Finding Lexi

by AJ Attard

  Chapter 4

  The sun gently slipped through the curtains. Lexi turned over in her bed, the golden rays of light laying themselves warmly upon the softness of her skin. She blinked slowly and took a deep, lazy breath. That was the first good night’s sleep she had had since she couldn't remember when. She stretched, reluctant to get up and have it end.

  "Lexi," her grandfather's voice, steady and clear carried through the door just as it had when she was a kid and she suddenly found she knew what he was going to say before he said it, "No sleeping in on a farm, Hon. No matter what time you get in bed, you get up with the rest of us. Lots to do," his voice faded with his footsteps as they descended down the stairs and most likely to the kitchen.

  Lexi smiled in spite of herself and felt a surge of energy. She was up, bed made, and clothes on before she could finish whistling "Amazing Grace", grinning the whole time and thankful that some things, like Grandpa, didn't change.

  He was right too, there was a lot to do. Not only were there the regular chores, there was all the unpacking and settling in, which included a trip to town to sign Jake up for school, among other errands. Lexi's head began to swim just thinking of everything that had to be done. After tucking Red into his stall last night the only thing they had done was devour a plate of cold fried chicken and mashed potatoes, washed down with a piece of Nora's famous butterscotch pie.

  Lexi hurried downstairs, scooping her hair into a ponytail as she hit the last step, the wood floor warm against her bare feet. It had been a long time since she was truly warm, since she and Colton had married in fact. Alaska always felt chilly to her despite its warm, friendly people.

  "About time," Jake said with mock contempt as she came through the kitchen door. His face was all lit up, dark eyes sparkling and a mound of bread, taters, and eggs steaming on a plate in front of him, "We almost gave up on you!" He exclaimed waving his fork so enthusiastically that he sent a shower of eggs to the floor. Delighted, her grandfather's hunting dog, Twinkie, lapped them up with enthusiasm that more than matched Jake's.

  "Well here I am," Lexi answered shaking her head, "Be careful, Jake," she admonished before catching a glimpse of her mother simply shaking with mirth.

  "Let him be," Nora said between giggles, "He's just being a kid."

  She took a breath and composed herself turning back to the stove to heap another plate generously with food before handing it to Lexi, "It's nice to have you all here," she told her with a kiss on Lexi's cheek and a knowing nod.

  "It's good to be here, Mom," Lexi said,. "I think it will be good for all of us," she added looking over at Clyde and Jake who were busy shaking various condiments on their respective breakfasts, Jake talking a mile a minute and Clyde grinning from ear to ear and nodding along with his great grandson.

  "I think so too," Nora said softly, "A fresh start for everyone," she sighed before giving Lexi a swat towards the table, "Go sit," she instructed before focusing on the skillet again.

  It was the first time Nora had even slightly hinted at what had transpired after Lexi had run off with Colton Majors to the vast wilds of Alaska and for a moment a sharp pain pierced her heart. Lexi didn’t know the details and was afraid of opening painful wounds for her mother and grandfather. In the time that she had been gone both her father and her grandmother had passed away, leaving Nora and Clyde alone to work the ranch and preserve their family’s way of life. Lexi had, for various reasons ranging from Alaska weather to horse issues to life, been unable to come home. Reasons, which at the time seemed paramount but now seemed like nothing at all.

  Nora caught Lexi looking at her, head cocked thoughtfully to the side, wheels quite obviously turning inside Lexi’s mind.

  “Let it go,” Nora advised wisely as if she could pluck the thoughts out of Lexi’s mind, “Time to move on now,” she said, settling into the seat next to her daughter and liberally dousing her breakfast with hot sauce.

  Lexi pushed another mouthful of bread, taters, and eggs into her mouth, letting her mother’s comments go unanswered. There was so much to make up for and so much to do to move forward. She again felt a tidal wave of emotions wash over her and tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to plummet to her plate.

  Clyde saw Lexi’s eyes shining with tears. His jaw tightened in emotion, as he watched the painful expression on her face. She had always been one of the most important things in his life and he was thankful for her every day, even when she had picked up and left with barely a moment’s notice. The sight of her fighting back tears nearly broke his heart and he had to clear his throat, choking back the quiver in his voice, before he began to speak.

  “There’s a lot to be done today,” he began, his opening sentence an already acknowledged and unnecessary remark, but a comforting one none the less, “We need to do barn chores and get you all unpacked, not to mention getting that horse of yours settled. He’s a big one,” Clyde added, again unnecessarily but comfortingly.

  “He’s huge!” Jake exclaimed excitedly, “and he’s still growing! Mom said that after he was good and broke she may let me ride him!” The boy fairly glowed with anticipation, already envisioning himself astride the massive chestnut.

  “You both have some growing and some learning to do first,” Lexi replied, grateful for the distraction from the thoughts bouncing around in her head, “and before we can embark on that we, have to feed you and Red and get unpacked.”

  “I was thinking…” Nora began in a sly tone that immediately caused Lexi to raise an eyebrow and cock her head warily at her mother, “… that if we get our work done this morning, after lunch we could head into town,” Nora took a swig of her coffee and looked under red lashes innocently at her daughter.

