Call of the Canyon (17 page)

“Yes, I know. I always thought Erin was
nice,” Jordyn sighed.

“She is...but just not to me.” Kate squeezed
her hand. “You can check out the guys on the basketball team but I
don’t recommend Tyson.”

They laughed and parted ways. Drew was
leaning against Kate’s locker, waiting for her. “Anyone I need to
beat up?” Drew grinned in his teasing way.

“Everything’s fine. We just need to be there
for Jordyn. She’s in a fragile state right now. She and Matt are no
longer together.”

“Sorry to hear that. I liked Matt.”

“You can still be friends with him,
Drew.”

“I know, it’s just not the same. I liked
them as a couple...”

“You’re such a romantic!” Kate playfully
poked him in the side.

All of a sudden there was an arm around her
waist and one wrapped over Drew’s shoulders. “How’s my favorite
couple? You two are looking cozy as ever. Erin’s coming home this
weekend, you guys want to double?”

Tyson
. That’s all Kate could think.
Tyson
. Drew already threw the arm off his shoulder and Kate
could feel the tension in the hand holding hers. She needed to
diffuse the situation.

“Tyson.” She calmly turned to him. “Kindly
take your arm off me or I’ll let Drew rip it off. You know we only
double-date with friends.”

“Ouch.” He pretended to have hurt feelings.
“You’re coming to my basketball games, aren’t you?”

“To see my friend, Jordyn, cheer, of
course.” Kate was tired of trying to deal with him.

“And how about you, big guy? I came to all
your football games.” Tyson turned his attention on Drew and Kate
knew that could end badly.

“Wouldn’t miss one, I’ll be right next to
Kate in the stands.” Drew shot back. Kate was proud of him.

“Kate, Kate, Kate, what’s up with that? I
got yelled at the one time I called her that.” Tyson wasn’t backing
down.

At that moment Kate wanted to tell him the
truth. It was Drew’s name for her, not Tyson’s. She had yelled at
Ty because it reminded her of Drew and the canyon. She was tired of
feeling sorry for him. It’s been a year since everything happened
between them. She thought things might get better and they could be
friends. There was little chance of it happening now.

Lindsey was heading straight for them just
at the right moment. Kate could tell by the look in her eyes she
knew exactly what was going on. “Someone bothering you, cuz? Want
me to take him off your hands?”

“He’s all yours.” Kate gave Lindsey a silent
thank you with her eyes and continued down the hall with Drew.

“Does that boy ever learn?” His face grew
red with anger.

“He likes to get to you, Drew. That’s all
he’s doing. If he sees it’s working, he’ll do it all the more. You
were great back there. Just don’t let him see he’s winning the
battle of the wills.”

* * * *

The rest of the school week went by
smoothly. Kate looked forward to the weekend. She had something
special she wanted to discuss with Drew. Since he still lived with
the Campbells, Kate didn’t see him all the time. They were a normal
high school couple with Drew going home to his house and Kate to
hers. They talked on the phone and sent text messages just like
everyone else. No one would suspect a thing or think they were
different from anyone else at school.

Kate waited for Drew’s call on Saturday
after football practice, but the call never came. She paced in her
room and finally ran downstairs. “Has anyone heard from Drew?”

“I have.” Her father called out. “He’s
running late and will be here shortly.”

Kate thought it was strange her dad got a
message from Drew and not her. Just then the doorbell rang. “I’ve
got it!” Kate called out to no one in particular and opened the
door to a flurry of balloons and a bouquet of flowers.

“Happy one week anniversary, Mrs. Martin.”
Drew stepped into the house with balloons whipping around him.
“Thanks, Jack!” He called out to Kate’s dad.

“Oh, Drew, this is too much.” She grabbed
the balloons from his hand and ran upstairs. She let them go in her
room and they floated to the ceiling filling the room with the
colors of their wedding.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t find lilacs this time
of year.” Drew stood in her door with a purple and white spray of
flowers. “That’s why I’m a little late. I called your dad to let
him know I was checking every florist in the area. You would ask
too many questions if I called you.”

