To be loved by you, p.12
To Be Loved by You, page 12
Suddenly, it occurred to Jeremy that in all his dinners with them, there’d been dozens of additional invited guests, but aside from his sponsor a handful of times, the guests had all been Edith’s and Eleanor’s connections.
Even the handful of dates he’d been on the last several years hadn’t been with women he’d cared to bring deeper into his world. And while he realized he hadn’t been ready to take any action of his own when it came to inviting Ava to join them for dinner, somehow, it seemed like exactly the right choice. Trust Edith and Eleanor to realize that before him.
As if sharing Jeremy’s sentiments, when farm talk was put on hold so that Ava could get ready for class, Rolo trotted along after her, not even looking back to see if Jeremy was following. Maybe he was holding out hopes for another bite of string cheese, but maybe, like Jeremy, he was also picking up on the fact that Ava Graham seemed to fit right in here.
Chapter 12
When the kids began arriving, the occasional laugh or playful shout reached Ava’s ears from the direction of the house as she set up for class. Even without her finishing touches, the backyard seemed to have been staged for the experience with its manicured flower beds, freshly mowed grass, citronella torches, and warm, glowing Edison bulbs strung underneath the wooden pergola. And that wasn’t even taking into account the garden. It was still late spring for another few weeks, and the garden was flourishing well enough that Ava had no doubt even her green-thumbed grandma would be impressed.
Her butterflies began to subside as she unrolled her mat near the arched entrance to the garden and spread the mats Jeremy had purchased, all royal blue, on the grass in front of her. Behind those, she unrolled the three extra mats she’d had in her trunk. In front of each mat, she set battery-operated tea-light candles and then pulled up the cello-based playlist she’d selected to play over her portable speaker, believing her music choice to be mellow enough for yoga but not too “out there” that it might inadvertently get the kids laughing.
Around her own mat, she placed the last three candles, the speaker, and one of her favorite yoga books that she’d be sharing a quote from at the end of class. She’d given considerable thought to which poses to introduce tonight. There were tons of yoga poses that worked small miracles on the body, but to reap their benefits, the kids would need to let go of a good deal of inhibition and really settle into the moment. Otherwise, they might well end up on their mats knotted like pretzels and laughing uncontrollably. Tonight, her motto was “simple but effective.”
A few minutes before class was scheduled to start, Jeremy stepped out of the house, a stream of teens trailing after him. Once he spotted her, Rolo bounded ahead of them, beelining to Ava for his second enthusiastic greeting of the night before trotting from one mat to the next, sniffing them and the candles. Rolo would be the only canine attending the class, and Ava suspected this wouldn’t bother him.
Until the foster dogs had a better handle on potty training, they’d stay in the four oversize kennels the shelter had lent Jeremy whenever they couldn’t be outside or closely watched inside. The goldendoodle puppies were sharing one and had enough space to do a bit of wrestling, and the mama doodle and leggy labradoodle had all the space they needed to both stand and stretch out in their separate ones. After unloading the Jeep, Ava and Jeremy had unpackaged a handful of toys, but as exhausted from the change of routine over the last several days as they likely were, all dogs including the labradoodle had curled up to doze before Ava headed outside.
“Ready for us?” Jeremy asked as the kids claimed their mats and he walked over to her. He’d changed out of the jeans and striped button-down shirt he’d been wearing when she got here into a black fitted T-shirt and exercise pants. Thanks to the angle of the late-evening sun and his black shirt, his hazel-green eyes stood out like a panther’s.
Yes, please, she thought. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
Jeremy’s hand locked over the side of her arm for a second or two. “It’s going to be great.” She was still soaking up the comforting strength in his touch when he cleared his throat and turned to appraise the kids. “Turns out, my entire new group showed tonight, so I decided to cap the class with only them, hoping they’ll bond a little more. Next week, it’ll be fair game to anyone who’s here.”
“Sure. Sounds good to me.” He was already talking about next week, and the class hadn’t even started yet. Please don’t let me disappoint him.
