Task Two of the day: get more clients.

Whipping out her phone, she shot a text off to Ayala. How would the second cutest couple in the world like a free photoshoot? Caveat: I get to upload the photos on my site.

Ayala’s reply is almost instantaneous. When I find them, I’ll let you know. #worldscutestcouple. And yaassss, we would love that.

Okay, perfect. She finalized a time and place for a shoot the next day, then checked in with the copywriter from Fiver about her ad.

And with all that hard work under her belt, she went off to make lunch.

It was amazing not to go into an office, to have the luxury to make fettuccine alfredo and haloumi salad for lunch, to not rush back and forth and try to juggle everything.

She did wonder, as she mixed the roux, how she would go about taking photos of a couple…. But she’d have to figure it all out at some point. Why not jump right in?

The apartment smelled like an Italian restaurant. He hummed as he shrugged off his jacket and hat.

“Est?”

“In here.”

He poked his head into the kitchen to find his wife plating food, a big smile on her face, and a shiur playing in the background. Well, then. A man could get used to this.

“It smells incredible.”

“Pasta and salad,” she said, motioning him toward the table, where two placemats were set up, along with cutlery, glasses, and a small vase of cut flowers taken from her Shabbos bouquet.

“How was your morning?”

She sighed happily. “It was amazing. I slept in, cleaned up, and then worked on my website. Oh, and I got some more clients! Pinny and Ayala.”

He tried to swallow, but a noodle ended up going down the wrong pipe, and he choked until he coughed it back up.

“Um, my Pinny?”

She nodded.

“Yeah, I don’t think that’s happening,” he said.

She put down her fork. “What?”

He tried to keep his tone calm. “Estee, why on earth would it make sense for you to take photos of my friend and his wife? You’re literally the same age as them.”

Two red splotches had appeared on Estee’s cheeks. “And so?”

He slammed his water glass down. “And so, if you were like ten years older than him, maybe it wouldn’t be weird, but you’re not and it is.”

Estee stared at him. “Why do I feel like you have zero appreciation for my hard work?” she said quietly. “I’m working so that you can learn. Do you know what I discovered this week? I really enjoy not working. But I want to do it anyway. So that we can have a Torah home. And all you do is shoot me down and kill my buzz. Well, I hope you’re happy.”

And then she stood up and stalked out of the kitchen.

He stared around the empty room in bewilderment. Then he took another bite of pasta, but he’d lost his appetite.

There was a paper on her pillow. Apology note?

She snatched it up. No, it was a computer printout. Google directions… Lakewood to the Poconos?

“Surprise.”

She spun around; Yonah was leaning on the door frame, looking sheepish.

“I’m sorry, Est, I shouldn’t have made it sound like I was forbidding you from doing something. Obviously, you can make your own choices. I just wanted to let you know it would make me uncomfortable. I thought we could use a little break from reality after all the changes lately. How ’bout a little cabin in the Poconos, with a patio. We’ll grill and chill.”

She was speechless. What a mindful apology and a seriously nice surprise. She’d been getting jealous, hearing everyone else gush about vacation and camp. Summers when you’re married were kind of boring.

“Wow,” she said. “Yonah, thanks so much. I’m really excited.”

And she was, really. Except she could kind of hear more of their savings plinking their way into the pocket of some cabin owner in the Poconos.

They always seemed to be driving. This drive was different that Boston, though; the air was heavy and introspective. Things had been rocky lately, they were going to reconnect.

Yonah’s feelings on the matter hadn’t changed one iota. But he was bright enough to realize that Estee didn’t take lightly to him stepping on her plans.

And at least, he thought, as he merged onto the throughway, she’d been forced to cancel her photo shoot. He tried not to let the thought process make him feel like a coward.

His phone rang. Estee pressed the Bluetooth before he had a chance to tell her that he’d decided loudspeaker conversations had no redeeming features.

“Hey, Yonah.”

He glanced at the screen. “Aryeh? How’s L.A’s finest pediatrician?”

Aryeh laughed. “Doing fine. Where am I catching you guys?”

Yonah glanced at Estee who was resolutely staring out the window. “Actually on our way to a little getaway.”

“Nice, enjoy. I wanted to speak to both of you. I’m sure you heard that Ma and Ta are moving away from Boston. And I’ve been thinking: the bikur cholim house and Ma and Ta’s hospitality — it’s so vital. Such special work. It would be a huge shame to let it fall by the wayside. So maybe… you and Estee can move to Boston and be their successors?”

To be continued…

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 1021)