The lecture wrapped up. Eva clicked her recorder off and tucked it into her purse. She watched as Ember walked toward the front of the lecture hall and shook hands with the lecturer. She had short, blonde hair that came down to her chin and appeared to smile as Ember said something to her. They shared a short laugh only a moment later. The lecturer picked up her belongings. Eva watched as the two women left from the door to the side of the podium while Eva sat in the back of the hall wondering what she’d just witnessed. Maybe Ember had enjoyed the lecture enough to want more from the lecturer than just her thoughts on math and science. Eva wrapped herself in her coat, headed home to drown her sorrows in one of her favorite beers and pack for what would now likely be a long and awkward drive with Ember to her sister’s wedding.
CHAPTER 10
Ember was outside her apartment early with her roller bag and messenger bag. She also had a hanger with her dress lying on the roller as she awaited Eva’s arrival. She applauded herself for being early for once and smiled at the thought of spending the next six hours in the car with Eva. She’d known her for about a month and though she’d only really spent a few days with her, shared a few phone calls and some banter back and forth via text messages, she found herself wanting to spend more and more time with her.
Ember still wasn’t sure if she was ready for a relationship. Eva definitely deserved someone who wanted that with her, but she figured she could be honest and tell her about these concerns. Maybe they could go on a date and take it from there. She’d been taken aback when Eva had mentioned North Dakota or the fact that she could leave the city. It worried Ember that maybe she’d lose her. Eva’s car pulled up and squeezed into an empty spot on the street. The driver side door opened.
“No, it’s okay. Stay where it’s warm. I got this.”
“Trunk is open,” Eva told her and closed the door.
Ember loaded her things into the trunk, closed it and made her way around to the passenger’s side.
“Hey,” Ember greeted and turned her body because she felt the sudden urge to hug Eva.
“Hey, you ready?” Eva barely glanced in her direction.
Ember nodded and turned back to face the front.
“Yeah, sure.” She paused. “You okay?” she asked.
“Just a little tired. You?”
“I’m okay. Tired too, I guess,” Ember replied still unsure what was causing this mood in Eva.
“Work a lot this week?” asked Eva.
“Every day, but it’s okay.”
“Did you get that inventory thing done that you needed to do yesterday?”
“I did, yeah. It takes a long time because you literally have to count everything. We do regular inventory once a week when we order, but half-case inventory is once a month and is mainly for reporting purposes.”
“Reporting?”
“My mom takes the information and uses it in the books. She has to anticipate how much we’ll need of everything, how much we’ve used and then calculates the forecast in expenses for the next month, quarter, and year.”
“Forgive me for asking this, but why does your mother do the books when you’re… you?” Said Eva, while still not looking in Ember’s direction. Ember stared down at her clasped hands and decided it was warm enough that she could remove her gloves. “Never mind. I’m sorry.” Eva sighed.
“No, don’t be. I was trying to figure out how to answer.” Ember turned toward her. “My mom likes doing the books. I try to help when I can, but my dad makes a pretty big deal out of her doing them since it’s the one thing she really likes doing. So, I leave it to her.”
Eva finally looked at her. Ember loved those deep gray eyes that were sometimes closer to black and other times looked like a darkened sky.
“That’s nice of you,” Eva told her and returned her eyes to the road. “So, it’s about six hours. We should miss most of the traffic and get there by early afternoon assuming the weather stays like this.”
“I looked into that this morning,” Ember said. “I checked the weather patterns from here to Winterset. We should be good as long as we make it by then. There’s a winter storm coming in from the Dakotas.” She stared back down at her hands. “Speaking of the Dakotas, how did your interview go?” She hoped Eva hadn’t noticed the change in her tone.
“It went well. I had another one with the head of the department. I think she liked me. She said she’d let me know by today.”
“But how do you feel about it? Do you think you got it?” Ember thought this might be too heavy a conversation topic considering they’d only just hit the highway and were six hours away from getting out of this enclosed space.
“I do, yeah,” Eva shared. “I’m still young, but I’m somewhat known in my area of focus, and I have years ahead of me. They’re looking for someone that fits that bill, so I think it’s likely she’ll offer it to me.”
“I’m happy for you,” said Ember, not at all meaning it.
“Yeah.” Eva didn’t seem that happy for herself. “I got you a coffee. I forgot about it.” She put her hand over the cup and passed it to Ember.
“You didn’t have to do that.”
“I thought you liked women bringing you free coffee.” Eva smiled. Ember thought maybe they could get through the ride with only a small amount of awkwardness. “Oh, and I wanted to…” She stopped herself. “I didn’t want you to lose your place in the lecture series, so I went yesterday.”
“You went to the lecture?” Ember nearly choked on her coffee.
“I did. I sat in the back. I didn’t understand any of it, but I figured since you couldn’t make it, I’d record it for you and you could listen to it later.” She paused and looked over at Ember.
“That was really nice of you, Eva.” She placed her hand on top of Eva’s, which had been on the wheel. “Thank you.”
Eva looked at their hands and at Ember. She appeared to be waiting for Ember to say something else, but when Ember didn’t, she just kept her attention on the drive.
