Chapter 1
So much has happened in the past couple of months. She had retired and begun her tour of the country. It was something she had been dreaming about doing her whole life and something she had thought her best friend, Jessica, was going to accompany her on. But Jessica had changed since their college years. She used to be so outgoing and vivacious. Now she seemed almost mousy and introverted.
It had taken a lot of talking to convince Jessica to accompany Mariah on the first part of her national tour but they had had several mishaps starting right from the very first. It hadn’t helped that they had met Carl and Duane. It had been love at first sight for both Jessica and Duane, so it turned out Jessica would not be continuing on with her for the rest of the trip. But that wasn’t going to stop Mariah.
If Mariah was honest with herself, the RV wasn’t really big enough for any more than two people and those two people needed to be a couple who shared her queen sized bed. The makeshift bed that Jessica had slept on for almost two weeks had been ok for a temporary situation but for a whole year? Mariah knew she wouldn’t have been able to do it either, so she didn’t blame Jessica for backing out of the rest of the trip, especially when the alternative was a hunky Adonis that looked like Duane.
Mariah and Jessica had met Carl and Duane at the same time and it was love at first sight for Jessica and Duane. Mariah couldn’t deny that she and Carl had been instantly attracted to each other and while she had felt that she had sent very obvious signals that she wanted him to kiss her, he had hesitated and it left Mariah feeling that he wasn’t as attracted to her as she had been to him.
When she and Jessica had left on the first leg of the trip, Mariah was unsure if it was just a strong physical attraction or if it could have been something more. But as the trip progressed it began to become clear to her that the attraction must have been all one sided. After all, he had made no effort to contact her the whole time they were gone, while Duane had contacted Jessica daily by either calling or texting her. Mariah had been hurt at first but figured that maybe the attraction she had been feeling really was all one sided.
And then she met Buck. The attraction she had felt for him had been mutual and Buck had not been shy about letting his feelings be known. They had been so in sync with each other. It was as if they had known each other for a very long time instead of just the few days they ended up spending together but in the short time they had spent together, she had come to care a great deal for him. She had even considered changing all of her plans and shortening her trip so that they could be together.
After all, Buck had changed his plans so that he could spend more time with her but, in the end, his obligations to his family and their ranch had caused him to leave earlier than he had wanted. Then on his way back to his ranch he had been in a horrible accident that had taken his life. Mariah had been crushed. She had flown to his hospital bedside and he had proposed to her just before he died. Mariah had just returned from his funeral last night.
She woke up early this morning with a headache and was so tired. She almost took some Tylenol and went back to sleep but a glance at the clock told her that if she was going to get to St. Louis, she needed to get a move on. If there was snow between here and there, she would have to drive slower than she normally would.
She forced her legs over the side of the bed and sat up. The need to pee drove her to hurry to the bathroom. As she emptied her bladder, she remembered that Jessica said she could take a shower in her bathroom this morning and Mariah wondered if Jessica was awake yet. If she knew her friend, she was sure Jessica was probably up and dressed already. Jessica had always been a morning person, whereas Mariah was more of a night owl.
Mariah went into the kitchenette and hit the button on the coffee pot and then thought to look to see if the makings were there. “Thank you, Jessica.” She said to herself when she found the coffee looked fresh in the dispenser cup.
She went back to the bedroom and gathered up her clothes for the day and stuffed them into her carry all then went back into the bathroom for her toiletries. She hadn’t finished unpacking everything yesterday so it was all still in the plastic bag she had taken with her on her trip to Wyoming.
She carried it all back into the cabin and set it on the bench. She poured herself a cup of coffee. As she took her first sip, she pulled back the privacy curtain to look out and wasn’t surprised to see that it had snowed a couple of inches last night. “Oh great! Just what I needed. Oh well, I’m not surprised.”
She pulled out her laptop and checked her email and the weather for the route she was planning on taking as she drank her coffee. Satisfied that she would be able to make the trip safely, she shut down her computer and stood to rinse her cup. It was time to get moving. She pulled on her boots and coat and made sure she had the key to Jessica’s before she grabbed her bag and pushed open her door. She hurried across the snowy yard and up the steps to Jessica’s back door and wasn’t shocked when it magically opened as she reached the stoop. Jessica held the door for her as she smiled out at her.
