She questioned him about fees and utilities and confirmed that the owners were willing to rent month-to-month. He had the grace to blush as he admitted that the owners had advertised the cabin for monthly rental, but the fine print stated they required the first and last months’ rent as well as a security deposit.
As he handed her forms to fill out, he hovered. “Are you new to the area?”
She glanced up at him as she sat at the table. “I lived not too far from here when I was younger. It was in an older neighborhood, just outside the city. But I have fond memories of that time. I don’t know how long I’ll be here, so renting month-to-month will be good.” I really want to come back to a place where I was happy. She did not speak this thought aloud but held it close to her heart. She already felt more at home here in this little cabin than she ever did in California.
His brow furrowed slightly, and he cleared his throat. “Um… what about employment? That is part of the application, as you can see.”
“I’m self-employed,” she replied. “I’m a writer.” She looked up at him and said, “I can provide you with last year’s tax statement as proof of income. And I’m prepared to pay in cash.”
His brows lifted, and his smile settled once more on his face. “That’ll be excellent. The owners are so anxious to rent, I’m sure they’ll be fine with you being here.”
An hour later, he had taken her money and the signed forms and left her with her copy of the lease and a key. She was surprised that he did not want to do a background check, but she knew money talked. Like he said… there was probably little interest in a tiny cabin outside the city.
She had not planned on finding a place to live so quickly but had no remorse over her hasty actions. After having spent years planning everything, she was ready to break free and just live spontaneously. First, her cross-country trip and now, this little house.
Spending the rest of the afternoon unloading her SUV, she heated a can of soup and made a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for supper. Her phone dinged an incoming message. Glancing at it, she immediately shut her phone down. The last thing she needed was unwanted messages.
As the sun moved over the top of the trees and the shadows lengthened in the evening, she pulled books from their boxes and placed them on the shelves. There were not enough books to fill the shelves completely, but just seeing them all together gave her comfort.
She opened the box with the word ‘Knitting’ written across the top and pulled out her basket, setting it on the floor next to the chair. She filled it with balls of soft, colored yarn and placed her knitting needles within reach.
The room was much smaller than Miss Ethel’s, and yet, its familiarity was comforting. Just like with so many times when she was younger, she fixed a cup of tea. Wishing she had milk to go in it, she decided a trip to the grocery store the next day was necessary.
She moved to the back door and walked out onto the patio, sitting on the step again. The sounds of nature all around were broken only by the muted sound of some kind of machinery in the distance. Not loud enough to be annoying, just present.
Caught up on her writing and editing schedule, she reveled in having several more days before she needed to get back to the current novel she was writing. She planned a trip into the city tomorrow to get cable and internet, grocery shop, and see what else was around. And maybe, just maybe, take a drive through the old neighborhood for old times’ sake.
Later that night, lying in bed, she read until sleep claimed her. The first peaceful sleep she had had in a very long time.
7
Cas walked from one of the bays into the office of Jayden’s garage, J. C. Tire & Auto. Looking over at Ruby, Jayden’s wife, he said, “It’s all done. She’s good to go.”
She smiled at him. “That was fast. I know the customer will be glad you were able to take care of it.”
He twisted to look over his shoulder at the young mother balancing a toddler on her hip while trying to entertain a bouncy preschooler in the small waiting room. She had brought her minivan in for its inspection, and he’d discovered she needed new brake pads. He had one other car to work on, but since that customer was okay with leaving it, he had immediately gone to work on the minivan.
With a smile and chin lift toward Ruby, he left her to handle the billing with the customer and went back into the garage.
Each of his brothers had found love; several were now parents. Zander had returned from his time in the Army, then bought and ran a bar named Grimm’s. He had met his wife, Rosalie, one tragic night at the bar when she was attacked. Now, happily married, they had a little girl. After leaving the Army, Rafe had had a career as a model before leaving the lights of L.A. for the quiet life of being a landscaper. Now, he and his wife, Eleanor, had a son and worked at the veterans burn facility that they had created.
Jaxon was now a paramedic and was married to Morgan, a former Olympic hopeful swimmer who now worked at Eleanor’s facility. Zeke had left the military and worked for Zander at Grimm’s until he started a restaurant attached to the bar. Zeke and Zander then became partners and had recently expanded to open Grimm’s Two. Zeke’s fiancé, Cynthia, was their manager.
Cael and Asher were both building contractors, Cael restoring old homes for flipping and Asher owning rental properties. Cael’s wife, Regina, worked for a local university, and Asher’s wife, Penny, worked as an office manager for a real estate company.
The group got together at Miss Ethel’s monthly, sometimes more often. Most of the time Cas made the trip into town to be with them all, but occasionally he missed. Not because he intentionally skipped, but sometimes he would be in his workshop creating furniture and time would simply pass by without him noticing.
He drove the sports car into his bay, already thinking about his evening’s activities. Unlike most mechanics, bending over the engine of a sports car gave him no particular thrill. He liked the methodical diagnosis and repair work on engines, and the mechanic’s training the Army had given him plus the training he had received from Jayden certainly made him qualified for the job. He enjoyed working for his brother and made good money.
