Out of Focus (18 page)

Chapter Twenty-Two

Kasey had fallen asleep watching television. She woke to bright sunshine and birds chirping outside and every light in the house still on. That felt ridiculous now.

She turned off the TV, and got up to make some coffee.

Being arrested hadn’t been the least bit funny at the time, but after the nice dinner with Scott, she’d begun to see the humor in the chain of events. She’d always been a fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants kind of a girl, but not once had she ever been in real trouble. Riley and Von would get a big laugh out of this. Grem would’ve had an all out hissy fit if she’d known Kasey had flirted with a criminal record. Thank goodness she hadn’t had to call Grem for bail.

Welcome to Adams Grove
.

She started the coffee, got her laptop from her office, and sat at the kitchen bar. After all the action of being on tour, it felt weird to sit still with nothing going on around her. She checked her email, then went to Cody Tuggle’s website. One click on the events page and she saw that they were in Florida tonight.

Good place to be the last week of January.

She got up and poured a cup of coffee, then sat back down. After a show, Cody didn’t wind down until after nine in the morning. He’d be up. She picked up her phone and dialed his cell number.

“Hey, Kasey. I’m so glad you called.”

His enthusiasm reflected her own. Their friendship had grown so much over the last few months. “Not a bad time?”

“No. Everything okay?”

“Yes. Everything’s fine. I was just thinking about y’all and thought I’d check in. I do have some news.”

“About Jake?” Cody sounded hopeful.

“No. Nothing there yet, but I moved.”

“Moved? You just got home.”

“I know. It sounds crazy, doesn’t it?” She explained the whole story—from Chaz Huckaby to the house. Cody seemed to understand her immediate connection to the place.

“I think you did the right thing. You sound good. Real good.”

 
“It’s just a little hard to embrace all the quiet after the pace of the tour.”

 
“You can always come back,” he said as if the answer was obvious. “I
do
have a seat on my plane that’s empty.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll email you the mailing address and phone number in case there’s anything we need to handle on the book. If you ever get back out this way, stop on by.”

“By the way, I need to thank you.”

“Yeah? For what?”

“I have some news, too,” he said.

“What’s that?”

“Annette tracked down Lou for me. She’s divorced. I’m thinking about giving her a call.”

Kasey smiled. “True love. You know it when you feel it. Good luck.”

“Thanks.” His voice softened. “I’m glad you called. We’ve missed you around here. Keep in touch, will you?”

“Count on it.” She hung up feeling connected in a good way.

The weather was chilly, but not as frigid as the first week of February could be. Kasey spent all day Saturday taking pictures and getting to know the new property by snapping off rolls and rolls of film. She’d test out her new darkroom developing the film. She looked forward to that.

The landscape, trees, the goats, and anything that came in view of her lens was fair game. She made a mental note to drive into town and get a book on birds. She’d caught several on film. Beautiful ones. But she had no idea what kind they were, and some things were just more convenient to have in book form rather than having to Google around on the internet.

She liked exploring the place, although it would have been more fun with Dutch by her side. He was good company, but Von convinced her that the old dog would be better off with the familiar surroundings and the constant attention of the 4-H-ers who frequented the Rocking R. It killed her to leave him behind, but the fifteen-year old-dog probably wouldn’t do so well being uprooted. It was the right thing to do for him even if it was hard for her.

It was after five when she came back into the house. She turned up the heat and took a warm bath. Wrapped in her favorite robe, she popped popcorn for dinner.

Accepting Scott’s invitation to his cookout tomorrow had seemed like a good idea at the time, but now she wished she hadn’t accepted. She couldn’t go empty-handed. Nick had stocked several bottles of wine in the rack, but wine didn’t seem like the right thing to take. She hadn’t stocked the pantry yet, but then her cooking skills weren’t that good anyway. She didn’t want to embarrass herself in front of her new neighbors. Maybe she could backtrack her way to the market in the morning and pick up something.

