Chapter Forty Three - Detour - Bridge Out
Sandy barely had me off balance and falling toward her when the phone rang again.
"I'll bet that's Carissa and she'll kill me if I don't answer." I said as I bounced off the bed and pulled away.
Sandy just sighed and nodded, then left me hurry back to the phone.
"Hello."
"Hello Chris. It's Wil. I thought I should call you and let you know what happened myself before anyone else called and blew what happened out of proportion."
"Too late, Mom already called." I kidded him.
"Oh jeez. I was hoping to have you call home for me, but someone else must have called her. What did she say happened?"
"Just that you went out for a drive with Corinna, but broke a tie rod and went in the ditch, then had to spend the night with a trapper. Why, did something else happen?"
"Oh, we were just off the property when we weren't supposed to be and then we were almost a whole day late getting Corinna back, that's all." Will grouched. "Dad told me when I bought that damn truck that I shouldn't touch it and as usual, he was right."
"You mean you didn't have permission to take Corinna for a drive?" I was astonished.
"I never even thought of it. Corinna wanted to go out for a drive and I didn't know any reason she couldn't. Hell, she's practically released; well, she will be tomorrow." He sighed deeply. "I am in so much shit you must be able to smell it over the phone. Right now I'm in the local cop shop, but at least I haven't been booked for anything yet."
"You're in the police station?"
"That's what I said, didn't I?" Will snapped. "I don't know why and I really don't know what to do. I know it's asking a lot, but you always seem to know how to get out of shit; I thought maybe you could give me some advice."
"Umm, Wil, I usually get out of trouble by not getting into it." I sighed. "You know me, I think about things first, then if it looks like I could get into trouble, I back off."
"Well, that doesn't help me much." Will complained. "When Corinna asked me to take her for a long drive yesterday, I was just so happy that she was feeling up to it, that I never thought of anything else but being with her and talking to her. I really didn't mean to get into trouble. I simply fucked up."
"Well, I don't know what to do, but I think you should call Mom and Dad. If worst comes to worst, they'll know how to get hold of the lawyer Grampa Bender used to write up his will and the leases. His lawyer will probably be able to recommend a defence lawyer who can help you, but make sure Mom and Dad know all the details."
"All the details? Like what?"
"Yeah, all the details, like where things happened and how they happened. The lawyer will want to know what Corinna said that convinced you to take her for a drive, where you went, the reason the truck went into the ditch, the trapper's name, the name of the service station where you worked on the truck, all that stuff."
"Oh jeez! I'm not sure I can remember everything."
"Well, you'll have to do your best. The more the lawyer knows, the easier his job will be and the quicker he can get something done." I paused to think for a second, then continued. "If I were you, I'd call Mom and Dad right away. The sooner they know about this, the faster they can get something going and the faster you can walk away from there."
"Shit, I guess you're right. Thanks."
Then before I could even wish him luck, he hung up the phone. I held it for a second, then slowly set it down. My mind was whirling, but had nothing to work on that offered a solution. I was turning toward the bedroom when Sandy stepped through the doorway, pulling on a robe.
"That wasn't Carissa, was it?" She asked.
"No, it was Wil. I don't know why, but the cops arrested him. He wasn't supposed to take Corinna away from the hospital, so when he got back, I guess the cops took him into custody."
"They probably think he kidnapped her." Sandy rolled her eyes. "Wil is so impulsive and after he's done anything he acts so guilty at being caught that people think he's guilty of more than he really did."
"Well, when it comes to being impulsive, Corinna isn't much better, but then, neither is Carissa." I snorted.
"You know; you're right." She looked thoughtful for a second. "But, you're on the exact opposite end of the scale. I try to think first and act later, but you take it to the point where I become impatient and wonder if you're ever going to make up your mind."
"Yeah, I do take a while on some things, but at least I haven't been arrested by the cops." I sighed. "Now, Wil is going to be calling Mom and Dad, so I can't use the phone to call them and warn them of what's up, but I'd like to at least give them a heads up. That way ..."
