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Chapter Five
Days passed. Valentine’s Day came and went. She hadn’t seen Jackson since the night that he helped her decorate the restaurant. It was a Saturday morning, and later that day she was due at the restaurant again. She should be there now, but she just couldn’t bring herself to get out of bed and go.
Jackson had missed Valentine’s Day. He’d been called away on a business trip, some kind of problem that needed the boss’s presence.
It was strange. She had never been close to him, like she had the couple of days they had fucked. She actually missed him.
She didn’t call or text him, nor did she email or video chat with him.
Leaving everything blank, she stared up at the ceiling, and wondered what the hell she was doing.
This was not the first time she had thought this.
When there was a knock on her front door, she glanced at the clock. No one came to her apartment on a Saturday. Climbing out of bed, she padded her way toward the front door, opening it up, and staring at Jackson in shock.
He looked … a little messy. His suit was wrinkled, his jacket creased, and there was a couple of days’ stubble on his chin.
“Jackson.”
“I’ve been gone a couple of days, and you’ve not even bothered to call.”
She was surprised.
He brushed past her, and she closed the door, turning toward him.
“Look, I know we’re keeping this from my daughter, I get that, but for me, we’re dating, and with dating comes certain obligations.” She folded her arms, prepared for what he was about to say. “When we’re apart it is customary for people who care to keep in touch, call, text, whatever you want. Mainly call. I hate texting. It’s fucking useless, and why the hell do people not spell shit out anymore? It’s why the world’s tumbling into chaos.”
“Because no one spells anymore?” she asked.
“No, because no one cares about the small details.”
“I wanted to call and I wanted to text, and email. I didn’t know how you’d handle that.” She kept her arms folded, staring at him. “It has been a couple of days, a few random hookups. We’re stumbling around this dating as if we’re kids that have never dated before.”
“I don’t want to do it anymore,” he said. “No more stumbling. When I’m away, I want to hear from you.”
“That’s good to know.”
She watched as he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a wrapped gift. “I had made plans for Valentine’s Day. I had a table set up, candles, romance planned, and then someone fucked up one of the software applications, and I just had to be there.”
“You’re big boss man. Of course you needed to be there.”
“I had to leave on one of the days that you loved. I’d have taken you with me, but I saw how much you were loving the restaurant, and I didn’t want to take you away from that. You’ve not been finding all that much enjoyment in it. Happy belated Valentine’s Day,” he said, handing over the gift.
“I didn’t get you anything.”
“I don’t need anything. Open it.”
She took the gift, and removed the wrapping. It looked like a journal, but when she turned it over she saw that it read “My Recipes”.
“I think it’s time you found that enjoyment again. Cooking was never a chore, and you treat it like it is. It’s time for you to find that passion again, Rebecca.” He stroked her cheek.
“I hate the restaurant.” She spilled the words that she had been keeping locked up for so long. She sighed, and tears filled her eyes. “This is actually really sweet. Probably one of the sweetest gifts I’ve ever been given.”
She opened the page, and saw it was blank. An endless list of possibilities. “Would you like something to drink?”
“Coffee if you have it.”
She nodded, waiting for him to take a seat. Entering the kitchen, she made them both a coffee, and joined him on the sofa. He’d opened the curtains, and the rays of sunshine came through the room. She pulled her knees beneath her, and rested her head on her hand. “Did you resolve your problem at work?”
