Read Just a Little Hope Online
Authors: Amy J. Norris
Just a Little Hope (5 page)
Tori sprinted up the stairs to Pax's apartment. Upon entering, she sat at the dining room table to thumb through the mail she'd picked up on her way into the complex. Tossing junk mail to the side, she gathered the important pieces into a pile to take to Pax the next day after work. Surely she should have heard from Carter by now. Tori slipped her cell phone out of her purse and checked for a new voicemail or text message. Nothing.
Sighing to herself, Tori kicked off her shoes. She padded barefoot down the hallway to the closet that served as the laundry room. Tori reached for the cat food Pax kept up on the shelf over the washer and heard the gentle meows of Pax's cats greeting her.
“Hey there, kitties. Are you hungry?”
She filled their bowl and changed out their water in the nearby bathroom sink. After checking her phone a second time, Tori plopped down on the floor next to the cats and rubbed their silky fur until soft purrs filled the room.
“You guys are lucky, you know it? You don't ever have to worry about dates or dinner or cute guys with enchanting blue eyes leaving rambling voicemails.”
The cats' only response was to continue purring.
“I think I have a case of texter's remorse. Can there be such a thing? What do you think, Ace? Was I too sassy in my response?”
The solid white feline curled onto her back and rubbed her head against Tori's hand.
“Of course I wasn't too sassy. I mean, I was just being me. And I'm not that sassy. Really. I'm not.”
Checking her phone a third time she double-checked she had the ringer on. Yep. And at full volume. Why hadn't he replied?
“Maybe I'm just a little bit too sassy for my own good.”
Tori continued her ministrations, occasionally mumbling under her breath to her two loyal listeners until the dinging of the cell phone caused her to jump. The two furry creatures skittered away in fright. “Sorry guys!” She called after them.
Her hands shook as she picked up her phone.
“So instead of dinner and a movie, you're thinking dinner and an ER visit? It would make for an interesting first date I guess.”
A grin slid over her face. Tori bit her lip and contemplated her response before punching the buttons on her phone.
“Well, since we met in a hospital parking lot, the ER might be apropos.”
She could barely contain her nerves as she waited on Carter's response. How did people in the olden days make it when all they had was the Pony Express to get the word out?
Laugher rippled through her when she read his response. He was clever, that one.
“Apropos? Your phone speaks in languages mine doesn't recognize.”
Tori's text shot back,
“Sorry. I didn't realize your phone wasn't bilingual.”
Tori scooted back across the carpeted hallway until she was leaning back against the wall. Straightening out her legs, she crossed her ankles, pink toes glistening in the waning sunlight shining through the windows of the open bedroom at the end of the hall.
“I'm not even sure this phone knows English. It's always auto-correcting my messages into gibberish. See. I had to hit backspace a bunch because it wanted to say “gibberisj”. What's gibberisj? Ewok speak?”
She snorted when she read his comment and typed her response.
“I think gibberisj came up because you've typed it so much it thinks it IS a word. Or perhaps your phone IS bilingual. If so, then may the force be with you.”
Ace and KC crept back down the hall and lightly stepped around her. She stroked each one as she waited for what had to be an entire minute before her text message notification sounded.
“I will never get the last word with you, will I?
J
How about this then? Let's forgo the text messaging for an actual face-to-face dinner tomorrow night. No ER visit afterwards (unless something unexpected happens at the restaurant). Although with you at the table, one might never know.”
“Well, he's a smarty pants, isn't he?” Tori spoke loud enough KC mewed in response. Her fingers quickly punched in the words to her next text, and she pushed send.
“Dinner sounds great. Text me a time and place tomorrow. Oh. I'll be sure and pack my bulletproof vest just in case.”
Tori hopped up off the floor and shoved her phone back in her purse on the table. Grabbing up the pile of mail, she grinned to herself.
“Yep. I always get the last word.”
****
Carter stared at his cell phone and shook his head. He couldn't decide which he liked more, Tori's adorable comebacks or the fact that she didn't back down from anything.
