CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Later, Ellie found herself crying in David’s arms again. It was another personal record; hysterics twice in one day. “I don’t understand why he wants to keep tormenting me. All that time he acted like I was so insignificant in his life, and now I can’t get him to leave me alone.” Her sobs subsided slowly to sniffles.
David stroked her hair and made soothing noises. “He sounds pretty unstable, Ellie. I think that restraining order was a really good idea. Some guys just don’t know how to deal with rejection.”
Ellie slowly pulled away and started smoothing her hair. She wiped her eyes and saw Skipper sitting across the room staring at them, looking miserable. “My poor dog. I don’t think he knows what to think of me. He probably wishes he had a normal owner instead of getting stuck with me.”
“Hey, don’t say that,” David said. He took her gently by the shoulders and looked into her eyes. “You are a strong woman, Ellie. You’ve been through a lot. You’ve got your life together. You are successful and talented and smart. Don’t let your ex-husband take that away from you. You are the one in control now.”
Ellie took a deep breath and felt a sense of peace returning. David’s words were having the right effect, and she wondered if somehow his calming aura was infectious. “You’re right, David. Of course you’re right. It’s not worth it. He’s not worth it. I won’t ruin our evening because of that big jerk.”
“That’s the spirit!” David chuckled.
Ellie stood up, her sense of purpose renewed. “I did manage to get groceries with all the other shopping I did today. I’ll start dinner.”
She walked into the kitchen with David close on her heels. She opened a bottle of chardonnay, poured two glasses, and handed one to David. He looked at her expectantly.
She held her glass up. “To new friends and new beginnings without any interruptions from old ghosts and bad memories.”
“I’ll drink to that.” David clinked his glass on hers. “So what else did you buy? Sounds like you went on quite a shopping spree.”
Ellie pulled the chicken breasts she had been marinating from the refrigerator. She put a saucepan on the stove and put some olive oil and ground garlic in it. She sliced the chicken up thinly and tossed the pieces into the pan to sauté. At the same time she put a pot of pasta on the stovetop to cook. She talked as she worked.
“Kevin and I have been arguing for probably a year now about me getting a new computer system for the store. I guess I’m pretty old-fashioned that way. I like working all of this stuff out in my head. I feel like it keeps me from getting rusty, and I feel like I am really in tune with what’s going on in the shop.” She paused in her work every now and then to glance in David’s direction. He stood against the countertop and sipped his wine. His attention was focused on her. He motioned to her to continue.
She watched the chicken carefully. She started putting together the ingredients for the Alfredo sauce, and then pulled garlic bread out of the freezer and preheated the oven.
“So today Kevin finally won. I went over to the electronics store and told them I needed the works. I was going to resist the cell phone, but after what happened today I am really glad I didn’t say no when they started showing them all to me.” She smiled shyly at David again.
“You need any help getting that computer up and running?” he asked.
“I don’t know a lot about computers. I liked the idea of a laptop because it’s portable. But other than finding the start button and opening an Internet browser I don’t know a lot. I feel like I’m a computer virgin,” she admitted.
“Well, I can help with that,” David said with a flirtatious glint in his eye. “Where’s the laptop?”
Ellie pointed at a cardboard box by the fireplace. “That’s going to be a big help. I really appreciate this, David. I mean about everything,” she said. She felt a lump in her throat and since she didn’t want to cry again she looked at her feet.
Suddenly David was at her side. His hand cupped her chin and he pulled her eyes up to meet his. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw the passion that smoldered there.
“I am pretty sure that I would do anything for you, Elizabeth Coulter,” he said. Then he kissed her deeply.
She clung to him and felt something long forgotten stir inside her. After what seemed an eternity, he stepped away, and she realized that her breath was coming in shallow gasps. “Um, wow,” she finally managed.
David seemed entirely composed and his smile was warm. “I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.” He shrugged but didn’t look the slightest bit embarrassed.
“Well, you are pretty good at it so feel free to do that any time you want to,” she laughed.
David’s low laugh filled the small apartment. “I’ll remember that,” he said. He returned to the hallway and set the computer box on the coffee table. “I’ll accept payment in kisses for this hard labor,” he said.
“You’ve got it.” Ellie went back to her cooking, pretending not to be watching David, although now she couldn’t stop looking at him. He was sitting in the living room on the couch, his back to her facing the fireplace. His broad shoulders were evident over the back of the couch, and she saw that his thick blond hair had just a hint of wave in the back. She found herself thinking that she wanted to dig her hands in his hair when he kissed her again. She blushed at her thoughts, and tried to concentrate on her Alfredo sauce.
Soon she was draining the pasta and combining it with the chicken breast and sauce. She carefully shook parmesan cheese on the top, and then pulled the garlic bread from the oven. Rich, spicy smells filled the air.
