Chapter Three #3
“One of my two best friends,” Gracie corrected.
“That’s better,” he said.
Tina stuck out her hand. “Pleased to meet you.”
Dakota shook with her and then laced his fingers back with Gracie’s hand. “Likewise. Come on over to the firepit. I’ve already got a blaze going. How are you doing, Walker?”
“One day at a time,” Walker answered.
“I hear you, brother,” Dakota said with a nod.
Gracie pointed toward a trailer. “That’s not your trailer.”
“That is my new one and my surprise for you,” Dakota answered, and kissed Gracie on the forehead. “When we travel this summer, we can stop at places that have electricity and running water. This one even has a small shower.”
“Are you serious?” Gracie asked.
“Yes, I am,” Dakota replied. “My cousin lived in it while he and his new wife built their house. So he let me have it for a good price. I’m not going to renew the lease on my apartment in August. The trailer park rent is about half of what I pay for the apartment.”
“I’ll feel like royalty,” Gracie said.
“You are,” Dakota told her. “Are you going to stare at the outside all day, or come inside and see it?”
Gracie turned around and focused on her two friends. “Am I dreaming? Tell me if this isn’t real.”
“It’s real,” Walker answered. “And what a beauty. I could park one like that behind the store and live in it with no problem.”
“You are not dreaming, and I’m more than a little bit jealous,” Tina added.
Dakota motioned toward a folding table laid out with all the makings for hot dogs. “Y’all go ahead and fix your supper while I show Gracie that there really is air-conditioning and a shower.”
“You could come with us.” Gracie motioned for her friends to follow them.
“You should be the first one to see your vacation home,” Tina told her.
“Thank you,” Gracie mouthed on her way to the RV, then focused on Dakota. “When are we leaving?”
Dakota’s face lit up in a brilliant smile. “That’s up to you. I’m planning an extended trip starting next week. The only plan I have is to stay a couple of days in the Palo Duro. Past that, I’ll go where the wind takes me. Will you go with me, and if so, when can you get away?”
Tina’s heart fell down to her toes like a stone when she heard Gracie tell him that she would leave with him on Monday morning.
She had been back in Benson only a week, and now her best friend would most likely leave for days, maybe weeks, at a time.
That Gracie had found happiness and love was evident in her expression, but Tina blinked back tears that had nothing to do with joy.
You should be feeling guilty, she fussed at herself. You don’t even have the right to be sad. She couldn’t and shouldn’t change her plans when you abandoned her for years.
“What time do I pick you up?” Dakota asked as he opened the trailer door for Gracie.
“As soon as you can drive over to Benson,” she answered, and then they disappeared inside the trailer.
Tina had been so thrown by this new development that she hadn’t even noticed the lawn chairs around the firepit.
But a gentle breeze blew the blaze’s warmth over to her, and she realized that she was looking at the perfect place to watch the sun drift behind the horizon out beyond the sagebrush and yucca plants.
Happiness comes from within. Cleo’s voice popped into her head.
Tina wondered why she was remembering Cleo’s high school–era advice just now, but it made sense when she considered her mixed emotions. Anger, envy, guilt, and love all at once did not make for a happy mental party.
“Hungry?” Walker asked.
“What?”
“Earth to Tina O’Grady,” he teased. “I asked if you are hungry.”
“Yes,” she answered. “I was just feeling sorry for myself—we all started reconnecting, and now Gracie is going to be gone for long stretches of time. But that’s not really fair of me.”
He picked up a long stick, stuck a hot dog on the end, and handed it to Tina. “As my grandfather used to tell me, ‘It’s all in how you look at it.’”
Tina stuck her hot dog over the fire and turned it slowly. “What does that mean?”
“That we will miss her for sure, but on the other hand, I am glad you are back home, and one friend won’t be running away for most of the summer. The Spirit gives and the Spirit takes away. Thank goodness He gave before He took away.”
“So, we are friends?” she asked.
“Why would you ask me that?”
“I’ve only been here a week, and you’ve been kind of cool toward me.”
“It left a hole in my heart when you disappeared,” he answered. “Friends don’t do that to friends.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” she assured him.
“How long?” Walker asked.
“As long as I feel like I do right now, and I hope that means forever. I didn’t know that peace was so important in a person’s life until now.”
Once Gracie and Dakota were inside, she wrapped her arms around his neck and gazed up into his eyes. “This is wonderful, but . . .”
