Update: next Friday, I will finally be uploading the final chapters!! It'll likely be three chapters, so I'll just post them all in one go. I'm writing them this week, but big things are coming! 🥳
"We should leave the windows open, sweetheart." Damien was desperate for some ventilation. Ever since they moved into their new place, Damien had suffered many headaches, stomach aches, and nausea attacks. He just couldn't seem to tolerate the woody smell that was coming from the new house.
"Just go to the car. I'll wrap up here." Ella ushered him out, staying to open up a few windows up to a safe enough space and plugging in some air fresheners.
Ella had felt fine, and she thought Damien's strong dislike towards the woody smell would go away, but it had gotten to the point where Damien would spend as much time as possible outside of the house, and he wouldn't even be able to eat inside. Ella was beginning to get concerned it wasn't going away: not the smell and not Damien's odd symptoms.
After dining out again, once Damien showered, he left straight from the bathroom and into Ella's arms, resting his nose right where her collarbone was, knowing that her pulse was warmly beating there and that her fragrance was the strongest there.
"Are you okay?" Ella turned, feeling Damien maneuver his way so that he could bury his face near her neck. She lifted a hand to his fragrant and wet hair, massaging his scalp.
"Your scent helps." Damien whispered, grateful that Ella's soft fragrance had been enough to get him through the nights. Her essence was the reason he had been in here for as long as he had.
"My poor fiancé." Ella kissed his forehead, using one hand to caress his hair and scalp and the other one to softly rub his back muscles. He had been spending more time at the gym now with all of his abrupt free time from home.
Damien chuckled at her reference to him. It was still weird to hear even after being engaged for more than half a year now.
"Have you given much thought to the color theme of the wedding?" Damien asked Ella, knowing that she had been crafting some ideas before they had left for dinner.
Ella took a deep breath, her chest rising below Damien's head. "I did, but I don't know, babe."
"What?" Damien used a hand to caress her sides through her night gown. "Are you having a hard time? We can hire a wedding planner. I can help you take care of other things. Obviously, I won't be the decision maker, but I can give my opinion-"
Ella didn't mean to cut him off with her laughter, but it was so endearing how he was so eager to help and instantly giving her options.
"What?" Damien lifted his head, smiling once he saw Ella's bright face and smile. She looked stunningly gorgeous. "What?" Damien persisted, pressing a kiss to her smiling lips.
"I'm just glad you're so willing to help. What I was saying about the colors is that I don't know which you would prefer. There some ideas I have in mind, but I'd like it if you were apart of this process. I want to know that you're going to like this wedding too."
"I'm going to love it regardless if you pick that... swan pink color or if you want lime green for a dress." Damien offered, raising on his forearms on either side of Ella's body, grazing the skin of her arms with his fingers.
"I'm actually glad you said that," Ella lifted her hand to graze his stubble with her thumb, her other fingers tenderly holding his jaw. "I want a bright pink one."
Damien blinked. "Um, okay... well, if you really like it," Damien seemed taken aback.
"I'm just kidding, babe." Ella laughed, feeling Damien smile in relief before leaning forward on her, kissing her gently. Ella only wrapped her arms loosely around his neck, feeling how his warm and hard body came down onto hers.
"You'd still look gorgeous." Damien nipped at her jaw, finding his place back into her arms, completely forgetting about his previous headache and stomach ache.
"Thank you." Ella chuckled, stretching under him, causing him to lift up briefly until she found her comfortable spot before he laid back down. "Mom has been wondering constantly about what I'm up to." Ella revealed nicely. Nagging would be more like the word she needed, but there was no point in saying it anyway.
"Does she not know that you've planned... quite a bit actually." Damien mentally listed off everything: the flowers, the invitations, the guest list, the food, the cake.
"Not really." Ella sighed, "I know she really wants to be apart of this, I know, but..."
"Elizabeth loves you, sweetheart." Damien murmured, "I'm sure she's going to understand that you want to have it here."
"It's just fair, you know? I don't want anyone to feel uncomfortable and having to fly people... it's just not practical."
Ella had been so worried about it all. While her mother had been listing off recommendations that were seeming more like requirements for the wedding she wanted in Spain, Damien's mother had also been strongly suggesting all of the cathedrals and dresses that were located in Italy for the big day.
