“It’s OK,” he said with an attempt to laugh it off.
It saddened me to see Max so down. I knew Max was happy for me, but I sensed that he hadn’t gotten over me rejecting his proposal. I hoped our encounter in Arizona would become a distant memory and that he would find his happiness soon.
“I guess I’ll see you at your wedding.”
I hated it when his face turned somber, and he couldn’t look me in the eye. I smiled, hugging him, and answered, “We’ll definitely see each other before then. Bye.” I gave him a quick peck on the cheek and walked toward the house.
It was near eleven o’clock when I got home and washed up for bed. Pulling an all-nighter last night made me extremely sleepy, but I tried my hardest to stay up and wait for Jake. My head bobbed up and down trying to watch whatever was on the television. Instinctually, I jerked awake at the sound of the garage door opening and closing. My legs took me as fast as they could downstairs in my pajamas, excited to see Jake. As he opened the door, I surprised him and jumped into his arms, almost knocking us both down.
He dropped whatever was in his hands, picked me up, and started embracing me. I didn’t think twice about the fact that he was carrying me, kissing me, and walking up a flight of stairs. What was the worst that could happen? We would fall and break his surgeon hands? We got to his bedroom and lay on our bed. We made out like two hormonal teenagers. For the first time, I didn’t stop him or push him away. I responded to his every move. I let him explore with his hands, his mouth, his tongue and soon my pajama top came undone. As my body continued to reciprocate, Jake paused and stared at me.
“Aren’t you going to stop me?” he questioned. “This is unusual that you haven’t said no yet.”
“Um, I wasn’t ready to stop, but I guess we should, huh? Sorry I got carried away.” I giggled.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. I stopped us?” He had this incredulous look on his handsome face. “I can’t win.”
“Yup, I guess I have you trained better than I thought.” I giggled even harder.
Jake groaned and walked in to take a shower.
I must have fallen asleep while Jake showered because when my eyes opened, I was alone nicely tucked away in his bed. It was 4:00 a.m. and sleep was done for the night. I was tempted to crawl into bed with Jake in Nick’s room, but I thought I should be good. There were only a few more weeks left for us to be apart. Instead, I drove downtown to the fish market and bought a variety of fish to make sushi today.
The fish market was bustling with vendors and chefs. It was tiny compared to the Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo, but the fish and seafood smelled fresh and delicious memories of Japan paraded through my morning. Mr. Yamaguchi’s suggestions for the day were tuna, salmon, yellowtail, halibut, sweet shrimp, and uni. This would absolutely make a nice lunch for the whole family. Maybe I would surprise Jake and bring him lunch at the hospital.
Once home, I put all the fish away and started making a batter for crepes. All the necessary ingredients for my own version of the Ritz Hotel crepes were found in the pantry. I chopped up bananas, strawberries, and peanuts and whipped up some heavy cream with vanilla and confectioners’ sugar. Sandy and Bobby cheerfully walked from their room, ready to be my chauffeur and wedding planner again. Though today, we needed to stay home and work with all the vendors who wanted to come see the layout of the house. Samples of linen would be sent to the house by 8:00 a.m., and Aunt Barbara, the chief’s wife, offered to be our interior and exterior designer for the wedding. Since I didn’t have much of an eye for design, I was glad she volunteered to help.
Good morning. I have strawberries and whipped cream crepes or Nutella, peanuts, and banana crepes. What can I get you?” I offered.
“Good morning, Emily. I’ll take one of each,” Bobby said. “I really enjoy your breakfast in the mornings. I feel like I’m at a bed and breakfast.”
“Emily, dear, you know that you don’t have to make us breakfast every morning, right?” Sandy looked worried.
“Oh, I know. It’s not a have to, it’s a want to. Cooking is something I love to do. Plus, I can’t sleep beyond 4:00 a.m., so I might as well be useful. Don’t get too used to it, though. Jake will tell you I’m not much of a morning person. Breakfast may soon be a thing of the past so enjoy it while it lasts.”
I went to work on my new electric crepe maker that I picked up yesterday while registering for my wedding gifts. The first few crepes turned out too thick so I threw them out, but after that, I got the hang of using the wooden rabot and perfected the spreading technique. Each crepe after the first few came out perfectly. Aunt Barbara and the chief came over and I made them each a couple of crepes. The kitchen island simulated a diner and I felt like a short order cook. It was fun.