Kate jumped in his arms, closing her door
behind him. “Make love to me, Drew, right now, right here on my
bed.” She closed her eyes waiting to feel his kiss.

“Kate, don’t ruin the moment. We’re not
married.”

“Yes, we
are,
don’t you remember that
little ceremony we had last weekend? Isn’t that what all these
balloons are for?” Kate tried to appear all cute and innocent.

“You’re hard to resist, wife. You’ll have to
wait until we return to the cabin at Thanksgiving just like we
planned.”

Kate sulked for a while but knew he was
right. She would wait for another time to break him down. This was
all still new for both of them. “Then at least join me here.” She
patted the bed. “I want to properly thank you.”

He sat next to her and drew her into his
arms. “I so love you, Kate.”

“I love you forever,” Kate whispered. How
could you not love someone who was always looking out for you and
never had an agenda...not to mention was tall, dark and
handsome?

“Well, isn’t this cute?”

Kate almost jumped through the ceiling when
she heard that voice. “Ty, what are you doing here?”

“Your dad sent me up. He said you two just
came up. Wasting no time, I see.”

Drew stood up. “Why would Jackson send you
up here? I find that hard to believe.”

“Kate and I are working on a project, aren’t
we, Kate?” Tyson nodded toward her.

“Yes, that’s right.” She got up and walked
over to her desk. She opened her laptop and downloaded the
information he needed on a flash drive. “Here’s what I have so
far.” She handed him the drive.

Kate couldn’t believe she ended up doing
another project with him, just like last year. He was in one of her
classes and when the teacher assigned group work, she made sure to
sign up last so Ty was already in a group. Somehow there were too
many people in his and he volunteered to switch. “I forgot to tell
you, Drew.” That wasn’t completely true. She just kept putting it
off because she knew how he’d react.

“Fine, you got what you wanted. Now get out
of here.” Drew stepped between Tyson and Kate.

“A little cranky, are we? Kate not putting
out? I tried my best...”

Tyson didn’t get to finish because Drew had
him by the shirt and was shoving him out the door.

“Tyson, shut your mouth for once!” Kate
screamed at him. “This is not the friend I know.”

His eyes showed a touch of sadness, but he
immediately transformed back to his cocky new self. “Get your hands
off me,
AN
-drew. I’m leaving.”

Drew slammed the door behind him and turned
to her. “How does he do that?”

She ran to Drew and wrapped her arms around
his waist. “Please, don’t be angry. I don’t know how it happened. I
told you I waited to sign up for the project...”

“I’m not mad at you, love. I’m starting to
see how he manipulated you last year and that’s what makes me
angry. He tried to do it to me, too. Since it wasn’t working, he’s
making you the target again.”

Kate breathed a sigh of relief. There’s no
way she could describe what she went through last year, but now
Drew saw it first hand. Tyson had a gift for showing up at the
right time and using his words to make you think you’re wrong and
he’s right. It was a scary combination. Many times Kate believed he
was truly sorry only to find out later it was just an act. “Now
where were we?” Kate looked up into Drew’s sizzling green eyes and
melted. “Remember, I love you, no one else.”

Drew gave her a quick kiss. “I’ll be right
back.”

Kate followed behind and listened in as Drew
went downstairs to confide in her father.

“The kid said he needed some information for
a paper he was doing. You two just went up so I told him to go
ahead. My mistake, forgive me. Tyson was a good kid at one time. I
don’t know what happened to him. From now on, he waits in the
entryway with my eyes on him at all times.”

“And what about the times we aren’t here,
Jack? That’s what concerns me. Kate can tell him to leave, but he
doesn’t seem to hear anything she says. She’s vulnerable and I
don’t like it.”

Kate stepped into the room when she heard
that. “You two are making Ty out to be a slasher-stalker! I’ve
known him since we were eight years old. I think I can handle him,
don’t worry. It’s just that...”

“What?” Her dad came toward her with a look
of concern.

Kate hesitated. Enough happened today and
she didn’t want her father and boyfriend to turn into security
detail. She couldn’t tell them Tyson was very adept at stopping by
when she was home alone. “He was my friend at one time and I can
handle him.”

“I know, pumpkin.” Her dad pulled her into a
bear hug. “Things are different now, just remember that.”

