Straddling the Fence

by Annie Evans

  “He says he left a note, and I do believe him, but to be honest, I didn’t look for one. When I woke up alone, I thought—”

  “That he’d slunk out to avoid facing you in the morning.”

  “The walk of shame, yeah.”

  “Except that’s not what either of you intended,” Kai said.

  “Well, I went into it with no expectations, or so I told myself. It didn’t feel that way the next morning, though. I was disappointed too, when he wasn’t there.”

  “So now that you’ve hopefully sorted the miscommunication part out, what’s the problem?”

  “Three condoms,” Bellamy said bluntly. “I’ve never known a man to carry three condoms around with him. One, I totally get. Two…maybe. But three? Come on.”

  “You think Eli’s a player?”

  Bellamy frowned at the harsh word. “Not a player, no, but a natural-born charmer? Yeah. And I know that sounds hypocritical, given the nature of the night we spent together. I mean, I was there too, and I sure as hell wasn’t resisting. ’Course, I can’t see how any single woman in her right mind would push Eli away. But I just can’t help where my thoughts went. That’s my own insecurities showing, I guess. Manifesting themselves in three used condoms and an empty motel room after a night of mind-blowing sex.”

  “I imagine it’s pretty normal to go there after thinking he ditched you. Maybe it’s some sort of self-protective reflex kicking in. You probably don’t make a habit out of having one-night stands.”

  “I might’ve had a couple while in college, but that’s it. And the guys never up and disappeared on me afterward.”

  Kai nodded. “Try the apple butter.”

  Bellamy scooped some onto a cracker and popped it into her mouth. The flavors of apple, spices, sugar and vanilla exploded across her taste buds. She hummed her approval and polished off the rest of the sample with another cracker.

  “I understand your worries, Bellamy, and I think they’re merited, all things considered. But Eli is…something special.” A genuine look of deep affection stole across Kai’s face. “He’s sweet and easygoing and hardworking. Honestly, between him, Fritz and Sage, you won’t find better men. Now—is he oversexed? Absolutely. And I think it’s because girls have been throwing themselves at him since grade school.”

  “I don’t doubt that.”

  “A lot of how boys handle that sort of thing lies in their personalities. Fritz is quieter and more subdued with the charm and flirtatiousness. Sage is practically a recluse when he’s not working, yet he still manages to get himself laid quite often, from what I hear. Eli is outgoing and quick with the come-ons. Sexual confidence rolls off him in waves. When the teenage hormones kicked in and the girls started responding, he ran with it instead of shying away. Unfortunately, it makes you wonder if he knows how to connect with someone on a deeper level. That might be what you’re wondering—should I take a risk and trust that he’s not playing games with me?”

  “That’s exactly what I’m asking myself.”

  “And I can’t answer that for you, although my gut says no. All I can tell you for sure is, I’ve never known him to say two words about a girl he’s been with in the past, good or bad. The fact that he’s opened up to Fritz about you speaks volumes.”

  Bellamy finished the yummy peach wine then sighed. “I like him a lot, Kai.”

  “He’s a really great guy, and I’m not saying that just because he’s my future brother-in-law. I’ve known Eli since we were kids. He’s always been that way.”

  Bellamy’s intuition told her the same thing. Now if she could only convince her heart to listen. “Let me see your engagement ring again.”

  Kai slapped her left hand down on the table. The afternoon sunshine streaming through the front window of the store landed like a spotlight on the ring, sending refractions of color streaming off the stones, creating a miniature disco ball. Set in platinum, a fat oval-shaped emerald was the center attraction, surrounded by smaller diamonds trickling down to line the band around her finger.

  “It’s gorgeous.”

  “And naturally, it had to have at least one green stone to satisfy Fritz. I think if he could’ve found something in corn colors he would’ve bought it.”

  “There are yellow diamonds, you know.”

  “But yellow diamonds paired with emeralds?” She scrunched her nose. “Not my style.”

  “Then he chose well.”

  “He chose very well.” Kai stared happily at the ring for a few more seconds. “So, what did you think of the samples?”

