Love's Embers (Canon City Series) (6 page)

Chapter Nine

Charlie got the fire blazing and heard his microwave turn on. He must have been outside when Lark came back. He stood up and went into the kitchen. She was at the counter putting spoonfuls of powder into his two cups. She’d taken her coat off and wore a fuzzy, soft looking sweater and tight straight-legged jeans. Her blonde hair caught the light from the stove top and seemed to glow. He liked the view and felt his blood start to warm. She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled.

“Lou, I don’t know if this sounds crude, but you have a great ass,” he said and smiled.

“Thanks for the compliment.” She left a spoon in one of the cups and walked over to her coat, which hung on the back door knob. She pulled something out of a pocket and flipped it to him.

He caught the yellow, rubber duck and was surprised. “Hey, where did this come from?”

“I was on a walk to somewhere one day when your mom still lived here. It was garbage day and her cans were on the curb, loaded with a ton of stuff. I saw Mr. Ducky on one of the piles and had to grab it.” She turned back to the microwave as the ringer went off.

“You’ve turned into a garbage picker?” He grinned and looked at one of the few things, besides Lark, his horse and his bike, that ever meant anything to him. It was given to him as a birthday present when he turned five.

“Yeah, it’s like those guys on the History Channel say. You never know when you’ll find gold.” She turned and carried two steaming cups.

His brows creased. “You’re not really picking garbage cans?”

She handed him a cup. “No, that was my one and only time.” She smiled.

“It’s warmer in the living room. Let’s go out there. I should have heat and water in the kitchen on Monday. I have field mice living in the air-ducts and once they’re cleaned out I’ll be able to turn on the furnace. Until then, it’s like camping in here. I don’t want mice poop flying through the air. The furnace guy started to ramble about twenty-six letter diseases I could get. It gave me the willies.”

“I guess, it’s probably a good idea not to turn it on then,” she said.

They walked back to the living room and she moved the chair to face the fire and sat. She took off her boots and put her socked feet up on the hearth. Breaker was stretched out on the sleeping bag.

“So, tell me about your pup. Where did you find him?” she asked and took a sip from her cup.

Charlie sat back down on the hearth and stretched out his long legs. “He sort of found me. I was at a rest area in Montana, just taking a break. I heard something whine outside the truck and when I looked there was this little scrawny puppy dancing around. I thought he might have rabies, but now I know he was just trying to get my attention.” He looked down at Breaker, whose tail started to wag. “I named him Breaker, because I was on a break. It wasn’t until I took him to a vet for shots and to get him neutered, that I found out he’s a gray wolf. We’ve been partners ever since.”

“He’s beautiful and seems very attached to you.”

“Yeah, I’ll have to put Mr. Ducky up, so he can’t get it. Breaker would tear the thing to pieces.” He looked at the rubber duck again and squeezed it. He stood up and put it on the mantel next to the stack of letters.

“I noticed the letters before...” Lark started and he saw her blue eyes look up at him. “I brought your letter over. Maybe we could have a sacrificial burning.”

He put his hands on them and smiled at her. “I don’t have much and the things I do have are precious to me. There is no way I will ever throw them in the trash or burn them.” He sat down on the end of the hearth and stretched his legs out, again.

“I saved your letter. It was the only one I ever received. I tried to read between the lines to figure out what I’d done wrong, but I couldn’t ever figure it out.” Lark arched her eyebrow and looked at her cup.

He sipped his cocoa and smiled. “You know, I searched high and low over the years for a cup of hot chocolate that could match Gran’s. I never found it. I travelled in all parts of the country and never found anything as good as this.” He sipped again. “It’s missing the little marshmallows though.”

“Gran mixes the powder in her secret kitchen and it’s packaged down at my warehouse. I’ve been selling it online for a couple of years. It’s one of our best sells. Sorry about the marshmallows. I forgot them.”

“I tasted a really strange mix once down in New Mexico. It had one of those hot peppers mixed into it and was spicy, but just not what I remembered. Do you know what the secret ingredient is?”

“No. Gran says its love, but since I’m not eight years old anymore, I’m pretty sure it’s one of her favorite spices.”

