Chapter 27

James

 

 

I woke up in the morning with Rachel wrapped around me, and realized I could wake up every single day like this and be very happy. I felt complete when she was with me like this, and different than I had in years. I was more than thankful to have her here with me.

Rachel stirred next to me, and her eyes opened up, and she looked at me.

“Are you watching me sleep?” she asked me sleepily.

“No,” I said, sarcastically.

She tapped my chest and laughed. “Yes, you were. No fibbing,” she said.

I laughed at her and then kissed the top of her head. She looked up at me, and we shared a kiss. I held her a little tighter against me, just before I let go to roll over and check my phone.

It was already ten and I was supposed to pick Nell up at eleven. “I need to go get Nell soon, would you like to come with?” I was hoping that she would say yes. I wanted to spend all my time with Rachel.

Rachel stretched beside me and then sat up. She nodded her head and yawned, trying to cover up her mouth.

We both got out of the bed and made our way to the kitchen. “Coffee first?” I asked her.

“Of course. I can’t start my day without a fresh cup of coffee,” she said.

Reaching into the cupboard, I grabbed two cups. Moving over to my Keurig I grabbed two k-pods. First, I made hers, and then I made mine.

“Hey, would you grab the creamer? It’s in the fridge door,” I asked Rachel.

“Sure,” she said. Seconds later, she was handing me the creamer. I grabbed a spoon from the drawer and handed her a cup of coffee. I let her make her cup of coffee first; I watched as she poured quite a bit creamer in there.

“Do you like it sweet or something?” I teased her.

“I actually really hate the taste of coffee. It’s just the caffeine I’m after. If this creamer was filled with caffeine I would just drink this,” she said laughing.

I laughed along with her. I’d never met anybody that put that much creamer in their coffee before. I thought it was cute. I noticed that I’d started really liking most everything that Rachel did. From the way she yawned, to the way she put creamer in her coffee, to the way she helped me out, to the way she spent time with Nell. She was really something else. Something I never thought I would find.

We finished our coffee and got in the car.

Rachel buckled her seatbelt and then she looked at me, “Do you think she’ll be excited to see me?” she asked.

 

I smiled at her. “Are you kidding? Of course, she will be. Nell absolutely adores you.” I wanted to reassure her and felt like maybe she was still struggling with where she fit in with our family. I wanted her to know that I liked her being around, and so did Nell. And the two of us could really use her in our lives. I didn’t want her to feel awkward, and I didn’t want her wondering if we wanted her around or not. If it would have been up to me, I would have asked her to move in right then and there.

We drove on towards Kassondra’s house. Rachel and I got out knocked on the door.

“Hello, James. Hi, Rachel.” We got a nice greeting when she opened the door.

“Hello,” I said.

“Hi, how are you?” Rachel said, smiling warmly at Kassondra’s mom.

“Was she good for you?” I asked.

She laughed, “Of course, she is always good for us, and we love having her over.”

Today, I wasn’t feeling that jealous of her and her husband. Maybe because I had Rachel by my side. It seemed like any time Rachel was near me, I felt complete again. I felt better about myself, more confident and generally happier.

Nell came out and wrapped her little arms around Rachel first, “Rachel!” she yelled.

“Hi, Nell! How was your night?” she asked.

“It was great! I had so much fun. I can’t wait to spend more time with her,” Nell said.

“I’m so glad to hear that,” Rachel said, giving Nell another hug. Then they pulled apart, and Nell came over and hugged me.

I love how enthusiastic she was about seeing both of us. Especially how enthusiastic she was about seeing Rachel. I was starting to realize more and more that Rachel was such a great fit for us.

Nell ran back inside and grabbed her bag. When she came back out, we said goodbye to Kassondra and her parents, and the three of us got into the car.

“What would you like to do today?” I asked her.

“Are there any good movies?” Nell asked.

“I’ll look,” Rachel said, pulling out her phone.

From the seat next to me, I watched out of the corner my eye as Rachel started scanning something on her phone. I liked that she automatically wanted to do what Nell requested. I really appreciated everything that she did for both of us.

Rachel listed off some movies and Nell heard one title that she really wanted to go see.

“Daddy, can we please go see it?” she begged from the backseat.

I looked at Rachel, “What you think?” I asked her. Really, I just wanted to know if she still wanted to spend the day with us, and if she thought going to a movie with us would be fun.

“I’d love to. I haven’t been to a movie for so long.” Rachel said.

 

“All right then, let’s go to the movies,” I said. Then I made a right turn down the next street and went around the block so I could get us moving in the right direction to get to the movie theater. I was excited because, like Rachel, I hadn’t been to a movie in a very long time. Whatever movies Nell had gone to, she had been with Esther, not me. So, this was going to be a major first for us.

