For now, better to just focus on getting our work done and enjoying my newly wedded life with Reiner. I wasn’t lying to myself; I knew that sooner or later we would have to deal with it and make some decisions. I had no idea how long we could avoid talking about it, but for now, I just wanted to enjoy life for a bit.
“It’s late. Let’s wrap up and go home,” Reiner suggested as he stood up from his desk.
“Ok, let’s do that,” I replied in agreement.
I quickly packed up my things and grabbed my handbag before heading for the door. Reiner already had the door open for me by the time that I arrived.
“Thank you,” I thanked him with a smile.
Reiner looked a little drained and I had to say that I felt and probably looked the same way if not worst. Working long hours was really starting to take a toll on my body and my looks. I should go get a makeover before I become an unattractive hag.
“I’m sorry for this…” Reiner said softly while we were riding the elevator down to the ground floor together.
“For what?” I asked in confusion.
I had no idea what he could possibly be apologizing for.
“All these late nights at work. I know we just got married and all we’re doing is work and more work…” Reiner said followed by a sigh.
My eyes widened as I stared at him while feeling a little surprised. I didn’t expect something like that to be bothering him. Perhaps all that nagging from Queen was finally getting to his head.
“It’s fine. We’re making some really good progress and I’m learning quite a lot of new things too,” I replied honestly.
“Maybe we should take a trip somewhere soon. Do you have any idea where you want to go?” Reiner asked.
“No idea. Thanks for thinking of me but with the level of energy that I have now, maybe we can do a day of sleeping in instead?” I suggested with a soft laugh.
“We can do that if you want but you should think about where we should go for our honeymoon trip,” Reiner replied without backing down.
A honeymoon trip…
“Sure. There’s no need to rush, though. You should rest too. You’ve been working hard and staying up late even at home behind my back,” I said as I narrowed my eyes at him.
“Ok…” Reiner replied vaguely, and I knew that he probably had no intentions of working any less than before.
When we got home, my suspicions were immediately confirmed when Reiner started confessing to me that he had to work even on this upcoming weekend.
“I have work this Saturday and I can’t take you with me,” Reiner said, sounding quite apologetic.
“That’s ok. I’ll find something to do with Queen or something. Don’t worry about me,” I replied with a smile.
“I’ll be gone since early in the morning, but I’ll try to come back as soon as possible, ok?” he said as he pulled me into his warm hug.
“Ok…” I whispered before burying my face into his chest.
“Let’s have dinner together when I get back,” Reiner suggested.
“Sure. This isn’t some dangerous work, right?” I asked just to make sure.
“Of course not. Some other managers just want to drag me along to inspect some new equipment deliveries,” he explained with a chuckle.
I was glad that I met Reiner when he wasn’t a roaring young man in his early twenties. Otherwise, he would probably be sent on dangerous missions all the time and each time I would go crazy just thinking about his safety. Thankfully, Reiner didn’t have to take on missions anymore and I guessed that King couldn’t afford to lose his only heir as well. That would ruin all his retirement plans.
“Doesn’t sound so interesting. I feel so sorry for you…” I said teasingly.
“Yeah. Staying home to bake or paint your nails would be more interesting and productive…” Reiner said while sounding very bored.
I couldn’t tell whether he meant it or if he was just joking but I found myself smiling and laughing along with him, nonetheless.
Since we’ve gotten married, we’ve always been together both at home and at work. This would probably be the first day during the weekend that Reiner wouldn’t be home. Despite the fact that I knew that we couldn’t always be glued together all the time, it still felt more than a little daunting knowing that Reiner won’t be with me on Saturday. Time to learn how to plant some roses or tend to the garden with Queen…
When I woke up on Saturday morning, the first thing I did instinctively was to reach my arm over to his side of the bed when I couldn’t feel the warmth of his embrace around my body. Feeling the bed empty next to me was hard on my heart and I squeezed my eyes closed even tighter because I didn’t want to deal with waking up without Reiner by my side. Suddenly, my eyes flew open, and I sat up in bed.
Get a grip, Natalia! He already told you that he needed to go out to work. Grow up…please…grow up…
I hate this. I hate this. I hate this.
Those words repeated itself in my mind as I headed for the bathroom for my morning routine of showering and dressing up for the day. The breakfast that was served tasted plain and was too greasy. Reiner wouldn’t make oily eggs like this because it’s supposed to be bad for my health…or something…
My phone was in my hand before I knew it and my fingers had begun dialing him. That was when I realized that I was going to give him a call. What am I doing!?
I quickly cancelled the call and dropped my phone down onto the table in front of me in my shock. Body dear, you shouldn’t move on your own like this. My mind knew that I should leave Reiner alone so that he could get some work done and get back soon in time for dinner as promised, but it was hard to handle a day without him and the day had just started.
–To be continued…