Kelvin met Leila cooking. There were two things he didn't like about this. First, she was still in her office clothes. Second, if leaning on the counter was a sign, then his wife was exhausted. He didn't want her stressing over food when he had cooks on his payroll.
After a change of clothes, he went to the kitchen with the intention of helping out but an aroma stopped him in his tracks. Leila was stirring something in the pot so she hadn't noticed him. Kelvin clutched his stomach, doubling over as a spell of dizziness hit him.
The door creaked as he clung to it to steady himself. His stomach churned and bile jumped to his throat. One of the reasons he hired cooks was because of his body's reaction to some foods. A smell could set him off and it was exactly what was happening to him.
He needed to get out of this kitchen and he needed to do it now. The sound of his flip-flops finally alerted Leila, Kelvin dry heaved but she didn't glance his way.
"Hey," she said without looking at him. "I'm making pasta, are you okay with that?" Kelvin didn't reply. It had to be the food. There was something in the food that triggered one of his allergies. She turned. "Kev?"
But he was already rushing to the bathroom. He collapsed on the floor and emptied the content of his stomach into the toilet. Frantic footsteps neared him as he flushed and a hand lowered to his back.
Kelvin smelt her before he saw her. Her worried face came into his view, he tried to smile but it came off as a grimace.
"Kev, are you okay?"
Concern laced her words, he was sorry for scaring her. Nodding, he accepted the glass of warm water she passed him. He stood and Leila rushed to him like he would pass out. His heart was still beating fast, his steps disoriented as he crossed to the medicine cabinet and popped two pills into his mouth. The pills were supposed to alleviate his allergic reactions.
He forced a smile to his lips. "I'm good."
Worry lines appeared on her forehead when he staggered, Leila tried to help but he waved her off. He needed to lie down for a bit. His allergies hadn't been triggered in a long time.
"Are you sure?" she asked in a quiet voice.
Leila never left his side, she followed him to their bedroom where he collapsed on the bed. Kelvin sat up when he noticed Leila shaking, she couldn't take the blame for this. Her worried eyes followed his move as he shifted to the edge of the bed to sit and she knelt between his legs.
"I'm fine, Leila." She didn't look like she believed him but he added, "I think it's the food. I have allergies." A contrite look crept into her eyes, he shook his head and held her shoulders before she thought of blaming herself. "It's not your fault, okay? You didn't know."
"I'm sorry," she whispered. He pulled her in for a hug and her arms wrapped around him. "I'm so sorry, Kev."
"Don't be sorry." He planted a kiss on her hair. She sniffed and he brushed the stray tear that fell to her cheeks. "Was there any seafood in the pasta?" Leila nodded. It dawned on him then. "Staying in places where they are cooking anything with seafood can trigger the allergy," he explained to her. Seafood were the most triggering. Leila didn't say anything but he knew his words affected her and she would probably blame herself for it. "I should have told you."
She stood. "Yeah. You should have." She swiped the back of her hand against her cheek. "What else are you allergic to? I can make a list to avoid them."
The reason he didn't mention some of the allergies was because Leila loved them. He hated peanuts but she loved them. He hated onions but she couldn't cook without them. The last time she made noodles, Kelvin had to pick out the onions before eating.
"I think we should let the cooks take care of our meals," he replied instead. "They know my allergies." When her eyes narrowed, he added, "You can cook on weekends." Kelvin didn't want Leila to doubt herself at any moment. If someone else cooked, she would have more time to rest and Leila needed the rest. Standing toe to toe with Leila, he offered her a smile. "Nothing with seafood. No onions. No wheat."
Leila's mouth snapped close and a wave of guilt hit Kelvin for putting her in this position. "Okay. Noted."
His hand wrapped around her wrists when she made to leave, a silent gasp escaped Leila and his eyes fell to her lips. She had been talking to that guy at work. She laughed. She had never laughed that way with him. Kelvin didn't like it but he didn't know how to talk to Leila about it without sounding jealous. In the end, he decided to talk about something else. Stars Glow.
"Who really compiled the numbers?" he asked her.
With a hand on Leila's elbow, he guided her to the vanity. She took one of the seats and he plopped into the other. Their knees touched, tingles shot up his body and his gaze lifted to her lips. He was thinking of it again, her chaste kiss when he dropped her off. The kiss he gave her this morning. Her soft, feminine smell.
"Lily," Leila confessed. She hid her hands between her legs and he took them. His fingers traced the lines on her palms and the tension left her body. Leila's lips twitched but she didn't smile. He wanted her to smile. "The approval came in last night so there wasn't much time to really go through it. I'll fix it as soon as I can."
The only thing that had been wrong with the slides was the statistics. Even with that, they could have continued the presentation but he didn't insist on it because of how shaken she was. He tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear and she flushed. Her hair was as soft as he remembered it. He leaned back in his seat when the urge to run his fingers through her hair intensified.
"I like the idea," he murmured. If they played their cards right, Stars Glow would be the next big thing in US. She bit her lips but a smile still broke free. He smiled too. "Good job, Leila."
"Thank you." She was avoiding his gaze again. He wanted to stare into those brown eyes while they spoke. "Thank you for the flowers. I loved them."
The excitement in Leila's voice excited him, he made a mental note of sending her flowers regularly.
"I'll order in," he said. "Are you okay with Chinese?"
At her nod, he sprung out of his seat and dialled his assistant. He didn't want to bother the cooks this late with the task of preparing a new meal.
Leila stepped out of the room while he was on the call with Amara. Amara knew about his allergies so he didn't have to explain his choice of meal to her. Minutes later, Leila was not back to the room. He sat, then stood back up. A hand ran through his hair while he waited for his wife to show up. But she didn't.
Few steps outside the room and he heard her voice. She was on a call. He followed the voice to the kitchen. There was no evidence of the food she was preparing earlier. His heart squeezed with guilt again as she cleaned, she was only trying to be a good wife.
"I'm sorry." He heard Leila say.
His lips pressed into a firm line as his wife bent over the sink. She tucked the phone between her shoulder and ear and rinsed out the pots. His jaw clenched when she laughed at something the person said.
Was it the guy at the office? Kelvin Michael Clyde.
"I'll make it up to you, I swear." She sighed again. "What if I spend the night? It can be like old times." The person must have refused, Leila's shoulders sagged. "Don't be like this." Kelvin walked over to her at that moment and tapped her. She held a finger up and returned to the call. "He's here, I'll call you back."
He folded his arms on his chest. "Who was that?"