Chapter Two
Jake
“You don’t need to pack much,” I said to Calla, who was busily stuffing a suitcase full of clothing. “I plan on keeping you naked most of the time.”
She giggled. “That’s fine, but on those rare occasions we go out for food or do a little sight-seeing, clothes would be nice. A girl can never take too many outfits.”
We were both in the bedroom, packing suitcases for our trip. We planned on heading into the city tomorrow and catching our flight early Tuesday morning. It had been a long time since I’d traveled anywhere and I was anxious and excited at the same time. This trip meant a lot to Calla and I wanted it to be special. We had been planning it for months. The idea to head somewhere warm and tropical had been born one especially cold winter afternoon. At the time I’d thought she was joking, but she had her assistant make it happen and now here we were, getting ready for our first vacation together.
She held up what looked like a string with a couple pieces of triangle-shaped fabric attached.
“What’s that?” I asked, a little afraid of what she would say.
“It’s my bikini.”
My mouth fell open, “You cannot wear that to the beach.”
She winked. “I hadn’t planned on it. This is for your own private viewing.”
I grinned. “Good. I can have some fun with that.”
We kept packing in silence and I was doing my best to pretend everything was fine. It wasn’t. At least it wasn’t for me. The next two weeks were supposed to be all about us. I didn’t want to ruin that, but I was struggling to keep up the façade that all was well.
I debated whether I should bring up the topic of her house. I wanted her to sell it. I was already tired of the long drives into the city to check on it every few weeks. It made no sense for her to hold onto it. It was one of the things that could always spark an argument between us. I decided to leave it alone for now. I didn’t want to ruin our trip by creating a dark shadow before we left.
It was her fear of commitment that was holding her back, and ultimately holding us back. I knew it and completely understood it. No matter how much I could relate to her reasoning, I always felt like she had one foot out the door. That worried me and heightened my own insecurities, which always led to weirdness between us.
“Calla, are we going to stop by your house before we leave?” I asked, not exactly bringing up the tired old subject, but mentioning it with the hope she would tell me we would never have to go there again.
“No.”
I waited for her to explain why, but it was clear she wasn’t going to. She wasn’t taking the bait.
“I’m going to take this out to the truck, then I’ll be back for yours,” I said, grabbing my suitcase and leaving the room. “That way all we have to do is grab our carry-ons in the morning.”
When I came back, her suitcase was sitting by the door.
“I’ll start some lunch,” she called, as I headed back down the porch.
I took a few minutes to lock up everything outside. We didn’t get many trespassers, but I didn’t like to take chances. I hated rushing out the door before an extended stay away from home. I liked to give myself plenty of time to make sure everything was taken care of. I would be worry-free and able to enjoy my time with this lovely lady.
Lunch was on the table when I returned. It was simple sandwiches with some fresh fruit.
“That looks good,” I said taking my seat at the table. I had never realized how much I needed a partner in my life until I met Calla. She loved taking care of me and I loved taking care of her.
“When we get back, I think we need to have a double date somewhere nice,” she announced.
“A double date?”
She nodded. “Yes, with Gabe and Holly. There’s a spark there and I am going to fan those flames.”
“Calla, trust me, there was no spark,” I assured her.
She scoffed. “You wouldn’t know a spark if a flame blew up in your face. Trust me, there was a spark and I’m going to make sure I pair them up. They would be good for each other. Gabe is lonely, and Holly could use a man to calm her down a little. She needs to relax and if she were to visit here more often, it would do the trick.”
I shook my head, “Gabe isn’t interested in Holly or any other woman.”
Her eyes widened, “He’s gay?”
“No! No, I meant, he is happy being alone. I don’t think he wants a girlfriend.”
She winked. “You didn’t think you wanted a girlfriend, and look at you now! You couldn’t live without me.”
I laughed, “That’s different.”
“Nope. Gabe needs a woman and Holly needs a man. I’m just going to help them realize they would be good for each other. I’m not saying they’re going to run off and get married, but they could have a little fun now and again and keep it casual,” she explained, as if that were the most normal thing in the world.
“Gabe isn’t like that.”
“Neither is Holly, but maybe they can take a walk on the wild side together.”
I took a deep breath. Gabe had told me his life story in confidence, but I knew I could trust Calla. I had to tell her to make her forget about this silly idea she had.
“Gabe is not looking for a woman. He’s in mourning still, I think,” I explained.
“Mourning?”
