“Quit whining,” she interrupted, tugging her back into motion.
Destiny pursed her lips as she allowed Lisa to drag her to the concession stand.
When they arrived, Lisa refused to release her friend’s arm, holding her firmly in place. They stood behind two women with a handful of one-dollar bills, eager to fill their bellies with whatever junk food they could afford. The man behind the counter took their order and glanced just past them. Destiny looked up just as his eyes met hers. They held hers for just a moment before he smiled and looked back to the women in front of her, who were still deciding what they wanted. Destiny felt her face flush. She couldn’t remember the last time that a look by any man had brought about that reaction. She quickly looked down at her feet.
“I think you’re going to like this guy,” Lisa continued. “He’s smart, he likes the outdoors, and he’s not hard on the eyes.”
Destiny looked away, feeling extremely awkward. “By the way, where’s Grandpa?”
“Cruise,” Lisa answered nonchalantly.
Destiny’s mouth hung open as she turned back to her friend. “Cruise?”
“Yeah, didn’t I tell you?”
Destiny narrowed her eyes. “No. I guess you forgot that little detail.”
Lisa tried to avoid her friend’s glare. “Oops,” she smiled. “Must have slipped my mind.”
“Mmm,” Destiny murmured, arms crossed, realizing she’d been tricked.
The women in front of them grabbed their large popcorn, Nestle’s Buncha Crunch, hot dogs and large sodas. They squeezed past Destiny and Lisa, their arms overflowing.
“Hey, Lisa,” the man behind the counter smiled.
“Hey, Bill.” She looked over at her friend nervously. “This, is my best friend, Destiny.”
When Destiny’s eyes met his again, she blushed. “Nice to meet you,” she said, her eyes staying on his only for a moment longer.
“Nice to meet you, too,” he replied, offering his hand.
Destiny slowly took it and shook it.
“What happened to the nose?” Lisa motioned with a nod of her head.
“Long story,” he sighed.
“I’ll bet it’s a good one,” she teased. “Can’t wait to hear it. Two margaritas, please. Make one a double.”
“Ralph and Harry?” Bill chuckled.
Lisa nodded.
“Two Seven Ups on the rocks, coming right up.”
“Do you want anything?” Lisa asked her friend.
Destiny shook her head. She just wanted to get out of there.
When Bill returned with the sodas, Lisa smiled. “Is Owen around?”
“Owen!” Bill yelled over his shoulder; then he looked at the women. “Sorry,” he said more quietly. “Intercom’s broken.”
Lisa nodded, looking over Bill’s shoulder.
A nice looking man, wearing a dress shirt and pressed slacks, looked around the corner and smiled. “Hey, Lisa!”
Owen walked toward them, wiping his hands on a dishrag. Destiny thought he was a little over-dressed for being in such a dive. He smiled at the women before he simply pushed Bill, full-armed, out of the way. A perplexed Bill fell into the wall. It was quite comical. Destiny had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. Lisa showed no restraint and laughed out loud.
Bill recovered after a moment and resumed his duties. “Anything else?”
Lisa looked up at the menu board, then shook her head. “No offense but nothing really looks good.”
“None taken.” Bill took Lisa’s money, his eyes on Destiny.
Owen furrowed his brow. “I take offense. I wrote the menu.” He smiled at the women, turning his full attention to Destiny. “So, you’re the little lady that Lisa’s been talking about all these months?”
Destiny shrugged. He was as nice looking as Lisa had described. However, she kept finding herself casting an occasional glance at Bill as Owen spoke. He looked like he’d been in a prize fight; a swollen nose, dark bruising under his eyes. Despite his injury, he had kind eyes and a friendly smile. Owen walked around the bar counter to get a closer look at Destiny.
“Lisa didn’t exaggerate when she said you were adorable.”
Destiny blushed again, not sure how to respond.
Owen motioned for her to step away from the counter so that they wouldn’t be blocking the line of impatient bingo players anxious to get back to their game. “Why haven’t I seen you in here before?”
Destiny looked down as she walked. She shrugged again. “Friday night is usually my night to unwind,” she said, hoping it was enough.
