“Jesus, that’s sad.” Leah squeezed Briley’s arm.
“I know. I barely held my tears in until I made it home.”
“I’ve never had that kind of love before.”
“Me either. She said she wouldn’t change a thing about their life together. I don’t think she knows she even does it, but sometimes when we talk, she’ll play with the necklace around her neck.”
“Do you know what significance it holds?”
Briley sighed. “It holds their wedding rings. When her hands started to swell badly a few years back, I bought it for her. She’s worn it ever since.”
Leah bumped her shoulder. “You’re a good egg, Briley.”
“My mom used to tell me I was too soft. I needed to toughen up. Dad told me that strength wasn’t determined by how much we could lift, but by how often we cried.”
“He sounds like a good man.”
“He was.” Briley sat still, enjoying the feel of Leah against her.
“I spent three weeks in the Amazon doing a piece on one of the tribes. These people had hardly any material possessions. Their huts were well-made but simple. Their clothes were well-made, but again, simple. I learned something valuable from them. Life shouldn’t be measured by how much you own or the money you make. Life is a gift that should be lived for the people we love. Memories are the souvenirs we should be taking with us. I guess that’s why I like taking pictures so much. I try to enjoy the moment for what it is, but I have this overwhelming urge to capture it.” She pulled her legs up to her chest. “Those people smiled and laughed more than anyone I’ve ever known.”
“I don’t want to go through the loss that Mrs. Hanlin has, but I don’t think I can live without it.”
“That’s life, Briley. We live. We die. It’s the in-between we make our own. What we have to cherish.”
They stayed sitting until Briley’s butt started to fall asleep. She didn’t want to ruin their time together, but Mrs. Hanlin would be waiting for them. They carefully put the letters in the box and got to their feet. Briley lifted the box and followed Leah. A few feet from the stairs Briley stopped.
“What is it?”
“These have been up here for a long time.” She saw Leah nod. She wouldn’t ask but she would always wonder why Mrs. Hanlin decided to read them now.
“Sometimes it just takes time, Briley.”
“Time,” she said softly.
At the bottom of the stairs, Briley set her box down, turned off the light, and lifted the ladder back up. She picked up the box and they followed the smell of freshly baked cookies into the kitchen.
Mrs. Hanlin turned around and covered her mouth to keep from laughing.
“What?” Briley turned to Leah and held in her snicker. Patches of dirt smeared her face and she had strands of cobwebs in her hair. “Here.” She swiped her thumb down Leah’s cheek and showed her the dirt.
Leah grimaced. “I bet I fared better than you.”
“No doubt.”
They deposited the boxes on the table per Mrs. Hanlin’s instructions, accepted the cookies she gave them, then headed home for the shower she ordered them to take. They stopped at the sidewalk outside Leah’s house.
“Not how I expected to spend my Sunday afternoon,” Briley said.
“Are you kidding? That’s the most excitement I’ve had in weeks.” Leah reached toward her and ran fingers through Briley’s hair only for them to come back covered in cobwebs. “Shower, then cookies.”
“Yep.”
Leah squeezed Briley’s arm. “I’ll see you later.”
“Leah.” She turned back around with her foot on the first step. “I enjoyed spending the day with you.”
“I did as well.” A smile fluttered on Leah’s lips.
“Good. Good.”
“Bye.”
“Bye.”
Chapter Ten
A lot had happened in the few weeks since the Sunday brunch spent with Leah at Mrs. Hanlin’s. Briley’s company had sold one house and started another and Kat had settled into her freelance accounting gig. Although Kat hated it, for the moment, she was sticking with it. Briley gave her credit for that, but the whole reason she moved was a change in scenery, plus a new career. If Kat didn’t consider something else in the next month, Briley would sit her down for a long over-due talk.
She and Leah had eaten breakfast together a handful of times on the weekends, and dinner twice with Kat. Even though Leah still made her nervous, Briley was never overwhelmed while with her. Often, if Briley got home early from work, she would whip something up and take it to Leah and they would talk while enjoying the treat. She felt they were on the right track.
