Lucai's Most Loving Meal Ever

Submitted into Contest #100 in response to: Write about a character preparing a meal for somebody else.... view prompt

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Suspense Fiction

Lucai had looked forward to making her beloved a special dinner for the longest time. Josua and her were finally going to have a significant reason to celebrate. Lucai fought with herself for days about revealing the big news before or after the meal. Tonight would be life changing for them both. She wanted everything to go perfect.

Lucai called out from the kitchen into the dining room. “Babe, tonight’s going to be the best night of our lives. I’m going to cap off this average day with the best meal you could eat, alongside the best news you’ll hear. Josua, I feel so blessed to be in your life forever.”

She could feel the giddiness grow at the the thought of officially sharing everything with him. The progress to make tonight real felt so far off at one time in her life. Now, she had her man, her surprises for him and their future together into the next decades.

His kind heart and deep well of intellect made loving him effortless. She easily overlooked his few faults to enjoy the man she knew him as. Her path had swerved to fall in love with Josua many years ago when he had been married. A woman who Lucai knew didn’t deserve him. His ex barely had time for Josua, with her need to career climb instead of taking care of him. Lucai vowed to be there for all of his needs, regardless of her other plans. 

Lucai had watched Josua for a solid year, overhearing his conversations with their coworkers. His caring voice had melted her heart. She spent many late nights pleasuring herself to the idea of their consummation. He had lied to everyone at their office about being happy with Clarice. His ex-wife visited the office once. Lucai knew that he had long been disappointed with someone who looked like Clarice, with her cropped, masculine hairstyle and formless chest. Lucai felt confident that Josua truly longed for a feminine woman with long, silken hair and full breasts like her own.

That terrible day that Clarice invaded the office, Lucai later stood naked in front of her full length mirror thinking about Josua admiring her. She had every plan to make him find real happiness with her. Lucai began by anonymously dropping small presents on his desk. Candies, knick-knacks and small mementos of her feelings. She had watched him eat the snacks from afar. His desk housed the collection of her love tokens. She knew their love was meant to be.

Silence permeated from the other room. Lucai went into the dining room. “You don’t seem too conversational tonight, maybe some music would fill the void.” Lucai went by him to the stereo. Her hand pressed play. Soft, romantic music filled the room. She landed a soft, loving kiss on his cheek. “Stay cute, baby.” She smiled enticingly at him over her shoulder as she exited back to the kitchen.

Lucai looked forward to their dinners especially. Any time with him felt wonderful. Dinner time had a magic to her that most of their other interactions could hardly compare to. This had became her freest time to spend with him. Her work and personal obligations often detained her from being with him as much as she would like. Guilt racked her when she returned to him. Lucai cried in his lap many times about not wanting to disappoint his heart.

Now that external matters had been settled for good, she remembered the promise to herself to spend more time being with him. Her efforts to win his attention had taken some time and she wanted to make sure their relationship wasn’t squandered as his ex had done. Lucai remembered all that she had accomplished to remove Josua out of his past life and into their new life as a couple.

Lucai prepared the chicken on the cutting board. She spent time and attention to make sure that the spiced seasoning would be his to savor. She had personally discussed her dinner plans with the store butcher and had convinced him to bring her the best cuts of meat from the back. Lucai felt waves of guilt for telling the butcher her big news before her beloved, though she felt justified under the circumstances. She begged the butcher not to share the news with anyone.

“Hon, I’ve gotta run out to the car for some ingredients I forgot. I’ll be right back. I’m going to miss you even just going to the street. Be right back.” Lucai hurried out to her sedan.

She thought about Josua the entire way. She considered how to share the big news with him tonight. When she returned, her focused concentrated became on preparing the rice and carrot dishes. Lucai imagined what each would look like when serving her food choices to him. The aroma settling into his nose. Him looking at her with the love of a man who needs a real woman. She imagined him taking a bite. He would moan with uncontrolled pleasure, much like the early evening two weeks ago that set up this dinner. A perfect dish for her perfect night for her perfect beloved. She wanted the presentation and taste to be as ecstatic as the forth coming news. Their lives would never be the same and Lucai couldn’t be happier. She knew he would feel the same.

