Cowboy Sing Me Home (21 page)

            Luke’s hand slid up from the small of her
back, over her shoulder, and cupped her jaw.  He could feel her heartbeat in
his fingertips at her neck.   Gently he pushed her jaw up and lowered his head
to hers.

            He felt her breath on his lips, and she
jerked away, stepping back out of his embrace.  She glared at him.  “I don’t kiss
married men.”

            He didn’t point out that he wasn’t married
yet, because he knew how ridiculous it sounded.  Instead, he took her hands and
gave voice to an impossible plan as soon as it popped into his mind.

            “Let’s run away.”

            “What?”

            “Let’s hook up your trailer and hit the
road.  Just you and me. Forget about Rain Fest, and Aloma, and everything
else.  Just leave.  Tonight.”

            She was thinking about it.  He could see
the thoughts flicker across her face, and his heart leapt at the idea.  To just
chuck everything, and follow his heart.  To be free, and happy.  To just be
with Dusty.

            Just as he could see her consider the
idea, he saw when she discarded it, too. 

            “Why not?” he asked, before she had a
chance to say no.

            “Because you couldn’t.  You wouldn’t.  
You wouldn’t forget Aloma, your family and job and friends.  You sure wouldn’t
forget that baby.  It wouldn’t work.  What you’re thinking… that’s not the way
it would actually be.”

            He knew she was right.  He wouldn’t even
make it past the city limits sign before he’d be eaten up with guilt.

            He dropped her hand, feeling like a fool
for even suggesting it. 

            She shrugged.  “See, the romantic nomadic
life isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, is it?”

            He didn’t know what to say.  “I’m really,
really sorry things worked out this way, Dusty.  We would have been great
together.”

            The light from the door cast her face in a
warm yellow glow, and she cocked her head and gave him a sad smile.  He felt in
that moment that he’d seen the real Dusty, the Dusty she didn’t allow anyone
else to see.  He knew it was only because whatever they had was ending here,
that she allowed herself to nod. 

            “Yes, we would have.  We would have been
great together.” 

            She walked back into the room, picked up
her guitar, and left him standing alone under the stars.

            The next morning Luke and Toby sat in the
jail office when the phone rang.  Toby looked at Luke, who shook his head. 
Toby picked up the phone.

            “Sheriff’s Office.”  He leaned back in his
chair.  “Hi Melinda.  No, he’s not back yet.  Can I give him a message?”  He
looked at Luke and raised an eyebrow.  “I see.  Sure.  I’ll tell him.  No, I’m
afraid his radio must be busted, ‘cause I tried to get him the other two times
you called, and he’s not answering.  He probably doesn’t even realize it. 
We’ll have to fix it when he comes in.”

            Toby picked up a pen.  “Okay, give them to
me again.  Yeah.  Good one.  That sounds real nice.  Yeah, I can see your
dilemma there.  I’ll get ahold of Luke as soon as I can.  Hmm, what time will
he be back?”  He looked at Luke again.

            Luke shook his head so hard he got an
instant headache.

            “I don’t think he’ll be back for a while,
Melinda.  But I’ll try that radio again right now.”

            When he hung up, Luke said, “Sorry about
that.”

            “No problem.  You know women and
weddings.”

            “What’s the big decision this time?”

            “While the guests are being seated, would
you prefer a string quartet or a harpist?”

            “A
harpist
?  Where in the world am
I going to find a harpist?”

            “She said there’s one in Lubbock, and she
just had a cancellation, but she’ll get booked again quick if you don’t hurry
up and call her.  Or, you can go with the string quartet.  They’re college
students from Abilene.”

            Luke groaned and rubbed hands over his
face.  “Which did she want?”

            “She said she didn’t care, that she was
leaving it up to you.  But if you want my advice, get the harp lady from
Lubbock.  She seemed to be leaning that way.”