She climbed into bed, exhausted from the fresh air. A dog howled in the distance and she wondered if it might be a coyote. Not that she’d ever heard a coyote howl, except in those spooky Halloween soundtracks. Taking in a couple of long, cleansing breaths, she reminded herself she was safe here, and tugged the covers over herself.

Kasey’s body clock woke her at seven. She stretched herself out full-length pointing her toes under the sheets. The extra-high mattress required a leap to the floor, as had the one she and Nick had shared before. The height had been no problem for him. He’d been tall. The bed was so high she literally had to climb in and out. She jumped to the ground and raised her hands over her head in an exaggerated gymnast’s flourish, as if she'd nailed the landing.

Nick used to tease her about her bed dismounts, shouting out scores as if he was a judge on
Dancing With the Stars
. He’d built a little stool to keep next to the bed, but she liked the bouncy dismount better. He pretended to spot her sometimes, just so he could cop a feel. As if he needed an excuse for something they both liked anyway

I miss you, Nick.

If Nick and Jake were here, this house would be full of comforting boy howls and playful banter. Instead, it was quiet.

Will I ever get used to the quiet?

Kasey made a cup of coffee, sat at the table in the corner of the kitchen, and looked out over the pastures, fully aware that Nick had this view in mind when he designed this space. She closed her eyes and squeezed her coffee cup. Tears tickled her bottom lashes. She felt the familiar warmth of Nick in the room. She blinked and shook off the thought. It was still too hard to go there—the wounds still too fresh when she missed him as she did now.

If she was going to find something suitable to take to Scott’s cookout, she needed to get busy. She got dressed and drove to town without one wrong turn. There weren’t large quantities of anything in the little market, but to her surprise there was most anything you could want, including some things you wouldn’t expect—like fishing poles and waders.

Deviled eggs would be easy enough. She could probably pull that off. She’d made them a couple of times. But if she didn’t peel the eggshells off just right, all the eggs would be gouged. That would be embarrassing with people she didn’t know—even with people she did.

She was a photographer, not a cook. She was good at creative stuff. Grem sure as heck never cooked, and it wasn’t something Kasey had ever learned to do. She spotted the waders again and had an idea. Tossing them in the cart, she picked up a few other things and headed to the register, pleased with her purchases. On the drive home, the feeling of accomplishment lifted her mood. She still had plenty of time before Scott picked her up at one.

As she approached the house, she was surprised to see a man leaning against a car in her driveway, his legs and arms crossed, waiting.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Kasey pulled her car to a stop next to him.

“Jeremy? What are you doing here?” she asked as she got out of the car. “Is everything okay?”

“Housewarming. I brought presents.” He lifted a big basket with a gingham kitchen towel draped across the top.

Kasey started to hug him, but a sweet aroma captured her attention. She released him and lifted the cloth draped over the basket. “What smells so
—L
emon poppyseed?”

“Of course.”

“My favorite. I can’t believe you drove all the way out here to bring me muffins. How did you find it? My GPS couldn’t even find the address.”

“It’s not that big of a town,” Jeremy said with a slight hesitation. “Internet. You can find anything online. You don’t mind, do you?”

“Heck no, especially when you come with fresh baked goods.”

Jeremy’s face lit up. “How’ve you been?”

“Fine. Great, actually.” She walked back to her car to get the groceries. Jeremy followed her, carrying the basket.

“Need some help?”

“Yeah. Thanks.” She loaded his free arm with one bag, lifted the other, and headed to the house. Her expression grew serious. “Did Grem send you to do her dirty work?”

“No. She doesn’t know I’m here. I came on my own.”

“Oh.” She blinked in surprise.

He followed close behind her. “She
has
been down since you left, though.”

“I don’t know why. I’ve only been gone a few days. It’s not like we used to see each other every day.”

He shrugged. “I guess it's just knowing that you’re farther away. She’s not getting any younger, just crankier.”

“You got that right.” She laughed. “She’ll be fine. She has her friends.”

“This time I think it’s different. She had me take her to the doctor yesterday.”

