“Hey, big bro, it’s good to see you.” Pamela stood on her tiptoes to greet Chris with a hug.
Chris squeezed her so hard he lifted her off the ground.
“Chris.” She hit him on the back. “Put me down.”
After a quick kiss on the cheek he planted her feet back on the floor and released her. “Damn, you are skinnier than you were the last time I saw you. What you trying to do, waste away?”
She stepped back and stuck a pose. “I’m not skinny, I’m trim.”
“Oh, yeah. Looks like you’re headed toward an eating disorder to me. You’re not throwing your food up, are you?”
She whacked him good on the arm. “That’s not funny. Eating disorders are a disease.”
“I know. I’m sorry. Come here and give me another hug.”
This time he left her feet on the ground. “I think you felt a little heavier that time,” he said when he released her.
“Boy.” Pamela shoved him and turned away. “Mama’s in the den and Daddy’s out in the garage working on something.”
Chris followed Pamela back into the house. His mother sat on her favorite massage lounger with a throw over her legs, looking as regal as ever. To the naked eye Dakota Williams looked fine. Since Chris was a little boy, pain had been her constant companion. Her invisible illness hadn’t been easy to explain to anyone outside the family. But, after years of suffering, the final diagnosis was fibromyalgia.
“Hey Mom, how you doing?” He bent over and kissed his mother on the forehead before giving her one of his bear hugs. His heart swelled every time he saw his mother.
“I’m fine, baby. And happy to see you.”
“How’s the pain today?” he asked.
“Oh, it’s about a six. That’s why I’m sitting down here watching all these talk shows with Pamela.” She glanced up at Chris. “You know personally I’d rather read a book.”
Pamela crossed her arms. “I thought you wanted to watch The View?”
“I do, honey. The View or whatever that other show was you had me watching a few minutes ago. I tell you, I don’t see how those women have the energy to keep trying to outtalk each other every day.”
Chris chuckled and planted himself on the edge of his mother’s lounger. “If your pain gets up to an eight, you have Pamela help you to bed.”
“Honey, I’m okay. I swear, you worry about me more than I stress about myself.”
“I just want to make sure you’re comfortable is all.”
“I couldn’t be more comfortable than in this massager. Thank you again for the chair, it helps so much.”
“I’m glad. The minute I saw it I thought about you.” Chris looked at Pamela who was so engrossed in her talk show he doubted she remembered he was in the room.
“I’m going out to the garage and see what Daddy’s up to.” He gave his mother another kiss on the forehead.
“I hope he’s not working on another table out there. We’ve got enough already.”
Chris walked down the hall lined with family pictures from his childhood to the present. He opened the door to the garage and could hear his father’s radio playing quietly in the corner while he tinkered with another creation. When Chris closed the door, his father turned around.
“How’s everything, Chris? Glad you stopped by. Let me get your opinion on something.”
“Sure, what you up to?” Chris walked over to see what his father was taking apart now. Before Nathaniel Williams’s former employer up and left Danville, he had a very stressful career. Between work and taking care of his wife he needed an outlet, so he took up woodworking. Now Chris’s dad was one of the most sought-after table designers and furniture repairmen in the county. His original and custom pieces had been commissioned from as far away as the Caribbean Islands.
When Chris was young he used to help his dad build things for work, and remodel their home. Once he started playing football, he spent his summers working in construction for extra money. Between the two of them, they could build a house. And that’s exactly what Chris planned on doing.
Chris placed his hand on his father’s shoulder and observed the handcrafted cigar box he worked on. His father was an inch shorter than Chris’s six-two frame, and thinner too.
“Which one of those designs do you like?” Nathaniel asked, pointing to a piece of paper next to the box. “Mr. Richardson up the street commissioned me to create a set of cigar boxes for his boys about to go off to college.”
Chris frowned. “They smoke cigars?”
“I reckon not. He just wanted all of them to have something special from him.”
Chris picked up the paper and read the inscription written in two different fonts. “I like the second one. It’s fancy, but still legible.”
His father took the paper from him. “Perfect. That’s what I hoped you’d say. That’s my choice as well.” With the paper he tapped Chris softly upside his head. “Like I always say, two heads are better than one.”
“Or, great minds think alike. Don’t forget that one,” Chris added.
Nathaniel laughed. “So what brings you by so early? Your day’s not over already, is it?”
Chris walked over and balanced himself on a stool near the radio. “I’m on my way out to the Colemans’ to demo some new software. I had a few minutes to spare so I thought I’d drop by.”
“That’s your friend Rollin’s place, right?”
“Yes sir.”
“Umm-hum.” Nathaniel picked up the box and examined his handiwork. “Isn’t he the one whose sister was in the car with you when you totaled it last year?”
Chris usually kept his dates to himself, but everyone in town probably knew about that accident. “Yep, that’s him.”
“What’s his sister’s name?”
