скачать книгу бесплатно
Alex smiled. Despite the tension of knowing Daniel was nearby, coming home had its advantages. Like being with her mother and father, and hearing the nickname she’d almost forgotten in the past few years. The Foster sisters were a tight group, each different from the other, yet loving in her own way. Alex missed Carrie. They talked two or three times a week, but even so, her absence felt as if a piece of the puzzle was missing.
“Mom, I’m ready!” Lizzie came into the kitchen, her backpack over her shoulder, the script she’d been studying in her hand, and her dark hair fastened into two braids. “It’s 8:30. I don’t want to be late.”
“Let’s go, then.”
The drive on the rural road to the Red Barn was peaceful. A few farm trucks gave a pastoral feel to the mix of BMWs and other classy cars of Fox Creek neighbors. On the way, Lizzie went over her lines. “I don’t have that big a part, but I want to do a good job. This is my first real acting gig.”
“And your last before you head off to Bryn Mawr,” Alex said. The two women had carefully considered all the top schools in the east where Lizzie could study literature, and they’d decided on the all-female Pennsylvania college. At first Lizzie had protested the absence of men, but when she discovered she could take classes at the University of Pennsylvania, which was coed, she readily accepted Bryn Mawr’s offer.
“I wonder if Daniel Chandler will be here today,” Lizzie said as they approached the theater. “I hope he is.”
Alex took a deep breath. “I don’t know, honey. He didn’t sound as if he’d be terribly involved when I talked to him.”
“He’s really good-looking, isn’t he?”
“Ah...” What would be the point of denying what was so obviously true. “I suppose.”
“Did you notice his arms and hands? He has lots of muscles for a guy who normally wears a suit.”
Alex didn’t answer, but she definitely remembered those strong, athletic arms.
“I mentioned him to Grandpa, and he told me that Daniel was elected to the state senate two years ago. He’s really popular with everyone in this district. Grandpa voted for him.”
“I would imagine that he’s kept busy with his duties. I wouldn’t count on seeing too much of him at the theater.”
Lizzie sighed with a typical teenage dreaminess. “He’d make a hunky Henry Hill, don’t you think?”
Determined not to focus on the fact that Lizzie was talking so openly about her father, Alex made light of the question. “I’m sure a state senator doesn’t have time to be the lead in a small-town summer production.”
“You’re probably right.”
They pulled into the lot and got out of the car. Lizzie entered the theater first and went right to the stage, where Glen and several other people were milling about. Thank goodness Daniel wasn’t one of them.
“Hey there, Zaneeta!” Glen called. “Now we’re all here for the first day’s rehearsal.” He smiled at Alex. “You want to stay, Alex? I’m sure we can put you to work.”
She laughed. “I’ve already been given an assignment from my sister. I’m on my way into Greenfield.”
“Okay. We’ll probably wrap up around three. But I’ll have Lizzie call you.”
Glen was introducing Lizzie to the other cast members as Alex left the theater. Okay, so their first meeting was just a temporary snag. Chances were, Lizzie wouldn’t see much of Daniel for the rest of the summer. And Alex wouldn’t, either. Crisis averted.
Once she’d finished paying for her purchases at the drugstore, Alex drove down Main Street to Chandler’s Hardware. She’d run in, hand the list to Gus and be out in five minutes, tops. She angle-parked in front of the century-old brick building and went inside. Familiar smells made her remember trips to this store with her dad when she was a very little girl, before her studies kept her busy. The scent of freshly cut lumber, the rusty tang of old nails, the smell of tanned leather. All good memories, until she met the owner’s son and hadn’t returned since.
Gus Chandler was behind the cash register. His gray hair was thinner than she remembered, and his skin had the pallor of an Ohio winter. But in his flannel shirt, loose-fitting denim pants and carpenter’s apron, he looked as if he was dressed for a business he loved. There was something comforting about the perseverance of small-town icons. They stuck it out, didn’t cut and run, like she had.
Gus gave her a welcoming grin. “Well, well...look who’s here. I haven’t seen you in a month of Sundays.”
“It has been a while. You’re looking good, Mr. Chandler.”
“You, too. Pretty as I remember. My son told me he ran into you the other day. Said you lost your husband.”
Alex nodded. Daniel had mentioned her to his father?
“Sad thing, that,” Gus said. “You’re too young to be a widow.”
Alex handed him Jude’s list. “My sister needs some things at the barn. Since I don’t know what any of this is, I’m trusting you to get them for me.”
“No problem.” He moved a few steps from the register and that was when Alex saw the cane leaning against the counter. And the noticeable limp in Gus’s right leg. “I don’t get around like I used to,” he said. “But I’ve got good help here today.”
