“No, the first thing I did was look up the meaning of my name.” She smiled warmly. And now, she was flirting back, a little anyway.
Nicole laughed at this admission; it was quite sweet how Lucy had no qualms about telling the truth even if it embarrassed her. Just another aspect of Lucy’s personality that was attractive. Paul Nixon was a liar from start to finish in their relationship. From his pretence at being the perfect husband and perfect father, to his addiction to gambling and God only knows what else. Her life with him had been a spiral of deceit, but not with Lucy. With Lucy she had openness, she had shared her darkest moments. With Lucy, there was fun and laughter, but most importantly, there was honesty.
“So, what does your name mean then?”
“Lucy just means ‘light,’ pretty boring I suppose, but my middle name is Alexandra and that means ‘defender.’ As in protector of man.” She beamed.
“Well that is pretty impressive, it’s not quite as impressive as my victorious people, but it’s still pretty good. I wonder what my middle name means.”
“What is it?”
Storm watched this conversation go back and forth with interest. Surely they could see it. She looked over to Rita, who was also watching, captivated by the pair of them, and when Rita turned her gaze on Storm, they both raised an eyebrow.
“Amanda, I am sure it won’t have any exciting meaning though.” Nicole laughed, continuing on with their conversation without regard to Rita and Storm’s silent exchange. Her fingertips reached out and touched lightly against Lucy’s arm. Rita had never seen anyone touch Lucy before, not in all the years she had known her.
“I’ll look it up when we get home. Do you need me to do anything?” Everything was so simple, the way they worked well together. It was so domesticated.
“I should be home for dinner. I was thinking of doing something simple like lasagne or spaghetti? Is that okay?”
“Fine by me, did you want to watch a movie? I can pick up a DVD on the way back,” Lucy offered, her smile growing by the minute. Someone else entered the store and Lucy instinctively turned her face away and brought her hand up through her hair to bring it forwards. Nicole reached out and touched her arm again, giving reassurance that she wasn’t alone and it was all okay.
“Sure, sounds like fun, get two. One the munchkins can watch with us and one for when they go to bed,” Nicole continued. The twins were excited about that news. They loved nothing more than watching films. Lucy always bought popcorn, and it was so much more fun than when they lived with their Dad. They could talk through it and ask questions and Lucy never got mad. They went to bed at night happy now.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Nicole got home to a quiet house. The girls were tidying their things in their room, and Lucy was in the kitchen mixing up a salad. In the oven was a lasagne that smelt out of this world. There was even garlic bread warming under the grill.
“Wow, I thought I was coming home to do the cooking,” Nicole said, eyes wide in wonder. The smell of garlic, basil, and onions wafting through the home had her salivating.
“Don’t be silly, you have been to work, that means you get the day off from chores,” Lucy said, smiling. “And anyway, it wasn’t difficult. Storm found the recipe online and I followed it.” She was getting the hang of all this new technology now, though she often needed Storm to show her how to use it. She wondered what else she had been missing out on in her self-imposed exclusion from society.
Passing by Lucy, she let her fingertips skim across the small of her back. “Well it smells amazing, thank you.”
Lucy felt herself aroused again at the close proximity. “Okay, so you have got about 10 minutes if you want to go and change or freshen up. Wine?” she offered, stumbling to the fridge, putting distance between them both.
“You read my mind. Please, I would love a glass.” Nicole was a little dumbstruck at how thoughtful Lucy was. Even when she was pregnant and Paul was being nice to her, she had still had to do all the chores and cooking. It was so foreign to her to put her feet up and have someone else wait on her. And she had to admit, she quite liked it.
She wandered into her room and quickly stripped out of her work clothes and grabbed a towel, wrapping it around herself. Remembering she had a carton of milk in her bag, she hurriedly exited her room and crossed the living room to where she had left her bag on the countertop. She grabbed it, pulling the carton of milk from inside and placing it inside the door of the fridge before heading back across the room to the bathroom.
