Elly In Bloom (35 page)

Anthony laughed. “Probably.” He looked around. “Are we all ready for this? I’m starting to have stress dreams and stomach cramps.”

Elly gathered a handful of pale lavender wax flower and weaved it with the yellow ranuculus, sticking it in her tiny vase. “Ahh,” she sighed. One square of inch of perfection in a store filled with chaos. “Tell me about it. I’ve been having horrible nightmares.”

She let the description fall into empty air. Anthony didn’t want to hear about her dreams: dreams in which Lucia chased her through her mother’s empty house, carrying a broken wine glass and screaming at the top of her lungs. Paint dripped down from the walls in a multitude of colors, and Elly was always hopelessly lost, looking for something that she could never find. Lucia pushed her closer and closer to the wall, making the paint drip over Elly’s face. Just as she couldn’t breathe anymore, paint filling her mouth, Lucia’s face would change to Aaron’s and Elly would wake up with a scream, bathed in sweat, her hands clutching the sheets. It took half an hour before her heart stopped hammering enough for her to fall back asleep. Cadbury, sensing the change in her, would lay his heavy head over her lap, his steady breathing finally lulling her into peace.

Elly snapped back to reality. “Mmm…Stress dreams, me too.”

“Can you believe it’s only three days away?” Anthony’s dark eyes lingered on hers. “Are you ready for this, sweetheart?”

No, no, I will never be ready for this
, thought Elly,
I’ve considered leaving the country every hour.

“I…” her words seemed to melt away.

Anthony put down the broom and flung his wide arm around Elly. “We’re going to be fine. There’s nothing that we can’t do together. Just a short while ago, when you hired me, I had no job, no friends, no money. This store - it’s my livelihood, my social life, it’s everything. So, I’m not gonna let this ship go down, not while I’m here.”

Elly felt like bursting into grateful tears and bit her lip to keep from weeping. “Thanks, Anthony. I think we’ll be okay, too. As long as I have you, I don’t know how I can feel anything but confident.” As she turned back to the buckets, Elly hoped that her voice didn’t betray the excruciating doubt she felt.

At 5 pm, after shutting off the lights to the studio, Elly arrived at her door, eagerly awaiting her leftover enchiladas in the fridge that would be accompanied unashamedly by some ice cream gorging in front of the television. Instead, she saw a familiar inked note taped to the door.

Elly,
it read
, Please join me tonight for dinner and wine. It seems like you could use a night off.

Elly sighed with contentment. Just when doubts about Isaac seemed to creep up, he always redeemed himself in a big way. It was also his luck that she never got tired of staring at his earthly beauty, running her fingers through his thick curls or kissing him. Oh – Elly felt a tingle run up her spine – kissing him was heavenly. She ran quickly inside, changed into jeans, a grey sweater and silver earrings, along with a splash of perfume on her neck. Cadbury got a quick walk, and rewarded her by dragging his mud-covered paws on the sofa.

Twenty minutes later, Elly stood at Isaac’s door, dizzy with hunger and longing to feel safe somewhere. She gave a soft knock. The door swung open, and Isaac pulled her swiftly against his chest. Elly gasped. In the soft lighting he was ridiculously beautiful. His black henley shirt clung to his chest, and his ripped khaki shorts showed off long and muscular legs.

Elly pulled back from him confused. “Um, are you wearing
shorts
? It’s November, remember?”

Issac made a serious face and yanked her inside his apartment. “I don’t conform myself to the seasons.”

Elly laughed, but noticed that Isaac didn’t.
Oh. He was serious
. She quickly sobered.

He nuzzled her neck. “You smell amazing...like the damp earth.”

Elly smiled. “That’s because I’ve been processing greenery all day. On top of that, I had six separate deliveries to schedule and Snarky Teenager seems incapable of getting drivers who can…”

“Wow, that sounds tough” interrupted Isaac. “Come inside, I have something to show you!”

Elly followed him into his bare bones living room, and noticed that it was more empty than usual. “Where is your couch?” she asked.

