“Since fall is finally acting like it wants to stick around, I decided to slow cook some beef stew. It’s ready to serve if you’re ready to eat.”
“I’m ready. Do you need any help?”
He shook his head as he ladled the first scoop of stew into a bowl placing it on the waiting server on the island.
“The only thing I need you to do is go sit down so I can bring you your food.”
When he finished filling the second bowl, he brought the serving tray around to where she sat and joined her at the table.
He waited a few moments, watching her dig in to the food, humming her enjoyment softly as she ate.
“This is some good stew, Adam. I’m gonna need this recipe.”
“Sorry, can’t do that.”
He could tell by the slight frown she wore that she hadn’t been expecting his response.
“Why, is it a family recipe or something?”
He took a spoonful, making her wait for him to finish chewing his food before he raised his eyes to hers.
“It is a family recipe, but that’s not why you can’t have it.”
“Then why not?”
He put down his spoon, reaching a hand over to touch her forearm. “Because if you can make it for yourself, I won’t be able to tempt you with it to get you to spend time with me.”
She chuckled, cutting her eyes at him in a seductive way.
“I’m not that bad, Adam, am I?”
“Considering it took me more than twenty years to get you to see me as something more than a jock in high school, I’d say you’re the most difficult woman I’ve ever had interest in. But that’s not a bad thing. It also means you’re the most interesting because all these years later, I’m still just as captivated as I was when I was a boy too afraid of life and the expectations being heaped on his shoulders to pursue you.”
Although her smile remained, he could see its brilliance dull ever so slightly as she prepared to speak.
“I’m so sorry I let my judgment of you stop me from giving you, us, a real chance. I… I don’t put much stock in the idea of teenage relationships going the distance. It would’ve been nice, though, to understand how kind and thoughtful you are. Anyone who can put together a bath with candles just for someone else to enjoy it is definitely someone I would’ve enjoyed being around.”
He watched her carefully, studying the soft lines and angles that marked both her external and internal beauty. This was a woman who was thoughtful and intentional in everything she did. It was evident in the way she took care of and fought for her son. It was present in her sharing the small snippets of her history with her ex-husband. Everything about her said that she meant what she said and said what she meant. She wouldn’t have given Adam those words if they weren’t true.
“We can’t fix our past mistakes, Janae. We can, however, forge a new path forward and make the best of this new opportunity to really connect.”
He pushed his bowl away from him, leaning closer to her, cupping his hand against her cheek. Electricity moved through him, something he was realizing was a reoccurring thing whenever he touched her, and that it excited him each time it happened.
“Adam, if you’re looking for promises, I can’t really offer you that at this stage in my life.”
He contemplated her words and he understood what she was saying. Her life wasn’t as flexible as his. She was a mother, and she would always have someone else to consider. What he’d incorrectly assumed were her walls was her trying to keep her priorities ordered.
“Is that what’s required for things to work out between us? Do you need some sort of declaration for the future in order for this to continue?”
He took her hand in his, bringing it to his lips, and placed a gentle kiss on her knuckles.
“The only thing I need for any of this to work is you. We’ll figure out the rest as we go along. Is that acceptable?”
Was that acceptable? The question permeated her mind, knocking through its recesses as it searched for an answer.
Could she do with more moments like this where Adam pampered her? Absolutely. Who wouldn’t want to have relaxing baths drawn for them by the kind and seductive man they were dating?
“Janae?”
