Scattered Ashes (33 page)

“Nic,” Sarah began, her hands pausing so she could look up at Nicole.  “We’ve been over this, hon.  What happened between you and Michael wasn’t your fault.  He was a dick, and you got hurt.  Your kids will tell you that, even though you’d never ask them because you try so hard to make things equitable.”  She shook her head.  “Well, do something for you.  Just this once make things equitable and enjoy your life.  You aren’t married, and you're free to call whomever you want.  Jordan is a big boy.  If he’s in the middle of a relationship, which I doubt, he’ll be the first to speak up, I’m sure.”

Sarah went back to shoving the poles into place, and to Nicole’s frustration, the tent began to take shape--and it even looked right, unlike what she'd done earlier.  Chewing her bottom lip, Nicole reached into the ice chest and pulled out a bottle of water.

“You seem certain Jordan isn’t in the middle of a relationship.  Why?”

Sarah straightened and stretched; half the tent was done.  “Well, let’s face it.  You never got over him, and I’m willing to bet he never got over you.  Yeah, he married Alyssa, but that didn’t last very long.  You married Michael, and even though you did everything you were supposed to, it fell apart.  Who's to say that what you and Jordan had wasn’t meant to be, and that both of you were just too stubborn and stupid to know better?”

“Thanks for your vote of confidence, Sarah.  I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.”  She sighed and took a drink before wiping her hand across her forehead.  “Besides, even if I did call Jordan and we wanted to go out, I’m not sure what the kids would think, and the last thing I want to do is upset them the way their dad is upsetting them.”

At that, Sarah actually threw one of the smaller tent poles.  Even though Nicole tried shifting out of the way, the pole dinged her shin.  “Ouch!  That hurt!  Why are you throwing things at me?”

“You're a grown woman, Nicole Adams, and you deserve your chance to go out and have fun just like the rest of the population.  I think your kids are smart enough to recognize that.”  She began to assemble the last part of the tent.  “You just can’t put a tent together to save your soul.

Nicole squirmed in her seat, knowing her best friend was probably right, but that didn’t make it any easier to think about.  It was bad enough that both her kids had seen her break down during a weaker moment even though she’d fought so hard to avoid it.  She didn’t want to have to explain about going out on dates, too.  Then again, if she hadn’t believed so strongly that Jordan had remarried, she probably would've tried to get together with him, if for no other reason than to rule out this infernal feeling of being incomplete without him.  That was really beginning to get on her nerves.

Nicole glanced around the campsite and shook her head.  “By the way, have you seen my two wonderful teenagers—you know, the ones who thought this would be such a great experience for mom?”

Sarah shrugged.  “Nope.   Then again, Nick in particular  knows just how well you put things together, so my money is on him wandering around, and Michelle has probably found the part of the river where all the cute guys are swimming and is reluctant to leave.”

She snapped the last pole into place and then gestured to the tent, a proud smile on her face.  “The tent is up.”

“Have I mentioned you suck?” Nicole growled standing.  Part of her wanted to find some kind of fault in how the tent was standing but couldn’t.  Sarah somehow knew just where everything went.  It was sickening, really.  “So where did you figure out how to put up a tent?”

“It’s not hard.”  She picked up a flyer from the other folding chair.  “They're  called instructions and they tell you everything you need to know about putting the poles in the right places.  You should try using them sometime.”  She waved them at her best friend and started laughing.

“Well,” Nicole said, looking at the tent.  “It’s hours before we need to think about dinner.  So what are we going to do?”

Sarah’s cell began to ring, and she shrugged.  “Hold that thought.  Let me answer this.”  She flipped the phone open.  “Hello?”  A pause.  “Oh, yeah.  The usual spot is definitely where it needs to be.  Thanks.”  She flipped the phone shut before turning back to Nicole.

“What was that all about?” Nicole asked, frowning.

“Mom’s keeping an eye on the house because Greg is out of town.  I was telling her to put the mail in the usual spot.”  She stretched her arms over her head.  “So how about we take a little walk to stretch our legs?”

“All right.  But I’m kind of getting a little nervous about Nick.  He should have been here already.”

Sarah gave her shoulder a squeeze.  “I’m sure Nick is fine, Nicole.  He’s got a good head on his shoulders.” 

The two of them headed down the road, and even though Nicole thought the landscape seemed familiar, she really couldn’t place it.  Although it was warm enough for swimming and she figured there would be more than a few people hanging around, there weren’t, which actually made it nice.  The two kept walking until Nicole spotted her son’s truck , and she jerked her best friend toward it.

“Now you get here,” Nicole said, watching as her son rolled the truck window down.  “I could've used some help putting up the tent!”

Nick grinned.  “Yeah, well, I’m sure you could've.”

Sarah threw her hands up in exasperation.  “Hey, I helped.  Otherwise, the tent would still be on the ground in pieces.  Your mother so needs tent assembly lessons.”

Nicole shoved her elbow in Sarah’s side, which immediately quieted her.  “So where have you been?”

Nick shrugged.  “I had to pick up a friend.”

Scanning the empty passenger seat, Nicole frowned.  “Okay, if you really want me to buy that, you should have someone sitting next to you.”

“He’s on the bridge, Mom.”  Nick’s dull tone suggested his mother really should be more observant.

“On the bridge?”  It was then that Nicole remembered the park from years ago, when she'd first met Jordan.  The sun was bright and she had to shield her eyes even to look at the bridge, which was when she saw a man in jeans and a denim, button-down standing at the center in pretty much the same spot she’d stood that day.  He held a bouquet of daisies.

“Who is….”  Nicole’s voice died as she took in his dark hair and build.  It was Jordan.  Her mouth opened, and she meant to call his name as her feet started moving.  At first, it was a slow canter, but a few steps later, she was running full force and didn’t stop until she'd launched herself into his arms.

“It’s you!  It’s really you!” she whispered breathlessly.

Jordan thought about answering, but for the moment all he could do was just hold onto her the way he’d always wanted since they’d met.  She wrapped her legs around him and buried her head against his neck, the silence broken only by the sound of dragonflies buzzing through the air and the sound of their hearts.

“I thought you'd remarried,” she said.

He pulled back to look into her eyes.  “And I thought you were still married.  Just goes to show what happens when you think instead of feel.”  He smiled, and in the instant their eyes met, he knew he had to kiss her.  His head bent low, and their lips touched at last.

For a moment the world seemed to spin.  Jordan could swear to that because suddenly they both listed to the side--and fell over the edge, the arms of the one never releasing the other.  They surfaced, laughing.

“We have to stop doing that,” Nicole said.

“Let's do it every year.”  Jordan pulled her close, and they kissed again.

From the bank, Nick yelled, “Hey, Jordan,” I think I got it.”  He waved the camera.

“Oh my God--is that my camera?" Nicole asked, incredulous.  "The one that fell in the river?”

He nodded.

Nicole swallowed hard and felt tears glimmering in her eyes.  He’d thought of her all those years and kept part of her close.  “But I told you to get rid of it.”

Jordan smiled.  “Some things just take time to fix.”

Maria Rachel Hooley has been featured in numerous publications such as Green Hills Literary Lantern, Westview, and Kimera. She has written over thirty novels in numerous genres. Her first chapbook of poetry, A Different Song, was published by Rose Rock Press in 1999. She is a high school teacher and lives in Oklahoma with husband and three children, one of whom is on the autism spectrum. She is an advocate for education about autism
.