The Closer You Get (8 page)

Cora tried not to smile. The two of them had immediately fallen into a sort of nagging husband and wife relationship. It was evident in their words and conversations, but also their postures. There was Daniel, sitting upright with his cup of tea, his face and voice expressive. And there was Rye, slouched in his chair, his legs sprawled in front of him, looking constantly annoyed.
 

Rye sighed and rolled his eyes. “It’s not the project; it’s the location. I don’t want to do it where he wants it done. There're two other sites that would work and aren’t located in a fucking swamp.”

“It’s not a swamp! You’re always exaggerating,” Daniel whined.

“Might as well be a swamp,” Rye muttered.

“It’s soft clay. You said it could be done.”

“It can. I just don’t want to do it when there’s better locations.”

Daniel was their main designer and had a primarily artistic bent. Sam had always been the structural guy, inserting math and science into Daniel’s work to keep it from crumbling to the ground in five years. This was Rye’s job now. “Okay,” Cora said, “Rye, can you build it or can’t you?”

He deflated some. “I can.”

“Great. You two work it out then. And make Mr. Pinkerton happy. That’s a huge project. What else do we have?”

Her project managers listed off their accomplishments of last week and their chores for the next one. She assigned Ted, one of the managers, to look into a remodel request at the university extension. “And Rye, the county wants to contract you to help with an overpass they’re building. Chrissy will set that appointment up for you.” Chrissy was their office manager and receptionist. She smiled and jotted it down. When Chrissy retired someday, they’d likely have to hire three people to replace her.
 

Cora thanked everyone, told them they were doing a good job, and ended the meeting. She hurried to her office and gathered her things. Adam was waiting for her in the lobby, leaning against the wall and fidgeting with his keys. He always looked so handsome in his suit with his hair all slicked back. Almost like a grown-up. Though when you’ve played in forts and swam naked in creeks with someone, they always sort of looked like a kid.
 

“You ready?” he asked.

“Definitely.”

“Let’s do this.”

She took his hand, and they started toward the door.

“Hey, boss!”
 

Cora turned to find Rye jogging toward her. She wished he would call her Mrs. McKay like everyone else. Ever since the crazy church fiasco, he’d been the picture of professionalism, except for calling her ‘boss’ all the time. She’d seen him around town, but he would only acknowledge her with a nod and a brief smile. At Darcy’s, he played pool with the new friends he’d made, or he tried to pick up women, but he never approached Cora. He was behaving professionally for sure, but that did little to soothe the curiosity he’d ignited in her. A curiosity that had only grown over the past few weeks.

“What is it?” she asked.

“Uh, do you have any way I can get in touch with Sam?” he asked.

“He’s gone completely incommunicado. Is there a problem?”

“No, not really. I just wanted to bounce some ideas off of him.”

“Bounce them off of me. Sam doesn’t want to talk about construction on his vacation.”

He swallowed and for some reason looked scared. “Uh, that’s okay. It wasn’t work related.”

Cora stood there waiting for him to say something else. “Okay,” she said at last. “Is there anything else you need?”

“Um. No.”

Still he didn’t leave. Finally he said, “I think I’ll go to Darcy’s after work.”

“They’re running out of women, Rye,” she said before she could think to stop herself.

His expression went cold again. “Not hardly. There’s always more women.” He turned on his heel and left.
 

Cora stared after him, regretting the way she’d triggered his defense mechanism. But then, wasn’t it for the best? She could never handle a man like him, and even if she could, it was always a bad idea to sleep with one’s employees.
 

Adam said, “Maybe he has a crush on you.”

Cora laughed. “I’m sure. Let’s go get my hair cut.”

Adam drove them to Betsy’s beauty salon. Betsy Goodnight had opened it five years ago when she was fresh out of beauty school. All they’d had in Fidelity before she came along was a little barber shop where the barber only offered one hair style. Betsy was full of bounce and energy. She was two years younger than Cora and Adam, very cute, and also very adept at her work. Her shop had three chairs.
 

Betsy was with a customer, but Karen Seabaugh’s chair was empty.

Betsy turned, her copper curls bouncing. “Oh hi, Cora! Hi, Adam. Have a seat.” She was wrapping strands of her customer’s hair in bits of foil for highlighting. “Actually,” she said, turning, “I’m running a little behind. Karen had a cancelation if you want to go over there.”

