Finding Abigail (24 page)

The sun was out
in full force, but wasn’t too bad thanks to the cool breeze. The soft wind blew
the amazing smell of cooked meat. I glanced over to a tented area where a large
rotisserie barbeque was placed in front. Smoke rose above a large cut of beef
as it spun around the flames. My mouth watered just by the mouthwatering scent.

“Sure I did,”
he said with a wink. He took a few steps with the cooler over his shoulder.
“Oh, there’s Sam and Kathy.”

I followed him
to a picnic table, where a cute couple were yelling at two little boys running
around their table chasing a little brown and black beagle. The man looked to
be mid-twenties to early thirties. His short brown hair was spiked at the top.
The woman appeared to be the same age. She was wearing a purple sleeveless silk
top and a short faded jean skirt. Her red hair was up in a messy bun. They
noticed our approach and waved us over. The woman, whom I now recognized as
Kathy from the grocery store, glanced over at me. “So you finally got your
neighbor out? Anna, right? It’s good to see you again.”

“You too.”

“Yeah, she
couldn’t resist a picnic,” Noah replied, setting his load onto the grass.

I placed the
blanket on top of Noah’s cooler and sat down next to Kathy, feeling anxious by
her husband.

Sam’s eyes
widened as Noah took the empty bench beside him. He leaned his elbows on the
wooden table. “You’re the one who punched Noah?” Sam asked, laughing.

Kathy grinned,
holding out her right hand. “Can I shake your hand? I have wanted to do that
since I was sixteen after he broke my heart.” She glanced at Noah with a frown
and droopy puppy dog eyes.

“Kathy, I’m
sitting right here,” Sam pointed out, a shocked expression on his face, his
eyes twinkling with laughter.

“It didn’t take
you long to get over me. You hooked up with my best friend a few months later.”
Noah added his version of the story. As I watched the banter between them, I
felt a surge of jealousy. It reminded me of Brenda and Debbie; I missed them so
much.

“Anna, are you
settling in okay?” Kathy asked, taking a beer out of a cooler and handing it to
Noah, then lifting one up for me.

I took it and
popped the top off. “Yes, it’s really a beautiful place. But it’s very
different here. I’m used to living in a big city.”

She traced her
finger along her beer bottle, making lines in the condensation. “You should
come down to Mable’s for some pie and visit me while I work.”

The name was
vaguely familiar. “Is that where you got that amazing coffee when we met?” I
asked Noah, who had turned around, his back to us, throwing a ball for one of
the boys.

He looked over
his shoulder at me. “Yep, you should try the pie. Mable makes the best lemon
meringue I’ve ever tasted. I tried a few bakeries in Philadelphia when I lived
there and not one could compare.”

“You lived in Philadelphia?”

He spun around
to face us again just as the ball he had thrown collided with the back of his
head. We all laughed as Noah picked up the ball and whipped it at the older boy
who had thrown it.

Once Kathy’s
laughter subsided, she explained, “Yeah, our Noah was a hot shot architect,
until that bitch Becca messed with his head.” She took a sip of beer. “Ow,” she
yelped after she swallowed as Sam kicked her under the table. “Oh, I’m sorry,
Noah; I shouldn’t have brought that up.”

“No, it’s okay.
I mentioned it first.”

There was
obviously a story there, but I didn’t ask and no one said anything else.

A very tall man
that looked like he was wearing stilts began walking to the center of the park,
and then stopped. He was carrying a microphone. I had never seen anyone as tall
in my life. But that wasn’t the only odd thing about him. He had a receding
hairline, a pointed long nose, and was wearing an ugly yellow suit The picture
of a canary popped in my head.

“Attention,
everyone.” His voice was deep, almost melodic. “I’d like to welcome you here to
the annual Memorial Day picnic. I see everyone has come out to celebrate, and a
few new faces have joined us as well.” He glanced at me as he paused. Some
people followed his gaze and I felt myself shrink back to hide behind Kathy.
With that many eyes on me, the odds were higher that I might be recognized. I
didn’t have my photo on most of my books, but with
Wendy’s Wish
, the
publisher forced me. Hopefully the book wasn’t very popular in this town.