They sipped the cocoa and he watched Lark look at the flames jump in the fireplace. “You know, I have some anger demons that I work really hard to keep buttoned up. They rear their ugly faces every now and then, but I learned some techniques to help quash them. They started to surface earlier and I am really sorry if I scared you.”

“It wasn’t you, Ducky. You have no reason to be sorry. Do you remember the time we built the catapult on the beach and that jerk, Bobbie Reynolds and his pals showed up and mouthed off?” Lark asked. He nodded. “Was that one of the times the anger demons appeared?”

“Yep, they’ve been with me a long time. My dad really kicked my butt when Bobbie’s dad came over and tried to get my dad to pay for the medical bills.” He grimaced and looked at Lark. “I guess I broke Bobbie’s nose. You know, I hate to admit this, but there are times when the anger is a good thing to have around. Like everywhere else in the world, there are some pretty mean drivers out on the roads and there were times I felt thankful for those demons.”

“Yeah, well Bobbie deserved worse and I felt proud that you were able to pull away from him without going overboard. He’s still here in Canon City and is a jerk. There’s a rumor about him dealing drugs, but I think he started it to pump up his weird ego. I heard Jamie moved down to Texas and became a cop or something like it. Dexter owns a bar up on I-25.” She gazed back at the flames. “Sorry, I shouldn’t waste time giving you their histories.”

“Lou, I’m sorry about that letter. Once I got my head straightened out with the therapist, I realized it was one of the dumbest things I’d ever done. I started millions of letters to you the last six months in juvie to try and apologize, but just couldn’t get the right words down.” He looked at her and wanted to touch her face and kiss her lips. “Every now and then over the years, I’d pull your letters out and re-read them. I still kick myself for being such an idiot. It’s my fault we lost all those years.”

“We were always able to talk about things, Charlie. I wish we’d been able to just talk then.” She set her cup on the hearth and folded her hands in her lap. “I never meant for my letters to torment you. I thought it would help keep you connected to us if you knew what was going on here and that we were thinking about you. It wasn’t supposed to hurt you.”

“I know. Since I can’t go back in time and change my reaction, hopefully, now we can at least become friends again. I missed that the most.” He put his hand on her foot and gave it a squeeze. He wanted so much more from her, but would have to accept friendship. “So, tell me about this loser you’re planning to marry. Is he good to you?”

“Thomas isn’t a loser, and, yes, he’s good to me,” she said and had a pinched look on her face. For some reason Charlie felt she was lying to him, but let it go and thought she didn’t want to discuss her relationship.

“How long have you been together?”

“About five years. He asked me to marry him two years ago on New Year’s Eve. That’s why we decided to have the ceremony this New Year’s Eve. It’s just a few weeks from now. I don’t know why I thought it would be a good idea. We’ve been pretty busy at work. He’ll be here in a couple of weeks for the dance.”

“What dance? Please, not another prom?”

“No. It’s the Methodist Church Christmas festival. A few years ago they moved it from the basement of the church to the community center. Now, the whole town gets involved. Gran, Mrs. Bickens and Mrs. Hager, Jay’s mom, have baking wars every year. It can be fun.”

They went silent for a few minutes and Charlie began to feel a little uncomfortable. “Why did you wait so long to finally decide on a date for the wedding?”

“The time was never right.” She laughed. “One thing after another kept getting in the way - his work, my work. I’m determined this year will go smoothly.”

Charlie saw her look down at her hands and frown. “Lou, you don’t sound very excited about it. You sound like you’re trying to convince yourself it’s going to go smooth.” He moved his hand up to her ankle.

“We still have one issue to work out. He wants me to move to Denver, but...” She looked up at him with her beautiful blue eyes.

“But?”

“I don’t want to be so far away from Gran and I can’t move the warehouse up there. I have fifteen employees who need the jobs. They have got children in school and homes. They count on me and Nancy, and wouldn’t be able to follow if I moved everything north.”

“That sounds like two very good reasons not to move to Denver.” He couldn’t stop staring at her. “I’m sure you’ll get it worked out.”

Lark nodded and looked at the fire. The reflection from the flames bounced on her face and hair. Charlie’s heart began to pound. “I only wish one thing.” He saw her eyebrows go up and she tilted her head. “We never got to have our date the day after the picnic. We were going to walk down the river bank and watch the rafters take off.”