Cora turned her gaze to Karen, who gave her a tight-lipped smile. Not good. Cora didn’t like Karen and was certain Karen didn’t like her. Still, it was just a hair cut. She stood and plopped down in Karen’s chair.

“Just a trim today?” Karen asked.

“Actually, I want a change. I want to go short. But feminine. Not pixie short, but maybe jaw length with some layers. I don’t really know; I just want it to be fun and cute.”

“And practical, I’m sure,” Karen said.

“Well—”

“We’ll fix you right up. I guess you want it out of your way for work and all.”

“No, actually, I’m just wanting a bit of a change—”

“Your sisters with all their fancy hairdos, changing colors all the time. Not sturdy little Cora. Never went in for those kinds of frills.”

Cora jumped to her feet and faced Karen. “I think I’ll wait for Betsy.”

Karen arched a brow. “Are you questioning my skills?”

“No. I just don’t think you’re hearing what I want. I’ll wait for Betsy.” She pivoted on her heel and seated herself back next to Adam. Betsy shot her a quick grin. Adam put his arm around her shoulders.

“Way to go,” he whispered in her ear.
 

She nodded proudly. She was going to stand up for herself and shape her own image. “I’ve got tea at Mother’s Sunday with the WICS.”

“Ah, yes. The Women In Christian Service. They get together for tea on Sundays and talk about all the problems in the world. Mail a few get well cards. Say a prayer and call it a day.”

“Shove it. I’ve got tea Sunday, and I want to look different. Not gaudy and pretentious. Just confident. I don’t want to be patronized anymore.”

“I applaud this new effort, Cora. I’m proud of you. It’s beyond me why you bother going to these things, but at least you can take back your dignity.”

She frowned at him. “You make it sound as though I’ve been a complete doormat.”

Adam just arched a brow.

She slumped back in her seat.

When Betsy was finally free, she sat and told her what she wanted. After Betsy finished and turned her to the mirror, Cora nearly cried. She looked somehow younger and at the same time more mature. She swung her hair side-to-side and felt her hair bounce against her cheeks. The air on the back of her now-bare neck felt invigorating. She glanced at Adam’s reflection, and he gave her a thumbs-up.
 

“Let’s go shopping,” he said.

Next, it was over to the big mall in Fayetteville. She wouldn’t have been able to do this without Adam. She hadn’t bought a dress in years and years. She wouldn’t even know what to look for. But after they walked out of the mall with their arms full of shopping bags, Cora had enough dresses to last her a lifetime. Adam talked her into changing in the backseat while he stood guard. She slipped on a yellow, strapless sheath that stopped a few inches above her knees. She found the shoes she’d gotten to match and stepped out of the car.
 

Adam’s eyes went wide. “You look…you look…”

She smiled. “I feel naked.”

He reached out and touched the curve of her neck. She batted his hand away and giggled. “Stop it, Adam, you’re making me all tingly.”

He laughed then. “You need some jewelry.” Then he gasped and grinned. “Let’s go get your ears pierced. Come on.” He grabbed her hand and dragged her back toward the mall entrance. She stumbled after him, not at all used to even a two inch heel.

“I don’t know,” she said. “I can grow my hair out and change into jeans. Piercing my ears is sort of permanent.”

“So what? You don’t want to wear earrings on a given day, you don’t have to. No big deal. But you should at least have the option.”

Before she knew it, she was sitting in a chair at the Piercing Pagoda. Adam made all the decisions for her, including which studs to get, and then she was holding her breath as her ear lobes were each punctured.

On their way out of the mall, Adam pulled her into a jewelry shop and bought her a necklace. He took a little time picking it out, but when he did, it was perfect. Cora wore it out and never wanted to take it off.
 

“Now where do we go for dinner?” Adam asked once they were back in the car.

“You don’t have to have dinner with me,” she said. “I know you’re probably in a hurry to get back to Cash.”

Adam blushed a little. “I do want to see him. But I told him I’d have drinks with him later this evening. So you and I should go some place nice since you’re dressed for it.”

