Dreams of Fire (Maple Hill Chronicles Book 1) (34 page)

Lily Thomas turned her head to Marianne, looking sideways at her, birdlike. “That’s right. You asked if you could paint. Yes, I’d like to see.”

Marianne gave her the nickel tour and showed her the rooms she’d completed and told her about her plans to paint the rest of the house. Mrs. Thomas seemed to approve the color scheme when she talked about how much lighter and brighter the house seemed. The yard was another matter, though.

“It was a showcase yard with so many beautiful flowers and plants,” Mrs. Thomas declared. “George would be saddened to see it looking so wretched now,” she said with the bluntness of the aged. Grandma Selene rolled her eyes behind her friend’s back and looked apologetically at Marianne who smiled and said, “Maybe you could show me some time what kind of plants they had, and I could perhaps work on replacing some of them.”

Mrs. Thomas agreed and said she was tired now and wanted to sit. Marianne took their drink orders and left to fill them. Kelly and Sarah arrived soon after and introduced themselves to Marianne’s mother at the door and went into the dining room to deposit a tabouli salad. Marianne finished pouring and greeted them with hugs and had a moment to murmur, “My mom’s not cool with the ghost thing.” Sarah nodded sympathetically, and Kelly shrugged slightly in understanding.

Marianne then introduced them to Grandma Selene and Mrs. Thomas. Within a few minutes, John Irving arrived, standing diffidently on the front stoop. His attire of loose canvas trousers and vertical striped shirt with a mandarin collar was nearly the same she’d seen him in at the cemetery, but clean. Marianne gave him a big smile and welcomed him in. He seemed shy with strangers and glad to see Sarah and Kelly.

“Mr. Carleton decided not to come, but he appreciated the invitation and said you could come see him sometime,” he said with quiet dignity to Marianne. She was a little taken aback but nodded and thanked him. She carefully introduced her mother to him. Kelly got John Irving a beer and stood talking to him since Sarah and Selene were deep in conversation.

Finally, the Cavarellis rang the doorbell, and the noise level went up a couple of decibels as more people mingled with each other. Maria had made a huge green salad with pepperocini, olives, tomatoes, and what seemed like half a deli’s worth of meat and cheese trimmings. The large bowl joined the platter of chicken and Grandma Selene’s potatoes au gratin.

Marianne enjoyed her guests for a bit before she looked at her cell phone discreetly and realized it was forty minutes into the party, and Ruari wasn’t there. Perhaps he’d changed his mind? She tried not to be disappointed and to tell herself that maybe he was late from work. Maybe something had come up, and Gloria’s Valley Homes had kept him late. She talked distractedly with Michael about basketball practice. School started next week, and he was gloomy about the end of summer.

There was a distant drumming, whooshing sound and Marianne looked out the window to see it pouring rain. Still no Ruari. She was beginning to resign herself to his not coming when the doorbell rang. She excused herself from Michael and hastened to the door.
 

Ruari stood on the top step, his hair plastered down the sides of his head and his button up shirt splattered with rain across his shoulders. He held two packages in his hands, and she urged him inside quickly before he got any wetter.

He said apologetically, “I’m so sorry to be late. I had an emergency at work, and the temporary fix took longer than I expected. I brought potato chips and some French onion dip—if it’s not too late?”

“No, no, that’s fine.” Marianne felt alight with happiness and said, “Come in the kitchen, and I’ll find a bowl. Do you want a towel? The bathroom’s across the hall and towels are in the little closet. Help yourself.” He avoided the living room and disappeared through the dining room.

Marianne opened the bag of chips, poured them in a big wooden bowl, and put them and the dip in the living room on the table. The second package was a grocery sized brown bag with something heavy inside, wrapped in cloth. She opted to wait for him before opening it.
 

He returned to the kitchen a few minutes later, his hair tousled and definitely shorter than it had been. It looked good on him. A faint scent of Ivory soap accompanied him. She smiled and took in his large frame, tanned face, and blue gray eyes. She appreciated how the damp white cotton shirt, open at the throat and clinging to his muscular shoulders, set off his complexion perfectly. He smiled shyly, taking her in as well.

“I’m glad you made it! Um, would you like something to drink?” She offered, suddenly shy as if she’d been handed a lavish gift and didn’t know what to do with it.

