Under the Aspens (The Aspen Series) (3 page)

She ran her fingers through her hair to tame it and smiled,
"I believe we did this before. You haven't changed."

He knew exactly what she referred to. She turned him down, when he offered his guest room for her that stormy night
two years ago. She was so independent, and stubborn.  Or maybe she just felt differently towards him, than he felt her. But she was wrong on one count, he had changed.

Taking
the cup from his hand, she almost dropped it, when she felt the spark from his fingers.  She felt that old longing in her chest. So many memories flashed in her mind, of happier times.

All of a sudden, she fe
lt underdressed.  She wore very modest pajamas, black, with Tropical Island flowers printed boldly all over. Now she wished she took the time and grabbed her robe from the foot of her bed, before she answered the door.

S
he felt very uncomfortable.  So she said the first thing that popped into her mind.

"
The coffee's good.”

"There
’s also sausage and hash browns in the bag, enough for two," He answered her.

She
knew her nerves were not up to eating.  So she just sipped the coffee.  She also knew one cup was not going to clear her head this morning, so she moved around the kitchen, and filled her coffee maker.

She love
d her modern kitchen, with the stainless steel appliances, and the long breakfast counter.  This was where Glen made himself comfortable, with his breakfast.

He
knew she was nervous about him being there, but she had to get over it.  He had a lot of questions.  He knew she hid something regarding yesterday, and he was determined to get answers. 

Sher fill
ed a mug of fresh brewed coffee, and sat it in front of Glen, "If I remember correctly, you take it black?"

"That hasn't changed
, but you have. You used to be so open about yourself.  I know you’re not being open about yesterday.  Care to tell me what's going on?" He stared at her, expected her to be as open with him as she used to be.

From the first moment she saw him at her door, she knew this moment was going to arrive faster than she wanted it to. He was the same man she remembered, and yet he wasn’t.  He seemed harder now, somehow. The
old Glen
would’ve shown up at her door, for no other reason, than because he brought her coffee and breakfast because he cared. This Glen had other motives. 

She ha
d to think.  She couldn’t do this now.  She felt too raw with emotions, and when she glanced at the clock, she knew she needed to get down to the deli.  She had trays to fix and deliver to Mr. Blackwheel, and orders that needed to get finished.  And she wanted to gather her thoughts before any discussion with Glen. She knew if she kept her wits about her, her heart wouldn’t be worn on her sleeves, so to speak, when she next talked to Glen.

"Can we do this later?  I need to get dressed and get to work.  I have a long day planned
," She told him.

He searche
d her face, as he looked for a hint of the old Sher.  For a moment, he saw the same longing in her eyes, as he saw over a year ago, but the next instant, it disappeared, and was replaced with a fiery determination.

Dumping the half empty cup of coffee in the sink, he sat the cup down,
"I'll meet you back here tonight, at seven. We will have that talk, you seem so determined to avoid."

"I'm not avoiding anything.  I do need to get to work now
," And she also thought she needed to get him out the door, before she said or did something she couldn’t take back.

"See you at
seven,” he repeated, as he walked out.

He close
d the door, and she watched him stroll to his jeep, surprised that he still had the bright, red vehicle. 

Her mind went back in time.
She loved the times they drove to Cherry Creek and got out.  They walked walk over the boulders, down to the creek, just enjoyed each other’s closeness, and the beautiful scenery. And when he returned her home, they sat in his jeep and kissed, for what seemed like hours.  Those kisses made her wish for things she couldn’t have.  For the man she couldn’t have.

Bringing herself back to earth, she shook her head. That’s enough daydreaming, time she got it together and went to work.
She decided on black slacks, with her favorite white sweater.  It would be a little cold today and windy, plus she wanted to look professional when she delivered the trays to Mr. Blackwell's real estate office.

Her mind
went forty miles an hour while she drove down Riverdale, so she couldn’t enjoy the scenery, like she usually did this time in the morning. She caught herself glancing in the rear-view mirror constantly.  So far, nothing was behind her.  Most people were already at work at this time.

She nea
red 120th Avenue, when she spotted a dark SUV behind her. She told herself to breath, don't panic. She only had to go three blocks, and she arrived at her deli. Although it was just a few minutes away, it seemed so much longer.  She held her breath, and then let it out slowly when she saw the car changed lanes.

As it pull
ed up next to her, she saw the windows were so darkly tinted, that she couldn’t see the driver. She tried to remember if she knew anyone with a black SUV.  No one came to mind.

A quick right hand turn and she
was in her parking lot. She was glad her deli was not the only shop opened at this time.  There was a book store next door, and on the other side of her, was a kids’ clothing store.  For once, this made her feel safe.  Funny, she only felt unsafe one time in her life before.  That was when William slapped her.

She look
ed back to see if the other vehicle pulled into the lot, but didn’t see any black SUV.  Breathing a sigh of relief, she locked her car and mentally planned out her day.

After
she unlocked the front door, she re-locked it, because she wasn’t open for another half hour, and had to get set up. 

She
spent a few minutes and sliced Swiss cheese for the cheese trays, and separated some for the sandwich trays.  The ham and turkey, and provolone cheese were already done.  All she had to do now was to assemble the sandwiches.  

