Restoring Passion

by Sandra Kyle

  Henry approached Daniel with an outstretched hand. “Just the kind of customer I like to see.”

  Daniel shook his hand. “What kind is that?”

  “The buying kind. You only come to see me when you’re ready.” He thumbed his hand over at the wanderer he had finished with moments ago. “These do-it-yourselfers think we’re here for complimentary hour-long consultations.” A finger wagged in Daniel’s face. “You’re partly to blame. Damn television programs making any imbecile think they can do this shit themselves. I miss the days when it was just contractors and landscapers on my land.”

  “Well, to make it up to you, I’ll come by every time I’m in need of your supply.”

  “Ah! You do that already. You know I’m the only place around that will give you a decent deal.”

  Daniel nodded and pulled out a piece of paper with his scrawled notes. “Thinking a flagstone walkway, large, solid pieces, maybe stone for a retaining wall with some greenery. Beach property.”

  Henry skimmed the dimensions listed and the rudimentary design. “You thinking a curved walkway? Not irregular?”

  Daniel smiled. “Going to cost me for the cut and design, I know.”

  “You’re making my day even better.” He glanced past Daniel’s left. “And you brought your backup? Uh-oh. She gives me a kiss and I know you’re working a hustle.” Henry waved. “It’s been forever since I’ve seen you, pretty lady.”

  “You know how Daniel is.” Vanessa’s voice made Daniel’s heart skip. “He’ll think I’m running off with you if I stop by without him.” She appeared beside him and gave Henry a peck on the cheek.

  “Hm.” He nodded in confirmation at Daniel. His droopy lids narrowed to slits over his brown eyes. “You two buy a beach house or something?”

  The creasing of her forehead above her sunglasses expressed the look of confusion Daniel had come to know so well. “Show stuff,” Daniel answered for her. “Making your life a living hell with more of that television garbage.”

  “But you might talk me into that balcony soon. Have to come down on the brick price, though.” Vanessa flashed a smile at Henry.

  A snicker left his mouth. The finger waving directed now at Vanessa. “You’re trouble. Have a look around. Come find me or Billy in the office once you decide, Danny.” He shook both their hands and then trotted off on his bow legs.

  “What are you looking for?” Vanessa’s tone shifted, laced with hesitation.

  “Stone for the patio.” Daniel stared down at her.

  “Don’t let me keep you from your errand. Can I join you in your search?”

  “Absolutely.” A hopefulness filled him. He turned in the direction of the stone deposits. “Remember the first time you came here with me?”

  She nodded and followed his lead. “Yes. I said it was like a pick-your-own pumpkin patch, only for slate and river rocks. You got a kick out of that.”

  “I know this can’t be a coincidence. Of all the stone quarries, in all the towns, in all the world, you walk into mine.”

  Vanessa smiled. “Casablanca. Well done.”

  “Contrary to what you may think, I do sometimes pay attention during movie nights.” He stopped and admired some slate with blue and orange striations running through it. Forcing his focus away from her face had been a challenge. “What made you search me out?”

  “I texted Marly. She told me you were heading over here.” She folded her arms and stepped closer, shortening the gap between them. He hoped his sunglasses hid the surprise he felt. “I heard something today…”

  Daniel waited, taking in the sight of her full lips, inhaling her perfume.

  “Has Mabel said anything to you... about Brian?”

  “Brian?” he repeated.

  It was Vanessa’s turn to wait as he rifled through his mental files.

  “I don’t think so. Why would she?”

  “Okay, this is going to sound nuts. But I think she knew him.”

  His eyes widened. “Mabel knew Brian?”

  Vanessa shrugged. “I think so. And I think she may have been with him the night he was…” She trailed off.

  “How? Why?” He raised his hands.

  “I overheard a conversation she had with someone.”

  “She mentioned Brian?”

  “No.”

  He raised his hands again.

  “I can’t explain why I think it. She said certain things, mentioned needing an alibi for that night. The man she was talking to asked if it had anything to do with the guy on the TV.” She rehashed everything she could remember.

