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For the next two days, I got acquainted with Tom Beckett. He was everything Laurie and Chance had said he was. By the time we got back to Chance's truck, I'd come to think of the three men I'd gotten acquainted with in Wilkins’ Gap as my guyumvirate. Each of them was different, but each was exceptional in some way.
Tom and I fell into an easy friendship right off. I didn't feel the physical spark I had with Chance, but I certainly found Tom appealing. When we pulled into Hairy's parking lot, I realized it felt like home. Tom carried my gear upstairs and followed me inside.
"How can I find out how Chance is doing?" I asked.
"Give me your number," he said. "I'll call you after I get an update."
After we traded phone numbers, he asked, "Would you like to have dinner with me Monday night?"
"That sounds good but remind me when you call about Chance. I'm not sure how much I'm going to remember until I get some sleep." I decided if a guy could find me interesting when I hadn't showered or washed my hair in a week, he deserved a shot.
After Tom left, I striped off my clothes and stood under the shower until the water ran cold. I was glad I'd avoided looking in the mirror before I got into the shower. It was amazing to feel clean again. I put on my Georgia bulldog pajamas, and slathered some lotion on my poor, tried feet. Other than a few scratches and the dark circles under my eyes, I seemed to have survived my week in the wild unscathed.
I made a cup of real tea and called Sally in the cafe and ask her to send up a cheeseburger and chili fries. I needed real food. It was late for dinner, but I didn't care. I was just finishing up an email to my mom, when my phone rang.
"Are you OK?" Laurie asked.
"Hi, Laurie. I'm doing better. I've had a shower and a cup of tea. Once I get the food I ordered from the cafe, I might be almost human again."
"I'm glad you're OK. I guess you and Tom had time to get acquainted."
"We did."
"I'll stop by the cafe tomorrow. I need deta..."
"Sorry, Laurie. I've got to go. Someone's knocking at my door. It should be my dinner."
"I'll talk to you tomorrow," she said and hung up. I threw open the door expecting to see Sally, but there stood Jim with a bottle of whiskey and a six pack of diet Coke.
"After I heard what happened, I wasn't sure of the appropriate welcome home gift," he said. He set the drinks on the table and wrapped me up in a hug. "How are you? I'm sorry you had such an ordeal." I pulled away when there was another knock on the door. This time it was Sally with my food. She looked past me. "Hi, Jim. I'll see you tomorrow, Everly."
"If you're hungry, I can order something for you. I know it's kind of late, but I wanted real food."
"I'm good, thanks. I just wanted to check on you and take care of you if you needed anything."
He fixed us drinks and sat across from me while I scarfed down my food. My mother would have fainted dead away if she saw me eating this fast in front of a man. Apologies to Mom, but I couldn't be bothered with polite right now. To his credit, Jim didn't comment on my table manners. He just smiled at me and asked me about the trip.
"Do you want to talk about what happened with Chance?"
"The short version is that I pushed him off a cliff." He raised an eyebrow, as I continued enjoying my meal. "I never knew the food at Hairy's was this good. This is like the best food I've ever had. Did someone hire a new cook while I was gone?"
Jim laughed. "I'm guessing after a few days of MRE's any real food tastes delicious." I glared at him.
"Not that the food at Hairy's isn't always delicious," he backpedaled. "What really happened to Chance?"
My phone rang, and the screen showed it was Tom calling. I held up my index finger to Jim. "Hi, Tom. I've had a shower and some real food, so I'm doing fine. How's Chance?"
Tom filled me in on Chance's condition and before he hung up, he invited me to dinner in a couple of days. "Sure. That sounds great. I'll talk to you soon," I said and laid the phone on the table. "That was Tom Beckett. As we expected, Chance's ankle is broken, and he has a concussion. He should be out of the hospital in a couple of days."
"That's good. How did you enjoy being rescued by our SAR team?"
"Technically, they rescued Chance. They were good at their jobs, but I hope it's an experience I never have to repeat."
I yawned as I cleaned up the table. Jim wrapped his arms around my waist as I was setting the cups in the sink. He nuzzled my ear. "I know you're exhausted," he said. "Is there anything I can get for you or do for you before I go?"
I turned around to face him. "Thanks for being so nice. I just want to sleep in my comfy bed. I need to talk to you about the will and the journal but that can wait."
He tilted my head up for a soft kiss. "I'll call you tomorrow. We can have dinner tomorrow night if you're up to it."
"Sounds good. Call me."
I was snuggled in my bed within minutes of closing the door behind Jim. I thought I was too tired, but all of my guyumvirate made appearances in my dreams. Thankfully, I don't remember anything else.