  Lexi, knowing Nora had something up her sleeve but not knowing quite what it was, nodded cautiously, “I was thinking the same thing,” she admitted carefully, feeling like she was agreeing to something that might turn out to be not quite so agreeable.

  “Great,” Nora smiled mischievously behind her coffee cup, “We can stop by the feed store on the way home. We might even bump into Luke Henderson while we’re there. He was asking about you just the other day,”

  With that Nora popped the last of her breakfast in her mouth and rose with surprising alacrity from the table, immersing herself elbow deep in white, sudsy dishwater.

  So that was it. The innocent look, the mischievous smile, Luke Henderson. Lexi should have known. She shook her head slowly side to side, her tongue pressing against her cheek as she raised her coffee cup to her lips. Of all the guys she had dated in her life Luke had always been her mother’s favorite that was for sure. He was, at least the last time Lexi had seen him, broad shouldered and rugged. He was handsome in the way cowboys were, not pretty or chiseled, just strong and solid. His eyes were blue as the Texas sky and he had a slow, mischievous drawl that could make even the worst idea seem heaven sent. He had moved to town about the time Lexi was fifteen and he was sixteen. His family had purchased an old abandoned ranch and had worked hard to make something of it and to be a part of the tight knit community. Luke and Lexi had hit it off from the first time they met in school and had become good friends and an even better couple. Life could be hard on young couples though and eventually the two had split, Luke going to U.T. and Lexi to Texas A&M, where she had met Colton.

  Lexi took a swallow of hot coffee and opened her mouth to reply when Clyde, pulling his hat from a hook by the door spoke first, “Sounds like a good idea to me. If we’re going to get it done, we’d better get it started. Come on, Kid,” he said to Jake, who fairly leaped from his chair and charged to the door.

  “Wait a second, Kid,” Clyde said, his eyes sparkling as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “Something is missing,” he closed one eye like he was thinking hard about what it was that was lacking, then a big grin spread over his tanned face. “I know,” he laughed, rubbing his hands together with glee. Clyde came back into the kitchen and leaned around the corner to the dining room. For a mo
ment all anyone saw was long legs and overalls then the rest of the big man returned to the room, carrying a cowboy hat.

  “You need one of these.”

  His words came out softly and thick with emotion, causing both Lexi and Nora to look up inquiringly. “You’re a Texan now, Kid,” he said pressing the hat down on Jake’s head, “Much better,” he nodded his approval and pulled open the door, a small satisfied smile pulling at his lips,. “Let’s get to work.”

  Chapter 5

  All morning they worked, mindful of the warm sunshine that was eagerly seeking the title of hot and which shone down on them with unmatched exuberance. It was early summer in the hill country and already the temperatures were preaching with the utmost faith, the promise of a hot summer. The foursome completed all the chores in the barn, settled Red in, turned him out, and unpacked the truck and the few meager belongings Lexi had brought with her all before one, o’clock. By then the heat was really starting to kick into high gear.

  After a lunch of leftover fried chicken, salad, and cornbread, which was topped off by the remainder of the butterscotch pie, Nora nudged Lexi and motioned for her to get moving.

  “Yes?” Lexi asked, drinking the last swallow of her iced tea lazily, letting the easy, lemony flavor slide down her dust coated throat.

  “Go get yourself cleaned up, we’re heading into town,” Nora told her, leaving no room for dissension

  “Mom,” Lexi began, thoughts of Luke Henderson immediately filling her mind. Not that she didn’t want to see Luke but, right now, at this moment, she could think of a million better occasions to see him again. Not to mention, she was exhausted from the drive and from unpacking all morning. She shook her head. She probably shouldn’t even be worried about it. He had to be married by now. Probably even had a family of his own. In truth, she couldn’t help but wonder why she cared anyway. The last thing she needed was another man in her life, ever.

  “Alexandra Marie,” Nora turned from the sink, tiny, iridescent bubbles dripping from one of her soap covered hands, which also was brandishing a serving spoon quite fiercely, “I don’t want to hear another word. Get your backside upstairs, clean yourself up, and meet me by the truck in fifteen minutes. Now go,” Nora said turning back to the sink,. “There is no time for messing around.”

  Lexi opened her mouth to remind her mother that she was, in fact, thirty three years old and didn’t need anyone to tell her what to do, but one look from her mother’s flashing green eyes and Lexi was on her feet and up the stairs. Jake and Clyde had decided that Jake would stay home with Clyde and they would finish whatever chores hadn’t gotten done that morning. There wasn’t much left. There was still some work to be done in the garden, not to mention starting evening chores, but Lexi had a suspicion that their to-do list consisted mostly of going fishing in one of the property’s three ponds. This suspicion was confirmed when Lexi looked out her window and saw her grandfather tenderly placing two fishing rods in the back of his old farm truck, along with a tackle box and a small cooler. Lexi also spied her mother’s red head walking purposefully toward the other pick up. Lexi reached out and snatched her purse and trotted down the steps and out the door.

