by Zoe Matthews
“Go on a date. Don’t men and women do that in your time? When a man wants to spend time with a woman, they will take her to dinner or a movie. They would do things together so they can get to know each other.”
“Oh,” Bridget smiled at him. “I would like that.” She did her best to sound calm, but inside her heart was racing like one of those cars that had whizzed by her earlier that day.
Justin looked relieved. “Good.”
They spent the rest of the afternoon watching Garrett play his game. At one point, Justin pulled out a small rectangular flat box, did something with his fingers on the front cover and then spoke into it. He quickly arranged for Garrett to spend the evening with his best friend. When he saw Bridget looking curiously at it, he showed her what a cell phone was, and how it worked.
After they left so Justin could drop Garrett off at his friends and Bridget could get ready for her date, she thought about all she had seen and experienced that day. She realized that when she made plans to use the keys to travel to the future, she wondered if she would want to stay for good, but she now knew she only wanted to visit. The future was too different from what she was used to. Everyone seemed so busy, rushing from one place to another. She was always busy on her family’s ranch, but they also knew how to enjoy the time in the day.
Bridget looked through Nicky’s closet of clothes and found another long flowing dress. After changing into the new dress, she brushed out her hair, deciding to leave it hanging down her back. One of the things she noticed at the mall was that the women wore their hair in many different fashions. She even saw a woman with purple hair! But she didn’t see anyone with their hair pulled back tightly in a bun. Even though she wasn’t used to having her hair loose, she wanted to fit in, so she left it down. When she was finally ready, she sat down on the sofa and picked up Pride and Prejudice to read until Justin arrived.
Chapter 10
Justin dropped Garrett off at his friend’s home and then went to his own to clean up. He was surprised how excited he felt about being able to spend time with Bridget.
When she’d first arrived, he’d been a bit perturbed. What did she think she was doing, using the keys to travel to the future? Especially when he found out that she hadn’t told anyone she was leaving. Didn’t she know that her family was probably worried about her?
He’d enjoyed spending the day with her. She’d exhibited child-like awe and enjoyment with everything she saw. He was surprised how much he enjoyed being with her.
She was kind to Garrett and seemed to enjoy the commentary his son went through as he eagerly showed Bridget the future. He found that he had a difficult time keeping himself from grabbing her hand throughout the day. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her auburn hair shone in the sunlight, her green eyes sparkled with joy. Then he found himself offering to take her out on a date.
After cleaning up, Justin walked the short distance to Nicky’s townhouse. He knocked on the door, then let himself in. Bridget was sitting on the sofa with a book in her lap. She looked up and smiled as he entered the room. Justin could tell that it had never occurred to her that he could have been someone else and promised himself to give her a quick lesson on Stranger Danger before the evening ended.
“Hi,” Bridget greeted him and stood.
He noticed she was dressed in another one of Nicky’s dresses. She had brushed out her auburn hair, and it hung down her back in curls. Her green eyes sparkled as she looked up at him. Justin had the hardest time keeping himself from gathering her into his arms. His heart skipped a beat with her smile. She seemed to be as happy to be with him as he was to be with her.
“Will you be okay if we go to where I want to take you in my car?” Justin asked as he shoved his hands into his pockets to keep himself from running his fingers through the curls of her hair. He noticed a little bit of fear in Bridget’s eyes. “I promise I will drive very carefully.”
“I know you will. I’m assuming driving those machines so fast is normal. I’m just not used to it.” Then she smiled, and again Justin’s heart skipped a beat. “Actually, I would like to experience riding in your car at least once before I leave.”
Justin led her out the door, making sure it was locked behind him. He took her hand as they walked to his car and was pleased that she didn’t pull away. He opened the passenger door and showed her how to secure the seatbelt before getting in on the driver’s side. He started the car and pulled carefully out of his parking spot. As he drove onto the street, he noticed Bridget clutching the sides of her seat, but she soon relaxed and started to ask questions about how cars worked.
They drove for about fifteen minutes before they arrived at the restaurant he planned to take her to. It was a nice restaurant that served many different types of food from which Bridget could choose.
After they were seated, the waitress handed them the menus and Bridget eagerly started to read hers. After a few moments, her face fell, and Justin picked up on it immediately.
“What’s wrong?” he asked with concern. “Doesn’t anything look good to you?”
“It’s not that. There are so many choices. I have no idea what to choose,” Bridget told him with a slight smile.
Justin leaned back in his chair and looked at her. “How about I order for both of us.”
Bridget looked relieved and set the menu aside. “That would be nice, thank you.”
After asking her what types of food she might like, he decided to stick with the basics of American food and ordered BBQ ribs with fries and a side salad. He wanted her to try something that she probably hadn’t eaten before, like salmon or shrimp, but he wasn’t sure she would have liked them. It was obvious that her main diet was what was available on their ranch, like beef, chicken, and basic fruits and vegetables.
