Lucien(39)

Ben opened the front doors for Luc. “At least you’ve got someone to come home to. Having a lady like your wife waiting with the front porch light on beats the hell out of what I’ve got.”



“If my wife were awake she would probably mention something about your lack of a love life stemming from working long hours like tonight.”



“If I could find a female like Elise who understood the long hours, then I might not have such a sorry love life,” Ben muttered.



“What happened to Sara?”



“An emergency meeting of the board at Raine Corp.” Ben unlocked Luc’s rental car and opened the passenger door. “While I was fighting to save my company, Sara was writing me a long letter, detailing my failings as both a human being and a male.” He stepped aside so Luc could lower Elise into the seat. “Apparently, there was only one aspect of our short lived relationship which was not lacking.”



Luc slipped his hands out from under Elise and drew the seat belt around her, clicking it in place. “Let me guess. Your cooking.”



“No, that was what Jane said. Sara gave me kudos for my taste in music.”



Luc straightened and pushed the door firmly shut. “I just noticed something.”



“What?” Ben tossed Luc his keys.



“You date women with normal names.” Luc smirked. “Why don’t you try adding a little spice to your life and going out with a name as weird as yours?”



Ben laughed and turned around to unlock his door. “My name is not weird. Your wife called it unusual and she said it suited my personality.”



“Whatever. It’s still weird.”



“Go home. You’re starting to bug me,” Ben replied with a smirk.



Luc laughed and went around to the driver’s side. He climbed inside and fired up the engine, then, after waiting to make sure Ben’s started, pulled out for the short drive to the place Elise had found for them. The small house wasn’t a palace, but it was a helluvalot better than being cooped up in an apartment complex with neighbors above and below with stereo systems that thumped and boomed at four in the morning. The house was located on a sleepy street in the middle of a family neighborhood. Elise had already charmed the neighbors on either side of the house and received an invitation to the green beans which Thelma, in the little yellow house on the left, grew in her backyard. Pam, in the two story brick house on the right, had taken an instant liking to Elise and left an open invitation to use the small pool in her backyard. While Pam’s husband, Lyle, had extended the hand of friendship with a backyard barbecue and the promise of his award winning ribs.



Luc stopped at an intersection and rubbed his eyes. Damn, but he was tired. He smoothed his hand down his face and massaged his jaw, then drove the last leg of the journey home. The first thing he noticed pulling in to the driveway was… Elise had left a light on in the living room. It was a little thing. Something he wouldn’t have done. It was but one act that marriage to Elise had brought him.



They’d been in the house for over three weeks and already she had a small window garden started in the kitchen. He didn’t ask her to wash his clothes, but she did and they always smelled fresh off the line. Hell, she even ironed his shirts. When Elise found the time to iron, he didn’t have a clue, but he knew she did. She went out of her way to make sure he ate right. Something he never paid any attention to before. The dishes were always clean and put away. There were towels in the bathroom when he needed them. His jacket, which he usually tossed onto the couch when he walked through the door, magically appeared on a hanger the next day.



It amazed and astounded him that she did those things for him. He glanced over at her, curled up in the passenger seat smiling at something in her dreams. No wonder she was exhausted. Elise took care of him at work and at home. He’d never heard her once complain about it. Well, she griped occasionally about his work habits, but that wasn’t the same. She deserved a vacation. Or better yet, a real honeymoon.



“Think about something else, Masters,” he muttered to himself. Being alone at night with his wife was hell enough without having to think about the garter belt underneath her short skirt.



Luc groaned as he pulled into the driveway and parked. “Another sleepless night for the sexually deprived,” he mumbled as he climbed out and went up to unlock the front door. Leaving it open, Luc went back to get Elise. He carried her inside, kicked the door closed behind him, then walked down the hall to her bedroom. He knelt on the bed and gently laid her down.