“Hey Grandma, it’s me,” I say as she answers the phone after a couple of rings.
“Oh hi Leah. I’m surprised to be hearing from you, did you need something dear?”
I roll my eyes before answering, of course that’s the only reason she would think I would be calling. “Actually I just wanted to let you know that a detective called yesterday. Moms dead,” I rush out, feeling the foreign words on my tongue.
I hear an intake of breath on the other line, “Well I guess that’s not that big of a surprise, now is it? She was such a wild child and never wanted anything to do with her own mother, always getting into some kind of trouble. Okay Leah, well thanks for calling. I do need to get going though, I’m meeting some of the girls for our yoga class. Do you need anything else dear?”
Maybe a little compassion for your own daughter? Obviously I knew they didn’t have much of a relationship but I figured grandma would have a little bit more of an emotional reaction about her only child. “No that was it Grandma, I’m heading out to make some arrangements this afternoon.”
“Ok well then goodbye Leah.”
I toss my phone back in my purse and grab our bags. Grandma had never really explained why her and mom had such a volatile relationship. I was surprised she even took us in when mom ditched me and Caleb with her. She was never rude or mean to us while we stayed there but she never did warm up to me and didn’t adjust her lifestyle to having a teenager and a baby.
Chase already had his jeep started up and ready by the time I got down and he hopped out to help me with my bag when he saw me coming down the stairs. I saw Caleb strapped in to his car seat and it looked like Chase already had him occupied with some sort of hand held game.“All set Leah?”
“Yup all ready. Let’s get this over with.”
After stopping off at a gas station to fill up and grabbing a few snacks for ourselves we head out on our road trip. Chase kept up a constant chatter about his classes and upcoming graduation in the spring. He had already applied for a few jobs for the next school year and was hoping to hear back from some soon. He filled me in on the upcoming band gigs they had and the few new songs that he had written that he was nervous to be trying out. Caleb of course kept up a steady babble too until he finally fell asleep. I added a few comments in but was still lost in thought after talking to grandma.
“Leah?” I look over at Chase who has a concerned look on his face after I realize he’s been trying to get my attention the past few minutes. “You okay?” he asks as he rubs his hand up and down on my thigh.
“Yeah, just thinking. I talked to my grandma before we left.”
“Oh yeah, how’d that go?”
“Pretty much just how I expected.” I mumble. “Seemed like I was inconveniencing her by calling more than anything.”
I look over at Chase who remains silent. His strong jaw is tense with his lips pressed into a firm line and he looks like he is trying to stay in control.
“I’m sorry Leah, you don’t deserve to be treated like that. Ever.” He slams his hand down on the steering wheel. “I could tell something was wrong as soon as you came down. You don’t have to keep everything inside, you have me, just let me in.”
I reach over and grab his hand interlacing my small fingers with his long slender ones. “Thanks Chase. I know you’re here and that means so much to me. It might just take me a little time to warm up to the idea, you just have to give me some time.”
He lifts our hands to his lips and gives me a small kiss that shoots tingles down to my toes. Just the simplest touches from him seem to set my body on fire. “We need to take a break, I think we’re about two hours away.”
“Yeah I need to stretch my legs a bit. I really don’t want to wake up Caleb but I’m sure he needs a potty break. I’ll take over driving too if you don’t mind.”
“Sure, that would be good.” He pulls in to a rest stop off the highway and we both run in to take bathroom breaks. Caleb insists he needs to go with Chase so he can go to the potty’s where you stand. I didn’t know those were so exciting but apparently having Chase around has some benefits. Chase tosses the keys to me and I follow the directions from the GPS.
I focus more on my conversation with Chase and we talk more about my school and I explain to him how I have about a year left give or take, depending on whether or not I take summer classes. He talks more about how he learned to play the guitar and how it was almost an instant thing for him, the playing came so easily.
“You’re really good,” I say. “I’m not into music much but I could listen to you play guitar anytime. And your voice. How come Teddys the lead singer, you could totally steal the lime light from him. You have such a deep gruff tone to your voice and it comes out when you sing.”
He barks out a laugh, “I won’t tell Teddy you said that, his ego might get deflated a bit. Being in the spotlight really isn’t my thing. Teddy likes all of the attention, I just like to play.”
“Well I would be your biggest fan if you ever decide to make it a career. And you totally could.”
“Thanks I’ll remember that if the teaching thing doesn’t work out at least I’ll have one album sold.” He glances up at the GPS, tapping at the screen. “Looks like we’ll be there in about ten minutes, are you ready for this?”
I take a deep breath in as I take our exit off the highway, “I think so, I just want to get it over with and move on. My mom already did that when she left me all those years ago but this will give me some closure.”
We pull into the station that the detective had directed us too. Chase talks to the receptionist when we enter and she directs us to a group of chairs to wait in until the detective can see us. I pull out some cars for Caleb to keep him occupied and he takes off to run them over every surface in the waiting area. A gruff looking man who looks like he hasn’t showered in days is sitting there with his head buried in his hands propped onto his knees. I drop down into the chair a few over from his as we wait.
The scratching of the chair must have startled him out of his trance and he looks up, “Leah?”
