CHAPTER 5
Lily lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. The excitement of her date and the dull ache of yearning kept her from settling into slumber. She relived their kiss over and over again. Still, in her imagination she felt the warmth of Aiden’s lips and the gentle strength of his hands on her body. Shock waves of desire rippled through her, and she wished more than anything he were here beside her now. Finally, sometime in the wee hours, sleep took her in gentle hands.
Lily woke the same way she fell asleep, with Aiden on her mind. For the first time in a long time, she was looking forward to her day.
She waited for the morning crowd to thin before stopping by the diner. A cup of much-needed coffee and something to eat wasn’t all she wanted. Since Sara’s death, friends had dropped out of her life as quickly and as thoroughly as if she had bubonic plague, and she yearned for some girl talk, especially now.
Lily settled at the counter. Annie, who was working the grill, turned to greet her. “Hey, whatcha doin’ here on your day off?”
“I’m just a regular customer today, Annie.” Lily turned over the cup in front of her. “A nice cuppa coffee and a piece of toast and jam is all I ask.” She smiled.
“Comin’ right up.” Annie poured each of them a coffee and was back in a flash with the toast and jam.
“How was the breakfast crowd?” Lily asked.
“Oh, about the same as usual. Good turnout.” Annie gestured with a nod of her head to the window. “Can you believe it? Snow this early in the season?”
True, Lily had thought it odd the snow had started so early, but her mood was so upbeat a hurricane could blow through town and she wouldn’t care.
She shrugged and smiled. “Weird, I know, but it’s not like it hasn’t ever snowed in October before.”
Annie’s eyes suddenly narrowed as she leaned on the counter, taking Lily in. “Why the goofy grin?”
Although Annie was an employee, there was a spark of friendship between them. “I don’t know what you’re talking about?” Lily replied with a wink.
“Ya got a funny-lookin’ smile on your face. What’s going on? Spill.” Annie rested her head in her hands. Hair pulled back in a ponytail, she looked younger than her forty-five years.
Lily sipped her coffee. “I’ve met someone.”
Annie squealed. “Oh, and I bet I know who it is.” She clapped her hands. “That gorgeous hunk of a man who was in here yesterday. Am I right?”
Lily nodded, happy to have someone to share her joy with.
“And he’s the one who saved you the other night, too. By God, Lil, things happen for a reason. If the place wasn’t being robbed, and he hadn’t come by just then to help you, you never would have met and…”
Lily stilled her with a hand. “Must be divine intervention.” She smirked.
“Damn right. The Lord knows what we want and what we need, and He sends it to us when the time is right.” Annie fingered the tiny gold cross around her neck.
Lily liked that thought, but although she wanted to, she couldn’t accept it. If Aiden was sent to her by God, then why didn’t God save her sister and the baby growing inside her? It would have been beyond wonderful to have a niece or nephew, to build a family again after her mom’s passing last year. She pushed the thoughts away, not wanting them to crowd out the happy ones she’d started her day with.
“He took me out last night,” Lily continued.
Annie’s eyes widened. “Oh, do tell. And I want all the details.”
Lily leisurely spread strawberry jam on her toast, teasing her friend by taking her time in replying.
“Aw, come on. You know I have no life. Just a few small details,” Annie pleaded.
Lily laughed heartily and it felt good. “There’s not much to tell, really. He took me on a ghost walk in Dunnsville. That’s all.”
“Oooohhh, that sounds nice and cozy. Did ya get a kiss at the end of the evening or a little something more?” Annie winked.
Lily’s eyes strayed to the spot in the diner where Aiden had kissed her. “Maybe.” She took a bite of toast.
Annie clapped her hands again. “You go, girl! You two going out on another date?”
“I’m going to see the place where he’s staying later this afternoon. You know that log cabin on Ryan’s Road?”
“Oh, sure. Everybody knows that place. He gonna be around for a while?”
Lily smiled. “Looks that way.” She drained her coffee and finished off the toast.
Annie placed a hand on Lily’s. “I’m happy for ya. After all you’ve been through with losing your sister and mother, you deserve some happiness.”
Lily was genuinely touched. Annie’s words felt sincere. “Thanks, Annie. You might be the only one in town who thinks I deserve anything except a nice cozy jail cell.”
