She was wearing a lovely, simple, sleeveless yellow knit sundress that hit above her knees and showed off her sleek legs and beautiful brown complexion. She gave Clayton a smile that was sweet and easy and still slightly cautious, which made his heart ache a little bit.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
Her look clouded, and he wanted to kick himself over his poor choice of words. It was then that he noticed that he wasn’t alone standing in front of the firehouse. Now four other guys suddenly had urgent in front of the firehouse loitering business. Like he didn’t know they were there to watch him talking with Liv. As if his speaking with her was somehow a watch-worthy event. “Well, I happened to step out of the shop for a moment since it was quiet, and when I looked up the street I saw you over here pacing, which looked a little odd, so I decided to come up and say hi. I hope that’s okay.”
Suddenly extremely self-conscious, Clayton nodded. “Sure, it’s more than okay. Though I’m sure the pacing did seem a little weird. I, um, was just waiting for a call from Hope. She’s out with a friend getting ice cream down the street, and I was wondering if I should go check on her.” He rubbed at his head and looked over at her. “I know it’s silly, and I’m probably being overly protective. But she doesn’t go out with friends much, and for her to say she’s going out . . . well, I just wanted to make sure she was having fun.”
Livia nodded and smiled at him, her eyes softening. “I totally get it, and you’re not being overprotective at all. You’re just being a good father.” She turned and looked down toward the ice-cream shop. “Hey, I just passed the shop on my way here and gave a glance inside. I saw her sitting there with two other girls. She looked fine to me. But if you want to take a walk down, I’ll walk with you.”
Clayton shook his head, letting out a sigh of relief. “No, you telling me that bit of news makes me feel a lot better. I don’t want to walk past and embarrass her. Make her feel like I’m checking up on her. Let me just type this quick text and tell her that I’m available to bring her home whenever she’s done.”
Clayton sent off the text to Hope and felt relief after it was done. He looked at Livia and admitted he was slightly surprised to find her still standing there. He’d wanted to see her and talk with her so much since their afternoon together, but she’d given him strict rules that he didn’t need to and she didn’t want him to reach out to her. It felt so wrong that it was making him nuts, but he had no choice but to play by her rules.
So why was she really here now? Did he owe her another apology, one for pacing in her line of sight? Oh whatever, she was here, and he shouldn’t question it, but be grateful for the chance to talk.
“Listen,” he said. “It’s kind of quiet right now, thankfully no emergencies. If you have time, you want to grab a quick iced coffee at the new coffee place? I’m sure my going there will send Doreen into a full-on hissy fit, but when I next go to her for my usual cheeseburger, I’ll just place the blame firmly on you and you being a New Yorker. I’ll say something about how New Yorkers need their coffee on steroids or something. That should do it.”
That pulled a chuckle from her. “Sure, it’s been so long since I’ve had my usual octane, I’m way overdue. You actually won’t be lying to Doreen if you tell her that.”
As they headed down the street, Clayton tried to quell his rapidly beating heart. He could do this. He could be normal and they could be just two old friends having a coffee; it would be fine. Along the way they passed Redheart, the old movie theater. At the same time, they both looked up at the old vintage marquee, and he saw Livia give a wistful smile.
“We had some good times there, didn’t we?” she said.
He nodded. “We really did. Those were some days. Back then it seemed like summer would go on forever right up until the very end, when it all came crashing down way too fast.”
She nodded. “It did feel as if it would go on forever. And now summer just feels like another month on the calendar, and those months go so fast they barely feel like weeks. One day melting into the next. It’s a shame, really. I will say though, I’m surprised the old theater is still here.”
“Me too,” Clayton agreed.
“It’s barely in use. As you can see, it’s closed today. The only reason it’s still in existence is because of the determination of Mr. Kilborn, its owner. He and his wife are such fans of classic movies that he refuses to bend and sell it, despite the many offers I hear he’s gotten over the years. Just about all the young folks go out to the mall and the new multiplex anyway, so Mr. Kilborn now solely opens for matinees on the weekends. One Saturday night showing. Usually it’s whatever he or his wife is in the mood to run, which is pretty hilarious. It’s a surprise potpourri movie night of sorts.”