We pulled into the parking lot of the movie theater, and I couldn’t help but feel a little nervous—like I was on a date. Even with Nell here, it felt nice having Rachel around, though I still felt a little nervous. I got butterflies in my stomach every time I saw her.

“Hi. How are you today?” the teenager on the other side of the ticket booth asked in a monotone voice.

“Hello, I’m good. Can I get three tickets to the twelve o’clock showing?” I asked. There was only one twelve o’clock showing that day, and it was the movie we are looking to see. We had lucked out.

“Sure.” Said the teenager.

After she passed me the tickets, the three of us went inside. “Do you guys want some snacks?” I asked.

“Of course, Daddy!” Nell yelled. Rachel and I both laughed at her. Sometimes, she just didn’t know how to be quieter. It was alright, though, and made for some funny moments.

As we walked up to the snack counter, the three of us were discussing the different treat options that we liked. Nell was requesting a hot dog, I wanted some nachos, and Rachel wanted popcorn. But all three of us also wanted some candy, plus I got all three of us drinks.

I was blown away by the price and realized that we could have gone to a restaurant for a full dinner. But I guess that was the price you pay when you go to the movies. I passed my money across the counter, to another teenager, but she seemed a little more upbeat than the first one. It made me wonder why teenagers wanted to be in customer service jobs when they weren’t really good at or interested in customer service. I figure maybe because it was just a job and that is the kind of jobs available for kids.

I handed the girls their cups, and as I waited for our snacks, I watched Nell and Rachel walk over to the soda machine. I saw Rachel asked Nell what kind of soda she wanted. Nell said Pepsi, and Rachel looked at me to ask, and I shook my head no. Rachel told Nell to choose something that didn’t have caffeine in it. She ended up picking orange soda, and I watched as Rachel helped her fill her cup with ice and then get the soda. She helped Nell put the lid on and get her straw in, all without helping herself first. I got the snacks and Rachel still was without a drink, but it was amazing to me. I didn’t ask her to do that. She could have waited for me to help Nell, but she just automatically did it. She made sure to take care of Nell before she took care of herself. That spoke volumes to me.

As I watched the two interact, I knew right then and there that I was head over heels for Rachel. Nothing would ever change it. I was in love with her.

I wanted to climb onto the roof and yell from the rooftop. I wanted everybody in the world to know how I felt about her. But the thing was, I didn’t know how she felt about me. I knew this was a conversation we were going to have to have very soon because I was desperate to know.

We found the theater for our movie and found some seats near the back, the exact place that Nell wanted to sit. I never understood going all the way to the back, and Rachel commented on the same thing. She said she liked to sit in the middle seats in the middle section. That’s exactly where I liked to sit. I remembered having friendly arguments with Whitney all the time about her wanting to sit in the very back. It was nice to know that I was now with someone that shared that preference. One more thing we had in common.

The movie was all right, but I was relieved when it was over. It was definitely for children. As we were walking out, I looked over at Rachel, wondering what she thought.

“Did you like it?” I asked her.

Rachel glanced at Nell, then gave a small shake of her head and laughed. And under her breath, she said, “Not really. I thought it was a little ridiculous. A lot of the kid movies I enjoy, but this, not so much.”

I laughed. Mostly at the fact that she was trying to hide her response from Nell.

“I know what you mean. I didn’t really understand what was going on half the time. But maybe that was because I was distracted,” I said.

Rachel looked at me, “Oh really? And what were you distracted with?” she asked.

I laughed, “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because my two dates were the most beautiful girls in the room.”

“Thank you, Daddy,” Nell yelled, causing Rachel to laugh again. I really loved the sound of her laugh.

We drove back to my house where Rachel stayed with us through the evening. She ate dinner with us and even pitched in while Nell got her bath. She helped put her to bed, and afterward the two of us snuggled on the couch watching a TV show. I started getting late, and Rachel had decided it was time for her to head home. I was sad, hoping I could spend more time with her. I didn’t want her to leave. It was a weird feeling for me since I hadn’t felt this way since Whitney, and I never thought I would again.

We kissed goodbye, and after I watched her car drive down the driveway and away toward her house, I started counting down the hours until I could see her again. This only drove me to want to know how she felt about me even more. I still wasn’t sure, and there was no way I could tell her how I felt about her then have her turn around and tell me that she doesn’t feel that way. I would be absolutely crushed and knew I wouldn’t be able to handle it. I fell asleep thinking about her and hoping she felt the same way about me.