My Forever June (5 page)

Chapter Thirteen

June

I spent most of the day cleaning and pickin
g up the trash in the yard. A lot of my neighbors were doing the same. The area was filled with the sounds of hammers banging. I was very grateful for the young gentleman Tucker had sent to repair my shutters. And after a few short hours, the house was back to its usual charming self. Felix, however, was distraught by the event and was hiding under my bed and stayed there all day.

             
I decided to wash my sheets, and it wasn’t as painful as I had remembered from living at home. Maybe it was because I didn’t have a nagging woman barking over my shoulder the entire time.
I know it sounds like I really dislike my mother, and maybe that is true to a small degree, but I do truly love her…a little.

             
Tucker called to check on how things were going and if I was pleased with the work the young guy, Nelson was doing. I assured him I was and thanked him again. He then asked me if I wanted to have dinner with his parents on Saturday night. I stammered and reluctantly agreed. He was thrilled and hung up the call with a chuckle
. I was so in trouble. This guy was totally getting into my skin, and it scared me a little.
I guess I had just gotten so content with living alone, and with all of my self-inflicted quirks, I didn’t really think I was good for anybody just yet. I had some things to work out. But this relationship just hit me square in the face.
I guess this was a relationship. What else would you call it?
I knew,
from what Tucker had told me, that his parents were wealthy and picky about the girls he dated, and I was nervous at the idea of meeting them.
Would they like me? Or would I have to win them over? And did I even I want to?
Well, I would have to wait until Saturday to see.

             
The two days passed a little too quickly for my comfort, and the time to prep for my dinner with Tucker’s parents had come. I jumped into the shower and then paced in front of my closet as I labored over what to wear. Another fifteen minutes passed before I finally decided on a black and white polka dot dress, with a yellow belt and matching yellow flip-flops with big yellow flowers across the top of them. My toenails were still blue.
Should I repaint them?
I decided I didn’t really have the time and then began studying my hair. This would be a bigger problem for me. You see my hair was really long and straight, so I usually pulled it up on top of my head, but I didn’t think that would work for this night. After a few minutes of playing with it, I finally decided to braid it down one side, leaving a few wispy pieces to frame my face. I added light make-up and a pair of my chunky earrings to finish off the look. I appraised myself in the mirror and had to admit that I looked pretty good. And I got confirmation, minutes later, when I opened the door to a bug-eyed Tucker with a silly grin covering his adorable face. It almost looked like he was salivating. I couldn’t help but laugh.

             
“You look very handsome,” I said, studying his white button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearm and his fitted blue-jeans and dark shoes. His hair was soft looking and windblown due to the beach wind.

             
“And you look…umm, you look amazing.” He leaned down then, and after a quick peek over my shoulder, I’m sure to see if Felix was close, he gave me a gentle kiss to the cheek.

             
Tucker’s parents’ house was beautiful, and huge. I felt the nervousness creeping in as Tucker opened my car door and took my hand.

             
“Don’t be nervous. It’ll be fine.”

             
I smiled to reassure him, but I was still a mess inside.

             
I took a deep breath, put on a happy face, and walked hand in hand with Tucker to the door. Having his strong hand wrapped around mine instantly eased some of my anxiety.

             
The first thing that I noticed when I stepped inside was the wonderful aroma of supper. Now I knew where Tucker got his gift of cooking.

             
We strolled into the kitchen, our hands still intertwined, and Tucker’s mom turned. “Oh, Tucker, you’re here. I didn’t hear you come in.”

             
“Hey, Mom.” He kissed her on her cheek and then turned to me, his expression filling with pride. “Mom, this is June Russell.”

             
I held out my hand and she took it warmly. “Hello, June. I’m Alice. It’s nice to meet you. I hope you’re hungry.”

             
Her smile was warm, but I felt a hesitation that I couldn’t quiet explain. It’s like she was holding herself back from being too warm…or something.

             
“It’s so nice to meet you too, Alice. You have a lovely home and the food smells wonderful.” I knew I said the right thing because her face relaxed and her eyes sparkled slightly.

             
“Thank you. Now you two take a seat at the table and once Jim gets down here we’ll start.” So we did as she requested.

             
I could see where Tucker got his looks from. His father, Jim, was an attractive man, tall with thick, dark hair and a nice smile. He seemed to be more genuine than Alice. I hadn’t yet figured out what her problem was. She either didn’t like me, or she didn’t want to like me, one or the other.

As we ate, they asked me
questions about my life and childhood. Everything seemed to be going fine, but when I shared about my Aunt Tess, the friction from Alice intensified. I began to wonder if she had known my aunt. I was going to ask her when Jim asked me a question.

“So, June, do you like living on Oak Island? Or are the tourist
s an irritation?”

