Bourbon Blaze Read online

  Sophia opened the door and gave a little screech at the large, brightly lit room. She danced around the work tables and smiled. She rushed over to the three boxes sitting on one of the tables. She opened one and thrust its contents at Curt. “Here’s my portfolio.” Curt took it, Sophia continued emptying the boxes of her art supplies, it didn’t take her long to have her office set up.

  “Now, I need a chair, and I’ll be set.” She said, running her hand over her computer. It took everything she had not to turn it on and get to work. While she traveled to Iowa, Sophia had cleared her head. This allowed her to come up with some designs she wanted to try. Knowing she lost herself in work, Sophia wouldn’t turn her computer on now.

  “Wait here.” Curt motioned for Sophia to stop before he went back out to the shop. “Scott!” Curt yelled. The other man looked up as Curt called to him. “Mind the shop; I’m taking Sophia to the office supply store!”

  “Gotcha! Make sure to flip the switch for the phones!”

  “What?” Sophia stared in shock.

  “Sorry, you can’t get to work unless you have a chair. I don’t know if Chris told you, I’m behind with my clients. I’m quoting people twelve to fourteen months from now. With you here, it’ll be faster. I don’t expect you to take up all of my slack. You can start your own list of clients with the first new customer who walks into the shop. In the meantime, I’ll give you the first client at the top of my waiting list. He’s been waiting for almost a year now. It’ll keep you busy. Get you started. Otherwise, I have room for you in the repair shop. Until you can build up your own customer base. I can always use someone to man the front office.”

  “God, please not that. I’ll take your client, I enjoy being busy, I don’t know if I can sit around and do nothing. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy working on the engines, but my first love is detailing. I’ll tell you right now, I’ll help in the front office, but I refuse to run it. I’m not a people person.” Sophia said. Twenty minutes later, they pulled into an office supply store. Both went to the marker and pen aisle first. After picking their choices, they made their way over to the office furniture. An hour later, they left the store with their purchases. Curt directed her to walk with him toward a popular cellphone carrier.

  “Before you say anything, Chris said to get you a cellphone. He told me what happened to you. I understand your reluctance to get a cellphone in your name. I have an account for HALO. The line is already being paid for we’d just need to pick out a phone.

  “You’re sure? You’ll have to take the amount of the bill out of my paycheck.”

  “Yes, I’m sure, and no, I won’t be taking anything out of your check. We can discuss it later.” Curt said. Once he explained to the manager what he needed, Curt stood back and let Sophia speak with her. Sophia was equipped with a new phone, a charger, and the instruction booklet when they exited the store. On the way back to the shop, Curt went through a drive-thru for their lunch before heading back to the shop.

  “When does the snow hit around here?” Sophia frowned at the laden skies.

  “Soon, I’ve seen it snow in September. Sometimes not until December. Is the bike your only transportation?”

  “For now, I’ll have to get a cage for the winter.”

  “Think about what you want, and I’m sure if Susan and Connor don’t want to go with you, I can take you. Though Connor is pretty knowledgeable when it comes to vehicles. He’s a smart kid.” Curt looked at her in concern. “When Chris first told me about you, I told Dana about you. It wasn’t until after you’d been out of the hospital for a couple of weeks that Susan and Dana realized that you were Susan’s cousin. I don’t know if you know this, but Susan’s son, Connor, is my son’s best friend.”

  “I did not know that, I have to admit, I’ve never met either of them. Susan found me on Facebook. She had been tracing her family tree. We’re second cousins. She and Connor are the only relatives I have. I’ve talked with her on Facebook and the phone, I’ve never met her in person. I’ll be meeting her later today.”

  “Well, you have nothing to worry about. Susan is a wonderful woman. She’s raising a great kid. Susan and Dana, my wife, are best friends, we will be there for you.”

  “Thanks, I’m a big girl, not physically, chronologically.” Curt gave her the side stink eye. She laughed. “I’m five-foot-two, I’m twenty-eight. I’m a big girl, I can handle it.”

