by Amy DeMeritt
“I was, but only because I know how frustrating the courting experience is for you, as was just clearly displayed.”
“It’s beyond frustrating.” Asia rolls her eyes as she lifts her glass to take a few sips of her drink. “Anyway, you’re right. I’m going to give Justin a fair chance. I’ll give him three dates. If after those three dates I’m still interested, I’ll…” She groans and rolls her eyes again before finishing, “I’ll have a talk with him about exclusivity, just to see where it goes.”
“Good. I have a question though. If you thought Chris was such a possible threat, why did you give him advice on how to be better at reeling in a woman?”
“Did I? I believe I told him to never hand-deliver a drink to a woman. Subtext, honey – I basically told him he better not be bringing drug laced drinks to any woman.”
“Ah, very smooth. So, before we were interrupted, you were going to tell me something important.”
“I was hoping you forgot about that. Okay, well, here it goes… Five years ago, I was engaged. He was gorgeous in every possible physical way, but he was a devil inside, which I didn’t figure out till a couple of years into the relationship. He was mentally, physically, and emotionally abusive, but he had this way of twisting everything to make me feel like I was the crazy one. I was convinced that he was the one being generous by sticking with me – the messed-up piece of shit, when he was really the messed-up piece of shit.
“It took being hospitalized and several sessions with an amazing domestic abuse victim’s counselor to realize what was really going on. Family and friends had been telling me the entire time that I shouldn’t be with him, but I just couldn’t see it before. Anyway, I was released from the hospital a week later and had the police escort me home so I could get my things and end it with Jerome. He flipped his lid and literally tried to kill me. There was a big fight between the police and him and… well… they ended up having to shoot him. He’s dead. So, yes, I have had to take a step back and look at my life and deal with the thing that wasn’t making me happy.”
“Asia… that’s… I’m so sorry. I had no idea that something like that had…”
“How could you know? Anyway, it’s in the past. I’ve done my time in therapy to heal from it and I’ve learned how to be wiser in my relationships. I know my example is a polar opposite to what you’re trying to decide, but happiness and wellbeing are at the core of both. I learned the hard way – you have a chance to do it the right way.”
“I guess I have no valid or logical arguments against it anymore.”
“What did Elli say about it?”
“Oh, shit, I totally forgot to tell her.”
Asia laughs, and as her eyes meet the waiter as he’s walking by to check the level of their drinks, Asia nods and motions between both of their drinks, silently confirming they need refills.
“Your date was that fantastic that you forgot to tell her about the biggest decision you’ve made in years?”
“It really was. But we have talked about it before. She knows I’ve been thinking about it and she told me she is supportive of me doing whatever I need to find my drive and happiness again.”
“Besides spending as much time as possible with Elli, have you decided what you’re going to do with your time off?”
“I haven’t thought about it much. A vacation would be nice, but I don’t know where I would go.”
Asia gets a knowing smile on her face, and teases, “I hear London is nice this time of year.”
“As wonderful as that sounds, I think it’s a bit early to be asking Elli to vacation with me, especially there. Oh, why did you put that idea in my head?”
“Would you really go on vacation without her with as love sick as you are right now?”
Lana laughs a little as her cheeks blush. “How do you know me so well?”
“Because I’m your best friend, honey. And for the record, I don’t think it’s too early to vacation with a love interest you have developed such a high level of trust in. Taking a vacation can be a great way to gauge if a relationship is going to work out. Vacations can be stressful and can bring out some very different sides of people. They can also be wonderful bonding opportunities – super romantic.”
“Those are very good points. I’ll keep it in mind.”
“Good. Seize the moment, honey, and make as many memorable experiences as possible.”
“I plan to.”
Chapter Fourteen
A knock at the back-door startles Elli, causing her to stab herself in the finger with a sewing needle. She sucks air through her teeth and shakes her hand out. A small pip of blood sprouts from the invisible hole, but knowing her hands are not clean, she resists the normal instinct to put her finger in her mouth to clean and soothe the wound and instead grabs a tissue.
With the tissue firmly pressed to her aching fingertip, she opens the door and immediately smiles.
“Mum, Dad, this is a surprise. Come on in.”
“Hello, Buttercup. Oh, dear, what happened to your finger?” Maggie takes Elli’s left hand in both of hers as she walks inside and removes the tissue. “Needle jab?”
“Aye, I’ll survive. So, what brings you both to the city?”
“We went to see an early showing of Hamlet at the Hampton Playwright Theatre.”
“One of my favorites. How was it?”
“It wasn’t an Arcola Theatre production, but it was still very well done. I think you’d enjoy it.”
Elli playfully pinches her mother’s side, and teases, “Then why didn’t you invite me along, Mum? You know I love the theatre. I could have closed up early to be your third wheel. We make a pretty lovely trike, the three of us.”
Maggie grips Elli’s chin with a smile and kisses her daughter on the forehead before pulling a long, thin envelope from her purse. “We bought you two tickets. We thought you might prefer to go with Lana.”
Elli accepts the envelope and pulls out two tickets for Saturday night.
