Covered Bridge Charm (25 page)

“Jah, sweetheart. I’m pretty sure it is.” He leaned his back against the tree and backed her up against him so that they could both watch the Calapooia River. His arms around her waist and his chin resting on her shoulder, he whispered, “Why did we wait so long to admit it?”

It was a rhetorical question. They both had good reasons.

“I’m going to be busy the next several weeks. I need to warn you that you probably won’t see much of me. But that doesn’t mean… Ahh!” He pushed her away, and she stumbled over one of the gnarly roots.

Gasping, she watched as he suddenly sprang away from her. “Ants!”

She scrambled up and into the clearing as he proceeded to hop on one foot and then the other, pulling off his shoes and his coat. “Ants,” he repeated.

Frantically, she checked her own clothing, but she seemed to be free of them. She moved closer. “Are they biting you?”

“Some, but they’re crawling everywhere. Yuck!” He continued swiping and slapping. You’d better look the other way.”

Turning around, she crossed her arms and listened to his mumbles and rustling of clothes he must surely be discarding. “There’s a restroom over there.”

“Good idea.”

She heard him moving in that direction, and then the door closed. Her lips curled, though she did feel sorry for him. She went to examine the kissing tree. They should have noticed earlier. Beneath the pine needles were mounds of duff and ants. Poor Adam. With what came out as part sigh and part giggle, she went to wait for him at the picnic table.

When he finally came out, he grinned sheepishly. “I think we need to try out a few more trees, sweetheart. Because that’s definitely not going to be my kissing tree.” She laughed as he took her hand, his other scratching the back of his neck. “Come on. I gotta get you home and go buy some ant lotion or something.”

She could tell he was miserable when at the door his good-bye kiss was brief. He’d left her with the admonition that the following Sunday his family was having a birthday party for his nephew, and he didn’t know when he’d be able to see her again.

H
umming, Carly placed her bike in Sweet Life’s bike rack and waved at Aesop. He purred over on his red scooter, and she stopped to talk to him, noticing his fuzzy, ear-muffed hat. “You’re bundled up today.”

He slapped his gloves together. “So—so you like my new hat? On sale at the mart. If—if you’re gonna ride your bike all winter, you should get one. Might”—he grinned—“might mess up your hair. But it’ll keeps you nice and toasty. Worth it.”

Her hair.
Unbidden she recalled the sight of Adam standing on her stoop the night she’d just washed her hair. She’d recognized the admiration in his eyes. And then he’d asked her out on a date. And on their date, he’d confessed his love. She grinned, realizing Aesop was watching her curiously. “Guess I should get out my winter scarves. But I think Auntie will soon be bringing me to work. She did for a couple months last winter.”

“Well—well it’s too cold to sit still. Have a good day, miss.”

“You, too, Aesop.”

She turned the corner and rapped on Rocco’s door as she passed.

He popped his head out. “You sure got a bounce in your step this morning.”

“Do I?” Carly grinned. “Guess I love my job.”

“Wish I could say the same.”

“Is there a problem?” she asked.

“Yep. Just found there’s a plumbing leak at two of the independent-living houses.”

“Uh-oh.”

“I’m already over budget this month. I’m hoping this doesn’t turn out to be an epidemic. All those houses were built at the same time, and you know how these things run in cycles.”

“Well don’t fret. Finding the money to pay for repair isn’t something that should fall on your shoulders. That’s for Simon and the board to worry about.”

“Except Simon forces me to cut corners, and I don’t like to do that.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Listen to me. Ruining your good day. Go on now. Don’t pay any attention to me.”

“One day at a time, Rocco.”

“You bet. Thanks for reminding me.”

For a few minutes, Carly brewed over Rocco’s predicament, but eventually her thoughts returned to Adam, and she couldn’t keep from smiling.

Inside her assisted-living building, her heart hummed. At breakfast, Nines asked if she could help her rearrange some things in her apartment. She’d agreed and now found herself listening to Nines’s explanation.

