Page 16 of Recipes for Life
I couldn't help but grin back at him. "Life of being a mother to a six-year-old."
"Tell me about it." The look he was pointing in my direction was a little intense.
Clearing my throat, I gestured to the door. "Should we go in?"
"Ah, we don't live there."
My eyes must have been as wide as saucers. "What?"
"Well, we live here, just not inthere." There was some emotion behind the way he said it, but I was a little too confused to dive into that.
"I'm sorry...I don't understand." He gestured for me to follow him into the backyard. We had bought the plot behind ours, even though we had a corner lot, but it gave us some extra space. I'd always dreamed of a pool and pool house back here, and it looked like Murphy had added that over the last few years. He took me in through the tall white privacy fence that surrounded the property, and the second I stepped through, I was stunned.
I was unsure how to describe what I was seeing. It looked like a backyard oasis; the pool was on the smaller side, but a hot tub had been added. There were hundreds of flowers—different kinds and in every color. There appeared to be a small gazebodown the way, but what really caught my eye was how the pool house had been transformed into what looked like one of those tiny homes. It was white with black trim, and twinkly lights sat in the windows and hung from the lattice that covered the sides. It wasamazing.Behind that stood another smaller-sized building, which looked like a wooden cabin. Upon further inspection, I saw that it had a forest green sign on the front that said, "The Workshop". I couldn't help but gasp.
"This is amazing." I turned to look at him, and his gaze was focused on all that was before us.
"I'm partial to it."
"You should be proud. Lux always talked about how she lived in a magical fairy land over here, but I thought she just meant you had redone her bedroom... I should have asked more questions." There was that feeling of guilt that had been creeping up lately.
"I probably should have told you that we didn't stay in the main house." He looked over at me, and I was immediately taken back by the look in his eyes. He looked at me the way I looked at Lux, like she was my whole world.
"Hmm." I was unsure of how to answer him; one, because of the way he had just looked at me, and two, because it wasn't like I had made it easy for him.
"Let's go check on our kid, yeah?" He gently squeezed my shoulder, and shockingly, I didn't feel repulsed by his touch. I'm not saying I had butterflies or anything, but I didn't physically want to vomit anymore.
Walking inside the old converted pool house, I couldn't help but stare in awe. This was adorable. A small kitchen was immediately to the left when you walked in, and the floor-to-ceiling windows gave the most amazing view of the gardens and pool. It was hard to look anywhere else, and once I was able topull my gaze from that, I saw someone appeared to have made built-in seating to the other end of the wall, creating a super cute, custom-made eating area. Murphy ushered me into a small hallway with a door to the right. He opened it, and I took in my sleeping daughter. She had a bunk bed that looked like it was carved into the side of a tree, the base being where her bed lay. It was incredible; it must have been another custom piece.
"All this woodworking is amazing. Who did it?" I couldn't help but ask. The attention to detail was so eye-catching, all I could do was stare.
Murphy gave me a pensive look that I didn't understand, but before he could answer me, I heard Lux speak up from behind me.
"Mom?" she croaked out. "How are you here?"
Her question didn't quite make sense, but I understood what she meant—she'd never once seen me inside her father’s home, and she'd never once seen him in mine. I don't know why this seemed to bother me so much. Maybe it was because I realized I had no clue what my daughter was doing with half of her time because I never asked any questions, only listened to what she had to tell me.
"You're sick, baby. Of course I'd come pick you up."
"Can I stay here in my tree? I love my tree," she mumbled before she fell back asleep.
I had to chuckle, and I looked over at Murphy. "Well...do you mind if she stays here tonight?"
A brief flash of annoyance crossed over his face. "I'd never mind."
"I know."
He was right. In the last three years, he always made it well-known that if I wanted to go out or had plans on my nights, he got the first option to take her. Heneverturned it down, and I meannever.
"I'll text my office tonight and let them know I'll be taking the next few days off. I'll swing by and grab her in the morning. What time do you need to leave for work?"
"Oh, I don't. My boss won't mind. She can stay here so you don't have to put anyone in a bind."
Again, I was a bit shocked. Murphy never used to take off work, not for anything.
"Your boss won't mind?" Last I knew, his boss minded if he left the office before six p.m.
"No." His eyes bore into mine, and I found myself looking away at the barely concealed intensity.
