He tucked the bag to his coat, snuggling it close to his chest. “Let’s go.”
After she returned to the house, Lisa was feeling extra glad that she’d asked Jim to meet her at the restaurant. She was nervous enough as it was. Why hadn’t she suggested coffee? It had been so long since she’d even thought about asking someone out, she’d forgotten the traditional dating hierarchy. First coffee or drinks. If that experience wasn’t completely horrible, then and only then do you graduate to dinner out. If and only if there was any attraction at all, maybe you’d consider cooking for someone.
After the adrenaline rush she’d had following Pete’s rescue, Lisa’s brain clearly hadn’t been operating at full capacity and she’d jumped three steps by asking Jim over to the house. Maybe Jim had realized that too. When he called to return her message, his voice didn’t sound upset when she listened to the machine play it back.
Now Lisa had to get dressed up again. Maybe this time the date would last longer than fifteen minutes. It was like déjà vu all over again as she drove to the Italian restaurant. She said a silent plea to the universe that a different hostess would be working that evening and that Larry wouldn’t be there.
As she entered the restaurant, she quickly scanned the room. Apparently the universe was feeling generous, because the hostess was a brunette and Larry hadn’t arrived for his dinner yet. Thank heavens. The hostess seated Lisa at the same table near the fireplace and handed her a menu. Before Lisa had a chance to look at it, Jim walked up and sat down across from her.
He took a menu from the hostess and leaned forward to smile at Lisa. “It’s great to see you. How’s my favorite heroic skier today?”
Lisa laughed, pleased that he’d broken the ice. “I’m not feeling heroic at the moment. Just hungry. And still sore, which is embarrassing.”
“You said you haven’t skied since you had the big accident way back when. Never once in all those years?” Jim shook his head. “I can’t imagine you not skiing.”
“Well, for a while I was focused on moving my legs, then on walking. It felt like it took forever. Rehab was rough.”
“At first, people said you were paralyzed. Everyone was totally freaking out. A few people even said you were dead.”
“Obviously I wasn’t dead, but I was paralyzed for a while. Fortunately, it wasn’t permanent. Those rumors probably floated around when I was in the trauma-care unit. The doctors didn’t know if the paralysis was permanent or due to swelling. Fortunately, it was swelling and the sensation came back. But I had multiple leg fractures, including my knee, so I had surgery.”
“Yeah, I’m sure that guy Pete you saved had to go under the knife too. His leg wasn’t looking too good.”
Lisa gestured toward the door. “I saw Pete again today. I had to visit my aunt at assisted living and he’s recovering there.”
“Is he doing all right?”
“He seemed to be in good spirits. Certainly a lot better than I was after my accident.”
“What do you mean better?”
Lisa gazed at the flame from the votive candle on the center of the table. “I was kind of a mess after the accident.”
“Well, you did get pretty badly hurt.”
“It wasn’t only the physical part. Rehab was hard, but I also felt like I’d let everyone down. You remember what it was like. The whole town was excited about me. Then the story went national and the whole country was talking about me as the great hope of the United States women’s ski team. There were all those articles and so much attention. After the crash, I wanted to crawl into a hole and die. I felt like my life was over.”
“I had no idea.”
Lisa smiled. “Well, it’s old news now. Like I said, Pete seemed fine. Maybe a little bored, but he seemed to be in a good mood. He said he wants me to bring the dog who found him when I visit.”
“That’s cool.” Jim checked out the waitress who was at the next table before looking back at Lisa. “You know, it’s strange, but I can’t imagine you depressed.”
“You should be glad you missed it. I think it was one of those things I needed to go through. To grieve for the future I’d lost, I suppose.” Lisa took a sip of water. “So enough about me. Tell me what you’ve been doing.”
He glanced at the waitress again. “Same old, same old. I ski in the winter and work on Snow Grove maintenance crews in the summer.”
Lisa reached across the table and touched his hand to get his attention. “Do you know that waitress?”
