Right Where We Started

The two women hugged, bouncing happily back and forth, and the red strands swayed softly, mesmerizing him like a hypnotist’s watch.

“You’ve straightened your hair. I love it!” The shorter woman smoothed her palm along the ends appreciatively, and Trey’s hand itched to do the same—to wind them up into his hands, to get that kiss she always promised but never gave.

You mean, you never took. Just having a beard doesn’t make you a man.

“I’ve been getting blow-outs.” The redhead turned her head toward him for just a fraction of a second before flipping it back around.

“Well, it’s beautiful.”

Trey agreed, revisiting the glimpse of face he’d been granted when she turned toward him.

“Thanks.” The redhead’s voice was low and silky, like her hair.

“I hear you and your husband divorced, and your dad died. I’m so sorry. And you’re back here, taking care of your mom?” The shorter woman’s head tilted in sympathy.

Audrey sighed. “Yeah, back in good ol’ Taylor’s Grove.”

She’s divorced. Grieving. Lonely, I’ll bet. Lives in Taylor’s Grove. Must be close around here.

“And how’s your mom doing?”

A shrug caused the red hair to shimmer under the slight movement. “Not great. Sometimes better than others. We just take it a day at a time.”

“Well, she’s blessed to have you. Alzheimer’s is a horrible disease. Such a damn horrible disease.”

Trey’s pump stopped and he replaced the nozzle. The women were still talking.

Don’t walk away from her yet. Find out all you can. Might come in handy.

Trey sloshed the squeegee from the bucket of gray water and swiped it across his windshield.

Audrey turned long enough to insert her credit card to start her pump. She didn’t glance his way. But he got a good, long look at her creamy complexion and eyes with long black fringes of lashes.

See the way she’s ignoring you? Being coy. Means she likes you.

The hard-on was agonizing now. He’d have to go to the restroom, but not until she left. He checked the oil level in his truck and still they talked.

Her daughter’s name is Tess, and she’s in the first grade. Did you notice how the mention of her teacher’s name—Mark Dublin—brought a shocked gasp from the other woman. Wonder what that’s about?

The pump on Audrey’s side clicked that it was finished. The women started saying their goodbyes, and the shorter woman walked back to her car.

Now’s your chance. Say something, idiot. Be a man.

Trey shook his head.

She’s getting her receipt. Now. Do it before she drives off. Just say “Hi.”

Trey opened his mouth, but her door slammed before he could get the word out. It caught on the back of his tongue as he watched her drive away.

Didn’t you hear me?

“I heard you, Daddy.” Trey kept his voice low.

I said to speak to her, and you didn’t. Open defiance. You know what that means.

Trey glanced at the belt lying on his front seat.

No one was waiting for his pump, so Trey left the truck and sought his relief in the small restroom, where he could lock himself away from the world for a few minutes.

Before returning to the truck, he pulled a map from the display rack and tossed it on the counter. “Can you show me where boat ramps are in these parts?” he asked the kid working the register.

The kid opened the map and grabbed a pen. “If you’re just wanting to put in, there’s a bunch all around here.” He started circling places on the map.

Trey’s eyes wandered the area of the map around Benton. The name Taylor’s Grove jumped out at him. Seeing how close it was made his heart beat fast.

See there. She’s close. Waiting for you right there.

“But, if you’re needing bait or anything, there’s several marinas that sell it.” The kid made an M over several sites, including Taylor’s Grove.

Bait. Daddy’s chuckle made him shiver. You have to use the right bait to get the one you want. You understand.

Trey nodded. “Yeah. I’m going to need some bait.”

Now you’re thinking like a man.

Trey could almost feel the slap on his back.

“Beecher’s in Taylor’s Grove would be the closest.” The teenager ran his finger along the line on the map, pointing out the road to Draffenville and the turn he would have to take to go on over to Taylor’s Grove and Kentucky Lake...and Audrey.

“Never heard of Taylor’s Grove.” He did a little subtle fishing without Daddy’s prodding. “Very big place?”

“Tiny,” the kid answered. “Don’t blink or you’ll miss it. Go to the end of town and turn left on Beecher Road. It dead-ends at the marina.”

Hear that? A tiny place. So finding out where someone lives probably wouldn’t be too hard.

Trey paid for his gas and the map and made a point of thanking the kid for his help, then he got in his truck. His stomach growled, the familiar gnaw growing too quickly to be ignored.

