Page 34 of #Beautiful

I throw my head back with a laugh and grab the hem of my shirt, pulling it off as carefully as I can. Bringing my arms to my sides again, Lena’s eyes move back and forth as she takes in the tattoo, and then tears form in her eyes.

“Okay,” Darcy says, “someone explain why she’s crying. It’s a cross with water and stuff. Totally awesome, but, I’m lost.”

Lena clears her throat as she takes a few steps closer, reaching out to take my hand in hers. “It’s not that simple, Darc. It’s a cross with the infinity symbol on the shore of the sea of Galilee. The city in the back is Magdala from the Bible.”

“That’s where Mary was from, right? Reformed follower.” Jackson glances between me and Lena.

“Yeah,” I say. “Now can anyone guess why any of that is important to Lena?” The room is silent, so I clear my throat and reach out to cup the side of her face. “It’s where her name come from. Magdalena translates to ‘the woman of Magdala’.”

“Oh, man,” Candice says with an exaggerated wiggle, “that is so sweet!”

Lena steps into me, my other arm going around her as she snuggles my side. “Yeah, it is. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I figured it was better than just getting your name.”

Lena’s laugh shakes the side of my body and makes me laugh. “I’d have to agree. Now, does your mom need help with dinner?”

Every turns to find my mom busying herself with cooking, a smile on her face. “Nope. It will be ready in about ten minutes, so if you girls can clear the mall you brought home out of the foyer, that would be the most helpful.”

It takes Lena and I two trips to get all her bags in my room. I can’t lie, I’m kinda stunned at how much she got. “Babe, it’s only a two week trip.”

Stopping in the middle of the room, she spins slowly, taking in all the bags. “I mean, like half of this is for you, too. I thought you might like some new stuff, but I know you won’t go shopping.”

“Have I told you how amazing you are lately,” I say, stepping carefully over the bags and making her squeal when I grab her by the rearend and lift her, wrapping her legs around my waist.

She puts her arms around my shoulders and neck, careful not to hit my tattoo. “You have, but I don’t get tired of hearing it. Have I told you how amazing you are lately?” Leaning forward, she kisses me softly, teasing my lips with her tongue.

“Mmm,” is all I can manage as she runs her fingers up the back of my head, tilting her own as our kiss deepens. I’m the luckiest man in the world. “I love you.”

Lena rests her forehead against mine. “I love you, too. Now, help me unpack all this.”

For the next fifteen, twenty minutes, we take everything out of the bags and put it in neat piles on the bed. Lena really did grab me a lot of stuff. New bathing suit, shorts, a few shirts. She even remembered to get me a new pair of the sandals I like. Mine finally had enough this past summer, and I had to send them to the trash.

“Dinner!” Mom’s voice rings up the stairs, and my stomach growls in response.

“Thank all that is Holy because I’m so hungry I could eat an entire cow,” I grumble as we head downstairs. Lena quietly chuckles, and it’s obvious something is off as we hit the bottom of the steps. “Babe, you okay?”

“Yeah,” she says a little too quickly. “I’m fine, hon. Just tired. Darcy is a crackhead when it comes to shopping.”

“No argument there,” I say, putting my arms around her. “Maybe we should call it an early night tonight. We’ve both pushed it the last few days.”

“Is right now too early to go to bed?” she says with a laugh as we step into the kitchen and stop short.

My parents have stools around the island, and in the center is pretty much the Taco Heaven spread. Anything and everything a person may want on a taco, burrito, quesadilla, whatever is on this table.

“Sweet, taco night,” Jackson says as he and Candice step past us and slide into chairs.

Lena and I join everyone, and my dad leads us in a prayer. Usually, it’s Darcy or I, but tonight he takes over and gives thanks for everything we’ve been blessed with this year. He ends it by thanking the Lord for mine and Lena’s engagement, and bringing him another daughter in love and faith, which of course, makes my fiancée all teary-eyed.

Everyone laughs and enjoys dinner, but for the first time in weeks, Lena isn’t as engaged, and she isn’t eating much, and that makes me worry. I don’t want to ruin the happy bubble we’ve found again, but my stomach knots something awful after dinner when not even five minutes into cleaning up, she excuses herself to use the restroom, and she doesn’t come back, even five minutes after we’re finished.

Lord, please don’t let us go down this road again.

Chapter 29 - Lena

I haven’t purged in a while— at least not intentionally.

But while shopping, Candice and Darcy had a whole litany of complaints about going to Italy and wearing bathing suits in the middle of winter when none of us, yes, plural, are bathing suit ready. Usually, soccer kept me in fit enough shape, but with all this going on and the ups and downs, it wasn’t enough. And I haven’t been to the gym since I passed out on Halloween. I used to go to the gym at least two or three times a week, so I’ve been thinking that if I go back to doing that, Declan won’t get real worried, since that was part of my routine before all this.

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