Chapter 10 Weston
Weston
Miriam smiled softly at me after she finished petting Scout. He loved her. But he also loved anyone who would rub his belly and feed him snacks. She walked down the stairs and into her yard, tilting her head back. I never took my eyes off her, watching and wondering what she was doing.
The sun shone down, and Miriam sighed. “It’s a gorgeous day.”
We said nothing. It was a nice day, but not something I would’ve considered gorgeous.
The sun was out and melting the snow, which would make the ground soft and the roads turn to mud.
I supposed in the grand scheme of life, winter turning to spring could be considered gorgeous—if spring were coming in March, like in Boston.
But here, spring could arrive in June, if Mother Nature didn’t take pity on the people of Grove Hill.
Miriam came back onto the porch. Antonia and I both stood, and Miriam chuckled. “Rolling out the red carpet for the dying.”
Antonia took a quick inhale, and I pondered how to reply. Do you say yes to something like this? Meet humor with humor or let the comment go by the wayside?
Miriam shook her head and eyed her friend. “If I can’t joke, then I’m not going to make it very long, am I?”
“You dying isn’t something I care to joke about.” Antonia stepped aside and directed Miriam to sit in the rocker. “Would you like coffee? Tea?”
“Tea would be fine.”
Antonia looked at me. “Can I get you anything else? A refill?”
“I’m fine. Thank you.”
She nodded softly and then disappeared into the house. I sat back down and looked at my dog, who sat expectantly next to Miriam. She slipped her hand into her pocket and handed him a treat. She patted Scout’s head and leaned down to kiss his nose.
“You’re such a good boy,” she said to him. “Do you think he knows?”
What a loaded question. I laughed and directed my answer to be about my dog being a good boy and not sensing Miriam was sick. “Yes, I tell him every day, and I believe Antonia told him as well. He’s going to get an inflated ego if we keep complimenting him.”
Miriam huffed. “Toni.”
“Toni?”
She nodded. “Her friends call her Toni.”
“I’m not sure we’re friends, at least not yet.”
“You will be,” she said as she continued to make lovey faces at my dog. “Aside from my kids and the staff at the hospital, you’re the only one that knows.”
I swallowed hard. Was this a burden? I didn’t think it was. “I did tell Jerome. He won’t say anything, but it was important for him to know as well, since he also teaches and coaches Cutter.”
“That’s fine. It’s only a matter of time before everyone will know.” Miriam sat back and began rocking. “My son is going to need you: someone to talk to.”
Her words tore at my heart. She was going to be in the fight of her life, and she was worried about her son. “He’ll have me,” I said and then cleared my throat. “Cutter will have the whole town to lean on.”
Miriam looked down at her hands, and I saw her lips move into a fine line.
I knew I shouldn’t stare but couldn’t help it.
I wondered if this moment would be one I recalled in the future.
Maybe when Nova was older, in ten years .
. . a thought struck me then: Would I even know her in ten years?
Would they go live with Antonia in Boston? Or Miriam’s parents?
They were the missing piece in all of this. I’d never seen them at a game or heard Cutter ever mention them.
The screen door opened, and Antonia returned. She handed Miriam a teacup and set the saucer down on the tray, then wiggled a bottle of water at me.
“Thanks,” I said as I stood and took it from her.
I motioned for her to sit in the rocker while I leaned against the pillar.
We sat in awkward silence for a minute, and I considered leaving.
I supposed it was one thing to sit and talk to either of them, but both made me feel like a third wheel.
Not to mention, there was an obvious worry between them.
After chugging half the bottle, I righted myself. “I’m going to head to the hardware store, and then I’ll be back to fix the loose boards.”
Miriam met my gaze. “You don’t have to do that, Wes.”
“I know, but I want to.”
I nodded to them and then took my leave, calling for Scout to follow me. I half expected him to stay back and milk the two ladies for more snacks, but he sauntered behind me.
As I walked home, I thought about what I’d need from the hardware store besides wood and realized I should’ve inspected the porch better.
For all I knew, the columns needed repairing, along with the roof, the screen door, and the wood trim.
The house would also fare better if it had siding instead of clapboard.
You’re getting ahead of yourself. It wasn’t my house, and I didn’t have a vested interest in it. Nor had Miriam asked me to fix anything. Still, I wanted to. It was one less thing she or Antonia would need to worry about.
I opened the truck door, and Scout hopped in. He sat in the passenger seat and liked to stick his head out the window, which meant I had to keep the heat cranked this time of year, or I’d freeze.
He wagged his tail in excitement when we drove past Miriam’s, and he continued to watch her house until it was out of sight.
“Don’t worry, we’ll go back so you can get more treats.”
At the mention of treats, Scout’s ears perked up, but since I didn’t hand him anything, he went back to looking out the window, with his tongue hanging out of his mouth.
When we came to the first stoplight, someone called his name. He was like the town mayor, only everyone loved Scout. He would happily accept any pets if people were willing to stop and give him some.
Luck was on my side when the Rusty Nail hardware store came into view: I found a spot out front that didn’t require me to parallel park. Scout was allowed inside, but I left him in the truck since I wouldn’t be gone terribly long.
The door chimed as I walked in, and I followed the voices toward the register. Rusty, the owner and a friend of mine, waved when he saw me and went back to talking with the lady at the counter. I made my way to the back, where he kept his lumber, and began gathering the necessary pieces.
“Whatcha making?” Rusty asked moments later.
“Fixing the Vaughns’ porch,” I told him as I held a two-by-four out, checking to see if the piece of wood was warped.
