by Howe, Violet
I shuffled down the hall and knocked on his door. Cabe mumbled something incoherent, and I opened the door and went in to sit on the bed next to him. It cracked me up to see my huge, strapping fiancé all curled up in my sister’s old pink sheets and comforter, his messy curls splayed across a pillowcase covered in hearts.
“What are you laughing at?” Cabe cocked one eye open and squinted at me.
“You look adorable.” I leaned forward and kissed his forehead, laughing again as he suddenly wrapped both arms around me and pulled me across his body on the bed.
As if on cue, Mama immediately admonished me from the hall as she headed downstairs. “Tyler Lorraine, you need to get in the shower if we’re gonna get pancakes.”
“You don’t want to miss out on pancakes, Tyler Lorraine,” Cabe whispered in an exaggerated Southern drawl. “You better get yo butt in the shower, gurrrl.”
I slapped at his chest and planted a quick peck on his cheek before crawling off the bed. I turned at the door and looked back at him. He had rolled to his side and propped up on his elbow, and the sleepy fog of his eyes pulled at my heartstrings and awakened other sensations deep within me. Oh, how I wish I could have just crawled under the covers with him and snuggled back to sleep. I never realized how lucky I was to get to sleep next to him until it became forbidden fruit last night. It made me long for the warmth of his body pressed against mine and the sound of his steady breathing on my neck. The touch of his hands as they caressed my skin. The little sounds he makes with his sighs and groans as we tease and pleasure each other.
That thought process would get me nowhere while we were at Mama’s, so I shook my head and grinned at Cabe. “I’m gonna use Mama’s bathroom so you can get in the hall shower.”
“What? You’re not going to join me?” His voice teased and insinuated everything my mind was already thinking.
“You have no idea how bad I want to, but—”
Mama’s voice bellowed from the bottom of the stairs. “Tyler Lorraine! Did you get in the shower yet? I don’t hear water running. Do I need to come up there?”
“I gotta go.”
Cabe laughed and flung back the covers, and at the sight of his muscular body in nothing but boxers, I almost decided it was worth risking my mother’s cardiac arrest to jump back in bed with him. But fear of her climbing the stairs overwhelmed my carnal desires, so I blew him a kiss and left to get ready.
When we’d had our fill of pancakes and met more people than Cabe could possibly remember in one day, we left Mama to chat at the pancake breakfast and took off for a little exploring on our own. I showed him a few landmarks and drove him around the perimeter of the town, the entire tour taking probably twenty minutes with such a small area to cover.
“We used to have a red light when I was growing up, but they took it out a few years ago. Carrie said there’s not enough traffic since they built the bypass, so now it’s just a flashing caution light.” We’d parked at the small gazebo between the courthouse and the river and gotten out to sit on a picnic table for arguably the best view of the massive waterway that curved around our town.
“Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a place growing backward and losing their traffic light. I knew you came from a small town, but I had no idea it was this small. Weekends must have been a blast.”
“Yeah. Not so much. I mean, Atlanta’s an easy drive, so we went there sometimes for a concert or a baseball game or something. And there’s a movie theater about a half hour west of here, so it’s not like we were completely out in the boondocks, but nothing like growing up in Orlando, either.”
The breeze lifted my hair across my face, and Cabe tucked it behind my ear. “I can’t picture you here,” he said. “I don’t see you in this environment.”
“Me neither.” I threw a small pebble someone had left on the picnic table. “I couldn’t wait to leave. Now, it feels so weird to be here. Like it’s home, it’s familiar, and I know what it is and what to expect. I know the people here, and I can fit in for a few days. But at the same time, it’s not home anymore. It’s not who I am or who I want to be. When I’m here, I get flooded with memories. Sensations. Sounds. Kind of like going back in time, I guess. I enjoy the journey, and I like feeling that nostalgia, that connection, but the whole time I’m antsy to get back to present day. To my life.”
He tucked his finger under my chin and turned my face to his, pressing his lips together with mine in the softest of kisses. He pulled back after a few seconds, but only far enough for us to breathe and look into each other’s eyes.
