A Place for Daydreams (Rosewood Beach #3)

Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

Hazel laughed as her daughter Samantha eagerly picked up a box of fall-themed cookies. The two of them were in the Rosewood Beach General Store, grabbing some items after Hazel had picked up Samantha from school. Hazel always enjoyed shopping with Samantha, since what had become routine to her was still new and fascinating to her daughter. Samantha always got excited about the wide variety of items that were available at the general store, and Hazel often found herself catching some of her daughter’s enthusiasm.

“Go ahead and put those in the cart. I think we could use some leaf-shaped, pumpkin-flavored cookies in our lives.” Hazel chuckled.

“I’ll say.” Samantha cheerfully plopped the box into the cart. “We should eat them tonight while we watch a movie. Something fall-themed.”

“Sounds great to me.” Hazel grinned and looked back down at her shopping list. “We also need laundry detergent and hand soap. We should look for that cucumber mint soap again, I really liked that.”

“Oh, I guess so, but shouldn’t we get something fall-themed? Like apple or pumpkin spice or something?”

“Wow, you’re really into these fall scents and flavors, aren’t you?”

“You’ve been alive for a long time. This is only my twelfth autumn, and I basically wasn’t conscious for the first two. You know, too little to appreciate it. So it’s kind of only my tenth autumn. So it’s very important.”

Hazel had to fight off a fit of laughter. “Oh, boy, I love you. Okay. Fall-themed soap it is.”

“Yay! I love you too, Mom.”

“You want to run and grab the soap, and I’ll get the laundry detergent?”

“Sure.” Samantha scampered off in the next moment, and Hazel made her way to the aisle that held the laundry detergent. She left the cart at the endcap, and then turned the corner, her eyes on the shelves.

She was looking so intently at the laundry detergents, trying to see if she could find a fall-themed scent for Samantha, that she didn’t notice the person standing nearby, intently reading the label on a bottle of cleaning solution.

She did, however, notice that person when she bumped right into him.

“Oh, I’m so sorry—Jacob!” Her heart skipped a beat as she found herself blinking up at Jacob Dorsey, the man she’d nearly professed her attraction to.

“Oh, gosh, hey, Hazel.” He grinned at her and held up the bottle of cleaning solution apologetically. “Sorry, I got totally wrapped up in this. Lost in the world of chemical ingredients.”

She laughed breathlessly. “Sounds fascinating.”

“Oh, it is. Very.” He smiled down at her, looking just as friendly as always, and she found her heart doing somersaults. “And it turns out that this does have the ingredients I need, so I’d better get going. Nice to see you.”

“Good to see you too.” She managed to get the words out without sounding as though she was stammering, even though she felt as though her heart was beating a mile a minute.

He waved briefly, still smiling, and then disappeared around the end of the aisle. She watched him go, feeling a knot form in her stomach.

Jacob never did anything wrong , she thought, holding back a sigh. There’s no reason for him to linger and talk to me now, and I shouldn’t feel bad about it. Why can’t I just let it go?

“Hey, Mom!”

Hazel turned, glad to hear her daughter’s voice, and as soon as she’d turned around, she burst into laughter. “What on earth are those?”

Samantha was standing at the end of the aisle, striking a dramatic pose and wearing bright yellow sunglasses with lenses shaped like hearts. The frames were covered in imitation diamonds, and they glinted fiercely.

“Don’t you like my new sunglasses?” Samantha did a flamboyant twirl. “I think they make me look really elegant.”

“Those are outrageous.” Hazel laughed.

Samantha shook her head. “They are the fashion.”

“They would make anyone look like a bumblebee,” Hazel said, still chuckling.

“Are you saying I look like a bumblebee?” Samantha’s jaw dropped as she pretended to be offended.

“Come look at yourself in this mirror,” Hazel said, catching sight of a mirror that was on the wall near a display of baseball caps. “You will agree with me.”

Laughing, Samantha followed her mother over to the mirror, and as soon as she saw her reflection, she doubled over with laughter.

“Oh, man, that’s good.” Samantha snorted, straightening up. “Here. You try them on.”

She took off the sunglasses and handed them to her mother, who put them on with a grin.

“Yup.” Hazel turned to her reflection and started laughing again. “I’m the Mama Bumblebee.”

“You’re right, they do make us look like bumblebees.” Samantha took the sunglasses as her mother handed them back to her. “So, we’re buying them, right?”

Hazel shook her head, laughing. “Maybe you can buy a pair with your allowance.”

Samantha sighed. “I just spent my allowance on a book. Which, when I think about it, is probably a much better purchase than these sunglasses. Although I did want to show my friends so we could laugh.”

