Chapter 10 Cathy

Chapter 10 Cathy

The day began, and I was in the guest room at the Night Pack’s mansion, something I had never imagined in my wildest thoughts.

My cell phone rang, and I answered immediately.

"Good morning, mom. Are you coming today?" Elliot asked, still sleepy.

"No, baby, but I promise I will come soon," I said. "How have you been?"

"Fine, just playing with my toys," he said with a little smile. "Nani made me pancakes and is taking me to the park after school."

"Have fun, then," I said.

He passed the phone to Nani.

"Hello, ma’am. How has your trip been?"

"Better than I thought, but now I think I’ll be staying a little longer than planned. Would you mind babysitting for a couple more days for Elliot?"

"I understand. I have no problem. Your boy is an angel, and I’ll take care of him until you get back," she stated.

"Thank you very much. I’ll send you some more money to take him to the movies and something extra for you," I said. "But please don’t let him eat too much candy, and tell him to do his school homework."

"Yes ma’am, I’ll keep you posted," she added.

"Thank you for taking care of my little boy. I have to go now. Tell him I love him."

I hung up the cell phone and got out of bed, finally feeling like my body had rested. The mattress was so soft and molded to my body in a way that felt like you were on a snowflake.

I went to the bathroom, washed my face, and let the cold water finish waking me up.

"Good morning. Are you awake?" Eric asked from outside.

He had stayed, and it wasn’t a dream. He was still there, which was getting on my nerves because I wouldn’t know how much I could take it.

"Yeah, I’m just getting ready," I said, taking off my pajamas and putting on some casual clothes.

I looked at myself in the large mirror next to the door and adjusted my blouse to better show off my figure. Then I walked out of the room, and Eric was there with a cup of coffee waiting for me.

"A little bird told me you can’t live without some of this in the morning," he said, bringing the cup closer to me.

The coffee aroma was exquisite, no doubt a Colombian coffee.

"Thank you so much, Eric. You shouldn’t have bothered," I said, "But I really appreciate it."

I took a sip, and it was perfect. Not too sweet, at the ideal temperature where it’s hot, but it doesn’t burn your mouth and is strong.

"It’s delicious," I said. "It’s very good. It reminds me of the coffee served in the bakeries in Paris."

"I learned to make it like that in Paris. I thought you might like it," he said. "By the way, did you sleep well?"

"I slept better than ever. That bed works miracles," I said, taking another sip of coffee. "I didn’t thank you last night for getting the room ready for me."

Eric was very attentive last night. He took it upon himself to change the sheets and make sure everything in the room was in order.

"It’s nothing, and it’s my way of showing you hospitality." He pouted his lip, turning the corner of his left side up a little as he looked me in the eye. "What do you want to eat... ask for whatever you want, and one of the maids will prepare it for you."

He led me to the dining room and pulled out the chair for me to sit in.

As soon as I sat down, a human woman came towards me and placed a plate, crystal glass, and cutlery on the side wrapped in a cloth napkin.

"What could I offer you for breakfast?" she asked.

She wasn’t like the humans who worked for my father. There wasn’t a hint of fear in her eyes. Instead, she looked like she enjoyed what she was doing.

I looked at Eric and opened my eyes like saucers for him to give me a hand.

"Ask for whatever you want," he insisted.

The woman looked at me confused and then smiled. "Would you like something traditional, eggs, bacon, and toast?"

"Yes, that would be great," I replied.

"And for you?" she turned to Eric.

"The same, and bring orange juice for both of us."

The woman nodded and returned to the kitchen.

As soon as she started cooking, the smell of fresh bacon and toasting bread flooded the place, making my stomach growl.

Eric sat down in the chair next to me and moved closer to me. The table seated eight, and none of them were taken, and for him, it made the most sense to sit so close to me.

"I couldn’t stop thinking about you last night," He said out of the blue. "In your situation, I meant."

"What do you mean?"

"Why you left the pack... don’t get me wrong, but even though I don’t think it was the place where you were happy, because no one leaves their pack and disappears off the face of the earth completely."

I felt pressured to tell him the truth, but this wasn’t the time, especially being in his house.

"I just wanted to pursue my dream of becoming a fragrance designer," I said with certainty. "My father never supported me, and I knew that if I stayed there, I would be a nobody all my life."

"Fair enough!" he said.

The maid arrived with two plates full of food and a pitcher of juice on a small rolling cart. She was just in time to keep the conversation from continuing.

"It looks delicious," I said. "You should teach me how to make eggs like this. I always break the yolk when I throw them in the pan."

She laughed. "You can’t be good at everything, ma’am," she said. "You have other talents, but if you want, I can teach you."

I smiled back at her and began tasting my breakfast. She lifted the corner of her lip a little and looked at me, enjoying her meal. I could tell she was happy with the compliment I gave her for the food. And when she made sure we were pleased, she returned to the kitchen and left Eric and me alone again.

We both ate in silence, but inside me, there was a question that was gnawing at me, so after holding back the urge to ask him, I mustered up my courage.