Time to go fishing, son. Find the highway to Taylor’s Grove. To Audrey with the silky red hair.

He obeyed and turned the truck toward the highway.

* * *

TESS RACED OUT of the school, waving a picture she’d drawn. “Can we stop to see the puppies on the way home?”

Audrey glanced at the picture—Tess’s rendition of a mother dog and three puppies. She grinned down at her daughter. “What? No ‘Hi, Mama’ or a hug?”

Tess threw her arms around her waist for a tight hug. “Hi, Mama. Can we? Please?”

“We’ll have to check with Mr. Dublin. He might have plans, so we can’t just be showing up at his house all the time.” The idea seemed so foreign to Audrey—making an appointment to go to Mark’s house. But nothing was the same as it used to be, and even sharing the responsibility of the dogs needed to be done with that in mind. She and Mark had their own separate lives and it needed to stay that way.

“Okay, let’s check.” Tess started pulling her toward the door, but before they got to it, Mark had come out to meet them. “Mr. Dublin, do you have plans?”

Mark placed his hands on his hips and gave her a serious look, but Audrey saw the mirth in his eyes.

“Well, that depends, Tess. What do you have in mind?”

“I want to see the puppies, but Mama says we can’t just be showing up at your house all the time.”

Audrey winced a little, hearing the exact words she’d said repeated almost verbatim. No telling what else Tess repeated.

“Actually, except for riding my bike and fishing some, I live a pretty dull life.” He glanced Audrey’s way and she saw the edges of his mouth twitch into a near smile that made her stomach flutter. She looked away quickly. “You and your mom are welcome to stop by anytime. If I’m home, I’ll enjoy the company, and if I’m not, I’ll be sorry I missed you.”

“See, Mama.” Tess leaned her head back, looking at Audrey upside down. “I knew it would be okay.”

“I did check on them twice today. The mother dog—”

“Cher,” Mark said.

“Cher?” Audrey questioned the odd name, but Mark nodded she’d heard correctly. “Okay, um... Cher used the bathroom both times. I think the little one is stronger than he was last night. I pulled the others away both times I was there and let him nurse by himself for a while.”

Mark nodded again. “I did that for a few minutes last night, too. He’ll catch up soon, I think, if we keep that up. Two males and a female, by the way.”

“That’s two boys and a girl, right?” Tess asked.

Mark’s smile broke full-force then as he looked down at Tess, and the muscles in Audrey’s chest tightened. “Right.” His eyes swept back up to meet Audrey’s. “I’m going to be here another half hour or so, but y’all can go ahead and stop even with me not there.” He paused, and his expression got more serious. “I left the door unlocked today, knowing you were going to be coming and going. But—” his shrug was apologetic “—with the apartment there now, I probably need to keep it locked while I’m at work. I know it seems silly, but you never know.”

“Oh, sure.”

“I’ll give you a key.”

“No,” Audrey protested. Having a key to Mark’s place seemed inappropriately intimate. “You don’t need to do that.”

He raised an eyebrow. “I don’t see any other way you can check on them during the day. And once the puppies start needing to go out...”

She had assured him raising the puppies would be a joint venture. She took a deep breath. “All right. Yeah, that’s probably the smartest thing to do.”

“I’ll give you one if you come by tonight.”

Her stomach twisted, but she nodded. “Okay.”

“Is Helen better today? Your text last night worried me.”

Was it just her imagination, or was he pulling out things to keep her talking? And were people really throwing looks their way? She glanced around just in time to wave at Sue Marsden, the town busybody, who happened to be driving by. Yep, definitely looking, and the knots in Audrey’s stomach tightened again. “She’s calmer today. We were on our way to your house last night, but she saw the willow tree and freaked out.”

“Memories.” Mark’s tone was soft with sympathy. “Strange how they affect us. When I see the tree, it always brings a smile.”

Audrey’s eyes followed Tess, who was busy trying to catch a grasshopper. “Different people, different reactions, especially when you’ve lost a child.” She shifted her eyes back and they collided with Mark’s, reading the message there. It was always going to come back to this subject, wasn’t it? No matter what they talked about, the subject of Win’s death was always going to be right there, lurking in the next sentence.

