“In that case, I’d better show you how much the laidback life in Cherry Lake can be as consuming and fun as the big city then. And if you’d care to join me inside, we can lay some cushions down in front of the fire and have our picnic.” He took her hand and led her back inside the cabin where it was warm and cozy.
When Bella was settled, he handed her the basket and she produced her idea of a picnic. A bottle of champagne and a pair of plastic glasses came out first.
“You deal with this, please, while I serve our entree.”
“With pleasure.” He unwrapped the cork and eased it out, careful not to waste any of the precious liquid by showing off with a burst of bubbles. He poured them a glass each and settled the bottle out of reach of the fire. When he went to pass a glass to Bella, she was already waiting with a plate of food for him. “Swap.”
“Cheers, Bella. To our first date.”
“Cheers. I like it out here, Jake. So pretty and peaceful. Do you fish much?”
“Not as much as I’d like to. What with work and taking care of Cory, the number of times I hit the water are getting less and less, and this time of year it’s not feasible.”
“If I owned a cabin like this, I’d make a point of spending the time up here even if it’s only to watch the water and relax.” She picked up a sesame cracker and scooped a morsel of pate. “This is my foie gras I made yesterday. It’s not for the book; it’s to nibble because I love good food.” She watched as he tried it. “What do you think?”
“I could get used to eating like this.” The flavors of rich duck topped with a bitter orange sauce swept over his tongue and he imagined the workout he’d have to do to keep his weight in the healthy range if she continued to cook for them.
“Now you know why I like to cook. Fresh is best, I always say, and good food is a necessity of life in my book, excuse the pun.” They ate in easy silence.
Once the entree was finished, Bella took his plate, gave him her glass, and served up the main part of the meal.
When they swapped glass for plate again, Jake leaned back on the cushions, his feet facing the fireplace, the heat from the flames warming his toes. “What do we have here?”
“Smoked chicken, warm zucchini, and walnut salad with garlic and lemon aioli and sweet potato croutons.”
Bella scooped a fork of salad up and ate it. As she chewed, she used her fork to point at the meal. “You know, if I had to, I could live on fish. It’s so easy to cook with and I love the variety I see in the stores these days.” She swallowed and scooped up another forkful, turned her face up to the fire.
“I’ll have to make a point of bringing you out here more often then.”
“That’d be wonderful. I can feel the tension slipping away sitting here watching the flames. Why didn’t I see how busy I was getting? How did I miss that when Russell didn’t?” She stabbed a piece of chicken.
“Maybe you got so wound up in what you’re doing, it felt normal to be so busy. I think we all get on that treadmill now and then. It’s hard to get off when you don’t know it’s happening.” He scooped a fork of salad and put it into his mouth.
“I bet you know when to step back.” Bella took a sip of champagne and gave him a megawatt smile.
In the firelight, it was hard to see the shadows under her eyes but they were there. Without the heavy makeup for her television appearances, they were darker than he would have liked. The urge to protect her started to rise again. If he could wave a magic wand and rid her of the stress, he would.
“Some days, no. I guess it’s human nature to keep going when you think you’re doing good or on a mission to succeed. When Lisa died, I ran myself ragged trying to make sure that Cory didn’t miss out on anything because he didn’t have a mom anymore. I put all the energy of two people into my day and it was the worst thing I could have done.”
Bella put her plate down and rolled the glass between her hands as she listened to him talk.
“I was walking a thin edge, I can tell you that. Superman had nothing on me. I was up early to make sure the house was clean, Cory had a decent breakfast to start the day, his lunch was packed, and schoolwork all done. I’d try to prepare dinner so I could pop it in the oven when I got home. Didn’t always work out that way though. Then I’d either drop him at school or at Dad’s depending on my work roster. We both had to juggle sports and after school activities or Cory would miss out.” Thinking about it now made him cringe. How close he’d come to burnout and breakdown.
“How did you know when to stop?” She rested her chin on her hands, tilted her face up to watch him.
“It was something Cory said that snapped me out of it. He told me I was looking a lot like his mom and it scared him.” He swallowed back the emotion. “Near the end she had permanent shadows under her eyes, weight loss was rapid, and she got very frail. From the pain mostly and the uselessness of it all. We’d acknowledged it by then, the fact it was terminal and there was nothing we could do. When Cory said that, I looked in the mirror. He was right. I looked terrible and it was then that I finally gave in and admitted I was being an
