[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Card stirred the chocolate as it melted in the bowl, which was suspended over a pan of boiling water. The rich, creamy substance was almost free of lumps, which meant he would need to be quick with the moulds once he was sure it was ready, otherwise it would begin clumping again - chocolate was such a fickle substance to work with.

He bummed as he worked, a very special woman in his mind; he tried to do something special for her every week, but this Valentine's he had decided to go all out and had a kitchen full of ingredients ready for the special night he had planned.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

As he poured the chocolate into the moulds, he pictured her soft brown hair and how it fell in liquid curls to frame her face. A goofy smile was plastered on his face as he placed the chocolates to cool, and placed a new bowl of chocolate on the pan, before moving to the sink to wash the strawberries carefully.

He carefully removed the stems and leaves, and pushed a skewer into each of the strawberries, before dividing them into two piles; the first pile were dipped into the chocolate and stood up in a jar to dry, whilst the second pile were snipped carefully into roses, petals forming out of the cut strawberry pieces and the fruits opening up under their own weight.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Candy let herself in to the flat with the key he had given her the Christmas before, a giddy feeling rising in her stomach as it always had since she moved in.

"I'm home!" She called out, being answered by the sound of bubbling and pots and pans clanging in the kitchen. "Don't worry, I'm not peeping - I'm heading upstairs to have a bath."

A loud "Love you" came through the kitchen door, and she blew Crax a kiss through the tiny gap he was peering through before she headed up the stairs. Every year, he would try to outdo himself and every year she rumoured him, content to be spoiled and doing what she could to spoil him in return.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

This year, she thought she had outdone herself; she had managed to get his favourite cookbook snuggled out of the house and signed by its author, and she has slipped two tickets to a weekend master chef retreat into the book beside the declaration. She had also lovingly crafted him a new suit, which she was sure would fit well, and she had a new set of cheesecake pans wrapped and ready to be gifted along with a cheesy card.

She dropped her bag and boots in their room and tossed her clothes from the day into the hamper, stepping into the bathroom and shaking her hair out as she turned on the taps in the bath.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Downstairs, Crax whistled happily as he whisked sugar into egg whites to create a light, fluffy meringue; he carefully spooned it onto the baking sheet in rounds, and placed the nests into the oven for a few minutes as he chopped blueberries, strawberries, cherries and pineapples to go over the meringue. Not for the first time, he wished he had purchased a new liquidizer  - he wished he could blend some of the fruit into a sauce to pour over the meringue nests, but instead he grabbed a fork and began squeezing and mashing some of it instead, until the bowl was covered in a rich, bright purple liquid.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

As the oven alarm began to ring, he pulled on his oven mitts and removed the tray with the meringue nests in it, placing it on the worktop to cool and closing the oven door, before adjusting the temperature so that it could heat up enough to cook dinner.

He removed the mitts and grabbed the roasting pan, placing it onto the tablr. Into it he chopped a series of vegetables, onions and garlic, and onto those he drizzled olive oil and sprinkled herbs, salt and pepper, before grabbing a set of salad tongs and tossing it all to mix it in thoroughly, patting it down once he was done so the bottom of the pan was coated evenly.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He then went over to the fridge and removed a dish which held two fine, plump steaks, marinating in a red wine sauce; he brought the fish over to the pan, used the tongs to remove the meat and lay it out on the vegetables, and then poured all of the red wine marinade into the pan over the meat and vegetables, trying to spread it out evenly. A couple of sprigs of rosemary topped it all off, and he washed his hands just as the oven light turned itself off to signal that it had reached the right temperature to cook the food.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Candy heard the oven alarm go off for the second time, and smiled, sinking deeper into her bubble bath while she could. She had already scrubbed herself clean and was now relaxing in the soothing scent which surrounded her, before she would drain the bath and rinse off, washing her hair as she did so. She wondered what he would be making for dinner; though the two bottles of red wine she had spotted when he returned from the shops the other day had  left her curious, he had managed to keep his plans a secret up until now, and she was excited to see how the evening would turn out.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

As she tried herself off and dressed for the evening, she decided to wear the classy pink dress he had gotten her for her birthday, paired with the black heels she had worn to their last dinner date. She knew he would recognise both items, but she thought he wouldn't mind - he liked it when they dressed up in fancy clothing, even if they weren't going out. He had always said it helped the evening feel even more special.

As she sprayed her perfume and dried her hair, she spotted the bracelet, necklace and earrings set he had given her last year, and smiled, knowing it would complete her outfit perfectly.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

She made her way downstairs to the dining room with the bag she had brought in with her under her arm, and looked around the room, planning what she would do. It was a charming room, with dark wooden furniture and a gorgeous fireplace on one end, and a large pair of French windows on the other end which led out to the garden. A pair of deep, wine-coloured curtains were currently covering them, and she pulled out her Valentine's tie-backs, pulling the curtains away to allow them to see the beautiful night sky outside, a full moon just rising as she worked - the days were still so short at this time of year.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Next, she cleared the table and pulled a deep red velvet tablecloth from her bag, smoothing it out on the table before placing a cream table runner on top and in the centre to hold the dishes. Silver candlesticks with three deep red candles were then placed along the table, to cast a soft glow when lit, and she set their places with cream napkins and plates on deep red place mats.

She lit the fire, and put the radio on to a station which was playing Valentine's classics, crooning along as she moved her hips, surveying the work she had done and wondering if there was anything she had missed.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

As the oven timer went off, Crax pulled the roasting pan out of the oven, pleased to see the meat was the exact shade of reddish brown he had been hoping for. He placed it on the table, turned everything off and wiped his brow, then turned around, hearing the door being pushed open behind him.

"It's me, and I'm not looking" Candy called out through the gap. "I just wanted to let you know the room is ready whenever you are."

Crax grinned in response. "I'm just leaving it here to rest while I pop upstairs and get changed" he called out, as he made his way through the door, catching just a glimpse of her skirt and one heel as she disappeared back into the dining room.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He made his way upstairs and was surprised to find a gorgeously wrapped gift on their bed, with a tag bearing his name and the message 'Wear me.'

He shook his head and undressed, throwing his clothes in the hamper before stepping into the shower cubicle for a quick wash, sighing as the lingering scent of Candy's body wash and hair products surrounded him.

A short while later, he tried himself off and unwrapped whatever it was she had gifted him, smiling happily as he felt the rich material of the suit in his hands. He had no doubt she had seen it herself, and whilst he normally made his own clothes the gesture touched his heart.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He !are his way back downstairs and into the kitchen, bag of gifts slung over his arm, and pulled his mitts back on before carrying the roasting pan out of the kitchen and towards the living room, trusting that she would have already set up the plates.

"Open the door for me please, Love" he called, and was greeted by her soft smile, almost dropping the roasting pan from surprise as he saw her properly for the first time that day.

"Hello Beautiful" he murmured, and leaned down as he passed to give her a quick kiss before setting the pan down in the centre of the table.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He placed the bag down beside his chair, and looked around them with a soft smile on his face. As she stepped towards him and lit the candles, he took her hand and pulled her close to kiss her again, before releasing her to collect the bottle of wine and two glasses from the kitchen.

"It all looks wonderful" he murmured as he poured her glass and handed it to her before serving her food and switching off the lights to let them dine by candlelight.

Whatever Candy had meant to say was smothered as she took a bite of the delicious food, and he watched as her eyes closed in pleasure.