"Why didn’t you get married? I mean, you were engaged," I asked, devouring the last of the bacon on my plate.

"It’s kind of a complicated story," he said.

"Come on, I told you mine. Tell me yours; it’s the least you can do."

"Okay, you’re right," he said.

"My ex-fiancée faked becoming disabled after an accident we had where she ’saved’ me just so she could marry me. It had all been her mother’s plan," he said, putting aside his food. "I found out on our wedding day."

"Ouch! I’m sorry for that." I said. "But what were her intentions?

"I couldn’t find them when we tried to locate my fiancée and her mother. They had vanished into thin air without a trace. But who knows, maybe for money or power."

I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. No one deserves to have such an important day ruined like that, let alone have the person you trust lie to you and use you like that.

I got lost in my thoughts, knowing that one applied to me as well. I left Morgan behind regardless of the troubles it could bring. I only thought of myself. I was selfish, but on the other hand, I had a child with this man here, and I didn’t tell him for fear of the consequences for me.

"Are you okay?" he asked me.

"Yeah, I was just thinking about how hard it must have been for you," I replied.

"Thank you, but it was the best thing that could have happened. I spent the next few months thinking about what would have happened if I had married her, what consequences it would have brought for me, my family, and my pack."

"You got a point. Let’s toast to that.”

I took the glass of orange juice half-heartedly and toasted it with him. We both drank the juice and headed to the lab.

Lydia was playing with the essences and left them on the table as soon as we walked in.

"Good morning, darling. I hope my son treated you well," she said.

"Good morning Mrs. Night," I said, "Yes, your son has been quite a gentleman."

"Oh no, no darling, no more Mrs. Night, just Lydia," she said to me.

"All right then. Are you ready to start?"

"Yes, I’m more than ready," she replied.

Eric helped me into my lab coat and gloves, and after passing me the safety glasses, he sat down in one of the chairs about six feet away.

"Do you mind if I stay to watch?" he asked. "I don’t mean to intrude. I’m just intrigued by the process. I’d like to know how you do your work."

Lydia looked at me with puppy dog eyes waiting for me to give my answer. It was already very obvious that she wanted her son and me to hang out.

"Yes, you can stay, but don’t touch anything," I claim.

"I promise you won’t even notice I’m here," he replied.

I nodded and got to work. Lydia had brought a notebook where she wrote down everything I told her, every process and measurement. She followed me everywhere and watched as I mixed the essences with the alcohol and added solvent and adhesives, and then sprayed the product on a small piece of paper to test it.

"What do you think?" I asked her.

She took the slip and sniffed it carefully. "I can’t believe I already made my first perfume," she said, spraying another dab of product on the slip. "It smells as sweet as I imagined it would."

Lydia was happy, her face lit up, and for a moment, she forgot about her surroundings to concentrate on the product in her hand.

"It’s boring, isn’t it?" I asked Eric, who was looking at me from the other side of the work table.

"No, it’s actually very interesting what you do. You look like a scientist."

I was flattered by his compliment. "Are you serious?"

"Yes, plus look at my mother. I’ve never seen her so happy," he said.

"I could teach any time if you want," I said. "It’s really not that hard once you do it."

"I’d love to," he said.

"I’ll go show off my new perfume," Lydia said and walked out of the lab, taking short but quick steps. "You two, clean up this mess."

"Alone again," he said, approaching me.

Eric knew what it did to me, and not only that, he enjoyed it. He loved making me nervous with just the look on his face. However, I’m not going to lie, either. I loved it when he did it.

"Yeah, don’t you notice it’s a little hot?" I said. "We should go outside."

I wanted at all costs to avoid spending too much time alone with him because I knew that as soon as our lips met, my whole world was going to fall apart, and I couldn’t allow myself that.

"You’ll stay another day, won’t you?" he asked me.

"Yes, it was the agreement I made with your mother. I have to teach her how to extract the aroma from the fruits, minerals, and some other process," I justified myself.

"It’s okay," he said, looking me in the eyes and catching my hands between his. "If I asked you to have dinner with me, would you accept?"

Even with gloves on, I could feel it, his eyes penetrating my defenses, making me melt for him.

"Yes, why not? We’re friends," I said.

Eric smiled, and an air of victory surrounded him. He released my hands, held my chin, and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"I’ll get everything settled in a half hour," he said. "Go get ready."

"Are you talking about tonight?" I asked.

"Of course, I won’t let this opportunity pass me by," he replied. "I’ll get everything ready right away. I promise it will be an unforgettable dinner."

Eric left the lab euphoric.

I sat back in my chair to process what had happened. My legs wouldn’t stop shaking, and the butterflies in my stomach that I tried to contain decided to flutter all at the same time. I was going on a date with Eric, and I didn’t know what to wear. I didn’t come prepared for this, and I didn’t want to make a bad impression.

My head started to fill with doubts, and time stopped until I took a deep breath, got up, and went to my room to get ready. After all, we were friends. What could possibly go wrong?