After he placed their order, he watched as she curiously looked over the salt and sugar packets, along with BBQ sauces that were in a small basket at the edge of the table.
“Tell me about Nicky and Kimberly,” he invited her. “Judging from their letters, they seem to be happy, but I’d like you to tell me what their life is like.”
Bridget’s face lit up. “They are happy, I promise. Nicky and Shaun are growing closer every day and Colleen loves her. She enjoys having a mother. Nicky is very good to Colleen and spends quite a bit of time with her. She has even taken over some of the schooling for her, which has freed up time for me.”
“I guess you are too far away for Colleen to go to a regular school with other children?” he asked.
Bridget nodded. “It takes about four hours to get to Denver. There aren’t any other towns that are closer. I taught my younger brother, Keegan, until he was old enough to go to school in Denver.”
“How old is Keegan?”
“He just turned 17. He wants to be a doctor. Next year will be his last year in school. We are hoping we can send him back east to a medical school.”
“What about Kimberly?”
“She loves being a mother. Richie and Kathy are happy babies. It’s great to have babies in the family again.”
Justin shook his head slightly. “It’s hard to believe that she has children, but I know she must be a good mother.”
Bridget continued to talk, telling him about what their day-to-day life was like on the ranch. She talked about Patrick and his job of overseeing the cows, and about Shaun working and training horses. She described the large vegetable garden she took care of and mentioned that she would be canning peas when she returned.
Justin learned that they grew or raised most of their food. They went into Denver only a few times a year for supplies. It was hard for him to picture choosing to be so isolated, but he could also tell Bridget loved living in the mountains. He also knew that in her time, being isolated like her family was wasn’t very unusual.
Bridget told him a little about Colleen’s history and that Shaun wasn’t her birth father. Evidently, Shaun had been good friends with her birth mother, who was a Native
American, although Bridget used the word Indian to describe them. Colleen’s mother had died giving birth to her, but not before requesting that Shaun and his family raise her. Colleen’s father was a mountain man, and that would make it hard for the tribe she lived in to accept her. Colleen’s mother wanted something better for her daughter than what she could get in her Indian village. Justin discovered that Colleen’s Indian family lived in a village tucked in a small valley in the mountains a few miles away from the ranch during the summer, but always left in the fall, going to their winter land further south.
The food was delivered and Justin enjoyed watching her taste the ribs carefully, then eat them with gusto. He was glad she enjoyed the food and soon their meal was over. He didn’t want to take her back to Nicky’s home yet, so after paying the bill, he suggested they walk to a nearby park. She eagerly agreed, making him think she also didn’t want the evening to end.
As they walked along a path that weaved its way through the park, they were both silent. It was beginning to get dark and Justin could see a few stars starting to twinkle in the night sky. He reached over and took her hand in his as they walked comfortably together.
****
Bridget loved the feeling of Justin’s hand covering her own. They strolled along together, just enjoying each other’s company. She had thoroughly enjoyed the date with Justin. She realized that if she allowed herself to, she could easily fall in love with him. But that would never be an option for either of them.
She enjoyed exploring the future and had absolutely loved getting to know Justin and his son. But she also knew she didn’t want to stay in this time. She belonged in the time in which she’d been born. Nicky and Kimberly were willing to travel to her time and marry her brothers, but it would be different for her.
Suddenly Justin stopped her under a huge shade tree. She turned her towards him, keeping her hand in his. She couldn’t see his face clearly in the dark night, but she saw enough to make her heart skip a beat.
“I enjoyed spending today with you,” Justin told her quietly.
“So have I,” Bridget admitted with a soft smile.
“Can I… I’m not sure how things are done in your time, but I’d like to kiss you,” he confessed as he used his free hand to tilt her chin upwards.
She debated a moment, knowing that she would fall for him if he kissed her. She recalled the thoughts she’d had just moments before. They would never be able to marry, as they both belonged in their own time. She almost said no, but couldn’t bring herself to.
I did want an adventure, didn’t I? She thought to herself. Just one kiss, I won’t let it go further than that.
She looked into his eyes and could see his face much more clearly now, even though it was dark, and she reached a hand to touch his face in invitation. He bent his head, and as their lips touched, stars exploded. He cupped her face with his hands as he deepened the kiss. As kisses go, it was brief, but as he stepped away from her and they continued to walk, she knew she was in deep trouble.
She had always wanted to know what love felt like for another man, what it would feel like getting to know a man like Justin. She had only been in Justin’s time for two days, so she shouldn’t feel so comfortable with him. But they had written to each other for many months, and she felt closer to him than she had ever felt to any other man, including her brothers. She firmly believed when a relationship was meant to be, things worked out one way or another. She knew that her life would never be the same.
