The Old Fashioned Way (A Homespun Romance)

by Kakade, Geeta

  Abby didn't move till she saw Daniel deposit the first box of book by her table, and turn around.

  She couldn't face him just yet. Slipping around the side of the van, she walked through the parked cars. Stopping beside a motor home that hid her completely, she leaned against it. A hand went up to her mouth. Her heart was beating at double time. His lips had barely brushed hers, so there wasn't any need to feel as if she were free falling over a cliff.

  Why had Daniel kissed her? The I-don't know-what-to-do-with-you look in his eyes told Abby her first instinct had been right.

  The sooner Daniel Hawthorn left Carbon Canyon the better.

  Daniel had never met anyone who disturbed him so deeply.

  Thought you knew women, Hawthorn?

  He'd thought so too. Until now. Until Abby Silver.

  Where other women created opportunities to touch and caress, she had a hard time being close to him. Watching her put a hand up to brush a strand of hair off her face, he wondered if someone had taken the place of her late husband? He shouldn't have kissed her like that. He had to apologize, and then remember that he was here purely on business.

  Abby Silver was not his type. She was too serious. The kiss had been casual. Her reaction had not. Recalling the way she had blushed, the way her eyes had closed, he knew she took everything seriously. Her work, her family, loving.

  Abby Silver had home and hearth written all over her. He had to steer clear of her.

  Daniel hadn't taken anyone seriously since Eve. His mouth tightened. Since Eve, he had skimmed the surface of relationships, telling himself he wanted nothing more.

  Abby wished she knew what was going on in Daniel Hawthorn's mind. His gaze bored into her back and she could sense his impatience. He wasn't an easy man to deal with.

  Abby ran a hand through her hair. Rod had called her a country mouse who didn't want to change. He had been right. She was all the things Rod had said she was. Plain, old-fashioned, boring.

  Daniel had kissed her because she'd annoyed him. Nothing else. A man like him couldn't possibly have any other reason for what he'd done. Turning to the next customer, Abby tried to concentrate on her work.

  Agnes introduced Daniel to most of the people who came up to the table as a business expert, and a friend of Abby's. After one lengthy conversation with a customer, Agnes turned to him and said, "Most old people suffer from terrible loneliness. Having someone to talk to makes a big difference in their lives."

  Daniel had noticed the way Abby spent every spare moment she had talking to Mr. Williams. He wondered what they had in common. He'd always found it hard to talk to his grandparents. Even now it was hard to say anything besides a greeting to the people he met. Agnes was different. So was Sarah. They didn't seem to notice his awkwardness around them. As for the rest...Daniel felt they guessed how uncomfortable he was around them.

  In the van on the way back, Daniel turned to Abby. "I'm sorry if I upset you."

  "When are you leaving?"

  As Gran always said, there was no point in beating around the bush. This afternoon had confirmed her worst fears. Daniel Hawthorn's presence was detrimental to her peace of mind.

  "When my work here is done."

  "We don't need your help anymore."

  Daniel couldn't hide his amazement. "What about the business?"

  "We don't need your help anymore," Abby repeated.

  "You're so determined to get rid of me that you don't care if the bank forecloses?"

  "There's nothing you can do to help us at this stage."

  Daniel looked at the tree lined road whiz by. "This is just because of what happened back at the library, isn't it?"

  "I don't want to talk about it."

  "Who says we're playing by your rules?" Daniel demanded, his anger returning. "Loosen up a bit, will you? A small kiss isn't an attack on your virtue. What are you so scared of anyway? That I might want more?"

  No one, not even Rod, had ever talked to her that way.

  "You are in no danger from me," Daniel continued. "I never mix business with pleasure. A beautiful woman deserves as much attention as a business venture. Careful evaluation of her needs, deciding the most effective mode of operation, figuring in advance how to maximize potential, can all be applied as effectively to a date as to a business project."

  Abby stared at the road. Daniel Hawthorn must find teasing her as amusing as kissing her. The man was dangerous, and she wanted him out of her life. Now.

