Chapter 31
Calla lay awake, wondering how she would get to see Thario today. She didn’t need to become obsessed with him. Thario was right, she hadn’t really lived. She needed time, but she didn’t want him to leave her.
After tossing and turning for a while, she got up and headed to the kitchen after brushing her teeth. She started the coffee and was staring out the window when she heard a noise behind her. She turned and spied Elowen.
“Hey. Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you. I couldn’t sleep.”
Elowen waved her off as she grabbed a mug for coffee. “It’s okay. So how are you feeling?”
“Okay.”
“Really?” Elowen asked as she let Knuckles out.
She shrugged. “I guess. I mean, I don’t know. Am I being stupid?”
Elowen shook her head. “About what?”
Calla sighed and slumped against the counter. "I don't know. I mean, I just escaped my brother, and I know nothing, but I feel something for Thario. I really feel something for him, and I don't know what it means."
"Oh, honey. I get the confusion. How do you tell what is real? It's hard. If what you feel for Thario is real, and if he feels it, too, he'll wait, and your feelings will be there when you get a handle on everything."
“Do you think he would really wait?”
“Absolutely. He knows you went through something traumatic. He understands.”
“I just don’t want him to get bored.”
Elowen laughed. “He’s not the type to get bored.”
“That’s good to hear.”
Elowen let her dog in and then came back into the kitchen. “So other than feelings for Thario, how are you?”
She took a sip of coffee, then added more sugar. "Good. I like working in the garden. I like doing things outside. I enjoyed cleaning the main house when we prepared it for guests, but working outside is better."
“That’s good to know.”
“So today, do you have any plans?”
Calla chuckled. “I think the most I have planned is spending time in the garden.”
“So are you okay going over to help Thario move in?”
“Sure. I’d like that.”
“Good. I was hoping you’d say yes.”
“I’m going to take a shower before we head out.”
"I should shower soon, too. And, Calla, we want you to know you can stay here as long as you like. We love having you."
She nodded and turned to leave, then spun back to Elowen and hugged her.
“Thank you for being here for me. I don’t know what I would have done if I had nowhere to go. That shelter would be fine, I guess, but I would have been lost there.”
“It sounded like it would have been chaotic. I’m glad you’re here with us.”
Calla showered and dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. Excitement buzzed through her as they ate breakfast.
Thario said he wasn’t going to start moving in until after he finished at the vet with Hope, so they said they would meet him at the house at eleven. They had some time, so she went out to work in the garden.
Knuckles went out with her and ran through the garden, stopping beside the zucchini. Calla laughed and headed over to the zucchini. Elowen came out, shaking her head.
"Do you want a zucchini?" she called out, and Knuckles danced around, happy she was going to get a treat.
“I can cut it for you,” Calla said.
“No, that’s okay. I know you like being out here. Enjoy some peace and quiet.”
“Thank you.”
Calla went through each row, getting rid of any weeds that had popped up and picking any vegetables that were ripe. She liked this time of day. The sun was high enough to warm her, but not so high that it was hot.
She heard someone approaching and assumed it was Griz, so she didn't turn immediately. The person came closer and then spoke. She jumped because she didn't recognize their voice.
Her heart raced, and she almost dropped the bag of vegetables when she turned and saw a guy wearing a ball cap. The worst part was that he looked similar to Brent.
He took off his cap, and it was obvious it wasn’t her brother. He was just the same age and build.
“Excuse me, miss, my friends and I wanted to know how to rent the house up front.”
Elowen burst out the back door, Knuckles at her side. “Can I help you?”
The man turned, and his body stiffened when he saw Knuckles.
"Um, my friends and I were staying at a hotel not too far from here, and we heard the people who were staying at the big house talking about how good the place here was. We like taking vacations in groups, and we wanted to know how to find this place to rent it."
“Oh, sure. Let me get you a card.”
Knuckles came to stand beside Calla, nudging her hand to get Calla to pet her.
“That’s a big dog.”
Calla glanced down, then back at the guy. "Yeah, she's good." She felt awkward standing out here with the stranger. Luckily, Elowen came back and handed him the card.
“Here you go.”
Gravel crunched under tires, and Calla saw Griz pulling up. She felt safer.
Did she feel unsafe because the guy could hurt her, or did she feel weird about him because of everything that had happened to her? Her life had been filled with horrible things, all because of Brent, but not everyone was as evil as her brother.
“That’s my husband,” Elowen said.
"Oh, nice. There are four of us. We were stationed together when we were younger and became friends. Luckily, all of our spouses get along."
“Military, which branch?” Elowen asked.
“Army.”
“Hello,” Griz said as he walked over.
“Griz just retired from the Navy,” Elowen said.
The guy laughed and moved to Griz, reaching out to shake his hand.
"Hello, I'm Scott, my friends call me Link. At first, they said I was the missing link, then they changed it because I kept everyone together on missions, making sure all the supplies we needed were in place."
“Nice, Griz, because I look like a grizzly bear.”
“You do. So your wife gave me the card for your rental. Nice looking place.”
Griz nodded. "She did a great job with it. All the woodwork, the construction was all hers."
“Very nice. I’ll get out of your hair. Next year’s vacation will be better. Thank you for being so kind.”
Scott left, and Calla turned to go back to the vegetable garden. She paused when Elowen reached out and touched her shoulder.
“Hey, are you okay?”
Calla shrugged. “I am, but when he showed up, I was scared. I don’t know if that was a normal reaction or not.”
Elowen’s lips thinned. “Honestly, if I didn’t have Knuckles, I would have grabbed a firearm before I came out. The guy didn’t look armed, so I was fairly sure Knuckles could take care of him if he tried anything. So no, being afraid when a stranger walks up like that out here is normal.”
Calla nodded, glad her reaction wasn’t abnormal. “I need to learn to trust myself.”
Elowen pulled her into a hug. “It will happen. You’re doing fine.”
She relaxed a little, then laughed as she stepped back. "Thank you. I'm glad I'm here. Being out here in nature helps."
“Good.”
“Hey, it’s almost time to leave to go help Thario,” Griz called out.
Excitement tickled Calla's belly, and she turned to race over to the car, but then she remembered the basket of vegetables she had picked and went to retrieve it.
After bringing the vegetables inside, she washed her hands and then headed out to the car.
It was weird how excited she was to see Thario, given that she didn't really know him well. They’d only met recently.
It wasn’t like she’d even known him for a month, and yet she couldn’t imagine never seeing him again.
Losing her connection to Thario would be the worst thing she could imagine. Having him in her life had made everything better. Now, she just needed to figure out if what she felt for him was genuine, and if it could grow into more.