"Use the radio." She interrupted me.
"Pardon?"
"Use the CB. Then you're not tying up their phone."
"Good idea. I knew you were more than just a pretty face and a sexy bod." I grabbed her in a quick hug and a short kiss before I moved to the CB and called Mom.
I was surprised how quickly Mom answered, but didn't mention it. I was in too much of a hurry to get the message across that Wil would be calling and that his call was important. I wanted to make sure the phone wasn't tied up and that Dad was in the house to take the call. I was very careful what I said over the CB, knowing that anyone else with a CB might be listening in, but I did get the message across. I'd just finished the call to Mom and stood up, intending to thank Sandy again when the phone rang, so I shrugged my shoulders and rolled my eyes at her grinning face as I grabbed the phone receiver again.
"Hello."
"Hi Chris. It's Carissa. Have you talked to your mom?"
"Yeah she told me that you'd called and that Corinna was back."
"Yeah, she's back, but Wil has disappeared. His truck is parked out front, but we haven't been able to find him anywhere." She snapped.
"He hasn't disappeared. The cops arrested him and took him to the police station."
"What? You're kidding me? We've been hunting all over for him."
"Well, the cops must have been told to arrest him by someone at the hospital, but whoever told them to do it didn't bother telling you. If you really need him, that's where he is."
"Look; I'll call you back. I've got to go tell Dad, then try to calm Corinna down. Fucking cops! We don't need this kind of bullshit right now. We need Will here with us to act as support. Corinna has been put through hell and she needs him. If I find out who told the cops to arrest Wil, I'll have his nuts. I'll rip them out, dry them in the oven and use them for a key fob."
With that, she hung up on me. I just shook my head and put the phone back on the hook.
"Carissa?" Sandy grinned.
"Unh huh, and she's wound up like a two-dollar watch." I rolled my eyes again. "She's ready to chew out the cops and the doctors at the hospital now."
"That arrest doesn't sound like something the RCMP would do, I'll bet they're town cops and they're out to make a name for themselves. You know the kind, act fast, then even if you fuck up, at least you have something to show for getting your paycheck." She snapped quickly, her mood changing instantly.
I just nodded. Then I crooked a finger in a come hither gesture and patted my knee.
"Since I can't move the phone because it's fastened to the wall and since I want to be nearby to take calls, I'm not going to move from this chair, but that doesn't mean we can't cuddle." I smiled at her. "Let's both calm down and try to be nonjudgmental about what we hear until we know the whole story, okay? Maybe the cops are at fault, but maybe someone at the hospital arranged to have Wil arrested. We don't know yet, so let's not go off half cocked."
That changed her mood again. She just shrugged her shoulders, but slid into my lap and I cuddled her for a moment.
"Oops, I should call Mom and let her know that Carissa and the Coulters didn't know where Wil was. There's a good chance that there won't be a reason to get a lawyer involved." I thought aloud.
"Yeah, you'd better, but I want my seat back when you sit down again." Sandy sighed, sliding off my lap with a quick peck on my lips.
Gambling that my folks' phone might be free, I picked up ours and dialed. Mom answered on the first ring.
"Hello. Wil, is that you?"
"No Mom. It's Chris. I was just talking to Carissa. They didn't know Wil had been taken away by the cops and the whole Coulter family is pissed off about it."
"Wil was arrested?" She sounded astounded.
"Mom, I don't know if he was arrested or not, but he's at the police station and ..."
"Well, now your call on the CB makes more sense." She interrupted me. "I'm going to call over there right now and find out just what's going on."
And, for the third time that morning, someone hung up the phone on me. I just stared at the dead receiver for a few seconds, then shook my head and hung it up again.
"Well, that was short and sweet." Sandy giggled at the surprised look on my face.
"Yeah, I'm getting tired of people rushing off and hanging up on me." I said sharply, then couldn't help but laugh. "I suppose Mom got a bit excited though. I wasn't exactly diplomatic, was I?"