“I hope she’s not serving our table.”
“Why?”
“Well, uh, I might have been married to her for a while.”
Lisa raised her eyebrows. “Oh, really? You didn’t mention you were married. I’m assuming you’re not now.”
“Well, uh, I’m sort of in the process of a divorce right now.”
“From the waitress?”
“No, she was number two. I’m getting divorced from Terri now.”
“How many times have you been married?”
“Terri was number five.” He raised his palms toward the ceiling and shrugged. “I don’t have much luck with marriage because eventually my wives figure out what I’m like and kick me to the curb. Terri said I was an untrustworthy flake.”
“You rescue people for a living. That seems trustworthy and not flaky at all.”
Jim’s shoulders slumped and he mumbled, “Oh crap,” as the waitress walked up to the table.
The tall woman tilted her head, swishing her long mahogany ponytail behind her back, and smiled sweetly. “Why Jim, how nice to see you again.”
“Hi Monica,” he said as he handed her a menu.
Monica turned to Lisa. “Are you ready to order?”
Lisa could sense the animosity oozing off the waitress and hurriedly passed off her menu. “Yes. I’d like the fettuccine, please.”
“Ravioli for me,” Jim said.
Monica turned, her ponytail whipping behind her. Jim made a wry face. “Sorry about that.”
“It’s Alpine Grove. Inevitably, the person you would least like to meet will show up when you least would like her to.”
“I suppose. I didn’t know she was working here now.”
Jim seemed unsettled by seeing his ex, and Lisa racked her brain for something to say. “So, other than skiing, what do you do? Do you have any hobbies?” She cringed inwardly. Hobbies? That was the best she could come up with?
Jim reached down into his pocket and popped some pills into his mouth. “Nothing much. Sometimes I paint or maybe write some poetry.”
“I didn’t know you were an artist. That’s wonderful.”
“I’m not really an artist. Most people think I’m goofing off. I probably am.”
“I don’t understand. Why would creating art be goofing off?”
“You don’t think painting is me screwing around being irresponsible?”
“No, why would I?”
He pointed at a small wood-framed painting of a mountain on the wall. “Well, that’s a painting of mine over there.”
Lisa turned to look. “It’s lovely. Obviously, you were inspired by Snow Grove.”
“Yeah, you’ve probably seen that view a million times.”
“It’s something I’ve missed. I’d forgotten how beautiful it is up there on the mountain until I went back.”
“I don’t feel alive, except when I’m skiing.”
“Well then, you have the perfect occupation.” Lisa picked up her fork and turned it over. His eyes had an odd unfocused look. What was in those pills he had taken? “How lucky that you can do what you love.”
“I guess. Most people think I’m a loser for living off my family since, well, forever.”
“I didn’t know you were related to the Greenfields.”
“How do you think I could live there? I could never afford one of those condos myself. Lifties don’t make the big bucks, you know.”
“Are you upset the Greenfields are selling the resort?”
“It doesn’t matter. I got the condo and the job years ago, so I think I’m safe.” He grabbed more pills from his pocket and gobbled them down. “I’m not sure why I’m telling you all this. I mean, I’ve been living this lie for years. Heck, some of my wives didn’t even know what a freeloader I really am. But we were probably too busy partying, I guess.”
“I see.” Lisa was starting to wonder why he’d ever been attracted to her. “I’ve never been much of a partier.”
“Yeah, you were hard core, always training. So after the accident, did you ever think of killing yourself?”
“What? No, of course not!”
“Just wondering, since you said you were depressed. I’ve thought about it sometimes.”
“Why on earth would you want to do that? You have an enviable life.”
Jim glanced back at the waitress. “I don’t know. I don’t envy it. Freeloading off my family’s money and failing at so many relationships for so long…I feel like a failure. All the parties and the drugs. I mean, I kept thinking ‘yeah, that party is gonna do it. That’s gonna make me happy.’ But then I wasn’t. Sometimes everything seems…I don’t know…pointless, you know?”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Why not?” He grinned. “I try writing poems, but that only takes you so far. Gotta let these feelings out somewhere, right?”