“Good morning!” Jessica said cheerfully.
“Morning! Why did it have to snow? This is really going to slow me down.” Mariah said as she stomped her feet on the rug inside Jessica’s back door.
“It’s winter. It has a tendency to do that often here in the winter months.” Jessica laughed at her.
“Ha-ha! Is the offer of a hot shower still open?” Mariah asked.
“Sure, help yourself.” Jessica asked. “Had any coffee yet?”
“Just one cup. Woke up with a bad headache. Didn’t sleep well last night.” Mariah said as she made her way to the bathroom. She turned on the hot water and stripped off her clothes. She set her boots next to the heater vent on the floor in the hopes that they would dry some before she had to put them back on. The snow outside had been slushy and wet.
Mariah stepped under the hot water and just stood there, letting the water beat down on her neck and back. She washed her hair, shaved her legs and thoroughly enjoyed not having to rush in the full sized shower. It wasn’t the steam shower at Buck’s house but it still felt great and when she emerged, she felt much better.
She pulled on her clothes but carried her socks and boots into the kitchen where she found Jessica pouring her a cup of coffee. “Thanks! For the coffee and the shower. I almost feel human again.” Mariah told her as she accepted the cup and sat down at the kitchen table.
“Bad dreams last night?” Jessica asked, as she set a plate of bacon, eggs and toast in front of Mariah.
“Not really bad, just disturbing. Some of it about Buck and some about Carl, even a few nasty tidbits of Ralph.” Mariah replied. As she ate, she tried to explain her dreams but it was all so confusing that she knew she wasn’t making much sense.
“Maybe you just need time away from all men for a while. While I wish you could stay and visit for a while longer, I think you really do need to get going on your trip and see your family.” Jessica told her. “I just hope, for Carl’s sake, that you don’t meet anyone else during your travels. He’s really…………what did you call it when Duane and I first met? Smitten? I probably shouldn’t tell you this but he’s got it for you bad, girl!”
“What makes you say that?” Mariah asked with a surprised look on her face.
“Well, Duane said that he was drawing your name on almost every sheet of paper in the office with little hearts and flowers and he was a real grouch in the mornings, especially if Duane even dared mention my name.” Jessica grinned at her.
Mariah rolled her eyes at Jessica and finished her coffee. “Well, he’s just going to have to keep drawing and being grouchy for a while longer. I’m going to finish what I started and I’m going to get started right now.” Mariah said as she stood and rinsed her cup and plate in the sink.
She pulled on her socks and boots, hugged Jessica goodbye and went outside to unhook her camper. She waved at Jessica who stood watching through the window as she climbed into the camper and started it up. As it warmed, she put away her carry all and toiletries and made sure everything was in place before she sat down in the drivers’ seat. With a honk of her horn, she put the camper in gear and drove down the driveway thinking, “On to the next great adventure.”
She was well on her way when her phone rang. She hit the answer button and then the speaker button and asked the caller to wait until she pulled over. She pulled onto the shoulder and hit her flashers, then answered her phone.
“Hello?” She said into the phone.
“Good morning. I was hoping to catch you at Jessica’s before you left but she said we just missed you by about 15 minutes.” Carl said.
“Hi. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were planning on coming over this morning or I would have waited to say goodbye again.” Mariah said. “I was anxious to get going, especially since it snowed last night. This is going to slow me down. I’ve got a feeling that the drive that should only take a day is going to end up taking a couple of days at least.”
“Well, I hope you have a safe trip. Call me while you are gone?” Carl said.
“I will if you will.” Mariah smiled into the phone. “I’m going to miss you, Carl. Thank you for understanding that I need to do this first.”
“I know.” Carl said and Mariah heard him take a deep breath. “Be safe but hurry back. Okay?”
