We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails.
Dolly Parton
Brady stared at Casey and then looked back at me. “I’m guessing that’s the person you’re talking about.”
“Yeah. That’s the one.”
“Casey?”
“Yeah.” I sighed. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be.” Brady glanced his way once again, then reached for my hand. “Should I say something to him? Is he making you uncomfortable?”
I was uncomfortable, all right, but didn’t want Brady to draw attention to the fact. I didn’t have to fret over Casey for long because my former almost-fiancé and his friends left the restaurant a few moments later. No doubt all of the attention on Brady was more than Casey could take. I finally breathed a sigh of relief. Well, until Mama walked in with Aunt Alva. They waved and came straight toward our booth.
“Well, hello, you two.” Mama plopped down and fanned herself with a church bulletin. “We just stopped in for a bite. Didn’t think you would be here.”
“Your mama was kind enough to come back to the house to fetch me,” Alva said. “I had a hankerin’ for a burger and some ice cream.”
At that moment, the manager of the restaurant showed up with two M&M Blizzards in his hand. “For our special guest.” He smiled as he handed one of them to Brady and the other to me. “Welcome to the Fairfield Dairy Queen, Mr. James.”
“Well, thanks.” Brady took his Blizzard and swallowed down the first mouthful. “Mmm. If I keep eating like this, I’ll never play ball again.”
“Ooh, someone take that ice cream away from him!” Alva laughed. “It’d be a crime if Brady James stopped playing ball.” She pointed her finger at him. “Ice cream is hard on the joints.” She looked at the manager and said, “Can you bring me one too?”
“You a friend of his?” the manager asked.
“You betcha. We’re practically family. If I have my way, we actually will be.” She gave Brady a playful wink.
The manager nodded, then headed off to fix a Blizzard for Aunt Alva.
Ophelia Edwards, one of Mama’s more troublesome choir members, sat in the booth behind us. She joined in the conversation without invitation. “Marie, who is this handsome young man sitting with our Katie Sue?”
“Now, Ophelia, you know Brady James, surely.” Mama continued to fan herself. “Everyone knows Brady.”
“Can’t say as I’ve seen him before.” Ophelia took off her glasses and wiped them with her chocolate-smudged napkin, then put them back on, covered in streaks. “Nope. He doesn’t look familiar.”
Alva rolled her eyes. “Surely you’ve seen him on television.”
“Oh, is he that new fella on Guiding Light?” Before any of us could answer, Ophelia slapped the table with her hand. “I can’t believe I’m admitting right here in Dairy Queen that I watch that show. I’ve tried to give it up, but it just keeps hanging on. Like a bad cough.”
“No, ma’am, I’m not on Guiding Light,” Brady said. “In fact—”
“Well, I don’t blame you for quitting. All of those nasty bedroom scenes.” Her face reddened. “You’re a good man to give it up.”
“Oh, I’m not saying I gave it up. I’m saying—”
“Well, make up your mind. Either you’re on Guiding Light or you’re not.”
“He’s not, Ophelia.” My mother made a “she’s crazy” sign behind Ophelia’s back. “Guiding Light hasn’t been on since 2009. Please don’t ask me how I know that.”
“Well, for pity’s sake. I could’ve sworn I watched it yesterday.” Ophelia’s nose wrinkled.
“This is Brady James,” Alva said. “Point guard for the Mavericks and a good friend of the family.”
“The Mavericks? Don’t think I’ve seen that show. When does it come on?”
“It’s not a show, Ophelia,” Mama said. “It’s a . . . never mind.”
“Well, why did you say the boy was on television? I swear, people are so hard to follow sometimes.” Ophelia took a bite of her chocolate-covered dip cone, which left a smudge of chocolate on her cheek. She then turned her attention to Alva. With narrowed gaze, she pointed to her and said, “You look familiar. Do I know you?”
The manager arrived just then with Alva’s Blizzard. He passed it off to her and she took a bite, then gave Ophelia a knowing look. “Well, you should, Ophelia. We graduated from Fairfield High the same year. In fact, we were pretty good friends back in the day.”
This apparently led to some confusion on Ophelia’s part. She couldn’t quite place Alva. Not that my aunt seemed to mind. She turned her attention to her ice cream.
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Brady. Such a great sport. I couldn’t picture him living here, in Fairfield. Couldn’t see him having lunch at Dairy Queen every day. Still, he seemed to fit in just about every place he went.
When we finished our Blizzards, I asked Brady if he wanted to take a drive around Fairfield and he agreed. We said goodbye to Mama and Alva, then headed out of the restaurant. Getting out took awhile, what with all of the people stopping us along the way.
Finally cleared from the traffic, Brady reached for my hand and squeezed it. When we got to the door, I realized that Casey was sitting outside at one of the tables on the patio. He glanced up at Brady. And me.
Mostly me.
“You’re Brady James.” Casey’s opening line wasn’t very well thought out, apparently, since he wasn’t actually looking at Brady when he spoke the words.
“Right.” Brady slipped his arm over my shoulders.
Casey looked back and forth between Brady and me, and I could read the confusion in his eyes. Now he homed in on me, giving me a penetrating gaze. “Katie, we need to talk.”
“Brady and I were just headed out for a drive. Can it wait?”
“I, well . . .”
Brady cleared his throat and then announced that he would be waiting in the truck. I nodded and told him I’d be right there. Once he disappeared from sight, Casey tried to take my hand, but I wouldn’t let him.
“Katie, I’m confused.”
Well, duh.
“I mean, I’m confused about what you’re doing in Dallas. This is out of character for you to go away.”
“Ah. I see. So, it’s okay for you to go to Oklahoma, but I can’t go see my cousin in Dallas? If we’re not a couple anymore, then why do you care where I go?”
