Unfinished (13 page)

Chapter Seventeen

I woke slowly
the next morning. I was in that warm and cozy mode where I didn’t even want to
move.  The fog in my head began to fade as memories of the night before became
clear in my head again.  It was then that I became aware of the warm arms that
had me encircled.   

His skin was
warm against me, like a personal heater. I liked it more than I probably
should.  I felt him stir behind me and then his breath warm against my ear.
“Good morning.” His voice was raspy from sleep.  I liked the way it sounded.

I turned in
his embrace so that I was facing him.  His hair was a mess and his gray eyes
were still sleepy.  I wanted to take this moment and freeze it.  I wanted to be
able to remember him just like this. This was a side of him that I had never
seen and it was quickly becoming one of my favorites.

“Hi,” I smiled,
a little shy.

“You’re
wearing a shirt.” His fingers pulled at the strap of my top and he frowned.  I
giggled.

“I put it on
last night. I was cold,” I admitted.  Really, I’d just had to pee and the idea
of getting back into bed completely naked had left me feeling a little
vulnerable.  So I’d put my panties and tank back on before crawling back into
bed. 

“I wasn’t
keeping you warm enough?” he asked moving me in closer to him.  I snuggled into
his warm chest, taking in his scent and loving the warmth of his skin against
my cheek.

“No worries, I
am toasty warm right now,” I said.

Owen ran his
fingers down along my arm, leaving a familiar hum along my skin.  I was content
and happy laying here.  I didn’t want to think about anything else, just that I
felt blissful lying in his arms. Last night had moved us forward on this
confusing path, but I wasn’t ready to examine what it all meant just yet.  I
could do that later, when I was alone.

“So, I was
thinking,” he said, pulling me from my fog.  I could feel his voice against his
chest and the sensation made me smile. “You want to go with me to see Granny
today?  I told her that I’d come see her, and I know that she would be thrilled
to see you.”

I looked up at
him and smiled.  “Yeah?” I asked.  I adored Owen’s grandmother. Owen and I had
spent a lot of time out there when we were younger and when I’d lost my own
grandparents I had kind of adopted his.  They were genuine and I loved them.

“Yeah.  I mean
I don’t know what you have planned for today, but I’d love for you to come with
me.”

“I would love
to go see Granny.  It’s been so long. I miss her.” The idea made me excited. 
It felt right.  “Let’s go!” I moved to get up, but he pulled me back down.

“Hold on.  I’m
not done with this yet,” he said pulling me to him again.  I settled myself
back into the crook of him and sighed, content. 

“I guess we
can wait a little longer.”

After I
showered and dressed, I made breakfast and coffee while Owen showered.  We had
somehow settled into a nice comfortable space together.  I tried not to give it
too much thought.  That was my motto for now. I knew there was a lot of
complicated mess around us, but for now, I just wanted to enjoy this time with
him.  I didn’t want to think about where it was going…or where it wasn’t.  So I
locked it all away and decided to just enjoy our day and whatever it brought to
us.

We had to take
a cab to pick up the Jeep from the bar.  Once we had it retrieved we started
out towards the small town of Butler, where we’d grown up. I was excited to see
Granny.  She was a special lady and had always been kind to me.  Sometimes, I
would go over with Owen, and while he’d be out working on the old cars with his
grandpa she would teach me to cook her southern specialties and we would talk
for hours.  I hated that I had lost touch with her too.  I especially hated
that I hadn’t been around when she’d lost Grandpa.  She had spent many afternoons
telling me all about when they’d fallen in love and I hated that I hadn’t been
there when she and Owen had gone through that loss.  It would be strange to be
there without him.

“How is she
doing without him?” I asked.  I had let him drive after he insisted.  I liked
letting him drive me around.  

“She’s good.
She’s always been a fighter.  It was hard at first.  I still worry about her
being out there all alone, but she has a good group of people looking out for
her.  She misses him. We both do.”  His eyes took on a sadness and I was sorry
that I’d brought it up.

“I’m sorry,
Owen.  I know how much you loved him,” I touched his arm and he turned and gave
me a smile.

“Thanks, Kit
Kat.” He took my hand in his and rested it on the console between us. 