They found a lovely little Italian place that had red carpet and white tablecloths. As fancy as they were going to get in Arkansas. They ordered and then Cora watched Adam consciously ignore his cell phone that had emitted a tone. She smiled. “Go ahead and check it.”

Adam grinned, looked at his phone, and then blushed. “Wow,” he said. “No babysitter tonight.”

“How’s that?”

“Cash and I haven’t had a moment alone. Rye is always there. He doesn’t leave Cash’s side. I guess he’s going to let us be alone tonight.”

“Why does he follow you guys around?”

“I still don’t know. Just that something bad happened, and now Rye is all protective. Cash hasn’t had as easy a time as I have when it comes to people accepting his sexuality.”

“That’s a shame. It’s good he’s being careful, though. Are you being careful?”

Adam frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, are you being safe? Going out alone with two guys you barely know. Are you sure you can trust them? Cash is a big guy. Add Rye into the equation…”

“You think they’d hurt me?”

“I only think you’re very trusting. And you’ve moved in and out of relationships fairly easily. There're bad people out there. These two…they’re not above resorting to violence.”

“I’m pretty sure they’ve had good reason to resort to violence the few times it’s happened.”

Cora shrugged. “I just don’t want to see you hurt, that’s all.”

Adam sat back. “I appreciate that. But I trust Cash. He’s…pretty amazing.”

She blushed and looked away. “I’m happy for you. Is everything going well?”

“Yeah. Still no kiss, yet.”

“Jeez. He’s a bulwark.”

“I know. As it turns out, I’ve enjoyed spending time getting to know him. When I first met him, I didn’t care about anything but getting him into bed. Now, when I think about what might have happened…I mean, what if we’d done that…had sex a few times and then went our separate ways? I wouldn’t have learned just how much I love fishing. Sitting out at night under the stars, listening to the crickets and frogs and holding Cash’s hand. Hearing his voice, low and beautiful, telling me about himself. It’s comforting, you know…knowing that we’ll still have this, even after that initial burst of passion. And that this is just as good, in its way.”

Cora’s vision was blurry with tears.
 

“Oh, God, Cora, don’t cry.”

“I’m not,” she squeaked, wiping her tears away. “I’m just so happy for you.”

He laughed. “I’m pretty happy for me, too. But don’t get all weepy on me. Tell me something good about you? Had any hot dates lately?”

She snorted. “You’d know if I had. I’ve never had a hot date.”

“Do you want one?”

She looked at him, confused at first. Of course, she wanted one. Every girl wanted a hot date. But she realized he was justified in asking. She’d never put out the effort. And she’d shut herself off to the possibility. “Yes,” she said.

“Maybe I can help. You got anyone in mind?”

She swallowed and looked down at her hands. “I thought…maybe…Rye…”

“No, way.”

His vehemence had her jerking her head up and frowning. “Why?”

“He’s a total horn-dog. Has no respect for women. You are way beyond too good for him.”

She shrugged. “Okay. You’re probably right.” Still, she felt a pinching in her chest, a painful regret.
 

Dinner arrived, but she had to force it down.

“Don’t worry,” Adam said, once the server had gone, “I’ll find someone great for you. Hey, you know Gary Floyd? He was two grades above us, remember?”

She nodded.
 

“I’m going to set you up with him.” Adam was involved in his meal. “It’s been two years since his divorce. I think he’s ready to get back out there. It’ll be perfect.”

And safe, she thought. Gary was a nice guy. Tall and clean cut. There wasn’t anything about him that made her knees go weak, but then, she was new to all of this. Maybe someone who made her knees go weak would also hurt her. Maybe Adam was right about Rye.

After dinner, Adam took her back to her house for her car. She drove up to Darcy’s to meet Lyssa and Franny for drinks. Adam was meeting Cash there, but she doubted her path would cross with his again that evening. Adam was completely smitten, and if this was truly their first chance to be alone, she knew he’d be angling to get Cash back to his place as soon as possible.
 

When she walked into the bar, her friends greeted her with cheers and squeals. “You look amazing!” Franny cried.

Lyssa gave her a hug and a proud once over. They found a table and ordered drinks. Rye was playing pool across the room. Cora seemed to know it even without looking. There was no indication he’d even noticed her walking in. She wondered if he would be wowed by her new look, or if he would care one way or the other.