“Thanks for bringing me here,” he said. “Thanks for showing me this part of you. For sharing your past and your background. I like learning new things about you. Getting new pieces in the puzzle of Tyler.” He kissed me again, and as the kiss deepened I was awkwardly aware of where we were.
I pulled away and hopped off the picnic table with a quick glance around to see who might be watching, but the area was pretty bare.
Cabe laughed. “We gonna get arrested for PDA?”
“No, but tongues wag. I don’t want Mama on my ass for being indecent in the middle of town. Let’s go get a drink.”
“A drink? At ten in the morning? I wouldn’t think bars would be open here so early.” He slid off the table and dusted the back of his jeans with his hand.
“There’s no bars here!” I cracked up laughing as I considered his preposterous statement. The notion that there would be a bar in my tiny little Southern Baptist-dominated town nearly doubled me over in laughter. Especially to think that anyone would dare drink in broad daylight on a Saturday morning.
“No bar? Seriously? Like in the whole town?” He stopped in his tracks and stared at me in amazement.
“Babe! You’ve seen the whole town. It’s like five blocks. Did you see a bar?”
“I just figured we hadn’t gotten to that part of the tour yet. So no one drinks?”
We got in the car and I backed out, still laughing at the mental image of Patsy Warren and the ladies of the Junior League having their monthly meetings in some dimly-lit bar tossing back shots of whiskey with their Caesar salads.
“Oh, they drink, I can assure you. But not out in public. I meant we’d get a Coke or something.”
I passed the big, new convenience store on the right to head over the hill and around the curve to the small store on the way out of town. The newer store had been built after I left, so it never occurred to me to go there. I went where I knew to go.
My brain did a double-take when I saw the large red pick-up truck parked beside the empty space I pulled into. What are the chances that out of all the people in our town, the one person I’d hoped to avoid seeing just happened to be in the same tiny, little store I had driven to at the same exact time as me?
“Something wrong?” Cabe asked as we got out of the car.
“Dwayne’s here.”
“Dweeb Dwayne? Awesome.” Cabe picked up his pace and almost passed me in his haste to get inside. He held the entrance door open for me, already scanning the store interior for his long-time nemesis.
“Behave, please,” I pleaded as I scanned the store on my own. At first glance, there was no one there but the cashier, a distant cousin on my daddy’s side. I exchanged pleasantries with her, and she had that look people back home often get where they think they know me but they can’t quite place who I am. Cabe and I walked to the back of the store and grabbed drinks from the cooler, both of us looking for any sign of my ex-boyfriend.
He came out of the men’s room just as we headed back to the cash register.
“Well, I’ll be damned. Tie me up and call me tongue-tied. If you ain’t a sight for sore eyes, darlin’.” Dwayne Davis stood face to face with me, his silly grin spreading even as I felt the tension roll off the man behind me.
Dwayne extended his arms for a hug, and I twisted to do a side-hug and an introduction at the same time.
“Dwayne, this is Cabe. My fiancé.” I stammered a lit
tle bit on the word, and I realized it was the first time I’d ever introduced him as such. How ironic.
Cabe had drawn up to his full height with his chest and shoulders expanded in that peacock move men instinctively do. He extended his hand to shake Dwayne’s, and I noticed as I looked back at Dwayne that he had pulled himself up and out too. It didn’t do a lot of good, though. Cabe towered over him as they exchanged greetings.
Dwayne took a step back to a more appropriate distance for someone who is engaged and has her fiancé standing right there, and I chuckled at the overwhelming essence of testosterone filling the air.
“I heard you was getting hitched,” Dwayne said, casting sideways glances toward Cabe while looking at me. “Congratulations.”
“News travels fast in this town,” I said as Dwayne reached for my left hand.
“May I?” he asked, though I don’t know if he was asking me or Cabe.
I extended my hand and he took it, turning it to catch the reflections of light dancing off the diamond.
