Page 38 of Lucky Shot
“Buttering up my dad won’t earn you any favors,” he said with a sardonic grin. “Then again, maybe it will.”
Grace laughed and greeted his mom with a warm one-armed hug. He was glad to see Cindy speaking to his father, showing she felt at ease there. She’d been out with Grace a few times, and the girls had gone to church with them and stayed for lunch last Sunday. Levi had loved sitting through the church service with Grace beside him, although her alluring fragrance combined with her appealing presence had made it hard for him to concentrate on the sermon.
“I love your outfit, Grace. Is it new?” Stella asked as she took the cake plate from her and set it on a table designated for desserts.
“I made it. Cindy and I found a great sale on material, and I had the pattern from some my aunt had given to me.”
“It looks so cute and perfect for Independence Day.”
Levi watched his mother rush to greet the first of her family to arrive. He walked over to Grace, looping an arm around her waist. When she leaned back against him, he pressed a light kiss to her neck. “I’m so glad you’re here, Grace.”
“Me too, Levi.”
Once the relatives all arrived, Levi felt like he didn’t get a minute to spend with Grace. His mother had him manning the barbecue grill, cooking burgers and frankfurters as fast as he could for what seemed like hundreds of people, but was probably closer to forty.
When the afternoon segued to the baseball game, Levi planned to find some reason not to participate, partially because of his hand but mostly because he wanted to be with Grace.
He was shocked to discover both she and Cindy had volunteered to play on his dad’s team.
“Oh, it’s on now, Meripie!” He waggled a finger at her, and everyone laughed.
Levi hadn’t tried to play baseball since he’d returned from the war, but he figured the worst that could happen was he’d strike out. When it was his turn to bat, he had to adjust his stance and grip on the bat, but he managed to hit the ball on the second swing, and it sailed out toward center field.
“Run!” he yelled to his uncle on third base as he headed to first.
The game was lively, and Grace and Cindy joined his cousins in lobbing taunting comments at him, but it was all in good fun. He dished out the jibes as fast as he received them.
When the game ended with his dad’s team winning, Levi cheered along with everyone else, mostly because Grace and Cindy were so thrilled with their victory.
After his aunts and mother hauled out gallons of homemade ice cream in four different flavors, they all ate until their brains felt frozen. Eventually, many of them participated in games of horseshoes, darts, three-legged races, and even a water balloon toss. Dinner was one of Levi’s favorite meals all year. His mother and aunts served baked beans, roasted potatoes, corn on the cob, and a pit-smoked pig that Levi and his father had been cooking since the previous evening. The meat was so tender and flavorful, it almost melted on his tongue.
Bellies full and children sleepy, everyone packed up and headed home, but only after everything had been set to rights in the yard and kitchen.
Levi’s parents, exhausted from the long day, sank onto the couch in the living room with their feet propped up and dozed. Normally, they would take a rest, then the three of them would drive into town to watch a fireworks display.
This year, though, Levi had invited Grace and Cindy to go with him to one of the local auto raceways for a drag race followed by a big fireworks extravaganza, or so the newspaper article had said. He’d purchased the tickets in advance so they wouldn’t have to worry about getting in.
While Grace and Cindy took a few minutes to clean up and rest, Levi retreated to his old bedroom and took a quick shower, trading the tank top and cut-off shorts he’d worn all day for a pair of jeans and a red, white, and blue plaid western shirt.
He settled his straw hat on his still-wet head, then went to the kitchen, where the girls sat at the table drinking glasses of ice water.
“Are you ready to go?” he asked, tamping his feet into his cowboy boots.
Grace’s hair was no longer confined on top of her head. Instead, it fell around her shoulders in chunky curls. Levi wanted to wrap the spirals around his fingers, let the strands trail up his arms, and bury his nose in the decadent tropical scent of it, but there would be time for a few stolen kisses and moments with her later.
Tonight, he wanted to make sure Grace and Cindy had fun. Because the day had been so warm and it hadn’t yet cooled off, his mother had insisted he take her car because it had air-conditioning. Under other circumstances, he would have declined and driven his pickup, but her car would be far more comfortable both because of the back seat for Cindy to ride in and the cool air that would be welcome in the summer’s heat. He snagged the keys from a little gold hook by the wall telephone in the kitchen and opened the back door.
“I’m calling shotgun,” Cindy teased as she raced out the door ahead of Grace.
“Should I be worried?” Levi asked as he and Grace walked hand in hand down the steps and over to the car.
“Nope.” Grace bumped her hip against his as they walked, and he knew happiness beyond anything he’d ever experienced.
Maybe there was a chance for them. If he could get his night terrors under control, and could get past his injuries, then maybe a possibility existed that he and Grace could have a future together.
When they reached the car, he started it and adjusted the cool air setting to high, letting the warm air blow through the vents before they got in.
It didn’t take long for the car to cool down and they were soon on their way to the raceway.