“There are no buts in love,” Dakota whispered. He tipped her chin up and kissed her passionately, then took a step back. “Were you serious about leaving on Monday?”
“Yes,” she answered. “I’ll go home tonight and get my stuff ready.”
A thought flickered through her mind about whether or not to come clean to her parents before they left, but she tossed it out. She had no doubt that their reaction would upset her, and she didn’t want anything to ruin her time with Dakota.
“You cannot leave your car sitting here that long. Why don’t I pick you up at that park across the street on Monday morning?” he asked. “Think you can get away without Cleo and Mae wanting to meet me? They are pretty protective.”
“Better yet, why don’t you pick me up Sunday morning at eight o’clock behind the feedstore?
This is the week that they have a potluck breakfast at church before the service,” she said.
“That way, no one will see and there won’t be any rumors.
” She shook her head and smiled. “I feel like we are a couple of teenagers sneaking out of the house after the lights are out.”
Dakota drew her so close to his chest that she could feel his heartbeat. He tipped her chin up and kissed her again. “I’m ready to announce that we are together anytime you are. You know our love is strong enough to win the battles with our families, right?”
“What if, when the two wars are over, we are the only two left standing?” she asked.
“Then that’s the way it will be,” he told her. “Let’s go back outside and have supper.”
She nodded toward the left end of the trailer. “I’d rather stay in here and try out that nice big bed.”
“So would I, but . . .” He hesitated.
“You said that there are no buts in love,” she told him. “However, I am hungry, and we do have guests.”
“Yes,” Dakota said and took her hand in his. “Just remember that together we can weather whatever is thrown at us.”
“Are we really staying out all summer?” Gracie asked.
“My idea is two weeks this first time. Then we’ll come home for a week and go again, maybe south.”
“Sounds good to me. I would love to see the Florida beaches. I hear they are beautiful.”
Dakota slipped an arm around her shoulders. “Then Florida it is.”
Gracie and Dakota stepped outside, and immediately Tina and Walker both turned their heads to look at them.
“Do you like your new home?” Tina asked.
“I love it,” Gracie answered. “Is that your first hot dog? Did you really start without me?” She felt a little guilty over missing out on more reconnecting with Tina, but she was over the moon about her upcoming trip. Getting to spend two whole weeks with Dakota was like a dream come true.
“It’s my second, and I’m having a third. There’s nothing like a hot dog roasted over an open fire, with sauerkraut piled on the top and a side of barbecued potato chips. Are you really leaving Monday morning?” Tina asked.
“No, we’re headed to our first destination on Sunday morning, but this trip is only for two weeks. Then we’ll be home for a little while before we go to the Florida beaches.”
“You will love that white sand,” Tina said.
“You’ve been there?” Gracie asked.
“A couple of times. It’s almost as peaceful as the park with the Tomorrow Tree.”
Gracie sat down in the chair close to Tina, and another brief flash of guilt washed over her. “I’m so excited. I really want you to be happy for me. You will be okay, won’t you?”
“I’ll be fine. I have a whole drawer full of big-girl panties,” Tina teased. “I will miss you so much, but I know you will have a great time. And I bet you come up with dozens of new ideas for your children’s books.”
“Promise me you won’t leave before I get back,” Gracie whispered.
Tina reached over and laid a hand on her shoulder. “You’ve got my word. I just told Walker that I didn’t realize the value of peace until I had it. Now, enough about me. This is your night. Tell me about your next book.”
“The two main characters in all my books, Abby and Toby, will also be taking a road trip. Thank you for sharing my joy.”
“We can FaceTime, and you can send pictures to me and Walker, and hopefully, the two weeks will go by fast. What am I supposed to tell Mae and Cleo when you are gone so long?”
“And your folks?” Walker asked.
“I will tell my parents and Mae and Cleo that I’m going with a friend on a road trip to get more ideas for my work,” Gracie answered. “That’s the truth.”
“My story is that a friend and I are taking a trip to find places for me to paint. Which is also true,” Dakota added.
Walker raised a dark eyebrow. “Friends?”
“We will always be friends,” Gracie answered.
Dakota roasted two hot dogs and handed the stick to Gracie. “Close to burnt, like you always want,” he said. “And I’m glad we’re friends, but even gladder that we’ve moved on to being more than that.”