"No, after what you said, can you blame her? She thinks one of her family has been put in danger. So she's just showing her mother's instincts. Now about that snuggle." And with that, she slipped back into my lap.
Actually, that was a preview of how Sandy and I spent most of the afternoon, lazing around the cabin, grabbing the phone when it rang, but grabbing cuddles and smooches whenever possible. The phone probably rang more that day than it had in weeks, so we never did get a chance to relax. However, as time passed, things slowly straightened around.
In the long run, John and Wilma Coulter got Wil out of the cops' hands. In the process they reamed one of the overly officious doctors at the hospital rather heavily for arranging to have him taken into custody. So it turned out that even though Wil had been held in custody for a few hours, there was no official arrest. In fact, after Corinna was officially released from care, she left the hospital grounds riding with Wil in Wil's truck. They were followed by Carissa in her jeep, just in case Wil had any more trouble with the truck.
Mr. and Mrs. Coulter remained behind for a while, but I never did find out why. I suspect that they spent the time chewing out people that they felt had screwed up. I did hear later that one of the doctors who had been working at the hospital transferred not long after the incident, but I don't know if the Coulters were responsible for his transfer or not.
Back at the ranch, things had settled down at our end by chore time. Not only had the phone calls dwindled off, but the rain had petered out and the sky was clearing. Sandy came out with me to help look after the animals, then I helped her prepare something to eat and even helped to clean up the kitchen afterward. We didn't sit on the porch for long that evening though. She wanted to go back to bed, but when we got there and tried to do anything, she soon realized that she was a bit uncomfortable.
"I guess you were right. Maybe I was a bit too energetic earlier." She complained.
"That's okay. You can still cuddle." I grinned and hugged her tightly.
"Well, I wanna do more, but it's uncomfy." She sniffed in annoyance.
I just chuckled and hugged her tightly. We fell asleep cuddled closely and I don't think we moved much all night.
Okay, I should correct that. I didn't move all night long, but I woke alone. Sandy wasn't in bed with me. When I went looking for her, she was sound asleep on Beth's bed in the back porch. I assumed right away that she'd found cuddling with me to be uncomfortable and that she'd moved during the night. Rather than waken her, I made coffee, then went out to look after the animals. I'd just walked back in the door after doing the chores when the phone rang. I rushed to grab it, hoping I could prevent the ring from waking Sandy.
"Hello." I answered quietly.
"Hi Chris, it's Beth. I was just calling to tell you that you don't have to worry about the chores this evening. George and I are only coming up for the barbecue, then we're coming back home before the races start; that way you don't have to do the chores either too early or too late." Beth prattled, almost non-stop.
"You're sure that's alright? Doesn't George want to be at the races?"
"Well, yeah, but Jess and Jean are going to go along with Tom and they've never seen the races before. So George suggested we leave early. He thinks Tom can handle the pit duties tonight, besides, if we do it right George and I can be alone for a while."
"Oh, are things getting serious?" I teased, then waved at Sandy as she scurried past to grab a robe before running outside to the biff.
"No more serious than they were a month ago, if it's any of your business. But talking about people and what's going on, J & J want to know how you and Sandy are making out?"
"Well, all I'll say is that I was alone in bed when I woke up and your bed was slept in last night. I really don't want to talk about it much."
"Oh. Unh, should I say that I'm sorry or ..."
"No, just leave it alone." I said shortly.
"Oh shit. Well, whether you like it or not, I am sorry. I like Sandy."
"Look, just leave it alone would ya?" I tried my best to sound grouchy.
"Okay, whatever you say, but I want to talk to you this afternoon, if I can get you alone."
"Okay, Beth. I'll see you then." I held a finger to my lips and winked as Sandy came inside again.
Sandy grinned and winked back, sticking her tongue out at me, but didn't say a word.
Beth said goodbye and we both hung up, then Sandy was in my arms. After a kiss and hug, Sandy leaned back and grinned at me.
"You've been fibbing again, haven't you?" She grinned.
"Nope, not one word, I just used a deceptive tone of voice." I grinned. "Of course I didn't tell her all the truth either, but that's beside the point."