“I will, Daddy. It’s probably good you’re
here. You can help us with something. I think Drew and I should
visit his family in New York City. We’ll miss a few days of school.
That’s where you come in. You have to convince Mom it’s okay. I
think Drew needs to see his family one more time and make amends
before he’s lost to the river.” Kate sighed loudly, relieved she
was finally able to reveal her special plan for Drew.

Her dad’s face wore a look of surprise.
“That’s very thoughtful, Kate. I’ll talk to your mother; it
shouldn’t be a problem. When do you want to go?”

“Next weekend?”

“Then next weekend it is.”

Chapter Fourteen

“We’ll
travel to New York in style.” Those were Drew’s words before they
left Ohio and now, looking around her, Kate saw he was right. Drew
had booked them a Drawing Room suite, a car that was special
ordered from the Pullman Travel Company. The unit had a spacious
living room with a wide sofa and two movable lounge chairs. A
luggage space with a wardrobe for hanging their clothes was in one
corner. A huge bed and bath were part of their accommodations, too.
“I thought we’d be sleeping in bunk beds like last time,” Kate
exclaimed as she entered the car. Their personal porter took the
baggage and was already putting things away.

“Well, that booking was last minute. I would
have definitely gotten better accommodations if I’d known sooner. I
thought we deserved a honeymoon and this is it. When we arrive in
Chicago, our car will automatically switch to the one taking us to
Grand Central Terminal in New York City. We don’t have to get off
and change trains. We stay in this car.” Drew appeared proud of
himself. “If we have to travel for a few days, we may as well enjoy
it. The porter will bring our food and clean the room.”

“Just like a hotel.” Kate thought it was a
little much but wasn’t going to complain. She spotted the bed and
knew she and Drew could sleep together on this trip, not in
separate berths like last time. She hadn’t been looking forward to
a sleeping car again. The family had seats for the day and then
retired to a private car with four small beds, two on top and two
on the bottom, like bunk beds. “And on the way home?”

“Same thing.” Drew beamed at her. Suddenly,
Kate realized he was accustomed to the finer things in life. She
knew little about his past and wondered what his house in New York
was like. Maybe she was in over her head when it came to the rich
and famous of the 1920s. Too late to do any research. No laptops on
the train or wi-fi available...if only she had her phone. A thought
occurred to her and she turned to the porter. “Would it be possible
to get some magazines?”

“Of course, ma’am, right away.” He turned
and left the quarters.

“I didn’t mean right away...”

“That’s their job, Kate. They’re trained to
take care of the customer. It’s not a big deal.”

Kate settled in with her pile of magazines.
She was surprised to recognize many of them. She pulled
Good
Housekeeping
and
Better Homes and Gardens
from the stack
and set them aside to look at later.
Vogue
was her first
choice after scouring through a pile of vintage movie magazines.
Those people loved their movie stars.

She slowly flipped through the pages of
Vogue
. Most articles were about the latest fashions from
Paris and what to wear in the upcoming season. Kate was pretty
familiar with the fashions of the day but needed more information
about how people lived, what they used in their homes. One article
caught her eye. It talked about the four social zones of Fifth
Avenue. It seemed like high society lived around Sixty-Eighth
Street and beyond. After glancing through the story, she grabbed
the pile of magazines and began to sort through them again.

“Kate, you’re so serious over there. Why
don’t you take a break and join me? The countryside is
breath-taking.” Drew had been staring out the window for quite a
while. “I can never get enough of it. The landscape is so different
from back east. Everyone should experience this.”

Kate slid next to him. “Yes, it is so
beautiful.” She snuggled up next to him. “Drew, I was thinking, we
need to take your parents a gift...something for their home. What
would they want?”

“Well, we hold lots of lawn parties in the
summer and cocktail parties in cooler weather so Mother and Father
could always expand their Waterford crystal collection.”

“Wow, I can just imagine those parties, like
The
Great Gatsby
.” Kate thought dreamily of playing
croquet in the yard during one of those social gatherings, sipping
lemonade from a crystal glass. “Would we have time to shop before
we go to the house?”