Chapter Two
Eva walked into The Grind, feeling a little out of place in the campus coffee shop. From the individuals working behind the counter to the students ordering their morning cups of caffeine, they all had one thing in common.
Youth.
She ordered a small vanilla latte, then scanned the café to find a possible refuge.
“Hi, Cathy!” She approached a familiar face at a nearby table. The brunette sitting there stared vacantly.
“Um… hi.” She stammered. “It’s Eva. Right? Eva Pressley?”
“Close,” Eva corrected her. “It’s Perez.”
“Oh, sorry.” The woman closed the books strewn about the table and pushed them aside. “Here have a seat. You’ll have to excuse me. I’m so bad with names.”
“Thanks.” Eva sat down. “And honestly, I’m surprised you remembered me at all. We were only in that night class for a few weeks last semester.”
“Yeah, I remember. You sat in the front and always had the right answer. Then you just seemed to stop coming one day.”
“Yeah.”
Eva took a sip of her drink, stalling to think up an answer. It wasn’t like Cathy and she had been good friends or something. Truth was, Eva didn’t really have any friends. Bryan had seen to that. From how she should wear her hair to the idea that she was wasting time going to grad school, he had controlled practically every decision she made since her move to North Carolina. It was only after she dropped out of school last spring that her family flew out from Puerto Rico to intervene. They were able to help her see what was going on and she finally accepted the fact that Bryan was manipulating her.
Of course, she didn’t want to admit any of that to Cathy. Wouldn’t it look bad that she – a woman on the cusp of thirty – didn’t even have enough common sense to spot an abusive man?
“Honestly? I was in a not-so-good relationship,” she finally said. “So I took some time off – spent the rest of spring and summer getting my priorities straight.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Cathy took a sip of her coffee, then waved away Eva’s confession as if it were commonplace. “Most of my relationships have been the ‘not-so-good’ kind. In fact, my first marriage was the absolute worst.”
Eva nearly choked on her coffee. “First marriage?”
“Yeah,” Cathy admitted. “I didn’t have a lick of sense – got married right out of high school. My parents said I was making the biggest mistake ever. Turns out they were right. That stupid, slimy, piece of… well, you know what. He just couldn’t keep his hands off of other women. Of course, I started crabbing about all his hot footing, and that’s when he couldn’t keep his hands off of me. Lord, my daddy just about killed him when I showed up at the house for Sunday dinner and he saw my face. Got his shotgun and ran that sorry excuse of a woman hater right out of town, and that, my friend, was the end of Michael the mistake.”
Cathy snapped her fingers, then flipped her long mane for emphasis.
Eva sat, stunned. A small, bubbly feeling welled up inside her and she quickly threw her hand up to her mouth, trying to hide a smile. She snickered, then a throaty laugh escaped.
Cathy laughed, too.
“I’m so sorry.” Eva cleared her throat. “It’s just that I never realized you were so animated. Are you always so… open?”
“Like a book.” The woman smiled brightly and brought her hands together, miming the turning of pages. “My granny used to say I could talk the ears off a Jesus. I told her if that was true, then everyone in the family should stop telling me to hush all the time so’s I could secure our place in Heaven a little faster.”
“And what did she say to that?”
“Stop trying to put me in an early grave. I know the way on my own just fine!”
The two women laughed again. Almost a decade on the mainland and it was the most she had spoken to any one woman. The thought forced a tear to spring up. Eva wiped it away. She took in a deep, cleansing breath and slowly released it.
“You know what, Cathy? I’m glad I ran into you today. All my classes seem to be full of students a good ten years younger than me. Maybe it’s a fall thing. I don’t know. Makes me feel a little out of sorts, though.”
“Yeah, I think that’s a problem with day classes – regardless of the semester. Most of the older adults have to work that nine-to-five and can only come in the evenings. Only thing is that clinics are during the day. Now who in the world figured out that schedule?”
“Right?”
Eva shook her head. All she needed was to finish a few case studies and she would graduate. Then she could become licensed and move up from assistant to physical therapist. The idea was exciting.
“So,” Cathy broke her reverie. “Have you decided what field you’re going to go into?”
“Honestly? I don’t know.” Eva considered her possibilities again. “I was thinking about pediatrics because I love children, but my father was in Vietnam and said there are a lot of our veterans who aren’t getting the help they really need. So I’m not too sure which one would be better. What about you?”
“I’m not one hundred percent certain, either. However, I do know one thing for sure. I want to work with service pets.”
Eva’s interest was piqued.
“Now that sounds interesting.”
“Yeah,” Cathy agreed. “I adore animals. They’re full of unconditional love, and so eager to please. That’s why I work part-time at a rescue. You’d be shocked to see how many animals that come in, surrendered or abandoned. It’s so sad, too, because they are just the sweetest little things.”
What would it be like to own a pet?
Eva rolled around the thought for a moment. She had always wanted a dog, but it had been impossible growing up. Their family had been the traditional kind a lot of families on the island had – large and loud. Animals were just extra mouths to feed. If it wasn’t a pig or chicken, then it wasn’t welcomed. Things hadn’t changed much after she got engaged and moved out, though. Despite traveling to the mainland, she still felt trapped under her fiancé’s thumb. For example, owning a pet was still an unwelcomed idea. Bryan’s excuse had been that an animal would just tie them down, and really, shouldn’t they wait until after the wedding to make such life-changing decisions? Then the engagement dragged on and on – a condition of her father’s that she finish undergrad if he was going to pay for the wedding.
But the wedding never occurred, and despite the fact that Lake Lure was little more than a dot on a map, Eva couldn’t bring herself to leave the small mountain town. It was her home now, and she was determined to stay.
Although, going home every night was pretty lonely.
She gave her head a decisive nod.
“Cathy, tell me more about your shelter rescues.”
***
Eva stood inside the Angel Paws Rescue Center, and signed the last of the adoption papers.
“That’s it!” Cathy beamed at her. “Now remember what I said about getting him fixed. Funding being what it is, we don’t have those services right now. So you’ll have to take on that responsibility before he gets too much older. Okay?”
Eva nodded her understanding, wondering at what age would be best to do that. She looked down at the dog tethered to the leash Cathy still held. The shelter volunteers were guessing he was around eight months old. Surely she had a little time before worrying about it. Right?
“Okie dokie.” Cathy held out the leash. “You are now the proud owner of this adorable little golden retriever.”
Before Eva could grab hold of the strap, the dog pulled free and jumped up on her. She laughed.
“Adorable, yes. Little, though, I’m not so sure.”
“Well, honey, this is North Carolina. My eight-year-old nephew weighs more than I do, but we still call him a ‘little darling.’ It’s just the way we speak. Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it.”
“I’m sure I will.” Eva smiled, looking down at the fluffy, young retriever that panted beside her. “What do you think, boy? Will we make a good team?”
The dog looked at her as if actually contemplating her words. He finally let out a resounding bark, and she laughed.
“Great! Then let’s go home.”