by Ellis, J. J.
“I’ll accompany you,” he insisted. “You never know what may be running around this old ranch.”
“Thank you, I’d love the company.” Emily stood, gathering her things then she and Russell stepped out into the cool night air.
“It is a beautiful night,” he stated. “Not a cloud in the sky.”
She looked up and smiled. “Oh how I missed these stars when I lived in the city. I could stay outside all night just staring at them.”
Russell chuckled and grabbed her arm to steady her. “Perhaps you should do it from a patio chair in your front yard, no tripping hazards there.”
She smiled up at him and they continued to walk, his hand still on her arm. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course,” he agreed. She sounded so serious. What on earth could she want to know?
“Why did you hate it here so much?”
Russell remained silent for a moment as he gathered his thoughts.
Emily grabbed his hand and held it as if to encourage him.
“Honestly, I’m not really sure if there is a definitive reason.” He shrugged and kicked a rock. “Suffocation is the only word that comes to mind. I wanted the good life, the kind of stuff you see on TV and in the movies, and I couldn’t have that here.”
“Did you just wake up one day and decide you couldn’t breathe here?” she asked, pulling him to a stop and turning him to look at her.
Russell grinned. “Actually yeah. I woke up one day and the feeling of heaviness I had carried for years had settled in my chest and I literally couldn’t breathe.”
Even in the moonlight Emily could see the pain in his eyes. When he paused, she urged him to continue.
“The next day I decided to transfer to Denver and when I graduated, my Uncle Ethan invited me to visit him in Nevada and I never left.”
Emily started walking again, she could see her bunkhouse cottage just ahead. “Have you had trouble breathing since you’ve returned to Harper’s Rock?”
“That first day, oh yes! But since then, not so much,” he answered as he opened her gate and ushered her through. “I can’t say I wouldn’t like to be back in Vegas, but for now, I’m okay here. Especially when I’m around a certain person. She almost makes me like it here.”
Emily laughed as they stepped up to the door. “Maybe this person needs to work harder to make you love it here.”
Russell grabbed her arms and pulled her close. “Maybe she does,” he whispered right before capturing her lips in a kiss.
Emily pulled her arms free and wrapped them around his neck, pressing into him. Her fingers made their way to his hair and a moan escaped her lips.
They pulled apart, both breathless and shaking. “We’d better say goodnight before we take things too far,” he said once he could breathe normally again.
“Yeah,” she agreed reluctantly. “If I don’t see you tomorrow, I’ll see you Saturday for our date.”
“Goodnight Em. Sleep Well.”
Emily chuckled and unlocked the door. “No chance of that now. Goodnight.”
Russell turned and jogged back down the path to the main house. He had to do something to work off the frustration that had built with one simple kiss.
CHAPTER 9
Saturday could not get here soon enough for Russell. Thursday and Friday had dragged on with no word from Emily. When the alarm rang on Saturday morning he jumped out of bed and rushed to get ready. He had some shopping to do, and he and Miranda were going to have lunch together at Shakes & Malts, one of the few fast food restaurants in town.
When he was showered and dressed, he hurried downstairs. The smell of his mother’s French toast was irresistible. “Good morning, Mama.”
“You’re sure chipper this morning,” Evelyn chuckled.
“He’s got a date with Miss Emily tonight,” Miranda sang out as she entered the kitchen and climbed up on a stool. “They’re going to dinner and the concert in the park.”
“A real date?” Evelyn questioned.
“Yes, Mother. I’m going on a real date,” Russell returned. “With a real live woman.”
“Smart ass,” Evelyn mumbled, waving her spatula at him. “Emily is a nice girl. Be good to her.”
“I know, Mother. I’ll behave myself.” He knew she was basically telling him that for the first time in years he had picked a decent woman and not to ruin it. Unfortunately he didn’t know if that was possible. He had a way of ruining the good things. “How is Dylan, Ma? Have you heard anything yet?”