What a surreal moment. Here stood the man who had captured my heart so long ago, ripped it to shreds and held the remnants captive for so many years. And next to me stood the man who had helped put the pieces back together, despite the fact that the damage caused had left my heart unavailable to him. He now held my heart and my future.
I felt fortunate to have revisited my relationship with Dwayne last year. To have worked through the faded imprint of heartache he left behind and released any lingering hold he had on me. Standing before him now, I felt nothing but warm memories of him as connected to my past. I leaned deeper into Cabe’s hand on my back and knew no one held any place in my heart except him. I belonged to Cabe now, completely and utterly. No longer restrained.
“You’re a very lucky man,” Dwayne told Cabe. “I’d say this little lady is about the best catch on the planet. Treat her well.”
Cabe nodded as he circled his arm around my waist and pulled me against him. “You’re not telling me anything I don’t already know. And don’t worry. She’ll be treated very well.”
Dwayne swallowed hard, and I noticed he looked even older than the last time I’d seen him six months ago. At one point in my life, I saw him as my destiny. Thank God for unanswered prayers.
“He’s shorter than I imagined,” Cabe said as we got back in the car. “Skinnier.”
“Well, he’s lost a lot of weight over the years.” I don’t know why I felt the need to defend Dwayne, or my choice of Dwayne, more like it.
“He’s not your type. It never would have worked.”
“Oh really? And what, pray tell, is my type?” I popped open the soda and took a swig as I waited to hear his description.
“Tall. Blonde. Surfer. Computer geek. Music aficionado. Closet romantic. Passionate kisser. Video game addict. Skilled masseuse. Great chef. Extraordinary lover. Compassionate animal owner.”
I laughed as his list went on and on, growing more complimentary and outrageous as he went. Though I can’t say any of it was really an exaggeration. Cabe was all that and more.
“Well, lucky for me, I found a guy who fits just that description.” I braced my weight on the console as I leaned in for a kiss. “You’re my perfect match.”
He cupped my face in his hands and demonstrated some of the skills he’d just described. When he pulled away from the kiss, I was tempted to discover if any of the old backwoods haunts were still great places to go parking. A quick glance at the clock told me Mama would be tapping her foot waiting for us to pick her up, though, so I cranked the car and shelved passion for another time.
Still Saturday-
Afternoon
We made a few more stops once we picked up Mama, mostly to visit people so she could show off my ring and share her big news. I didn’t mind. It was fun to finally be excited about the engagement after dreading this trip so long. Mama was in a great mood, and it felt good to make her happy for once. Of course, it didn’t hurt that I had the most handsome man in the world by my side. Showing him off was even better than the ring.
He made a great impression on Mama. I don’t know what she was expecting me to bring home, but she gave me her stamp of approval as we made lunch while Brad and Cabe horsed around with the basketball outside.
“He’s sweet,” Mama said. “Real polite. Well-spoken. He’s got good manners. I haven’t had to open a door all day, and he seems real attentive to ya. The way he looks at you, I swear. He’s smitten, for sure.”
My heart swelled, and my cheeks blushed warm as my smile widened across my face. In part because it made me all gooey inside to hear someone else tell me Cabe was smitten with me, and in part because Mama doesn’t lavish praise often. I was soaking it up like a sponge.
“Where’s his family from again?” Her question seemed nonchalant, but I’d be willing to bet she was looking for a chink in the armor.
“He was born in Florida.”
“I know that, but where’s his family from? You can tell a lot about how a tree will grow by its roots. He’s got good family? You’ve met ‘em?”
“Yes, ma’am. You would love his mama. She’s so nice. She used to be a ballerina. What are your plans for dinner? Want to just go out somewhere so we don’t have to cook? We’d love to take you out. Treat you somewhere.” I had hoped I could distract her from asking about Cabe’s dad. I didn’t have answers to those questions, and I didn’t want her asking Cabe about him.
“We’ll see. What about his daddy? What does he do?”
She was undeterred.
“Um, I don’t know much about his daddy.”
