Sunsets and Sandwiches
SUNSETS AND SANDWICHES
“You didn’t go to jail for murder, right?”
As we walked through the tall grass, he glanced over his shoulder, a smile stretched across his face. He wasn’t going to give up his secret that easily. I could have called and asked Gladys, but knowing how rumors in Firefly went, it had grown. What started as jaywalking could become high-speed chases or international espionage.
“I promise you’re safe.” He gestured for me to keep up. “Just beware of bears.”
I loved bears. They’re so damned… Oh. The four-legged kind that could throw me around like a plaything. Wait, maybe they weren’t so different. This wouldn’t be a concern in Portland. The only bears I had to worry about were the leather daddies having drinks at the Dugout.
The sun had started to set, but we had another hour of light before wandering through the field in the dark. Driving empty roads here proved that Firefly was close to the middle of nowhere. We had officially left the map.
“We’re almost there.”
“Is this where the gangs of lumberjacks hideout? Are you the leader of a gang of flannel-clad ruffians?”
“No, this isn’t a porn.”
“Damn.”
I held out my hand, letting the top of the grass tickle my palms. I couldn’t remember the last time I had been surrounded by this much greenery. Portland had parks and more than its fair share of trees, but it didn’t have fields stretching to the mountains. Trees didn’t speckle the distance, hidden in shadows like rows of soldiers. We might both call Maine home, but only one of us had been born in the wild.
I tightened the straps on my backpack as we headed toward a single oak. As we reached the base, Tyler didn’t stop, except this time, he moved up. Stepping back, I craned my neck to see a structure hidden amongst the leaves. I had heard hunting cabins were common but never imagined one in a tree.
“Are you sure it’s safe?” My track record with gravity wasn't great.
“I haven’t died yet.”
Not the ringing endorsement I had hoped for. “Are we trespassing?” Maybe he went to jail for breaking and entering… breaking and climbing… unlawful climbing? I’m sure we were breaking a law, and a game warden would appear at any moment .
“It’s an adventure,” he said.
Three words spoken like a dare. Mimi… if I break my neck, it’s on you. I gripped the first wooden step, testing its sturdiness. Tyler had to have at least fifty pounds on me. I glanced up to see his jeans tight, every step showing off the muscle of those beautiful glutes. If he hadn’t fallen and broken his neck, I needed to have faith they’d hold for me. Then I remembered I was the guy who walked into walls and fell while standing still.
Heaven help me.
I followed, hurrying to avoid slipping and dying. When I reached the top, I had climbed through a hole in the floor. Sitting with my legs dangling twenty feet above the ground, I tried to catch my breath. Tyler sat with his back against a wall covered in graffiti. He smiled while watching me. He might be a burly bear, but he must have kept himself in shape.
“What?”
“You’re the second most beautiful thing here.”
He laid it on thick, but the way he stared, I believed him. My cheeks burned as I stared down at a glistening spot of sap on my jeans. It had been eons since somebody looked at me like a chubby kid staring at a tray of cupcakes.
“Wait. Second?”
He didn’t respond. Turning his head, I followed his eyes to— “Wow.”
The builders had forgotten to put up the fourth wall of their treehouse. Instead, I had a view of dense trees stretching to the mountains. I could use the word forest, but it wouldn’t have done Maine justice. The mountain range surrounding Firefly Valley remained hazy as if they were half in our world and half wherever elves lived.
“A close second.”
I ignored his attempts at flattery. It’d have been impressive on its own. As the sun set, the shadows of the mountains stretched along the tree tops. Behind it, the sky colored like the flickering flame of a matchstick. With every minute, the colors continued fading. Out here, the world felt quieter, slower, as if it invited me to stop and breathe.
“It’s beautiful,” I said.
“I promised a spot for our picnic.”
Pulling off the backpack, I paused every few seconds to find another cloud had dispersed. I offered to pack dinner if he could think of a suitable spot for our date. I imagined we’d be eating on the floor of the gazebo or sprawled out in the grass. Tyler, outdoing himself, left me thinking my contributions were subpar.
