“Yeah.”
“Well, I wore that tight suit and those high heels because I wanted you to think that I was attractive. And it backfired.”
Edric fully turned to face his date. He wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her close.
“Ellie, you’re always beautiful. You don’t have to dress up on my account. I mean, yeah, you might have turned my head a bit. Well, a lot when you wore your high heels and tight suit. But, you’re always beautiful to me.”
“I…um…thank you. But, I guess the point of that story is to let you know that I tried to impress you but it backfired on me too. So, it’s okay. I understand.” She smiled up at Edric. He smiled down at her before holding her tightly and burying her face against his chest.
Ellie appreciated the warmth of the hug. She snuggled up against him even more and let out a contented, airy sigh. Edric resumed running his fingers through her silky hair with her right hand while keeping his left hand on the small of her back.
“I do have a request of you, Ellie.”
“Hmm?” She didn’t want to respond in actual words—responding in actual words required her to pull her head away from Edric’s chest, a sacrifice that she wasn’t quite prepared to make because she felt quite comfortable in that position.
“Keep the pearl set.”
Ellie turned her head to the side slightly to speak. “But I don’t need it.”
“I want you to have it so you’ll have something to think of me by.”
“I’d rather just be with you to think of you.”
Edric chuckled again.
“Well, you can have both. I’d like you to have both. I know you don’t like lavish things but, please, just indulge me here. I’ll feel better knowing that you’ll have this nice thing from me.”
“Thank you, Edric.”
“Now what do you want to do?”
Ellie shrugged. She just wanted to stay in his warm, comfortable, embrace. “I don’t know. What do you normally do on a date?”
“Wait, Ellie. Is this your first date?”
She buried her face in his chest and groaned.
“Well…this is mortifying.”
“Oh, Ellie. Don’t be embarrassed. I’m honored to be your first boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend?”
Edric nodded his head. “Well, I hope so.”
“I would like that a lot.”
“So, what do you want to do tonight, Ellie? Forget about societal expectations or what you think dates should be like. If you could do anything in the world, what do you want to do?”
“I’d like to go for a walk.”
“Go for a walk? But it’s ninety degrees outside.”
Ellie half-broke out of the hug so they were connected at the waist but she could look him in the eye. She smiled coyly. “I thought that you wanted to know what I wanted to do?” She reached out and playfully touched the side of his cheek, where his dimple was.
“I only wanted good suggestions.” He teased.
“Walking always is.”
“Not when it’s ninety degrees outside.”
“But it’s cooler in the evening.”
“That’s the one thing you want to do? Out of everything in the world, you want to go for a walk?”
Ellie nodded her head. “That way we can be together and talk.”
“All right, well, let’s go for a walk.”
Chapter Sixteen
For the first time in a long time, Edric was nervous. The last month had been nothing short of amazing. Every Friday and Saturday he’d had dates with Ellie. He took her to the small, hole-in-the-wall diners that Ellie preferred. They went on walks, saw movies. They even went to the beach one day. Edric was always careful to wear jeans and tee shirts, so he looked as inconspicuous as possible. He had Violet purchase a small, ordinary-looking car for the purpose of taking Ellie out.
Edric rather liked his normal, inconspicuous life. The secret one that he had with Ellie. He appreciated her warm hugs and gentle kisses. He actually had fun with her, and at work too. Perhaps too much so—it was quite difficult for him for him to focus on doing his job with Ellie sitting ten feet away. He found himself periodically getting up to walk over to her desk to sneak a kiss. Sometimes she would do the same. Edric liked it the most when Ellie walked over and gave him a peck on the lips. It was nice to have a reminder that she liked him too.
The thing that made Edric nervous was Ellie’s request one Thursday evening: could you come over for dinner tomorrow?
Even though Edric was very curious to see her dwellings, he knew that Cassie would be there. And she wasn’t exactly his biggest fan. Thankfully, Violet was also invited to Ellie’s little dinner party. He was glad that his sister was there to serve as a buffer.
The CEO spent a little bit more time getting ready for their date that afternoon. He even went through the trouble of slicking his hair back with gel. When Violet caught him checking his hair in the living room mirror, she laughed at him.
“Ellie knows what you look like, you know.”
“I’m aware.”
“Why so nervous?”
“Cassandra Kent.”
“Ah.” Violet nodded her head. “I see.”
“No words of encouragement?”
Violet laughed. “Nope. She hates you, thinks you’re just going to break her sister’s heart.”
“Still? We’ve been dating a little over a month now.”
“Still.”
“Will she be good tonight?”
His sister laughed again. “Have you ever known Cassie to keep her opinions to herself?”
“I suppose you’re right.”
“Also, it’s not like your good looks are going to help you with this situation.”
“I need all the help I can get.”
He stood up and headed to the door.
“Where are you going?” Violet asked.
“To help Ellie with cooking.” Edric responded, not even slowing down his pace.
“But you’ve never cooked before.”
“I’ll figure it out!” He called out from the other room.
Violet chuckled to herself and shook her head.
***
When Ellie heard Edric’s car pull up to her tiny house, she rushed over to the door.