Rubbing his eyes, he took notice of his surroundings. The streetlights were coming on one-by-one as dusk encroached upon the late summer day. He glanced at the clock on the dash and realized he'd been sitting in the car texting Tori for the past fifteen minutes. Seb and Pax no doubt wondered what in the world he'd been doing in their driveway since he'd left them with the remains of the pizza they'd ordered for dinner.
Carter snickered to himself. Tori always seemed to have a ready reply to his teasing texts. He released a deep breath. Dating, or at least trying to date, was mentally exhausting.
Carter cranked the ignition in his car and pulled out of the driveway. He drove out of the neighborhood, admiring the houses and immaculate grounds lined up along the road. Carter didn't have a strong desire to be a multi-millionaire, but a nice neighborhood like Seb's sure tugged at him. He could picture himself with a wife and kids in a similar place. Sure, Carter drove a relatively nice car. He'd purchased it on a whim after he received his signing bonus. But beyond the car, he hadn't done much but try to put back as much as he could and make sure his folks were taken care of. His sister, she was another matter. But now, Carter found he'd actually begun thinking of a future for his family. And the image of a little girl with crazy, curly red hair running to him from the back yard calling, “Daddy,” came to mind.
Shaking his head to clear those ideas, Carter concentrated on the road ahead. Leaving the posh world behind, Carter headed back down the Interstate toward the bright lights of downtown St. Louis and his one-bedroom apartment not far from the ballpark. The drive to the city from the suburbs would take him a good thirty minutes. Times like this Carter found perfect opportunity for reflection and prayer.
Well, Lord. You always know what you're doing. You knew I'd need a friend and mentor in Seb. And somehow You knew I needed someone to keep me on my toesâ¦someone like Tori, maybe. I'm not sure where this thing is headed, but I know I'm having fun figuring it out. So thanks for always having my best interests in Your best interests. And help me to not screw things up.
“So, have you decided what ensemble you're putting together for tonight's big date?” Pax smoothed the wrinkles out of the blanket covering her legs as she reclined in the king-sized bed in Seb's master suite.
Tori, who was leaning against the headboard, seated on the bed next to her best friend, in disgust threw down the fork she was using to eat her lunch.
“Well, no. The goofball hasn't told me where we're going yet. All he did was text me this morning andâ”
She picked up her cell phone and scrolled through her text messages until she came to his. â
I'll pick you up at your office at 5 p.m. Let me know if it won't work for your schedule.'
I mean, what does this tell me? Wear what I have on? Do I need to run out and get some sweats and a T-shirt because we're gonna hit the gym? Details, boy, I need details.”
“Did you ask him for details? You know you have to kinda lead men to get them where you want them to go.”
Tori rolled her eyes. “Well, I was hoping to give him the benefit of the doubt on this one. Surely, he should know most girls can't stand not having plans explained to them.”
Pax snorted in reply. “You mean he knows you are high-maintenance?”
Tori snapped her head toward Pax in mock anger. “Listen, girlie. The only reason I'm not whopping you upside the head is because you've been beat up enough by doctors and nurses and whoever was driving the other car. I'm not high-maintenance. I'm just detail-oriented.”
“Oh, is that what they are calling it now? Tori, the guy is interested in you, but he's also trying to throw you off your game a little bit. I think he's trying to have a little fun.”
“Fun? Fun for whom? Not me. Tell me we're going out, but don't tell me where we're going so I can plan appropriate attire. That is about as far from fun as you can get.”
Tori picked up her fork and stabbed at the lettuce. Her phone dinged just as she put her fork to her mouth.
Grabbing her cell from the bedside table, she then frowned when she read the text. “Hmm. Well, if he's trying to give me more information, this doesn't help.”
“What's he say now?”
“Hope you're interested in something off the beaten path for dinner.”
She handed the phone to her friend. “How do you interpret this? Do I need hiking boots?”