“Corra.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen her around. She’s the manager over at Save-A-Lot, isn’t she? Or she used to be. Haven’t seen her around lately.”
His father did a lot of the grocery shopping for the family and he’d probably run into Corra on several occasions.
“Have you?” Nathaniel asked.
Chris shook his head. “No. I haven’t seen her since I’ve been back.”
“Why not?” Nathaniel asked, as he put the box down and cleaned up his work area.
Chris shrugged. “Haven’t had time. Opening the call center is a lot of work. Besides, I’m probably the last person she wants to see.”
“I thought you said you were on good terms with her when you left town?”
“Yeah I was. We even talked on the phone a couple of times after I left, but then I got busy and she never called me back. I haven’t spoken to her in months.”
“Son, I know you feel bad about the accident, but it wasn’t your fault.”
“I know. But if only I’d let her ride with her friends instead, it might not have happened.”
“Or, the drunk driver might have hit them and the accident could have been much worse. You can’t play what-if, or place blame anywhere other than on the drunk driver.”
“I hear you, but it’s still hard not to feel responsible. Especially when I wasn’t hurt, and she could have been killed.”
“Look at it this way. At least you two have something in common.”
Chris stood up laughing. “Yeah, that’s one way of looking at it.” He followed his father back inside the house.
Once Chris had his father, mother and Pamela in the den together he decided to spring the good news on them.
“If you guys have a second I’d like to fill you in on something,” he said, as he sat in one of the side chairs next to the couch.
His father had washed his hands and took his place in his favorite chair opposite his wife’s. Pamela lay across the couch, still heavily engrossed in
some television show.
“Sure, what is it?” His mother readjusted herself on the lounger.
Chris clasped his hands together. “Remember the old Whitfield place?”
“Of course. James Whitfield used to be the richest man in the county. That property has a helicopter landing pad out back for when he’d fly back and forth to Louisville. That was back in his heyday before they had to shut the plant down.” Nathaniel crossed his legs, ready to go down memory lane. “I used to make a delivery up there a couple times a year. You might not remember, Chris, but I used to take you with me.”
“Yeah, I remember going up there. I also remember peering out the window every day as the school bus passed the property. In the winter after the leaves fell from the trees you could see the house pretty good. I always said one day I was going to own that house.”
Pamela sat up on the couch, fully at attention now. “No, you didn’t!” she said.
“Chris, you bought that old place?” his mother asked.
Chris nodded. “Yes, I did.” He looked at his father who was sitting back in his chair, and thought about how hard he had worked for the Whitfields all his life and never got as far as the entryway of that house.
Nathaniel smiled from ear to ear. “Son, I’m proud of you. You’ve really made some strides in this town.”
Chris smiled and hoped his accomplishments would impress a certain woman who now weighed heavily on his mind.
Chapter 3
“I can’t believe we sold every single tote with the state emblem embossed on it.” Corra pointed to the empty display.
“You don’t have any more in the back?” Kyla asked.
“No, I thought I had enough to get us through the month. But with the Kentucky Derby coming up, I guess I underestimated. I need to order more, quick.” She moved the display around, highlighting other bags.
“Mrs. Rita sent me over here to remind you about the sales guy coming at noon.”
Corra looked at her watch. “Thanks, I forgot all about that.”
“Yeah, she figured as much. She said you’d be at the front desk by now if you’d remembered. Tayler’s not back yet, and Tracee had car trouble this morning, so I’m helping out with lunch today. Got a full house.” Kyla turned to leave.
“Oh, Kyla, let me ask you something. Did Rollin say where he was going?”
“Nope.”
“Okay, normally any time Rollin and Tayler are gone, they’re usually together. Do you know where she went to this morning?”
“Nope. Rollin just said she had some business in town. Why? You think they’re planning on eloping?”
The excitement in Kyla’s eyes made Corra laugh. “Of course not. They wouldn’t do that to us. I’m just curious about where they went to, that’s all. Tell Rita I’m on my way over. I’ll close the shop for a little while.”
As Corra closed up she rethought the idea of Rollin eloping, but quickly dismissed the notion. He wouldn’t deprive her of the joy of watching them take their vows. She only wished her parents were alive to witness the ceremony. Her own courthouse ceremony was not a proper wedding in her opinion. This one they would do up right. She locked the door and hurried over to the house.
The dining room was abuzz with all the guests fixing their plates and discussing this morning’s events. Corra smiled and continued walking until she reached the private quarters of the house. In the office, she kept a pair of high heels she changed into when she worked the front desk. After a quick bathroom check of her makeup, she walked out and took her place behind the counter. She sat on a stool and turned on the computer. First, she answered a few emails, then logged into the program they used to manage guest check-in. Although she didn’t use the program every day, she knew how to use it. She quickly familiarized herself with what she could.