“Nothing like unwinding with a bunch of old farts that have nothing better to do.” When she didn’t say anything else, he added, “Well, I’m glad you finally came. I think you’ll see that these guys just want a little company. It’s their chance to get out. They get a free, healthy meal. It’s kind of like a reverse Meals on Wheels.” Owen smiled. “Get it? Reverse Meals on Wheels? They come to us?”
Destiny nodded at his lame attempt at humor. “Got it.” She drew in a deep breath and looked around for Lisa, realizing she had conveniently disappeared. “It was really nice meeting you, Owen,” she smiled and held up her hands with the cups in them. “I really need to get these to Ralph and Harry.”
Owen seemed disappointed, but he pasted a smile on his face. He held out his hand, looked down at hers and realized her hands were full so moved his hand to her elbow and shook it. “I’ll check in on you after awhile,” he winked.
“See you around.” Destiny grinned, then turned and grimaced as she quickly walked away.
Lisa appeared from nowhere and took her arm as they walked to their table together.
“Don’t ever do that to me again,” Destiny said flatly.
“You didn’t like him?”
“He was nice enough,” Destiny conceded. “But I told you before, I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready to date again.” She drew in a deep breath. “Ever.”
Lisa pulled her to a stop. “Sweetie, I don’t care if you ever date again. Ever,” she stressed. “Honest. I just want you to meet people.”
“I meet people.”
“Where? Where do you meet people?”
Destiny hesitated. “The grocery store,” she replied, fumbling. “The mall.”
Lisa scoffed. “When was the last time you went to a mall?”
Destiny felt cornered. “Umm, just last week?”
Lisa took the cups of soda from her and handed them to Ralph and Harry while cutting her eyes at her friend. “Uh-huh.”
“Here’s our good luck charm.” Harry patted Destiny on the back as she sat down.
Lisa laughed. “What am I now? Chopped liver?”
Ralph patted her arm as she sat. “You’re more like filet mignon, Sweetheart,” he said with a smile.
Harry sipped his drink. “They forgot the alcohol again.”
Lisa snapped her fingers. “I knew we forgot something.”
Ralph handed Destiny two of his cards and a stamp. “Make me proud, Sweetie,” he grinned.
They played six more games, without another win, and then it was time for everyone to go home. Lisa and Destiny helped wheel Harry and Ralph outside to the bus waiting to take them back to the local Veterans Administration hospital. Ralph made Destiny promise to return the following Friday, and she reluctantly assured him she’d be back.
Lisa and Destiny walked back inside to clean tables and repack the bingo equipment. A little while later, Owen made his way back over to them, to help them clear several tables.
“Sorry you missed the fish,” Owen said with a smile. “If you snooze, you lose around here.”
“I’ll just have to get here earlier next Friday.” Destiny cleared the table without looking up at him.
“I’ll make sure to hold you a few back if you don’t make it in time.”
Destiny looked up. Owen was trying so hard she almost felt bad for him. Almost. “Thank you.”
Owen drew in a deep breath and glanced at Lisa, who enc
ouraged him with a nod of her head. He turned back to Destiny, nervously. “Hey, would you like to get a drink sometime?”
Destiny continued to wipe down the table she had just cleared, with hot soapy water. “That’s sweet, but I’m not really a drinker.”
Owen sighed and glanced at Lisa again for encouragement. She motioned with her head for him not to give up. “How about going for a cup of coffee, then?” he asked.
Destiny put on the kindest smile she could muster. “I don’t really do coffee, either.”
Owen felt himself struggling now. “You do eat, right?”
Destiny glanced at her friend and saw her encouraging Owen. Lisa grinned and shrugged, knowing she was busted. Destiny turned back to Owen, who looked like a little lost puppy. “I’ve been known to eat. On occasion,” she added with a smile.
“So, meet me here, next week, and we’ll talk about eating,” he offered.
Destiny tilted her head, her smile softening. “Sure, we’ll talk next week.” What the heck was she thinking?
“So, it’s a date?” he asked coyly, then quickly added, “Unofficially?”
