Page 26 of Wanted

When it came down to my mother, she was quite pleased, because in her mind, the place of a wife is always next to her husband without question. She didn’t even put up a fight about having to take care of the bees. I didn’t want to ask her to make soaps. Although, I did insist that if she needed an extra hand, she could call Alison. Still, Lionel intervened immediately, saying that he would take care of the salary if she wanted to hire somebody.

Jackson went to the hospital every day, but I haven’t seen Catherine again, since one of her daughters hasn’t been feeling well and she had to do a double shift. Not to mention she’s also the director of a major PR firm in the city. A girl boss and, for me, she’s an inspiration.

Nothing is impossible for the one who believes. So, I need to start studying.

The rest will come later.

Lionel and I keep looking at each other, neither of us wanting to break contact, until the driver opens his door to help him out. He’s fine, considering what happened, but a sling still immobilizes his arm. Although he still mostly rests, he’s required to do some exercises every night, and in a couple of weeks, he will start PT.

The physiotherapist at the hospital recommended a couple of colleagues who make house visits and we’ve already contacted one for an interview. Security around the house was also organized, although Lionel was stubborn about having anyone inside, so Jackson had installed a state-of-the-art security system. In his own words, it’s top-notch.

Besides, the property is located within a private gated community, which can only be accessed after passing a security check.

And now here we are, in front of the house where my husband lives.

Lionel gets out and waits for me to do the same. One of the security guards keeps the door open allowing me to get out of the SUV.

“I hope you like it,” Lionel mutters as we climb the steps that lead to the entrance. The door is red and has a glass panel on each side. It makes a lovely contrast to the gray wood planks of the walls and the white trim.

The house looks like something out of a fairy tale.

“Under the circumstances,” he says with a grin. “I hope my wife will forgive me for the fact that I won’t be carrying her as we crossed our home threshold for the first time.”

And my jaw drops to the floor.

I don’t know what surprised me more, the fact that he considered taking me in his arms or that he called this our home.

This is a joke, I tell myself. Look at the man’s face, of course, he’s joking.

I decide to put on the rose-tinted glasses I’m seeing the world through right now and joke around with him too.

“Well, kind gentleman, open the door then. I’m getting old here.”

Lionel enters a code on the small panel. A green light appears, and I gasp as the door opens. I don’t know if it’s the fact that the house is much more than I imagined when I saw it from the outside. It’s spacious and has beautiful wooden floors, high ceilings, large windows and it is… yes, that… it’s empty.

Again mistrust and resentment appear, this could all be a trick. After all, I’ve seen my fair share of them. A man with his position and money, could easily call someone to rent a property for him, or even buy it. He thinks I’m stupid enough to continue believing all his lies.

“Who lives here?” My head is spinning and not in a good way. “Who’s the owner of this house?

“What are you talking about? It’s mine, of course,” he responds almost automatically.

“How long have you lived here?”

“A little over three years,” he explains while looking around a bit. I don’t have time to ask more because he takes my hand and pulls me to the other side, where there are some wooden and glass doors.

Lionel slides one of the glass doors open and the breeze caresses my face. For the first time I catch sight of the immensity of the ocean. The way the sky begins to blur with the water in the horizon, it’s truly a sight to behold.

“That’s the ocean,” he states. What my eyes are seeing makes me forget the rest.

“That’s the ocean,” he repeats. “You’ve never seen it before?”

That question catches me off guard, he and I have talked about this before.

“I already told you, the only places I’ve visited are Detroit and Chicago,” I reply without taking my eyes off the beautiful landscape in front of us.

“Sorry,” he mutters as he shrugs. “Some memories are still fuzzy.”

But for me everything is clear like the sky above us, as beautiful as the vastness of the water, and as bright as the sun. I feel like I could stay here, admiring this view forever. I can’t wait to see the sunset.

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