“Oh, dear, I do hope she’ll be flexible. We’re supposed to go to dinner Saturday night – a very fancy, upscale place – Sky Lounge.”
“That is a very fancy place. If you don’t have reservations, you likely won’t get in.”
Elli nods and inhales deeply as she sits down staring at the tickets, uncertain of what she should do. “She made reservations for 6:30pm. I think we’d be cutting it close to make an eight o’clock showing. I better call her to see if she can change the reservations for a bit earlier. Would you like to come up for coffee, or I can open a bottle of wine?”
“We’d love to, Buttercup. Hudson, dear, will you close up the shop for Elli?”
“Of course. I’ll see you upstairs.”
Elli hands her father the shop keys, then follows her mother up the spiral staircase to her apartment. While Maggie goes to the kitchen, Elli goes to the living room to call Lana.
With a tone of sweet excitement in her voice, Lana answers, “Hello, Elli.”
“Hello, Sunshine. How is your day coming along?”
“I just finished and delivered the preliminary monthly numbers, an hour before it was due, so it’s coming along very well. How about you?”
“I had a fairly uninterrupted day in the shop today, so I was able to get a good bit accomplished. Mum and Dad just popped in for a surprise visit, so I closed up early for the day.”
“That’s nice. Should I not come over tonight to work on the shoes?”
The nervousness in Lana’s voice registers as disappointment that Lana might not get to see Elli tonight, which makes Elli’s cheeks warm with happiness.
“There are no changes to our plans tonight. However, we have a decision to make about Saturday night. Mum and Dad surprised me with two tickets to a production of Hamlet for Saturday night at 8:00pm. Would you be interested in trying to move our dinner reservations to a slot a bit earlier so we can do both?”
“Dinner and the theatre in one night – that sounds wonderful. I’ll call to se
e if I can change the reservation. Do you think five o’clock would work?”
“I believe that would be perfect.”
“Okay, let me call really quick. Should I call you back or just text so you can visit with your parents?”
“Whatever you would like, Sunshine.”
“I would love to hear your voice again, so I’ll call you back, but I promise I won’t keep you too long.”
“I’m looking forward to it. Talk to you soon.”
After hanging up, Elli takes a deep breath and slowly stands up. As she turns and sees her smiling parents standing a few feet behind the couch, her smile widens and her pale cheeks blush.
“You are simply glowing, Buttercup. We haven’t seen you this happy in a very long time.” Maggie offers Elli a glass of white wine and pulls her daughter back down to sit on the couch side by side, while Hudson sits in the cushioned armchair next to them. “Did I hear correctly, you have plans tonight?”
“Aye, she’s coming over to continue working on her boots we’re making together.” Elli looks at her watch. “She gets off in an hour, so she’ll probably be over just a bit after that. Her office is only two blocks from here. Will you extend your impromptu visit long enough to meet her?”
“We would love to, darling.” Elli smiles as she loops her arm with her mother and kisses her cheek. “I really do love seeing you so happy again.”
Before she can respond, her cellphone rings with Lana calling through. Maggie perks up and slides her arm out from Elli’s to pat her upper back and shuffle a foot away to give her a bit of space to answer the call.
“Hello, Sunshine. Any luck with changing the reservation?”
“They didn’t have any tables available at five o’clock. They had openings for a half hour before and after. I figured four-thirty would be too early, so I picked five-thirty. Do you think that will be okay?”
“It’s perfect. I do have one more change to request.”
Lana releases a small laugh, and asks, “Okay, what do you need?”
“I’d like you to meet my parents this evening.”
“I would have been disappointed if I had missed them before they left. I’m looking forward to it.”
Elli glances between her parents with an uncontained toothy smile and releases a small happy laugh.
“Wonderful. We’ll see you soon, Sunshine.”
“I can’t wait.”
After an anticipatory farewell, Elli hangs up and takes a sip of wine.
“Should we prepare dinner before she arrives?”
“Aye, I think that would be nice.”
***
As soon as Elli locks the door and turns to face Lana, she’s immediately wrapped in Lana’s arms and their lips meet with a sigh of delight. With warm silky tongues and earnest lips, they allow passion to dance between them. Lana runs her hand up into Elli’s short hair, lightly scraping her nails over Elli’s scalp, causing Elli to release a small sound of pleasure into her parted mouth. A spark between their thighs signals the need to rein themselves in and they break their mouths apart.
“I missed you.”
Elli gives Lana a smiling kiss and brushes her fingers through Lana’s silky brown hair. “I missed you too, Sunshine. Mum and Dad are very excited to meet you. I do hope you’re really okay with this.”
“I’m more than okay with it.”
“Wonderful. Come, you can change before dinner so you’re more comfortable.”
“What are we cooking?”
“Already done, Sunshine. Mum and I made chicken pot pie.”
Lana releases a groan of delight and dramatically leans into Elli, making her laugh. “You remembered that is one of my favorite things to eat?”
“Aye. I thought you might like your favorite comfort food after finishing that major project.”
“That was very sweet of you. Thank you.”
