Daydream Retriever (An Alpine Grove Romantic Comedy Book 10) Page 4

  Lisa turned onto a road that led back toward the deeply forested areas northeast of town, thankful it hadn’t snowed lately. These back roads were awful in the winter. Although Larry had assured Lisa that the ugly truck had four-wheel drive, she would prefer to avoid having to count on it. The evergreen trees were bright green against the backdrop of snow and mountains. Although Lisa hated to admit it, Alpine Grove was stunningly beautiful in the winter, with everything all sparkly and white. She probably should have come up here more often when the girls were growing up. Oh well. It was too late now and the girls always had seemed to enjoy visiting Mike’s parents over the holidays and spending time in Alpine Grove in the summer.

  Finally Lisa found a driveway with a sign that said Wag On Inn. Not only was this near Abigail Goodman’s house, it was Abigail’s house. Did Kat buy it from her? What had happened to Abigail? A knot formed in Lisa’s stomach. Like everyone else, Abigail must be getting older. Was she still alive?

  The long gravel driveway was bracketed by mounds of snow and weaved through a section of forest filled with huge trees. Everything looked the same as Lisa remembered from her visits out here years ago.

  Lisa stopped when she reached a gate across the driveway. That was new. In the past, she’d been able to go all the way up to Abigail’s house. A sign indicated she should turn left toward the dog-boarding kennels. She parked the truck in front of the kennel buildings and told Harley to wait. She got out of the truck and took a deep breath. At least the forest smelled the same. The winter sun was warming the evergreens in the clearing and even though it was cold, the breeze was unusually redolent with the scent of pine.

  A sign attached to the kennel building instructed visitors to ring the buzzer. Lisa followed the directions and dutifully pressed the button. She stood and looked up at the trees, waiting, clasping her gloved hands in front of her.

  At the sound of a door slamming, Lisa turned. A petite woman walked down the steps of the log house at the end of the driveway. She must be the owner, Kat Stevens. From a distance, she looked like Abigail, with a long braid hanging down her back. It was like a flash back to days gone by, which would make more sense if Lisa had done lots of drugs in the sixties. But unlike almost everyone else, she’d been too busy training for ski competitions to engage in that type of recreational activity.

  Harley was leaping around in the cab of the truck, obviously eager to escape. Lisa turned and managed to extricate him from the vehicle, unravel the leash from herself, and get him under control.

  As the woman walked up, Lisa pushed a clump of hair away from her face. “I’m sorry. He’s been so mellow. I don’t know what happened to him.”

  “Harley is probably excited about getting to play with his friends again. I’m Kat Stevens. It’s nice to meet you in person.” Kat bent and reached out toward the dog. “Hey Harley. Welcome back. Why don’t you settle down?”

  Lisa rearranged the leash and shook Kat’s hand. “Yes, you too. I think I’ve been here before. Did you buy this house from someone named Abigail Goodman?”

  “Not exactly. I inherited it.”

  “Oh no, you mean Abigail is…she died? When? I’m so sorry. She was a wonderful person.” Lisa stared down at Harley. “I didn’t think she had kids.”

  “She died a year ago and I was her closest relative. I’m surprised Larry didn’t mention it. He dealt with all the estate issues. He was really helpful.”

  Lisa made a face. “Well, I, ah, had some of my own things going on then and I didn’t talk to my brother much about what was happening in Alpine Grove. I can’t believe no one told me. Again, I’m so very sorry. You must miss her.”

  “I hadn’t seen her in a long time, but yes, I wish I could talk to her now.” Kat gestured toward the trees. “I have about a million questions.”

  “I can imagine.”

  “I should get Harley settled. Are you still planning to pick him up tomorrow?”

  “Yes, I’ll be by to get him during the morning pick-up hours.”

  “That sounds great. We’ll see you then.”

  They said their goodbyes and Lisa clambered back into Larry’s truck. Abigail was dead and Larry had never bothered to mention it to her. Didn’t he think she’d want to know? Abigail had been a friend of the family for years. On the other hand, it probably wasn’t entirely his fault. After she’d been sick, Lisa had retreated from family, feeling like she’d burdened everyone enough with her health problems.

