The Normal Kind of Crazy (Crazy #1)

by L. J. Voss

  I raise my hands in surrender. “I forgot which brand you said. So I was going to get one of each brand. But there were so many flavors and you didn’t say which one you wanted. The only solution was to buy one of each. You better really like popcorn, because we’re going to be eating a lot of it.”

  “Oh, don’t you worry, I could eat popcorn with every meal. But you really didn’t need to do that, Calder. I would have eaten whatever one you brought back. I’m not that high maintenance. I do know what we can do tonight while we eat some of the popcorn you bought.” She goes over to where the games are and pulls out Battleship. “I haven’t played this game in ages. June used to play this with me every Sunday night.”

  I continue to unpack the groceries as I answer, “Sure. Just be prepared. I clean up in that game.”

  She lets out a chuckle, “We’ll see about that.” So she likes to trash talk. Got to say it’s kind of a turn on. We finish unpacking and putting away the groceries. I turn around and notice two fishing poles leaning by the front door.

  “Where did those come from?”

  She follows my eyes. Her hands knit together as she rushes, “I went out for a little walk and found some wildflowers I wanted to pick. I wanted to make these flower crowns. I used to make them with my mom before she got sick and totally forgot about them. So I picked some and was heading back inside when I noticed the shed. When I looked in I saw those fishing poles. I’ve never been before and I thought maybe, if you had time, you could show me how?”

  I spin to face her, my shock showing on my face, “You’ve never been fishing? Ever? Not even when you were younger?” As I finish my last sentence I realize why she wouldn’t have gone fishing. She didn’t know who her dad was until a few days ago and there haven’t been any other male figures in her life.

  “No, there was never anyone to take me.”

  “We’re here for one more day, so we can go tomorrow. I’ll teach you everything I know.”

  Her whole face lights up as she smiles and I like that something I said caused her to smile like that. “Thank you! You don’t know how much that means, Calder.”

  “It really isn’t a big deal. Plus if we catch anything, fresh fish for dinner beats sandwiches.”

  “Well, it means a lot to me. That you’d take the time to teach me is really nice. It’s your job to make sure I don’t die but it isn’t your job to entertain me. It’s something I’ve always wanted to learn. I’m going to go read on the porch for a little bit. But I was thinking spaghetti for dinner, maybe in a couple of hours?”

  “Spaghetti sounds perfect.” She heads outside and I head back into my room to finish some work I have left to get done. Although that’s easier said than done. My mind keeps drifting to her in that flimsy white dress with those flowers in her hair. I’ve got to stay focused. This, her, isn’t the plan. That promotion is my dream. It’s what I’ve been working towards my whole life. It’s a family legacy to go into law enforcement. My dad and grandpa both were detectives. I always knew I wanted to follow in their footsteps but I wanted more than just the local police department.

  Marriage and kids are nice for some people. They were never a part of my plans. My parents have been married for thirty-three years. They have been the perfect example that when it’s right, it works. They fight like cats and dogs. But they always make up and they always choose each other. My only choice was the FBI. I didn’t want or need any distractions to take away from that. I still don’t.

  I thought I could have it all once. But Michelle made me realize my work hours and dedication to the job wasn’t fair to anyone in a relationship with me. I don’t work a typical nine to five and once I get promoted the hours could be even worse. She worried every time I went to work. It wasn’t something she could live with. Especially since she wanted kids and didn’t want to worry about their father not coming home. After she left, I’ve been dedicated to getting that promotion. If I had to decide between a family and my career then the choice was an easy one. My relationships since then have been made up of one night stands.

  I spend some time looking through some files and sending some follow up emails. I shut my laptop and head out to the kitchen. Imogen is in there getting stuff ready for dinner. “Is there anything I can do to help?” I ask her.

  “No, thanks though. I just need to cook the noodles and heat up the sauce. My mom is probably rolling over in her grave right now. She’d kill me herself if she knew I was using premade pasta sauce. But I didn’t want to make it from scratch up here at the cabin. I took the lazy way out.”