“Oh, no they’re not an irritation for me at all. I love living on the beach. Maybe it has something to do with having such great memories as a child her
e, but I feel like I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.”

Tucker took hold of my hand under the table. I felt like I was back in high school again. And to be honest, it felt really nice.

We said our goodbyes, and I put my arm through Tucker’s as he walked me to my side of the truck.

Our drive to Darling was quiet, but nice. Even though the dinner hadn’t been a total success, nothing bad had happened either, but I sensed something had chan
ged between Tucker and myself. It was unspoken, but we had somehow officially become a couple. It wasn’t anything that was said but more of just a feeling…a very strong feeling. Maybe it was just the gesture of meeting his parents that changed everything, or maybe it was the intimacy of getting a glimpse into his life, his past that endeared me to him even more than I already was. But something had definitely changed. And I sensed that tonight I was finally going to get that kiss that I was desperately looking forward to.

Chapter Fourteen

Tucker

My
hands were sweating as I pulled the truck to a stop in her driveway. Tonight was the night I was finally going to get that kiss, and no cat, possessed or not, was gonna get in the way this time. It had been over three weeks since I first laid eyes on June Russell, and I had wanted to kiss her then. I knew I couldn’t wait much longer. I couldn’t explain it, but something had suddenly changed, as if a light switch had been turned on and our feelings were allowed to be real. Somehow I knew that this was the night for that first kiss. I had never remembered being so nervous over a first kiss before. Maybe it was because I never felt this way for any other girl before…ever.

             
I turned off the ignition and glanced over at her. She was watching me and a warm smile danced on her glowing face. “Well,” I finally said, “I think the dinner went well.”

             
She nodded slightly. “Yeah, but I don’t think your parents liked me all that much. Did I say something wrong?”

             
I took her delicate hand in mine and rubbed it with my thumb. It was so soft and warm. “No, not at all. They just have a ridiculous standard. They think you have to be rich and snooty, like them, to make me happy.”

             
She laughed then and the lovely sound filled the small space like her wind chimes blowing in the summer breeze.

             
“That’s never going to happen, you know,” she said through her laughter.

             
Suddenly, I was laughing along with her. “God, I hope not.” Then we were both laughing in full force, much like that day we first met.

             
My laughter slowed before hers, and I gazed at her as I took her braid into my hand and gently played with it. “I really like you, you know.”

             
Her laughing came to an abrupt stop. She peered up at me, her big, chocolate eyes sincere. “I like you too.”

             
“No, I mean I really, really like you. Maybe more than I should.”

             
Her soft, pink lips parted as if to say something in response, and I couldn’t resist any longer. In one swift move, I scooted close, placed my left hand around the back of her neck, and pressed my lips against hers. You know how they say that with a powerful kiss you can sometimes hear music? Well, an entire symphony was playing in my ears. I slowly pulled back and gazed down at her. Her warm dark eyes peered back, giving me permission. My lips came down on hers again, this time with slightly more force, as if the floodgates of heaven had been released. She responded with the same force.
Could it be she wanted this kiss as much as I wanted it? Not possible.

             
I cleared my mind then, only thinking of the way her delicate form felt in my arms and the way her warm moist lips felt against mine. I was lost.

             
Headlights flashed through the windows, overwhelming us with light as June’s neighbor pulled into his driveway. We blinked against the brightness and pulled apart, waiting for him to kill his headlights, but it didn’t happen.

             
At that very moment, I wanted to punch my hand through his windshield and grab his neck.

             
“I guess I better get inside. Thank you for a lovely evening, Tucker. It was nice.” She glanced across at her neighbor, still in his car with his headlights blaring in the truck, and then she opened the door and stepped out.

             
“I’ll call you tomorrow,” I blurted before the door was shut.

             
She smiled sheepishly. “You better.” And then she quickly disappeared around the house.

             
I smiled victoriously as I pulled out of her driveway. It was then that her neighbor shut off his headlights.

             
Oh man!
I suddenly realized I forgot to walk June to her front door. The kiss was more powerful than I ever dreamed. It even made me forget my manners.
Some gentleman I am.

             
I could barely concentrate on work the next day, and I was a fool if I thought my dad didn’t notice. For the first time, I didn’t care and counted the minutes until time to leave. Forget calling her, I was going to go see her again. And my truck couldn’t drive there fast enough.

Her car was in her driveway, but she didn’t answer the door when I knocked. I peered through her window and it looked as if she wasn’t at home.

