Chapter One
Dawn, Darkness and Gloaming
A novel by Katharine Brooks
Alycen looked out the window at the rain streaming down. What should have been a gorgeous dawn sky was nothing but inky blackness, punctuated by the staccato beat of rain drops falling on the metal roof of her house.
Even now, she had a hard time explaining to other people why she had bought the dilapidated farm cottage. The foundation was shot rock piled up in uneven stacks with huge wooden beams criss-crossed across it. The roof was a mélange of tin and shingle. The floor rolled like a ship at sea. And very little in it worked as it was originally intended. But this was her home, a misfit as she had always been a misfit, and as misfits alike, they were a perfect match for each other.
She never minded rain much, but she’d been planning on going for a walk in the park this morning before work, and though she was known to walk in the rain, it was coming down at such force and volume, that walking in it would be an exercise in frustration. And the last thing she needed right now was more frustration.
Bill was calling again. She had sincerely hoped he’d taken the hint that she wasn’t interested in a relationship, but apparently he was deliberately missing the broad, softball hints she’d tossed his way in an attempt to salvage his obviously fragile ego. She supposed it was time for a fastball to the groin. Some guys, that is what it took. But she was not a cruel person by nature, and she was loathe to hurt even an asshole like Bill.
Why her sister had thought setting them up would be a good idea, Alycen was not really certain. Well, actually, that was not entirely true. The family had probably figured, inaccurately once again, that what she really needed was a nice solid man to settle her down. The thought of a “nice, solid man” made Alycen want to dry heave into her cereal bowl. Nearly as much as the thought of “settling down.” Or settling, period. Why couldn’t her family accept that she wasn’t a settled kind of person? Why the constant, soul barrage of attempts to change her? It was more or less her life time quandary, and she was no closer to solving it now than she had been at the age of seven or eight.
That was when she noticed that she was distinctly different from her salt of the earth family. That the rest of the tribe did not see things and people who were not there. That they considered her insistence that she did see those things and people an embarrassing nuisance. That she was expected to “grow up” and give up her “imaginary friends.” Which she did. She ignored the bright, colorful beings that surrounded her childhood self until they stopped appearing, and her world started to resemble the stable, grey world that every one else inhabited. Most of the time, anyway.
Well, if she was not going to go for her morning walk, she had better determine what she was going to do as her daily exercise. She had found a long time ago that she needed a certain amount of physical activity to keep her mental health in balance. It was so natural for her to spend all her time in the world of her thoughts, feelings, and imagination, that she needed to consciously make an effort to connect with the world outside her.
So she supposed she would go to the YMCA and take advantage of the free membership she received as a gift from her brother Gary. She was not particularly fond of the sterile, glaringly white environment, but it was better than slogging through the rain in the park.
She slipped into her workout clothes: slim leggings and a loose tunic she used mostly for yoga. She tossed her work clothes in a bag, grabbed a cup of coffee, and headed out the door.
*****
Connor was not exactly sure why he had promised Steve that he would start working out with him at the ungodly hour of 5:00 am. Actually, that wasn’t entirely true. Steve was his friend. And Steve had asked him. If he was able, he generally tried to do most anything his friends asked of him.
But in all honestly, he didn’t really need the additional exercise. As a landscaping contractor, he spent a big part of his day tossing bags of rock and mulch around, digging holes to plant seedlings, and generally busting his ass. Feeling like an uncoordinated dork on a piece of thousand dollar exercise machinery at the local Y was not exactly his idea of a great way to spend his time. But he and Steve were both so busy with work, they rarely got the chance to just hang out anymore. So when Steve suggested they work out together a few times a week, he agreed.
Besides, the gym was an excellent place to scope out women. Unfortunately, so far most of the women who’d shown up during their early morning workouts were not exactly prime dating material. Lumpy, grumpy moms for whom the butt crack of dawn was their only chance to get out of the house and exercise.
And it was this particular train of thought he was riding, not to mention the treadmill, when a total knockout walked into the exercise area. Thick, thick, ashy blond hair was pulled back into a high ponytail, and a thick fringe of bangs hovered over vivid, almond shaped green eyes. She had a dancer’s body, the curves were subtle but attractive. And she was sitting down directly in front of him to stretch out before working out. Connor found himself standing a little more erect in the treadmill, pulling his gut in. Come to think of it, his spine was not the only thing getting more erect. He was embarrassed to find that he was getting stiff just watching this woman stretch. Holy crap, he thought, this hasn’t happened since high school Biology class. And unfortunately, there was no bulky textbook on the treadmill to hide behind.
*****
Alycen had walked into the Y planning on going upstairs to the walking path, but for some reason found herself pulled towards the equipment room. That was odd, because she rarely ever even bothered to look in on the sweaty folks in there. This morning, however, her attention was immediately caught by a guy who was awkwardly trotting on one of the farther treadmills.
