Coming Home (14 page)

He decided that tomorrow he would make a visit to a certain
restaurant in hopes of seeing the very beautiful owner of said restaurant.

The next morning he found himself waiting in line at the
bakery counter of Nana's Bakery and Restaurant. When he got to the front of the
line he asked the clerk to see Ms. Johnson.

"She's not here," the girl behind the counter
told him. "But you can talk to the manager, though," she said
helpfully.

Craig nodded his head, feeling frustrated.
"Fine."

The girl stepped over to the door leading to the kitchen
and motioned for someone to come. Craig watched as Jean started coming through
the door then stopped as if to turn back when she spotted him. She looked
around then continued toward him with a smile pasted on her face. She crossed
her arms in front of her chest, "How can I help you?" She asked
gruffly.

“Hi Jean."

She just raised her eyebrows at him.

“Is Susan here?”

“Susan?” She asked with a nervous lick of her lips.

“Yes, do you know where she is?”

She looked around anxiously.

"You know where she is." He stated.

"Who?"

"Your boss, the owner of this restaurant, the woman
who is trying to avoid me, though I have no idea why."

"Me either." Jean said quietly.

"Excuse me?"

"She’s not here."

"Do you know when she'll be in?"

"Nope."

"Do you know where I can find her?"

"I don't know where she is," Jean said with a
little shake of her head.

Craig just looked at the woman in front of him wondering if
she were telling him the truth. "Someone has to know where she is, in case
of an emergency or something."

Jean stood to her full 5'5" height, "I am
perfectly capable of handling any and all emergencies."

Craig nodded, "Of course you are, but you must know
how to contact her."

"She trusts me," she said with more meaning than
just dealing with emergencies.

Craig nodded his head; he knew he wasn't going to get any
information out of this loyal employee. He wanted to growl in his annoyance.
"Okay," he said looking around and saw the waitress he remembered
from his first time here. He looked back at Jean with a smile, "Would it
be possible to get a table? I haven't eaten yet and I know from personal
experience that the food here is exceptional."

"Mmmm..mmmm.. You are a charmer, that's for
sure," Jean said with a smile as she started to walk toward the restaurant
area. After a quick consultation with the hostess she led Craig to a table.
"Here you go. Enjoy your breakfast."

"Thank you, Jean. Oh, Jean?" He asked as she
turned to walk away.

Jean turned back toward him, "Yes?"

"If you do talk to her, will you let her know that I'm
looking for her?"

She gave him a quick nod then turned and walked away. Craig
sighed, wondering what would make Susan avoid him like this, if indeed she was
avoiding him.

The waitress came up to take his order. Craig turned to
smile up at her and was pleasantly surprised to see that it was Cindy, the
waitress he had met his first time here. He looked to where Jean was
disappearing through the door to the kitchen, she turned toward him. When their
eyes met she winked at him. He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully and looked at Cindy.
"Hi, Cindy. How are you today?" He asked with a smile.

"I'm fine, thank you. How about yourself?"

 "I'm doing well. How does your boyfriend like his new
job?"

"He really likes it, how did you...? Oh, your Ms.
Johnson's friend -- the one who gave Sam the lead for the job."

Craig nodded his head, "I'm glad he likes it."

"I can't tell you how thankful we are, if there is
ever anything I can do for you, you just say the word."

Craig smiled, "I think there may be something, but
first I would like some of your wonderful coffee and one of your excellent
Omelet Supremes."

"You got it. I'll be right back."

Craig enjoyed the delicious breakfast; the only thing it
was lacking was Susan. He was almost finished when Cindy came back, "Is
there anything else I can get for you?" She asked as she refilled his
coffee.

"No thank you it was delicious as expected."

She smiled at him.

Craig cleared his throat, "There is something you can
do for me though. I'm trying to get in contact with Ms. Johnson, but I can't
get a hold of her, you don't happen to know where she is, do you?"

"Yeah, that's funny, Jean just mentioned something
about that in the break room. I guess she went to visit her parents in Newport
Beach for a couple of weeks."

"A couple of weeks, huh?" He asked as he blessed
Jean.

"Yeah, maybe cell phone coverage isn't very good up
there."

Craig nodded his head thinking it had less to do with the
coverage and more to do with the owner of the phone.

"Thank you, Cindy."

"No problem, you have a good day." She said
laying his bill on the table.

"Thank you, you too."

Craig took a sip of his steaming coffee.
Lord, should I
go up to Newport Beach? Or should I wait for her to come back?
He prayed
silently, not knowing which would be the better thing to do. He didn't even
know where her parents lived in Newport Beach. He set his coffee cup down,
plunked a generous tip on the table, paid his bill and hurried to his car. He
had somewhere to go.

Craig knocked on the door, and then knocked again.

"Coming, coming, hold your britches." He heard a
voice from the other side of the door.

The door finally opened and Craig gave a smile of relief to
the person standing in front of him.

"Craig, what a surprise."

"Good morning, Nana. How are you today?"

"Well, I'm that much better with you here. Come
in."