  “Let me know. I’m here to look out for you.”

  “Thanks, Curt, you can call your brother, Chris, and tell him I’m fine. He doesn’t have to have you babysit me. I need to do this on my own.”

  “Call him with your new number. Otherwise he’ll be calling me all the time to check up on you.”

  “Fine.” Sophia laughed as she dialed her new phone. Once her call was done, she returned to work. Stepping into her office, Sophia rubbed her hands together and laughed with excitement.

  Sophia climbed onto her Harley after work, relaxed and happy for the first time in months. Sophia looked forward to interacting with people. Putting her bike in gear, she followed the directions Curt had given her to Susan’s place.

  3

  Sophia traveled fifteen minutes to go a few miles outside of town to a small, pale blue, two-story house. The driveway led so far back from the main road, it felt like she was in the middle of nowhere. Susan’s house sat in a patch of woods, surrounded by open fields. Sophia had the impression of being all alone in the world. Pulling beside the car already parked, she shut the bike off, dismounted, stretched, and turned toward the house.

  Sophia froze when she saw a woman and teenager standing on the porch.

  “Susan?” Sophia asked, uncertain.

  “Sophia?”

  “Yes.” Susan hurried down to hug Sophia. She noticed the boy come down the steps, with a pronounced limp. Sticking his hand out, he said. “Hello, I’m Connor Phillips.”

  “Hello, Connor. I’m Sophia Swanson.”

  “Is this your bike?”

  “Yep.”

  “Cool paint job, it’s dope. Who did it?”

  “I did.”

  “No way.”

  “Way.” Sophia laughed. She watched the boy walk around her motorcycle. At one point, he leaned in so close to inspect a skull, his nose hit the gas tank. Sophia laughed and answered his questions on how she painted the bike.

  When Connor was finished inspecting the bike, they turned toward the house. “I don’t have much.” Susan waved her arm, indicating the house and surrounding area.

  “I don’t expect you to go all out for me, Susan. If you can’t put me up, I can go find a hotel someplace.” Sophia didn’t want her cousin to think she was a freeloader. If need be, she could stay someplace on her own for several weeks.

  “Nope,” Connor said as he walked over to the garage and opened the door. “Mom parks her car on this side. We’ve talked it over you can have the other side. Your bike and trailer are small enough to fit on this one side of the garage. If you need help moving the trailer, I can help you. Or my friend Justin is coming over this weekend, we can move it for you.”

  “It’s easy to move.” Sophia unhooked it and the three of them moved it inside to the back of the garage, then she drove her bike inside. “It’s a camper.” Sophia popped it open to retrieve several items before going in the house.

  “I’m glad you’re here. You’re the only relative I have left on my father’s side. I have a couple of cousins on my mother’s, along with an aunt. They all live in California. I told you when you called, the house was small. Do not, I repeat, do not, think I am not happy you are here. There are two bedrooms, one bathroom. Connor and I discussed it, and we think you will be most comfortable in the attic. We moved all of the storage from the attic into the basement. I have a basement and a complete attic.

  Susan held up her hand when Sophia started to say something. “It’s a full basement, though not complete.”

  “Meaning?” Sophia asked. “Forgive me, coming from Florida, we
didn’t have basements. What’s the difference between a complete or a not complete?”

  “Let me show you.” Susan turned to go in a different direction. Opening a door, she reached in, flipped on a light and Sophia followed her down the stairs. What she saw shocked her.

  “There’s no floor.” Sophia was shocked by what she saw. “Well, there’s a dirt one, what are the walls made of?”

  “Dirt. It was this way when the house was built. It’s all dirt, floor, walls, nothing has been completed in it. Connor’s father started to finish it when we first moved in. After he left, I didn’t have the time, money, or energy to fix it. It wasn’t like I needed the space. It’s been Connor and me since his father left.”

  “Can I ask why he left?”