Today they were having lunch together. With a wave to Brandon, Briley made her way across town. After parking in her driveway, Briley hopped out, walked up Leah’s porch, and knocked on the door.
Leah greeted her with a warm smile that instantly put Briley’s nerves to rest. After ushering her into a kitchen seat, she placed the food on the table. Today’s fare was chicken salad sandwiches, fruit salad, and sweet tea.
“This looks delicious. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Halfway through the meal it dawned on Briley that, although they’d talked about a lot of things, they’d never talked about their past relationships. She didn’t enjoy rehashing the subject, but she was curious about Leah’s story. Briley bit her bottom lip and wanted to ask the question, but wasn’t sure it was her place to.
“Briley, I can see the wheels in your head turning. Ask your question.”
She went with an easy way to lead the conversation where she wanted it to go. “I was just wondering if Evan’s other parent participated when you and he would cosplay?”
Leah set her empty bowl on her plate. “No. By that time, we had already gone our separate ways. We both wanted Evan and she loves him, and that’s all I could ever ask of her. She’s remarried now, to Lilith, a woman ten years younger than her, and they have an almost two-year-old daughter they named Griffin. Everything worked out the way it was supposed to. Sometimes marriage doesn’t mean forever. Sometimes it’s just a stepping stone to the rest of your life and that’s what I got with Evan and with Madison and my first marriage.”
“Well, I, for one, am glad things worked out like they have.”
“Why’s that?”
“It brought us here.” Briley spread her arms out wide.
Leah smiled. “Yes, it did.”
“So.” Briley pushed her empty plate away. “You’ve been married twice.”
“I have. I met Jeff when I was fifteen. We were married at eighteen and Madison was born when I was twenty-five. We divorced a year after that and remained friends, but it’s never the same. He was an amazing father, but I figured out early on that we would never really be anything other than friends. It was for the best that we divorced. I actually stayed in the marriage longer than I should have, but if I’d left earlier, I wouldn’t have Madison, and I will never be sorry for that.”
“Was?”
“He died five years ago. Heart attack. Then I met Kathy when I was thirty-two and two years into our relationship, we had Evan. Things went south for us quickly. We both knew it wasn’t the best match and thank goodness we figured that out sooner rather than later.”
Briley braced her elbows on the table. “My longest relationship was five years. I thought Beth was the one. We were talking kids and marriage. One night we had a huge fight. She stormed out, and when she came back home the next morning, I knew and she knew that I knew.” Briley paused to smooth a strand of hair from her face. “She said it was a mistake and would never happen again, but the damage, at least for me, had already been done. When the woman you’re planning on spending the rest of your life with tells you the woman she cheated on you with meant nothing, well, I knew I would never be able to trust her again. It wouldn’t have been fair to either one of us to try and make it work. She would always be atoning for cheating and I would
always be reading too much into her every move. That was two years ago.”
“Jeff nor Kathy ever cheated on me, but in between those two relationships, I dated a woman for almost six months when I realized only one of us was being monogamous.”
“Thankfully, my only bout with cheating was with Beth. It was hard enough dealing with that from one person. I don’t know how people cope when multiple partners cheat on them.”
“I don’t either. I value trust above all else and when it’s broken in a romantic relationship, for me, it can never be regained.” Leah picked her glass up and took a sip of her tea.
“I feel the same way. It’s not easy to give my heart to someone because I know what it’s like to have it shattered, and sometimes I wonder if the risk is worth the reward. Then I look at people like my parents and Mrs. Hanlin and want what they had.”
“I agree. I don’t think I’m too old to want that forever kind of love. I’m sure she’s out there somewhere.”
“She?”
Leah frowned. “Yes.”
Briley held her hand up. “You were married to a man. I was just wondering. I didn’t mean any harm.”
