Chapter 1
It has all the makings of a good night. One of the kinds of nights that came around so few times. His daughter Lauren was at a friend’s house, and his wife Rebecca finally had a night off from the hospital where she worked as a nurse. So far, things have gone exactly the way Randall Morris planned.
The last several months were one struggle after another for the couple when it came to making time to be a family. He worked nearly non-stop at his remodeling business. One of the jobs proved far more complex than he had planned, putting him far behind schedule. Hardly a weekend passed since early summer when he and his crew were not putting in tremendous amounts of overtime. All the overtime caused conflict at home. Just his luck after an abnormally busy winter also kept him away from home.
Another source of conflict with Rebecca was the sunporch. The project started a few months ago and still needed to be finished. He worked on it during the weekends when he did not have more significant projects that needed his attention. Part of the problem of owning your own business was that if things needed to be done, you were usually the one to do them. Sure, he had guys who worked for him, but his reputation was on the line, and he prided himself on a well-done job. So, the restoration of the sunporch continued to drag on longer than it would have if he were a client. Still, it was coming along, and he would finally get back to work on it this weekend.
He checked his watch and saw it was close to the time for Rebecca to arrive home. Quickly, he picked out his best shirt and ran the iron over it several times. He moved to the bathroom and combed his hair. His beard was beginning to show more gray than brown lately, as was the hair on his head. At least he could still say the thickness of his hair had not changed. Satisfied that he was properly attired, he retrieved the small bouquet of flowers he had bought for Rebecca on his way home from lunch.
Rebecca got home at her usual time, not expecting what he planned for them to do this evening. He met her at the door with the flowers.
“Hey,” he said, “These are for you. I hope you like them.”
“They’re beautiful,” Rebecca said. “What’s the occasion?”
“Well, I made reservations at Anderson’s for us tonight.”
“Anderson’s? I’ve been wanting to go there for a while. I guess I should get ready then.”
“You’ve got time; our reservations are at six-thirty.”
“Okay then, looks like you’ve thought of everything. I’ll get ready.”
Randall sat on the sofa and turned on the television while he waited for Rebecca to get ready. Almost an hour passed as he watched the local news. He checked his watch, and tried to reassure himself that they had plenty of time. Tension coursed through him no matter how much he tried to relax. He wanted he night to be perfect.
When she finally emerged from their bedroom, he again shot a quick look at his watch. To his relief it was not quite six. It was only a ten minute ride to the restaurant.
“You look lovely,’ he said. Randall stood and took her hand and kissed it. “Shall we?” he asked.
“Thank you. Lead the way.”
When they arrived, there was a delay of several minutes before their table was ready. The hostess apologized, telling them she would do her best to have the table prepared as soon as possible. It didn’t matter to him; the delay allowed him more time to be with the lovely lady he had married six years ago. That’s what tonight was supposed to be about, reconnecting with her and their marriage. Besides, the food here was well worth the wait.
When the meal came, they were not disappointed. They ordered shrimp and steak, a nice bottle of wine, and even shared a dessert of chocolate cake. As they dined, they talked about the things in their lives and chatted about little things of interest to them. It probably seemed to anyone observing them that they were more like two young people dating than a married couple of six years. It felt nice to have an evening where they did more than pass each other in the hallway before settling into bed. There were nights when they barely spoke a word to each other, and he wanted to change that, starting right here and now.
Rebecca seemed to be enjoying herself. She worked extra hours at the hospital so often that she felt like family time was a memory. She told him a few days ago that she was tired of never seeing him and that he was neglecting his duties around the house. It had been stressful for her, and he knew he did not often make it any easier on her. Later she apologized to him, saying the stress of her job was bringing out the worst in her. He knew she was right. He promised her that things would change. He vowed to be the attentive husband she deserved.
Leaving the restaurant, Rebecca told him she needed to stop by the grocery store to pick up several items to make a dessert for the community bake sale. From the look on his face, Rebecca could tell he was disappointed in the change of plan. She smiled at him, took his hand, and lightly kissed him. She softly whispered, “Relax. Some things are worth waiting for.” He chuckled lightly and drove to a nearby grocery store.