  Bellamy straightened from her chair. “I’ll take one of each, please.”

  Kai beamed, clapping her hands. “I love customers like you. Browse until I get you ready to go.”

  While Kai wrapped each item in red-and-white checked tissue paper, Bellamy meandered around Homegrown, perusing the fresh seasonal produce, artisan crafts, and other items she hadn’t noticed on previous visits. “Oh, I’m almost out of honey too.”

  “With the comb or without?”

  “With. I eat it on toast.”

  “Got it,” Kai said, grabbing a jar off a shelf.

  “Seems rather quiet in here for a Friday afternoon.”

  “The kids are trick-or-treating tonight in town, so I’m sure folks are at home getting ready for that screaming sugar-fest. The elementary school and some of the local churches hold fall festivals to coincide with Halloween as well.”

  Bellamy picked up a handmade carving board, running her fingers across the smooth surface. The piece was done in alternating strips of light and dark wood, with curving handles on each end. It was pretty enough to do double duty as kitchen art in addition to being functional. The price tag made her eyebrows climb her forehead, so she carefully placed it back on the shelf.

  “I almost forgot this weekend is Halloween. I should carve a pumpkin or something fun,” Bellamy mused aloud. “Although no one would see it but me since the house sits so far back off the road.”

  “You shouldn’t let that stop you, and I just happen to have a few pumpkins left out front. I’ll even toss in a couple beeswax votive candles for the inside once you get it carved.”

  “Jesus, girlfriend. You’re really good at this retail stuff. But yes, I’ll take a pumpkin.”

  Kai just laughed and added it to the tab.

  When Bellamy stepped over to the counter to pay for her purchases, a painting on the wall behind Kai’s head caught her eye. Done in oils or acrylics on canvas and framed in what looked to be old barn wood, it was of a paint horse grazing in a field near a small pond. The detailing was so precise, she could see the delineation in the muscles of the animal’s shoulder and hip. Trees and wildflowers dotted the landscape surrounding the beautiful animal. Wispy clouds drifting through a bright blue sky were reflected on the surface of the water.

  The paint’s markings were primarily sorrel, with splashes of white across its barrel and neck, with more white from its knees down to its hooves. The head was mostly dark with a blaze of white between the eyes and ears. A tobiano pattern, if her memory served.

  Looking at it made Bellamy’s heart squeeze. She’d always had a soft spot for paint horses, and sadly, since she’d taken over her uncle’s practice, she had yet to receive a single equine call. For Pete’s sake, didn’t anyone in or around Serenity own a horse?

  Kai stopped placing items in a bag, her gaze swinging from Bellamy’s upturned face to the painting on the wall. “Pretty, huh?”

  “It’s amazing. I’m assuming it was done by a local artist.”

  “I only carry local, so yes.”

  “He or she is certainly talented. If I’m any judge of skill, I’d say that piece should be hanging in an art gallery.”

  “It’s a he, and I’ve told him the same thing. For right now though, he prefers to remain anonymous. And it’s not Eli, in case you were wondering.”

  “Eli doesn’t strike me as the anonymous type. Is the subject matter local too?”

  The
question gave Kai pause because she had to think before she answered. “You know, I’m not sure. He didn’t say, but I would assume so.”

  “I wish I knew where. I’d love to see the horse live in that setting.”

  “The painting is for sale, the next best thing to live.” Kai wiggled her eyebrows.

  “Oh no you don’t,” Bellamy said with a laugh. “That would bust my bank account all to hell and back, I’m sure.”

  “Well, if you change your mind, I can always see if he’d be willing to negotiate on the price, or let you break it up into a few payments.”

  “Tempting, but no. Despite having copious amounts of empty space, it would look awful lonesome hanging on my bare white walls.” Not to mention as out of place as utters on a bull.

  “Hey, you gotta start somewhere, right?”

  “I think said starting point should be a scrub brush and a fresh coat of paint.”

  Kai laughed and finished ringing up Bellamy’s purchases.