“What do you mean you don’t know much about his daddy? You haven’t met him?”
I sighed and told the truth. “He left when Cabe was three. His mama raised him on her own.”
“So what then? His daddy didn’t see him anymore? Why not?”
I debated how in depth to answer her, but before I could decide, Brad and Cabe came busting up in the kitchen, hot and sweaty and needing refreshment.
“We’re gonna take off on the four-wheeler. We’ll be back in a few. When’s lunch?” Brad asked as he tossed Cabe a Gatorade bottle from the fridge and opened one for himself.
“Not long. How far ya goin’?” Mama asked.
“I’m gonna take him up to the creek and back.” Brad grabbed a banana and motioned to Cabe to ask if he wanted one.
While I was certainly happy to see Cabe and my brother bonding and getting along so well, I suddenly felt like Cabe was one of Brad’s buddies and I was the outsider.
“I wanna come.” My voice sounded a little more like a whine than I had intended.
Brad looked at me like I was an annoying little sister. Probably exactly the same expression I had given him as the annoying little brother over the years. “There’s no room. We’ll be back in a few minutes. I think you can live without him that long.” He rolled his eyes and scowled.
“Oh, you’re one to talk,” Mama chimed in. “I’m surprised you’re taking in oxygen without Kelly attached to your hip. I thought for sure your lungs didn’t function if she wasn’t sharing your breathing space.”
“Where is Kelly? Are we gonna see her while I’m here?” I asked.
“She’s shopping with her mom today, but she’ll be at Aunt Clem’s tonight.”
“Why? What’s happening at Aunt Clem’s?”
Brad’s eyes widened and he broke out into a mischievous grin before darting out the door. “See ya later. Sorry, Mom.”
“Bradley David, I swear you couldn’t keep a secret if your life depended on it. Loud mouth young’un.” Mama shook her head and continued chopping potatoes.
“Mama? What secret? What’s happening at Aunt Clem’s tonight? Please tell me you didn’t go and plan something after I asked you not to.” Visions of my entire extended family swarming all over Cabe, asking him questions, and embarrassing the living daylights out of me flooded through my mind and unsettled my stomach.
“C’mon, honey. You
got engaged, and you’re home to tell us. Everybody wants to celebrate with you and meet your fella. Don’t be stingy with him.”
“Aw, Mama! I don’t want to go over to Aunt Clem’s and have fifty million people talking all at once, asking Cabe a bunch of questions and making fun of me.”
She dropped the potatoes in the fryer and wiped her hands on her apron.
“Tyler, you can’t always just think about yourself. Sometimes you have to consider other people. There’s a lot of folks up here who don’t ever get to see you and certainly don’t ever hear from you, but they love you just the same. Now you have some news to share and you’re bringing a complete stranger into the family. None of us knows him or knows his family. People want to meet him. Check him out. Tell you congratulations. Can’t you just let folks be happy?”
I pulled the condiments from the fridge, my body on auto-pilot remembering how to set the table and argue with my mother at the same time.
“I’m all for people being happy. But why can’t we have dinner here? Or maybe just visit with Aunt Clem and let her tell everybody about him? I think it’s going to be overwhelming for Cabe to meet everyone all at once.” There were a few choice family members I knew would be overwhelming even if he met them all by themselves, but to put all the crazy in the same room at the same time was a little much. Even for me, and I already knew them.
“So you’d rather me work myself to death and spend a ton of money hosting an engagement party here when Aunt Clem has graciously offered to do it without me lifting a finger? Well, thank you very much, but no.” She flipped the burgers and rattled the fryer basket with the fries.
“We could go out to eat. Invite everyone to come to a restaurant or something. Maybe the diner?”
“Money might grow on trees down in Orlando, but ain’t nobody here gonna take their entire family out to dinner just because you’re too high-falutin’ to have potluck at your great-aunt’s house. Besides, if he meets everybody tonight, then when y’all come back for the wedding, he’ll already know ‘em and it’ll be more fun for him.”