Damien hadn't even been aware of those calls until he noticed that Ella had been dozing off too much during dinner or when she "read" at night. After he found out, he warned his mother to stop stressing Ella. Celeste hadn't known that she had been stressing her poor future daughter-in-law, but as soon as she knew, she stopped suggesting ideas and instead let Ella bring it to conversation willingly, of course, Ella never did.
Ella hadn't known why Celeste stopped talking about it abruptly, but she also wasn't planning on bringing it up. She also had a guilty suspicion that the reason behind it all was Damien, but Ella was finally having a break, so she couldn't bring herself to be back at the tormented place.
The next following day, though, as usual, Ella and Damien got ready for the day, Damien heading down first to start on breakfast while Ella finished packing her purse for the day.
"You look beautiful." Damien complimented Ella once she finally descending downstairs.
"Thank you." Ella smiled because even though he said that every morning when she came down, whether she came in dressed up for work or in her night gown on the weekends, he always told her she was beautiful.
"I might arrive a little later tonight. You remember Henderson's case, right?" Damien sat at the breakfast bar to eat while Ella stood, a habit Damien had recently learned about her: she always stood when having breakfast.
"What would like for dinner, then?" Ella pondered, coming up with recipe ideas for this evening already.
"Whatever you'd like." Damien stood, plate in hand to place in the sink. "Or I can pick you up and we can go somewhere."
Ella scrunched her nose. She didn't want to eat out again. They had already been doing that so much since Damien couldn't tolerate the woody scent from the house.
"We can talk about it when I return or something; I've got to go." Damien rushed, checking his watch while stopping by Ella to kiss her head while she continued to eat.
"Have a good day at work." Ella called after him, and Damien smiled.
He didn't think he would ever get used to having such pleasant mornings and evenings with her. It was practically the highlight of his day. Getting her to wish him a good day at work but also being able to come home to her was something so trivial, he didn't think it was normal to be so over the moon about things like that.
Ella, on the other hand, wasn't actually planning on going to work today. She had seen how much Damien had been trying to silently suffer about the wood in the house, so Ella had rescheduled her appointments, which luckily weren't many since it was Monday. She was planning on going to the store to purchase scent diffusers and cleaning the house as much as possible. Not that there was much to clean anyway; they had already cleaned everything when they installed themselves there about two months ago.
Stefanie ended up accompanying Ella, happy to be able to spend more time with her older sister since she really hadn't much of her, even though Ella had already promised that they would go wedding dress shopping together.
"You should get this."
"I don't think so." Ella transferred the heavy shopping bag to her other arm, looking at some lavender candles.
"Oh! Definitely this."
"No, thank you."
"What about this?" Stefanie's voice sounded somewhat farther away.
"Nope." Ella again, didn't bother looking. Stefanie was like that. She loved spending money on unnecessary things. It was a good thing she made enough to spend like she did.
"Oh, let me tell you!" Stef began talking about how she had met a boy at her modeling gig and how they really hit it off.
"Just be careful, Stef. Don't fall too hard just yet." Ella advised, paying for her last purchase of the day since it was getting pretty late, and she still needed to go set up the house.
"I know... it's just... I see what Fransisco has, and I see what you are getting, and I also want that. I want a lifelong partner, a home, and a family."
"Yes, but Stef, trust me when I say that everything happens with time. It's not just an overnight process." Ella linked an arm through her younger sister's arm. "If you build a castle really quickly without giving the cement time to dry, then it's going to be a wonky foundation that builds a wonky home."
"I know... I know..." Stef sighed, leaning Ella's shoulder. Though she was about three inches taller than Ella, a good 5'9", they both almost didn't see much of the height difference until they took pictures. Then, their brother, Fransisco, stood at a good 6'1". "When am I going to get another niece or nephew? Personally, I want a nephew. I have some sick boxing moves I can show him."
"I know. Damien still remembers that right hook you gave him." Ella chuckled, remembering that one occasion when Stef went to Ella's home without knowing that Damien was there alone, waiting for Ella.
