Steady (32 page)

After leaving Will of the talented fingers and enigmatic expression behind, she hadn’t known what to do with what had just happened. She needed time to replay and process, replay and process, her mind twisted, no idea what she wanted to do next. Her body wouldn’t settle down or lie still, either, so she quit trying at about 4 a.m., deciding she needed some godfather time.

“Colburn,” she called out, hearing sounds coming from the kitchen. She walked through the living room and into the kitchen to find Uncle C pouring coffee into two mugs while the television sat on the counter, blaring out the morning news.

“Hey, Uncle C,” she said. He turned at the sound of his name, giving her a smile, welcome and love in his eyes. She almost started crying again.

“Well, how is my favorite goddaughter this morning?” he said, his smile growing in size.

She so needed this. “I’m your only goddaughter,” she shot back, thinking she would never ever grow tired of hearing his affirmation of her place in their lives.

“You’re up early,” he said, standing next to the coffeemaker at the counter near the sink.

“I couldn’t sleep, thought I’d come over to help around here,” she said.

“That boyfriend of yours giving you trouble?” he asked, taking a sip of his coffee, his eyes roaming her face.

She walked over and opened the cabinet, took out a mug, and walked to stand next to him. He reached for the pot and poured some into her cup. She turned and opened the refrigerator, searching for the creamer that she purchased and kept in stock here to cut the mud that passed for coffee in this house. The godfathers would never dream of drinking anything that wasn’t absolutely black in color.

“No boyfriend, just wanted to see you and Colburn,” she said.

“Yesterday pass okay for you?” he asked, taking a sip of his coffee. She turned her eyes to him.

“Yes,” she said, leaning her head onto his chest.

“It’ll be okay, Kat,” he said, his arm going over her shoulder.

“I know,” she said, lifting her head. “You guys had breakfast yet?” she asked, stepping away.

“Nope, but feel free to cook,” C said, and she laughed.

She sat her coffee down and pulled out the ingredients for breakfast. She put a couple of slices of bread into their toaster. “Do you two want bacon this morning?” she asked.

“Of course we do. And not that turkey bacon stuff,” Colburn said, walking into the kitchen and kissing her cheek.

Katrina walked over to the refrigerator, grabbing turkey bacon and eggs, ignoring Colburn, and placing them on the counter. She found the skillet and arranged the bacon in it. She put six eggs in a bowl and began to scramble them. Colburn and C took their coffee and sat at the table, watching her and exchanging looks.

“So how is that boyfriend of yours?” Colburn asked.

“He’s not my boyfriend, but if you’re referring to Will, he’s fine. We have done quite a bit of work on the garden. I’m impressed with him; he works really hard, and is more knowledgeable than I had given him credit for,” she said.

“Katrina’s boyfriend is a hard worker,” Charles said.

“He seemed pretty tough to me. He didn’t let you intimidate him or push him out of the competition,” Colburn said. She opened another cabinet and took out plates and silverware and set the table. She walked back to the stove and picked up a fork.

“You two must think me tougher than I am; trust me, I’m not that tough,” she said as she removed the bacon from the stove and cooked the eggs.

Colburn and Charles sat at the table, waiting for her to finish. She removed the last of the toast, placed it on a plate next to the bacon, and put it on the table. She stirred the eggs once, then scooped them into a bowl, and put them on the table. She led the way with grace; she kept it short and sweet so she didn’t lose her audience.

“You know, I’ve been thinking,” she said.

“That could be trouble,” Colburn said, interrupting and giving her a wink.

“I’ve been giving some thought to a career change. I could start out small, maybe take on some small landscaping jobs. I’ve done it for free in the past. Maybe after the competition I could take on small paying jobs build up a business the way you two have. You’ve always encouraged me to start getting paid for what I do. I’m sure you’ll be happy that I’m finally coming around,” she finished, finally looking at them.

Two serious faces studied her.

“You were right the other day, C. I used to want more for my life. I think it’s about time I started owning it more. I didn’t use all the money after Mom and Dad died; I put most of it in savings. That could be my seed money, plus I could sell my home and take an apartment until I get it going.

“I have enough to live on for a while until I can find another job. I mean, I like my job, it’s okay, but I think I would like to try something different, try going out on a limb, test myself,” she said. She watched as Colburn looked at Charles, and then turned back to her.

“Katrina,” C said, “we promised your parents to always look after you if something happened to them, and we have. Colburn and I have thought about this long and hard. We don’t have any heirs by blood, and as you are our only heir, we are giving you the business. We made the changes to our wills about two years ago. We were waiting for the right time to tell you. This seems like it to me.”

“That’s right, you can quit any time you wish, start a business, fail, start another one. Or you can come and work here with us. I know you can’t tell it by looking at us, but we are getting old. Can’t get around like we used to,” Charles continued.

“Speak for yourself. We had even thought one day of starting a landscaping branch of the business, but with what we have here, we didn’t have the time. You could start it for us. You would be good at it, too. Look what you’ve done to the competition each year, and we would be here to guide you,” Colburn said.

“I don’t know what to say,” she said, her eyes moving between them, tearing up.

“You’ve got gardening in your blood, just like your family, and we are your family. Until we’re gone, we will always be here to look after you,” Charles said, watching her tears fall in earnest now.

“Hey there, don’t cry. You know I dislike crying women,” Colburn said, reaching over and taking her hand in his, his actions belying his words.

“Thank you,” she said, smiling through her tears. “I’m too old for anyone to look after.”