  “You haven’t met my friend Grace yet,” Kai said. “We should all get together for a drink at Sam’s Tavern sometime, have a fun girls’ night out.”

  “Sure, I’m in. Take my number down and call me anytime you’re ready.” Kai scribbled the number on a slip of paper when Bellamy rattled it off.

  “We’ll try to make plans for one night next week.”

  “Sounds great.” Bellamy pocketed her change and grabbed the handle on the pretty bag Kai had packed with goodies, already looking forward to hanging out, talking and laughing. As much as she liked Kai, it would be nice to meet Grace too. Since she’d moved to Serenity, there had been very little time for socializing. A girls’ night would be a welcome chance to make new friends, unwind, and get out for a change.

  Kai waved goodbye. “Don’t forget to grab your pumpkin!”

  Once she’d loaded everything into the backseat of the truck, Bellamy headed for home.

  At her driveway she was met with a closed gate, a shiny new chain wrapped around the post and secured with a lock.

  Her frown of confusion quickly morphed into a smile of realization. Eli had fixed her gate. No sense thinking it could’ve been anyone else. But had he locked her out?

  There was a small piece of paper stuck to the metal surface near the chain with a strip of duct tape. She climbed out of her truck to see what it said.

  Check the mailbox.

  Inside the mailbox—which also sat atop a brand-new post—was a single key on a length of twine. Bellamy opened the lock and pocketed the key, pushed open the gate, drove through then relocked it behind her. Might as well get in the habit.

  The sweet gestures made her heart thump harder as she parked the truck and carried her Homegrown purchases inside. She should call Eli and thank him, maybe buy him dinner or something.

  Or something.

  But first, a long hot bath to rid herself of any remaining traces of goat, and to soak the soreness out of her achy muscles.

  She pondered that something during the entirety of her twenty-minute soak, then while she made herself a pimento cheese sandwich and ate it. She didn’t stop mulling it over until she had a steaming cup of chai tea in her hands and was staring through the window of the kitchen door in hopes of catching a glimpse of the fox prowling around the shed for its dinner.

  It was Halloween, but the moon was waning, almost a crescent in the inky sky. A lazy breeze made the old rope swing sway back and forth, catching patches of weak moonlight streaming down through the canopy of tree limbs. Something looked different. She narrowed her eyes curiously, trying to decipher what it was.

  The pale wood of a brand-new seat in the swing glowed through the darkness.

  Her throat tightened. Tears clouded her vision until she blinked them away. Bellamy set the teacup and saucer aside, pulled on a robe over her nightgown and grabbed her phone. Flipping on the back porch light, she slid her feet into a pair of flip-flops and walked outside.

  The virgin wood was smooth under her palm, then cool beneath her bottom as she sat down. He’d routered the edges to a comfortable curve and shortened the long length of rope enough to allow for reworked knots beneath the seat.

  Forget flowers, expensive gifts or dinner dates. This modest gesture was the single most romantic thing any man had ever done for her.

  After taking a long moment to simply absorb just how sweet and thoughtful Eli’s gift was, she pulled her phone from the pocket of her robe and sent him a text.

  I could use a push.

  Chapter Six

  In truth, Eli had already given Bellamy a push, metaphorically speaking, although that probably wasn’t his intention. Any hesitancy she’d felt at getting involved with him vanished the second she spied the repaired swing. Maybe even upon encountering the closed gate. And she couldn’t forget the concern he’d shown for her living conditions last Saturday. The frown he’d tried to chase away but had kept returning to darken his eyes and set his mouth in a tense line. It wasn’t like she was living in squalor, but she could admit it was scant. To an outsider it might appear lonely and disconcerting. Temporary.

  Isn’t it?

  Admittedly, she did miss some material things—the huge comfy beanbag chair she’d sat in to read, her old bed with its wrought iron frame she’d found at a yard sale for fifty bucks, and a few other odds and ends that didn’t make the trip because of space constraints. Renting a moving truck would’ve cost money she didn’t have to spare, and her mom and dad couldn’t be troubled to shorten their trip and offer help of any sort.

