“I got your message,” he told her. “Is Monroe still missing?”
She opened the screen door wide enough to let hyper Andy spring out and Lewis in. “No. I was just talking to Faye. I told her she should call her ex in case Monroe went home.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“Not according to my big sister.”
“Oh.”
“I looked all over town.” She shoved her hands into the oversized pockets of her man pants.
“Maybe he’s just trying to shake his mom up,” Lewis suggested. “Cherry told me he wasn’t too thrilled with this move.”
Hope frowned. She wanted to ask what else Cherry had told him, and by the way, why was he spending so much time with her married sister in the first place? But she knew that was not her business.
He smiled now. “Your message also said you were painting your house, but I don’t see any paint.”
“The paint’s still in my car. I was so worried about Monroe that it sort of took the wind out of my sails.” She held out her arms as if to show off her outfit, which would’ve been pretty hard to overlook. “But as you can see, I’m still planning on attacking it.”
“Since there doesn’t seem much you can do for Monroe at the moment, maybe a little house painting would be a good distraction.” He pointed to his own attire: neatly pressed gray slacks and a blue and white striped shirt. “I don’t know if I can put together a painting getup as classy as yours.” He grinned. “That rope belt is a nice hillbilly touch.”
“Thanks.” She rolled her eyes.
“But I can be ready to work in about half an hour, if you’d like.”
Hope nodded. “That’d be great. I’ll start getting the paint stuff out.”
As she unloaded the car, she thought that Lewis was right. Painting would be a good distraction over worrying about her mixed-up nephew. Although she’d keep her cell phone in her pocket…just in case Faye called.
Poor Monroe, he had looked so lost and lonely at Nona’s funeral. Hope had assumed that, like her, he’d been sad to lose a grandmother—rather a great-grandmother. But the truth was, Monroe had probably been sad about losing his home, his dad, his friends…his whole life. How could Faye do that to her own son? Was it simply to punish Jeff? And, if so, it was probably going to come back and bite Faye. Maybe it already had. Hope’s best guess was that Monroe was okay, probably on his way to Seattle or maybe even there by now. Still, she felt guilty for not reaching out to him more at Nona’s funeral. She already doubted that she was much of a sister, but couldn’t she do better as an aunt?
Chapter Thirteen
Because the backside of Nona’s house got more weather and sun, it also needed more work. Lewis offered to tackle it. He insisted that it needed “prepping,” which included some washing, sanding, and, when the siding was dry enough, a coat of primer paint. “And then you can paint it yellow,” he told her.
As a result, Hope and Avery were focusing on the front side of the house, which by late afternoon was starting to look pretty good. “You’re doing a great job on that window box,” Hope told Avery.
“Lewis told me I had to sand it first,” Avery explained. “And I think he’s right. See how smooth the paint goes on now.”
“He’s the expert. In fact, I think I should go ask him about this corner of the house where the downspout must’ve splashed up. I have a feeling it might need some extra attention, too.” But when Hope found Lewis in the backyard, he wasn’t working, but standing and talking to Cherry over the gate that connected the two yards. It appeared to be an intense conversation, too. Cherry, as usual, looked impeccable with her wavy blond hair flowing over her bare shoulders. She had on a robin’s egg blue sundress, which really showed off her tan. But she looked upset, almost on the verge of tears (unless it was an act), and Lewis reached over the gate and put his hand on her shoulder as if to comfort her. Or whatever!
Once again, Hope felt like a voyeur. And yet, she was standing in her own backyard. Feeling guilty and slightly humiliated, she turned and walked away. But as she went around the corner of the house, she grew angry. Was it fair that she couldn’t even go about her own business in her own home without feeling guilty for spying on her baby sister? And what was the deal with those two anyway? Maybe she should just throw the cards down on the table and ask. And yet…how would that sound? Of course she would appear to be a nosy, busybody neighbor. And maybe she was, but she didn’t have to let the whole world know. Better to just forget about it.
Back at the front of the house, whether it was a mistake or not, she began slapping yellow paint onto the funky place near the downspout. At least it made it look better, and an extra layer of paint probably couldn’t hurt anything. Plus, if it needed more attention, she could deal with it later. She was just finishing up and thinking about ordering pizza and calling it a day when Brian’s turquoise pickup pulled into her driveway. She tossed down her brush, waved at him, and hurried over.
“Hey, this place is looking great.” He nodded to the front of the house. “But I hope you know you’ll probably need to redo that window trim after we replace the windows.”
“That’s okay,” she assured him. “It’s kind of fun to see it all coming together.”
“I got your message.”
She nodded. “I went over the contract, and I think it looks good, so I signed it.”
“And I already called my buddy about the old-growth fir floor. He’s put your name on about one thousand square feet of it. A good thing since another builder was asking about it, too.”
“Great. I’ll run and get the contract.”
Inside the house, she peeked out the bedroom window to see if Lewis and Cherry were still cloistered over the gate…or perhaps they’d snuck off to some more private location. But Lewis was back to work, washing a brush out in the hose. She picked up the contract from where she’d tossed it on the bed, then on her way out, caught a glimpse of her image in the mirror. Not only was her outfit atrocious and spotted with paint, but she’d even managed to get some on her face. Not that she planned to do anything about it now. She just laughed and shook her head.