“It’s just not like you to go away.”
“I happen to like Dallas. I’ve met a lot of nice people there.”
“Okay, I have to ask—what’s the deal with Brady James? How in the world do you know him? When I talked to you about him during the playoff game, you didn’t even know who he was. Now you’re dating him?”
“Who said Brady and I are dating?”
“It’s obvious you have feelings for him. And vice versa. You were holding hands.”
“Brady and I are in the getting-to-know-you stage. And to answer your question, I met him at a store where he’s working.”
“Wait. A pro ball player works in a store? What kind of store?”
“It’s kind of a long story, Casey, and I don’t have time for a long story. That’s what I was trying to say before. We’re headed out for a sightseeing trip and then back to my parents’ place to have dinner. I’m leaving to go back to Dallas tomorrow after church, so you won’t be seeing me around.” I took a step away and then turned back. “So, what happened in Tulsa?”
“Nothing.” He shrugged. “I’m going back. Just came home to pack up my stuff.”
“Queenie thought you were back for good.”
His eyes widened. “Oh, I see. Is that what you thought?”
“I didn’t know what to think. I still haven’t quite figured out the part where you left in the first place, so seeing you come back again is even more confusing. It’s all so strange.”
“Kind of like you staying in Dallas and buddying up with a pro basketball player at some store.”
“We’re changing. Both of us.” Obviously. “We’re not the same people when we’re away from Fairfield.”
He shrugged. “Guess not.”
“And that’s okay. Maybe we needed this to discover who we really are.” I glanced toward Brady’s truck and saw him standing next to the door on the passenger side. I wouldn’t keep him waiting any longer. “Anyway, have a nice trip back to Tulsa, Casey. Give your mama my love before you go. Oh, and if you happen to see me on the front of a bridal magazine wearing a really awesome dress, don’t panic.”
“What?”
“Just don’t read too much into it, okay? It’s not a ploy to get you back. In fact, I seriously doubt you’ll ever see me wear that dress in person. So rest easy.”
“O-okay.” He paused. “Have fun in Dallas.”
“I will,” I said. And I meant it. I gave him a little wave and walked toward Brady, all smiles.
“You okay?” he asked when I drew near.
“Oh yeah. Better than I’ve been in a long time. Feel like I’ve lost a hundred pounds.”
“Katie, if you lost a hundred pounds, you’d be the size of a toddler.”
That made me laugh. He pulled me into his arms and gave me a kiss on the forehead. “That’s just a sampling of what’s to come,” he whispered.
“Mmm.” Sounded good.
We spent the next few hours on a lengthy drive through the country. I showed Brady everything. The property my great-grandparents had owned. The high school. The lake. I took him by every place that had ever meant anything special to me while growing up, including the ballpark where my father coached Little League.
As we stood at the edge of the ball field, Brady pulled me close. “I can see why you love it here, Katie. This is very . . . quiet. Peaceful.” After a moment’s silence he added, “Quaint.”
I couldn’t tell from the way he used the word if he really meant it as a compliment. “You mean small?” I asked.
“I think it’s just right. There’s enough of a town to offer the things you need, but not enough to overwhelm you. It’s nice.”
“Well, speaking of town, there’s one place I haven’t taken you yet. Would you like to see our family’s hardware store?”
His eyes sparkled as he answered, “I thought you’d never ask.”
“Pop’s already gone home by now, I’m sure,” I said. “But I have a key.”
We drove to the store and found it empty, as I’d said. That turned out to be a very good thing.
I never thought I’d be kissed by a pro ball player in the lawn and garden section of my family’s hardware store, but that was exactly what happened. Brady caught me somewhere between the fertilizer and the sprinklers and gave me a kiss so sweet that I almost tumbled straight into the insect repellent display. When we came up for air—and it took awhile—I felt a little woozy.
He caught me and grinned. “Easy now.”
I giggled.
“I guess I should’ve asked your permission before doing that.”
“Doing what? Kissing me? Who asks permission?” I gave him a wink. “I’m not sure I really got the full effect. Would you mind trying again?”
And so he did. He kissed me again in the lawn and garden section. And twice in housewares. And three times in hardware. By the time we reached the electrical department, I’d pretty much made up my mind that we had already generated enough electricity to light the city of Fairfield for a month. He must’ve realized it too, because he took a giant step backwards and mouthed, “Wow.”
“Yes. Wow. That’s—that’s the word I was thinking.” Wow. Wow to the moon and back. Most of all, wow to the idea that I’d waited until the age of twenty-four to really, truly have that sort of reaction to a kiss from a boy. Correction—a man. Yes, Brady James, all six feet four of him, was more than enough man to knock a girl off her feet in the hardware store.
“You’re quite a kisser,” I said.
“Well, I should be. I’ve had a lot of practice on Guiding Light. But don’t tell Ophelia.”
We both laughed until tears came.
Then, in an instant, I remembered something. “Brady, it’s almost six thirty. Mama’s expecting us home for dinner.”
“What about Queenie? Should we go back up to see her before visiting hours are over?”
“I’m sure she’s already been released, actually. I’m guessing Pop is there now, ready to drive her home. I’ll stop by her house tomorrow after church. Besides, I have a sneaking suspicion she’d want the two of us to spend more time together. She’s a romantic at heart, even though she doesn’t always come across that way.”
“You think?”
“Yes.” I thought about what I’d just said. “I’m pretty sure Alva would too. You know, those two sisters are more alike than they are different. And I think they would both be tickled pink that you and I are . . .” A girlish giggle escaped. “Well, you know, that we just . . .”
“Kissed in the family hardware store?”
“Yes. Kissed in the family hardware store.”
“Well, anything for the family,” Brady said. He reached down and gave me a little kiss on the tip of my nose. “Anything for the family.”