Chapter Four

Stillwell Art Center Tuesday, Late Afternoon Luna's Dresser

C ullen felt a little creepy about going behind his sister's back with the ruse of wanting to get into classic car refurbishing in order to play matchmaker. Not that Luna and Chris needed to be matched, but Cullen was concerned about his sister's mood and the fact that she and Chris hadn't seen each other in three weeks. Cullen knew from experience that long-distance relationships were not easy to maintain.

He thought the world of Chris, but he sensed Luna's growing discomfort. She would never admit it. At least not to him. Maybe not even to herself. Cullen always wondered how she could be so brilliant when it came to reading other people, but so clueless about her own relationships with men. But Chris seemed to be the exception, though the distance and lack of commitment were worrisome. Not that Cullen should judge. He was as guilty of ignoring the elephant in the room as anyone else. If Luna and Chris had talked about a commitment, she'd never mentioned it to him. The class ring and "going steady" was cute, but it wasn't an engagement ring. He shrugged. It really wasn't any of his business, but Luna was his sister, and he adored her. What he really needed to focus on was his own relationship and what it meant to him and to Chi-Chi. But that would wait until the weekend, after he'd had time to rehearse what he was going to say to her. First, he had to figure out exactly what that was.

The buzzer from the rear loading dock rang. Cullen went to the back of the workshop and opened the door. A small pickup truck had pulled in.

"Hey, Cullen! Look at you—all grown up, with a business in this fancy place!"

"Duke! How the heck are you?" Cullen grasped the seventy-something man by the shoulders. Back when Cullen's parents had their antique business, Duke was their delivery driver. When Luna and Cullen were kids, Duke would let them ride in the flatbed of the truck and take them to a pumpkin farm or an apple orchard. No one would imagine doing that now, and it was nearly horrifying to think about what could have happened back then. Like drinking out of the garden hose , thought Cullen. "Come in! Come in!" He slapped Duke on the back.

"This is some setup you got here." Duke smiled, showing off his two gold molars. He took in the large workshop with its pristine workbench and wall of tools. He whistled. "Never thought you'd be in the furniture fixin' business." He shoved his hands into his overall pockets and marveled at the space.

"Yeah, well, I always had an interest, and along came an opportunity, so I took it." Cullen nodded. "Follow me. There's someone who will be very surprised to see you."

The two men walked slowly from the workshop through the showroom, Duke stopping at almost every piece of restored furniture. "You do all this yourself?" he asked in awe.

"Yessir." Cullen pointed up to the ceiling fixtures. "Got busy with some lighting, too."

"Man-oh-man. You're some kind of wizard there, kid." Duke's head was moving in all directions. He didn't know what to look at next. "How'd you come into all this?"

"Well, you know my folks wanted to retire and had a lot of inventory. I didn't want to be solely in the antiques business, so I started with what they had on hand, then began working on my own projects. Almost everything here is my work. I only have a couple of pieces left from their business."

"Man-oh-man," Duke repeated. "They sure must be proud."

"I hope so. You know my dad. Not much for touchy-feely stuff or handing out compliments."

"Yeah, but you always knew somehow he was proud of you. And your sister. By the way, what is she up to these days?"

"Follow me." Cullen walked to the door that opened to Luna's café.

"Duke!" Luna squealed with pleasure when she spotted them. "What on earth are you doing here?" She gave him a huge hug, staying clear of his scruffy beard.

"Your brother asked me to deliver something that was in storage." He looked around Luna's place with the same awe he'd exhibited at Cullen's. "This place yours?"

"It is." Luna grinned. "Cullen figured if he kept me close by, he could make sure I stayed out of trouble. Welcome to the Namaste Café."

Duke stopped short when he looked out to the atrium. "Holy smoke! I heard about this place but never came by. Thought it might be a little too hoity-toity for me." His jaw was agape. "This here place has a bunch of artist types, food, and all that other stuff?"

Luna laughed. "Yep, and all that other stuff." Duke was not quite a hillbilly. "How about a cup of coffee?"

"I don't want to put you out."

"Duke, this is a café. This is what I do. I make coffee." She left out the psychic stuff. She didn't want to spook the man. She had done that enough times, like when she was eleven and told him things she could not possibly know, such as how his brother had stolen five hundred dollars from Duke's coffee can when he believed he had it well hidden in the back of the freezer. She'd thought he was going to have a heart attack when she asked him, "What happened to the frozen money?" He never answered her. It was hard enough for him to admit it to himself, let alone say it out loud: "My brother is a cheat." He simply turned pale, got in his truck, and drove away.