“I’ll call you from St. Louis. Stay sweet. I better hang up and get back on the road before someone thinks I broke down and stops.” Mariah said. “Tell Duane I said “see ya laters and tell him to take care of my best friend.”
“I will. You be safe.” Carl replied and then hung up.
Mariah stood staring at the phone for a moment and thought “I hope I’m not making a mistake by leaving him behind.” She thought about what had happened when she got back yesterday.
She pulled back on to the highway and her mind wandered as she drove along. There were not many other cars on the road but a car horn brought her back to the present and she realized that her wool gathering had caused her to ease up on the gas so much that she was going about 15 miles under the speed limit and traffic was piling up behind her. She would be needing gas soon and she watched for signage that would tell her where the next exit was that had gas.
The traffic wasn’t bad but the weather made Mariah take extra care driving and it was taking her longer than she had hoped. Instead of a day and a half it was going to take at least 2 full days and probably part of another day to get there because of all the construction detours she had to take. She found a rest stop the first night and was able to plug in and get some sleep.
The second day she was getting very frustrated with the traffic delays and detours and then she got lost one time because she was tired and had followed a car that knew where it was going but unfortunately it wasn’t where she needed to go and she had gone out of her way by almost 10 miles before she realized her error and then had to drive several more miles to find a place big enough for her to turn the large vehicle around.
“This is definitely not like driving my little Honda.” She thought as she pulled back on the road after turning around in a church parking lot. She began to wonder if she should just find a hotel or rest area to pull into and get some rest as she was really tired but it was still kind of early and she decided to push on, hoping she could make it by tonight.
It was after 3pm when her cell phone rang and it was Sam wondering where she was. She pulled over to the side of the road to take the call.
“Where are you now?” Sam asked.
“Well, I left Indianapolis about 8 this morning and there have been several detours and I’m not exactly sure. The GPS says I’ve got about 50 miles left to go, if there’s not another detour. My nerves are a wreck. I definitely don’t like driving in this weather.” Mariah said.
“Can you describe what’s around you? Have you been seeing signs for Horseshoe Lake yet?” Sam asked.
“Yes. The last one said that it was 2 miles to the turn off for Horseshoe Lake. Is that close to you?”
“Yes. So you haven’t passed the turn off to it yet?” Sam asked excitedly.
“No but I should be almost to it. Should I get off there?” Mariah asked.
“No, not yet. There will be another turn off after you go over the stupid loop (a child hood name they all called the looping on/off ramps on the highways). When you see the turn off that will access Hwy 111, take it and head south. That way you will have to pass Kevin’s fire station on the way in. I’ll tell him to keep an eye out for you. You can’t miss it. Stop there and he can lead you to the house, if they are there when you get there. If not, call me and I’ll come lead you here. It’s not far but it is kind of complicated if you don’t know the area.”
“Ok, will do. I’m really looking forward to seeing the new house. See you soon.” Mariah said and hung up.
Her oldest daughter, Samantha, or Sam for short, and her husband, Kevin, had bought a piece of property on the outskirts of St. Louis and had built a house on it last year. Mariah hadn’t been there since they had moved in this past spring and she really was anxious to see what it looked like. Sam had sent pictures of the property and had tried to describe the layout of the house but Mariah wanted to see it for herself.
Mariah knew that Sam and Kevin wanted her to consider moving in with them after she retired but she couldn’t see that happening. She loved them and her grandkids with all her heart but she liked her privacy too and had gotten used to not having kids under foot all the time.
Mariah got back on the road and was pleasantly surprised that while the snow kept falling, it was light and melted as soon as it hit the road. It made her drive beautiful as it covered everything along the roadside in what looked like white lace in the trees, bushes and overgrowth alongside the road.
It seemed to take no time at all until she reached the turn off Sam had told her to take. She followed Sam’s directions and soon she spotted Kevin’s fire station. Spotting it was easy as Kevin had been watching for her and had turned on the flashing red lights on the top of the rescue truck that sat in the driveway of the firehouse when he spotted her coming down the road. She pulled into the drive and he ran up to the RV as she put it in park and hopped out the drivers’ door to meet him.
