Phil's Cabin Works Out Well

"Do you need to go or anything? I mean, we've made a lot of progress today."

"Wow, all that work I did, and you're trying to get rid of me?"

Her eyes had a delightful twinkle when she teased me.

"You know better, but you are one helluva worker."

"With what you're giving me, I'd better be."

"Very true," I said, teasing back.

"Ugh, I deserved that," she said with a giggle.

"Seriously, though, you are a great worker, and I'd be happy to have you on my team any time." As I said that, what I was saying registered. "Hey," I said, gazing at those dark eyes as I thought. "I just said team. Want to be a part of the team...my woodshop team?"

"How's that?"

"You've already designed one item that got me business. I'm going to be needing things to make and sell. I was thinking potential customers would request things, but if I had a few unique items, it would give me a head start. Someone needs to create those designs."

"Me?" Nina asked finger to chest.

"Who else?"

I'd already gotten a peek at that side of Nina, and I suspected it was more the real Nina than was engineering, soccer, and volleyball Nina. When I watched her sketching the cutting board, the look on her face told me she was happy and content doing what she was doing. I suspected she would be more than happy designing furniture and anything else her brain could conceive for me to construct and sell.

"I'd love that. I can do it in my spare time, and you don't even have to pay me."

"Nina."

"I know, I know, Mr. Fair and Square. We'll work that out." A big smile crossed her face. "Would you like to see something that very few people know exists?"

That simple statement had my mind racing, and I was a little ashamed of myself.

"I think I would," I answered cautiously.

"Let me call and set it up."

She punched away on her cell phone.

"Hi, dad. Listen, I'm going to take Phil to see some pictures at the house, and we'll probably stop and get something to eat." She looked at me, and I nodded. "So, I'll be a little late getting home. Yeah, they're coming along great. I can't wait to see them all complete. Love you too. Bye-bye."

"So, where are we going?"

"In town--it's about forty-five minutes, and I'll buy dinner since I'm dragging you along, and it's your truck and gasoline."

"I'll pay and subtract it from the five hundred I owe you." Another tease.

"Phil, I know you won't do that, but..."

We jumped into the truck and headed into town. It was fun talking with Nina as she seemed to know something about almost everything. I probed about her engineering courses, and she filled me in...with language I could understand. I could tell that she really enjoyed the sports too.

We stopped at McDonald's and grabbed a Big Mac and fries each. I'd expected Nina to have a salad or something, but she seemed to be hungry because she was only a few seconds behind me finishing the Big Mac. I looked at her and smiled.

"Hungry," she said, stifling a mini-belch. "Sorry. You ready to go?"

I gathered the trash, dumped it in the container, and we were off again.

"Am I allowed to be nervous?" Nina asked as she directed me into the driveway of a pleasant two-story home.

I hadn't thought a great deal about what I was about to see, but her concern made me realize that it must be a personal thing for her. I cautioned myself to be aware of that, but my intuition told me it wouldn't be an issue.

Nina unlocked the door and led me through the house, commenting as she went. She explained that the settlement after her mother's accident had allowed them to customize the house to meet many of her special needs.

"With such a beautiful house, why do your parents go to the cabin?"

"Dad likes vacations, but Mom doesn't. It's tedious and inconvenient for her. The cabin is their compromise. Dad gets away from some of the helter-skelter of his daily life, and Mom has the conveniences she needs."

"Makes sense."

We moved to the stairway and climbed to the second floor.

"We have four bedrooms, and Mom and Dad gave me one of them for my projects." She stopped in front of a closed door and took a deep breath. "This is it," she said, opening the door and stepping aside.

I stepped into the room as Nina flipped on the lights.

"Ho-ly shit."

"What?"

"Is this all yours?"

"Yes."

The room was filled with sketches, drawings, paintings, water colors, and items that looked like sculptures but were really clay figures that Nina had shaped and painted. I was sure my mouth was hanging open.

"And you're going to be an engineer?"

"Do you like it?" The tone of her voice told me that my answer was important.

There was only one answer I could give.

"I'm not an art critic, but everything I see looks fantastic." I extended my arms, and Nina threw her arms around my waist. She received a gentle squeeze, and I stepped back.