She smiled. “I remember and we were going to work on our kissing technique.”

“Do you remember the card game that went on and on, until I won?”

“Yeah, and excuse me, you didn’t win, I did. I was the War champ. Lord, I thought we’d be out in that field all night trying to get that game finished.” She shook her head. “Do you want some more cocoa?”

Charlie heard what she asked, but couldn’t answer. He put his cup aside and slid from the hearth down onto his knees. He moved toward her and wedged himself between her legs. He pulled her slightly forward and hugged her, putting his head on her shoulder. He felt her hands move to his back and touch his hair.

“God, I’ve missed talking to you so much,” he mumbled. “Last week, before I saw you, I was so scared. I’d never admit that to anyone but you. After that first dinner, I went from being scared to really sad. I didn’t think you’d ever forgive me and wondered why I’d bothered coming back to Canon City. I could have easily gotten an apartment in Fort Collins.” He moved back, rested on his feet and left his hands on her thighs. “Lark, I...we...”

She put her finger over his lips. “Ducky, don’t hyperventilate.” She looked at him and leaned toward him putting her lips on his.

Charlie moved one of his hands up to her face and put the other around her back. Her tongue tenderly caressed his lips and it made him want her more than he ever thought he would, but she broke the kiss and moved her head back. He opened his eyes and saw the confused look on her face. She didn’t take her hands off of his shoulders. They were both breathing hard.

“Ducky, I have a few things to work out here. The one thing I do have to say though is that our kisses have gotten a lot better than our first one, so many years ago. Although, that first kiss did stick with me for a long time. Have you been practicing?”

He rested back on his heels again and moved his hands down to her waist. “I’ve been with a few women in the last thirteen years and they were all one-night stands. No one could ever be you.”

She smiled and put her hand on his cheek. “I better get out of here. We both need to get some sleep. Thank you for your honesty.”

Charlie pushed himself up and helped her stand. “Do you want me to walk you home?”

“No, I think I can find my way.”  She stopped mid-way through the living room and looked up at him. “I’ll leave the cocoa powder I brought. Just put two scoops in the cup with milk. It only takes about two and a half minutes to warm it up.”

Chapter Ten

Although Lark felt exhausted when she got home, she found it hard to get to sleep that night. She lay in her warm bed and stared up at the ceiling. Charlie turned into a really good kisser and she found it difficult to think about anything else.

As the sun started to come up, she felt herself start to drift off. The next time she was alert, she looked at her clock and it was just before noon.

She put on her sweats and slippers and made her way down to the kitchen. Gran sat at the table with a pile of papers and her checkbook.

“I was wondering when you’d get up. I heard you stomp in here pretty late last night. What was going on?”

“I wanted to get the air cleared with Charlie or I was never going to sleep right again.” Lark poured a cup of coffee and sat at the table.

“Did you two get things worked out?”

“Yep, I think we did.” Lark brought her leg up and rested her chin on her knee. “We talked about some old hurts.”

“Good, I didn’t like the way you acted at dinner the other night. Poor Charlie seemed so uncomfortable, but tried to make the best of it,” Gran said and looked over the top of her glasses at Lark and then went back to her bills. “Did he explain what happened and why he turned us away?”

Lark adjusted herself in her seat and wondered how much she should tell Gran about the last thirteen years. “I wrote letters to him when he was in detention. I’d tell him all about what I was doing at school and the creative stuff you and I would work on. I wrote to him about going to prom with Zack Strom and he received it on a really bad day. He never said that it bugged him”- she didn’t want to give Gran a bad impression of Charlie - “but I guess he got jealous that I was living and he wasn’t. His mother visited him and said some very hurtful things to him the same day the prom letter arrived. I never realized that his mom treated him so bad. I always thought it was just his dad. Anyway, one thing led to another, and when he got out he didn’t feel like he could come back and fit in.” She shook her head.

“Charlie’s mom was the classic abused woman. I saw her once with a black eye and asked what happened. She gave the usual
I bumped into something
response. When I’d talk to her about Charlie it was obvious she didn’t care one way or another about what happened to him. It broke my heart for him. Charlie has such a big heart and he deserved so much better. It’s a miracle he turned out to be a decent man. You know, I thought about reporting his parents to children’s services, but he begged me not to say anything.”

