But he wouldn’t let her carry any. He wanted to hold her hand and keep this idyllic experience going for as long as he could.
****
Madison watched Dante unload all the bags. He wouldn’t let her help. “I feel like I’m just sitting here like a bump on a log.”
“A pretty bump.” He smiled at her and her heart melted. He thought she was pretty. She looked down at the table. She wasn’t used to getting compliments and didn’t know how to take it. Was he was feeling the same tugs and yearnings for a longer arrangement?
She couldn’t believe she was thinking that. She needed to snap herself out of it. What they had going was fine. She didn’t even know how much longer these intense emotions would last. Besides, they only had two months left to their deal. Who knew what would happen after their time together was up.
“What can I help with?”
“Well, now that I have all the ingredients out, shall we look them over to find out what we can make with them?”
“Sure.” Madison got off the stool and walked over to the counter where he had displayed everything.
“What are you thinking?” Madison looked at the spread.
“I don’t know. We have that garlic bread, spinach, peppers, and tomatoes. We could do salad with homemade croutons and maybe that thick-cut bacon on the side. What do you think?”
“That sounds delicious. I was thinking that for dinner we do the free-range chicken with the kale and potatoes and maybe an orange or lemon sauce.” Madison set the ingredients to one side.
“That sounds good. Are you going to make it?”
“Yep. What if you make lunch and I’ll be your sous chef and then we make dinner together?”
“Ok, let’s get eat. I’m getting hungry.”
They worked in companionable silence. It was seamless as they moved around the kitchen together as if they had been doing this for years. It was nice to be able to work together in such a smooth way, and they had the meal prepared fast and sat down to eat.
“So what was it like for you growing up? Did you have any other siblings? I know you mentioned your brother that played pro ball. Is that right?” Dante picked up his silverware.
“Yeah.” Madison didn’t want to discuss her family life. She never said anything to anyone else, but this time she wanted to share. She wanted Dante to know more, and she wanted to unburden herself and find more out about Dante as well. You couldn’t ask questions if you weren’t willing to give up some information yourself.
“Well, I grew up with my parents and older half-brother. I was a later-in-life baby for my dad since my older brother’s mom passed away due to breast cancer that hadn’t been caught in time. My dad met my mom, and she didn’t think she would get pregnant and didn’t plan to have a kid, but here I am. I’m the oops baby.”
What had gotten into her? She had never shared with anyone. That knowledge didn’t stop her from continuing.
“As I got older, my mom got more jealous of the time my dad spent with me, so to make her happy he spent less time with me.”
“Your mom was worried you would like your dad more.”
“No, she was worried she would get less attention. So I spent a lot of time with my granny who was still young for her age since my mom wasn’t even in her thirties.”
“That must have been nice. None of my grandparents were alive when we were born.”
“It was nice. She taught me everything that I know. I know how to sew because of her and she inspired me to not just be a seamstress but to design my own clothes. It’s what pushed me to where I am now.”
“That is cool. It’s nice to have someone in your corner.”
“Yeah it was. She passed away from a sudden heart attack.”
“Oh no. I’m sorry.” He reached for her hand.
“It’s ok. It was a long time ago.”
“I’m sure she is watching over you.”
“I like to think that too.” She stared off to the side thinking how much she missed her granny.