  “He couldn’t handle his son being born with a hip disability. They can do surgery to try to fix it after he stops growing. If they do it before then, it’ll have to be redone. I take him to a specialist every two to three years. We make a weekend of it because the surgeon is in Chicago.”

  “I’m sorry your ex was such a douchebag. I can always go with you if you need someone to hold your hand. Give you moral support.”

  “Don’t be sorry, Connor and I are fine with it. He knows he can’t do what he wants when he grows up, though he is determined he will, he’s okay with it, so am I. We’ll have to wait until he’s eighteen or nineteen to take him back in to see if they can do the surgery. I took him six months ago. We don’t have to go for another three years. I may take you up on your offer.”

  “What does he want to do? How old is he?”

  “He wants to be a Navy SEAL or a Marine, but there is no way he’ll pass the physical. He’s twelve, going on twenty-five.” Susan said. “I know I don’t have to tell you, but he is not allowed to drive your bike. He can ride on the back with you. He is not to drive it. No matter what he or his best friend Justin says.”

  “Agreed.” Sophia walked around the basement. After Sophia stumbled over a root for the second time, the two women left. Susan took her upstairs.

  “As I said, it’s a two-bedroom. Connor is at that end of the hall, I’m at this end. The bathroom is between the two bedrooms. The door on the right is the linen closet, the door on the left is the attic.” Susan opened the door, flipped on the light, headed up the stairs.

  “I hope you don’t mind, I picked out second-hand bedroom furniture. However, I bought the mattress new. There’s room for one small dresser. Those crates can be used as a closet.”

  “Thank you.” Sophia walked around. “It’s more than I’ve had for the last few months. The biggest mistake of my life was moving in with Tomas.”

  “We’ll talk later, if you’re willing to discuss it, I’d like to know what happened.”

  “It’s not pretty.” Sophia sighed.

  “I don’t expect it to be. I think if you talk about it, you’ll start to heal. I’m a trauma nurse at the local hospital. I believe patients heal faster if they talk about it. Professional help. Sitting in the living room at night, drinking a glass of wine, and talking might be therapeutic. But that’s not what I’m proposing here.”

  “You mean therapy?”

  “Yes. Therapy may be an option for you.”

  “I’ll think about it.” Sophia sighed. She put her bag on the bed and looked at Susan. “I do not promise anything, other than I’ll think about it.”

  “No pressure, I want you to know I’m here if you need anything.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I’ll leave you to unpack. Supper will be ready in twenty. I didn’t know what time you were arriving. I did something quick and easy. I hope you like spaghetti.”

  “Love it, I’ll unpack and come down.”

  “Take your time.” Susan headed toward the door, turned back with a laugh. “No longer than twenty minutes. The way Connor’s been growing, he might eat us out of house and home.”

  Sophia shared a laugh with her cousin. Left alone, she was able to unpack her clothes, and arrange her toiletries. She put her chaps and jacket off to the side. At the last minute, she grabbed them to take back downstairs with her. In her other hand, she had a pair of flipflops. She would probably have to resort to fuzzy slippers once the snow hit. She had always worn flipflops after work. On her bike, she wore riding boots. She made a mental note to ask Susan about shopping. She needed to pick up a pair of tennis shoes for the office. She didn’t want to ruin her riding boots in the paint booth. A pair of cheap, comfortable sneakers would do the trick.

  She walked into the kitchen and watched Connor help his mother in the simple task of putting a dish of spaghetti on the table. It brought tears to her eyes. Unsure where they came from, she stepped out and hurried up to the bathroom to wash her face. She looked in the mirror, and drew in several deep breaths. Talking to herself.

  “You're stupid, no reason to cry because Susan and her son are working together to put a meal on the table. Something they probably do every night.” It had been years since she’d had something so innocent as sharing a household task with a loved one. Under control, Sophia made her way back down to the kitchen. The next time she walked in and saw the domestic activities, she was better equipped to handle it.

  “There you are, did you bring your leather back down? There’s a hook in the front hall you can hang it on.”

