Jailbird (5 page)

“You’ll all just have to wait and see
tomorrow,” I wasn’t just toying with them. I figured it would be
easier to show them than to explain anyway.

“Yeah, well, he’s already cancelled all of
his appointments so he can stick around and figure it out.”

“He hasn’t,” I gasped.

“He has,” Manny smiled at me. I wasn’t sure
how I felt about that news. Alone all day with Charlie. There
wasn’t much else the conversation could do to hold my attention the
rest of the evening. I was too busy alternating between looking
forward to morning and dreading it.

Whichever emotion won the evening, morning
came surely enough. I was awake and ready long before the sun
peeked over the horizon. Gray haze still clung to the countryside
as I walked down the dirt road to Charlie’s house. A basket swung
by my side, loaded with a trowel and a steak knife: the two best
tools any gardener could ask for.

I let myself into the field, trying not to
spend too much time staring at the house as I set about my work.
This part was easy enough. I knew I would be physically tired by
the end of the day, but my mind would be wonderfully clear. That’s
the beauty of working the earth.

I dug each dandelion up, careful to leave
some root so the plants would regenerate. Those still sporting
clocks I left alone. Maybe Cara could come out later and help me
spread the seeds from them. If Charlie didn’t mind me reneging on
my promise to plant grass seed, that is.

By the time Charlie wandered out to the field
to offer me a cup of coffee, my basket was overflowing with
dandelions. I hadn’t even made a dent in the crop.

“Did you sleep well?” I wrapped my arms
nervously around myself as I struggled to sound natural.

“Are you chilly?” His brow creased with
concern.

“I guess a little,” I lied. Truthfully, I was
just unsure what to do with my hands since Charlie was carrying my
basket full of dandelions.

“Here…,” Before I could process what he was
doing, he’d slid his robe off and was draping it over my
shoulders.

“You don’t have to do that,” I protested,
secretly relishing the scent and the warmth that clung to the
garment. I’d actually been pretty warm already from the work I’d
put in, but the robe offered a different kind of heat. It felt like
him.

“Can’t a guy be a gentleman anymore?” he
teased.

“Thank you,” I acknowledged. Now I had the
added bonus of watching him walk across his lawn in nothing but
pajama bottoms. He was built better than any small town lawyer had
a right to be. I bit my lip and admonished myself for having such a
one-track mind. Oh, but the man was fine. Had I really thought him
average just a few days ago?

“I didn’t sleep well, by the way,” he went
back to my original question.

“I’m sorry,” I frowned with concern.

“I never sleep well when Cara’s gone,” he
explained. I thought maybe he had something else to add, but he
apparently decided against it.

“How long will she be with her grandparents?”
I resisted the urge to lay my hand on his shoulder in a comforting
gesture.

“A whole week. It’s stretching out in front
of me like a year right now.”

“Well, I can certainly keep you busy,” I
offered, then quickly added. “With the dandelions, I mean. Of
course. What else would I keep you busy with? I mean, you’d be
surprised what you can do with a dandelion.”

A smile tugged the corner of his mouth, but
to his credit he kept walking. “I have to say I’ve never found
dandelions more fascinating.”

“You just might be sick of them by the end of
the day,” I warned. It was probably best to just pretend I hadn’t
just accidentally propositioned him with dandelions.

To that end, while he poured us each a cup of
coffee, I set about making a list of the supplies I would need with
a Crayola and a napkin.

While I poured sugar in my coffee, he studied
the list thoughtfully. “You know, I think I have all of this around
here somewhere.”

“I was hoping so.”

“Just let me get enough caffeine in my system
to be coherent then I’ll see what I can round up for you.”

“Fair enough,” I smiled a little at him. I
felt like a fool for doing it, but I couldn’t seem to control my
mouth muscles. “I hear I’ll have some company today.”

“Yeah, well, I couldn’t just leave you alone
here all day. You could be a convicted felon that would make off
with the family silver or something,” he winked at me. I barely
noticed; I was too busy trying to bat down the panic that had risen
in my throat.

“I solemnly swear not to make off with the
silver while you’re getting dressed,” I finally managed weakly.
“And I can promise I’ve never been convicted of larceny.”

