“If you change your mind, we can come back.”
“I won’t. It’s not time for me to give up any of my newfound freedom yet. There will always be cute puppies.”
He smiled over at me and tousled my hair. “You are making so many decisions lately that I wish would go the other way.”
“I’m sorry. I just have so much I have to think about now. And wow, a puppy. Hell, the next week of traveling with just this one is probably going to exhaust me.”
“Your wardrobe at least.” He nodded with his chin to the area of my chest where the puppy lay curled above my breasts. I didn’t have to look down; I felt the warm trickle soaking into my bra and sweater.
I gave a sigh of resignation as I lifted the puppy and put her on the ground at my feet.”
“I think you’re going to have to work on your timing, that’s hardly going to do any good now.”
The puppy began biting my toes and licking the straps of my sandal. She’d had a two-minute nap and relieved herself quite unabashedly and was now ready to play. After a few minutes, I scooped her up and tucked her into the carrier we had bought on the way here. After a quick ride back to the airport we were in the air and on our way back to Pahrump, where my RV was ready and waiting. While in the plane I made use of the pilot’s glass cleaner to minimize the damage to my sweater. I actually only managed to make it uniformly wet.
At the dealership, the mechanic tried to convince me that he had finagled the manufacturer into paying for the new engine but he just couldn’t carry the lie off. I knew that Craig had arranged to pay the repair bill before we arrived to pick up my Dolphin. I wagged my finger at him and tried to write him a check but he wouldn’t hear of it. Finally he did accept the check, but I knew that he’d never cash it, so it was an effort in futility.
I listened to a lecture about overheating and asked a few questions that had been on my mind since owning the Dolphin, mostly those concerned with the operation and connection of the TV and DVD player and the generator. Then it was time to go back to the hotel to collect Stumpy and all the rest of my things.
I tried to get Craig to let me pay for my accommodations, and refusing that, at least the damage to the bedspread and carpet from the nail polish I’d spilled. The remover had worked in some places but had made big washed out blobs in others.
“In case you haven’t had it drilled into you enough, I’ve a mind to keep you and take care of you and all these piddly expenses you manage to accrue for all time. And by the way, just how does one person eat $78 worth of breakfast?”
I hung my head in shame, allowing the puppy to burrow under my chin. “I was very hungry and I started very early, and I just kept eating until the sun came over the mountain. Everything on the menu sounded so good that I couldn’t decide, I think I ordered a little of everything.”
He chuckled and ran his finger playfully down the slope of my nose. He stepped back and slowly looked me up and down, as if trying to figure out where I’d put it all. In my tight jeans and pee-dampened sweater, it might’ve shown except for the fact that it was the first decent meal I’d had for days.
“I’ll get a bellman to help you, I can’t watch you go. You are by far the best thing I ever picked up in the desert. If you ever need me, you know I’m only a phone call away.” He leaned down, scratched the puppy under her chin and kissed me by my ear. “I mean it. Anything.”
I watched him walk into the hotel lobby, impossibly tall, confident to the point of cocky, and chivalrous as all get out as he opened the door for a middle-aged woman dragging a suitcase behind her. Effortlessly, with just one hand, he picked the huge bag up and carried it inside for her.
I sighed. If Brick had not come along first, Craig would’ve been an enticing appetizer on the man menu. That was for damned sure.
I gave “Sweetie,” as in Hey Sweetie, stop peeing on my shirts, a nice long walk, and yes, I cleaned up after her. Then I loaded up my Dolphin for the trip to Texas. My little Vespa, which I’d used to get around while the RV was being repaired, went on first, then I checked the tires and made sure all the basement doors were locked.
In the pile of stuff the bellhop had brought through the lobby and deposited on the curb were some interesting additions to the pile I’d left in my room that morning. Among them was a huge basket of fruit, many Styrofoam containers of food from the restaurant, a bag of kibble with a bow and a beribboned jar of what appeared to be fireflies, along with a huge bouquet of flowers. I could just envision Craig handing over a twenty-dollar bill to one of his young male guests and asking him to catch fireflies for him last night. I didn’t usually opt for fireflies for Stumpy, as I’d read they had a ridiculously short life to begin with and I hated to be the one to make it even shorter, but I was not about to let them go so I could look under rocks at my campsite tonight. The fireflies would do nicely. Craig was the most thoughtful man I’d ever known.
