Breath of Life 03 - Moments

by Sara Marion

  “Hmm. I guess,” Ryan didn’t seem convinced of her intentions.

  “I tried asking her to lunch to thank her but she refused.”

  “She barely knows you Duke. She probably thought you were trying to hit on her.”

  “But she took me to the hospital. She knows me well enough right?”

  Ryan chuckled, “Maybe, who knows? I bet she was just being a helping hand. Besides she saved you on the ridiculous ambulance fee.”

  “True, which is why I want to take her out.”

  “That’s the only reason?”

  “Yes, I can’t get involved with her. It wouldn’t be good for me.”

  “Why is that? You need to get back in the saddle at some point.”

  “I know, but this is different. She looks and sounds like Ella, with the exception she’s a brunette and a little bigger than Ella was. Her voice though. It gets me every time. I swear, Ryan, if I closed my eyes, I would think it was Ella in front of me.”

  “That’s not good man. You should definitely stay away then,” Ryan warned.

  “I know,” Duke felt something break inside him. He paused for a moment before continuing, “I didn’t come here to talk about Jennah though. I was going to see if you wanted to grab a beer.”

  “I think that’s a fantastic idea,” Ryan chuckled.

  They quickly went back to his office so he could shut down for the day and grab his laptop. They walked down talking about everyday things.

  “Make sure you lock up tight Maddy,” Ryan said as they pushed through the front doors.

  “Will do boss-man. Later Mr. Avery!” She called out behind us.

  Duke was grateful that he still had someone completely in his corner. No matter what Ryan was always there.

  ***

  Duke sat back as Ryan went to a sports bar out by Duke’s house. It was located right by the golf course in a little strip mall that was built not too long ago. It was a low-key place to go, a place to just sit and talk. That’s what he needed. Someone on the outside of his drama. Someone to help get his head back on straight. Plus Ryan was his last connection to Ella, well living connection.

  They sat at a booth by the window. The sun was setting which gave an orange glow throughout the place. The lights were starting to become more prominent overhead as the place begins to transition from dinner rush to the bar crowd. A server came by and took their drink orders.

  “So what’s new?” Duke asked after the server left.

  “Not a whole lot. Just busy with the gallery and when I get some free time I like to spend it with Olivia,” Ryan grinned.

  “Olivia?” Duke had never heard of anyone named Olivia. He wondered if maybe this is a new girl in Ryan’s life. For as long as he has known Ella, Ryan never dated anyone. Never mentioned any girlfriends. Duke felt guilty for being so wrapped up in his own issues that he wasn’t being a friend like he should have been.

  “Yeah, I met her a couple months ago. Right around Ella’s anniversary. I was out and she was there. We had a couple drinks and since then, well, we’ve seen each other a few times.”

  “So are you two dating?” Duke felt like a woman wanting to get the scoop but he didn’t care. He needed to be a friend right now.

  “You can say that. We aren’t official. We are just seeing where it goes.”

  The server came back and delivered their drinks. Both took a drink of their beers.

  “That’s great! I hope it works out for you two,” Duke set his beer down.

  “Me too, but we’ll see. So far, I think we’re good for each other. What about you? What’s going on with you besides being slow to react to a ball flying that’s coming towards your head? I’m still intrigued by this Jennah person, even though I think you should keep as far away from her as you can. You can’t afford to be hung up on her.”

  “I’m not hung up on her,” Duke defended himself. “She’s just a friend I guess. We’ve talked a few times if you wanna say we talked. Like I said, she’s just a relative of one of my players.”

  “And you want to get to know her?”

  “No, I mean yes, but not like that. Like I said she reminds me of Ella and I think that is why I am drawn to her. I miss Ella, but Jennah…”

  “You’re intrigued,” Ryan paused. Duke felt like Ryan was reaching into his mind and pulling things out on his own. “I can see it, Duke,” Ryan continued.