But as she went outside, she couldn’t help but mentally compare herself to Cherry. Why wouldn’t someone like Lewis be attracted to Little Miss Perfect? Well, despite the fact that Cherry was married. Still, not everyone respected such conventional things as marriage vows. And not that Hope cared what Lewis or Cherry did anyway. Why should she? And yet why was she obsessing over it?
Lewis and Brian were talking now. Acting like old buddies, although she was certain those two probably never spoke to each other in high school. “Here you go.” She handed the paperwork to Brian with a big smile. “I can’t wait to begin.”
He smiled back. “I’ll be over first thing in the morning.”
And then something came over Hope. She knew it was juvenile—straight out of junior high—but she started to flirt with Brian. “And I could have coffee for you,” she said sweetly, “if you like.”
He nodded. “Hey, that’d be great. I’ll bet your coffee is way better than the stuff I grab at Barnie’s kiosk.”
“I’ll bet it is, too,” she said in a slightly seductive way. Okay, she knew this was ridiculous. Especially considering how she probably looked in her awful orange T-shirt, baggy jeans, and neon green flip-flops. Not to mention a sloppy ponytail and paint on her face. Seriously, had she lost her senses?
Brian leaned a little closer to her now. “And I like a little cream in my coffee, if that’s not too much to ask.”
She tilted her head slightly. “And how about some pastry to go with that?”
He chuckled. “I know I’m going to like working for you, Hope.”
“And I’m going to like having you around, too.” Now she turned to Lewis as if she’d just noticed he was standing there watching them. “Hey, I was about to order pizza and call it a day.” She turned back to Brian now. “Would you like to join us?” Again, almost against her will
, she was turning on the charm.
“I’d love to, but I dropped Jack at a friend’s house and promised to pick him up in time to get him home by seven.”
She nodded in a coy fashion. “Another time then.”
“For sure.” He actually tipped his cowboy hat now, grinning like he’d just won the prize pumpkin at the county fair. Of course, in her orange shirt, she probably looked a bit like a pumpkin as she waved good-bye.
“You and Brian seemed to have hit it off.” Lewis said this with a question in his voice.
“Oh, yeah.” She nodded. “He’s great. And he’s got some really good ideas for fixing this place up. I can’t believe he’s going to start tomorrow.”
“Sounds like he’s made you his number-one priority.”
“And that’s how I plan to keep it, too.” She turned and made a slightly catty smile for Lewis. “Got to keep my contractor happy, don’t ya think? Make sure he gets the job done right.”
“I guess so.” And yet something about his expression looked troubled. And suddenly Hope felt guilty…and silly…and like a big phony. And yet, what was she going to do about it? And why should Lewis care anyway? He obviously had something going on with Cherry. At least that was what it looked like to Hope.
“Are we going to have pizza?” Avery called from where she was finishing up the second window box.
“I’m on it.” Hope dug her phone out of her jeans pocket. “What kind do you like?” she asked Lewis, but he was hedging, acting like he needed to go.
“You can’t leave before we have pizza,” Avery said as she joined them.
“That’s right.” Hope nodded firmly. Then she made them decide on toppings and called it in, and they all went to work cleaning their brushes and things, getting it all put away.
“Avery!” Cherry yelled from her front porch. “Time to come in for dinner.”
“But Aunt Hope’s getting pizza,” Avery called back.
“I said, come home,” Cherry called again.
“But Mom,” Avery pleaded.
“Avery!” Cherry called shrilly. She probably didn’t realize that Lewis was still around to hear her sounding like a fishwife. Or maybe she didn’t care.
“I gotta go,” Avery said with disappointment.
“I’m sorry, sweetie.” Hope gave her a hug.
“I’ll be back tomorrow, okay?”
“Absolutely.” Hope stroked Avery’s ponytail, giving it a playful flip. “And I have to go to Bend to look at some appliances and things. Do you think your mom would let you come with me?”
Avery brightened. “I’ll ask!”
“Great.” Hope was relieved to see Avery cheering up.
“And maybe we can stop by Target,” she said hopefully. “I mean if you have time.”
Hope nodded. “I don’t see why not.”
Avery nodded eagerly. “That’s where Lucy got her swimsuit.”
“And it’s close to a lot of appliance stores,” Lewis offered.
“Sounds like a good plan,” Hope agreed.
“Thanks, Aunt Hope!” Avery waved and scurried off.
“What a great kid.” Hope watched her trotting up the steps to her house.
“She really is a sweetheart,” agreed Lewis.
Now she turned to him. “Do you still want to stay for pizza?”
“Why not?”
“Well, the work party just got reduced by one-third.”
“That means more pizza for me.” He hungrily rubbed his stomach.
“Which reminds me, I should go feed Andy. Want to come inside?”
“Sure.” So they both went in, and while she fed Andy, Lewis went to clean up in the bathroom, emerging and looking as good as new.
“Guess I better clean up, too,” she said as she held out her paint-splotched hands. “I hope this comes off.” But first, she put out some money on the kitchen table. “Will you take care of the pizza guy if I’m not out when he comes?”
