Chapter Eleven

“Mmm mmm, I wish time would stop.” Paige said with a languid sigh.

“I think it just did. That wind-up clock finally stopped ticking.”

Michael and Paige were curled up on the ancient, sheet-covered loveseat. Throw pillows made it somewhat comfortable. His suit jacket was off and she was half draped on him, her LBD riding up.

She wiggled her toes toward the small fire. Nuzzling her cheek against his face, she turned and kissed him. He softly returned the kiss. Both were still too full and sedentary to move. Totally relaxed. He rubbed his full stomach.

“How’d you know to do what you did back there?” she asked. “It’s good you did what you did, when you did it, because I bet it’s needed more than I thought.”

“Not English, Flee.” His stomach rumbled.

She leaned up a bit. “The budget, the bills, the project costs—all red. How did you know?”

“I didn’t, Paige. Renovating a place always costs more than expected. You need help from professionals, and those costs really add up.” He smiled and brushed back her hair. “Truth is, I didn’t know what I was doing. It just all came out. I wanted them to see you as I do.”

“A woman with a drawl in a cocktail dress?”

“No. A woman who is trying to conquer a mountain with a broom. Make that several mountains.” His stomach made a strange gurgle. “All I did was tell them you needed their services. It’ll still cost you, but at least you might get their support and maybe even the townie rate.”

She nodded, turning a bit so she could rub his stomach. “It’s well…it’s like a whole community just gave their approval of some sort.”

Winky inched around the corner and rubbed the leg of the loveseat. Paige sighed, stretching in place, eyes locked to the embers of the fire. “And the food wasn’t that bad either.”

“I don’t know about that.” Michael lurched up, groaning, and ran to the powder room.

Winky jumped up and took Michael’s place on the warm love seat. He circled the spot, pushing against Paige, and purred.

“Hey, you’re not so bad, little fella, are you?”

He licked his paw and rolled against her more. She would think the exact opposite later when she saw the amount of fur he left on her little black dress. It became a little fur dress instead.

****

Romance came in many forms. A bad stomach wasn’t one of them. Their night of love making never followed. For Michael, it was a night of uncomfortable sleep and bathroom trips. Paige had found him the antacids and rushed out in the morning to bring back seltzer, ginger ale, and a drink with electrolytes, not knowing his remedy of choice. Her brothers used all three at different times, including a horrible recipe for hangovers involving things that made her flinch at the thought of it.

Michael was of no use in the de-hoarding process that day. She chose to tackle some paperwork, so she could keep him company. It was already early afternoon when they sat at the kitchen table while he sipped seltzer.

“Did you have the brown meatball?” he asked.

“Yes.” She taped business cards given to her onto a stained poster board she’d found. One section was for things people wanted to buy. The other cards were placed into categories of help offered.

“Okay, that wasn’t it. What about the spinach soufflé and potatoes?”

“Nope. Wait. I had scalloped potatoes. What soufflé?”

“Must be the culprit.” Michael moaned and popped another antacid.

“Sure. It couldn’t possibly be the amount you ate,” she said.

Michael burped and grinned sheepishly.

Linney entered the kitchen at that moment followed by Winky. She’d just returned from her job. “What’s all this?”

Paige began to tell her of their evening, the business cards, and how she was going to hang it in the hallway for easy use.

Her aunt cut her off, “No. This. You two sitting here,” Linney said. “He’s burping and popping antacid while you are surrounded by…accounting? How long have you two been together?”

Linney plated some leftovers and put them in the microwave. Michael looked green again.

“I thought you were heading out with George,” Paige said, continuing her task.

“That’s later. A girl’s gotta eat.” She shoveled in a large bite of green zucchini. Michael flew from the room. “Is he sick?”

Paige nodded and finished telling her about the potluck and all that happened while Linney ate.

“You never go for the spinach soufflé around here. Mrs. Teeter sometimes makes it with the old eggs. Makes you sick every time unless you have an iron stomach.”

“Thanks for the heads up. I’ll remember it next time.” Paige said looking up from the file system she had been setting up.

Linney finished eating and pulled Paige away from the papers, hoping to make a dent in one of the rooms upstairs before napping.

They left Michael to his own devices and a piece of very dry toast. By the time Paige came down for something to drink an hour or two later, he had the expansion file nearly filled with sorted renovation papers and bills.

“Wow. We should get you sick more often,” Paige said.

“Don’t you dare. I’m just now feeling better.”

“Well enough to…” She motioned upstairs.

Michael looked iffy. Winky dashed by chasing the Ben Wa ball. He caught it and rolled over on top of it, rubbing his back, and momentarily curling up.

“Maybe well enough even to do what he’s doing,” Michael said.

Winky turned over and rolled his belly back and forth on the ball and then hissed at it.

“Strike that. I have no idea what he’s doing.”

Paige didn’t either. She shrugged, “Not my cat. And thankfully not my toy either for that matter.”

She failed to mention she had her own toys, but that would have to wait for a more energetic, playful time.

They headed upstairs hand in hand. As enjoyable as cuddling was, it wasn’t like the torrid moments they preferred or had shared many times before. It was relaxing and sweet, filled with soft touches and massages as they curled up in bed. Paige spoke of her disbelief of how short a time they’d actually been together. Michael pointed out that they’d been together more hours than most people several months into their relationship.

