Gwen grimaced when she realized Lottie still had a ton of energy, and she was about to try and make her sit and eat. "I'll give her another ten minutes. Let this cool a little." She didn't figured it couldn't hurt, especially when he squeezed her hand, sending heat and tingles up her arm. "So," She turned her attention to her food, trying to be nonchalant as she tried to eat with one hand. "Um," All it had taken for her to forget her words was to look up at his face, and her insides went all gooey. She felt something she hadn't felt in a long time, but Gwen couldn't put her finger on when it had happened.

"Mommy, I'm thirsty."

Lottie's voice broke through to Gwen's brain and snapped her out of whatever spell she'd been under and she turned her attention to her daughter. "Oh, Lottie yes, here." She let go of Markus's hands hoping Lottie wouldn't note that, and grabbed for the kids cup to hand to her. "Want to eat a little?" She asked, forcing herself to be the mom Lottie deserved, something she never got.

Lottie Narrows her eyes at her mother's hand as it leaves Mr. Bucky's hands, following her mother's movements till she got the cup, taking a drink, eyeing Markus from the side.

Lottie turned her attention to the food Gwen had laid before her, snacking on a few things while she also colored on the placemat with the crayons the waiter had brought over.

Once Gwen was satisfied that Lottie was content, she turned her attention to the food before her, realizing she now had both hands to eat with, but she really wanted to hold his hand more. "Have you ever shaved your beard?" She asked, curious to know if he'd try going the short route, even though she was drooling over his long haired version of him. She forced herself to eat, knowing if she did quickly, maybe she could find a reason to hold his hand again.

Gwen smiled as he talked about the one time he did shave it, not unhappy to find that all he did was trim it. "That bad huh?" She teased, trying to imagine what he'd look like, but she couldn't picture it. Her eyes trailed his hands and arms, wondering if he had any tattoos, "How do you feel about ink?" She asked, trying to imagine what kind of tattoos he'd get if he did decide to get a tattoo.

Gwen laughed and shook her head, "I think you should keep the beard." She teased, though she wasn't going to say no to something she actually liked. "I'm a little shocked you don't have any," She wondered what his reasonings were, trying to imagine him being the type to be scared of needles. "I have one, on my ankle." She'd gotten the date that she was five years clean, Lottie had only been about four then.

Gwen giggled a little when she felt his leg touch hers, "Just pick one on your brothers you like and claim it as your own tattoo." She teased, thinking if he even paid for one to be done, he could claim that one. Gwen fiddled with her napkin, pretending to clean off her hands after eating, debating on telling Markus the truth or lie, "It's a specific date," She started off with, eyeing Lottie from the side who was staring through the window into the playground. "When I um, became five years sober." She admitted, looking everywhere but at Markus, feeling slightly embarrassed, about her past.

Gwen looked over at Lottie, knowing she'd definitely would spend time coloring in someone's tattoos for hours, mostly talking and making up a word for the things she was coloring in. Gwen smiled softly, wrapping her arm around Lottie and squeezing her shoulders. "I had to, for this one." She teased, then told Lottie to go play some more. She was happy to be sober from drugs now eight years, but she didn't want to talk about it much, it always brought back memories she was hoping to keep in the dark forever. "So, sea lions and then where should we go?" She asked, wanting to change the subject, not wanting Markus to think twice about hanging out with her, but she felt his knee rub against hers and the butterflies started fluttering on their own.

Gwen shivered at his touch, a smile growing on her face as she relaxed, realizing he wasn't going to judge her, though she wondered if he might still once he learned what she was sober from. She hesitated for a second before intertwining her fingers with his, hoping she wasn't pushing boundaries. She nodded at each thing he listed, but perked up with the mermaid show. "Oh, she would love that." She didn't know this place had such a show, but now she knew Lottie would be over the moon about it.

"If we did miss it, I'd have to keep her from finding out," Gwen grimaced at the thought of Lottie finding out about mermaids after missing the show, though would promise a thousand pinky swears that she'd bring her back just for the mermaid show. "So, you're from Montana, and moved here, did you go to college in Montana?" She wondered if he ended up in a small college town, like where she grew up and wreaked havoc.

Gwen thought about her hometown, also a college town by the coast, the place her mother dumped her before disappearing without a trace. “A small town, other side of the country. A place I am very grateful to leave.” She chuckled nervously, not wanting to think about her past demons she hoped she left behind. She didn’t want to think about it following her here, though so far it hadn’t, just one person that might if he ever found out about Lottie.

Gwen perked up when he mentioned the mermaid show, having disappeared into the past. "Oh, perfect, I'll go grab her." She said with a smile, though it faded slightly when she pulled her hand from his. She grabbed her purse and headed into the playground area, calling out for Lottie, who of course took five minutes to make it down because she 'got lost', but now walked hand in hand with Gwen as they made their way back into the café seating area, looking for Markus.

Gwen spotted him and made her way over, her heart skipping a beat when he held out his hand to her, she couldn't help but looked down to Lottie, who was more interested some kid with a bubble wand. She wasn't sure if this was moving too fast, but she didn't want Lottie to worry about anything. Gwen still slid her hand into his, feeling instant warmth, and needing to find a way to keep it. When he mentioned a surprise, her attention when back to her daughter, who whipped her head around to face him with wide eyes.

The second Lottie saw the mermaids swimming around in the tank, she ran straight up to the glass, pressing her face to it.


Gwen stepped back so she could let Lottie enjoy the show, and allow some other little kids to run up and watch. She pulled her phone out to snap some photos, still keeping her hand in Markus's. "I have a feeling she's going to ask me for a pool, and a mermaids tail for her birthday." She chuckled, knowing the apartments had a pool, but she had no idea where she'd get a tail.

Gwen bit the inside of her cheek, worried about the tail being more of a hazard than a toy, thinking if she had a hot tub or a jacuzzi tub, she'd let her wear it in there until she was older and had swimming lessons. She turned to Markus at his comments, a light blush flushing across her cheeks, "Maybe, I'd be afraid I'd drown." She nervously chuckled, wishing she had a private pool to play mermaids with Lottie.

Gwen felt a shiver run along her skin when he whispered in her ear, a huge smile growing on her face, the image of being a special mermaid just for Markus flashed in her mind. She turned towards him, "Wow, are you flirting with me?" She asked teasingly, her eyes sparklingly with excitement. "Because I kind of like it." She admitted, giving his hand a squeeze, feeling like this was going the way she hoped it would.