“Be my pleasure. Take your time.”
She hurried to the bathroom, scrubbing as fast and hard as she could on her paint spots. Then she took her hair out of the ragged ponytail and made a mad dash to the bedroom, where she quickly changed into her Wranglers and a clean T-shirt. She knew it was silly, especially since she’d heard the pizza arrive, but she even took the time to put on some lip gloss and mascara. And she questioned herself as she did this. Why was she going to this much trouble for a guy who was probably having an affair (or considering it) with her baby sister? On the same token, why had she attempted to make him jealous by flirting with Brian? What was wrong with her?
And when she went to the kitchen, she figured she was getting just what she deserved, because it appeared as if Lewis had left. But Andy was gone, too. As was the pizza. Now this was a bit weird.
“We’re out here,” Lewis called through the screen door. “You might want a sweater, though…it’s cooling off a bit.”
“Okay,” she called back. Of course the only sweater she could find was the white lacy one that she’d worn to the funeral, but she put it on anyway. Then she went outside to find that Lewis had unearthed an old patio table, which he had set up by the garden along with the old lawn chairs. And he’d even put a red and white checked tablecloth on the table, along with a couple of plates, two glasses of water, and paper towels for napkins. But what really got her attention was the fact that he’d also brought out a pair of Nona’s old silver candlestick holders, and the white taper candles were lit.
The scene was actually surprisingly romantic. She wondered if he realized this, or if he’d been simply trying to create a casual outdoor picnic.
“Very nice,” she told him as he pulled out a chair for her to sit.
“I try.”
He presented the pizza box, actually serving her. She daintily removed a piece and set it on her plate. She was actually speechless—and that was unusual for her.
“June is one of the most beautiful months,” he said as he took a couple pieces for himself and then set the pizza box on the small side table that she’d dug out yesterday. “And eating outside on a night like this is too good to pass up, don’t you think?”
Just then, Andy jumped onto her lap, and she laughed. “It appears that Sir Andy would agree with you on that.” She waited for the little dog to settle down and then took a bite of pizza. “I like to eat outside, too,” she admitted. “But my condo in Portland isn’t the best setup. My terrace is so tiny I can barely fit one chair and a few potted plants. I guess I won’t miss that much.”
“But there are other things you’ll miss?”
“Probably.”
They both ate quietly with only the background noises of crickets, an occasional frog, and what sounded like a mourning dove. And yet, it wasn’t the sort of quiet where Hope felt the need to fill in the spaces with words. In a way, it was a companionable silence. Or at least she hoped it was.
“You clean up well.” Lewis smiled as he took another piece of pizza.
She looked down at her crocheted sweater. It actually looked pretty in the flickering candlelight. “Thanks.”
“Did you hear anything from Faye…in regard to Monroe?”
She shook her head. “I really think he must’ve gone home. To Seattle, I mean, to be with his dad.”
“That makes sense.”
“But I would’ve thought Faye might’ve called.”
“Maybe you should check in with her.”
Hope nodded. “Yes. That’s probably wise. Faye isn’t really good at keeping people informed.”
“I kind of get the sense that the three sisters aren’t too close.” He chuckled. “Kind of like the mountains. Oh, they look close to each other from a distance, but when you’re hiking around there, you see how much space is between them.”
“That’s really true. I’ve noticed that before, but I never thought about it in respect to my sisters and me.”
“Also, the three sisters are volcanic mountains,” he pointed out.
“Meaning one of them could erupt.”
He shrugged. “Possibly.”
“Which sister do you think would erupt first?” She studied him closely now.
“Well, as I’m sure you know, the South Sister, which is also the youngest sister, has had the most volcanic activity. So it’s probably most likely.”
She wondered if he was talking about the mountain or Cherry now. Perhaps she didn’t want to know. Maybe the safest route was to keep the conversation focused on mountains—not sisters. “Did you know that South Sister also has the highest mountain lake in Oregon?”
He nodded. “Teardrop Lake.”
“Have you climbed any of them?”
“Only South Sister.”
“Yes…well, that’s the easiest climb.” She was trying very hard not to think about Cherry. They were, after all, talking about the mountains.
“How about you?” he asked.
“What?”
“Have you climbed any of them?”
“Oh…well, yes, of course. I climbed South Sister first. I was sixteen that summer. My mom took our family up there. But Mom and I were the only ones to make it to the top. Mom was disappointed because she really felt that Cherry should’ve completed the climb, you know, since it was her namesake mountain.”
He just nodded, watching her with interested eyes.
“And the next summer, when I was seventeen, Mom and I climbed Middle Sister. That’s a harder climb.”
“So I’ve heard. I’ve been thinking about trying it myself.”
“Really? I’ve actually thought about doing it again, too.”
“Maybe we could do it together.”
Now Hope knew they were talking about mountains and climbing, but she was thankful for the dim light outside because she was certain her cheeks were flushing. “And I’ve never climbed North Sister, although my mom and some of her friends had climbed it, and Mom had promised to take me there the summer after I graduated.”
“The summer she died?”
Love Finds You in Sisters, Oregon Page 12