'Jenna & Luke' - Chapter 11

Six months had passed since Jenna moved in with Luke. To Jenna’s relief she seemed to have gained Maryanne Stevenson’s approval. When Luke’s family had visited them over Christmas she had been much warmer toward Jenna and she had even expressed that she was happy Luke had her in his life. It was a big improvement from the first time they’d met over the Labor Day weekend.

Over the New Years weekend Jenna’s parents and Joanna and Shannon had visited. It was the first time they met Luke and it had gone better than they had feared. Jenna’s dad genuinely seemed to like Luke; they had found common ground in their interest for football. Luke’s behind-the-scenes tales from his time in the NFL had won him over.

Jenna’s mother was more skeptical, but after Luke cooked them a delicious dinner of marinated chicken breasts served with homemade mashed potatoes and gravy and a side of steamed vegetables with only minimal assistance from Jenna she had warmed up toward him.  

The anniversary of their first date was a week away and Jenna had a special weekend planned for them to celebrate the occasion. She had booked a long weekend stay for them in an accessible bungalow at a resort by the coast.

Jenna had done thorough research on wheelchair accessible hotels in Laguna Beach and she had actually gone to visit her top two contenders to make sure they were as accessible as they claimed to be. The first one had been a disappointment. His shower chair would not be able to fit in the shower stall and the doorways were on the narrow side.

To Jenna’s relief the second resort was everything they promised and more. The accessible bungalows were spacious and the furniture was well laid out. The bathroom had a big roll-in shower stall and when Jenna saw the ocean view she was sold. She just hoped Luke loved it as much as she did.

.....

“Wow! This place is amazing, Jenna!” Luke exclaimed as he made his way through the living room of their bungalow and through the open sliding doors that led to their private deck. He rolled across it and stopped at the edge, taking in the ocean view.

“The view is breathtaking, isn’t it?” Jenna said as she followed him and stood next to him, with a hand on his shoulder. “That combined with how accessible this place it won me over.”

“It really is. You did very well when you picked this place,” he said with a grin as he wrapped his arm around her waist.

“I’m glad you like it. I did quite a bit or research to find it. I really want this weekend to be good for both of us and I don’t want you to have to struggle with accessibility issues.”

“It’s perfect,” Luke assured her. “Are you sure you’re okay with not bringing a PCA?” He had been hesitant about not bringing one of his assistants, but Jenna had been adamant that she wanted the weekend to be just the two of them and when Kevin had supported Jenna he had finally backed down.

“Yes. I want this to be just the two of us and you know I don’t mind helping you. Kevin has trained me for months.”

“Helping me with my bowel routine might kill the romantic mood though…” Luke’s voice trailed off and his cheeks reddened.

“Honey, please stop worrying. It will be fine. Let’s just enjoy our time together, just the two of us, okay?” Jenna leaned down and kissed the crown of Luke’s head.

“I’ll do my best. I want this weekend to be good for us too.”

“Good. Glad we’re on the same page,” Jenna said with a smile.

“Come here,” Luke said, pulling her into his lap. Jenna willingly obliged and snuggled against her boyfriend’s chest. They stayed like that, in a contended silence, just enjoying the view, the sound of the waves and each other’s company.

…

Late that evening they were comfortably settled under the Egyptian cotton sheets in the king size bed in the main bedroom in the bungalow.  Jenna had helped Luke with his evening routine, which had included his bowel routine, without any problems. Luke had seemed relieved when she helped him transfer to bed and put his overnight splints on.

“That wasn’t too bad, was it?” she asked as she climbed into bed.

“No, it wasn’t,” Luke said with a small smile.

Jenna didn’t say anything else, she just leaned over and kissed him passionately on the lips. Luke did his best to pull her closer and deepened the kiss. They were both panting when they came up for air a few minutes later.

“See, romance is still there,” Jenna said with a smile. Then she kissed him again.

“You’re amazing,” Luke said as he put his arm around her back as Jenna snuggled against his side and rested her head on his chest.

“No, I’m in love,” she mumbled, already half asleep. Luke didn’t say anything; he just kissed the crown of her head.

…

“Oh, wow! It’s a beautiful day,” Jenna exclaimed as she pulled the curtains to the sides and opened the French Doors that led from the master bedroom to the deck to let the fresh sea breeze into the room.

“Looks like it,” Luke agreed, his voice thick with sleep. “I can’t remember the last time I slept this soundly and I usually struggle to sleep in strange beds.”

“This bed is incredibly comfortable,” Jenna agreed. “Maybe we’ll have to look into getting one at home?”

“That might be a good idea. So, shall we call room service for breakfast?”

“Sounds like a good plan to me. Do you want to get dressed first, or shall we be lazy and eat in our pajamas?”

“I think I’ll go with lazy. Just change my hand splints and help me into my wheelchair. We can shower later.” He had a teasing smile on his face and waggled his eyebrows suggestively as he mention them taking a shower.