But it was not his passion.
That was reserved for what he could do with wood. Furniture design and building. Self-taught, he spent all of his spare time creating one-of-a-kind pieces. His family had not known of his creations until he finished a project for Miss Ethel, and she showed it off to the others. Jayden had even told him at the time that his efforts at the garage were wasted when he could be building and selling his own line of furniture.
Sure that he would never be able to make a living doing that, he kept his job as a mechanic but occasionally took pieces of furniture to some of the area craft fairs. Ruby designed business cards for him, and he was surprised to see that by the end of the fair, most were gone.
Stunned that each of his pieces sold, he was encouraged by his family to raise his prices. Starting tentatively, he did and was equally surprised that people not only paid for his furniture but were willing to pay well.
He had no desire to make more money than he needed to live off of and save, so he kept his prices reasonable. After a while, some people began special ordering pieces, and for those, he charged more.
An hour later, he finished with the sports car and drove it out of the bay. Cleaning off his hands at the sink, Ruby poked her head out of the door and said, “Hey, Cas… Jayden would like to see you before you leave.”
Wiping his hands on a towel, he jogged up the three steps into the office, seeing Jayden sitting behind his desk. “What’s up, bro?”
“You look like shit, Cas,” Jayden said, his grin taking the sting out of any insult. Not giving Cas a chance to reply, he asked, “How late are you up at night making furniture?”
Cas glanced over at Ruby, who was attempting an innocent expression while sitting on the stool by the cash register. Plopping into the available chair, he stared at them. “Late.”
“I hear you’re now
taking special orders.”
“I’ve got a couple.” From the smile on Ruby’s face, he assumed she knew about Rosalie’s and Eleanor’s friends asking him to design baby beds for their children.
Jayden shook his head. “Cas, I know that’s where your heart is. I’ve always known that. I know you would hate to give up this job, and I sure as hell don’t want to make things financially tight for you, but—"
“I’m okay. I mean, I’m not rolling in money, but I’ve still got savings from when I was in the military.”
“Good, good,” Jayden said, “because I want you to cut your hours here in the shop. You need more time in your own shop to design and build furniture, and the only way you’re going to have that time is to cut back here.”
Tamping down the excitement of having days that he could spend in his workshop, he asked, “What kind of cutback are you talking about?”
Shrugging his shoulders with his hands lifted to his sides, Jayden looked to him. “You tell me. Cas, I want this to work for you. My business is good. I can bring on a part-time or a full-time mechanic.”
Rubbing his chin, he quickly calculated the hours it would take each week to work on the projects that were coming in. Excitement bubbled deep inside, starting slow and building, He was no longer able to keep his grin from widening. Holding Jayden’s gaze, he said, “It would be good if I could have two full days off a week to just work in my workshop.”
Jayden lifted an eyebrow in doubt. “Just two?”
“Let’s start with that and see how it goes,” Cas suggested. The two men took to their feet at the same time, hands reaching out to clasp. “Thanks, Jayden. This means a lot to me.”
Ruby slipped off the stool and walked around to Jayden, her arm sliding around her husband’s waist as she smiled up at Cas. “See you there?”
He knew she was referring to the dinner at Miss Ethel’s, and he nodded. “Yeah, that’s where I’m heading right now.”
Saying goodbye, he walked out to his truck and spent the drive to Miss Ethel’s busily planning his next project. Parking at her house, he glanced across the street as he always did. It was a habit… just like looking at the trees in the corner where he used to spend time whittling or writing or the other millions of memories that he had at her house.
Seeing that he was the first one to arrive, he jogged up the front porch steps and into the house. Hearing a noise from the kitchen, he made his way past the living room and dining room, down the hall, and into the large room that Miss Ethel felt was the hub of her house.
She looked up from the pot she was stirring and her warm smile greeted him. Her hair was now white, pulled back in a bun. Her eyes, more grey than blue, still twinkled from behind her wire-rimmed glasses. Her frame, even more thin, was encased in a buttery yellow dress, belted at the waist. As always, she immediately turned from whatever she was doing and opened her arms.
Never turning down her silent invitation, he walked into her embrace. One thing he noticed was that her arms never seemed to weaken. Her hug was just as firm. He inhaled deeply the light scent of rose water, so familiar and so comforting at the same time.
“Oh, my Cas,” she said. Leaning back, she looked up at him, then tilted her head slightly to the side. “You look like a man with news to tell.”
He had no idea how she did that… how she knew just by looking at one of them that there was something going on in their lives. It was a mystery not to be discovered, so he did not question it. Grinning, he nodded. “Jayden and I talked today. I’m cutting back my hours at the garage so that I’ll have more time at my own workshop.”
Her delight was obvious, and she said, “Oh, I am glad. Cas, my boy, you’re so talented and so deserving. I’ve always wanted my boys to follow their passion, and building furniture is definitely your calling.”
