Chapter 12
“I almost texted and asked if you were coming, and then I saw you walking out, and it was perfect timing because I had just picked up my notebook.”
That was how Birdie greeted him as they stepped out on the beach together, each of them going down the steps in front of their house and walking toward each other. They had a tendency to meet in the middle and then go down and sit on dry sand, as close to the water as they could get without getting wet.
It wasn’t like the ocean where the tide was shifting all day long. Although there was a slight tide, it wasn’t extremely noticeable. Which made it nice. A person didn’t have to constantly be moving their beach chair. Except neither one of them brought chairs; they’d both been sitting on the sand.
“Thank you so much for the delicious food and the pie you sent home with us. Everything was so good,” Wesley said, putting a hand on his stomach. “I almost took a nap instead of coming out here today, but it was the idea of the good company I would be missing that got me out the door.”
“You are welcome to go back and take a nap if you want to. No one says that we have to write every single day. And I know for me, the things I have to do are coming along quite nicely.”
“Me too.” And it’s true, they were. He was definitely ahead.
She knew he was writing an autobiography, but he still wasn’t sure what she was writing .
They had an unspoken rule between them that neither one of them asked about the other, but he’d been thinking about it a little bit.
“So I feel like I have a little bit of an affinity with you because both of us are hiding something. Can I say that?”
She pursed her lips together and narrowed her eyes, looking at the lake and seeming to ponder this question. He thought she was just goofing, but he wasn’t sure. She hadn’t broached the subject at all, and neither had he. More out of respect for her than because he still wanted to keep his identity a secret from her. He was pretty sure that she would keep it for him. That he didn’t have to worry about her spilling it without his permission.
“You can say that. As long as you don’t ask me what I’m hiding.”
“How do you know I haven’t figured it out?”
“I think there will be signs if you do,” she said thoughtfully but with a little smile on her face, so he knew she wasn’t being totally serious.
“That big, huh?”
“No. Not necessarily. I think I’ll just know.”
“Have you figured me out?”
“Maybe,” she said, but he thought she really hadn’t. She had said she had no idea who he was, and she hadn’t put a lot of effort in figuring it out. “Is it terrible that I really don’t want to know? I mean, I am curious, but,” she put her hand out fast when he started to open his mouth, “I really don’t want to know. I just like not knowing. Is that terrible?”
“No. I think it will probably change things if the truth comes out. And the more people who know, the more likely it is that someone who isn’t supposed to know will find out, and then everything will go downhill from there.”
“I agree. Although, tomorrow is the day that we’re supposed to watch the twins. Are you ready?”
“I thought we were watching six kids?” he said, knowing that he really had no clue what he signed up for.
“Yeah, I guess it’s the twins that have me concerned though. They’re not that old, and I think it would take a lot of attention.”
“Will Vera be helping us?”
“I think since there’s two of us, she and Dominic are going to do some maintenance work on the healing garden. It’s kind of like a date for them.”
“Wow. So we’re trusted to have the children alone without their parents? ”
“I believe so. I think they thought we would actually show up. I do think there are people who sign up for it and then don’t show.”
“That’s too bad.”
They didn’t say anything for a bit, just looking at the water and enjoying the nice day, when he said, “This is the best week of writing I’ve had. I just wanted to thank you again for pushing me into it.”
“I pushed you into it?” she asked.
He was pretty sure she knew he was teasing. “You know what I mean. I was trying to be a little bit serious. I do appreciate you.”
“I appreciate you, too. Although, I think it’s going to be a couple of days until we have another day to write.”
“Maybe we should take the weekends off. Give us a break from being creative.”
“You’re not going to have a break from me. Because we’re doing the kids together tomorrow, but you have a break from writing.”
“I don’t need a break from you. You’ve been growing on me.”
“I see. I think it’s the apple pie that’s been growing on you, and that’s my gram.”
“Hmm. She’s modest. I like it.” They chuckled together. She wiggled her bare toes into the sand, and he did, too, loving the way it felt as it ran through his toes, the soft warmth, the day with no pressure. Even the idea of watching six kids tomorrow wasn’t terrible. Because Birdie would be there too. And one thing he figured out with Birdie, he would have a good time with her.
And that made him look forward to it.
“So what do you know about Becky?” Wesley asked after a few minutes of silence where he looked down at his laptop.
“I just saw her at church, went over, and chatted with her. She said she was trying to start a riding stable, and I felt a little bit bad for her, so I asked if I could be her first customer. Well, I also love horses but haven’t had much opportunity to ride.”
“All right. So I know you’re not a famous American jockey.”
“You’re right. I’m not.” She looked down. “I think I weigh about one hundred pounds too much.”
“I don’t think we should talk about your weight. That makes me nervous.” Wesley gave a fake shiver which made her laugh.
“So I guess we have that tomorrow too. I kind of forgot about it. I’m looking forward to it, but I’m a little nervous.”
“Nervous?”
“I’m afraid I might fall off.”
“I think if you just hold onto that little thing that sticks up on the saddle, you really can’t go wrong.”
“Maybe we could just lead the horses for a walk on the beach; we could just all four take a walk together.”
“You can lead your horse if you want to, but I’m lazy.”
She laughed. “I’m thinking that’s not true. You guys did a great job on the roof. I can’t say whether or not it leaks, since we haven’t had any rain, but it looks nice.”
“Think there’s some rain in the forecast for Sunday, so maybe we’ll get it tested out then.”
After a little bit of talking with Birdie before they started writing, it seemed like his words just flowed. He had the best writing day he had all week, finishing an entire chapter.
“Thanks for meeting me. I probably should scoot. Gram’s going to be home soon from the nursing home and ready to start supper.”
“I think I’ll work another week, and then...would you be willing to read what I’ve written?” he asked, knowing his words were unsure. He’d been sitting there thinking about asking her for a while.
“I can. Are you sure?”
He nodded. “I trust you. I know that you know how it is to not want your name out there, and so I know that you’re not going to rat me out, if you figure it out. But since I’m writing the book in first person, you might not.”
“All right. So we have one more week of anonymity, and then I might know who you are.”
“And I might figure you out as well.”
That’s kind of how they always left it. Just them teasing each other that they were going to figure out who the other one was, but he didn’t really think they would. Maybe when she read what he had written for his autobiography she’d figure it out.
They got up and walked together for a little bit before they needed to separate and go to their separate steps.
“Tomorrow morning at nine?” he said as they stopped and looked at each other .
“Tomorrow morning at nine,” she repeated.
He was most definitely looking forward to it.