“You wicked man,” Jenna laughed.

…

After breakfast they enjoyed a rather erotic shower together and then Jenna assisted Luke with his morning routine and helped him get dressed and settled into his wheelchair. He headed out to the deck to enjoy the sunshine while Jenna finished her own morning routine.

She found him slightly reclined with his eyes closed and his face bathed in sun. The small contended smile on his face made Jenna smile too.

“Hey handsome, enjoying the sunshine?” she said as she kissed his forehead.

“Yeah. And the sound of the waves and seagulls. It’s so peaceful here. I love it.”

“Want to take a walk down on the beach? There’s a nice paved path down there.”

“Oh, that sounds nice,” Luke agreed as he adjusted the position of his chair so he was sitting upright again.

…

Jenna laced her right hand with Luke’s left as they strolled along the path. She realized it had been a long time since she had felt this happy and relaxed, and she knew the man next to her was the reason for that.  Her career was doing great; the company was gaining a great reputation and new assignments were coming in at a fast pace. They were so busy that Sarah had mentioned hiring someone, at least part time. Living with Luke was great and Jenna hadn’t regretted moving in with him once. He was a great partner; loving, caring, attentive and Jenna was infinitely grateful to have him in her life.

“What?” Luke’s deep baritone voice pulled Jenna out of her reverie.

“Huh?” Jenna said, not understanding what he was asking about.

“What has you grinning like the Cheshire cat?”

“I’m just happy with my life right now. My career is in a great place, I live in a really nice house and more importantly I’m in an amazing relationship.”

“I can relate to that feeling,” Luke said with a wide smile.

…

After strolling along the path in silence for another few minutes a second path; leading out on a pier that looked mostly abandoned came from up ahead and it caught Luke’s eye.

“Let’s go out on the pier,” he suggested. Jenna agreed

A few minutes later she was sitting on a bench and Luke had parked his wheelchair next to her.

“I could get used to this,” Jenna said with a contended sigh.

“Me too. It’s nice to take some time off and I have to admit it’s nice that it’s just the two of us for a couple of days.”

“I’m glad you’re coming around to the idea of me assisting you from time to time. I’ve gotten used to having your assistants around, but I think it’s a good thing that we aren’t dependent on them. That we can spend a weekend together, just the two of us. That we can manage of an assistant calls in sick and you can’t get anyone else to step in on short notice. Knowing I’m trained to assist you has actually put me at ease, I don’t worry about what to do if something unexpected happens.”

“I haven’t thought about it that way,” Luke said thoughtfully. “But you’re right. I suppose I just worry about being a burden sometimes. As adjusted as I have become to my disability there are still moments where I’m incredibly frustrated about being dependent on other people for tasks that most people take for granted. Things most people don’t even think twice about.”

“I have no idea what it’s like for you, but I can imagine it’s hard sometimes. I do know one thing; you’re not a burden to me and you never will be. Don’t let your mind go down that road.”

“That reminds me of something my shrink back in Ann Arbor told me, it wasn’t that long after I was discharged from rehab and I was still a mess, struggling to adjust to my new reality. I can’t remember his exact wording, but the core of it was that a disabled person is not a burden to the people that love them. They assist them when its necessary to make their life easier, richer and without thinking twice about it. He’s visually impaired himself, so I suppose he knows what he’s talking about.”

“I think he’s absolutely right,” Jenna replied. “That’s how I feel about it. Why do you struggle so hard to accept it? Have someone expressed they feel that way about you? Or is it all in your head?”

“My family is great. They’ve really supported me from day one and I definitely be where I am today without them. But they’re family… I don’t know… After I got hurt I kind of gave up on finding a woman that could deal with all the crap that comes with my disability. Convinced myself that I was fine with being single. And then I met you and you just totally blew me away with your easy acceptance of everything.”

Jenna smiled and took a deep breath before she answered. “I kind of fell for you the first time I saw you; I like dark guys and your smile just blew me away. Every time I saw you at the coffee shop my heart skipped a beat and whenever you smiled at me I felt like a silly teenager again. If you hadn’t been disabled I would’ve made a move sooner, but I didn’t know how to approach you; what the proper etiquette for ‘hitting on the guy in the wheelchair’ was. I’m so grateful that Mon took the initiative for us.”

“We should probably buy her a nice bottle of wine or something,” Luke interjected with a chuckle.

“Yeah,” Jenna agreed. “Anyway. Within minutes of chatting with you I was falling for you all over again. Not only are you great looking, you’re smart, funny and able to carry a conversation. As far as I recall there weren’t any awkward moments.”

“You’re really stroking my ego here,” Luke said with a laugh and shake of his head. “You aren’t half bad at carrying conversations yourself.”

Jenna smiled as Luke pulled her into his lap; she quickly surveyed their surroundings and when she was sure they were alone she kissed Luke soundly.

...to be continued...