After their shopping, Ella returned back home alone and set up everything after doing more thorough cleaning. She wasn't sure if she do more cleaning at this point. Her Damien had already washed and disinfected everything.
Taking a phone call as her break, Ella began lighting up some candles while she answered her work phone.
"Olivia would like to see you." The social services worker went straight to the point, not bothering to keep up with pleasantries. Ella always thought she was quite... hostile, but Ella also liked working with her because she was good at her job. Whether she said it or not, her actions showed that she cared for the general safety of the children assigned to her.
"Right now?" Ella turned, looking at her house. She would need to go to her office, but also, she had already planned Damien's surprise.
"I'm outside your office. You're not opening." The social worker, Jessie, pounded the door loudly just for added effect.
"Oh. That's because I'm at home today... listen, I'll be right there... just... give me a minute, okay?"
"Don't bother. We'll just go to you."
Ella froze. "Pardon?"
"You've had others at your house before. It's just Olivia."
"That's not my name." Olivia could be lowly heard in the background.
"Would you like me to wait?" Jessie asked Ella, and Ella touched her forehead.
This could be a good exercise for Olivia. Besides, if the girl felt comfortable enough to go seek Ella, then who was Ella to deny her entrance? Ella loved that Olivia was opening up to her more.
"Alright. You have my new address, right?"
"We'll be there in twenty." Jessie hung up, and Ella nodded, staying still and silent for a few moments, pondering about her decision before she just shook her head and went back to dinner. It was getting a bit late, and she wanted to make sure that Olivia felt welcomed and that she surprised Damien, too.
A few minutes later, and Olivia got there first, and Ella happily welcomed her in. Jessie only dropped her off, rushing to get back to finish a file on another child before she returning later to pick up Olivia.
"My mom was... she was a coward." Olivia set her lips in a grim line. "I understand her fear. Grandmother was never a coward, though. She stood tall. She stood her ground."
Ella listened quietly, not bothering to nod or make any move. Olivia was just focused on saying her story out loud.
"I was more like Grandmother. I stood in front of mom. Even when I just wanted to hide, to be protected, I stood my ground. I would remember how Grandmother stood tall, her head held high. Then again, I don't think she ever got beat. Abuse, right?"
Ella nodded, wanting so badly to mend this girl's innocence back together.
"So I want to be named after my grandmother."
"What was your grandmother's name?"
"Mary," Olivia looked down at Rufus who had settled in between the two girls, his tail gently wagging, brushing up against Ella's ankles on one side and Mary's ankles on the other.
"Mary," Ella repeated, and the little girl nodded, a small smile on her lips.
Before Ella could respond again, the front door opened, scaring Mary with the loud entrance since everything had been pretty quiet.
"Hey, love," Damien popped into view, suddenly startled by the rapid movement that the little and unknown girl had made when Ella stood to greet him. The child had clung to Ella's hand, afraid to let her be close to the large man that stood at the entrance of the room.
"Mary," Ella held Mary's two little hands in between both of hers, "I would like you to meet Damien Petrotti. He is my fiancé." Ella gestured to her wary and surprised fiancé that didn't know what to do at that moment. He had seen how Mary had reacted to his entrance, so he knew that getting closer was out of the question.
Mary simply tugged Ella closer, not necessarily standing front of her rather, almost, just almost, hiding behind her, which was something Ella felt relief about because that meant Mary was letting go of the protector role that she had always played. She was trusting another adult to protect her, and she was trusting Ella.
"He... he's your boyfriend? You're getting married?" Mary looked up at Ella briefly, afraid to take her eyes off the tall man that stood a couple feet away.
"That's right." Ella nodded, pointing at a photo she had hanging on the wall of her and Damien posing for a picture the day they got engaged. Both had warm smiles on their face, leaning on each other as they posed for the camera.
Mary looked at the photo carefully, noticing how Ella's smile was wide, and she had those lines that showed through when the young psychologist laughed. Mary knew enough to know that Ella was actually happy.
Damien cleared his throat. "I... I'm going to go upstairs and clean up a bit." He resisted the urge to go to Ella to greet her with a kiss like he usually did when he arrived home to her.