He accepted a glass of iced tea, and she introduced him to everyone there. Kelly gave her a wink as he turned away so that only Marianne could see it. Marianne grinned back at Kelly, blushing furiously. He shook hands with her mother, and immediately they fell into polite conversation.
 

Over the course of the party, Marianne received compliments on her painting and encouragement to finish. She was pleased that everyone seemed to be comfortable with each other. After Grandma Selene and Sarah’s long conversation, they split up so Grandma could speak to Maria Cavarelli, and Sarah moved on to Marianne’s mother. The two Johns seemed to know each other, and Marianne realized that John Irving probably knew many people in town through the cemetery. Michael and Kelly talked to each other for a while, and Marianne noticed that he hovered near the piano for a little, perhaps imagining the ghostly Anne playing. Ruari spoke in turn to John Cavarelli, Kelly, and Mrs. Thomas. Oscar surveyed the party from the foot of the stairs where he could watch unobtrusively.

At some point John Cavarelli cleared his throat and spoke over the voices in the living room. His big voice penetrated the entire first floor with little effort and everyone gathered.

“I’d like to be the first to officially welcome our new neighbor to Maple Hill!” He raised his glass and everyone said, “Hear, hear!”

After a drink from his beer he continued, “In the short time she’s been here, she has made wonderful changes and improvements to this house. I hope she’s here for a long time.”

Marianne smiled and murmured, “Thank you.” As she stood looking at the room full of people, she had an epiphany. She’d come home. Geoffrey had chased her out of her old life, hoping to leave her off balance and punish her for leaving him. Instead she’d come back to Maple Hill and discovered it was home. In three weeks through the activities of her invisible neighbors, she’d become friends with more people than she’d known over the last five years. And with that thought something inside her settled into place. She was divorced but in no way diminished. Instead, she had grown. Even though she had discovered some disquieting things about herself, she was not alone. She had friends, and that was worth a lot.

“This is a housewarming party, right?” John Cavarelli’s strong voice continued. “Maria and I would like to give you a little something.”
 

Maria, looking elegant in her casual work attire and glossy black hair, stepped forward with a wrapped package.
 

Marianne said with some embarrassment, “You didn’t have to. It’s wonderful just to have you all be here.”

“Everyone needs a little something extra in a new house,” Maria insisted and wrapped Marianne’s hands around the box. It was unexpectedly heavy, and she thought for a moment it might be gardening tools. When she unwrapped it, it turned out to be a set of nesting glass bowls with sealing lids.

“You’ll be glad you have them,” Maria said with perfect confidence. Marianne hugged her and turned to accept the larger, more awkward box from her mother.

This turned out to be a small vacuum cleaner with brushes for hardwood floors. “Mom! Thank you.” She hugged her mother as well.

“Don’t mention it. Like Maria said, you’ll be glad you have it!” Her mom quipped.

Everyone laughed.
 

“I brought you a little something, too,” said Ruari quietly from the doorway. He had the brown grocery bag in his arms again, and she stepped over to take it from him.
 

The contents of the bag were slightly heavier than the glassware. She set it down on the coffee table and knelt down to reach inside. Her fingers met soft cloth wrapped around something solid and oblong, and she carefully drew it out. Everyone was silent as she gently pulled the flannel away, revealing an exquisite carving. It was about twelve inches high and shaped like a seedpod made of beautiful reddish brown wood. One side was smooth, and the finish had highlighted the grain of the wood, giving it a depth beneath the surface. The other side had a woman’s face, resting on her hand as it pushed aside the soft fold of a curtain. Her eyes were closed as in peaceful repose or meditation, and tendrils of hair fell across her brow and escaped across the other side of the curtains. The whole image was in perfect proportion and rendered so lifelike that it was easy to imagine the woman awakening and opening her eyes.
 

“Oh, Ruari, it’s beautiful,” Marianne breathed, overwhelmed. She looked up and saw his hopeful, vulnerable expression. “I love it!” She answered his unspoken question. “You said you were a carpenter. You didn’t say you were an artist!”

He shrugged modestly. “I’m a carpenter, but I also make art pieces sometimes. This one just spoke to me. I’m glad you like her. She’s called ‘Sleeping Lady,’” he added shyly. For a moment it seemed like they were the only two in the room.