I’m surprised when I hear my name coming from this mans lips and look over at him. “Um, yes?”
“You look so much like your mom,” he says as he eyes flick across the features of my face like he’s trying to memorize them. “I know you’ve only ever met me once and even then it was kind of brief. I’m Tank,” he says as he stands up and holds out a shaking hand to me.
I look closer at him and instantly recognize him after I look past the longer greasy hair and full beard since the last time I had seen him. I reach out a hand and shake it lightly as his dirty hand that looks like it’s covered in grime engulfs mine.
“Your mom…” he stops as his voice shakes and swipes a tear from the corner of his eye. The tears surprise me coming from this massive motorcycle man that barely gave me the time of day the first time I met him. “She really loved you, ya know?”
I snort out a dry laugh, “Yeah she really had a good way of showing that too by leaving us and never looking back. She never once called to see how we were. It didn’t even matter if she called for me, she could have at least called to check on him.” I gesture towards Caleb whose still playing away totally oblivious to what’s going on around him which relieves me. He doesn’t need to be caught up in this. Chase reaches over and grabs my hand and I hold on tight like he’s anchoring me down.
“I know. She picked up that phone so many times to call, ripped up so many letters she had written to you but she just couldn’t bring herself to do it. She figured you were better off without her.” He pauses as he looks down at me. “I know you don’t want to hear this but she did love you. Having a new baby just really freaked her out. I thought I was making her a little bit happier, but obviously not enough.”
He pulls out a piece of paper from the pocket of his leather vest. “She left this for you, I hope it helps you a bit. I need to get going, I have a few things to settle before I head out.”
&nb
sp; I take the letter from him and fold it up, stuffing it in my purse without a glance as Tank heads towards the front entrance. The detective comes out from his office, “Ms. Rossi?” I nod my head in acknowledgment and follow him into his office. Chase and I had already agreed that he would stay with Caleb in the waiting area. He didn’t need to be involved. For all he knew I was the only mom he had and needed. Maybe someday when he was older I would explain the situation.
“Well I wish we were meeting on different circumstances but unfortunately it’s apart of the job.” He shuffles around some papers and pushes a few towards me. “I just need you to sign a few things here Leah and then you can proceed with whatever funeral arrangements you choose.”
We finish signing all of the papers and the detective suggests a few funeral homes in the area. I decided before coming that I wasn’t going to have a service, we were her only family left and I didn’t know or care to meet any of her friends that she had made since leaving us. After a couple of hours we had arrangements made for a cremation and I had picked out a simple urn that would be shipped back to me in Indiana. After grabbing a late dinner at McDonalds per Calebs request, we head back out onto the road with Chase driving.
“So where are we headed now, you said something about reservations?”
“Well it’s a surprise, you’ll see when we get there, we probably have about two hours in the car before we get there. We’ll get there a little late but I figured it’ll give you two days of relaxation. I figured you would need it before the craziness of your schedule begins again on Monday.”
I raise an eyebrow at him, “I’m not really crazy about surprises Chase and for some reason you love them, can’t you just give me a little hint?”
“Nope,” he says with a pop. He grins back over at me, “You’ve had a long day, why don’t you take a little nap and by the time you get up we should be there.”
“Fine,” I grumble as I cross my arms over my chest and lean my seat back, turning my back to Chase.
Chase lets out a laugh as he flips through the radio stations, “You’re even sexy when you pout Leah.”
I roll my eyes and bite back a smile. I feel the day catching up with me as my eyes droop and I drift off to the sound of Chases low sexy voice as he sings softly along with the radio.
The sound of a car door slamming wakes me suddenly as I sit up quickly wiping away the drool that’s running down my chin. The driver’s seat is empty and I don’t see Chase anywhere in sight as I look around taking in my surroundings. Caleb of course is passed out in the backseat, it’s been a long day for him and the car always lulls him to sleep. We were in a parking lot of what looked to be a very small grocery store. The driver door opens and Chase pops his head in. “You’re awake? I was hoping you would still be asleep by the time I came back. You both looked like you were pretty out of it,” he says as he swipes at my chin. Oh gawd he saw that didn’t he? I self conscientiously rub at my whole face again with the sleeve of my sweatshirt to make sure I definitely got it all.
He opens the back door and loads the backseat down with grocery bags. “I needed to grab a few things before we get there,” he says as he slides back into his seat and starts the jeep back up. “We’re about 20 minutes away and according to the guy in there, this is the closest store so good thing I stopped.”
We drive a little further away and I take in the desolate surroundings as we get further and further from civilization. Chase turns off onto a long dirt road surrounded by trees and stops the car at the end. “Well what do you think?” He asks as he motions towards a small log cabin nestled between a thick forest of trees.
“This is where we’re staying? By ourselves?” I say as I look up at the dark cabin. Chase snorts, “Well yeah, did you think we would get separate rooms? I can sleep on the porch if you want.”
I wave my hands at him and shake my head. “That’s not what I meant, I just figured we were staying at a hotel. Where there would be other people.”
