Chapter 9:
Mr. Steele was adding the last touches to the food, while Laura was setting the table. When the bell rang, they shared a brief glance, he came to her, and after giving her a slight kiss, told her: "Let's do it."
"Let's do it," she answered.
He opened the door, and it was Mildred, ready to enjoy a lovely dinner with her kids.
Sometime later, Abigail arrived with Frances and Donald. They were a little surprised to find Mildred there, but nobody said a word about it.
Everyone was in place at the table, when Mr. Steele brought the delicious first course from the kitchen.
"This looks fantastic, Mr. Steele," said Abigail. "You are such a treasure. It's not easy to find a fine man like you, able to find pleasure in ordinary tasks like cooking. I'd imagined you leaving those tasks to others while focusing on more relevant ones."
"I do have my focus in transcendental tasks, Abigail. However, sometimes an ordinary task as a well-cooked dinner can open the door for another kind of unexpected pleasures," He answered her with a smile.
"I don't seem to understand…" said a confused Abigail.
Laura was staring at him livid. What was the man doing? Wasn't enough the amount of anxiety she was suffering, he'd needed to increase the dose? For a brief moment, their eyes met. Abigail, like the rest of the dinners, was still waiting for him to clarify his last statement.
"I have the pleasure to enjoy Laura's family company tonight… It's a special moment for me, and I hope for you too, Abigail. An ordinary task as making dinner, opened the door to have you all here; a real pleasure."
"Oh, of course, Mr. Steele, it's a real pleasure for us too," answered a relieved Abigail.
Laura restarted to breathe again.
After that, they went through the first course chatting and having a good time. When the main dish arrived, Laura began to feel the critical moment closer. She was beyond than nervous then, and the food didn't seem like a good option in her state. Mr. Steele was offering delicacies to everyone when Laura excused herself and walked to the kitchen. She pretended to look for something in the cabinets, but the real reason for her escape was that she needed some air to breathe, out of her family's eyes.
Everybody remained at the table, but Mildred's instincts felt that something big was on the way to happen. She excused herself too and went to the kitchen following Laura's path. "Are you all right, Miss Holt?" she asked.
"I'm all right, Mildred. I just needed some air. The antibiotics are making me more sensitive over some sort of things," answered Miss Holt.
"I see. Don't panic, honey. I know what's happening here tonight," said the secretary.
"You do?" asked an astonished Laura.
"Well, Miss Holt. We've known each other for some time now. The only thing that can make you as nervous as you are this evening is your family. And as for how things are going at the office, I think I can guess what it's going to happen before long at this table."
"You know…" said a surrendered but relieved Laura.
"That you two are together? Of course, I know, honey. I'm not a baby, you know… I work with you two at the same office, and I'm not blind," said Mildred.
"Is it that obvious? I supposed we were hiding it respectably."
"Come on honey! You can hide it from the rest of the world maybe, but not from me. I've known for some time. And I'm very happy for you two! I have to confess that I would have loved you telling me. But putting the clues together had had its magic too. We are kind of detectives after all…"
"Well, it's nice to feel somebody else on our side…" said Laura with relief.
"I'm always on your side, Miss Holt. Try to remember that. We are on the same team. Let's go back to the table. Everything is going to be okay."
"You are right. Let's go back, Mildred. And… Thank you," said a grateful Laura.
"You're welcome, honey."
The two ladies returned to the dining room.
"Are you going to try with some of the food, Laura? It tastes as it looks, trust me," said Mr. Steele looking at her.
"Mm, I just can't decide what to begin with…" she said looking through all the delicacies. She told him with her eyes that everything was fine and that she was confident about the conversation that will follow.
Everything happened as planned. Mildred was thrilled with the news, and Abigail almost fainted with joy.
"I'm delighted you have found my daughter, Mr. Steele. She is a fortunate woman. Laura had always been the rebel one, but it looks like you have found the way to tame her," said a happy Abigail.
"Perhaps I would have to clarify something to you, Mrs. Holt. I didn't find Laura, actually. She found me. I was the one in need to be found," he stopped then, and with his eyes glued to Laura's he followed, "I'm the lucky one, and I would never dare to tame her. I love her because of the way she is."
Laura was utterly touched while listening to his words, especially to one of them. Frances noticed it and decided to cover her little sister for a while from their mother's onslaughts. She changed the subject subtly, and after a while, both sisters, with Mildred's additional help, were picking up the dessert in the kitchen, Frances found the moment to give Laura a tender embrace. "I'm very happy for you, Laura. It's not good to spend your life alone. I know you will make everything fit. I know you can do it. Just take one step at the time, and allow yourself to enjoy the moment. "
"Thank you, Frances. I'm trying exactly to do that. It looks like we are not so different after all…"
"We are not different, Laura. We have different timing. That's all." That was everything Frances and Laura would share in front of Mildred. Laura's sister spent the rest of the dinner trying to have one private moment with her sibling, while Laura succeeded in avoiding it.
The rest of the evening run successfully after everyone relaxed. Laura and Mr. Steele's eyes met with each other's several times along the dessert. At one point, he took her hand in his and put them on the table. Laura was happily surprised that it didn't feel wrong. No more hiding for them in the future.
"I really like the wine you chose to complement the food, Mr. Steele," said Abigail. She looked at Laura then. "I noticed you avoided drinking wine along the whole dinner, Laura dear. Is there any reason in particular?" she asked her daughter, adding to the question a suspicious touch.
"Actually, there is a particular reason, mother," she delayed her answer for a while, having another sip of her water and giving a mischievous glare to Mr. Steele. The whole table held their breath with suspense. "I'm under antibiotics treatment, and I can't have alcohol in the meantime."
"Pity, dear, the wine goes divinely with everything," answered Abigail.
"Believe me mother, I would be thrilled with a glass of wine in my hands at this very moment," said Laura, drinking another sip of water with resignation.
Mildred smiled to Mr. Steele, who smiled back at her in return.
Dinner continued, and it was well after dessert when Frances and Donald said their goodbyes adducing the next day was a working one. Abigail tried to stay for a little while but was quickly dragged by her oldest daughter and her husband to leave with them. Laura had had more than enough from Abigail in one evening, her sister thought.
After that, Laura and Mildred carried everything to the kitchen, and then Mr. Steele offered them a cognac. Laura refused the drink, and it was then when the secretary began to feel like a third wheel. She decided at that moment that her kids would welcome her departure, and they said their goodbyes.
Laura and Mr. Steele were in front of the fireplace, enjoying the peace of the moment after a stressful long day followed by a stressful but finally joyful, long night.
"Thank you for a lovely dinner. Everything was fantastic. Even my family behavior was respectable," Laura told him.
"I'm pleased you enjoyed it, Laura. Everything happened as we expected it." He approached her then. "Now that the ordinary task as a well-cooked dinner is over, don't you think it's time to open the door for another kind of pleasures?" he asked.
"Maybe we could start right now with just an incentive," said Laura working his shirt buttons slowly.
"Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me?"
"You look older than Ben Braddock, Mr. Steele," Laura answered sensually. "Besides, I'm not trying… I'm counting on it…"