by Troy Hunter
“It’s all very good things,” Loretta assured him and he breathed again, although she gave him another pointed look. “Will you two be staying for dinner?”
“Not this weekend, Mom. We have an errand to run before heading home and I’ll grab something for Olivia on the way, but thanks. I’m glad she had a great weekend,” Cole replied.
“Of course. Now, next weekend she’s with us all week for school vacation, right?”
“Yes. If you don’t mind having her. The shop is still open and I haven’t lined up a babysitter.”
“Not at all, dear. We love having her.”
Olivia rested her head on Cole’s shoulder and Mason looked over to find her watching him. He pulled a face to make her giggle and winked at her when Cole looked between them to see what was so funny. He shrugged when Cole gave him a puzzled look and then held a finger to his lips when Cole turned his attention back to Loretta and Bill.
“I’ll bring her by Friday night after dinner. She has a half day at school so I’ll close the shop early.”
Mason took a deep breath and then jumped head first over the boundaries he was sure he was crossing.
“She could hang out with me if you want to keep the shop open. We could get a jump start on that fun thing you have planned at your house.”
Loretta and Bill looked confused, but Cole looked surprised.
“Thing? What thing?” Olivia sat up and Mason was pretty sure she was going to keep on asking until Cole gave in and told her the surprise. Nothing like dangling candy in front of a baby.
“You sure about that? You’re with the kids all the time at school.”
“Yeah, why not? You’re just getting the business going and Fridays are the busiest nights on the town. I don’t mind if you don’t mind me watching her. I have nothing else to do.”
“Yeah! Mr. Savage can watch me, Daddy. I like that plan,” Olivia was tugging on his sleeve, trying to get his attention.
“Huh? Yeah, well, Mr. Savage might need a break from kids, Olivia.” Her face was crestfallen, but Mason didn’t push any further. He knew he’d put Cole on the spot, but the truth was, he liked Olivia. She was clever and smart, and kids have a way of looking at the world that he admired.
“But Daddy!”
“Well…” Cole seemed torn, but finally… “OK, OK. How about we do that, then I can keep the shop open normal hours and I’ll drive you out here Saturday morning like usual?
“Yay!” Olivia clapped her hands and danced in his arms. He kissed the top of her head and mouthed thank you over her ponytail. Loretta and Bill were smiling and Cole gave each a sideways hug before turning back and walking to the car. Just as Mason was about to follow, Loretta touched his arm.
“If he’s happy, we’re happy.” Her blue eyes were bright with tears that she refused to shed. Bill nodded.
“He hasn’t been happy in a long time, and although it’s a bit of a shock, we’re glad you’re…around.” Mason nodded, feeling a lump form in his own throat. Meeting the parents was always hard, but these were pretty unusual circumstances.
“Olivia told us about the penny you helped her tape to the desk. Those two are very lucky to have you around.”
Mason ducked his head. He hadn’t realized that he actually did need the approval of some people. Loretta and Bill were being exceedingly gracious given their unique position in it all.
“Thank you.”
“We hope to see you back again. Stay for dinner sometime.” Loretta squeezed Mason’s arm and Bill nodded again. His newsboy cap was a little large for his head, and he was about three inches shorter than her. The cap slid over his eyes but he was smiling.
“I will.” He turned and walked to the car, this time getting into the passenger seat.
Cole walked back to Loretta and Bill, and whatever they said to him, Mason could guess, but it earned them both big hugs and several eyes that needed drying. Mason smiled as he looked in the rearview mirror and saw Olivia staring at him. Her expression was pensive, almost like she was trying to put together something she was missing, but he deadpanned his own face and figured she would come out with it eventually.
“Do you cheat at Monopoly?”
“Upon my word young lady, I would never!” He held his hand to his heart and gave a slight bow to the mirror.
“Then I think we’ll keep you Friday night.”
Mason grinned into his palm. He’d never expected approval from the parents of his romantic interest’s deceased wife, but to get it from his six-year-old was a miracle in itself.
“Only if I get to be the top hat character in the game.”
She nodded solemnly at him, making a vow of her own, and hats off to her for taking the game so seriously too. It just made the fact that she didn’t know they were going to Picasso her bedroom yet, all the more fun.
7
Cole Armstrong
Cole felt lighter than he had in years. He even pulled through the McDonald’s drive-thru and ordered Olivia a happy meal. He didn’t usually let her eat that junk, but tonight was different. It also distracted her from where they were going, and she only looked confused when they pulled into the hardware store. Lawn mowers, grills, and kiddie pools lined the sidewalk leading up to the front door and prices were written on white boards in big, black, block letters. Olivia held her hand up to first himself and then Mason who looked taken aback and then cupped her tiny fist in his palm. He loved her wide-eyed expression as they walked into the factory-sized store. They made their way down the center aisle to the paint center, and Olivia began to jump up and down.
“We’re going to paint! We’re going to paint!”
“Yeah, honey. I thought we could brighten up the house a bit, and Mr. Savage has offered to help.”