She hated that. Hated the anger weighing down the bottom of every breath she exhaled. Hated that Tess—her precious daughter and the one thing that gave meaning to her life—had never known her without the anger. What she would give for a breath—just one breath—not filtered through the pain of eleven years ago.

Her eyes filled with tears, which she blinked back.

“Audrey...” Mark touched her arm gently and she stepped back. She heard his sigh as his hands settled back on his hips. “I’m going to put the pet door in this evening.” He changed the subject to something safe. “But I think it’ll take two people—one inside and one out—to get it placed right. If your mom’s okay and y’all come after supper, maybe you could help me for a few minutes?”

“Yeah, if Mom takes her sedative and goes to bed, we’ll come down and help you.” She shrugged. “I’m never sure that will happen the way it’s supposed to, but we can hope.”

“Once I get the hole cut, I can cover it with plywood until you can get down there...whenever that might be.”

In other words, I’ll wait until you come around, his eyes said.

An involuntary warmth passed through her, and she started to smile at the sensation, but then the true source hit her and she clenched her teeth. It wasn’t a comforting warmth. It was left over from the flare of anger always burning in her, deep inside.

And it was always followed by a chill.

* * *

SEE, I TOLD you finding her would be no problem.

Trey timed his late lunch at the same time school would be getting out. She had a daughter in the first grade, so he figured she’d probably be there to pick up the kid after school, and he was right. She was talking with some guy—the kid’s teacher, most likely—but she didn’t like him. Her posture was rigid, and once when he’d touched her arm, she’d stepped quickly back.

She’d like your touch. Wouldn’t want to step back—not that you should let her even if she wants to. You have to show a woman who’s in charge.

Trey’s fingers tingled at the thought of touching Audrey’s smooth skin. He wouldn’t let them dig in. She’d probably bruise easily, she was so fair. No, he would just use his fingertips and let them glide down her face, her neck, her bare shoulders...

Trey took another small bite of the BLT from the diner, pulling his eyes away, forcing them to look in the other direction for a while. It wouldn’t do for her, or anybody else in town, to think he was watching. He’d have to be discreet and move slowly.

Some of the moms and kids were coming to the park to play on the swings. He smiled at the ones who came near. “Hi.” He gave a good-ol’-boy nod. “Afternoon.”

He took a sip of the soda and another bite of the delicious sandwich. Take-out food was a splurge, but to be able to sit in the gazebo at the park in the middle of town and see all the goings-on was worth the indulgence.

She started to walk with the child at her side—the little girl had hair as bright as her mama’s. So she lived within walking distance—but then everybody must live within walking distance in this hole-in-the-wall town.

He allowed himself a casual glance. They walked east. That was good. When he went back to get his boat, which he’d left tied up at the marina while he came into town to grab a quick bite, he’d watch for her car. Not many streets turned off Main Street on the east side of town. It might take a few days to check them all. Might even require coming early in the morning or late at night. But fishermen were notorious for keeping strange hours.

He took the last few bites, pausing for a few minutes to stretch his arms out along the back of the bench—seemingly in no hurry to chase after the redhead who had now gotten out of sight. Then, like a dutiful citizen, he gathered up his paper wrapper and foam cup and threw them away in the trash can before heading back to his truck.

By the time those coppery tresses came back into his view, Audrey and the child were almost to the edge of town. Only one house remained on the left side of the road and none on the right. So the house on the corner must be hers. He turned his signal on and turned left onto Beecher Road, never glancing her way.

A little way up the road on the right was a driveway. He slowed a tad to check it out. Her tan SUV! Right there, plain as day in front of the two-story house. The only house on the road, he noted, as he drove on back to the marina.

Damn! You’re a helluva lot better at this than I ever thought you could be!

“Going out again?” The marina guy—probably Beecher himself—came out of his small shop as Trey got out of his truck and headed to his boat.

Trey grinned broadly, letting out some of the excitement racing through his body. “Can’t stay away when there’s one out there just waiting to be caught.” He laughed, knowing he was safe in his admission, and he heard the echo of his dad laughing with him.

Beecher’s eyes tightened slightly. “You’re not from these parts.”

Trey had spent the better part of the day out in the boat, listening to his daddy’s voice conjure a sympathetic story.

Do this exactly the way I told you to.

