Don't Turn Back (Coming Home Book 1) (11 page)

“Hey stranger,” she says as I roll down my window.

“Hello yourself. Are you always this cheerful so early in the morning?” I hope that didn’t come across sounding rude.

“Not exactly. I thought you were long gone from here. How long have you been out here sleeping?” She throws in. I get the impression she thinks I’ve only been here for a little while, not the entire night.  “You up for some coffee this morning?”

“Sure.  Where’s the nearest Starbucks?”  I ask. I really can’t afford Starbucks, but how can I turn down an invitation from a face like that?

I decide to fess up to her. “I actually pulled in late last night and had plans to come visit. You had several customers you were waiting on, and I guess I dozed off.”

“
Awww
. Well, I hate you had to sleep out here, but I’m glad you waited for me. If you don’t mind, I need to stop by my apartment and change clothes. Or, I could fix us a pot of coffee there and we can sit out on my porch. It’s your call.”

“Sounds good to me. You want me to follow you?” I’m excited she’s invited me over to her place instead of going to some overpriced coffee shop. If I play my cards right, I might even be able to grab a shower there, something I sorely need.

“Just follow me, it’s about a ten minute drive from here. When we get there, just park beside me. Each unit is allowed two parking spots.” She quickly runs off to her car. I go ahead and crank mine up, ready to follow her. Maybe this day is going to be better than I ever expected.

I follow closely behind Jennifer as we drive to her apartment, not wanting to lose sight of her in the early morning traffic. We pull in and drive all the way to a unit in the back. I pull into the spot next to her, just as she instructed me to.

I help her grab her things from the front seat and hold everything while she unlocks the door. Her apartment is on the bottom facing the back, so there is a little bit of privacy. We walk in together, and I notice how clean the apartment is. Everything is neat and tidy, and there’s not a single thing out of place. Her apartment is not as large as the one Macy and I shared, but it’s still spacious enough.

“If you don’t mind, go ahead and turn on the coffee pot. I’m just going to change clothes real quick. I always get the coffee ready the night before I leave for work.” She runs off down the narrow hallway and turns to the room on the left, which I assume must be her bedroom. 

“Sure, no problem.”

Minutes later, she comes back into the kitchen wearing a pair of pajama-like pants and a t-shirt. She looks very relaxed and comfortable, to say the least.

“Mind if I use your restroom?” I ask her. She doesn’t seem to be the least bit concerned about having me here in her apartment.

“Not at all. It’s down the hallway to the right.” I swear this girl does nothing but smile, probably even in her sleep. She just has one of those radiating personalities.

I make my way to the bathroom and notice that it, too, is completely spotless. The countertop is clear of any lotions, hairsprays, or perfumes. The only thing I see is a cute little bottle of hand soap from one of those specialty shops. Everything else, I’m sure, is neatly tucked away in one of the drawers underneath the sink. I always hated having to help Macy clean the apartment when we lived together. I would usually try to come up with some excuse of something I needed to do when she would start instructing me to do different tasks. But, I guess if you maintain everything, it doesn’t take much to stay on top of it. Macy had a bad habit of letting everything go during the week, but then expected me to help her on the weekends. Looking back, I know I probably should have done more to help, especially when I was between jobs and home most of the time, but housework isn’t really my thing.

Walking back into the kitchen, I notice she has two coffee cups on the counter.

“How do you like your coffee?” Jennifer asks.

“Two sugars and cream please.”

There goes that damn smile again. “Oh, wow, that’s the same way I like mine. Is liquid creamer okay?” She prepares our cups and hands one to me. 

I’m careful not to spill any and walk over towards her sliding glass doors to look out onto the patio. I notice she has a small grill over in the corner, along with a hanging swing. “Nice swing you got there.” I tell her.

“Yeah, it belonged to my parents. They didn’t want to get rid of it when they sold the house, but they didn’t have room to take it with them in the motor home. My dad got the maintenance man to hang it for me.”

“I bet you enjoy sitting outside in it.”

“Sometimes I like to sit out there when I get home in the mornings. It helps me to unwind before heading to sleep. Working the overnight shift makes it hard to immediately go to bed once I get home. There are times I have studying to do or homework to finish, but most of the time I try to do all of that while I am at work. All of my classes are in the evenings, so I try to discipline myself to go to sleep as soon as possible.” 

She opens the sliding doors and we both walk out to the swing. The morning is slightly chilly, indicating the fall weather is approaching, but it’s a perfect morning to be outside.

“Guess what? I found a job this week.” I share with her.

“Oh, wow. That’s awesome. I knew you would get lucky and find something. It’s not too hard to find a job around here. New places are being built all the time. It may not be the kind of job you really want but, it will be a paycheck until you can find something else.”

“Well, it’s a job. I’m not planning on making it permanent, but it will at least give me some money while I continue to look around for something else.” I sort of lower my head, as though I am somewhat embarrassed, when I tell her what the job entails. “I’m washing cars down at the local oil change place. The one in front of Target.”

“I’ve been there plenty of times. The owner is really nice. My dad actually feels safe with me using them if he’s not in town to service my car. My parents are a little over protective.” She sets her empty coffee cup down on the ground between her feet.