Cullen pulled out a chair. "Have a seat."

"I don't want to take you away from your work." Duke peered into the atrium and noticed the place was empty.

Luna was reading his mind again. "The center is closed on Monday and Tuesday, but I'm usually here and keep the coffee going for anyone else in the building. I'll give you a tour after our coffee. What would you like? Cappuccino? Espresso? Latte?"

"Them's too fancy fer me. Got a regular cup of java in that fancy machine?"

"Sure do. Cream and sugar?" Luna asked.

"Is there any other way? I mean besides all that other stuff?" He snorted.

"Coming right up." Luna turned toward the coffee maker and began whipping up a latte for Cullen. She also brewed a regular cup of java for Duke. While Duke was gawking at the interior landscaping and the scope of the center, she grabbed a couple of scones and brought everything to the table.

"How's the family, Duke? Still living in North Carolina?" Cullen asked.

"My daughter and her hubby moved to Georgia. He got a job in Savannah working for Gulfstream Aerospace. I'm glad I made that girl go to college so she could meet a fine man. And she did. She's a teacher, you know."

"I remember when she first went to school. You were so proud," Luna said.

"Yep. Someone in this family needed an edge-u-cation." He slapped his knee. "Still waiting for them grandbabies." He slurped his coffee and then shook his head. "But I don't think that's gonna happen. But it's okay, I guess. They're happy."

Luna patted him on the hand. "That's all that matters. And health, of course. Speaking of health, you're looking pretty fit!"

"Well, I try to walk a few miles every day. And then I help out at the local farms. It's hard to find good workers, so I lend a hand when I can. Gotta be a good neighbor."

Duke was a kind spirit. He'd worked for the Bodmans for over twenty years and was generous with his time. He charged a flat fee, even if the job took twice as long as he planned. But the Bodmans were appreciative and always gave him a liberal bonus each year. They also appreciated his babysitting skills, such as the times he would take the kids for a joyride while the Bodmans had business to tend to.

"So what did you bring for Cullen?" Luna asked.

Duke shot Cullen a look. He knew it was supposed to be a surprise, but maybe Cullen had already told her.

Cullen cleared his throat. "Just something I came across when I checked the storage unit a few weeks ago. I'm trying to clear it out little by little."

"So you're bringing stuff here," Luna teased.

"Only stuff that's salvageable. And one thing at a time." Cullen peered over his coffee mug. It was true that he'd wanted this to be a surprise—well, it still would be when Luna saw it. He'd been hoping he could refurbish it first, but knowing Luna, she would have sniffed his secret out sooner rather than later. Besides, he might do something to it that she wouldn't like. Yes, it was better to show her right away.

As they were finishing up their coffee, Luna spotted Chi-Chi in the distance and waved her over. A beautiful cloud of colors floated across the atrium.

"Lordy. Who is that?" Duke asked in awe. "Some kind of princess?"

"You could say that." Luna winked at Cullen. "She's from Nigeria. Makes beautiful jewelry." Luna got up from her chair, followed by Cullen, then Duke.

"E káàrò!" Chi-Chi nodded to everyone. Cullen got up and pulled a chair over to the table.

Cullen introduced her. "This is Lebici Stone. Chi-Chi, this is Duke, a longtime friend of the family."

She reached across the table to shake his hand.

"You are some kind of beautiful woman," Duke said as he shook her hand. He couldn't stop staring at her.

"Thank you," Chi-Chi replied with dignity, her head held high.

"Luna tells me you're from Nigeria?" Duke still hadn't blinked.

"Yes. My family came to the States when I was young. We still have some relatives there, and my brother visits several times a year."

Duke was enthralled. "And you make jewelry?" He was staring at her amethyst bracelet.

"I do. This is one of my pieces." She smiled.

"Well, alls I can say is your work is as beautiful as you are."

Cullen glanced over at Luna and grinned. He couldn't remember ever seeing Duke this enamored with anyone. It was a nice surprise.

Chi-Chi gave Duke a humble nod. "Thank you. You are very kind."

Duke slapped his leg again. "How about you take me for a tour of this place?" He stood and crooked his arm. Chi-Chi looked alarmed, but Cullen gave her a reassuring nod and whispered, "He's harmless."

The four of them paraded out the door into the sunlit atrium with Wylie in tow. Duke stopped short and let out a low whistle. "I heard lots of things about this here place, but just couldn't picture it in my mind. Imagine a huge tree like that on the inside?" It was obvious Duke was not a worldly man. Maybe that's why the Bodman family was so fond of him. He was the opposite of pretentious and looked at most things with wonder. He wasn't a stupid man. Just far from sophisticated.