◆◆◆
“Here we are.” Eva pointed at a mailbox off the main road that seemed to be out in the middle of nowhere.
“Where is here?” Ember sat up and looked around to locate a house or houses, but there were rows and rows of trees. Even bare, they blocked anything else from view.
“Farm, remember?” Eva said. “Massive amount of property.” She turned left and took them down a very long driveway. “The house is pretty far back.”
“I rarely get out of the city, and I’ve never been on a farm. This is kind of awesome,” Ember said as she continued to look at everything they passed. “Is that the barn?” She pointed at a large grayish and very old building.
“One of them.”
“One of them? How many are there?”
“There are two on the property. This one is up front. We have one further back for the horses mainly, but we store stuff there as well.”
“Cool.” Ember smiled. “Where is the tree house?”
Eva laughed. Ember looked at her, eyes wide.
“What?” Eva laughed some more. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Because that’s the first time I’ve heard you laugh all day. It’s nice.”
“The tree house is around the back of the house. I will show you that later.” Eva pulled the car up behind three different pickup trucks of varying colors and ages. “My parents won’t be home yet. They’re at Robert’s house with his parents and Anna.”
“So, no one’s here?” Ember asked.
“Probably not. They’re getting ready for the rehearsal dinner. They’ll be back probably in an hour or so to get dressed. Then, go over there to help finalize the setup.”
“Cool.” Ember climbed out of the car and stretched her body while letting the cold air enter her lungs.
“You’re not wearing your coat. You should get inside,” Eva said. “Come on.” She walked around to the trunk, pulled it open and began to pull out their bags.
; “Do you have the key?” Ember asked when they walked to the front porch of the old light blue farmhouse.
It had white shutters that were covered in equally white snow. The porch itself was white and mostly under the snow, but had a pathway shoveled so they could make it to the door with their things.
“Key? No.” Eva rolled her eyes and smiled at Ember before just opening the door. “They never lock this place. I always tell them they should, but they don’t listen.” She placed her duffel bag on the floor, wiped her feet on the rug, turned to see Ember struggling with her own bag and walked back outside to help.
“Thanks.”
“This is it,” she said once the door closed.
Ember’s eyes darted around the wide-open foyer and the dark hardwood floor. It had a few scratches here and there but was otherwise gorgeous. There was a staircase off a little to the right and a large family room just beyond it with oversized furniture.
“It’s nice, Dash,” Ember said and looked past the staircase down the hall.
“Kitchen is back through there. Dining room too. Bathroom is through that door.” She pointed to a lone door about halfway between them and the kitchen. “And bedrooms are upstairs.”
“Where should we put our things?” Ember asked, holding up her dress that she needed to hang.
“Up here. Come on.” Eva carried up her bag as well as Ember’s messenger bag to the second floor. She nodded to the first door on the right. “That’s my parent’s room. This is Anna’s room.”
“She doesn’t live with Robert?” Ember was surprised.
“No. She will now, obviously, but she’s lived here throughout their engagement. Once they’re married, she’ll move into Robert’s house on his parent’s property. Her stuff is already mostly moved over from what she told me. She’ll stay here tonight though.”
“Bad luck to see the bride before the wedding,” Ember said as they walked along to another room.
“That and she’s getting ready here tomorrow, so it’s easier,” Eva added. “This is the guest room and your room for the next two nights.” She motioned to a door on the left. “The bathroom is right here and then my room.” Eva put Ember’s bag on the floor just inside the guest room. “This is you,” she repeated and took a few steps inside the room. Ember flipped the light switch before entering. The room was small and had a twin bed pushed against the wall with a window that had an open light-yellow curtain. Ember was able to take in the view of the backyard and the property. “I hope it’s okay,” Eva added as she watched Ember walk to the window, dropping her dress on the bed, and leaving her roller bag near the door.
“That’s it, isn’t it?” She pointed outside.
Eva laughed and approached her.
“Yes, that’s the tree house. Why are you so obsessed with this rotted out thing?”
Ember turned to look at her.
“Because you said it was special to you.” She smiled. “Can we go?”
“Just let me put my stuff in my room.”
“Can I hang my dress in here?”
“Of course.” Eva pointed at the closet. “Go for it.”
Eva left the room and grabbed her own bag, which she’d left out in the hall. Ember hung her dress in the closet and took in the room. It was cute and very Iowa farm in her mind. She headed out in the hall and took the five steps toward Eva’s room. Eva was removing a dress from the bag and placing it on a hanger.
“You’re wearing that tomorrow?” Ember asked as she crossed her arms and leaned against the open door.
“Tonight. It didn’t wrinkle much so it should be okay. I have a bridesmaid’s dress for tomorrow. It’s here somewhere. I have to try it on tonight.”
“You haven’t tried it on yet?” Ember asked. “I had to try on my dress for Zack’s wedding, and it is months away.”
“I couldn’t get here or more accurately didn’t want to come all the way here just to try on a dress. I sent them my measurements, and my mom made sure it would work. She’s a great seamstress, so if there need to be slight alterations, she can make them herself.”
