Authors: Lee Ann Sontheimer Murphy
“And
if you want to call me, I’ll get a phone.
You can help me pick one out ‘cause I don’t know jack shit about them.”
Speechless,
she nodded.
He confused and delighted
her, and she didn’t begin to understand him.
But she ached to know him more.
Devlin wasn’t a cookie cutter man, but an original.
His brusque manner hid a soft heart, she
decided, and he told it straight.
Her
parents preferred politeness and throughout her education, from kindergarten
until college, most people spoke with a certain amount of sugar coating.
This man didn’t and she found his difference
positive.
Devlin
noted her nod and added, “It’s a good idea with you trying to walk all over
town late at night.
If I get a phone and
you ever need me, you can call me.
What
do you think?”
Gracie
cleared her throat.
“I think it’s a plan.”
What
she liked most of all was the way he seemed to think he’d be part of her life
in the future.
Chapter Four
Leaving
Springfield on the back of a bike, arms tight around Dev’s waist, with sunshine
pouring over her like molten gold, Gracie tasted a little happiness.
They roared past the bookstore where she
should be reporting for work in a few hours and she resisted the urge to thumb
her nose.
Today she’d be free like the
customers who frequented the store, enjoying a little leisure time. She almost
wished she could ride without the helmet and let her hair fly loose in the
breeze, but it wouldn’t be safe and Gracie was aware.
When
Devlin hit the straight stretch out of town, he accelerated, and her stomach
seemed to drop back to the city limits.
Fear clutched her body and her heart sped up
as the miles per hour increased.
Flying
must seem the same, she thought, as she tried to put away her terror to enjoy
the ride.
As much as she liked Devlin,
she almost wished she hadn’t agreed to come.
The ride down would take at least two hours, and she doubted her nerves
could handle the strain for so long.
If
it wasn’t for the strong wind buffeting her face, she’d probably be crying and
if she thought Dev could hear, she might’ve asked him to take her back home.
Instead
she clutched him harder, her fingers in a taut death grip on his denim
jacket.
Gracie didn’t think he noticed
her extreme fear, but after he turned onto 86, Dev pulled into a convenience
store.
By then her knees trembled and
when he pulled off his helmet to talk to her, he wore a frown.
“Are
you okay?” he asked. “I can feel you shaking through the vibration of the
road.
Are you scared or what?”
His
voice calmed her, but she nodded. “I’m terrified, Devlin.”
Although
his expression shifted quickly, Gracie read his disappointment before it
vanished, but when he spoke, he didn’t sound upset. “Do you want me to take you
home?”
“No,”
she said, surprising herself.
Five
minutes earlier she’d been praying he would offer, but now she wanted to make
the trip. “I want to go.
I really do.”
His
usually mournful eyes turned sadder. “Don’t you trust me?”
“I
do,” Gracie said. “I’m just not used to the speed.
Do you always go so fast?”
A
faint smile flickered across his mouth. “I’ve been keeping it sixty or less,”
Dev said. “If it was just me, I’d probably be pushing eighty.”
“No
kidding?”
“No
shit,” he said, serious. “Babe, I like flirting with death, but I figured you
wouldn’t so I’ve kept the speed down.
The road will get curvy before we get there. I’ll allow for it and slow
down, but it’s supposed to be fun.
I
didn’t mean to scare you.”
Devlin
sounded so sincere Gracie regretted her fear. “I know you didn’t,” she said.
“I’ve always been too nervous, afraid of anything and everything.”
He
laughed. “I’m the opposite, most of the time.
Do you still want to go?”
“Yes, very much.”
“Then
relax and trust me,” he said. “Try to enjoy the ride, will you? If it’s not fun
for you, it won’t do much for me.”
Her
desire to enjoy the day included watching Devlin have fun so she nodded. “I’ll
do my best.”
“Good.
Here’s what we’ll do.
Go inside, use the restroom, and relax.
Then we’ll start over.”
“Okay.”
“But,
Gracie?”
“What?”
“If
it still scares the hell out of you, tell me and we’ll do something else.
Promise me you will.”
“Sure,
I promise.”
They
started out again and this time Gracie focused on the way Dev handled the
bike.
She admired his control and once
she calmed down, she began to enjoy the changing scenery.
Even his speed began to provide exhilaration
instead of fright and by the time they changed from 86 over to 21, she decided
she liked riding behind Devlin.
As the
hills grew into mountains and the curves wrapped tight to the road, Gracie
experienced a rush of pleasure.
Her
earlier happiness returned and increased.
By
the time they rolled into Eureka Springs, she knew this day would rank high in
her memory as one of the best ever.
Devlin appeared familiar with the place and navigated the twisting
streets to the downtown district.
He
parked the bike on a side street and they dismounted.
“I
thought we’d wander around here for a while,” he told her. “If your butt’s as
stiff as mine, I figure you’d like to stretch your legs a little.”
“Sure,”
Gracie said. Her rear and legs were rigid as wood.
On impulse, she let her hair down after the
helmets were put away and when Devlin offered his hand, she took it.
They climbed up one side of the street,
peering into windows and entering many of the shops.
Accustomed to her dad who hated to set foot
in anything besides a farm or auto parts store, who griped if he had to enter
the supermarket or a discount store, Gracie liked Devlin’s willingness to look
at things.