“Let’s give a
round of applause to the women of the planning committee, who have been cooking
up a storm for days.” He began clapping as about ten women stood up who were
seated near the tent with the food table. When the clapping died down he
continued his speech. “Dinner is ready, so if you’d like to form a line you may
begin. And don’t forget to put a donation in the bucket for next year.”
Everyone clapped for the food as much as they did for the man who was now
walking toward the food table, taking the first spot in line.

“Who is that
man? And why is he wearing a yellow suit?” I leaned in and asked Kathy.

“Mayor Alfred,”
she replied, turning to look at me. A lock of hair fell out of her bun, and she
tucked it behind her ear. “If you think that suit’s bad, wait until Easter when
he wears his pale purple one.”

I laughed. I
couldn’t imagine a man, let alone one as tall and skinny as him, wearing a
purple suit. “Seriously?”

“Are you two
discussing our mayor’s fine fashion sense?” Noah asked, standing beside me,
leaning between us. I couldn’t help but breathe him in. There was the smell of
his spicy cologne, but underneath it was the scent of wood. What was I doing?
Sniffing him? Was I so desperate for the soft touch of a man that I’d fall for
the first one I see?
I couldn’t let that happen. I couldn’t ever trust
again. The pain was just too much.
I quickly scolded myself.

“Yes, but he
dresses almost as bad as you, Noah.” She grinned at him, and he laughed. She
pushed him away so she could stand up. “Let me by, I have to get in line to get
some food for the two monsters.” She paused and tilted her head. “I mean the
younger ones.” She laughed at her own joke as she stepped away.

Sam looked up
from his beer. “What about me?”

She had started
toward the line. “Get your own,” she called over her shoulder. I followed until
I was walking beside her. With every step we took toward the food, the line
seemed to grow. Half the town was already there eager to eat. The familiar
anxious feeling emerged as we mixed into the crowd. I took a deep breath and
moved closer to Kathy. We had just met but I felt comfortable around her; she
reminded me of Debbie.

“Your boys are
beautiful. What are their names?” I asked.

“The one over
there wrestling with the dog is Jeremy.” I looked to where she pointed and saw
the boy who looked about eight, his hair was dark brown like his father’s, he
was wearing jean shorts and a T-shirt, both were full of grass stains, and yes
he was wresting with the dog over a ball. “And the one trying to jump on Noah
is Jamie.” Jamie looked about ten or eleven, and he, like his mother, had red
hair and green eyes. He was trying to jump on Noah’s back while Noah was making
his way to the food table, but every time Jamie put his arms on Noah’s
shoulders, Noah would pretend to swat a fly and knock him to the ground. We
could hear Jamie’s laughter from where we now stood in line. We watched as Sam
approached the two, carrying Jeremy, just as Jamie landed on Noah’s shoulder,
surprising Noah and knocking him to the ground. Sam and Jeremy jumped on them
in a pile of laughter and curses.

The scene both
warmed my heart and made me sad. I really missed my niece and nephew. “Noah
seems to love your boys.” We took a few more steps, getting a little closer to
the meal. I actually couldn’t wait; the aromas drifting in the air smelled
delicious.

Kathy smiled,
emotion warming her eyes. “And they love him too. He moved away when they were
little, but he’s been home for about three years. They call him Uncle Noah,
which he loves, since his own niece lives in New York state.”

“Sam and Noah
have been best friends for a long time?” I leaned into Kathy after a short
balding man in front of me elbowed me in the gut. Air whooshed out of me, and I
resisted the urge to groan. Kathy grinned and stifled some laughter.

“Since about
birth. Their parents were close, and when Noah’s folks moved after high school,
Noah stayed with Sam’s family. He went to a college nearby with Sam. Sam was
devastated at the thought of Noah moving away, so it was lucky for him that
Noah didn’t want to leave either. He’s not much of a city boy. We were all
surprised when he moved to Philadelphia.” Her expression changed as she glanced
over my shoulder. I turned to see what she was looking at. The two women I had
seen at the grocery store a month ago who Kathy had called gossip mongers stood
in line behind us.