"Thank you," she said, flashing those dark eyes at me.

Her art had overwhelmed me, and her petite beauty and those eyes enticed me to a point that I was wondering. It had only been a few days, but possibly without knowing it, she was chipping away at my resolve. We'd just have to see.

"I can hardly wait to see some of your designs for the shop."

"I have some ideas already and will have sketches in a few days."

We worked together the next week to finish the cutting boards, the final step being "branding" them with Barker's Crafts, which was carefully burned into each board using the electric iron and a template to ensure the proper location.

The boards were delivered, and the payment received. I went to the bank, deposited the check and withdrew five hundred dollars--fifty tens, and took them to Nina. I stopped by the shop momentarily to use a new device I'd purchased.

Nina's eyes went wide when I handed her the pile of money. I chuckled since I had worked to make it as impressive as possible. But when I handed her the piece of wood, her expression changed. Burned into it were the words

Walker's Woodcrafts

Designed by Nina Kaufman

"I'm ready to start building them."

She looked at the little piece of wood, then at me, and then at the wood again.

"I have three sketches for you," she said as she clutched the wood tightly. "I'll get them."

When she handed me the sketches, she said, "I'll have detailed dimensional information for you in a couple of days. I'm so excited."

So was I, as her sketches were unique, and I could hardly wait for people to see them...and order them.

Nina had to get some school forms taken care of, and she wanted to ensure her schedule met what she wanted. It had never really mattered before, but now she wanted a block of time to work on designs and to work in the woodshop too.

The three windows had arrived, and I went to Jolene's to get them installed. She was still the new Jolene, and the cabin was clean and neat but needed the repairs I had written on my list. The insulation would be the next project since I knew cool weather wasn't too far off. The heater she had might handle cool, but not cold.

"Where's your cute companion?" she said when Ingrid and I arrived.

"She's off taking care of school things."

"College girl, huh."

"Yeah, but she's designing things I can make in the new shop and then sell."

"Sounds like a good arrangement."

I smiled. "It is, Jo. It is."

"More than a business partnership, too, I expect," she said, giving my shoulder a nudge.

"No, not at all," I replied, hoping I sounded convincing.

"I'll answer that with two words. Bull shit. I suspect you came out here to the woods to get away from something, but instead, I think you've found something you hadn't expected."

Was it that obvious? I mean, I'd been denying it to myself ever since I first met Nina, but my internal arguments were beginning to convince me of just the opposite. Even knowing Nina wouldn't be around for a few days had me, well, missing her. I knew she'd be back, but then school would be starting, and she'd be away. I knew the truck would be traveling a few more miles than usual. That realization was just one more thing convincing me of what I'd been afraid to admit. Nina was very special, and the thought of letting her get away almost made me tremble.

I installed the windows, and Jo watched carefully. I admired her greatly for wanting to change, for wanting to learn things she'd never thought about learning before, for being anxious to change a place she'd hated into somewhere she might grow to love and enjoy.

When I finished, she thanked me again.

"I hope you can understand how thankful I am for all you're doing. I say thank you, but I mean so much more. So, I'll just keep saying thank you, and I'll trust that you know what that means."

"I think I do, Jo. And I hope you know how happy it makes me to see what's happening here in the cabin and in the lady who owns the cabin."

"I didn't, but I think I'm getting there. Having a friend like you was beyond what I could comprehend not long ago. If it wore pants, it was evil. But you are my friend," she said, extending her arms.

We hugged. And it was new to me too; the hugging of a lady as beautiful as Jolene was, without any sexual tension being involved.

Ingrid and I had just gotten back to the cabin when my phone rang. It was a facetime call from Nina.

"Hi. How's the school stuff going?"

"Better than I could have hoped for. They were perfectly willing to change my schedule to exactly the way I wanted it, so I have the afternoons free." Nina smiled. "Since I'm through at about noon, I can jump in the car and be at the cabin in an hour."

That brought a smile to my face.

"When will you be back here now?"

"Tomorrow afternoon."

"Good." I paused and watched her big smile return. "I've missed you already."

"Really?" she asked softly.

"Really," I echoed.

"It seems silly in a way, but I've missed you too, Phil."

"When you get back tomorrow, we need to talk about that...over dinner somewhere."

