“Hey, Dad.”
Alex looked up. “Catch anything?”
“Just the catfish again. The same one I catch every time.”
“I’ll see you in a little bit for lunch, okay?”
Josh vanished back into the storeroom and Alex heard him padding up the steps to the house.
Outside, the rain came down hard and the wind whipped sheets of water against the glass. Branches bent inthe wind, bowing to a higher power. The dark sky flashed bright with lightning, and thunder boomed, loud enoughto shake the windows. From across the store, Alex saw Katie flinch, her face a mask of surprise and terror, and hefound himself wondering whether it was the same way her husband had once seen her.
The door of the store opened and a man rushed in, trailing water on the old wood flooring. He shook rivulets ofrain from his sleeves and nodded at Alex before finally moving toward the grill.
Katie turned back to the shelf that held crackers. He didn’t have a big selection, just Saltines and Ritz, the onlytwo that sold regularly, and she reached for the Ritz.
She selected her usual items as well and carried her basket to the register. When he finished ringing up andbagging her items, Alex tapped the bag he’d put on the counter earlier.
“Don’t forget the vegetables.”
She glanced at the total on the register. “Are you sure you rang them up?”
“Of course.”
“Because the total isn’t any more than it usually is.”
“I gave you the introductory price.”
She frowned, wondering whether to believe him, then finally reached into the bag. She pulled out a tomato andbrought it to her nose.
“It smells good.”
“I had some last night. They’re great with a touch of salt, and the cucumbers don’t need anything.”
She nodded but her gaze was focused on the door. The wind was driving rain against it in furious waves. Thedoor creaked open, the water fighting to get inside. The world beyond the glass was blurry.
People lingered in the grill. Alex could hear them mumbling to themselves about waiting for the storm to break.
Katie drew a fortifying breath and reached for her bags.
“Miss Katie!” Kristen cried, sounding almost panicked. She stood, brandishing the picture she’d colored. She’dalready torn it from the book. “You almost forgot your picture.”
Katie reached for it, brightening as she examined the picture. Alex noted how—at least for an instant
—everything else in the world seemed to be forgotten.
“This is beautiful,” she murmured. “I can’t wait to hang it up.”
“I’ll color another one for you the next time you come in.”
“I’d like that very much,” she said.
Kristen beamed before sitting at the table again. Katie rolled up the picture, making sure not to wrinkle it, andthen tucked it into the bag. Lightning and thunder erupted, almost simultaneously this time. Rain hammered theground and the parking lot was a sea of puddles. The sky was as dark as northern seas.
“Do you know how long the storm is supposed to last?” she asked.
“I heard it was supposed to last most of the day,” Alex answered.
She stared out the door. As she debated what to do, she toyed again with the nonexistent ring. In the silence,Kristen tugged at her dad’s shirt.
“You should drive Miss Katie home,” she told him. “She doesn’t have a car. And it’s raining hard.”
Alex looked at Katie, knowing she’d overheard Kristen. “Would you like a ride home?”
Katie shook her head. “No, that’s okay.”
“But what about the picture?” Kristen said. “It might get wet.”
When Katie didn’t answer immediately, Alex came out from behind the register. “Come on.” He motioned withhis head. “There’s no reason to get soaked. My car’s right out back.”
“I don’t want to impose…”
“You’re not imposing.” He patted his pocket and pulled out his car keys before reaching for the bags. “Let meget those for you,” he said, taking them. “Kristen, sweetie? Will you run upstairs and tell Josh I’ll be back in tenminutes?”
“Sure, Daddy,” she said.
“Roger?” he called out. “Watch the store and the kids for a bit, would you?”
“No problem.” Roger waved.
Alex nodded toward the rear of the store. “You ready?” he asked.
They made a frantic dash for the jeep, wielding bent umbrellas against the gale-force winds and blankets of rain.
Lightning continued to flash, making the clouds blink. Once they had settled into their seats, Katie used her handto wipe the condensation from the window.
“I didn’t think it would be like this when I left the house.”
“No one ever does, until the storm hits, anyway. We get a lot of the sky is fallingon the weather reports, sowhen something big does hit, people never expect it. If it’s not as bad as the reports predicted, we complain. If it’sworse than expected, we complain. If it’s just as bad as predicted, we complain about that, too, because we’ll saythat the reports are wrong so often, there was no way to know they’d be right this time. It just gives peoplesomething to complain about.”
“Like the people in the grill?”
He nodded and grinned. “But they’re basically good people. For the most part, they’re hardworking, honest,and as kind as the day is long. Any one of them would have been glad to watch the store for me if I’d asked, andthey’d account for every penny. It’s like that down here. Because deep down, everyone here knows that in a smalltown like this, we all need one another. It’s great, even if it did take some time for me to get used to it.”
“You’re not from here?”
“No. My wife was. I’m from Spokane. When I first moved here, I remember thinking that there wasn’t a chanceI’d ever stay in a place like this. I mean, it’s a small Southern town that doesn’t care what the rest of the worldthinks. It takes a little getting used to, at first. But then… it grows on you. It keeps me focused on what’simportant.”
Katie’s voice was soft. “What’s important?”
He shrugged. “Depends on the person, doesn’t it? But right now, for me, it’s about my kids. This is home forthem, and after what they’ve been through, they need predictability. Kristen needs a place to color and dress herdolls and Josh needs a place to fish, and they both need to know that I’m around whenever they need me. Thisplace, and the store, gives them that, and right now, that’s what I want. It’s what I need.”
He paused, feeling self-conscious about talking so much. “By the way, where am I going, exactly?”
“Keep going straight. There’s a gravel road that you’ll have to turn on. It’s a little bit past the curve.”
“You mean the gravel road by the plantation?”
