DOUBLE TAKE

Chapter 35

Nell drove Callen home after another long day at the Office of Special Projects. She felt the air had shifted within Callen, since he had left earlier with Nate. She was glad Nate had arrived when he did, as she had been worried for the past month on how Callen would be, once his memory returned. He seemed more at peace, yet he remained quiet throughout the drive home.

"How did your time with Nate go?" Nell finally inquired. She'd seen how exhausted he looked, when he had returned with Nate.

"Not here," Callen replied to her. He spoke softly, not wanting to alarm her.

Nell pulled into 'their' driveway. She smiled at the thought of it. The place where they will bring their baby up. Callen exited the car and unlocked the front door, going straight for the couch. Before Nell had even entered the house, Callen was lying on the couch, asleep. She shook her head in wonder, at how quickly he could fall asleep. It was a new development, since he'd been badly injured. Nell decided to leave him in peace and start on dinner. Now that he had a special diet to consider, she needed to ensure he ate healthily.

Nell turned the oven on to preheat and grabbed two potatoes out of the pantry to scrub clean. She neatly cut a cross into the potatoes and looked over at the microwave. "Huh!" Above the wall oven sat a matching stainless steel microwave. It blended in with the oven well, something Nell hadn't noticed before. As she looked over at the other kitchen appliances, she realised Callen's whole kitchen was coordinated in stainless steel appliances. The expresso maker, kettle, toaster, dishwasher, stove top, oven and microwave. When she looked at the fridge, she laughed. She looked over towards where Callen slept, hoping she hadn't disturbed him. Callen's fridge was a Smeg retro 50's style refrigerator, in silver. She shook her head in wonderment. How had I not noticed this before now? Probably because she had spent so much of her time worrying over him.

Nell placed a paper towel on the glass plate in the microwave, placed the potatoes on top of it and closed the door. She pressed the potato button and smiled. Cooking for the two of them was going to be much easier than she realised. She opened the fridge and gathered the ingredients for lime, coriander and sweet chilli chicken stir fry. With the chopping board down on the bench top, Nell chopped onion, bok choy, zucchini, carrot and mushrooms. She measured half a table spoon of olive oil into the pan and turned the gas on. She carefully placed the chicken tenderloins into the wok, to prevent the oil from splashing up at her. Wooden spoon in hand, she stirred to sear the meat on both sides, before she added the onion. Even the wok was a really good heavy based one, Nell noted.

Callen woke to the smell of Nell's cooking. He stood and walked over towards her, and smiled as he watched her cook their dinner. Seeing her in his kitchen made him feel a happiness he had longed for, for a while. It was their kitchen now, not just his. He watched her place the potatoes from the microwave, into the oven, to crisp up.

Nell turned and caught Callen watching her. She smiled in return. "Sorry, did I wake you?" She thought she had been fairly quiet as she worked in the kitchen.

Callen shook his head. "Not you, but whatever it is that you're cooking did. It smells really good." He praised her cooking.

"It's nothing too special. It's just a stir fry," she declared.

"Of course it's special, Nell. You're cooking it, in our home." He emphasised the words 'our home,' to make sure she felt at home there with him. The corners of his mouth hinted a smile. He walked closer towards her and placed his arms around her, as she continued to stir the other vegetables into the wok. Callen rubbed her belly, which had started to swell from their baby growing inside of her.

Nell found it hard to concentrate, with Callen rubbing her belly. She was self conscious of it, as it was still a new experience for her. "G!" She tried to get him to stop.