"Dinner?"

"Yeah, let's go to Robertson's."

"Um, if we go there, I'll have to wear something nice."

"If you'd like, that would be fine."

A very demure smile from Nina, which I wasn't used to seeing. "If it's a date, I should dress up a bit."

I was about to say something I hadn't anticipated saying...perhaps never. "Yes, it's a date if you'd be so kind as to accept it."

"I'd be honored, Phillip Walker."

"Thank you so much, Nina Kaufman."

"I'll see you tomorrow, then."

"Counting on it." I nearly blew her a kiss over the phone but stopped myself at the last moment. What would a date with Nina be like?

◇-◇-◇-◇

With my freshly pressed khaki slacks and button-down collar shirt, I was ready for an actual date with Nina. She was certainly a fascinating young lady, but I had been fascinated before, and here I was, running away to a cabin in the woods. I had to admit to myself that, so far, the fascination had been fun. Maybe I'd learn more on this date.

But I was a little worried...or maybe concerned. I'd really enjoyed working with Nina on the cutting boards. She was enthusiastic, an excellent and careful worker and fun to be around. Just the few designs she'd shown me had me excited about the future of the wood shop. But if we dated and it didn't work out, would all of that disappear?

If we continued just working together, on a lesser scale when she returned to college, I knew the attraction would continue to grow, and denying it might cause tensions that could be as destructive as the dating.

I think I had decided which of the chances to take when I asked her to dinner.

When there was a soft knock on the door, Ingrid was there quickly, her tail wagging but no bark. I smiled, aware that my heart rate had increased. I opened the door.

"That red looks good on you," I said. It did. She wore snug black slacks and a vivid red blouse that really highlighted her black hair and dark eyes. Low-heeled black shoes and diamond stud earrings that sparked even in the subdued light of the cabin gave me a new picture of Nina.

"Thanks, and you look different, too, without all the wood chips and sawdust hanging on you."

"Wait, was that a left-handed compliment?" I asked with a chuckle.

"Not at all. I think I could get used to seeing you all cleaned up."

"I guess we both look different cleaned up."

"I don't think I've been to Robertson's since my senior prom."

"I think we'll both enjoy it then."

I'd cleaned the inside of the truck for this special occasion, and it looked very nice. But I wondered if I needed to get something besides the truck if I was going to be dating Nina. I don't think she expected it, but it would be a little more pleasant, particularly for going to places like Robertson's.

I held her hand while she climbed up into the truck, then hurried around, and we were off.

"What would you think if I let my hair grow long?" she asked, leaning over so she could see herself in the rearview mirror.

Was this a trap, or did she really want to know?

"You know, you look really nice and cute with the short hair. Long hair would change the image, but with that beautiful dark hair of yours, I think you'd be..."

"What?"

She had me. I took a deep breath. "Beautiful."

"Phil, no way am I going to be beautiful."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not, well, guh."

I smiled at her. "Beautiful involves more than your face, you know."

"Well, I'm just talking about the face."

"And the longer hair."

"Phil."

"Okay, why do you want to let your hair grow longer?"

She signed, and I knew she was looking right at me, although I was working hard to keep my eyes on the road.

"I guess I'm tired of trying to be daddy's "boy" and want to be...more like a woman."

"Nina, I love that short dark hair. It's fascinating and a little different from most of the young women I see in my traveling around. Right now, I'm trying to picture you in long hair, and all I'm seeing is the same fascinating lady that's sitting beside me right at this moment."

I wasn't sure just how far I should go with this since it was just our first date. The more I said, the more my feelings were racing ahead of my words. She was already special to me, long or short hair, and I was more concerned about how she'd feel about it herself. But she hadn't replied; I think waiting for me to continue.

"I'm happy just being with Nina, and I want Nina to be happy with being with Nina if that makes sense."

I glanced at her in time to see her close her eyes. "Thank you," she said, opening them. "We're on our first date, and I'm looking forward to more of them. I think you've answered questions I haven't even asked yet." She reached out and squeezed my arm.

First date. I'd moved to the cabin, so there wouldn't be any "first dates." Obviously, it hadn't worked, and I wondered if I didn't know myself very thoroughly. I thought I was going to find out fairly quickly. I decided to say what I was feeling.

