Seraphina
Copyright© 2025 by Krista*
Chapter 4
Monday morning, Zoe cornered Seraphina shortly after they entered the office. “Details! Now!” Over coffee and a danish, Seraphina told her friend how they had enjoyed a nice lunch, getting to know each other. She told how she had informed Eric of her being a local girl, went to community college where she met her husband where he was attending on the G.I. Bill, along with a few other details.
“Wait, your husband was in the military?”
“Coast Guard. He was stationed in Sausalito, at the Golden Gate Facility. He told me that the majority of the times he went out was because local boaters had gotten into trouble and their boats were in need of rescue because someone didn’t follow the rules and did something dumb. Often resulting in a boat sinking. The Pacific isn’t always peaceful.”
“Was he one of those people who jumped into the water to save people?”
“Oh goodness no! Those people are, in his words, a special kind of crazy! He was a sonar and radar technician, not a rescue swimmer.” Seraphina smiled at the memory. “He did his hitch and got out.”
“Right. So, Eric. Spill the beans!”
“He’s from Oregon and will be thirty soon.”
“And?”
“And the rest is private. You can ask him for specifics,” she laughed.
“Come on! I’m not chasing him because you’re the one who is going to marry him, not me. I just wanted to live vicariously through you, for once!”
“What?” Seraphina sputtered, “How can you say that?”
“Girl, are you blind? You don’t notice how he looks at you? I bet when he finally meets Ruth, he will be ready to sign on as instant dad.”
“Well, he did meet her on Saturday.” She went on to tell Zoe about their day together and how Ruth said that in the future, Eric could take her mommy on dates, but she had to join them occasionally so she could act as a chaperone. “Now shut up! Jeff will be starting the morning huddle soon.”
“Good morning, ladies,” Eric smiled as he came into the office.”Zoe, I trust your weekend went well?” He smiled at Seraphina and winked. “How is Ruth today?”
“She wanted to take her dragon scale to school today to show everyone,” Seraphina laughed. “We told her that because it was so rare and precious, it was best to leave it home and stay safe. Again, I can’t thank you enough for how you handled everything on Saturday.”
“Like I said, she is important to you. I didn’t want her upset.”
“This was a new experience for her. The idea of mommy having any other interests was completely out of left field for her, as the saying goes. But she has not stopped talking about how much fun she had.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Now, since the both of you are here right now, I want to review with you some upcoming changes in service rates. We are going to have something printed out that can be posted for customers to see. I just wanted to go over that and a few other items. How about we take a quick look at this while we have a chance?”
The two were soon recognized as an ‘unofficial item’ since they shared lunch together on a daily basis, either in the employee break room, or going out together to eat locally. Sometimes, Eric would follow Seraphina home at the end of the day to take her out to dinner. Ruth would occasionally join them. Weekends were usually for the adults, but again, they made it a point to include the child if an opportunity arose.
One afternoon found them at the zoo. Ruth was allowed into an area to interact with several otters that wiggled and splashed and zoomed around having fun. Ruth was beside herself with joy as her mother took pictures of her with the playful animals. “Thank goodness I keep a change of clothes in the trunk of the car for her!” Seraphina laughed as she watched her daughter playing with the mischievous and adorable otters.
“Mommy! Look! They hold hands when they float together!”
“That’s so they don’t drift apart from each other,” Eric smiled. “They like to stay close to each other when they are relaxing in the water.”
“Like you and mommy always hold hands? So you don’t drift apart?”
“Pretty much,” he laughed. “Just like your mommy holds your hand so YOU don’t drift away! She loves you and wants you to be safe.”
“Mister Eric, if you’re holding mommy’s had so she doesn’t drift away, does that mean you love her?”
Seraphina smirked as she watched Eric choose his words. “I don’t know if it’s love, yet. But I really do like your mommy a lot. You too.”
Ruth thought a moment, then nodded. “I like you a lot too, Mister Eric. And you can hold my hand if you want to.”
“Thank you, sweetie.”
Punching in the gate code for the apartment complex, Serephina entered the parking lot and found a space in the visitors parking area.
It was late Saturday afternoon, and Eric had said he would be busy with a few things during the day, but he had wanted her to come over for a home made dinner. Ruth was staying at home. Grabbing her purse and the bottles of wine that she had purchased, she strolled over to his door.
“Welcome! Right on time!” Eric grinned as he stepped to the side to allow her to enter. “Dinner will be ready in a few minutes. Just waiting for the rice cooker to pop.”
“Whatever it is that you’re making, it smells delicious!”
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