  The comparison she'd made the first day had been right. Daniel Hawthorn was a whale, and she was a guppy. Challenging him had been her biggest mistake. She was out of her league, out of her depth, out of her mind.

  "Now we've got that settled, we can concentrate on the store."

  Abby wondered what it was they had got settled. She had never felt less settled in her entire life.

  That night Agnes gave Sarah an account of the book sale, finishing with, "Things went very well. Very well indeed. Daniel is definitely interested in Abby, and Abby...well, she's determined not to be interested in Daniel Hawthorn, but she is. I think it's a match made in Heaven."

  In his favorite chair, Hamish rustled the newspaper impatiently and said, "Hmphf!"

  The tickets arrived Friday morning. Abby ripped opened the letter addressed to her. Surprise held her silent as she read the accompanying note .

  "Mrs. Soames, President of `Friends of the library', has sent two tickets to a play in the Old Millhouse Theater, for Saturday after next. She says it's to thank Daniel and me for all our help with the book sale."

  Abby looked at Gran in dismay.

  Sarah, busy arranging lavender sachets in a box on the counter, glanced at her, "What's wrong? Can't you go?"

  "It's not that." Abby stared at the tickets by the cash register. "If Daniel's leaving tonight, he won't be here for the show on Saturday."

  "I wouldn't be too sure of that." Sarah smiled at her granddaughter's expression. "Didn't Daniel tell you? He's going to spend a few more days here."

  The cushion Abby was holding slipped from her hands. He's not. Her mind screamed the words over the pounding of her heart.

  "He wanted to meet Mr. Hawkins, but Bill is away on vacation till Monday, so Daniel's decided to stay a little longer."

  "I don't think we should take advantage of his good nature," Abby didn't like the way her voice sounded. Soft, squeaky, excited.

  Sarah frowned. "We're not doing that. Agnes and I feel he likes it here. His life in Los Angeles sounds very lonely. He doesn't need a lonely vacation as well. He offered to pay for use of the guest house, but I wouldn't hear of it. He's doing so much for us."

  Abby knew she had to get away. Running into Daniel every now and then wasn't doing anything for her peace of mind.

  "Lou asked me to house sit for her. She's going to spend the weekend with Katy in Monterey. The baby's due any day now."

  Katy was Abby's best friend from high school. She lived in Monterey and Abby often house sat for Lou, while she visited her daughter. It was a valid excuse.

  "Very well, Abby," Sarah said quietly.

  Abby felt uneasy under that piercing gaze. Gran had always had a nose for lies. "I'll help with the store both days, but I'll spend the nights at Lou's."

  "Daniel said something about having a meeting soon. He's going to tell us what we can do to save the store." Picking up the basket that had held the sachets, Sarah patted her bun. "So, you see he might be here for the play after all."

  Abby didn't want to go to a show with Daniel Hawthorn. She didn't even want to tell him about the tickets. Since the book sale she had taken care to avoid him.

  "Would you like to go instead of me?" she asked her grandmother. "I have things to do that night."

  "That's our Bingo night."

  Abby sighed. The trio organized Bingo every other Saturday at the local high school to raise money for the library.

  "I don't know what you could possibly have to do that night," Sarah stated firmly. "All you'
ve done on Saturday nights for the last three years is wash your hair and watch an old movie. It will do you good to get out for a change."

  Daniel walked softly out of the community room, careful to close the door into the office very gently. Taking a sip of the coffee he'd gone into the community room for, he wondered about Abby Silver's social life. Surely someone as warm and good looking as Abby would have a boyfriend. Then again, maybe she hadn't got over her husband's death yet.

  She hadn't sounded happy about the fact he'd be staying on, but that was something he'd expected.

  Pulling the ledger he was examining towards him, Daniel tried to concentrate on his final summing up.

  Abby looked at the tickets in her hand in dismay. It would have been wiser not to mention them, to pretend they had never reached her. Now that Gran knew about them she would definitely bring the matter up in front of Daniel. Abby couldn't lie and say she had misplaced them. This left her with only one option. To mention them to Daniel before Gran did, and make sure he didn't want to go. She also had to call Lou and ask her if she could spend the weekend with her.

