Page 37 of Housekeeping

Her voice trailed off like she couldn’t come up with a real refusal. I chuckled because this was the first time I was seeing her act so cute. There were many sides to Laura, and I wanted to know them all.

“There’s also some prepared food in there,” I added. “The dishes are down in the bottom; I was hoping to keep them warm on the way here. It’s not bought at a restaurant or anything. I was home earlier, and I helped my sister to cook everything. Mom even joined in but I did most of the work.”

I wasn’t even bragging. Whatever Emily had been doing in the kitchen before I arrived, I offered to help her cook instead of making the staff do it. She’d pretty much had me do everything. Mom, who we’d spent the afternoon with, had joined in too. They both got a kick out of watching me cook for them and had hung back as much as I’d allowed them.

“What is it?” Laura asked.

“Why don’t you let me inside and I’ll show you?”

She bit down on her lip. I wasn’t about to let her back away though, and I lowered the basket to my side, taking a step closer to her and leaning my head down a little. She watched me, and I was grateful when she didn’t try to back away.

“Laura,” I said, my voice going a little husky. I couldn’t help it with the proximity to her. “Can I please come in?”

She looked like she was considering it. A wave of relief went through my chest, and I was a little awed at the feeling. If she’d turned me down flat, it would have bothered me. Relief wasn’t something I often felt when it came to women outside of my family unless it was someone clingy finally deciding to let go.

“The food is getting cold,” I prompted. “And I cooked it especially for you. At least tell me what you think of it.”

That seemed to make her cave, and my lips twitched. She hadn't said the words yet, I couldn’t smile just yet.

“Okay,” she said, finally, after another minute. She stepped aside to let me go through. “I haven’t started on food yet, so I hope you have something good in there.”

I didn’t know her tastes but I hoped she’d like it. I at least knew she liked to eat healthily, and I’d thought to ask one of the cooks at the mansion instead of depending on the Internet for ideas.

Her apartment was so small it was like a little box. My hotel suite probably had bigger space. There was a couch, a single seat, a coffee table, and a couple of stools. There were some knickknacks piled in one corner I didn’t look particularly close at.

Even as small as it was, she kept the place clean, if a little cluttered. There were plenty of bright, vibrant colors all over the room, nothing like my stark white hotel room, or the marble foyer in the mansion. I could tell by just looking around that the place was lived in.

“Follow me,” she said, taking the lead. “The kitchen is this way.”

I could have made it on my own. In the tiny room, there was one door, and one open archway, and it was easy to guess which would lead to the bedroom, which to the kitchen. Still, I followed dutifully behind her.

“Tell me if there’s something you don’t like,” I said. “I’ll take it back and replace it with something else.”

“You don’t have to get me anymore,” she said, frowning at me. Then her expression softened. “Thank you. It’s a thoughtful gift. And I’ll admit, I didn’t think you had it in you.”

I didn’t even care she was technically insulting me. I was just glad she was no longer pushing me away, and I smiled with just a hint of pride showing.

We put the groceries away in her kitchen, then I got the food out. She looked especially curious when I opened three different dishes.

“What is all this?” she asked.

“Well, I thought chicken salad since we had steak last time. I thought about making fish, but I don’t like packing fish, it’s best eaten right away. You’ll probably want to warm this. There’s also steamed veggies with a Greek yogurt sauce, and the last dish is a fruit salad with honey orange glaze. It’s been a while since I’ve cooked anything so fancy, but my family liked it, so I hope you do too.”

We heated everything up, then sat down at her tiny dinner table to eat. I waited to see her reaction to everything before I ate it myself. She seemed to like all of it, and I felt another wave of relief. I watched her eat happily, almost forgetting to get in some bites myself.

In that moment, all I cared about was that Laura was happy.