“Yeah, he told me about that. He was afraid he’d never see us again.” Lark sipped her coffee and silently agreed with her grandmother. “What are you working on?”

“I’m just paying some bills. Do you want lunch?”

“No. I’m going to drink too much coffee and then head over to the warehouse.”

“It’s Saturday, Lark. I think you need a day off,” Gran said.

“Thank you. I’ll get time off after Christmas. We’re too busy right now.”

“When are you going to go for your dress fitting?”

Lark nearly choked on her coffee. “Oh Lord, I completely forgot about that. I haven’t had time to even think about getting back up to Denver this year. I don’t know what I’m going to do about that.”

Gran put her pen down and moved her hand to Lark’s arm. “Sweetheart, the wedding is in three weeks. Are you sure Thomas is the one?”

Lark froze for a moment and remembered the kiss with Charlie last night. She shook her head. “Yes, Gran, I’m sure. I’ll talk to Nancy. I’m sure she’ll have a suggestion or know someone who could alter the dress. I’ll arrange to have it sent down from that shop in Denver.”

****

Charlie woke up and felt better than he had in a very long time. He strolled out to the kitchen and saw the can of hot chocolate powder. He grinned and thought it felt good to smile for a change. He followed Lark’s instructions to mix the cocoa and while it warmed in the microwave, he fed Breaker.

It was a slightly overcast day, but there wasn’t any breeze to chill the air. The trees stood stock still. He decided it would be a good day to try and get some work done outside. He wanted to get under the house and see if there were any animals living or dead down there. The furnace man hadn’t seen anything but the holes in the air ducts. He also wanted to see if the shed behind the house was still standing or if it rotted away to nothing. 

He and Lark spent a lot of weekends weaving tales in that shed. They even imagined pirates invading Canon City once. It was also his injured animal hospital. When his dad found out what the kids were using the shed for, he’d whipped Charlie with his belt. Charlie still heard the snap and some nights could feel the stings.

Charlie put on his gloves and opened the back door stepping into the breezeway between the house and garage. He hadn’t gotten the chance to look at what condition it was in and figured there would be varmints living out there and probably mountains of spider webs. He put his shoulder to the garage door and pushed to get it open. When he entered, he hoped to find a broom, but was surprised. Whoever lived in the house last, left behind furniture, a barbeque, hoses and a large number of boxes stacked around the room. The garage was loaded wall to wall.

“Holy crap,” he mumbled. He walked towards the double doors and slid them up to get some light. He wondered why the real-estate agent hadn’t mentioned any of this stuff. Laughing at himself, he thought,
Why didn’t I check out here when I bought the place?
He would have to call the garbage collectors and find out if they’d pick some of it up if he left it on the road. He stopped and thought,
I need to get a phone
.

He pulled things around and went through some of the boxes. There was a couch that was home to several families of field mice and a couple of leisure chairs with more families living in the cushions. He did find a small square dining room table and four chairs he could use, a glass fronted bookshelf unit and two boxes with plates and bowls. Now all he needed was silverware and he’d be set.

He cleaned off the table and chairs and carried them into the kitchen. He took the shelving unit into the living room. He planned to put the plates up in the cupboards, but decided to wait until the water was hooked up in the kitchen. He should probably clean them up before he used them. He stacked the boxes along the wall. He went through more of the boxes and found some pots and pans. He started to laugh and looked at Breaker.

“I guess I’ll have to learn how to cook,” he said to the wolf and ruffled his neck.

Breaker woofed at him and followed him back and forth into the house. He was about to stop and fix himself a peanut butter sandwich, when a Jeep pulled into the driveway.

Charlie walked to the front of the garage and watched Jay Hager unfold himself from the Jeep. Charlie couldn’t believe his eyes and started to laugh. “Where the hell did you come from?”

“Me? Where the hell have you been?” Jay walked up to him and grabbed Charlie’s hand. “It’s been too long, man.”

They shook hands and Jay slapped him on the shoulder. Charlie shook his head. “I can’t believe I’m actually looking you in the eye. You were always way taller than me.”