“There’re more kids inside from other groups. And one of my grad students,” he added with a secretive grin.
The kids were making themselves comfortable on the mats, and Ava wasn’t surprised to spy that the back row had filled with the three teen boys who looked most like they didn’t want to be here.
“Oh, and fair warning,” Jeremy added, “to get a couple of these guys on board, I had to promise to participate. You saw my skills firsthand Tuesday, so you have a sense of how I’m about to look in front of this new group.”
“You shouldn’t say that. You looked great.” After pausing awkwardly, she added, “Your form, I mean.” Get it together, girl.
“How about we start with some introductions while we’re waiting for Edith and Eleanor?” He waved the kids up. “Hey, all, how about we circle up and introduce ourselves?”
“If I leave this mat, somebody’s gonna take it,” one of the kids in the back called out, but he got up anyway.
They were a mixed bag, no question—varying sizes, races, and styles of dress. The only thing they seemed to have in common was that none of them seemed too excited to be here.
One girl, the second shortest of the bunch, who screamed old-school punk with her dyed-black hair swept forward on her face and dressed in all black, gave her a look like she’d been sipping on unsweetened kefir. “So, I guess you’re Doc’s girlfriend or something?”
Steeling herself, Ava dove in before Jeremy could respond. “I’m Ava Graham, Jeremy’s friend, and I’m excited to be here.”
“We’re not,” one of the tall boys coughed under his breath.
“Nolan.” Jeremy’s tone was somehow both gentle and reprimanding…and effective. Nolan mumbled an apology.
“You know, I get your reservation,” Ava said. “At your age, I wouldn’t have been excited to try yoga either. But it’s done wonders for me, and I’m hoping you’ll find the same thing.”
“Doc said if we want to work with the dogs, we have to take yoga lessons and work in the garden pulling weeds and crap.” It was the punkish girl again. Apparently, she was the voice of the group.
“That doesn’t sound like a bad deal to me,” Ava replied. “I love gardening.”
The last kid over, a straggler, was a striking girl who was plainly dressed, makeup free, and had long red hair that was a bit disheveled. Out of all of them, Ava felt a clear affinity toward her. Something more than the color of her hair reminded Ava of Olivia when she was younger—blissfully oblivious and without a care in the world about fitting in.
“Remember what I said Tuesday about how one of the best ways out of your head is to get into your body?” Jeremy asked. “Well, Ava’s going to help you do that.”
Um, no pressure. “Jeremy’s right,” she said more confidently than she felt. “In case you don’t know, yoga’s a five-thousand-year-old art form. And it was designed with the intent of quieting the mind by getting the mind to become aware of the body in a deeper way.”
“You don’t look like a yoga teacher.” This comment came from the youngest-looking boy with shiny, dark hair and a slight build.
Ava tilted her head. “I didn’t realize yoga teachers had a look.”
Jeremy clapped his hands together as he looked over the group. “Before we scare her off entirely, how about names, everybody? I’d like us to take turns introducing someone else in the group. I bet you can all tell Ava two or three interesting things we learned about each other in circle Tuesday afternoon.” Projecting over a chorus of groans, he continued. “And let’s keep away from anything personal that might’ve been shared. A good rule of thumb is if you’d mind it being shared on social media about yourself, don’t share it about anyone else.”
The groans and eye-rolling continued, but Jeremy wasn’t deterred. He nodded at the punkish girl first. “How about you start us off, Hailey?”
Ava braced for Hailey to say something else semi-rude. To her surprise, after a beat or two, Hailey pointed to a tall boy with flawless brown skin and golden-brown eyes. “That’s Nolan. Don’t ask him if he plays basketball because it’s a tall person stereotype, and it pisses him off.” She planted her fists on her hips and looked at Jeremy. “If that doesn’t count, I quit.”
Jeremy smiled encouragingly. “That counts. What else do you remember?”
Witnessing his gentle but authoritative leadership, Ava wanted to hug him.
“I don’t know, Doc. I guess I remember him saying something about being fifteen and not having a permit, but that he’s still been driving his aunt to her chemo appointments for the last year.”
