The following morning, Brenna awoke to a typical northwest climate and the weatherman predicted more of the same as, shivering, she restarted the fire. Adam had left after his coffee the night before with a promise to return in the morning to start the search for the headstone, but she wasn’t sure he’d want to be out in this foggy, damp weather.
She let Zoe and the cats out and started a pot of coffee, fully caffeinated. Concerned the cats might sleep in the baby clothes, she had boxed them up before going to bed, but now she again unpacked the christening gown and bonnet. She had awakened with the idea of hanging them on one of her satin hangers on the wall in her room; she had a rose-colored hanger that would do perfectly.
Brenna started to pour her coffee at the same moment Zoe decided she frantically had to come in out of the fog and the phone rang in the parlor. Quickly she let Zoe in and ran to the phone.
“Hello?”
“Hi, just wanted to see if you were still up for exploring today.”
“Well, yes. I was kind of wondering if you’d be, what with this icky weather and all. Zoe doesn’t even want to stay out there,” Brenna admitted.
“How quickly you forget. I work for the fire department, remember? We have to go out in the worst weather. Actually, today, I’ll be lucky not to get called in. It’s pretty blustery here in town. How’s it out there?”
“Oh, it’s not really windy, mainly damp fog.”
“Hey, no problem. I’ll be over in about an hour. How’s that?”
“That’s fine. I don’t suppose you have a sickle or Weedeater, do you? All I seem to have are hoes and shovels.”
“All of the above are at your service. By the way, would you be interested in having dinner at my brother's tonight if we're not too tired? He's married with three kids and we have dinner together fairly often."
She blinked in surprise. Family, hmm. Well, why not? She could handle it; they couldn't be too bad if they were related to Adam. "Okay, that sounds nice. See you in a bit.”
Brenna hung up quickly and went back to her coffee. Well, this should be an interesting day. What would she wear tonight? And what did one wear when hunting for a tombstone? She shuddered. Maybe it wasn’t there; maybe her dreams were a little off yesterday. Taking a deep breath, she went upstairs, donned layers of old clothes and laced up her hiking boots.
Running back downstairs, she grabbed an apple from a basket on the dining room table and went outside, Zoe playing dead by the fire when her name was called. “Pansy,” Brenna yelled back at her as the screen door slammed.
She walked around her yard staying near the house as if she went too far, she would suddenly stumble on the headstone by herself. Eating her apple, she checked on all her flowering bushes, noting the lilacs were about done for the season. Some of the rhodies were just now coming in bloom. Looking around, it seemed as though bushes had been planted in such a way that there would always be something blooming. She wondered if it had been Martin or Helena who had such a green thumb.
Tires crackled on gravel as Adam’s truck pulled into the drive. He and Max hopped out, and he pulled a large Weedeater and two sickles from the truck bed.
“Good morning,” he called to Brenna as she came across the yard. “Perfect day for clearing brush, wouldn’t you say?”
Brenna wrinkled her nose and threw her apple core in the bushes on the other side of the drive. “Perfect for sitting by the fire and reading, I’d say.”
Adam handed her the Weedeater. “Oh, come on, it’ll be fun and even if we don’t find anything, your yard’ll look better.”
Before Brenna could reply to that, she heard Zoe scratching at the back door. Apparently now that Max was here, the weather wasn’t such a problem. When Brenna opened the door, Zoe flew down the steps and she and Max took off for the woods.
“Hey, let us know if you find anything!” Adam called after them. Brenna whacked him on the arm as he laughed and followed her out back.
“Be serious, you; we’re looking for a headstone, for God’s sake,” Brenna admonished him.
“If I’ve learned nothing else this year, it’s to laugh when you can; there are few things in life worth crying over.”
Brenna was silent, remembering Adam's ex-fiance. She didn’t think she wanted to get onto that topic yet.
“What side of the property was the grave on?” he asked.
She pointed toward the northeast corner and they started cutting.
“Why don’t we clear a path for now since we know what we’re after, and later we can clear the rest?”
Brenna nodded, running the Weedeater behind him as he hacked his way into the brush and overgrown blackberries. Good grief, this thing was heavy.
They worked for half an hour before Brenna called for a break.