  “It’s more than I would have done. If we were close enough I would have just gotten take out.”

  “It’ll be ready in about twenty minutes.”

  “Okay. If you are sure you don’t need my help I’m going to go out to the shed and see what our bait options are for fishing tomorrow.”

  “Nope, I’ve got it covered. And, Calder, thanks again for everything. You’ve made a horrible scary situation actually manageable.”

  I give her a slight nod and head out to the shed. There are cobwebs all over. I’m surprised she even ventured in here. Most women I know wouldn’t touch a spider with a ten foot pole let alone walk into an old shed with cobwebs covering every corner. Spotting my grandpa’s blue tackle box I grab it and set it down and open it. Looking inside I see some old PowerBait, dried up marshmallows, and some old red fish eggs. It’s probably all too old and dried to use. I’ll need to head to the gas station down the road and see what bait they have. I close the tackle box and head back inside.

  “So all the bait’s too old to use. If we want to have a chance at catching anything we’ll need something not dried out. There’s a gas station down the road. I’m going to see what bait they have. I’ll be back in probably twenty minutes.”

  “Oh no, Calder, we don’t have to go fishing. It was nice you were willing to teach me. But I don’t want to make you go through that much trouble.”

  “It’s fine. I was actually kind of looking forward to it. I haven’t done it in years. Besides, now that I said it, I’m looking forward to fresh fish for dinner.”

  I grab my keys and head back out to the car, only this time I’m followed. Mr. Darcy is right on my heels. “Nope, not a chance in hell. Get back inside.” I bend down and push him towards the cabin. But he doesn’t budge. “Seriously, get inside. I don’t want to hit you.” This time he actually sits down and looks up at me. I open the door and he comes up right next to my leg. “Fine.” I grab him up and drop him on the passenger seat.

  I stop at the first gas station I come to. Mr. Darcy is sitting on the passenger seat. I don’t want to take him in with me so I crack a window. I’ll only be a few minutes, he’ll be fine. Our options are slim but it’s better than dried out old bait. I grab a jar of each and head up to pay. I checkout and head back out to my car. There are about five or six people gathered around my car looking in the window. I didn’t think about the kind of attraction a pig sitting in the front seat would be. They turn to me as I get to my door. A little girl looks at me, “Is that a pet pig? Can I see him? Can I pet him? Is he nice?”

  “I’m sort of in a hurry.” Her face falls as if I’ve just crushed all of her childhood dreams. I can’t be the one to stand in the way of her dreams of petting a pig so I open my door and reach down and hit the unlock button, “Okay, you can pet him. But you have to be fast.” Her smile is back in the blink of an eye. She opens the door and reaches in to pet him.

  “Oooohhhhhhh, he is so cute! Can I get one, Mama? Can I please? I’ll take real good care of it!”

  A lady I’m assuming is her mother grabs her arm, “Oh no, sweetie. You can’t have a pig for a pet! Where would we put it? Besides they are messy dirty animals. It’s time to go.”

  The little girl waves as her mom drags her away from my car. The other people slowly disperse. I reach over and shut the passenger side door the
n put the car in reverse and head back. So much for keeping a low profile. I’ve got to get my focus back. I never would’ve been this careless. These are the types of screw ups that cost people jobs and get people killed. That’s not something I’m willing to risk. I’m starting to think playing a game and going fishing isn’t such a great idea. I need to distance myself from her. Somehow she’s getting under my skin and I’m letting my guard down.

  Pulling up to the cabin, I park the car. I take a breath and steel my resolve to distance myself from her. I open the door and grab Mr. Darcy. Imogen is up on the porch and she flies down the stairs when she spots Mr. Darcy in my arms.

  “Oh thank goodness you had him!” She wraps her arms around me and the pig in my arms, “After you left I figured Mr. Darcy was just walking around the cabin but then I started calling him and he didn’t come. Then I realized the door was open and I was afraid he had wandered off and was lost or dying or being eaten. But then you drove up and I saw you had him!” She drops her arms from around me and snatches the pig from my arms, “Dinner is ready.”

