Chapter Two
A little pep talk is all it takes
Elizabeth had circled the block for the seventh time that evening. She looked out of her window and back down at the address written on the napkin; she had pin pointed which house was Henry's, now all she need to do was stop the car and get to the door. She sighed heavily as she pulled to a stop on the side of the road. She pulled her sun visor down and looked in the mirror. She hadn't cared for her appearance for months, ten months. She hadn't cared for much just recently and she couldn't understand why this strange man was different. As she looked at her reflection she closed her eyes and took a deep breath;
'Ok, you can do this, come on Elizabeth, He doesn't know you, he doesn't need to know. It's just a distraction from reality' she mumbled to herself. A sudden surge of courage washed over her. She pulled the key from the car, swung the door open and headed to Henry's home. She raised her hand to knock the door. She gritted her teeth and laughed awkwardly at herself; she tried again, hesitantly she lifted her hand and wrapped it into a ball before knocking the door three times.
Henry was inside packing some items into boxes when he heard the door knock. He titled his head wondering who it could be. He walked to the bay window and peered out noticing that long blonde hair flowing he knew instantly who it was. Henry walked to the front door and with a smile wider than the river Nile he opened it.
'Hey'
'Hi' she echoed and smiled softly.
'Come on in' He stepped aside to allow her to come in.
'Excuse the mess, I am trying to pack but it turns out it's not my forte' he chuckled and removed items from his sofa so she could take a seat.
'No, its fine you did warn me'
'I didn't think you were coming, I mean It's been four days and I just assumed you might have come to your senses and thought going to a strangers house is probably not a good idea'
'Well, I would be lying if I said I hadn't thought about that, but...well here I am. All it took was a few trips around the block and a little pep talk' she admitted shyly.
'Only a little one' he teased trying to make her feel better. She smiled at him, feeling at ease around him. A feeling that was unfamiliar to her; uncomfortable almost but yet so fresh, new and comforting all at the same time. Henry was the perfect oxymoron.
'Would you like a drink? Have you eaten, maybe we could go and get some food?' He asked
'I'm ok thanks, I haven't eaten but we don't have to go out, I can help with some of this if you like?' she offered
'I didn't invite you over to help me pack up' he laughed softly
'So what did you invite me over for Henry McCord?' she raised an eyebrow at him and smirked
'Urm, noting like that, I just. Urm... Chinese good for you?' he rubbed his head as his cheeks flushed. Elizabeth bit down on her lip trying not to laugh at the flustered, sexy man before her.
'Chinese is perfect' she nodded, standing up and walking towards the boxes
'So what goes where?' she asked determined to get stuck in, she needed the welcome distraction.
'Ok, Urm, maybe you could put those books into a box? They're all coming with me' he explained before grabbing a menu and ordering them some food. Henry stepped into the kitchen to order some food and despite her polite decline he poured them a drink; he knew she like hot chocolate as that what she drank at the cafe the other day so with that in mind and the Chinese ordered he walked back to her handing her a fresh mug of hot chocolate.
'Here you go, food will be about half an hour' he smiled
'Thank you' she took the drink from him and placed it down on the side. She turned back to his books, running her hands along them as she picked them up to put into a box. She curiously read every title of each book before packing them away; book titles always reveal a lot about a person.
'I am a strange twenty-two year old, I know' Henrys words alerted her to the fact he was watching her. Elizabeth shook her head placing the book down and picking up her drink
'I wasn't thinking that actually'
'Oh, you wasn't looking at the fact most of those books are religious, or philosophical and wondering who the hell this man is?' he rolled his eyes as she blushed
'Not entirely, I was thinking how refreshing it was to be in the presence of someone well educated' Henry smiled proudly when she said that; she was sexy and intelligent, that is always a good recipe.
'I am very interested in religion and ethics' he clarified and she nodded at him
'Well it's a nice change'
'So you feeling better?' She looked at him, she knew he was alluding to the other day but sought out clarification anyway, more as a means to give herself an extra few seconds to compose an answer.
'Sorry?'
'The other day, you said you had a bad day, you looked like you'd be crying, so are you feeling better?'
'Oh that...' Of course that, she knew it was going to be that. 'Yes thank you' she lied
'So why are you moving anyway?' she changed the subject, something that didn't go unnoticed by Henry, but for now he 'played' along.
