Gage, Ronna - The Search is Over (Siren Publishing Classic) (18 page)

Candi looked up at him. “Yes.”

Rafe looked at his watch. “It’s almost ten. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?” Candi nodded. He walked to the door. “I’ll pick you up after school. Sound good?”

“I’m counting the hours.”

He looked back at her, and his heart melted. Her frailty was a misconception, but the thought of her alone, in unfriendly territory, shot shivers of hate up his spine.
I won’t leave her here.

* * * *

Candi watched Rafe walk the path to his trailer. She waited out on the porch until she saw the light come on in his room. She walked inside and then to the bedroom to go to bed. She sat on the bed, smiling. “God, please let this work out,” she prayed. “I love him so much and will go to the ends of the earth to be with him.” A slight flicker of dread rushed through her heart. “He just needs to clue me into his feelings. Besides his love, that’s all I want from him.” Candi felt safe with Rafe. In his arms, she could do anything, and everything would be all right. Her love for him grew tonight when he included her in his plans to leave with him. Sudden fears of the uncertain future surfaced, ruining her euphoria. The idea of moving out with Rafe scared her immensely, but she needed to be free of Jesse.
At least here I’m paying rent and taking care of myself.
I can finish school if I stay here
. Her heart weighed with doubt triggered another thought.
If anything happened between us and we broke up, I’ll be alone with nowhere to go.
In her sadness, she realized a decision had to be made that would ensure her happiness and protect her interests. Throwing caution to the wind, she made her mind up to go with him.

A loud knock on the door interrupted her thoughts and jolted her back to the present. Clumsily, she rushed to the living room. She opened the door to an agitated Rafe standing on the porch. “What is it?”

“You’re not staying here!” he announced gruffly. “Get your things. You’re coming with me.”

Dumbfounded by his demand, Candi asked the most obvious question. “How long will I be gone?”

Rafe’s eyes softened. “You aren’t coming back here.”

Candi didn’t hesitate. She walked to her room and packed a bag. She made a mental note to make arrangements with Minerva to pick up her things when she and Rafe found a place. Looking back into the room, she lifted her bag onto her shoulder and then turned off the light. This was the beginning of her life—with Rafe.

Chapter Thirty-One

The closer Candi came to the door of the small wood-framed house, the more her nerves bunched into knots. Rafe stuck out his finger and pressed the doorbell button. In a matter of seconds a woman answered the door.

“Hi, everyone. I’m so glad to see you,” she greeted. Candi watched as everyone hugged and kissed the hostess, Marcia Templeton. Suddenly, she felt an arm around her shoulder, but it wasn’t Rafe’s. She realized it was Ralph Sines. Sylvia looked at Marcia.

“Marcia, this is Candi Patterson.”

Marcia took her hand. “Hello, Candi. It’s nice to finally meet you,” Marcia greeted her with the warmth of a close friend.

Candi smiled. “Thank you. Sylvia has told me so much about you.” The tense knots of anxiety uncoiled in her stomach a small bit. Being invited to a barbeque by Rafe’s family became surreal. She felt like they accepted her and Rafe’s relationship. This July Fourth weekend with Rafe and his parents, meeting the close family friend and taking time to relax, couldn’t be more perfect.

“Oh, Rafe.” Marcia turned to him. “Since you and Jack are here, I have a little project that needs to be done. So, maybe, you can earn your dinner,” she teased.

“How?” Rafe asked, his voice smooth and sweet.

“
Shelby
needs an extension on her closet.”

“Oh, that’s all.” Rafe looked at Jack. “What do you think, partner?”

“I can work to eat.”

“I guess we are installing a closet, then.”

Candi walked in the direction Rafe headed.

“No, Candi,” Sylvia called out to her. “Stay here with us in the kitchen?”

She looked to Rafe. Nervous jitters blossomed in her tummy again.

“Go ahead, that sounds a hell of a lot more fun than what I’ll have going on.”

Candi nodded. “All right, if you need anything, let me know.”