“We’re going to paint!”
She was skipping between them and he asked, “What color do you want…”
“I want the walls to look like the sides of the Scooby Doo van!” He hadn’t even finished the sentence before she told him.
Cole had thought she might say purple and green like Donatello, but he should have expected she would come up with something outlandish like the Mystery Machine.
“Mystery Machine theme, you’ve got it.” Olivia skipped to the paint swatches as Cole took out his phone to look up the colors of the van. He then went and began looking at colors for the rest of the house.
“What’s your favorite color?” Mason nudged his shoulder.
He looked over and grinned. “I don’t have a favorite.”
“Oh come on. Everyone has a favorite,” Mason teased.
“I like color combinations. Colors that go together. It’s kind of dumb, but to me it tells a story, if that makes sense.”
“Kind of. So, what do you think of blue and silver.”
“White caps on the water.”
“Purple and green?
“Depends. If it is a deep hue, then Olivia’s favorite character, Donatello from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. If it’s a lilac and soft green, lilac bushes that used to grow outside my bedroom window.”
“That makes sense then. What about, red and black?” Mason gave Cole another heated look before they were interrupted by the paint center employee.
“Can I help you?” The kid’s voice was bored and monotone.
“Yeah, I want all these colors for my daughter’s bedroom,” He held up the phone for the employee who searched through the tiny placards on the swatch wall until he found, under the kid’s characters and colors, the Mystery Machine card. It labeled all the colors with their names and color numbers, and after he told them the details he began mixing paint for the size of Olivia’s room.
Cole examined the wall of colors and began picking up some of his favorites. He went for brighter colors for the walls with lighter accents, which was typically the opposite of what people did. He thought it was strange to have such a small pop of color and then such boring, bland colors to look at on the majority of the walls. The kid working th
e paint center wasn’t at all pleased with how much paint he had to mix so he didn’t try to upsell Cole on any of the essentials like tape, brushes, trays, and paint stirrers. Mason volunteered to remain and wait for the paint while Olivia and Cole went to find a cart, then pick out the other things they needed for the different rooms.
“I’m glad you have a friend, Daddy,” Olivia was looking at a package of paintbrushes. She’d already laid claim to the cutting-in brush, because it was the smallest, but Cole didn’t mind.
“Thank you, sweetie. It’s been a long time since Daddy has had one.”
“I know. Mommy was your best friend and now she’s gone. She’ll be happy you have a new best friend.”
Cole nodded and kissed the top of her forehead. She’d insisted on riding in the cart, even though she was getting a little big for the basket. She rode in it sideways with her knees tucked up. Cole returned and collected all the cans of paint, and Mason helped him load them into the cart. Once they’d paid and loaded everything into the car, they began the long drive home and within five minutes, Olivia had fallen asleep.
Cole pulled into the driveway and got out, picking her up gently from the backseat. It had been a quiet ride because neither wanted to wake Olivia, but he mouthed thank you to Mason who was standing in the driveway. Mason nodded and smiled, then looked at Cole’s lips before turning to the woods. He desperately wanted the goodnight kiss Mason had been thinking about, but with Olivia in his arms, there was no way he could pull it off.
He entered the house and strode upstairs, tucking her in. She was in a gray pair of sweatpants and a small t-shirt, so he let her sleep in those rather than try to put her in her nightgown and wake her up. He took her glasses from her nose, being really careful not to break the tiny frames when he folded them up and put them on the bedside table so she could find them in the morning.
Cole kissed her goodnight, tucked her in, and went back downstairs. There was so much on his mind, he didn’t think he’d be able to sleep, and sure enough he found himself cracking into the first gallon of paint and prepping the dining room. He worked through most of the night and opened the windows, so the fumes wouldn’t waft up to Olivia’s room. He loved how bright it was. The formal dining room set that he and Olivia never used was in fall colors, reds and oranges with hints of yellow. He did the dining room’s base coat in a sunny yellow and had bought stencils of different leaf shapes. When the second coat of paint had dried he lightly brushed on the stencils, so the whole room had leaves falling down the walls.
Around four in the morning, he stepped back and admired his work. He loved the new look and it didn’t take him long to clean up, because the dining room was the least used and had very little furniture or decorations to maneuver.
He strode upstairs, exhausted but happy with the decision to begin work on the house, and collapsed on his bed for a few hours. The next few nights went similarly, with Mason stopping by to help and Olivia making a mess of things, but eventually all that was left was his room and hers.
When Friday night rolled around, Cole was exhausted and wished for nothing more than to go home and see how Olivia and Mason were faring on her room. She’d been such a big girl, helping him pick up her room and box things up until the painting was done. When it was time to close the store, Cole couldn’t get home fast enough. He found Mason and Olivia just finishing her room when he walked in.
“Daddy, look it’s the Mystery Machine!” She was so excited and covered almost head to toe in paint.
“That’s great, sweetie! Are you guys all done? Did I miss the fun?”