Livia looked at him in shock. “You have got to be kidding me? How does he stay in business doing that?”
“Oh, don’t feel bad for the Kilborns, they do just fine. Not only do they own this movie theater, but they are huge landowners in these parts and have their hands in all sorts of other property investments, from what I hear. The old man is quietly a financial wiz. This theater is just their tribute to old Hollywood and holding on to what they feel is the way of life that they love.”
Livia nodded. “Oh well, I get it, and I can’t say I don’t admire their way of doing things. I’m happy to see the old theater still here. I wonder what they’re showing this weekend.”
Clayton felt his heart stop for a moment and all judgment go out the window as he once again threw caution to the wind. “Would you care to come with me on Saturday night and we’ll see what the showing is together?”
At her immediate wide-eyed expression, he was quick to throw in, “As just friends, nothing more. I promise not to do anything crazy like try to kiss you. I heard you loud and clear the other day.”
Livia gave him a sideways glance. “Yeah, that would be crazy.” She then blinked and gave her head a little shake as if she were shaking off her own comment as she looked up at him with a smile. “Glad to hear you were listening. So just friends, huh?”
Clayton gave a quick nod and attempted a smile, though everything in him was saying that just friends was the last thing he wanted to be when it came to her.
She finally nodded back at him. “Well, when you put it like that, how can I possibly refuse? Now, come on, you talked of this coffee so much, I’m actually quite thirsty.” She started to walk ahead of him, leaving him no choice but to follow.
Clayton looked up at the marquee of the old theater. “Thirsty doesn’t even begin to describe it.”
* * *
“It’s just a movie,” Liv said to Drea, who was sitting on the opposite twin bed as she changed out of the purple sundress she was wearing and flipped the black one over her head.
“Yeah, honey, you keep telling yourself that. Meanwhile this is the fourth dress you’ve tried on. I always change my outfit four times when it’s ‘just a movie’.”
Liv gave her sister a sharp glare as she took in the air quotes that Drea had put around “just a movie.” She didn’t need the added pressure tonight. She didn’t need any pressure at all. It was bad enough she accepted the date—no, not date, the meet-up. No, not quite a meet-up since he was picking her up outside the house and they were going together. Well, maybe it was a meet-up because he was just meeting her in front of the house, so technically she could call it a meet-up. Right. Either way, she didn’t need the added pressure of Drea teasing her over the fact that she was indeed going to a movie with Clayton Morris tonight.
Just as the dress skimmed over her hips, the doorbell rang. “Dang it! What is he doing ringing the doorbell? We were supposed to meet outside, and on top of it he’s five minutes early,” she said. “This is gonna make it look like a date. If Aunt Joyce opens the door and lets him in and starts chatting with him, this is totally going to make it look like we were officially courting or something.” She started waving her hands at Drea, shooing her. “You run downstairs and
play interception, beat her to the punch. She’s got a bum hip. The woman can’t be that fast.”
Drea was jumping up from the bed and Liv was trying to wedge her feet into sandals while putting on some lip gloss when they both heard Aunt Joyce greeting Clayton at the front door. “Why, Clayton Morris, don’t you look the dashing picture tonight,” Aunt Joyce said, her voice loud and exuberant as it trailed up the stairs to their ears.
Liv groaned and Drea fell back on the bed in a fit of laughter. “Cut it out, it’s not that funny,” Liv said.
“It’s kind of hilarious.” Drea giggled. “You’d think you were a teenager the way you are acting and the way she’s going on down there. I feel like we’re something out of an Austen parody novel. It’s cracking me up. This is seriously turning into the best trip ever.”
Liv picked up her crossbody purse and slung it over her head. “Well, I’m so glad one of us is having a great time. Let me get going before Aunt Joyce comes up with an imaginary dowry for me and really pawns me off on the man.”
