by H. P. Munro
Erin’s face crumpled. “I didn’t —”
“No, I should have tried harder. I’ve been thinking about what you said earlier and—”
Whatever Charlotte was about to say was lost as Erin stepped forward and pulled her towards her. In an instant, Charlotte was both off balance and strangely centered when Erin’s lips touched hers.
She’d barely recovered from the shock enough to respond, when the kiss, as quickly as it was initiated, ended. She raised her hands to touch Erin only to find them reaching into empty air.
Erin stood touching her lips, her eyes were wide with astonishment as if her actions were as much of a surprise to her as they had been to Charlotte.
“I’m sorry, I…” Erin frowned. “It’s the drugs. I should go.”
Before Charlotte’s brain was able to engage fully with her body to enable her to move or speak, Erin opened the door and was halfway down the path. She reached the door at the same time Erin reached the gate at the end of the path. Her voice came out almost like a breath.
“Erin.”
Whether she heard her or not Charlotte didn’t know, but Erin stopped as she closed the gate and looked up towards the porch where Charlotte stood. Charlotte’s breath caught in her throat as a smile appeared on Erin’s face before she turned and ran off down the sidewalk.
Charlotte lifted her fingers to touch her still tingling lips and smiled. In that briefest of kiss, she had felt more alive, more grounded and more aroused than she had in over twenty years.
***
Erin made it barely twenty paces down the sidewalk before the adrenalin wore off and she remembered her bruised ribs.
“Holy crap.” She bent over and held her side, trying not to breathe deeply. Suddenly she was aware of every feeling within her body. She snorted at the absurd thought that the kiss had awakened her like Sleeping Beauty. “More like the drugs have worn off.”
She straightened up and stepped carefully on the sidewalk while shaking her head at her own impulsiveness. Impulsiveness which now had her walking the streets of Grace Falls in her nightwear and bare feet.
She stopped as the memory of the kiss hit her. What was she thinking? She closed her eyes as she slapped her palm against her forehead.
“Hey, Erin.”
Erin leapt in the air. Her squeal, a mix of pain and terror, managed to set off several neighborhood dogs barking. She turned to see a smiling Peter Campbell in his pajamas standing with a stroller.
“You can’t sleep either?” Peter grinned sleepily nodding towards the stroller. Seemingly oblivious to Erin’s discomfort or attire.
Pressing her hand onto her ribs, Erin finally composed herself enough to speak. “Something like that.”
“Walk with you?”
Ignoring the absurdness of the situation Erin fell into step with Peter. “So is this a common thing for you?”
Peter nodded wearily. “Nighthawk here doesn’t seem to like to keep regular hours. He usually quiets down after a couple of minutes out walking. Thankfully tonight he’s been quiet since we left the house. It’s good for Ruth to get a break. Oh hey, I heard you’re coming for lunch on Sunday. Could you bring your mud pie? I haven’t had it in ages.”
Erin looked at him puzzled. “I am?”
Her confused look was swiftly joined by a similar one on Peter’s face.
“I’m sure I heard you were coming. Teddy was talking to Ruth about it. Maybe I got it wrong. Dammit, I really wanted that mud pie.” They stopped as they reached Peter and Ruth’s home.
“Well, I’ll see what I can do.”
Erin smiled. She leaned down to look into the stroller to say a quiet goodnight to Ben. “Ummm, Peter. I don’t want to alarm you, but Ben’s not in the stroller.”
Peter’s sleep deprived brain struggled to comprehend her words and it took him a moment before he joined her to look into the stroller. Sitting where his slumbering son should have been was the large soft toy that, when its stomach was pressed had Teddy and Alex singing an entirely off-key version of the song ‘Ben.’
“What the—?”
“You lost something?”
Both Peter and Erin turned towards the voice. Standing on the porch was Ruth with a bemused smirk on her face and a sleeping Ben in her arms.
“Crap, I did it again didn’t I?” Peter’s shoulders slumped and his head fell forward dejectedly.
“Yeah you did,” Ruth replied smiling. “Hey Erin, looking forward to seeing you on Sunday.”