“He’s pretty much the same,” she sighed. “I’ll go visit him once a week when Evangeline and Nicoletta go, unless something major happens.”
Russell threw a look at Miranda and then to his mother to let her know that he would have more questions for her when his daughter wasn’t around. “Are you ready to go, squirt? I want to get to the store before it gets too busy.”
“Yeah, Daddy! Can Grandma come?”
“If she wants to. I’ll be right back. I’m going to grab my keys.” When he walked back into the kitchen, Miranda was hugging her grandmother. “You’re not coming, Ma?”
“No, I’m waiting for your Uncle Cowboy to call with details of his yearly hunting trip.”
“Okay Ma,” he said, kissing her cheek. “We’ll see you after lunch.”
“I’ll be here. I have some planning to do. I think Miranda and I will have a little date of our own.”
**********
Russell pulled into a parking spot at Harper’s Rock Grocery and shut the engine off. “Carnations or roses for Miss Emily, Kiddo?”
“A single red rose, Daddy! She’ll like that.”
Russell sighed. It was so cliché, but his daughter seemed excited about the idea so he would go with it. “Come on, let’s go see if we can talk Uncle Logan into joining us for lunch later.”
“Do you think he will?” she asked excitedly.
“I don’t know,” Russell said, helping her out of the SUV. “We’ll just have to ask and see.”
They walked quickly through the store and into the back. Logan was at the loading dock, signing an invoice. “Hey big brother,” he called out to Russell. “I’ll be with you in a minute.”
They stood near the management office and waited. A beautiful blond woman, carrying a tiny baby, slipped quickly past them and opened the door leading to Logan’s private quarters. With her head down, she disappeared inside.
“So what can I do for my pain in the ass brother and my beautiful niece?” Logan Harper asked as he approached them.
Russell cleared his throat. “Well first, you can tell me who that beauty was who went up to your apartment with a baby?”
Logan looked to the closed apartment door then back to his brother before his eyes settled on his boots. “Just a friend.”
“Little brother’s got a girlfriend…and a baby?” Russell asked puzzled.
“No!” Logan nearly shouted. “You know how I feel about marriage and family. She’s just a friend.”
“Okay,” Russell said, holding his hands up in surrender. He somehow thought his brother was protesting a bit too much. “We just stopped by to grab a few things and thought we would invite you to Shakes & Malts for lunch at 11:30. We haven’t been able to see you much since we’ve been back.”
Logan looked quickly at the door leading to his home and then back to his brother and niece. “I…I’m sorry guys. I just can’t right now. I’ve got some stuff going on.”
“Yeah, apparently,” Russell murmured, shooting a glance at the door leading upstairs. “We’ll get together soon, right?”
“Yeah, of course,” he said with a smile. “Let me walk you back out to the front. It’s time for me to take over the bakery counter for Sarah’s break.”
The three walked out through the swinging door and Russell nearly ran head on into Emily’s cart.
“Oh, hello there,” she beamed at him. “I didn’t think I’d see you until tonight.”
“I had to pick up a few thing
s,” he answered. “It looks like we had the same idea.”
“I’m going on a date too, Miss Emily,” Miranda cut in.
“You are? With who?”
Miranda gave a big smile. “With my Grandma!”
“Oh that sounds so fun.”
Logan offered to take his niece to the bakery for a free cookie and they left Russell and Emily alone to talk.
“So, how have you been?” he asked.
“Really good,” she smiled. “Work has kept me pretty busy and my brother was in town for a couple of days. I kind of wanted to call you but…”
“Yeah, I know. I wanted to call you too.”
“I wasn’t sure if that was allowed,” she said quietly.
Russell shrugged. “I think it would be okay.”
“I’ll remember that next time,” she murmured. “I’d better go. Mama is waiting for me at the checkout.”
“Yeah, I better get back to Miranda. I’ll see you at six tonight.”
“See you then.”