“Hey, Kathy,
who’s your friend?” the one with short brown hair asked. Kathy rolled her eyes
at me, then turned to look at the women. A fake smile was pasted on her face.
“Anna, this is Cindy Mason and Kelly Bartlet. This is Anna, she moved into
Sylvia Newman’s cottage.”

Cindy smiled;
it was just as fake as Kathy’s. “Oh, so you’re Noah’s new neighbor. That
explains why he brought you. Isn’t he friendly?”

Was I just
insulted by a woman I had never met before?
Obviously she had the wrong idea about Noah and me. “Yes, it was very nice of
him to bring me here and show me around. But we’re just friends.”

Kathy glared at
Cindy. “Actually, she and Noah have been inseparable since she moved here. He
told Sam they get along so well he just had to ask her to the picnic.” She
turned to me with her eyes wide, obviously trying to send me a private message.
“Aren’t you, Anna?”

By the tone of
her voice I was afraid to argue. “Yes, we’re having a great time,” I answered,
playing along.

Cindy’s face
went cold as she turned to Kelly. “Oh look, there’s Wade, lets go see how
Cheryl’s doing.” She pulled her friend away, glaring at me as she went.

I turned to my
new friend. “What the hell was that?”

Her green eyes
were now narrowed, her jaw clenched. “That bitch has been after Noah since he
moved back three years ago. And since she was already jealous of the two of
you, I thought I’d add fuel to the fire.”

“But there is
nothing between Noah and me.”

She shoved me,
making me take a few steps forward as the line moved up a bit. We were almost
to the table. “She doesn’t have to know that. And besides, if you’re worried
about Noah, I’ll tell him what I did. He knows I love giving Cindy a hard time
and if it keeps her away from him, he’ll thank me.” The line moved again, and
it was finally our turn. She took two plates from the stack to fill.

“Tell me what
Jeremy likes, and I’ll get his and mine.”

“You don’t have
to do that; I can get back in line.”

“Don’t be
ridiculous, I have two hands. You get Jamie’s and I’ll get Jeremy’s. Noah and
Sam can get their own, if they ever stop playing around.” I glanced behind me
to the four males, who were now throwing a Frisbee around.

Kathy laughed.
“I like you; I think you and I are going to get along great.”

I smiled. That
sounded too good to be true—my freedom, and friends. Maybe I would like it
here. I ignored the nagging feeling that I should keep to myself. I hadn’t
spoken to a single person besides Noah in a month.

After our
plates were filled, we headed back to the table. Noah and Sam took their turn.
When everyone was sitting down at the picnic table enjoying their food, Kathy
turned to Noah. “Hey, Noah, did you see Cindy?”

He froze. His
macaroni-salad-filled fork hovered in front of his mouth. “Almost. I saw her
headed my way, but I ducked behind the boys. So she went after Frank instead.
He didn’t look happy.” Frank must be the black-haired tall guy wearing a cowboy
hat that I had seen her talking to earlier.

“Well, she
insulted Anna. She must have seen you two show up together and thought you were
an item. Anna was about to set her straight until I told her you guys were
basically in a hot love affair.”

Noah turned to
me and grinned, a gentle breeze blowing a strand of hair onto his forehead. “A
love affair already?” He winked. “I’m fast.”

Sam, who was
quietly shoving food in his face, added, “So we’ve heard.” Kathy and I laughed.
Noah punched Sam in the shoulder.

The rest of the
afternoon was fun. The boys entered a few competitions. Jamie beat everyone at
the watermelon-eating contest. Jeremy came in third in the three-legged race
with his friend Curtis. We sat around watching them, drinking. Every time I put
an empty beer bottle down, Noah was handing me another. If I didn’t know any
better, I’d say he was trying to get me drunk. But since we hardly knew each
other, I decided he was just being friendly. On the fourth one, I told him I
had had enough.

“You guys
staying for the fireworks?” Sam asked Noah. He was sitting next to his wife,
with his arm wrapped casually around her shoulder.