8 #2
Ollie launched into an explanation of how his parents had been killed in a car accident and he’d lived deep in the forest with his grandparents until they’d both passed, leaving him alone with the dog.
Emma’s eyes widened as she listened. She looked away a few times, blinking back tears, as he talked about how lonely it’d been and how much he’d missed his grandparents.
“Until I met Truman.” Her mouth formed a big O as Ollie explained how he’d rescued Truman after the man had been kidnapped, beaten, and locked in a shed.
“But first Kaylie’s father died, and she went to live with Mercy, who is her aunt,” Emma recited slowly, trying to get the details straight. “Now all four of you live together. Truman married Mercy and he adopted you?”
“Yeah, it just went through recently.”
“But you’re an adult.”
“I’m twenty. It was more symbolic of how much we care about each other.
Truman wanted to give me roots and a sense of family.
And we love each other a lot, of course.
A while back I learned that the story about my parents dying in a car accident wasn’t true.
My birth father, Devin, lives outside of town with his mother.
So I also have a new grandmother. I went from having no family to one with several amazing people.
Mercy refers to all of us as a patchwork quilt family. ”
“That’s such a nice way to say it,” said Emma with a wide smile. “Quilts are made with love and keep you warm.”
“You’re right.” He’d never thought of it that way. “Look!” He pointed and grabbed her hand to stop her. “A bald eagle.” The bird had swooped out of the tall pines and out over the lake.
Emma stared, her gaze locked on the huge bird.
“There’s a couple of them that live nearby,” Ollie told her. “I’ve seen them here before. They might be mates.”
I still have her hand.
He wasn’t ready to let go; it didn’t make sense.
Ollie had dated a number of women. Kissed them and more. But he’d never held one’s hand, and he didn’t want to let go.
He slowly released her hand, still talking about the eagle and trying to act as if he weren’t thinking about their hands. They walked on.
It was a great day for a hike. The blue sky was reflected on the water, and in the shade of the trees, the temperature was perfect. He spent a lot of time outdoors, hiking, camping, fishing, snowmobiling. The forests were his happy place.
Emma had gone silent, and he wondered if he’d talked too much. He was usually quiet too, but when he was comfortable, he had a tendency to rattle on, as Kaylie had told him several times. Which was ridiculous considering she talked nonstop.
“Thank you for telling me about your family,” Emma finally said, her gaze on the ground. “I suppose you’ve heard a lot about my situation.”
“Some,” said Ollie. “Are you happy where you are now?”
Her gaze shot up to his. “Oh, yes. I’m so lucky since I met Detective Marshall. My life has done a one-eighty for the better.”
“That’s how I feel about meeting Truman.” He glanced at her. “Do you call her Detective Marshall?”
Emma laughed. “I did at first. She kept telling me to call her Noelle, which I do most of the time now, but if I’m talking about her to someone else, I’ll often say Detective. Habit, I guess.”
“I was sorry to hear about your dad,” Ollie said. “And your mom. I totally get it.”
“You didn’t mention your birth mom.” She shot him a quick look. “You don’t have to tell me if you’re not comfortable.”
“It’s okay. She died right after having me. No one would take her to a hospital.”
“Oh, Ollie, that’s horrible!”
“It is.” He was quiet as he analyzed his feelings.
“But I never knew her. I grew up believing she was dead. I feel so bad when I think about how young she was and how she had a baby and then died from the birth, but I’m oddly removed from it.
” He looked at her. “She suffered, and her death was preventable and tragic. But I don’t feel as if she was my mother. Does that make sense?”
“Yes.”
Even with the heavy discussions, Ollie was growing happier as the hike went on.
They talked about cats and dogs and the growing number of animals collecting in Noelle’s stable.
Emma loved books and was well read from so many trips to the library.
She liked romance novels but was familiar with several of Ollie’s favorite science fiction authors.
He nearly tripped when she admitted she’d never been to a movie theater.
“We’ll have to go!” he told her excitedly. “I hadn’t been either until a few years ago. You’ll never forget the first time.”
She agreed, and then they argued (politely) a bit about which movie to see.
She loved the description of a romantic comedy that was out and clearly wasn’t thrilled about his suggestion of the seventh movie in a space series.
He relented and agreed to the rom-com since it would be her first time, so it was important that the movie be one she would enjoy.
“But then we’ll go to my choice,” he told her.
“Deal!”
They’d stopped on the trail while fiercely discussing movies and now looked at each other in a bit of surprise: They’d just set up two more dates.
“I guess this was a date,” Emma said quietly. “I wasn’t sure.”
“It was. I’d wanted to ask you out for a while,” he admitted.
She looked at the lake. “I knew exactly who you were when I asked if you were Kaylie’s brother.”
His chest warmed, and he couldn’t hold back a smile. “Oh yeah?”
“Yes.” Her light-green eyes sparkled, and he couldn’t look away.
“I didn’t know if you’d be interested,” he confessed. “I was a bit worried.”
“I was interested. I noticed you picked a day when Kaylie was gone. That was smart.”
“She would have gotten right in the center of it. I love her, but she’s a bossy pain in the butt sometimes,” he said.
“When do you want to see the movie?” she asked.
“Day after tomorrow? You’re off work, right? There’s always a good price for the noon showings.” He held his breath.
Too soon?
“That sounds perfect.”