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Melts in Your Mouth | Nessa L. Warin
2
SATURDAY night, after they grill out on the back porch and
eat steaks while the sun sets, Logan refills their wine glasses
and carries them over to the table between their reclining
chairs. This isn t anything unusual for them. They often
spend their weekends just relaxing and trying to forget about
the long days that they ve worked all week, and Saturday
nights are often spent at home, watching the dogs play in the
back yard or watching all the shows that they ve recorded on
the DVR during the week.
This particular Saturday, the weather has finally cleared
after a week of rain, and neither of them wanted to stay
inside, something for which Logan is profoundly grateful. His
plan will work no matter where he does it, but sitting on the
living room couch with the television blaring in the
background isn t the way he imagined things going.
This, however, is. The dogs are running around in the
yard chasing fireflies, the stars are starting to come out
overhead, and they re both pleasantly full from a delicious
meal. The moment isn t going to get any better than this.
When Caleb slips into his chair, relaxing with a sigh
after putting the dishes away, Logan fights down the
butterflies in this stomach, pulls the bag of custom-designed
M&M s out of his jacket pocket, and passes them to Caleb.
 Here, he says softly, letting his fingers linger against
Caleb s.  I got these for you.
Melts in Your Mouth | Nessa L. Warin
3
 Dessert? Caleb perks up immediately as soon as he
sees the familiar M&M s logo on the top of the unusual
looking bag.  Logan! You shouldn t have! He says it in a
teasing tone, like this is just any other piece of candy that
Logan has given him on just any other day, and Logan tries
to tell himself that Caleb just hasn t noticed that they re
special yet. He tries to tell himself that Caleb will notice just
as soon as he pulls one out of the bag, or maybe before,
since the question he wants to ask is showing clearly
through the clear plastic window in the bag, but then Caleb
takes a sip of his wine, rips the bag open, and dumps a
handful in his mouth.
Logan s heart sinks.
Some of what Logan is feeling must be showing on his
face, because Caleb immediately tilts the bag toward Logan.
 You want some?
 No, Logan manages faintly.  I, uh, I got them special
for you.
Caleb frowns down at them for a minute, and Logan
thinks that he has to notice that they re not usual M&M s.
Sure, they re the right size and shape, but the only colors are
pink, purple, and green, and on the side that doesn t have an
M, there are either words, a picture of two champagne flutes
clinking together, or a picture of two wedding bands. It s
pretty obvious.
Or it should be, anyway. Caleb tilts the bag back and
forth, frowning at it in the dim light, and then takes a few of
the M&M s in his hands and peers at them closely. The
moment he sees what they re saying is both obvious and
Melts in Your Mouth | Nessa L. Warin
4
nerve-wracking, and the butterflies in Logan s stomach start
fluttering again.
 Logan? Caleb says, arranging four of the M&M s in a
row.  Does this& ? Are you& ? He looks up at Logan with
wide eyes, and his hand trembles as he holds it out.
Logan doesn t have to look to answer the question, but
he does anyway, smiling when he sees the order of the
candies in Caleb s palm. There s a purple one with the
champagne flutes, then a green one that says,  Will You , a
pink one that says,  Marry Me? , and another purple one
with the rings. It s exactly how Logan had thought about
laying them out before he d thought that just giving Caleb
the bag was a better idea.
His boyfriend does love his candy, after all.
 Yes, Logan says softly, smiling up at Caleb.  It does. I
am. He bites his bottom lip as he waits for Caleb s answer,
and when none is forthcoming, he ducks his head, takes a
deep breath, and looks Caleb straight in the eyes.  Will you
marry me?
His heart catches in his throat as he says it, but the
moment the last word leaves his mouth, Caleb beams and
looks at him in the way that made Logan fall in love with him
to begin with.  Yes, Caleb whispers, grinning down at the
M&M s in his hand.  Yes.
Logan s heart swells so much that it feels like it s going
to explode out of his chest. He lunges across the space
between them and lands in Caleb s lap with a surprised
noise and the biggest smile he s ever worn on his face.  Yes?
Melts in Your Mouth | Nessa L. Warin
5
he asks, cupping Caleb s face in his hands and leaning in so
close that their noses are almost touching.
 Yeah, Caleb affirms, dropping the bag to pull Logan
closer. As their lips touch, the candies scatter, bouncing and
falling to cover the patio like confetti. Logan spares a brief
glance, thinking that it looks as though they re having a
celebration. Then, as Caleb s tongue slips into his mouth
and the candies in Caleb s hand crumble against his shirt,
he realizes that they are.
Caleb said yes. They re going to get married.
Melts in Your Mouth | Nessa L. Warin
6
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NESSA L. WARIN lives in southwestern Ohio and enjoys
reading, wine tastings, and watching fantasy movies and
television. She also participates in role playing events and
can be found running around in costume during at least one
Renaissance festival and one fantasy convention a year.
When she s not playing, Nessa works in the corporate office
of a large life insurance company coordinating the
production and mailing of marketing materials. She shares
her home with a cat that enjoys getting in the way when
she s trying to write and owns far more books than she really
has room to keep.
Melts in Your Mouth ©Copyright Nessa L. Warin, 2011
Published by
Dreamspinner Press
382 NE 191st Street #88329
Miami, FL 33179-3899 USA
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the
authors imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead,
business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Cover Art by Anne Cain [e-mail]
Cover Design by Mara McKennen
This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is
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Released in the United States of America
October 2011
eBook Edition