Kellen's Moment

by Robin Alexander

  Chapter 3

  Stevie had been home less than twenty minutes when she received a call from Christine. “Hey, what’s going on?” Stevie said when she answered.

  “You tell me. A friend of mine told me a red car pulled out in front of her when it left Trulee’s Diner today. She followed it all the way back to town and was shocked when she noticed it turned into Mom and Dad’s driveway. I made her swear she wouldn’t tell anyone because if word got out, Mom would be singing Landslide for weeks, and Dad’s head would just pop off. Are you crazy?”

  “No, I’m perfectly sane.” Stevie kicked off her shoes. “I’ll tell you what else, I’m thirty-four years old, and nobody tells me where I can and can’t go.”

  “Oh, yeah, get all cocky with me, but you try telling Mom and Dad that. You’ll get an hour-long lecture from Dad while Mom wails and sings Fleetwood Mac songs in the background. When they’re done with you, you’ll be afraid to cross the street in fear of reliving that drama. I know because they did that to me when I offhandedly mentioned that I considered visiting a friend who had a boat at the McLin Marina.”

  “This is so idiotic. Why are you supporting our parents who are perpetuating a feud that happened before any of us were born? Even Trulee and Kyle think it’s stupid.”

  Christine gasped. “You talked to them about it?”

  “Yes, I did. I went to the South’s version of Area 51 and confronted the aliens. They didn’t arrest me, shoot me with a ray gun, or probe my bellybutton, and I had the best pie I have ever put in my mouth.”

  “You know Dad is on blood pressure medicine, right?” Christine asked.

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Well, he is, and if he finds out about what you did, he’ll probably have a stroke. Walt McLin is the reason Dad’s pressure runs high. Did you talk to him, too?” Christine sounded as though Stevie had committed an unpardonable sin.

  “No, I chatted with Trulee and Kyle, and I spoke to Kellen briefly when she came into the diner to pick up her lunch.”

  “Kellen—you’re lucky your head is still where it belongs, that woman is vicious. She used to threaten to kill me, and I honestly believed she would have if she’d gotten her hands on me. Why did you go to McLin?”

  “I went to see if Trent Weiss still lived there. Not that it’s any of your business or anybody else’s. If you want to rat me out to Mom and Dad, go ahead. They can rant and rave all they want, but I’m not gonna get caught up in this stupid-ass Louisiana version of the Hatfields and McCoys,” Stevie said resolutely.

  “I’d forgotten all about your skinny boyfriend Trent.” Christine sighed. “At the risk of sounding like our parents, you are a Sealy. I don’t go to that town or have anything to do with those people because Walt has called my father Dickus Minimus, a lazy soft-handed weasel, slick shit on a stick, and the bottom of a bag of dicks.”

  “I didn’t know that,” Stevie conceded with a sigh. “Why does Dad talk to him then?”

  “Parades and festivals are a big deal around here. They draw people from all over the state and elsewhere. Whenever we have one, McLin has one too. Their town is smaller, but they have the marina, and boat parades are hard to compete with. Dad has tried for years to work with Walt on the schedules so both towns can take advantage of the crowds and the money they bring. Walt will tell Dad one thing and do another. He’s an asshole that loves strife, and he’s got his hand in everything that goes on in that town. He was mayor for a while, then Kyle was, and now Kellen. I won’t be surprised if after Kellen’s term is up Trulee runs and wins.”

  “One of the reasons I couldn’t wait to get out of this town was the constant drama that always seemed to surround our family. I love y’all, I really do, but I don’t want to take part in the whole hating the McLins thing and pretending we Sealys are so perfect we don’t even shit. Doesn’t that get old for you, too?”

  “Yeah.” Christine sighed. “Sealy is home, though. I have a husband and kids; we have roots here. I don’t get involved in the feud anymore. I listen to Mom and Dad complain about the McLins, nod, and go on about my business of not giving a shit. That’s my advice to you. Your secret is safe with me, but if you want to spend time with Trent, have him come here. I have to take the girls to dance class, we’ll talk later.”