              I stepped out onto the beach and climbed the nearest dune. It was an amazing day and the temperature was perfect. The sun was high in the sky and the breeze was moderate. My eyes scanned the shoreline and that’s when I spotted her. She was walking this way in the surf and was a ways off yet. Her long dark hair was down and blowing in the breeze. She was wearing a yellow sundress that came to her ankles and the bottom was wet and clung to her legs. She was holding a straw hat in her hand and was swaying it back and forth as she walked. As she got closer, the look on her face was so peaceful it took my breath away. I would’ve given anything to know what she was thinking in that very moment. I wished that I had a camera. I would’ve snapped off picture after picture, trying to capture the moment and the way she was looking up into the sky. Though I knew the image was burned into my memory for life.

             
As she approached, she finally spotted me and waved sweetly, but said nothing as she then walked past me and went into the house. I turned and watched her go, mesmerized again by her beauty. I stared at the house for a few minutes and then smiled in relief when she finally opened the door and waved me inside.

Chapter Fifteen

June

I woke that morning with the oddest sense of completeness. I couldn’t quite explain it. I had never experienced it before, and it scared me.

After breakfast
, I had tried to go upstairs and work, but the inspiration wasn’t there. I then went back downstairs and paced for a while, trying to come to some kind of understanding of what was happening to me. I felt a little sick and unfocused.

I stopped
in front of my painting of the butterfly. It usually held the power to focus me, or at least give me strength, but not today, today I was a mess. After a few more failed attempts at painting, I decided to take a walk on the beach to clear my head. I didn’t have anything clean to wear, so I pulled a yellow sundress from my closet and grabbed my straw beach hat as I exited the house, pulling the door shut behind me.

The beach was
always a soothing place for me. The warm sun on my skin, the wind in my hair, and the smell of salt mixed with coconut-scented suntan lotion was therapy of the greatest kind. And it didn’t disappoint. I walked the pier and stopped at the end and leaned against the rail to look into the ocean. A couple came alongside me and were giggling and snuggling. They were giddy as they shared intimate secrets. Then it hit me like a boulder to the head. “That’s it!” I yelled. The couple turned toward me, their eyes growing wide in concern. “That’s it! I’m falling in love with Tucker Mitchell!!”

“Congratulations,” they both said, patting me on the back.

I could feel my mouth
still agape as the words finally penetrated my brain, along with the realization that I had declared that out loud!
How had I let this happen? This was not part of my new life plan!
I was instantly agitated by this revelation. But as I stood there secretly watching the young lovers kissing and laughing, I settled into a peaceful acceptance.
Maybe this wouldn’t be a bad thing. Maybe, just maybe, this could be amazing.
I decided right then and there, that it was worth a try, and that falling in love didn’t have to be painful, and so I let all my reservations slip over the railing and into the ocean water below me.

I
grinned as I strolled back down the beach toward home, my face tipped up toward the bright sky. I was in love with Tucker, and an unexplainable peace had settled into my spirit that overwhelmed me…in a good way.

             
I glanced across the beach and spotted Tucker standing on a dune, watching me. I pretended not to be fazed by his sudden presence and strolled past him and into my home.

             
When the minutes passed and he didn’t follow, I opened my door and ushered him inside.

             
He stepped into the room, his face beaming.

Had he come to the same revelation today that I had?

              “Hey there,” I said, grinning at his adorable and disheveled appearance. “Are you okay?”

             
“Never better. And you?” he asked.

             
“Oh, I’m doing pretty good too. You want something to drink?”

             
“Sure,” he simply replied, but he still had that ridiculous grin on his face.

             
What was he not telling me?

             
I poured him a glass of sweet tea and we sat down on the sofa. “So, how ‘bout you tell me more about your childhood?” I asked, genuinely curious.

             
He shrugged. “Oh, okay. Well, I bet you couldn’t guess that when I was young I had seizures?”

             
My eyes widened in concern. “Really? Did you have epilepsy?”

             
“Yes. And when I was ten I had brain surgery to fix the problem in my brain that was causing the seizures. They shaved my head, and I had a huge scar around the top of my head.” He drew an imaginary circle around his head, showing me just where. “I don’t remember much about the surgery, but after that the seizures stopped. That’s one reason my parents are so protective. They just never learned to stop, even after I was better.”

             
I nodded my understanding. “Wow. That’s really something I never expected to hear. Now, I understand completely why they are that way. I probably would be too.”

             
“Yeah, I try to go easy on them, but sometimes it can be pretty annoying.”

             
“Oh, I’m sure it can. Thanks for sharing that with me.” I took hold of his hand and squeezed.

             
He squeezed back, and for a moment, we sat still and quiet, just holding hands.              

             
I heated us up two microwave dinners, and we sat on the sofa, eating and talking. We laughed and shared things about our pasts, and this went on for hours until we were both spent. I had learned more about him in that one night than I had in all the previous nights put together, and I was awestruck. He was an interesting man, and I sensed a genuine goodness in him. There was no way for me to deny any longer that I was in love with Tucker Mitchell…and my heart made a good choice. If nothing else, his goodnight kiss was proof enough.