            “Thanks.”  Luke sighed again, wishing
there were a chance Melinda would be willing to go for a Justice of the Peace
ceremony.  “We’re supposed to get together tonight after the Jubilee to pick
out colors and stuff.  Maybe after that she’ll quit calling so much.”

            “Yeah,” Toby said solemnly.  “That’ll
happen.”

The front door opened and Wayne Schotts
poked in his head.  “You guys busy?”  He laughed, his mouth so wide Luke could
see his molars.  “What am I saying?  You guys, busy?  Keeping the streets of
Aloma safe from the criminal elements?”

 “Come on in, Wayne.”  Luke narrowed his eyes
in warning to Toby as Wayne walked through.  Toby was a trifle sensitive to
people making fun of his job and his town.  “What are you up to?”

Wayne stood with his head tilted back, and
took in the room.  “I’ve exhausted all the entertainment and culture Aloma has
to offer.”  He curled up his lip in what even Luke couldn’t pretend was a real
smile.  “That didn’t take long, even with the glamour and excitement of Rain
Fest.”  He spread his hands and said the words with melodramatic flair.  “So I
thought I’d come by and catch up on old times.”

Luke cast another quick glance at Toby,
who was leaned back in his chair and glaring at Wayne like he’d just as soon
put him on the next Greyhound back to Seattle. 

“Great,” Luke said, before Toby could get
too riled.  “How about a Coke?”

Wayne dropped into the chair beside Luke’s
desk.  “I assume you’re like most Texans and say ‘Coke’ for any and every
carbonated beverage.”

Luke stopped in the doorway and reminded
himself that he was responsible for what had probably been one of the most
humiliating moments in Wayne’s life.  That made it easier to take when Wayne
gave another sanctimonious smile and said, “I’ll take a 7-Up, if you have it.”

As he left the room, he heard Toby say,
“You say ‘Texans’ like you’re not one.”

Luke grinned and shook his head, looking
in on their guest as he walked past the cells on his way to the break room
where the fridge was.  Kenny stood at the edge of his cell, his hands wrapped
around the bars, craning his neck to see into the front room even though Luke
knew good and well he couldn’t see anything but door jamb.

“You want a Coke?”

Kenny nodded woodenly.  “You have company
in there?”

Luke bent over the small fridge and pushed
aside the Diet Coke that Corinne brought for Toby – which he didn’t drink – and
took out two regular Cokes, which he did.  There were two 7-Ups toward the
back, and Luke grabbed one.  “And old friend from high school,” Luke said as he
took the other 7-Up to Kenny.  “You want me to bring you another magazine or
something?”

Kenny shook his head, still looking toward
the front room, then gave Luke a brief look as he took the cold can.  “No
thanks.  I’m still working on the Oprah book you brought me.”  He turned and
sat on his bunk, his back straight.

“Let me know if you need anything.  Lunch
will be here soon.”

Luke walked back into the main office and
handed cans to the other two men, then popped the top on his own.  “That’s the
most nervous guy I’ve ever seen.  You’d think he was awaiting extradition on a
murder charge or something.”

“Wayne was saying I shouldn’t worry about
IND’s stock going down on Friday.  That happens a lot of times right before a
big product comes out.  People get nervous.”

Wayne nodded.  “In fact, I’d buy up as
much as you can while it’s low.  That company’s going through the roof any
minute now.”  He took a long drink of his 7-Up.  “Mind if I look around?” 
Without waiting for a reply, he set the can down and walked slowly from the
front office through the hall.  “Two whole cells, huh?”  He gave that loud
laugh again.  “One more than you need right now, though.”

Luke followed Wayne and stood silently by
as he poked his nose into everything.  He walked past Kenny and smiled at him
like he was a puppy in a pet store window.  It didn’t take long to make the
circuit of the office.  At the back door, Wayne turned to Luke with raised
eyebrows.  “This go out the back alley?”  He tried the knob.

“It’s locked.”  Luke didn’t offer to open
it. 

