A Hope and a Chance

by Jennifer Foor

  “You left with me, Chance.” I confirmed. I already knew about the disappearance, courtesy of my best friend.

  “You don’t understand, Hope. You’re underage, and your father didn’t even know we’d met. I couldn’t say that I was with you even if I wanted to.”

  “I don’t care about what happens to me. You have to tell them we were together. I’m your alibi, Chance.” This guy had the worse luck on the planet. He was now being pegged for a second crime.

  He shook his head. “No way! I won’t get you involved.”

  We both turned our heads toward the window when we heard a car pulling up out front.

  “They’re home.” I said in a panic.

  Chance kissed me. “I’m going in the kitchen. Run upstairs and don’t come down until you hear us talking,” he urged.

  Without even thinking about everything he’d told me, I rushed up the stairs toward my room.

  22

  Telling Hope the truth was easier than I’d originally thought. Once I started the whole story came pouring out. She believed me and it meant everything. I hated to send her upstairs after confessing so much about myself, but we couldn’t risk being found out, especially now. I made my way to the kitchen and started to make coffee. By the time the front door opened it was already brewing and I was leaning against the counter.

  I heard Buffy first as she called out. “Hello, we’re home!”

  I headed out of the kitchen and into the foyer. Buffy was beaming ear to ear. She dropped her suit case and held out her arms for me to hug her. I gave her a big squeeze and finally let her go as Mark walked into the house. I reached my hand out and shook his, the whole time wondering if he suspected that I’d slept with his only daughter.

  “Where’s Hope?” Was the first thing out of his mouth.

  “I have no idea. I came in to make coffee, and then heard you guys coming in the door,” I lied.

  “HOPE,” Buffy called up the stairs.

  Perfection came walking down the stairs in a pair of pajama pants and hoodie. She had pulled her hair up, but it looked like she’d just gotten out of bed. “Hey, I didn’t hear you come in.”

  She never looked in my direction and it was a good thing, because if my eyes found hers they would know the truth immediately. This was a dangerous game that we were playing.

  “We have some news and it involves the both of you. How about we leave everything here. I want to make a big family breakfast and tell you all what’s going on.” Buffy was all smiles, making me wonder what she had up her sleeve. All I could think about was going on some kind of family vacation together, and sneaking around trying to catch alone moments with my girlfriend.

  “Can I get a shower while you cook?” Hope asked.

  “I can help you cook, sis,” I offered.

  Buffy snatched my arm and pulled me into the kitchen, while Mark started carrying the luggage into the laundry room.

  “So, how was your weekend, little brother?” She asked as she started pulling out things from cabinets and the refrigerator.

  “It was fine. I just hung around here and worked on the roof for a while. What about you? How was your trip?”

  She smiled cheek to cheek again. “It was fabulous, but we can talk about it when we’re all together.”

  “Okay, should I be nervous?” I leaned across the counter. “Are you kicking me out, or hiring a new carpenter? Am I working too slow?” I asked.

  “Chance, get a grip!” She laughed. “It has nothing to do with you, it just affects you indirectly. Stop assuming.”

  I shrugged and made a cup of coffee while she began cooking. I noticed she was making French toast. It was something that my mother showed her how to do when we were kids. They made this vanilla cinnamon butter to go with it that made it taste even better. The smell filled my nostrils, but it wasn’t breakfast that filled my mind. It was Hope.

  I found myself watching the kitchen doorway, just waiting for her to come into the room. I heard the phone ring and Mark getting into a conversation with one of his clients about a new property. I started juggling, or attempting to juggle some oranges while I waited.

  My sister rolled her eyes and motioned to a stack of plates and silverware. I dropped the fruit back in the basket. Once I took the plates, she told me to set the outside table, so I headed onto the patio.

  When I started to set the table I got a whiff of Hope’s shampoo, and it took everything I had in me not to turn around and pull her into my arms. She smelled delightful and I found myself missing her already even though we were standing just feet apart.

  I twisted my head to glance at her, but when I noticed she was doing the same, I turned away. “Get yourself together,” I mumbled to myself.

  Hope and I needed to be careful. We couldn’t act like we were involved, but it was obviously impossible to avoid each other. We had to be cordial without revealing our desire to be together. It was harder than we thought. When I looked at her, I wanted to melt into her eyes. She was breathtaking, and her running shorts with that tight shirt did more for me than it should have been doing.

  “Good morning, Chance.” Hope said loud enough that Buffy could hear.

  “Hey, Hope. What’s new? What’d you do last night?” I asked, praying she went along with the ruse.

  “Nothing much, downloaded some new music to go running to today,” she announced, but as she approached the table she added, “I spent the weekend with my boyfriend and last night he made passionate love to me until I collapsed in his arms. It was amazing.”

  I had to turn away from the house. Her face was red and I could tell she thought she was funny. “So, what’s he like?” I asked as we sat at the table across from each other. We could hear Mark talking from in his office and Buffy was busy inside attending to the stove.

  Hope played with her napkin, folding it in different directions. “He’s kind, and considerate. He puts everyone else’s needs before his own. He has the biggest heart, but tries to hide it away. And…I think about sleeping with him every CHANCE I get.” She over-enunciated my name.

