The House We Built

by Ina Williams

  Elijah began to understand that for all the beauty she saw in the world around her, Molly may never have noticed how much was her own reflection.

  “I wasn’t talking about the dress,” he said with his eyes fixed on her. He refused to look away until she met his gaze. She did.

  “Thank you,” she whispered, eyes wide with innocence. “You clean up pretty nice yourself,” she returned.

  Elijah felt warmth rise in his own face, but quickly changed the subject before any color appeared. He drew a bouquet from behind his back then ascended the stairs to hand them to her.

  “Thank you,” she chirped and her hand brushed his as she lifted them. She motioned for him to follow her inside.

  “These are so beautiful,” she doted as he sat at the kitchen table and watched while she placed the flowers in a vase.

  “You’re kind of an old school romantic aren’t you?” It was more of a statement than a question and she glanced up at him to see him smile coyly.

  “I see you’re not any better at taking compliments than I am,” she laughed.

  “Ok, just one more sec,” she said walking toward the couch and picking up a small black sweater that was laying across the back. She put it on quickly and turned to face him. “Ready,” she declared as he rose to open the door for her.

  Lilly’s was a little restaurant on a lake. It was charming and quaint and Molly had never been there. It was the romantic go-to restaurant in her new town and it had all the makings of Molly’s new favorite spot with one exception, Elijah seemed to have several admirers among the staff. The hostess greeted Elijah a little too warmly for Molly’s taste and the waitress was being entirely too attentive to him once they were seated. Molly bared all of this, in her own opinion, with a great deal of grace but when the waitress agreed to bring “sweetie” back another beer after completely ignoring her almost empty glass of wine she began to suspect that quiet, mild-mannered Elijah had a well-deserved reputation in this small town.

  “Why do I feel like I’m about to get an influx of hate mail,” Molly joked.

  Elijah choked out a laugh, “Wow!”

  “You don’t think that’s a fair observation? The women in here are burning holes in my head with their eyes. What did you do?” Molly asked with an urgent whisper.

  “What did I do?” Elijah avoided the question. “Who says I did anything?”

  Molly put down her fork and sat back in her chair waiting for a better answer.

  Both convicted and enchanted, Elijah relented and shared the mild version of his dating history.

  “Oh my gosh. You’re that guy,” Molly sang pretending to be judgmental.

  “Was. I was that guy,” Elijah corrected.

  “Nice save.” Molly said, not at all convinced as she picked up her fork and returned to her salmon.

  After dessert they enjoyed two dances on the back porch of the restaurant where the jazz trio was playing a few classics. An enchanted Molly thought the night couldn’t be more perfect, then Elijah suggested a walk along the lake.

  After a few minutes of casual conversation and laughter, Molly asked the question that had been on her mind since dinner, “So who’s the girl?”

  “What girl?” Elijah asked, assuming she was talking about one of his admirers from inside the restaurant.

  “The girl who inspired your reckless and wild dating season. There was a girl, right?” Molly asked a bit relaxed from the drinks and dancing.

  The brisk breeze from the lake swirled around them. Elijah wrapped his jacket around Molly’s shoulders. It was too big for her and she looked like a girl wearing a football player’s letterman jacket. All of a sudden Elijah really wanted to be a football player.

  “You don’t really do small talk do you?” He smiled.

  “Come on, spill,” she goaded.

  “What is this, a slumber party? She was nobody, just a girl.”

  “Aha! So I was right! There’s always a girl,” she continued now a few steps ahead of him.

  “Was she mean?” Molly asked over her shoulder. There was something so sweet about the way she asked it, like she was asking if he was okay.

  Elijah couldn’t help smiling before he answered, “Not to me. But to someone I cared about.”

  Molly looked at him for a long time before turning around again. She began walking in silence for a few moments before asking, “Why don’t you let people see you like this more?”

  The question struck Elijah, and rather intensely. This was the kind of question that Elsa would ask him. In fact, it was a question she had asked him several times before.

  “Like what,” he asked dodging the question.

  “I don’t know, protective and, not exactly kind, but noble maybe.”

  Molly turned to find Elijah only an inch from her face. She breathed in slowly attempting to catch her breath, but what she caught was his scent—wood, freshly washed clothes, and beer. Separately these things seemed too mundane to cause excitement but together they were intoxicating. The spell was interrupted by a shuffle in the grass.

  “What was that,” Molly worried as she looked in the direction of the sound, but there was only darkness.

  “What was what?” Elijah asked.

  This time the sound was louder and Elijah heard it too. Molly’s grip on Elijah’s arm tightened and he smiled as her eyes searched in the darkness for something to run from. Then the culprit emerged victoriously. A frog leapt from the tall grass towards Molly and she jumped into Elijah’s arms. Almost useless with laughter, Elijah obliged her girlish tantrum by heading to the car but not before pretending to throw her in the grass.

  “I had fun tonight,” Molly said as she ascended the stairs and sat on the porch railing.

  “Me too,” Elijah seconded as he followed her up the stairs. “What are you doing tomorrow?”

