Drew looked down at her, mouthed “sorry”, and pulled away to heckle the ball-throwing kid. “Troy, you jerk! What are you guys doing?”
Piper felt chilled as he pulled away from her. She rubbed her arms and already missed the heat of his body next to hers. He reached down, took her hand and held it lightly in his. Feeling his touch brought some of the warmth back.
“We’re just walking back from the Tastee Freez and happened to catch you two mashing,” the boy teased. “So, is this the girl you’ve been telling us about who you like so much?”
Piper froze and looked at her feet in embarrassment. She dropped Drew’s hand. How could I have been so stupid? Thinking he liked me when he was telling all his friends about some girl that he really liked. The familiar feelings of abandonment crowded into her heart as she chastised herself for letting someone get close to her.
“Yep, this is her.” Drew beamed and reached for her hand again, proudly holding up their joined fingers.
“Piper, this is Tara and Troy. You’ve heard me talking about Troy, my best friend and social ingrate. And Tara and I have lived on the same street since second grade. She’s probably the closest thing I’ve got to a sister.”
“Hi,” Tara said to Piper, who was still stunned over Drew’s declaration of his feelings for her. “I’m so glad we finally get to meet you. Drew has been talking about you non-stop ever since you moved here.”
Piper looked toward Drew and smiled before she could stop herself. Looking back at Tara, she took in the girl’s jean shorts, low top Converse sneakers, and brightly colored double layered t-shirts. “I really like your shirt,” Piper said, then looked away and silently berated herself for such a stupid comment.
“Oh, gosh, I have tons of these. You can borrow some if you want,” Tara offered, her smile filled with warmth.
“Oh, okay, thanks,” Piper replied.
“Hey, we wanted to tell you Tara’s having a Summer Luau party this weekend at her house to celebrate school being out. You guys should come,” Troy said.
“It’s a tropical theme,” Tara said. “So dress Hawaiian. And Piper, you can tell your mom that ‘yes, my parents will be there- all night.’ I’m having a couple of other girls stay the night so you can sleep over if you want.”
“Okay, thanks,” Piper answered softly. She was stunned that this nice, pretty girl had invited her not only to a party, but to sleep over and loan her some of her clothes. Feelings of acceptance warred with her inner struggles of desertion, because she knew she didn’t have to tell her mom anything about the party. Because her mom was gone, once again putting some guy above her own daughter.
“Well, we gotta go.” Tara dragged on Troy’s hand. “We’ll see you guys on Saturday night. Piper, I’ll get your number from Drew later and text you about sleeping over.”
“Okay.” Piper was filled with the unfamiliar sensation of pure happiness, and her throat felt full from the strange lump that was forming there. She swallowed, afraid to look at Drew, in case he could see the tears forming in her eyes.
“We better get back,” Drew said. He pulled her toward his house. “Do you want to go to the party Saturday night? With me, I mean.”
She swallowed again, shaking off the sentiment and resuming her tougher shell. “Sure, it sounds fun. I’ll talk to Cassie about it.”
“Great.” Drew’s face lit up as they walked through the park, the sun slipping behind the mountains at their backs. “It’s a date then.”
* * *
“So, where did you and Drew head off to?” Cassie asked as she and Piper drove home that night. She had been dying to talk to her since she saw the teenage couple walk back in the door of Maggie’s house. Cassie was shocked by the pink flush and the smile that kept popping up on her niece’s face.
“Oh, we walked down to the park and played around on the playground,” Piper answered.
Cassie knew this was an important communication bridge they were crossing and she tried to keep her tone light. “Sounds fun. I think Drew is a great kid, and he’s very cute.”
“Yeah, he’s nice,” Piper replied, then blushed and said, “and yes, he is very cute, too.”
“I think he really likes you.”
The darkness in the car must have freed Piper to open up, and she gushed, “Oh, Aunt Cassie, I really like him.” She spilled the whole story of Drew holding her hand, and meeting the other kids, and being invited to the party. She described Tara in detail, and told Cassie she had asked her to sleep over. In a quiet voice, she even confessed that Drew had kissed her for the first time.