Pax laughed. “I don't think I would take it that way. Write him back, and tell him you can handle whatever he's got planned. Act like this doesn't bother you a bit. It'll confuse the stew out of him.”
“You think so, huh? Alrighty then.”
Tori took the phone back and proceeded to tap out her response. “There. We'll see if this little ditty warrants a reply.”
“I'm almost afraid to ask. What did you say?”
“What you said, in a way. Here, read it for yourself.”
She handed the phone to her friend and went back to attacking her salad, albeit a little less furiously this time.
Pax read the message and returned the phone to her. “Well, it will certainly give him something to think about.”
****
Carter opened the text message.
“Off the beaten path sounds fine. Why not? I mean, who needs a normal everyday restaurant when we can forage in the forest with the rabbits and squirrels? I'll be sure and wear my best poncho and rain boots in case the weather stinks. :P”
Carter choked on the water he'd just swallowed and coughed several times to clear his throat. After several deep breaths, he read her text again. “I should take her out into the forest just to spite!” She never ceased to amaze him. That's for sure. He quickly typed out a reply and hit send.
“Save your poncho for next time. For tonight, keep your heels on. See ya' at 5 p.m.”
That might get her to thinking.
Carter hopped out of the recliner and headed back to the bedroom. He was tired but exhilarated all at the same time. His long run outside a few minutes earlier had been just what he needed to get his mind focused on the next few games of their upcoming road trip. His swing had been off as of late. As his feet pounded the pavement, he worked through the last few at-bats he'd taken, trying to figure out what he was doing wrong.
Of course, his mind strayed to dinner tonight, too. Carter knew exactly where he wanted to take Tori. Sure, part of him secretly wanted to see how she would react if he took to her something like a tractor pull. But, if he wanted to make a good impression, a nicer restaurant might be the best bet for their first date.
He started to turn the water on in the shower when he heard the trill of his cell phone ringing. Shutting the shower door, he then wiped his damp hands on the nearby towel. Carter grabbed the phone off the bedside table where he'd placed it minutes earlier. The face staring back at him caused him to grimace for a brief moment. He sighed.
“What do you need, Dani?”
“Is that anyway to greet your sister?”
Carter rubbed his forehead before answering. “Hi, Dani. How are you? What do you need?”
“You hurt me, Carter. Really you do.”
“Yeah, well. Mom said you got in a little trouble last week.”
Dani's sigh echoed through the phone. “Mom overreacts. I just went out with friends and had a bit of car trouble.”
“That's it? Car trouble at two in the morning equals you goofing off with your friends and hitting a parked car. Were you drinking?”
“Carter, just mind your own business, will you?”
Her deflected answer told him all he needed to know. “Sis, I don't know how much more Mom and Dad are going to put up with. You gotta get your head screwed on right. You hear me?”
“Well, we can't all be the perfect child like you, Carter. Some of us don't have fancy cars and big sports contracts. We're just regular people. But you've never been regular in your life, have you, Carter?”
Carter dropped his head and took a deep breath. Their conversations always ended the same.
“Listen, I can't help what happened to me as a child, but I can help what I do as an adult. I've worked hard for everything. You know that. You can have the same success, Danielle. I know you can.”
“Whatever, Carter. Anyway, I may need to borrow a few bucks to get the car fixed. You think you can spare some?”
“I don't know. Aren't you working and bringing in a paycheck?”
“I am working, but Java Joe's coffee shop doesn't exactly have me rolling in the dough, you know? I'll pay you back. I just need a couple of hundred bucks to get me over the hump. Come on, CJ, please?”
Carter closed his eyes. Telling Dani no was never easy, especially because he knew deep down the Dani he really loved was in there. She was hidden behind years of jealousy and frustration. But right now, he didn't recognize his sister. And using her old nickname for him, she knew what she was doing.
“I don't think so. You're going to have to take care of this problem yourself.”
“Thanks for nothing, brother.”
The click of her ending the call reverberated in his ear.