He cupped his hands around his mouth and called, “Danny, can you come in here a minute?”
Alex’s mouth went dry. She’d thought she might see Daniel at the theater, but she hadn’t expected to find him at the store. She quickly glanced around, nervously seeking an exit. But leaving was ridiculous and would call more attention to herself than staying.
Dusting off his hands on a rag, Daniel came from the back storeroom. His eyes lit up, and a smile spread across his face when he saw her. An honest reaction or a politician’s gimmick?
“Hey, Alex! Imagine seeing you twice in—what? Four days. Must be my lucky week.”
“Hello, Daniel. Lizzie was hoping you’d be at the theater today.”
“Nope. Not today. I’m helping Pop with inventory. I expect Glen will have me working a few hours tonight, though. The sets are pretty complicated for this musical.”
He removed a Cleveland Indians ball cap long enough to smooth a lock of dark hair from his forehead before replacing the hat and tugging the brim low. “How is Lizzie this morning?”
“Excited. I dropped her off at the theater.”
“She’ll love working with Glen. He makes it fun.” Tucking the rag into the back pocket of his jeans, Daniel crossed his arms over an Ohio State T-shirt. His gaze, however, never left Alex’s face. She suddenly felt small and vulnerable. “What can I do for you?” he asked.
“She’s got a list of things,” Gus said from behind the counter. “If you don’t mind...”
“Happy to.” Daniel took the list, grabbed an empty box from the floor and said, “Follow me.”
With the expertise of someone familiar with every nook and cranny of a hardware store warehouse, Daniel went about selecting the items from Jude’s list. When he filled the box and had seemingly exhausted every bit of small talk about Greenfield town life, he turned to Alex and said, “So how’s your stay in Ohio going?”
“It’s all good. This is home, so you know.”
“You bet I do. I spend most of my time in Columbus these days, but it’s always nice to come back to Greenfield.”
Unable to pretend any longer that she knew nothing about Daniel’s career, Alex said, “I heard you were elected to the state senate. That’s quite an accomplishment.”
“I don’t know about that. I like to think I connected with voters on a basic level of honesty and caring.”
“I guess you did. Sorry I wasn’t here to vote for you.” As if he needed her one measly vote.
He smiled. “I would have gotten your vote, Alex? That means a lot to me.”
Her face grew warm. “I must admit I didn’t know your opponent, but yes, I’m pretty sure I would have voted for you.”
He made a quick check through the box and set the list inside with the items.
When the silence became uncomfortable, Alex said, “So, do you have aspirations beyond the state senate?”
“We all have aspirations, don’t we? But for now I’m content. I’m working on a few projects that I believe will benefit both the citizens of Fox Creek and the Greenfielders. Just need to acquire more funding.”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll succeed.” Alex nodded at the box. “I have to be on my way now. Can I carry this?”
“Probably, but why should you? I’m the jack-of-all-trades around here. Is your car out front?”
“Yes, but I think I’d better stop and pay.”
“Oh, sure. Pop would appreciate that.”
Alex reached out a hand almost as if she would touch Daniel’s arm, but immediately pulled back. “He’s okay, isn’t he? Your dad, I mean. He seems a bit frail.”
Daniel’s face clouded with an emotion that could only be pain. “I don’t suppose there’s any reason not to tell you, at least not now that certain decisions have been made. Pop’s ill, Alex. He has bone cancer. Even a bone marrow transplant won’t help him now.”
Her heart clutched in her chest. “I’m sorry, Daniel. This must be so hard.”
“It is. He’s got some time left. A few months, so the doctors tell him. That’s why I’m here and why I took hiatus from my senate job this month. I’m helping him clear out inventory so the building can be put up for sale. Once that’s done I figure he might take a short trip, see some of America he never had a chance to visit before.”
“Will you go with him?”
“I can’t. I wish Mom were still alive, but his sister has agreed to go. They get along well. And I’ll stay in touch with them every day.”
“Why doesn’t he try to sell the business?” Realizing she might be crossing a line between concern and poking her nose into someone else’s family matters, Alex amended, “What I’m trying to say is, this store has been here for decades. It’s a shame to see it close and the building be turned over to some other establishment. This town would miss Chandler’s Hardware.”
“You just said it, Alex. This store is Chandler’s. That’s why people keep coming back. If it changed hands, I think the big-box stores around Cleveland would get our local customers.” Daniel sighed. “I think Pop’s right. It’s been a good run, but it’s time to close it up.” He picked up the box. “You stop at the register and I’ll meet you outside.”