“No, you are not, and that’s the end of that,” Colburn said. She left the table for a minute to compose herself and splashed some water on her face. They finished breakfast when she returned without further comment on that subject.

The godfathers knew she needed time to process their suggestion. They hoped she would agree. They ate breakfast discussing the business and the upcoming garden competition. After breakfast they left to start working, and she stayed behind to clean up the kitchen.

They really loved her, and sometimes, even with the adoption, it was hard for her to understand unconditional love. That was why she pushed back so, testing others so much. Why she hid herself, too. Up until she was ten, love had never been unconditional, and that had been the hardest part for her to overcome. Most times she didn’t feel she’d ever learn to accept love, to believe in it. She knew it intellectually, had seen it from her parents, but for some reason it had not sunk into her soul. It had always been easier to wait for the other shoe to drop than to trust that people would be there for her and wouldn’t desert her.

What a gracious gift the godfathers had given her, even if she didn’t take them up on it. They’d shown her what she meant to them. It was a gift beyond measure. She stood at the sink, her tears finding their familiar route down her face, and she gave herself over to the comfort of having someone love her as much as her parents had.

She spent the remainder of the day working at Abernathy and Co. There was always more than enough work to go around. She started out back, running the backhoe, loading up dirt and compost into trucks, large and small. A customer would pull up along a road, park, and hand over their slip, which listed the type of dirt or fertilizer or compost they wanted. She’d take her backhoe and scoop the correct amount and drop it into their trucks.

While she worked, her thoughts turned to Will. She didn’t know what to do about him, especially in light of yesterday. He was silently and patiently working at overcoming her defenses, not pushing but not allowing her to run, either. He never said a word to her about it, but he called and sought her out constantly now. He was someone she could talk with. She liked him very much. Liked his energy, the way he took on challenges. They’d become friends. She’d shared more about herself with him, more than she’d ever shared with a potential romantic interest. Could this be more for her?

She hadn’t had much luck with guys, but it was mostly her own fault because of her ingrained defensiveness. So should she or shouldn’t she try with Will?

She later helped customers in the shop, sitting next to her Uncle C, a perfect ending to a perfect day. The ability to do something she loved every day appealed to her strongly, so she promised herself she would start making plans to take her life in a new direction.

October

The first Saturday in October found Katrina back at the garden bright and early, standing in the potting shed over the main table. The volunteers were scheduled to arrive at nine today, and she stopped by the local taco stand and picked up a bucket filled to the brim with tacos, a few juices, and some coffee. She was not above bribery, especially as the weeks of work had worn on. She swiped some fruit from the vegetable stand and added it to the array of other food items. She surveyed her buffet, pleased with the bounty.

She wanted to make sure everything was in order, always cognizant of her volunteers’ time; just ‘cause it was free didn’t mean they could waste it. Arriving before Will wasn’t easy. He was always around, always early, had taken this competition business seriously. Her focus tended to slip away when he presented himself in front of her.

She’d kept her mind from replaying too much of what had transpired between them. It had the power to push her over to his door, begging for more, and she wasn’t sure that’s where she needed to be. However, her doubts were slowly disappearing. Will the consistent was wreaking havoc on her fears, pushing them aside. He’d become a good friend. She spent an inordinate amount of her time thinking about him. She was coming to believe that he would be worth it.

Since the food was ready, she found her backpack and dug through it for a copy of the plans. She took them with her and walked out toward the flower section. It was always good to check up, make sure they stayed on schedule. She was pleased with the progress they’d made; they were well on schedule. She hoped to have all of the water features up and running by month’s end. Next month was the restructuring of the pavilion to Will’s Eastern theme, and they needed to enclose his stone garden.

She would order the rocks for the garden this week for delivery next Saturday. She saw some of the volunteers enter and she smiled and waved to them as she reached the main gate. They were headed to the back for food. She walked over to stand in the middle of the path leading into the gardens, looking over the two main trees that they would have to prune, as well as the multitude of shrubs tucked into beds that awaited pruning. There was always something that needed doing, but she was pleased with their progress.

***

Second weekend

Will entered the garden, looking around for Katrina. Today was rock-delivery day. It was a sad state of events that that had become exciting to him. The past month had been grueling work at the gardens, with Katrina turning into the taskmaster from hell. He thought he could give orders, but he’d had no idea. He knew now what the others had learned long ago: beware of Katrina when she approached you with a wide smile and wrapped her arms around you. It always meant more work. The funny thing was that she asked in a way that sounded reasonable at the time but made you kick yourself as soon as she walked away for agreeing.

She had given up the professional routine, traded it in finally for friendship. One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind, he thought. He had no idea that he could be this patient. Hell, he’d never had to be, not with women, at least. This was a new experience for him, and he’d lost the desire for someone else a while ago; he wanted no substitutes. Wow, that was a powerful admission, but he was long past going back.

Seeing her crying that night had affected him. She had an effect on him and had changed something internally in him that had been slowly changing, anyway. He wanted to know her, maybe even for keeps. His Katrina had been good at hiding, putting up roadblocks. Not so much anymore; she was sending signals his way, or maybe it was wishful thinking on his part, his time away from sex making him delusional. He smiled at that.

Thankfully, the digging was done; next came getting the ponds, waterfalls and streams built, lined, filled with water, and up and running. Speak of the devil, there she stood in the middle of the path, dressed in a large sweatshirt and jeans, work boots on her feet. When and how had a woman dressed in work clothes become such a turn on? He watched her for a second as she looked at something on her copy of the plans. He walked up behind her, waiting until she felt him at her back and turned around.