Old Flames

      Twenty minutes later Kathy pulled into her driveway and parked her car. Oded pulled in behind her and did the same. She got out and walked back to him. He rolled down the window and looked up at her. “Do you want to come inside?” she asked hesitantly. “I should only be a minute.”
      He shook his head. “That’s ok. I’ll wait here.” She felt relieved. She wasn’t sure she could take having him in the house that she and Brad shared. She thought he probably felt the same.
      She quickly made her way up the walk, unlocked the door, and let herself in. She threw her briefcase and purse on the kitchen counter and walked back to the bedroom. She pulled her suitcase out of the closet and started throwing clothing and personal items in it. It dawned on her that she had no idea what she should bring, so she decided to be prepared for everything. She packed a myriad of clothing, a book or two for reading, and all her makeup and bathroom items. Then she looked down at herself and realized she was still in her work clothes. She quickly changed into a comfortable pair of jeans and a light blouse. She ran a brush through her brunette hair and spritzed herself with her favorite perfume, then felt a little better about her appearance. She jammed a few last minute thoughts into the suitcase, then tried to zipper it shut. She finally succeeded by sitting on it.
      A few minutes later she dragged the suitcase out the front door, grabbed her purse, and locked the house up. Her heart was feeling lighter already. She found herself being grateful not to have to sit in that house all weekend, constantly reminded of what had gone on in her life. Maybe a change of scenery would do her good.
      Kathy struggled with the large suitcase, dragging it down her walk toward Oded’s Camry. He got out of his car, pulling the latch that released the trunk lid as he did, and looked at her. “What the hell are you doing?” he asked with a small smile.
      She stopped where she was, straddling the large suitcase and breathing heavily. “Well, you never told me what to pack for, so I packed for every possibility.” She looked at him flippantly. He just rolled his eyes at her as he approached her. He picked up the suitcase, exaggerating its weight a little. She smiled and slapped him on the arm lightly. He walked around the back of his car, opened the trunk, and threw the suitcase inside. They both saw the rear end of the car settle considerably. They looked at each other, then Oded smiled. “Oh shut up,” she shot back at him, returning his smile. He chuckled as they got into the car.

      The long drive into the mountains contained a few sporadic moments of awkwardness, but for the most part Oded and Kathy spent the time falling back into their old relationship. They caught up on what both of them had been doing the last five years, subconsciously avoiding any references that could lead to Brad. Kathy found herself letting go of her guilt and sorrow over the past few weeks. At least most of it. Her mind seemed determined to remind her once in a while of what she had done, giving her an occasional twinge. But this was the best she had felt in a long time, and was resolute not to let it get her down.
      She watched Oded as he drove, the wind from his lowered window tousling his hair slightly, and found it hard to believe that this was happening. He placed his hand lightly on her thigh, taking subliminal claim of her, and the warmth of it reinforced the actuality of him. Their talk was punctuated with laughter, and she realized how long it had been since she had done that. It felt so good to laugh again.
      After they left the city behind and entered the countryside, they stopped for dinner at a restaurant in one of the small towns along the way. Oded had been there before on his previous trip up to the cabin, where his friend had had a party. As they enjoyed their food, the ramifications of their trip began to dawn on Kathy. On the drive up, all she had been concerned with was what she was getting away from. Now she was beginning to realize what she was getting into, and her nervousness started to build. Doubt flitted across her mind as she wondered if this was such a good idea.
      But as Kathy sat across the table from him, listening to him talk about one thing or another, she felt her affection bloom and her doubt fade. She sat silently, a small smile curving her lips as she admired him in the diffused light of the restaurant. Her desire for him began to build inside of her like a large warm cat that was purring contentedly. She was immeasurably attracted to him physically, with his dark, intense good looks. But she knew it was more than that. They had a spiritual bond. She thought it had broken after she had left London five years ago, but it was now evident to her that it hadn’t. It had just gone underground, waiting for them to meet again. And now it was reemerging. She didn’t know what it meant as far as her future was concerned, but as she sat there in the restaurant gazing at him fondly, she didn’t care. All she could comprehend was the weekend in front of them.

      They arrived at the cabin just as dusk was falling. Oded turned off the highway onto a well-maintained gravel road that meandered into the mountains for a seemingly infinite number of miles. It guided them through the forest of pines until it came out on top of the mountains. Kathy had a commanding view for miles around. She looked down the steep slope along the side of the road and noticed a long deep lake below them, divided on one end into three fingers. From where they were, it reminded her of a bird’s foot. Steep cliffs surrounded it on all sides.
