Cradle Creek

Chapter 70, Pilgrimage

Life moved quickly for Emmie in the immediate days that followed her meeting with Drew.

Her new contract allowed for a housing stipend and while staying with Aunt Katie was comfortable, it couldn't be permanent. If she stayed with her, she'd be hiding and it would be eternally temporary. Maybe putting down a root or two in buying a house could be a good move. Maybe it would make this transition feel a little less temporary. Over the years, she had saved a little money and small cottages littered the main street around the heart of town. If one was close enough, she could walk to work and that sounded divine. It sounded different, so different from everything she had known.

From the clinic window, she watched AJ cross the street from Drew's house to Sugarbaker's. Thinking about a realtor in this town, she excused herself during a break in patients, walking over to the bakery. The little bell announced her arrival. When Emmie asked about a house to rent or buy, Julia said, "You'll need to talk to Mabel about buying a house."

"Who's Mabel?" AJ and Emmie asked simultaneously.

"Oh, dear Mabel," Julia said rolling her eyes, "She's the only real estate agent in town. You could say she has a monopoly. She's a real bulldog, so if you aren't serious about buying, you better hold off."

"I'm serious. There's nothing left for me back there. Aunt Katie arranged for a moving crew to ship my clothes and personal effects. I need a change. A big one."

"Then go with God. I'll get you in touch with her, but don't say I didn't warn you."

The next day, Mabel practically tore down the clinic door to get in and meet her newest client. She held a stack of papers and a flurry of information on heels too high for anyone to walk in without substantial effort unless paid in dollar bills. Emmie loved her excitement and made fast friends with her. Appointments were set to see a gaggle of homes over the next few days.

It was the small English cottage with a white picket fence covered in jasmine that stole Emmie's heart. Yellows roses climbed the right side of the front door and squatty gardenias ran the front of the house. Someone had loved this home before her and it showed.

Mabel opened the door and Emmie found a clean, empty house with wide planked hardwood floors, an updated kitchen with marble countertops and two bathrooms, one bigger than the other. The backyard had a brick patio and the previous owner had left two black wrought iron chairs and a cozy table. They were heavy antiques and seemed to bring the whole space together. Boxwoods surrounded the patio and lush green grass with hydrangea bushes at the edge completed the space.

"Wow," Emmie said, "I never thought a place like this could exist anywhere but in the movies."

"Sullivan's Rest is full of surprises," Mabel responded.

The two women discussed the price and the owner agreed to do a private rent-to-own agreement based on Emmie's monthly stipend and the money she had saved. It was a different way of doing things, but all parties were happy with the plan, especially Mabel who nimbly negotiated to keep both sides of the commission.

"I got rid of all my furniture, but I can figure that out," Emmie told AJ as she walked her through the house later.

"You should go to Pete's," AJ said, "I was just in there and he always has something unique."

A week later, Emmie closed on her first house and found herself wandering into the antique store she knew by name only. It was open and airy, full of intricacies that made her want to stop at every shelf and see what she could find. Taking in her surroundings, she could picture him leaning against the counter, folding his letterhead in the shape of a crane. The counter was free of clutter, except a stack of the heavy linen paper with Pete's Antiques, Oddities and Collectible for the Criminally Sane and Sanity Driven Criminals scrawled across the top.

"Hello?" she called to the dust.

"In the back," she heard a familiar deep voice in a slow southern drawl. It had been almost a year since she had last seen him. A lifetime ago.

Emmie trailed her finger on a dresser as she saw a chair that looked deceptively uncomfortable in the corner. Sitting in it, she was surprised at the ease it gave her. Yep, she could curl up with a good book in this beast.

"Not bad, right?" she heard the same voice from over the back of the chair. He saw only a unfamiliar blonde head of hair peeking out over the top.

"Not bad, indeed! It looks so stiff and uninviting, but man, you sit in this bad boy, and magic happens," Emmie said, wiggling deeper in the arms and warmth of it.

Pete chuckled, "Pete Archer," he said as he rounded the corner to see his customer and the surprise was candid on his face.

"Emmie! I didn't see you," he fumbled, suddenly tripping over words. "I didn't realize you were the new nurse everyone is talking about," Pausing, he felt Lucy's words in his ear, 'breath,' she would have whispered. And so he did.

"Welcome to Sullivan's Rest, where technology dies and gossip thrives," he said.

"So I gather," she said. "I need some..."

"Furniture, I bet."

"I'm on a budget, but I know I want this chair. That's the stuff of dreams. And maybe that dresser," she said, pointing, "And I think a table for the kitchen and maybe a stool or chair for that," she thought out loud.

"Going sparse, are we?" he asked.

"Budget. I said that, didn't I?" she chuckled.

"Well, let's see what we have and what we can get in for you. Are you planning on sleeping on the floor?"

"No. Dang it," she snapped her fingers, "Scratch the table, I need a bed."

"What's your budget and I'll see what we can do," he asked. She told him and he said, "Yeah, we can work with that."

As Emmie looked around, she saw there were no prices. Pete pointed out a second chair that complimented the one she wanted. She nodded and he walked her over to a square table with four sturdy chairs. The table sat heavy with fat legs. He did not have any mattresses, but let's be honest, he chided, who wants to buy a mattress from an antique store?

There were a few headboards against a back wall, but nothing he thought would suit her. It surprised Emmie how well he knew what a woman would want. Inadvertently she checked his left hand. No ring.

He added a glass coffee table and sideboard, totaling up her cost, coming in well under budget, with enough money to buy a mattress and bed from somewhere on the internet.

"My sister is an interior designer and she sent me this link," he said, pulling it up on his phone, "It was easy to assemble and was delivered quickly."

Seeing the image, "Oh, I don't need a king size bed. A double will do just fine," She said.

He raised his eyebrows commenting that she wasn't in college anymore and they compromised on a queen before offering to have it shipped to his store and have everything delivered when it arrived.

"All that's left are towels and sheets and you can't get those here," He said smiling broadly. He had straight white teeth and those lips that, well, that's for another day. She paid Pete and thanked him for all of his help.

"Hey, do you play checkers?" she asked as she was leaving.

When he looked dumbfounded at the question, "Checkers?" She repeated back to him, confused at his confusion.

"Yeah, you know red and black," she continued, "Kings and jumps. You have to go back and forth across the board," he said.

"It's been a few years, but I think I remember. Why do you ask?"

"Just curious. You wanted to play Uno at the hospital," and he groaned loudly. Laughing, she said, "Cards aren't really my thing, but I like board games."

As he walked her to the door, he wanted to ask what brought her to Cradle Creek. But when he saw the white band on her left ring finger, where a diamond once elegantly sat, he decided to save the question for another day.

Five years ago, he thought his life was over. Now, it seemed like it was beginning again.