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We ate dinner outdoors around a fire pit, and we ate like royalty. Reggie had grilled the venison steaks while Etta raided the fresh vegetables in the kitchen and prepared from that sauteed green beans, fried okra, which I admit I didn’t care for since I’d never been an okra fan, and fresh corn on the cob. To go with that, we had fresh-baked corn bread, and the freshest lemonade I’d ever tasted.
Conversation was light during the meal itself and limited to mostly words of praise for the delicious food, but eventually the feast ended, and Kayla and I collected the plates, took them to the kitchen, and returned to our seats.
“Thank you so much for the meal,” Kayla said.
“Oh, Sugar, it’s our pleasure,” Etta said. “It’s not often we get such good company during supper.”
I downed the last of my lemonade and set the plastic cup on the ground next to my chair leg. “Reggie, I hate to ask, but do you think there’s any transportation around here I could have? Car? Bus? Van? Anything? It doesn’t have to be pretty; it only has to roll.”
Reggie grinned at me. “Don’t want to ride a ten-speed through five more states?”
“I would, but you know...” I cocked my head in Kayla’s direction and raised an eyebrow.
“Baker, don’t be a jerk,” Kayla said as she playfully punched me in the shoulder.
“So that tells me she’s the smart one of the pair,” Reggie said. He pondered it for a moment. “I guess I might be able to help you out. I’ll check it out in the morning. Is that okay?”
I nodded. “Can I ask for one additional favor? Could you let us bunk down in your shed for the night?”
“Oh, no, no,” Etta said. “No way. You’ll be in the house with us.”
“I just didn’t want to put you out.”
“Nonsense. You can sleep in Willie’s room. He’s not using it tonight. The bed’s only a twin, so if that won’t work for the two of you, one of you can settle in on the couch.”
“That’s perfect, thank you,” Kayla said.
Off in the distance, the frogs started to sing their nighttime chorus, and a hush fell over our group.
“So, Baker,” Etta said, breaking the silence. “How did you two meet?”
I glanced at Kayla, who stared me down, interested in whether I actually remembered the truth or if I would spin a tale that varied widely from what actually happened.
I looked from Etta to Reggie to Jasmine and back at Kayla, who gave me one of her patented sweet smiles.
“Well? We’re waiting,” she said, almost in a whisper.
I sat back in my chair and rubbed my hands on my pants. “Well, where do I begin?”
“How about at the beginning?” Reggie offered.
“Maybe he doesn’t remember,” Kayla said. “It was a long, long time ago.”
I glanced at her and threw her a weak smile, sensing that she was trying to dig me out of the hole.
“Come on, Baker. I’m sure you remember something about it. Just give us the overview,” Etta pressed.
“Well,” I started, “it was a long, long time ago, like Kayla said, and I don’t remember everything about it, but here’s what I do remember.”
I paused for an extended moment. Everyone probably assumed it was to search my memory banks, but it was only a bit of well-placed drama on my part.
“It was a Sunday night, I remember. We were both at a professional conference, at one of those mixer things that we were obligated to go to. For me, anyway, it was one of those events where I planned on staying only long enough to be seen by the right people and then pretend I needed to use the bathroom and disappear for the rest of the night. Then, Kayla and the group of people she was with got introduced to the group of people I was with, and we all did that thing where we step in and shake hands, you know?”
I paused for a moment. More drama on my part.
“And?” Jasmine said, ready for the story to move along.
“And then we shook hands, and I noticed five things.”
“Five?” Etta said. “Not just one, but five?”
I nodded and counted them off on my fingers. “The first was her eyes. I’d learned somewhere that you should always look someone in the eyes, and when I looked into hers, I was like, wow. They were bright green or sometimes hazel, based on the light, but regardless of the color, the sparkle, the life behind them was intense and captivating.”
I glanced over at Kayla, and she shot me an uncomfortable smile.
“The second thing was the handshake itself. Her hand felt soft in mine, yet the shake itself was firm and strong. The third was I looked down a second and noticed the scar.”
“What scar?” Reggie interrupted.
“She’s got a scar on her right hand. In the web between her thumb and forefinger. About an inch long.”