Craig followed her into the house and shut the door.

"What brings you here today?"

"Well, to be honest, I'm looking for Susan."

"Is she supposed to be here?"

"No, I believe she is in Newport beach."

He saw a look of surprise cross her face. "How did you
find that out?"

"Did you know she went there?"

"Well, she didn't tell me, but I figured, I mean
really, where else would she go?"

Craig shrugged. Then his brows pulled together in
confusion. "Why didn't she tell you where she was going?"

Nana shrugged, "I think she was afraid that I would
tell you."

Craig slumped down on the couch, the air knocked out of
him. "Why?" He asked.

"Why would I tell you? Probably because I like
you," she said with a twinkle in her eye.

Craig smiled, "I mean why doesn't she want me to know
where she is?"

"Oh, that. I can't tell you," she said and acted
like she was zipping her lips shut.

Craig smiled again in spite of himself. Nana had always
been a character. He nodded his head, "Okay, I won't ask you that again.
Can you tell me what her parents' address is?"

Nana clapped her hands together in excitement, "Are
you going to go after her?"

Craig smiled at her exuberance, but shrugged his shoulders,
"I'm not sure if I should."

"But you are thinking about it," she stated.

He nodded his head slowly, "Yes, I am thinking about
it. But..."

She looked at him expectantly, "But?"

"I'm not sure it is my place to go after her. I mean,
we aren't dating, we both agree we shouldn't."

"But you love her, don't you?"

Craig hesitated, not sure he should share such intimate
information with Nana.

"Of course you do. I knew you weren't dating that
little blonde woman." She looked at him questioningly, "Are
you?"

"No. Is that what Susan thought?"

"What?"

Craig looked at Nana wondering if she was just trying to be
difficult. "Does Susan think I'm dating someone else?"

"How should I know?" Nana asked as she walked
over to a desk and picked up a book.

Craig just watched her feeling like she knew more than she
was letting on, yet not knowing how to get her to tell him.

"You know, the best way to find out what someone is
thinking is to ask them point-blank 'what are you thinking?'" She said as
she walked back to her chair with the little book.

"It's kind of hard to ask her anything when I can't
even get a hold of her."

Nana smiled, "Playing hard to get is she?"

Craig shrugged, "I don't know if it is that, or if I
have offended her in some way."

"Oh, it's probably a little bit of both."

"You aren't making me feel any better, Nana."
Craig said with a shake of his head.

"Oh, is that why you came over here?"

He chuckled, "No."

She wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it to
him. "You will go see her?" She asked holding his hand in her grasp.

Craig realized she had just handed him the address where he
would find Susan and his heart sped up. "I'm not sure that is such a good
idea," he said hesitantly.

She looked down at their hands then back up at him,
"Can I tell you something?"

Craig nodded his head, "Yes."

"Women like to be pursued."

Craig looked at her blankly for a moment and then smiled.
"You really think I should go up there, even though we have both agreed
that we shouldn't date."

"Things change, people change, and God works in
mysterious ways. You want to talk to her. If she won't answer the phone, go to
her. Pursue her. Love conquers all," she said with a smile.

Craig nodded his head. "I will think about it, Nana. I
will definitely think about it," he said as he headed toward the door.

"She is wondering if you will come," she said
from behind him.

Craig stopped and turned toward her. "She told you
that?"

Nana chuckled, "Of course not, knuckle-head."

"Then how do you know?"

"She's a woman, son, that's how I know. She probably
wouldn't admit it to anyone that she is thinking about you, but I bet you a
nickel she is up there probably right at this moment wondering what she would
say and do if you knocked on the door right now."

"Does she want me to come?"

"You will have to figure that out on your own."

Craig shook his head, "I will never understand
women."

"That's probably a good thing," Nana said with a
chuckle.

Craig sat out in his car looking at the piece of paper with
the address written on it.

"Okay, Lord. I got what I came here for. Now
what?"

He sat in silence for a while waiting to get direction from
the Lord.

Susan turned the pages of the magazine she was holding
without really looking at them. Her mind was on a certain man that would not
leave her thoughts, no matter how hard she tried.

"Are you looking for something in particular, dear, or
just trying to see how fast you can turn the pages of that magazine?"

Susan looked blankly at her mom. “I’m sorry, what?"

"You seem a little preoccupied."

Susan set the magazine aside and folded her hands, “What
makes you say that?"

Her mom shrugged, "Oh, I don't know. Maybe the fact
that you have been walking around the house like a zombie for the past
week."

"It hasn't been a week already, has it?" Susan
asked looking at her watch as if that would tell her how long she had been at
her parents’ home.

"I said a week, not an hour, Honey. And yes you came
up here a week ago tomorrow." She patted Susan's knee, "Not that we
mind, of course, we love having you here. But what are you running away
from?"

"Nothing," Susan quickly denied.

"Must be a man."

"What must be a man?" Susan's dad asked as he
came into the living room where Susan and her mom were sitting.

"Nothing," mother and daughter said at the same
time.

