Salvaged (45 page)

"No clue. Bob won't tell me."

"So he's keeping it all a secret then?"

"Yes. I've tried to pry it out of him, but he won't budge."

"What's he like? Does he treat you well?"

"He's the sweetest boy I've ever met. I think he'd do just about
anything for me."

She leaned forward and placed her face in her hands. "He's a
sweetheart?"

"And a gentleman."

She let out a happy sigh.

"His mother must have raised him well."

"I sure did-I mean, she sure must have."

We laughed just as Riley startled us by walking into the room.
"What are you guys doing in here?"

"Nothing," we answered simultaneously, and I was certain we
sounded guilty.

Marme and I quickly glanced at each other and then busied
ourselves with folding bath towels.

"Who's Bob?" he asked. "I heard somebody mention a guy
named Bob." He stuffed a cookie into his mouth and looked at us as
he waited for a response.

I glanced at his mother and then back at him. "Um, just a guy."

"Just a guy?" he asked with his mouth full.

Here I'd just told his mother what a gentleman he was, and now
he was talking with his mouth full. We'd have to work on that.

"Then why do you look guilty?" he asked.

I panicked at the fear that he would know I was lying. "Guilty?
Do I look guilty?"

"Yes, you big liar, you look totally guilty. Spill it."

I knew it; he caught me red-handed. Riley practically knew me
better than I knew myself.

"Well, Bob is the gentleman that's taking me out on a date
tonight."

I threw my hand over my eyes and waited for his wrath to descend
upon me.

"Oh my Lord! You're talking to my mother about us?"

"No, Riley." She rushed to my defense. "Attie's telling me about
her date tonight with a boy named Bob."

He kicked my chair. "Atticus Elizabeth Reed, you big wimp.
Couldn't you have just told her no when she asked for the details?
She's my mother for cryin' out loud! How embarrassing."

My hand was still covering my face when I heard Pops walk into
the kitchen.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

"Attie's spilling the beans to your nosey wife about our relationship."

"Well, that's embarrassing," his dad said dryly.

I peeked through my fingers at Riley. He was smiling down at
me, so I removed my hand and gave him a weak smile back. "I'm
sorry, Riley. I just needed someone to share it with; that's all."

"You've got a hen house full of friends. Couldn't you talk to one
of them about it?"

"I already do. Besides, its not the same thing."

"Yeah, Riley," Marine said, snapping a towel his direction, "give
us a break. This is what moms and daughters do. We're all we've
got, and if you won't let us talk about it, then as long as you two are
together, neither one of us will ever get to talk boys."

His shoulders dropped as he gave me a sympathetic smile.
"Nothing too personal, Charlie, don't get crazy or anything."

"I won't. I mean really, there isn't much to tell."

He looked over at his dad, who waved his hands in front of him.
"Don't look at me. This is your problem; I'm staying out of it."

Marine and I glanced at each other. We both knew Riley was
caving.

"Fine, enjoy your girl talk," he said, turning and walking out of
the kitchen. "I've got some errands to run. I'll see you later."

"Like I said, he'll do just about anything I ask," I said, grabbing
another towel.

Pops hung his head in shame. "The poor boy never had a chance.
I'd say it's gonna be getting interesting around here."

"Attiline, someone's at the door for you."

"For me?"

"Yes, now get your butt down here."

"You're sounding more and more like one of my parents every day,
bossing me around and all," I teased as I marched down the stairs.

"Good. And just think, in a week I'll be your principal too."

"Lucky me."

I threw open the front door and found Riley standing on the
porch holding a bouquet of yellow roses. As a big grin filled his face,
it felt like all those fireflies we'd captured over the years simultaneously lit up in my chest.

"You ready to go?" he asked.

I could see Pops and Marme in my peripheral vision. "Maybe
you should come in and meet my parents," I joked.

Riley walked into the house and handed me the flowers. "For
you.

"Thank you for the flowers, Riley. They're beautiful."

"Not as beautiful as you."

I looked over at his parents. "Have you met this hopeless boy?"

"He's practically unrecognizable." Pops shook his head. "It's
sickening."

"I think it's adorable," Marme disagreed with her husband.
"Here, Attie, give me the flowers and I'll go put them in water." I
obliged, and the adults left Riley and me standing in the foyer.

This was the first time I'd seen Riley in something other than
jeans or shorts of some kind. He wore a pair of khaki linen slacks
and a brown short sleeve button down shirt. His thick mane lay in
muddled, loose curls on his head. I never understood how he could
pull off such a messy bed head look, but he looked fantastic. I wore
a simple brown summer dress and felt plain compared to his near
perfection.

He took a step toward me and then stopped.

"What?" I asked.

He walked backwards until he was standing on the porch and
then summoned me with his pointer finger for me to join him. As soon as my feet were outside the house, he grabbed me and wrapped
his arms around my body in a tight embrace. I laid my head against
his chest and could hear his heartbeat. It was strong and fast, and I
could only assume that its fierce pounding matched mine.

"I can't believe we're finally going out." He released his grip and
lightly kissed me on the forehead.

"Me either."

"You ready?"

"Let me get my purse. I'll be right back; don't move."