“I have sandwiches for dinner. If I had known?—”
He reached out with a grabbing motion. “Did Bonnie make them?” I pulled out the first sandwich. “Yup!” He snatched the crinkly plastic wrapped Coffee Pot. I’d never understand the obsession with Maine’s trademark sandwich. It didn’t seem to matter as he took his first bite.
I pulled out my sandwich to see Bonnie had scribbled on it with a marker. “Adorable Man-Friend.” It seemed Gladys had gotten around to spilling the beans. I could foresee plenty of remarks from the rest of the town. The pies being delivered would come with unsolicited advice. It’d start with casual questions, and before long, they’d be planning our wedding. Firefly demanded a happily ever after.
“Don’t tell anybody, but Bonnie adds mayo to the sandwich.”
“You rebel, you.”
I didn’t know they were intended to be eaten without condiments. I unwrapped the cellophane and inspected the innards. Meat. Cheese. Onions. Green Peppers. Pickles. I scooted against the wall before taking a bite, wondering if I’d experience the same magic. Mayo shot out the back, splattering across my jeans.
“Excited to see me?” he asked with a snort.
I let out a deep breath. The Olsen curse refused to let up. I grabbed napkins from my backpack and wiped off my jeans. Now, it looked like a wet spot. “Apparently, you have that effect on me.”
I took another bite of my sandwich. Not bad, but I’d have to live vicariously through Tyler as he moaned between bites.
He reached into his bag and produced a flask. “Rum.” He took a sip and handed it to me. I didn’t question him, taking a quick swig. We might as well have been teenagers again, stealing booze from whichever parent forgot to lock their liquor cabinet.
“Why here?” Other than his job and love of books, I knew almost nothing about Tyler. I hardly knew him when we were seventeen.
He finished his chewing before pointing to the mountains. “You can’t beat this view. ”
Nope, I wasn’t letting him get away with a shallow reply. If we were going to bridge the gap from stranger to friend, I needed to understand him, at least a little. This is where I struggled. Sex… that was easy. Intimacy… not my forte.
“You can see the mountains everywhere. Why this spot?”
I almost retracted the question as he looked down at the sandwich in his lap. The fun-loving grin faded as he trudged through a painful memory. I had seen a similar expression staring at me in the mirror for years.
“I built it with my dad.”
“Oh.” Oh? I needed to work on my small talk. “Do you hunt?”
He shook his head. “He tried to teach me. I’ve polished more than a few guns in my day.” Armed robbery. It had to be an armed robbery. “He grew up hunting with his dad. He wanted it to be our thing.”
“As I’m a newly appointed expert in all things Tyler,” I said. “I don’t take you for the hunting type?”
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m a crack shot with a rifle.” I wonder if he and Laurel had gone toe-to-toe, showing off their skills. “But killing things isn’t exactly exciting. I’d much rather sit down with a book. Less noise.”
“How’d he take it?”
“You know. Disappointed. At least at first.” I didn’t quite know how to talk about parents without making it weird. Every time the conversation came up, once it came out that my folks died, the conversation turned awkward. “We had a year or two where he tried to get me interested in things he liked. Changing the oil in my car, no problem. I know how to put up drywall. I can shoot a gun. But he knew none of it excited me.”
I liked to imagine my parents would have continued pushing me toward my passions. Maybe if Mom were still around, she’d remind me that being content isn’t the same as really living—and that I’ve played it safe long enough. While they might be gone, I had the luxury of imagining them as these perfect people who always supported me.
“Then, one day, he asked me to come with him. I was confused because we were coming to the treehouse, but he didn’t have his rifle. When we got up here, he didn’t say a word. I could swear he found out I was sneaking out at night.” Tyler gave a slight chuckle at the memory. He set his sandwich in his lap. “Then he pulled out a book and started reading.”
I had to smile at his dad’s efforts. To think he set aside his upbringing and found his son’s passion made me stifle a breath. This was a side of Tyler I hadn't expected. Something about his honesty made him even more endearing.
“Of course, I had my book. We sat up here and read. That’s it. Then he told me all about the private eye in his book. He asked me about the elves in mine and why they hated dwarves.”