“Already?” Adam asked, in feigned disbelief. But he quickly dropped his sickle and followed her back to the house. They had already shed their jackets while working and the house felt like an oven, so they brought their juice outside and sat on the back steps for a few minutes.
“We’ve made good progress; shouldn’t take much longer,” Adam estimated.
Brenna shivered, suddenly feeling chilled, and rose to take their glasses back into the kitchen.
Adam was right. It wasn’t long before they found the fence marking the east side of the property. They turned north and cleared about ten feet before Adam nearly tripped over something. He looked down and, brushing the overgrowth off the object, could see the rough-cut top of a small headstone, the crevices filled with the dirt of past years. Brenna’s eyes widened as he backed up and, taking the Weedeater from her, proceeded to clear the area. Then he motioned her forward so she could clear off the small headstone herself.
Kneeling down, she pulled the sleeve of her sweatshirt over her wrist and rubbed off the face of the pink granite stone, revealing what she already knew was there. She traced the rose with her finger and shivered, remembering Helena doing the same.
“Wow,” was all Adam could seem to get out. He had believed her but, as with the baby clothes, it was a different thing to actually see it.
Brenna scooted back, cleared off the top of the grave and stood up, her sore muscles complaining.
“What now?” Adam asked.
Brenna looked at him and shook her head. She laughed half-heartedly and said, “I have no idea.”
“Well, I’m starving. Have I worked hard enough for some food?”
She smiled and led the way back to the house, Max and Zoe bursting out of the underbrush behind them.
In the warm kitchen, they dropped their sweatshirts by the back door and washed their hands and faces. Brenna opened the refrigerator door and surveyed the contents. Hmm...not very impressive. She opened her cupboard and pulled out a can of soup. “Clam chowder okay?”
“Always. Do you need some help?”
“To heat a can of soup?”
He held up his hands. “Okay, I’ll go sit with the dogs in the parlor.”
She smiled behind his back as he left, and set to work on the chowder and grilled cheese sandwiches. Why was it women wanted to prepare all the food initially, but down the line, when the guys were used to being pushed out of the kitchen, women complained about the lack of help? In her family, anyway. She had better not set that precedent.
She put the food on a tray and, getting some cans of pop from the frig, carried it all into the parlor. Adam jumped up. “Here, let me help you.”
“Thank you.” After handing him the tray, she lowered herself to the floor. “Did you stir up the fire? Thanks, I was hot when we came in, but now I’m getting chilled.”
All was silent as they ate the hot food while the dogs stared at them from the other end of the hearth. Brenna looked away from them. “I hate it when they do that. They make me feel so guilty.”
Adam laughed. “Just don’t look at them; I don’t. Max is so spoiled I’m not about to give him my own food too.”
“Good way to look at it. I don’t think Zoe is actually lack
ing anything either. Certainly not food.”
After lunch, Adam got to his feet and stretched, Max raising his head to see what was happening. “Thanks for lunch, it was great. I’m going to run home and clean up and get some other stuff done before dinner. Do you still want to come tonight?”
“Oh, sure, I’m looking forward to it,” Brenna replied, picking up the lunch tray.
“Here, I’ll take that.” Adam took the tray from her hands and carried it into the kitchen. She smiled behind his back. She may have shoved him out of the kitchen, but chivalry was not dead.
The dogs followed Adam to the door and they said a quick goodby over milling animals.
“You know, what you need is a dog door. What do you think?” Adam asked.
She laughed, looking down at the pets. “You may have something there. I’ll definitely consider it.”
“I’ll pick you up at five, okay?”
“That’s fine, I’ll see you then.”
He hesitated, then kissed her quickly, as if on a dare. When she smiled, he kissed her again, a softer, longer kiss. Leaving her not only smiling, but speechless, he and Max hopped in the truck and backed out of the drive. Brenna closed the door as they drove away and patted Zoe’s head. “Hmm. Well, that was interesting. Zoe, I am so tired, but I’m almost afraid to take a nap. What do you think, girl?”
Zoe’s response was to pad into the parlor and flop down in front of the fire.
“Okay, but if I have any dreams, it’s on your head,” Brenna told her, shaking her finger at the already slumbering dog. She pulled her afghan around herself and curled up on the small velvet couch, touching her lips with a smile.
Chapter 25