Erin nodded, still somewhat confused she knew nothing about the invite but suspecting Teddy was involved in about a hundred different ways.
“Yeah thanks, I’m going to bring mud pie.”
Peter shot her a grateful look as he opened their gate and trod up the pathway pushing the stroller.
With a wave, Erin was back walking on her own. Deliberately attempting to ignore the fact she’d just kissed Charlotte Grace.
What’s more, she wanted to again.
Chapter Twenty-Three
With each step Charlotte’s nervousness amplified. She’d barely slept as her mind turned over whether she should go to see Erin or wait and let Erin come to her. In the end, it came down to one simple thing. Charlotte needed to see Erin’s face. She needed to look into her eyes and see whether there was regret there or if the tiniest spark of what they once had could be nurtured back to something more.
Her legs felt heavy as she stepped up towards Erin’s front door. Music blared inside the house and she had to repeat her knock with a heavier hand after a weak first attempt. The music was turned down and heavy footsteps sounded through the house.
“Goddammit, Teddy, I already told you…”
The door flew open, and Charlotte was faced with a frazzled looking Sam.
“You’re not Teddy.” He frowned and looked beyond Charlotte as if convinced that she was sheltering Teddy behind her.
“And you’re not wearing any clothes,” Charlotte replied, noting Sam’s appearance.
“Ah relax, I’ve got my tighty whitey’s on.” Sam grinned, holding the door open for Charlotte to enter.
She walked into Erin’s house, only slightly more relaxed than she’d been on her previous visit. “Is there a reason for the lack of any other clothes?”
Sam shrugged and closed the door. “I’m painting,” he said, as if this was a more than adequate explanation for his lack of attire. “You looking for Erin?”
“She here?” Charlotte craned her neck for any indication Erin was in the house.
“Nope.” Sam sighed. “I guess you two spoke some last night.”
Charlotte opened her mouth to reply then closed it again and scowled. “Could you put some clothes on?”
Sam raised an eyebrow and placed the tips of his fingers onto his nipples. “Gimme a minute and I’ll make myself presentable.”
While she waited for Sam to dress, Charlotte wandered around Erin’s living room trying unsuccessfully not to snoop at the photos and books on display in her bookcase. Her breath caught as she saw a familiar book.
“So, I’m guessing my sister doing her Houdini act this morning means things didn’t go too well?”
Charlotte let her fingers linger on the copy of Doctor Dolittle she’d given Erin on her seventeenth birthday before she turned towards Sam and shrugged. “I’m not totally sure how things are between us. That’s why I’m here. I thought we should talk some more.”
“Well, it seems Erin doesn’t want to talk to anyone. When I got here at eight, she was gone, along with Cooper and her truck. You want water?” Sam asked, heading into the kitchen.
Charlotte followed him, curious to see the rest of Erin’s home. “Thanks.” She took the proffered bottle of water. “Should we be worried? I mean with her injury and all, maybe—”
“She’s tougher than she looks.” Sam shook his head. “She sometimes takes off like this when she’s got a lot on her mind.” He took a long drink of water and let out a satisfied sigh. “When our dad died
she was gone almost three days.”
Charlotte paused mid sip. “I didn’t know.”
“Yeah, well, you missed a whole bunch of stuff.”
She looked at Sam to see whether there was any hint of accusation on his face. However, he just smiled sadly at her.
He shrugged a shoulder. “Can’t be helped now. No point whining over yesterday’s sorrows.”
Charlotte was almost hesitant to ask about the rest of their family. Somehow sensing her reluctance, Sam plowed on between swigs of water.
“Our momma never did like living here away from her family in St Anton. So pop was barely in the ground when she’d up’d and moved in with her sister.”
Charlotte nodded. “You think that’s where Erin’s gone?”
Sam chuckled and shook his head. “I’d bet you my next three paychecks Erin is nowhere near mama and Aunt Sadie.”
“Why’s that?”
He cocked his head to the side. “Momma never really got on board with Erin being gay. Don’t get me wrong she’s not as bad as your mama, but she and Erin don’t connect much nowadays. So I can’t see Erin running off to St Anton. But I will bet that wherever she is, she’ll be fine.”