“So, this is your room?” Ember looked around and smiled as she did.
Everything about it screamed Eva to her. The bed was made impeccably, but that was likely her mom’s doing. The walls were bare but had a nice floral wallpaper that seemed as if it had been there when Eva was young. It was peeling in a few places, but Ember felt like that gave it more character. There was an old dresser against the wall with the window, and it had three piles of books on top of it. There was a bookshelf next to it that was filled and overflowing. Eva hung her dress while Ember wondered if she could read every one of those books this weekend without Eva knowing.
“This is it,” Eva said after a moment.
“It’s cute.” Ember sat on the edge of Eva’s full bed. “It’s you.”
Eva turned to look at her and moved the bag to the floor, so that she could sit next to her.
“I hated this room.”
“Why?” Ember turned to face her.
“This place never felt like home to me. I love my family. Don’t get me wrong, but this place was-”
“Small.”
“Yes.”
“And you, Eva Dash, are anything but small,” Ember told her with a smile.
“Well yeah, I’m 5’9. I don’t think anyone would call me small.” Eva leaned her shoulder into Ember’s and then stood up.
“That’s not what I meant, but I get it.”
“You really want to see this damn tree house, don’t you?”
“Yes.” Ember headed toward the door.
“I think you’re going to be disappointed, but okay.”
Eva followed her out and down the stairs. Neither of them put their coats back on, and they headed out the back door through the kitchen. Luckily, the storm had yet to make an appearance, and the weather had actually warmed a bit. Snow was still on the ground, and it slowed their progress as they made their way toward the tree house. When Ember watched Eva trip on something hidden beneath the snow, she held out her arm to stop her and then took her hand to make sure she was okay. They shared a laugh and Ember kept hold of her hand. She was glad neither of them had bothered to put on gloves. Eva’s hand was cold because of the weather, but it was soft and fit nicely into her own.
“Is it safe?” Ember asked when she stared up from under the tree at the tree house, which was about twenty-five feet in the air and looked to be fairly solid. But it was old, and it was winter, so she really had no way of knowing for sure.
“I have no idea,” Eva answered. “I’ll go first.”
Eva let go of Ember’s hand and gripped the second plank of wood while placing her foot on the bottom plank. She lifted herself up and reached for the next plank. Ember stood under her and had no problem watching as Eva’s ass was in her face for a few moments. In those tight jeans, it looked good. Once Eva was all the way up the ladder and made her way inside the house itself, Ember began the same process. When she arrived at the top, Eva helped pull her inside, and she took it all in. The tree house was one room, but it was larger than Ember had expected. All the walls had signs of repair, with planks of wood being placed over other planks to keep things solid. The ceiling was mostly intact. There was only a small hole in one of the corners that allowed snow in, but it was in good shape. There was also a stool and a few blankets in one corner and a bean bag chair that had been covered by another blanket in the middle of the space.
“So, where did you keep your books?” Ember asked.
“Over there, but they kind of just ended up anywhere. When I used to come up here, I had one of those little sofas. Like a love seat, but smaller I guess. I’d sit in it and read.”
“It’s cool,” Ember remarked. “I never had a yard or a tree. This is pretty awesome.” She felt the blanket on top of the bean bag chair. It was dry, so she pulled it up, sat on the bag and then placed it on top of her legs. “I think someone still uses this place.”
�
�Why?”
“Because it’s been taken care of,” Ember explained.
“I don’t know how sturdy it is. We probably shouldn’t stay.” Eva motioned back toward the tree ladder.
“It’s fine,” Ember asserted. “This wood is oak. They used 2x4s and then 2x6s in the roof. The floor is solid. I think it’s plywood on top, but oak underneath from what I could gather outside,” Ember continued. “The tree is oak too and the supports beneath us are located in the optimal locations for a structure this size.” She noticed Eva staring at her. “I guess it is old. You’re right.” She looked down at the blanket.
Eva walked closer and reached for the blanket. She lifted it a little and then sat on the bean bag chair that was just barely large enough for the two of them. She pulled the blanket over both pairs of legs and slid her hands under it to keep them warm.
“Why do you do that?” Eva said after a moment.
“Do what?”
“Pretend you don’t know things. When we were outside staring up at this thing, you could tell it was fine, but you still asked me. You just explained it perfectly and then stopped and tried to play it off.” Eva looked over at her.
Ember could feel Eva’s thigh pressed against her own. She could feel her shoulder and the side of her body. Their shared body heat, mixed with the blanket over them, was starting to make Ember feel hotter.
“I don’t know,” Ember replied.
“Yes, you do. You just don’t want to tell me.” Eva was staring at her and Ember knew it, but she couldn’t meet her eyes. After a moment, Eva’s head was on Ember’s shoulder. “I don’t know what’s caused you to pretend you’re not brilliant. If you still don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine. I just want you to know that I want you to be you. I like you. I like that you’re the smartest person I know. I like that you’re kind of a grown-up child about this whole tree house thing.”
Ember’s body shook with laughter, but Eva’s head remained in place.
“I’m not used to talking about it,” Ember said after several moments of silence.
The Best Lines Page 11