  “Okay.” Stevie blew out a breath of frustration when the call ended. Good old-fashioned rebellion, pie, and Trent weren’t the only reasons Stevie wanted to go back to McLin. For most of her life, she’d developed crushes on female friends, but she’d always reasoned it was their character that had attracted her to them. She’d never met a woman who had an instant physical effect on her until that afternoon when she’d met Kellen McLin.

  *******

  “I met someone interesting today,” Kyle said as Trent walked in the back door of the house they shared.

  Trent smiled as he took off his boots. “You must’ve left McLin then.”

  “No, this person came into the diner and asked Trulee if she knew you. Give me a kiss, and I might tell you who it was. A quick peck, I don’t wanna get too close to you before you shower.”

  Trent gave Kyle a kiss. “Please tell me this person wasn’t with the IRS.”

  “Her name is Stevie Sealy.”

  “Are you kidding me, man?” Trent said excitedly as a huge smile spread across his face.

  Kyle waved a piece of paper. “This is her phone number. She was worried that your wife might be jealous,” he said with a snort.

  “Did you tell her you are my wife?” Trent asked.

  “Nope, but I will if you want me to. She obviously doesn’t know you’re gay, but she will if she spends any time around here. Will that be a problem?”

  “If I thought it would be, I’d tell you to toss that number in the trash.” Trent grabbed the piece of paper from Kyle. “I’m gonna call her right now.”

  “Take a shower first. I don’t want you sitting on anything in those dirty work clothes. Dinner is almost ready too.”

  “What’re we having?” Trent asked as he unbuttoned his shirt.

  “Sloppy Joes, no fries, though. You’ll have to settle for salad.” Kyle patted his stomach. “We need to lose the winter fluff.”

  Trent nodded. “Do you remember me telling you about Stevie?”

  “Yeah, she was your best friend in high school.”

  “Since kindergarten,” Trent corrected. “She was the only girl I ever gave a valentine to besides my ex-wife. It had a picture of a truck on it, and Stevie loved it. Is she married, divorced, what?”

  “We didn’t get around to that.” Kyle frowned as he tried to remember everything they’d talked about. “She said she just moved back from New York.”

  “I always wondered if Stevie was gay, but I was too scared to ask because I was afraid she might figure me out. Of course, back then, I didn’t even have me figured out. Stevie was pretty, but she didn’t date much. The second a guy would make a move on her, she’d dump him and bitch to me about it. When she went to college and we talked on the phone, she didn’t mention any guys, just the gang of female friends she hung out with.” Trent smiled wistfully. “If she is gay, I guess it would make sense why our bond stayed strong while we were in school. Maybe on some wavelength, we knew we were safe with each other.”

  “Oh, you’re getting all cosmically deep. I love it when you get in that mood, it’s so sexy. You want some company in the shower?” Kyle grinned. “We could talk about—”

  “I’m starving, what’s for dinner?” Kellen asked as she burst through the back door.

  “Whatever is being served up at the diner,” Kyle snapped, disappointed that he wouldn’t be sharing a shower with Trent.

  “I’m sick of diner food, and all I have is cheese in my fridge.” Kellen walked over to the stove and lifted the lid on the pot. “Slap my ass, it’s Sloppy Joes. Where’s the fries? Hey, Trent. Forgive me for not hugging you, but you look like you’ve been dragged across your shop.”

  “I’m gonna take a
shower right now, and there better be plenty of Joe left when I get back, or you’re gonna be dragged,” Trent warned as he walked out of the kitchen.

  “I’ll be right back,” Kyle said to Kellen and followed Trent.

  “I’m not taking a shower with you while your sister’s in the kitchen,” Trent said when Kyle went into the bathroom with him and closed the door.

  “Here’s the deal. Kellen came into the diner when Stevie was there, so I introduced her as Stephanie Grant. Dave Sealy has been pissing Kellen off with the parade shit, and I didn’t want her to say anything ugly to Stevie, so it’s best you don’t mention her over dinner,” Kyle whispered.

  “Well, that sucks because if Stevie is gay and single, we could fix them up and finally have an uninterrupted dinner.”

  Kyle’s eyes went wide. “We can’t pair a McLin with a Sealy, are you crazy? If it did work out, Walt would explode. I’m talking a mushroom cloud people on the other side of the globe could see.”