Drea started laughing all over again as Liv hit the staircase. “I won’t wait up!” she yelled. Liv growled in response. Yet she knew she’d made the right decision agreeing to go to the movies with Clayton Morris tonight, that was for sure.
Chapter 20
Liv rushed down to Clayton, interjecting herself into his conversation with Aunt Joyce. “We better get going if we’re going to make the movie time,” she said, not really leaving any room open for debate from Aunt Joyce.
Aunt Joyce’s clear disappointment couldn’t be missed. “Well, I guess you kids go and have fun. Though I was hoping to at least offer a bit of refreshment to Clayton before you all left,” Aunt Joyce said anyway.
“Thanks so much, Miss Joyce. I’ll have to take you up on that next time,” Clayton said, and Liv couldn’t help giving him a side-eye glance. Next time? Not so fast, buddy, this was just a movie between friends. It wasn’t like there would be so many next times. But she wouldn’t get into that now. Now it was time to get them both out the door and on their way.
So quick to get them out, Liv didn’t get to know what anxiety was until they were alone together in Clayton’s truck. As he shut the passenger-side door behind her, it really hit her how much this felt like a date. She watched nervously as he walked around the front of the truck and got in on the driver’s side. He looked good dressed up, though still quite casual in jeans and loafers and a button-down shirt. She could tell he made the effort. Something about him made her want to smile, but also gave her a little pain over the fact that he’d gone to so much effort over what he would wear tonight. She looked across the dashboard and gave a quick glance to the interior of his truck. It was quite clean and well kept, though the truck was clearly a few years old. She could see that the dashboard was polished to a high sheen, and there were no extra frills in the interior. She took a deep breath and instantly regretted it as his masculine scent hit her nostrils, putting her body on full alert.
Clayton started the truck and she rolled down her window, letting the welcome smell of the woods into the cab of the truck as they started down the road.
“I’m excited to see what they’re showing tonight,” she said, hoping her voice sounded bright and easy. “I hope it’s something fun.”
“Me too,” he said. “Hope it’s not too dark or too deep. You never know with Mr. and Mrs. Kilborn; it’s a toss-up. Like I said, it totally depends on their mood. You’ll forgive me if this turns into a bust, won’t you? If it’s totally something you don’t want to see, please just let me know and we can scratch it or we can go to the multiplex down at the mall and see something more current.” Liv noticed the worry in his tone.
“Don’t worry, I’m totally game. I’m sure whatever they’re playing should be good. Besides, there’s nothing out right now that’s striking my fancy. Everything seems like more of the same. I don’t know if the Kilborns still have that old popcorn maker; I’m sure you’re looking forward to that. Popcorn with lots of butter, just like you like it.”
Clayton started to chuckle as he continued his drive down the road.
“What is it? Why are you laughing?”
“I’m just laughing over the popcorn. Can I be honest with you for a second?”
Suddenly Liv didn’t know what to expect. Nothing good ever came out of that “Can I be honest” question. But she nodded, “Go ahead, though I admit, I am kind of nervous as well as curious.”
Clayton glanced at her, his eyes dark and shining in the moonlight, before he turned back to the road and kept driving. “I was never a fan of butter on my popcorn like that. Heck, I only kind of like popcorn. I only got it because I knew how much you liked it. This is embarrassing, but I went with it just so I could happen to touch your hand in the popcorn bucket.”
Liv couldn’t have been more stunned if he told her he was some sort of alien from outer space. But then she started to laugh at the absurdity of it all.
Clayton turned to her with confusion in his eyes. He shook his head. “Wow, you really do go for a guy’s jugular, Livia. Though I guess it is funny finding out how truly over-the-top crazy for you I was. I know I was a total and complete sap during those days.”
Liv shook her head and held up a hand at him. “No, that’s not it. That’s not it at all.”
Now he was even more confused. “What are you talking about?”
She snorted and shook her head even more. “You probably won’t believe this, but I don’t like popcorn with butter either. I mean, I like popcorn just fine, but with just a little salt and a hint of butter. I only ordered it that way because I thought you liked it.”
