A 4th of July to Remember. Book One (A 4th of July to Remember, Maddie and Ronnie)

by T. J. Honey

  “Ok, we’ll stay for just a little while.”

  She snuggled up close to him in the seat and put her head on his shoulder. The scent of woodsy musk emanated from his warm body and he softly hummed to the music as they drove toward the river, a full moon and a symphony of stars shining brightly above awaited them.

  Chapter Ten

  Ronnie drove toward the edge of the river to a secluded spot near a boat launching pad. It was quiet except for the occasional chirp of a cricket or two. The perfect night for romance Maddie thought to herself, but she was tired and wasn’t sure if she was up to any heavy lovemaking with Ronnie.

  She’d missed him since Laura’s fall. It hadn’t just taken the wind out of Laura, but also her relationship with Ronnie. She felt a little nervous as they came to a final stop and he put the brake on. She wondered if he expected them to make love tonight and it made her feel uncomfortable. Glancing over at him in the strained silence, she tried to guess what he was thinking. He caught her sneaking peeks at him and looked back at her with a coy smile.

  “Don’t worry Maddie,” he said softly, “I don’t expect to make love with you tonight. I kinda wanted to talk with you about us.”

  She nodded as she watched the moonbeams scatter across the tiny waves on the river. She loved the way Ronnie could be soft and gentle. Other guys she’d been with were so immature in comparison and she liked that about him. Immediately she relaxed and fell into the rhythm of the water slapping against the shore. She nodded back and forth, lulling herself into a meditative state. After all she’d been through with Laura and the partying with BB at the house, she needed this space and Ronnie allowed her to be herself. She appreciated it.

  “What exactly did you want to talk about?” she asked, leaning back comfortably against the seat. For some reason it didn’t make her nervous that he was the one who wanted to talk about their relationship. She wanted to know how he felt… what he thought about the two of them.

  He cleared his throat, “I want to know how you feel about me. I mean, do you think we have a future as a couple? I know we live a few hours away from each other, but we could visit more often if you think we have something.”

  Maddie sat upright and pulled out of her relaxed state a little, not expecting to get into a discussion that required a definitive answer. She didn’t want to say the wrong thing to him as she liked him and wanted to keep seeing him. But she wasn’t sure if she wanted to keep it a summer fling and nothing more. She had entertained all of this in the beginning, but now with everything that had happened, their relationship had taken a backseat in her mind and her heart.

  After an awkward silence she finally said, “I hadn’t really thought about it, but I really like you and I love our sex. I don’t know if something long distance would work for me. I’m not sure what direction my life is going in right now, personally or relationship wise. I don’t think I’m really ready to commit to anything, if you know what I mean.”

  Maddie tried to be as gentle and careful with her words as possible, but she saw a frown form on Ronnie’s brow. She could sense his disappointment and put her hand up to touch his cheek to comfort him. He grabbed it, kissed the inside of her palm and pulled her closer.

  “I think I could fall in love with you Maddie. Just say that we might have something and ease my poor aching heart.” he smiled at her again, his blue eyes twinkling and put her hand on his chest, “Do you feel that?” he asked, “It’s love beginning to form. Although it could be something else beginning to form.”

  He looked down at the huge bulge in his jeans and started to laugh. Maddie couldn’t help herself and joined in. It broke the tension and they both continued to laugh.

  “You are so bad, Ronnie Hatcher!” she said, through fits of laughter.

  They calmed down and Ronnie lifted her chin and kissed her. She couldn’t help but respond, tired or not she found it hard to ignore the heat between them. Ronnie could do magic with his tongue and he always turned her on like no other.

  He caressed her breast and played with her nipple sending her into a delicious tailspin of ecstasy. He pulled away from her mouth asking with his eyes if they could make love. She nodded and he opened the truck door and helped her out. They climbed into the back of the truck where there was a soft pad that offered some cushioning. Getting comfortable, they removed all their clothes. The night was cool, but the heat from their bodies was enough to save them from the chill. Ronnie caressed Maddie for a long time, playing her into a frenzied maniac. She couldn’t wait for him to enter her and ease the tension of the past week. She missed him… his touch… his—love? She wondered about that as he slid a condom on and entered her. Whatever! She thought as her body took over the controls.

  They lay in the truck bed staring up at the stars for about an hour after making love. A shooting star crossed over the horizon and Ronnie asked Maddie to make a wish. She closed her eyes and silently wished that Laura would heal quickly and that her relationship with Ronnie would take whatever path that the universe intended. She didn’t want to wish for something that she wasn’t sure she wanted yet. And her last wish was that somehow… someway… in this life she would feel safe.

  It was in the fall of her seventeenth birthday and she had bid her parents a fond goodbye as they headed for Kennewick in their twin piper airplane, Maddie’s dad in the pilot’s seat. The turbulence that day had been intense and her dad took the plane up to a higher elevation to avoid the winds that could potentially tear the plane apart. He had called the tower and let them know his flight path as she found out later. But something had gone horribly wrong and they were up too high. The plane didn’t carry oxygen and the theory was that they didn’t realize it until it was too late and had blacked out. They found the plane in a canyon just outside of the Cascade Mountains after a week of searching. There was no saving them; the crash had killed them both on impact.