  Duke knew he was right but was it was just because he was still reeling from news about the baby? He took a long drink from his beer. He knew he had to limit himself. He didn’t want to wake up with a bigger headache than he already had.

  “Let me tell you something Duke,” Ryan took another drink. “You’ve been through a lot. More than any man your age should have to go through. You lost you wife, you put your heart out again only for it to be trampled on, you found out you were going to be a father two years after you lost the child you didn’t know about. You’re scared. I know it. I see it. I know you better than you think. After all, you are my nephew, not by blood, but my nephew. You need to move on, be happy. Ella wouldn’t want you to wallow. She celebrated life, you should too. You need to honor her, do things for her, put your heart back out their for her. It’s not easy, believe me I know, but you can’t hideaway and avoid things forever, like you have over the last month or so. You can’t. You’ll die alone if you do. Now I’m not saying chase after Jennah, but I can see in your eyes that you are going to have a hard time staying away, so be careful but don’t be afraid to put yourself out there.”

  Duke stared at Ryan. He didn’t think this would be a heavy conversation between them, but it happened. He could always count on Ryan. This is what he needed, the perspective he didn’t want to see. Ryan was his voice of reason.

  “So, when do I get to meet this Olivia?” Duke changed the subject. Ryan laughed at his awful transition.

  “I don’t know. I will see where it goes after dinner tomorrow. Maybe you can meet her sometime after that. I don’t want to scare her off ya know.”

  Just like that, Duke felt at ease again. Things were light but Ryan’s words were still echoing in his head.

  ELEVEN

  Jennah sat in the house. She was off today and had nothing to do but search for houses. Dobry was down for her nap and Jennah relished in the downtime she had. Chase had mentioned that playoffs started today and he wanted her to come, but she told him she had other things she needed to do. It wasn’t a complete lie, but she needed to look for her own place. Now that she has an income coming in, she can pull from her savings account to get a place of her own.

  “Jennah Mae!” a chirpy voice called out. “Jennah, Jennah Mae! Come on let’s get to the game!”

  Audra appeared in her doorway. Jennah smiled looking at her best friend, her sister.

  “I’m not going to the game today and Dobry is sleeping right now,” Jennah replied.

  “What? It’s the playoffs and your nephew really wants you to be there, Dobry can sleep on the way and in her stroller,” she scowled.

  “I can’t. I need to look for a place and get out of your hair. You’ve put me up long enough. Plus if I wake up Dobry she will be a monster the rest of the day.”

  “True, Dobry is a diva,” she laughed. “Seriously though, you don’t need to leave here. Chase and I love having you and Dobry here. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

  “Please Audra. No one likes their sister hanging around or a very rambunctious toddler. I’m sorry, I just can’t go to the game.”

  “Is this because of the crush you have on the coach?”

  Jennah gave a death stare to her sister, “No, I don’t like him like that.”

  “Right, I saw the way you ran out to him at the last game.”

  “That was just my natural instinct.”

  “Natural instinct? Jennah, the way you looked running on to that field, the look on your face and reaction screamed of someone who is frightened for their loved one. Don’t deny it. I have never seen that look on
your face. Not even with Josh.”

  “You’re wrong,” Jennah grabbed her jacket and purse. “I don’t need a relationship right now when I need to figure out what I am going to do. Where I am going to live.”

  “I have a friend who is trying to find someone to rent out his house. He has been for a while now. It’s a 3 bedroom, 2.5 baths that he was going to rent for $1200 a month, all bills paid, but I’m sure if maybe I talk to him I can talk him down. Let me go call him really quick.”

  Jennah watched Audra bound off to call her friend. The thought of living in a house excited her, but she hoped that Josh had given up looking for her and Dobry. She was tired of running. She just wanted to figure out who she was and then move forward in life. Build a beautiful one for Dobry.

  “Guess what?” Audra came bouncing back into her room about ten minutes later.

  “Shh, Dobry is sleeping!”