Lucy had to stop what she was doing. The sight of a semi-naked Nicole strolling across the lounge in just a towel that, although covered her perfectly, hugged every curve and allowed for plenty of uncovered skin to be on view, had momentarily frozen her to the spot. Placing the knife down on the chopping board, she put her hands on the counter either side and focused her vision on the half-chopped onion. She steadied her breathing and, in that instant, she was completely aware of just how attracted to Nicole she was becoming. It was a feeling she wasn’t sure she knew how to cope with. She hadn’t been attracted to anyone for such a long time; it was foreign, it was unwanted, and yet she couldn’t stop it.
~E&F~
Dinner though, was a great success. Lucy was very pleased that everybody was enjoying it. It wasn’t that she was a bad cook, but after living alone for so long, she had just gotten used to eating meals for one, or frozen dinners and takeout. Before that, she was on the road for months on end, and dinner was always supplied, so she was enjoying these moments now that she had…what exactly did she have? Friends? Guests? Family? Whatever they were to her, she had them, and she wanted to cook and make life easier for Nicole.
“Lucy this is amazing,” Nicole enthused, taking another bite of the piping hot lasagne. And it really was; the flavours were perfectly blended. The sauce wasn’t too sloppy, and it was full of tomato and just a hint of basil.
“Thanks,” she blurted, not used to compliments and attention coming in her direction much anymore. Her cheeks immediately flushed, or was it because Nicole was looking at her like that, like she was the most important person in the room?
“So, what did we all do today?” Nicole asked, changing the subject quickly. The twins were making a huge mess on their plates with bits of food that had escaped their forks. Storm rolled her eyes at them while Lucy seemed to find it endearing.
“How do they make so much mess?” the elder of Nicole’s girls asked incredulously. It never failed to amaze her just how messy her sisters could be with food.
“They don’t make any more mess than you used to, Storm,” Nicole said, laughing gently. “You used to get it all over your face, I took so many pictures—” She stopped laughing and her face took on a melancholy look as she realised they had left all of those memories behind. So many times she had thought about that day, when they had escaped, and wished she had taken just a few minutes longer to grab more of their things.
Lucy, who was sitting beside Storm at the table, saw the sadness that instantly appeared to mark the features of what had been a beautiful smiling face just seconds ago. In a moment of absolute madness, she knew what needed to be done. With the meal virtually finished anyway, she scooped a piece of lasagne up in her fingers and threw it at Storm, hitting her on the cheek. She stared and waited as it slid off, leaving a long red tomato sauce streak in its wake. Storm turned and looked at her, startled, not believing she had just thrown pasta and sauce at her, while Nicole sat wide-eyed.
“Might as well make new memories, huh?” Lucy said, picking up another piece. This time she actually smeared it across Storm’s nose. The twins howled in delight, and even Nicole had to stop herself from laughing out loud. It took a moment, and Lucy was still unsure whether Storm was going to fall into a giant tantrum or not, but just as she was about to get worried, Storm’s face broke out into a huge grin as she too grabbed a handful of food and threw it at Lucy.
“I suggest you find a camera if you’re going to start
capturing more memories,” Lucy shouted over the squeals and giggles of three children throwing their food at one another.
Nicole grabbed her new phone, something Lucy insisted they both have now just in case anything happened to the children or each other, and clicked on the camera app, snapping away, all the while laughing hard at the antics until one of them threw something at her, and well, it would be rude not to join in.
~E&F~
With the clean-up in progress, Lucy was feeling pleased with herself. Nicole was putting the girls in the bath, and then they were going to watch a movie. In the meantime, Lucy had been given the job of clearing the mess. Well, she had started it, as Nicole had pointed out, and it was a fair point. She took her punishment and scraped food off of what seemed like every surface, but she smiled to herself for making such a great decision. Nicole was happy. The kids were happy, and in all honesty, so was Lucy.
