by J. A. Saare
Chapter 9—Linen and Honeysuckle
The morning arrived quickly. Too quickly. Trent would arrive after his chartered flight from Scotland landed in Tennessee later in the evening. It was one hell of a long journey that I remembered very well. The first time around had felt longer than my return trip to the States, but then again, the company had been different. I’d been with Trent, a virtual stranger, when I’d gone to meet my parents. When I came home, I was surrounded by those I’d come to trust, including Caleb.
Things were bound to be uncomfortable for Trent. This wasn’t his home, and I was sure he wouldn’t feel entirely welcome. So I decided the least I could do was make sure he had some private space available to retreat, a sanctuary away from the wolves at his door. I didn’t feel guilty about calling him before, but as the time for his arrival approached, I started to. It was wrong of me to ask him to travel so far to protect me, and I planned to apologize for doing so when he arrived. I offered to meet him at the airport, but he insisted he could make it to the Blackney farm without an escort.
The majority of the day was spent cleaning the guest bedroom for him. Unlike most people believed, vampires were perfectly capable of moving around during the day. They didn’t prefer to—they are nocturnal creatures by design—but they were no more incapable of stepping into the rays of the sun than werewolves were to bask in the beams of the moon.
I made sure to clear a large place for Trent in the closet. He was a bit of clotheshorse, entirely spiffy in his multitude of dress shirts, slacks, and of course, trench coats. I asked him once why he wore the blasted things, since vampires didn’t get cold, and he informed me that everyone looked better in a trench coat. I didn’t bother inflating his delicate ego by informing him that he already had all of his bases covered in that department. Although in retrospect, he probably picked the thought easily enough from my mind. I could just imagine the pleasure the flight attendants would receive when he boarded the plane and became their visual eye candy.
After I finished changing the linens and closing the windows I’d opened to air everything out, I came around the corner and strode into Caleb’s room. I had cleared off a spot next to the bed for the mattress we were retrieving from Haven’s cabin. I had offered to take the floor, but Sarah would have none of that. I wanted to make sure she was as comfortable as possible, especially since she wasn’t angry anymore. I think being in a safe zone put her at ease.
I walked to the bookshelf against Caleb’s wall and carefully studied the spines of several John Steinbeck novels in his collection. I knew they were his personal favorites. I pulled out East of Eden and allowed the pages to flitter under my thumb before closing the hardback and sliding it back into place.
Caleb’s closet was next to the shelf. I pulled it open and sorted through the shirts and sweatshirts hanging inside. Once I’d chosen a gray sweatshirt from the hanger, I rubbed the soft cotton under my fingers. It was emblazoned with an orange “T” in the center. I grinned. Caleb was a college football fan, and I didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out his team of choice. He was loyal, even when it came to sports.
Snickering, I pulled the material over my head and smoothed it over the white T-shirt I’d put on earlier. It was several sizes too large and fell to the top of my thighs. I pulled the Tennessee logo to my face, inhaled deeply, and frowned at the lack of Caleb’s scent. The sweatshirt smelled like detergent and dryer sheets. I snorted the air from my nose and tried again.
Nothing.
I scurried to his bed and snatched his pillow. Pressing the soft cushion into my face, I breathed in deeply. A bit of his delicious smell lingered, but not nearly enough. We’d been apart for four days, and I all I could think about was when he’d finally be home.
No matter how selfish it made me, I wanted it to be soon. I wanted them to find Sammie and to come home so we could finally start living a normal—well, as normal as we could—life. I could pretend that not having him here didn’t affect me, or that the distance didn’t get to me, but it couldn’t be further from the truth.
Shuffling from the hallway got my attention and I turned in time to see Beverly walking in, carrying a load of freshly laundered sheets. Her blue jeans were baggy, swallowing her whole, as was her tan sweater. The load under her arm was enormous in comparison to her petite frame. She was the tiniest person I'd ever met, barely even reaching my chin. Her sienna brown hair continued to grow, cascading in straight strands past her shoulder blades. It was much longer than the pixie cut she’d gotten after her son retreated from his family to take out his aggressions in a pit full of werewolves that were equally angry and primal.