Chapter 11
The next morning Justin showed up early at Nicky’s home. Bridget had just risen for the day, so was still in Nicky’s nightgown. When Justin had dropped her off the evening before, he’d given her a quick lesson on how to use a machine in the kitchen, something he called a microwave, and she instantly remembered Kimberly talking about it. Because of his instructions, she was able to heat up some water for oatmeal. He had started another machine that made coffee and she woke up to the pleasant smell of the drink brewing. As she took her first sip, she realized that there were a few things she would like to take back with her, although the coffee maker wouldn’t work at the ranch. The electricity needed in order to run wasn’t available at her ranch, although some people in large cities were starting to use it in their homes.
Justin told her he had just dropped Garrett off at school, but he wanted to invite her to his parents’ house that evening for dinner. He had a meeting to go to for his work, but he’d be by to get her around six o’clock that evening.
He cautioned her to stay close to Nicky’s townhouse and not go anywhere by herself. Then he was gone. Bridget chuckled to herself. It was obvious he was in a great hurry. The meeting he needed to get to must be very important. When she woke up that morning, she decided it would be best to return to her time as soon as possible, but after hearing Justin’s plans for the evening, she decided another day wouldn’t matter. She found it interesting that Justin had stopped asking her when she was planning on going back. Did he think she was staying for longer than a few days?
She spent the day cleaning the kitchen and living room the best she could. She found several boxes in Kimberly’s room and decided to help Justin by packing some of her belongings. After eating a sandwich for lunch (that she didn’t enjoy because she didn’t like the bread), she decided she would make her own bread. She was pleased to find the ingredients she needed in Nicky’s pantry. She found wheat flour, salt and oil. She also found a small package that was labeled yeast, but she had no idea how to use it. She decided to boil a few potatoes and used the water to make yeast and a few hours later, she had some bread dough ready to rise.
Knowing she would need to use Nicky’s oven, she spent an hour experimenting with it. Once she figured out what the buttons and knobs were for, she was able to turn the oven on.
While the dough sat, she took a short walk around the complex and enjoyed watching some children climb on the fancy metal playset. Once back in the kitchen, she preheated the oven. She had to guess the temperature, but when she pulled two loaves of crusty brown bread out of the oven an hour later, she was very pleased with herself. She had just made bread in the future with a fancy oven. After letting the bread cool for a few minutes, she was cutting herself a slice of bread when Justin knocked on the door and then let himself in, Garrett right behind him.
“Man, something smells really good,” Garrett ran into the kitchen. “Homemade bread! Can I have some?”
“Sure,” Bridget answered him with a smile and sliced another piece. “It’s still a bit warm, so be careful.”
Justin followed his son into the kitchen and leaned against the wall. He watched as Garrett spread butter and strawberry jam on his bread and then sat at the table to enjoy his treat.
“Would you like some?” Bridget asked, suddenly feeling shy in his presence.
He grinned at her. “Of course. I’d be a fool to pass up homemade bread.”
Bridget gave him a slice. The three of them sat at the small table, and she loved watching Justin and Garrett enjoy bread that she had made.
“I guess you figured out how to use the stove?” Justin questioned.
“It took a while, but I did figure it out. It baked this bread very well.”
“Why don’t we head over to my parents’ when you’re ready,” he suggested.
“That will be fine. Do they know about me, where I’m from?”
“Not yet,” Justin looked away sheepishly as took a bite of bread. “I thought I’d tell them when we go over.”
“Grandma and Grandpa don’t believe in time travel,” Garrett said, adding to the conversation. “They think Dad’s hiding Nicky because she got herself into some kind of trouble.”
Bridget looked sharply at Justin. “Do you think they’ll believe you if I just show up? Maybe it would be better to at least warn them.”
“They know about the keys. They’ve even received a few letters from Nicky, and they have seen them disappear. I think they believe more than t
hey want to admit. They are in denial,” Justin commented.
“Denial?” Bridget questioned, not sure what he meant.
“They don’t want to admit to themselves that they may never see their daughter again,” Justin explained as he stood up and went to slice another piece of bread.
Bridget smiled as she watched him cut a thick piece. The loaf was already half gone. There wasn’t going to be any left the way Justin and Garrett were eating it.
“To be honest with you, I’ve been a bit upset with Nicky and Kimberly for putting me in this position. Time travel is thought of as fiction in our time. They left without telling anyone. What about our parents? I’m supposed to figure out what to do with their townhouse and all of their stuff,” he waved his hand in the air as he talked.
Bridget looked down in her lap. “I guess I’ve added to the problem, just showing up like I did.”