“It looks like you took your grow vitamins like a good boy.” Jay laughed and patted him on the head. “I saw Lark at the rink last weekend and she said you were back. I was in the neighborhood and thought I’d drop in for a little visit.”

“Rink?”

“Yeah, I own the rink now.”

“That decrepit old place? I thought you were going to be a big NHL star?” Charlie took off his gloves and leaned against the garage door rail.

“Yeah, that was the plan. I got hit really bad in the juniors and busted my knee and leg to pieces. I couldn’t pass the physical after that and put my energies elsewhere. The rink is no longer that decrepit old building. We’ve remodeled and business is pretty good. Do you have any kids that need skating lessons?”

“No, no kids.”

“Well, every Saturday night we have a broom ball match. The kids play first and then the adults get out there and tear up the ice. I expect to see you there.” Jay arched his eyebrow and

stared at Charlie.

“That sounds like fun. I’ll mark my calendar as soon as I get this place up to snuff.”

“I was a little surprised that you bought this house. Are you trying to make yourself nuts?”

Charlie looked at his old friend and laughed. He explained to Jay about his reasons for coming back and they spent about an hour getting caught up. Jay filled him in on all the local gossip about the jerks from their school days and Charlie told about his journeys across America. They agreed to get together soon for dinner and then Jay took off.

Charlie turned around and looked into the garage. One side was cleared and swept. He did find a broom. The other side had pieces of furniture that would have to go to the dump. Since he spent most of the morning in the garage and it was after two o’clock, he put off going under the house. The furnace people would blow out the air ducts on Monday and he could wait until spring to go below.

He walked up to the shed and pulled the door open. The building shook a little and he could tell there was a lot of mold.

“Charlie, are you around her somewhere?” he heard Gran’s voice call from the breezeway.

“I’m here, Gran.” He turned and moved to the back of the house.

Breaker ran to the end of the walkway and wagged his tail with wild abandon. Gran appeared and bent over the wolf, scratching his neck and back. The pup was in heaven and seemed to be smiling. He rubbed up against Gran’s legs making a strange squeaking noise.

“I saw you out front working your butt off. I didn’t realize the garage was such a mess. Was that Jay Hager I saw pull up in the Jeep?” she asked and walked up to him.

“Can’t get anything past you, can I, Gran? Yeah, I guess Lark told him I as back. It was good to get caught up with him.” He smiled. “Hey, I have a question. How many years has it been since someone lived here?” he asked.

“I guess that family left about four or five years ago. He worked over at the prison, but got laid off at some point. They stayed as long as they could, but eventually just packed up and left.”

“They left a ton of stuff behind. It’s really crazy. I have almost a complete kitchen set up. I just need to get a toaster and some glasses and silverware. Although, I haven’t gone through all the boxes, I may still find those things.” He laughed. “It’s sad to think they just left it all behind. I don’t get it.”

“Well, they had three kids. Sometimes it’s too expensive to move furniture and everything else. I remember they had a U-haul trailer. It was probably just the beds and personal stuff.” She looked around the back yard and then at the shed. “Is there more in there?” She pointed.

“I don’t know. I was just going in, when you called. Want to see if there are any more families of field mice in there?” He grinned at her.

“You bet,” she answered.

They went to the door and looked. It was dark in the shed, but Charlie had his flashlight in his pocket. He turned it on and pointed it in. It was full of gardening equipment, more hoses, a lawn mower and outdoor furniture.

“You know, when I bought this place, I thought I’d have to spend a lot of money on this kind of equipment.” He shook his head. “I think all I’ll need is bedroom furniture and a couch.”

“I saw a couch in the garage. Can’t you use it?” Gran asked and backed away from the door.

“Ah, no. There a couple of families of critters living in it and I’d have to evict them. If you pull up the cushions there’s not a much underneath except springs.” He looked at Gran and grimaced. “It smells pretty nasty, too.”

“Well, why don’t you get finished and clean up. Then bring Mr. Breaker and yourself over for dinner. I’m making meatloaf and mashed potatoes. It will be a ready in about two hours. Lark should be back from the warehouse by then.”

“Gran, you’re going to spoil me rotten. I’ll agree if you and Lark will let me take you out for dinner tomorrow?”

“I don’t see any problem with that, but I’ll have to check with Lark.”