"Smart ass." She laughed. "Isn't that called dissembling by exclusion?"
"Wow, dissembling by exclusion? Aren't those awfully big words for a little gal to use on a Sunday morning? Just what do you think they mean?"
"Oh, I think you could say that they mean lying, by not telling all of the truth. Besides, I'll have you know that this little gal got an A+ in my English final, so even if you don't think so, I have a pretty fair idea of the meaning of the words I use." She grinned. "Now I'm curious, who was that on the phone?"
"That was my dear little sister. She told me that she and George are going to do the chores here tonight while I go race a car, but she also warned me that she likes you and plans to talk at me about you."
"Don't you mean talk to you?" Sandy snickered.
"Nope. When Beth gets wound up, she talks at you, not to you. She gives lectures that have a built in bite."
"Oh, I know those. I've had one." She laughed, but rather off-key, almost as if she wanted to complain, but knew she shouldn't.
"When did she lecture you?" I frowned.
"About a day after I tried to screw you on the way home after the only real date we ever had. She talked at me about birth control and about relationships. I have to admit that in her case, the word 'at' is very descriptive and used accurately." Sandy broke into a grin. "I'm just waiting for the day when she screws up and I can talk 'at' her and give her advice."
"You'd better be patient then, she's darn careful and doesn't screw up often." I laughed. "Now, I'm starved, could we make something to eat. By the way, I don't have anything planned for today, so I was wondering if you have something you want to do?"
I was surprised that she didn't want to take advantage of the fact that we were still alone. Instead, she wanted to go for a drive in the jeep and see more of the ranch. So after breakfast, we packed some drinks and snacks, then I drove up the trail on the west side of the valley. We went as far as we could in the jeep, then climbed to the top of one of the cliffs. From there we could see the entire ranch and she was able to get an idea of just how large it really was. I'm certain that she'd had no idea before, because she seemed to be stunned by the view.
"Jeez, just how big is the whole place?" She turned to me, eyes wide in astonishment.
"Well, the valley floor is the only part we really count, and that works out to be just under five thousand acres." I smiled. "But we do control the cliffs on each side since the government survey lines run along the compass lines, north and south or east and west. I suppose if you counted the cliffs and the upper area, all the way out to the survey lines, we probably have at least another thousand acres we don't use. The upper ranch is about seven and a half miles long and two and a half miles wide at the widest spot. The lower ranch is bigger."
"Jeez, you are fucking rich."
"No, not really." I laughed. "Actually, one or two bad years and my whole family could be land poor. You see the taxes on the place are huge as well, then the expenses of upkeep are sizeable, so we have to worry about keeping our income on the positive side of the ledger all the time. At the moment we have a decent bank balance, but if we had three or four rough years in a row, we'd have to re-mortgage the land we own to pay the expenses on the taxes and upkeep on our property and the leased land. As farmers and ranchers, we depend on the weather to be favourable. The government doesn't care one iota if the weather ruins our crops one year, they still want their taxes. Then the bankers still want the money we're paying back on loans we took out in the bad years we had not long ago. So in effect we're gambling on the weather all the time, year in and year out."
"Oh, I didn't look at it that way." She frowned.
"Most people don't, they just see the large acreage and don't think about the ongoing large costs that go along with it."
"Well, if the costs are so great, how do you do as well as you do?"
"Well, we diversify. Look at Dad's farm. He has cows, pigs, chickens and he grows more grain than he can feed, so he sells the extra. That means he sells milk and eggs, beef, pork, and chickens as well as grain. No single weather problem will completely wipe out his financial base. Because we have the water rights on the creek, he even had one field that he can irrigate if there's a drought. He usually gets a cash crop of alfalfa that he sells to a dairy farmer near Calgary. I'm thinking of doing the same thing up here, even if it means plowing under one of the regular hayfields, and clearing back some scrub willow."
"Where would you do that? Can you point out the area from here?"
