Excerpt 85

She settled on some boat shoes she had bought the summer before.  They felt a little stretched out and loosely dropped down her heel as she walked, but they would have to do.  She couldn’t spend all day getting dressed for a hike.

Ala found him in the kitchen smearing some kind of preserves she didn’t recognize onto the two heels of the bread.  There was also cheese wrapped in waxed paper, a cut up apple in a baggie, a bottle of wine and a wedge of pate wrapped in plastic lying on the counter.

She picked up the pate.

“Will this be good in the heat?”

He stopped spreading and looked at her.

“Are you afraid?”

She smiled and went into the pantry to find a bag.  She put everything into a canvas satchel and zipped it closed.  She carried it to the foyer, where she found her purse, and retrieved her sunglasses.  She heard him locking the back door and her heart quivered.  They certainly were playing house.  He was taking the time to take care of a house that he was not even supposed to step foot in.

The car was sweltering and he immediately turned the dial all the way up so the cool air blasted their faces.  She melted against the headrest as he drove past her parent’s house.  She didn’t bother looking to see if they were home.  She felt very adult and really didn’t need, or care, to know what anyone else was up to today.

He drove along the water for as long as possible, then veered toward the highway that curved toward the hills.  She held her breath and inched her hand over to his. He snatched it up instantly.

He parked on the side of a very steep and rocky hill, partially covered with little green sprouts, and made sure to activate the parking brake.  She grabbed the bag of food and secured the leather laces, which were more of a decoration than functional part of the shoe, before skipping to catch up to him.