“Of course.”  Wayne smiled and took a deep
breath, patting his hands to his chest.  “It’s funny how your mind builds
things up when you’re a kid.  I used to picture this place like Alcatraz or
something.  Miles of cells, degenerates banging tin cups against the bars.”  He
looked at Kenny and gave that loud laugh.  “This place is hardly more than a
trip to the principal’s office.”

Luke could practically feel Toby bristling
in the next room.  He changed the subject and led Wayne back to the front. 
“So, how long have you been in Seattle?”

“A while.  I went to San Francisco after I
left Aloma, then down to L. A. for a while, then up to Seattle.”  He looked
from Toby to Luke.  “You two never got out, did you?”

“Got out?  Like escaped?” Toby said.

 “You make Aloma sound like quicksand,”
Luke said.

“Maybe because I felt so trapped while I
was here, and felt like I’d escaped from a slow, torturous death when I got
out.”  He laughed and shook his head.  “The melodrama of youth, huh?”

But it didn’t seem like Wayne had left
melodrama in his youth, Luke thought.  He chewed his lip, still wondering if
the jockstrap incident had anything to do with Wayne’s bitterness.  He took a
deep breath.  “Yeah, well, I hope your feeling that way didn’t have anything to
do with me.  But just in case, I apologize for ever doing anything to make your
life difficult.”

Wayne froze, and his eyebrows rose.  “What
are you talking about?”

“Well…”  Luke frowned and crossed his arms
over his chest, wishing he hadn’t brought it up.  “Nothing, really.  Except
that one time… when we – I – um, accidentally pushed you out of the locker room
and you were – um – wearing just your… you know.  Jockstrap.”

Wayne laughed, louder and higher than
before.  “That wasn’t me.  You have me mixed up with someone else.”

Luke looked at Toby, who just shrugged. 
“I’m pretty sure –”

“Yeah, I remember that.  That was Terry
Rister, poor slob.  He was the laughing stock of the whole school after that.”

Luke opened his mouth to disagree, but
something about the brightness of Wayne’s eyes stopped him.

Wayne put his can down and moved toward the
door.

“It was great seeing you two again. 
Thanks for the Coke.”

“Anytime,” Luke said faintly, feeling as
if he’d missed something important.  He was talking to the door, at any rate. 
Wayne was gone.

The room was silent for a long time.  Luke
blew out a long breath.  “That was weird.”

“When did he get to be such a jerk?”

“Why did he insist that was Terry Rister? 
Did he really think he was fooling us?”

“I don’t know.  But at least I got a good
stock tip.  I’m going to put in my order now so it’ll go through first thing in
the morning when the market opens.”  Toby turned back to the computer.

Luke sat back at his desk, still staring
at the door.  “Weird.”  He shook his head and picked up the phone.  He had a
harpist to book.

            Luke pulled into the grassy lot.  His
mother stood beside her car, and she motioned him over and lifted the trunk
lid.

            “How’s my favorite grandma?” he asked as
he walked up, looping an arm around her shoulders.

            “I was going through some of your old
stuff and I found some things you and Melinda could use for the baby.”  She
closed the trunk and set a cardboard box on top of it.  “These are all
blankets.  You think you’re not going to need them all, but believe me, you
can’t imagine how many receiving blankets you’ll go through.  And this being a
winter baby…” As she talked, she pulled things out of the box and stacked them
on the trunk.  “These are all your little dresses.  They’re blue, but even if
it’s a girl –”

            “I wore
dresses
?”

            “Well, they’re not dresses, exactly,
they’re little dressing gowns –“

            Luke held up on tiny cotton gown.  “Good
Lord.  You made me wear dresses.”

            “Oh hush.  That’s what people put on
babies, back then.  It’s not like you wore them to football practice.  You were
just a baby.”

            “Did you take me anywhere in them?  Did
any of my friends see me in this?”

            She slapped him lightly on the belly. 
“Would you stop?  Look at these little shoes.”