“Unofficially,” Destiny agreed.
Owen smiled and nodded ever so slightly. “Next week,” he added, triumphantly. “See you then.” He backed up, turned and ran straight into a table. He nonchalantly looked around, thought no one saw him and walked casually back to the kitchen.
Lisa had to cover her snicker. Destiny didn’t even look up, unable to appreciate the humor at the moment. Lisa walked over to her friend. “See. That wasn’t so hard.”
Destiny glared at her, her stare following her friend as she moved to cleaning the next table.
Bill shook his head and laughed, watching his brother make a fool of himself. Then he turned his attention to the woman with whom Owen had been flirting. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so quick to dismiss Lisa when she had told him there was someone she wanted him to meet. When she first walked up to stand in his line, he found he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. Destiny was not just pretty, as Lisa had described her, she was drop-dead beautiful—maybe a couple of inches shorter than he was, her hair dark as a moonless night, beautifully framing her delicate features. It had been years since he had even thought of asking another woman out, and now, the only one he would even think of asking was being set up with his brother.
He looked down to recount the money since he couldn’t seem to focus. For the fifth time, he counted it again, telling himself not to look up or he’d have to count it over. “Eighteen hundred eighty dollars,” he said to himself, then wrote it down on his accounting form.
“Wow,” Destiny said, startling him. “Do the concessions always do that well?”
Bill looked up suddenly. She stood before him, holding a bowl of sanitizing water and a cloth. “Um… catfish nights are always good.” Bill smiled awkwardly. “It’s our best seller.”
“Then I definitely need to be here in time next week.”
“Yeah,” he struggled with what to say.
“Is there anything else you need me to do?” she asked.
“No. No,” he stammered. “But thank you.”
Destiny smiled. “See you next week.”
“I look forward to it,” Bill said as she turned and walked away. He watched her and Lisa walk toward the back door. He dropped his head to the refrigerator beside him and banged his head slowly. “You are way out of practice, my friend. Way out of practice.”
Chapter 12
Destiny parked in the same space she had two nights before. There was a slight chill in the air, but it was still and quiet, except for the occasional rooster crowing or the lambs calling for their mamas. The mist hung heavy in the air over the meadows and the ponds on the property. Destiny was usually the first person to arrive on the weekends. She loved riding early. Other riders often began dragging in about ten or eleven. Once the time changed, she could start riding even earlier and undisturbed, for longer. She bridled and saddled Daisy, a beautiful chestnut mare with a star on her forehead.
On her very first visit to the stable, Charlie and Jessie had shown her around the property. She knew instantly that this was where she wanted to ride. Not only were they kind, but it felt like… home. Raised on a small ranch outside of San Antonio, she was taught to handle horses. She’d been riding almost since she was old enough to walk. Until they moved to the city, she lived on a farm. They owned a few milk cows, a couple of hogs, and dozens of goats and chickens. And horses.
Charlie could sense her familiarity with and love for horses immediately. When they arrived at the stable, he had taken her stall by stall to meet them. Destiny had asked which one she would be riding, and he told her it was up to the horse. She teased him about being a horse whisperer. Charlie had laughed and said it was nothing like that. Destiny knew what it was like to love a horse, truly love a horse, the way some people loved their dogs or maybe even their cats. So, she played it his way, walking stall to stall, taking a moment to talk to the horses. It was at the second to last stall that she stopped when the small mare turned from her feed bucket and whinnied softly, snorted and moved to her.
Destiny had held out her hand for the horse to sniff; then the mare gently nibbled on her hand with her muzzle. Slowly, Destiny raised the mare’s chin as it sniffed up her arm, arriving at her face. She had been chosen. And she had ridden Daisy every weekend since, for the past eighteen months. It was her favorite part of the week. When they rode, it was just the two of them. There was no past she was trying to forget, no worries about school, no worries about life. It was just them. She would ride for hours some days. Some days Destiny would lead the way, some days she let Daisy lead the way. They had traveled every pathway, every meadow, every deer trail on the farm.