She turned away. “Hey, I can use one thing,” he stated softly.

“What’s that?”

“A kiss.”

Her heart aflutter, she tiptoed up to meet his lips. The quick kiss didn’t satisfy her, but it did calm her apprehensions.

Sitting at the table, Candi took in the scene around her. Outside, plumes of smoke drifted in the air above the grill filling it with the scent of burning wood. In the living room, NASCAR commentators announced the statistics of the races past and the points leader’s lead in percentile, and in the kitchen, the two women worked in perfect harmony to prepare the meal.

“Marcia, you have so much already prepared,” Candi heard Sylvia say to her.

“Yeah, I thought it would give us more time to talk if I did most of it this morning. And it’s cooler.”

“Can I do anything?” Candi asked from the table.

Marcia looked at her and smiled. “Nope, just look pretty.”

Marcia Templeton dispensed the details of the barbeque with the ease of a professional and still maintained her sanity.

“You must be meticulously organized,” Candi said, voicing her observation.

“I have to be, or I will lose my mind.”

Marcia seemed wiser than the mere twelve years she had over Candi. Candi liked her immediately.

Rafe passed through the kitchen, arms loaded down with lumber and materials for his project. He bent over and brushed his lips to Candi’s cheek. He stood up. “Marcia, I’m gonna be hungry when this is done.”

“It’s almost done. Should be ready when you finish,” Sylvia told him in her typical motherly voice which both assured and warned him to stay out of the way.

Marcia placed a bowl of shrimp in front of Candi. “Here is something you can do. Peel these while I make the sauce.”

“I’d be happy to,” Candi accepted. “Peeling shrimp is a task that takes longer than two minutes.”

“Here.” Sylvia set down a glass of margarita in front of her. “Try this and tell me what you think.”

She took a small sip of the frozen drink and smacked her lips.
Tart!
“That’s good.”

“It’s a little tart, isn’t it?” Marcia asked with a coy wink.

“Marcia, did I tell you that Rafe and Candi are moving in together?” Sylvia asked.

“Oh, my!” Marcia looked at Candi surprised by the announcement. “When?”

“Next weekend.” Candi felt an excitement rush through her.

“He’s a handful.” Marcia warned softly.

“Rafe seems all right to me,” Candi said matter-of-factly.

“He’s had his moments,” Marcia added with a softer warning.

“I’ll take my chances.” Candi winked. “Why do people still see him as that bad boy? Can’t they see he’s changed?”

Marcia and Sylvia looked at her.

“What do you mean?” Sylvia asked as she peeled a shrimp.

Candi took a deep breath and blew it out. “The other night we dropped by Jorge and Nelly’s house so Rafe could help him fix a project car or something. I felt like we were on display for everyone to see. A group of us women stood around watching Rafe and Jorge work on this heap in the front yard.” She tossed a shrimp into the bowl. “I sat in the front seat talking with Nelly, when Rafe interrupted our conversation, needing to get inside the car. He asked me to move. I got up and let him have my seat.” Her hands paused before she picked up another shrimp. “He teased me that he wouldn’t let me have my seat back because it was warm. I warned him not to get too comfortable. I wanted it back.” She picked up another shrimp. “The group was dumbstruck. Jorge jabbed Rafe in the arm saying, ‘I’m surprised you didn’t jerk her out of that seat or say the usual
hey bitch, get out!

“Rafe then turned to me, got out of the seat, and gave it back to me. However, he didn’t stop there. In front of everyone, he turned back and kissed me soundly on the cheek.

“Later, Jorge told me that Rafe was a notorious rebel with a bad reputation in his younger days. He was a love ’em and leave ’em kind of person. The more they clung to him, the less they saw of him. After his divorce, Jorge worried it would make him worse.”

“Thankfully it was only a short while after his divorce,” Sylvia mused.

“He just needed someone to change him,” Marcia whispered softly so no one could hear.