Russell watched her walk away. He was in big trouble. He wanted to spend every moment getting to know her again.
“Daddy, Daddy!”
“Hey squirt, you ready to go to the floral section before we go to the deli?”
“Yeah, let’s go get Miss Emily’s rose.” She skipped ahead and Russell watched her closely. She didn’t seem to mind that he was dating again, but he probably should talk to her about everything soon. She was his first priority and he wanted her to know that.
By the time he reached the floral counter, Miranda had already ordered the flower. That was unheard of. She just didn’t speak to people in public that she didn’t know.
“Here you go young lady,” the elderly clerk said as he handed her the order sheet. “It will be delivered to your grandmother’s house at 4:30.”
Russell looked curiously at the clerk. “You’re delivering one rose?”
The older man chuckled. “No Mr. Harper. The young miss ordered a dozen plus one in the white vase.”
“I wanted some roses for my date with Grandma too,” she said quietly, looking at the floor.
“Great idea squirt!” Russell enthused. “I’m glad you thought of it. Grandma will love it.”
Miranda smiled and he gave her a quick hug. “Let’s go to the deli and get the dessert for the concert.” Russell ordered the cheesecake sampler platter with wine and glasses. They would be delivered in a picnic basket, at the same time as the flowers.
Father and daughter stopped at the checkouts to pay their bill then left the store and stood outside in the warm sunshine. “I’m not quite hungry yet,” Miranda said.
“Me either,” Russell agreed. “I wonder what we should do.”
“I don’t know. I didn’t bring my library books or we could go there.”
Russell put his arm around his disappointed little girl. “What would you say if I told you that I brought your books?”
“Really!” Her face lit up. “Can we go to the library before lunch then?”
Russell chuckled at his excited little girl. “Yeah, let’s get the books out of the car and walk over there.”
An hour later, Miranda reluctantly left the library and they walked down the street to the tiny, hometown fast food joint.
When they walked in, Emily was sitting alone at a booth near the door. “Hello again,” Russell said, his voice catching.
“Hi guys,” Emily greeted. “Would you care to join me? My mother had to take care of an emergency at the hospital.”
“Oh can we, Daddy?” Miranda squealed.
He felt like squealing ‘hell yeah’ himself, but instead he just ushered his daughter into the booth and sat down next to her. “We’d love to.”
The waitress soon came over and took their orders before Miranda ran off to the bathroom. Russell figured that while they waited for the food, it was a good time for them to talk to Miranda about the date. But he wanted Emily in on it too. “I want to talk to Randi about us dating. I need to make sure she understands and agrees to it.”
Emily smiled at him and grabbed his hand. “I think it’s a great idea.”
Miranda arrived back at the table and asked to sit by her counselor this time. When she was seated, Russell broached the subject of dating.
“So, kiddo. We want to ask you a question. Is that okay?”
“Yeah sure,” she said as she drew circles on her coloring sheet.
“Does it bother you that Miss Emily and I are dating?”
Miranda put her crayon down and looked at her father like he’d lost his mind. “I want you to go on dates,” she replied as if she couldn’t believe he didn’t know the most obvious thing in the world.
“You do?” Russell asked, surprised. “Why?”
The little girl shrugged as she went back to drawing circles. “You’re lonely. Miss Emily is lonely. And I love you both so that means you have to date and become boyfriend and girlfriend.”
Emily reached out and touched Miranda’s arm. “Sweetie, just because we date doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll become a couple.”
The little girl sat there thinking for a long time. “That’s okay,” she decided. “You should at least try though. You need to have some fun, Dad. There’s more to life than me and work.”
Russell and Emily looked at each other with wide eyes. It went unspoken between them that Miranda was smarter than she sometimes seemed. Russell looked away first to keep from laughing. His little nine-year-old was acting like she owned the world, and he and Emily were peasants under her rule.
The waitress broke the tension when she delivered their burger specials. They spent the rest of the meal chatting about old times, stopping occasionally to answer Miranda’s questions. She seemed fascinated by the fact that they were once young.