“I have two sets here,” she said, sorted through the sheets and handed them over. I tossed the pillow to the mattress, took them, and held them out in my upraised hands. “Bring the dirty linens to me when you’re finished.”
I stared down at the fresh sheets and then at Caleb’s pillow which was crumpled in the middle of the comforter. It was silly wanting to keep any part of him lingering around, but while he was gone that was exactly what I intended to do.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized the moment she comprehended my confusion. “I didn’t think, sweetheart.” She took the sheets back, sorted through them, and handed one set over. “These are for Sarah. When you have her bed set, I’ll bring a blanket up.”
“Thanks.” I placed the sheets on top of the bed and turned around, meeting her expectant face.
“Did you return Caleb’s call yet?” she asked and lifted her sky blue gaze to my face. There were still dark puffy circles under her eyes. I knew she wasn't sleeping well since Sammie's disappearance.
“I was just about to.”
I had promised her I would call him hours ago. As much as it killed me, I tried to put off returning his call for as long as possible. I had yet to break the news about our new houseguest since I knew Caleb would not be pleased with me. I wanted to remember his cheery voice instead of his furious one, and I had a bad feeling he might decide to make the trek home anyway, especially with Trent paying a visit.
“Here’s the phone. I brought it up with me, just in case.” She smiled knowingly and I knew I was busted. She and Chris had discussed all of this, I was sure of it, and now it was time to pay the piper.
“Thanks.” I took the phone with a smile while thinking to myself “you really shouldn’t have.”
“Just take your time. He told me he would be waiting on your call. I’m surprised he didn’t just call back.” Her smile widened, sweet but insistent. Beverly was extremely protective of her son. She motioned to the phone. “Well, don’t keep him waiting.”
“I’m calling now.” I lifted the long silver cordless into the air.
She waited at the door and I shook my head, somehow refraining from grumbling at her to leave. Pressing the talk button got the job done. She gave me a bright smile and walked out the door. I listened as her light footsteps echoed off the floor as she strolled down the hallway.
I punched in the numbers to Caleb’s cell and walked back to the bookshelf, staring aimlessly at the picture frames on the middle shelf before choosing the one from his senior prom and pulling it off. I ran my thumb over his date’s head, a tall leggy blond with blue eyes—my polar opposite.
“Hello?” The instant his husky lilt hit my ear, a shiver ran down my spine and caused the hair along my nape to stand on end.
“I miss you,” I said breathlessly.
I heard rustling and voices next to the phone. “I have to take this call.” He sounded far away, as if he put the phone against his chest to muffle the sound.
Waiting with the phone pressed against my ear, I trapped it between my shoulder and face while tracing my fingers along the picture. Caleb wasn’t as bulky, his height and youth making him appear lanky and thin. His hair was longer too, brushing past his shoulders. I missed his long hair and was relieved it had finally started growing back.
“Tell him I’m on the phone, I’ve been wa
iting on this call,” I heard him snap at someone before his voice came through the line, softer this time. “Emma?”
“Hey,” I said and pushed the frame behind other pictures, gently tilting it back until it stood upright.
“I was getting concerned. Didn’t Mom tell you I called?”
“She did, I’m sorry. I was, err,” I stammered, thinking of an excuse. “Uh, I was doing some spring cleaning.”
“It’s December.”
I glanced down at the huge orange T on his thick sweatshirt.
“Really? I didn’t notice.”
“Are you going to make me come out and ask? Because I know you, and I know you’re avoiding something.” He spoke softly but the warning was clearly implied.
“Tell me about Sammie first.” It was a tactic to change the subject, as well as to find out what was going on. “Did you find anything?”
