Chapter 01 CHARLIE
“Shake that ass, dude!“
I chuckled.
My eight-year-old Boston terrier Beau was standing on his hind legs, dancing along to the music playing through the speakers on my beat-up laptop, a bright smile on his face with his tongue sticking out. His paws were in my hands while we spun around the living room in our new home. New might’ve been the wrong word for it, since the house was built in the 1800s, but it was new to us.
We danced in a circle around the grand staircase, which was the prominent feature of this 200-year-old house. I shook my hips to the beat of the music as Beau led me toward the front door, hopping on his back feet, his nails clicking against the floors. The newly renovated hardwood floors were sparkling in the early morning light reflecting off the Mississippi River nearly sixteen stories below us. I couldn’t help beaming at the innocent joy of my best friend.
I’d fallen in love with this house twenty years ago, when my ex and I had stumbled upon the property as we were hiking nearby trails. The views were incredible, but the house, a rare shingle style, was the centerpoint of the area. Hidden behind trees, it was a menacing oasis any Gothic cinematographer would have killed to shoot. It overlooked the Mississippi River and into Missouri from atop the bluffs. We never had the opportunity to get inside the house when we were younger because it was falling apart, but when I found out that the owners were selling, I couldn’t pass it up.
Beau barked, making me jump. He wiggled his paws out of my hands, bolting up the stairs and around the right side of the staircase. This house was large enough that he had his own room, but that was up the left side of the staircase. Curious what had him on alert, I followed him. He never barked unless he was startled, and I hadn’t heard anything.
He was standing at the top of the stairs, staring up at seemingly nothing. Confused, I stood next to him. “What is it, dude?”
Beau nudged my leg with his head before pointing his nose up at the picture on the wall. My brows scrunched as I stepped closer, trying to figure out what he was so insistent about. I smiled sadly at the image. It was a picture of my girl. Well, at least she was my girl at one point in time. Shana was standing on the porch of this very house, one arm above her head, leaning against the support beam holding up the rotunda just off the side of this hallway.
I bent down to pet Beau, pulling myself out of the painful memories.
I might’ve purchased this house partially out of nostalgia, but it was a new start. I was determined to give myself a different perspective about the place that brought me both love and heartbreak. I’d been in a rut for far too long now, and it was time to change that. I kissed Beau’s head and scratched behind his ears, and his tail wagged happily before he raced back down the stairs, circling on the rug in front of the door.
I laughed, my mood lightening at his randomness. Pulling on my coat and toque from the hook next to the door, I struggled to get Beau’s sweater on him from all his wiggling, then opened the door as he took off like a shot. I didn’t have a fenced-in yard, but I had acres of land, and I trusted that he’d come back.
The picture Beau had pointed to upstairs was still on my mind as I plopped my ass on the front stairs where the image was taken, the ghost in the window just above her curiously trying to see who was on her property. I pulled out my phone, waiting for Beau to find the perfect spot to piss. He’d want to be out here for a while, so I doomscrolled through Instagram. Commenting on a few posts from friends, I kept scrolling until a picture stopped me in my fucking tracks. I leaned back against the banister, head in my hand as I studied the picture like my life depended on it.
It was an image of two women locked in an embrace. They were silhouettes against the backdrop. I’d built my algorithm brick by brick, so seeing two women locking lips wasn’t what had stopped me, though they were attractive. Their chemistry, however, was a completely different story. One was sitting atop a log while the other straddled her lap. The one on top was cupping the back of the other's head, and the one on the log was pulling the other closer. It was electric.
And while they were the focal point of the picture, they weren’t the main event. The greens, purples, and blues of the auroras were playing in the sky behind them, lighting up the snowy peaks of the mountain. They’d been camping, if the tent on the side of the image and the fire raging behind them were any indication. I couldn’t imagine wanting to take my eyes off the views the universe sent our way if I was in that position, though I’d never had the opportunity to see the Northern Lights in person yet.
Eventually, I read through the caption, and was surprised to learn that it was one of those stranger sessions. This was the first time these two had met. They were both travelers and happened to be in the same area as Sadie Clarke, the photographer who went viral for her photography and matchmaking skills. Numerous relationships had come out of it. Further down the description, Sadie mentioned that applications were open for the sessions.
I gave her a follow, jerking my head out of the way of Beau’s cold-ass nose, which he stuck in my face as soon as he was finished. I talked to him while we both fed “Well, dude. Do you think I should?“
I asked him later that night as he snuggled in under the blanket in my lap while some hockey show played quietly on the TV. He let out a snore, and I rolled my eyes.
I’d been focused on this house for far too long. I was talking to my dog as if he could respond to me.
I clicked on the link.