A Slow Burning Fire (6 page)

Fatigue washed over her as she'd hardly slept the night before. Once more she closed her eyes, resting her head against the window. Going home always made her nervous. It was almost like going to a foreign country in a lot of ways. Ohio was as different from California as night and day. Arial hadn't been kidding Bryce when she told him the nearest decent hotel was a whole other town away. What she didn't mention was the drive to that town would be at least half an hour, making commuting back and forth rather inconvenient. The closest mall was even further, and it was the same for a movie theater that actually played current releases.

Her hometown was in the middle of nowhere, no exaggeration needed. After being there for three days, Bryce would get bored and want to leave. If she didn't want to spend longer than she had to in Gloriana, there was no way he would. He was raised in the city, growing up in a suburb outside of Los Angeles. Nothing about a small town surrounded by farmland could possibly appeal to him. As much as she wanted to warn him how desolate it truly was, she knew he wouldn't believe her anyway. He'd just have to experience it all through culture shock.

At least I'll have a few days with him,
she thought
. And those few days will be wonderful.

****

She must have drifted off to sleep shortly after take-off. When her eyes opened again, she was startled to find the plane empty of everyone but her, Bryce, and the staff getting ready to clean up. Arial let out a groggy moan. She reached down to grab her carry-on bag, only to find it missing.

Bryce cleared his throat. “I already packed you up. It was easier to wait until everyone got off the flight before waking you up. Don't worry, we haven't been keeping anyone. The last person just exited approximately three seconds ago.”

“I need to call my mom,” she mumbled as she dug around in her pockets for her cell phone. Slowly, she stood up in her seat. Bryce put a hand on the small of her back. She glanced back at him and was met with the sight of his soft green eyes looking at her.
Don't read too much into it,
she chided herself inwardly.

Once off the plane, she finally had a few bars of reception on her phone. Enough to call her parents to see where they were in terms of picking her up. The drive to Port Columbus International Airport would take her parents at least an hour. Hopefully, they were on their way. Her parents weren't always the most punctual of people.

“We're almost there, honey!” Patty answered, not bothering to say hello. Which was typical of her mother. When the woman got excited, her manners flew out the window. “I can't wait to see you.”

“I can't wait either. We're almost at the baggage claim, and then we'll be right out.”

“Love you!” And then her mother hung up before Arial could reply.

She sighed and put her phone back into her pocket. Hardly anyone checked luggage for the flight. Then again, the plane hadn't been all too full to begin with. Not many people wanted to fly into Ohio for a visit. Most were probably connecting for another flight. It made getting her things easier. She reached for her black suitcase on the carousel, but Bryce beat her to it. He picked it up with such ease, despite it being heavy with things like books and other more personal items. Clothes were still plentiful back at her parents’ house.

The muscles of his arm bulged and stretched as he carried it to the side for her. Then he came back and did it again with his own suitcase, which was even bigger than hers.

“Did you pack your house in there?” she teased.

He laughed. “I didn't want to forget something important.”

“Like your socks and toothbrush? I remember our trip to the Atlanta comic book convention. That was a disaster. Everything was missing.”

“Because I think someone raided my bag for things to sell online. Not the point anyway. I don't want to be an inconvenience while I'm here.” He lifted both of the suitcases, one in each hand. “Where are we going?”

Arial pointed to the nearest exit. “You're never an inconvenience. Not forgetting something is probably a good idea here. Some things are hard to come by out in the country.”

A wide grin spread across his face. “That's the part I'm looking forward to most. Not sure I believe you when you say there's no civilization. After all, I've yet to see anyone in your family grunt and pound their chest like a caveman. Are you sure you're not being too hard on your hometown?”

“Just wait, city boy.”

They walked out the door into the hot summer air. Sure enough, waiting outside was her parents full-sized SUV. The front passenger door opened, and her mother leapt out of the car. Arial had two seconds to brace herself for the suffocating hug her mother gave her. Kisses were shared, and then it was Bryce's turn.