I’d never traveled with any flowers before and was unsure where to put them while I was driving. I ended up floating them in an inch of water in the bathtub so they wouldn’t die and anchoring them in place by taping the cellophane wrapper to the shower wall.
I was so happy to get my home back! After everything was in and I’d gone over the checklist, I sat on the sofa for a minute to just look around. I loved this RV; it felt more like home than the insanely expensive house I’d shared with Jared for the last six years.
It was cute and everything had its place—some little nook or cranny was reserved for each item, in a very practical and commonsensical way. Even the bathtub, small as it was, served a dual purpose now. It had everything I needed. I could not wait until tonight when I could pull the RV into a campsite, fill the bathtub with a nice aromatic bubble bath and settle into it with a glass of wine and my book. That was if I could find a place that had hook ups. There would be too much gray water draining from the tub for the holding tank if I couldn’t. I am not very good at conserving water. I had never been one to fill the sink to do dishes. I’d always run the water continuously, washing each plate, cup, saucer or spoon and then rinsing each item before putting it in the sink drain before retrieving another. RVing had quickly changed that style of dishwashing. I now filled a dishpan and let things pile up before washing the dishes, and then when I was done, I found some shrub or flower that looked a little droopy instead of pouring it down the drain. In many ways RVing was a “green” lifestyle. Conservation and recycling was very important to this way of life. I was more than just okay with that.
I stood up and walked back to check on the puppy one more time before pulling out. She was already whimpering in her carrier so I thought the further I could distance myself from that the better, so she was stuck in my bedroom, tucked between the bed and the wall so the carrier couldn’t slide. It would be darker back there too, and I was hopeful that she’d sleep some. It didn’t sound likely though.
“Hey Sweetie, you be a good girl and pretty soon you’re going to have a whole new family to take care of you. You’ll have a nice big yard and a sweet little girl who probably won’t let you out of her sight for a week. She’s just going to adore you!” I stroked her nose through the wire mesh door of the cage. “Now be good! No more whining please!” Stumpy was in his terrarium that was jammed in on the other side of the bed so it couldn’t slide around either. He looked fairly content, slumbering on a flat rock. I raised the window blind on his side as I knew he loved basking in the sun.
On the way back up front I noticed that the entryway had accumulated its usual collection of grass cuttings and odd specks of dirt. No matter how careful I was, I was always tracking in dirt, which was the one thing about RVing I would change if I could. Despite mats outside on the ground, two treads on the outdoor steps, and three carpeted interior steps, along with a mat at the top in the main living area, the carpet always looked like it needed to be vacuumed. I shook my head, resigned as always to the situation. I looked at the clock on the microwave, it was 2:30 in the afternoon. I’d bet
ter get going, I told myself, or I’d never make my first stop before the sun went down, which was usually my goal. Backing in and hooking up at a campsite in the dark when you were by yourself was not all that easy.
Settling into the driver’s seat I had to smile at myself in the rearview mirror. Even though my RV had its foibles, it was mine, and I loved it. So what that I had to remember to turn off the A/C if I wanted to use the microwave, the convection oven, the toaster, or the blow dryer? My RV worked with 35 amps, so I was constantly blowing a fuse if I forgot. The A/C could draw 20—26 on its own and the microwave or toaster an easy 12. So what if I had to grill most meals outside to conserve propane? So what if I had to take G.I. showers or run out of hot water while washing my hair or shaving? So what if I had to unclog the bathroom sink every few weeks by pulling the drain apart and cleaning it as it didn’t have a big enough drop or I didn’t use enough water to push all the gunk through the trap? So what if things shifted in the refrigerator while I was driving and I wasn’t always careful when opening it? Buying an RV and taking to the road had still been one of the best decisions I’d ever made in my life.
I adjusted my seat and the mirrors and belted up. Oh, it was going to feel so good to be on the road again. “Sweetie . . . quiet back there! Go to sleep! Stumpy make her shut up!”