"Oh yeah, no problem." I rested my hands on her shoulders and turned her toward the cabin, then slightly to the left. "There, on the left of the cabin, above the barns and corrals, you see that hayfield that runs almost to the lake?"
"Yeah, I can see that."
"Okay, all of that field, as well as the area covered by those low bushes, seems to me to be a perfect area to irrigate. First of all, it's very flat and won't need any grading work. Secondly, it's close enough to the house that I can use an electric motor to run the irrigation pump. Then too as a third point, every acre of that area is on the original homestead, that means it doesn't fall under the new rules that we have to follow about native plant protection on the leased area."
"You have to follow rules on what you can do on your property?"
"Oh yeah, on the lease we certainly do. I think new lease states that we have to retain something like seventy-five or eighty percent of the acreage in natural plants and we can't do major soil modifications or anything like that."
"I didn't realize farming and ranching could be so complex."
"Oh, this is nothing. You should ask Mom what the latest rules are, because she's the one who keeps track on all the new laws and regulations. We always ask her to check things for us before we even start a new project, since the government seems to be always changing things. I'm not sure how it happened, but after we had a problem or two with legal changes, Mom just seemed to take the job on and she does it extremely well."
"Mmm, talking about your Mom, I guess we should go get ready and head down there soon, huh?" She leaned back against me and snuggled for a minute. "So, are we going to keep up the charade of barely getting along in front of your parents, or do we let them in on the secret?"
"Let's see just how long we can keep it up." I laughed. "Mom and Dad are very good at judging character and they read people's actions as much as their words. Let's see just how long it takes for them to catch on to us."
"It's a good test for us then, is it?"
"Um hmm, but it might be tough to keep up the act." I hugged her gently from behind.
She turned and kissed me quickly, then pulled away and bent to pick up what was left of our picnic lunch. I almost had to run to keep up with her as she skipped down the grade to the jeep.
When we got down to the farm, Mom and Dad were almost ready to leave. I'm not sure if it was our actions after they saw us, or if they'd talked things over beforehand, but when we got into the car, Dad got in front with me and Mom got in the backseat with Sandy. I do know that all the way to the lake, Dad kept me involved in a conversation, so that Mom and Sandy could talk. I actually found the situation to be a bit funny, but even though I wanted to, I didn't dare grin about it. In fact, I tried to act as if Mom and Dad were doing me a favour.
Once we got to the lake and out of the car, things were a lot easier for me to handle. For one thing, once I'd had a chance to talk to Carissa for a few seconds, she could help us with our masquerade. Then too, I was inundated by the attention that I received from Corinna and Wil; somehow they had decided that I was solely responsible for straightening out the mess with the cops. I couldn't seem to make them see the fact that Carissa who had been the mover and shaker who had stirred things up so changes could happen.
Of course I had to talk to John and Wilma Coulter. After that, I spent some time with Frank Dolens and his family, then I spent even more time talking with Sam and Ann McAdam. That was the hard one. Ann McAdam had noticed that I and Sandy weren't spending much time together and she spent several minutes letting me know what a wonderful young woman Sandy was going to become. I was very grateful to Sam for finally leading her away when some of his relatives showed up. That gave me a chance to finally get to spend time with someone my age.
I moved over to talk to Tom, George and Wil who were over by Car 54. "Hi guys, what's going on?"
"Not a darn thing." Tom grinned. "I think the car is ready, but George is going to eat and run on us today."
"Yeah, so I heard. Thanks for offering to look after the chores for me, George." I nodded.
"I don't mind." He grinned. "Your chores are nothing, besides Beth is all wound up about seeing her horses again. If I can do a few chores and make her happy, I don't mind at all."
I was trying to think of something to say to that when we were inundated by females. Carissa and Corinna appeared first, then Sandy showed up with Jess and Jean as well as a tall blonde that I'd never seen before. It turned out that she was Sandy's cousin and her name was Jacqueline, but answered to the nickname; Jackie.
She was stunning, the ultimate blonde bombshell, and she knew it. To make things more interesting, ten seconds after being introduced to the three of us guys; she was on the make. Unfortunately for her, none of us were extremely interested, but to my discomfort, she homed in on me.
