by Emma Woods
I tried to think who might have dropped by the library and talked with Rosa about the position.
“Actually, I do. My niece, Corinne, is looking to find a new work situation.”
Matt and I exchanged a look. Rosa was in her late thirties. How old could her niece be?
Rosa clarified, “Corinne is my oldest brother’s daughter. She’s twenty-six and has been working as a secretary since she left high school. She takes sole care of her brother, Gus, who has Down’s Syndrome. I was thinking of fixing up the other cottage next to Emily and Nate and letting the two of them move in. All she needs is a good job, and then everything will work out great.”
“Well, tell Corinne to send her resume to Luke. It would be wonderful to get some good help. I don’t mind reception, but it’s not my calling,” I said with a silly grimace.
“Let me know if you need a hand fixing up the cottage. I’ve been itching to get my hands working on a new project,” Matt offered.
He and Rosa started talking about her plans for the little house. My attention drifted as I began thinking about what jobs I would do at the ranch if I was no longer needed at the front desk.
Usually, I filled in all over. However, since the old receptionist had moved on, this was almost all I was asked to do. Everything seemed to be running fine without me. Did that mean that Luke and Heather didn’t really need me at the ranch? And if that was true, was it time for me to find a different job?
The only thing I’d ever done well was dancing, and I had long ago learned that my hatred of performing in public meant that I could never pursue a career on the stage. I had a lifetime of training, but what did I do with that if I didn’t want to join a professional company? We already had a dance studio in town. I would need to move pretty far away if I was going to open a studio of my own. And could I really do that? You needed money to rent a building and outfit it with the right flooring and mirrors and changing rooms. Just thinking about it made me feel totally overwhelmed.
What was it that I was supposed to do with my life?
8
I don’t know what it was, exactly, that I was expecting to see. I certainly hadn’t come to any conclusions where Ty or my future was concerned. Yet, I was somehow disappointed the following day when Ty merely waved and threw me a distant grin as he strode past me to his office. He wasn’t unkind, but he wasn’t as friendly as he had been just a few days ago when we’d unpacked his apartment.
From the reception desk, I watched him work quietly at his desk, make some phone calls, and have a buoyant conversation with Luke about college football. In between my own phone calls and paperwork, I waited for him to shoot me his goofy grin or walk by and whisper some quip he’d just thought up. But, no. Nothing. It was as though we were no more than two people whose offices just happened to be close together.
I was disappointed, of course, but tried to convince myself that it was all for the best. If Ty kept his distance, I could have a chance to let my crush finally dissolve. And that would be a good thing, right? Some traitorous part of me, though, disagreed and kept me peeking at him all morning long.
“Sorry I’m late,” Heather called as she did most days when she arrived to cover for my lunch break. “Abby was whining all morning. I couldn’t get anything done!”
The phone rang and she dove for it, waving me away. I headed toward the kitchenette to retrieve my lunch, and then walked to the cafeteria. It hadn’t escaped me that Ty had already left for lunch ten minutes ago. He was, in all likelihood, already eating with someone else, and I would have to eat alone.
Images of myself in a dark corner kept springing to mind as I walked to the cafeteria, hugging my coat around myself to keep out the cool air. But when I stepped inside and looked around, there was Ty sitting by himself at the table we so often occupied together. I paused to pick up a drink and then went to join him, half relieved and half wary.
He looked up from his phone as though I’d dragged him from the deepest of concentration. “Oh, hey, Rosemarie,” he blinked at me.
“Do you mind if I sit here?” I asked tentatively.
To my great relief, a look of complete surprise passed over his face. “Of course, you can sit here!”
I pulled out the chair and hurried to sit down. “You looked like you were concentrating really hard on your phone. I didn’t want to interrupt something important.”
“Oh, no. I was reading an email from Jenna.” He frowned at his phone. “She wants me to pay for medication for the dog I bought her for her birthday last year.”
“Really?” I tried not to laugh as I opened my bag and drew out my sandwich. “Why on earth would she expect you to pay for that?”