“And I haven’t gotten pulled over yet,” Nolan added with a wink.
Ava felt a tug in her middle. Maybe underage driving was against the law, but it was also one of the most noble things she’d heard in a long time.
Encouraged, Hailey rolled back on her heels. “He likes oranges and string cheese, and he can peel an orange in one piece.”
Nolan’s eyebrows lifted. “You were paying attention, Half Pint.”
The sour look reappeared on Hailey’s face in a microsecond. “Don’t call me Half Pint, Sasquatch.”
“Aside from the fact that we all need to ask permission before we call anyone by a nickname they haven’t called themselves, that was good, Hailey.” Jeremy nodded at Nolan. “Your turn, Nolan.”
“She can call me Sasquatch so long as I can call her Short Stack.”
Ava was picking up on an underlying attraction between them that gave her a sense of all Jeremy had to manage in groups like this.
Nolan looked around the circle and pinched his lower lip between his thumb and forefinger. “Man, I’m glad I’m second because I was not paying attention in that circle half the time. Uh… Who do I remember anything about?” After a few seconds, he pointed at the redheaded girl with the far-off look to her. “What’s your name again? Don’t tell me. Rosebud or something.”
“Lily,” the shortest boy interjected with a snort.
“I knew it was a flower, didn’t I?” Nolan shot off at him. “I guess she’s got like a whole lot of stepbrothers and sisters in her house, but she’s also an only child like me.” He looked at Jeremy. “That’s two things, right?”
“Let’s count it as one,” Jeremy said. “I have confidence in you, Nolan. What else can you share with Ava about Lily?”
Jeremy was great with the kids—calm and steady without being a pushover.
“Why do I think you set this up so you can quiz us?” Nolan asked.
Jeremy laughed. “It isn’t a setup. Promise.”
Nolan rolled his eyes without seeming genuinely frustrated. “Oh yeah, Lily’s mom used to like to plant things before she stopped liking anything, and lilies were her favorite flower. Oh, and you said avocado rolls are your desert island food, didn’t you?”
Lily looked at him in mild surprise. “They are.”
Jeremy beamed. “Nice job, Nolan.”
“Nolan and Lily, nice to meet you,” Ava said, looking between them. “Lily, avocado rolls are the best. And Nolan, about the orange peeling, I can peel just about any fruit in one continuous piece. It’s harder to do with potatoes.”
She glanced at Jeremy when she finished talking, and there was something about the way he was looking at her—really looking at her—that made Ava’s stomach drop into her toes.
Lily introduced Sammy, a solidly built girl with curly hair wearing a flannel shirt, well-worn jeans, and lime-green Converse shoes. Sammy owned a miniature schnauzer who was a chronic sneezer, liked to fly radio-controlled planes, and had six pairs of Converses.
Next, there was William, the shortest of the group, who seemed especially perceptive. He spoke four languages fluently, loved Mike and Ikes, and had a Guatemalan mom who’d come to the United States by marriage without knowing English but had since learned it and gotten a degree in auctioneering.
The others were Adam, who could juggle and ride a unicycle, and Christopher, the tallest and the former owner of a Mercedes he’d totaled after owning it seventeen days. Then it circled back to Hailey, who’d started off the introductions and who—to Ava’s surprise—had a thing for soap operas, especially Hispanic telenovelas, and liked bubble-gum ice cream.
“Growing up, bubble gum was my favorite flavor,” Ava said, “but now it’s anything Ben & Jerry’s, with Americone Dream topping the list. So just a heads-up, all of you who give yoga a serious try will likely be treated to an ice-cream party at some point.”
Adam grabbed his stomach. “I could eat me some Ben & Jerry’s.”
“Hey, no one did you, Doc.” Hailey said, her hands shoved into her back pockets.
“’Cuz we all know him, you dweeb,” Christopher scoffed. Ava had gotten the sense from his few side comments and the way he held himself—even before she’d heard the bit about him totaling a Mercedes seventeen days into owning it—that he was working through some anger issues.