  Molly smiled before leaning into one of the posts on the porch towards him. “I don’t know. What am I doing tomorrow?”

  “Horseback riding,” he stated confidently.

  “I am?” Molly asked, her eyebrows furrowed in doubt.

  He laughed. “Yeah, my buddy Carl has a stable a few miles from here and he’s great with beginners,” he reassured her.

  “Really? Well what comes before a beginner? I think I’m that,” he laughed again and Molly soaked it up.

  “I like you like this,” she said.

  “Me too,” he said, and he leaned in slowly, smiled a warning then pressed his lips to hers softly. He made his way around the post and kissed her again, stronger this time. He placed his hands on either side of her neck as he cradled the back of her head with his fingers. Molly’s hands floated slowly up his back and she drew him closer to her. His hands moved from her neck to her back and he lifted her to her feet. She stood, clumsily bringing her hands to his chest, first for balance and then to push him away, gently. She lowered her head.

  “Sorry,” he whispered.

  “Don’t be,” she said plainly, “it’s just…I just…”

  “Need to go slow. I understand,” he said raising his hands in compliance and taking a few steps backward.

  She took a step back too and answered more to herself than to him. “Yeah, something like that.”

  “No, it’s fine. Slow is good,” Elijah convinced himself before holding out his hand for her to shake.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Molly laughed then took his hand. “See you tomorrow.”

  The next morning Elijah went to the shop for a few hours to get some things done before picking Molly up. He was headed out of the door, yelling out the last of the tasks for Drew to finish, when he backed into Earnest Jay as he entered the store.

  “You treat all your customers like this?” Earnest Jay teased.

  Elijah opened his mouth to apologize before realizing who he was. They embra
ced each other without a moment’s pause.

  “It’s good to see you man,” Elijah said before releasing his friend.

  “You too,” Earnest responded, but Elijah could hear the weight in his voice again.

  “When did you get in?” Elijah asked pulling him to the side to let another customer in.

  “Just now, I haven’t even stopped at the house yet.” He said pointing to his car parked outside.

  “Missed me that much, huh?” Elijah joked.

  Earnest let out a short laugh. “You headed out?”

  “Yeah, I’ve got some things to take care of.” Elijah, said a little too professionally.

  Earnest’s eyes narrowed. “I see. With the new Tara Fredrick, I presume.”

  Elijah shook his head in disbelief, same old Earnest.

  “Well, look can we meet at Grace’s later?” Earnest’s question came out more gravely than he’d meant. Elijah could see it had something to do with what had been bothering him.

  “Yeah, is everything cool?”

  “No worries, we’ll talk later, you go on your little date,” Earnest evaded.

  Elijah was concerned but knew he would have time later to get to the bottom of his friend’s new melancholy.

  “It’s just a horse,” Elijah teased Molly as she stood in front of the intimidating steed and extended a shaky hand to rub its nose. Carl and Elijah had been waiting patiently for her to complete this first small feat before mounting the horse.

  “A very large, really strong, and infamously temperamental animal,” Molly whispered urgently.

  “Seriously, just pet the horse already,” his patience fading.

  “How do you know it’s just me? Maybe he isn’t any more ready to be rubbed than I am to rub him,” Elijah shook his head, gently placed his hand on hers and moved it to the bridge of the horse’s nose. Molly let out a whimper but after a moment her hand relaxed and she began to move it with ease and comfort. The horse must have felt the change as well because he rested his nose under her arm as she rubbed it.

  “See,” Elijah said now moving to rub the horse’s neck. “What do you think? You ready to ride yet?”

  “Do I have a choice?” she asked peering at him from around the front of the horse.

  “No,” he stated matter-of-factly.

  He made his way toward her and placed his hands on her waist to help her up onto the horse. Under normal circumstances his touch would have thrilled her, but she was much too concerned with not spooking the horse to think about anything else. Elijah on the other hand, having considerably more practice with livestock was comfortable enough to note not only the shape of her waist, but also the scent of her hair, sweet and flowery, like she’d just washed it.

  Once she was on the horse Molly needed to move forward so Elijah could get on behind her but she was afraid to move too quickly so she inched forward slowly, whispering “Good boy” with each small scoot. Elijah laughed and when she was far enough forward he mounted the horse behind her. He was close enough to feel that she was holding her breath. He couldn’t contain his laughter.

  “What is so funny?” she asked tensely.

  “Horses don’t get spooked by breathing. You can exhale.”

  “You’re enjoying this aren’t you,” she said turning a bit before tensing up again.

  “I really am. And ‘good girl’ would be more appropriate if you’re trying to calm her.”

  “This horse is a girl?” The horse brayed as if in response. “No wonder she didn’t want me to touch her, I’d be mad if someone thought I was a boy too!”

  Elijah couldn’t help laughing out loud. Molly could feel his belly moving behind her and it made her feel calmer.

  “What’s her name?” she asked sweetly.

  “Bertie,” he answered.

  She smiled to herself and took a deep breath as Elijah quickly snapped the reins and the horse started a slow but steady trot.

  “So, horseback riding,” Molly started after a few minutes of quiet. Bertie had slowed to a rather steady walk now and Molly was taking in the view.