“So you see, if my chair was right here”—the older woman stood in the middle of her living area—“closer to the TV, then I could hear it better.”

Carly tapped her cheek. “I see your point. But that’s in the middle of the room, and you might get tired of walking around it. Why don’t I get Miranda to show you how to manage the volume on your remote.” They’d gone over this before. More than once.

“No.” Nines shook her head. “I can’t remember how to do it. And what’s the use of watching TV if I can’t hear what’s going on?” She patted her cat, Teacup’s, head. “We’d like it here, wouldn’t we?”

“All right. Let’s give it a try. Why don’t you go sit on the sofa, and you can tell me when I get it right.”

Excitement lit the older woman’s face. She sat on the sofa with her purse in her lap, leaning forward with anticipation so that Carly felt bad for not giving in to her request sooner. She knew exactly what the outcome would be because they’d done this before, but why not make her happy? Restore her dignity? Today, she wanted everyone to be happy. It took a lot of effort, but Rocco had too many other things on his mind to bother him, and finally she got the heavy recliner dragged into the center of the room. “How’s this?”

“It blocks my view of the TV.” Nines frowned.

“Come sit in it. Then tell me.”

Nines shrugged and moved as if someone was making a big imposition upon her. When she sat in the chair, she used the recline lever and nestled down into the chair. “This is better!” she exclaimed.

“Good.”

The woman looked behind her. “But now it looks so bare where the chair used to be. And I’m too far away from Teacup’s pillow.”

“We can move Teacup closer.”

“No, I might stumble.” She shook her head, which at the present was adorned with a black hat with black netting. “Can we move the chair back a little?”

“Jah, sure.” She helped Nines out of the recliner and back to the sofa. Carly moved it about two feet. “How about here?”

“No, a little more.”

Carly moved it another two feet. “How’s this?”

The woman gestured, “More.”

“Here?”

“A little more.”

When the chair rested back in its original carpet imprints, Nines squealed, “There! That’s perfect. Should I try it?”

Carly helped her back to the recliner. Teacup leapt into Nines’s lap. She grinned. “Perfect. So much better.”

“Jah. That should work good for you. Want to rest a bit, while you’re in your chair?”

“Yes. Thanks, Carly.”

“I’m glad I could help.”

Back in the hall, she paused to rub sweat from her temple. Miranda appeared from a resident’s room. “Did Jimmy tell you we got together before he went out of town?”

Carly shook her head. She’d been so engrossed in her own weekend with Adam that she’d forgotten about
them.
“I haven’t seen him since the other Sunday when we were all together.”

Miranda lowered her mascara-painted lashes. “We went out to eat one night. Afterward we talked a long time before he took me inside.”

Carly pushed away the image Miranda was creating in her mind. “So what are you trying to say?”

Miranda shrugged, looking hurt. “Nothing. I like him. I just wanted to thank you for setting us up.”

She hadn’t set them up! Or had she? It wasn’t coming out at all like she’d envisioned with Jimmy ignoring Miranda. But why did it matter so much to her? All of them were adults. Still, she didn’t want to raise Miranda’s hopes. “You’re welcome.” Carly started to turn away, then thought better of it. She should be honest with Miranda. “You both seemed to click, but be careful with your feelings. I feel responsible now.”

“Don’t worry. We’re just dating. Having some fun.”

“Jay, okay. I’m happy for you.”

Miranda pursed her red lips, “So what’s going on with you and Adam?”

“We’re dating, too.”

“I thought so. He’s super cute. Better take your own advice. You’re way more sensitive than me.”

Surprised, Carly nodded. “I suppose so.”

“Hey. Maybe we can double sometime.”

Carly laughed. “Actually, Adam’s pretty busy at the tree farm right now. And Jimmy doesn’t approve of Adam and me.” She shrugged. “But who knows?”

Suddenly the day didn’t seem quite as bright. She started toward the receptionist’s desk but halted when she heard loud barking.