Patty looked him up and down. “You've grown since the last time I saw you.”

“It hasn't been that long, has it?” he asked with a quiet laugh.

“About five years since we were last in person together. I know you were a grown man then, too, but somethin' about you is different.” She gave him one more kiss on the cheek. “Let's get going. The Henderlites are expecting you, and we shouldn't keep them waitin' for too long.”

“The Henderlites?” Arial asked. She was about to load up the trunk, but once again Bryce beat her to it. Instead she took a seat behind her mother. “Why are the Henderlites waitin'?”

Bryce snickered a little. “Accent,” he teased.

“Hush.” She scowled. It flowed out of her naturally when she was with her family. There was no way to stop it; she'd tried many times. It was like she couldn't escape her roots no matter what she did.

He put his hands up defensively and gazed out the window. “You already know how I feel about it. Stop being so grumpy.”

“Yes, how could I forget?” she grumbled. He thought the accent was cute, like a little schoolgirl’s. That's exactly
not
what she wanted to sound like the whole time they were together. “Mama, why are the Henderlites waiting?”

Patty buckled herself into her seat. “They're waitin' for Bryce, honey. Your father and I thought it best for him to stay elsewhere. I hope you don't mind.” She looked back at Bryce as if she were speaking only to him. “It just didn't seem proper to have you there. We have three young ladies in the house. And it's not that we don't trust you, but it would just be better for everyone's comfort all the same.”

****

“I'm fine with that,” Bryce said. In a lot of ways it was better. Being in such close quarters to Arial all of the time wouldn't help his confusion. Just knowing she was sleeping under the same roof would be tempting enough. He wouldn't dream of doing anything to destroy her virtue, but even cuddling against her at night was a desire he couldn't fulfill.

Arial nodded but didn't say anything.

He gave her a small smile, wishing he could cheer her up. She seemed so down the moment they walked into the airport at Los Angeles. “We'll still be able to spend lots of time together during the day. I'd really like to see this farm I keep hearing so much about.”

“Great, we can put you to work,” her father said. Richard was a kind, strong man, with old-fashioned values. Bryce always admired his work ethic and devotion to the family. Those two things were becoming increasingly harder to find these days.

Bryce chuckled. “I'd be more than happy to help.”

“Good, the animals are gettin' to be a bit of a handful for me these days. I'm not as young as I used to be. Then there's always the lawn work, too. Kieran isn't quite old enough to help with a lot of those kinds of things,” Richard said.

Nodding, Bryce couldn't help but smile as he listened to the man talk. Kieran would be eleven now. The last time Bryce had seen him, the kid had been at least five. Arial was the eldest child in her family. She had three younger sisters as well: Tiffany, who should be about thirteen, Caroline, who would be seventeen, and Nadine, who was twenty. When Arial's parents took turns living in Los Angeles, they'd also take turns bringing the other kids along. Set visits were frequent. Sometimes Arial complained about it, but Bryce had never minded seeing them in the slightest. Her family reminded him so much of his own, back when it used to be whole.

****

Arial couldn't believe Bryce was offering to help work on the farm. Was he crazy? He didn't know what he was getting himself into. Mowing the lawn was not an easy one- or two-hour task like it was in the suburbs. And did he know anything about taking care of animals? Her family didn't own as many as they used to, but there was a big difference between feeding a horse and feeding a cat. She did admire his wanting to be useful. Any of her other friends she'd made out in California would have rather sat around and done nothing. She could tell he wasn't asking simply out of polite obligation, and that was even more amazing.

“What kind of animals do you have?” Bryce asked.

Her father made eye contact with her through the rear view mirror. “Ari didn't tell you? I thought you heard so much about the farm.”

She groaned and rolled her eyes, looking back out the window. The sky was darkening, and the city lights were fast disappearing behind them as they drove down the interstate. “I didn't go that deeply into details.”

“She told me about a cow she was best friends with growing up,” Bryce said. “The one that made her vegetarian.”