“Oh Mom! I’m so glad you made it safely.” He said as he picked her up in a big, warm hug.
“Hi Kevin. Oh goodness. It’s good to see you too! Hahaha! Put me down.” Mariah laughed as Kevin swung her around.
“I’m just so happy to see you. Sam has been a nervous wreck ever since you started this trip! She’s been calling me every 10 minutes for the past two hours.” Kevin told her.
“Well, I wish everyone would stop worrying about me. I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself. You’d think my kids don’t remember who it was that raised all of them and most of their friends too! You spent enough time at our house in high school to know that!” Mariah laughed up at him.
“I know, I know. It’s because you are so loved that we can’t help but worry about you.” Kevin threw a line back on her that she had used often when one or the other of her kids had violated curfew and had been late getting home. Kevin and Sam had often been late coming home from a lot of their dates.
“Karma!” They said in unison and then laughed.
“Come on, we’d better get going or Sam will be driving down here to wait for you.” Kevin said. Just then the phone in the station began to ring and the door opened. “Tell her we are on our way and will be there in a few minutes.” Kevin called out to the man who was about to tell him that it was a call from Sam for him AGAIN!
The man grinned and waved at her. Mariah recognized him but couldn’t remember his name so she grinned and waved in return before he quickly ducked back into the station.
“Follow me.” Kevin said as he opened the drivers’ door on the RV for her and she climbed back inside. He ran back to his truck and Mariah followed Kevin about half a mile down the road where he turned and drove for about 10 minutes before she spotted a large sprawling ranch house on the top of a small knoll in the middle of a large clearing of trees. It was picture postcard perfect and Mariah remembered how she had felt when she and Ralph had found the home they had raised their children in. The two homes looked nothing alike but the feeling was there. It was hard to explain but from the moment she had walked in the front door, she had felt the love and warmth in that house. It had been hard for her to sell the place but it was too much for just her alone. That and the memories of the last few years of her marriage had not been happy ones.
Sam and the kids were waiting on the front porch that wrapped all the way around the house. There was a small pond that was currently frozen, with a small dock for fishing and diving off of in the hot summer months. Mariah fell in love with the willows that grew near the waters’ edge and wisteria that covered the gazebo that sat several yards up on the bank.
Mariah parked the RV in the middle of the circular driveway and after setting the brake, she jumped out to meet them as they flooded down the steps to greet her. She hugged each of the grandkids before Sam could get to her and when she did, Sam wrapped her in a tight hug and began to cry.
“Why are you crying?” Mariah asked.
“I’m just so glad you made it here safely.” Sam said, as she wiped the tears from her cheeks and smiled at her mother.
“Well, I’m here and I’m cold. Let’s go inside.” Mariah said as she tucked her hand in Sam’s arm and began to walk towards the house. “I’m dying to see the inside of this very impressive and beautiful house.”
Mariah was very impressed with her daughter’s new home. It wasn’t the decorations so much as the layout. It was large and spacious and comfortable and seemed to suit them all very well. With 4 kids living at home, it definitely had the lived in look. Sam led the way into the kitchen and offered Mariah something to drink. “Dinner will be ready soon. We’re having lasagna. I hope mine turns out as good as yours.”
“Where is the bathroom? I need to pee! I haven’t stop to go since I talked to you.” Mariah said.
“Carly, go show your nana where the bathroom is. Boys, go feed the dogs and then get ready for dinner.” Sam told her children.
Carly led Mariah down the center hall to the first door on the right and opened the door for her. “My room is right across the hall, come see when you are done.” Carly told Mariah.
“Ok sweetie. I’ll be out in a minute.” Mariah said as she hurried into the bathroom. It was impressive with the sand colored marble vanity and beige Travertine tile that blended perfectly. Sam had decorated it very tastefully with rubbed bronze fixtures and chocolate bath rugs and towels. She had live ferns on a shelf above the shower that seemed to be thriving in the moist atmosphere and they added a pop of color with their bright green fronds.