"Humph," he said as he sat in his recliner and pushed
up the foot-rest. "Men get blamed for everything," he said as he
picked up the newspaper and began to read it.

"Probably because they are to blame," her mom
said with a smile.

"And women are perfect," he said dryly from
behind the paper.

"Well, like Mary Poppins we are practically perfect in
every way."

Susan could hear her dad chuckle behind the paper and she
smiled. She had always loved the way her parents interacted with each other.
She silently wondered if she would ever have a relationship like that and her
mind went directly back to Craig. She almost groaned out loud. "I think I
will go take a nap," she said as she stood up from the couch where she had
been lounging.

"Okay, dinner will be at five tonight," her mom
said a small worry line creasing her forehead.

Susan patted her shoulder, "Don't worry about me, mom.
I'll be fine."

"I know dear, but it is my job to worry."

Susan smiled as she headed toward the staircase with a sigh
and a heavy heart. If it had been a week already, then he wasn't going to come.
Not that she really expected him to, there was no reason for him to. It wasn't
like they were dating, he already had a girlfriend. She was halfway up the
stairs when the doorbell rang. She thought about letting her parents get it,
but the door was right at the bottom of the stairs so she turned around.
"I'll get it!" She called as she headed back down. It was probably
just a solicitor anyway. She swung open the door all prepared to tell the
person they didn't want candy or magazines or an oil change or whatever they
may be peddling but the words got stuck in her throat when she saw Craig
standing there with a sheepish smile on his face.

"Craig."

"Hi."

"What are you doing here?"

"I missed you on Tuesday."

"Tuesday?"

"Yeah, you know. Beach night."

"Who is it, Honey?" Her mom asked coming into the
foyer.

"A solicitor." Susan said without thinking.

Craig looked at her funny while her mom looked at Craig
appraisingly noticing that his arm was in a cast. "No he's not," she
said after a moment.

"Thank you," Craig said aiming a smile at Susan's
mom.

"Fine, he's a stalker," Susan said half
seriously. She had seen how many times he had tried to call her cell phone.

Craig looked at Susan in shock and her mom shook her head
again, "No he's not that either." She looked at Susan, "Are you
going to ask him in, dear?"

Craig looked at Susan expectantly.

Susan huffed a sigh, "Would you like to come in?"

"I thought you would never ask," he said with a
smile as he stepped into the house.

"You look familiar," Susan's mom said with a
finger to her chin.

Susan tried to remember if her parents had ever met Craig,
but she couldn't.

"I know where I've seen you before. I'll be right
back."

Susan and Craig watched her go toward the back of the house
then they looked at each other.

"Won’t your girlfriend think it strange that you drove
all the way up here just to tell me that you missed seeing me at the
beach?" Susan asked with her arms folded across her chest.

"If I had a girlfriend I think she would be a little
more upset than that," he said with a wry smile.

"If?" Susan asked getting hung up on that one
word.

"Yep, I knew I had seen you somewhere before,"
Susan's mom said as she came back to where they were still standing in front of
the door. She looked at them strangely. "Why are you still standing
here?" She looked at Susan, "Where are your manners? Invite him
in." She headed toward the living room still holding whatever she had gone
to the back of the house to find.

Susan rolled her eyes, "Would you like to come in and
sit down?"

"I would love to," he said as he followed Susan's
mom into the living room.

Susan followed Craig, her head spinning. She had hoped that
he would come, but now that he was here, she had no idea how to act toward him.
She was positive he had a girlfriend, but he had said "if." Did that
mean he broke up with her? How long had they been dating? She had been asking
these questions all week long and now it was all she could do to keep them from
blurting from her mouth.

"Mom, dad, this is..."

"Craig Ryder." Her mother finished for her.
"It is so nice to finally meet you in person."

Craig and Susan looked at each other in confusion.

"We have heard so much about you, or rather used to
hear so much about you. It must have been what, Honey, ten years?"

Her father had set down his paper and was rising from his
chair. "Oh, I can't remember what I had for breakfast, how am I supposed
to remember someone I have never met?"

He held out his hand to Craig, "Nice to meet you
Craig, I'm Jack and this is my wife Candy."

Craig shook hands with both of Susan's parents then looked
at Susan.

Susan made an effort to smile, this was incredibly weird.

"This is what I went in the back to get," Candy
said as she handed a picture frame to Craig.

Craig looked at the picture and felt the breath get caught
in his throat. It was a picture of him and Susan at a New Year's Eve party
right after he had proposed. He would never forget that evening. They looked so
happy in that picture. He sensed more than saw Susan look at the picture and
heard her sharp intake of breath. He glanced at her and was surprised to find
her face just mere inches from his. He felt his heart accelerate to high gear;
she was even more beautiful now than she had been then. There was something
different about her that he couldn't put his finger on. His eyes roamed over
her face then settled on her eyes which held a question that he couldn't
fathom.

"You two look so happy in that picture," Candy
said, breaking the moment. He watched as Susan moved away to sit on the couch.
He handed the picture back to Candy.