Page 54 of Miracles and Marriage
“I’m staying,” he said calmly. “Cute bunnies.”
Zoe glared at him, but Cal merely returned her stare with an amused one of his own. She considered demanding he leave, but had a suspicion he’d ignore her.
Continuing to the kitchen, Zoe set about preparing tea and some muffins. She tried to appreciate his willingness to help, but she didn’t need it or him. Even her sister knew better than to crowd her space. Yet the more she thought about it, the more she was touched he stuck around.
Once her light meal was ready, she carried it into the living area. She could demand he move and let her use the table, but she’d just as soon eat the snack on the sofa. Still, she wanted to do something to assert her rights in her own place.
He looked at her.
“Is that enough?”
“For now. I’ll eat more for dinner if I still feel okay.”
“I’m starting to realize how severe these attacks can be,” he said, rising and coming to sit beside her on the sofa.
“Doctors don’t recommend surgery lightly,” she said, feeling as if he took up more than his share of space.
She couldn’t move without being obvious, but he seemed too close. Glancing down she saw there was more than a foot of sofa between them.
“All the more reason to see if you can get pregnant as quickly as possible,” he said.
She could feel herself grown warm with embarrassment. She wasn’t comfortable discussing sex with Cal. It was one thing to relive every moment at night when she was alone in her bed, or during a break at work, but the thought of shedding her clothes and his and making love again was more than she could casually handle with him so close.
“Be easier if we lived together,” he continued. “We wouldn’t be limited by a trip to the cottage.”
“Okay, you have made your point several times. I agree for when I’m fertile. But other than that, there’s no reason to.”
She’d make any concession to get him to stop pressing her on the matter. She needed to maintain her independence.
He studied her for a moment.
“When you’re ready my place is bigger. I have two bedrooms. You’d have more privacy.”
“Fine.”
“So when do you think you’ll move in?” he asked.
Was there a hint of self-satisfaction in his tone. Zoe frowned. She felt pressured.
“In a week or so.”
Once there she imagined there’d be nightly bouts of sex. She almost caught her breath at the thought. She’d loved the two nights at the cottage. She just wished there was a bit more to their relationship. All intimacy required some time to develop. Physically they had been as intimate as two people could be, yet he held so much in reserve, she didn’t feel close to him as she’d like. Did he feel that way about her?
“I hope you have a streaming service. I thought we could watch some movies this evening.”
“You don’t have to stay.”
“And miss the movies?”
The rest of the weekend passed uneventfully. Cal left Sunday morning after she assured him she was past the worst. Still feeling shaky after her bout she didn’t do much that day beyond reading and going for a short walk. But at least she got out of the apartment.
Always in the back of her mind was the thought of moving in, temporarily, with Cal in a few days. What would it be like to share a space with him?
Monday at work, Cal called to check on her. She was busy and quickly told him she was fine.
Tuesday he stopped by her office for a moment.
Wednesday he had Emily call in the afternoon.