“Hey, bring them in here.” Hazel grinned at her daughter. “You can all try on a pair.” The laugh had done her heart good, reminding her that she had so much to be thankful for. She might not have Jacob Dorsey as a boyfriend, but she’d gotten along fine without him for many years. She had a darling daughter that she adored, and a kind, supportive family. As she and Samantha continued to shop, her spirits continued to lift as she reminded herself how lucky she was. After a few minutes, Samantha darted off to look at lawn ornaments, and Hazel became more lost in thought as she began to walk through the store by herself.

She remembered the conversation that she’d had with her sisters about pampering herself as a show of self-love. She smiled as she got the idea to purchase a face mask for herself, and a moment later she steered the cart into the beauty supply aisle.

She picked out a green tea and honey face mask, feeling pleased with her selection. She liked the idea of treating herself to an at-home spa experience. Then she checked her list again and saw that she’d made all her purchases.

Too bad my daughter has disappeared , she thought with a chuckle. It’s time for us to go.

“Samantha!” she called, not quite shouting since she didn’t want to disturb the other customers.

Samantha didn’t appear, but she decided to start checking out anyway, knowing that Samatha would know to come look for her at the front of the store sooner rather than later.

She was greeted by the friendly cashier and began to unload her cart onto the conveyer belt. As she worked, she noticed a catalog in the magazine rack. It was titled, How to Make Your Own DIY Spa Day.

Hazel picked up the catalog with interest. A few flips through the glossy pages told her that it was something she wanted to purchase. She thought that having a “do-it-yourself” spa day was a wonderful idea.

“Hey, Mom!” Samantha sashayed up to her. “Ooh, that looks cool.”

“It does, doesn’t it? I think I’m going to buy it.”

As Hazel placed the catalogue down onto the conveyer belt, she felt a surge of excitement. Having a spa day would be the perfect way to treat herself with love and care, and remind herself that she didn’t need a man in her life to feel happy.

Dean leaned against his kitchen counter, rubbing his hands gently. He was frowning and staring into space. Next to him on the stove, a pot of freshly-made spaghetti was starting to cool. He’d made it for his dinner, but now he was beginning to lose his appetite.

He’d had a good day at work, until the very end. For most of the day, he’d had good energy and almost no pain. Then in the late afternoon, his hands had begun to hurt. He’d brushed off his concerns and kept working, but by the time he was back at home and cooking dinner for himself, his hands were in a lot of pain.

And it’s only the start of the week, he thought. I rested all weekend.

Feeling a twist of worry, he turned around and got a plate out of the cupboard, along with a fork. He dished himself out a generous portion of spaghetti and meatballs, and then covered the pasta with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese. Then he plopped some pre-washed spinach leaves onto the side of his plate and drizzled ranch dressing over them, making a lazy salad. Finally, he sat down at his table with the plate of food and a can of lemon seltzer water.

He began to eat, relishing the taste of the food but unable to ignore the way his hands still ached with a dull pain. He tried to stay optimistic as he ate his meal, but he was becoming more and more worried.

He thought about what he might be able to do to help with the pain, and his mind lighted on the idea of compression. He paused in his eating for a moment, considering it. He wasn’t sure if it would work or not, but he decided it was worth a try. He remembered that he had a wrist brace from when he’d tweaked his wrist playing baseball in high school. He wasn’t exactly sure where it was, but he guessed that it was in an old box filled with high school paraphernalia that he kept up in the attic.

When he’d finished his meal, he felt refreshed and a little more energized. He went up to the attic and located the old box, and then he brought it back downstairs to the living room so he could look through it more comfortably.

He took a long sip of his seltzer water and began to dig into the box. The first thing he pulled out was his old baseball jersey, and he grinned when he saw it, immediately flooded with memories.

Below the jersey was a messy collection of items, including his high school yearbooks. He drew out the first one almost reverently, surprised by how intensely nostalgic he felt all of a sudden. He began to turn the pages slowly, a huge smile on his face as he relived old times in his mind.

He felt delighted by the pictures that he saw. He grinned as he saw old photographs of his classmates, marveling at how young everyone looked. He laughed over the sight of Hazel wearing braces, and a picture of himself with a black eye that he’d gotten playing baseball.

When he’d finished going through the yearbooks, he found a photo album underneath them. He remembered with a grin when Julia had given it to him, and he opened it eagerly. Inside were more pictures of his high school glory days—baseball games and board game nights with his friends—and then the pictures began to be of his first few years after high school, when he’d become a mechanic and worked at the local hardware store part time.

As he kept turning the pages, he began to see pictures from when he started his auto repair shop. There were photographs of the grand opening, and the party that they’d had in the garage afterward. He chuckled over pictures of the car-shaped cake that his mother had made, and the banner that Hazel had made that had read, “Congrats on the Best Auto Shop in Town.”

His heart felt warmed by the sight of so many good memories. He remembered how much energy and hope for the future he’d had.

I want to prolong my youth , he thought, feeling a sudden surge of determination. I want to feel good like that again. If there’s a way for that to happen, I’m going to take it.

He closed the photo album, deciding that he was going to make a physical therapy appointment the following day.