“Wow. You had quite a night,” Cassie said, keeping her eyes on the road. She was afraid if she looked at the girl, then Piper would see the tears that filled her eyes as Cassie burst with love and happiness for her. She wanted so much for her niece to be happy and free of some of the despair that seemed to be her constant companion.
Piper looked down into her lap and fidgeted with her seat belt. “Aunt Cassie, can I ask you a favor?” she asked quietly.
“Sure honey, go ahead.”
“Um, do you think you would have time to take me shopping for some new clothes tomorrow? Maybe just like some shorts and a few t-shirts. I kind of like turquoise, and maybe yellow would be okay. And maybe a pair of flip-flops. Would that be okay?”
“That would be fine. Why don’t we plan to go to lunch tomorrow, then head to the mall?” Cassie held her breath, hoping she hadn’t pushed too hard by planning lunch and the mall in the same sentence.
“Cool,” Piper said, then reached for the radio knob and turned the music up, effectively signaling their conversation was over.
Cassie smiled to herself as she released her breath. She tried to hold back the joy she felt for Piper. She worried her heart would explode with love for this daughter of her sister, and used the back of her hand to nonchalantly wipe away a tear that escaped her eye, as she drove into the night.
8
The smell of apples and cinnamon filled Sunny’s kitchen Friday afternoon as she cut a slice from the warm pie she had just baked. She plopped a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of the slice, dropped the scooper into the sink, and shoved the carton of vanilla back into the freezer.
By the time she carried her plate out to the deck and sat in her favorite lounge chair, the ice cream had begun to melt from the warmth of the apple pie and golden pools of cream and cinnamon formed on the plate.
Sunny put the first bite in her mouth and sighed with pleasure as the mixed flavors of warm cinnamon, cool vanilla ice cream and the tangy sweetness of the apples flooded her tongue. She chewed slowly, savoring the flaky crust and the gooey cinnamon filling.
She continued to savor each bite of pie and relished the warm June day. Closing her eyes, she turned her face to the sun and enjoyed the feel of the heat on her skin. Oh, I love summer!
On a whim, Sunny decided to take a piece of pie to Jake. But she had to ask herself, “Is that really the reason I had baked the pie? To give me an excuse to see him?” Of course not. I am just in the mood for pie. I think.
Thirty minutes later, Sunny walked across the backyard, freshly showered and smelling of perfume and shampoo. She carried a plastic dish that contained three pieces of apple pie.
As she approached the back screen door, she heard Jake’s voice. He spoke rather angrily and since no one answered, she deduced he must be talking on the phone. I know, I’m a regular Sherlock Holmes.
She waited before knocking and listened to his heated words.
“Get off my back. I know why I’m here.”
He paused as he listened to the caller on the other end.
“I haven’t found out enough about her yet. She’s not making it easy.”
She-who? Who was this ‘she’ he was talking about?
“I know what I’m supposed to do. I’ve got the situation under control.”
Jake turned and saw her standing on the doorstep.
“Hey, I gotta go. We’ll have to continue this l
ater.” He listened another few seconds and replied, “You’ll be hearing from me soon.” He snapped the phone shut and pushed the screen door open to let her into the kitchen.
“Hey Sunny, I didn’t hear you come up. Have you been standing there long?” he asked, warily.
“No, I just walked up,” she lied. “Sorry to interrupt your call. Was it important?” she asked, trying to sound innocently uninterested.
“No, it’s no big deal,” Jake answered gruffly and then switched gears as he spied the plastic container in her hand. He smiled and raised his eyebrows at her. “What’s in the dish?”
“Oh, ya,” she faltered, a little undone by his smile. “I brought you some pie. I wanted to thank you for rescuing me. From my date. With Hank.”
Sunny hadn’t really seen Jake since the incident with Hank, several days before. She was still suspicious of Jake, but his grin and that tousled blond hair made her want to trust him. He smiled and nodded at her. “Anytime.”