“That was a pretty good cup of coffee. Thanks for inviting me over this morning.” I tell her. I bend over to pick up her cup and ask if she would like a refill.

“Sure. I’ll make us one.”

“No, let me. You sit still.” I go inside and see she’s left the cream and sugar on the counter.

I walk back out to the swing, and hand her the cup, careful not to spill any of the hot liquid. 

“So, what have you got planned for this gorgeous day?” She asks me. 

“Well, I need to find somewhere I can wash and dry my clothes. I’ve just about run out of clean stuff. Do you know where I can find a place close by?”

“Why don’t you just do it here? I have my own washer and dryer. Besides, it would save you a little bit of money.”

Not only do I feel like this is imposing on her, I just can’t bring myself to let her see the little bit of clothing I actually own.

“Seriously, I insist.” She tells me again. “I won’t take no for an answer.”

Not wanting to offend her, “Ok, but just this once. Hopefully, I will have my own place soon and I’ll be able to do it from there.” I’m not exactly sure that’s going to happen soon, since I don’t have any money saved. It’s going to take a month’s worth of paychecks, if not more, to have enough to place a deposit and first month’s rent on a room somewhere. A guy can dream, right? I don’t really want to tell her I’ve actually never had a place of my own by myself. From the time I left my parent’s home, I either lived with my brother, stayed with a few friends, or moved in with a few girlfriends, now exes. Being independent has never been my thing.

“Have you started narrowing down a place yet?” She asks me. “Every now and then, a unit becomes vacant here. You should stop by the front office and see if anything’s available.”

I wonder if she even realizes that I have still been sleeping in my car in parking lots for two weeks now. I’ve tried my best to stay out of sight from the cops around town. Not that I have been bothering anyone, but they all frowned upon my living arrangements for some reason.

“I’m sure a place like this is way out of my budget. I really don’t want to tie up every dollar I’ll make on rent. Your place is really nice, but I may need to actually find a roommate and split the expenses until I’m more financially able to afford a place on my own.”

She looks over at me. “Well good luck with your search. I’m sure you’ll come up with a place soon. Now, let’s get your laundry started. You grab your clothes and I will get the washer ready.”

I walk out to my car and retrieve my duffel bag from the back seat. I really hate bringing all my dirty, smelly clothes into her apartment, but she insists. Walking back inside, I hear the washer filling up with water. “Looks like I can probably get them all done in one load.”

“Don’t be silly. You don’t want to overload the washer and you surely don’t want to mix your whites with colors.” She tells me this with a smirk. “Here, let me.” She reaches out to take them from me, but I manage to pull back.

“No, they are my dirty clothes.”

“You act like I’ve never seen dirty clothes before. Remember, I grew up with two older brothers. I had to pitch in and help mom around the house.” I can tell she has had a happy upbringing just by the way she always mentions her parents. I’m sure she misses them a great deal, too. I have mentioned very little to her about mine.

I really hate to ask this of her, but I do it anyway. “Do you think while my clothes are washing I could maybe take a hot shower?”

Before she even says yes, she’s already walking down the hallway towards the bathroom. “Please, be my guest. The towels are under the sink. If you need anything, there’re plenty of body washes and shampoos over there. I’m going to hang out in the kitchen and put together a shopping list of some things I need around here. Maybe you would like to join me for a little shopping after lunch. That is, if you don’t have any other plans today.”

I laugh silently to myself as I turn to shut the door behind her.
What kind of plans could I possibly have?
Let’s see. I’ve visited the Wal-mart and Target; I’ve taken in several movies; and I have eighty bucks to my name, thanks to my new boss, Jared. Since I have nothing better to do, I might as well hang out with Jennifer and get to know her better. I already like the direction this is heading.

I like being friendly and accommodating for Brian, but is it really safe to have this guy who I’ve only known for a short period of time, in my apartment, using my shower?
  I push the thought from my mind and try to convince myself I’m helping someone out who’s had a run of bad luck. Besides, we have both enjoyed each other’s company, so far. If nothing else, I’ve made a new friend. 

I still hear the water from the shower running as the washing machine turns off. Rather than have his clothes sit, I go ahead and toss them in the dryer. The sooner his clothes are finished drying, the sooner we will be able to head out and do a little grocery shopping.

Minutes later, Brian walks out from the bathroom and is standing in the hallway with a towel wrapped around him. I try to refrain from letting my mouth hang wide open and staring at him.
Sweet Baby Jesus, what do I have standing in front of me? Wow
. 

I can see his cheeks turning red. I only hope it’s from his recent hot shower, and not from the gaze I have locked on his gorgeous body. 

As he stands there with me taking
all
of him in, he finally speaks, causing me to quickly break my stare. “Man, that was one of the best showers I’ve had in a long time.” 

What I wouldn’t give for that towel to slip and fall to the floor.

Turning away from him and facing the dryer to hide my embarrassment, I tell him, “I went ahead and tossed your clothes in the dryer. Hope you didn’t mind.”

“Oh, thanks. I, uh, sort of forgot to leave out any clothes to change in to. Looks like I’m going to have to hang out in this towel until they are dry.” He must know he’s driving me crazy. I’m barely able to look at him without being flushed and flustered.