While
she cubed the cheese for the trays, she the bell rang above the front door.  She saw Cathy walk in which made her smile. She gave Cathy her own key to the shop, just in case she had to open early, or close late.  She trusted Cathy to make sure the register was empty at night, and the money deposited in the safe.  Cathy had been such a help since Sher opened the shop.  She really needed her bubbly persona this morning, and Cathy didn’t let her down. She hummed an Adele song, as she hung up her coat. Sher smiled to herself.

 
"Morning,” Cathy said, between song verses.

 
"Good morning, yourself,” Sher smiled back.

"I see you came in early to fix Mr. Blackw
heel’s trays. I believe he prefers you to make them.  You always put the parsley and cherry tomatoes in the center.  I always forget those."

“You do a great job. Don't doubt yourself.  Mrs. Nichols will be in today for her usual corned beef and Swiss. She says you always slice it just thin enough
,” It is true. Mrs. Nichols never complained when Cathy sliced her meats and cheeses.

Cathy busie
d herself putting her apron on. She went through her morning ritual, apron, hairnet, then checked the times on the day’s order forms.  Business had picked up the past four months or so. They always had between five to eight special orders per day. 

As
Cathy moved about her routine, she sang another tune.  This one was not familiar to Sher, but it was music.  And as the saying went, music relaxed the nerves.

Sher
was surprised how fast the time went by. They were so busy, she didn’t worry about yesterday.  She delivered Mr. Blackwell’s order, and, as usual, he paid, and included a large tip. It did her heart as she heard his many compliments.

Nothing unusual happen
ed when she drove back to the shop.  She began to relax.  She told herself the black vehicle was nothing, just her over-reacting. 

Entering the shop, she s
aw Cathy waited on another customer. She reminded herself she needed to take the funds from the safe and go to the bank and make a deposit.

In her office, she add
ed up the receipts and completed the book-keeping. A few moments later, Sher had the deposit slip and cash in the bank bag, and walked to the front of the shop to let Cathy know where she was headed.

Cathy
’s cleaned the slicers again. No customers were in the shop so she let Cathy know Mr. Blackwheel ordered five more trays for Saturday. But this time she was to deliver them to the Crown Plaza in downtown Denver.  There was going to be a convention of realtors. 

Since the deli was closed on Sunday, Sher considered staying downtown herself.  She loved shopping along the Sixteenth Street Mall, and she felt her mouth watering to the memories of the food at Maggiano’s.  By now, she convinced herself that was what she would do.  She would treat herself to a night downtown.

"I'll write up the order in a second, soon as I finish some cleaning," Cathy said.

"
O.K. I'm off to the bank.  When I come back, maybe we can work on that window display," After everything that had happened, Sher almost forgot the window display.

She always includ
ed Cathy on the building of the display for the front window.  They both had talent, but together they showed amazing results. With the Holidays coming, she wanted something the whole town of Northglenn remembered.

Cathy and Sher spent the rest of the day building the fall window display.  Was one of her favorite times of the year.
 As she moved back to admire the beautiful fall leaves and gourds they strategically placed in the front window, she realized it missed something. 

 
"Cathy, don’t we have a couple of barrels we can place toward the back of the window?" Sher asked her assistant.
 "Yes. I know we put some in the store room.  I'll go check." Cathy replied.
As Cathy went to check on the barrels, Sher decided it was time for coffee, and a phone call to her ex-husband.  She felt her blood pressure as it rose higher.  After their divorce, she mistakenly believed she wouldn’t have to deal with him any longer.  They had no children.  They had nothing to tie them together.  So the idea of having to speak to him, and ruined her good mood. The last thing she wanted was drama today.   

As Sher dialed his number, she said a small prayer that she was to leave him a message, and not have to actually speak to the man...
 Her luck didn’t hold out this morning.

"It's about time you call.
 Where is my box?" He hadn’t even said
Hello
first.

"I'm sorry, William.
 I haven't taken the time to look for your box.  Like I told you before, I seriously doubt I have anything left of yours at my house." She said.

"You Bitch.
 You either find that box, or I will be there tonight and find it myself." Seemed his meanness hadn’t changed.
Sher cringed, but held her ground,” You cannot intimidate me any longer. You will not threaten me."
But she talked to dead air, William had hung up.  How was she supposed to find something that wasn’t even there?  In fact, she recalled, Brad took a few boxes just last month.  But weren't those some things that belonged to their parents?  Brad would be home from his
camping trip in two more days.  She would wait and talk to him then.  In the meantime, William had to wait.
Cathy returned with the barrels, and Sher occupied the next hour and finished the window display.
"I see we outdid ourselves this year.  It's unbelievable."

They both stood outside and admired the finished window.
 It looked spectacular.  They were sure to get many compliments this year.
The rest of the day was uneventful, which Sher was very happy about.   They waited on customers, made orders, and cleaned.  By seven, they were both ready to lock the door and call it another day. Tomorrow looked to be a very hectic day.  They had six trays to put together
and to be delivered to the Crown Plaza downtown.  This meant they both would be in the shop at five in the morning, in order to put everything together.  Then she would drive downtown and set everything up for the conference at the plaza.  

Sher continually watched the traffic behind her in the rearview mirror that evening on her way home. No one suspicious followed. An Adele song came on the radio, and she sang along.
 She avoided thoughts of the past few days, or of William .She just drove and enjoyed the scenery. 

Off and on all day, Sher thought about the squash soup she could heat up for her dinner tonight. And the call she needed to make to her best friend, Lynn.
 She and Lynn had been best friends since grade school, and she missed sharing her days with her.