They admired handmade quilts,
mocked some of the cheaper tourist trinkets, and when she looked over some
scented candles with delight, he bought her one.
“Thank
you,” she said, outside on the sidewalk, bag swinging from her free hand. “You
didn’t have to buy it, but I’m glad you did.”
“It
smells good,” he said. “What is it, some flower?”
“Roses,”
Gracie replied.
In
the next shop, he bought some old-fashioned stick candy and they enjoyed
it.
By the time they meandered down the
opposite side of the street, she enjoyed total rapport with Devlin.
Gracie didn’t think she’d seen him so at ease
before, chatting with shopkeepers and commenting on everything from calico to
cubic zirconas.
When she paused at a
display of Arkansas diamond jewelry, attention caught by the sparkling stones,
Dev stopped, too.
“They’re
pretty,” she said, tilting her head up to look at him.
She wasn’t hinting, just appreciating beauty,
but he smiled at her.
“Pick
out something,” he said.
“A necklace, earrings, or ring,
whatever you like, Gracie.”
Although
the prices weren’t too expensive, she hesitated.
A lifetime of frugality always made her pause
before purchasing anything. “Are you sure?” she asked.
“Damn
sure,” Devlin said.
“C’mon, it’s not
like I’m offering you anything from Tiffany’s or even Kay Jewelers.”
Gracie
laughed.
Maybe she should loosen up
more, be less serious.
“All right,” she
said, “I like this.”
Her
fingers touched a ring, one with multiple stones set in the shape of a
five-pointed flower.
The dainty beauty
appealed to her and after sizing her right hand ring finger, Devlin bought it.
She wore it out of the store, unable to
resist tilting her hand to watch the sunlight glisten over the clear
semi-precious stones.
Gracie
paused on the sidewalk and when Dev looked askance at her, she stood on tip-toe
to kiss his mouth, her lips light as a butterfly’s wings against his.
Despite the tourists and other visitors
swirling around them, he grasped her tighter and gave back a proper kiss.
“Thank
you, Devlin,” she said.
“For
the kiss or for the ring?” he asked with one eyebrow quirked upward in query.
Without
stopping to think about her answer, Gracie said, “It’s for both.”
Both and so much more
, but she didn’t say it.
Instead she linked her arm through his and
asked, “So what now?”
“Do
you want to eat or see the Crescent Hotel?”
Gracie
knew the legends and the history, but she’d never seen the place. “You mean the
haunted hotel?”
“Yeah,
that’s it.”
“Let’s
go see the Crescent.”
Any
picture she’d ever seen failed to show the sheer size of the place. The zigzag
road climbing to the hotel almost made her nervous because he took it with
speed on the bike, but she relaxed and enjoyed it instead.
At the Crescent, she stared up at the hotel
and decided it wasn’t quite what she thought.
Although huge and grand by Ozark standards, it failed to exude the kind
of elegance she expected.
Instead, it
offered a Victorian atmosphere, gracious and grand but far from opulent.
Gracie and Devlin wandered into the lobby
and peered around at some of the vintage furnishings.
A cat basked in the sunlight streaming through
the windows on the rug. Since it was still August, there wasn’t a fire in the
massive hearth.
After
peeking into the large dining room, she shook her head at the starched white
table linens and said, “This wouldn’t be for me.
It’s too fancy.”
With
a wicked grin, Devlin said, “Are you sure? I’ll buy lunch here if you want.”
“I
wouldn’t begin to know what fork to use,” Gracie quipped and he laughed aloud.
Then
he led her up the stairs to a public overlook so she could see the view.
She didn’t care for the narrow corridors much
or the overall melancholy feeling hanging over the place, but the scenic view
made up for the rest.
They lingered
there for fifteen or twenty minutes as he pointed out some of the landmarks,
including the Christ of the Ozarks statue on a distant hill.
Below them the entrance gate and walls of an
attractive church were visible.
“It
looks pretty,” she commented.
Sober-faced,
Devlin replied. “It’s famous, in Ripley’s Believe It or Not because you enter
through the bell tower, but it’s kind of a trick because the bell tower leads
to a sidewalk.”
Curiosity
piqued, Gracie said, “Can we go see it?”
Although
he made no objection, she sensed some hesitation, but Devlin nodded. “Sure, if
you want.”
They
didn’t drive but instead walked down a long flight of stairs leading out of a
garden behind the hotel to the street below and crossed over to St. Elizabeth’s.
Holding hands, they followed the sidewalk and
it wasn’t until they were about to enter that Gracie realized it was a Catholic
church.
Raised Baptist, she’d never
before entered a Catholic place of worship, but Devlin opened the door so she
walked inside.
Candles
flickered at several statues in the large vestibule, but Devlin walked toward
the sanctuary with familiarity as well as purpose.
She watched as he dipped the fingers of his
right hand into water and made the sign of the cross.
“Hang
on just a minute,” he said and released her hand.
She watched as he knelt for a few brief
moments in a pew and then dug in his pocket for some change.
After he shoved a handful of quarters into a
slot, Devlin lit a candle at the feet of what Gracie guessed to be Mary, the
mother of Jesus.
He bowed his head as if
saying a prayer and when he finished, he headed for the door so she trailed
behind.
Outside
in a pretty courtyard, Devlin waited for her.
His closed expression warned her of his high emotional stress. When she
took his hand, he squeezed it.
“Are you
a practicing Catholic?” she asked.