His face cleared. “I know, right? It seemed pretty unreasonable to me, but I was starting to doubt myself.”
I shook my head vehemently. “Nope. That is totally unreasonable. You two broke up and you live in a different state. Also, it’s her dog.”
Ty turned off his phone and flipped it over so the screen wouldn’t show. “Okay. Good. So, what’s new with you?”
“New since yesterday? Not much.”
“Well, I hardly talked to you yesterday. So, has anything new happened since Wednesday night? Have you recovered from helping me unpack? Did I thank you for that, by the way?”
I laughed. This was the Ty I knew and loved. “I think I recovered. Physically, at least,” I teased. “Yes, you thanked me by buying pizza. And, no, nothing new has happened.”
“Did I tell you that I’m thinking of naming the present you gave me Kurt?”
I snorted and tried not to choke on the food in my mouth. When I’d finally swallowed and stopped laughing, I asked, “Kurt?”
Ty was delighted by my response. “Yeah. He strikes me as a Kurt. All those rippling muscles and that huge sword just shout ‘Kurt’ to me.”
“I didn’t really put rippling muscles and the name Kurt together before, but I guess it’s your statue and so your call.”
“I’m glad you recognize that. When you give a gift, you don’t get to keep custody.” He threw a scolding glare at his phone, and I knew he was thinking of his ex-fianceé. “Anyway, you have a big date tonight.”
And, honestly, I was completely lost at that. A big date? Me? Had I agreed to do something with Ty? Then I remembered Nick.
“It’s not a big date,” I assured Ty. “It’s going to the movies with a friend.”
He shook his head sagely. “Ah, Rosemarie. You’re so young. So innocent. Going to the movies with a man is always a date. Always.”
I rolled my eyes. “I have two brothers, Ty. I happen to know that is not true.”
“They’re exceptions to the rule. So, what are you going to wear?”
I stared at him. It was the sort of thing I expected Jill to ask, not a grown man who was best friends with Luke, the least sensitive man on the planet. In fact, it wasn’t the sort of thing Matt would have even thought to ask, and he was usually very perceptive.
But here was Ty looking at me expectantly, waiting for an answer as if this was a completely normal thing for him to wonder about me.
“Well, the movie theater is pretty cold, so maybe jeans?” I said slowly. “I was thinking of bringing a sweatshirt, too.”
His eyebrows lifted, speaking volumes.
“What?” I asked defensively.
“Rosemarie, this is a date. It’s going to have to be a pretty special sweatshirt.”
“No, it isn’t a date. Nick and I have gone out as friends many times. We always see superhero movies together, but that’s as serious as this relationship gets. We’ve never kissed, never even held hands. We knew each other back in high school and got along then. It doesn’t matter if I wear a garbage bag, because Nick won’t care. We are not dating.”
Ty sighed and shook his head sadly, then took a bite of his lunch.
I narrowed my eyes at him, warming to my topic. “And for that matter, Ty Dondero, when I do go on dates, I prefer to be comfortable. I don�
��t like to pretend to be someone else, and so I wear what I always wear.”
All teasing seemed to leave him, and he gave me an admiring half-smile. “Good for you, Rosie. I mean, I guess I didn’t expect anything different from you. You’re as genuine as they come.”
We finished our lunches and headed back to work. All throughout that afternoon I basked in the glow of Ty’s compliment. He thought I was genuine. Never before had that word meant so much to me. I even dressed for the movies and intentionally put on my second-best jeans, all because Ty thought I was genuine.
Nick texted to say he was on the way, and I was waiting on the porch when his car pulled up. I grabbed my sweatshirt and purse and trotted out to meet him. He didn’t even get out of the car, further proof that this wasn’t a date, I thought with satisfaction.
“Hi, Nick. How’s it going?” I asked as I buckled up.
He flashed me a smile of greeting as he checked the rearview mirror and began to turn the car around. “It’s going just fine. How are you?”
