Chapter 14 #2
After a while, they pulled into the driveway of a large green house with a wraparound porch.
It was the kind of house Bella always looked at with longing, knowing she’d never be able to afford it.
It was no mansion, but it was beautiful and two-storied and had a yard, all the things Bella used to dream of.
“You live here?” she asked as they got out.
“I do. And now, so do you.”
Luke carried her suitcase up the steps and through the front door. Bella followed, blinking in surprise as she took in the inside of her new home.
The entryway was almost completely empty. There were three pairs of shoes neatly lined up on a shoe rack, along with a rain jacket and a winter coat. That was it. There were no mirrors or pictures or end tables with plants.
Luke took off his shoes, so Bella did, too, leaning carefully against the wall to avoid tipping over with her new center of gravity.
“I’ll give you the tour,” Luke explained. “First, your room. Head upstairs — I’ll be right behind you.”
Bella climbed the stairs slowly. At the top, she turned to the first bedroom, which had plain white walls, no pictures, and a large bed with white sheets.
“This must be the guestroom,” she said.
“No, that’s mine. Yours is just down the hall.”
Luke pointed, so Bella continued to the next room.
It was also very plain: white walls, no pictures, a bed with white sheets.
As they continued the tour, she noticed the same pattern in every room.
There was no personality anywhere. The house was spacious and beautiful, but as empty as a staged home.
No pictures. No plants. No books. Nothing.
“Do you really live here?” Bella asked when they ended the tour in the clean, empty kitchen. “Because you’ve just brought me to the house of a serial killer.” She raised her eyebrows at Luke, who chuckled.
“Okay, I see your point. Like I said, I’ve lived alone for a long time.”
“Can I please make a few changes around here?” Bella asked.
“Whatever you’d like,” Luke said easily.
“And is it okay if I use your kitchen?” Bella continued.
“Yes, it’s your kitchen too, now. But as I mentioned before, you should be mostly resting, even mostly on bed rest, for the next few weeks. So, take it easy.”
“Hmm.” Bella went into the kitchen and ran her hand over the countertop, then opened the fridge. Inside were two beers and a bottle of ketchup. “What do you eat?”
“I do a lot of takeout,” Luke said. “And I have some frozen meals.”
“Yeah, that’s not going to work.” Bella turned back to him with a smile. “Maybe it’s me doing you a favor here.”
Luke chuckled. “Maybe. But for now, how about you just settle in, and I’ll order us some takeout? At least for tonight, you should stay off your feet.”
“Sounds good to me.”
“What would you like?” Luke was already getting out his phone. “Indian? Thai? Burgers?”
“Let’s do Thai,” Bella said. She sank onto one of the barstools at the edge of the tall kitchen counter.
A few minutes later, they’d put in an order, and they headed into the living room.
Bella still wasn’t sure what to say. This was only the second time she’d met Luke, and yet she was now living in his house and carrying his baby.
What did a person even say in a situation like that?
So, they didn’t say much. Luke went on his phone, and Bella did, too.
She started looking for temporary staff who could take over her next few gigs, which was very depressing and frustrating work.
When the food came, they put aside their phones and dug into the white paper boxes with wooden chopsticks.
The noodles Bella had ordered were saucy and delicious, but she couldn’t help thinking she could have improved the recipe with a little more garlic and some cilantro on top.
“What do you think?” Luke asked, pointing to the food with his chopsticks.
Bella explained what she’d just been thinking, and Luke chuckled.
“Okay, you really are a chef. Always analyzing your food to see how it could be better. You did that with the cheesecake at the bar, too. I can’t imagine what that would be like.”
“And I can’t imagine living on takeout and frozen dinners,” Bella teased. Part of her was pleased he’d remembered about the cheesecake. He’d been paying attention. He still was.
“And protein bars. At work, I usually eat protein bars.”
“This sounds terrible, and it has to stop. You’re a doctor!” Bella shook her head, though she was smiling. “How can you live on such a bad diet when you advise patients to eat right?”
Luke shrugged. “I’m just too busy most of the time to cook, and it doesn’t make much of a difference for me. If I do cook, it’s something easy, like pasta with red sauce, or sandwiches, and that isn’t as good as takeout.”
“Let’s see about that,” Bella muttered into her food. Teasing Luke seemed like a safe topic. They could joke around with each other, like they had the night they’d met, without acknowledging the herd of elephants in the room.
After dinner, Bella headed upstairs for a quick shower and got into bed. She was applying lotion when there was a quiet knock on the door.
“Come in,” Bella called, suddenly very conscious of the fact that she was dressed in her chili-pepper pajamas and sitting in bed. Luke opened the door a crack and peered inside.
“Hey, I just wanted to ask if you need anything before I go to sleep.”
“No, I’m fine. Um, thanks.”
“Sleep well.” Luke left again, closing the door behind him, and Bella shook her head. It was increasingly clear that neither of them knew how to act in this situation.
I hope I did the right thing. Bella put a little lotion on her belly, feeling the soft flutter of kicks beneath her hand. That reassured her. She’d been thinking of her baby, and having a stable home and two parents was definitely the right thing for her baby.
She’d done the right thing. Even though being here with Luke was confusing and a little uncomfortable after living alone and relying on no one for so long.