What bothered me was that Carissa and Sandy thought it was funny. For some reason they held back and let her play, disregarding the helpless look I threw their way. In fact, Carissa winked at me, which threw me completely off balance. Just what was that wink for? Was she implying that I should go along with Jackie's play and act as if I was interested? Or did it mean that Jackie wasn't really interested in me and Carissa was letting me know that I was safe? For a short time, I really didn't know what to do.
Meanwhile, Jackie was playing the part of a dumb blonde, pressing close to me, rubbing a very full breast against my arm, batting her eyes and broadcasting the impression that she was available. But, there was something about her actions that read wrong to me, almost as if there was a red flag waving in my view. After the third or fourth dumb question about driving a stock car, I realized what was wrong. While her face and her body were broadcasting willingness and even eagerness, her eyes weren't. There was something in the depth of her eyes that just didn't ring true to her actions.
At the same time, something else was happening. I didn't notice at first, but after a moment it dawned on me that the two of us were being left near the car as all of my friends moved away. I don't think Jackie noticed either. I decided that this was a setup of some sort, but at first I didn't know what to do. However since we were standing fully exposed to anyone who happened to be watching, I wasn't worried. I let Jackie prattle on, answering her dumb questions until no one would be able to hear my voice if I spoke quietly, then I lifted a hand, palm forward. Her voice stopped and she looked slightly shocked.
"Jackie, I don't know what you're up to, but I know you're acting." I said quietly. "Underneath that dumb blonde act, you're very intelligent, but scared as hell. Now, I'm not someone you should be afraid of because I try my best not to hurt people. In fact, I try to help them if I can, so just what is going on?"
"What do you mean?" She whispered, pulling back a few inches and frowning slightly.
"I mean what I said." I shrugged. "For one thing, you aren't as naive as you've been acting. In fact, it takes a very intelligent person to come across as someone so untutored in the real world, but even more than that, you're forcing yourself to be close to me and I can sense it. You're afraid of something, and I think it's either me, or men in general, but I want you to know that I won't hurt you. At least, I won't hurt you intentionally, but I can't discount the fact that accidents happen."
"So just like that, I'm supposed to trust you?" She snapped, dropping her act.
"No, that will take time, but since you came over here with Sandy and Carissa, I imagine they've already told you the same thing. I'm not a super critical person and I'm certainly not a person who sets out to hurt others, but since we've just met, you'll have to go on our word for now." I shrugged my shoulders. "I really can't prove it in a short time."
"Hmm." She mumbled, then tried to smile. "Okay, but you should know that I've never met one man in my life that hasn't hurt me, so trusting you is damn hard."
"Are you telling me that even the men in your family have hurt you?"
"Hell yes, them most of all and my mother is just as bad."
"Well, if you don't like men, why do you dress and act the way you do?" It was my turn to frown questioningly.
She was quiet for a minute, then turned and looked toward Sandy and Carissa before sighing deeply and turning toward me again.
"I dress this way because my folks insist on it and I act like I do to hide the fact that I'm weird." She stopped speaking and pulled away, her face looking as if she was terrified of saying anything more for fear that I might hurt her.
"I'm going to guess that from what you said, that your folks know that you like girls, but think it's wrong." I said quietly and watched her face register shock.
"How did you know?" She whispered, almost silently.
"Well, you're not all that fucking weird." I snapped. "Didn't Sandy and Carissa talk to you about their feelings?"
"You mean that they ..." Her voice trailed off into nothing.
"No they aren't lesbians, but they like both guys and gals. You should be talking to them, not me."
"Unh, I don't think so." Jackie seemed to droop.
"Why not?"
"Because that's just as weird and the Bible says it's wrong."
"Well, I'm not about to argue with you about your beliefs. But in my mind, you're letting your belief in the Bible torture you and I don't think that's right." I sighed heavily. "I really do think you should talk to Carissa about that and Sandy too for that matter, after all the two of you are related. Oh, by the way, were you raised in the Mormon church like Sandy's mom was?"