“Good. Work is busy, but not too bad. Has your sister had her baby yet?”
Nick shook his head. “Not yet, and she says she’s in agony. I mean, she’s enormous, so that’s not really a surprise.”
I gave his arm a smack. “You’re never supposed to call pregnant women ‘enormous.’ That’s mean.”
“I would never say it to her, of course. I’m not a complete idiot. I mean, she did say that she can’t see her feet anymore and she has to ask her husband if she’s wearing matching shoes.”
We laughed and talked easily on the drive to Melbourne, which was the closest town big enough to have a movie theater. Rumor had it, in larger cities, you could order tickets online to movies. Not so in our neck of the woods. We had to make sure we were at the theater in plenty of time to get seats to the more popular movies on a Friday night.
So, we had our tub of popcorn and buckets of soda and were seated a full twenty minutes before the previews were set to begin. As we munched and chatted comfortably, I reflected on how easy it was to spend time with Nick. Why was it easy and comfortable, but no butterflies exploded in my stomach at just the thought of him? He was every bit as handsome as Ty, probably even more so, if I was objective. Nick was kind and thoughtful. He was funny. He was like a brother to me.
Oh, there it was. Nick was like a brother to me. Ty, who had spent enough time with my family to actually be my brother, didn’t feel like one at all.
I was glad when the lights dimmed and the screen lit up. I was eager to put thoughts of Nick and Ty out of my mind and focus on the action-packed, special-effects masterpiece ahead of me. And I was mostly successful. Nick and I did whisper back and forth at important moments, pointing out details the other might have missed.
When the credits finished rolling and the mass exodus to the door began, Nick took my empty soda container and said, “Do you want to get some dessert?”
I checked my phone. “Is it too late for dessert? Aren’t most places closed?”
“Not the Dairy Treat. They stay open until midnight on the weekends. Come on, Rosemarie, how can you say no to a hot fudge sundae on a cold night?” Nick waggled his eyebrows temptingly at me.
“You’re right. I can’t resist. Let’s go.”
Before long, we were scooting into a red vinyl booth, enormous ice creams in hand. “I’m going to have to go for an extra run tomorrow to make up for this,” I admitted. “But it’s totally worth it.”
Nick laughed and picked up his spoon, then set it down and grew serious. “I need to talk to you about something.”
My stomach clenched. Oh, no. Don’t tell me Nick wanted to start dating. I absolutely dreaded confrontation, and there would be no way around it. With Ty back in town and all those old feelings stirring up, I just couldn’t date anyone else.
“Okay, shoot.” I tried to sound nonchalant.
“I really like you, Rosemarie, I do. We’ve had a lot of fun since you moved back to town and I hope we can always go to the movies together.” He looked down at his ice cream and took a bracing breath. “I’ve met someone I want to get serious about.”
Instantly, my stomach relaxed, and I grinned. “And it’s not me, right?”
Nick shook his head apologetically. “Nope.”
“That’s great, Nick! I’m really happy for you!”
“Are you sure?” He squinted at me, trying to read my true intentions.
I took a bite of my sundae and smiled at him. “I’m sure. I think you’re great, but I don’t have romantic feelings for you. I was actually thinking about that earlier. You’re like one of my brothers.”
Nick looked like I’d taken a heavy weight off his shoulders. “I’m so glad to hear that. I was worried that I’d made you think there was more to this than there really was.”
“Not at all. In fact, I was telling someone earlier today that this wasn’t a date,” I chortled smugly.
“Who was that?” Nick asked, his old smile back in place.
“Oh, a guy at work,” I said airily.
But Nick wasn’t fooled. He gave me a knowing look, and I hurried to ask him about who the lucky lady was before he dug any deeper.
9
After such a good night with Nick, I awoke the next morning with a deep sense of wellbeing. It wasn’t my week to work at Donna’s, so I stretched and took myself out for a really long run, ending at the coffee shop, where I got to have a relaxing cup of coffee with Matt.
