Page 30 of Rescue
Chapter 15
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Penelope
The next few days pass uneventfully, though Miles comes by every day. We don’t usually have time to do more than say good morning, but it’s nice just to see him. I’ve thought a lot about Nana’s offer, and I think I’m going to accept, but it feels like there’s something holding me back from fully committing. I would never leave her hanging with this place, but I want to make sure this is the right decision. Not just for the business or for Nana, but for me too.
Is this what I want? I know it’s going to be tough sometimes, and I know sometimes I’ll want to quit, but when I look around this cafe, it feels like home. Not just because I lived here for several years as a child, or because I learned to bake right here in this kitchen, but because I love this place and what I do here. I can’t imagine letting the cafe go to someone who doesn’t love it like I do. If that doesn’t tell me what I should do, nothing will.
I’m startled out of my thoughts by a knock on the door. It’s Wednesday afternoon and I just finished up all the cleaning and prep for tomorrow. I’m officially done for the day. I skip to the door feeling more buoyant than usual. I didn’t realize how tense I’ve been thinking about what I’m going to do with the cafe. Now that I’ve decided, the relief I’m feeling has me practically giddy.
My smile widens when I see that it's Miles. I look over at the big clock on the wall and see it’s only 4. He must have left work early. I quickly unlock the door and let him in. A breeze catches the door as he moves to open it and the door flies back and slaps against the outside of the cafe. Add that to the list of things we need to have done around here.
I can’t bring myself to care too much, because just as soon as the door is open, Miles scoops me up into his arms and kisses the daylights out of me, right there in the doorway of the cafe. It’s all very sudden, but definitely welcome.
When he sets me down, I’m a little dazed. I look up and drag air into my lungs. “Well, hello to you too.” I smile and wink at him, letting him know that I’ll take that kind of greeting any day.
“Sorry about that,” he says as his cheeks redden a little bit. “Something about you just makes me lose all of my manners. How’s your day been?”
“Better now that you’re here,” I say with a smile. “What are you doing off so early? I thought you usually worked until 5 or 6.”
“Pays to be the boss sometimes,” he says as he grins down at me. He set me on the floor, but he still hasn’t let go. “Come with me, I wanna show you something.”
He’s got a twinkle in his eye telling me he’s got some kind of surprise in store. I’m definitely up for the adventure. I look down at what I’m wearing and realize I still have my apron and work clothes on. “Let me just change real quick and I’ll be ready to go. Want to tell me what we’re doing so I know what to wear?”
He gives me a secret little smile and I know I’m not going to get anything out of him. “Just dress warm. We’ll be outside and it’s supposed to get cold this evening.”
I dash upstairs and dress quickly. When I grab my phone to head downstairs, it rings. Looking down at the screen I see it’s Spencer. Guilt rushes through me, but then I check myself. I have nothing to feel guilty about. Spencer and I broke up, whether he chooses to believe that or not, and Miles and I haven’t had the ‘relationship’ talk yet. I’m not sure where we stand, but we haven’t had a discussion about being exclusive yet. I quickly send the call to voicemail and switch my phone to silent. I’m not going to let him ruin my day.
Seeing Spencer’s name on my screen causes me to pause for a minute and think about what I really want. I never considered that when I was with him. It was always about what he wanted to do. Do I really want to go somewhere with Miles tonight? It’s been a long day and I thought about a long hot bath all day long. When I think about it, I realize that doing whatever Miles has planned for us is going to be a lot more fun than some silly bath I could take whenever I want. I’m starting to really like Miles, and more importantly, I like who I am when we’re together.
With that decided, I set my phone down on my bed and decide to leave it here while I’m gone. I don’t want anything distracting me while we’re out. I don’t really care what we do, I just want to spend time with him and see if this electricity I feel when we’re together is real. I want more of the warm fuzzy tingles I get with Miles and less of the dread and guilt that always surface at just the thought of Spencer. This isn’t a competition, but if it were, Miles would be winning hands down.
I collect my thoughts and head back downstairs. Miles is looking at something on his phone, but when he sees me walk into the room his face lights up and he quickly stows it in his pocket.
“Are you ready?” he asks with an eager look on his face.
“I think so. Do I need to bring anything with me?”
“Nothing but yourself. Everything ok?”
I smile and shove my thoughts about Spencer’s call out of my mind. “Yeah, everything is great! Ready to tell me what we’re doing?”
“Not yet,” he says with his eyes still twinkling. I can tell whatever we’re doing is special to him and I can’t wait.
We drive through the mountains for miles. I recognize where we are for a while, but then he turns off the main road onto a dirt road I didn’t know was here. It seems like we’re in the middle of the forest as best I can tell, but we bump along for another 20 minutes or so. I don’t know how I lived in this town my whole life and still don’t know about this secret we’re headed for, but the anticipation has me squirming in my seat. I’m like a little kid on Christmas morning.
Finally, after what feels like forever, we turn a corner and suddenly the whole horizon comes into view. He maneuvers the truck into a position he seems to know by heart, then puts it in park and climbs out. When he comes around to let me out, I move around to the back of the truck and see that we’re just on the edge of the mountain perched in such a way that we’ll be able to see the sunset perfectly. I gasp and a small “Oh!” escapes me.
It feels like there’s something hallowed about this place. I’ve never seen anything like it. The sky is lit up in gorgeous rays of gold all the way through every color of orange and then finally pink, beaming down on the mountains around us, thousands of trees of every shape and size spread out in front of us over peaks and valleys. The heavens are showing out tonight. I’m speechless, but I think this moment calls for it. I’m staring, transfixed on one of the most incredible sights my eyes have ever seen.
“Yeah, this is really something, isn’t it?” he says quietly into my ear. I didn’t even hear him come up behind me. He wraps his arms around my waist, and we stand there staring for a moment. He takes a deep breath and then releases me to go to work making the bed of the truck more comfortable. He pulls several blankets out of the back seat of his truck and climbs in to start laying them all out. Once he’s satisfied with his set up, he reaches down and helps me up into the bed of the truck. We nestle down into the blankets, him behind me as I lean against his chest. This is perfect.
I feel Miles shift a bit as though he’s uncomfortable about something and I turn my head to look at him. “I come here sometimes when I’ve had a rough day, or when it looks like it’s going to be a really special sunset. This afternoon when I thought about coming out here, I couldn’t help but want to bring you with me.” He doesn’t say anything for a few moments and I think he’s done.
“I’ve never brought anyone else out here before.” He makes the admission to the setting sun, but I know it’s meant for me. I feel every ounce of the words he’s trying to say right now. They couldn’t sound more perfect.
I smile, even though I know he can’t see it and reach over and grasp his hand. I don’t have the appropriate words to say how special he just made me feel, but at this moment, I don’t feel like I need them.