Her friend waved a hand in the air. “Don’t let these closed-minded small-town folk get the better of ya. People are gonna talk no matter what.” Annie’s expression darkened and she leaned in close. “Does this new fella know about…” Her words trailed off and she began again, “Does he know about the money and all that?”
Lily was surprised Annie broached the subject. Perhaps she was feeling a little more like a friend than an employee. Maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing. Still, the wall of protection she’d built up around herself after her sister’s murder was hard to get around. She’d confided in Annie, but she’d certainly not told her everything.
Annie shifted uncomfortably. “I spoke out of turn. I’m sorry.”
“No”—Lily was quick to answer—“it’s OK. Aiden knows about my sister’s death, but that’s it. He has no idea about my inheritance or that I’m a suspect in Sara’s murder.” She sighed. “I suppose I’ll have to tell him or he’ll find out on his own. But I’m scared he’ll bolt.”
“My advice is to just have fun for now. You’ll know when the time is right to tell him more, and besides, once he gets to know you, he’ll figure out for himself you’re a good woman.”
Lily wondered if Annie was right. After all, the townsfolk did have good reason for feeling the way they did. If she put herself in their shoes, their suspicions were understandable, especially because of the argument she’d had with Sara the day of her murder, and, of course, there was that damned e-mail. Information spread quicker than a cold in January in small towns like Higgstown.
Lily glanced at her watch. “Gotta go, Annie. Thanks for listening.”
“Where you off to?”
Lily threw her purse over a shoulder. “Three guesses.”
* * *
Visiting the residents of the Evelyn Harrison Seniors Center was bittersweet for Lily. The bright fluorescents made her eyes tired, and the harsh antiseptic smell was one she’d never get used to. It nearly stole her breath every time she walked through the front doors into the pea-green atrium. She stamped her feet free of snow as she made her way to the reception area.
“Hey, Miss Lily, nice to see you today.” Gail, a rail-thin black woman in her fifties, greeted Lily from her post. “How ’bout that weather?” She shook her head in disbelief.
“I know! It’s a little unexpected. Haven’t even dug my boots out yet.” Her toes were wet and chilled in her Sketchers. “Is everyone behaving themselves today? No wild parties?”
Gail laughed. “Things are quiet, but I imagine once they see you’re here, it’ll liven up pretty quick. Need any help?” She gestured to the buggy filled to overflowing that Lily had wheeled in behind her.
“Got it covered, but thanks. I’ll just start on my rounds if that’s OK.”
“Sure, honey, you go right ahead.”
Lily had been visiting the residents of the center since she was a teenager. It was something she was compelled to do, more than likely because she’d never had a grandparent of her own. Both sets on her mother’s and father’s sides died when she was just a girl, and she had no memories of what it felt like to have an older person in her life.
Over the years, the faces of the elderly residents came and went. Some were in Lily’s life for years and others just months, but she remembered most of them. The women in the facility outnumbered the men two to one, and the old fellas were often fought over by the ladies. It was comical how they would argue and fuss over them as if they were their husbands. Lily suspected the men secretly enjoyed the attention, though they grumbled and complained and would never admit to it.
She made her way to the common room where the majority of the residents would be watching the big-screen TV she’d bought for the center last month. Others would be playing cards or sitting around chatting.
The room was large and open. Picture windows made up an entire wall, letting in natural light, softening the artificial fluorescents. Laminate, yellowed with age and scarred with scrapes from wheelchairs, walkers, and canes covered the floor; the painted brick walls were cold and institutional-looking, though one was dressed up with a hand-painted mural of a flower-filled meadow, complete with rainbows and butterflies. A bit juvenile, Lily thought, but in fairness, it had been done by art students from Higgstown High.
She entered, pulling her buggy, and waved and smiled at the familiar faces.
“My goodness, is that Lily?” she heard someone ask in a voice shaky with age. It was Irene Scott—ninety-two with failing eyesight, but she always seemed to know Lily when she arrived.
“Yes, Mrs. Scott, it’s me,” Lily called back loudly and took a seat on one of the couches. Soon her friends were settling in around her.
“Is it visiting day already?” Mr. Piccione asked as he approached with his walker. A portly man with a tidy, thin mustache, he was never without his fedora and sports coat, making him look as if he’d walked straight out of a 1950s gangster movie.