  The headache and chills came on very suddenly. One minute Daniel was deciding he'd finished for the day, the next he was wondering what was wrong. The dull throbbing at the back of his head had intensified and he felt strange.

  Going into the guest house he decided he needed some aspirin. A glance at the bed changed his mind. Taking off his shoes he lay down and drew the covers over his head. He'd look for that aspirin in a minute.

  Abby looked up as Gran entered the store. She'd just closed the store and begun totaling their sales for the day. It only took one look at Gran's face to tell her something was wrong.

  "What is it?" Gran didn't panic unless something serious happened.

  "It's Daniel. Agnes took Daniel's laundry over and he didn't answer, so she looked through his bedroom window to see if he was there at all. He's lying in bed with the covers over his head. She called to him and he wouldn't answer. Princess knows something is wrong. She's scratching on his door as if she wants to get into the guest house.

  Abby frowned. It did sound strange. Princess had never scratched on the door of the guest house before.

  "Where's the key for the other door?" Gran asked.

  "We can't just barge into his room," Abby protested. Neither could they leave him like that.

  "I'll take full responsibility," Gran's voice was very firm.

  Abby fetched the key from the office. She'd meant to give it to Daniel, but forgotten.

  Gran unlocked the door in the community room. "Daniel?" she called.

  He was lying very still. Abby watched Gran tug the covers off and placed a hand on Daniel's forehead. "He's burning up. He must have caught the flu bug that's going around."

  Daniel opened his eyes, and stared at them. His headache was worse and his throat felt as if it was on fire. He looked at the bed, and then at Abby and Sarah. What on earth were they doing here?

  "You're sick," Sarah informed him.

  "I'm not." The croak that emerged startled him. What had happened to his voice?

  "You've got a temperature. About 104 degrees, I'd say."

  Abby bit back a smile at Daniel's expression. Gran was an expert at reading temperatures `by hand'.

  "I'm never sick."

  "Do you have a headache?"

  "Yes."

  "Aches and pains all over?"

  "Yes."

  "You're sick."

  Abby smiled. Dr. Davisson had once told Gran she was his only serious competition in Carbon Canyon. She could diagnose and cure as well as he could and some people preferred her methods.

  "Stay in bed," Daniel heard Sarah say. "We have to get you out of those clothes and into pajamas."

  Bustling over to the drawer, she took out a pair. "We'll soon have you well. There's nothing to worry about. Agnes makes these special brews that will have your fever down in no time. I'll get some balm and rub your chest and back down with it. Hamish will make you some of his special chicken soup and strawberry jelly."

  Abby leaned against the wall. Gran firmly believed illnesses had to be treated the old fashioned way. Staying in bed, a light diet, and plenty of fluids. She didn't believe in twenty-four hour cold medicines and carrying on as usual.

  "Do you need help changing?"

  Daniel snatched the pajamas from her. "No." He stared at Abby and when she didn't respond to his quick, unspoken plea for help, he said, "I don't want anyone coming in here. You'll all get the flu from me."

  "We've had our flu shots," Sarah said firmly. "Besides we're not as weak as you young people. Rushing around, eating fast food, never getting enough sleep...."

  Abby slid out of the room quietly. Once Gran got started on that speech it took a while for her to stop. It was hard to stop grinning. Daniel Hawthorn was about to receive the best home nursing there was available. Whether he would appreciate it was another matter.

  When Daniel awoke Tuesday morning, his first sensation was one of overwhelming relief. He had no fever. His temperature had stayed down since last night. Sarah had told him if it did, he could get up for a little while today.

  Determined to shower and dress before she got there, Daniel went into the bathroom. As he shaved, he thought about the last few days.

  Sarah had been serious about taking care of him. Daniel closed his eyes briefly. The brews had been very strong. Sarah had actually stood over him and made him drink it. As for the chest rubs, the chicken soup and the Jell-O...it had all been enough to cure him in double quick time.