“Smells wonderful.” David’s breath was on the back of her neck as he murmured into her ear, and his arms encircled her from behind. She turned and wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Just so you know, I’m a pretty damn good cook,” she said.
“Oh, I had no doubt,” he said.
Ellie lost several moments as they kissed again. David had awakened a completely different appetite inside her. She was amazed how she reacted to him. She had never been like this in her entire life, even with Jake.
When David finally released her lips, she saw that his expression had grown serious. “I meant it when I said I would do anything for you, Ellie. I know we really just met, but I feel like I’ve known you forever,” he said.
Ellie nodded in agreement. He had voiced something that she had felt as well. “Yes, I know what you mean. I can’t even explain how comfortable I feel with you.” She buried her head into his chest and breathed deeply of his scent. She hoped that her clothes kept some of that, so that she could smell him even after he left.
“Okay, mister. We should eat while the food is still warm,” she said with a playful jab to his chest.
“There are many other things I’d like to do right now,” David whispered in her ear. “But you did such a great job with this that I don’t want it to go to waste.” He kissed her once more, and then stepped back so that she could move again.
Quickly she set the table and had the food ready. She encouraged David to serve himself first. “Guests first,” she insisted.
They were silent as they started to eat. Ellie watched David’s expression as he took the first bite. He seemed delighted, and Ellie was glad that she had invited him over that evening. Life was looking so much better after such a short amount of time that she could hardly believe it.
She told him all about her evening hijinks with Kevin at Linda’s house the night before, and she was delighted when he laughed along with her when she told him how they had acted like teenagers who had been left alone at home for the first time. Ellie never thought of herself as a particularly funny person, so it was a relief to feel like someone would find her engaging.
“I’m having a hard time believing that I just spent time with you for the first time outside of the coffee shop three nights ago,” she said, taking a sip of her wine.
“Things happen for a reason, Ellie.
” He reached over and put his hand on top of hers. “I hope I don’t scare you by saying this, but I feel like we were meant to find each other. It’s totally crazy, but this feels right.”
Ellie was touched by his words. She felt like she was being swept off her feet, just like a girl in one of her romance novels. The fact that David was so comfortable sharing how he felt made him even more attractive to her. Jake had always shut her out.
“You aren’t scaring me, David. I don’t think you could with how fantastic you’ve been toward me. But I admit that I don’t know a lot about you. We always talk about me. Tell me something about yourself. I want to know everything about you,” Ellie said.
“Not a lot to tell,” David answered as he continued to eat. “I had two parents who wanted nothing but the best for me. Now I’m a doctor and I enjoy my job. I get to help people every day. I love coffee, which is by far my worst addiction. But I’m glad for it because it led me to you. The end.”
“C’mon, now,” Ellie joked. “There’s a lot more to you than that.”
“No, my life was pretty boring until now,” David said.
“Have you ever been married?” Ellie asked.
“No, but I haven’t had a lot of time to date. Medical school and all,” David answered.
“You have any brothers or sisters?”
“Only child,” was his short reply. “What about you, Ellie?”
“My parents died when I was little, and we didn’t have any close family. So I was pretty much an orphan. I grew up in foster care here in Minneapolis.” Ellie sighed.
“That must have been really tough,” David said. “You’ve really made something of yourself, owning your own business and all.”
Ellie heard admiration in his voice. “Nah. It was something that sounded fun and I’ve always wanted to work for myself. That’s all. I’ve made plenty of bad decisions. One of them, of course, you’ve met up close and personal today.”
Ellie was starting to feel the wine. She didn’t drink very often, and it seemed that it was going straight to her head. She looked at the glass, and David reached over to refill it even though she tried to wave him off.
“We all make mistakes, Ellie. You need to relax a little,” he said through her protests.
“I still need to go over to Linda’s,” she argued.
“I’m here to help with that,” David said. “You’ll get everything done. You are safe. It’s okay. Relax.”
Ellie felt herself acquiescing. Having him there completely relaxed her. They finished eating, and David insisted on doing the dishes after parking Ellie on the couch in front of the fire. He set the new computer in her lap.
“It’s all set and ready to roll. Try it out. Get familiar with it,” he said.
Ellie couldn’t focus on the screen, and found the wine glass in her hand again. She heard water running, and then the sound of pots and pans bumping together. “I do have a dishwasher,” she called out. Was that her voice? All the words slurred together.
“There are some things that I like to do the old-fashioned way too,” was David’s amused reply.
Ellie felt her eyes starting to close and rested her head on the back of the couch.
“Ellie. Ellie.” David’s voice was close by. “How about I go over to Linda’s for you? You can just stay here and relax in front of the fire. Where are the keys?”
Ellie was so tired that she couldn’t even argue. “In my purse.”
“I’ll be back soon.”
She felt a squeeze on her shoulder. She relaxed into her dreams.