Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
In her many years as a stay-at-home mom, something she’d done during her son Jeremy’s entire childhood, Eleanor had experienced a lot of different relationships with cooking.
There had been the toddler years, where every dinner had felt like a minefield, when Jeremy would eat three servings of something one week, only to refuse to eat so much as a single bite of the same meal when she repeated it the next time.
There had been his teenage years, where she had felt as though she was cooking for a family of ten, not a family of three, given how much he could eat.
There had been the days when cooking felt like a chore, a slog, something she had to do every day, day in, day out, no breaks, no reprieves.
But sometimes there had been the meals that felt so satisfying to make.
The meals that reminded her that cooking wasn’t just an obligation, but that it was also an art, a connection to culture, a delight for the senses.
The ones that reminded her that cooking a good meal for someone was a way to show how much you cared for them.
Tonight was one of those special, vanishingly rare nights, Eleanor reflected happily as she put the last touches on a mushroom bourguignonne that had taken her hours to make.
It was a dish that she loved, one that felt just right for the cooler nights that had swept in with October, but she so rarely cooked it, mostly because of the time commitment.
Tonight though, she had wanted to do something special for Garrett. Not because of a special occasion, but just because.
Or rather, yes for a special occasion, because being with him made every day feel special.
That was what she wanted to celebrate. That was what she wanted to thank him for.
She had considered giving him a hint that tonight was going to be special, since she planned to dress nicely and thought he might enjoy the opportunity to do the same.
In the end though, she’d been too mischievously pleased with the idea of totally surprising him that she hadn’t told him anything in her text except that he should come over for dinner.
After all, he hadn’t given her any warning before he had brought her lunch the other day.
And it was the surprise that had made it so delightful…
or at least part of what had made it so delightful.
The other part was the adorable note that he’d left her, which was currently living in her bedside table, where she could keep it safe, not to mention where she could read it and reread it as often as she wanted.
Eleanor fussed with the edge of the red dress that Garrett had given her a month or two prior.
With her red hair, she’d always been cautious about wearing red, but her boyfriend had encouraged her to be brave if she wanted to try something new, and then he’d made it easy for her to do so by delivering the dress directly to her.
She had to admit, she did look rather nice in the dress, if she did say so herself.
It made her hair look more golden than it usually did, highlighting the softer undertones as opposed to the brighter strands, but it didn’t clash, not at all.
She felt beautiful, but she knew that the man was more responsible for that than the dress.
Though she wanted to go all out for Garrett, in the end, Eleanor decided against heels, opting instead for a pair of mules that were a little more casual than what she might have donned if she was wearing this dress out, but which felt acceptable for a night at home, fancy or not.
She knew the heels would have looked spectacular with the dress, but she’d learned that her feet got tired after a day at the bookstore, which involved a lot of walking, standing, and lifting heavy boxes full of books.
The ache in her muscles was a good one, one that reminded her that she was living her dream to the fullest, but still. She didn’t want to push things.
Garrett had told her he would come by shortly after six, and a glance at the clock told Eleanor it was time to put the final touches on dinner.
She pulled the mushroom sauce off the stove, where it had been reducing on low, and arranged it over the wide noodles that were waiting on a platter with tongs to serve.
She grabbed the homemade garlic bread out of the oven, being careful of her fingers as she cut it into large pieces, then opened the bottle of red wine and poured it into the decanter to breathe.
Normally, Eleanor didn’t bother with the decanter, since it was such a pain to wash, but it was worth it for the special occasion.
“El?”
Eleanor heard her boyfriend calling for her just as she was finishing up lighting the candles on the table. Perfect timing. She quickly tugged off the apron she’d worn to protect her dress, checked her lipstick in the mirror, and went to greet him in the front of the house.
“Hey, Ellie, how was—”
Garrett cut off mid-sentence when he saw her. Eleanor fought the urge to preen. It was a very gratifying reaction.
“What do you think?” she asked when he stared at her for several long seconds.
He opened and closed his mouth twice before managing to get words out.
“Goodness, woman,” he said, sounding awed. “You get any more beautiful than that, and you’re going to knock me dead with it. What did I do to deserve something like this?”
She smiled and approached him. He opened his arms immediately and she wrapped a hug around his waist.
“In general?” she asked. “You deserve this just for being you.” She stole a quick kiss.
“Specifically though, I really loved that you brought me that lunch the other day. And the note?” She knew she was beaming so brightly that she probably looked a little silly, but she found that she didn’t mind it at all.
“Not only did I love it, but it meant a lot to me that you put it in my language. A book metaphor! You sweet, sweet man.”
She stole one more kiss for good measure.
Garrett looked happy but a little dazed, like he couldn’t quite believe his good fortune. Eleanor could relate. It was how she felt about their relationship in general.
“I… wow,” he said. “You know I didn’t bring you that lunch for some kind of quid pro quo though, right?” he added, brow furrowing in worry. “I just did it because I know you are too busy to stop half the time.”
“I know,” she reassured him. “This isn’t me returning the favor. This is just me doing something nice for the man I—” She bit her lip against the onslaught of wonderful feelings inside her. “The man I care about so, so much.”
“You’re amazing, Eleanor,” he said, pressing a kiss to her cheek, the rasp of his beard a familiar, comforting sensation. “Although I’m really underdressed. You could have warned me!”
“Sorry,” she said, scrunching up her nose. “I couldn’t resist. But come on. Don’t you want to see what we’re eating?”
“You don’t have to ask me twice,” he said, letting her lead him by the hand through to the kitchen. He looked bashfully pleased when he saw the romantic lighting provided by the candles.
Garrett oohed and aahed over every aspect of the dinner she’d laid out, from the smell to the plating to the taste, once they finally made it into their seats and sampled everything.
His kind words made her feel extremely appreciated, although not nearly as much as when he went back for seconds and then thirds of everything she’d made.
“Honey, please tell me you didn’t make dessert,” he said after he was done, patting his stomach with a slight groan. “That was too good to stop, and if I eat anything else, I’m afraid I’ll explode.”
“I might have made a little something, but it will keep until tomorrow,” she reassured him, thinking of the apple pie that was sitting in her fridge.
“Well, now I’m curious about what you made, but I don’t want to ask,” he replied. “Not only because it will make me want it now, but because letting it keep means that I get to see you tomorrow too. And here I was thinking I’d have to sneak in with lunch for you, again.”
Eleanor laughed. “Don’t even think about it, mister,” she chided, gesturing to the dishes in front of them. “You and I both are having leftovers tomorrow. I don’t know why I always feel like I have to cook enough to feed an army, but somewhere along the line it got baked in.”
“You’ll hear no arguments from me,” he said.
“This was delicious. Although, don’t think this gets you off the hook for getting lunches in the future,” he added fondly, tugging on her chair until she scooted close enough that he could wrap his arm around her shoulders.
She nestled into his side, feeling perfectly content.
“Now it’s my turn not to argue,” she said. “I’m always happy to have lunch with you.”
“Me too,” he said warmly, pressing his cheek to the top of her head. “I could spend every evening like this with you and never once have a bad time.”
Eleanor felt her heart soar. It was hard to believe that a person could ever be this happy, and yet here she was, enjoying it every day.
The couple sat quietly for a moment, just soaking one another in, staring absently at the flickering candlelight as they waited for their stomachs to catch up with the marvelous meal they’d just consumed.
They each took a few errant sips of wine, but mostly they just enjoyed the quiet and togetherness.
In the back of Eleanor’s mind, however, a happy little question hummed along. What on earth was life even like before Garrett? She couldn’t imagine her world without him any longer… and maybe, if she was very lucky, she would never have to try.