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“Oh, Jack,” I say. “You shouldn’t have done this.”
He shrugs. “I saw them on my way home today and they made me think of you. They’re nowhere near as beautiful, but you get the idea.”
I chuckle and take a whiff of them, gently touching their delicate petals. “You’re just too good to me.” I’m starting to think about that. He has been really good to me this entire time. He comes home on time every night – working late has become a thing of the past. He brings me gifts on a regular basis. He even rubs my feet when we’re watching television on the couch.
I feel pampered and loved…and yet…
“Jack,” I hold his arm and make him sit beside me. “I…I know all that you’ve done for me since I moved in and…” I didn’t know how to say this. I feel so awful that I don’t feel the same way he obviously does.
“The flowers are too much,” he says and I feel my face flush.
“The flowers are perfect. You’re not doing anything wrong. This is about me. I…I guess I still need time and—”
“Stop,” he says, putting his hand on mine. “You don’t have to apologize and you don’t have to worry. I’ll wait for you to come around. Take as much time as you need.”
I chuckle a little. “You are so confident that I’m going to fall in love with you.”
“Yeah,” he says. “I am.”
That’s when the windows start banging with the incoming storm, the winds hitting them hard. I jump and hug Jack instinctively. I bury my fast in his neck taking in his comforting smell. After a second of surprise, he hugs me back, rubbing my back slowly.
“It’s okay,” he says. “It’s just the storm. No big deal.”
But this seems to be our relationship now. It reminds me of the time before we started dating. The time when he was just there for me because it was decent. This is the part of him that I fell for. That I kept hoping to see when he drifted so far from me in our college days.
That night, the storm raged on as we slept. Well, as Jack slept. The sound of thunder and madness outside of our window was keeping me up. By the time the morning hours came, I decided just to give up on it and start getting ready for the day.
I slip out of bed, being careful not to disturb Jack, and go to the bathroom. It’s then that I notice a book by the toilet. I pick it up and I’m a little surprised by the title.When Partners Become Parentsby Carolyn Pape Cowan and Philip A. Cowan.
More proof of Jack’s commitment to me. I must be a fool not to doubt him. What is even wrong with me?
When I go back to bed, he rolls over and wraps his arms around me, kissing me on the neck. “Good morning, princess.”
I smile. “Princess? What’s with this ‘princess’ thing?”
“You are my princess,” he replies. “It’s your new nickname, ‘princess’.”
He gives me a quick kiss and gets out of bed. “What do you want for breakfast?” he asks.
“I don’t care,” I say. He goes to the bathroom and leaves the door open a little. I’m biting my lip, thinking about the book on the toilet tank.
“Jack?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“So, you are reading books on parenting?”
“What’s wrong with that?” he says from the bathroom. “Thought I’d bone up on my parenting skills since we’re about to have the pitter-patter of two pairs of feet around here.”
“Wow,” I say. I don’t have anything else to say about that. It’s…unusual.
He finally comes out of the bathroom and says, “Let’s make breakfast.”
I smile. “You’re helping.”
“I am helping.”
I smile. Fine, he doesn’t want to talk anymore about it. It’s fine. I guess there’s nothing more to say, really.