Liv watched as understanding dawned on Clayton’s features, and she started to laugh once again. “I guess we’re both total and complete saps, or at least we were back in those days. Teen love is quite the thing, isn’t it?”
“You can say that again,” Clayton said as he continued to ride into town, this time both of them lost in their own thoughts about young love and sacrifice.
* * *
At the concession stand Liv ordered a medium popcorn, no butter, but Clayton insisted she add a bit and he tacked on M&M’s and the vintage red lace candies they had, and she was surprised to see they even offered freshly baked pigs in a blanket. “Yum, I love pigs in a blanket. Those smell delicious. Mrs. Kilborn makes them fresh.”
Liv was astounded. “Only in Sugar Lake would folks even show off their culinary skill at the movie concession stand.”
Clayton laughed and, balancing what he could, stepped aside, making space for Liv as he lead her into the theater.
Along the way Liv whispered, “I can’t believe that Mr. and Mrs. Kilborn dressed as aliens tonight. They really know how to get in the spirit of things.” Liv found it tough to keep a straight face while accepting her Coke from Mrs. Kilborn, who was indeed dressed in full alien regalia for the night’s showing of the original Independence Day. The petite, elderly woman with the eager smile could barely keep her antennae from falling off while trying to balance them atop her purple bouffant wig. And her husband was equally as funny, looking like a mashup of Forbidden Planet meets Dr. Who meets Cocoon.
It was so cute, and she was a little more than grateful for the easy lightheartedness of it all. To say Liv was relieved at the choice of movies being screened was an understatement. She was nervous expecting that they might be playing something that was overly romantic, making both her and Clayton feel quite uncomfortable. But Independence Day had always been one of her favorites, so she was actually excited about seeing it again.
“Yes, they really do go all out and get in the spirit of things,” Clayton said as he ushered her into the theater. Although she wasn’t surprised, Liv was still a little sad over how empty the theater was. There were only four other patrons—two middle-aged men close to the front and another couple off on the left side.
“Well, it looks like we’ve got our pick of seats,” Clayton said.
“Yeah, I would
say so. Which is kind of sad. I really don’t know how they keep this place open,” Liv said.
“Remember what I said about how well they do with their other properties, so I think they’re okay. And besides, this is opening weekend for the big horror thriller that everybody’s talking about, so I’m sure that’s where most of the crowd is tonight, down at the multiplex.”
They settled into seats toward the back midsection, and Liv was surprised to see that, though it was the original theater, it wasn’t as run-down as Liv imagined it would be. Sure, it could use some updates, but it was clean, the old seats looked to have been reupholstered, and there was fairly new carpeting in the rows. She could tell that the Kilborns really loved either this place or each other very much. She bet that both weighed pretty heavy. It felt somehow magical seeing a movie in a place that still had such fine architectural details. She didn’t even miss extra leg room or stadium-style seating.
“Wow, it’s even more beautiful in here than I remembered,” Liv commented as she took her seat.
Clayton nodded as he helped her balance her snacks and get settled. “That it is. I guess they figured since they were keeping the old place open they wouldn’t let it just go to rot, which we all can appreciate. As you can see, though it’s small, at least a few still come here,” he said. “They even rent the place out for parties and small festivals,” he added.
Liv couldn’t help being impressed, telling herself that all would be fine while she fought to push her earlier anxiety aside. Besides, so far things were working out well.
As Clayton took a seat beside her and the previews came up, she settled in to enjoy herself.
But as she sat uneasy in her seat munching on her third handful of popcorn, Liv wondered, since when did Independence Day turn into such a highly charged romantic movie? There were aliens, for goodness’ sake. Aliens and fight scenes galore. She wasn’t supposed to feel so much sexual tension during this movie. But as she sat there trying to concentrate on the big screen and enjoy her not-too-buttery popcorn, sizzles, tingles, and all sorts of unwanted feelings were what she felt sitting so close in the dark next to Clayton Morris.
As Good as the First Time Page 24