  “Hope! Calm down, please. You’re making it difficult for me to focus,” I confessed while pointing between my legs.

  She giggled. “You’re the one that asked. I can’t help it. In fact, after last night and this morning, I wish we could just rip everything off of this table and bang like wild animals.”

  I looked up at her in shock, but saw her winking at me. She immediately started giggling. We were caught off guard by Buffy bringing out two large trays of French toast and sausage, while Mark followed behind her with orange juice and coffee.

  “What’s so funny out here?” Mark asked.

  I froze, but Hope took over. “I was laughing at something that happened yesterday. Chance was climbing on a ladder while I was going running. He must have thought it was locked into place, but when he started climbing up it was collapsing. His face was priceless.”

  They all began laughing, but I was in shock that my little princess had told a complete white-lie without breaking a sweat.

  “Hope, do you mind scooting next to Chance so that I can sit with your dad? We had such a fun weekend, I don’t think I am ready for it to end yet,” Buffy announced.

  Hope stood up and headed in my direction. When she sat on the bench beside me her leg brushed against mine. Knowing her mood, she had probably done it intentionally. This was going to be a lot more difficult than I’d imagined it in my head.

  My sister broke my train of thought. “So we have something important to tell you. Mark why don’t you tell them.”

  “As you both know I’m crazy about this woman, and after much consideration I’ve asked her to be my wife.” Mark seemed like he was on cloud nine.

  Hope was taking a drink of orange juice and immediately spit it out in front of her. It went over her plate and on her face. I handed her some napkins. “Sorry, it went down the wrong hole, I guess,” she said while cleaning up the mess.

  “Well, I sup
pose congratulations are in order.” I reached over and shook Mark’s hand then

  got up and gave my sister a big hug. I knew she was beside herself with excitement. We finally started eating as Buffy and Mark talked about their romantic weekend. Hope and I kept touching our legs together, knowing it was the closest to hand holding we could get.

  Finally after a moment of silence, Buffy got all giddy. “This means that you two will be each other’s niece and uncle. Isn’t that totally cool? We’ll all be a real family.”

  This time I was the one spitting out my coffee. “I don’t think we should label it, sis. You are making me feel old. Hope is only like sixteen or something. She isn’t young enough to call me her uncle. Maybe if she were a little girl or something, it would be different. I don’t expect her to call me uncle Chance.”

  “I’m almost eighteen,” Hope corrected.

  Her father gave a curious look. “Not until the end of the year, sweetie.”

  “Whatever! I hate that my birthday is the last day of the year. All of my friends are legal adults and I can’t do anything I want, ever!” It was very obvious that she was not taking the proposal well. I wanted to hug her, but I couldn’t.

  “Hope, please don’t ruin breakfast,” Mark pleaded.

  “Sorry. Buffy, I’m happy for you and my dad. I can’t wait to help plan the wedding, if you will let me. Breakfast was fantastic. Now if you’ll excuse me I’m going for a run. I’m obviously on edge for some reason this morning. Maybe I just need to go clear my head.”

  Hope stood up and took her plate into the house. She never looked at me or back toward her father.

  “Wonder what’s gotten into her,” he said with a laugh.

  “Probably, just girl problems. Us women get our period and it messes us all up. I’m sure she’s fine.” Buffy stated.

  I stood up from the table. “I need to grab a new paintbrush at the hardware store. Hope borrowed mine and forgot to clean it out. The thing was hard as a rock when I found it still stuck in the roller tray. I should have those posts done by dinner time. Thanks for breakfast and congratulations you two. I’m real glad you have each other.” I said before I headed into the kitchen.

  I hurried into the pool house, located my keys then ran right into the garage where I found a brand new paintbrush and stuck it in my pocket. I jumped on my bike and began looking for Hope, knowing damn well she didn’t want to be alone.

  23

  I had to get out of that house. I don’t even remember if I cleared my plate off the table. The combination of being around Chance and hearing my dad’s announcement was too much for me to take. How could he ask her to marry him without seeing if I was okay with it? I knew it wasn’t my decision, but he could have at least talked to me about it. I liked Buffy a lot, and albeit she was more like a big sister than a step-mother, but factor in the relationship with me and Chance, and it was a complete cluster fuck.

  I wanted to scream, but instead kept running as fast as my legs would let me. The summer sun was beating down on me and I’d forgotten to grab anything to drink. Between the tears and the sweat, I was having a hard time seeing through my wet eyes.

  A familiar sound came roaring around the corner behind me, and I slowed down my pace even before he was in view. Chance pulled up beside me and handed me a helmet. I jumped right on the bike, and he took off out of the neighborhood.

  I wrapped my arms tightly around him. With one of his hands he squeezed mine, and I felt a rush of relief to know that we were together.

  When we finally made it to a nearby park he pulled in and turned off the bike. I hopped off the motorcycle and waited for Chance to pull me into his arms, and kiss me tenderly. “Are you okay?” He asked as he placed his forehead against mine.