  As Lisa drove down the driveway, her regrets were replaced with apprehension about her upcoming date. Even though it had been a long time, her experiences with the men of Alpine Grove hadn’t exactly been electrifying. If Jonah spoke in complete sentences and had all his teeth, it would be a welcome surprise.

  Chapter 3

  Little Piggy

  After taking Harley on a walk through the forest, Kat led him into the kennel building, opened one of the chain-link doors, and went inside the enclosure with him. She ran her hand across the smooth golden fur on his head. “Remember this place? It’s your extra-special, super-reinforced, escape-proof kennel.”

  Harley wagged his tail uncertainly and Kat smiled. “It’s going to be fine. I have a peanut-butter filled Kong right over there with your name on it.”

  Kat exited the kennel and returned with a bowl of water and the Kong. Harley took the toy from her and curled up on the dog bed in the back of the kennel to begin working on his peanut-butter-extraction project. Kat left as quietly as she could, hoping that the thrill of PB would keep him from fixating on the fact that there was no human to keep him company.

  She left the building and met her dog-walker, Mia, who was returning from a walk with four dogs on leashes.

  Mia grinned at Kat as she rearranged the leashes in her hand. “We’re back. Is Harley in there yet?”

  “Yes, and he has a Kong, but please keep an eye on him while you’re brushing out Ziggy. I’m going back to work on my horrible book now. Let me know if you need anything.”

  Mia nodded and disappeared inside with the dogs, which led to a burst of barking as the canines greeted their kennelmates.

  Kat walked up the driveway toward the house, her mind whirring with all the things she was supposed to remember to add into the book chapter she was working on. It was the last section she had to write for a deadline on Friday. The FedEx guy would be by bright and early to collect the package filled with her peerless prose. By the end of the month, the whole dreadful project would finally be over and she’d be able to sleep again. What a novelty that would be.

  The book deadlines over the holidays had been murder. The outline for the software book had been due right after Thanksgiving, four chapters were due after Christmas, and now four more were due Friday. The last chapters would be due at the end of January. Writer’s block had become a luxury Kat couldn’t afford. She smiled at the quaint notion she used to have of “not feeling like writing.” Or that sometimes the “creative juices weren’t flowing.” Or maybe she wasn’t “feeling inspired today.” What a joke.

  At this point in the book project, Kat had written thousands upon thousands of words when she was not in the mood. In the process, she taken the term “crabby” to a new and extremely disagreeable level. It was a miracle her fiancé Joel hadn’t decided to move out. Although he was generally a quiet and even-tempered person, he had become increasingly silent and distant, which was worrisome, although understandable. To be fair, Kat didn’t want to be around herself either. But once January was over and the manuscript was safely in the publisher’s hands, she’d make it up to Joel. She’d known the book project would be a lot of work, but she hadn’t expected her entire life to revolve around deadlines.

  She opened the door to the house and was greeted by the sound of her five dogs barking from downstairs. Joel was in the kitchen leaning against the counter and eating an apple. He raised his pinky finger and wiggled it in greeting as he took a huge bite of the Red Delicious.

  Kat walked over, stood
in front of him, and looked up into his face.

  He swallowed and raised an eyebrow at her. “Something wrong?”

  She shook her head. “Not exactly. Other than I feel like I never see you anymore.”

  “I’m not far away. If you left your office more often, you’d see me more.”

  “I know. I hate this book and I hate how grumpy I’ve been. I’m sorry.”

  “You’ve apologized before, and I understand.” He put his hand on her shoulder. “I’m going back outside to dig out more wood.”

  Kat reached up and put her hand on his to keep him from leaving. “You look tired.”

  “I am tired. My clothes got soaked, so I came in to change.”

  “I wish I could help.”

  He pulled his hand away. “It’s fine. You have deadlines. See you later.”