  “Two words: lazy Sunday. We haven’t had one of those alone since Kellen broke up with number thirteen over a year ago,” Trent said as he pulled off his shirt.

  “Her name was Lola—don’t sing that damn song. Get any matchmaking ideas between them out of your head. Now I have to go get Kellen out of the food. Remember what I said.” When Kyle returned to the kitchen, he found Kellen cooking fries and groaned. “Damn it! We were having salad with the Joes! I’m trying to watch our waistlines.”

  Kellen made a face. “You can’t have Joes with salad, that’s a sin. I’m sure it’s in the Bible.”

  “Move, you’re gonna get grease on your suit.” Kyle nudged Kellen away from the stove. “You have got to get a girlfriend. You just interrupted my seduction.”

  “Sorry,” Kellen said and exhaled loudly. “I can take a Joe to go.”

  “No, you’re gonna stay and eat the majority of these fries.”

  “That woman in the diner today was really pretty. I couldn’t get her face out of my mind while I sat through meetings. Maybe it was my imagination, but I kinda felt like she was giving me the look. Did you notice?”

  Kyle had noticed a flush on Stevie’s neck and that she’d watched Kellen walk away. He shook his head, though. “I didn’t see the way she was looking at you. We were at the counter, and she was turned away from me when y’all talked.”

  “Wow, she was pretty,” Kellen said with a sigh. “I should’ve blown off my meeting and stayed there to talk to her. If it’s meant to be, we’ll cross paths again.”

  “Why don’t we go to New Orleans this weekend and do some window shopping? Let’s just see who’s hanging out in the bars.”

  “I can’t. I have to cut a ribbon at the new credit union. It’s a really thick ribbon, and I’m sure I’ll be exhausted,” Kellen said as she set the table.

  Kyle sighed. “Stop making excuses. If you want to meet a woman, you have to go where they are.”

  “I know,” Kellen said listlessly. “It’s not that I mind being alone, but it would be nice to have someone to share things with. That’s why I admire your relationship with Trent. Y’all have so many common interests like that old car in the garage y’all tinker with.”

  “Be careful how you refer to her. That is a 1964 Mustang, and she is a goddess.”

  “You didn’t have to travel out of town to meet the rare gay gearhead. Seriously, I think there’s only two of you.” Kellen cocked her head and peered beneath the table.

  “Not true, there’s lots of car-loving gay guys. That’s what we need to focus on, your interests.”

  “You need to focus on your cleaning, there’s a king crab leg under your table.” Kellen grimaced. “I’m not touching it, the thing looks like it needs a shave.”

  Kyle walked over to where Kellen stood and shook his head slowly as he stared at the leg. “Kellen, you need a girlfriend. You need someone to share your life with and get pissed off with when she does a shitty cleaning job.”

  “Do I smell fries?” Trent walked into the kitchen with his hair dripping all over his shirt.

  “When I asked you to get all the ping pong balls from underneath the table yesterday, did you happen to see a hairy crab leg?” Kyle asked Trent.

  “Yeah,” Trent said with a nod.

  Kyle blinked rapidly. “And you saw no reason to pick it up?”

  “Well, you were vacuuming in here, and I thought you’d get it.” Trent sniffed. “Oh! That is fries I smell.”

  “Trent, do you seriously think the vacuum cleaner would pick up a damn king crab leg?” Kyle snapped.

  “It picked up a pencil, so why not?” Trent said with a shrug.

  “You were only in the shower for a few minutes,” Kellen said with a frown. “Did you wash or just run through the water?”

  Trent threw up his hands. “What is it with you two and the third degree on cleaning?”

  “There is a hairy crab leg under the kitchen table!” Kyle yelled.

  “If you’re gonna fuss at somebody, you should call the real culprit in here. I had three crab legs on my plate when I went to the bathroom last week, and when I came back, there were only two. Shadow had been lying on the back of the couch, and he was gone right along with the leg. He’s the one who put it under the table,” Trent said.

  Kyle pointed a finger at Kellen. “When you find a mate, make sure she’s clean.”

