Chapter 22 #2
“Eww.” She grinned and tossed a gemstone to him. “Do better.”
He looked at his watch. “I don’t have time. Come on. I’m butchnapping you for a few hours. We’re going to be crazy busy this weekend, and we need a minute to ourselves.” He waved impatiently. “Get your boxers moving. I’ll tell you all about my little vacation on the way.”
She shooed him toward the door. “Then move aside, you big lug.” They exited, and she locked the door behind her before following him to his car. Once they were on their way, she said, “Where to?”
“Have you been to Vancouver? It’s amazing. You know when something is so perfect and beautiful and overwhelming that you just wish you could…ingest it?” He glanced at her, swerving to narrowly miss a car with Miss Piggy painted on the back window.
“Yeah, I’ve felt that. At the Grand Canyon, the last time.” She shrugged at the little photo of him with an attractive guy with a beard. “I don’t remember this one’s name, sorry.”
“Ben.” He laughed when she rolled her eyes.
“Billy and Ben? Very cutesy.”
“We’re going to start a B&B.” He yanked the wheel to the left and swore at the driver doing the speed limit. “Not really. But I do like him, and the sex was fucking phenomenal.”
“Glad to hear it,” she said, grasping the door handle to keep from getting thrown to the other side of the car. “Are we there yet?”
“Nearly.” He stopped at a light and glared at it as though trying to change it by force of thought.
“I saw you on TV. You looked super hot. Totally relaxed. I’d be on your side even if they hadn’t left me four letters asking me to get in touch about an offer that was so low I would have set it on fire and thrown it at their feet if I’d been there to take it. ”
River could picture him doing just that, but they were pulling into a parking lot behind a large building. “Axetastic?” she asked.
“We’re going to throw axes, drink beer, have pizza, and you’re going to catch me up on everything I need to know. Including what the deal is with Marina and that showdown you had during the news segment.”
That sounded almost perfect. “I’m not sure about beer and axes, but what the hell.”
He’d already booked their lane, and a server brought over the large pizza with greasy pools reflecting the red lighting overhead, as well as a pitcher of beer and frosty glasses.
Between bouts of throwing an axe at a giant dartboard type thing, she filled him in on the community stuff as well as the time she’d spent with Marina. His quips and teasing made everything feel lighter.
“Seriously, though,” he said, plunking himself down on a stool and taking a big gulp of beer. “It does seem like you’re headed for heartbreak hotel, you know?”
River picked up an axe, hefted it as she thought about Black Pinnacle, and then threw it straight into the middle red circle. “And we didn’t get along before I knew what she did for a living. That hasn’t changed.”
He tilted his head. “Well, I mean, it kinda has.” When she threw him a questioning look, he shrugged. “It sounds like you had a really good time on that rooftop.”
They had, it was true. And the kiss had been something special. “Maybe we’d have a slim chance if we weren’t on opposite sides.”
He raised his beer in salute. “To heartbreak and lust.”
Saturday morning dawned bright and cold, and the wind whipped the trees in front of River’s house into a chaotic dance.
Yawning, she looked down to see if she had any spectral visitors, but perhaps the day was too bright for them.
Unfocused spirits seemed to need the night to show up with any real pseudo-physicality.
Her bedside lamp clicked on and off several times. “I’m up, Marjorie. And I appreciate the lack of your usual morning wakeup call.” She’d hardly seen Marjorie the past few days. Could she be preparing to move on after all this time? Her phone buzzed with a text from Audrey.
Audrey: Coffee. Bring extra for backup later. Billy bringing us black cherry cinnamon buns.
She sent back a googly-eyed emoji that didn’t mean anything.
Thankfully, Audrey had decided to drive the van to the festival, which meant River could take her bike.
It would make the thirty-minute drive to the festival a lot easier if she could dart through traffic.
She took a last look in the mirror. The V-neck black shirt with the shop logo on it hugged her biceps, and the light windbreaker had the logo on the chest. Black jeans and boots, plus a thick black leather bracelet completed the ensemble.
She shook her head at her quick thought that she hoped Marina would like the look and headed out.
Twenty-five minutes later, she had parked and was walking to The Book Cellar.
She waved to Sue, who ran the Chakra Shop, a similar place to Echoes, and Sue waved a pretty pink scarf in return.
People were already sitting at the makeshift patio The Book Cellar set up during festival days, and the inside was buzzing with browsers and baristas alike.
River smiled at the signs for the wine and reading book group, the wine and women authors book group, and even the wine and wicked children group, who met while their children were entertained by drag queens who read them children’s stories. Fortunately, their coffee was good too.
She ordered five lattes: two plain, two with pumpkin spice, and a s’mores one for Billy, who would say it wasn’t as good as what he served even as he drank the very last drop.
“Here you go,” the barista said, giving River a blatant once-over. “Looks like you’ve got your hands full though.”
River looked at her helmet, then at the tray of coffee, the extra one at its side. “Guess I’ll just have to be careful.”
“Or I could give you a hand. Are you a stallholder?” she asked, looking at River’s logo.
“I am, but that’s not necessary, thanks.” She slipped her arm through the opening in her helmet and tugged it up to her elbow. Then she grabbed the single drink with that hand, and the tray with the other. “All good.”
The young woman didn’t look upset, but River caught the mild irritation that threaded her energy. She was cute and probably not used to being turned down. She was also way too young. It would be like dating one of the kids who came to the tarot workshops. Even the thought of it made her cringe.
She walked along the road lined with vendors on both sides. It was early enough that she didn’t need to dodge too many people, thankfully. More than once her helmet had started to slide down her arm, and she’d had to stop to shimmy it back up.
“Those are some moves you’ve got there.”
