My Husband’s Cooking Bites Me Chapter 03
To test my theory, I tried more than a dozen different foods outside the house.
Nothing happened.
My body felt completely normal.
Right then, Thomas sent me a photo of himself prepping dinner in the kitchen.
[Your mom’s coming over tonight. I’m gonna make sure she gets a proper taste of my cooking.]
Just looking at the photo was enough to make my body react.
I made up my mind.
If Thomas’s cooking made me feel this way again tonight, I was going to talk to him about it.
I couldn’t keep putting my body through this.
By the time I got home that evening, Thomas had already finished cooking.
Mom, Linda, took one look at the table.
“Wow. That looks delicious!”
Then she took a bite.
Her eyes lit up.
“Thomas, I had no idea you could cook this well!”
“This is even better than mine!”
Thomas scratched the back of his head with a grin.
“If you like it, that’s all I care about.”
“Ever since I started cooking at home, Ellie’s been eating less and less.”
“I was starting to worry she didn’t like my food.”
“So I made a few new dishes tonight.”
As he spoke, Thomas held the fork out to me.
“Ellie, come on.”
“Try this one.”
“Tell me if you like it.”
I hesitated.
Then I caught Mom giving me a warning look.
I had no choice but to take a small bite.
The second the food touched my tongue, that burning sensation came back.
Now I knew for sure.
There was something wrong with Thomas’s cooking.
But why?
Thomas, our son, and Mom were all eating the same food without a problem.
Why was I the only one who felt awful?
Thomas looked at me expectantly.
“Well?”
“Do you like it?”
Mom gave me another look.
With my mouth still full, I forced out,
“It’s good.”
Mom kept watching me through the entire meal, so I ended up eating far more than usual.
And the more I ate, the worse I felt.
Thomas, on the other hand, looked thrilled.
“Look at that.”
“Linda comes over, and suddenly Ellie’s got her appetite back.”
I forced a smile.
After Thomas cleared the table, he went to help our son with his homework.
Mom grabbed my hand and pulled me into the living room.
She lowered her voice.
“Ellie, what’s going on with you?”
“Thomas’s food was perfectly fine.”
“So what was with that face at dinner?”
Before I could answer, she kept going.
“You know how much Thomas has done for this family.”
“When your dad got sick, Thomas didn’t just help with the hospital bills.”
“He was there day and night.”
“Seven days straight.”
“He helped your dad eat, wash up, use the bathroom – everything.”
“Not once did he complain.”
“And when your dad didn’t make it?”
“Thomas cried harder than anyone.”
“He handled the funeral.”
“He took care of everything.”
“Remember those friends who used to give us grief because we never had a son?”
“Even they said Thomas had done more for us than most sons ever would.”
Her expression hardened.
“And now?”
“He loses his job, and you’re treating him like he’s a burden?”
“Ellie, you can’t be this ungrateful.”
“Mom, I’m not…”
My chest tightened as I said it.
Of course I knew how much Thomas had done for my family over the years.
That was exactly why I’d been so careful with his feelings.
I was worried he’d think I saw him differently just because he’d lost his job.
But the food?
That wasn’t my fault.
I let out a long breath.
“Mom, I’m not judging Thomas for losing his job.”
I paused.
“His food bites me.”