Nicole soon returned with two sleepy 4-year-olds and Storm, all fighting to keep their eyes open for the movie. Lucy pressed play and started the film. Within minutes, Rain was snoring lightly on her momma's lap. A few minutes after that and Lucy had the pleasure of a dribbling Summer in slumber on her own lap. They looked at one another, and without a word, both stood to carry them to their beds. Lucy took a moment to just look at Summer as she slept; she was so peaceful, so unaware of all of life’s hardships. All that was important to her was playing and chocolate. She felt the soft touch of Nicole’s palm against her shoulder and turned, a half-smile on her face. “I wonder what they dream about,” Nicole said quietly.
“It must be something nice, they never wake up grumpy,” Lucy replied as they both turned to leave the room. She left the door ajar and followed the raven-haired Nicole back into the living room.
“Oh,” she giggled as both sets of eyes landed on the sleeping form of Storm, stretched out across the couch with a cushion tucked beneath her cheek. “I thought she would have lasted at least another fifteen minutes.”
“I’ll take her,” Lucy said, bending to scoop her up. “You change the movie, there is no point us watching the rest of this as they are only going to make us watch it 15 times tomorrow.”
“You they might, I have to go into town,” Nicole said, with a wink that sent an immediate shockwave of desire throughout Lucy’s being.
She lifted Storm and felt her arms wrap around her neck; it was familiar, and Lucy adored this child. She adored all of them, but she and Storm had a connection that went deeper, and although Lucy couldn’t explain it, she really felt as though she was meant to come into her life.
Nicole had poured two glasses of wine while Lucy was gone. It was nice to have these moments. In her old life, she never had the chance to just sit and enjoy a glass of wine by herself, let alone enjoy it with someone else. She wasn’t allowed to drink unless they were entertaining people, and even then, if she had more than two glasses she would feel his glare. Of course, he could and would drink as much as he wanted. It was nights like those that she feared the most. Nights like the one before they had left. She shivered at the thought and then concentrated her gaze on Lucy, needing to ground herself in hope.
“I like the way you are with my kids,” Nicole stated while continuing to stare at Lucy. She yawned. “God, I don’t know why I feel so tired all the time,” she laughed, feeling a little embarrassed at her statement.
“Well, they are great kids,” Lucy replied with a smile.
“Yes, but they haven’t had very good role models in their short lives, and you, well I think you’re good for them.”
Lucy blushed at the compliment but didn’t say anything further, and Nicole didn’t push it. They just sat and enjoyed their wine, watching the movie.
“Lucy?”
“Yeah?” she said, not taking her eyes off of the screen. For someone that had gone years without a TV, Lucy was now understanding what she had been missing out on.
“Do you think Storm will be ok?”
“Sure.”
“I mean, at school, with the stage fright issue?”
“Oh, I guess so,” Lucy said, turning her attention to the brunette. Big mistake! Nicole was sitting with her legs curled up underneath herself, leaning on the arm of the couch with her head tilted towards Lucy. She was biting her bottom lip nervously, and she looked stunning. No make-up, no fancy clothes or jewellery; her hair was messy and wild.
“Do you think – maybe…” She stopped to reconsider what it was that she had been planning to ask, and then decided against it. “No, it doesn’t matter.”
“What?” Lucy turned fully now, bringing her own legs up on the couch, bending them at the knee as she hugged and rested her chin on them.
“It’s ok, I can’t ask you to do—” She was cut off.
“Just ask. If I don’t want to do it then I’ll say no.” Nicole considered that; Lucy wasn’t shy in saying no. Lucy was staring at her and waited for a response.
“I just wondered if you could give her some tips on how to perform, to an audience, ya know on a stage?” She managed to get it out, and she prepared herself for being turned down, ridiculed, but then she saw those green eyes staring back at her and she remembered, this wasn’t Paul. It was Lucy.
“Oh.” That wasn’t what she had expected to hear. She hadn’t performed on a stage herself for so very long, was she even the right person to offer advice?
“See, I said I shouldn’t ask. I’m sorry,” Nicole apologised, looking away, back to the television and the film they were watching.
They sat like that for a while, the movie playing on in the background as they took sips of their wine. Lucy took the opportunity to glance across at her a few times. She was still sitting with her knees tucked up, facing Nicole.