He had the build of a man whose muscles came from hard manual labor, not from the precise toning and sculpting of machines. That appealed to Alycen all by itself. But when she looked up at the man’s face, she was caught off guard. He had beautiful amber skin, probably as much the product of genetics as days spent in the sun. His hair was a thick black crop on his head, mussed and sweaty. He had a dark and neatly trimmed goatee, thick black eyebrows, and the high clear cheekbones of someone with at least a bit of Native American heritage. His eyes were a dark, glossy chestnut brown and were fringed with lashes that were thick and black enough to make her a little bit envious. Some days, it sucked to be a natural blonde.
She decided to work out in the equipment room, for a change of pace. She found a spot to stretch out directly in front of the man on the treadmill, and bent over, wrapping her arms around one outstretched leg. As she stretched, she wondered if the man had noticed her, until she caught site of him in the corner of her eye in the mirror. Apparently, the guy had not only noticed her, but certain parts of his body were overwhelmingly in favor of getting to know her better. She smiled a little crooked smile, and continued stretching.
Thank God for rainy days, she thought to herself. And thank you Gary, for your thoughtful gift of a YMCA membership.
*****
Much as Connor wanted to meet the attractive blonde in front of him, he did not want to confront her in the state he was in. He was hoping to slip out unnoticed to the showers and hang around in the lobby after Steve left, waiting for an opportunity to talk to her.
He wasn’t counting on her following him out of the equipment room when he got off the treadmill and headed towards the showers. At first he was damning his luck that she happened to be there for nothing more than a quick stretch, and that she was leaving the same time that he was. Then suddenly she called out to him from behind.
“Hey, isn’t it a little rude among your people to salute a person like that and then run off without a greeting?”
Connor wasn’t exactly some naïve kid unaccustomed to sexual joking around. He was a landscaping man, for heaven’s sake. The language his guys used in his presence on a daily basis would make a sailor blush. But for some odd reason, this woman’s salty teasing voice made him turn beet red. He wasn’t exactly certain whether he felt more embarrassed or more angry. He spun around to face her and stalked right up to her, backing her against the wall.
“And isn’t it a little rude among your people to shake your ass in front of a guy for twenty minutes and then announce to the public he’s got a hard on?”
Alycen was taken aback. She hadn’t thought she’d said anything that risqué, or that she’d said it within earshot of anyone else in the gym. As attractive as the man was, he was also a bit scary. But, embarrassingly, she found the threat of him even more attractive than his retreating backside had been. This was totally out of character for her. She’d never been into the whole “bad boy” thing. Her feeling had always been that women who went looking for that kind of trouble were fools. But she was unexplainably drawn to this scary, gorgeous guy.
Connor didn’t know what the hell had come over him. He was the ultimate nice guy. Women told him he was too sweet, too good natured. He knew he was a decent looking guy, but he found himself hearing the old “let’s just be friends” more often than he cared to admit. What on earth was he doing growling at this woman, and backing her into a corner as if he’d like to yank down those leggings and hump her against the wall? Actually, it was best he kept his mind far, far away from that particular thought, because some dark, grumbly voice in his head said “yeah, that’s the idea.”
He took a step back, disconcerted at his totally out of character response. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what the hell that was all about. It just seemed like, like…” C’mon babe, help me out here, he thought.
“Like I was teasing you and then trying to publicly humiliate you? Sorry, not my intent at all. I just noticed you seemed…um… interested. And I didn’t want to let you get away without telling you the interest was returned.”
They both laughed. Really, it was a ridiculous situation, and both of them were acting like a couple of junior high school kids. Hell, they both felt like a couple of junior high school kids. Which wasn’t an entirely bad thing.
“Look, I’ve got to get to work, but I’d like to get together sometime for coffee or something. See if maybe there’s a little bit more to this than exercise-induced testosterone lust. Are you interested or not?” She cocked her head to one side, and raised a fine gray-blond eyebrow.
“Yeah, definitely. Coffee sounds great.” Actually, he hated coffee, but he’d gladly drink a gallon of the nasty stuff if it meant getting to spend more time with this woman.
“Great. My name’s Alycen O’Ryan.” She reached into her bag and pulled out a business card.
“I don’t have any of my cards with me,” he said, and she smiled, obviously thinking that it was clear they weren’t in his pants. “Can I borrow one of yours and a pen?” She handed both over, and he scribbled his name and number on the back and returned it to her with the pen.
“Connor Bates? Nice to meet you. Both of you,” she whispered, with a wink. Then she spun on her heels and bolted for the door before he could growl at her again. And as deep and husky as her voice had been, he could have sworn he heard her giggle like a twelve year old girl, as she practically bounced out the front door.