She knew in her heart that wasn’t it. It was much more than being locked away together a set number of hours in a bed and breakfast. They matched. They relished the other’s company. They flourished together and their bodies craved the other’s touch.

But somewhere deep inside, she knew to temper the relationship so it built and didn’t flame out. The loving way his hands rubbed her back said what he felt the same. And when she turned toward him, softly stroking the line of his handsome face, she knew her eyes poured out the same meaning.

Neither spoke of love, but the words hung nearly palpable between them.

****

At the door early that evening, soft kisses became the promise of things to come. Maybe because their lazy snuggling left them with a sweet longing instead of bright afterglow, Michael’s leaving that day was all the more wrenching to Paige and from his actions, to Michael also. Valentine’s Day was only two days away. He’d promised to return even if were only a short time on February 14th. Still, the parting felt more like a tearing apart than just a quick “see you soon.”

A kiss. Another touch. A smile. Some unnecessary comment. Another kiss. He stood at the door, bags at his feet, unable to let go of her.

“Oh, for Heaven’s sake!” Aunt Linney grumbled. “You, get your things, tell her you love her, and leave. And you, Squirt, stop moping. Blast your loud music when I go and get a move on. We can’t start putting this place together until we finish clearing it out. Now step out of my way. I have a diner dinner date with George. I’m not even getting free Wi-Fi out of it, so he better be a helluva lot more fun than you two were today.”

“I was sick,” Michael protested.

“You’re both sick, all googly-eyed. Move your butt. A hungry woman needs to go.” With that, Linney left.

It took a beat, but both laughed.

“You heard the woman. Go.” Paige kissed him with a happy mwwwahhh sound and shooed him away, smiling.

“Love ya. See you soon,” Michael said hastily and picked up his things. He didn’t turn around, but Paige heard his breath catch just a bit.

“Well, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” she asked herself.

The cat answered with a yowl from the far corner of the living room.

“Critic.”

****

Paige managed to fill several garbage bags from one of the spare upstairs bedroom. The master bedroom had a larger possibility of hiding treasures, but she wanted an easier space to clear. She did so, as much as she could as fast as she could. Even though the music blared, her ears were on alert for Linney’s return. Her aunt called it a date, and she wanted to be there at the ready for support.

No Linney—yet.

Paige tired of lifting the garbage bags that needed to go all the way out to the street for pick up. By the third one, she’d devised a cardboard sled for the stairs so she could just slide it down. It worked even to bring some of the bags out over the snow covering the driveway.

Her mind was on Linney’s lateness, ranging from elation that she was out on a date to worry over her being out too long. She stomped off the snow ready to hang up her coat when she noticed the last and largest bag upstairs.

With an exasperated sigh, she brought the soggy cardboard back up. Paige applied the same slide-the-bag-down-the-stairs routine but with the wet cardboard and sharp heaviness of the contents, the bag ripped completely open, spewing the contents from nearly the top step all the way down.

It was right then that Linney stepped into the foyer.

“Do you know how late you are?” Paige called down the stairs.

“Not late enough by the looks of it. I can come back when you’re done.”

“Ha. Ha. The bag ripped.”

“I see that. I think I will have to table your title of Sagey-Paigey.”

“Not funny. Do you know how worried I was? You didn’t have your cell phone.” Paige started to stuff the mess into a new bag, jamming in the pieces.

“Sure, I did. I just turned it off.” Linney left and came back with another garbage bag and wearing an apron over her clothing that said, “Everyone has their price. Mine is chocolate.”

They both bent to the task.

“So, are you going to tell me?” Paige asked.

“Tell you what?” Her aunt started from the bottom and worked fast.

“About your date. Your diner date you called it.” Paige worked her way down from the top.

“What about it?” Linney picked up pieces.

“How’d it go?” Paige picked up pieces.

“Fine I guess.” More pieces.

“Fine as in, oh, he’s cute and fun and I want another date. Or fine as in he can take a hike before I see him again?”

“Fine as in fine.”

Paige huffed. She jammed in three items. “Look, I am just trying to help you out. It seems I’ve dated more than you have since Roger. I’m trying to be a good niece and friend here and help set you up.”

“I…” Stuff. “don’t…” Stuff, stuff. “need…” Jam. “your help!”

“Everybody needs help.” They both grabbed for the last chunks.

“I don’t. Never did. Never will.”

Paige’s heart twisted with the pang of hurt.

“Oh Paige, not what I meant at all. I meant with dating and whether or not I do it again. How about this? Think of him as out of the picture then it won’t bother you.”

Paige was still upset but nodded.

“C’mere Squirt. I didn’t mean it about the help thing. I just meant about fixing me up. I need your help, here. Boy, do I. We all need it of each other, in some way or another. And some of us more than others. Let’s walk this to the curb. Okay? We can even do something corny like wish on stars like you used to love doing as a kid.”

Paige forced a smile. She wasn’t upset about what Linney had said about helping each other. Whether she acknowledged it or not, everyone needed a sounding board when it came to relationships. She knew her aunt just wanted her to stop prying. She was upset about George maybe being out of the picture.

That meant it was one guy down and only one guy to go for Project Fix Aunt Linney’s Broken Heart. A project that had a Valentine’s Day due date and that was only one and half days away.