Mrs. Maloney, one of the new volunteers who brought her pet to the center, had lost control of her normally mellow dog. The basset hound’s barks soon turned into a hair-raising howl. Becca scurried to shut off her fan, and when the plastic bag that had been dancing near the receptionist’s counter finally deflated, the dog’s howl turned back into barking.

Mrs. Maloney half dragged her dog over to the bag to reassure it that everything was all right. Glancing around the room, Carly saw that most of the residents were responding as if it were good entertainment. Only Nines seemed concerned, leaving them to go and check on Teacup.

The dog incident, though minor, had fried Carly’s nerves. She shook her head. As she watched Mrs. Maloney work the room, her thoughts returned to Adam, and she pinpointed her frustration. It was Miranda’s warning to watch her heart. Adam could have invited her to their family birthday party. But he hadn’t. And she was worried that after being around his family, especially his dad, he would withdraw again.

Adam was managing a rough day by whistling away his cares and thinking about Carly. He couldn’t wait until he could see her again. But the happier he felt, the more sullen Dad became. After checking one of the noble fir fields and noticing some fungus, he ditched the whistling, and they drove in stony silence to the cut-your-own site where they needed to do some last-minute pruning.

Glancing over, he saw Dad’s face remained glum, and he was slumped down in the passenger’s seat. Normally, he had an anger problem. This pouting attitude was somewhat new and unpredictable. But whatever kind of snit he was in, it was better just to pretend not to notice. But Dad wasn’t having it that way, either. As soon as Adam turned off the ignition and moved to open the door, his arm shot out to stop him.

“There’s a rumor going around about you.”

Lightly gripping the steering wheel, he tried to be patient and prepare for the worst, and most likely the ridiculous. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You were seen at the Crawfordsville Bridge with that Blosser woman.”

Adam rolled his gaze upward.
Not this conversation again.
“Well that’s not a rumor because it’s true. I was at the bridge with Carly.”

Dad slapped the dashboard with both hands. “Son, what were you thinking?”

Adam gripped the steering wheel tight. “Why is that such a crime?”

“Because they caught you with your clothes off. For Pete’s sake, couldn’t you have done it someplace private and not out in broad daylight? Good grief, half of the church lives off of Halsey—Sweet Home Road.”

For a few futile seconds, his mind tried to figure out who saw what. Half the church? But it didn’t matter. Whoever ratted was a gossip and had their own problems. He crossed his arms. “A grown man shouldn’t have to explain himself to his dad or half the church.”

Dad shook his head. “At least consider the woman. She’s already had to live down one set of rumors. Although she probably doesn’t have any good chances anymore.”

Adam stared, deeply offended.

“For marriage, I mean.”

“I don’t know why you would say that. I don’t believe those things Dale said about her.”

“So what are you going to do about this?”

“Look, we kissed behind a big tree where nobody could have seen us, and then I got ants all over me. I was throwing off my clothes because they were eating me alive. I was probably running toward the men’s room when”—he raised his hands to make air quotes—” ‘half the church’ saw me. And you’re right. If what you heard was disgusting, then it’s nothing but a rumor.”

“Thank goodness.” Surprisingly, Dad’s lip curled. “Ants, huh?”

“Jah. Ants.”

“Well that’s a relief. At least there’s no wedding to be planned?”

“Not yet, anyway.”

“So you didn’t get your fill of her yet. Well, you will one day. And it’ll be too late.”

“Carly isn’t her aunt. And she didn’t lose a little boy.”

“What’s your point?”

“Maybe Fannie was still mourning.”

Dad seemed to consider it. “Is that what Carly told you?”

“Jah. Said she’s still afraid to love again.”

While Dad was considering that, Adam went on, “Carly’s not a clone of her aunt. She’s kind and caring. And I believe there’s more to the story of what happened between her and Dale. Why don’t I invite her to Jacob’s birthday party so you can get to know her? Find out for yourself?”