Blue Hollow Falls

by Donna Kauffman

  “Hello, Little Red Riding Hood,” Sunny said, delighted. She looked at Addie, “And Granny, my, what a big nightcap you have on.”

  Addie beamed. “Why, hello, Miss Bo Peep. It looks like all of Mother Goose’s children are here this evening.”

  “Well, I hope you’ve been able to stay away from the big, bad—” Even as she said the words, they trailed off as she realized. “Oh . . . no.” Her face lit up all over again, this time in pure glee. “You did not get him to—did you?”

  “Did you what?”

  She spun around to see a very tall wolf striding toward her. Even as her face split in an even broader grin, her pulse started drumming, and various erogenous zones all over her body began to pick up the beat. She’d never imagined herself jumping on the cosplay bandwagon, but at that moment, she might have been persuaded to consider it. He was in a full body fur suit, with a wolf mask complete with gleaming, wicked-looking pearly whites and a lascivious tongue licking out one side. There were big clawed hands and even bigger clawed feet. “My my, what big teeth you have,” she quipped. The moment the words were out of her mouth, she realized that was the last opening she should have given him.

  Fortunately, they had a small audience, though from the corner of her eye, she did catch Seth struggling mightily not to bust out laughing.

  She immediately spun back to Addie. “I love it. What a great costume idea.”

  Addie beamed. “Actually, Bailey was the one who came up with it.”

  Sunny turned to Bailey and made a sweeping gesture at herself. “Proof, if we needed any more, that we share the same DNA.”

  That got a smile from the young girl and even a brief curtsy. She pointed at Sunny’s leash. “What’s on the other end of that?”

  Sunny glanced at Addie, who gave her an almost imperceptible nod. Sunny took a short, calming breath, and sent up a prayer that she’d done the right thing. Addie seemed to think it was perfect, but Addie wasn’t Bailey. And Bailey was still mostly an enigma to her.

  Sunny turned around, but didn’t see the—“Oh!” she said, as she felt something nibble at her pantaloons. “I—just a minute.” She swished the layers of crinoline under her skirt aside, and out hustled the little black lamb, giving an annoyed bleat at having her snack interrupted.

  Sunny heard a soft “Oh” and turned to see Bailey already sinking to her knees. She set her basket on the ground and flipped her hood back, then beckoned the lamb over. The lamb trotted right up and Bailey gave it a good head scratch, then rubbed its back. She kept her hand on the lamb’s back as she looked up at Sunny, giggling when the baby tried to nibble on the ties to her cape. “What’s her name?” she said, nudging the lamb away from the ties and scratching her under her chin.

  “I don’t know,” Sunny told her. “I was thinking maybe you could help me with that.”

  Bailey’s eyebrows shot straight up. “She’s yours?”

  Sunny shook her head and held out the handle to the leash. “I knew you missed your little goat. And, I’m sorry, I tried to find another pygmy goat, but D.C. isn’t exactly teaming with livestock. A friend I work with, his family raises sheep on a farm in Maryland. She’s a Herdwick. They’re from the UK, they stay pretty small, and they do really well in rocky mountain terrain. So—what do you think?” She lifted a shoulder, looked at Addie, then back to Bailey. “I cleared it with Addie. She said that since her summer garden has been plowed under, the deer fence around it should hold this little one pretty easily, and you can use the shed for a make-do shelter. There should be plenty of time to get it all straight before the weather turns ugly.”

  Bailey just stared at her, saying nothing, her expression going carefully blank. But there was hope shining from those eyes like big, blue beacons.

  Still, Sunny thought maybe she’d made a misstep. Maybe Bailey wasn’t ready to let herself care for something, or get attached. “I—if you don’t want her, that’s okay. They will take her back, no worries at all. I just thought—”

  Bailey launched herself from her crouched position and cleared the space between her and Sunny in a single bound. She wrapped her skinny arms around Sunny’s waist, burying her face in Sunny’s fleece jacket, hugging her as tightly as Sunny thought she’d ever been hugged.