  She had gone to live with Aunt BB and Uncle Don for her last year of school, then moved to Bend to attend college. They had helped her with her expenses and tried to give her the love and security that she needed, but she never felt the same after that. In her mind, anyone could be snatched out of her life at any minute and she’d felt vulnerable and insecure ever since the accident... and never safe. In the back of her mind, danger could be lurking around every corner.

  “So, do you at least want to see me next summer if you come up?” Ronnie asked Maddie, twirling her blonde hair between his fingers.

  She snapped out of the memory and turned to him smiling, “We’ll see Ronnie, if it’s written in the stars.”

  Her mood had changed from bliss to melancholy and Ronnie could sense that something was bothering her. They exited the back of the truck, Ronnie took the wheel and they headed back to her aunt’s house. BB was waiting for her when they drove up the driveway. She knew that Maddie and Ronnie hadn’t gotten much private time since Laura’s accident, so she didn’t come down on her too hard.

  “Hey, you two,” she said, as Ronnie opened the door of the truck. Maddie slid out and hugged BB.

  “I was getting a little worried when I played your message back and I couldn’t get through to your cell. I was just about to have Don go out looking for you.”

  “Thanks BB. I didn’t mean to worry you. When I couldn’t reach you I had Ronnie pick me up. My car’s being towed to a garage.”

  “Okay, you guys must be exhausted; we’ll deal with it tomorrow. Come on in and have a nightcap with me.”

  Maddie could always count on her aunt to soothe her pain. She remembered when she was thirteen and had the water skiing accident. BB had comforted her and put salve on a huge gash on her leg. She was going too fast, let go of the rope and plowed straight into a huge cabin cruiser parked at the dock. Luckily her inner thigh hit first. Her uncle had jumped in and pulled her out of the water immediately and then BB applied the first aid. Since the loss of her folks they’d become like second parents to her.

  Dragging ass, Maddie and Ronnie
headed into the house and sat on the bar stools in the kitchen behind the counter. BB retrieved some small glasses from the cupboard and poured dark sherry into each one about half way. Just enough, Maddie thought. She was bone tired and ready for bed. It had been a long vacation.

  Chapter Eleven

  Maddie awoke to BB shaking her, “Maddie, wake up. The garage called and they need to hear from you. I let you sleep in, but I think you need to get back to them pretty soon.”

  She yawned and rubbed her eyes, still tired. Some of the stress from the previous weeks was starting to subside. She was with the two people who loved her most in the world and she knew she was well taken care of.

  “Okay BB, I’ll get dressed and come out. Is there any coffee left?”

  “Yes honey, I’ll pour you a cup.”

  Maddie slipped on her jeans and a blouse and headed into the kitchen. There was still steam rising from the freshly poured beverage. She sat at the bar and sipped it gingerly and began to wake up as it permeated her veins.

  Taking a deep sigh, she punched in the numbers for the garage.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, this is Maddie Malone; I’m calling about my car?”

  “Just a minute please.”

  A man’s voice came over the line, “Hi, we have your car ready, everything runs like it should. You can pick it up anytime.”

  “Okay, I’ll be down in a little bit. Thank you.”

  She hung up the phone and decided she would just take her time and leave later in the afternoon. She needed a shower and wanted to say goodbye to Ronnie one last time before she left. He had been nice enough to take care of her car last night and get her home, it was the least she could do. Besides, she needed a ride to the garage.

  It had been a nice long vacation with the extra two weeks, so waiting a little longer wouldn’t hurt anything. She felt that she and Ronnie didn’t really finish their conversation from the night before and she wanted to make it clear to him that she really liked him, but they should let their relationship unfold naturally… and not push it. They could have one final talk on the way to the garage.

  She picked up the phone, “Hello Ronnie? Hi, it’s Maddie.

  “Hey, what’s up?”

  “I got a call from the garage and my car’s ready. I wanted to thank you again for arranging the tow and everything last night and see if you could drive me over to get it,” Maddie waited for Ronnie to respond.

  “Yeah, I suppose I could do that. What time?”

  “In about an hour?”

  “Okay, that’s cool. I’ll swing by to get you then.”

  “k, thanks.”

  Sometimes he could be curt and she couldn’t tell what he was thinking. But he was like most guys she had know… not very emotional most of the time. You had to practically play guessing games with them to get information.

  She had an hour to get ready so she headed for the shower.

  “BB, I’m going to hop in the shower and then Ronnie’s going to take me to get my car. I’m planning to leave for home from the garage,” she shouted loudly down the hall, hoping that she could hear her.

  Sure enough she came flip-flopping out of her ironing room with a stack of laundry almost as high as her head. She peeked around it, “You sure you don’t wanna stay another night and get a fresh start in the morning?”

  “I think I better get back. I’ve already stayed over my vacation time.”

  “Okay honey, if that’s what you want. Let me put this in the other room and we can talk for a little while after you shower, okay?”