Mariah took care of business then quickly washed her hands and left the bathroom to find Carly waiting for her in the doorway to her bedroom. It was definitely a young pre teenaged girls’ room done in frilly pink and lavender. Carly was going to be 10 early next year and while she might be becoming a young woman, she was still just a little girl at heart and it showed with the My Little Pony stuffed animals all over the room.
“Oh Carly, it’s so pretty. I love the colors. Not too much pink but just enough so that everyone will know this is a young woman’s room.” Mariah told her as she put her arm around her granddaughter and gave her a hug. Carly beamed up at her when she called her a “young woman”.
“Soups on!” Sam called down the hall and Mariah told Carly, “Come on, let’s go eat. I’m hungry and I smell garlic bread.”
“Hmmmm. It smells so good!” Mariah said as she entered the kitchen. “Need help?”
“Nope, just grab a plate. I’m going to dish it up here and everyone can bring their plates to the table. The dish overflowed a little and I don’t want to get it all over my table cloth.” Sam said as she cut into the lasagna and began dishing it onto the stack of plates on the counter next to her.
It was a fun, loud, lively meal as they ate until no one wanted to move and everyone sat around the table talking. Mariah told them about the first part of her trip, of Jessica and the bear and how scared they had been and then about the accident and getting fogged in and Halloween. Kevin, knowing that there was something more, looked at the clock and told the kids. “Hey, it’s getting late. Dishes still need to be done and who has homework to finish?” Kevin said, as he looked around the table. The kids admitted that they all had homework and reluctantly stood and began to clear the table while the adults went into the living room and sat in front of the fire that Kevin had built earlier.
“So tell us about Buck.” Sam prompted as she curled up on the sofa next to her mother. Mariah told them about meeting Buck and tried to explain how she felt about him but it wasn’t easy because she still wasn’t sure if she had truly been in “forever after” love with him or if she just cared for him more than as just a friend and had been in lust with him.
“All I know is that it felt like someone had punched me in the heart when we got that phone call telling us that he had been in an accident and I knew I needed to get there as quickly as I could. Then when he died I sort of went numb for a couple of days.” Mariah tried to explain.
“Maybe it was love that hadn’t had a chance to fully bloom yet.” Sam offered.
“Maybe but now I will never know. But I do know, I will never forget him.” Mariah said as she looked down at Buck’s ring.
“But?” Kevin asked. He had a feeling that there was something she was holding back. He had known Mariah almost his whole life. She had been there for him when his mom had died of cancer when he was barely 15. Over the years he had come to think of her as his mom, not just his mother in law and he sensed there was something she needed to get off her chest.
“Well, I met this guy, Carl, at Jessica’s before we left on our trip and we were very attracted to each other but we didn’t have a chance to get to know each other before we left. He has a partner, Duane, that fell for Jessica like a ton of bricks and vice versa. They are together almost constantly now. He’s really pulled her out of her shell. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to hear they are engaged before the end of the year. Anyway, I can’t explain what I feel for Carl any better than I can explain what I felt for Buck except that when I’m with him, I feel alive and young and sexy and I’ve only ever even laid eyes on him half a dozen times at most.” Mariah said as she wrung her hands together.
“What’s he like?” Sam asked.
“Well, he’s tall, got broad shoulders, curly dark brown hair, warm brown eyes and a beautiful white smile and the sexiest voice I’ve ever heard on the phone.” Mariah’s voice seemed to change and she had a dreamy look on her face as she tried to describe Carl. She looked at them with an embarrassed smile. Kevin and Sam exchanged knowing looks, then grinned at her. Kevin asked “What does he do for a living?”
“You are not going to believe this but he and Duane own an RV dealership. You should see the custom work they did in my RV while I was in Wyoming. Oh my goodness, that reminds me, I forgot to pay them for it. I’ll have to call and find out and mail him a check.”
“Well, at least he’s employed.” Sam said.
“Oh, I think it’s more because he’s not lazy than a real need for income. You would not believe what some of those things cost brand new. I lucked out on getting mine at such a great deal.” Mariah told them and then had to hide a yawn behind her hand.