'Well, I am due to be based at the Marines training camp over the course of the next six to twelve months and I'll be staying there. It makes no sense to have an apartment this big and this far away from the base, so I am downsizing and moving a little closer. Not that I will spend much time there but it's cheaper'
'Do you not get to go home from base?'
'Not really, you can but that privilege tends to be reserved for those with families, well young families mainly' he explained and she nodded as his words digested through her system.
'What about you? Did you have to drive far?'
'No. I live just the other side of town so, twenty minute drive. I have recently moved so I know the struggle of all this'
'How come you moved?'
'Oh I just needed some space, I had two flat mates but I just needed to be on my own, in my own company so it felt like the right thing to do' she offered an honest explanation. Henry stopped what he was doing picked up his drink and walked towards her taking a seat a little closer to where she was sat organizing his books.
'I needed space tends to mean something happened'
'Not something I want to talk about' she immediately shut him down, stern but soft. He knew in that instance he wasn't going to break down her walls with a simple nudge.
'You know, Thomas Aquinas said, 'sorrow can be elevated with a glass of wine, a bath and a good night's sleep'
'Well does your Thomas guy have any other suggestions because I don't drink, my new place doesn't have a bath and sleep evades me' she tried to laugh it off but she knew already that Henry was on to her. For some reason she couldn't build her wall any higher around him; perhaps she was scared of missing the view before her.
'Whatever happened the other day, or caused you to move away from people, or caused that sad look in your eyes; well you've got someone here who is willing to listen when you're ready to talk. That isn't my Thomas guy talking, that is me' he pressed his lips together sadly as he looked at her. She was clearly broken, yet still so beautiful.
'Oh so you invited the girl who told you she had baggage over to try and fix her?' her eyes piercing into his; a connection forming.
'No, I invited her over because I had a great time with her; I don't fix people, I'm a pilot not a doctor' he half teased.
'Well it's a good job I don't need a doctor then, Come to think of it I don't need a pilot either...' she laughed as she mocked him.
'Oi you' he playfully nudged her, his hand pushing on her knee. Their first contact with one another, the warmth of a touch from a strange like something they'd never experienced. She gasped as she pretended to be hurt by his gesture and his laughter erupted from his lips and flooded the room. She chuckled and turned her attention back to the pile of items at her side.
'OH MY, you have SCRABBLE' she almost shrieked with excitement
'Can we play? I haven't played scrabble since I was a kid, no one would play with me, apparently I was too good' and there it was, a slight slip of the tongue and the first notion of family was mentioned.
'Of course, let's set it up' he took the game from her and headed to the kitchen, he heard her mention her childhood and wondered if that could be a way through her walls, but for now decided to enjoy the company of one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen.
As the evening carried out they continued to laugh and converse with one another; flirting is the more appropriate term. Elizabeth helped Henry clear away the dishes from their food and pack up a few more things before deciding to call it a night.
'Thank you Henry, I had a great evening' she leant on the door frame as she stepped outside.
'So did I, but I want a re-match a scrabble, there is no way you didn't cheat!' he hung back a little by the door
'I didn't, but I mean it's fine if you want to lose again I suppose you can' she mocked
'I want to spend more time with you' he opened up and noted how she recoiled
'Henry I'
'Stop doing that, stop for whatever reason pushing me away before anything has even had a chance to begin' Her eyes narrowed as they fixated on him, how did he know? How was he so understanding of her?
'I don't want to damage you' she whispered
'And how do you suppose you're going to do that?' he stepped a little closer to her, the gap between them just inches
'I told you, I have –'
'Baggage' he announced at the same time as her.
'I have two hands, I can hold a lot of bags' he smiled down at her, his mind wondering why the heck this woman did not know just how special she is. Elizabeth didn't know how to respond, she dipped her head and closed her eyes, she needed to get home. She was tired and her guard was slipping, the pain creeping in. Henry reached for her chin and tilted her head up, he closed the gap, softly brushing his lips onto hers; it was light but meaningful. Stepping back he left his hand on her chin so she could look at him
'I had to give myself a little pep talk for that' he winked, echoing her words from earlier that evening. She smiled and bit her lip.
'Who are you Henry McCord?'
'I could say the same about you, Elizabeth Adams, Goodnight, Drive safe' Henry watched as she walked to her car. He remained at the front door until she drove off into the distance; once gone he stepped back inside and carried on packing his things into boxes, all the while his mind infatuated by this woman and the mystery her eyes held.