Destiny walked to the mare’s stall, bridle in hand, ready for their morning ride. “Hey, Girl,” she smiled, first stroking her muzzle and forehead, then her forelock and behind her ears. The mare leaned into the scratch, welcoming it and begging for more with her motions. Destiny laughed. Slowly she bridled her and led her from the paddock.
“Hi,” a small voice said.
Destiny turned with a start. “Hi.”
“I’m Sydney. I’m eight,” she smiled, her arms behind her back. “What’s your name?”
Destiny knelt by her side. “I’m Destiny. But you can call me Dee. We met Friday night. Remember?”
Sydney nodded. “That’s a pretty name.” She studied Destiny for a moment. “Are you going to ride Daisy?”
“Yup,” she smiled. “I was just about to saddle her up.”
“Can I ride with you?”
Destiny looked around. “Well, I don’t know, Sweetie. Where are your parents?”
“My dad had to go out of town. Usually, we go to church on Sundays.”
Jessie walked around the corner. “There you are, little miss. I was looking for you. I thought you went to gather eggs.”
Sydney took the basket from behind her and held it up. “Here they are.”
Destiny looked down. “My, you gathered all those yourself?”
Sydney nodded excitedly.
Jessie took the egg basket and hugged Sydney to her side. “You remember our grand-niece, Sydney?”
“We’ve officially met,” Destiny replied.
“Can I go riding with Dee?” Sydney asked.
“Well, Honey,” Jessie said, uncomfortably. “Miss Destiny usually rides alone.”
“Has she ridden before?”
“Almost every week,” Sydney interrupted.
Destiny looked down at the young girl, then up at Jessie, who nodded. “Surprisingly, she’s pretty good,” she began. “But, if you would prefer to ride alone, I can take her out after breakfast.”
Destiny looked down at Sydney, who pleaded with her eyes, and smiled. “Sure. Why not.”
Sydney beamed, calmly walked to the tack room just two stalls away, and took out a bridle. The young girl walked three stalls in the other direction, opened the door, and
less than a minute later, walked out with a pony bridled. All under the watchful eye of Destiny and Jessie. Sydney looked at the women.
“Well,” Destiny grinned, turning to Jessie. “I guess we’ll see you in a little while.”
Jessie winked at her and then turned to Sydney. “Little lady, you had better use your manners. Miss Destiny is the senior rider here, so if she gives you any instructions, you listen, you hear me?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“And I want you back by ten. That way Miss Destiny can have some time to herself.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“And she has my phone number, so no shenanigans like last time, okay?”
“Yes, Aunt Jessie.” Sydney waited patiently for the instructions to end so she could ride.
“You sure about this?” she turned back to Destiny.
“Absolutely,” she replied, looking over at Sydney, anxiety brimming in the child’s eyes.
Jessie leaned over and kissed her niece on the head. “Best behavior,” her aunt whispered, loud enough for Destiny to hear. She stood up and turned to leave. “I’ll keep my cell phone on,” she said to Destiny, with a glance to Sydney. Jessie patted her coat pocket, then turned and walked toward the main house.
Sydney looked up at Destiny. “You ready?” she asked.
Destiny raised her eyebrows, a little taken aback by the boldness of an eight-year-old. “Sure.”
Sydney led, and Destiny followed back to the tack room. Sydney tied her mount, like a pro, to the boards beside her and then slowly ran her hand over his back and flank. Then she slowly picked up each hoof to check for pebbles or rocks. Destiny watched the child carefully look over her mount to assure that he was fit to ride. Then Sydney looked up at the woman expectantly. Destiny slowly tied Daisy beside the pony and checked over her in much the same way. When finished, she walked to the other side of her horse. Sydney had already saddled Peanut and was tightening the cinch.
“Can you please help me make sure it’s tight enough?”
“Sure, Honey.” She stepped over and checked the cinch, which was perfectly clasped. She moved the saddle back and forth, and it didn’t budge. “You’re a pro at this.”
“Thank you.” Sydney untied the reins from the fence.
Destiny by chance: A Contemporary Romance Fiction Novel Page 6