"I'm not going anywhere without you."

He waited as I ran inside, grabbed my purse, said good-bye to
his parents, and met him back out on the porch. I was out of breath,
and it caused Riley to laugh. "I'm ready."

He led me to his car and opened the passenger door for me. The
scent of his cologne permeated the interior of his car. I closed my
eyes and took in several deep breaths.

"You asleep?" he asked as he got in the driver's side.

"No. I'm enjoying the smell of your car. It smells just like you.
We should take your car more often."

"No way. Why do you think I like to take your car everywhere?"

"It smells like me?"

"Oh yeah."

"Where are we going?" I asked as he put his seatbelt on.

"You like steak, right?"

"Love it."

"That's what I thought. We're going to a place in the city that
I've heard is really nice. Very fancy."

"You've never been there?"

"It's our first date. I'm not gonna take you somewhere I've already
been. This will be a first for both of us."

I placed a checkmark into the air. "Add it to the list."

"Good girl." He nodded but kept his eyes on the road in front
of him.

The restaurant was the fanciest one that I'd ever been to. The
woodwork was dark, and there was barely any light overhead. We
laughed at each other as we tried to read our menus by candlelight.

"Good grief, Riley, this place is way too expensive."

"Don't worry about it. We'll have McDonald's next time if that'll
make you feel better."

"Really, you have to pay for everything separately. It's going to
cost a fortune."

He glared at me but didn't say a word.

"All right, all right," I conceded and browsed the small menu.

"Do you want a crab cake to start with?" he asked.

"Yes. That sounds good. Have you decided what you're getting
for the main course?"

"I think I'm gonna get this prime rib-eye. What about you?"

"Same thing. I bet it's huge. Do you want to split a baked potato
or something?"

"Sure."

Our conversation easily flowed as we drank our sodas and ate
the crab cake. When the waiter returned with our meal, he shined
a small flashlight onto our steaks and asked us to cut into them to
make sure they were cooked properly. I tried not to chuckle at the
ridiculousness of the flashlight.

As soon as the waiter walked away, Riley rolled his eyes. "Why
don't they just turn on the dang lights?" He'd read my mind. "Seriously, a flashlight?" He laughed. "I appreciate the whole `ambiance'
thing, but if you have to shine a flashlight on somebody's food for
them to see it, there's a problem."

I giggled as I cut into my steak. "This is romantic, Riley; don't
you get that?"

"Oh, is that romantic? I just thought it was stupid. This restaurant's nice, but I'd like to see you sitting across from me. I can barely
see your face it's so dark in here."

"It adds to the mystery. Just go with it."

"I hate to complain, but between this and the movie, I won't be
able to see you all night. It's a major disappointment."

I picked up the candle and held it up to my face. "Does this
help?" I asked with a big cheesy grin on my face.

"Yes. Just hold that right there all night and I'll be good. Here,"
he said, reaching across the table with his knife and fork. "I'll cut
your steak for you so you don't have to put the candle down."

"Don't you dare." I placed the candle back onto the table.
"They'll kick us out of this place for being too white trash. We must
not appreciate the finer things of life. The steak's good though."

"I'm glad." He winked at me before taking his first bite.

Conversation continued as we finished our meal. We talked
about everything from school to movies and books. The awkwardness wore off, and we were free to be ourselves.

(Riley)

When the movie let out, Attie and I decided to return to town
and go to the park for a while. After arriving, we sat in the car talking
for several minutes before I reached across the dashboard, opened
the glove box, and pulled out a small gift-wrapped box.

Attie squealed. "You got me a gift?"

I laughed as I handed it to her. "Of course." I would never get
tired of seeing her reaction each time I gave her a gift.

She quickly unwrapped the box and opened it.

"Oh, Riley, it's beautiful!" She removed the ring from the box
and held it up to the light.

A round green peridot stone sat in a thin band and halo of tiny
diamonds (at least that's how the saleslady described it to me when
I bought it).

"It's your birthstone," I informed her.

"I love it." She started to place it on her finger, but I stopped her
and motioned for her to hand the ring back to me.

"I wanna ask you something first," I announced.

"You're not going to ask me to marry you, are you?"

"Not yet. That'll come later." I wasn't totally kidding. "But I do
wanna ask you a serious question."

She turned in her seat so that she was facing me. "All right."

"I can't believe I'm finally getting to do this," I admitted.

"Do what?"

"Ask if you will officially be my girlfriend."

A large smile formed on her gorgeous face. "You are?"

"I am." I nodded. "Honestly, there's nothing I want more than
for you to be my girlfriend."

"I'd like that very much."

Slowly grabbing her hand, I slid the ring on her finger. "Look at
that, it looks great on you."

"It's beautiful. It would look great on anyone. I love it; thank
you so much."

"You're welcome."

"Okay, well now I'm sort of embarrassed." She buried her face in
her hands and shook her head.

"Why?"

"I brought a gift for you, but it's nowhere near as great as what
you gave me.

"You got me a gift? No girl has ever given me a gift before."

She peeked out between her fingers. "Another first."

"That's right." I laughed. "Another first. Now can I see my gift?
I'm stoked."