“Ah, I’ve talked to Miriam about replacing the wood with Trex, but I’m not sure she can afford it.”
Trex decking was a high-performance material engineered to resist fading. It didn’t splinter and shouldn’t warp if installed correctly. It was also pricey upfront but would last at least twenty years, if not up to fifty.
The thought crossed my mind to buy a handful of boards and slowly replace each one, but I quickly dismissed it. “Enticing,” I said to Rusty and shook my head. “As is, she’ll be mad I’m even doing this much.”
“Ain’t that the truth. I swear every time she’s in here, she’s talking about some project she found on Pinterest. I never think to ask if she’s actually done any of the jobs she’s told me about.”
I laughed. Cutter had mentioned the same thing a time or two. “Yeah, I’m not sure. I’ve never been past the porch. I was over there this morning and noticed the boards needed to be replaced. I figured I could at least get that started for her, especially since it’s nice out.”
I wasn’t about to tell him what was going on with her or how she wouldn’t fight me on helping her out now. How sad was it that it took her dying to accept help? I shook my head and added another board to my flatbed cart.
Where I failed in this project was not measuring the deck beforehand or inspecting each piece of board. Right now, I had to guesstimate the size since, at some point, I’d decided to replace the entire front portion.
“You taking the whole thing down?” Rusty asked.
I shook my head. “I think it might be best if I go board by board. I hadn’t planned on replacing any joists or jacking the roof up. Might just piecemeal it for right now.”
He slapped me on the shoulder. “Holler if you need some equipment.”
“Will do.” After I finished loading the wood, I stopped by the nail section and picked out what I thought I’d need. It didn’t escape me that I was doing all of this in haste, and I knew why.
Antonia.
As much as I didn’t want to think about her, I was. Her standing there on the porch, with the sun shining down on her. She glowed and took my breath away.
If this had been any other morning, one not marred by the news of a friend and parent being terminally ill, I would’ve been thrilled about Scout running up to her. I’d be the first to admit I would totally use my dog to flirt with someone, especially if that someone was Antonia.
My heart may have skipped a beat or two when she invited me to stay for coffee. Sitting there and watching the day come to life was peaceful, despite the heaviness that surrounded her. I’d lost people in my life, but never like this. I’d never had to be someone’s caretaker.
I took my supplies to the counter, where Rusty stood chatting to another local. The name of the fellow escaped me, but we greeted each other like long-lost friends anyway. More people knew me than I did them because of my former career and my current one as a coach.
When I’d first moved to Grove Hill, I was treated like a celebrity.
It didn’t matter where I went; someone was asking for my autograph or a picture.
This lasted for about a year and now only happened when a tourist came to town and I just happened to show up where they were, or when I was asked to make an appearance.
I didn’t mind any of the fanfare. It made me feel loved and appreciated.
Rusty rang up my purchase and helped me load everything into the back of my truck.
After he’d showered Scout with some attention, he reminded me about our standing trivia game at the local pub.
Rusty, Jerome, me, and whoever we could rope in as our fourth usually dominated trivia night.
Rusty had a knack for knowing the most obscure things, while I tended to get most of the sports questions correct, and Jerome rocked geography. We made the best team.
I drove straight to Miriam’s. She and Antonia weren’t sitting in the rockers anymore when I pulled in.
I sat there for a moment and imagined what it would be like to have someone sitting on my porch and waiting for me to come home again.
I had that once with my high school sweetheart, turned wife, turned ex-wife.
There had been a time when we couldn’t get enough of each other, and then I got hurt.
It wasn’t my injury that drove her away or the fact that I wanted to retire instead of being demoted from a starting pitcher to someone who came in to relieve the starter or the reliever. It was that we didn’t see eye to eye on life, on living in a small mountain town, or having children.
Brianna wanted different.
I wanted more.
I shook my thoughts clear and shut off my truck. As soon as I opened the door to let Scout out, Antonia and Nova came outside. Another woman followed, who sat down and pulled Nova onto her lap.
Antonia came toward me. “How much do I owe you?”
“For what?” I asked as I dropped the tailgate.
“For the supplies? Labor?”
“If you help, not a thing,” I said, winking. It was a lame attempt at flirting, but her cheeks pinked slightly, and that was enough for me.
She laughed lightly. “And if I don’t?”
“Still nothing,” I told her as I pulled a couple of the boards from the back. “I’m not doing this for payment or anything.”
“Then why?”
I nodded toward the house. “Because this town cares about the Vaughns. Because I care.”
Antonia looked over her shoulder, and I tried not to stare but couldn’t help myself. She wore jeans, a collared shirt with a sweater over the top, and, while the ground was soft and in parts muddy, she had on a pair of loafers. Not exactly winter shoes.
She looked back at me and held my gaze. I wanted to ask her out to dinner or tell her I’d bring some steaks over, and I’d grill for her, Miriam, and the kids. Anything so I could spend more time trying to get to know her.
“Well, I feel bad you’re doing this because it’s Saturday and you’ve worked all week. If you need help, let me know. I don’t know squat about construction, but my dad does, and so does my boyfriend. I can call them if you need me to.”
At the mention of a boyfriend, my heart sank. That would be my luck. I finally felt a spark toward someone, and she had a boyfriend.
“I’ll be fine.” I grabbed three boards, lifted them onto my shoulder, and walked toward the house. As I got closer, I changed my frown into a smile for Nova’s sake, because it definitely wasn’t for me.