Reggie glanced over at Kayla. She blushed and held her hand up for all to see.
Etta got up from her chair, took Kayla’s hand in hers, and scrutinized it. “You mean this little thing? How’d you even see it?”
I shrugged as Etta took her seat. “Don’t know. I just did. I saw that scar, and I wanted to know the background, the story of how it came to be, how that one flaw came to be on such a perfect hand.”
“Oh please,” Kayla said.
“Hey, you wanted me to tell the story, right?”
“Okay. What was the fourth?” Jasmine asked.
“The electricity,” I said, turning my attention to the teen, who was literally sitting on the edge of her seat. “The second we made contact, I received this bolt of energy that rushed from my hand right up to my shoulder and right down to my toes. It was like lightning had struck me.”
“That was static,” Kayla protested, although everyone ignored her comment.
“And the fifth thing?” Etta said.
“The fifth thing,” I said, dropping my voice to just above a whisper and leaning forward in my seat as if sharing the biggest of secrets. On instinct, the four others leaned forward, too. “The fifth thing was, I never wanted to let her hand go.”
The reactions to my statement varied. Reggie laughed, sat back, and crossed his legs. Etta smiled widely and patted my knee. Jasmine put her hand over her heart like it was the sweetest thing she’d ever heard. Kayla rolled her eyes at me, which was a very Kayla thing to do.
“We got drinks. She had a red wine, I got a Diet Coke, and we found a quiet corner and chatted for a while about all the things that people do when they first meet. Backgrounds, families, jobs, all that kind of surface stuff. We did that for, what, a half hour?”
Kayla sighed.
“Okay. It was more like three hours. At one point we looked up and most of the bar was empty, except for the poor staff waiting for us to clear out so they could clean up. So, then we left the bar.”
“Did you go back to your room and have sex?” Jasmine blurted. She looked at Reggie and Etta as soon as the words escaped her, then covered her mouth with both hands. “Sorry.”
I laughed. “No. We didn’t. By that time, it was almost midnight, and we both needed to be up early for seminars. We walked to the elevator together and got in. She got off at the fourth floor, and I never left the car when we said goodnight. I headed to bed all alone. When I woke up the next morning, I was already running late, so I got dressed and rushed down to the meeting room. I got there just as the session began and noticed Kayla sitting in the back row, right by the door with an empty seat right next to her. So, I asked if I could sit down, and she said she’d been saving the seat for me.”
“How sweet,” Etta said. “What happened next?”
“Boredom,” Kayla said. “Pure and complete boredom for like four straight hours.”
“It was the seminar, not me,” I explained. “Then we got released for lunch, and I asked her to join me, and she took me up on that offer. Down the street from the convention center we found this little hole in the wall Chinese place. We ate for an hour, again, sharing small talk, and when the break was over, Kayla suggested we skip the afternoon sessions and go to the park instead.”
“So, what did you do?” Jasmine asked.
“I went with her to the park. How is doing otherwise even an option? There, we found a bench under a tall oak tree and talked more. At one point, we spotted an ice cream vendor up the block, so we headed there for a treat. Turns out we both liked the same ice cream. Mint chocolate chip. Go figure. Dessert in hand, we walked around the park for a while before settling in on a bench for more conversation.”
“This is a boring story,” Jasmine interjected.
“Jazz,” Etta scolded.
“Well, it is,” Jasmine said, folding her arms to her chest.
“What would make it more exciting for you?” I asked.
Jasmine dropped her defense posture and put her hands on her knees. “Did you kiss her?”
“Jazz!” Etta repeated.
Jasmine paid no attention to her mother and instead stared at me.
“No, actually, I never have,” I admitted.
“Do you want to?” Jasmine asked.
I smiled, but didn’t answer.
“You do! Baker!”
“Jasmine, that’s enough,” Etta said. “Mr. Baker, I apologize for my child’s behavior.”
“It’s really not a problem,” I said. “We’ve never kissed, but yes, I want to. Actually, I’ve dreamed of it often over the last fifteen years or so.” Everyone stared at me when I finished my confession. I didn’t look over at Kayla, so I didn’t know what her reaction was. Since I was already deep in the hole I dug for myself, I kept going.