  Jake, Clyde, and Twinkie were standing by the old farm truck, which had to be at least as old as Lexi herself, and that was being generous. It was an old Chevy, once red, but now faded by sun and time, to an easy, gentle reddish pink. You could barely make out the Chevrolet on the back tailgate. It was worn smooth of paint by use and rust. Clyde was leaning against the bed as Jake tossed a stick for Twinkie. He watched his great grandson and chatted about fishing, with a look of contentment on his weathered face.

  “Working hard?” Lexi teased as she came up to them, dropping a kiss on Jake’s head and one on Clyde’s cheek, not forgetting to stoop on the gravel driveway and rub Twinkie’s ears. The dog immediately dropped her stick and tipped her head sideways, closing her eyes as if she felt in pure bliss and moving so Lexi hit every spot just right.

  “Of course,” Clyde answered without missing a beat, “We’re just taking a bit of a breather before getting back into the thick of things,” he answered with mock seriousness.

  Lexi stood up and leaned over the truck bed, peering blatantly at the fishing poles and raising an eyebrow skeptically, “Really?” she asked playfully, looking between the two of them and trying, with great effort, not to giggle.

  “Yes, Ma’am,” Clyde assured her, “After all, fishing is hard work,” he winked at Jake, “Right, Son?” he confirmed, a smile just starting to brim on the corners of his mouth.

  “Yep!” Jake confirmed with a joyful nod, “It is! I mean you have to bait your hook and sit still, and,” Jake was about to continue but Lexi held a halting hand up.

  “I get the general idea,” She said with a laugh, “Well, I’m going to town, to actually accomplish something,” she said playfully, “You all have fun fishing,” she grinned at them, “and don’t work too hard.”

  “No Ma’am,” the pair answered in unison, waving goofily goodbye. Lexi laughed again before stepping up into the pick up Nora had brought around.

  “Be careful,” Nora advised from the driver’s side window. She then added, “ before adding, “Have fun!”

  “We will!” Clyde and Jake responded enthusiastically though Lexi wondered which question they were answering, while sincerely hoping it was both.

  Chapter 6

  “He’s divorced now, you know,” Nora said after they had been driving for about five miles through the beautiful Texas hills. The grass was still vibrantly green from the spring rains and grew in long, slick blades that waved luxuriously in the soft breeze, undulating on the breaths of wind that danced over the rolling landscapes. Texas blue belles adorned the vast stretches of land with an elegance that defied description. Their distinct color entranced the eye while their light, playful scent wafted through the air and tickled one’s nose.

  “Who?” Lexi asked, pretending she had no idea who her mother was talking about.

  Nora snorted in disgust, “You know good and well who I’m talking about. Don’t even try that with me,” Nora advised, sending Lexi a warning glance that was not without a touch of levity.

  Lexi sighed, “Momma,” Lexi sighed then began to search through the depths of her purse for her sunglasses which seemed to have been devoured within the recesses of the ample bag, “It is of no relevance to me if Luke Henderson is married, divorced, single, or planning on flying to the moon,” Lexi informed her mother firmly, “I have no intention of having another man in my life. I have been through enough and I just want to start over and move on,” Lexi punctuated her point by determinedly pushing her sunglasses onto her face and peering intently out the windshield.

  Nora smiled, “Okay,” she said smoothly, “You just keep telling yourself that,” she looked over at Lexi and catching Lexi’s eye, winked, “but somewhere inside you know it was meant to be for you and Luke,” and before Lexi could respond, Nora turned on the radio and began singing along with an old Waylon Jennings song. Lexi shook her head half in amusement and half in frustration, and hunkered down into her seat before joining her voice to Waylon and Nora’s.

  ***

  The tiny town of Hopeful, Texas was no more than a microscopic dot on a map to most people. It was nestled in the softly rolling hills, like a newborn to its mother’s breast. It was held tenderly in place by the rise and fall of the land, protected by an ocean of acres and honest, hardworking people. Newcomers were lost, or passing through on their way to Houston, Dallas, or any number of big cities that called Texas home. The town was laid out in a grid pattern, with one main street throughout, on which the local diner, bank, doctor’s office, feed store, and mechanic all made their homes. There were other stores too,; a tack shop, a small gift shop, a gas station. They were the kind of stores found in small towns all across America. The town itself was surrounded on three sides by the schools that offered a surprisingly excellent education, due to dedicated teachers an
d small class sizes. The elementary school sat to the east, the middle school to the west, and the crowning glory of any small Texas town, the high school, sat to the south. It was here on Friday nights during the fall that the whole town turned out to watch their Hopeful Mustangs do battle on the field. Without question, football was the second religion of the inhabitants of Hopeful. In his entire life Clyde had never missed a game, quite literally. His mother had taken himto his first one when he was only two weeks old.

  Lexi and Nora's trip through town was more like a Homecoming parade than a march through a list of errands. Everywhere they went, people greeted Lexi warmly and wanted to stop and chat, all eager to welcome her home and catch up a bit. Nora appeared to take all this in stride, knowing full well this had been was to be expected. Lexi, who had spent the last eleven years of her life isolated in the vast expanse of Alaska, found it herself a bit overwhelmed.