She smiled before she turned around, liking the sound of Marina’s voice even with all the complications it brought with it. “I’d like to think so, but you haven’t seen the best ones yet.”
“Yet.” Marina plucked the single coffee out of River’s hand. “Nice outfit.”
River wondered if people could preen like peacocks. If she’d had a big, fancy tail of feathers, it would be waving away right now. “Thanks. You look nice.”
Marina’s wry expression suggested what she thought of that. “You’re not a fan of office chic?”
“No, no. It’s…nice.” She winced and started walking again, Marina beside her. “You look great. It’s very lawyerly.” The skirt suit was a sky gray, with a hint of a black top under the buttoned-up jacket. Her heels were low, the comfortable, practical kind.
“I have no idea if I should be happy about that or not.”
River stopped in front of Billy’s tent. “Hey, Billy Goat Gruff. Got you something.” She tilted her head at Marina, who turned to hand Billy his drink.
“You know I don’t drink this swill.” He took a deep sip. “But I will because you spent money on it. Marina, good to see you looking less unconscious and sweaty.”
She rolled her eyes but smiled. “Thanks for that happy little reminder.”
“Anytime.” He held out a big paper bag with grease marks showing through. “I promised Audrey, and if they don’t make it to your booth, she’ll tell everyone what I’m thinking all the time, and no one wants that. So don’t eat them before you get there.”
Marina took the bag from him, and they headed further down the row.
Audrey already had the gazebo up, but it was tilting in the wind.
River hurried over, put the coffee down on the table, and grabbed the box of weights from the back of the van.
Quickly, she got them wrapped around the bases of the poles, and the gazebo stopped looking like it might become a kite.
The whole time, Audrey continued to set up, sipping her coffee and pointedly ignoring Marina, who didn’t seem in the least bothered by Audrey’s rudeness. In fact, Marina seemed intent on watching as River lifted the weights and set them down again.
“Okay. Now that that’s done.” River gave Marina a quick smile, but she really didn’t have time to stop and chat. “I thought you’d come by later. I’m afraid we need to get set up now, before the crowds start to arrive.”
Irritation flashed across Marina’s eyes, but she hid it quickly. “I don’t need a lot of time. But I wanted to pass something by you, and it’s time sensitive.”
“Don’t let me stop you,” Audrey said, ripping a piece of cinnamon bun out of the bag and stuffing it in her mouth. “River is just going to tell me everything anyway.”
“Look—”
River held up her hands. “Marina, I’m sorry. But this is my business, and we need to get underway. You can sit down and talk while we do it.”
Marina’s sigh was barely visible, but it was there.
River was reminded of the woman she’d met with at that first disastrous dinner, and she didn’t say anything else as she started to help Audrey.
Tension crackled in the air as Marina stayed silent for some time.
Every once in a while, Audrey sniggered, and Marina shot her a glare.
“Regeneration instead of gentrification,” she finally said, her words crisp and lacking any of the day’s warmth.
“My client invests in South Shore businesses to help the area grow and thrive instead of tearing down what’s there to create something new.
There’s a lot of jargon and far more to it than that, but without being able to talk to you properly, that’s the gist of it. ”
River and Audrey exchanged glances, and Audrey’s tiny smile suggested she liked whatever thoughts of irritation and entitlement Marina was having.
“That sounds good as a starting point,” River said, glancing back at her. “What was it you wanted to talk about with me, specifically, today?”
Marina seemed taken aback by the question. “Well, it’s your community. You’re kind of the face of the resistance. I assumed you’d want to know there’s another option on the table.”
“And you’re right. I do.” She gave Marina a gentle smile. “But a street festival isn’t great for that, and there are a lot more people than me invested in this.”
Marina frowned and stood, smoothing down her skirt.
“I don’t know what I was thinking. You’re right.
I just…” She shrugged. “I thought maybe I could tell you the plan and answer any questions you might have, but on more informal grounds. I didn’t think it through.
” She moved beyond their gazebo and onto the street.
“I’ll be in touch. Have a good weekend.”
She turned to walk stiffly away, which meant she didn’t see the gazebo from three stalls down come loose as a gust of wind slammed into it.
There was a shout, and Marina turned. River watched it in slow motion, even as her energy surged.
She jumped over their table, knocking some things to the ground, and grabbed Marina just before the giant metal frame was about to slam into her.
River’s bodyweight carried them to the ground, and the gazebo caught the wind and sailed over the stalls toward the park beyond.
“River…” Marina wheezed from beneath her. “You’re like having a brick wall on top of me.”
River pushed herself up on her hands. “Rude. I’m light as a cloud and soft as a teddy bear.”
Marina lay on the ground, her hair flared out around her, her hands on River’s upper arms. Her big brown eyes were wide, her lips parted.
“I don’t mind you being solid on top of me, but I do need to breathe.
” Her eyes half-lidded. “And we probably shouldn’t look like we’re about to have sex in the middle of the Apple Festival. ”
River laughed and shoved herself to her knees, then she stood and helped Marina to her feet. There was general laughter and applause around them, and River could see Marina’s blush even through her light brown skin. Marina straightened herself and stepped away from her.
“Thanks for saving me. Again.” Marina’s smile was tight, and if River wasn’t mistaken, a little sad.
“You just keep falling at my feet…” River bent to pick up a broken figurine. When she looked up, Marina was disappearing into the crowd.
Audrey threw a wadded up piece of paper at her head, and it bounced off and into a mini metal cauldron on the table. “Get your head out of your pants. We need to finish, and we need to do some research on this regeneration idea.”
River held up her hands in surrender and started helping again. But that feeling of Marina’s body beneath hers didn’t leave her for the rest of the weekend.