  Kat watched as he went to the hallway, put his winter coat on, and left. He was definitely not happy. It didn’t help that the lean-to where they’d been storing wood had collapsed under the weight of soggy snow. Pretty, light, fluffy snow had a habit of turning to mushy, heavy cement when it was rained on for an extended period of time. The poor old lean-to wasn’t up to the task and the roof had caved in, burying the firewood under a mess of snow and broken boards.

  Because the lean-to was no longer useful for keeping firewood dry, Joel had spent hours digging out the firewood and carting it over to the Tessa Hut. The old outbuilding had been used for dog boarding before the kennel construction was completed. They had nicknamed it the Tessa Hut because Kat’s golden retriever Tessa was the first occupant.

  Joel had removed the chain-link kennel from the Hut and rearranged the interior so it could house the wet firewood instead of a dog. Unfortunately, the outbuilding was not as close to the house as the old lean-to was, so getting wood for the woodstove in bad weather had become more of a chore.

  Kat reluctantly went downstairs to her office to return to the tedious task of cranking out more words. The dogs gathered around and she smiled at them. “Thanks for the moral support, guys. Let’s go finish up this chapter.” Amid wagging tails, she settled back into her chair for another writing marathon.

  Kat stayed glued to her chair writing, even though she desperately wanted to leave and do something else. Anything else. But she needed to finish this chapter so that the next day she could read everything over, print it out, and package it up for FedEx to pick up Friday morning.

  Fortunately, Mia was well aware of Kat’s work schedule and was handling the care, walking, and feeding of the boarding dogs. Kat paused for a small thank you to the universe for sending Mia to Alpine Grove. Hiring a dog walker to manage the day-to-day operations of the kennel had made it possible for Kat to write.

  If this book ever saw the light of day, Kat was going to thank Mia in the acknowledgments and dedicate the tome to Joel for putting up with life with a book author. It was the least she could do.

  After spending an outrageously long time selecting her clothes and doing her hair and makeup, Lisa left the house and drove to the Italian restaurant in town. Although the ownership had changed a few times over the years, the restaurant had been the de facto first-date restaurant in Alpine Grove for as long as Lisa could remember. It also was practically Larry’s second home. She often wondered if her brother ate all of his meals there. The man never seemed to cook anything for himself.

  Because it was Alpine Grove, quite a few people recognized Lisa and the pretty blonde hostess patiently attempted to get her customer to the designated table. The hostess waited with her hands in front of her clutching the menus while Lisa said hello to everyone from former teachers and classmates to customers from the hardware store she hadn’t seen in decades.

  At last, Lisa was seated at one of her favorite tables near the fireplace, gazing at the flickering flame of the votive candle. She’d sat right here across from Randy Houston before a spring formal they’d attended together. In some ways, that felt like it was a million years ago; in others it seemed like yesterday. Where had the time gone?

  She was startled from her reverie when a tall, handsome man stopped in front of her table. He bent slightly and said quietly, “Are you Lisa?”

  Lisa looked up into his face. Now she knew why Bev had fixed her up with Jonah. This guy was extremely easy on the eyes. Wow. With his jet black hair and smoldering dark eyes, he should be in a movie featuring a Scottish lord. A kilt would absolutely work for him. She gestured toward the seat across from her. “You must be Jonah. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Please sit down.”

  After settling himself, he picked up the menu, held it in both hands, and leaned forward toward her. “I’ve never been here before? Have you?”

  Lisa smiled politely. Only about a thousand times. “I have. Didn’t Bev mention that we grew up here in Alpine Grove?”

  “No, but it must have been a great place to be a kid, with skiing and the lake and all that. I like it here.”

  “Bev and I had a lot of fun.” Lisa picked up her napkin and put it in her lap. Jonah seemed pleasant enough. Maybe this hadn’t been such a bad idea, after all. Having someone to go places with while she was in town could be enjoyable. It was utterly pathetic, but one side effect of getting divorced that people often didn’t think about was that you no longer had a date for events. When they’d been married, Mike might have ignored her half the time, but at least he was obligated to be her ‘plus one.’ She smiled at Jonah again. “Bev said you met last week?”