After lunch was over, Miranda hugged Emily and insisted her father do the same. When he took her into his arms, it felt like an electric current was running between them. Thrilling and painful all at the same time. They said quick and awkward goodbyes before going their separate ways.
CHAPTER 10
“Oh you stupid cat. You’re lucky I didn’t throw you out of the window at the state line,” the woman complained as she tried to get the animal in its carrier to take him into the hotel room.
Finally at the door, she unlocked it and they tumbled inside. She looked around the sparsely furnished room and had to fight back tears. How far did she have to stoop? She was stuck in a flea bag motel in the middle of fucking Harper’s Rock, Wyoming. Unfortunately, she couldn’t risk staying anywhere nicer.
“Oh Mr. Kitty, I’m going to die living here,” she whined, letting him out of the cage. “I don’t care if I have to squat, I’ll have to find someplace better to live. Mommy is scared here.”
The cat struggled to get out of her arms so she tossed him onto the bed. “Dumb ass. I might just leave you here. I never should have brought you with me.”
The woman retrieved her bag and unpacked. “My name is Lucy now, Mr. Kitty, and I have black hair, see?” she said, holding out a black wig. “As soon as I change, I’m going to go out and get something to eat. I’ll bring you back something. I’m not sure if this town has a Big World Market or not, but I’m sure they have a grocery store.”
Lucy left the room and looked around the town. It seemed to be small enough to manage on foot, so there was no reason to risk having her license plate seen.
The night was starting to cool down as she walked along the streets. A big lighted sign caught her eye at the far end of the main street. It advertised a Mediterranean restaurant, her favorite!
The waiter seated her in a quiet corner and she looked around the place. It was so nice. She’d never understood how a small town like this could have such nice places.
More people walked into the room. Wait a minute, she recognized one of them. Immediately she picked up her menu to hide her face. No one could know she was there. Yet. The more she stayed out of sight, the easier it would be to gra
b her property and get the hell out of town.
*********
Russell paced his room, waiting for the time to pass. He was showered and dressed for the date but still had twenty minutes to fill. Maybe calling his cousin Abigail would take up the time. She had agreed to keep an eye on his restaurants and the people who were running them. Quickly dialing her number, he was relieved when she picked up on the third ring.
“Well hello cousin.”
“Hey Abby. How are you, Sam, and the kids?”
“We’re all doing great. How are you and Miranda?”
Russell sat down on his bed with a sigh. “We’re good. I don’t know if Uncle Ethan told you, but we are thinking Randi might be autistic.”
“Oh,” Abigail murmured. “So much makes sense now.”
“Yeah,” Russell chuckled. “Took me long enough.”
“Don’t go there cousin,” she warned. “Everything will turn out great.”
“I hope so,” he said softly. “So, how are my restaurants?”
Abigail laughed. “I wondered when you would get to that. They are doing just fine, Rusty. Everything is running smoothly.”
What a relief. He couldn’t help but worry. “Well that’s one thing I don’t have to stress over for now.”
“Yeah, hey Russell, could you do me a favor?”
“Of course,” he promised.
“Take some flowers to Ben’s grave for me.”
“Of course I will.” This time of year was always hard on Abigail. She and his oldest brother had been inseparable until the day he took his own life, rather than admit to everyone that he loved another boy.
“Thank you Rusty,” she said softly. “I don’t think we’ll make it up there this year, but I want him to know he’s always in my thoughts.”
“I know Abby. I need to visit him soon, so I’ll take flowers for you.”
“Thanks again, cousin. I’ll talk to you later.”
Russell hung up the phone and grabbed his wallet and keys off the dresser. He was tired of waiting to see Emily. He rushed down the stairs, said goodbye to Evelyn and Miranda, and grabbed the picnic basket and a rose from the white vase. He climbed in the SUV and drove the short distance to the old bunk house.
