He shut his eyes and imagined the glimmer in her blue ones that went along with the laughter. Listening to her voice when she was happy was like seeing a gorgeous sunrise bringing the promise of a new day.
She went on, “Those three can flat-out hold their wine. They drank two bottles between them, and other than a little girlish giggling and slight slurring of words, they were steady as a rock.”
“And I bet they all had headaches on Sunday morning when they went to church,” he said. “Want to go for a drive with me? I haven’t had supper. It’s half-price burger night at Sonic.”
“I’d rather go out to the farm and help you gather tomorrow’s deliveries, since Cricket isn’t there to fuss at us,” she said. “We could pick up burgers and eat them on the way.”
“So you missed me?”
“I missed green beans and squash and corn.”
He imagined her closing one eye in a sly wink. “And you don’t want to go home to your apartment because you know that Lettie will holler at you to come in her house, and Cricket will be there, right? Oh, I do feel used,” he said, but his tone said that he was getting a big kick out of this.
“Not you,” she said sweetly. “I would never use you to escape going home. But I would use your garden to stay away from Cricket a few more days.”
“I’ll pick up the burgers on the way and be there in ten minutes.”
“Mustard and no onions,” she said.
She was sitting on the outside bench when he arrived. She waved and didn’t wait for him to get out to open the door for her, but dived right in and grabbed the brown bag. “These smell so good. Man, I missed good old greasy burgers when I was in New York. They just don’t taste the same out there.” She bit into hers before she got his out of the bag and handed it to him.
“Do you ever have a negative thought in your head?” Rick asked.
“Used to, then I figured out that positive can’t survive in a negative atmosphere, so I have a mental ‘Delete’ button that I press real often. Do you have bad thoughts?” she asked.
Rick chewed fast and swallowed. “I did for a long time, but a therapist in the hospital finally got through my thick skull—negative and positive don’t survive together.”
She was halfway through her burger when they reached the farm, so he turned off the engine and rolled down the windows. “Let’s finish before we hit the garden.”
“Thank you. I want to enjoy every bite of this.” She kicked off her shoes and slowly ate the rest of her food before she opened the door and said, “I’ll grab a basket and meet you in the peas.”
He nodded and followed her to the back porch with both of their drinks in his hands. “You forgot this.”
She took a long draw from the straw and set it on the porch. “I missed this the past few days, Rick. It’s so peaceful out here—especially with the smell of fresh dirt and creek water. Two more things I missed in New York.”
“There’s a shallow creek at the back of the place with a big old scrub oak shade tree at the edge. We could go there for a little while when we finish up here,” he said.
“Yes,” she said without hesitation. “But first, let’s get the stuff gathered up for your deliveries tomorrow morning.”
They were finished in less than an hour, and once they’d washed off their bare feet and gotten their shoes back on, he led the way down a path with weeds growing up in the middle of two ruts.
“I can hear it already,” she said before they made the final bend in the path.
“When Cricket and I were little kids, several times a year we’d have a tailgate picnic at the creek, and then Mama and Daddy would let us splash around in the water,” he said.
“Oh, it’s beautiful. Look at that big old shady tree. I love it, Rick,” she said. “Can we wade in it?”
“It’s spring fed, so it’s pretty cold, but you can if you want,” he answered as he sat down under the huge scrub oak tree.
“I’d rather go skinny-dippin’,” she whispered.
“Would you repeat that?” He could feel a blush heating up his cheeks.
She clamped a hand over her mouth. “Did I say that out loud?”
“I believe you did.” He grinned.
“I was thinkin’ it, but I didn’t mean to say it.” She was downright cute with two bright-red spots dotting her cheeks. “And it would be fun, because I’ve never done that before.”
“I don’t think it would be a good idea. I swear in this area even the blackbirds in the trees carry gossip. You can’t even imagine what one little skinny-dippin’ night would have created by this time tomorrow,” he said.
“It could be one of those ‘used rumors.’” She put air quotes around the words. “Those that we file away to sell to a town that’s just gettin’ into the rumor business.”
“We could sell that one pretty high.”
She sat down and nudged him with her shoulder. “We could give classes to towns that don’t have the experience Bloom does. Cricket could work up a syllabus and help teach it. Did your mama like gossip, too?”
“No, ma’am,” he said quickly.
“Then you must be more like her.”
“Pretty much, but sometimes Dad comes out in my attitude if I’m brooding about something. What about you?” He couldn’t see much of either of her parents in her. Not the uppity Charlotte or the philandering Dill. He drew his eyebrows down into a frown, wondering exactly how those two ever made a child so different from them both.
“They say I’m like Granny Baker. She was gone before I was born, but I get told that I’m like her pretty often, mostly when Mama is scolding me about something.” She stood up and walked across the green grass to the edge of the water and stuck a bare toe in it. “Man, it is cold, but it feels so good. I’m going to come out here someday and go skinny-dippin’. I’ll tell you beforehand so you can guard it for me.”
“What makes you think I’ll stand guard? I might sit right here and enjoy the sight.” Immediately he wondered if he’d been guilty of saying words out loud that he shouldn’t have even thought.
“Are you flirting with me, Rick Lawson?” she asked.
“Maybe. Probably. Is that okay?”
“Well, when you make up your mind, I’d like to know.” She stuck her whole foot into the water and then the other one, only sucking air a little bit. Then she waded out ankle-deep and inhaled. “It smells wonderful. So fresh and clean, and there’s little minnows in here, Rick. If I owned this place, I’d build a house right there where you are sitting, and I’d never leave. If I needed anything other than what is grown here, I’d pay someone to deliver it.”
He walked out to the edge of the water and extended a hand. “It gets slippery right at the edge.”
She put hers in his, but when she took that final step, she faltered and started down into the icy water. To prevent that, he grabbed both her arms and jerked her toward him. He ended up flat on his back with her on top of him. From the waist up, they were on dry ground, while below, the cold water rushed around and over them. Thank God for the cold water or else she would have known exactly how much she affected him right then.
“Are you all right?” he panted.
“I think so. Did I break your back?”
He should sit up and help her, but he liked the way her body felt. “I don’t think so.” His hands went up to cup her cheeks. “I’m flirting now.”
“Okay,” she whispered when she realized he was about to kiss her.
Then their lips met, and the whole earth stood still. Maybe he had died, and this was his first taste of heaven. As suddenly as it started, it was over. She rolled off him and lay on the grass, staring up at the limbs of the old oak tree.
“Rick, I’ve had boyfriends. I’ve had a husband. I like you better than any of them, and I’d never ruin what we’ve got for a fling,” she told him.
“Who says it’s a fling?” he said.