“I think you should be grateful. And if you don’t want to live off your family’s money anymore, you can always stop.”
“Stop? Are you nuts?”
“Well, it might be scary at first. Maybe you need to face up to that fear.”
“You mean give up the job and the free condo?”
“See? You know what you’re afraid of. If you don’t like what’s going on, you can do something else.” Lisa mentally chastised herself for not taking her own advice. She was one to talk. Here she was in her forties for heaven’s sake, and completely lost, unsure and afraid of what might lie ahead.
Jim shook his head, “I don’t think so. I’m sure things will be better once I get through this latest divorce. Don’t mind me. I’m just going off on a bunch of stupid tangents. It’s what I do.”
The rest of the dinner passed reasonably uneventfully, but it was clear that no sparks were going to fly. Lisa also was worried about what might be in the pills Jim was chowing down like candy. At the end of the evening, there was a halfhearted, “I’ll give you a call sometime” gesture from Jim, but that was it. He seemed as relieved as she was for the date to be over.
By the time Lisa got home and crawled under the ugly plaid bedspread in her childhood bedroom, she had renewed her promise to herself to be done with men. No matter what Bev might say, all the awkwardness and uncomfortable situations inherent in the whole awful spectacle of dating simply wasn’t worth the effort.
The next morning after she talked to her daughters, Lisa was eager to pick up Harley to distract herself from the inevitable post-call letdown. After hearing about her daughters’ slew of exciting new experiences, her status as former housewife seemed even more dull and pedestrian.
The house seemed too quiet without Harley’s goofy presence and Lisa was surprised to find she missed the dog. He deserved the perfect forever home. Lisa needed to talk to Brigid about letting her be involved in the adoption-screening process. Sure he needed some training, but Harley was too special to let just anyone adopt him.
After breakfast, Lisa got into the truck for the trek back out to the kennel. As she drove, she went over the conversation with Jim in her mind. He’d seemed like such a happy-go-lucky person out at the mountain, which showed you never knew what was really going on with people inside their head.
At least she’d been able to deflect any questions about her nebulous future by asking him to recite some of his poetry. The poems weren’t bad, although he wasn’t kidding that they revealed his dark side. With any luck, those pills were anti-depressants. He could certainly use some.
Lisa had been trying to shake the sulky mood she’d been in since last night, but it wasn’t working. Maybe Harley’s exuberance would cheer her up. She’d spent some time looking around the house and had found another pile of old costume jewelry in a dresser drawer that she could show to Betty. After talking to her aunt, Lisa wasn’t completely sure jewelry was what she was after. Maybe today she could get a few more answers to clarify what Betty did want from the house.
When Lisa drove up to the kennel, Kat was walking down the driveway with the big hairy dog Linus. The beast seemed to follow her around in much the same way Chewbacca trailed Han Solo. Kat lifted her hand in greeting, and Lisa waited next to the truck as she approached.
“Welcome back,” Kat said. “How was your date? Better than the last one I hope.”
Lisa shook her head. “Well, not exactly. Just because you knew someone twenty-five years ago doesn’t mean you should date him. People change. Or maybe they don’t change enough. I’m not sure. It was unsettling, and thankfully, it’s over. I’m planning to more fully embrace my single status now. Dating is too confusing and I’ve had enough of men to last me for while—a long while. How’s Harley?”
“He’s great.” Kat paused in front of the kennel door. “So how do you feel about cats?”
“I like cats. Why do you ask?”
Kat shook her head as they entered the kennel, since any further conversation would be drowned out by barking. She extracted Harley from his enclosure and he leaped around the walkway, sharing his joy and delight at seeing Lisa.
When they were back outside, Kat answered the question. “Harley did the hero thing again.”
Lisa looked down at the dog, who was sitting quietly next to her, slowly wagging his tail in the gravel. “What do you mean? Was someone hurt?”