He hesitated. “There’s a place Rosco wants us to check out tonight. We’ve combed over most of the city and a good portion of the state. If we don’t find anything we might just have to give up and come home. There just isn’t much to go on. No one else has gone missing, and there isn’t a scent to follow.”
“What’s so special about this place?” I kept the worry from my voice, forcing myself to sound curious.
“Some people were asking questions in a bar outside of town that caters to”—he lowered his voice to whisper—“all kinds of things. We’re going there to see if they come back around looking for some action or asking anymore questions. Right now, that’s all we’ve got.”
“If you don’t find anything, you’ll be coming home?” My heart lodged into my throat, but I managed to keep my tone the same. I wanted him home, but I knew the minute they left it meant Sammie was really gone.
“Yes.” I never knew it was possible to sound both relieved and despondent at the same time, but Caleb had just uttered a word that conveyed both emotions perfectly.
“I wish I was there with you.” I walked to the bed, flopped onto the mattress, and pulled the pillow into my lap.
“Me too.” He chuckled and the welcome sound wound through my ear and wrapped around my chest.
“I’m sure there are plenty of women there to keep you occupied until you get home.” I said it teasingly but frowned when I pictured all the women who would undoubtedly swoon when they got a look at Caleb. I had the same reaction the first time I saw him.
“They are nothing in comparison to you.”
“Pretty words.” I laughed, pressed the pillow closer to my chest, and inhaled.
“It’s the truth—” He stopped midsentence and asked, “What are you doing?”
I blushed, realizing the phone was directly next to my nose. “I was smelling your pillow.”
“You were, huh?” he asked in a husky voice.
“Mmm hmm.” I sniffed again, and snickered when he grumbled something obscene through the phone.
“I’d give anything to smell you right now.”
“And what do I smell like?” I asked, knowing good and damned well that I didn’t have a smell. I didn’t wear perfume, and I didn’t have a wolf living inside of me.
“You smell like white linen dried in the warm sunshine, with the faintest hint of honeysuckle and lilac.”
My breath caught, I never knew I smelled like anything. “I do?”
“You do.”
He exhaled loudly into the phone and growled, “Hang on.”
I heard him snapping at someone again followed by the ruffle of cloth against the speaker as the phone was lifted back into the air.
“Emma, I’m going to have to let you go, but I’ll be calling back. Be there when I call.”
“I promised Sarah I’d go with her to get something from Haven’s, but I can tell her no.”
“No.” He sighed. “Go ahead. Call me when you get home.”
“What if you’re busy? I don’t want to interrupt.”
“You are never an interruption. Call me when you get home.” He waited a moment and added, “Please.”
“I’ll call as soon as I get home, I promise.”
“Damn it!” he shouted away from the phone and muffled the speaker again. “Give me a fucking minute!” After a moment, he returned to the line. “I have to go,” he said angrily, “but I want to talk to you tonight. Call me when you get home.”
“Okay. I love you.”
He chuckled. “You still didn’t tell me why you didn’t return my call.”
“I’ll tell you when I call tonight.”
“You’d better.”
The phone rustled again and Caleb really let it fly. I had heard him give someone an ass chew before, but not like this. He was in a foul mood, and I cringed as he barked viciously at whoever interrupted our call.
“I have to go,” he repeated, “but I’ll talk to you soon. I love you.”
His curses rang out until the line clicked off. I let the pillow fall to the mattress and rose from the bed. Walking out of the bedroom and to the hall, I started making my way downstairs.
Beverly was waiting at the stove when I stepped into the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on dinner. The poor woman seemed to live in front of the stove. It was the one place you could always find her.
She paused when she saw me and frowned. “That was fast.”
“He had to go.” I gave a weak smile and walked past the counter to collect the plates and silverware to set the table.
I glided into the hall, stepped into the dining room, and placed the plates onto the table, telling myself not to get upset over the two empty spaces situated across from each other. Once I had given up hope, believing nothing could prevent what was about to happen to me, and I’d been proven wrong. I had to believe that would happen again.