She was a little nervous about having Edric over. First of all, he would have to smooth things out with Cassie. Secondly, she was worried that her apartment wasn’t nice enough for her high-flying boyfriend. She had been over to his penthouse on numerous occasions but he never once set foot in her apartment.
Ellie rushed to the door to open it. Edric smiled at her and leaned down to softly kissed her on the lips. “Thank you for letting me into your home.”
She smiled and took his hand. “Let me show you around.”
“Please do.”
First, she showed him their small kitchen. Edric’s work kitchenette was far more impressive than the Kent sister’s real one—they only had a refrigerator, stove, oven, cheap coffee pot, and microwave. She then showed him their small combined living and dining room. The table was covered in a yellow and white checkerboard cloth that matched their old sofa, which was probably thirty years old. Floral wallpaper adorned the walls.
“I know it’s not much, but it’s mine and Cassie’s. Speaking of, she’s out running errands right now.”
“Good, then I can do this.” Edric snuck up from behind Ellie and wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. She giggled as he kissed her on the cheek.
Spots heard his mistress’s giggle and limped out from the bedroom into the living room. Ellie took a half step away from Edric and picked her dog up off the floor and cradled him against her chest. When Edric saw Ellie and the hideous dog she was holding, his brown eyes widened.
“What’s this?” Edric wrinkled his nose.
“Spots, my dog.”
Edric furrowed his brow. “Oh. He’s not quite what I expected.”
Ellie hugged
Spots tighter and frowned.
“What do you mean?”
“I always envisioned Spots as a fluffy Poodle or something. He’s a bit um…well...um…something you’d see in a nightmare.”
Ellie cradled Spots tighter and frowned.
“He’s a good dog. And he’s not ugly.”
“Um.”
“He has an uncanny ability to know when someone’s sad and always cheers them up. He loves to play, and he’s very loyal. He’s a good dog and he’s beautiful on the inside.”
Edric looked at Ellie. Really looked at Ellie. She never quite got used to her boyfriend’s piercing stares.
“Do I have something on my face or something?”
“I love you.” Edric murmured.
Ellie looked up at Edric. Even though his appearance was immaculate and orderly looking, his face was red and he looked flustered. His hands were tucked in his pockets and he looked visibly flustered.
She put the dog down and wrapped her arms around Edric’s waist. She stood up on her tippy toes and kissed him gently on the lips. A warm and affectionate kiss. She them took a few steps back and picked up her dog.
“I know it’s sudden because we’ve only been dating for a month and known each other for three months or so. But I love you. You see the good and the beauty in everything and you always try to do the right thing. Ellie, I love you.”
“I didn’t know that you felt so strongly about me.”
“If you don’t feel that way about me now, then that’s fine. I get it. But I love you and I just need you to know that.” He exhaled loudly.
“I really like you, Edric, and I care about you deeply. But I don’t know if I can say that I love you yet. I just don’t know you well enough to say that.”
Edric bit his lip and nodded his head. Not the answer he had hoped for.
“It’s okay. I just wanted you to know. I hope that you’ll love me someday.”
“I think I will. Love just means a lot to me. The only person I can really say I love is my sister.”
“It means a lot to me too. I only love my family, some of my personal staff, and you, Ellie.” He reached out and squeezed her hand. The two locked eyes.
Ellie stood up on the tips of her toes and Edric leaned down and gently kissed her. The kiss escalated from being gentle and sweet to passionate. He pulled her down on the couch. His hands roamed freely over her petite body as he pushed her down from a sitting position to a laying position and crawled on top of her. His lips roamed from her mouth to the nape of her neck. She let out a slight whimper and gripped his back tighter. He continued to explore her neck with his soft lips and ran his hands up and down her narrow waist.
Suddenly, he heard the sound of footsteps and the door handle jingle. Edric shot up from the couch and took a few footsteps back. Ellie sat upright and ran her fingers through her hair. The two tried to act like nothing just happened.
“Ellie, I got the ricotta cheese.” Cassie declared as she entered the room. She took one look at Edric and frowned. “Oh. You’re here.”
Edric put his hands in his pockets. “Yeah. I thought I would come early, to help Ellie cook.”
“You won’t be of much help, Scrooge.”
“Cassie. Be nice. Edric means a great deal to me and part of the reason for this dinner that I’m hosting is for you two to get along.”
The private detective scoffed. “Whatever.”
“Thank you for the ricotta cheese. Now I can finish assembling the lasagna.”
“Do you need my help with anything?” Edric asked, gently touching her arm.
Ellie shook her head. “No, I’m all set. I just need to assemble it and put it in the oven. And then toss up the salad. Dinner will be ready in an hour.”
She stood up from the couch, took the cheese away, and then wandered over to the kitchen. Edric and Cassie could hear her humming to herself.
***
Cassie Kent finally got Ellie’s boyfriend where she wanted him: on her turf. She quickly turned her attention to Edric. She circled around him and then plopped down in an armchair, while he sat in the seat that Ellie had been sitting in moments ago.
“How was your day, Cassie?”
“Oh, my day was fine. I just worked. How was your day? Did you prey on any more naïve and innocent virgins?”
