Free The Light of Asteria by Elizabeth Isaacs

memory I had of him, allowing them
to build. I searched with my soul; a hint of yearning brushed my
face. Encouraged by his timbre, I focused all of my strength and
searched again. Standing there with my eyes closed and arms opened
wide, I inhaled deeply and willed myself to feel. A whisper of
anger now flavored the longing, and I could sense that he was
distancing himself. Or maybe I was so desperate to feel him again
it was just my imagination running rampant. He wasn’t here, and I
was standing in the parking lot looking like a loon. I dropped my
arms and glanced around hoping Mrs. Brown wasn’t documenting the
bizarre behavior. Several male painted buntings floated down and
perched themselves on the roof of the car next to me.
    Trying not to lose what little sanity I had
left, I jumped in the Jeep and turned my crazy thoughts to the
immediate problem at hand. I’d take Edna out to dinner after her
nail appointment. It would be easier to tell her about Gavin in a
public place.
    “Ed, I’m home … you ready to go?”
    “Almost.” Her voice rang above me.
    What if Sally knows? I’d better say something
before I drop her off.
    “How was work?” she asked, shuffling down the
stairs.
    “I sold some special nails today, but I’ll
tell you about it over dinner. How about hitting up Panera’s after
Sally’s?” Playing it up seemed the only way to assure she didn’t
feel left out.
    “You look like you won the lottery. What
happened?”
    “I don’t want you to be late … we’ll talk in
the Jeep, all right?” Her eyes twinkled, as I stalled for time.
    The packed tourist lot gave me an excuse to
concentrate. Edna waited patiently until the Waynesville sign came
into view.
    “Okay, so you know the guy that bought the
hammer the other day ... the one Mr. Vernor saw in the store?”
    “Yes.”
    “Well, he needed some more nails.” Why was
this so hard? “His name is Gavin…. We got to talking, and Mrs.
Brown came into the store….”
    Edna silently waited.
    “She stopped by to get some stuff for the
festival … anyway, she met him.”
    “Is that all?” A smile played on Edna’s lips.
I whipped around the corner, passing the church, barreling my way
through town.
    “Well, can I fill you in at dinner? … I just
didn’t want Sally or anyone else to make it sound like I had a
stalker.” I finished lamely.
    “Or a boyfriend …” Edna surmised. I could
feel heat flood my face.
    “Am I ever going to meet this Gavin?”
    “He’s out of town until next week. It’s
almost four. I’ll pick you up in say, half an hour?” I veered the
truck to the front of the salon.
    “See you then,” she promised.
    Sweat beaded on my brow. Boys, or in this
case a gorgeous man, were uncharted waters. The brief time I had
alone allowed me a reprieve to gather my thoughts. When Edna got
back in the Jeep, I wasn’t quite so flustered. We drove in silence
to the outskirts of town.
    “Love the pink,” I muttered, as we found an
oversized booth. She ignored me, waiting for the conversation she
wanted to have. I sighed and finally caved.
    “Okay … so I met Gavin coming out of Hol’s
dorm. I was distraught about leaving and wasn’t watching where I
was going.” I kept my eyes down, tripping over my words. “He tried
to talk to me, but I was so upset I didn’t know it. When I went to
see Kate and Hol that Friday, I ran into him again. He apologized
for running into me the first time and then walked me to the
bookstore, overheard Hol ask about my work schedule, and then
showed up last week needing to buy a hammer.” I rambled through the
story quickly, not even sure it made sense.
    “Anyway, he ran into Hol when she wasn’t in
great shape, and brought her back to her room so she would be safe,
and I saw him again … which leads us to today.”
    “Is that all?” she asked, always seeming to
know.
    “Well, I’m going out to dinner with him after
school next Friday,” I muttered, staring into my soup.
    I