CHAPTER FIVE
A New Day
Adam’s Perspective
I did not go back to the cabin and she did not leave it for the duration of the entire voyage. In both parts I was both ashamed of myself and outright wrathful of spirit when it came to her.
In a word the woman had driven me mad. Seething as I had been for much of the voyage I stared with relief at the shoreline of America growing closer by the moment.
Finally a chance to get off his boat and away from the woman that had set my world in order completely on fire. Suddenly my scowling gaze of the approaching shoreline was interrupted by the presence of her.
I blinked and half turned to her as she stood beside me also now gazing at the approaching shore. Awkwardly, I looked away.
It felt like something should be said, but I didn’t know what and as I wrestled with words I saw something white come into my field of vision. My eyes focused and I took in the sight of a scrap of paper held in her hand, a hand that had reached out to offer it to me even as her gaze remained fixed on the horizon.
Feeling suddenly quiet inside from my earlier troubled thoughts I tugged the piece of paper free from her hand. The paper came free easily and her hand returned to be in front of her.
With both curiosity and trepidation, I opened the bent piece of paper to read its simple, but profound message, “I’m sorry.”
At those two words I felt a wealth of anger simply drift into nothingness as if it had never been. My hand closed the note and I stuck it in a vest pocket as in some ways it was something I would always treasure.
Glancing at her I said, “I’m sorry as well.”
Her head ducked down for a moment. Then I watched her pull out another scrap of paper and again she offered it out to me as she had before.
Bemused, I tugged on it and she let it go. Opening the note I read yet another profound statement, made even more profound by the fact that she hadn’t known for sure what my reaction to the first message would be.
Feeling a rise of intense emotion I nodded again as I reread her simple note of, “I would like to start over with you.”
Tucking the paper away as I had the first I glanced at her and said, “Me too.”
Finally, she glanced at me and then under her breath, she said, “I can be a lot of trouble.”
I nodded, but said, “So I’ve noticed, but I think you’re worth it.”
She looked away, but shyly, her hand came out and curled around the fingers of my hand. I held her hand with mine, even as I saw her whisper, “Thank you.”
Standing beside her I felt suddenly that I too had much to say thank you for, but not to her. No, I sent my thank you to God, because something had been done miraculously in this woman that moments before I had been dreaming nonstop of escaping from now to being entirely to content once more to make a future life with.
The ship docked and then things were very hustled. I was a very important man and as much as I wanted to be there to transition Lorene to life in the colonies I had other pressing matters to attend to, which saw me abandoning her for most of the day.
My home was nothing such as hers had been, but it was well furnished, solid, and to me at least cozy seeming. I liked it, but I wasn’t so sure about what her reaction to it would be.
It was quite a change for her. Everything was.
It was after dark when I finally got free from the last meeting with colonial officials and could make my way home. I had no idea what I would find when I reached my house.
With trepidation, I opened the door of the house. Things were very different.
I stood for a moment, shocked. Was this my house?
I was so temporarily unsure of that that I actually stepped back outside to make sure. Yes, it was.
I stepped back inside. Slowly I hung my coat up.
Candles were burning warmly in places they never had before. The air smelled fresh with a hint of lavender to it.
I had no servants and I had debated on the need to hire some, but now as I slowly stepped through my house I saw that was entirely unnecessary. My woman it seemed was more than capable of taking care of her home.
Stepping into the kitchen I stared around in even greater shock at the order I saw everywhere I looked. On the table was a suspicious looking dish of food and with it a note.
I was beginning to love these notes. I read it and laughed out loud softly.
“I made food, but it’s terrible. I will get better at cooking I promise.”
Taking a bite of what was on the plate I abruptly spit it back out. God bless her, she’d been right.
Strangely, I could have cared less. What I cared about was the effort made.
Feeling touched deeply by simply everything occurring I left the kitchen in search of her. I found her in my study.
My respect for her grew. While she had tidied and cleaned the entire house, she had studiously left my desk full of papers alone.
Circling the chair she sat in that was drawn up before a fire I looked down upon my sleeping wife. She must’ve literally exhausted herself working as hard as she had all day.
My cock lengthened and then expanded at the simple sight of her in gentle repose, but I ignored it willfully. Gently I lifted her out of the chair and into my arms.
Carrying her up the stairs, I only beheld more wonders along the way. She had made my house a home.
There was an actual feeling of it in the air. I, really…. it was hard to express what I felt.
I’d never really had a home. I’d always wanted one though.
Very gently I laid her down on the freshly made bed. So many changes in just one day.
Straightening up I looked down and whispering out loud, I said, “Thank you God. I didn’t expect this, much less think it was even possible.”
I left then, but was back moments later with a handwritten note of my own. I set it beside the bed and then reaching into my pocket I pulled out a gold necklace with a single bright shining peridot gemstone on it.
More than anything I wanted to lay down and start over right here and now with her physically, but well that was a lie in some ways. Because I wasn’t going to do that.
She deserved her rest and I wanted what was best for her, even as she had brought me a much greater fullness today by all that she’d done to make my house a home. She’d made me feel respected and that was truly a priceless gift all of its own.
Slowly I backed out of the room. I wasn’t sleepy anyway and her efforts to clean things up were likewise an inspiration for me.
There was a reason to tidy things up now, when before there really hadn’t been one.