Running Northwest (35 page)

After sitting for a little bit Thomas went outside, called the coffee shop, and talked to Tracie on the phone. The conversation had been frustrating because she didn’t say anything but things about the shop. Thomas went back inside after having a cigarette and sat down with his son who was finishing his hot chocolate.

.
             
.
             
.

Back down the coast in Tillamook Stephanie drove slowly around town checking out the area. She had passed Thomas coffee shop on her way into town from the north. She had brought some of the info Karen had giving to her to help guide her around. She had also passed Derrick’s and Thomas’ bar called the “Whaleback” and had briefly thought about stopping. Eventually she pulled over into a parking lot near some small shops, got out, and walked. She went into a small souvenir shop and after spending some time looking around and talking to the older lady working she left with a bag full of souvenirs and post cards.

The lady that was working in the store gave her some pointers on things to do in town, one of which was to see Netarts Bay. Tillamook was a cute town and very working class but small, but it did not have the same feel that Cannon Beach had. There were large chain stores and it seemed everywhere she looked she saw stores that sold fishing supplies. And it seemed everywhere she went people were talking about “the storm” that was coming; one lady even said it could be the worst storm in a decade. After going through a few more shops and trying some of the cheese that was made locally Stephanie decided it was time to go to Thomas’ shop. She had to see it and did not know what she would do if he was there, but she came all this way and she may not come back to Tillamook. She got into her car and drove back the way she had come until she reached The Sunset Café towards the north end of town.

When she pulled into the parking lot there were only a few other cars there, she noticed an old jeep towards the back of the building
and wondered if it was Thomas’
. She walked up some stairs and into the front door. Her heart was beating faster than it had in a long time. But after going through the door and not seeing Thomas she relaxed a little bit and headed towards the counter. The girl that was working looked to be in her early twenties and was attractive but who also seemed to be in a mood. The music that was playing was a song by Dean Martin and it made Stephanie smile.

“Hello, how are you doing today, what can I get for you honey
?
” the girl asked

“I’m fine thanks; umm…I don’t know what’s good here. I’ve never been to Tillamook before” Stephanie said as she tried to study the place.

“Yeah I can tell, well it depends on what you like, since it’s pretty cold and shitty outside I’m assuming a cold drink is out of the question
?
” the girl said.

Stephanie laughed at the young girl and was not put off by her language at all. In her head, she was thinking, “I can see why Thomas hired you
,
” as she stared at the menu.

“Don’t you know it, yeah Hun something hot
definitely
?
I don’t really know
,
so why don’t you just make me something creative, I’m tired so make sure there’s lots of espresso in it and make it a big one” Stephanie said

“All right will do, the adventurous type, huh?” the girl answered as she went to work making a drink.

Stephanie laughed a little and said, “Well I try.” She looked down and saw a sign next to the register saying the girl who was working was named Tracie.

“So where are you from if can ask
?
” Tracie asked.

Without even thinking about it Stephanie blurted out “Michigan”.

“Oh really? That’s cool; my boss and his best friend are from Michigan. What part are you from? I think they are from Grand somewhere or something,” Tracie said.

“Grand Rapids?” Stephanie asked.

“Yeah, that’s it. Is that where you’re from?” Tracie asked.

“O
h no, I’m from a town called Traverse City” Stephanie said lying to girl
,
then adding “but I go down to Grand Rapids quite often
.
”

“That’s cool, does it stink that bad there that you Michiganders move all the way to Oregon?” Tracie asked as she laughed
.

“Yeah for some it does, but it has its good points too, but sometimes a change of scenery is nice, you know what I mean” Stephanie said.

“Oh I do completely, I’m thinking of doing one myself for a bit
,
” Tracie said as she handed Stephanie her drink and then taking her money
.

“Change is good sometimes, at least I think so. But hey, I have to ask is your boss actually here right now, because I love the music you’re playing and I just wanted to compliment
him
on it. I am a huge rat pack and old jazz fan” Stephanie said.