“Remember the commitments we made Tuesday, Christopher?” Again, Jeremy’s tone was assertive without being accusing.
The lanky teen dragged a hand through his light-blond hair, causing several fine ends to stick up like they’d been electrostatically charged. “Hailey.”
“Thank you.” Jeremy surprised Ava by turning to her and raising an eyebrow. “Want to go for it?”
Ava wiped the palms of her hands against the sides of her yoga pants at this display of trust. He’d certainly shared things with her he might not be ready to share with this group. “Um, let’s see. Three things about Jeremy you all might not know…” She was tempted to add that she’d only known him a week, but she’d just witnessed a group of challenged teens rise to the occasion, sharing about peers they’d only met once. “Well, for starters, he did a polar plunge into Lake Michigan one January while in undergrad in Chicago.” It was something he’d shared at the end of dinner the other night when he’d opened up and started talking a bit more about his life.
She ran her tongue along her top lip as the kids reacted with a chorus of varying exclamations, half claiming they wanted a chance at doing that, and others acting as if they couldn’t believe it. “Ah, what else?” she continued. “He loves hot wings and has a soft spot for Fitz’s root beer.” Time to go big or go home. “And there’s a groundedness to him that’s different from anyone I’ve ever met.”
She didn’t look at him as she said it, but she could tell his feet shifted at the last sentence.
“Grounded?” Sammy said.
Ava shrugged. “Yeah, like a tree that doesn’t get blown in a storm. Rooted.”
“I can see that,” Lily said, her voice a degree softer than the other kids.
“Is Adam grounded since he can ride a unicycle without falling down?” Nolan asked with a laugh.
“I think you’re all on a journey to being grounded,” Jeremy said. “And thank you, Ava. Well, there you have it, group. Less than two hours together, and not only do you know each other’s names, you’ve already gotten to know some of what makes us unique…and connects us to one another, which I think can be easy to forget, especially in a world as virtual as the one you’ve been exposed to.”
He noticed Edith and Eleanor walking out of the house at the same time Ava did. Eleanor was still rocking it in her Judas Priest shirt but had dated herself a little with the addition of a sweatband around her forehead and two more on her wrists. Edith, on the other hand, looked a little less fragile in the absence of her oversize gardener’s hat, though her seersucker pants promised not to have much elasticity to them.
“Looks like it’s go time,” Jeremy said.
As the teens disbursed, half of them at a run to get back to the mat they’d already laid claim to, Rolo seemed to sense the change in energy. He trotted over from the corner of the garden where he’d been munching on the sparse, long blades of grass growing up between the bricks and shoved his head underneath Ava’s hand.
“I’m hoping this means I’m going to have an assistant again.” She bent down and draped him in a hug, soaking in the silky feel of his long black coat and appreciating the classic but mild dog smell he carried.
“Something tells me you will,” Jeremy said. “He’s becoming quite the Ava fan.”
“Well, it’s mutual, trust me.” She smiled as she stood straight again. “And not that I had any doubts, but that was awesome. You’re really good with the kids.”
“Thanks.”
As Edith and Eleanor made it to mats in the middle row, only one was left, front and center, which Ava and Jeremy seemed to notice at the same time. It seemed Ava was going to have an unobstructed view of Jeremy to unravel her focus this first class. Playing off her insecurities, she said with a laugh, “I guess no one wanted to be that kid tonight.”
“Give ’em time,” he said as he headed over to it. “I’m betting a few of ’em will be vying for that spot before it’s all over.”
Ava knelt to turn on her playlist, savoring the promise in his words. Maybe it was still undefined, but there was no denying this whole thing had a ring of permanence to it. And that was one hundred percent okay with her.
Chapter 13
Ava was guiding the group into something called sphinx pose when Rolo popped up from the edge of her mat and trotted into the garden, offering Jeremy another uninterrupted view of her. This didn’t help the fact that he was at war with himself, watching her for direction while doing his best not to be distracted by the beauty of her form as she guided them through the poses.