Chapter Thirty-four
By the time I had driven a hundred miles, I was ready to take that dog back to the kennel in Tucson. I didn’t know if I would make it to the campground I had selected from the Internet to be my first stopping place on my way to Austin. At the next rest area, I pulled over to walk The Dog. I was no longer calling her Sweetie, I was thinking Yappy might be more suitable. I fed her and walked her again before forcing her arched rump back into her carrier. She did not want to go back in the carrier. I could hardly blame her. I wrapped a tiny travel alarm I had bought just for this purpose in a hand towel and put it in the carrier beside her and patted her on the head. She seemed mollified for the time being.
Stumpy got the opened jar of fireflies placed on the bottom of his terrarium along with fresh water. I was getting rather good at doing this quickly as the first few times I’d done this maneuver, I’d ended up chasing mosquitoes and crickets around the RV for a long time before capturing them. The mosquitoes I’d had to squash, and although I considered them to be fresh kill, Stumpy had turned up his nose at their inanimate bodies. The cricket didn’t have a chance though, that long tongue made quick work of him. I ran some cold water in a washcloth and held it to my face for a minute to revive me, then mopped at my shirt, again wet from holding The Dog. When would I learn not to cuddle her up under my chin?
Two hours later I pulled into Blake Ranch RV Park, twelve miles east of Kingman, Arizona. They supported Sam’s Club guests, and although Brick had warned me not to be predictable by using Club parks over and over again, I registered and found a nice, wide, pull-in lot. I’d wanted to make it to Flagstaff, but only made it to just past Kingman. I just couldn’t stand the noise the dog was making anymore, whimpering as if her heart were broken. I had to keep telling myself that this was normal for a puppy, that I really wasn’t hurting her. I had no doubt that the first night away from mom and siblings would prove to be daunting indeed. As soon as I turned the engine off she stopped whining and resumed yapping. She had been quiet for a few minutes here and there during the last hour, but now it seemed she was up and wanted some attention. I could hear her thumping against the door of the carrier and rattling it. It was a relief to close the door behind me while I did the hook ups. Poor Stumpy, I wondered if he had ears and what he thought of the constant yip, yip, yip.
After settling in and playing with the puppy on my bed while I munched on some cheese and crackers, I took that much earned soak in my bathtub. The wine had mellowed me and I was even back to calling the dog Sweetie again. I was taking my laptop out and setting it up so I could check my e-mail, when I noticed it was suddenly very quiet, too quiet. I went looking for Sweetie. She had her nose right up against Stumpy’s with only the glass of the terrarium separating them, her plume of a tail was wagging furiously back and forth fanning the air. It was so comical I had to laugh out loud. I picked up Sweetie and held her with one hand while I walked back to the front of the bus. When I felt her peeing down my shirt front again I almost dropped her. She got a bath, I got a quick hosing off with the showerhead, and after one final walk that yielded nothing, I put her to bed for the night. Then I brought Stumpy’s terrarium out to the living area and closed the connecting door to drown out the puppy’s frantic pleas.
I was delighted when I made the Internet connection so easily and waited while my mail downloaded. I was thrilled that I had a message from Connor, two from Daniel, and several from Brick. I guess we were no longer incommunicado. I was curious to learn if they had found Jillie yet so I opened his first.
Brick: I met with the receptionist you talked to in Oregon. She was very helpful but initially quite upset that she had fallen for your little ruse. The only thing she could add to what you had already learned was that a year before joining her church, the Byrnes had lost a young daughter to asthma. She said they were very protective of Jillie, whom they called Annie, which was why one parent was always in the children’s daycare area during church services. She has no idea where they went. One week they were in church and the next week and all the others thereafter, they were not. She remembers them well because they kept to themselves a lot and the man’s eyes fascinated her as she’d never seen the anomaly before. We cannot seem to find him anywhere. He must be on the road. We have six teams of agents working on this now so it’s only a matter of time before we track him down. Thanks to you we at least have a name—we’re checking all the credit bureaus, banks and credit card companies and all the D.M.V.s around the country for licenses or registrations. I know that it won’t be long until we find Jillie. I feel very confident about that now. I owe you a great debt and a huge apology. Please see past my unfounded spate of jealousy, I know that I should have been more trusting. It was just that you were right there in front of me looking so content in the arms of another man. I admit that I completely lost it. And I was too stubborn to listen when you tried to explain. We have had a roller coaster of a relationship from the very beginning, it’s time for an upswing now don’t you think?