Tracie laughed and said
“No, I’m sorry Hun, he’s not, Tom actually went up to Cannon Beach for the day with his son but he may be back later. I’ll pass on the compliment if you would like,”

Stephanie almost dropped her drink on the ground where she stood because of what this girl had just told her. What were the odds that Thomas went to Cannon Beach on the same day she came to Tillamook? For a brief second she wondered if Thomas knew she was here.

“Damn. Okay yeah, just tell him…tell Thomas that I said nice choice in music. Well, I guess I’ll get going and see what else I can find to do here. Hey, this is a really good by the way” Stephanie said smiling to Tracie after taking a sip of her drink. Tracie was looking down at the ten dollar tip Stephanie had left her.

“Excuse me, can I ask you a question” Tracie said to Stephanie as she was slowly heading towards the door.

“Sure” Stephanie said nervously

“You look really familiar, are you sure I have never seen you in town before?” Tracie asked.

“Positive honey I’m a virgin out this way, never been to the West Coast ever
,
” Stephanie said with a laugh as she looked at the three other people in the shop.

“Okay, it so weird I could swear I’ve seen your face. I suppose that happen a lot in my job, I see lots of people every day. Well anyway have a good day, enjoy your trip. Watch out for the storm too it’s supposed to be a bad one,” Tracie said.

“I will Sweetie and thanks for the drink” Stephanie said as she walked out the door trying not to hurry and got into her car.

Once inside her heart felt like her heart was coming out of her chest, she was so nervous.

“How the hell can he be in Cannon Beach?” she said out loud.

She took a sip of her coffee and started the car. She thought about going to see Derrick at the bar, but decided to just head back up the coast. Stephanie knew it may not be a smart thing for her to go to Cannon Beach knowing Thomas may still be there, but something inside of her would not stop here. The rain was coming down lightly now, but the wind had picked up and as she drove north through town her headlights came on. She put her phones earpiece on and called Karen who was just getting to work back in Michigan and told her what had just happened.

.
             
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.

After leaving Santos Café, Thomas and Daniel wandered the streets and shops of Cannon Beach, the ones that were still open at least. They stopped at a small shop that sold photographs and other artwork; most of the photos were taken in the area surrounding Cannon Beach. Thomas found a large black and white print of haystack rock that had been taken in the 1950’s; it had old cars parked on the beach and was a picture Thomas had always liked. He bought two large copies, one for his home and one for his coffee shop. After leaving there, they found another shop tucked away which sold kites among other things; it was called “Once Upon a Breeze”. The building was blue and was by far the brightest building in town, which made it unique among the others. Daniel spent nearly 20 minutes looking at all the different kites they sold, he picked out one that had a whale on it and seemed pleased with his choice. After leaving there and going through a few more shops and one art gallery they walked back to the truck to check on the dogs. Daniel was paranoid about leaving the dogs in the truck; mostly he was worried they would get lonely. Thomas and his son stood next to the truck holding the dogs on leashes and letting them stretch their legs before putting them back in the truck and getting lunch.

“I don’t know why they can’t come with us when we get lunch Dad” Daniel said as he petted Layla's head.

“Well buddy the dogs aren’t allowed in restaurants you know that” Thomas said as he knelt down rubbing Harleys head.

“Well that’s dumb and I don’t like i
t, the dogs get to come into our
coffee shop
,
” the boy said.

“Well that’s because your dad owns the coffee shop guy, it’s kind of my prerogative
,
” Thomas said.

The boy deadpan stared his father for second or two then said “that’s a big word, don’t know what it means. I hate it when you use big words I haven’t learned yet,”

Thomas laughed hard not so much at what his son had said but the stare his son had given him, which was about as intense as a nearly 8-year-old boy could manage.

“It means it’s my choice buddy, it’s my shop so
I
can say who’s allowed inside, including dogs” Thomas said as he helped Harley get back into the truck.