  “All right, so what if she knew him?”

  “She might know what happened to him and who else is behind you being blackmailed. If we can get some answers…”

  “You believe me?” he blurted out.

  Vanessa opened her mouth to say something. “I…” She faltered. “I want to find out the truth.”

  He smiled. “I was trying to figure out how to tell you.” He pulled out his wallet and dug through it, eventually finding a folded piece of paper. “It didn’t seem like something I should text or leave a voicemail about.” Daniel offered the sheet to her. “Some good news I got this morning.”

  She unfolded and read. “Negative.”

  “All negative.”

  A deep sigh released. “One less thing to keep me up at night.” Her fingers worked with care to match the creases and conform the note back to its original shape. She handed it back.

  “What’s your plan?” His fingers glided over hers with intention, accepting the paper.

  She stared up at him.

  “How do we find out if Mabel knew him?”

  “No idea.”

  “I could ask her.”

  She laughed. “Just ask her?”

  “Well, in a roundabout way.”

  “I don’t know. Let’s not try to figure out the next step right now. Like I said, I needed to tell someone, see if I sounded nuts.”

  “It doesn’t sound nuts, Vanessa.” He rubbed her forearm.

  She pursed her lips. “I’ve got to go.”

  “Wait.” His mind raced for a question, anything to keep her with him for another moment. “Where did you overhear Mabel?”

  “By a shed, out in the woods.”

  He chuckled. “Come again?”

  She shook her head. “Another time for the whole story.” Vanessa backed away and walked toward her parked truck.

  “Promise?” he asked.

  She turned and gave him a grin. “Promise.”

  *

  Daniel tapped his hands against the steering wheel, matching the rhythm of the rock song blaring from the radio. He’d been driving a stretch of road with no destination in mind. The visit to Henry’s had been eventful on a level he never would have imagined. She came to me.

  It was a step toward mending things. He was sure of it. Even if this new bit of information didn’t actually lead to anything substantial. What are the chances of Mabel being mixed up with Brian? That’s secondary when it comes down to why she came to see me. Vanessa wants to believe me. She can call me naive and stupid and trusting to a fault… not a cheater. Deep down, she has to know that.

  He bopped his head to the familiar beats of a new tune, turning up the volume. Vanessa loves this one. She always hummed along. Timid, unsure and off-key at first, she’d eventually belt out the chorus with abandon. Still off-key. But she’d lose herself in the music. It would bring a smile to his face even if his ears disapproved. I love her off-key.

  Gotta give her space. Be patient. He repeated the mantra in his head, and his driving went on autopilot.

  Gotta give her space. Be patient.

  He pulled into a parking spot on the street and shifted into park.

  “Danny!” The squeaky scream jerked his head to the right. Jasmine bounded off Vanessa’s steps. His wife was left alone on the porch with an open school book in her lap. Her mouth screwed into a frown.

  Shit. How did I manage to do the exa
ct opposite of giving her space?

  Jasmine hopped onto the truck step and waved her hand through the open passenger door window. “Where’ve you been?”

  “Busy, Jaz.”

  “Did you watch the baseball game last night?”

  “Missed it.”

  “Want a recap?”

  He nodded over to Vanessa. “It looks like you’re working on homework.”

  “Yeah. Stupid Algebra. FOIL method. Farty, Old, Idiotic, Lunatic.” Scrawny fingers held on to the edge of the door as she rocked her frame back and forth.

  “Careful. Vanessa’s waiting.”

  “Mom had to run out and help Aunt Monica with something.” She continued to shake, ignoring Daniel’s warning. “Vanessa’s watching me.” Her motion ceased as if someone had found a hidden stop button. Then she dove half of her body into the window and produced a wide grin. “Wanna play catch?”

  “Jasmine!” Vanessa called from the porch, waving the textbook.

  Jasmine swooped back out and screamed, “Can Danny and I play catch for five minutes?”