“I was trying to be diplomatic here.”
“Oh, I think we’re beyond the diplomacy stage, don’t you?”
“Cassandra, I’m going to be in Eleonore’s life for a very long time. I think we’d best put our differences aside.”
She scoffed. “You think you’ll be in Ellie’s life for a very long time?”
“Yes, I do.”
“And why is that?”
“Because I want to be with her and I’m going to do whatever it takes to ensure the success of our relationship.”
“Even at the expense of my sister?”
“No, of course not. Ellie’s well-being is my top priority.”
“Well, I should hope so.”
Cassie crossed her legs and leaned back in the chair. Edric mirrored her motion and sat back on the couch and crossed his legs too. “Ellie’s an incredible woman.” She declared.
“I’m very well-aware of that.”
“And she’s fragile too—vulnerable.” Edric readjusted his position on the couch. Cassie smiled inwardly, knowing enough about body language to know he was squirming. “So, don’t fuck this up, Scrooge.”
“I have no intentions of doing so.”
“Because if you do, I’ll make you wish you were never born.”
“I’m not going to hurt her.”
“I just want to make sure we have an understanding, Kensington.”
“We do.”
“Now that that’s out of the way, I suppose we can be civil for tonight. For Ellie’s sake.”
“Good.”
Edric drummed his fingers on the sofa arm. Cassie pursed her lips. The two sat in silence. Cassie studied Edric. Even though he was dressed ‘casually’ in jeans and a tee shirt, the dark-washed jeans were tailored to fit and the polo shirt that he was wearing was name brand. It was a poor attempt to appear to be casual—one of them. She also noticed that his hair was gelled back. It still looked slightly tussled, like someone ran their fingers through it. There were three options: either he tussled the hair himself, he and Ellie had a bit of a make-out session, or he and some other woman had a make-out session. Since he stood up so abruptly when she arrived, the private detective assumed the second option. She smiled inwardly; she liked having this secret knowledge.
“You’re very vain.” Cassie finally said.
“I thought that we made some sort of a truce just a second ago.”
“I know we did. But I had to say something.”
Edric sighed. “All right.”
“You’re not going to say anything back?”
He shook his head. “No, I’m not.”
A small yelp came from the kitchen. Edric leapt up from the couch and darted into the kitchen. Cassie was mere footsteps behind him. They saw that Ellie was clutching her right hand, her face red.
Edric walked up to his girlfriend and gently touched the small of her back. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I just burnt my hand. That’s all.”
“Are you sure you’re all right?”
“The only thing wounded is my ego.”
“May I see it?”
Ellie reluctantly showed him her hand, and the small mark on top of it.
“I accidentally brushed against the oven rack. That’s all.”
“Let me help you take care of that.”
“Oh, I’ll be fine.”
“Ellie. Please?”
She gently nodded her head in agreement.
The tall man gently guided his petite girlfriend over to the kitchen sink and ran her hand under cool water. Cassie watched from afar. Edric seemed so kind, gentle, and caring towards her sister. Is this even the same person as the guy
who fired the cancer kid guy? Cassie wondered. She shook her head. Whatever. I won’t read too much into it.
“Violet’s here; I’ll get it.” Cassie declared. She felt the overwhelming urge to leave the room. It was as if she were interrupting some sort of private moment. She hurried to the door and yanked it open.
Violet stood in the doorway wearing a sundress. Cassie was used to seeing her dressed casually in clothes that had grease stains on them. She was also holding a cake.
Cassie raised an eyebrow. Why the hell is Violet acting all 1950’s with wearing dresses and bringing baked goods?
“Violet. You look…different.”
Violet tucked a strand of brown hair behind her ear.
The couple of the hour finally emerged from the kitchen. Edric’s arm was wrapped protectively around Ellie and she leaned against him.
Ellie does look happy with him… Cassie thought.
“Violet. You’re dressed differently.”
“I got oil on my last outfit and I felt the need to get change and this sundress was easy to put on.” She cleared her throat and then held up the cake. “I brought cake. Which my brother forgot.”
“Oh, I did forget.”
“Dinner will be ready in an hour.” Ellie declared. “I made a salad for us all to start with.”
“What do you want to do in the meanwhile?” Cassie asked.
Ellie leaned further into her boyfriend. “I figured that we could just talk and get to know each other. After dinner, maybe we could all play board games or cards?”
“Yeah.”
“Sure.”
“All right.”
They all walked over to the couch and chair set. Ellie sat between her Edric and her sister and Violet sat in the nearby chair. When they were seated, Edric made a point to intertwine his fingers with Ellie’s. She looked up at him and smiled lightly.
This is terrible. Ellie’s painfully shy and Violet’s awkward in group settings unless she’s talking about machines. Edric, well…I thought he was an asshole but jury’s out now. I guess it’s on me to make things work tonight.
“What type of cake did you make?” Cassie asked.
“Carrot cake. Rosemary made it for us to bring.”
“Who’s Rosemary?”
“Our old nanny.” Edric said.
“She basically raised us.”
A Sibling's Dilemma Page 20