He took the container from her and peeled back one corner. His eyes closed as he inhaled deeply. “I love pie.”
Holy cow! Sunny’s knees went weak with desire, and she had a sudden vision of him sweeping the contents of the table to the floor, laying her back against it, then eating the pie off her bare stomach.
Where had that come from? Swallowing, she tried to pull herself back to the task at hand. Finding out what happened to Walter was more important than indulging in pie-eating sexual fantasies.
“So, what have you heard about Walter?” she asked, not very subtly.
“Nothing, really. They’re still investigating the source of the fire and trying to locate information about his activities the past several weeks. Have you seen him acting weird lately or talking to anyone you don’t know?”
They had quickly moved from Sunny trying to glean information from Jake to him questioning her. His rapid-fire questions sounded like an interrogation.
“No,” she replied. “I haven’t noticed anything strange. Walter just always seems to be around. He’s working in the yard or fixing something in the garage. He’s usually willing to come over and help me with a leaky faucet or with moving something.” She felt a lump forming in her throat from thinking that something could have happened to him. “He’s just a really nice old guy.”
“Yeah, he’s a real saint,” Jake said bitterly, not quite under his breath. “What about any visitors? Have you heard him mention anyone new or talk about recent friends he’s made?”
“The only thing I can think of is that he got a new computer at Christmas. I helped him set it up and got him connected online.”
“Hmmm.” Jake looked toward the desk in the kitchen where Walter’s computer sat.
Why was he asking about Walter meeting someone new? Was he worried Walter may have revealed the true relationship he had with Jake, or maybe that was just a ruse and Jake had just met him and was trying to cover his tracks.
Suddenly the strains of “I’ll Be Watching You” by The Police drifted from Sunny’s jeans pocket as her phone went off, startling both of them.
“What’s that about?” Jake asked. He looked at her questioningly.
“Just me trying to be funny. I set that ring tone for Hank,” she confessed. “He calls me all the time, and this way I know when it’s him.” She smiled sheepishly. “I just found a song that had a little stalker quality to it.”
“Are you having trouble with him?” Jake’s tone changed to one of alarm. “Are you worried he might hurt you?”
“No, but he’s not getting the hint that I’m not really interested in him.”
“Not really interested or not interested?” Jake leaned against the counter next to her. Sunny felt a zing of pleasure as his hip rested against hers.
“Not interested.”
“Then you need to tell him to leave you alone.”
“I know, but he’s not getting the hint, and I don’t want to hurt his feelings.” Yuck, my voice sounds way too whiney.
“Who cares about his feelings? The guy is an ox. You need to cut him loose.”
“Thanks, I’ll work on that.”
Jake had a point that she did need to be more assertive with Hank. But, she wondered, were Jake’s comments out of friendly concern, or could he actually be jealous of the muscle-bound jock? And did she tell him about Hank in hopes he would be jealous?
Sunny needed to follow her plan of using the pie as an excuse to spy on Jake and see if she could find out more information about why he was here. She pushed away from the counter and started toward Walter’s desk. “Walter really was excited about this new computer.”
Walter’s desk was an old roll top with little cubbies and pigeon holes stuffed with a jumble of paperwork, rubber bands, and pens. Jutting out from one compartment was an envelope with the familiar letterhead of Wilson, Benton, Grant and Hayes. Maggie’s firm! Sunny could make out the first part of the title, “Last Will and Testa…” but the rest of the wording was obscured by an envelope from the electric company. The will was jammed into a cubby amongst assorted bills and correspondence.
Jake closed the roll top by reaching across Sunny and brushed his arm against hers. Her mouth went dry from the sudden closeness of him. She could smell the musky scent of his aftershave and something minty.
Being this close to him made her realize how tall he was, and that she was alone in the house with him. She knew he could easily overpower her as he took her shoulder and steered her back to the kitchen table. “How about joining me for a piece of pie?”
