Chapter Fourteen

Ruby

Walking through The Avalon by myself always made me feel self-conscious. When I arrived, I wasn’t sure where to go since I didn’t have a card for the elevator. There was a lovely man at the front named George, and he seemed especially excited when I told him I was there to see Nathan. He called up to the apartment and then personally escorted me to his floor, helping me carry the groceries I was lugging. Nathan tipped him generously and then helped me inside. I went to work straight away, making the sauce that I had seen my mother prepare so many times before. I loved cooking, I just never had anyone to cook for, and I thought it was stupid to put that much work in for just me. I glanced over at Nathan as I stirred the noodles, noticing that he looked like he had something on his mind. I figured it was probably a long day at work for him and if he wanted to talk about it, he would. He wasn’t one to hold back very often.

I set the table as he flipped through his phone, finishing up answering emails he didn’t get done at work. I realized quickly that I no longer felt lost at his place, and knew where things were that he didn’t even know were there. It was humorous to me. I had been there enough that the place was like home to me. When I finally sat down, I smiled over at him, watching him finish up his typing and put his phone away. He smiled at me and looked down at the food.

“Looks delicious,” he said smiling.

“Thank you,” I said with pride. “So, how was your day?”

“It was long,” he said holding out his plate as I served him some of the spaghetti and bread. “I had to get a lot done today that I didn’t think I would have on my plate.”

“Why?”

“Well, I’m taking a work vacation of sorts,” he said looking up at me.

“What exactly is a work vacation? It sounds like no fun,” I laughed.

“I have one small thing to take care of in India on Thursday, so I figured why not make it a vacation, I haven’t ever taken one,” he said smiling.

“Oh, wow,” I replied. “That sounds fabulous. I have always wanted to go to India. Their culture is so beautiful.”

“I hoped you would feel that way,” he laughed. “I want you to go with me. We would leave tomorrow night, well early Wednesday morning, but we would have to be at the airport a couple hours early.”

“That sounds amazing,” I said excitedly. “I’m sure I could get time off for that, especially since everyone is coming back from DC tonight.”

“Good,” he said proudly. “Then it’s settled. After dinner, we will go to your house and pack some clothes for you.”

“I’m so excited,” I said, standing up and leaning over the table to kiss him.

We spent the rest of dinner talking about the trip, where it was, what we could do there. It was a short trip, just a few days, but it was the first time I was going to get to travel outside of the country. Well, except for when I went to Mexico but that was more of an alcohol-infused blur at the time. He looked giddy almost, like me saying I would go with him made his day. Part of me started to wonder what kind of business an American company would have in India, but I quickly shoved it out of my mind, too excited about everything else to give it much thought.

When dinner was done Nathan helped clear the table. He rinsed dishes while I put the leftovers in containers and stuck them in the fridge. We had gotten ourselves into a rhythm where I didn’t even think about it when dinner was over. He helped me clear the table and then one of us washed while the other took care of the food. It was kind of cute when I thought about it, but I didn’t say anything, not wanting to upset the smooth rhythm we’d developed. When we were done, Nathan changed out of his work clothes, and we headed over to my house.

It was nice being there with him, we didn’t spend much time at my place. I didn’t mind, but sometimes it was nice to be home. He followed me upstairs to the bed, patting me on the ass and winking as he walked by. I could feel my cheeks getting hot, and I walked into the closet and pulled down my suitcase. I hadn’t packed for a trip in so long I didn’t even know where to start. I looked up the weather in India in April and was surprised to see that it was going to be hotter than hell, over a hundred degrees some places. Where we were going was a tad bit cooler but only because it was on the coast. I pulled down my summer clothes bins and started going through them.

“You should just wear that bikini the whole time,” he said glancing down at the red bikini in the box.

“Yeah, right,” I laughed. “I want to have a good time not get chased down with pitchforks and torches.”

“You are ridiculous,” he said walking over behind me. “You are absolutely gorgeous.”

I turned around and kissed him passionately, feeling his arms around my waist. When we pulled away, I kissed him on the nose and smiled. He looked at me dreamily, and I knew what was on his mind, but I needed to get packed.

“Calm down, sir,” I laughed, slapping him on the chest. “I have to pack.”

“Okay, okay,” he said, walking over to the bed and falling on it. “This is comfortable.”

“Yeah, my dad got it for me when I moved in,” I said.

I went through all of my clothes, asking Nathan his opinion, putting items back, switching pieces out, and for the first time in my life wishing, I didn’t have so many clothes. When I was finished, I went into the bathroom and loosely packed my toiletries, knowing that I would need them the next morning. I walked into the bedroom holding my hairspray bottle.

“Will they allow this on the plane?”

“We are taking the company jet,” he said nonchalantly. “You can bring whatever you like.”

“Oh, well la-de-da,” I laughed. “Taking the private jet to India for a small weekend away.”

I walked back in the bathroom and packed it, listening to him cracking up laughing at my sassiness. When I was done, I sighed, thankful that the hard part was over. I turned off the bathroom light and plopped down on the bed beside him, curling up with my head on his chest. I was so comfortable and didn’t want to move.

“Why don’t we stay here tonight?”

“Really?” I popped my head up in surprise.

“Yeah,” he chuckled slipping his shoes off onto the floor. “We’re already here. We will have time tomorrow to go back to my place so I can change and grab my bags. I’ve been on so many trips that I have three drawers of just clothes for trips. Makes packing easier.”

“You are so spoiled,” I laughed.

I reached over and clicked the lights off, grabbing the remote and turning on the television. Nathan sat up and took his shirt and pants off, and I did the same, getting comfortable under the covers. I laid my head back on his chest and watched the old black and white movie on the screen, feeling his chest rise and fall as he breathed. I could hear his heart beating in his chest, and it was almost like a lullaby comforting me even more than I already was. This man made me feel at home no matter where we were. I was nervous about visiting a new country, but knowing that Nathan was going to be there was all the comfort I needed.

We watched the movie and when it was over flipped on another one. I could tell he was distracted by other things on his mind, so I just laid there listening to his heart and feeling his hand stroking my back. I didn’t know where any of this was going, but for the first time in my life, I felt okay with not being in control of it. I knew that whether it turned out alright or not, I would have some beautiful memories and a bunch of once-in-a-lifetime adventures. With those thoughts trapped carefully in my mind, I yawned and let his breathing lull me into a deep, unhindered sleep.