As soon as the stress of the morning dissipates, I am overwhelmed with exhaustion. Since I still have some time, I make my way back into the house to shower and pack my bag, then I slip on a nightie, set an alarm, and crawl back into our unmade bed. I'm asleep in minutes.
"Sugar?"
I feel my hair being petted. I open my eyes to see a very concerned Prince sitting on the edge of the bed.
"Hey," I smile up at him as I reach for my phone on the nightstand.
I had the alarm set for 2:30, and it's only 1:57, he's home earlier than I thought he would be. He strokes my hair again, then rests the back of his hand on my forehead, "Are you feeling okay?"
"Yeah, I'm just," I shake my head as I sit up, "yeah, I'm fine." I crawl out of the bed, and start toward the bathroom.
He stays seated, watching me while I walk by, then he follows close behind me, "If you're not feeling well, we don't have to go tonight." His voice is sympathetic.
"I really am fine. I just needed the nap. This morning was a bit much. I guess l let things get to me more than I think they do, it leaves me drained," I sputter in my attempts to explain my weariness.
"I'm sorry, Sugar," he pulls me in for a hug, "all this because I wanted to see the Lakers play," he kisses my cheek.
"Basketball?" I whisper in disbelief.
Now, I feel stupid as I cover my face with my hand. All this grief because he wanted to go to a basketball game.
"You said you didn't like sports," he explains.
"I don't," I whisper. Feeling slightly relieved to know why he skipped town without warning, although I don't condone him for not telling me, "Can you just tell me next time?"
"I will, I promise." He releases the embrace enough to kiss my forehead, "Are you sure you're okay?"
I can feel myself still frowning as I nod, my eyes are focused elsewhere. I keep telling him to let me in, but I haven't really shared my anxiety issues with him. So I start, "In case you haven't noticed," I punctuate that with a nervous titter, "I suffer with anxiety."
He half smiles and rolls his eyes just a bit, "I've noticed," a smile plays on his lips, as if he would have had to been blind not to see it.
"And some mild depression, too," I look downward, I always feel weak when I have to explain my actions. "Usually, I can keep it hidden, well, when I was alone, anyway," I pause, biting my lip, "but I'm not, now." He nods, letting me continue, "Prince, these past 6 weeks have felt like a year, a LOT has happened..."
His eyes are full of compassion, but he presses his lips together as he thinks. I see some of the same characteristics in his behaviors so I know he's able to understand . His eyes show that, but the pressing of the lips indicate he's not going to discuss it with me.
"So, there's that." I try to break the seriousness as we stand there staring at each other. "Am I really worth all this trouble?"
Now it's his turn to frown, "Yes," it's slow and drawn out. His eyes scrutinize me as he shakes his head ever so slightly, as if I should have known better than to doubt myself. He points to my closet and says in an easy manner, "Get dressed."
----------
Just over two hours later we are on the jet and airborne. The tension of the morning has slipped away, but Prince remains highly attentive.
"Do you think you should take another nap?" he asks as we remove our seatbelts.
"No," I pause. "Do you have your bible with you?"
He raises his eyebrows, nodding, "You know I do. Want me to read to you?" He almost looks delighted that I asked.
When I nod, he takes my hand and leads me to the private cabin, "Get comfortable, l'll just be a minute, I have to get it from my bag."
He returns quickly and we cuddle together, before he opens the book he recites a verse:
"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs."
He smiles, letting me absorb that, then he opens his bible and begins to read to me from where we left off.
*****
When we land there is a Cadillac XTS sitting on the tarmac. As our bags and his acoustic guitar get loaded into the trunk, I walk around the vehicle. Prince comes around and opens the passenger door for me.
"Very inconspicuous," I joke, as he grins, shaking his head at my comment. I'm just happy to not see a beast of a SUV sitting here.
It doesn't take long for us to get to my place, I hesitate, yes, still my place. With our bags, we head around to the back first. I want to see my garden, Prince seems to sense this and follows quietly. I stop and take in the area, a calm washes over me as I take a couple deep breaths.
He's standing beside me but leans closer to whisper in my ear, "It won't be much longer until you feel this way about our garden."
I turn to kiss his cheek and whisper back, "It's getting there," which is true, I can already feel it.
As I unlock the back door, my stomach growls. Prince's face is priceless as he looks down at my stomach then his eyes travel up to meet mine. He laughs, "I guess I better feed you after we get our bags in. Where does Angel work?"
"Ruby Tuesday's in the next town over," I tell him as we walk into the house.
I'm instantly in awe at how small my place is after just a week in the Minnesota house, but there's a coziness here. As much as Prince had done to cater to my taste, it's far from cozy. I place my suitcase on the floor between the closet and the bathroom, and hang my garment bag in the closet, Prince does the same.
"Let's go visit Angel and get you something eat," as he pulls me close, I see a hunger in his eyes that has nothing to do with food.
"Ruby Tuesday's is a bar and grill, you know?"
"As long as you like their food, I don't care," he kisses me, and just like his eyes, it's hungry.
It takes just over twenty minutes to get to the restaurant, when we arrive Prince asks to be seated in Angel's section. We know she said she was working, but we don't see her as we're being seated.
The booths are high so she doesn't see us until she's walking up to the table, "Good evening," she stops when she sees us grinning at her. She leans closer to us and says, "Shut up!" in a loud whisper, we both laugh. "What are y'all doing here?"
"Food, Angel. We came to a restaurant to eat food," Prince says in an even tone, although he's being condescending.
Angel shoots him a look, then her mouth opens for what I'm sure is a comeback to his answer. He stops her by holding up his index finger and giving her some side eye, "Careful, I have been known to be a good tipper."
Angel's mouth slams shut, I laugh and shake my head at their antics. Prince orders the California Primavera Pasta, which sounds good, so I order the same. He asks for water with his meal, but I order a Long Island Ice Tea. He doesn't say a word, but I see his eyes shift to look at me, Angel notices it, too, and quickly leaves to turn in our order.
Prince watches until Angel is out of earshot, then with a serious expression, "Liquor?"
"You're driving. I haven't had a drink in ages, except for the wine," I hesitate. "Do you want me to cancel it?"
"No," he stares at me, "but if we're trying to get pregnant, it's really isn't prudent."
"Valid point," I agree, although It's too early for us to start trying, but I need to remember to think about these things. "Just this one, then no more liquor, I promise."