“Good to know,” the look in his eyes said he
wanted to know what I had been convicted of.

“You’re much nicer to me now than you were
Saturday,” I knew I should leave well enough alone, but I wanted to
know what had changed his mind.

“Would you prefer I go back to being
curt?”

“No, no. I like this mood much better. Just
making an observation.”

“To be honest, I’m still trying to decide
what to make of you.”

“That’s okay. I’m still trying to decide what
to do to you. With you. Aw hell,” I shook my head and rolled my
eyes at myself. I was determined to stick my foot in my mouth
today.

“Keep talking like that and we won’t get to
the dandelions,” he warned.

“Dandelions. Yes. The dandelions. If you
could tell me where some of this stuff is, I can start cleaning
them while you get dressed. I mean, if you want to get dressed. Not
that you have to, because you look great in your pajamas. I mean…
dang it…. Sorry. I guess I haven’t talked to a man in a while. I
haven’t talked to much of anyone in a while.”

“Hard time can be like that…”

“Excuse me?” I think I forgot to breathe.

“Prison… sorry, bad joke. Now I’m the one
that has to admit I haven’t talked to a woman over the age of six
recently. Well, except Anjelita and she doesn’t count.”

“No, it’s okay. We’ll just stammer through
the day together,” I’m pretty sure I smiled at him. Feebly, maybe,
but it was meant to be reassuring.

“So, should I change or not?” he teased.

“Just point me in the direction of my
supplies and you can strip naked and streak through the town square
for all I care,” I tried to sound indifferent. Truth was—if he did
that, I’d probably be on the front porch watching. That thought
made me giggle. There was something very normal about being in
lust. I liked that. Maybe it meant there was hope for me yet.

“Na, you’d enjoy that too much. You’d never
get your dandelions… well, whatever you’re going to do to them.” He
playfully tapped my nose. I startled like a deer, causing him to
apologize, then me to apologize.

If for no other reason than to break the
awkwardness we kept stumbling onto, he rounded up the pans and
buckets I’d requested, then went to change while I began the
process of separating the dandelions into three parts. He returned
in a gray t-shirt and jeans, ready to help clean dandelions.

I showed him how to cut the flowers so no
green wound up in the mix, and where to cut the roots. After we’d
finished separating, I washed the florets and put them on to boil
before turning my attention to the roots. While I washed and
chopped roots, Charlie followed my instructions to set out the
supplies we’d need to finish the flowers. He watched with
fascination as I put the dandelion roots on to roast.

“You have to tell me what we’re making,” he
implored as he handed me the coffee filter I’d requested.

“It’s more fun to make you wonder,” I shook
my head and carefully strained the water with the yellow flowers.
“Can you hand me that sugar?”

He did as I requested, watching intently as I
mixed the ingredients together and began pouring the mixture into
canning jars.

“When this cools, you can have your very
first taste of dandelion jelly,” I nodded at the jars as I got the
dandelion roots out of the oven.

“Dandelion jelly?”

“Sure. It tastes a little like honey. It’s
very good for you. So’s the coffee.”

“Coffee?”

“It’s what we’re making with the roots. It
makes a very good decaffeinated coffee,” I assured him.

“And you plan to sell this?”

“Oh ye of little faith. Yes, I plan to sell
it. There’s always a market for herbal remedies that don’t taste
like medicine. Package it pretty and it’ll sell.”

“I think I believe you,” he still seemed
unsure. “But what about the greens?”

“Those’ll be turning up in my cooking.”

“Huh.”

“What? It’s better for you than spinach and
cheaper, too.”

“Okay.”

“Don’t sound so convinced. I think the roots
are cool enough to grind if you want to put them in that food
processor. You know, there are other things we could do with these.
I just thought this was a good place to start.”

“I never knew.”

“Most people don’t,” I shrugged. “Would you
like me to brew you a cup of dandelion coffee?”

“Sure. Why not?”

When we’d processed all of the dandelions I’d
brought in that morning, we stopped for lunch then went back out to
his field to harvest more. I showed him how to use the steak knife
to cut the roots and which ones to leave behind.

