She kissed him on the tip of his nose and giggled. "And you're a great man! The greatest!" She realized then that he was being serious, more serious than normal. Out of respect for his mood, she put her arms around him more gently and snuggled into his shoulder. She, sensed that he wanted her soft right now. "I have such a good time with you, Dan."

"I want you to come back east with me to visit my family," he told her abruptly. "That vacation we've been planning together, that's where we ought to go."

She was shocked. He had never before even breathed a hint of such a plan. Meeting the family sounded like serious business. "But, Dan… I mean, why right away? What's the hurry?"

"Because I want to marry you, and I suppose I ought to let the folks have a look at you before we do it. Doesn't that sound fair?"

Sue's jaw hung limply. She was dumbfounded. Dan was covering a lot of territory awfully fast. A few minutes ago, the biggest thing on her mind had been a jazz show, now it was marriage. They had discussed it obliquely once or twice, but nothing nearly so direct. Sue was not even sure how she felt about marriage. She thought she was awfully young…

"Well, Sue… what do you say?"

He was looking at her with such trust, such vulnerable confidence. She felt a surge of love for him stronger than anything she had ever known. She knew right then, she could not do without the overwhelming joy of this man's talented cock or his enthusiastic admiration. He always made her feel so beautiful.

Marriage! Well, why not? Most everyone did it, at least once. Some even made it work. "What do I say? I say we should go and visit your family. But, you know, I'm going to be scared stiff. I've never been a candidate for a daughter-in-law before. Will you promise me one thing?"

"Anything!"

"Let's not tell them we're thinking about marriage, at least not at first. I don't want them to feel like they have to like me or anything."