Katie nodded. “That’s the one.”
“I didn’t even know that road went anywhere.” He wrinkled his forehead. “That’s quite a walk,” he said. “What isit? A couple of miles?”
“It’s not too bad,” she demurred.
“Maybe in nice weather. But today, you’d have to swim home. There’s no way you could have walked this far.
And Kristen’s picture would have been ruined.”
He noted the flicker of a smile at Kristen’s name but she said nothing.
“Someone said you work at Ivan’s?” he prompted.
She nodded. “I started in March.”
“How do you like it?”
“It’s okay. It’s just a job, but the owner has been good to me.”
“Ivan?”
“You know him?”
“Everyone knows Ivan. Did you know he dresses up like a Confederate general every fall to reenact the famedBattle of Southport? When Sherman burned the town? Which is fine, of course… except that there was never aBattle of Southport in the Civil War. Southport wasn’t even called Southport back then, it was called Smithville. AndSherman was never within a hundred miles of here.”
“Seriously?” Katie asked.
“Don’t get me wrong. I like Ivan—he’s a good man, and the restaurant is a fixture in this town. Kristen and Joshlove the hush puppies there, and Ivan’s always welcoming whenever we show up. But sometimes, I’ve wonderedwhat drives him. His family arrived from Russia in the fifties. First generation, in other words. No one in hisextended family has probably even heard of the Civil War. But Ivan will spend an entire weekend pointing hissword and shouting orders right in the middle of the road in front of the courthouse.”
“Why have I never heard about this?”
“Because it’s not something the locals like to talk about. It’s kind of… eccentric, you know? Even locals, peoplewho really like him, try to ignore him. They’ll see Ivan in the middle of downtown and they’ll turn away and startsaying things like, Can you believe how beautiful those chrysanthemums are by the courthouse ?”
For the first time since she’d been in the car, Katie laughed. “I’m not sure I believe you.”
“It doesn’t matter. If you’re here in October, you’ll see for yourself. But again, don’t get me wrong. He’s a niceguy and the restaurant is great. After a day at the beach, we almost always stop in there. Next time we come in,we’ll ask for you.”
She hesitated. “Okay.”
“She likes you,” Alex said. “Kristen, I mean.”
“I like her. She’s a bright spirit—a real personality.”
“I’ll tell her you said that. And thanks.”
“How old is she?”
“She’s five. When she starts school in the fall, I don’t know what I’m going to do. It’ll be so quiet around thestore.”
“You’ll miss her,” Katie observed.
He nodded. “A lot. I know she’ll enjoy school, but I kind of like having her around.”
As he spoke, rain continued to sheet against the windows. The sky flashed on and off like a strobe,accompanied by an almost continuous rumble.
Katie peered out the passenger-side window, lost in her thoughts. He waited, somehow knowing she wouldbreak the silence.
“How long were you and your wife married?” Katie finally asked.
“Five years. We dated for a year before that. I met her when I was stationed at Fort Bragg.”
“You were in the army?”
“Ten years. It was a good experience and I’m glad I did it. At the same time, I’m glad I’m done.”
Katie pointed through the windshield. “There’s the turn up ahead,” she said.
Alex turned onto Katie’s road and slowed down. The rough gravel surface had flooded during the downpour,and water splashed up to the windows and over the windshield. As he focused on steering the car through thedeep puddles, Alex was suddenly struck by the thought that this was the first time he’d been alone in a car with awoman since his wife had died.
“Which one is it?” he asked, squinting at the outline of two small cottages.
“The one on the right,” she said.
He turned into the makeshift drive and pulled as close to the house as he could. “I’ll bring the groceries to thedoor for you.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“You don’t know the way I was raised,” he said, jumping out before she could object. He grabbed the bags andran them to her porch. By the time he set them down and began to shake off, Katie was hurrying toward him, theumbrella Alex had lent her clutched in her hands.
“Thanks,” she called out over the noise of the downpour.
When she offered him the umbrella, he shook his head. “Keep it for a while. Or forever. It doesn’t matter. If youwalk a lot around here, you’re going to need it.”
“I can pay you—” she began.
“Don’t worry about it.”
“But this is from the store.”
“It’s okay,” he said. “Really. But if you don’t think you should, then just settle up the next time you’re in thestore, okay?”
“Alex, really—”
He didn’t let her finish. “You’re a good customer, and I like to help my customers.”
It took a moment for her to answer. “Thank you,” she finally said, her eyes, now dark green, fixed on his. “Andthanks for driving me home.”
He tipped his head. “Anytime.”
What to do with the kids: it was the endless, sometimes unanswerable question he faced on weekends, and asusual, he had absolutely no idea.
With the storm in full fury and showing no signs of letting up, doing anything outside was out of the question.
He could take them to a movie, but there was nothing playing that they’d both be interested in. He could simply letthem entertain themselves for a while. He knew lots of parents operated that way. On the other hand, his kids werestill young, too young to be left completely to their own devices. More important, they were already on their own astill young, too young to be left completely to their own devices. More important, they were already on their own alot, improvising ways to keep themselves entertained, simply because of his long hours at the store. He ponderedthe options as he made grilled cheese sandwiches, but he soon found his thoughts drifting to Katie. While shewas obviously doing her best to maintain a low profile, he knew it was almost impossible in a town like this. Shewas too attractive to blend in, and when people caught on to the fact that she walked everywhere, it was inevitablethat talk would start and questions would be asked about her past.
He didn’t want that to happen. Not for selfish reasons, but because she was entitled to the kind of life she’dcome here to find. A normal life. A life of simple pleasures, the kind that most people took for granted: the ability togo where she wanted when she wanted and live in a home where she felt safe and secure. She also needed a wayto get around.