“None taken. Jeff and I were young. Too young. I thought I knew what I wanted, but I was wrong. When I first told him I was gay, he was furious. Threatened to fight for full custody of Madison. After a few weeks, we both sat down and had a long talk, and decided to make our friendship the best we could and to raise Madison with the full love and support of two parents. It worked out well.”
“And Kathy?”
“I wouldn’t say we were friends after we were divorced but we had a mutual understanding and trust between us. We, also, only wanted the best for Evan and I believe we’ve achieved that. She’s a great mother. No love before Beth?”
“I dated, but nothing worth mentioning. No one had ever meant to me what Beth did.”
“Do you still love her?”
“No. I haven’t for a long time. I’m ready to move on. Settle down. Make a life together.”
“Be a housewife?”
“Hey.” Briley picked up her napkin and tossed it in Leah’s direction. “I would make an awesome housewife. Except dishes. I hate doing dishes. At least by myself.”
For the next thirty minutes, they debated the many household chores they had to do. Briley was grateful for the change in subject. She could only handle spending small doses of time on serious conversation. A glance at her watch told her she needed to be getting back to work.
“I need to be getting back. I’ve enjoyed lunch,” Briley said.
“I did as well. How about lunch again tomorrow?”
“I would love to.” At the door, Briley turned back around. “The church bazaar is in a few days. Do you want to go?”
“I would.”
“Good.” Briley swallowed. “I can pick you up.”
“It’s Thursday, right?” Briley nodded. “I have an appointment. I’ll meet you there.”
“Okay.”
“Okay.”
On her way back to work, Briley hummed along with the radio, satisfied at the success of lunch.
Chapter Eleven
The bazaar was always held twice a month. The Holy Temple of God’s People and Believers Church was an all-inclusive establishment. Briley and dozens of other church members had tried to tell them an abbreviated name would suffice, but the Pastor had quickly vetoed their ideas. Briley had been quite taken with The Church, but Pastor Marks said to draw people in, they needed a catchy name. Briley didn’t believe in organized religion, but she did enjoy the choir and the churchgoers had always accepted her with welcome arms.
Somehow, the volunteers had squished almost forty tables into the moderately sized church basement. Food wasn’t allowed in the basement for fear of mold growing in one of the rooms. They didn’t want to deal with another food related illness like the one from three years back. So the ladies who cooked made do with the small kitchen in the church. When lunch was ready, you picked it up in the kitchen and took it to one of the dozens of picnic tables set up in the back parking lot.
For ten dollars, The Church offered lunch at twelve thirty on the dot. Today’s bazaar offered fried chicken and catfish, along with mac and cheese, mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, and rolls. Chocolate cake and cherry pie were offered for dessert and even though she didn’t bake them, she would still eat them since Brew and Bake, a popular bakery/coffee shop in Garriety, donated them.
There were only so many tickets for lunch, so Briley had snagged her and Leah’s ticket before she even made it down stairs to the vendors. This was no time to be taking chances. She’d invited Kat, but she had begged off, wanting to spend a quiet day at home, relaxing. Briley knew she couldn’t fight the urge and bought a couple of brownies and rice crispy treats from the kids on the church’s t-ball team, who were set up in the back-parking lot next to the building.
They raised money every year for their uniforms and supplies. Before she left the table, she slipped a fifty to the kid’s coach to help them reach their goal. From the way everyone bought the treats and gave extra donations, she had a feeling they would have enough money for not only the uniforms but also whatever else they would need.
At the bottom of the stairs, Briley took in the chaos in front of her. Hundreds of people filled the small space already. Briley scrunched her nose at the smell that seemed a mixture of mold, sweat, some unknown scent, and the apple cinnamon candles Dorothy, the pastor’s wife, always bought for these events to try and mask the other odors. It was a good idea in principle, but ended up making the combined smells twice as worse. Everyone dealt with it because no one had the heart to tell Dorothy otherwise.
