It was serene.
It was controlled.
It was beautiful.
It was extraordinary.
Although all of this was delightful, what it wasn’t was Elle.
Silently, he turned and walked down the stairs.
She rejoined them in time to work with Jason on his guitar and for Sally to help her with dinner. She ate with them. She tidied the kitchen.
Then she disappeared.
Prentice gave her some time then he followed.
His feet in socks making no noise on the stairs, he stopped yet again halfway up the second flight.
He saw Elle through the door. She was curled into the chair, knees bent, feet up on its edge. The lavender scent was again permeating the air. Her head was bowed and he could see she was writing in one of her journals.
Peaceful.
Quiet.
Withdrawn.
Not Elle.
Again, he silently made his way back down the stairs.
She rejoined them again to get Sally to bed, walking her up the stairs, hand in hand. She stayed upstairs to read Sally a bedtime story.
“Do me a favor, mate, go to your room,” Prentice said to Jason.
“But Dad –”
Prentice looked at his son. Jason knew that look. He grabbed his guitar, said his goodnight and went up to his room.
Prentice watched his son until he was out of sight.
Then he made a decision.
It might be too soon but he didn’t give a fuck.
They’d lost twenty years, he’d lost a wife, his children had lost their mother and, as far as he could tell, Elle had lived a life where she had very little that was meaningful to lose.
Life was too short.
There was no time to waste.
He went to the kitchen, found a bottle of red wine Elle had bought and put it on the counter with the corkscrew. He was taking down two glasses when she walked down the stairs.
“Where’s Jason?” she asked, her eyes on the wine, her expression guarded.
“Early night,” Prentice answered, grabbing the glasses by their stem and upending them then wrapping his hand around the neck of the bottle and nabbing the corkscrew.
“Prentice,” Elle said as he walked up to her, “we need to talk.”
Good, she didn’t intend to delay in telling him what was on her mind.
That worked for him because neither did he.
Obviously, Prentice had changed his mind about talking that day; it was just that he now also had something to say.
“Aye,” he agreed.
“I…” she started but stopped when he threw an arm around her shoulders and guided her toward the stairs. She began again when they hit the stairs, “Where are we going?”
“We’re going to talk,” he said, resolutely moving her up the stairs.
“But where?”
“The best place in the house.”
She fell silent.
At the top of the stairs, he directed her toward his rooms.
Her body jolted.
“Pren –”
His arm left her shoulders and the hand with the bottle went to the small of her back. He pushed her into his sitting room.
“I don’t think this is a good idea,” she whispered when he closed the door behind them.
“Why no’?” he asked, guiding her through the small sitting room into the bedroom, putting everything on his bureau and opening a drawer.
“Because…” she began then paused then went on, “Can we talk in your study?”
He walked up to her with a pair of his thick socks.
“No,” he held out the socks, gentled his voice and ordered “Put those on, baby.”
She stared at the socks but didn’t move. He lifted her hand, set the socks in her palm and walked away.
“Socks?” she asked his back as he opened another drawer.
“Put them on,” he ordered.
“But –”
He turned to look at her.
She couldn’t even see his face but she still bent and put on the socks.
When she straightened, he was close and before she could say a word, he pulled one of his jumpers over her head.
“Um…” she muttered as she shoved her arms through and he tugged the tendrils of hair at her neck free of the collar, “I’m not getting it.”
He looked at her shadowed form in his sweater. She swam in it.
Definitely better than the posh cardie.
He walked away, explaining, “We’re going outside.”
“We are?”
He pulled on a jumper. “Aye. Best place in the house.”
He grabbed the wine and then guided her out the door to the balcony. He put the glasses on the railing and saw her give them a funny look while he uncorked the wine.
Then her eyes went to his face. He couldn’t see her clearly in the dark but he felt her gaze.
“Pren,” she said softly.
He cut her off. “We need to talk about Fee.”
Even though she was two feet away, Prentice felt her go still.
He ignored it and poured the wine. Handing a glass to her, he took a sip from his.
Then Prentice decided it was fucking well time to get a few things straight. Straight enough so that head of hers couldn’t twist them, no matter how hard she tried.
He got close and circled her with an arm around her chest, turning her so her back was to his front. He rested his weight against the railing and put pressure against her chest with his forearm as indication she should rest her weight against him.
She struggled with this for a moment. When he didn’t release the pressure, with a sigh she relaxed against him.
His eyes went to the sea.
The night was chill, the moon mostly hidden, the sea only a midnight blue blanket with caps of white.
As it always did, this vision settled him.
“I loved her,” Prentice whispered and Elle went solid against him for only a moment before her hands came up. Her fingers curling on his forearm, she left them where they were and she relaxed. Prentice went on, “I still do.”
“You miss her,” Elle said softly.
“Aye. Every day. Even after all this time, I can open the front door and forget she won’t be on the other side.”
Her hands squeezed his arm.
“We were happy,” Prentice told her.
Elle nodded but he heard her breath hitch.
This time his arm squeezed her.
“I’ll always love her, Elle.”
“Of course,” she whispered.
He took a sip from his wine and then rested his jaw against her head.
“I’m a man who’s been blessed.”
Her body jolted again and she stammered, “Wh… what?”
“I had Fee. She was no’ long meant for this world but I knew her since she was wee and she was mine for awhile. It was a blessing.”
Elle relaxed and nodded again. “You’re right, Pren.”
“Then,” he continued, “you came back.” She went solid as a rock against him but he ignored it and carried on, “I’ve lived a good life in this village, with Fee, but you’re still the best thing that’s been in it.”
“Oh my God,” she breathed.
He ignored that too, put his wine glass on the railing and his mouth to her neck.
“To have Fee, who gave me her and then Jason and Sally and then to have you,” he murmured. “I’m a man who’s been blessed.”
“Pren –” she started but her breath hitched again and she stopped.
“Come back to me, Elle,” he coaxed softly.
She was pulling at his arm with her hands now but he held strong.