The Ivy House

chapter 33

They got cold. And hungry. Night had fallen and the breeze from the open window had become downright cold. She felt herself shiver, and Chase got up, pulled the throw from the bottom of the bed over her, and started dressing. Her heart sank at the thought of him leaving, but she tried to keep her face from showing it.

He only buttoned two buttons and pulled his jeans up, leaving the top undone.

“Where are you going?” she asked.

“I heard your stomach growl.”

“Did not,” she started to say, just as it did so again.

One eyebrow went up.

“I’ll bring it up here,” he said. Phoebe looked around. Her comforter was a custom silk one that she’d designed herself and had shipped to her. As romantic as eating in bed sounded, she couldn’t bear the thought of anything happening to it.

“Oh, no you won’t.” She pulled the blanket around her and swung her legs out of bed, hunting for her clothes. “No eating in bed.”

“Doesn’t that depend on the menu?” he said, pulling her to him. She wasn’t sure that they would make it downstairs, but then her stomach growled and he let her go.

“I’ll go set everything up,” he said and bounded from the room. Phoebe watched him go. The expression on his face was like that of a very happy puppy.

She took more than a moment, running a quick shower and finding a pair of casual linen pants, a fresh t-shirt, and sweater to wrap herself in. The hot water sluiced over her, and she tried to clear her head. It means nothing, she told herself. She shouldn’t let herself get too wrapped up in him. It couldn’t be permanent. Not for him, and that was what she wanted. Sooner or later, someone was going to get hurt. But for now, she told herself, just enjoy the moment.

When she went downstairs, she found that Chase had made himself useful. He’d moved the kitchen table into the dining room and found candles. He’d opened a bottle of wine and set it out amid the takeout cartons.

“I didn’t know what you liked, so I got a little of everything,” he said, appearing in the soft candlelight. Music was playing, probably Coldplay, and even without a rug or curtains or a fresh paint job, all of a sudden, it felt right, Phoebe thought; it felt like home. Her breath hitched and her heart lurched. Home. It was what she had been trying to find for a long time.

Chase held out the chair for her and she glided into it. “We have moo shu, lo mein, chicken, and broccoli…”

Phoebe went for the moo shu, while Chase seemed to be happy with a lot of everything. It took a while before he brought up the attic.

“I thought you’d be busy arranging furniture.”

“So did I. Lynn wanted to poke around Savannah’s things and so we did.”

“Did you find anything interesting?” Chase asked.

Phoebe shrugged. “Nothing too out of the ordinary. Just those old photo albums.”

“Savannah’s?”

“And some from my parents, from before I was born. I didn’t really know where they went. Haven’t thought about them in a long time. The pictures, I mean. It was weird seeing them.”

“Why?” Chase asked.

Phoebe thought for a moment before she answered. “They were so happy. And in love. With each other. I remember it and seeing the pictures brought it all back to me.”

“I’m sorry,” Chase said, but it was more a question.

“Don’t be. It made me happy. Sad too, but happy. Happy that they had that. It was so different from what Savannah and Leland had.”

Chase’s chopsticks paused midway between his plate and his mouth. “What do you mean?”

“My parents had a steady type of love. I don’t remember them ever really arguing. Their relationship was even, steady. But then I think about Savannah and Leland.”

“What about them?” Chase’s eyes were dark in the candlelight, intently looking at her. Phoebe didn’t know why she pressed on, but she had to.

“Their love was intense. Leland gave up a lot to be with her. Savannah even gave up her career for a while. It burned so hot, their love, it consumed them. He was jealous of her acting, but she couldn’t not do it. In the end, they loved each other still, but they were at each other’s throats. At least that’s what all the stories said. It was like they were so on fire for each other, it burned them out.”

It hung in the air between them. Chase looked at her for a long time, before he took her hand and gently pulled her towards him, up from the table, into his arms. She looked at him for a long time, staring at his face, and finally he stood up and she did too. She led him up the stairs and into her bedroom.