“Do you need any help?” Sarah’s question echoed in my ears before she appeared.
“I’ve got it, but thanks.” I glanced over my shoulder at her.
“How did Caleb take the news?” she murmured, walking around the table.
“About that.” I grimaced and peered up at her through my lashes. “He had to let me go before I could tell him.”
“Emma.” She gave me her most disappointed and disapproving look. The one that always made me feel like I was back in kindergarten getting busted for breaking the crayons or spilling the glue. I was such a rebel back then.
“I’ll tell him as soon as we get back from the cabin,” I told her quietly, adjusting the napkins on the plates.
“Do you want to go before or after we eat?”
“Do we have time to go now?” I frowned and looked at the clock. The drive to Haven’s was at least an hour away.
“Bev is making lasagna, and it’s not in the oven yet. Trust me, we have time. Besides, there’s something I need to do before I explode.”
She walked out of the dining room and yelled. “Bev, we’re going to the cabin. We’ll back soon!” Then she nodded at me. “Get your coat. Let’s go.”
Chapter 10—Indigo
Just as predicted, we arrived at Haven’s cabin when the sun was hidden around the bend of the earth, the sky turning hues of pink but not quite orange. The clouds basked in the final warm tendrils of the sun, ready to fade into the cover of the night. We had a little over an hour left before darkness would overtake the sky.
Sarah pulled directly to the front of the cabin and my stomach did a somersault. I hadn’t returned here since I’d left months before. This was the place that had started it all for me. I had fallen in love with Caleb here. There were so many memories in this place, all of them good, shoved into a matter of days.
I took a few steps toward the huge lake in the back, picturing Billy on his bucket reeling in fish and patiently teaching me how to do the same. I rotated to the right, finding the expanse of trees where Caleb had brought me after I was first introduced to Sarah. He asked me about my parents, my life, and encouraged me to share my secrets with his gorgeous smile.
“Emma?” Sarah’s voice in
terrupted my recollections, and I blinked, coming back to the present. “The mattress is in our room.”
She sorted through her keys, found the correct one, and climbed the stairs. The porch creaked as we walked across, the wood protesting under our combined weight. Sarah slid the key into the knob, twisted, and worked the handle with her fingers to open the door to the cabin. After she’d stepped inside, she flipped the light switch and covered the entranceway in a soft glow.
The cabin was the same. To the left was the pool room, complete with a clawed table with a faux zebra carpet displayed underneath, pool racks, and a jukebox. The insanely well-equipped kitchen was in the back, and to the right was the living room, complete with an enormous plasma screen television and wrap around couch that swallowed the room completely.
Sarah started walking up the stairs as I followed, remaining close behind her. She traveled to the bedroom she and Derek shared, pushed open the door, and strode inside. I had never been inside their private space before, so it made my heart ache to see the pictures of the two of them displayed on a dresser. I sauntered over, bent at the waist and looked into the glossy frames. A few of the pictures were recent, displaying Sarah’s clipped inky hair and Derek’s blond, nearly baldhead. However, two of the pictures were older. Sarah’s dark hair was long, falling to her hips. Derek’s blond waves were as long as Caleb’s used to be.
They smiled blissfully at the camera, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist, her chin tilted down as if she were embarrassed. I knew the picture had to have been taken before they decided to separate for a brief period. There was a joyful happiness between them that I’d not seen before.
Standing upright, I looked around. The windows were covered by wooden blinds, just as they were in Caleb’s room. The faintest hint of light pushed through the slats. The walls were painted the same dark mahogany. The huge bed across from the door was hidden by a red duvet and pillows of various shades and sizes.
Sarah was digging around in the closet, crouched down, pushing boxes out of the way. Apparently, Caleb got the bedroom with the nice walk in closet. She and Derek got the crappy one with sliding doors.