The Valentine's Arrangement (12 page)

“I thought you were still sleeping.”

Ronnie’s lids fluttered open, her brown eyes blinking to life. “Is this it?” She sat up and looked out the passenger window as he turned onto Memorial Dr. towards downtown. He was home.

“Yep.”

“Huh,” she sighed, her words giving a verbal shrug.

“What was the ‘huh’ for?”

She leaned forward and yanked on her boots. “I didn’t expect it to be so…cozy.”

“Cozy?”

She rolled her eyes at him. “Just pull in somewhere, I’m about to pee my pants.”

“Well, we definitely wouldn’t want that.” Kale pulled into the next gas station and drove up to the pump. He watched as Ronnie hopped out and gracefully power walked to the doors. How she managed to move so fast in heels was lost on him, but he sure as shit enjoyed watching.

Kale was just topping off the tank when Ronnie appeared on the other side of the truck bed holding a bag of sour patch kids and a snickers in one hand and two big gulp sodas tucked tightly in her other arm.

“Sour patch kids? What are you, ten?”

“Kiss my ass, Emerson,” she spat.

“Gladly, Sweetheart.” He curved his lips in the way he knew would get a reaction from her, and it worked. Ronnie chucked the snickers at him, hitting him in the chest before it dropped to his hands.

“Don’t say I never gave you anything,” she hissed before hopping back in the truck.

Kale shook his head and laughed under his breath as he put the cap back on his gas tank. He stepped into the cab, Ronnie sending him a narrow eyed glare, and he ripped open the snickers taking half of it in his mouth in one bite. He nodded his head and smiled. “Thanks baby,” he said around a mouth full of nuts and chocolate, then he pulled back out onto the road.

A few minutes later, they were pulling into the cemetery. Kale hadn’t been back to visit his Grandmother’s grave since the day after they put her in the ground, the day he had to leave to go back to Fort Hood where he was stationed at the time. Her head stone wasn’t even up yet. That was three years ago.

He parked on the side of the road that tangled in all directions around the cemetery. He took a deep breath and pulled the bouquet of lilies he had tucked away before they left out of the back seat. Lilies were his Grams’ favorite.

“I’ll be back in a few, I won’t take too long.” He opened the door and before he got one foot out of the truck Ronnie was opening her door too.

“I’ll go with you.”

“You don’t have to—”

“I want to,” she said, hopping out and shutting the door before Kale had another chance to object. He walked around the truck and stood in front of her.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I want to pay my respects to the woman who raised you”—her eyes held his and her expression was gentle and sweet, nothing like the way she usually looked at him—“even if you are a huge pain in the ass.”

“I will take that as a compliment coming from you.”

“Yeah, well don’t get used to it. I’m in rare form today.”

“I’ve noticed.” He reached forward and grabbed her hand lacing his fingers through hers. She looked down at their joined hands and then back to him. He could see the indecision cross over her face, her forehead wrinkling between her eyes, and he pulled her closer to him, walking away from the truck before she had the chance to decide against it.

Kale walked to the spot where his Grandmother’s grave was, never once needing to look around to make sure he was in the right section. He may have only been there the two times after she passed, but it was embedded in his memory. She lay right next to his mother and father. The sad things are always harder to forget.

They came to a large headstone, one Kale carefully picked out himself. It was beautifully marbleized in a soft grey stone with a photo of his grandmother when she was twenty-five etched in the front above the words that until now, Kale had never seen.

Marilyn Emerson

Her body lies to rest beneath the ground, her soul walks eternally with the Lord, and her memory lives forever in our hearts.

Kale felt Ronnie’s fingers tighten around his hand. “She was beautiful.”

“That she was,” Kale said, reading over the words a second time. He let go of Ronnie and stepped forward, laying the lilies down on the frozen ground next to the stone. “Hey Grams,” he whispered. “Sorry it’s taken me so long to get back here. I miss you.” He pulled a single lily from the bouquet, stood up and backed away, needing a little distance to calm the burn in the back of his throat.

Whoever said it got easier with time was wrong, death never got easier. The pain dulls around your heart, numbing the spot the deceased inhabited in your chest—but it was never easier. Loss was still loss—a physical pain, a hurt that reaches deep inside you and smothers your soul, forever indenting their memory. No, death was still death, loss was still loss, and pain was still pain. Time didn’t change that.