The kitchen table, bare-stomached fantasy flashed through Sunny’s mind, and she swallowed, trying to overcome the contrasting feelings of fear and flat-out yearning for this man. “I really need to get back.”
She needed to get a hold of herself, to be in her safe house, and splash some cold water on her face. Plus, she was eager to get home and call Maggie about the envelope she had seen.
“So, who’s lined up for this weekend?”
“Pardon me?” she croaked.
“Who’s your blind date for this weekend?” he asked again.
Sunny had forgotten that she had told him about the six blind dates. “A guy named Jeremy. He’s the grandson of one of Edna’s friends.”
“Well, let me know if you need rescuing from this one,” he teased. Then his tone took on a more serious note. “I’ll be watching out for you.”
“I better get going,” Sunny said, trying to drag herself away from his blue eyes. He had once again moved close enough to her that if she tilted her head and leaned in a little…then maybe she could be kissing a murderer! Eeek. Gotta go.
“I’ll see ya later,” she said and made a quick escape to the door.
“Let me know how it goes with the grandson.” He chuckled and followed her to the door. He reached out his long arm to hold it for Sunny, and she brushed against him as she walked through.
“And give that ox the old heave-ho. Really, Sunny, you need to firmly tell him to quit calling you.” His voice was serious.
“Thanks, I will.” She walked across the driveway toward her backyard as the familiar notes of “I’ll Be Watching You” began to play again.
Her game of ‘ignore it and it will go away’ hadn’t worked so far, so she picked up Hank’s call and tried to follow Jake’s advice.
“Hello,” she cautiously answered.
“Sunny D!” Hank’s voice boomed into her ear. “How’s my favorite sexy blonde?”
“Well, I’m fine, Hank,” she said. “But I think…”
“I’m calling to invite you over for a barbeque this weekend.” Hank bulldozed over her in mid-comment. “I thought it would be a great time for you to meet the folks.”
“I’m not quite ready to meet your parents,” she stammered. “In fact, I’m not sure…”
“Oh, you’re gonna love them. And I know they will love you. You’re very different from my last wife.”
“Hank, I can’t. I’ve got other plans this weekend, and
I don’t really see this working out.”
“Well, dang. We’ll have to make it another time then. Hey, Mikey’s calling me so I gotta go. I’ll call ya later, honey.”
“But, I really don’t think…” she began, but he had already clicked off.
Way to be firm, Sunny.
She snapped the phone shut and went inside, anxious to call Maggie and see what she could dig up from her firm on Walter’s will.
9
“All right, so anything I tell you, or don’t exactly tell you, is absolutely, totally one hundred percent confidential,” Maggie said. It was Saturday night, and she had shown up around five so she and Sunny would have time to talk before the grandson arrived for their date.
Sunny had put together a plate of thin crackers and a circle of brie with pecans and warm melted caramel sauce drizzled on it. The smoky flavor of the cheese, combined with the sweet caramel and a salted cracker, was a flavor explosion. They dug into the warm brie and sipped on white wine. Nothing like a little glass of wine to add that extra edge to a great first impression.
“Fine,” Sunny replied, anxious to hear what Maggie had uncovered about Walter’s will, and if Jake had any real connections to him. “Top secret. Now, what did you find out?” She scooped a sugary pecan on to a cracker and tipped it into her mouth.
“Well, you know I can’t really tell you anything about the document, but if you were to google any ancestry type website, you would find out that Jake really is related to Walter. And you would probably see that he really is his grandson,” Maggie said.
Sunny felt a little spurt of joy at the knowledge that at least Jake was telling the truth about being related to Walter. “Why would he make such a big deal about being his grandson? Why not just come out and say that? What’s the mystery?”
“That I don’t know. I can neither confirm nor deny if this is true, but if a certain grandson were to be the sole beneficiary of his grandfather’s estate, I do know what that means.” She popped another cracker in her mouth and chewed twice. “Motive.”
Another Saturday Night and I Ain't Got No Body (A Page Turners Novel) Page 7