Page 59 of Allured
After a few seconds without an answer, I start beating myself up for not calling first. That was probably the normal thing to do when going over to someone’s house but that damn realization and confession I had in the middle of a farmer’s market didn’t leave me thinking about anything else other thanneedingto see Ezekiel.
“Hello?” A sweet and high—pitched voice that definitely doesn’t belong to my boyfriend interrupts my thoughts. I look to the right and see an older woman leaning over the porch fence of the house next door.
Shit. I don’t know if Ezekiel has told anyone about me, or if he’s close enough to his neighbors that they even know personal details about him. I’ve got to play it cool.
“Oh hi ma’am, I need to drop off some groceries for Ezekiel. Would you know if he’s here to receive them?” I move a little closer so I’m not shouting across the wide space between us.
The older woman looks at the bags of produce I’m holding and then back to Ezekiel’s house.
“Oh you know, Ezekiel gave me a spare key to his house if he wasn’t back in time today to feed Peaches,” she begins, slowly making her way down her porch steps to meet me at the fence between their yards.
“Isn’t she the sweetest little thing?” The lady points over to Ezekiel’s door, where Peaches is pawing at the glass. “I’ve got a cat too, her name is Susie, but she doesn't like seeing Peaches through the kitchen window. She throws a little hissy fit every time. Susie wouldn’t stand a chance. Did you see the size of that Peachy girl?” She points to the very large cat still pawing at the glass door.
“Oh my, yes, the groceries. We wouldn’t want them going rotten. My name is Maude, by the way. I can’t believe I told you the names of all the cats in the neighborhood before I told you my own.” She chuckles and motions for the grocery bags.
“I’m Alek, nice to meet you,” I reply almost automatically. I’m busy thinking about where Ez could be when he told me he was working from home today. I lift my hands to hand her the tote bags full of groceries. I don’t blame her for not letting me into Ezekiel’s home to put them away myself. I am just some stranger to her.
“I’ll go ahead and put those in when I feed Peaches later today. Might be that Ezekiel and Elizabeth are back from the airport before then, though. You never really know whether these pesky flights will be on time or not.” Maude hugs the groceries against her body as she continues.
“Been too long since I’ve seen Elizabeth. That one’s been gone for almost two months, can you believe that? Being away from your husband for so long,” she tsks and shakes her head.
I sputter and cover it with a cough, raising my hand politely at her in apology.
“I’m sorry, did you say Ezekiel is her husband? Ezekiel has a wife?” I could have probably asked the question a little better and not so surprised but fuck, the guy I’ve been dating for nearly two months has a goddamn wife?
“Yes, the Adlers, that is who you were delivering the groceries to, correct?” she asks, looking at me a little more suspiciously now.
“Yes, I am sorry. I only saw one name under the grocery order, that’s all. I will leave you to it. Have a nice day ma’am.” A weak flick of my wrist is all I can offer her before I bolt and practically run back to my car.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
EZEKIEL
A bittersweet goodbye.
“Ihad the last of your boxes delivered to your new residence.”
A part of me still feels somewhat detached from my body as I speak the words to Elizabeth. My now ex—wife. While we have been separated now for nearly four months, it is still difficult to erase the feelings that come with the twelve years we shared our life. It’s tragic to admit a partnership spanning over a decade is over, but we both had foreseen this. Over the last handful of years, we both knew our marriage was not what we wanted it to be. If anything, we felt stuck and remained together for appearance more than love.
I must admit, the feelings of failure and remorse are morphing into a bearable bittersweet nostalgia. It has taken months of reflection, journaling, reading, and new experiences to allow me into that mindset.
“Thank you, Ezekiel. I appreciate how you were willing to take charge of my belongings,” Elizabeth replies with a serenesmile. I lay my eyes on her for a moment. She looks relaxed and enlightened in a way that I only recently became accustomed to myself.
While on our trek to my car at the airport, Elizabeth recounted her adventures in the Camino de Santiago, a month—long pilgrimage she thought would afford her spiritual clarity. Her eyes were brilliant as she shared her memories of the other places in Europe she also visited. I cannot remember the last time she radiated such ease and positive energy.
“I haven’t seen you this delighted in years,” I comment, the low classical music on the radio providing a background to my voice.
“And I don’t think I’ve seen you this tranquil in the entire time I’ve known you,” Elizabeth replies, turning her body marginally in the passenger seat. I feel her eyes study me as I drive.
“I am not pressuring you to divulge specifics, but…” she pauses for a second before continuing, “therapy has treated you well?”
“I do not mind sharing with you,” I start. “Therapy has been enlightening, surely, but words are words. It wasn’t until I began to open myself to new experiences and truly allowed myself to express my emotions that I felt progress. In a way, I’ve had my own Camino of sorts to walk through.”
A flash of light from my right turn signal illuminates her form in the darkening cab of the car as the sun sets behind us. There are unshed tears of happiness and a gentle smile that travels up to her green eyes.
“I’m so happy for you, Ezekiel. Really, I am. I’ve never known a man more deserving of true happiness.” Elizabeth breathes deeply as she pats my forearm.
Pulling my car into the driveway, I park the car and turn to stare at her.