“No, but he ran off. I think I clipped the leash onto his collar wrong or something. Suddenly, I was standing there holding a leash, but no dog. We tracked him through the forest.”
“I’m so glad you were able to find him.” Lisa crouched down next to Harley and put her hands on both sides of his neck. “Listen here—you have got to stop running away like this!”
“It turns out he was on a mission. He found a young cat. Really a kitten still—maybe six months old, I’d guess. He or she is currently confined in my bathroom. Unfortunately, we only have one bathroom in the house, so it’s not an ideal situation. I don’t suppose you’d like to foster or adopt a cat, would you? A really pretty long-haired gray tabby?”
“I’m not really in a position to do that because of all the work being done on the house. What do you mean found? You’re saying Harley ran off and happened to discover a cat wandering around in the woods?”
“The cat was in a drawstring bag. I think someone dumped it.” Kat gazed off at the trees. “Someone once told me that the reason my aunt had so many critters was because they ended up here. I’m starting to understand how that might have happened.”
Lisa stood up. “That’s horrible.”
“I know.” Kat ran her hand across the fur on Linus’s broad head thoughtfully. “Joel told me he ended up with his dog more or less the same way. Someone dumped Lady out near his cabin.”
“I guess it’s been that way for a long time. People didn’t talk about it when I was a kid, but I think you’re right about Abigail. She always had lots of animals out here. There wasn’t any type of animal shelter or animal control back then, and I think she helped find new homes for lots of animals. From the sounds of it, she was a one-woman foster-care program.”
Kat laughed. “That’s easy to imagine. It’s why I loved visiting when I was little. Abigail always had some new dog or cat for me to play with. And every one of them had a story. I’m guessing she might have cleaned up the tales a little to avoid scaring her wimpy little niece though.”
“She was one of the kindest and most compassionate people I’ve ever met.” Lisa opened the passenger door of the truck. “I should get going. I promised Pete I’d bring Harley by his room at t
he assisted-living place later today.”
“Pete? You mean the guy you rescued?”
“Well, technically the guy Harley rescued, but yes. It turns out Pete is recuperating at the Alpine Grove Care Center where my aunt is staying.”
Kat watched as Harley hopped into the truck cab. “I bet Harley will have fun.”
“I’m more concerned about the other residents of the facility putting up with Harley.”
Kat gave Harley a final pat. “You behave yourself. With any luck, no one needs rescuing there.”
After returning to the house and eating lunch, Lisa threw the costume jewelry into a bag, collected Harley, and got back into the truck. For someone without a job or kids, she certainly did a lot of driving. Now, instead of driving her girls all over Gleasonville to get to soccer practice or music lessons, she was driving one slobbery Labrador around Alpine Grove. Larry probably wasn’t going to appreciate the sheen of Harley’s drool all over the passenger-side window when she returned the truck, but it was Larry’s fault she was here in the first place, so she wasn’t going to lose any sleep over it.
She parked and went inside the facility with Harley, stopping at the reception desk to remind everyone that they’d approved the dog’s visit the day before. Harley got a few pats and treats from staff members, which seemed to improve his already exultant mood. When he wasn’t off keeping the world safe, Harley was an unusually happy creature.
Lisa stopped by Pete’s room first because it was closer to the lobby. Harley launched into the room, yanking the leash from Lisa’s hand. He jumped up, placing his front paws on the bed. The expression on Pete’s face went from surprise to pleasure at the sudden visitor. “You brought him!”
Lisa picked up the leash and pushed Harley back to the floor. “They were really nice about it. I guess a lot of the residents have canine friends who visit them.”
Pete scooted over to the far side of the bed and patted the bedspread. “Come on up, buddy.”
“Be careful!”
Harley got onto the bed with a surprising degree of grace and lay alongside Pete, who ruffled the dog’s ears. “Remember what we talked about, okay?”
Daydream Retriever (An Alpine Grove Romantic Comedy Book 10) Page 12