By early evening, my back was screaming from
the long day, but I was flushed with the joy of having spent a day
laughing. I didn’t want it to end, so maybe I was a tad too eager
to agree when he asked if I’d go to dinner with him at the diner on
the town square.

“Just don’t strip naked and go streaking,” I
cautioned after calling Anjelita to tell her not to hold dinner for
me.

“But it was your idea,” he pouted.

“But now I’ll be with you. I have a
reputation to uphold.”

“Ah,” he feigned serious contrition. “Then
I’ll be on my best behavior.”

Chapter Six

I’m not sure who was more embarrassed when
the brassy blonde stood hand on hip in front of our table glaring
at me. Charlie had introduced us; I’d offered a handshake. She’d
ignored it and had been staring at me ever since.

Elena was the sheriff’s daughter and I got
the distinct impression she thought Charlie belonged to her.

“So, are the two of you dating?”

“Only if I can convince Neena to give me a
chance,” Charlie met my eyes in a way that made my stomach
flutter.

“That doesn’t make any sense. She’s been in
town for two minutes, Charlie,” the blonde protested.

“Elena, sometimes the heart just knows what
it wants,” he shrugged and smiled. “Now you have a good evening and
tell your daddy I said hey.”

She frowned prettily at Charlie, gave me a
final glare, and sashayed out of the little diner. Any hope I had
of going unnoticed in this town went out the door with her.

“Bravo,” I flashed him a smile while trying
to settle my heart back into a steady rhythm. “That was a very
stirring performance.”

“Sure.…”

What did that tone mean? Sure you’re crazy,
or sure it wasn’t a performance? How could one word be so loaded? I
spent the rest of my meal trying to decipher the tone of his sure.
When we were back in the car, he asked if I wanted to go to his
place for a cup of dandelion coffee. He seemed to be as reluctant
to be alone as I was to leave his company.

“It’s decaffeinated,” he informed me
imploringly.

I’ve never done drugs, not once, but I was
beginning to think that being near him was like an addiction to
drugs. And I don’t mean nicotine… I mean the hard stuff. The junk
you know you shouldn’t do, but can’t seem to steer clear of. Every
rational thought in my head was screaming to go back to the
Angelita’s.

“Oh, well then… how could I not?” The
completely irrational addict in me replied.

Any butterflies in my stomach scattered when
he took my hand and led me up the walk. They were replaced by
molten lava. I swallowed hard and took a deep breath. It didn’t
help. Now his scent had a firmer grip on my senses. Something about
the whole thing woke up a different kind of completely instinctual
animal; one I didn’t even realize I had lurking inside of me.

The door clicked behind us and we leapt at
each other. He pulled me into his arms as I hungrily buried my
fingers in his soft golden hair.

I had been kissed by a clumsy teenage boy
before. I’d been punished by the angry touch of a beast. I’d never
been branded by the kiss of a starving man. Not like this. It was
dizzying. The emotions were so overwhelming it made me want to cry.
I couldn’t get close enough to him and he couldn’t seem to get
enough of me. His hands were everywhere. We found our way to the
stairs but we didn’t make it up them.

I didn’t feel the steps pressing into my back
as his mouth roamed my throat. But when his hands trailed up my
arms to cup my neck, the other completely instinctual animal in me
panicked. Warning bells sounded in my brain. Hands that had sought
him now clawed and shoved him from me.

He pulled away, cursing up a storm until he
saw the look in my eyes. The stark terror coursing through my veins
must have shown, because his expression instantly softened.

What scared me most at that moment was the
knowledge that if there’d been a tire iron within my grasp, I would
have hurt him. Really hurt him.

“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry,” I scrambled to
my feet.

“Neena,” he made a grab for my hand that I
eluded.

“I have to go. I’m sorry,” I refused to look
him in the eye.

“If I did something…,” he sounded so tortured
at that moment it stopped me in my tracks.

“You are the gentlest… the most decent man
I’ve met in many years. It’s me. I had no business even toying with
the idea… let alone ending up on your steps. I’m so sorry,” I took
his hand in mine and kissed his knuckles. “I’m so, so sorry.”