“He made the change himself. I’m just the lucky one that gets to stand by him,” Candi said, giving credit where it was due.

“I like your way of thinking.” Marcia handed her a pitcher of tea. “Take this outside.”

Marcia and Sylvia walked to the patio door carrying bowls of food, chatting as they went.

Deep in thought, Candi made her way to the hallway. Walking past the little girl’s room, she watched Rafe stand back to admire his handiwork. The look in his eyes and the grin on his face, showed the pride in the job he had done. “I would be proud, too,” she commented from the doorway. “It is very impressive!” Candi’s heart filled with pride. She imagined him building small projects for their children. “This project looks like a professional carpenter’s touch.”

Rafe turned to her smiling, but it faded at the seriousness of her expression. He came to her immediately. “Are you all right?” His chest bowed out like a man ready to do battle. She nodded then turned to leave until Rafe’s hand grabbed her arm. “What’s wrong?”

She was quiet for a moment. She looked into his face hoping to read his thoughts. “Are you happy?”

In an instant, he answered, “Yes. Why do you ask?”

She shrugged her shoulders, dismissing the nagging feeling of doubt in her gut. “No reason. It’s just nice to know sometimes, you know?”

“Yeah. I’m happy.” He kissed her softly and then set her away before she could deepen the kiss.

“I think it’s time to eat. Knowing my dad, he’ll make me cook the meat, too.”

Candi snickered at the exasperated comment. “Well, let’s not keep them waiting, Chef Rafe.”

Rafe and Candi walked to the patio deck. They sat with the family and listened to stories of Rafe’s youth. Deep down in the quiet hallows of her heart she hoped to be a part of the clan one day soon.

Chapter Thirty-Two

The hectic following week gave Rafe and Candi barely any time for themselves. When they did find time to together, they slept. They packed around their work and her school schedules. In one day off, Candi boxed all her belongings at Minerva’s house. “I think that’s everything,” she said to Rafe and Minerva.

“If I find anything, I’ll call you to let you know I have it.”

“Great!” Candi looked at Minerva. At the same instant both women’s eyes teared up. “I’m going to miss you,” she told Minerva.

“Not as much as I will miss you.”

The two of them hugged. “I’ll call you when we settle.” Candi promised.

Minerva looked at Rafe. “You take care of her. She is a keeper.”

“I will,” he promised with a hug. “Who knows, she may even need me, too.”

The three laughed. “Come on, we better go before drama comes calling.” The three walked to the car. Rafe loaded the three boxes in his trunk, opened the door for Candi, and then walked around to the driver’s side. “Honey, we need to hurry,” he gently prodded the second hug between Minerva and Candi.

“You take care of yourself. I’m here if you need me,” Minerva whispered in her ear.

“Good luck with your new happiness. I’m a phone call away.” Candi sat in the car. Minerva shut the door and stood quiet. Candi reached into her purse, pulled out an envelope and handed it to Minerva. “Will you give this to
Chandler
?” Minerva took the envelope. “It’s this month’s rent that he and I negotiated.”

“I’ll see that he gets it.”

Rafe pulled out of the driveway, Minerva waved them good-bye. Outside the gate, Candi sighed. “On to our new life,” she said. Rafe smiled.

Rafe and Candi took the three boxes to the shop to store in the empty bay he’d chosen earlier in the week to keep everything in one place. “Just one more night,” he stated. He pulled up to the bay, got out of the car, raised the door, and stepped back. “Candi, come here.”

Candi stepped out of the car, walked to where he stood staring at the door, and smiled at a brand new sofa wrapped in plastic with a big red bow, sitting in the center of the bay.

“It’s beautiful!” Candi said with choked emotions in her throat. She sat on the sofa. “It’s so soft.”

Rafe sat with her. Sylvia walked up with a smile from one ear to the other on her face. “Mom, where did this come from?”

“This is for your new life together,” Sylvia explained. She and Ralph hugged the two of them.

“This is wonderful. I offered my sectional to
Chandler
,” Candi said.