"We have one more week here at the cabins, and then you go away to school."

"Don't remind me. I'm so enjoying working in the shop and thinking about the new and different designs that I hate to think of stopping that. But school is only an hour away."

"It's an hour both ways, so you don't always have to be coming this way."

"Really?"

"Sure, I'd love to track what you do in your classes. I'd love to come and spend a day following you around and listening."

"Engineering listening is boring, even for me." She laughed.

She was nibbling her lower lip which told me she was about to share something special.

"Mom and Dad like you," she said. "They're very, well, understanding. They realize that I'm twenty-one years old...nearly twenty-two." A momentary pause. "If I drive here from school, I'll have the key to the cabin so I can spend the weekend."

I'm sure she could see me take a deep breath. Nina being here for the weekend and staying by herself in that cabin was very intriguing. Nina here for the weekend, and staying in my cabin was even more enticing. I wondered if she could tell what I was thinking.

"That would be convenient, wouldn't it?

"Yes," she answered with a smile.

I needed to change the subject before I ventured somewhere I shouldn't go.

"Speaking of next week, I'm going to put the insulation in Jolene's cabin..., and I could use some help."

"Don't even ask. Just let me know what time and what days."

"I've rented the machine for Tuesday and Wednesday. We'll drill holes high up in the walls between the studs, and I'll pump in the foam. You can patch the holes if that's okay."

"If I'm going to help, I need to be helpful."

I chuckled. "It's so simple, isn't it?"

"Simple tasks for a simple mind."

"Now you're going to get an argument from me. Your mind is anything but simple."

"I guess," she replied. "Confused and messed up, maybe."

"Not those, either."

"We'll have to discuss that."

But something she had said earlier was still in my mind.

"You said your mom and dad like me?"

"Oh yeah, they think you're great and keep after me to..." She paused, and I could sense that her head had snapped around to look at me.

I wanted to hear her say it and didn't mind teasing a little.

"Go on."

"Phil," she pleaded.

"Be honest."

"So we're pledging honesty?"

I hadn't really thought about it, but, "Sure we are."

"They thought it would be great if I dated you."

"And you are."

"I am, and not just because they wanted it."

"I love hearing that, but the reason I brought them up is because of your mom. Does she get out much?"

Not a lot. Dad takes her out when he can, but he's busy with work. I try, but with school..."

"That's something I could help with. I'll come to town, and you and I will take your mom out shopping or whatever."

"Phil, you don't have--"

I swung my hand over to her mouth. She tried to bite it, laughing as she did.

"Ouch," I yelped.

"I didn't even bite down. But, in your case, I'm removing 'you don't have to' from my vocabulary.

"Good idea. I hope your mom will be willing to venture out."

"Phil, if you're leading the parade, she'll be marching."

"We'll find out next week. But here's Richardson's. You hungry?"

"Expensively hungry," she teased. "Since I'm not playing soccer or volleyball, I don't eat nearly as much, and I'm not very big to start with. So..."

I needed to say it without telling all since that was the source of my previous problems. I knew Nina wasn't like that...I absolutely knew it, but there'd be a time.

"Nina, don't think about money when you're with me."

"Phil, you're trying to get the shop going, and fifty cutting boards isn't exactly a bonanza."

Nina was so precious. I pulled her into a warm hug.

"Nina, we said we'd be honest, and I'm telling you very honestly, don't worry about money."

"I don't know, Phil. I hear what you're saying, but that's not my nature. It'll be difficult, but I'll try," she said, reluctance in her voice.

We went inside, were seated, and ordered. I decided that Nina had a very high metabolism as she had no trouble downing quite a bit of food, and eating too much was not a part of her tight and trim figure. Everything I did with her just added to her appeal...as if I needed more additions.

As always, talking with her was both enjoyable and enlightening. She was excited about starting school and even more excited about graduating. Sitting across from her and watching the way her eyes sparkled had me thinking things that I worked hard to flush from my mind.

Afterward, as we pulled up in front of her cabin, I shut off the truck...and wondered. My questions were answered almost immediately as she leaned across the console, only inches from my face.

"I had a wonderful time on our first date, Phil." She leaned toward me, and our lips touched.