  She’d outright lied to Eli when she told him her parents weren’t the overly involved type. The truth was they were emotionally negligent. She’d never wanted for anything growing up except their attention, their genuine involvement in her life. To feel as if they cared about what happened to her instead of always wondering if she’d been an afterthought. A reproductive concession to satisfy some societal, parental or sibling pressure, not a sincere desire for a child.

  Down deep inside, Bellamy knew her parents loved her, but they were selfish in expressing the sentiment in ways that really mattered. That was why getting to spend summers and holidays with her grandparents had meant so much. Here, she’d felt wanted, loved and nurtured. Like she belonged. In some ways, she supposed it fed her through the months in between visits. Gave her something to look forward to.

  Her phone chimed with a return message, jarring her from the depressing thoughts and back to the moment.

  Be there in 10.

  She dropped the phone back into her pocket, let go a shaky breath and kicked the flip-flops aside to drag her toes through the cool, dew-dampened grass. Let her mind focus on the tickling sensation instead of the fast, anticipatory thud of her heart as she tried hard not to count off the minutes in her head.

  It didn’t dawn on her until she heard the approaching whine of the big tires on his pickup that she’d locked the gate behind her earlier. She waited for him to call, but he must’ve kept a spare key for himself or hid one somewhere because after a brief pause, headlights flashed through the side of the yard and then he was parking behind her raggedy car.

  Bellamy closed her eyes and listened to the soft shush-shush-shush of his footsteps through the grass as he drew nearer. Beneath her palms, the rope was hard and slightly abrasive since it hadn’t been handled in years. The night air was crisp, but still held enough humidity for it to feel moist against the bare skin of her legs. When his footsteps ceased and she could sense him in front of her, she opened her eyes.

  He was wearing the same cream-colored western shirt he’d had on the night they met in Perry. Forevermore that shirt, or anything similar in color or style, would be a turn-on for her. Fabric washed to a fine softness, traces of his aftershave clinging to the collar. The tanned expanse of his forearms and throat stark against the lighter shade. Pearl snaps that came apart easily at her frenzied urging, the sound an instant and lasting aphrodisiac. Simple, really. Just a shirt on a handsome man, yet Eli made the experienc
e unique and unforgettable.

  Moonlight turned his dark hair silvery across the crown of his head and cast his face mostly in shadow. If she didn’t know him better, he’d look threatening, intimidating. His lips parted like he wanted to say something before he closed them and stepped behind her.

  She waited for his hands to grasp her hips and push, nearly shivering in the interval, but instead they covered hers around the rope. He pressed his face to her hair at the back of her neck, and even through the thickness of the strands, she could feel his breaths warm her skin. Goose bumps rose along her arms. Her nipples grew tight beneath her gown. Arousal pooled low in her belly, spreading slow like honey through her core.

  When his mouth found her ear, he whispered, “Every girl needs a swing.”

  Bellamy had to bite her lip hard to stifle a gasp of emotion. It took her a moment to recover enough to respond. “Thank you is woefully inadequate.”

  “It’s enough, Bell. Just being here with you is enough.”

  It wasn’t enough for her, but how could you express to someone that they’d given you the best parts of your childhood back? How did you put into words the feeling of not having a care in the world except how high you could fly?

  Sitting there on that new seat brought hazy memories into sharp relief. Hot summer days spent picking wild blackberries for cobbler. Sticky peach juice trickling down her arm as she sank her teeth into the ripe, freshly picked fruit. Sinking to her chin in a round, galvanized tub full of cold water from the hose as a respite from the oppressive Georgia heat. Her grandmother laughing at her from the porch while she shelled fresh peas. Feeling unbelievably loved and wanted. Those times spent here had been as near to perfect as you could get.

  Bellamy had swung back and forth until her legs were so tired she was sure they would collapse once she jumped free. A simple piece of wood and twin lengths of rope became a portal to the past. Now every time she sat down on the swing, she could recall those sweet memories just as easily as she did when she sat down at her grandparents’ old farm table.