“That’s sweet.”
My hand rested on the floorboards. I could feel his finger creeping over mine. I pulled away for a moment. His eyes darted downward until I covered his hand, giving it a tight squeeze.
“Why here?” He repeated my question before glancing at me from the corner of his eye. “I think of it as a place for reconnecting.”
My heart heaved in my chest. I had wanted him to open up, but the thoughtfulness of his intent was enough to make me gasp. Okay, with that level of vulnerability, I’d move this to one of the best dates. It certainly beat those encounters over coffee where I scouted for the exits.
“Cheers.” I held up the flask. He raised his sandwich. “To reconnecting with old friends.”
“To old friends,” he repeated.
Tyler had won the best date location. We continued eating while staring out of the tree house at the darkening landscape. It defied words, so I stopped trying. Instead, I searched for the ones that described Tyler. Thoughtful. Nostalgic. Mysterious. Sexy hunk of beef. If this was his first attempt at reconnecting, he had my attention. What was the harm? We both knew how it’d end. In a few weeks, the city would call me home. It didn’t mean we couldn’t have an adventure in the meantime.
“Where exactly were you sneaking off to?”
“Like naked men and heaving breasts?”
“I see enough six packs in a week to open a liquor store. ”
Tyler snorted. We had perched ourselves against the wall, staring into the darkness. The sun had set hours ago while we talked about ourselves. I learned how he landed the position at the library and how he insisted on it becoming a vital part of Firefly. When he found out I designed book covers, he couldn’t resist poking fun.
“What’s it called when he’s clinging to the?—”
“Clutch pose. Yeah, I’m the one pulling them out of the photo and putting them on ships, mountains, and my personal favorite, castles in Scotland. Yup. I do it all.”
The breeze had picked up as the night settled in. Tyler had a small battery-powered lantern hanging on a hook that cast a soft yellow glow across the treehouse. I would have thought it peaceful, perhaps even quiet, but nature had a pulse similar to the city. Insects kept a constant humming going, with the occasional owl hoot or wolf howl breaking through the static.
“What about fantasy books?”
“Not as many fantasy covers. They tend to be illustrated, but I’m sure I could paint them if I tried.”
“You paint?”
He sounded surprised. Now that I thought about it, I surprised myself. I rarely talked about work outside of telling people I was a graphic designer. When they heard I created book covers for a publisher, they went on tirades about their favorite book. Never had I told people I had other artistic abilities.
“I used to when I was younger. I’d like to think I was pretty good at it. Though I always preferred pencils and charcoal.”
“Mr. Olsen, that’s pretty impressive. I couldn’t draw a stick figure if my life depended on it.”
That’s what everybody said, as if artistic ability came from genetics. When I started, I hadn’t been very good. I hoped to find some of my earliest notebooks to compare, but it looked like those hadn’t been deemed worthy by Mimi. What started out as crude drawings of teachers making fools of themselves had evolved.
“I can show you. We’ll have you making anatomically correct stick figures in no time.”
“Or…”
I raised an eyebrow. Tyler leaned forward, pulling his shirt over his head. Wait, were we about to… When he shook his head, pushing his chest forward with hands on his hips, I got the idea. Though, I really wanted to run my hands over his belly and follow the trail of hair until it reached his chest.
“I could be one of your models.”
I hadn’t spent enough time with Tyler twenty years ago to draw him. If I were going to include him with the other radical love portraits, he wouldn’t be shirtless… much to my dismay. He’d probably be sitting in a bean bag in the loft, reading children’s books. Maybe I’d stop in and bring my notebook. If nothing else, it’d be fun to see him in his environment.
“You mentioned the library might close?”
He slumped, making his belly protrude. Will power. It took every ounce not to rub his stomach. He let out a deep sigh. I could see the stress in the grimace.
“It’s the same every year. The state cuts funding. We make budget cuts. But we’re reaching the tipping point. I’m not saying it’s the foundation of Firefly, but even a small town deserves a safe space.”
“What about you?”
