South of Superior - Ellen Airgood [139]
“I liked that little dance move you were doing, that little thing with your hands,” Paul said after a moment.
Madeline felt foolish and embarrassed.
“Hey,” he said, seeming to see her discomfort. “I really did like it. You looked so happy. Like everything in the world was going your way.”
She gave him a tentative smile. “It’s a sunny day. I’ve got enough money to pay the bills this month, as long as nothing breaks down. And I love that song.”
“Me too. Always did. It’s a feel-good song.” He pushed himself off the doorframe and shoved his hands in his pockets. He looked around the room, and Madeline felt awkwardness growing Up between them like a tangle of brush.
“So what are you doing here?” she asked again, softly.
He looked down at his battered leather work boots. They were so familiar—she’d never thought of knowing his shoes when she worked with him, but she did. The Loco-Motion had ended and an advertisement came on the radio. Roof rakes were on sale at the Soo Lock Hardware, thirty-four ninety-nine, get yours today, pull that snow off before it builds Up and caves your roof in. Madeline crossed the room and switched the power off. She and Paul stared at each other in the sudden quiet.
To Madeline he looked wonderful. He looked dear. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and hold him tight. She wanted to dispense with this absurd awkward pretense of talking and just absorb him through her skin. She could admit this now, at least to herself.
“Did you get the card I sent?” he asked.
“I did. Thank you.”
Silence fell again. Paul was looking at her so oddly. Intense, hopeful, sad—she wasn’t sure what the expression on his face meant.
“Why are you here?” she asked again, just as Paul said, “Listen—”
They both stopped talking, began again. “I’m just so surprised to see you,” she said, as he said, “I didn’t know how else to do this—”
“Do what?” she asked while he said, “Except to just show Up.”
She took a quick breath, let it out again. “Do what?”
Paul nodded once, as if deciding finally on some course of action. “I’m back to open Up again. I got a little money from the insurance. Not enough, but we’ll figure it out. Being down there, working for Jim—getting laid off by Jim about ten minutes after I started and him thinking he was doing me some favor—it all made me realize, this is where I want to be. This is what I want to be doing. Sure, it’s never perfect, but it’s mine, you know? My life, my business. And my nephew Tom’s coming with me. He’s going to help me put it all back together and then run the place with me. At least for a while. He was over in Iraq and he’s kind of at loose ends now. Turns out he was an army cook. Can you believe I didn’t even know?”
“It’s easy to lose track of people.” This was probably the longest speech she’d ever heard Paul make, and Madeline was startled by it. She didn’t Understand all of it, but that didn’t matter. She was startled, and incredibly happy that he’d said, I’m back.
“I had some time to think. And to grow Up a little, I guess—”
“You’re grown Up,” Madeline protested, but Paul rolled on as if he didn’t hear.
“The thing is—the thing is, that I—oh, hell.” He crossed the few steps between them and suddenly was very near. He smelled good, of some kind of spice, or soap. His eyes were so brown, big and serious. He took her shoulders, drew her closer. He kissed her. Madeline didn’t think her response through; she put her arms around him.
“I missed you,” he said when they broke apart.
“I missed you too.”
“All the way Up, I was thinking maybe could we try—”
“Try what?” she said softly. He was only a little taller than her; their eyes were almost level.
A looked flashed across his face, a look that had hope and daring in it, but shyness too. “Being together.”
“Oh.” She had a sudden vision of them together in this hotel years from now. How far off that seemed, and how Unlikely. But she loved his eyes, his merry smile, his way of standing. It felt that simple. Maybe it really was that simple. A smile spread across her face. “Okay.”