He threw his empty bottle in the trash and wiped his hands on his pants. “If you don’t mind, I’m gonna get back to work.” He paused, a grin appeared on his face that for a moment reminded Charlotte of Erin so much so that her breath caught in her throat. “Of course, if you’ve nothing better on, you could always help?”
A frown appeared on Charlotte’s face. “Do I have to take my clothes off?”
Sam let out a full-bellied laugh as he left the kitchen. “Clothing is optional.”
Charlotte threw her bottle in the trash, and mirroring Sam’s actions she wiped her hands on her jeans. “Yeah well, I’m opting that we both keep our clothes on.”
Sighing, Sam handed her a paintbrush. “Just don’t come moaning to me when you get them fancy jeans covered in paint.”
She gripped the paintbrush and followed Sam. “Duly noted.”
***
Alex groaned inwardly as the bell chime signaled another customer. She was hiding in the kitchen taking a few minutes to stretch her back and catch her breath during what was the usual Saturday lunchtime rush. She slapped the door with the palm of her hand and plastered a smile on her face. The fake cheerfulness quickly dissolved into actual happiness when she saw Charlotte standing at the counter.
“Hey you, I was hoping I’d get a chance to speak to you,” Alex said, moving out of the way of a harassed Lou.
“Well, here I am.” Charlotte smiled. “Can I have two coffees and two of those cookies to go?” She pointed at the plate of cookies in the display.
Alex smiled as she grabbed a couple of cups. The ‘to go’ option had only been introduced as a result of Maddie’s arrival in Grace Falls. Anytime someone asked for their coffee to go, she always pictured Maddie’s incredulous face when Lou handed her coffee over that first time in a sippy cup. Thankfully they now had cups that allowed them to offer the service properly.
As the coffee dripped into the cups, she quickly gathered a bag and the tongs for Charlotte’s cookies.
“So I was going to ask how things are going since your return, but since you’ve been at Erin’s all morning I’m going to assume things have gone well.” Alex smiled as she handed over the bag of cookies.
“How’d you…?” Charlotte narrowed her eyes, and frowned. “Never mind I keep forgetting everyone knows everything here.”
Alex grinned as she collected the cups of coffee and placed them on the counter. “Well you know this town, but in this case you’ve got paint on your forehead which is Erin’s choice for her spare room.”
Charlotte’s hand went immediately to her forehead to touch the incriminating dollop of paint. “You’re like a regular Sherlock Holmes.”
Laughing, Alex tossed a couple of lids down on the counter. “Nah, I’m a mama. We don’t miss much. So you and Erin…”
Sensing her hesitance in answering Alex leaned over and put the lids on the coffee and lifted them off the counter. “How bout I give you the guided tour of the kitchen?” With a coffee in each hand, she cocked her head towards the kitchen door. She turned and whispered to a wide-eyed Lou, “Five minutes I promise, and I’ll clean out the juicer tonight.” Any complaint about to leave Lou’s lips promptly halted at the offer. Alex bumped the kitchen door open with her backside and held it open until Charlotte made her way around the counter and into the kitchen.
“So?” Alex let the door go, walked into the kitchen, and placed the cups of coffee down on the work surface.
“Where do I begin?”
“To tell the story of how grateful love can be.” Alex sang. Her off-key warbling garnered a confused look from Charlotte. “Not an Andy William’s fan then.”
“Sorry I am so far out of my comfort zone right now; I don’t know who I am.”
Alex cast a glance over towards the door, knowing her promise of five minutes was optimistic at best. She walked to the fridge and pulled the door open. “Milk?”
“Sorry?”
“For your coffee. Do you want milk or creamer?”
“Milk’s good.”
Alex nodded and with a milk carton in hand she returned. Within a couple of seconds, lids were removed and milk added to both cups. She gave Charlotte a cup and lifted the other to her lips. As she drank she raised her eyebrows, encouraging Charlotte to speak.
Charlotte relaxed against the counter and picked idly at the seam of the cup. “She kissed me.”