  Tears sprang instantly to Sunny’s eyes and she instinctively clasped one hand to Bailey’s head, and the other to her back and just held on. She caught Addie’s gaze and the older woman merely nodded, a look of absolute contentment on her smiling face.

  Bailey finally let go and looked up at Sunny. Her eyes weren’t wet. In fact, they were as serious as Sunny had ever seen them. Fervently so. “I swear I will take the best care of her,” she said, almost fiercely. “I promise.”

  “I know you will,” Sunny said. She caught Thor turning sideways and possibly wiping a bit of dampness from his eyes. That made her smile; then a laugh bubbled up and she was dashing the tears from her own cheeks. “I had just been about to ask Seth if he’d be willing to help you with the animal enclosure when you all walked up. Since I don’t know the first thing about it and he’s got a llama and all. I should have called him up front, but somebody forced me to go hunting up a costume, and then there was the livestock wrangling, and . . .”

  Seth turned back around, his eyes still overly bright. He had to clear his throat, but finally said, “Yes, sure.” He looked at Bailey, and his grin was back. “We’ll get it done up right.” He made a fist and turned it toward Bailey.

  She bumped him back, and they finished with the whole explosion-rain gesture. “Thank you, thank you,” Bailey told Seth. “I’ve built pens before, so I can help.”

  “Indeed you will,” Seth told her, and the two bent their heads together already in serious pen-planning mode. But not before Bailey knelt down and scooped up the lamb, who bleated, then tried to eat her hood. Bailey giggled again, gently scolded the lamb as she extricated the hood, then took the handle to the leash, and she, the lamb, and Seth all walked over to the grass together.

  “A girl and her lamb,” Sunny said, sighing a little. “And her Thor,” she added with a laugh.

  Addie smiled at that, and followed the trio, leaving Sunny alone with Sawyer.

  Sunny felt a hand at the small of her back—a large wolf paw, to be more specific—as Sawyer stepped in behind her and bent down so the gleaming set of fake wolf teeth in the giant head of his costume was beside her ear. “I think someone just earned a pair of angel wings.”

  She dipped her chin at that, smiling, and felt a bit of warmth fill her cheeks. “Is this where I say it takes one to know one?” She slid a sideways look at him as he straightened and stepped up beside her, having to tip her head up to meet his eyes. “Is it hot in that thing?”

  “You have no idea.”

  She thought she heard him chuckle, and she might have snickered herself. “Seth told me you weren’t a costume guy. So I guess Bailey is a lot stealthier about getting her way than we gave her credit for.”

  “If so, she’s being taught by the master.” He nodded toward Seth, then shook his big wolf head.

  “What?” she asked, when she heard him laugh and sigh at the same time.

  “It’s all falling into place now.”

  “What is?”

  “The Master Plan. I knew Addie was up to something, and I was pretty sure Seth was, too. He and Bailey have been spending time together working on some project up at his farm. Addie has been talking to you, and I guess Seth has been talking to you.”

  Now it was her turn to shake her head. “You lost me.”

  “Can you help me with these?” He turned his hands palms up and she saw that there were elastic straps holding the clawed paws to the back of his own. She supposed so he could still use his hand to hold a drink or eat at the party. “Slide one off?”

  She did. He used his free hand to slide the other paw off, leaving them both to dangle at his wrists, then reached around the back of his costume, fumbled for a moment. She heard what sounded like a z
ipper and a few snaps giving way. He lifted the head off the wolf suit. His hair was damp and clung to his scalp and his face was a bit flushed.

  “You weren’t kidding,” she said. “Sauna in a suit.”

  “Pretty much.” He glanced over to the mill. Addie, Bailey, the lamb, and Seth had made their way to where a group of other folks were gathering by the big sliding door. “Seth and Addie can probably handle things for a bit.” He looked down at her. “Can we take a walk?”