“Yeah, but Mr. Savage said you can do your bedroom tomorrow night. He also said we could have a sleepover at his house tonight since my room smells like paint fumes. Can we go, Daddy? Please? Can we go?” Olivia was bouncing up and down. “He has a kitty cat named Zemi! I want to meet Zemi!”
Cole looked at Mason, who was whistling and purposefully not looking at him, but he was smiling. He had a point. There was no way Olivia could sleep in this room for a couple of days until it aired out. The stenciling they’d done was fantastic and the room looked amazing, but it stunk to high heaven.
“Well, I suppose we could, maybe for tonight. You can’t sleep here. If Mr. Savage really doesn’t mind us coming over.” He looked at Mason who turned his head toward him. His green eyes glittered and Cole had the suspicion he was now caught in Mason’s plan and he wasn’t going to let him out so easily.
“Not at all,” is voice was quiet but Cole heard the heat in it. He sucked in a breath.
“You need to take your bath first though. We don’t want that paint drying on you, Olivia.”
“OK.”
She left her room and Cole found himself in a stare down with Mason. He wanted to go to him, to touch him and kiss him. He hadn’t had any contact with him all week, and the anticipation was killing him.
“Thank you for having us. That’s really nice of you.”
“Of course. It’ll be nice to hear someone else in that big old house beside Zemi’s meow.”
“Daddy!” Olivia called from the bathroom.
“I…”
“Have to go take care of your responsibility. I’m going to go get your rooms ready and you can either drive around or take the path directly through the woods. I’ve been clearing away a little at a time so it’s well marked now.”
“Thanks. We’ll probably drive because she might get scared, but I do want to take that walk sometime, I think it would be nice to explore back there.”
“Mhmm. Me too,” his words suggested that the path wasn’t the only thing he wanted to explore in the woods with Cole, but there was nothing Cole could do about that suggestion right now.
He left the room after blowing out a slow breath, and helped Olivia get ready for bed. It was already late for her and by the time they got to Mason’s house, she would only have time for a quick look around before bedtime.
Cole pulled into the driveway and found Mason standing there, holding a black cat with yellow eyes that glowed so brightly, they were like two lantern orbs in the dimly lit entryway to the old house.
“Kitty!” Olivia squealed with delight as Cole fetched their overnight bag. Olivia raced up the walkway with her arms outstretched and Mason gently lowered the cat into them. Zemi immediately began purring and rubbing up against her forehead and neck.
“He likes you,” Mason observed, as she led the way into the house.
Cole was intrigued to see it was pretty spartan as well. The most notable things on the walls were old family photographs. It was like stepping through the door to a time long past, exactly as Mason’s ancestors had left it.
“I don’t spend much time inside when I’m home, so it’s not much, but it’s suitable.”
“Are you kidding? This has so much character it’s unbelievable! I love old houses,” Cole gazed around at the turn-of-the-century architecture. The house was well over one hundred years old, with three stories and what looked like a large garden out back, if he judged correctly from the windows across the room. There were lanterns lit back there and the ambiance screamed garden, with the small wooden bench and what looked like a tiny garden gnome.
“I’ll give you the tour.” He walked them through the rooms of the house, until they ended up on the second floor and he opened the door into an old fashioned nursery. There was a toddler bed and a dollhouse, a rocking horse and several toy boxes which looked like antiques. They were wooden with old metal hinges. Olivia set the cat down and immediately walked in and began looking around. The bed was made up fresh and she yawned and rubbed her eyes.
“OK kiddo, this is exciting but it’s bedtime.” Cole told her.
“But Daddy, I just got here! I want to play.”
“You can play tomorrow morning when you wake up, before I come get you, OK?”
She rubbed her eyes again and yawned so Cole helped her climb into bed and tucked her in.
“There’s a bathroom right across the hall,
Olivia. And the nightlight is already on for you,” Mason said from the doorway, but she was already sound asleep.
Cole rose, followed him out of the room, and gently shut the door behind him. When he turned back around he didn’t need to say anything, Mason was there, cupping his chin and kissing him. Cole felt his whole body tense and then shiver as the tingles raced up his spine. He moaned into Mason’s mouth, desperately wanting him, but a small part of him was still holding off, knowing Olivia was right on the other side of the door. He pulled back, panting.
“We can’t! We can’t!”
Mason hesitated before letting go, dropping his head to Cole’s chest and groaning. “I don’t know how much longer I can wait,” he whispered.
Cole’s fingers trembled as he brought his hand up and stroked Mason’s hair. “Tomorrow,” Cole whispered.
Mason shuddered. “Tomorrow is Beltane.”
“Huh?”
“The first of May. It’s a holiday for me.”
“Yes, I know. The school had to schedule the spring vacation late this year because of renovations that are taking place. That’s why Olivia is on vacation next week and not a week ago.”
“I know. Teacher, remember?”
Cole chuckled and managed to step back. If he didn’t put some distance between him and Mason now, he wasn’t going to.
“Where is my room?” he asked. He didn’t want to go to bed, but he was practically dead on his feet from the work he’d put in that week.