A gurgling noise came from Alex’s throat as the mouthful of coffee she’d just taken took a different route than planned. With a cough she managed to clear her throat enough to rasp a response. “Erin kissed you?”
“No Mack did,” Charlotte quipped. “Of course Erin.”
“Sorry, I just wasn’t expecting that.”
“You and me both.”
“When? Where? Wha—”
“Last night. We spoke some yesterday and cleared up some stuff from our past. She appeared at my door in the middle of the night and kissed me.”
“And how’s things been this morning?”
“That’s just it.” Charlotte sighed, placing her coffee cup down and running a hand through her hair. “I went round to speak to her, and she’d gone. Sam was there painting, so I’ve been helping him.”
“Was he wearing clothes?”
Charlotte let out a bark of laughter at Alex’s question. “Just his underpants.”
“Oh sweet lord! You count yourself fortunate. He volunteered to paint the clinic for Maddie and it took weeks for her to be able to look at him in the face without blushing. She walked in as he was taking a dance break and apparently everything was swinging.” Alex chuckled at the memory.
“Did you know he’s serious about the Olympic thing? He’s been offered a training place in Finland.”
“Yeah, I know he’s serious about it. Well, as serious as he gets about anything, but no I definitely didn’t know about the training offer.”
“I think he’s scared to take it and leave Erin.”
“Well that’s just plain foolish. Erin will be alright.”
“You think?”
Immediately Alex knew Charlotte wasn’t asking about Erin’s ability to cope with her brother’s absence.
“She takes off sometimes to get her head clear. You coming back. Her finding out about why you left.” Alex waved a hand before Charlotte started to rant about the town knowing her business. “You can’t have a stand-up fight and air your laundry in public then complain ’cause someone’s seen your Spanx, Charlotte.” Softening her tone Alex continued, “Then there’s the fact she kissed you. All in, Erin has a lot going round that pretty head of hers.”
“I know.” Charlotte’s head dropped until her chin touched her chest. When she looked up again, her eyes were moist. “I just want to see her.”
“Well I have it on good auth
ority she’ll be at Ruth’s for dinner tomorrow, so how ’bout you come along too?”
“How do you know she’ll show?”
Alex grinned. “’Cause Ruth’ll kill her if she don’t.”
Charlotte’s face brightened as she nodded towards Alex’s hand. “You owe Sam a coffee.”
***
Erin brought her hand down from the bell and gripped the packaging tightly before she realized she was probably squeezing the life out of the cake inside. She hoped Peter would forgive her for buying a mud pie instead of making one, but by the time she’d arrived back in Grace Falls it was too late.
She’d driven for almost seven hours straight, save for comfort breaks and gas stops, without any clear idea of a destination. It wasn’t until the warm air from the Gulf of Mexico was gently ruffling her hair that she realized she was on the same stretch of sand as she’d escaped to following her father’s death.
The drive and her time at the beach gave her plenty of time to reflect on her feelings about Charlotte’s revelation. She’d reassessed what Charlotte’s abandonment had created in her, the self-doubt, the lack of trust, and she reviewed the decisions she’d made as a result.
The whole exercise had left her feeling aggrieved. She was annoyed she’d allowed that one incident as an adolescent to impact her life right up into almost her forties. She’d also contemplated the opportunities she’d missed out on and the relationships she’d failed to allow to grow, all because of her fear.
She started to regret not smacking Charlotte instead of kissing her…almost. The kiss played on her mind for a good portion of her trip; how the simple touch of Charlotte’s lips on hers ignited something that had lain dormant for a long time.
“Hey, you came, and you brought pie.” Peter held the door open and reached to take the pie from her. “You even made proper packaging and a logo.” He grinned as he examined the pack.
Erin’s head dropped. “I’m sorry. I didn’t have time to make one.”
Sneaking a look, Peter shrugged. “You’ll just have to owe me. Come on in, everyone’s here.”
Peter pushed open the door that led into their dining room, and immediately everyone turned to see the new arrival. Erin smiled a hello as her gaze swept around the room, pausing as her eyes rested on an uncharacteristically bashful-looking Charlotte.