I nodded. “He was married. His wife was killed a few years ago. I don’t know if he is ready to move on. It certainly didn’t sound like it the day we spoke. The man really loved her and is feeling a lot of guilt and regret over the whole thing as it is.”
“How did she die?”
“She was hit by a drunk driver.”
Calla drew in a sharp breath. “That’s horrible. No wonder he always has that look of sadness in his eyes and walks like he carries the weight of the world on his shoulders.”
I nodded my head, agreeing with her assessment. Gabe was haunted by the ghosts of his past. I had seen it the first time we met. The man laughed, and he seemed at peace with his life, but there was always that shadow of grief and guilt clinging to him. I’d had a similar shadow for a long time. It didn’t go away unless the person carrying it around was ready to step into the light. Gabe didn’t seem ready for that.
She clapped her hands together and grinned. “All the more reason to set them up! He needs a little joy in his life!”
I groaned, knowing there was no stopping her. “Calla, can’t you leave the man alone.”
“Nope. He’ll thank me for it.”
I gave up trying to convince her otherwise. Once the woman got an idea in her head, she went with it. There was no stopping her. I had a feeling she had met her match with Gabe. He was a stubborn man and would not be an easy target.
“Alright, I’m going to take care of a few things,” I said, standing and kissing her on the cheek. “I’ll leave you to your meddling.”
Her laughter followed me out the door. By the time we crawled into bed for the night, I was finally feeling ready for our vacation together.
“Did you get everything done?” she asked.
“Yes. I checked and double checked everything. I’m ready.”
She laughed. “You give me anxiety. I have never seen someone prepare as much as you. I lived out of a suitcase for years before coming here. When I had to go away for a week or two, my biggest chore was remembering to lock the door behind me.”
“That’s because you were homeless,” I quipped.
“I wasn’t homeless—I had several homes, in fact. I was a rolling stone,” she joked.
“You still have several homes,” I mumbled.
“No, I don’t. This is my home.”
I let out a long sigh. I had promised myself I wouldn’t bring up the sore subject of the house.
“Jake,” she said, in a low voice, her arm going around my bare chest as she snuggled against my side.
“Hmm?” I asked, expecting her to request me to do something to her body.
“I’m going to sell the house,” she said, in a low voice.
“What?” I stammered, afraid to believe what I heard.
She pinched my nipple. “Stop. You heard me. I know you’ve been dying for me to do it. I’m going to do it,” she paused, and I waited for the other shoe to drop.
“But?” I prompted.
“But, you have to promise to build me an office up here. I need somewhere to work. Somewhere quiet that’s not in the middle of the cabin. You’re a distraction. I have to get started on my next book when we get back. I can’t sit at the kitchen table and write a book.”
“I will. I’ll build you a whole cabin if you want,” I said, eagerly.
She laughed. “I don’t need a whole cabin, but I would like my office to be attached or have a covered walkway. I don’t want to be walking through three feet of snow this winter to work.”
I kissed her and squeezed her close to me. “I will do whatever you want. I’ll have plenty of time if I don’t have to waste an entire day or two every month driving into the city.”
“Oh, please. It isn’t that bad. Plus, it was always a productive trip. We got to do some shopping, we got to get out into the world, and it was only until I felt comfortable enough to get rid of my safety net,” she said.
“I know. So, let’s get married,” I blurted out.
“We are.”
“I don’t want to wait. I don’t want to do this big thing. You said you didn’t want to either. Why are we doing something we both don’t want to?” I asked
She was quiet for a long time and I figured I had really stepped in it. Women liked weddings. Women wanted the big to-do and the poufy dress. I was totally ready to suck it up if it would make her happy.
“I’m sorry,” I muttered. “I can wait. We can have the fancy wedding with flowers and bridesmaids and all that. It’s whatever you want.”
“No. You’re right. I don’t want that. I think I thought I did, or thought I was supposed to, but I really don’t. It’s why I’ve been dragging my feet about picking out a dress. We have to have the reception though. Holly would never forgive me if we pulled out of that.”
“I’m good with that. A party is a hundred times better than a stuffy wedding. Are you sure it’s okay?”
She climbed over me, kissed me soundly and wiggled her body against mine. “I am absolutely certain it’s okay. I’m so glad to have the wedding off my plate. I was really not looking forward to all of that drama and fuss. Now, I can focus on work and promoting my book.”
After that, I let her have her way with me. Life had just gotten a hell of a lot better. It felt like we were on the right path to a long and happy life together. All those dark days when I had resigned myself to living a miserable, empty, lonely life were a distant memory. I had Calla by my side and she wasn’t going anywhere.