With Lana’s fingers entwined with hers, Elli leads Lana up the spiral staircase to her apartment. As they enter the living room, Elli’s parents stand, wearing warm friendly smiles.
“Hello, dear, I am Maggie and this Hudson. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Lana shakes their hands in turn, saying, “The pleasure is mine. I’ve heard so much about both of you and the family that I’ve been very anxious to meet you both. Thank you for the tickets for Hamlet. It’s been a while since I’ve been to the theatre.”
“You’re very welcome. Hudson and I saw a showing of it today. The production was done fairly well, so hopefully you’ll enjoy it.”
“I’m sure I will. Hamlet… is that the one when the king is murdered and his son goes crazy, thinking he’s talking to his father’s ghost?”
“Is he crazy or is the ghost a manifestation of his intuition – the way Hamlet’s mind analyzes and copes with the heartbreaking truth of who betrayed his father?”
The teasing smile and challenging tone in Elli’s voice cause a burst of affection in Lana’s chest.
“It seems I have a theatre date with a Shakespearean aficionado.”
“Hamlet is one of Elli’s favorite plays. What about you, dear, what is your favorite play?”
“Oh, uh, let me think. I’ve always loved the Christmas Carol and Les Misérables. But for Shakespeare, I think my favorite is Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
“All wonderful choices. Should we proceed to the dining room for dinner?”
“We’ll be right there, Mum. I’m going to show Lana to my bedroom so she can change out of her work clothes.”
“Ah, yes, please get more comfortable.”
Elli leads Lana to her bedroom, and as Lana sets her bag on the bed, Elli hesitates to leave, nervously waiting for Lana’s assessment of her parents. Sensing the unspoken question, Lana smiles and takes both of Elli’s hands, coaxing her in closer so their torsos are touching.
“Your parents are very nice. I hope I made a good first impression.”
“They adore you.”
Lana tilts her head with a teasing grin, and asks, “Just your parents?”
Elli laughs and gives her a soft lingering kiss on her lips, before confirming, “Aye, Sunshine, I adore you.”
Lana presses and parts her lips with Elli’s, pulling her into a soft kiss. After a few moments, Lana pulls away with glossy eyes and passion flushed cheeks.
“I’ll be quick.”
“Okay, Sunshine.”
After another quick kiss on the lips, Elli leaves Lana to change out of her suit and into jeans and a tee shirt. As she enters the kitchen to help her mom to bring the food to the dining room table, Maggie wraps an arm around Elli’s shoulders and kisses her cheek.
“Lana is beautiful, polite, and engaging. I like her.”
“Thanks, Mum. She likes you both too.”
Maggie winks at Elli as she releases her to grab a large bowl of salad. Elli opens the oven, and with mitted hands, she pulls out two chicken pot pies with buttery golden crispy crusts. Hudson sets a trivet down on the table so Elli can set a pie down, then begins twisting the corkscrew into a bottle of white wine.
Lana places a hand on Elli’s lower back as she’s opening the fridge, making Elli smile.
“What can I do?”
“Can you carry the water pitcher to the table?”
“Sure.”
As Lana accepts the pitcher, she kisses Elli’s lips, then slowly glides her hand off of Elli’s back, causing a twinge of desire in both of them.
After the table is set with the pie, salad, a basket of dinner rolls, glasses of wine, and glasses of water, they sit around the table together. Armed with a sharp knife and a pie spatula, Hudson cuts and serves a large wedge of creamy chicken pot pie for everyone while Elli fills salad bowls.
“This looks delicious. Thank you for cooking.”
“It was no trouble, dear. So, Elli tells us you’re making a pair of boots together. How are you enjoying it so far?”
“I only have the pattern cut out and my materials selected, but I’m loving the
process so far. Aside from the occasional arts and crafts projects growing up, I’ve never really made anything with my hands. It’s a very different experience. It was also a nice surprise that my knowledge of math came in handy.”
“The brains needed for what we do is something people often don’t anticipate. If you like to be challenged, you’ll never be bored working in the shop.”
“Are you offering me a job, Mr. Voss?”
Hudson gives Lana a cheeky grin and a wink as he takes a sip of wine. “Elli owns the shop now, but if you’re interested, I could put in a good word for you with the boss.”
Lana laughs as her cheeks blush and she looks over at Elli, who is slightly biting her bottom lip and absentmindedly moving her salad around. Both women feel the subtle pressure of Hudson’s suggestion that Lana will one day give up her job and work in the shop with Elli. What neither of them is willing to say, at least not at this moment, is that they both have fantasied about the idea more than a few times since their first date.
She can see Elli is nervous and feeling insecure, and Lana knows it’s not because her father posed an unfavorable scenario, rather she can tell Elli is worried Lana hates the idea.
“I think I have a bit more I need to prove before it’s a fair request to make. But I do love the idea of learning the ropes.”
Elli looks up from her salad with emotion suddenly springing into her eyes, not enough to run down her cheeks, just enough to pool in the corners. As their eyes lock, their lips curl upwards in a shared understanding of each other’s desires.