Alex paid her bill. She tried to keep her voice cheerful, but she could no longer ignore the lines etched in Gus’s face, the signs of the pain he must be enduring every day. And that cane, propped against the counter like some bleak reminder that everyone’s future had an ending.
“You have a great day now, sweetheart,” Gus said when she was ready to leave. “It was great seeing you again.”
“Same here, Gus. I’m sure I’ll be back a time or two before I return to Chicago.”
Marveling at the way Gus kept his spirits up around other people, she went outside, motioned to her Honda CR-V and beeped the hatch open in back.
Daniel slid the box into the cargo area. “Nice seeing you,” he said when he’d closed the door.
“Again, Daniel, I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks.” He paused while she went to the driver’s side and got in. “Oh, Alex, before you go...”
“Yes?”
“Would you like to get together while you’re in town? Maybe take in a movie?”
Was she reading his question correctly? Was he suggesting they take up where they left off eighteen years ago? Didn’t he remember she was a widow? “Are you asking me on a date, Daniel?”
He grinned. “And if I were, what would you say?”
I would say that my racing heart couldn’t take an entire evening with you. She cleared her throat. “Considering the recent events in my life...” and a few significant ones from the past “...I’d have to say no.”
He leaned his forearm on the top of her car. “Okay, then. I’m not asking you on a date. We’d just be two friends going out for the evening to catch up on time lost. What would you say to that?”
She smiled. “Still no, but thanks anyway.”
“You know where I am if you change your mind. Either here, at Pop’s house or at the theater. People can always use friends, Alex, and you and I were tight once, as I recall.”
That was the way he remembered that night under the dock, the last night of the summer? They’d been two hormone-driven teenagers who couldn’t keep their hands to themselves. He’d had a few beers. She’d had one powerful one. And to inexperienced Alexis Foster, Daniel had been much more than a friend. He’d been the brightest star in her summer, maybe in her entire life, and he’d just reduced the most important emotions she’d ever experienced to the word tight. He might have been talking about teammates on a sports roster.
She put her car in gear before she said something much too meaningful for this moment. “Maybe I’ll see you around, Daniel.”
“That would suit me fine. I’ll be looking for you.”
* * *
“WOW, COULD YOU have made it sound any worse?”
Daniel didn’t even realize he was speaking out loud until his father said, “What’s that, son? Couldn’t quite get that.”
He tried to put his asinine comment about being tight with Alex from his mind as he walked to the counter. He hadn’t been talking to his best friend from high school, for heaven’s sake. He’d been crazy about Alex.
“Nothing important, Pop,” he said. “I was just giving myself a personal evaluation.”
Gus chuckled. “How’d you do?”
“I failed.”
“I doubt that.” Gus continued flipping through the day’s invoices. “She’s a pretty one, that Alexis Foster,” he said.
“It’s Alexis Pope,” Daniel said.
“Oh, of course. I always remember her coming in here with her daddy. I don’t usually keep up with the social news around here, but her marriage was something of a surprise. She married a colleague of her father’s, much older man. And I remember your mother commented that they didn’t have a big hullabaloo of a wedding like you’d think for a Foster girl.”
“Strange you or Mom never mentioned that marriage to me. I even asked about Alex a couple of times.”
“I guess it slipped our minds,” Gus said. “Or we didn’t think you’d be interested. Besides, the wedding seemed downplayed to me.”
That was odd, Daniel thought. Most girls wanted big weddings, didn’t they? Why did Alex make up her mind and tie the knot within weeks?
“What else did you hear, Pop?”
“Not much, but a few months back, a customer mentioned that the doctor had died. A shame. That pretty lady won’t wither long on the vine, though. Some lucky man will snap her up.”
Daniel thought of one man who had tried and failed. Back then he’d been a struggling college kid who earned tip money by catering to the people who had it. Maybe Alex had appreciated his charm, but she sure tossed him aside when something better came along. All the charm in the world couldn’t compete with a successful doctor on his way up the ladder.
Going back to his inventory of the warehouse, Daniel continued on this train of thought. Besides having his heart ripped out and stomped on, he had been disappointed in Alex. He hadn’t pegged her as the kind of girl who would marry for money or prestige. Meeting her again after so long, she still didn’t seem that way. Sure, she was classy and cultured and could hold her own in any crowd, but there was still some of that shy, eager small-town girl who had shown up at Birch Shore that day. So why had she married the much older doctor?
Maybe Daniel had pegged Alex wrong. Maybe he’d pegged himself wrong, too. Maybe he hadn’t been as charming as he’d thought back then. Maybe she’d seen something in him that summer that made her rethink her interest after they parted.