And so, by the time I headed home around lunch time, I was in a really wonderful mood. To my surprise, there was a small SUV with a rented moving trailer attached to the back. Was someone moving in? I couldn’t remember Rosa saying anything about a new girl in the house.
But there was a woman I didn’t know toting boxes into the house. I headed up the walk just as Rosa skipped out the door.
“Hi, Rosemarie! You aren’t going to believe it, but my best friend Danielle needed a place to stay all of a sudden. We only worked out the details of her moving in last night, or else I would have told you sooner.” Rosa reached for a lamp and cradled it, watching my face closely.
“Well, I hope she feels welcomed in Birch Springs,” I said cheerfully. “Do you need a hand? I’m already sweaty from running.”
“That would be wonderful! Jill’s off watching Sophie, and Mae has a work obligation. With three of us working, we’ll have this done in no time.”
I grabbed a box and followed Rosa into the house. She led the way up to the third floor and into the room Emily had used when she was living in the big house.
“Danielle, this is Rosemarie,” Rosa called out.
Danielle turned and offered me a warm smile and a hand to shake. She had a neat, chin-length haircut, big blue eyes, and was overall rather average. If I’d passed her on the street, I wouldn’t have noticed her. Yet, when she spoke to me, I felt as if I’d been drawn into a circle of warmth.
“Hi, Rosemarie! I hope I’m not putting you out too much. I had another place rented, and they called to tell me they’ve decided to sell. Thank goodness for Rosa and her generosity!” Danielle threw an arm around her best friend, and they smiled fondly at each other.
The three of us trooped out of the room and thundered down two flights of stairs and out to the trailer. Even with three sets of hands, it still took many trips to haul everything upstairs. Luckily, I still felt guilty for the enormous sundae I’d eaten and so was eager for the workout it afforded me.
When the last box was deposited in Danielle’s new room, she took one look around at all the work she had ahead of her and suggested we stop for a cold drink. So we clattered back downstairs, by now a bit wearily, and poured tall glasses of lemonade which we took out to the back porch.
“I can’t believe I get to live at Bumblebee House again!” Danielle sighed contentedly.
“’Again’?” I pried.
The corner of her mouth tipped up. “I came and spent a summer here with my two boys about eight years back. My marria
ge had fallen apart, and I needed to get away. Rosa offered the third floor to the three of us. I don’t know how I would have made it through that time if we hadn’t had Rosa and Bumblebee House to escape to.”
Rosa reached over and patted her friend, smiling ruefully. “Okay, that’s a bit dramatic. There was no actual ‘escaping.’”
“Oh, no. We weren’t running away in the night or anything,” Danielle clarified quickly. “We just needed a fresh start.”
I sipped my lemonade and hugged my knees to my chest, letting the cool breeze push me gently on the porch swing. Having never been married, the idea of a marriage crumbling both fascinated and terrified me. Divorce happened to other people, it had always seemed. To actually know adults who had survived it was a clear statement that I was being naive about it, and that was scary.
“Where are your boys now?” I moved us toward an easier conversation.
“They are both in college.”
I blinked at Danielle, stunned. How was she old enough to have children in college? I knew Rosa to be in her late thirties. Calculating quickly, I realized it wasn’t impossible for Danielle to be old enough for this.
She smiled at me kindly. “I have twin sons, Josiah and Ben. They are both freshmen at a college in California. I moved them in back in August and then packed up our house, put it on the market, and moved to be closer to my dearest friend.”
Danielle and Rosa chatted about a variety of topics. They included me whenever they could, but I was enjoying listening to the pair of them and didn’t feel left out. Would I be as wise, as mature, in a dozen years? Rosa had such confidence in herself and such a strong purpose for her life. Danielle was every bit as impressive, though she was softer somehow. I admired both of them and lifted up a prayer that I would become a woman on par with these two in ten years’ time.
Mae dropped me off at my parents’ house the following day after church. I noted that Ty’s flashy car was parked in the driveway and paused to put on another layer of lip gloss before entering the house and being almost attacked by Abby.