  “Yeah, my mom and my step father used to bring me out here on my birthday. We couldn’t really afford lessons or anything, but my mom knew I liked it so…” Elijah let his voice trail off as he reached around her to tighten his grip on the reigns. What he was really after was a tighter grip on Molly.

  “I haven’t really heard you talk about your mom much, are you two close?” she asked.

  “We were. She passed a few years back,” he said quietly.

  He hadn’t talked about his mother in a while, he hadn’t needed to. It felt strange to be talking about her now and he suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

  Molly turned as far as she could to look at him “I’m very sorry to hear that. I know that must have been hard.”

  That was it. No, sad story of her own to level the playing field, no prying into the inner workings of his heart and mind, just sincere condolences. He appreciated that.

  They rode in silence for a bit. Taking in the lush fall colors around them and enjoying the crisp autumn day. The sky was one big cloud, but the day was bright and the gray sky seemed the perfect backdrop for the towering trees.

  “It’s so beautiful out here,” Molly almost sung the words she was so enthusiastic. The sentiment was for herself, but she didn’t mind if Elijah overheard.

  “I’m not quite sure how you do that,” Elijah said smiling.

  “Do what?”

  “Look at everything like it’s brand new. I mean you did it all the time with the house and now out here.”

  “Is that why you were always so annoyed with me?”

  Elijah felt a little embarrassed to admit it now, but that was definitely what annoyed him most about her when they first met. She was like a child, always so deeply impressed by everything and everyone. He wondered if it was as exhausting to live as it was to watch.

  “Well if you think about it, it is all new,” she started bravely. “I mean you may have seen this view before, or ridden this horse, but you’ve never done it with me.” She said leaning her head back and resting it on his shoulder.

  Elijah paused to think about what that meant. That even though he’d been on this path many times before, it was brand new today, because Molly was with him.

  “And you’ve probably had new experiences since the last time you were here, met new people, and all those things help change your perspective. The view may not be different, but you are.” She finished.

  Elijah was suddenly intimidated. With one sentence, she had made sense of life.

  “So what brings you home,” Elijah asked Earnest after they placed their order at Grace’s. Elijah had noticed that Earnest wasn’t sporting his usual clean cut shave and haircut or a snazzy lawyer suit. Earnest had always dressed up, long before he passed the bar, even before he left for college. Everyone figured that he decided to be a lawyer at age twelve because he already dressed like one.

  “Just needed to get away.” Earnest buried his head in the drink menu just as the waiter made his way to the table with their entrees.

  “They stressing you out over there?” Elijah lifted his elbows from the table so the waiter could put his food down.

  “Man,” Earnest huffed, sounding too exhausted to elaborate. They paused to bless the food, then both men dove head first into their meals.

  After a few moments of eating in silence, Earnest remarked, “I think I’m going to stick around for a while.”

  “Really,” Elijah looked up from his plate. He was happy to have Earnest home, but the thought that he was planning to set down roots in town made Elijah nervous.

  “Yeah, Atlanta’s getting to be too much. I was thinking I’d come help you out in the shop for a bit,” Earnest said between bites.

  Elijah paused, almost choking on his food.
r />   CHAPTER 12

  Everything

  The thing Elijah loved most about spending time with Molly was that he didn’t have to say much. She didn’t over talk but she knew how to fill the silences. She understood when to talk and when to listen. He had come to realize that she wasn’t nearly as afraid of quiet moments as he’d originally assumed she was. In fact, in the weeks following their first date they had grown quite comfortable with their little silences. She would read a book on one side of the couch while he read the paper on the other. Or she sat and rested in the living room while he did the dishes. Every once in a while one would look over at the other and they’d smile before returning to whatever it was they were doing.

  One night though, the sweetness of the quiet was impeded by a sort of lingering need to speak. The silence became an annoying buzz in an otherwise peaceful room. She set down her book and approached Elijah sweetly.

  “Hey,” she started and brushed her hand along his forearm. Unable to resist such a sweet and open gesture he turned to her. When she asked him what was wrong, her eyes were full of so much sincerity that he could hardly refuse to tell her.

  He confessed that he was worried about Earnest Jay. Since he’d gotten back to town he was quiet and withdrawn. Elijah couldn’t seem to reach him and he didn’t know how or where to start. His work in the shop was improving, which only worried Elijah more, Earnest had never liked working there. Elijah was afraid that whatever was bothering him was also changing him.

  “And you’re sure it’s a bad change?” Elijah looked up at her confused. He hadn’t really thought about it, but he didn’t see how change could be good.

  “I mean, for you working in the shop was about growing up and healing, right?”

  Elijah nodded in affirmation, he had not realized how much she really listened to him.

  “Then maybe that’s what Earnest Jay needs now too.”

  She was sitting close to him with her hand in his. He pressed his other hand to the side of her face and kissed her.

  “You really like this girl,” Bix observed from underneath Elijah’s truck one afternoon as they were changing the oil. Earnest sat nearby on the steps of the back porch, he’d never changed oil in a car in his life.