She reminisced about his coyness even after all the years. Lucai reflected on their elevator and break room conversations they would have before he left back to work. She had known since early on that their love had been mutual. Lucai knew that Josua had been always “office kind” to her so as not to make their growing relationship a matter of bored, cubicle gossip. She thought about how he didn’t linger by her work station like she would do near him. Lucai would be frustrated how he sometimes passed on conversations with her in the elevator to maintain their facade. She would remind other women that he was spoken for and to mind his space. Lucai had no regrets about the sacrificed friendships and promotions to make sure no one else would get close to him.

She thought about his bitch ex-wife, Clarice, as she prepared the cobbler. Her rival caused internal, dark feelings to surface. The woman who could never love him as deeply. Even now, just prior to dinner, a time she should be happy, thoughts of Clarice easily clouded her happiness. Lucai felt bad for all the years that Josua had wasted on such a lost cause, a woman who couldn’t give him the family Lucai knew he always wanted. Her smile widened with with thoughts that Clarice would never disappoint her beloved again.

Lucai prepared the baked chicken in rice that he once told her he liked. To get this basic information took some of her feminine charms, but he finally divulged his secret after much insistence. She thought back to a time close before they officially became a couple. Lucai didn’t feel a shred of guilt about breaking up Josua’s former marriage. She had little respect for a woman who had been clearly beneath him in every way. She had spent long nights wondering what caused him to settle for less. Lucai reminded herself that the past had been then and their future would be revealed in a short time.

The kitchen filled with the heat of the stove top and oven working to their limits. Lucai drank from her tall glass of water. The cold liquid became a respite oasis. She did her best to balance the timing of the dishes. Lucai didn’t know how to make a bowl of salad before she met Josua. Once she knew that he would be in her life, Lucai took a few cooking classes in preparation of being the perfect woman for him. She became quite proud of her accomplishments. Never would she have thought that she would be making a full meal in preparation of sharing not one, but two, pieces of life changing news for them as a couple.

“I’ll be in there soon to check on you, baby. I’m sorry that I’m not normally as attentive, but tonight it’ll be worth it, I promise. Please don’t be mad.” She heard him make some noises beyond the music acknowledging her comment. Lucai thought about their lives together. She knew that he wasn’t mad at her and probably never would be after this evening.

“Babe, we’ll spend the rest of the night cuddling and talking about all our plans moving forward. That’s as much as I want to say. I hope that I didn’t spoil the surprise.” She berated herself about giving away too much.

Lucai wiped the layer of sweat off of her brow. She considered sweating unladylike under most conditions. She considered her presentation as part of the feminine charm that she knew Josua appreciated. Lucai had earlier considered serving him in her sexiest lingerie. The tight, black teddy with lace. She decided against this plan because she assumed that her outfit would likely distract him. She needed his focus on what she wanted to show him. She thought about the timing of changing into his favorite outfit after dinner. Lucai wanted him to be able to celebrate embraced next to her when the time was right.

Small, bluish flames continued to lick close to the bottom of the metal pots on the stove. The culinary fragrance began to sift throughout the room. Lucai took a deep breath, enjoying the aromas of her love for him. The scent of ingredients mixing for their best potential together. She began nearly dancing with anticipation. She looked at him through the doorway. A wide smile formed. He was seated at the dinner table as she hoped he would be.

“You’re so cute. Did you know that I bought the shirt you’re wearing when the store at the outlet mall was having that massive sale?”

She noted his reaction.

“Yes, the same mall your ex-wife worked at. No, no, no, we didn’t argue this time. Ooops, hold a sec, hun, the apple cobbler needs my attention.” She hurried back to the preparation.

Dusk filtered through the dining room windows carrying growing shadows across the interior. Lucai noticed the gradual change. She lit several candles that stood tall on the dining table and others elsewhere around the room. Flames danced along to the beat of the soft music.

“There. That should be better. As long as you’re comfortable. I look forward to cuddling with you later. If you could put some runners under the plate, that would be helpful.” She blew him a kiss and seductively adjusted her top to offer him a bit of enticement. Lucai winked and smiled before going back to work.

The kitchen soon began to overflow with the aroma of her cooking efforts. She took pride in her progress. She re-imagined the smile on his face as he savored the perfect flavors. Lucai considered his potential reactions, heavily favoring that he would be speechless. She considered her options on how to present the picture and small ring.

Lucai checked on the meat. Heat from the oven washed across her face and chest. The top of the chicken began to brown as she hoped the skin would. Everything she did slowly worked itself together. Her fingers lightly stroked the small photograph that she kept hidden in her pocket. Their definitive future in one small printout. They would have to begin making plans over the next months.

