And honestly? I’d even take less money. My first few paychecks alone were enough to get me caught up on old bills and then some. For the first time in forever, I can shop online again! My cart has been waiting for me to click that checkout button. I can order food whenever I want, but I don’t even need to do that because I’m dating, not really, a whole chef!

I’m finally breathing again.

And lately, I feel like I’m being adored again. Well, not again… I feel like I’m being adored for the first time ever.

Vic spoils me in ways that, to him, are just the standard, but to me, they feel like a luxury I never knew I deserved.

My definition of breakfast is a bagel or bowl of cereal, something quick and simple. But to Vic? It’s cooking a homemade breakfast complete with Belgian waffles, fresh turkey bacon, eggs benedict, and a fruit platter.

My poor little Honda only gets driven when I go home on the weekends because here? I’m either being driven around by Gary or handed the keys to one of Vic’s luxury cars, half of which I can’t even pronounce.

He checks in on me every morning and throughout the day—not like I’m his responsibility, but like I’m his person. His friend. Like my well-being actually matters to him.

He doesn’t do anything for praise. He doesn’t do anything for show. He does everything because he wants to and that’s just who he is. He gives without hesitation, without expectation.

And when he asks how I’m feeling, I tell him I’m good, but he doesn’t just accept it; he asks me what he needs to do to make me feel great. And it unnerves me because I don’t have an answer. He doesn’t understand that I’m not used to being taken care of like this.

And he does these things not for show, not for selfies, or for the public. He just does it for me.

And what does he ask for in return? My company.

The evenings are ours. No matter how busy the day or how exhausted we both are, we always find each other. A glass of wine for me and a whiskey neat for him.

He isn’t the grumpy, no-personality having man everyone assumes him to be, at least not with me. With me, he lowers his guard just enough for me to catch glimpses of what’s beneath the veil.

We have great conversations with laughter and sometimes even flirtation, but I want more. I want intimacy.