His next e-mail message asked for my location and asked me to please turn my cell phone back on. I had used so many minutes calling the eye centers that I had no time left on it. I had to remember to buy more minutes at the next convenience store that sold them. I didn’t answer Brick despite knowing that he’d probably get the receipt that said I’d opened his messages. I had feelings that were too close to the surface and still needed more time.
Daniel was inquiring about my progress and trying to pinpoint my arrival. The other message was from Angelina telling me she was building her puppy a dog house, with her dad’s help of course, and did I think her new puppy would like it painted green or blue?
Connor had the best news of all. He had found Diana. She had finally come to the bar he’d been hanging out at and after making eyes at her across the room he’d finally built up the courage to ask her to dance. I read every word with eyes agog.
Connor: I looked her right in the eyes and asked her to dance. When she simply nodded I reached for her hand to take her to the dance floor. You would have thought our hands had contacted through an electric fence. When I held her in my arms on the dance floor and she swayed to the music with her thighs against mine, I thought I’d found heaven for sure. I can’t describe how wonderful it felt to hold her and look down into her smiling face.
Then the strangest thing happened. She said, “I knew you’d find me. I just knew it.” There on the dance floor, right in front of the DJ who was playing a song by the Decemberists, I held her face between my hands and we had our first kiss. If I ever wondered whether this was real love or not, our first kiss settled the matter—for both of us. We had the most amazing night
. We sat on the steps of her dorm until the stars starting dimming their lights. We’re going to get married before I’m called back, and we’d like you to be our combined maid of honor and best man. Yup, we’re tying the knot legally, but not officially. Diana will stay here while I serve out my final tour and when I get back we’ll tell her parents. Anyway, that’s the plan. Any chance you can head to the east coast to witness our wedded bliss? Love, Connor.
Oh my, oh my. I hadn’t expected things to go quite this well, and certainly not this quickly. I was thrilled for them and anxious to meet the girl who had stolen this wonderful man’s heart. But could I go all the way east? Was I up to a cross-country RV trip so soon after heading west from the east?
I thought about it for quite a long time and then it occurred to me that I wouldn’t necessarily have to take the RV east. I could park it in a campground and fly to Rhode Island and then fly back. It was perfect really, except that I would have to use my old I.D. and fly as Debbie Jameson, as I knew that in order to fly, you had to have a picture I.D. Since there’d been no sign of Jared, I figured he was still incapacitated with his memory loss. It wouldn’t be a problem to be out in the open, I reasoned. The issue of the hospital bracelet that had been mailed to me was a little disconcerting, as I had no idea who had sent it, but I didn’t dwell on it, since nothing had come of it. I hurriedly replied, asking for the specifics so I could plan my trip. I brought him up to date on Brick, Jillie, and our little fall out. In previous e-mails I had already told him about my overheating problem and the Good Samaritan I had found in Craig. With any luck I could visit Angelina, drop off Sweetie, park my RV, and fly out of Austin or Dallas, and make it in time to give the new couple my blessing. I loved a good romance and this one was the stuff dreams were made of.
I finally went back to Brick’s e-mail and told him how encouraged I was by the progress his team was making and that as soon as I could, I’d buy some minutes for my phone and turn it back on. I was still raw from some of the things he had said to me, so I didn’t do more than answer his questions. I didn’t tell him that I had Angelina’s dog and that I was making plans to join Connor in Rhode Island. Connor had always been a sore spot with him anyway. They were like two dogs peeing, marking their territory, but Brick was too hardheaded to see that Connor had belonged to another bitch long before I’d even met him. Now, the thing with Craig I could understand, I was partially at fault with that one, but I still wasn’t ready to pretend that things were all patched up between us. And I’d be damned if I was going to apologize for anything.
Running Up the Score Page 17