He jumps out of the car and jogs over to my side pulling the door open. “C’mon, let’s go check the place out. I found it online and it looked pretty nice,” he says as he grabs my hand pulling me out. “We’ll come back for Caleb in a minute. I don’t think he’s going anywhere.” He places his hands under my knees and throws me over his shoulder as he runs towards the cabin. “Jeez Chase,” I say as I pound on his back. “I can walk ya know?”
“I know that Leah but that way was more fun, right? Besides you weigh about as much as my 10 year old sister, we need to pack some pounds on you.”
“Um, that’s ok. Didn’t your mother ever teach you never to comment on a ladies weight?” I ask as he sets me down on the porch and roots around the top of the door frame. “What are you…”
“Aha I got it,” he says as he brings his hand down, showing me the key he found. “The guy I rented this from lives a few hours away so after I gave him all of my credit card info he let me know where the key was hidden.” He slides the key in and holds the door open for me. “I’m gonna go grab our stuff and the little dude.”
I feel around and find a switch that lights the tiny cabin up. There’s just one wide room with an open concept and I can see the small kitchen, living room with a fireplace in the corner and a small dining area with a table for two all from the front door. There’s a set of stairs sitting in the middle of the room that leads up to a loft where the bathroom and bedroom must be. The whole place is decorated in an Americana theme I notice as I look around and it feels very homey.
“Here we go. I think this is everything,” Chase says as he comes in loaded down with bags and sets Caleb down who looks around at his strange surroundings while rubbing at his eyes. “Wow this place is pretty great, huh?” I grab bags from him and haul them towards the kitchen. “Yeah it really is. You’re a good planner,” I say as I empty out the bags. Chase bought all the basic provisions for us and some simple meals for the next two days. “You still tired buddy?” Caleb shakes his head at me and Chase helps me get him ready for bed. The couch in the living room has a pull out bed and after changing him into his jammies and pulling out his favorite blanket, he immediately crashes. “Don’t worry I made sure the doors are locked, he’s not going anywhere.” Chase says as if he can read my mind. I’m not used to being somewhere that’s not baby proof but I guess my little guy isn’t so much of a baby anymore.
He grabs my hand as I put the last of the things away. “And I know you’ll like this,” he says as he drags me to the back sliding door off of the living room. We walk out onto the back porch where the fireplace from the living room is double sided and can be seen from the back. There’s a small pond with the moon reflecting off of it that we can see from the porch as I lean against the rails. Chase wraps his arms around my waist and places a kiss under my ear as he snuggles me closer. I let out a small shiver and he wraps me even tighter, “You cold?” He whispers in my ear with his hot breath sending more shivers running through my body. “Nope I’m good,” I say as I lean back into him.
“Oh I guess you don’t want to check that out then,” he says as he motions with his head towards the opposite end of the porch. I turn and see a small hot tub that looks just big enough for the two of us. “Well I suppose we could check it out, if you want,” I say with a shrug of my shoulders. He grabs me around the waist and throws me over his shoulder again as he runs inside. “Anything to see you in a bikini again baby.” I laugh as he sets me down and I rifle through my bag for my suit. “I’ll be right back,” I say as I jog up the stairs to the loft.
There’s a huge four poster king size bed set in the middle of the room, covered in pillows and a soft looking quilt. Off to the edge I see a bathroom attached where I figured it would be since I didn’t see one downstairs. The biggest Jacuzzi bathtub I think I’ve ever seen sits in the corner along with a separate enclosed glass shower with at least four separate shower heads. I change out of my clothes quickly and into my suit, running down the stairs. The small cabin hasn’t
warmed up completely yet even with the small fire Chase has built in the fireplace and the nip of the November air has small goosebumps running all over my body. I open the door and make my way on my tiptoes over to the hot tub that Chase has already uncovered and has the jets going. I test the water with my toe and slowly slide the rest of my body in.
“You couldn’t wait for me,” Chase asks as he walks out with two wine glasses and nothing on but his swim trunks. “Get in here,” I say as I reach out to hold both glasses for him. “It is freezing out there!”
Chase lets out a laugh as he slowly climbs in and I try to make room for his long body as I move my body between his legs. I hand him his glass back and take a small sip of the wine he brought out before setting it on the ledge. I turn and rest my head on his solid chest as I close my eyes and relax in the water against him. We talk about favorite movies, TV shows, our lives in high school and all the fun he’s had growing up with so many sisters. I figured he would have felt like the odd man out but he liked being the only brother for all the girls to have around.
“Well I think we’re both starting to turn into prunes Leah,” he says as he stretches out my hands over his. “You ready to head in?” I shake my head, “Not really, it’s going to be freezing!”
“I’ll take care of you Leah,” he says as he stands up and leans down to scoop me up, cradling me with his arms. “Hold on,” he says. I wrap both my arms around his neck burying my head in his chest as he sprints toward the back door while I giggle from being jostled up and down. He doesn’t stop to set me down once we’re inside, but pauses briefly at the end of Calebs bed, knowing that I’d want to check on him again and of course he’s still conked out. He continues up the stairs into the bathroom attached to the bedroom without even a heavy breath from the extra weight he’s carrying.
Chasing Leah (Journey Series) Page 12