“I sold it. I felt like it was keeping me away from my true potential… my music was stronger when I sat on the floor or the balcony, so I didn’t want it to be a temptation. By removing the stigma that I have to sit ON something, it allows the whole apartment to be my dwelling place.”

Elly nodded, confused. “Yes…but now you have no couch.”

Isaac kissed her fingertips. “Yes. I have no couch, which is why we will sit on the blanket.” He gestured into the dining room, where a large red afghan was unfolded on the floor, covered in pillows. Two paper plates and wine glasses were set in the middle, surrounded by tiny little votives. He smiled down at her. “I know you had a long week and you have a tough couple of days coming up. I wanted to do something nice for you, Elly.”

Elly was overwhelmed by this small, sweet gesture. She cupped Isaac’s cheeks in her hands. “You are good for me. Every part of you has been a wondrous surprise.”

Isaac opened his mouth to say something suggestive and Elly put her finger over his lips. “Don’t ruin it.”

Elly settled herself down on the thin afghan and shoved a pillow under her legs. “I’m intrigued. What are we having?”

Isaac smiled. “Well, I think it’s something you will like, and I worked all afternoon on it.” He came out of the kitchen carrying two familiar sandwich bags. “I know you love Keith’s deli, so I bought you your favorite sandwich. I ALSO got us this amazing salad and chocolate ganache cake for dessert.”

Elly felt her heart sink. Keith? The last thing she needed tonight was to think of Keith. Keith tipping his hat at her. Keith tricking her into thinking they were good friends, when he had ulterior motives. Keith’s face, covered with tiny reflections of light, the way her body had simply radiated light when he touched her….
Ugh
! Elly slammed her hand down on the rug.
Keith and his stupid, stupid sandwich face!
Elly was suddenly furious at him. Who did he think he was, walking into her store at two in morning and telling her that Isaac wasn’t the right guy for her? How rude! Elly scoffed as she looked at Isaac, humming to himself as he folded his legs underneath him. Isaac...not the right guy?
Look at him
, she thought,
how could he be the wrong guy?

“You okay?” Isaac asked, putting the sandwiches on the plates. “Do you want something else? I could order a pizza…”

“No, I’m fine” Elly snapped. She grabbed the wrapped sandwich. “Smells amazing. What do I have here?”

“Something Keith came up with. I was going to get you the Sprout Veggie Surprise, but Keith said you would like this better.”

Elly took a bite into her sandwich. It was incredible. She suppressed a loud moan, figuring only strange, fat girls moaned about sandwiches. Keith had outdone himself.

Creamy chicken with a hint of lemon and mustard danced across her tongue, while sharp braeburn apples mingled sensually with brie. The bread was a thick grain, toasted lightly and then brushed with butter. It was the best sandwich she had ever had. Isaac, on the other hand, was making a disgusted face at his.

“Gross!” he said, flinging aside a wilty cucumber. “This is nasty.” He took another cautious bite, chewed and then spit into a napkin. “I’m pretty sure this lettuce has mold growing on it. Sick. I’m never eating there again. I think that guy HATES me. Is yours okay?”

Elly couldn’t answer, as she had a mouthful of pure bliss. She nodded.

Isaac popped up from the pillows. “Whatever. I’m having ramen.” He huffed into the kitchen. Elly sat back on the blanket. Now that the sandwich was resting happily in her stomach, she was feeling very sleepy. Isaac sat down beside her.

“Where’s your ramen?” Elly asked, with one eye open.

“Oh. I didn’t feel really like eating. I had a banana today already
.”

I hate you
, thought Elly.

He leaned over Elly, bracing his body over hers and sticking his hip right into the remains of her sandwich.

“Er, I think you might have chicken on your thigh,” she pointed out. He smiled, his white teeth dazzling her. She suddenly felt a loss for words.

“I don’t care,” he said, trailing his finger down her cheek. “I just care that you are here with me. Close to me. I don’t like being away from you. You are just so…warm.” He kissed her softly. She fell into him, whirling in a vortex of passion. He pulled away from her breathless. “Wow. You really did have a week, didn’t you?”

