Wait For Me To Come Home

Chapter 73

Lauren came home from work early one afternoon, exhausted from a lack of sleep the night before and an endless day of business meetings. Things between Lauren and Camila had been a little bit easier, having finally talked about those two weeks, and it made Lauren feel like things were getting better. She didn't expect that to mean that Camila would be fine all of a sudden, but still, she was surprised when she came home to see Camila sat at the dinner table doing nothing. She was just staring at the wall. There was that blank expression and vacant look in her eyes that Lauren had come to associate with Camila's more difficult days. Camila jumped as Lauren softly called her name, quickly standing up and plastering a smile on her face. If Lauren hadn't just walked in and seen Camila looking completely disinterested in anything, she would've assumed that she was fine.

            Setting her keys and bag down on the counter, Lauren hesitantly walked towards Camila. "Is- is everything okay?" she asked, looking concerned.

            Smiling, Camila met her halfway and leaned in for a kiss. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just ... thinking."

            "Is there anything you need to talk about?" Lauren asked, cupping Camila's face and stroking her cheekbone as she looked into her eyes. There was a flicker of something there, but it was gone before Lauren could figure out what Camila was thinking.

            "No," Camila said, giving her a small smile. "No, I don't think so. How was work? I wasn't expecting you home so early."

            "Work was ... okay. The same as always I guess. I closed that deal with Norway," Lauren said, pressing a kiss to Camila's cheek before pulling away.

            "Well done," Camila said, giving her another smile before she went and sat back down at the table. Resting her chin in one hand, Camila sat there, and Lauren wasn't sure if that was a signal for her to carry on talking or to say the conversation had finished. Pausing for a moment, Lauren waited for Camila to move, to speak, to do anything, and when she didn't, Lauren let out a sigh.

            "Pack a bag," Lauren told her, and Camila looked at her with surprise.

            "What?" Camila asked, her eyebrows slightly raised.

            "Pack a bag. We're going away for a few days," Lauren said, walking towards their bedroom as she pulled her phone out of her pocket. Making a quick call, she organized for her plane to be readied as soon as possible, and set about shoving some clothes into a bag. Camila followed her in, and Lauren grabbed some of her things out of their closet and handed them to Camila.

            "Where are we going?" Camila asked, frowning slightly.

            Lauren gave her a wry smile. "It's time for you to see where I grew up."

---

            On the way to the airport, Lauren made a few calls; first to Sofi so she didn't worry, then to her mother to let her know, and then to Ally to cancel any appointments Lauren had that couldn't be managed over the phone. By the time they reached the airport, everything was settled, and Camila was curious about seeing Lauren's childhood home.

            It was still early when they landed in Jacksonville, and sunset was still a while away thanks to the long summer nights. The waiting car carried the two of them and the dog out of the city limits, and Camila stared out the window, watching the suburbs give way to the countryside. "How far out of the city do you live?" Camila asked as the outlying neighborhoods gave way to acres of land.

            "Put it this way; if someone tried to kill you in the house, no one would hear you for miles around," Lauren laughed. "The closest neighbors are a fifteen-minute drive away."