Chapter 9
CHAPTER 9
HEATH
For quite possibly the first time in my life, I literally woke up smiling. How could I not with Ben snuggled against me? Having him in my arms felt right. I was getting way ahead of myself, but I wanted to hold on to the joy and never let it go. I’d been around long enough to know that when you experienced something like this, you didn’t let it slip through your fingers.
When Ben stirred, I kissed his forehead.
His smile was soft and sleepy. “Morning.” A face-splitting yawn interrupted the word. He was so cute.
“Good morning. How’d you sleep?”
Ben snuggled closer. “Amazing.”
“Me too. Coffee?”
“God, yes.”
I chuckled and kissed his forehead again before getting out of bed to take care of business and brush my teeth. When I left my en suite bathroom, I found Ben stretching and yawning with the comforter around his waist. He looked so at home in my bed. I wanted to wake up to that sight again and again.
“I left you a toothbrush on the counter. I’ll go start coffee.”
Ben hummed. “Thanks.”
I pulled on a T-shirt and pajama pants then set out some for Ben before leaving my bedroom. When I got to the kitchen, I started a pot of coffee. I was in the middle of perusing my fridge for breakfast fixings when Ben shuffled in. Seeing him in my clothes tugged at my heart and the Ben-shaped hole that needed to be filled.
He wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed me gently like we’d had a hundred similar lazy Sunday mornings.
“This is nice.” His words echoed my thoughts as he rested his head against my shoulder while we watched the coffee pot slowly fill.
“It really is. Hungry?”
“Starved. Got more appetizers hiding in there?”
I pinched his ass, then talked through the options. We settled on buttered English muffins, scrambled eggs, and finishing off the pint of blueberries I’d grabbed at the farmers’ market last weekend.
“What are your plans for the day?” Ben asked as he dropped an English muffin into the toaster while I whipped the eggs.
“I don’t have anything planned other than grocery shopping. You?”
Ben hummed. “That’s all I had planned to do today too. Possibly the farmers’ market.” He glanced over at me with a tentative smile. “We could go together. Or is that weird? Too much, too fast?”
I dropped the whisk and pulled him close. “Who cares what timeline we move on? No one is scoring us. If it feels right, then that’s all that matters, and right now, I want to go grocery shopping with you and learn what kind of bread you buy.”
“Whole-grain wheat with as many seeds as possible.”
“Dave’s Killer Bread has the best seeded bread,” I said. We grinned at each other.
The eager smiles and quick kisses continued as we finished breakfast. It was hard not to let my imagination run wild with this easy domesticity. I pictured staying at each other’s homes, meeting each other’s friends, bringing Ben to work functions, and having dinner with Mom joining us. I wished Dad was still around to meet Ben. Dad would’ve absolutely loved him.
We started discussing plans to meet at A Whole Latte Love tomorrow as Ben rose from the table to refill our coffees.
“Want to come to my place after? I can cook us dinner,” he said over his shoulder as he replaced the pot on the coffee machine.
I was curious about Ben’s space. He’d warned me he had a lot more clutter than I did. “Sounds great.” I couldn’t wait.
A knock at my front door startled me. Who in the world would be knocking on a Sunday morning? As I realized, cold dread filled me.
“What’s wrong?” Ben studied my face.
“I think that’s my mom. She sometimes drops by on Sunday mornings with pastries from the farmers’ market.”
Ben glanced in the direction of the bedroom. “I can hide in your room.”
I walked over to where he stood at the counter. I wasn’t worried about what Ben assumed. If she knew I had a guy here, she’d start a Pinterest board for our wedding. I squeezed his arm. The hesitation in his eyes made my stomach roll.
“I’m not worried about her meeting you. I’m concerned she’ll scare you away with her enthusiasm.”
Ben’s eyes brightened. “You can’t get rid of me that easily. And anyway, parents love me.”
“I don’t doubt it. Well, brace yourself.”
There was a more persistent knock, then a muffled “I’m going to use my key” came through the door.
“I’m coming,” I called in return. When I opened the door, Mom bustled past me.
“What took you so long? Were you still sleeping? Are you ill? You never sleep this late. I got those cardamom buns you love.” She talked a mile a minute as she headed toward the kitchen with a grocery bag hanging off her arm.
I squeezed my eyes closed like it could prevent the train wreck about to happen. “Wait, there’s someone I want—” Before I could finish getting the words out, Mom gasped.
As I entered the kitchen hot on her heels, I saw her run into Ben’s arms and pull him into a tight hug. Her knuckles whitened with the force of her grip on his shirt.
“Cynthia? Oh, honey. It’s so good to see you again. Your complexion is much rosier away from those fluorescents.”
Mom’s laugh sounded wet as she pulled back and cupped Ben’s cheeks. After staring into his eyes for a long moment, she pulled him into another hug. He gripped her just as tightly. I watched them as the gears in my brain tried to figure out how they knew each other. Fluorescents?
He opened his eyes and stared at me over Mom’s shoulder. “You’re George’s son.”
How could he know my dad? Oh. Oh my god.
Mom let go and turned toward me. Tears formed an inky path down her cheeks, but her smile glowed. She stared at me like I’d won the lottery, achieved tenure, married a nice man, and found a cure for cancer.
“I told you that you’d adore your father’s favorite oncology nurse. God, I love being right.”
My attention darted to Ben for confirmation as my pulse pounded in my ears. Ben was the man who’d brought my parents joy during their darkest days? The man who’d held my mom’s hand as Dad struggled more with his chemo treatments? The man who made them laugh and leave appointments upbeat, as impossible as it had seemed at the time. He was the man they’d spoken about as if he were an angel walking Earth.
Of course it was Ben. He was the most amazing man I knew. That was obvious after only knowing him for a few weeks.
It only took three long steps for me to reach him. I pulled Ben into a breath-stealing hug and added my own tears to the mix on his shirt, then stepped back enough to hook my arm around Mom’s shoulders too.
I wasn’t sure what I believed about spirituality, the afterlife, or whatever might be out there, but… Thanks, Dad. I owe you one.