I resisted. I didn’t want to overwhelm her literally within our first twenty-four hours.
“I think I could do with dinner soon. What did you have in mind?” she asked.
“Well,” I said, making my way into the kitchen. I opened the fridge, the freezer and a few cabinets taking a mental inventory. “I could whip together pasta carbonara if you’d like.”
She jumped onto the island, her legs kicking over the edge with excitement.
“How could you know that’s my favorite meal?” she squealed.
My arms were full of the ingredients within minutes, and I set to work on cooking her favorite dish. “Let me guess, you like the one from a very well-known chain restaurant, don’t you?”
She continued sitting at the end of the island, watching my every move. It was a bit distracting having her exposed legs catching my eye. And under that shirt her bare cheeks pressed against the marble stone, that thin thong offering no cover, tempting me.
I persevered by filling pots, grating cheese, and mixing eggs. Before long, I had a full bowl of deliciousness for us to sit down to.
“Should I open a bottle of wine?” she asked as her feet thudded to the floor. As soon as she said it, she froze. Mid-step, on her way to the table. Horror filled her face and eyes when she turned to me. “Logan.” My name came out a whisper. “I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it,” I told her. But that didn’t seem to quell her concerns.
She just stood there, staring at me with nervous eyes. Her hand covered her mouth as she mumbled more apologies that I couldn’t hear. I took slow, measured steps in her direction, and her eyes widened as I approached. Her hand went up, waving me off, a silent request to leave her alone. I ignored her and took that hand in mine.
“Hey…” Her hand trembled against my fingers. “Ava, relax, it’s OK. You said nothing wrong, sweetheart. It’s all good.”
My arms went around her shaking shoulders, pulling her body against mine. She nodded against my chest as I continued reassuring her.
Then a phone pinged.
“Was that my phone or yours?” she asked.
“Must be yours, I have mine in my pocket.”
As she slid from my arms to search for her phone, I saw a quick swipe of her hand to her eyes. We would have to have a conversation about how to navigate this part of my life together, so that she was comfortable living hers.
“Oh shit!” Ava sprinted for the stairs. “Macie’s coming home!”
I found myself running up to the second floor, standing in her doorway watching her tear through the closet for something to wear.
“How the hell is she going to get here in this snow?” I asked. Moving to her window, I looked outside and noticed that the lots were plowed, and all the cars were plowed in. But the walkways were shoveled and things were getting cleaned by the crews from the complex.
“Jace lives here, in our complex, and he has a truck, so he’s bringing her here. She needs something for homework, or clothes, I don’t know…”
She was racing around the room, clad in only her thong, throwing bras and pants and shirts through the air. I grabbed her by the arms and forced her to stop.
“Hey,” I said. “Text her back and tell her to come eat with us. Act normal. It’s OK. Get dressed, I’ll go clean up the living room, and everything’ll be fine.”
The nod she gave wasn’t very convincing, but she calmed down. I let her go and watched her move zombielike toward her dresser. She pulled out sweats and put them on. Knowing then she’d be fine, I made my way back downstairs to straighten up.
Within minutes, Ava was back downstairs. I was plating our food while she filled our glasses of water. That was when we heard the key in the door.
“He’s such a great cook, you have to stay for dinner…”
Macie’s words could be heard as she came into the house. Ava stiffened and her head jerked in my direction.
“Relax,” I mouthed to her.
Macie and a guy, who I had to assume was Jace, bounded into the kitchen still talking to each other.
“Hi, guys,” Macie said. “Hope it’s OK if Jace eats with us. I told him what a great cook you are. This is Logan, and you know Ava.”
