Southern Comfort (9 page)

Riley's plan was to put everything in his truck and take it to the bar. That way Cody could take it to the ranch where Analise was staying. He would have done just that if he had not seen the treasure box she'd been working on.

He was downright shocked. It might have been something she purchased unfinished, one of those cookie-cutter chests you can buy about anywhere, but she'd turned it into something special. It was clear that she'd not only listened to what he'd told her, but had done one hell of a job and added her own touches to boot.

The finish looked to be a mix of stain colors that had resulted in a honey tone with some rust overtones that gave it a slightly aged look. She'd let the stain build up in the crevices of the carvings on the top to make them stand out, and she'd somehow gotten a pattern created along the edges so that it appeared to have an inlaid border.

He was not only impressed, but curious as to how she'd done it. Riley knew the kind of time it took to create something that beautiful. It was sanded  smooth as glass and had a polished rather than sealed look, which spoke to him of many hours of oiling and buffing. He knew the care and love that went into something like this, and that spoke volumes to him.

God help him but that that wooden chest did it. It didn’t matter what the women in his past had done to hurt him. She wasn’t them. She was Annie. His Annie. The woman who was trying to rebuild her life with the same care and focus as she built this chest. He had to take it to her. Had to see her and try and make things right between them. Whatever right was.

He coasted to a stop in front of the house and sat there staring while trying to figure out what he was going to say. The front door opened and Analise stepped out onto the porch. She didn't smile or wave, just stood there watching, her hands crammed in the pockets of her jeans.

Riley climbed out of the truck and reached over the side, into the bed to lift out the chest. When he turned toward the house, Analise's hands had moved. The fingers of both hands now covered her mouth.

He walked to the house and up the steps, his eyes on her. He could see the glistening in her eyes and once he was on the porch looking down at her, knew that glistening was tears that had gathered and were threatening to spill over.

"I knew you'd want this. You did a real fine job on this, Annie."

"Thank you, Riley."

"So I'm fully back to Riley?"

"My friend Riley saved me from a snake. And only my friend Riley would know how important this is to me. Nate Bridges wouldn't."

"Then can I come in?  I don't know what you got in here, but it's getting a might heavy."

She smiled, brushed at the tears and opened the door for him.

"Where you want me to put this?"

"Could you put it on the kitchen table for now?"

"Yep."

He walked into the kitchen and stopped short. His stop must have been more abrupt than he realized because she ran right into the back of him.

"Oh sorry. What's wrong?"

"What happened?" Riley had been in Cody's house a lot of times and not once had he ever seen the kitchen this clean.

"What do you mean?"

"It's clean."

"Oh," she laughed and pushed at him. "I didn't have anything to do so I cleaned."

Riley set the chest on the table and ran his hand over it. "You did a hell of a job on this Annie."

"Why have you called me Annie since I got here?  You never did before."

He turned to face her and for a moment they were both frozen, gazes locked. "Analise is the woman who lived in New York. She wouldn't take off across the country in an RV all by herself. Annie – well, Annie's the woman who would. She'd drive all the way to Texas to meet a friend and she'd create something as beautiful as this chest, putting in the hours, giving it the time and love it deserved so its beauty could be revealed."

Analise had never heard anything as wonderful or beautiful as those words. She couldn't stop the tears that spilled down her cheeks.

"Damn, Annie. I didn't mean to make you cry."

She shook her head and laughed through the tears. "I think that's the nicest thing anyone has said to me in … in a very long time. Thank you."

Riley reached over to cup the side of her face with his hand, his thumb brushing away the last of the tears. Once more their gazes locked and they were frozen in place. Annie could barely breathe. The touch of his hand evoked emotions and reactions that were almost overwhelming. His eyes held something – some emotion that held her spellbound.

Finally he smiled. "Just sayin' it like it is. Now, about this chest…"

His hand moved away and he turned to the chest. "How did you create this border?  It looks like a wood inlay."

"Oh!" Analise mentally shook herself, trying to regain mental composure. She opened the chest and took out a case. "This." It was a Dremel tool. "I used a metal ruler as a guide and carved the little depression and then created the pattern. If you go really easy it makes it look kind of like little chunks of wood that have been glued down."

"And the colors?"

"I bought different stains and painted it with a little brush and then I put a finish coat of the tung oil and didn't buff it and it made it really shiny."

Riley leaned over, placing his hands on the table to study the chest. "This is really fine work, Analise."

"Annie." She said quietly and when he looked at her in surprise, she smiled. "Please, I think I like that better."

"Well, so do I. And I'm really impressed, Annie. In fact, I'm working on a piece for Stella and Billy – Cody's parents. Billy took a spill a few weeks back and kind of demolished a side table they had in their living room that was from Stella's folks. He wanted to make it up to her so I'm making a replacement. I'm not too good on the intricate stuff, but I have some pictures so maybe you could help me with me."

"I'd love to." She was thrilled that he would ask.

"Yeah?"

"Yes."

"Well good. Maybe I could come by tomorrow morning and take you over to my place. I'd planned on working on it tomorrow."

"Aren't you going to the festival tomorrow?"

"Naw. I'll be there tonight and that'll be enough for me. But if you'd rather go to—"

"No, I wouldn't. I'd love to come help you in your shop. I've been so curious about it; I'm dying to see it."

"It's not much to see."

"It is to me."

"Well good then, it's a date."

