Woodlands (24 page)

“It only took me three hours,” Leah said dramatically. She opened her dishwasher and pulled out two coffee mugs.

“Why didn’t you close the door?” Seth asked.

“I wanted Hula to be able to get away from Bungee since I had to block off the doggy door to the backyard. I thought Hula might want her space. As it was, she stayed huddled in the mudroom, and Bungee had the run of the place.”

“Did he ruin anything?”

Leah had to wait a minute before answering because Seth was grinding the coffee beans. As soon as he spooned them into the filter, she could smell the rich aroma. “Not really. He just made a gigantic mess.”

“I’m sorry, Leah.”

“No need to apologize. I should have known Bungee is fast growing beyond the sleepy puppy stage. And I should have put up a bigger barricade.”

Seth poured water into the coffeemaker and pushed the start button. It was quiet for a moment between them as they stood facing each other by the kitchen counter. Seth reached over and lightly fingered the ends of her hair. “Did I ever tell you how much I like your hair?”

“As a matter of fact, you did. More than once. However, the first time, you were slightly spacey so I wasn’t sure how much of what you said was true.”

“Really? What did I say?”

Leah felt her cheeks blushing.

“That good, huh?” Seth said, touching his fingers to her rosy cheeks. “What else did I say?”

“Nothing much.” Leah looked down. “Just enough to let me know you were interested in me.”

“And you didn’t believe me, did you?”

“Well …” She hesitated, not sure if she should tell him of his mini-concert at the Dairy Queen. Any woman would question what a man said immediately after he had sung a list of hamburgers.

“Come here,” Seth said, drawing Leah to him in a hug. He held her close. “Believe me, Leah. Trust me.”

She wanted to. But something made her hesitate. It suddenly struck her that everything had happened so quickly and had seemed a little too perfect. Things didn’t go along the lines of “perfect” or “smooth” in her life unless she did lots of preparing and planning. None of this was planned.

Leah didn’t pull away from Seth on the outside; yet on the inside she began to put up a barricade. The feelings she had were similar to how she felt about Bungee. He could be in her
house but only within the limits she set for him. She felt frightened to think Seth might break through and have the run of her heart. She hadn’t had time to think all this through yet.

Leah guessed that Seth sensed her reluctance. He released her from his hug and held her at arm’s length. “You haven’t told me my number yet.”

“Your number?”

“My number. Which boyfriend am I? Which number? Forty-seven? Ninety-three?”

Leah pressed her lips together and looked into his deep blue eyes. Seth seemed so sincere, so open to her. She knew she shouldn’t be skittish. She had trusted him with her secret about the Glenbrooke Zorro. She could trust him with this truth.

“Seth, you’re the first and only.”

“Oh, come on, I find that hard to believe.”

“I’ve never led much of a social life. Surely you guessed that.”

“You know everyone in this town. They all adore you. I can’t believe none of the guys I’ve met has come knocking on your door.”

“Believe it, Seth. I’ve always been everyone’s pal and never anyone’s girlfriend.”

“Their loss is my gain.” He drew her close again, and Leah had the distinct impression he was about to kiss her. She turned her head, and his nose ended up in her ear. Seth let her go.

“Am I coming on too strong?” he asked gently.

“Yes,” Leah said. “I mean, no. I mean … I don’t know. I know you’re going to say I’m too much of a skeptic, but I still can’t get used to the idea that you’re interested in me.”

Seth took two steps back and crossed his arms in front of him. “What can I do to convince you?”

“Nothing. You don’t need to do anything. I guess I need a little more time to get used to all this.”

“Okay,” Seth said, unfolding his arms and reaching for the coffeepot. “I’m in no hurry. We can take it as slow as you want.”

Leah held up her cup, and he began to pour the coffee very slowly. “Is this slow enough for you?” he teased.

“That’s perfect.”

They shuffled into the living room with their coffee and a bag of cookies Leah pulled out of the cupboard. Seth sat on the recliner, and she stretched out on the couch. For the next hour and a half they talked about a dozen different topics. Leah began to feel more at ease. She scolded herself for being so paranoid about giving herself to a relationship with Seth. She guessed it was her lack of experience that made her hesitant.

When Seth left, he kept his word about taking things slowly, and he didn’t kiss her good night. He promised to call her the next day at work and asked if she wanted to plan on dinner and a movie on Friday night.

Leah went to bed dreaming of Seth’s kiss in the woods. The sensation of being circled in his embrace and feeling his lips on hers was intoxicating. The only thing she could compare it to was the way she had felt as a child on Easter Sunday when the pungent fragrance of lilies filled the sanctuary, and she was allowed to stand up in church and shout.

Tonight, in the stillness of her room, she felt the intoxication of Seth’s touch as strongly as she remembered the scent of those Easter lilies. However, something was keeping her from standing up on the inside and shouting her declarations about Seth.

The next day Seth called her twice. First he phoned before she left for work just to say good morning and to give her the list of movies playing so she could choose which one she wanted to see Friday night.

The second time he called was late afternoon, right before she left work. He said the lawyer had phoned, asking if they could meet Monday morning for the reading of the will. Seth told Leah the lawyer would be calling her as well.

“Why?” she asked.

“You’re mentioned in the will, obviously.”

“What time Monday morning?”

“Nine o’clock. Do you think it will be a problem for you?”

“No, I can make arrangements.”

“Good,” Seth said. “I’m sure looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night.”

“Me, too,” Leah said and then hung up. Leah had to do some fancy schedule changing with two other employees before she could arrange to be gone for an hour Monday morning.

Seth called again on Friday afternoon and said he would pick her up at 6:30.