He raised an eyebrow as if he had never considered the question. If my company was about to fold, I’d have my portfolio ready to send out. Did he focus on the library at the expense of his personal security? Interesting.
“Will you stay in Firefly? Might find another position in Bangor? Or you could visit me down in Portland.”
He gave a slight shrug. “I don’t think of Firefly as a place I can never leave. If I had to, I could go elsewhere and be happy. Trust me, I see its bumps and bruises. But I kind of like the familiar.” I could understand that. It might be the reason I stayed in Portland. He gave me a quick glance. “You can say I have a soft spot for the things I know.”
I’m sure I blushed.
“Is it a done deal? Or do you have time?”
“It wouldn’t happen until next year. I have time to figure things out. I’m not a blind optimist, but I’m holding out.”
“Hope ain’t a bad thing.”
“The kids are going to be crushed. I finally got the parents to show up at our reading hour. The next step was to introduce them to drag story time. They’re not scared of change, but they move at their own pace. Can you imagine it? Drag queen strutting through the library, pointing out their favorite books.”
I chuckled at the image. “Mabel would love that.”
“Next was getting the adults involved in murder mystery nights.”
“Mabel would also love that. Maybe you just need a drag queen to host every event.”
“In a town where the best thing to do is sit in a tree house with a cute guy, they need some excitement.”
“I don’t know. This is pretty exciting to me.”
I flashed a smile. His ability to care warmed my heart. After thinking about passions for the last few days, Tyler had found his. Amidst the stacks of books, he wanted nothing more than to bring stories to the people of Firefly.
My hand slid closer until it wrapped around his. It had been a long time since I witnessed somebody pour their heart into a project. I was equal parts excited and jealous. As the emotions flared, pouncing on one another. I did the only logical thing I could think of.
My finger brushed over the indentation on his ring finger. There were more stories to be told, parts of Tyler that had me curious. For now, I set aside the past and lived in the present.
I kissed Tyler.
Or… I tried.
I missed his lips and kissed his cheek. Damn Olsen curse. Kill me now. The movies made an impulsive gesture look easy. I hovered, waiting for him to turn his head. The moment passed, and I leaned back, wondering if I had overstepped.
“Sorry,” I mumbled. I had ruined a perfectly?—
“Don’t be. I’m just shocked.” Huh? I would have thought that after the bar, we had skipped all the awkwardness. “That was the worst kiss ever.”
Tyler laughed hard enough that I swore the treehouse shook. I don’t think anybody had ever roared like this from a kiss. However, the longer he laughed, the harder I found to resist joining in. Okay, I admitted it wasn’t my best attempt. My embarrassment turned into amusement.
“If you’re going to kiss somebody out of the blue, make sure you hit the mark.”
He turned, hand resting on my cheek as he leaned closer. His lips hovered inches from my face, close enough I could feel the warmth of his breath. I closed my eyes, drifting forward until our lips touched. He tasted like rum, and I would have gladly spent the night drinking him in.
Our kiss didn’t drip with passion. It held an edge of intensity mixed with longing. For a moment, I thought about standing on the green, hearing the fireworks as we exchanged our first kiss. He had improved over the years, and as he pulled away, I chased, wanting to prolong the moment.
When I opened my eyes, he had a smirk on his face. “That’s how you do it.”
“Yes, it is,” I whispered.
“Is it time to head back?”
I was surprised to find I didn’t want to jump the shirtless man. Something about the moment was different, charged in a way that didn’t lead to my cock. Logic said to pump the brakes. For safety, I should nod my head, pack up and head home. That’s what I would have done a week ago.
“Let’s stay a little longer.”
I shimmied closer until I rested my head on his shoulder. Holding out my hand, he laced his fingers through mine, giving me a firm squeeze. I closed my eyes, listening to the hum of Maine. I had warned Tyler that whatever happened came with an expiration date. Maybe those words weren’t meant for him? There was no point in starting something just to see it come to an end.
Yet…
Maybe this was the adventure I needed? He moved slowly until I heard him kiss the top of my head. I pushed the conclusion of our story out of my mind. For right now, I wanted to focus on the journey with this handsome, burly bear.