“Oh I see, well Dad I’m hungry, let’s get food man. I really wanna go to the beach, I can hear the waves from here” Daniel said.

“Sounds good to me, I’m starving too
,
” Thomas said after he put Layla into the truck and shut the door then asking “so, what are you in the mood for?”

“Well, I don’t know Dad but pizza sounds pretty good, I wish it was nice enough so we could eat on the beach. But I’ll take the huge waves over the sun I think” Daniel said.

“Okay well, there’s a pizza place just a little ways back down Hemlock Street. It shouldn’t be too busy today so maybe we can give that a shot. We may have eaten there before I think” Thomas said.

“Hey that sounds good to me,” the boy said.

The two of them walked slowly down Hemlock Street about a hundred yards to the north. The pizza place they were going to was actually right by Santos Café where they had gotten coffee earlier in the morning. When they walked in the place was not busy at all and they were seated at a table by the front window so they could watch the few people on the street pass by. Thomas decided to get a beer since he was not going to be driving soon and Daniel got root beer in a bottle. Thomas also let his son pick out the pizza and the toppings. Outside on the streets Thomas could tell the wind was picking up in a big way. The sky had begun to darken up and the rain
continued to come down in light
swaths. Thomas looked over at his son who was watching a lady and her dog walk by and said “I’m glad we brought your rain coat buddy, it looks like we may get wetter than we thought today
.
”

“Yeah, I know. I’m so excited though Dad; I bet the waves are huge. The dogs are going to love the beach today. I bet there is hardly anyone out there
,
” the boy said ready to bolt out the door.

“I bet they are, when we leave here we will go grab some more coffee and hot chocolate to go from the place we went to earlier, then we will go and get the dogs and head over to the beach” Thomas said
.

The waiter brought their drinks and while they waited for their food they sat and talked about Daniel’s new kite. They discussed the idea about putting it together with Derrick
when he
came over later. After a little while longer their pizza and breadsticks came and Thomas talked to the server about how slow it was, both thought it was the weather. Their pizza had sausage, mushrooms and pineapple on it and Daniel grabbed for two pieces. Thomas was not thrilled about the pineapple and picked it off. They sat and ate and watched people hurry in and off the street trying to get out of the weather and joked about the people that could not handle the rain.

.
             
.
             
.

When Stephanie had gotten back into Cannon Beach, she was stressed from the drive up. The rain shot over her windshield in what looked like waves and at one point she was worried she would drive her rental car right off a cliff a
nd into the ocean. The car’s
convertible top made the rain sound even louder, but as she got closer to Cannon Beach the rain settled down slightly but the wind was still strong. She stopped at her rented cottage and changed into warmer clothes, the temperature had dropped into the mid-50’s but felt much colder with the rain and wind. Stephanie was staring at the clock on the microwave as she pecked
at
a bagel; it was almost 12:30 PM
.

For a portion of the drive back from Tillamook, she was on the phone with Karen who
was trying to calm her down was
at
the same time proud of the fact
her friend has been so gutsy thus far.
Now as Stephanie stood in the kitchen leaning against the wooden counter she was trying to decide what to do next. When she had gotten back to the cottage there was note on the door from Ann who had invited her to have drinks with her and her husband in town later that afternoon. There were things she did need to get from town and wanted to stay close since the weather was getting worse. In her mind she was hoping to see Thomas, but was not ready to talk to him yet; she was actually more scared than anything. After grabbing her pea coat and a pair of dark sunglasses that she didn’t need but would wear anyway she headed out the door, got in her car and drove the few blocks to downtown Cannon Beach. If it had been a nicer day, she would have walked but she did not want to walk back in
a
downpour. She parked in a public parking area Ann had told her about behind some bathrooms on the east edge of downtown. She headed across the street after looking at a map of where to go if a tsunami hit which made her laugh albeit a little nervously. She had not really been able to explore the town t
o
o much so far and she would like to a little bit today. Even with Thomas and his son in the town she was relying on the fact he would not recognize her right away.