Chasing Shade

‘Oh, it turns out that the cure for Mary chasing after me was not being wanted by the other woman any more. Who knew?’ He shrugged. ‘But it’s fine. It worked out for the best.’ He waved a hand at her but she wasn’t fooled. Betsey could see the carefully buried pain in that statement.

‘Maybe it is, though, Archie,’ she said, rocking forwards to put a hand on his knee. It might have been a mistake. The moment she touched him a sparking sensation raced along her skin. Betsey knew it was her imagination, her body reacting to her sudden attraction for him – hell, for anyone – but it sure as shit felt real.

‘I’m sure it is,’ he said. He had frozen when she touched him and Betsey became painfully aware that she was still touching him. Her hand still on the soft, pale denim that covered his thigh. She cleared her throat and let the rocking chair rock back and put some distance between them. ‘So what happened?’ she practically whispered.

‘What happened was I got a decent – not great, but decent – severance package and then I had to start looking for a job.’

She sighed but said nothing.

‘Yeah, good luck with that, right? Right now? My God. The people who used to be buying and selling McDonald’s franchises are now working at them. So I did piecemeal work. I found stuff that was short-term and I worked it and I…’ He petered off, and a bitter bark of laughter burst out of him. It was so sharp it startled her.

‘Then?’ Her tea was cold.

‘I had to move in with my mother.’

She laughed. She couldn’t help it. ‘That’s the worst. But I have to say, the way you built it up I thought you were going to tell me you had to turn to hooking.’

His eyebrows shot up and total silence filled the Airstream. And then they were both laughing, Betsey so hard she held her stomach.

‘Hey now,’ he said, smacking her thigh playfully. He’d been the one to lean forwards this time. ‘You make that sound implausible.’

She stared at his hand and there was an electric-spark moment again. Everything seemed to speed up and slow down simultaneously.

‘No,’ Betsey said. ‘It isn’t.’ But then she caught sight of the time. ‘Mr Booth –’

‘Oh, shit. Sorry, we can –’

‘No,’ she said. ‘Tell me.’

‘I moved in with my mother. And if that isn’t sad enough…’ He sighed and finished off his tea with a final gulp. ‘Ready for the punchline?’

‘Sure,’ she said, though she knew it had to be bad. Judging by how his blue eyes had gone grey and his generous mouth had turned down and tightened.

‘She kicked me out.’

‘What? Your mom?’

‘Yep. We were never very close to begin with. Not since my dad died anyway. She’s made some choices…I don’t quite agree with, but I thought we were close enough to let me live in her basement.’ He groaned. ‘How sad is that?’

‘I’ve heard worse,’ she said. And it was true. She had.

‘Her boyfriend…he didn’t like me being there. So he gave her a choice. Me or him. Turns out that Jerry and his sizeable retirement fund mean more than her son. So –’ he made a popping noise with his mouth ‘– it was the boot for me. So here I am.’ He threw his hands up and grinned, but his eyes were sad. ‘A truck, a little money left and a need to find a job and a home and a place to lay my head.’

‘Welcome to your new home,’ she said. She stuck her hand out and he took it. ‘It will get better, Archie,’ she said. She managed to ignore that touching him was making her heart pound.

‘Promise?’

‘I promise.’

‘How do you know?’

‘It has to,’ she said.

‘Can’t you call me Rader?’ he asked, hopeful.

‘Nope. Archie it is.’

‘I surrender.’

‘That’s wise,’ she said. ‘Now let’s go meet your new boss.’

Charlie Booth was a grizzled old man who cursed like a prison inmate on cable TV.

‘You got a bad back?’

‘No,’ Archie said.

‘Got a problem with the bottle?’

Betsey’s eyes slid to him when the question was asked, as well. Archie shook his head. ‘Nope.’

‘Any crazy people gonna show up looking for you and create drama in my park?’ Charlie was whittling a stick as he asked these questions. The shavings drifted around his ancient work boots and littered the rag rugs scattered around his office.

Archie wondered wildly if he lived in his office. He rerouted his attention and answered the question. ‘Nope.’

‘Then you have the job.’

He blinked. What the hell? ‘What? That was it? Just that?’

‘Sure. I trust Betsey. She wouldn’t have brought you here if she didn’t believe you’d be a good fit. I’ll need your driver’s licence and Social Security number and for you to fill out an application and forms and all that normal b.s. But we can do that tomorrow. I’ll let Betsey show you to your trailer. You can get settled and you can start in the morning. Let her show you around and all that jazz. Tomorrow you can start your to-do list.’ He cackled at this and grabbed a yellow legal pad. Then he proceeded to riffle through the top four pages. ‘It’s a decent-sized one.’

Archie had a brief urge to turn tail and run but decided it was better to put down some tentative roots and feel mildly overwhelmed than to drift and roam and fall asleep at night unsettled and lost.

‘Fine by me.’ He stuck out his hand. ‘I appreciate the chance, Mr Booth. I won’t let you down. Either of you,’ he said, smiling at Betsey.

‘See that you don’t,’ Booth said in his grumpy growly voice. But he shook Archie’s hand. ‘I’m too old to have to kick your ass.’

Betsey giggled and held out her hand too. Seeing it made his heart jump in his chest – jump so hard it made his throat grow tight. Archie took her hand.

‘Come on. I’ll show you your new place before he makes you perform some strange initiation ceremony or something.’

They left Booth’s office. Outside, in the faded winter sun, she grabbed him and hugged him hard. ‘Congratulations, Archie! I hope you don’t regret joining our little community.’

He hugged her back. Crushing her trim body to his. Letting himself have that for just a second. Just this one moment in time. Her curves were warm and inviting against him and Archie had to withdraw from the hug even though she felt perfectly content to stay there. His body was getting a little too happy to hug her. And he didn’t want to put her in a position where she regretted helping him out.

Chapter 6 (#uf73d4060-9cff-515c-a40a-e3eb279dec68)

‘Oh, shit,’ Betsey said. Then she started to laugh. Luckily Archie was laughing with her. Within a minute they were hanging off each other like two drunks, laughing like lunatics.