  “I did, along with my chaps. I brought my riding boots down and set them next to the others shoes near the door.” After they sat down, Connor started serving the salad. During dinner, they talked, getting to know each other. At one point, Sophia spoke.

  “Is there any place I can search for a vehicle? A used car dealership?”

  “Why?” Connor asked. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be nosy. You have a sweet bike out in the garage.”

  “Yeah, I’m not going to drive it when there’s ten foot of snow out there on the roads.”

  “Oh, crap, I forgot.” The pre-teen snickered. “I guess it’d be like riding a greased pig, huh?” He laughed when he realized what he said. “Harley, hog, greased pig.” The women rolled their eyes, laughing along with him.

  “I’m also going to need a store.” Sophia said.

  “For anything particular?”

  “Sneakers, I wear my riding boots on the bike and in the office. I don’t wear them in the paint booth. It gets too messy. I forgot the pair I wore at the Daytona shop. They’re not worth having Chris send them.”

  “Do you know what your hours at the shop will be?” Susan asked. Sophia declined any more food. Connor ended up finishing it all.

  “Eight to five Monday through Friday, I don’t know what the weekend schedule is going to be.”

  “Curt works until noon on most Saturdays.” Connor spoke between mouthfuls of spaghetti. “Unless Ryan, Justin, or one of the others has a game. This weekend coming up, Ryan has a game. Curt will be there.” he turned to his mother. “Remember, I’m spending Saturday over at the farm.”

  “I know,” Susan said. “Maybe I can get a few friends to come over. We can have a girl’s night in. I could introduce you.”

  “You don’t have to do anything special. I’ll meet people.”

  “I know you will, but give a single mom a break. When Connor’s at Justin’s it’s my night to do what I want. It’s when I catch up on my cleaning and laundry. At least every two months, a bunch of us get together. May was the last time I’ve had a relaxing night. Justin’s been here a lot this summer.”

  “Who’s he?”

  “Curt and Dana’s son.” The three of them cleaned up the kitchen, Susan told Sophia about Curt and Dana. Connor took over the kitchen table for his homework, while the women went into the living room. By nine o’clock, Sophia was ready to call it a night. Sophia learned both Susan and Connor took showers in the morning, she decided to take hers at night. No need for the three of them to be in each other’s way. By quarter to ten, she was sound asleep in her new attic bedroom.

  Two hours before Sean was off work, he was driving the back roads,
cruising to see if there were any problems in the county. He wasn’t one of those cops who sat in one spot for most of his shift, he liked to keep moving. Pissed his boss, Phil Olsen, off because Sean was the only deputy who used the most gas compared to the others. He slammed on his brakes when a deer ran out in the road ahead of him. Kilo woofed. Sean pulled off to the side, making sure the dog was settled before he pulled back out onto the road. His cellphone indicated a text. He read it and shot a reply back. He hung up, he looked back at his dog.

  “That was Curt, he said there’s a new detailer at the shop. They started today. I can come in on Saturday to talk to them about the paint job I want on the bike. It’s going to be in the high sixties. You’re staying home. You’re not allowed on the bike.”

  Kilo woofed as if he understood everything Sean had told him. He reached back and ruffled the dog’s fur. He loved that dog. He finished his shift, doing his paperwork in record time.

  Arriving home, he let Kilo into the back yard, made sure he had plenty of food and water, headed up to his bedroom to shower and change. Going into his garage Sean walked around his bike, then over to his workbench, pulling the file he’d compiled a couple of years ago. It contained the design he wanted to be painted on his gas tank and both fenders. Looking it over, Sean knew he still wanted it. Back in the kitchen, he opened the refrigerator and began pulling items to make an omelet. For the first time since working afternoons, Sean was in bed by one-thirty in the morning.

  At a quarter to ten Saturday morning, Sean walked in the front door of HALO Customs. He rang the bell in the center of the counter. Curt, the owner, smiled as he approached. “Sean, how are you?”

  “Good, how about yourself? I have to thank you for sending me that text. Since I’ve been working afternoons, it’s hard to get anything done.”