  “Don’t get a cat,” Trent added. “You’ll get blamed for everything it does. I’ve even been accused of coughing up a hairball on the couch.”

  “I wasn’t saying you coughed it up.” Kyle blew out a breath and rubbed his forehead with the heel of his hand. “You saw it, and you left it there.”

  “Thank you both,” Kellen said with a warm smile. “I was feeling sorry for myself for being alone, and y’all just reminded me there are benefits to being single. Now, will one of you get this leg? It’s pointing at me.”

  Kyle took the broom and dustpan from the closet where they kept their cleaning supplies and handed it to Trent. “Go get your leg.”

  “Let’s go for a run,” Kellen said as she and Kyle slouched on the couch.

  “I can’t.”

  “Why?” Kellen eyed Kyle curiously.

  “I’m training to become the new Pillsbury Doughboy.”

  Kellen listened to banging in the other room a moment and asked, “What’s Trent doing?”

  “Excavation. When he moved in, he crammed a bunch of boxes in the closet of the spare bedroom. He routinely goes in there and digs. Last time he went in, he came out with a kilt and a missing sock, so I’m very eager to see what he comes out with tonight.” Kyle grinned. “I hope it’s a toaster oven. Ours died last week.”

  “There’s my girlfriend,” Kellen cooed and patted her stomach when Shadow walked into the room. The cat took one look at her and went the other way. “Damn it! Even the four-legged women are elusive.”

  “He hates you because you call him a girl. You know where I saw lesbians the other day?” Kyle asked. “Happy Ground, it’s a coffee shop in Sealy.”

  “I can’t go to Sealy, I’m the mayor of McLin. If Dave or any of his cronies saw me over there, I’d be tarred and feathered.”

  “Do you really want to meet someone?”

  It took Kellen a moment or two to answer. “Yeah, sure,” she replied dully.

  “Then stop making excuses. You gotta get out there, Kell. If you’re not gonna do it online, we have to go to New Orleans. We could go this weekend. I know Trent would love that.”

  Kellen blew out a sigh. “I got that ribbon to cut. That woman in the diner could’ve been my moment.”

  “You gotta let go of that moment bullshit.”

  “I was joking. I have let that go,” Kellen lied.

  “Really? Look at me then.”

  Kellen glanced at Kyle. “Really.”

  “Bullshit.”

  “You know what pisses me off? You had a moment with Trent, Trulee and Walt had theirs, but y’all are so quick to tell me that I�
�m stupid for wanting one. It can happen to y’all, but it can’t happen to me.”

  Kyle rolled his eyes. “Trent and I didn’t have the moment. We dated for a long time, decided we could put up with each other’s weird bullshit, and moved in together. That’s real life.”

  “You said when he told you your shoelace was untied in the grocery store, you turned and saw him, and you knew something was going to happen between y’all.”

  “He gave me the gay man you wanna? look, and I knew we were gonna get into something. I didn’t know I was gonna fall in love with him at that moment.” Kyle laughed. “You know what drives me insane? You figured out Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny weren’t real before I did, but when it comes to falling in love, you would rather put your faith in a fantasy.”

  “Criticize me all you want, but I’ve been in relationships. I dated those women, cared for them, got serious after a respectable amount of time, and look at me, I’m single again at thirty-nine. For once, I want to meet a woman and have an instant connection with her that makes me feel like she’s the one I’m gonna spend the rest of my life with. Excuse me, but I want my damn moment!”

  Kyle blew out a sigh. “I’m gonna make some calls to my peeps and see what I can find.”

  “I don’t wanna be set up.”

  “No, I’m gonna round up single women and throw a party—at your house. It says a lot about your personality. You’re…remote, you like trees, wild animals, privacy. If one of the women really likes your house, she’ll like you. No pressure, all you have to do is mingle…and provide food…and drinks.” Kyle grinned. “I’ll do all the work.”

  “What is that, make calls and show up?” Kellen asked.

  “Pretty much. Trent! We’re having a party.”

  Trent appeared in the hallway holding a large clear plastic ball. “Cool, when?”

  “I don’t know, I have to make some calls and round up women.” Kyle’s brow furrowed. “Is that a hamster ball?”