“I was thinking about that,” she said. “Why don’t I drive to your place or meet you at the restaurant in Edgefield? It would be a lot easier than your driving home after work, then driving all the way here, and then we turn around and go back to Edgefield.”

Seth paused. “Are you sure? Because I don’t mind coming to get you. If you wanted, I could pick you up right at work, and we could go to an early movie and then to dinner.”

“No, I’d rather change out of my work clothes,” Leah said. “I’ll just come to Edgefield at 6:30. Where should I meet you?”

“My place, I guess. Oh, and I’ve been meaning to tell you, the spinach was fantastic.”

“Good. I’ll make you another one.”

Seth chuckled. “You don’t need to make me another one. I simply wanted you to know I enjoyed it.”

As Leah hurried home from work Friday, she wondered if
she was overdoing it with Seth. Offering to make him spinach, insisting on driving so he wouldn’t have to.

It reminded her of something Shelly had said several months ago. “Leah, you seem like the kind of woman who is only comfortable when you’re in charge of things. Every once in a while it’s good if you let someone else take control. Let others give to you for a change.”

The comment had come during the practice for the annual church Christmas pageant when Leah was doing everything from sewing wise men costumes to coaching kids on their lines to showing up early at the performance to making sure enough chairs were set up.

Leah wondered if she actually could let herself relax with Seth tonight on this, their first official date. Could she stop being in charge?

In an effort to get herself started on the right foot, Leah decided to take a bath. It wasn’t a long bath, but then she wasn’t given to such luxuries so the twelve minutes she soaked in the warm tub were restful for her. Then she made liberal use of her only bottle of hand lotion. The bug bites on her legs had turned to small, red dots. Not that it mattered; she planned to wear jeans. She always wore jeans.

Leah began to dress but then wondered if her chinos might be a little nicer. She didn’t know what kind of restaurant Seth planned to take her to.

What if it’s formal attire only? No, Seth wouldn’t like a place where he had to wear a coat and tie. I was surprised he even owned a coat and tie to wear to the memorial service. I wonder if he bought them just for the funeral?

Leah looked in her closet and decided it wouldn’t hurt her to do a little shopping one of these days, too. She couldn’t remember the last time she had bought herself anything other than work apparel or new tennis shoes.

She finally decided on a white cotton shirt, which she ironed vigorously so the collar would stay in place. The final vote on the pants was the jeans because the chinos looked wrinkled to her, and she didn’t want to take the time to iron them. When she slipped on her black linen blazer, she thought it looked pretty good. Some sort of jewelry would improve the outfit, but her selection was limited and none of it seemed right.

While brushing her hair, which had air-dried after her bath, Leah decided to pull the top part back in a single clip. She didn’t usually do anything with her hair so this seemed like a fancy change. She wondered if Seth would like it.

Her makeup routine was simple and the same every day. Tonight she experimented with some blush, which she rarely used since, in her opinion, her cheeks blushed enough on their own. The extra minutes with the mascara wand and the extra detailed flossing and brushing of her teeth all seemed to have a good effect. She felt pretty, and that was as important as anything else.

With a squirt of her only fragrance, which was a gift-sized bottle of Fresh Ocean Breeze, Leah called her good-byes to Hula and opened her front door.

There stood Collin Radcliffe, just about to ring her doorbell.

C
ollin, you startled me,” Leah said, catching her balance.

“Good evening, Leah. My, don’t you look nice. Are you going out?”

“As a matter of fact, I was just leaving,” she said, checking her watch. It was five minutes before six.

“That’s a pity.” Collin had on one of his expensive business suits and looked as if he had just come from the office.

“Is there something wrong?” Leah asked.

“I was hoping I might have a word with you before you met with my father Monday for the reading of Mr. Madison’s will. Did you get my message?”

“No, I haven’t listened to my machine yet.”

“Would there be a convenient time for me to stop by tomorrow?” Collin asked.

“Tomorrow? I guess so.”

“I don’t want to hold you up,” he said smoothly. “Here’s my
card. Would you call me in the morning after nine and let me know a time that would work for you?”

“Sure.” Leah took the embossed business card from him. “I’ll call you.”

“Good. May I walk you to your car?”

Leah found his superb manners once again put her on the defensive. This time, instead of resisting his assistance, she held her tongue and let Collin reach over and open the car door for her. She thought again of Shelly’s observation that Leah only was comfortable when she was the one in control. This seemed as good a time as any for her to practice relinquishing control. Collin seemed as determined to do things for her as she was determined to do things for others.

“You’ll call me tomorrow then?” he asked.

“Yes, I’ll call you.” She smiled at him before she drove off. Not a flirty, inviting smile, but one that expressed her decision not to resist Collin or his sudden involvement in her life. It was her way of saying, “Okay, I’ll stop being the edgy, poor-me girl you knew in high school. This is the new me, the Leah who is learning to like who she is and is accepting her life as it is.”

Her drive to Edgefield seemed to take only ten minutes instead of the actual thirty. She was lost in her thoughts—or more accurately, in her dreams. She saw her response to Collin as a major step in the right direction. She could be free and open in her relationships instead of controlling. It didn’t matter to her at the moment if Collin wanted to talk about business or Franklin or—maybe he was considering running for mayor and wanted her support. She was a strong woman learning to soften up around the edges. And she was on her way to have a date with the most wonderful man in the world who had captured her heart. How could she possibly allow herself to enter this evening as the old, driven, misunderstood Leah?

She found herself praying aloud the last few blocks to Seth’s apartment. She wanted God’s blessing on her life. On this evening. On her relationship with Seth.

Parking in one of the three visitor parking spaces, Leah looked at the sticky note on her dashboard that had the Psalm 37 verses printed on it. She read the last verse aloud, “ ‘Commit your way to the L
ORD
, trust also in Him, and He will do it.’ ”