“Yeah, I think so. Like your life is better because you knew them, right?”
“Well, that but also the relationship led you both to want to know what comes next, that you don’t shut down. You see a lot of older couples around here all shut down. After a few decades of the same old same old, it’s almost a relief to die. I don’t ever want to be like that. Sorry, I’m monopolizing. How about kids?”
“I don’t know. I’m growing attached to my sister/step-niece. The drool stage would be the roughest for me, but I’ve always thought I’d have one kid, or maybe two, if I found the right person. My mom did a pretty good job raising me alone, I think, but I wouldn’t want to be a single parent unless I had to be. She never had time for herself, and now that she can, she’s starting over with a new kid. You?”
“I had cousins and friends growing up, but I always wanted a sister. I think I would want at least two kids, maybe more under the right circumstances. I would love to have a little mini-me running around.”
That’s what Mom used to call me – mini-me. I remembered sitting on her lap, her arms draped around me, watching fireworks from the roof of the hospital where she worked. As downtown Sacramento flashed an indelible image into my memory, Mom and I felt like pieces of the same puzzle. Goddess, I miss her. Suddenly, I could see Jodie walking a horse around an arena with a little brown-haired girl in the saddle, both them grinning from ear to ear. It sent a warmth throughout my body. I inched forward and kissed her.
“I would love to see that.”
We heard a whistling sound and a loud boom, and the sky exploded in droplets of light. We lay back on the blanket and watched the fireworks streaming down in giant arcs.
“You know, we have a long way to go, but I love where we’re at.”
“Me, too.”
July 6, 2013
Russ and Jodie woke me up, pulling in the driveway. I didn’t want to look like a slacker, so I hopped out of bed and pulled bread, jam, and butter onto the table before heading out to help unload the grill.
“Hey, Bilbo. You sleep until your toes got hairy?” Russ climbed up into the truck bed and undid the tie down straps. Zzzbbbtttt. The straps sang as he yanked them through the buckle.
“I don’t know what that means, Russ, but not everyone gets up at five a.m.”
He stuck his tongue out at me.
Jodie shuffled around the truck, her arms full of grocery bags.
“Geez. How many people do you think will be here?”
She smooched me on the cheek and headed towards the house. “About as many as show up. Can you get the rest and shut the door?”
“Yep.” I bounded around the truck and dragged the four remaining bags into the house. Eight a.m., and it already felt like eighty degrees.
“Maybe the heat will keep people away. Seriously. I don’t want to have a lot of food go to waste.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem. And one more thing …” Jodie pursed her lips and braced for impact. “I may have accidently invited the library board.”
“Not the entire board?”
“Ah, yep. Sorry, sorry, sorry.”
“Delilah Fricken Crabtree is coming to our barbecue.”
“We don’t know for sure, but maybe.” She winced.
“Oh, geez!” …
Amy Stinnett grew up in Louisville, Tennessee. By a circuitous route, she completed her degree, made two cross country moves, and raised a child. She has written short stories and articles that focus on LGBTQ relationships and coming of age, edited an LGBTQ newspaper, and edited works for other writers.
She has a varied background, having worked in group homes with developmentally delayed and chemically addicted individuals, a homeless shelter, private prisons, and a day care, to name a few places.
Some of her favorite authors are Dorothy Allison, Cormac McCarthy, Maya Angelou, Harper Lee, William Faulkner, Tom Robbins, Barbara Kingsolver, and Fannie Flagg.
She has a degree in English from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and is a member of the Idaho Writers Guild and the W.I.L.D. Writers Group.
Amy has also lived in Georgia, Florida, Arizona, Idaho, and Eugene, Oregon. She now lives in Ontario, Oregon with her partner, Stephanie, and their son, along with their two dogs, two cats, eight goats, and too many chickens to count.
Blog – https://www.amystinnett.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/jumblefish @jumblefish
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/amystinnettwriter
http://www.waitingdogpress.com
Other Works by Amy Stinnett:
Alex and Kat have been together about a year and a half, and things are getting serious. As they struggle to find their way as a couple, they have to contend with career and family issues. A client from Alex's group home is missing, and she starts to doubt her chosen profession. Kat begins to realize that bartending and starting a family don’t mix for her. Add in family guilt and one persistent bar skank, and their relationship is on overload. Will they find a way to mend all the broken places? Or will it just be too much?
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Lookout Butte is the first of a three book series that explores the beginning years in a young couple's relationship. Alex is a young professional from Connecticut. Kat is a bartender who grew up in a hick town a stone's throw from Atlanta. Together, they are either a train wreck or a force to be reckoned with, depending on the day and the challenge.