  She continued to her bedroom with the load, and Maddie went into the bathroom, turned on the hot water and got in. She stood in the shower with her eyes closed enjoying the soothing massage. It had been a strange and wonderful summer, yet there were so many unanswered questions. What was Laura’s hidden agenda? Why had she and Ronnie connected again the way they did after all these years? Would she see him again next summer, or maybe sooner? She pondered over them as she dried off and put fresh clothes on.

  BB was waiting in the kitchen for her as she walked in still toweling her hair. She sat on one of the bar stool.

  BB started, “I just wanted to tell you how much we enjoyed your stay with us this summer and that you’re welcome any time of the year. You don’t have to wait to visit. If you want to come, over Christmas break, you can,” she paused while Maddie smiled and nodded.

  “Also, I don’t want to worry you, but I’m having a complete physical make up in September and they may have to put a stent in one of my heart arteries. It’s nothing major, just routine and I’m on meds now to keep things going. It runs in the family, so you may have to deal with the same issues when you get to my age.”

  Maddie’s face dropped. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. BB had always been as healthy as a horse, but now… now would she lose her second mom too? The thought of losing BB terrified her. And what would Uncle Don do without her? … Hell, what would she do without her?

  BB could see that Maddie was scared, “Don’t worry honey, its routine. They do stents all the time and they think it’s only one artery that’s blocked. It could be worse, so don’t worry unnecessarily, okay?”

  Maddie was still upset, but nodded at BB. This news was devastating. Her issues around feeling safe bubbled up inside of her once again.

  BB poured her another cup of coffee and they sat there in silence sipping the hot brew. They heard Ronnie’s truck come crunching up the gravel driveway and the energy shifted. Maddie snapped back into her get it done routine and pushed her fears out of her mind. She had to take care of business and get on the road. She wondered if maybe she should wait one more day after hearing this news.

  Ronnie came in smelling like a clean tee-shirt, “Hey all, how’s it going, you ready Maddie?”

  He looked from Maddie to BB with a big grin on his face oblivious to what was going on in the room. He stopped as he felt the energy, “Did I interrupt something?”

  “No,” Maddie said, “We were just saying our goodbyes. You know how hard that can be, right?”

  She tried to make light of the situation and brush it away. Far away… out of her mind… out of her life. She wanted BB to live forever, but she recognized that time was not on her side. This new information was too much reality for her. She realized she still hadn’t processed the loss of her parents just a few short years ago. She counted in her head… let’s see… almost five years.

  Ronnie interrupted her thoughts, “You ready to go Maddie?” he could sense that something was up, but was polite enough not to ask.

  Maddie snapped out of the nightmare that was playing in her mind and nodded at Ronnie. She grabbed her purse, hugged BB and told her she would call from the garage before she left.

  She walked out to Ronnie’s truck her knees shaking as she went. She was having a physical reaction from the news about BB. He opened the door for her, went to the other side and got in. Before starting the truck he turned to her. “Maddie, are you okay? Wanna talk about it?”

  “Let me catch my breath Ronnie. I just heard some shocking news and I’m trying to digest it.”

  Ronnie pulled the truck out of the driveway and drove down the road toward the garage. It was a hot august day and they had the windows open trying to get a breeze going. Maddie felt the sweat trickle down the side of her face from her temple and wiped it away with the back of her hand.

  She broke the silence between them, “God, it’s so hot today! Why is it so damn hot today?”

  Ronnie glanced over at her. He knew something big had stressed her out.

  “Maddie, you wanna share what’s going on with you? You’re starting to worry me a little bit.”

  “Yeah, okay. So…, BB has heart issues and I’m freaked out about it!! She told me she might need a stent put in one of her arteries in the fall. I’m afraid. I’m so damn afraid I can’t stand it!”

  She burst into tears and started sobbing uncontrollably. Ronnie pulled over t
o the side of the road under a tree. He scooted across the seat and put his arm around her while she cried into his shirt. He stroked her hair and tried to comfort her. Finally Maddie got control of her emotions. Ronnie pulled a tissue out of the glove compartment and handed it to her. Calming down, she wiped her eyes and cleared her sinuses.

  “Better?”

  Sniffing she said, “Yeah… I’ll be okay. I just can’t stand to lose one more person in my life. What would I do without BB? What if she dies Ronnie? I don’t think I could handle it.”

  “Well, no sense worrying about it before hand, I mean, she’ll probably be okay and you’re worrying yourself before anything has even happened. She might have a whole lot of years ahead of her. You just don’t know Maddie, why are you so frightened? I mean, I noticed you have issues around feeling safe and loss.”

  “Damn it Ronnie. I lost my Mom and Dad just five years ago; I’m still not over it. It’s made me totally insecure about everything in my life. Just when I’m feeling safe, if you can call it that, and I think I’m fine, something happens to remind me that I’m not over it. I’m just not over it! I don’t think I’ll ever be completely over it! Have you ever lost anyone you love Ronnie…? Have you? Huh? HAVE YOU!” she was screaming now, unable to control her emotions.