A novel by Katharine Brooks
Alycen looked out the window at the rain streaming down. What should have been a gorgeous dawn sky was nothing but inky blackness, punctuated by the staccato beat of rain drops falling on the metal roof of her house.
Even now, she had a hard time explaining to other people why she had bought the dilapidated farm cottage. The foundation was shot rock piled up in uneven stacks with huge wooden beams criss-crossed across it. The roof was a mélange of tin and shingle. The floor rolled like a ship at sea. And very little in it worked as it was originally intended. But this was her home, a misfit as she had always been a misfit, and as misfits alike, they were a perfect match for each other.
She never minded rain much, but she’d been planning on going for a walk in the park this morning before work, and though she was known to walk in the rain, it was coming down at such force and volume, that walking in it would be an exercise in frustration. And the last thing she needed right now was more frustration.
Bill was calling again. She had sincerely hoped he’d taken the hint that she wasn’t interested in a relationship, but apparently he was deliberately missing the broad, softball hints she’d tossed his way in an attempt to salvage his obviously fragile ego. She supposed it was time for a fastball to the groin. Some guys, that is what it took. But she was not a cruel person by nature, and she was loathe to hurt even an asshole like Bill.
Why her sister had thought setting them up would be a good idea, Alycen was not really certain. Well, actually, that was not entirely true. The family had probably figured, inaccurately once again, that what she really needed was a nice solid man to settle her down. The thought of a “nice, solid man” made Alycen want to dry heave into her cereal bowl. Nearly as much as the thought of “settling down.” Or settling, period. Why couldn’t her family accept that she wasn’t a settled kind of person? Why the constant, soul barrage of attempts to change her? It was more or less her life time quandary, and she was no closer to solving it now than she had been at the age of seven or eight.
That was when she noticed that she was distinctly different from her salt of the earth family. That the rest of the tribe did not see things and people who were not there. That they considered her insistence that she did see those things and people an embarrassing nuisance. That she was expected to “grow up” and give up her “imaginary friends.” Which she did. She ignored the bright, colorful beings that surrounded her childhood self until they stopped appearing, and her world started to resemble the stable, grey world that every one else inhabited. Most of the time, anyway.
Well, if she was not going to go for her morning walk, she had better determine what she was going to do as her daily exercise. She had found a long time ago that she needed a certain amount of physical activity to keep her mental health in balance. It was so natural for her to spend all her time in the world of her thoughts, feelings, and imagination, that she needed to consciously make an effort to connect with the world outside her.
So she supposed she would go to the YMCA and take advantage of the free membership she received as a gift from her brother Gary. She was not particularly fond of the sterile, glaringly white environment, but it was better than slogging through the rain in the park.
She slipped into her workout clothes: slim leggings and a loose tunic she used mostly for yoga. She tossed her work clothes in a bag, grabbed a cup of coffee, and headed out the door.
*****
Connor was not exactly sure why he had promised Steve that he would start working out with him at the ungodly hour of 5:00 am. Actually, that wasn’t entirely true. Steve was his friend. And Steve had asked him. If he was able, he generally tried to do most anything his friends asked of him.
But in all honestly, he didn’t really need the additional exercise. As a landscaping contractor, he spent a big part of his day tossing bags of rock and mulch around, digging holes to plant seedlings, and generally busting his ass. Feeling like an uncoordinated dork on a piece of thousand dollar exercise machinery at the local Y was not exactly his idea of a great way to spend his time. But he and Steve were both so busy with work, they rarely got the chance to just hang out anymore. So when Steve suggested they work out together a few times a week, he agreed.
Besides, the gym was an excellent place to scope out women. Unfortunately, so far most of the women who’d shown up during their early morning workouts were not exactly prime dating material. Lumpy, grumpy moms for whom the butt crack of dawn was their only chance to get out of the house and exercise.
And it was this particular train of thought he was riding, not to mention the treadmill, when a total knockout walked into the exercise area. Thick, thick, ashy blond hair was pulled back into a high ponytail, and a thick fringe of bangs hovered over vivid, almond shaped green eyes. She had a dancer’s body, the curves were subtle but attractive. And she was sitting down directly in front of him to stretch out before working out. Connor found himself standing a little more erect in the treadmill, pulling his gut in. Come to think of it, his spine was not the only thing getting more erect. He was embarrassed to find that he was getting stiff just watching this woman stretch. Holy crap, he thought, this hasn’t happened since high school Biology class. And unfortunately, there was no bulky textbook on the treadmill to hide behind.
*****
Alycen had walked into the Y planning on going upstairs to the walking path, but for some reason found herself pulled towards the equipment room. That was odd, because she rarely ever even bothered to look in on the sweaty folks in there. This morning, however, her attention was immediately caught by a guy who was awkwardly trotting on one of the farther treadmills.