  “Not really.”

  He let out a short laugh. “That was certainly a surprise.”

  “You’re telling me. I didn’t even know how to react. I feel like such an idiot for running out. Your sister must hate me for ruining her excitement.”

  Chance led me to a bench and we sat down next to each other. He captured my hand and played with it as he spoke. “Buffy will be fine. She should have known this would all be hard for you, Hope. You just moved into the house after not speaking to your father for a long period of time. There is no way that this would be easy for you.”

  “Well it doesn’t help that the guy I want to be with is going to be my uncle,” I blurted out.

  “That is not even funny.”

  “No kidding. I thought I was going to choke on my breakfast when she said that.”

  “Well, one good thing can come out of this,” he suggested.

  “Yeah, care to share?”

  “They will be so caught up in planning that they won’t notice how crazy we are for each other.” He had a point.

  I brought my head up and kissed him lightly on the cheek. “You’re crazy about me?”

  “Hope, I never would have told you about my past if I wasn’t. You don’t know how many times I wanted you to know the truth.” He put his head against mine.

  I place one of his hands in between both of mine. “None of that was your fault. You have to know that.”

  He nodded and shot me a smirk. “Sometimes I do, but there are some days I can’t help but blame myself. The worst part is that they never even looked for another killer. The newspapers always talked about how the real killer got away with it, referring to me. It really tears me up inside knowing that.”

  “Chance, please don’t take this the wrong way, but if it weren’t for your past we would’ve never met. I have to think that something good comes out of something horrible.” I smiled and stared at his hand that I still held.

  He turned to face me more, suddenly pulling me on his lap. “I can’t imagine never knowing you. You’ve made me remember what it’s like to have a friend, and how it feels to love someone.”

  His words shocked me, and it wasn’t because I thought he was lying or that it wasn’t the appropriate time to tell me. I just couldn’t believe he’d said it. “Did you just say what I think you said?”

  He looked directly into my eyes and smiled. “Maybe.”

  I smiled back at him. “Well maybe I feel the same.”

  He pulled me tight against his chest. “You better.”

  “I wish we could stay here all day.” I looked around and saw nothing but nature. It was secluded and peaceful.

  “Yeah, well I can’t stay much longer. I told your dad I was going out to get a paintbrush at the hardware store.” Chance explained

  I sat up and looked at him. “You better get going then.”

  He laughed and reached for something in his back pocket. “I’m surprised you didn’t feel it when you were on the bike behind me.” A paintbrush in a wrapper sat in his hand.

  I busted out laughing, unable to control my shock in reaction to his quick thinking. “Wow, you thought of that fast.”

  “It was nothing compared to your story about the ladder,” he added.

  I leaned over and kissed him lightly, but when he began to kiss me back it turned into much more. I ran my hands over his face, and held them as his mouth found mine once again. When he pulled away we were both breathless. “I don’t know how long I can last without touching you,” I confessed. “I need to be close to you.” I kissed him again, so slowly that it implied everything I expected it to.

  “You won’t have to wait long,” he promised.

  We held each other for a few more minutes before climbing back onto his bike and heading in the direction of our neighborhood. I assured him that I would be open-minded about my father and Buffy’s upcoming nuptials. To be honest all I wanted to do was think about him. It wouldn’t be hard to put my father’s wedding out of my mind.

  I really did want them to be happy, except I just feared being the one to break the news to my mother. She’d been through so much lately. First my grandfather died and now my grandmother had to be put into a home. Plus she had lost her job and h
ad to sell the house. This would crush her.

  I couldn’t begin to figure out how I was going to look in her eyes and hurt her. Knowing Buffy like I did, she was bound to call every newspaper and have it listed. Hell, she probably had called to have engagement photos taken already.

  I could just picture it now she and my father in a fashioned embrace while Chance and I stood behind them with googly eyes for each other. That would go over fantastic.

  I squeezed my arms around Chance even tighter. Our alone time was almost over and I wasn’t ready to let him go.

  When he finally pulled over he gave me a quick kiss and finally sped away. We couldn’t be caught like that, so I understood completely. As he drove into the distance I felt like a part of me was gone. My heart ached and I ran as fast as I could to get back to my house and be able to see him.

  When I rounded the block that my house was on I decided to slow down. I didn’t want to arrive just minutes after Chance, so I walked the rest of the way. I finally made it down the long driveway and was met by my father having a word with Chance. When he sauntered away from him he quickly patted him on the shoulder. I had no idea what the discussion was about, but I couldn’t help having a guilty conscience.

  Chance had already begun painting the wooden posts on the front of the house. Seeing him with a brush reminded me of being in my room. I wished we were alone again with that bucket of paint, a couple rollers, and my bed.

  He looked back at me and gave me a wave before turning back around and getting to work. My father came back out of the house with his briefcase this time. He walked over to where I was standing and pulled me in for a hug. “I’m sorry if we caught you off guard this morning, sweetie. We didn’t mean to upset you.”

  “It’s fine, Dad. I’d just woke up and wasn’t prepared for hearing big news like that yet. I feel better after my run though. It’s all good.”