Chapter 5 #3
Henry came up behind me and placed his hands on my shoulders.
The urge to sway back into him was strong, but I managed to keep myself upright.
He was close enough that I could feel the heat of his body and smell the faint aroma of his aftershave.
I had no idea what it was, but it smelled nice.
It was clean and masculine without a citrus note in sight.
“Sorry, I’m afraid you’re on your own for this one because I would just pick them all,” Henry whispered in my ear. The small puff of air sent the tiniest shiver through me.
How was it that I could go from having a near meltdown in home goods to thinking about proximity and how I could maneuver Henry just the tiniest bit closer to me while standing in the stuffie section? I’d narrowed my choices to two, but now that I’d gotten that far, I was completely stuck.
It would be nice to bring something that actually belonged to me into my room at Halo House.
I had fifteen dollars in my pocket. It was quite literally the only money I had left in this world, and I was foolishly about to spend it on a stuffed animal.
It didn’t make a lot of financial sense, but a fifteen-dollar nest egg wasn’t worth worrying about either.
At least if I spent it here, I’d have something to cuddle, and that was worth something.
“Narrowing it down helps though. You started off with twenty choices, and now you’re down to two. I don’t know the math on that, but those are pretty good percentages.”
“Well, yeah, that’s true, but look at these guys.
What are the odds of being able to choose?
Maybe I just shouldn’t get any because I can’t decide.
I mean, on the one hand, I have this adorable pot-bellied orangutan.
Who doesn’t love that? And over here, we’ve got the meerkat family.
Equally adorable but with slightly fewer potbellies. ”
Henry hadn’t moved away from me as I stood there contemplating my choices. His breathing, steady as ever, was the most regulating thing I’d felt in months.
While I was still debating, a couple brushed past us, discussing their budget and what they would need to give up in order to buy the furniture they wanted. I knew I shouldn’t eavesdrop, but it firmly jerked me back into reality.
There was no possible way I could spend the last fifteen dollars to my name on a stuffed animal. That wasn’t just foolish. It bordered on insanity. What on earth was I thinking?
“I can’t make a decision, so I’m just going to let them stay here. Maybe when I’ve decided, I can come back and get one.” I think I kept the disappointment well hidden in my voice. At least I wanted to.
“Sorry, Drew. We are leaving with a stuffie because I’m getting you one,” Henry said simply, as if it were a foregone conclusion.
“What would I even do with the stuffie? And you don’t need to spend your money on me. I’ve already wasted it on the tickets we aren’t using.”
I said all that, but I couldn’t keep my fingers from squeezing the fur on the orangutan’s head a little tighter.
“Meh. It’s a tax write-off because it was a charity thing. It doesn’t count.”
“What’s the charity?” I asked cautiously.
“Homeless Not Toothless.”
“That can’t be real.”
“Scout’s honor.”
“Hey, I was a Scout, and we take that seriously.”
“Look it up, sweetheart. I’ll wait.”
“I left my phone at Halo House, but I will.”
“You do that, but I think I understand the problem now. My mistake was in not being clear enough. You’re leaving with as many stuffies as you want.
If that’s two, then it’s two. I should’ve explained we’re getting both of the ones you like.
Sorry. That one’s on me,” Henry said with a shrug. “And if you want more, we get more.”
“You shouldn’t spend your money on me, especially for something so silly.”
“Do you like him? Do you like them?” He reached around me and raised my hands, which still clutched the stuffies.
“I mean, yes, but that doesn’t mean I need them.”
“I didn’t need a cherry-red classic Mustang with a convertible top, but I have one because I like it and it makes me happy.”
“Do you do everything that makes you happy?”
Henry thought for a second. I could almost see the wheels turning and gears moving in his head as he considered all the implications of my question.
In our very brief meetings, Henry had come across as someone who didn’t spend a lot of time second-guessing himself.
I couldn’t even imagine what that would be like.
It was a completely foreign concept in my world.
“I work hard to keep my job and my life separate. I don’t always get what I want in my job.
On rare occasions, I lose. Sometimes I don’t get the deal done the way I thought it should be resolved, but I’m proud of the work I do, and my clients know there is nothing within the bounds of the law that I wouldn’t do to help them get the outcome they want.
In my private life? I absolutely do what makes me happy. ”
“Then why are you here?”
“Because being around you makes me happy. And the orangutan and the meerkats are going home with you.”