.” She smiles and takes his hand and they go out to the dance floor and join the other couples already dancing. She looks so uncomfortable on the dance floor and he almost regrets taking her out there. But he knows she wouldn’t have come if she wasn’t willing. So he stops and goes over the steps they are going to do for her. She relaxes a bit and follows his instructions and lead easily.
“It’s amazing how much easier that is with someone who actually pays attention to what their partner is doing.”
“Yeah, just knowing the steps doesn’t really make it work. It’s a shared experience.” The song ended and he walked her back to the table. “Sadly, we need to be heading back. I’m pretty sure I have to perform tonight.”

“Of course. Let me run to the restroom and I’ll be right back.” She left with him watching her the whole time. He paid the check while she was gone. When she came back he was smiling too much.
“Okay, let’s get out of here before I ask you what you are grinning about.” She grabbed her purse and he escorted her to the car. After he opened the door, but before letting her get inside the car, he pulled her back up against his chest and whispered in her ear.
“I’m pretty sure that one of the ways you show someone that they matter to you is by doing something you wouldn’t normally do for them. Am I right?” She nodded. “Thank you for this,” he said and kissed her cheek before helping her into the back of the limo.
He watched her and she watched him for a few minutes. Finally she couldn’t stand it. “Ok so we have 45 minutes to get back and get to the venue. So I’m gonna run upstairs and change into some jeans and a shirt and I’ll see you from the crowd.” He was still staring. “I’m not telling you where my seat is tonight. You just have to find me on your own.”
“No problem. I’ll find you before the end of the first song. Count on it.” Fortunately they were having dinner close to their hotel that was across the street from the venue.
He walked her to her door and gave her a hug. “Thank you for going with me Marina.” She seemed so far away from him even though he was holding her.
She smiled. “Thank you for asking me. And thank you for making me dance. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.” He put his hand on her cheek. He so wanted to kiss her. But he could see in her eyes that she was scared of a kiss. She wasn’t completely sure. But…
“I’ll see you in a little while.” He let go of her and started to walk away. He whispered something that she didn’t quite catch.
“What did you just say?” she called after him.
“Um…nothing.”
“Not nothing. It was something. Tell me.”
He took a breath. “Fine. I figure since you danced with me tonight that you like me. So I said ‘she likes me’ to myself. I ruined it, didn’t I?” He looked so pitiful.
“Donnie, you are so … silly. Yes, I like you.” She stepped forward and kissed his cheek. When she went to pull away and let him leave, he grabbed her arm.
“May I?” he asked.
“I think so.” He stepped forward and put his hands on the sides of her face and in her hair. It started out to be a chaste sort of kiss, but the more she responded, the more he wanted. A few minutes into the kiss, Donnie’s cell phone alarm went off letting him know he was really running late. He wasn’t sure how he had managed to back Marina up against the door and had her completely up against him.

He pulled back enough for them to recompose themselves. “Damn! I never expected to kiss you tonight and I certainly never expected for you to kiss like that. And to think I thought you were just all prim, proper, and reserved about the physical stuff.” She blushed, but didn’t say anything. “I have to go now. Maybe I can kiss you again later?” She nodded but didn’t look up. He put his fingers under her chin and tilted her chin up so she had to look at him. “So, that nod is a ‘yes, Donnie. You can kiss me later’?”
She smiled at him. “Yes.”
“Get in your room now. The sooner this show is over, the sooner I can kiss you again.” He took her room key and opened the door and handed the key back before heading down the hall. She heard him say one more thing… “She really likes me.”

“Donnie!”