  “Sounds good, I’m starved.” I can smell the spaghetti as soon as I walk in the door, “It smells delicious. Let me go wash my hands and I’ll be back out.” I head to the bathroom and wash my hands. I take a second to look in the mirror to give myself a pep talk, “Get it together, you can do this. You can be professional. It’s a job and nothing more. Your dream is on the line.”

  She’s already sitting at the table with the spaghetti dished up into two bowls. As soon as I sit down she dives in. Man, she can eat. It’s not every day you see a girl eat real food. None of this lettuce and water shit. It’s actually refreshing. I put a forkful in my mouth and it’s like heaven. I can’t remember the last time I had a real meal. Take out is a lot easier when there’s only one of you. We finish eating at the same time and I reach for her bowl, “You cooked. I’ll do the dishes.”

  “Thank you. I also made some cupcakes. Since you ran to the store I had extra time and it’s actually Mr. Darcy’s birthday and he loves cupcakes.” She comes and grabs a plate of cupcakes from the counter and sets them on the table along with a tiny birthday hat that she’s made. She comes back into the kitchen and reaches into the cupboard and pulls out some popcorn and kind of waves it as she says, “And I didn’t forget about the popcorn I have to eat, don’t worry.” Then she puts it in the microwave to pop.

  I’m a little distracted by the fact that she made cupcakes for her pig. “You are throwing your pig a birthday party?”

  She turns to face me, “Of course not, I’m not a crazy person.” I look at her skeptically. “I mean, I’m just the normal kind of crazy. I’m not crazy crazy. Besides you can’t have a birthday party with only two people.”

  I smile at her, “The normal kind of crazy, huh?” She smiles back at me. I turn back to the dishes and I lose track of what I was about to say before the cupcakes and the pig’s birthday came up. I remember, “Oh, so I was thinking,” I trail off as I turn around and she already has Battleship set up and is waiting for me.

  “Yes?”

  She looks so excited about playing Battleship. It’s like the little girl at the gas station all over again. Except, this time it isn’t a little girl whose dreams I’m going to crush. It’s a hot fully grown woman and one who I’m starting to feel something for. A woman with amazing strength, in spite of all she has been through. It’s her whom I would be disappointing. How much can one game of Battleship hurt? In the morning I’ll just say I’m sick. Or that I have more work to do. Something so we can’t go fishing. Hell, maybe I’ll get lucky and it’ll rain.

  “Mr. Darcy’s growing on me.” She just smiles at me. Definitely the right choice. It’ll be easier tomorrow. I dump the popcorn into a bowl and sit down. I set the popcorn on the table and slide my Battleship board closer to me. My mind is already starting to strategize and I have a little rush of adrenaline. To say that I’m competitive would be putting it mildly.

  After a few minutes of planning we both get our ships laid out and I grab for a cupcake. I swear everything this girl makes is heaven. The cupcake is gone in four bites and I reach for another one, “These are really good. It’s a good thing I didn’t have these when I came in to your café or I’d be living at the gym.”

  She takes one and sets it on the ground for Mr. Darcy, “Try working there every day. My self-control is really put to the test. But everything in moderation. And by moderation I mean no repeats, so, one of each.”

  “I didn’t know pigs could eat cake. I don’t know how you can do it. The smell alone would be torture. So are you going first or am I?”

  “He can’t have a lot of cake or have it very often, but he can have it. You can. Are we playing the normal way or Salvo rules? ”

  “You know how to play Salvo? I thought we were the only ones who knew that way. I don’t know anyone else who plays that way.”

  “That’s the only way June let me play growing up. She said the regular rules are for pansies and she wouldn’t have me growing up to be a pansy.”

  “Sounds like my kind of woman.” I look at my game board and try to strategize what I’m going to call out first.

  I call out my five shots and don’t hit anything. She follows with her five but she misses all of them as well. We call our five shots back and forth a few more times before either one of us make a hit. She ends up being the first one to hit something and the little squeal of excitement she lets out helps soften the blow. I’m surprised at how good she is. Once she got her first hit she was on fire. She seemed to know where the rest of my ships were and the rest of her calls are hits. With each sunken ship I lose one of my calls and I’m out before I even know what hit me.