"Sure. I'll set up for dinner." Ella turned to Mary as Damien left. "Would like to stay for dinner? If you want, we can have it in the patio ourselves." Ella rubbed her fingertips over Mary's knuckles tenderly. "It's okay if you do. I want you to feel comfortable."
Mary looked down at Rufus who was still wagging his tail happily.
Dogs and Ella were good judges of character.
"I... I can stay." Mary still shuffled closer to Ella when helping prep the table, always using her or the large Golden Retriever as her shield.
Damien, when heading downstairs, didn't know whether to make some noise when entering to inform them of his presence or to be quiet as to not startle them.
"It's smells good." Damien softly said upon entering the kitchen, his hair still slightly damp from his shower. He was dressed comfortably, some dark sweatpants and a white tee shirt that made his muscled form stand out a bit.
"Thank you. I made some of the chicken rice you really liked." Ella guided them to the patio outside that overlooked the empty pool. Since it was still chilly out and they had only recently bought the place, the pool hadn't been set yet. Ella had already set a small and portable heater outside to keep themselves warm while they ate.
"The house smells good too. It doesn't smell like wood." Damien approached her carefully, knowing that Mary was watching him attentively.
"Oh! Right! I actually set up the essentials oils now, so hopefully it doesn't smell like wood. I didn't ask what scent you wanted, though. I wanted it to be a surprise, but we can-"
"It's okay, amore. I love it." Damien kissed her head, reaching to take some of the plates in her hand.
Mary stiffened slightly when Damien approach Ella closely, but she was trying to not panic. It seemed like Damien was a decent man, it just made her nervous to see such a large man hang out around them with the history she had with her father.
"Come on, Rufus." Damien patted his leg, and Rufus ran up to him, lapping happily at Damien's hands when Damien snuck a piece of chicken to the pup. That pulled a smile out of Mary.
"What are you doing?" Ella didn't even look at Damien and her pup while she served a generous portion onto Mary's plate.
"Grabbing some water," Damien smoothly placed some water bottles on the table.
"Damien..." Ella three him a side glance.
"See, Rufus? Gotta eat quieter, buddy." Damien shrugged, sitting back in his seat relaxed while Rufus threw himself on the floor, his leg curling around Mary's ankle that barely touched the floor due to her sitting on the larger chair.
Mary smiled a bit wider, her own gently reaching to scratch at the happy pup's head.
"How was your day?" Ella questioned Damien while he opened her water and she served him his plate.
"It was good. I think Kim is going to force me to take some time off, though."
"Is that a bad thing?" Ella sat in her seat, closer to Mary than to Damien in order to help Mary be more at ease.
"Not necessarily." Damien denied. He had wanted to take Ella out on a trip for a long time now, and he could use this as his opportunity.
The rest of dinner was relaxed talk about different topics that had happened during their day until Jessie called to inform Ella that she was on her way to pick up Mary.
"I'll clean up." Damien got up, taking most of the dishes with him to give Ella and Mary some privacy so that they could bid their goodbyes.
"He's... he seems calm." Mary watched through the window as Damien washed some of the dishes, sometimes shooing Rufus who was prancing around the man's feet.
"He is, actually." Ella nodded, glancing back at the man in her life before looking back at Mary, reaching to grab ahold of one of her hands. "How do you feel?"
Mary swung her legs gently. "He seems nice. Does he stay with you all the time?"
Ella shook her head. "Not really. We both have jobs that we go to and errands we have to run separately."
"When will you return to work?"
"Tomorrow, but if you ever want to come and walk Rufus with me or help me clean," Ella winked at Mary, who giggled at Ella's obviously advantageous offer. "I'm just kidding about the cleaning part. You are welcome here anytime."
Mary nodded, knowing that she probably wouldn't. It still scared her to be so close to a man, let alone someone as large as Damien. He seemed decent today, and Ella also seemed really relaxed, but Mary didn't want to stay.
"Come, I'll walk you to the front. Jessie should be here any minute now." Ella extended her hand out for Mary to hold, and Mary did so comfortably, scooting closer to Ella's body once they entered the house. Ella made sure to round the kitchen through the dining room just to avoid Damien for Mary's sake.
Once in the front, Jessie pulled up not a second later, and Mary quickly left, thanking Ella for accepting her new name and dinner.