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I need to get a grip.
I need control.
I won’t be owned by anyone.
Putting Chase out of my mind for the time being, I text my new friend and invite her over for homemade pizza and wine.
Pepper: Wine and homemade pizza tastes better with friends.
Charlie: You had me at wine. I’ll be over in thirty.
I move the boxes I’d packed today aside to tidy up the place. So far, I’ve filled bags with Elliot’s t-shirts and pants in good condition for donating. And prepared a box of his barely-worn suits to drop off at the church.
I managed to fill one box of his personal things this evening. Clothes were easy. They don’t require much thinking. But collectibles, loose little trinkets, and other items that hold meaning beyond my knowledge is going to be the hardest part of this cleanout.
I thought it would be easier.
But as I rummaged through drawers and cabinets, gathering items to determine their value to the Reeves family, my throat started to clog with emotion—and it’s not supposed to do that.
Not for someone I never really knew.
As I wait for Charlie, I pour myself a glass of wine and move back to the last box I filled. The one I’m not sure I should tape up yet. I twist the heavy black leather keepsake box and open it again. Once more, I flip through cased NHL cards of Elliot’s favorite player. Several of them all ranging from his rookie year to last year. I smooth out the signed jersey I folded earlier, my heart tugging. Then I lift the beat-up puck with faint scribble and stickers on it again to see if I can make it out. The barely-there signature looks nothing like Chase’s other signed stuff, and I wonder if it’s someone else’s.
Closing it again, I top that box with another small one containing things like collector lighters, school rings, and yearbook photographs.
Before closing the box, I reposition a book that doesn’t seem to fit right. Something falls loose from between the pages and I lift it. It’s a photo of Elliot and Mr. Reeves. They’re at Hideaway Lake in what looks like the summertime. Elliot is younger. Probably early teens, wearing a sunhat that appears too big for him and makes him look a little goofy. But judging by the smile and the relatively large fish he’s holding, he doesn’t seem to care.
Reconsidering, I pull it out and set that one aside for now. I know just who to pass that one onto.
I’m prepping ingredients in the kitchen when the doorbell rings. Grabbing a dish rag, I head to the front door and take a glimpse through the peephole before opening. “Hey!”
“Hey!” Charlie beams right back. “Love the look.” She points to my hair and marches in. “Sorry I’m late—had to feed the cat, then shower, then meal prep for the week.”
I shut the door behind her. “You meal prep?”
“What? No, I don’t.”
“Aww. That’s cute.”
She growls and walks to the kitchen. “I was told there’d be wine.”
“And pizza and toppings and yes, plenty of wine.”
She pulls open the fridge. “You went shopping.”
“I picked up a few things after Chase left. I’ve had five hours to myself. And I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there’s nothing but an empty farm behind this house. If I don’t stay busy, I’m going to start having horror movie thoughts.”
“Oh, it’s not empty. That’s Levi’s ranch.”
“Levi’s ranch? Ooh, does he walk around in a cowboy hat?”
Charlie laughs. “Only to humor his brothers, who make fun of him for it.”
I peek out the window. “Maybe I’ll see him riding his horses.”
“Not likely. He only rides one and not often. Peanut’s old.”
I turn back to our pizza toppings. “So what do you do? Like for work? Do you have to be up early or something? I realized I called you over here on a Tuesday night without thinking.”