The front door slowly opened and Corra rose. The Coleman House might be small in comparison to other bed-and-breakfasts in the area, but they were known for their first-class hospitality, which had paid off in repeat business and referrals. She’d treat this sales guy like a potential customer.
When the door opened all the way and Christopher Williams stepped in, Corra almost fell backward off her stool. She hadn’t seen Chris since his last visit to her hospital room seven months and three weeks ago, to be exact. Afterward he called her a couple of times, but kept the conversations brief.
He closed the door and glanced around the entrance, smiling, before he noticed first the front desk, and then Corra. The look on his face was priceless. She crossed her arms and couldn’t hold back the sarcasm.
“Well, look what the cat dragged in.”
He recovered quickly and ran a hand over his mouth. “Corra, I didn’t expect to see you here,” he said, as he approached the front desk.
“Same here.” She tried to hold on to her sarcasm although she wanted to grin from ear to ear. Chris was a six-foot-two-inch, two-hundred-and-something-pound precision-honed man who looked like he could pick up a football today and get back in the game. He was still as handsome as ever. He locked his grayish-brown eyes on her as he crossed the floor, giving her a big smile. Her heartbeat raced.
“I’m scheduled to meet Rollin at noon. But I have a feeling he’s not here.”
She rose from the stool. “Nope. I’m your man, or woman. Whatever you planned to show him, you can now show me.”
Chris jerked his head back. “This is you?” he asked, pointing at the front desk.
She nodded.
“What happened, the grocery story wouldn’t take you back after you recovered?”
“Oh, they took me back. Then I quit. I promised Rollin if he didn’t close down the bed-and-breakfast I would join the staff and work to grow the business.”
Chris set his laptop case down and applauded. “Smart choice. If you can run a grocery store you can run any establishment.”
Corra rubbed her palms along the counter. “Well, I’m not actually running things, yet anyway, but I’ve learned a lot.”
Chris took a step back and widened his stance. “So my business meeting is with you?”
“Yes sir. And if it’s okay with you can we work right here?”
“Sure.” Chris picked up his case and pulled out his laptop.
Corra welcomed him to have a seat behind the counter. She pulled up another stool and they sat side by side while he showed her how he could improve their everyday lives with a simple program.
“Our system is cloud based, so you can access it from anywhere on any device.” He pulled the program up on his computer and Corra’s initial reaction was to move her head closer to the screen and raise one brow.
“Don’t worry, it’s a very approachable, intuitive interface that I can teach you.”
She sat up. “Let’s get started.”
In a little over an hour Chris gave Corra a demo of the system and had his first beta customer. She just had to clear things with Rollin and they would be installing the new test system within the week.
“See, that was painless, wasn’t it?” Chris asked, as he closed out the program.
Corra sat back, clasped her hands together and stretched her arms out in front of her. “No, that wasn’t bad at all. Not only does it help with online booking, but I like that it helps us maintain the gift shop, the farm and anything else we want to add on. I can’t believe Rollin wasn’t already using something like this.”
Chris crossed his arms. “Neither can I. Trust me, after you get a chance to experience the software, you’ll want this installed right away.”
“Okay, I’ll go over everything with Rollin and let you know what he says. But, I can’t imagine him saying no, at least to a beta test after I tell him how robust the system is.”
“Thank you. And if he needs a little convincing don’t hesitate to call me.” Ch
ris reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a business card. “Here’s my new information.”
Corra read the card. “3C Evolution has a Danville address.” She tilted her head and stared up at him.
“I moved back two weeks ago and opened our customer service center here. I’m surprised you didn’t read about it in the business section of the paper.”
Corra almost fell off her stool. “I must have missed it. So you’re here permanently now?”
“I don’t know about permanently, but I’ll be living here for quite a while. I’ve made Danville my home again.”
“I bet your parents are happy?” Not to mention how delighted I’m feeling right now.
“They are.”
“What about you? After living away for so long how do you feel about being back here?”
“It was my choice to move the center to Danville. I was ready to come home.”
Corra found it hard to believe he left Philly for Danville. But deep down she knew Chris was a country boy just like Rollin. She rubbed her palms down her pants legs. “Well, I guess I should say, welcome home.” She offered her hand to him.
“Thank you.” He accepted her handshake.
A warm current shot up Corra’s arm, reminding her of how much Chris excited her. She pursed her lips and fought the urge to blush.
“I haven’t been inside this house in a long time,” Chris said as he closed his laptop and slid it back into his carrying case.
“Would you like a quick tour?” she asked.
“That would be nice. Is Mrs. Rita still here?”
“Of course. Come on, we’ll start with the kitchen.”
* * *
As they toured the property fond memories of a young Corra were coming back to Chris.
“Man, I remember taking these steps two at a time,” he said, as he ran his hand along the banister coming from the second floor. “Do you remember how Rollin used to chase you out of his room whenever he had a girl on the phone?”
Corra laughed. “Yes, because I was always listening at the door.”
The Only One for Me Page 2
