Marcie and Leo Ch. 133

One of the things that I was told a long time ago was that in our lives, we all play the role of the hero. Regardless of how we turn out, we are the main characters in our lives. One of the things I did in my life was putting others first. When we were younger, I was there for my friend, Matt. There were many times I had to back him up just because he was just a smooth talker. I'm not saying that Matt couldn't fend for himself. He was always very fit and could stand up for himself. It was just that many of his foes were not honorable enough to come into a situation by themselves.

Missy, my late wife, was the focus of my life for years. I worked my keister off to make sure she was taken care of. She was massively supportive of my drive, especially when Matt came by to discuss his idea for our company. It was this drive that had the side effect that she neglected to tell me about her cancer until it was almost too late. Sadly, she wasn't responsive to the chemo. I lost her soon after.

Marcie became the most important part of my story when she started checking on me while her husband was in his final weeks. Every day while she was with him, she would take time to come to my house next door and check on me while I grieved. It was during the month after I lost Missy that she lost her husband, Mitch. There was a period after where we backed each other up before the events I wrote in the first story about us.

Since then, we've accomplished many things together. Besides our relationship, where we'll be celebrating our second wedding anniversary soon, we have also helped my assistant with her nuptials as well as some of the party ideas Matt has come up with. Even with my accident while walking along a trail, we have accomplished so much together.

What amazes me about Marcie though is that she is so driven. When one puts a goal in front of my little hottie, she has a difficult time stopping until it is finished. When Aubrey, my assistant, talked about redecorating, Marcie was there. There were even moments she would persuade me to help although I was clueless about what to do. Marcie was also my main cheerleader and advocate during my injury. I have mentioned these in previous stories, but she still impresses me when she does.

There was this one time where she wanted to paint our guest room. Full disclosure, I was never a good painter. I remember trying to offer Marcie that we could have a professional do it, but she was having none of it. I then remembered driving with her to the local paint store. As we were looking at color swatches, a couple of the employees were trying to get my attention. It was when Marcie pointed to a color that one stepped up.

"Is that the color you'd like?" he asked.

I noticed he was looking at me before Marcie spoke up.

"I would. How many gallons do you think we'd need?"

"Ma'am, that depends on the dimensions of the area you are painting."

Marcie already had the dimensions of the room before he could say anything. He looked at me again, this time with a look of helplessness. It was when we heard a feminine voice from the back that we saw his face turn to pure terror.

"Bill, are you trying to show off again?" the voice asked.

"No dear," he answered.

"Margaret?" Marcie asked.

There was a rustling before a trim woman walked out to where we were. Marcie and the woman shrieked before they hugged. I looked at Bill and he was shaking his head.

"I take it that makes you, Leo?" he asked.

I nodded my head.

"Margaret talked about the few times you went in with her friend to do yoga. I didn't put it together until they shrieked."

It was funny how sometimes the town we live in seems smaller than it was. I had no idea one of Marcie's fitness friends would be in a paint store, much less working at one. Through the conversation with Bill, I discovered that Bill and Margaret owned the store and that they had had it for a couple of decades. Bill and I attempted to make small talk while Margaret and Marcie chatted. It was when Bill went behind the counter that I eased near the duo.

"Hello, Stranger," Margaret said.

I immediately blushed while they laughed. It was then Margaret smiled.

"We're gonna deliver the paint to you two this weekend. Hope you're ready to work your cute tush off, Leo."

I smiled as I realized what my wife had dragged me into. As we headed to one of our favorite Mexican places, I could see the hesitancy in her face.

"Leo, I..." she started before I leaned in to kiss her softly.

We were interrupted by the waitress with our waters. As she blushed from being caught, I smiled at the waitress before she walked away.

"Normally, that kiss would calm me down," Marcie started. "I feel bad about dragging you to the paint store though."

"I wouldn't say you dragged me," I said. "Obviously you had a plan. You also had a contact as well."

We started to talk about Margaret and how long she and Bill had been married as the dishes were being brought out. It was a charming date even if we were already together. As we were heading out the door, she leaned in to kiss me on the cheek. I smiled before we reached the car and slipped in.

"Do you forgive me, Leo?" she asked.

I could see her eyes were sparkling as she asked that question. I could tell by her mannerisms that she was being careful. I smiled at her and kissed her on the forehead.

"You're good, my pet."

It was as I drove, I started to realize why I was so calm. Every little thing we did to her house started to make it our house together. The change in furniture, the different decorative touches were all a gift from her to me to show that we were a team, and it was becoming our home. It was like another lesson she learned from Missy regarding becoming a strong couple even though I didn't think we needed it. It was the little things that seemed to remind me of how far my life had come.