“Don’t you even know what day it is?” one of the ladies called.
Mr. Piccione shot her a dirty look and settled beside Lily. “How’s my girl today?” He patted her knee with an age-speckled hand.
“Just great, Mr. P.” She gave him her warmest smile. “I have something for you all.”
“What? What did you say?” Mrs. Scott called. Her hearing was about as good as her eyesight.
“She said she has something for us.” Mr. Piccione spoke loudly, enunciating each word, then returned his gaze to Lily. “You’re such a sweetie. You always have something for us.”
An air of excitement filled the room. The nurses and attendants sat back and let Lily have center stage. “I brought some large-print novels as well as books on tape, and I have a few treats, but of course I’ve got to let the staff take care of those because some of you are on restricted diets.”
“Not me, angel,” came a call from the back. Lily turned to see Mrs. Guiterrez smiling at her. Mrs. G., as Lily called her, was a little thing with jet-black hair. It was the kind that came from a bottle and was startling against the pale of her wrinkled face. She held a special place in Lily’s heart and had lived in the center for as long as Lily could remember.
Lily waved her over. “Good for you, Mrs. G. You keep doing whatever it is you’re doing to stay so healthy.”
The old woman walked briskly and confidently over to the couch and perched on the armrest beside Lily, wrapping an arm around her as if to lay claim. Mrs. G. had no children, and her husband had passed away long ago. Though she had some extended family, nieces and nephews who visited from time to time, Lily and her friends at the center had become as close as family. Lily suspected it was the sense of being alone in the world that had brought the two of them even closer over the last little while.
“Love you, angel,” Mrs. G. whispered, and Lily smiled up at her, giving her a wink. It might have made the others feel bad if Lily had said, “I love you, too,” but the wink let her friend know she did.
Lily continued unloading the buggy. “I’ve got wool and patterns for the ladies and crossword and Sudoku puzzles, as well as some paint by numbers. We’ll set them out on the table at the back, and you can take whatever you like.”
Sharon, a long-time employee who was so ancient she could easily pass for a resident, shuffled over and scooped up the goodies Lily had unpacked. “I’ll take the treats to the kitchen. We’ll sort out who can have what later.”
“Thanks,” Lily replied. “I brought some sugarless treats, too.”
“You always do,” Sharon called over her shoulder.
After a half hour of chatting in the common room, Lily visited some of the bedridden residents and the ones who preferred the solitude of their rooms to the common areas. She spent a good amount of time with each, never rushing and always patient, even with those who tried to keep her with them, not wanting to let go of the company. She left a present with each of them—a book, a DVD, a jigsaw puzzle. After so many years, she never grew tired of the weekly visits, and now that she had money, she was all too happy to buy a big-ticket item for the facility every now and then. After all, she had more than she could spend in a lifetime and her needs were simple.
When she was done, she went back to the common room and bade a quick good-bye from the doorway. She was met with waves, blowing of kisses, smiles, and thank-yous.
Leaving was always sad. She couldn’t help but wonder if everyone would still be there next week when she returned. Life was a precarious thing at any age.
On her way to the car, her cell phone rang. The sight of Aiden’s name on the phone made her heartbeat quicken.
She let it ring one more time then answered, trying not to seem too eager.
“Hi. I was just thinking about you and wanted to hear your voice. Where are you?” Aiden said.
Lily’s heart did a flip-flop. He was thinking of her! “Just running a few errands. I’ll be heading home soon.”
“Does it always snow here in October?” He laughed. “I wasn’t prepared for this.”
“No. This is just weird. I’m getting into my car now, and it’s really coming down. I’ve got on a warm enough coat, but no boots. My feet are soaked.” She hoped the premature winter weather wouldn’t make him second-guess his move to small-town Maine.
“Hope it doesn’t pile up. You might have a hard time getting up my driveway. It’s pretty steep.”
Disappointment struck. Was he going to cancel on her? “It should be fine,” she said, but worry stabbed when she realized she didn’t have her snow tires on yet.
“OK. You know this town better than I do. If you still want to come to the cabin, it’s more than fine with me.”
She heard the smile in his voice and that made her relax. “No worries. I’ll be there at four.”