After a quick scan, Briley stepped down and moved into the crowd. Even though Garriety’s population was nearing a hundred and fifty thousand, most people tended to run in the same circles and she’d known these folks since she moved into this neighborhood ten years ago. They’d accepted her whole-heartedly and if asked, she would do whatever she could for them, as she knew they would do for her.
She was halfway down the first row, between two tables that were filled with kitchen utensils and papier-mâché angels when she caught sight of Leah haggling over the price of what looked to be another piece of art. She hadn’t expected her until later, so this was a treat.
Today Leah’s curls were put up off her neck and she had on a pair of dark washed jeans and a short sleeve white, blue, and yellow striped polo. Briley followed the line of Leah’s leg all the way down to red colored toenails encased in strappy sandals. It took her a moment to realize those sandals were headed toward her.
Briley straightened and turned to the closest table, scanning the contents to give her a moment to compose herself before facing Leah. Even though she had felt a shift in their relationship over the last several weeks, being near Leah still made her nervous. She groaned when she realized whose table she was at. Kate Michaels was the nosiest person she had ever met. Before Briley could make her get-away, Kate grabbed her wrist.
“Briley, good to see you today.” When she had Briley’s attention, she let go of her wrist. “What can I interest you in?” The glint in her eyes put Briley on edge and she knew she would not be able to get out of buying something.
The table contained dozens of different trinkets. “Not sure,” she mumbled. Without much thought, she picked up a small polka-dot ceramic cat and handed it over. At least she would be able to hide it behind something in her curio cabinet.
“Nice choice,” Kate said, accepting the five-dollar bill Briley gave her and handing over her bag. “Have a good day.”
“You too.” Briley turned and ran straight into Leah. She grabbed Leah’s arms to keep them both upright. “Sorry, didn’t expect you so close and almost didn’t see you. You’re so tiny.” Leah smelled like a combination of apples, vanilla, and something sweet she couldn’t identify. The fragrance intoxicated and it was driving her mad.
Leah held back a smile
and rested her hands over Briley’s. “It was partially my fault. I was waiting until you completed your purchase when my mind wandered.”
Briley let go of Leah, took a step back, and rocked back on her heels. “So?”
“So.” A smile played at the corner of Leah’s lips.
“Have you been here long?”
“Have you bought a lunch ticket yet?” They both spoke at the same time. Leah chuckled and slipped her arm through Briley’s. “Since this is my first time here, show me around.”
Instead of talking, she nodded and started walking. Quite a few times, she’d catch an envious look thrown their way and stand up straighter. She knew how lucky she was to have Leah on her arm.
They spent a few minutes at each table and Briley introduced Leah to everyone she knew that they came across. Leah bought candles and another small painting to put up in her hallway, and Briley picked up some homemade oat and honey soap for Kat for Christmas, plus a new gray and blue checkered scarf for herself. It took them over two hours but they made it around the room.
“So,” Briley said. “I bought us both lunch tickets.”
Leah squeezed her arm. “So, you’re asking me to have lunch with you?”
“I am. Let’s head out and get in line. There is always plenty of food but we don’t need to take any chances. Even with a ticket, these people can be vultures. Don’t mess with church people and their food.” Briley patted Leah’s hand then motioned for her to go ahead of her on the stairs. They walked down a hallway to the kitchen, and got in line. “You’re in for a treat. Mr. Hinkley’s fried chicken is awesome. He’s a legend around these parts.”
“You don’t say.” A teasing smile danced on her lips.
“I do say. I do.” The other woman was so easy to be around. Briley stuffed her bag under one arm, picked up a tray, and followed beside Leah as they made the way down the line. For a small woman, Leah didn’t skimp on the portions. Thank goodness. After their plates were laden with food, they headed outside and Briley shielded her eyes from the sun. She searched the area for a spot to eat, ignoring Ms. Bonds, who waved frantically at her. She smiled sweetly when Leah threw her a look.
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