The sound of the front door opening was heard, and soon the house was filled with all of his brothers and their wives and children. He scooped up Zander’s little girl, Charity, blowing raspberries on her belly, much to her delight. Then he moved over to Eleanor, kissed her cheek and Rory’s head, and said, “I’m glad you liked his bed. The one for your friend will be ready soon. In fact, since I’m going to have a few extra days a week to work on it, I should have it by this weekend.”
Ruby was spreading the news of Cas having full days to work on his furniture, and he accepted the congratulations from the gathering. Shooting Jayden a grin which he hoped showed his gratitude, he sat down at the table after helping Miss Ethel bring out the food.
As usual, the meal was filled with lots of conversation, sharing about lives, reminisces of the past.
“Do you remember that girl that lived across the street for a while? Bianca?” Rafe asked. “I thought about her the other day when I was reading to Rory. I remembered what she said about the prince in Snow White. How he just stumbled upon her and hadn’t done anything to deserve her, and it was the huntsman that had truly saved her.”
“And how the dwarfs were her friends,” Jaxon laughed.
“Wonder whatever happened to her,” Zeke said, passing a bowl to Cynthia.
Miss Ethel’s brow furrowed. “I don’t know. She and her father moved away about the time the last of you graduated. I had hoped to hear from her after they left but never did.”
“You were close to her, Cas,” Jayden said, looking over at him. “Did she ever get in contact with you?”
Shaking his head, he replied, “I left for the Army right when she moved. We never had contact after that.” Regret shot through him like a bolt, and he lifted his hand and rubbed his chest.
“In this day and age of social media, you could probably find out about her,” Regina commented.
He had thought about it before, but something always held him back. Maybe it was the lack of desire to see her life as she moved away from him. Continuing to shake his head, he lied, “Nah. She was just a girl I knew as a kid. Nothing more.”
Rafe said, “It was weird to suddenly have that memory jump back into my head.”
Zander piped up, “I think it’s because you’re a father. Seriously, there’s all kinds of things that now come to mind.” He nodded toward Miss Ethel. “I find myself wanting to remember everything about growing up with you so that I can try to do the right things with Charity.”
The conversation around the table moved to their childhood memories, most tales spent one-upping each other. But for Cas, he thought of Bianca. Her black hair, pale complexion, blue eyes, and the way she made him feel. She would listen… really listen to whatever was on his mind. She had a way of making him feel as though he could do anything.
He zoned out what the others were saying, startling when there was more laughter around the table and realized he had missed the last story. His eyes jumped to Miss Ethel’s and found them on him, her gaze thoughtful.
He stayed back after the others left, checking to make sure she had everything she needed. She lifted her hand and patted his cheek, saying, “All my good boys have grown into such good men.”
They stepped out on the front porch together, and as though a magnet drew their eyes, both looked across the street.
“You remember young Bianca better than you let on during dinner.” Her voice was soft, without judgment. But her intuition was, as always, correct.
His hand drifted upward to rub his chest again. He could never lie to Miss Ethel and was not about to begin now. “I do remember her very well. We had… well, I guess you’d call it a special friendship.” A heavy sigh slipped from his lips. “ We were very young, though. Like I said, she’s a pleasant memory from my childhood.”
She smiled indulgently. “She was such a delight to have around. So very intuitive for such a young person.”
“Yeah, she was. Funny, smart.”
“I used to call her an old soul,” Miss Ethel remembered.
“Sometimes I wondered what all was going on in her head. She was always creating characters and stories.”
“In man
y ways, you two were so much alike. Both inventive… creative… artistic.”
He had not thought of their similarities, and the idea caused his lips to curve. Giving his head a little shake, he tightened his arm and squeezed her shoulders. “I’m going to head on home now, Miss Ethel. I’ve got furniture to build and all day tomorrow to be able to work on it.”
“Of all my boys, I should’ve known that you would end up with a cabin in the woods, surrounded by your workshop and the nature you always loved .”
He grinned and nodded. “A house in the city was never going to be for me. I love my cabin. Plenty of privacy. Plenty of quiet for me to be able to design my furniture. And if I’m in the mood to stay up all night and build, I don’t disturb anyone.”
Bending, he kissed her cheek and jogged down the steps toward his truck.
Miss Ethel stood on the porch and waved goodbye, her smile staying on her face long after his truck disappeared down the road. A breeze blew past, the wind whispering in her ear. With a twinkle in her eyes, she moved back inside her house.
8
Driving home, Cas’ mind was on the baby bed he was building. He had made one for Rafe’s son, Rory, using designs he had found online for a child’s bed that could go from a crib to a junior bed, and made it his own by adding carvings of an enchanted forest in the headboard. A friend of Eleanor’s had seen it and wanted one like it.
As he neared his drive, he noticed the ‘For Rent’ sign was missing from the property next to his. He had bought his cabin property two years ago, and the elderly man who lived next to him had died soon after. He had been aware that work was being done on the cabin and the man’s children were hoping to sell it. When that did not happen, they decided to rent it, but it had sat empty for a while.
Cas: Heroes at Heart Page 6