Chapter 12 #2
“Thank you Jack, you have a lovely home. And I met Daisy, so my night is complete.”
“Well, I hope it’s not quite complete,” he replied with a sparkle in his blue eyes.
Oh my. It’s warm here. The flutter was back.
“Come on into the kitchen, I’ll get you something to drink.” Bella followed Jack into the kitchen and was impressed - she loved a good kitchen, and this was a fabulous one, meant for cooking and conversations.
“This is a great kitchen, Jack. It has good flow.”
“Thanks, I like to cook when I’m home. I knew how to cook from my bachelor days, but after Susan’s death I had to take over full time, and I learned how much I enjoyed it. Now, what are you drinking?”
Wanting to keep a clear head around the girls tonight, Bella asked if he had any sparkling water, with lime or lemon.
“Sure, do you mind if I have a beer? I think it’s a rule of barbecuing that you have to have a beer in your hand while standing at the grill.”
Jack handed Bella her water, opened a beer for himself, and got the burgers from the fridge, and placed them on a platter, to take them out to the grill when it was ready for them.
“Is there anything I can do to help?
“No Bella, you are our guest tonight, you relax and leave it all to me.”
“Hey Dad, how come you aren’t wearing that shirt we got you, to wear when you barbeque? You never wear it.” asked Piper as she came into the kitchen from the backyard.
“Piper, you know why. It’s red.”
Curious, Bella asked “Why won’t you wear a red shirt?”
“I’m the captain Bella; we don’t wear red shirts.” Bella burst into laughter, getting the Star Trek reference right away. “Okay, that’s funny!”
Seeing Bella in his kitchen, laughing, and looking so right, suddenly made Jack feel shy for some reason he didn’t understand - he was Jack Calloway.
Fighter Pilot. Astronaut. He didn’t do shy.
“Okay, these burgers won’t cook themselves, let’s get going, I feel hungry for some reason” he said, looking Bella straight in the eye.
Hungry for something more than a burger.
Wait. Where did THAT come from - why do I feel sixteen again?
After dinner, the girls played in the pool, with Daisy running around barking at them each time they splashed water at her.
Jack and Bella sat on the patio, watching them in quiet companionship, not feeling the need to fill every moment with talk.
Sometimes you just wanted to be, and this was one of those times.
“Okay girls, time to go in. It’s a school night; you need to get in the shower and get your school bags packed up for the morning. Go on, Bella and I can clean up.”
Taking in the dishes, Bella rinsed and loaded the dishwasher for Jack, so he could get the girls’ lunches ready for the next day.
He had to be at NASA at 5:00am, so it would be an early night, and the girls would carpool to school with friends.
As the girls came back downstairs to say their good nights to their dad, Bella remembered she’d brought them something - she hadn’t come empty-handed after all - and walked over to her tote to grab the small gift for them.
“Hey girls, these are for you," Bella said, handing them each a small black bag with the Bella Pelle logo in white. “They go on sale next week.”
They read the name of the color on the top of the small box that held a Carrie’s Color Crayon. Susan. “Really? You named it after our mom?” The girls were quiet, as if they couldn’t believe Bella had actually done it.
“Yes, I told you I’d be honored to name that shade after your mom. Read the side of the box.”
100% of the profits from the sale of this shade will be donated to The Cornerstone Education Fund, in memory of Susan Calloway, a teacher.
The girls came over to hug Bella tightly. “Thank you Bella, thank you so much. Our mom would have loved this.”
Jack had watched from the doorway, silent, words stuck in his throat. Clearing his throat, he said, “Okay girls, hit the rack. Carpool will be here at 0700 hours, so it’s lights out.”
A chorus of “Night Dad, Night Bella” echoed up the stairs, and then the closing of doors.
Jack crossed the room and took Bella in his arms. “That might be one of the nicest things I’ve ever seen. You didn’t have to do that.”
Bella hesitantly wrapped her arms around Jack’s waist. “I wanted to. Let’s not make a big thing of it.”
He released her only long enough to cradle her face in both hands before bending to kiss her, at first tenderly, then fiercely.
Matching him in intensity, running her hands through his hair, thinking only about how good this felt, but then suddenly remembering where they were, and who was upstairs.
“We shouldn’t be doing this now,” she whispered.
“I know, I know.” Kissing her again, he took her breath away, and she felt a warmth spread over her whole body, from the bottoms of her feet to the top of her head.
Mustering the strength to stop, Bella called for an Uber to take her to the hotel, but Jack refused to let go of her, stealing little kisses while they waited.
After walking her to the car, Jack saw her off, went back to the house and straight into an ice-cold shower.