  Shit. “Jaz, how about you finish your homework and then we play catch?” He hopped out of the driver’s seat. Once he reached Jasmine, he scooped her up by way of her armpits. She swung around in his large hands and giggled. He clopped his way along the path and deposited her in front of Vanessa. “There. Tutor time.” He mouthed “sorry” to Vanessa.

  “A few more problems and we’re done.” A tap of Vanessa’s finger directed Jasmine’s gaze to a page filled with parentheses and numbers.

  “Ugh!” Jasmine picked up the forgotten piece of looseleaf on the porch. Her stub of a pencil made some ilegible markings.

  “Remember, if I can’t read your work, then your teacher can’t either. Don’t make double work for yourself and have to rewrite everything.” Vanessa looked up at Daniel with wide eyes behind her black-rimmed glasses. “Why don’t you go inside and relax?”

  Daniel realized that if he left right now it would only make things worse for Vanessa’s tutoring duties. He imagined Jasmine locking onto his ankles and screaming. She has to play house now with me even if she doesn’t want to. Held hostage by a thirteen-year-old.

  “Can we all go out for ice cream after I’m done?” Jasmine bleated out the request like a lamb. The textbook balanced on her lap somehow even with her constant fidgeting.

  “I’m sure Marly will be back soon. Besides, you haven’t even had dinner yet.”

  “That could be my dinner.”

  “What’s healthy about ice cream?” Vanessa asked.

  “I could get a banana split!” Jasmine countered.

  Daniel piped in. “Don’t forget you’ve got that game of catch on your busy agenda. We can run to the square right after that last math problem if you hurry.”

  Jasmine nodded.

  “But only if Ms. Calculator here says your work is perfect.” He pointed to Vanessa.

  “Got it.”

  “I’ll be inside. Give me a holler when you’re finished.” He climbed the steps behind the both of them. He disappeared in the living room, awaiting his next command.

  *

  Babysitting duties ended up encompassing catch at the square and sandwiches on the porch. The trio resumed their watch on the steps. Neighbors made their way home, and groups of children strolled toward the nearby community center. Jasmine had a never-ending supply of energy and persistence, still attempting to cajole Daniel into a trip to the ice cream parlor.

  Vanessa breathed an internal sigh of relief when Marly rolled up to the duplex around seven. The apologies spilled out of her mouth as soon as she closed the driver’s side door to her sedan. From the explanation, Gary’s mom had fallen down the basement steps of her home and twisted her ankle. Monica had called Marly for reinforcement while at the hospital, not knowing how she would get the insolent older woman back home by herself. Gary had left that morning for a work trip.

  Jasmine was in deep conversation with Daniel about something baseball related on the porch. A slight breeze skipped into the house through the screen door. Marly stood in the middle of Vanessa’s living room, filling her in. “I don’t know who was in worse shape, Gary’s mom or my sister.” Marly clapped her hands together and bowed. “Thank you. Jasmine would never have gotten her homework done if I’d left her to her own devices. And, of course, Jack had to go to Vegas tonight.”

  Vanessa shrugged. “It’s always something. I hope she’s all right.”

  Marly chuckled. “She’ll be fine. I can’t say the same for Monica, having her mother-in-law staying with her through the recuperation, at least for the first couple weeks. Pray Gary gets back before they throw down.”

  “I’ve heard the stories. I may have to stop by and check in on the both of them.”

  “Referee is more like it. I’m sure Monica would appreciate the pop-over.” A pause preceded a gaze that went from Vanessa, to the porch, then back to Vanessa. A lower tone asked, “Is everything all right here?”

  “Yeah. He just showed up.” Only Jasmine could be seen through the screen door from Vanessa’s spot by the couch. “She was so excited to see him…”

  “I’m sorry.” Marly frowned. “Jack and I, we haven’t said anything about what’s going on to her.”

  “Probably better that you didn’t.”

  “Jaz would be more than happy to take him off your hands by the looks of it.” Marly shook her head at her daughter. “Want me to suggest he come over our place for a video game? She’ll be super excited, and you know he can’t say no to her.”

  Vanessa laughed. “It’s all right. We need to talk about something.”