  She supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised by the request. They hadn’t talked since he’d signed the trust papers. Which, in essence, meant they really hadn’t talked since they’d kissed each other senseless under a starlit sky in one of the most beautiful settings she’d ever seen. “Yes,” she said when she realized she hadn’t answered him. She thought about her footwear. “Nothing too rugged, I’m afraid.” She lifted her skirts to show him the black ballet flats she had on. “Bo Peep isn’t exactly an all-terrain costume.”

  He chuckled. “Not to worry.” He lifted one of his own costumed feet. “I’m not exactly equipped for a trail hike, either.”

  She laughed, then fished her key fob out of the little pocket that had been surreptitiously constructed in the side seam of her skirt and clicked the hatch button. “Why don’t you stow that wolf head in here, so you don’t have to carry it.” She opened the door to the lamb’s crate. “Perfect fit.”

  He managed to get it inside, with the muzzle facing out through the metal door when she closed it. “There is a horror movie script in this somewhere,” she said, giving a little shudder as she closed the hatch.

  “Well, I don’t think you have to worry about anyone stealing your car, so there’s that.”

  “True.” She pocketed the fob again, then suddenly at a loss, she straightened her little jacket and wrapped her arms around her waist. It was quite chilly now that the sun was setting.

  “I’d offer to trade costumes so you’d be warmer,” he said. “But crinoline skirts are so last year.”

  She let out a bark of laughter at that. “I’m amazed you even know what crinolines are.”

  “Me, too,” he said, “come to think of it.” He started walking down the narrow road that led into the mill so they could stay on a paved surface. “I think I can blame Addie for making me watch Gone with the Wind with her when I was Bailey’s age.”

  “Still scarred, are you?” she said dryly.

  He slid her a smile. “She watched all of the Planet of the Apes movies with me, so I think we’re square.”

  “I figured it would be pretty warm inside with all the people and the music and dancing going on, so I didn’t bring anything heavier to wear. I’m looking forward to seeing how far along the interior has come, what with the second floor in now and all.”

  “I wish I could take you up there, but the subfloor isn’t all in yet.”

  “No, that’s fine.” She wrapped her arms a bit tighter. “It is pretty brisk out here.”

  “There have been freeze warnings all week.” He looked up at the sky. It was clear and the moon was up. “Hasn’t happened yet, but from the feel of it, tonight might be the night. Let me know if it gets too cold for you and we’ll head back and get you inside.”

  She nodded, and they walked on a bit. “So, what’s this about a master plan?” she asked, going back to his earlier comment.

  “Oh. Right. I didn’t know you were coming,” he said. “To the party.”

  She was sincerely surprised by that. “That’s . . . odd. Addie knew, Seth knew.” Then she paused, and thought about how the party had all come together, and said, “Oh. Right. That was probably Seth’s doing.”

  “Yeah, I just figured that out.”

  “He’s a good friend to you, but you already know that.”

  “I do. Which is why I won’t kill him for meddling.” He looked at her. “So, tell me what you know. About this little plan of his,” he clarified.

  Her eyes widened a bit at that, but he’d asked sincerely enough. “Well, Seth called me, about a week and a half ago, after . . . you know.”

  Sawyer merely nodded, saving her from having to be more specific.

  “He . . . gave me some relationship advice.”

  Sawyer’s steps slowed. “Okay,” he said, sounding anything but.

  She stopped then, and turned to him. “He had . . . deduced that things didn’t exactly end on an easy note between us when I left here last time.” She figured there was no reason not to be honest with him. “He encouraged me to rethink my decision about our relationship.”

  Sawyer looked away, didn’t say anything, then rubbed his hand over his face and back over his still-damp hair. She might have heard him swear under his breath.

  “I gathered that the two of you had talked, about . . . well, about us, but he didn’t reveal any of what you said to him,” she said. “And I don’t blame you for talking to him. That’s what best friends are for. I will say I think his heart was truly in the right place. I think he got the idea for the party as a way to bring us back in the same space, in a more relaxed, casual situation.” She did not, however, think it was wise to tell him all of what Seth hoped would happen between them. “I told him I didn’t know if I’d come. He said he was going forward with the party either way, and he hoped I’d reconsider.”