He took the small step to the side and stood in front of his mother and father’s headstone laying the single flower on top. Kale lifted his hands out in front of him and gestured to the three graves before them. “This is my family.” This was it, this was everyone that had ever meant anything to him, and they were all here…gone.

They stood there in silence together for an endless amount of time that was measured in only a matter of a few minutes, but it was just long enough to mend the ache that swept over him since the moment he pulled into the cemetery.

The atmosphere in the car as they left the cemetery and headed back into town was thick and more than a little stiff, making Kale wonder whether or not he made the right decision bringing Ronnie.

“You kind of look like her, ya know?” Her words sliced through the small space in the truck.

“What?” Kale asked, pulling himself out of his own head.

“Your Grams, you have her eyes.”

Kale turned to look at her but her face was toward the window, hiding any vulnerable emotion she was having from him.

Kale pulled into the parking lot of a large brick building that was overrun by cars. This place was packed, as usual. They had the best pizza in town. Kale came here every week growing up. They were famous for their homemade pizza pies and beer. They had their own microbrewery and their own brand of beer. It’s single handedly the best beer Kale had ever had. The owners have had several offers to go mainstream with their brand but they refuse to sell. If you want their beer, you gotta get it here.

“What is this place?” Ronnie asked as Kale parked the truck.

He turned off the engine tucking the keys in his pocket. “I hope you’re hungry.”

“You did this on purpose, didn’t you?”

“What, offer to feed you? Yes, I did that on purpose. Look Ronnie, it’s just pizza. Loosen up, Sweetheart.”

“But—”

“Stay in the truck if you want but I’m gonna get some food.” He got out and walked to the passenger door, opening it for Ronnie. “You coming?”

Ronnie just rolled her eyes and got out of the truck.

“Good girl.”

Ronnie pinned him with a look that made him laugh and cringe at the same time. “Watch it, Soldier.”

They stepped into the restaurant; warm air filled with the aroma of fresh baked bread filled their noses. “Fuck, is the whole damn town here or something?” Ronnie asked, looking around to the crowded room of people chatting and stuffing their faces.

“Pretty much, come on.” Kale led Ronnie into the restaurant, scanning the area for an open table when a voice thundered from across the room.

“No freakin way! Kale Emerson?” Kale turned toward the voice in time to see a short overly round guy approaching with a cheese eatin’ grin on his face.

“Fat Andy!” Kale said, hugging the guy.

“Emerson. What the hell buddy! I haven’t seen you in years. How the hell you been? Last I heard you were fighting over in Iraq.”

“I am. I’m home on R&R; I just drove up to visit Grams.”

Andy nodded his head with a knowing look before turning his attention to Ronnie who was cautiously watching their little reunion.

“And where did you pick up this lovely lady?” he asked, not trying to hide his wandering eyes, as he looked Ronnie up and down.

“She—” Kale started but Ronnie stepped closer to Andy and finished his sentence for him.

“He didn’t pick me up anywhere, and I’m no lady. People really need to stop fucking calling me that. The name’s Ronnie.”

Instead of being taken back by Ronnie’s bite your head off response, Andy just shook with laughter. “Oh I like this one Emerson. Feisty. You better hold on to her.”

Kale met eyes with Ronnie. Yeah, he was kind of thinking the same thing.

“Come on man, Matt’s here, and Trisha and Cammie are meeting us up here later. Come sit with us, it’ll be like old times.”

Kale waited to see how Ronnie responded. He didn’t want to throw her into a situation where she was forced to meet some of his high school buddies. He knew that didn’t fall into the terms of their arrangement, hell, he was just glad she came inside with him. He didn’t want to push his luck.

“I don’t care where we sit as long as someone feeds me, and soon,” Ronnie said, filling in the awkward silence.

Andy cocked his head to the side. “The lady has spoken. Come on Ronnie, let Fat Andy show you how pizza is done here in Montpelier.”

Kale was relieved when Ronnie just smiled and followed.