  “Okay.” The word sounded hesitant. “Sure?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Jaz! Let’s get out of these two’s hair for the night.” Marly strolled out onto the porch. Vanessa heard a groan from Jasmine and some work chatter between Daniel and Marly. She walked into the kitchen to clean up the fixings laid out for the impromptu sandwich dinner.

  It wasn’t long before Daniel appeared in the doorway. “Can I help with anything?” he asked.

  “Not much to help with. You know me and meals when I’m in charge.” She waved the wrapped deli meat in her hand and stashed it in the fridge.

  “Can you tell me anything else about this conversation you overheard? With Mabel?” Daniel paced on the small span of checkerboard tile. Hands dug into his jean pockets.

  “It was at the country club. Monica invited me to lunch. I got turned around on my way out and ended up on this walking path in the woods.” She saw the look of disbelief on his face. “What? That place is huge. Anyway, I inadvertently dropped in on Mabel and some tennis instructor, talking about alibis and hush-hush stuff over a guy she had brought to the club.” Vanessa raised an eyebrow. “Around Memorial Day weekend.”

  “Did you get a look at this tennis instructor?”

  She shrugged. “Not a very good look. But she called him Cameron.”

  “Hm.” He nodded. “Since when is Monica a country club member?”

  “Since Gary. Too bad we aren’t tennis players or we could do some reconnaissance on the courts.”

  “Too bad.” Some seconds passed, and then he added, “I should get out of here.”

  “Thanks for all of the help with Jasmine.” Vanessa returned random food items to their locations. “I would have run out of things to do right after the dreaded homework had been completed.” A swing of a cabinet door revealed the overflowing stash in their snack cabinet. “Still have those jabanero chips in here that you like.” Her nose twitched at the recall of intense, painful heat they had produced in her mouth the one and only time she had sampled them. “Do you want to take them with you? I’m not going to eat ’em.”

  “Keep ’em here. I’ll eat them when I come back.”

  She turned. The expression on his face was certain and confident. It had been weeks since she had seen that particular side of Daniel. “They might be stale by then,” she said matter-of-f
actly.

  He shrugged. “I’ll still eat them.”

  “Why’d you come by today anyway?” She closed the cabinet door. It slammed, harder than expected. She flinched.

  “I didn’t mean to.” He stepped toward her. “I was in the truck, thinking about how I needed to be patient. Not rush things.” His blue eyes surveyed the curves of her face. The way that always made her melt inside. Every. Damn. Time. “And, then, I was here.”

  “Not rushing things, huh?” As she tried to create some distance between them, her ass backed into the corner.

  A cocky smile emerged. “Blame my subconscious and your irresistible magnetism.” He leaned in, only inches separating their bodies. His hands clutched the counter edge on either side of her. He whispered, “I want to be with you, baby. The way it was.”

  “It’s not that simple. You know that.”

  “Who says? I love you. You love me. That’s all that should matter.”

  She shook her head. “We don’t live in a bubble where the rest of the world doesn’t affect us. Especially now. With this show and all that comes with it...”

  “Fuck the show.” He bent down to meet her eye level. His forehead almost pressed against hers. The rest of his body swung out to accommodate the height difference. “I’ll give it up in a second, no questions asked. We can lie low for a while if those stupid photos do get out. Or we up and move somewhere nobody knows us.”

  A swell of emotions filled her chest. “You couldn’t leave Savannah.” She broke from his gaze.

  Those strong hands clasped the sides of her face, forcing her eyes to stare back into his. “I’ll go anywhere if it means I can be with you, Vanessa. Anywhere,” he whispered. “Let me back in, baby.”

  Her mouth opened. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to say. He pulled the breath from her with a deep inhale. In an instant his lips covered hers. A collective moan escaped and dissolved into the kiss. His arms tangled around her back. He lifted and deposited her with care on the countertop.

  His fingers returned to caress her cheeks. “Let me back in,” he whispered again.

  A swell of conflicting emotions whirled through her chest. Tears threatened to escape. She wrapped her arms under his and buried her face against his neck. “I don’t want it to hurt so much,” she whispered.