He had the build of a man whose muscles came from hard manual labor, not from the precise toning and sculpting of machines. That appealed to Alycen all by itself. But when she looked up at the man’s face, she was caught off guard. He had beautiful amber skin, probably as much the product of genetics as days spent in the sun. His hair was a thick black crop on his head, mussed and sweaty. He had a dark and neatly trimmed goatee, thick black eyebrows, and the high clear cheekbones of someone with at least a bit of Native American heritage. His eyes were a dark, glossy chestnut brown and were fringed with lashes that were thick and black enough to make her a little bit envious. Some days, it sucked to be a natural blonde.
She decided to work out in the equipment room, for a change of pace. She found a spot to stretch out directly in front of the man on the treadmill, and bent over, wrapping her arms around one outstretched leg. As she stretched, she wondered if the man had noticed her, until she caught site of him in the corner of her eye in the mirror. Apparently, the guy had not only noticed her, but certain parts of his body were overwhelmingly in favor of getting to know her better. She smiled a little crooked smile, and continued stretching.
Thank God for rainy days, she thought to herself. And thank you Gary, for your thoughtful gift of a YMCA membership.
*****
Much as Connor wanted to meet the attractive blonde in front of him, he did not want to confront her in the state he was in. He was hoping to slip out unnoticed to the showers and hang around in the lobby after Steve left, waiting for an opportunity to talk to her.
He wasn’t counting on her following him out of the equipment room when he got off the treadmill and headed towards the showers. At first he was damning his luck that she happened to be there for nothing more than a quick stretch, and that she was leaving the same time that he was. Then suddenly she called out to him from behind.
“Hey, isn’t it a little rude among your people to salute a person like that and then run off without a greeting?”
Connor wasn’t exactly some naïve kid unaccustomed to sexual joking around. He was a landscaping man, for heaven’s sake. The language his guys used in his presence on a daily basis would make a sailor blush. But for some odd reason, this woman’s salty teasing voice made him turn beet red. He wasn’t exactly certain whether he felt more embarrassed or more angry. He spun around to face her and stalked right up to her, backing her against the wall.
“And isn’t it a little rude among your people to shake your ass in front of a guy for twenty minutes and then announce to the public he’s got a hard on?”
Alycen was taken aback. She hadn’t thought she’d said anything that risqué, or that she’d said it within earshot of anyone else in the gym. As attractive as the man was, he was also a bit scary. But, embarrassingly, she found the threat of him even more attractive than his retreating backside had been. This was totally out of character for her. She’d never been into the whole “bad boy” thing. Her feeling had always been that women who went looking for that kind of trouble were fools. But she was unexplainably drawn to this scary, gorgeous guy.
Connor didn’t know what the hell had come over him. He was the ultimate nice guy. Women told him he was too sweet, too good natured. He knew he was a decent looking guy, but he found himself hearing the old “let’s just be friends” more often than he cared to admit. What on earth was he doing growling at this woman, and backing her into a corner as if he’d like to yank down those leggings and hump her against the wall? Actually, it was best he kept his mind far, far away from that particular thought, because some dark, grumbly voice in his head said “yeah, that’s the idea.”
He took a step back, disconcerted at his totally out of character response. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what the hell that was all about. It just seemed like, like…” C’mon babe, help me out here, he thought.
“Like I was teasing you and then trying to publicly humiliate you? Sorry, not my intent at all. I just noticed you seemed…um… interested. And I didn’t want to let you get away without telling you the interest was returned.”
They both laughed. Really, it was a ridiculous situation, and both of them were acting like a couple of junior high school kids. Hell, they both felt like a couple of junior high school kids. Which wasn’t an entirely bad thing.
“Look, I’ve got to get to work, but I’d like to get together sometime for coffee or something. See if maybe there’s a little bit more to this than exercise-induced testosterone lust. Are you interested or not?” She cocked her head to one side, and raised a fine gray-blond eyebrow.
“Yeah, definitely. Coffee sounds great.” Actually, he hated coffee, but he’d gladly drink a gallon of the nasty stuff if it meant getting to spend more time with this woman.
“Great. My name’s Alycen O’Ryan.” She reached into her bag and pulled out a business card.
“I don’t have any of my cards with me,” he said, and she smiled, obviously thinking that it was clear they weren’t in his pants. “Can I borrow one of yours and a pen?” She handed both over, and he scribbled his name and number on the back and returned it to her with the pen.
“Connor Bates? Nice to meet you. Both of you,” she whispered, with a wink. Then she spun on her heels and bolted for the door before he could growl at her again. And as deep and husky as her voice had been, he could have sworn he heard her giggle like a twelve year old girl, as she practically bounced out the front door.
posted by katfrench at 6:07 AM
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