Elly nodded, her eyes unexpectedly filling with tears. “It’s been crazy. I’m still not sure that I can pull this off, and I’m asking myself ‘Why? Why did I do this? Why am I torturing myself? Am I masochist?’”

Isaac’s eyes lit up. “Oh, I certainly hope so.”

She slapped his roaming hands. “You should stop in and see the studio. It’s fern gulley in there. We have six different types of greenery…Dark pittosporum, Magnolia leaves, jade palms, and this amazing full leaf called Tree of Heaven…” She sighed happily. No matter what the occasion, talking about flowers always brought a sense of calm. “You can barely walk because of all the buckets, but it does feel a little like a peaceful rainforest.” She paused. He looked like he was listening, but she couldn’t be sure. There was something that she had wanted to ask him…something that she had talked over with Kim. Elly sat up halfway.

“I need to ask you something.”

Isaac sat back, looking oddly disappointed.

“What would you think…” she halted to read his face, “about helping me with the wedding?”

Isaac’s face was still as ice, but his eyes widened. She traced over his hand with her pointer finger.

“I’ve been thinking about it, and I think that if you were by my side all day that I could get through this. Not only could I use the extra hands,” she said, bringing those gorgeous hands up to her face, “but when you’re there, I feel more confident, more alive.”

He looked confused and Elly carefully weighed her next words.

“You’re a shot of adrenaline to my heart.” His eyes lit up with the praise. “Before you knocked on my door, my heart was just dormant.” She eyed his flushed face. “And now, you’ve set it on fire. You made me feel like I could live again.”
Okay, now she was getting carried away.
“So, will you be there? Will you help me that day? I….I need you there. I need that boost that only you can give me.”

Isaac placed his hand on her heart. “If you want me to be there, I will be there. It’s important to you. And Elly…I love you.”

She suddenly wanted to tell him everything, not the watered-down version of the wedding, but the truth behind it. That there were times where she still felt like her heart would explode from the pain, that she saw Lucia’s face every time she shut her eyes, that she was praying feverishly into the night that Aaron’s hold on her would be lifted. She took a breath. Why not? What could happen if she truly bared her soul to him? Besides, his brown eyes were so inviting…

“I feel like I’m in a dream that I will never wake up from,” she started. “When I left Georgia…”

Isaac put his finger over Elly’s lips. “Let’s not talk about that,” he whispered, and Elly felt a sharp punch of rejection. “I want to talk about us.” He pushed her back onto the pillows, softly nuzzling her nose. “Do you remember the other night, at the Paradox Club?”

You mean, where you ripped your shirt off and told me that you loved me in front of a crowd of hundreds?
Elly’s cringed at the awkward memory. “Yes, I remember.”
Unfortunately.

“Remember when I told you I loved you?” His lips brushed across hers, from side to side. “I had thought that you would…ah…feel more comfortable with me after that.”

Elly smiled and ran her hand down his back. “What do you mean? I do feel comfortable with you.”

He pulled away from her. “You know what I mean. I’m just wondering where this relationship is going.” Elly avoided his questioning eyes. “When are we going to make it…real?”

Oh no, not this again. Why is he such a sixteen-year-old boy? I
so
don’t want to talk about this tonight
, she grumbled inwardly, and kissed him furiously with hopes of distracting him from this particular line of thought.

Elly’s head was now cradled against the soft pillow. Isaac’s breath on her neck was making her drowsy and she felt her eyes closing. It had been a very long day. She could feel the dirt caked under her fingernails and the sore ache in her thighs. Her whole body hurt. Instead of responding to Isaac with passion, it seemed to be screaming for bed. She was drifting…

“I have to go home. I’m just so tired,” she whispered.

Isaac’s head jerked back. “You’re falling asleep?”

Elly nodded, content with the feel of his hand on her face. If he would just stop molesting her, she could nap here, pressed against his body, wrapped up in his adoring arms.

He looked annoyed. “Why are you so afraid to move forward with me?”

She pushed him off. “I’m not. I’m just exhausted, please understand. It has nothing to do with you.”