“Yeah, it’s on his letterhead, from that note he wrote me.” I slid the note out of my pocket and showed it to her.
“You know if you leave now you’ll be there in just a few hours. It’s Sunday so there’s probably no traffic out there, well not much anyway. Go home and change and go see him! You want me to go with you? I can wait in the car.”
“No, I need to do this myself but thank you for offering. Are you sure you are going to be okay?”
“Girl, I am more than okay.” She laughed aloud and pointed to the computer screen. “I’m about to book a cruise around the Mediterranean. Life is good. I deserve a break. I guess I need to call HR first and make sure I can take the two weeks off. Ah, screw them. I have plenty of vacation time coming.”
I picked up my plate and put it in the sink.
“Alright then. So I am really going to do this.” I paused at the door with my purse in my hand.
“Yep, you are really doing this!” She smiled and tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Oh and Lilly—pick something dressy casual. Go ahead and pack a bag just in case
. You might need to stay overnight to think about it a little more.”
I rolled my eyes playfully and smiled at her. “I doubt I will need that but okay.”
I left Kate’s house feeling good about my friend. She had something to think about, something to plan for, that was going to help her move on from Riley. What an ass!
I went home looking for something that qualified as dressy casual and toyed with the idea of packing a bag, in case it got too late and I wanted to wait to go home. I was sure there were some good hotels around there.
Yeah, right. That’s what you’ll do.
Chapter Ten
Bullet
It was Sunday afternoon, a little late in the day but I felt restless. My life was totally in transition, from my personal life, to my geographical location to my career, and the more I thought of it, the more nervous I became. I decided to clean out my garage. I slid on a pair of old jeans and a white t-shirt. This must have been the one that Lilly had worn because I smelled her perfume. The scent filled me with longing. Get over it. She’s gone.
I walked out the kitchen to the garage and hit the automatic door to let some light in. I rarely used the garage, mainly because it was a disorganized mess. I didn’t do much work around the house— my hands were my money so I had gotten out of the habit of getting them beat up. I smiled at the old motorcycle remembering how many hours I had put into it as a college sophomore. Maybe it was time to finally fix it. I had all the parts, just needed the time. Well, I had plenty of time now, didn’t I? First things first, tidy up the garage.
I reached for one of the empty plastic bins I had bought a few months ago. I had put this project off for too long. I opened them and placed the bins on the counter tops that lined the garage. I put motorcycle parts in one, tools in another and so on until I had some sort of order going. Soon I was covered in grease and I didn’t give a damn. It was nice to think about nothing. I flipped on the radio and enjoyed Kansas playing “Dust in the Wind.” Nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky…
My neighbor across the street waved at me as he rode around his yard on his lawn mower. I half waved back, and felt extremely guilty just by doing so. He was about my age, I guessed and in his mind, I was sure he thought he was “living the dream.” I’d been sleeping with the guy’s wife for months and sadly for him, I was pretty sure I was not the only one on her roster. Leave it alone, Bullet.
Finally, I got on my knees beside the motorcycle with the bucket of parts. So what if I nicked my hands? I had already made up my mind to take some time off, at least until the transition to Pennington’s office. I had someone in mind that could cover me if I couldn’t do this week’s surgeries. I needed this. It was almost as good as the cabin at Blue Lake.
I twisted off the bolts to remove the old part. Once I got this off, I was going to get myself a beer. It was warm out and sunny—the perfect day for working in the garage. I popped off the old housing and all of a sudden, I heard a car in my driveway. I got up off my knees and rubbed my greasy hands on a rag. I could hardly believe my eyes. It was Lilly!
She didn’t see me at first but I could see her. Her wild blonde hair caught in the breeze. She wore a yellow summer dress and yellow sandals. Her golden skin looked even more beautiful. Finally Lilly saw me; she stood still and walked toward me, her dainty purse clutched in her hands. She gave me a tentative smile. I walked to the driveway and leaned against the doorframe.
“Hi. If I had known you were coming, I would have cleaned up.” I felt embarrassed having her see me covered in grease and grime.
“No need to apologize. This was how I wanted to see you. I wanted to see the real you. Not the guy you pretend to be, or at least I think you pretend to be. I see you’re busy,” she gestured to my motorcycle project, “but can we talk?”
“Oh yeah, sure. I was just about to pause for a beer. Do you want something? Beer, soda, water?”
“Yes, a soda sounds wonderful.”
“Come on, I’ll go clean up my hands.” She followed me in the house. I was glad the housekeeper had passed through here Friday. Except for a few glasses on the counter, everything was in order. I washed up my hands and dried them. I grabbed a beer and soda from the refrigerator. I opened hers and offered her a glass. “No, I’m good thanks.” We stood there awkwardly in the kitchen, and I finally remembered the beer in my hand. I opened it and took a sip.
“How was your drive over?”
“It was pretty good. Easy shot. I am surprised you fly so much. It’s not really much of a drive.”
“Well, it’s just a little faster and I sometimes have to go to several cities in one week so it makes things easier. But it looks like that might change.”
“Really? What do you mean? Plan on opening a motorcycle shop?” She laughed ruefully.