  “Sorry, sorry,” she smiled. “I just talked to my friend and he is going to give you a great deal on the house! I told him a little bit about your situation and he agreed to put it under my name and cut the rent down to $700 a month, all bills paid.”

  “Audra, I can’t take charity like that. Besides the house is probably too big. I will find something else.”

  “Come on, he wants to help you.”

  “Why?”

  “I’m kinda seeing him,” Audra smirked.

  “What? When did this happen and why haven’t I heard of him?”

  Audra was beaming. “We just got together not to long ago and you are always working or taking care of Dobry. I just haven’t found time to tell you. Listen he said this was no problem. I’ll go to the game and by the time we get back, we can go check out the house if Dobry is up from her nap.”

  “Fine, but you should go. You are going to be late for the game.”

  She watched Audra walk out of her room. Jennah figured that she could find a million reasons beforehand on how to refuse this charity of Audra’s boyfriend. She wanted to do this on her own and she was sure that an apartment would suit her and her daughter just fine. They could always go to the park to stretch their legs.

  A couple hours later she found herself driving into the quaint little neighborhood with her sister. Jennah saw a few kids playing in the common area. There was a trail that seemed to start on the other side of the playground. She smiled at the kids as they passed by then looked at her sweet angel in her car seat. Audra passed by a few more houses then turned into the driveway of one on the corner.

  Jennah stared up at the two-story house. She liked it from the outside. She found herself smiling as she got out of the car. She quickly got Dobry out from her car seat and started walking up to the house. She felt like she was coming home. It was a strange feeling for her as she has never seen this house before, she never even stepped foot in this town. Maybe it was a sign that she was heading in the right direction. Audra put the key in the door and they walked through the door.

  Jennah looked around at the living room she walked into. She set Dobry down to let her run. It was a decent size room and it led straight into the dining room. From the dining room she saw the kitchen. It was a nice, updated kitchen that opened up to the den area on the other side. She walked through the kitchen, touching the smooth granite tops, noticing the stainless steel appliances. In the den, she found built in bookshelves, a fireplace and a door that led to the backyard. Opening the door, Jennah stepped outside onto the deck, keeping it open to listen to Dobry talking to herself or her echoes in the living room. The deck itself was large. She had plenty of room for patio furniture where she could relax while watching Dobry play in the fenced yard.

  Stepping back into the house, she noticed another door on the other side of the room. She opened it up to find a laundry room. Two more doors were inside. One led to a half bath and the other to her two-car garage. She walked back out of the small room and walked through the short hallway that led back out to the front living room. To her left she saw the stairs. She grabbed Dobry and headed up to see what was on the second floor.

  At the top of the stairs, she saw a full bathroom. On one side was a door and the other side of the bathroom had two doors. She went to the left and opened the door. She shifted Dobry to the other hip as she walked into the master suite. It was a rather large room. Tucked in the corner was the master bath. She quickly went to it. It had a tiled, steam shower and a door that led to her walk-in closet. She smiled. She knew she could only fill up half of the closet but the left side would be just fine.

  She walked back and found Audra smiling. “This is a good-sized room!”

  “You’re telling me! The closet is amazing but I’ll never be able to fill it. This house is almost too big for us, but I like it,” Jennah smiled.

  “Let’s go check out the other two rooms,” Audra beamed.

  Jennah knew Audra was right. She was in love with this house. It already felt like home to her and that was a warm feeling she didn’t want to disappear. The two rooms were decent sizes. One obviously a tad bit bigger, which would be Dobry’s room. She needed space for her toys. The other room would make a great guest room. “You were right, I love this place Audra. Thank you,” she hugged her sister.

  “I knew you would. When Greg told me about this place, he brought me here. For some reason, I always kept this house tucked in the back of my mind. I hoped that it would be available one day for you, I can’t explain why though. Seriously, this place is meant to be for you. I mean the timing and connection. Come on!” Audra waived her hand in the air. She was always theatrical when she knew something was a sure thing, then she was proven to be right.