"Yes, but what has that to do with anything?"
"Nothing really, but I thought all Mormon women were taught that obedience to the men in their family was paramount?"
"We are, but I can't seem to do that either." She broke into tears.
"Dammit, don't do that." I sighed.
"What? Why can't I cry?" She whimpered.
"Because when I see a woman cry, I want to comfort her and fix what's wrong, but you don't trust me, so I can't even wipe away your tears for fear of upsetting you."
She looked at me strangely, then to my surprise she walked off toward Sandy and Carissa. I just shook my head and gave up, then wandered off to try to find Tom and George, deciding that this was turning into one weird day. Thankfully it wasn't long before the steaks were ready and we could eat.
Mom called me aside to talk to me after we'd eaten, which didn't really surprise me.
"We're going to catch a ride home with George and Beth." She smiled.
"Oh, I thought you'd stick around to see the races." I looked at her in surprise.
"Well, to be honest, seeing those cars go so fast and watching you in the midst of them worries me a bit, even if I know in my heart that you're a very good driver. So, since we have the excuse of being short handed to do the chores, Willard has suggested we go home and let you have your fun. I'll still worry, but at least I won't have my heart in my mouth all the time."
"But, I'm safer in the car on the track than I am when I'm driving on the road." I protested.
"I know that in my head, but it hasn't sunk into my heart yet." Mom smiled. "But I didn't come over here to argue about that. I had a completely different reason in mind. I wanted to talk to you about Sandy."
"Oh, what about her?" I thought she'd caught on to our charade.
"I think you're being too hard on her." She frowned at me. "She tries to hide it, but talking to her on the ride up here, she really cares for you."
That statement took me completely by surprise.
"I think you should consider giving her another chance." She smiled. "It's not that I don't like Carissa, because I do, but I think Sandy is very nice as well. Besides, I'm sure you know that I think it's far too soon to settle down with anyone, so I'm suggesting that you don't slam the door in Sandy's face, at least not yet."
"Are you saying that because of the fact that Carissa ..."
"No, not at all." Mom interrupted, then she grinned mischievously and glanced around as if checking that no one could hear her as her voice dropped to a whisper. "Actually, I find the idea that if he plays his cards right, my son might be spending a night in bed with more than one young woman rather titillating."
She was blushing then and she lifted her hand in goodbye, then rushed off. All I could do was stare after her.
I was completely flabbergasted.
Not knowing what to do or say to anyone right then, I wandered slowly over to the stock car and leaned against the fender. That's where Frank found me a few minutes later.
"Well, Chris, are you ready to race?"
"Yeah, I think so." I nodded. "At least on the track I have a good idea of what to expect next."
"Yes, you've had an interesting summer, haven't you?"
"Oh, Frank, that is putting it mildly." I snorted. "I've been turned every which way but loose."
"Well, life is like that." He grew serious. "However, I came over to tell you that today you have some very heavy competition, drivers who've come in from Edmonton and Calgary. I wanted to let you know that win, lose or draw, I'm not worried. Just having you in the race is enough, so just go out there and have fun. Okay?"
"Thanks, I think I will."
"Alright, Chris, it's time to get down to the track. Wil and Tom have already gone down to find your spot in the pits, so all you have to do it pull on your gear and go. I'll talk to you after the races."
With that, he rested his hand on my shoulder for a second, then walked away. I sighed, then reached in through the window of the car and pulled out my racing gear, deciding that today was the day when I intended to find out just how fast the car could go. By the time I was dressed, I'd succeeded in clearing my head of all thoughts, but those about racing. I drove slowly down the hill from the area where we'd picnicked, then eased up to the track entrance. That's when I saw the tall, slim figure of Jack, the track marshal, smiling as he waited for me with his clipboard in his hand.
At that moment I was in the strange mood that took over whenever I raced in any way, completely at ease, yet hyped to do my very best. No matter what else happened that day, I was confident that I was going to do well.