  His only response was a gigantic sneeze that reverberated through the low hum of ambient conversation, startling the restaurant into silence. Reaching into his pocket, he yanked out a handkerchief and blew his nose like a trumpet. “Sorry. Allergies.”

  “You have allergies in the winter? Are you allergic to pet hair?”

  “I have allergies all the time because I’m allergic to everything. Hair, dust, mold, grass, trees, leaves—you name it. If it’s floating in the air, my sinuses don’t like it and stage a revolt. I keep trying new drugs, but nothing seems to do much.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that.” Lisa struggled to think of something to say that wasn’t related to nasal passages. “Bev told me you’re in advertising.”

  “Well, I was, but I retired. The medical-equipment company I worked for got bought out by a gigantic conglomerate and they wanted everyone to move to Cleveland, so I took early retirement.”

  “How nice that you were able to do that. Do you miss the work? Bev made it sound like it was very creative and interesting.”

  He shook his head. “Not really. There’s only so much you can say about enemas and I think by the time I left, I’d said it all.”

  Lisa paused, mentally flailing for a response that wouldn’t be completely inappropriate. Enemas? She was going to kill Bev. “So, ah, what’s next for you?”

  “Not sure. Just kinda floating around, doing a little traveling. I tried out skiing at Snow Grove. Turns out I’m really bad at it.”

  “I haven’t been skiing in many years. It sounds like you’re finding yourself. What a wonderful opportunity. Now you have time to explore new ideas and look for the answers to the big questions.”

  He tilted his head. “What questions? I don’t have any questions.”

  “You know, all the big questions of the universe. Why am I here? What is my purpose in life?” Lisa smiled. “I can relate to that, since I’m at a bit of a crossroads myself.”

  “I guess I never thought about it. You’re kinda intense aren’t you?”

  “Intense?” Lisa pursed her lips. She’d certainly never thought of herself that way. Or not in a long time anyway. “I don’t think so. Maybe years ago I was, but after I got married, I was focused on raising my two girls.”

  “You’re married?”

  “Divorced. Now that I’m alone and the girls are off in college living their own lives, I’m not sure what’s next for me.”

  “Are you scared of being alone? Is that it? The whole empty-nest deal?”

&nb
sp; “Maybe. I suppose so.”

  “Yeah, I’m a little worried I’ll be alone forever. Because of my allergies, people avoid me. But I’m not sick. I mean, it’s not contagious or anything.”

  “That’s good to hear.”

  “I guess I could spew out something gross when I sneeze, but I do cover my mouth, since that’s what you have to do to be polite, you know. But sometimes I get this itching all over my skin too, particularly in hot spots like the genital area. Oh, and because I have a severe case of allergic rhinitis, as the specialists call it, that means I snore like a rusty old diesel freight train. And there’s nothing anyone can do about it.”

  “Ah, that’s interesting.” Lisa took a sip of water. That was vastly more information than she needed to know.

  “Yeah, it stinks.” He sighed. “I really shouldn’t be telling you all this personal stuff.”

  “It’s okay. I felt that way after I was diagnosed with cancer. People think they can catch it, which is ridiculous.”

  Jonah raised his eyebrows. “You have cancer? But you look really healthy and alive.”

  “I had thyroid cancer, but it’s in remission.”

  “But wow, cancer? You musta been really sick. Like dying and stuff.”

  “Ironically, none of the symptoms I had related to the cancer. I used to go to doctors a lot…I suppose some people might say I was a bit of a hypochondriac. In any case, I asked them to do all these tests because I didn’t feel well. It turned out there was nothing wrong with me that had anything to do with my symptoms, but in the process they did find the cancer. So I still don’t feel great, but the cancer is gone. With cancer, they generally don’t say cured, so technically I’m in remission.”

  “But wait, remission means it could come back, right? Aren’t you scared you’re going to die?”

  “Well, yes, I do think about that sometimes. I never want to go through that type of thing again, and to be honest, like I said, I still haven’t been feeling great.” Lisa touched her neck absently. “It could be a cold. But I don’t feel good. I have this sort of clogged and foggy feeling, you know?”