  “When can I move in?” Jennah felt the excitement grow within her.

  “Right now if you want. I can drive you back to the house then help you although I really wish you would stay with us, but I understand why you want to get out on your own. Come on, let’s go back and call Greg.”

  “Sounds like a plan.” She looked around as they headed back downstairs. This would be her place, she knew her life was changing for the better. She couldn’t explain it but she finally felt like she could become who she was meant to be. Everything just seemed to be falling into place.

  ***

  Duke went back to PJ’s Bar & Grill for lunch. He was missing the first game of State playoffs all because he didn’t want the kids in his classes to ask about the bruising, although he was sure they all knew what happened. He didn’t want to deal the looks, the whispers, and he definitely did not want to be a distraction in his students. He figured it would be better for him to stay home, let the sub continue for the week, while his bruising continued to clear up.

  Duke walked inside hoping that Jennah wasn’t there, but part of him wanted her to be so he could see her again. When he asked the hostess, she stated that Jennah was off today. He felt his hopes drop and decided it was probably for the best. He just needed to reign in his feelings for her, stay away because nothing good can come from starting a relationship with a person that reminds you of your late wife. Duke decided he would just order a quick bite then go to the gallery. Ryan should be in and helping out with the weekend art goers. He could hang out there for a bit until he figured out what to do with himself.

  Shortly after finishing his lunch, Duke pulled up to the gallery and it was dead. He sighed as he got out of his car. He figured Ryan would probably be in his office but he didn’t see Ryan’s car there. Duke walked in and was greeted by Maddy.

  “Hey Duke, how’s your face?” she joked.

  “Better than the last time you saw it,” Duke smiled. Link came up to him and greeted him. He bent over and patted Link on the head. He was getting so big. “Is Ryan in?” He looked up as he straightened himself back up.

  “No, you just missed him.”

  “He didn’t take Link?” Duke was confused. Link was always with Paxton, Jenny, or Ryan. Why was he here with Maddy?

  “No, he leaves Link here with me when I’m by myself. He’s become quite the
guard dog.”

  “Have you had trouble?” It bothered him that someone was possibly causing trouble at Ella’s gallery.

  “Once, thankfully I was just watching Link as Ryan went out for food. Just some stupid kids,” she paused, not wanting to go into it, “but Link saved me, scared them away.” She smiled down at Link.

  “Good thing he was here then.”

  “Yeah,” she looked down at the dog. Link seemed to be loved by everyone. “So is there a message you want me to give Ryan?”

  “No, I was just stopping by to chit-chat since I can’t go to the field right now.”

  “Oh yeah, State is this weekend. Hope you guys do well.”

  “Yeah, me too. I should be there but the bruising is still pretty bad.”

  “It’s getting better though.”

  “Yeah,” he smiled. “Well, I guess I will get out of here. Have a good night, Maddy.”

  “You too!” She called out as Duke walked out the door.

  He seemed to be striking out all over the place. He hoped his team was doing much better than him. He drove back to his house. He figured he could just watch a movie to pass time. He should get a call or text when the game was over. He wondered if Jennah was at the game, not that he should care. His heart was in a thousand pieces and he was just now trying to get his life back in order. He had no time for relationship, not that he wanted one with her. He didn’t even know if she was seeing someone or not. For now, Duke decided to forget her and concentrate on his students. He didn’t need the distraction with finals coming up.

  TWELVE

  Duke found himself running along the gravel trail. He just passed the two-mile marker on the Linear trail. He had gotten a call from his assistant coach stating that his team had lost. He knew that the team was disappointed but he was proud of them. They had a phenomenal season and he wouldn’t let them forget that. They would have one more meeting before they stopped for the season. He would make sure that they left the season feeling proud of themselves. Now, Duke knew he had to focus on finals that were occurring in two weeks and then football camp that would commence in early July. After that, a brand new school year.