  I lean back in my chair and look over at her, “That is one of the only times I’ve lost and definitely the fastest.”

  “Well, it’s the first time you’ve played me and I told you I was good,” she replies with a smirk. She starts putting away the game pieces so I join in and start putting mine away. I can’t even be pissed at losing with the huge grin filling her face. Things are just effortless with her. She makes it easy to forget that I’m on the job and I’m here to protect her from someone trying to take her life. I grab her game board and put the game back in the box and put it back with the other games.

  “I think I’m going to call it a night. If you still want to go fishing tomorrow we’ll need to get an earlier start, otherwise we won’t catch anything,” and just like that my resolve to flake out in the morning is gone. There is no way I can disappoint her and I’m actually looking forward to it. It’s been too long since I’ve thrown a line out.

  “Oh, I didn’t even think about that. And yes, I still want to go fishing tomorrow. I’ll call it an early night too and be ready and raring to go in the morning. Good-night, Calder. Thanks again for a fun day.”

  I watch her walk to her room. The fresh air fishing will be good. It’ll help clear my head. We’re only here another day or so. You can’t fall in love with someone in a few days. I have nothing to worry about. These feelings I think I’m getting are just attraction. They’ll go away when she goes away.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  - Imogen -

  I wake up like a kid on Christmas. Rushing, I throw on the first clothes I grab and hurry in and make some breakfast. I’m just pulling the last two pieces of toast out of the toaster when Calder comes walking down the hall. He has on some well-worn jeans and an old ratty t-shirt. I can almost feel the drool on the side of my mouth.

  “Good morning.”

  “Good morning,” I snap out of my trance and put the toast on the plate and head to the table. “You said we needed to get an early start so I got up and started making breakfast. I wasn’t sure how far we were going and if we would need to pack a lunch or not. So if we do I can make some sandwiches for us to take with us.”

  “We aren’t going far but we’ll p
ack lunch. Then we don’t have to cut out in the middle of fishing if we get hungry.” He grabs a plate and starts eating some eggs and toast. After seeing how much he dishes up I’m thinking I should have made more. I scoop a few of the eggs that are left and half of a piece of toast and put it on a plate for Mr. Darcy. Then I take what’s left and start eating.

  “Okay, that sounds good. What kind of fish are out there? And do I need to be afraid of alligators?” I didn’t really think about alligators when I asked to go fishing. Maybe I should have thought this through a little better. “Because you know, if there are alligators I’m pretty sure that I forgot that there was this thing I had to do today.” That would be my luck. Here I’ve escaped death and then I get done in by an alligator.

  “It’s been a while since I’ve been fishing up here. I haven’t kept up on my fish species studies,” he says with a smile. I swear his eyes twinkle as he adds, “But we used to catch a lot of catfish so probably some of those. Which would be good fried for dinner. As far as alligators, they’re always a possibility.” I think the fear in my eyes causes him to add, “But I haven’t seen one yet. And I’ve been coming up here for years. Plus remember it’s my job to keep you safe. That means even from alligators. I’m going to go grab the fishing poles. I’ll meet you out front.” He sets his plate down in the sink and heads outside. Mr. Darcy and I finish eating and then I pick up our plates and take them over to the sink and clean them. Grabbing the peanut butter and the jam, I make a couple sandwiches. Thinking about this morning, I decide to make two more. Calder seems to have an empty pit for a stomach so I know they won’t go to waste.

  Pulling open the refrigerator door, I survey our options for drinks. I don’t think beer would be appropriate even though that seems like what you’re supposed to drink when fishing. I see Diet Coke and grab a couple of those. Thank goodness he’s a Coke drinker too; I didn’t think about telling him about my Diet Coke addiction and Pepsi would not have cut it. I put on Mr. Darcy’s leash and collar that I use to walk him. I find a plastic grocery store bag that I put the sandwiches and drinks in and then head out front.