We pulled up
to the house and it was just as I remembered. It was a big farm house, painted
white with dark blue shutters.  I spotted the porch swing on the big wrap
around porch and smiled.  I had a thing for porch swings.  Owen pulled up to
the house and parked.  I could tell he was excited to be here too. 

“Let’s go see
Granny.” He gave me a grin and jumped out.  He came over to my side and opened
my door. 

“Thanks,” I
smiled as he helped me from the car like a gentleman.  Granny had taught him
well.

Owen kept my
hand as we walked up towards the house.  He didn’t bother knocking and we went
in.  I was suddenly washed in memories.  It was like a blanket of comfort and
home.  I squeezed his hand as I took it all in. 

“Gran, we’re
here,” he called out. 

“In the
kitchen, Honey,” her voice greeted us.  Owen led us through the living room and
back to the kitchen.  My smile was huge when we turned the corner and saw her
at the counter, hands in the flour as she worked dough into a pie crust.  ,

“Hey Granny,” he
moved towards her and her face lit up. 

“Oh, Boy, it’s
about time you were here.  I have missed your face.” She gave him a big hug;
careful not to get him covered in flour. 

“Me, too, Gran. 
I brought someone with me.” He winked at her and then Granny looked over in my
direction. 

“Dear, Lord,
it’s Ally!” She moved towards me and I laughed.

“Hi, Granny,”
I smiled, giving her a hug.  Her body felt fragile, but welcoming.

“I can’t
believe it.  Where have you been? It’s so good to see you.  You sure are a
beautiful girl,” she smiled warmly at me.

“It’s been too
long,” I agreed. 

She shook her
head and looked from me to Owen.  “It’s good to see you two together again,”
her eyes sparkled as she moved back to her pie making. “Now, Owen, grab us some
sweet tea and take a seat.  We have lots to catch up on.”

Sweet tea in
hand, Owen and I each took a seat at the counter to watch her work.  “What kind
of pies are you making, Gran?” Owen asked her as we settled in.

“This one is
apple, but I’m also gonna make a lemon one,” she smiled, pressing the crust
into the glass pie pan. 

“Yum.  I have
sure missed your pie,” I admitted.  I’d tried to make my own versions over the
years, the way she’d taught me, but they never tasted as good.

“Well, you can
help me with this one if you want. Just like old times,” she said giving me a
wink.

“I would love
to,” I said. 

“Grab yourself
an apron so you don’t get that pretty dress dirty. Owen, honey, do you mind
doing me a couple of favors?  I have some lights that need changing and there
is a loose board on the back steps that needs fixing.  I hate to make you work
while you are here, but I’d love it if you could help me out,” she gave him a
sweet smile and I saw a bit of Owen in it.  It was one of those smiles that
could get you to do anything. 

“Of course. 
I’ll do it now, while you two catch up.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek and
headed off to grab some tools for the porch.

Granny gave me
a conspiratorial look and grabbed a big mixing bowl for the pie filling.  She
pushed some of the ingredients my direction and a faded recipe card that I knew
that she had no need for. 

“So tell me,
Ally, what have you been up to?  How have you been?” she asked me as she
returned to her dough for the second pie. 

“Oh, just the
normal stuff. I live in Nashville now.  I work for a marketing company there. 
I really love it,” I smiled peeling up some tart green apples.

“That’s good. 
It’s good to enjoy your work.  But what else?  You aren’t married?” she asked
nodding to my hands, where there was no ring.

“No.  Haven’t
crossed that off the list yet,” I smiled at her.

“It’s nice to
see you and Owen spending time together.  He sure did miss you when you stopped
coming around.  I always thought that the two of you had something special,”
she gave me a pointed look and I felt the blush creep across my cheeks.

“Oh, Granny,
we’re just friends, you know that,” I smiled. She gave me a look that said I
wasn’t fooling her.

“Maybe you
have always been friends, but you are good for him.  I worry about him
sometimes, up there in that big city.  All he does is work and try to make more
money.  I worry that he’ll forget about the important things that make a life. 
But seeing you here with him, I worry a little less.”