“Mostly vegetarian,” she corrected.

“Right, mostly. You did eat the bacon I made Saturday morning for breakfast.”

Her mother looked back at her with raised eyebrows. “You ate bacon? I thought pork was on your no list.”

But Arial knew the real reason behind the curiosity in her mother's eyes. She was wondering why Bryce had cooked her breakfast.

“Later,” Arial mouthed at her. She didn't want to get into details in front of her father and especially not in front of Bryce. Clearing her throat, she spoke. “It's on my list of foods I indulge in once or twice a year.”

“It was turkey bacon anyway,” Bryce said. He winked at Arial, and her heart beat a little faster. “I wouldn't ever try to feed her something she was morally against eating. Besides, it's so much better for you.”

Richard groaned. “Nothing beats good ol' pig fat, young man. You both have spent too much time out West.”

“That's probably true,” Bryce said. “I look forward to having a taste of the countryside and some physical work.”

Arial laughed. “You don't know what you're asking for, buddy.”

A slight wince was hidden in his smile. “No, I don't know, and that's what I like the most.”

She swallowed at the sight of his smile. Every time he did it while looking at her, it stopped her brain from working properly. “We'll see if you're singing a different tune at the end of your first day.”

“When do you wanna start?” Richard asked.

“As soon as I can,” Bryce said. She hoped some of his enthusiasm rubbed off on her.

****

An hour later Bryce was dropped off at the Henderlite residence. They were next-door neighbors to Arial's family, but the house was a half-mile down the road. She didn't want him to leave her. The Henderlites would treat him well, no doubt. Mrs. Henderlite was like a second mother to her, and her husband was equally as sweet. The middle-aged couple never had children of their own, so they would dote on Bryce just as much as they had Arial. However, Bryce was also her last touch of California. With him gone, isolation started to set in around her. Space was a good thing to have, but she didn't want him to be too far away either.

It's only a half-mile. I can see the house from my back
yard. It'll be fine.
She didn't know what her problem was. Back in Los Angeles, they lived across town from one another, and it didn't bother her. Still, she missed him all the same. Part of her was afraid that if she didn't keep him entertained enough, he'd change his mind and leave altogether. She wouldn't survive the next two months without him if that happened.

Shaking her head, she carried her suitcase upstairs to her bedroom. At least she had her own room. The next eldest of her siblings lived in the basement, the two younger sisters shared the large guest room on the second floor just down the hall from Arial, and her brother slept in the room next to her parents on the main floor.

Arial did love her bedroom on the farm. Part of it was on the second floor and consisted of a room about the size of her walk-in closet back in California. Enough space for her to keep her dresser, twin-sized bed, and a nightstand. There was a pull-down ladder, however, that went up into the attic. It was there she kept her stereo, a couch, all of her books, and other valuables. Some of the family antiques were up there as well, of course. In order to make the area her own, she’d had to make a deal with her parents and share part of the attic for storage. Thankfully, they had understood her need for a private haven of sorts. She needed a place to read scripts and unwind without having to listen to her siblings yell at each other all the time.

She put her things by the side of her bed and laid down on it. Her mind wandered back to Bryce as she wondered how he was settling in. Calling him was tempting, but he was probably talking with the Henderlites. He loved to talk, which made him a lot of fun to be around. The fact that he would rather tell a story than play stupid games on his cell phone said a lot about him. And he always had the best stories. He could make just about anything seem interesting.

A quiet knock came from her door. The knob turned, and she saw her mother. “Do you need any help?”

“I'm fine, Ma,” Arial said with a weak smile. “It's late here. You should go to bed.”

“But I want to talk with you. See how your flight was, and get the scoop on what exactly is going on with you and your 'friend'.” Patty sat down next to her on the bed.

Arial rolled her eyes. “We
are
just friends. Nothing else is going on.”

Patty shrugged and then leaned over so she could play with her daughter's long dark curls. “Can't blame me for being curious. The timing is rather convenient after all. He did just break up with your co-star, yes?”