      A smaller road split off the main road, and Oded took it. It dropped down a narrow break in the cliffs, approaching one of the fingers of the lake. Kathy rolled down her window and cocked her elbow out, inhaling the scent of the forest that came in on the warm breeze. It reminded her of her childhood in Idaho and she smiled nostalgically.
      The road suddenly emerged from the close-knit grove of trees and entered a wide meadow. It split the high grass in two, then ended in a large circular driveway. On the far side of the driveway sat a large two-story log home. It was surrounded by a sprawling landscape, consisting of a well-manicured lawn and various groups of trees. Kathy could see glimpses of the blue water of the lake through the leaves. Her mouth fell open at the sight of it.
      As Oded pulled into the driveway, she exclaimed, “My god, Oded! I thought you said this was a cabin!”
      He looked at her, smiling slightly. “It is.”
      “No it’s not.” She gazed around the property in amazement. “My family’s hunting cabin back in Idaho had an outhouse and packrats.” He laughed as she continued. “That was a cabin. This is a lodge!”
      He parked the Camry next to the steps leading up to the back door. He popped the trunk latch, and they both got out. Kathy could hardly take her eyes off the place. She had never been near a home this nice before. It had to be very expensive.
      As they walked around to the trunk, she asked, “Just what does your friend do, anyway?”
      He smiled and said casually, “He’s an actor, like me. We were in a couple movies together.” He started pulling out their luggage.
      “Is this someone I might know?” she asked.
      “Probably. Brendan Fraser?”
      She thought about it. “That name rings a bell.”
      He set their luggage on the ground and straightened. “The Mummy?”
      “Never saw it.”
      “The Mummy Returns?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
      “Never saw it.”
      “Do you go to any movies?”
      She smiled at him. “Rarely. I’m usually too busy.”
      He put a hand over his chest dramatically. “I’m crushed!”
      She laughed. “Ok, the next one you’re in, I’ll go to. Deal?”
      “Ok.”
      She paused as an idea hit her. “By the way, how was it that you are always home during the day, and are able to just take off whenever you want? What’s up with that?”
      “I’m actually between jobs. I start shooting a new movie next month. I’m sort of on vacation right now. ‘Vacation’ sounds better than ‘temporarily unemployed’, anyway.” He grinned as she laughed.
      Oded picked up their luggage and followed her up the steps. As she climbed them, she asked, “This may be a dumb question, but how do we get in? Do you have a key?”
      “No, it’s not a dumb question, and no, I don’t have a key. The caretaker was supposed to stop by today and leave it unlocked for us. He also stocked the fridge and had a cleaning service come in. It should be all set for us.” He paused. “The guy was very nice about it, considering that I didn’t give him much notice.”
      She threw a surprised look over her shoulder at him. “He left a place like this unlocked?”
      “Well, it’s pretty isolated. This is the only place on this finger of the lake. Plus the caretaker’s home is just over the hill, so he keeps a pretty close eye on it.”
      “Oh,” she replied, giving up. She couldn’t imagine ever earning enough money to have her own pet caretaker.
      Kathy walked up to the back door and tried the knob. It was indeed unlocked. She shook her head, smiling, and let them inside to the kitchen. Oded dropped their bags on the floor with a noticeable sigh of relief as she shut the door behind him. He shrugged his shoulders and stretched his back. “I can tell I’m going to need to visit my chiropractor when I get back,” he teased. She gave him a dirty look, and he smiled at her deviously.
      Oded peered in the progressing gloom at the wall that surrounded the door. “The guy said there was a light switch somewhere here… Ah!” He flipped the switch, exposing the home to them. Kathy gaped in admiration. The large kitchen that they were standing in was obviously built for having large get-togethers. All the appliances were professional size and stainless steel. The long countertops were granite. The kitchen stepped down to a large dining room, where a table capable of seating a large amount of people was arranged. That trailed further into the living room, which had large windows giving a spectacular view of the lake. The warm wood of the large log walls and plank flooring surrounded the whole scene.
      “My god,” she muttered. “When I grow up, I want to have a place like this.”
      He chuckled. “Come on, I’ll give you the dime tour.” He casually took her hand in his and led her first down to the living room, where a side door led onto the deck outside. They stepped into the warm summer evening and leaned against the deck railing, admiring the surroundings. The ground gradually sloped away from the home to the lake, where a smooth gravelly beach was laid out. At one side of the beach was a small dock with a fairly expensive-looking boat tied to it. They were silent for a moment, enjoying the quiet of the area after the noise of the city. The only sounds were the soft sigh of a breeze blowing through the pine trees, the lap of the water against the shore, and the occasional call of a bird. Kathy felt some of the tension in her body start to leave her and decided that this had been a very good idea.