He shook his head, turning down the wattage on his smile until it became appropriately sad. “West Virginia.” He sighed. “Spent the last two years since my daddy died taking care of my mom, God rest her soul.” He removed his cap for a second and covered his heart, then flipped it back up on his head. “She had Alzheimer’s. Died last month.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Beecher’s lips pressed to a thin line.

Told you. There’s the sympathetic look.

“She’s better off, but her death knocked the wind out of my sails.” Trey glanced away, blinking back tears that were meant for Granny, not his mom. “I just couldn’t stay there. Decided it was time for a new start. Leave the bad memories behind and carry the good ones with me, you know?” He patted his chest over his heart.

“So, you’re looking to move here permanently?”

Trey shrugged. “Staying at a motel in Benton right now,” he lied. “But I like the fishing here. Like Kentucky Lake. If something turns up in the way of work, I’d consider it. Money’s not going to last forever.”

Beecher nodded and held out his hand to shake. “I’m Sol Beecher, by the way. I didn’t introduce myself earlier.”

Trey shook the extended hand warmly. “Trey Cooper.”

“I’ll keep my ear to the ground.” The fancy phone on Beecher’s belt started playing some idiotic song. He reached for it. “If I hear of any jobs, I’ll let you know.”

“I’d be muchly beholden.” Trey laid on the good old Appalachian-boy charm. He got in his boat and started untying as Beecher answered his phone.

The groundwork’s laid.

* * *

“THE HOLES ARE lined up perfectly right there. Can you hold it long enough for me to screw it in?” Mark couldn’t see Audrey through the pet door. She was on her knees inside the garage, and he was on his knees outside.

“I’ve got it.”

Using his dad’s electric screwdriver made quick work of the top two screws. “Okay. The top ones are in. It’s not going anywhere now, so you can let go.”

Her grunt of relief came through the plastic as did the rustle of her movements as she stood up. She’d helped cut the installation time in half, he figured. He placed the other four screws, then stepped inside to add the finishing plate. “Tess.” The child looked up from where she sat on the floor beside the dog bed, cradling the puppies in her lap. “If you’ll put the collar on Cher, we’ll see if this thing works.”

“It should, if I got the batteries in everything the right way.” Audrey handed the collar to Tess to do the honors.

Cher seemed to understand and enjoy being on the receiving end of all this attention. She held her nose high in the air as Tess attached the hot pink collar with the battery device.

Mark taped the hinged flap open, like the directions suggested, then he grabbed a few treats from the bag on the counter and handed a few to Tess. “Let’s see if our dog can pass first grade.” He tapped Tess on the nose. She answered with a smile and a nod.

He went outside and stood a few feet from the door. “Cher!” He whistled. “Come here, girl.”

In a flash, the dog was through the hole in the door. He heard Tess’s and Audrey’s applause as he praised the dog and gave her a treat. “Now, call her back in.”

Tess called her, and with ears and tail held high, Cher plunged back inside. They did this several times, until he was sure the dog understood the game plan. Then he went back inside and lowered the flap. “Fingers crossed,” he said over his shoulder as he went back out.

He called and whistled, and almost immediately heard the smack on the other side, followed by the sympathetic, female tones.

“Awww. She hit the flap,” Audrey called, but in the next instant, Cher bounded through the opening.

“Good girl.” Mark scratched behind her ears and gave her a treat. “She has to learn to wait for the signal,” he said, loud enough for them to hear him inside. “Okay, call her back.”

This time it was Audrey who called her name, and Cher loped toward the door, butting it again with her head. Then the soft buzz sounded and she was through.

It took seven more tries, but the dog caught on quickly. By the ninth time, she hesitated long enough for the signal to buzz and then pushed through.

“Woo-hoo!” came the cheers from inside.

“If it takes eleven times to make something a habit,” Mark called to his companions, “our dog’s above average.” Getting to use the plural possessive pronoun made his smile broaden.

They called Cher back and forth a few more times to make sure she truly had the hang of it before he went in. Tess met him at the door with a grin and a high five, and when he turned his attention to Audrey, she did the same.

There it was! The first smile from her meant for him in eleven years. His breath caught as her happy eyes met his and her hand reached up for a slap. He met it with his own and caught it, letting their palms brush for a second that exploded with joy in his heart. He knew better than to push his luck, but he couldn’t help himself. Touching her for even a second and having her touch him back willingly wasn’t something he was sure he’d ever experience again, and he wanted it to linger.

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