He surprises me.

I sit in the kitchen reading a magazine. I hear some noise coming from the living room, but I didn?t think much of it. After a while, Jean calls me into the living room. I?m still in a bad mood but grudgingly go.

To my surprise, all the furniture has been moved off to the side and a large blanket has been set out on the floor. I look over questioningly at Jean, who just smiles and holds up a small wicker basket. He tells me that we?re going to have a picnic. I mention to him it?s the middle of winter and he says that?s why we?re having it indoors.

Of course, I think this a rather silly idea, but after a bit of gentle coxing, Jean talks me into sitting down on the blanket. I can?t help but smile as he pulls out two miniature bottles of wine like the kind you would find in a hotel?s minibar. Next, he produces three tiny chocolates that I recognize as leftovers from Valentine?s Day that I thought were lost to the depths of the freezer forever. Finally, he takes out a container of whipped cream and several strawberries.

He opens a tiny wine and gives it to me. He then opens the other and proposes a toast to the wonderful weather that allows us to have a picnic.

We eat the chocolate next. We both eat one piece and he decides that we should flip a coin to see who gets remaining one. He takes out a quarter and I call heads. As he flips the quarter in the air, I quickly grab the chocolate and toss it in my mouth. Jean laughs and the quarter falls onto the blanket. Of course, it?s tails. He threatens to go in after the chocolate. I clamp my mouth shut and narrow my eyes in warning. He just smiles and picks up a strawberry.

He dips the strawberry into the whipped cream and holds it out in front of my face. I reach out to take it, but he pulls it away and shakes his head. He wants to feed me the strawberry himself. I just roll my eyes and decide to play along. He puts the strawberry in front my face again, and I open my mouth and lean forward to eat it.

He quickly pulls the strawberry away and kisses me on the mouth. What surprises me the most is not the kiss itself, but how gentle and soft the kiss is. His lips barely touch mine and as he pulls away, he lightly drags his bottom lip across my top one.

Before I can even react, he takes my hand and starts to lightly massage it. Jean kneads the palm of my hand with his fingers. I am pleasantly surprised by how good it feels, and allow him to continue. Using small circular motions, he slowly works the length of my fingers in between his thumbs. When he finishes each finger, he brings it up to his mouth and gives it a gentle kiss on each knuckle and on the tip. A pleasurable feeling of warmth begins to travel up the length of my arms and I lie back on the blanket.

He leans on his side besides me and runs his fingers through my hair. He strokes it, smoothes it, and wraps it around his fingers. I tell him that I could go for a strawberry right now. He smiles and holds a cream covered strawberry over my mouth. I grab the berry with my lips and bite into it. The strawberry is very tart, but the whipped cream mellows it out nicely.

We take turns feeding each other the strawberries, and somehow end up giggling and rolling on the floor in each other?s arms. He kisses me, again very soft and slow. I feel very relaxed and happy, but still not aroused. Jean seems to sense this.