The trip inside the store ended up giving them another opportunity to be together as a couple. Aisle by aisle they collected the things they needed. The whole time Rebecca played with her long brown hair, glancing slyly at him, smiling at just the right time. Oh my god, she’s flirting with me, he thought as their eyes met, causing her to smile at him again. He could feel his desire for her grow with each passing glance, each movement of her body, and every blink of her eyes. Her flirtations made him want her as they eventually made their way to the checkout aisle. Maybe this was not such a bad idea, he thought as the cashier scanned their items.
The drive home seemed to last forever. They lived in a small subdivision outside of Warrenton on Fountain Street. Their house might not have been much, but they made it a lovely home. A happy home, he thought. I’m the luckiest man on the face of the Earth.
After the divorce from his first wife, he had all but given up on finding love again. He had joint custody of his daughter Lauren, and for a time, that was enough. But Lauren was a teenager, and spending a lot of time with Dad was not a big priority to her. So, when he met Rebecca, it was a godsend. It was odd at first. Rebecca was several years younger, and he worried she and Lauren would not get along. Their relationship was a bit rocky initially, but Lauren seemed to accept Rebecca, even telling him she wanted her dad to be happy.
The romance didn’t happen all at once, but the two began seeing each other more and more over time. Before Randall knew it, they were in love and planning on spending their lives together. They got married, and like every married couple, they had differences, spats, big arguments, and disagreements. Yet he never went to bed mad at her, at least not that he could remember. Despite all their problems, they were happy and still very much in love. She was his dream come true.
Finally, they arrived home. They carried in their groceries and put away the things that needed to be refrigerated. As Rebecca stood up from putting the heavy cream into the refrigerator, he took her by her waist and began kissing her neck. She giggled and turned to place her arms around him. She pressed her lips to his, and the rest began to happen naturally. Soon they were in their bedroom, undressed, bodies intertwined in the heat of passion. Every movement built upon the next one until the inevitable release. They lay gazing into each other’s eyes, whispering lovers’ words, wishing they could hold onto the moment forever.
After several more minutes, they partially dressed and returned to the kitchen. Rebecca began putting the ingredients together with his help. She looked around and got a distressed look on her face. “Where is the vanilla extract we bought?” she asked him as she looked through the cabinets.
“I don’t know. It should be on the island. Did you put it in the cabinet?”
“I looked, and it’s not there. Did we leave it off?”
“Don’t think so. Where’s the receipt?” They looked over the receipt, and sure enough, they had left it out of the cart. Rebecca was beside herself with embarrassment. She ran her hand through her hair and shifted on her feet.
“Well, I have to go back to the store,” she said, exhaling a frustrated breath.
“Can’t it wait until tomorrow?” he asked.
“No, it can’t. I don’t want to go back to the store, but I have to. I have to deliver it to the bake sale by eight in the morning. Okay, I’ll run back to the store and be right back.”
“I’ll go with you,” Randall said. “Just let me get my jeans on real quick.”
“No, don’t worry about it. I’ll go. It’s not that big of a deal, I guess.”
“You sure? I don’t mind,” he said, trying to be helpful.
“Really, no. I’m a big girl. I’ll be fine. Besides, we may start over again when we get the cake in the oven.”
“Oh well, okay, Mrs. Morris, if that’s what you want.”
She put on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, slipped on a pair of shoes, grabbed her purse, and left for the store. She promised to be gone only a short time. He watched her drive away and then shut the door. He decided to check on the remodeling job on the sunporch while she was gone.
He walked to the back and inspected the work he had completed. Everything seemed to be coming together nicely. This weekend he would finish sanding the drywall along the seams he mudded a couple of weeks ago. By Sunday evening, he could have the first coat of paint on the walls and, maybe next weekend, finally finish this project. Randall, in his mind, began to plan a Super Bowl party, not that the Rams would make it that far. He always wanted a man cave, and soon he thought his hide-away would finally be ready. This would be his refuge from the worries of the world. A place he could relax.
Suddenly something knocked him to the floor. At first, he thought something had fallen from the ceiling and knocked his breath out. As he tried to rise, he saw the blood on the floor and felt weakness in his left arm. His breathing became short and erratic as he realized this wasn’t an accident. He never knew what happened next. His attacker fired three more shots, and while only two found their mark, it was enough. His last vision was of the floor and the quickly massing pool of blood. Two breaths later, the world faded away forever.