Lucai eased off an indented, white cap atop the small, orange bottle. A little, engraved pill eased out into her hand. She smiled as she re-topped and set the container back in the pantry. The pill crumbled under the obstructive weight of her meat tenderizer, becoming a fine powder on the counter. Lucai softly sang to herself as she sprinkled the dust onto his carrot glaze. She mixed the fine ingredient around until any trace of its existence had been dissolved. She reflected back about how her beloved had once hated taking his medication until she found a way to get him started. Lucai felt such a sense of accomplishment of him no longer fussing. His attitude back then wasn’t productive for their relationship. She was certain that their relationships started off with some waves because of his ex-wife’s emotional toll on him. She patted herself on the back for being such a thoughtful partner.

“I’m making your carrots in a honey sauce as you like, baby. Make sure that you eat ‘em all.” She listened to the music that played over his response. Candlelight spilled into the kitchen, reminding Lucai that he was waiting on her.

Lucai acknowledged to herself that after dinner her wonderful Josua wouldn’t help her clean. “Men are such spoiled babies,” she laughed to herself, “but he’s my baby now. My responsibility to make the happiest man ever.” Lucai smiled as she began the final steps of finishing the cobbler.

She took their dinner plates from out of the cupboard. Her everyday plates, the ones with their monogrammed initials stamped on the edges. She caught herself gazinng lovingly at his picture on the far counter. This zoomed in photo had become her favorite. The one taken a few years back when his hair had been a bit more unkempt and a little less styled. She found herself lost in his expression. She wondered if he thought about her when she took the picture from her car in the office parking lot.

Lucai moved across the room to the picture. She took the frame in her hands. Her lips met his lips safely behind the glass. Her rose lipstick reapplied onto the lips shape that she had left on the pane so many times before. A tear of happiness rolled down her cheek while she breathed in with pride. Together.

Lucai added a perfectly baked chicken thigh onto the plateau of rice which took home on his plate. Lucai knew the time had come. She straightened her top and fussed with her hair in the microwave door’s reflection to look as perfect as possible.

“Babe, I hope your hungry and in the mood for some of the best news ever. Here it comes.” Lucai entered the dining room with two plates full of piping hot food. Their meals were nearly the same, with the addition of carrots that were on his plate. Steam waved into the air, trailing back towards the doorway. She looked at Josua with her widest possible smile. The moment was now.

He remained in his seat like every other night since they began having dinners in the home. The candlelight illuminated winding, thick, tan ropes that held him taut to the heavy chair. His hands and feet held secured within custom restraints that she had fastened to make sure he would stay in place. His eyes hung heavy from the sedatives that had accumulated in his system. She set the plates down on the table in their respective places.

“Oh, babe, I know it’s really hot. I can tell you while the food cools a bit.” Lucai poured him the red wine she knew he liked. “First, the big news. I, that is, we, are officially…”

Large tears of joy rolled out of eyes onto the carpet. Her words became choked up. “I mean, I’m just so happy, I’ve been waiting all day to tell you.” Lucai did her best to regain shreds of her composure.

“Ok, here.” She softly laid a small sonogram picture on the table by his plate. He barely registered its existence.

“We’re going to be parents. You’re going to be a daddy, just like I know that you’ve always hoped for.” She looked into his face for a reaction. He gave her no change.

“Oh my god, isn’t it amazing. We’ve created a life together in my belly, one that we will raise and love and nourish. And I know what you’re thinking, the baby will never, ever come between us. I promise that my dedication to your happiness will always be a priority. If this baby works out as I expect it will, I’d be open to have as many as we want.” He looked ahead into the room. The candlelight cast shadows over his inert facial features.

“I know that was big news, the best news. But I’ve one more amazing thing to share tonight.” Lucai took a deep breath. She was nearly more excited about this than sharing about their baby. She casually rested Clarice’s wedding ring on the table next to the sonogram. The gold and diamond band reflected the room’s candlelight around several dark areas residing on the band. She was giddy to see it on the table. He continued to look forward through his chemical fog.

”It’s ok, baby, we won’t have to worry about her interfering with us anymore. I’m so sorry for missing out on our time before. I needed to remove her intrusion against our happiness. We’re finally free forever.”

Lucai smiled with satisfaction at the moment. She kissed him on the cheek to celebrate their good news. Their baby’s first picture in front of her perfect man, next to a perfect plate of food with his ex-wife’s ring on the table. She took in the moment that everything looked perfect, perfect forever.

July 02, 2021 12:06

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