“To tell you the truth, I’ve loved her since the moment I first looked into her eyes. That love runs deep, and often feels more like magic than reality to me. Until we met, I never really believed in the concept of a soul mate. But now? I guarantee you they exist, and that Kayla is mine.”
When I finished, no one spoke. Even the frogs fell silent. The moment hung in the air like a dense fog. After almost a minute, I leaned forward and whispered to Jasmine. “Is she looking at me?”
Jasmine nodded.
“Does she look irritated?”
Jasmine smiled and shook her head no. I nodded and sat back in my chair. A moment later, I felt Kayla’s hand reaching for mine, and within a moment, our fingers intertwined, and she gave me a light squeeze.
“But, I don’t understand,” Etta said. “If y’all are meant to be together, why aren’t you together?”
I thought about it for a moment, then gave an extended sigh.
“That’s an excellent question. One I’m not sure I have a suitable answer to. When we met, I was in the middle of an unhappy relationship, and she was in a happy marriage, so the timing was bad for both of us. And, until just now, I’d never really acknowledged my true feelings.”
“You’ve known her for fifteen years, and never told her you loved her?” Reggie asked.
I nodded.
“Can I ask a follow-up question?” Reggie asked.
“Of course,” I said.
“Are you stupid, son?”
“Reginald!” Etta yelled, smacking her husband on her leg.
I started to laugh, as did Kayla and Jasmine, but a look of fury passed over Etta’s face.
“I think perhaps I am,” I admitted. “At least I was smart enough to keep her close over the years. Texts, phone calls, birthday cards. Granted, there were unspoken words between us, probably the most important words, but I don’t think there were many times when we didn’t talk every day, were there?”
I looked at Kayla for an answer. “That’s true. Just about every day we talked until the world fell apart.”
“What did you do in the before times?” Etta asked Kayla.
“Well, when I first met Baker, I worked in finance. I hate to brag, but I was on the fast track to becoming the first woman executive officer the company ever had. Then I got into something a little less lucrative, and I’ve been doing that the last few years.”
“What did you get into?” Reggie asked.
Kayla mumbled an answer.
“What was that?” Reggie asked.
“I ran an animal rescue,” Kayla said louder. Her cheeks reddened with embarrassment, and she pulled her feet off the ground and sat on them.
“How did you get into that line of work?” Etta asked. “That seems like quite the jump from finance.”
“Well, I was working late one night, and the news came on. Halfway through they played this human-interest story about a woman who ran a shelter, but she had to give it up due to health reasons. Since there was no one else to step in, the county was going to shut it down. All throughout the segment they kept showing video of all those animals. That night when I went to bed I couldn’t sleep. All I kept thinking about were all those sad looking creatures. The next day was a Saturday, so I went out to see that lady, and she showed me around the place, and I couldn’t get enough. So, we worked out a deal. She would take care of the business side, and I would tend to the operational side, including caring for all those animals.”
“What kind of animals do you have?” Jasmine asked.
“We had mostly cats and dogs. But we also cared for other things. We had a baby opossum come through, and a tortoise, and a half dozen of those fainting goats.”
“Oh, how cute, I love those!” Jasmine squealed with delight.
“Me too,” Kayla said.
“What did your husband say about all that?” Reggie asked. “He couldn’t have been too happy with you going from the fast track to a farmer.”
“Unhappy is an understatement. He got super p... angry with me. But, I stuck up for myself. And I would do it again if I had the chance.”
“Why?” Etta asked.
“Because all I was making for the corporation was money. But with those animals, I could make a difference, one cat or dog or goat at a time.”
“Bah,” Reggie scoffed.
“Reggie!” Etta smacked him on the knee. “Did you forget the good book? Says right there in Proverbs that the righteous care for the needs of their animals. This lady here does God’s work, and that makes her okay in my book.”
Reggie looked taken aback, so he changed the subject. “So, how did you stay in contact?” Reggie asked.
“When I noticed the country was going to slide off the edge of the cliff, I sent her a satellite phone. It’s funny. I didn’t mind losing my job, or my comfortable life, or all the struggles I’ve had to go through from the beginning of the end until now. But the thought of being out of contact with Kayla forever? That’s what kept me awake at night.”