A date?  She had a date with Riley? She felt a flutter of excitement. "Yes it is."

Her phone rang and she looked pulled it from her back pocket. "It's Cody."

"Go ahead."

She gave him a smile and answered. "Hey Cody. I was just talking with Riley…. Yes, he brought some of my things from the RV. I hope you don't mind. Oh!  Ok, hold on and I'll ask."

She moved the phone slightly away from her face and looked at Riley. "Cody wants to know if it'd be too much trouble for you to give me a ride to the bar. Hannah is going to be late and Billy is busy with the pig so it's going to be a while before she can come get me."

"Be happy to."

"Thanks." She smiled and lifted the phone back to her ear. "He will. Thanks, Cody. See you later."

She put the phone down on the table and looked at Riley. "So what time do you want to go?"

"Around six?"

"Works for me."

"Oh, I almost forgot. Jimmy said he made some calls and he thinks he can fix your rig but it will take three to four weeks more to get the parts."

"That long?"

"Is that long?"

"Well, it is when you're imposing on someone. I don't know if Cody will want me around that long."

"If you keep her kitchen this clean she will. And between you and me, since you can cook that's a bonus. That girl can burn water."

Analise chuckled. "Then I guess I'll just have to ask her."

"Well, if she says no and you can cook, I'll put you up."

"Really?"

"It's the least a friend can do."

Riley saw the surprise and something else register on Annie's face and for the third time since he'd walked into the house, their eyes locked. Damn if there wasn't something enticing there, the way her eyes darkened a bit and the slight flush that bloomed on her cheeks.

It inspired thoughts he'd not had in a while. Sure there were lascivious thoughts, but Annie inspired imaginings of long walks at sunset, slow dances and kisses that could make a man lose track of time. It shocked him and it made him a bit nervous. Nervous enough that he moved away, went to the refrigerator and pulled out a pitcher of tea

"So, what does your family think about you being stranded in Cotton Creek?" He searched the cupboards for a glass.

"David thought the whole thing was hilarious and told me I should use it in a book."

Riley took his glass back to the refrigerator and opened up the freezer section at the top. There was a pail of ice inside. He filled his glass and then looked at Annie. "Want me to fix you a glass?"

"No thanks. I've had enough coffee today that my caffeine quota is way over the line."

Riley chuckled. "So, your son is okay with you being here?" He filled his glass with tea and made another trip back to the refrigerator to put the pitcher away.

"Yes."

"What about your husband?"

There was dead silence. Riley turned to look at her. "Annie?"

She just stood there, smile gone from her face and her stance one of tension.

"You okay, Annie?"

She nodded and looked away for a moment. "I…I didn't tell you everything about my leaving New York."

"Oh?"

"I left for good. Left him."

Riley leaned back against the counter. "I know you'd had some …some trouble."

"Oh, like him cheating on me for the last three years with some woman young enough to be his daughter, and his family being investigated for fraud and money laundering and him threatening to burn the house down with me in it?  Yeah, we've had some trouble."

Riley was shocked. He knew Annie had not been all that happy and that she'd mentioned she was thinking of leaving but he figured it was just a couple going through a rough patch. "Investigated?"

She nodded again. "I think he's going to prison, Riley. And even if he doesn't, I can't see the point in staying. He doesn't love me. He's in love with that girl. And oddly, that doesn't even hurt because I realized that I don't love him either.”

As she spoke she realized that her words weren’t empty. Whatever hurt Rick had given with his infidelity had faded. She’d lost her love for him long before now.

"The man I married disappeared a long time ago. He went into business with his family and became someone I didn't know and didn't really want to. I stayed for David, but he's grown now, all moved into an apartment in Cambridge and excited about his life.

"There's nothing left for me there. So, I left him."

"And bought an RV and toured the country."

That brought the ghost of a smile to her face. "Yes. And came to Texas. I got to see my friend Katie, and make a new friend in Cody and I got to meet you. And that makes it worth it."

"So, I guess if you're not planning on going back it doesn't much matter how long it takes to fix your rig."

"You're absolutely right." This time the smile that formed on her face was full blown. "I'm free to do what I want. And right now there's nowhere else I'd rather be."

That tore it. Annie was not married. Well, she was, but she'd left her cheating husband so she was a free woman. Riley couldn't handle what ripped through him. He and Annie were friends and no friends should be thinking what he was thinking at the moment. She was free and all he wanted was to get his hands on her.

"Then let's get the rest of your stuff out of the truck."

"Okay."

Together they went out to his truck. There wasn't all that much, but it took two trips. They piled everything in the front room. "I think I should call Cody and ask her about staying before I haul this to the room that she let me use."

"Okay. I need to get back home, and take care of a couple of things. Be back at six."

"All right. I'll be ready."

She walked him to the front porch and when he turned to face her, she reached out and gave his arm a gentle squeeze. "I'm glad you came over, Riley. I was really nervous about seeing you."

"Oh, because of the –"

"Yes, the movie star thing. You're always going to be that, you know. It’s part of who you are, but I'm glad I can see you for you – for Riley, I mean. And if you don't mind me saying so, I think he just might be every bit as special as Nate."

Riley was in motion before he could stop himself. His hand reached out to cup her face. "Annie."

"Yes?" Her eyes searched his and what he saw in them slayed him. If he didn't leave now he was going to make a huge mistake.