I thought
about her words. I’d like to think that I could remind him of the important
things, but I knew him and the intense need he had to make something important
of himself.  He needed that kind of security.  It was important to him. He let
it define his success.

“He works
hard. He’s always wanted to do big things,” I said.

“I know.  He
had a lot of bad examples in his life. I can’t fault him for putting those
things first.  But I wish he’d let go a little.  There is a lot more to life than
money and success. Those are the things that I always wanted to teach him.  I
don’t want him to miss out on those things.  When it’s over, those are the
things that matter,” her voice took on a reminiscent one and I smiled at her.

“He’ll get
there.  He just has to prove something to himself first,” I assured her. I
wasn’t sure that I believed that, but I knew it was important to her.  It was
important to me too. 

By the time
that we had the pies in the oven, Owen had returned from his chores and had
joined us at the kitchen table. We chatted away and got caught up on local
happenings and told old stories.  It was nice and I clung to the moment and the
sense of peace and home that came with it.

As the
afternoon wore on Granny started to get tired and told us she needed to rest a
little before dinner.  Owen wanted to go and check on the barn where his
Grandpa’s old cars were stored.  I followed him outside where he had parked an
old four wheeler. 

“Hop on, Kit
Kat,” he smiled patting the seat behind him. 

“You aren’t
going to let me drive?” I asked giving him a pout.  He laughed.

“Uh, no. 
Sorry.  But I’ll let you hold on tight,” he waggled his eyebrows at me and I
rolled my eyes.

“Lucky me,” I
said sarcastically.  But as I climbed on and wrapped my arms around his waist,
feeling the hard muscles beneath his shirt, I knew that I was indeed very lucky.

We rode down
to the old barn and parked.  “I kind of wish that it had taken longer to get
here. I like the way it feels when you hold on to me like that,” he said,
keeping my arms wrapped around him, pulling them tighter.  I liked it too.   

“Well, you get
to drive me back eventually,” I laughed. 

“True. I’ll
take the long way,” he grinned as he released me and got off of the 4 wheeler. 
He turned to help me off. “Ally, you know you and these sundresses are going to
be the death of me,” he gave me a serious look and I laughed.

“What?  It’s
warm.  I have to take advantage of it while I can.  It’s gonna turn cold soon,”
I said swinging my leg over so that I was sitting in front of him.  He placed a
hand on each thigh and I shivered as he moved them across the bare skin beneath
my skirt. 

“Hmmm, well,
maybe I should take advantage of the warm weather too,” he offered, rubbing his
thumb across my skin.  I felt the fire begin to heat.  It was always lying in
wait, close to the surface, waiting for a simple touch to ignite it to full
flame.

“You could,” I
agreed.  I saw his gaze darken as he moved closer to me. 

“You are
dangerous,” he smirked.  He moved one hand to my face, brushing my hair behind
my shoulders.  “I want to kiss you…but with you I always get carried away.” He
made no move to put space between us.  I rested my hands against his chest and
held his gaze.  I ran my teeth against my bottom lip at the anticipation of his
kiss. 

“You aren’t
playing fair,” he said darkly.

“Kiss me,” I
said, my voice quiet. 

He didn’t
question me. He brought up his other hand and cradled my face and then covered
my mouth with his.  It was sweet, tender.  I could feel the passion building,
but he held back and kept the kiss slow and gentle.  It melted me.  His tongue
moved slowly against mine as he took his time tasting me.  It was perfect.

He broke the
kiss and smiled down at me.  “Killing me,” he muttered.  I smiled and he helped
me down to my feet.  He kept my hand in his as we moved to the old barn.  Owen
opened up one of the stalls and as we walked in, I noticed the row of old gems lined
up in a row.

“Wow, look at
these!” I took in the history and the pride of Grandpa Jack.  I counted six old
beauties.  I couldn’t identify what they all were but they were all amazing.

“They are
great aren’t they?  He loved these cars.  He had a story behind each one. I
used to love coming out here and working on them with him.  Those are some of
my favorite memories.  I should come here more and finish what we started,” he
said. His voice sounded far away as he ran his hand across the black paint of
an old Chevelle.  That one had always been my favorite.