  Daniel's razor paused in mid-air. He wasn't being entirely fair. The trio had gone out of their way to take care of him. Their concern had been genuine. One or the other of them had sat with him when he wasn't sleeping. When the fever racked him they had applied cool cloths to his head. Abby, they'd told him, had taken over running the store, so they would be free to concentrate on him. She was the only one who hadn't had a flu shot.

  "Why are you doing this?" he'd asked Sarah once.

  "Because we care about you."

  Unlimited caring. It was a strange thing to get accustomed to. He understood Abby's love for her grandmother and the caring between her and the others. But he was a perfect stranger. Why did they care about him?

  His relationship with the trio had changed in some subtle way. They had taken him in, cared for him. He felt close to them, in a way he never had with his own grandparents.

  Later that morning, Daniel glanced at his watch impatiently. He had told Sarah Trenton that the meeting would be at eleven sharp in the community room. It was now eleven thirty and there was no sign of anyone. Striding towards the store he paused in front of it.

  Abby had pinned a huge scene with a fireplace painted on it, to one side of the window. In front of it was a rocking chair. She was working on arranging the folds of an afghan over the arm. Daniel stared at the images she was creating. It was a very good idea for a display.

  She wore a teal blue shirt that reached mid-thigh and loose black pants. He remembered her stopping by twice a day to ask her how he felt. The trio hadn't let her in past the door.

  She saw him and said, "You're feeling better."

  "Yes." He hoped the trio would believe that.

  Daniel thought he glimpsed a smile on Abby's face as she bent and picked up a pillow. It prompted him to say, "I'm not going to drink any more of Sarah's medicine."

  Abby couldn't help laughing. The defiant note in Daniel's voice made him sound like a little boy.

  "It doesn't taste very good, does it?"

  "No." The sight of Abby laughing made Daniel laugh too. It was obvious she'd had the same brews herself.

  "The trio are a formidable nursing crew," Abby chuckled. "It almost makes one afraid to be ill."

  "Those inhalations are enough to scare a cold away," added Daniel. "What do they put into the water?"

  "Eucalyptus leaves."

  The thought of Daniel bent over a bowl of hot water inhaling
the vapor, with a heavy towel over his head, was too much. He must have wished he had never heard of Carbon Canyon, or the Busy Bee. Abby laughed till there were tears coming out of her eyes.

  "Every time I lifted my head, Sarah would say, `Just a few more minutes.' I haven't sweated so much even in a sauna." Daniel laughed too. Now it was over, it did seem funny. "You keep sweating and they keep saying, `More! More! This will clear up the congestion in no time. You young people are so weak.' He sighed. “I can’t believe I did every single thing they told me to."

  "Please stop." Abby held her side. It hurt so much, but she couldn't stop laughing.

  It was good to share laughter with Abby. Daniel looked at her mouth, wondering what she would say if he kissed her right now.

  Abby knew exactly when humor changed to tension. The way Daniel was looking at her, sent a chill up her spine. The last few days she'd told herself she had everything under control. The last minute proved she had nothing under control. With one look, Daniel could unsettle her.

  "When will you be leaving?"

  Daniel's smile disappeared. His feelings about the trio may have changed, but Abby's determination hadn't diminished.

  "Where's your grandmother?"

  Abby looked surprised. "She's at Vista today. It's Tuesday."

  Daniel didn't know what was special about Tuesdays and Vista. All he knew was Sarah Trenton's absence was a disruption of his plans.

  "I told her we would have a meeting at eleven sharp."

  Abby looked up at him, "Gran couldn't have realized today was Tuesday when you told her about the meeting. She's absent minded."

  Daniel leaned against the wall and folded his arms across his chest. As long as there was going to be no meeting, he had time to talk. "Why has she gone to Vista?"

  "On Tuesdays, Gran and a group of her friends from Vista volunteer at the soup kitchen organized by Carbon Canyon Church."

  And that, Abby's tone indicated, was that. Daniel decided his first impression had been right. It wasn't going to be difficult dealing with Abby Silver. It was going to be impossible.