That got Kasey’s attention. “Grem hates the doctor.”

His brows flickered a little, and his dark eyes softened. “I thought you’d want to know.”

Kasey knew she should check on Grem, but all their conversations ended up being about her moving into the carriage house, and that wasn’t going to happen. It made her feel guilty as hell.

“Is she okay?”

“Seems to be. They ran some blood work. I guess she’ll hear those results next week. I’ll keep you posted.”

“Thanks.”

Jeremy put the basket on the kitchen table. “Nice place. How do you like living out here?”

“I love it.”

He raised a brow. “I can’t picture you this far out in the country.”

She unloaded the shopping bags. “It’s not like I’m beating my laundry on a rock or dipping water out of a well.”

“It’s a lot farther away than you were before.”

“True.” She leaned against the counter. “I’m surprised Nick never mentioned this place to you and Grem. He never was good at keeping a secret,” she said. “Seems like he would’ve told someone.” She shrugged, not really expecting an answer.

“Didn’t look like there were any fast food or delivery places nearby. You could starve out here.”

“I’ll just have to cook.”

“Is that burnt popcorn I smell?” He sniffed. “Hope he installed a smoke alarm.”

“Ha ha, so I’ll know when dinner is done. Funny. And yes. That’s what I had for dinner last night.”

Kasey was happy to see Jeremy, but she didn’t have much time before Scott came to pick her up. She hadn’t expected the unannounced company. Even though Scott wasn’t a date, she’d feel awkward if Jeremy was there when he arrived. She needed to get a move on. How was she going to get rid of Jeremy without being rude? She put the rest of the groceries away. She put the waders, a potted mum, and some ribbon on the table.

“What are you doing?” Jeremy asked, pulling up a chair.

“A project.” She took a pair of scissors out of the kitchen drawer and cut one of the waders down to a manageable size that would hold the potted plant. She folded the top of the boot over, cut slits in a row around it, ran a ribbon through the slits and tied a perfect bow. She wiggled the pot down into the boot until the bright flowers nestled into place.

“Cute,” Jeremy said.

“I’m not done. Wait here. Be right back.” She rushed down the hall into the darkroom. She dug through bins full of pictures that weren’t keepers but were too good to toss, and found what she was looking for. As she turned to stand, she slammed right into Jeremy. Her heart leaped into her throat.

“You scared me to death.” She swatted him on the arm and took a deep breath, hoping to slow her racing heart. “I didn’t hear you come up behind me.” She was inexplicably irked.

“Sorry. I followed you.”

Kasey pushed past him. “Don’t scare me like that again.”

“See. You are antsy about living out here, aren’t you?”

Irritated by his mocking tone, Kasey said, “No. Not at all.” Why was he challenging her?

She took the handful of photos back to the kitchen table.

“Well, I won’t hold you up. I just wanted to let you know about your grandmother and see how you were settling in. Give you the housewarming gift.”

She wiped her hands on her pants. Thank goodness. He was finally going to leave. She still needed to get ready. “I’ll walk you out. Oh, and thanks for the muffins. The dish towel matches the kitchen. That was sweet. ”

He just stood there for a moment, which was a little awkward. She made her way toward the door, hoping he would follow. He did, and she walked him to the car. He got into the car and rolled down the window, tossing something her way. She caught it in mid-air, then opened her hand. A butterscotch candy.

Of course.

She waved, feeling a little bad for being annoyed by his surprise visit.

Back in the kitchen, she cut the pictures and positioned them onto the boot, gluing and layering them into place. She hadn’t decoupaged anything in a long time. Hopefully the lacquer would dry before Scott arrived. She opened the first drawer in the kitchen to toss the butterscotch candy into it. There were already a few in there.

Old habits.
Jake had probably emptied his little pockets in here on his visits. Before meals, it was their routine for Jake to empty his pockets of all his collections into the kitchen junk drawer. She missed that. Sometimes he’d have little army men or rocks, and oftentimes candy or Lucky Charms marshmallows that he’d tucked away.