“I guess I could show her a few things,” Lucy offered.
“Really?” Nicole beamed, turning back to face her again, a huge smile on her face. “That would be so great, I mean she already looks up to you. In fact, I think she sees you as a parent.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen, I’ll talk to her.”
“What? No, I’m not unhappy about it, I think it’s sweet she has you to go to when she can’t or won’t come to me. That’s why I thought maybe you talking to her might help,” Nicole said openly, pausing the film so they didn’t miss it. In reality, this was a conversation she felt they needed to have. Storm was attached to Lucy, Nicole could see that. She needed to make sure that Lucy was comfortable with that too.
“Oh, I thought you wanted me to talk to her because, well ya know, what I used to do.”
“It doesn’t hurt that you know what you’re talking about, but if it’s too difficult then don’t worry, I’m sure we…I can find another way,” Nicole said, feeling a little awkward. She hadn’t meant to bring up any unwanted memories for Lucy, or worse, make Lucy feel as though she had to take on parental responsibility for her kids.
“Nah it’s fine, I probably can help her,” she said, and then added, “I want to help her.” The truth was, she would do anything for that child, if she could.
They switched the film back on and filled their glasses once more. The characters on the screen were being murdered one by one by a rather gruesome killer. Lucy was getting a little more than frightened with each grim scene, though she would never admit it, but Nicole wasn’t deaf or blind to the squirming and gasps that were coming from the other end of the couch. It was yet another endearing part of Lucy to love.
But the tables turned moments later as one character was beaten to death. It was Lucy’s turn to now be concerned at the whimpering coming from the other end of the couch. She silently cursed herself as she looked towards Nicole; she was crying, big fat tears rolling down her cheek.
Lucy reached for the remote and switched the film off, but it made no difference. Nicole’s gaze was unfocused on the TV. She was just staring ahead, flashbacks of her own beatings came flooding back.
“Nicole?” Lucy spoke gently, not wanting to scare her furthe
r. “I’m going to move, okay? I’m gonna move to sit beside you.” With no reaction, she edged a little closer. Nicole just stared off into the distance. “So, I was thinking maybe…can I hold your hand? Would that be okay?” Her hand hovered near Nicole’s, and her fingers shook as they closed the gap. Ever so gently, she let her forefinger touch the soft skin on the back of Nicole’s hand. With no flinch or movement from her, Lucy let all of her fingers touch. “It’s okay. You’re safe now.” Lucy kept her eyes firmly on Nicole’s face, watching intently for any sign that she was making things worse. “You’re safe now,” she repeated. Slowly, Nicole closed her eyes.
“I’m sorry, I just…” Her eyes opened, and she turned slowly to face Lucy.
“It’s okay.” Lucy tried a smile. “Do you want to…” She wasn’t even sure what she was asking, but Nicole seemed to know and nodded, a half smile of her own before she leant forward into Lucy’s arms.
Lucy held her breath, let her arms raise up and wrap around the trembling shoulders, the fingers of her left hand cradling the back of Nicole’s head as she held her against her own chest and rocked them back and forth while she cried.
After several minutes, Lucy realised that Nicole had cried herself to sleep. With one hand, she reached behind and pulled down the old crocheted blanket that she had picked up at a craft fair years ago when Rita had dragged her out to the community market. She felt Nicole snuggle in, her head buried into the crook of Lucy’s neck. Breath, hot against her skin, reminded Lucy just how close Nicole was. She breathed her in, the smell of her hair; the peach shampoo she used was intoxicating, and she found herself placing a kiss to the top of her head. Nicole murmured something unintelligible in her sleep, and then Lucy drifted off too.
When the morning light filtered through the windows, only Storm was awake. She wandered sleepily out from her room and was going to put the TV on while everyone else slept. She gasped with surprise when she found her mom and Lucy cuddled up together on the couch under a blanket. She giggled to herself and grabbed her mom’s phone from the table, snapping a couple of pictures before she put the phone back down and slipped quietly away and back into her room.
The Meant to Be Collection Page 13