Kayla gave my fingers another squeeze, and I gave her a light squeeze in return.
“What about the promise?” Jasmine asked. “When you were here last, you kept talking about a promise. What was that about?”
“Well, when it was time for us to part, when we left the conference, headed back to our respective homes, I promised her that if she needed me for anything, I’d be there for her. Regardless of what it was, or where we were at the time.”
Reggie nodded. “So, when she called you after she got left alone, you put your life on pause in Virginia to go and get her.”
I nodded. “That’s a simple way to put it.”
“Considering the circumstances, I’m not sure there are many who would have kept that particular promise,” he said.
“But he did,” Kayla said. “He probably saved my life in the process.”
Reggie didn’t say anything, but instead shot a glance at Etta, who shook her head so slightly I barely caught it. I hoped Kayla hadn’t caught it at all.
Once again, silence smothered the conversation, and the words drifted away on a light breeze that blew through.
“Well, speaking of promises, I think I have a vehicle for you,” Reggie said. “It’s not a limousine, but I think it will get you home. We’ll head out first thing in the morning and pick it up.”
“Great, thanks,” I said.
“Yes, thank you. We appreciate it,” Kayla added.
“It’s getting late. I should be getting to bed,” Etta said. “Morning comes early around here, and I got a lot of canning to do tomorrow.”
“Will you be needing my help with that?” I asked.
Etta stood, walked over to me, and gave me a kiss on the forehead. “Bless you for offering Baker, but to be honest, you’re slowing me down.” With a laugh, Etta headed into the house with Reggie on her heels.
“You coming in?” Jasmine asked as she rose.
“Right behind you,” I said.
Jasmine gave Kayla and me each a hug and headed for the house.
“You sure made some good friends here, Baker,” Kayla said, letting go of my hand. “How did you manage to make such an impact on these people just by passing through town on the way to get me?”
“Well,” I started, then paused. I knew I should tell her, but didn’t know where to start, nor how much detail to dive into.
“Oh, wait. Want to hear something interesting that happened to me today?” she asked.
“Of course. Tell me.”
“Well, Jasmine and I walked to town, which isn’t far from here. There’s a spot there where the fire department and police department share the same block by the water tower. Anyway, they have the public shower setup behind the fire department. They’ve got quite the setup over there. They heat the water, and pump it to an overhead reservoir, and it is gravity fed from there. There was someone in line in front of me, so as I waited my turn, the person operating the shower started making small talk with Jasmine, and that turned into a discussion about who I was and who I was with. And you won’t believe this, but the person running the shower had nothing but high praise for you, too. As did the person in the shower ahead of me. As did the person who stopped to say hello to Jasmine. So, tell me, Baker. How is it everyone in this little town knows you?”
I looked Kayla in the eyes and opened my mouth to speak. Before I could utter a word, she put her index finger against my lips to silence me.
“The things you didn’t want to talk about all happened here, didn’t they?”
I nodded, her finger still on my lips.
“And you’d really prefer to keep it all to yourself for now?”
I nodded again.
“Okay. To tell you the truth, on one hand, I’m irritated with you for taking such a colossal risk. Who knows what would have happened to you had things not turned out the way they did? But, on the other hand, I’m really proud of you. You put your life on the line. And it’s one thing to do it for me all because of a silly promise, but quite another to do it for a bunch of strangers.”
“I wanted to tell you,” I said. “I wanted to tell you everything.”
“Despite what I heard from Jasmine and her friends, I think I didn’t get the complete story from them. In fact, I suspect that something horrible went on here that everyone wants to forget. Including you.”
I hesitated, then nodded.
“So, here’s the deal. We’re going to drop it right here on this lawn. I’m not going to bring it up again, nor am I going to pressure you to. If you want to tell me everything, I’ll listen, but you have to want to. Is that a fair deal?”
I exhaled. I didn’t realize I’d been holding my breath. “Yes. It is.”
“Okay.” Kayla stood, grabbed my hand, and pulled me to my feet. “Come on, hero. Let’s go get some sleep.”