She took a deep breath and turned her attention to the project before she got all misty-eyed. The planter turned out so cute, she thought about keeping it for herself. She gently placed it into a large paper sack and set it next to the door before she changed her mind.

She showered, blew her hair dry, and put on jeans and her favorite denim shirt. Her wide leather belt popped as she tugged it through the loops. She twisted to get a good look in the mirror, and pouffed the bottom of her shirt.

The idea of the cookout—of meeting a bunch of strangers—made her stomach queasy.
It’s just a casual get-together, and the chance to meet new neighbors.
She shoved her hands into her back pockets and rocked side to side, trying to burn her excess energy.

A few minutes later, Scott pulled the Thunderbird into the driveway. Even though she expected to see it this time, the sight of the car still made her heart skip a beat.

Scott tooted the horn twice.

Kasey picked up her camera bag, grabbed the paper sack, slammed the door behind her, and went outside to meet him.

“Hey, girl,” Scott said as he climbed out of the car.

“Hey, yourself.” She walked to the passenger side.

He followed behind her and closed the door after she’d settled into the seat. With a click of the lap belt, she was ready to go. “All set.”

Scott got into the car and nodded toward the paper sack, her purse and the camera bag all shoved onto the floor board. “Do you ever travel light?”

“I have to have my camera with me. Occupational hazard.”

“I suppose.” He pointed to the side of the house. “Who does the RV belong to?”

“Me.”

He gave her a sidelong glance. “
You
drive that thing?”

“Yep. For work. I used to do a lot of work on the road before I married Nick. That
thing
is fully equipped—darkroom and all my backdrops, lighting and stuff. A self-contained photo studio. I haven’t used it much over the last couple of years, but I’m afraid no one would be interested in buying it.”

“Sounds cool.” He nodded, looking impressed, then put the car in reverse and backed out of the long driveway.

Big puffy cotton-candy clouds filled the sky. The kind of clouds that somehow never get in the way of the sunshine, even though they’re everywhere.

The silence was a bit awkward. Kasey asked, “How far away do you live?”

“About eight miles.”

“You said your mom lives out this way?”

His mouth curved as if he was on the verge of laughter. “She lives at the other end of Nickel Creek, near the river.”

“I haven’t been to that end of the road yet.”

He turned to her, his thick hair skimming his shirt collar in the back. “It’s nice. There’s a boat ramp down that way, too. Most people take Bradford Junction Road to get to it, though, so your road is pretty quiet.” Scott looked relaxed, one of his arms propped on the console as he drove.

“Yeah. It is quiet. I think I’ve seen two cars in the last two days.” She looked out the window as he turned off the main road. “Hey, this is a regular neighborhood.”

He chuckled. “What did you expect? Cows?”

“Quit laughing. But yeah, maybe.”

He drove past the row of houses, a mishmash of new and turn-of-the-century buildings. Scott’s house was at the very end of the road, nestled amidst huge old trees. “The river runs behind the house,” he said as he parked the car.

He offered to help her with her bags, but she insisted on carrying them herself. Kasey followed closely behind him to the side door. She could see the water from there.

“You
are
right on the water.”

“Yep. I grew up on these rivers, boating and fishing with my dad.” He pointed down the slope to a boathouse and dock. “I have a pontoon boat and a fishing boat. We’ll have to go out sometime.”

“That sounds like fun.”

Inside, the house was tidy but lacked a feminine touch. It had an open floor plan. From where she stood, she could see the living room, dining room and kitchen. In the living room, a stone fireplace stretched across one entire wall. Its heavy wooden mantel appeared to be hand-carved. Oversized leather and suede furniture looked comfortable enough to nap in. She found herself mentally redecorating the place in something other than shades of brown.

The kitchen was huge and very upscale. It looked like something off the Food Network, with tons of cabinets and a fancy multi-burner gas range. It even had two ovens. An array of food cluttered the counter, an assortment of pots nearby. She felt totally inadequate already.