      When they had their fill, Oded led her through the rest of the house. The upstairs was the master suite, an imposing setup that Kathy thought she could never feel comfortable in. The rest of the downstairs consisted of three more bedrooms and two bathrooms. The house seemed to go on forever. With just the two of them there, she felt a little like the last two peas that had been left rolling around in a tin can. There was too much space.
      They finished the tour back in the kitchen, next to their luggage. Suddenly an awkward silence filled the air. Now there could be no ignoring the reason they were there, just the two of them. As Oded gazed at her, she felt her longing for him rise again, but she still felt uncomfortable with it. The recollections of the past few weeks were still fresh in her memory. Her emotions struggled with each other.
      “Well, which bedroom should we stay in?” Oded asked.
      She felt herself blush with all the implications. “Uh…” she stammered, “Well, why don’t we stay in the one nearest to the kitchen?”
      He nodded and picked up their luggage, taking it into the bedroom. She was nervous, and started to ramble as she followed him. “This place is so big, I can’t imagine walking all the way down from the master suite to the kitchen just for a cup of coffee.”
      He dropped the duffel bag and suitcase on the floor next to the bed, and turned around to look at her. Another awkward silence fell upon them.
      Kathy suddenly realized what a long day she had had. “Uh, I think I’m going to take a quick shower.” She jerked her thumb at the door connecting the bedroom to a bathroom. “I feel fairly grody.”
      “Ok. I’ll take a minute to check out the place, make sure we have everything we need.” With that he turned around and left. She was aware of the breath she had been holding and released it. She grabbed her suitcase and managed to lift it onto a trunk at the foot of the bed. She unpacked all of her things, amazed that she had fit all that junk in there. She grabbed her robe and bathroom articles and went into the bathroom. She quickly cluttered the counter with her armload of jars, tubes, and bottles, and closed the door behind her. She walked over to the shower, leaned in, and turned on the water, waiting for it to heat up. It dawned on her as she got undressed to question why she had closed the door and realized she was feeling timid about Oded seeing her naked. She looked at her image in the mirror, admonishing herself. That was a pretty weird way to feel, considering how many times the man had seen her naked before. She smiled crookedly and shook her head, then stepped carefully into the shower.
      Kathy stood in the hot stream of water with her head hanging down, letting the pressure knead her tight shoulders and neck. She consciously made an effort to clear her mind of all her thoughts. When she felt she had let the majority of her stress go, she grabbed her shampoo and started doing her usual routine. As the day’s grime and worries were washed off, her eyelids started to become heavy. All the anxiety she had been dealing with lately, her lack of sleep, and the large meal she had eaten on the way up were catching up with her. Her mind began to wander. All of a sudden she wondered if Oded might start the weekend off by joining her in the shower. The thought brought her out of her semi-doze like a slap. Her body reacted to the visual, bringing a flush to her cheeks and a knot to her stomach. But her mind wasn’t quite ready for that yet, and she found herself hoping he wouldn’t.
      As she finished up her shower, she became more convinced that he wasn’t going to try it. She was a little disappointed, but mostly she was grateful. He seemed to realize what was going on in her head and was giving her some space. She relaxed again, and exhaustion soon crept up on her again.

      Oded heard Kathy turn off the shower as he was unpacking his duffel bag. Everything was put away except for his small bathroom kit, and he’d wait until she got out before going in there. She had seemed nervous when they arrived at the cabin, and he didn’t want to push himself on her. He had felt a strong urge to go in there and join her in the shower, but had resisted. He wanted to spend a wonderful weekend together, and pressuring her wasn’t a good way to start it off.
      He left the bedroom, finding things around the house to check on, opening windows to let in some fresh air, turning on or turning off lights, going through the fridge and cupboards. Finally he went out to his car, making sure they had brought everything in. He spied his careless collection of CDs and grabbed a few, then locked the car up. He walked back into the kitchen and laid his CDs on the counter. He turned to the bedroom, figuring she had had enough time to get done.
      “Hey, Kay, everything’s buttoned down for the…” he trailed off as he entered the room and saw her lying on the bed. She was wrapped up in her big terrycloth robe, her hair still wet, fast asleep. He stopped and looked at her, an affectionate smile spreading across his face. He watched her sleep for a moment, then quietly left the room.