Before he knew it almost two hours had past. Ronnie impressively consumed damn near an entire pizza all herself and had been working her magic busting his buddies’ balls and drinking beer like a grown man. It made her even sexier, if that was even possible.

“I’m going to need to get a keg of this beer to go. Seriously Kale, this is fucking amazing. Mic would go ape-shit,” she said, setting down her empty glass.

“Told ya, Sweetheart.”

Ronnie stood up, wobbling a little in her heels but she recovered quickly. “You up for a game of darts?”

Kale stood up next to her and leaned his head down close to her ear. “Are you ready to get your ass handed to you?”

She turned her head to the side so she was looking at his eyes, heat tuning her brown eyes into smoldering chocolate. “Depends on who’s doing the handing,” she said, insinuating things Kale had been dreaming up in his mind since he first touched her body.

His eyes went cloudy and his voice got low. “Oh, that most definitely will be me.”

“Then I’m most definitely ready.”

“Are we going to get some more beer and play some darts or are you two going to stand there and give each other sex eyes all night?”

“Screw you, Andy ,” Kale said, never taking his gaze from Ronnie.

Ronnie tore her eyes from him and fixed them on Andy. “Emerson here is just procrastinating, putting off the inevitable outcome of failure.”

Fat Andy came around and gripped Kale on the shoulder. “Sounds like you’ve got yourself a challenge there, little buddy.”

“That I do,” he said to himself as he watched Ronnie’s hips rock in rhythm to the click of her heels as she headed to the back of the bar—and he was definitely up for the challenge.

A couple rounds later and with only a slight bruise to his ego, Kale sat at the table watching this sexy woman with complete amusement.

“Oh yeah!” Ronnie slurred as she walked back to the table after annihilating Matt in a game of darts. She was slightly past tipsy and was toying with drunk but she was cute as hell. “Who the fuck wants to try their luck against me next?” Ronnie was showing them all up, kicking their sorry asses one by one.

“How the hell did you get so good at darts?” Matt asked, looking like a kid who just got his candy taken away from him.

Ronnie just laughed and shook her head at him. “Sorry buddy, I’ve been around more beer drinking, dart throwing men in my life time than I can count. And on top of that my best friend Mic and I play every Friday night so I’ve had a lot of practice.”

Matt wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a headlock/hug. “Well looks like I’m buying the next round. Be right back.”

Just as Matt released Ronnie from his big brother-like embrace, a couple of girls walked in, one girl in particular pointing her pissed off eyes at Ronnie, obviously not missing their hug.

“Is it just me or am I getting the stink eye from Barbie over there?” Ronnie asked loud enough for everyone around them to hear, and Kale knew that was her full intention.

Matt returned with four glasses of beer wedged between his hands. “Here ya go.”

“Hey baby.” The blonde said making her way to Matt as he set the beers down on the table. She wrapped her arms around his waist never taking her eyes off Ronnie. Leave it to Trisha to be full of girl drama.

Luckily, Kale didn’t think Ronnie seemed too bothered by Trisha, if anything she seemed amused.

Obviously, Trisha thought the same thing. “What’s so funny?” Trisha asked as Ronnie shook her head and laughed.

“You are.”

“Matt who is this?” Trisha asked, spitting deadly venom at Ronnie.

“This is Kale’s girl.”

“I’m not—”

“Kale!!” A voice squealed from behind Trisha, interrupting Ronnie. Kale was all too familiar with that high-pitched sound. Hell, it haunted his dreams his entire senior year of high school. That’s what he got for sleeping with a cheerleader.

A short, voluptuous brunette came into view right as her arms wound around his neck. If it weren’t for Andy mentioning that Cammie was going to be coming up here, he would have never recognized her apart from her voice. Her hair was cut short and sleek to her chin and her figure was fuller and curvier. She was a knock out in high school but now she was downright sexy.

“Hey Cammie.” He awkwardly hugged her back. He could see Ronnie out of the corner of his eye and her lips pressed into a line, suppressing a laugh. He was starting to understand why she didn’t have many girlfriends. The woman was not female friendly.

Cammie pulled away from him and looked at him like she was admiring a rare lost artifact. “I can’t believe you are here! Jeez, how long has it been? Two years?”

“Three.”

“It’s so good to see you, I’ve missed you.”