“It’s amazing! Thank you.” She stood up, and feeling like she’d set the precedent with the other two gifts, she reached up and hugged him briefly. He hugged her back awkwardly, saying, “You’re welcome.”

Suddenly aware of the other people watching her silently, Marianne stepped back and said loudly, “I think there’s more food in the dining room and more beer and wine in the fridge. Please help yourselves!”

People began talking again and some moved to refill their plates. Marianne felt flustered and took refuge in urging people to eat more. Kelly slipped up to her and murmured throatily, “Wow, that’s some housewarming gift. You really made an impression on Mr. Allen!”

“Yeah,” Marianne said weakly. “I can’t think about that right now, though.”

“Have fun thinking about it later then,” Kelly said with a look that would’ve made a saint blush and slipped away to find Sarah.

The party broke up soon after with the Cavarelli’s departure. Mr. Cavarelli assured her she could keep the ladder as long as she needed it to finish the painting job. Michael said with school starting he would have to come on weekends after his homework was done to keep working on the lawn. Maria had put a healthy portion of the leftover salad into one of the new glass bowls and put it in the fridge.
 

John Irving said how much he’d enjoyed the party and invited her to come out to the cemetery to visit him again. “I will,” she promised, thinking that the cemetery might be a little bit lonely.

Sarah and Kelly were ready to leave a few minutes later.
 

Sarah clasped Marianne’s hands and said, “I really enjoyed meeting your grandmother. She’s a very strong woman, and it was a gift to meet her.”
 

“You’re welcome,” Marianne said sincerely. “I think she really enjoyed meeting you, too.” Suddenly remembering the gifts she had for her two friends, she said, “Wait! I have something for you. I almost forgot.” She dashed into her bedroom and brought back two little boxes.

“Oohh, presents!” Kelly said delightedly. “What’s this for?” She and Sarah moved back to the sofa and sat down again.

“You recently rendered me a great service,” Marianne said formally. “This is a token of my appreciation.”

Kelly demurred but opened her box and took out a silver hairpiece. Three overlapping oak leaves molded in silver, shaped into a gentle arc lay on her palm with a silver pin to hold it in place. “Oh, wow! That’s gorgeous! You got this in Dream Time didn’t you? I’ve looked at this a bunch of times but couldn’t find a reason to splurge.” Kelly stood and gave her a quick hug and hastened to pull her thick blonde hair with its two lavender locks into a ponytail and slide the pin through the ends of the leaves. It looked as good as Marianne had thought it would.

Sarah opened her box and pulled aside the fluffy stuff inside. There was a polished rose quartz disc surrounded by swirls of silver hanging from a fine silver chain. “It’s beautiful,” Sarah said softly. Kelly helped her do up the clasp under her hair. It hung poised below her collarbone, framed by the vee of her shirt. “Marianne, you didn’t need to—“ she started.

“You guys totally saved my bacon,” Marianne interrupted firmly. “Yes, I had to. I’m glad you like them.”
 

“I promised I would help you shield your space this weekend. Let me know when it’s a good time for you,” Sarah remembered.

“I’ll give you a call,” Marianne promised. They left shortly after. The rain had let up, but it was still dripping under the trees.

Marianne turned back to see Ruari getting ready to leave.

“They must be really good friends of yours,” he said, clearly having watched the presentation.

“They are,” she said simply. She glanced back at the coffee table and the new sculpture that stood there. “Thank you again for ‘Sleeping Lady.’ It’s really beautiful. I feel a little—“ she started.

“I wondered if you wanted to get coffee tomorrow some time?” He blurted without letting her finish.

She blinked and paused before saying, “I would. What time?”

“How about ten at the co-op?”

“I’ll meet you there,” she agreed.

“Okay, then. See you there. Thanks for inviting me.”

“I’m glad you could make it,” she said, smiling, and saw him out the door.
 

Ruari walked out to his battered white truck and climbed in. Rain beaded the hood and windows, and he turned on the wipers as he pulled away from the curb. He’d asked her out, and she’d said yes, but he’d seen the hesitation in her face and wondered why. ‘Sleeping Lady’ had been a labor of love, completed over the last three weeks, and he was happy with how it had turned out. It certainly wasn’t a vacuum cleaner or set of Tupperware. She said she’d liked it, so why the hesitation?