  Sawyer started walking again, slowly so she could easily keep pace.

  He didn’t say anything, but it wasn’t awkward, and it wasn’t tense. More like he was just taking the time to process it all. Plus, his big wolf feet were scuffing along the road, and she was using Bo Peep’s shepherd’s hook as a hiking stick, making it somewhat impossible for the atmosphere to be too intense.

  “I talk to Addie—which I’ve been doing all along,” Sunny went on. “She’s made a habit of calling me, and . . . it’s been a good way to get to know each other.”

  “She told me. I think that’s a good thing, too.”

  “So, I told her I was coming. Mostly because I’d had the idea for the goat, which turned out to be a lamb, and I wanted to talk to her about it first, both to get her opinion and because she is Bailey’s guardian. I wouldn’t have just done that without—”

  “I know,” he said, quietly this time.

  “So, I guess, with her knowing, I just assumed everyone knew.”

  He nodded, and kept walking along.

  “You’re probably feeling manipulated,” she said, at length. “That wasn’t my intent. I had no intent, actually. I just . . .”

  He slowed again, then stopped and turned to face her. They were a fair distance away from the mill now. Darkness was gathering quickly. She could still hear the hum of conversation and the occasional burst of laughter as the party swung into gear, but the sounds were muted. The music of fiddles playing and a banjo echoed through the cool evening air.

  “Why did you come?” he asked her. “For Bailey?”

  “I—she didn’t know I was coming. I mean, I didn’t know that until she walked up just now and was surprised to see me. But yes, seeing her was part of it. The lamb was a big part of it.” She paused then, and looked down at her hands, which she’d twined together as she spoke. “I have thought about what Seth said, though. A lot, actually. But I didn’t hear anything from you. So I had to think that maybe we’d made the right choice after all.”

  “Sunny—”

  She did look at him now. “But there’s Addie, and Bailey, and . . .” She let out a slow, measured breath. “This is part of my life now, Sawyer. They are part of my life now.” She smiled briefly, and let out a little laugh. “Score one for Addie, I guess. She’s made it happen.” She forced herself to stop toying with her fingers and avoiding the main topic. She smoothed her palms over her skirt and looked at him directly. His gaze was on hers intently, no diffidence, no awkwardness. It was hard, as the shadows deepened, to read what was in his eyes, but there was no doubt of the intensity that charged the air between them. “I . . . I don’t know how I will fit in here. Or how t
his place will fit in with me, I guess. Bailey is my half sister. I want to know her. She’s coming to see me next month. And I guess . . . if I waited too long to come back, it would just have been more awkward. Or more . . . something.” She lifted her hands, then let them fall by her sides. “So, I didn’t come here tonight for you, but you were part of the reason why I came. If that makes sense.”

  He nodded, but his gaze never wavered. The moment spun out, then spun out a bit longer still.

  She couldn’t have put a name to all of the things she was feeling, but one of them was definitely lust. Hot, simmering, itchy-with-need wanting. And she silently begged him to do something, or say something, to help her put that back where it belonged. On some dusty shelf, where she could ignore it until it wasn’t a thing any longer. Maybe she should have waited longer before coming back. Maybe more time would have helped. Like what, a millennium?

  “Will you say something?” she finally said, as if the words were being pulled from her. “Please?”

  She realized she was holding her breath, waiting for him to, at the very least, let her know in no uncertain terms that he wasn’t particularly thrilled with all the behind-his-back machinations. She could have just contacted him directly, told him about Seth’s plans, discussed this with him directly. Which, in that moment, seemed so obvious. But sitting at home in Alexandria, wondering what he was thinking, what he was doing, and not hearing anything . . . it hadn’t seemed all that obvious.

  “So . . . Seth convinced you to come,” Sawyer said. “But he didn’t change your mind?”

  “What?”

  “You’re not here for me,” he said, as if reiterating his question.