Chi-Chi immediately took to his kind nature and began to explain all the different shops and artists as they strolled around the inside perimeter. As they walked to the automatic door that led to the patio, two German shepherds came bounding toward them. Duke let out a shriek. "What in the Sam Hill is going on?"

Chi-Chi squeezed Duke's arm. "Meet Ziggy and Marley," she said. The dogs stopped abruptly and sat at attention. Cullen reached down to pet them, and Wylie gave them both a headbutt. "They belong to Ellie, the genius behind this endeavor."

"Scared the bejeezus out of me." Duke was clutching his chest.

"Sorry. We're so used to them, we forget they can be scary for people who don't know them," Luna explained. She reached down and gave both dogs a "good boy" scratch behind the ears.

Ellie wasn't far behind the two dogs. "Hi, everyone!" She waved.

"And that is Ellie Stillwell," Chi-Chi explained further.

"Hello," Ellie said immediately.

"Howdy, Miss Ellie." Duke chuckled, remembering the TV show Dallas from the 1980s. "So tell me, who shot J.R.?" He couldn't help voicing the compelling question that 83 million TV viewers once asked.

Ellie laughed. She had lost count of how many times people had asked her that question. "It was Kristin. And he deserved it."

Everyone laughed. Even though the show had first aired almost a decade before Cullen and Luna were born, it was a well-known pop-culture classic.

Cullen introduced Duke to Ellie, explaining his association with the Bodman family and their business.

"Nice to meet you. I see you've already met Ziggy and Marley," Ellie said.

"Sure have. Gave me a good scare, they did." He smiled as they shook hands.

"Sorry about that. They're really sweet unless someone tries to hurt anyone."

"I'm sure of that, ma'am." Duke flashed his gold teeth again.

"We were about to give Duke a tour," Cullen said.

"Excellent. I'm going to attempt to learn a new software program. Enjoy!" Ellie walked over to the large staircase that led to the second floor of the gallery, with Ziggy and Marley wagging their tails behind her.

"Seems like a nice lady," Duke remarked. "She single?"

Luna almost spit. Now that would be a very interesting matchup. "Sorry, Duke, she's taken."

"A lawyer," Cullen added. "You don't want to mess with those types," he joked.

"You got that right, sonny boy." Duke reinserted Chi-Chi's arm through his. "And what about you, pretty lady?"

"She's mine." Cullen made the official announcement. Very much to his own surprise. Then his hands began to sweat as he worried what Chi-Chi might think of this little outburst.

"Well, lookie here." Duke stopped and turned. "If anyone deserves someone as magnificent as this lady, I suppose it's you, Cullen Bodman."

"Glad you approve." Cullen's face was flushed. He looked over at Chi-Chi, who had the biggest smile on her face.

"It is true, Mr. Duke. We are together." Chi-Chi gave Cullen a sideways glance and smile of approval.

"I guess that leaves you and me, Luna." Duke was kidding, but his comment prompted Luna to add her own status.

"Sorry. I'm going steady." She dangled the ring that hung around her neck. "To a U.S. Marshal."

"Huh. A U.S. Marshal, eh?"

"Yep. Who woulda thunk it?" Luna cackled.

"Well, surely not me. You were always a bit of a rascal."

"That's putting it mildly," Cullen added. Luna elbowed him in the ribs. "See? She's still a rascal."

"Well maybe one of y'all can have those grandbabies for me." Duke laughed. Chi-Chi, Luna, and Cullen froze.

Once they regained their composure, the quartet roamed past the patio and the grounds behind the center as Luna pointed out the highlights.

"A dog park? Whaddya know." Duke was still in awe of everything he was experiencing. "This is kinda like Disney for grownups. And dogs."

They meandered back to the interior of the center. "This is fan-tas-tic." Duke enunciated each syllable. "I understand why you'd wanna work here."

"That's the best part. It doesn't feel like work." Cullen grinned. "Especially when you're surrounded by special people."

"Thank you, bro," Luna chimed in.

"Yeah, you too, I guess," he teased, and got another elbow in the ribs. "Keep it up and you will be on my no-fly list."

"Ha." She gave him a smack on the arm with the back of her hand.

"And this is what I have to put up with every single day." Cullen pretended to be serious.

Luna jerked her thumb in Cullen's direction. "Me, too."

The group made their way to the workshop and the back entrance. Cullen put his hands over Luna's eyes.

"What are you doing?" she protested.

"Just be quiet for a second. Can you do that?" Cullen clasped her forehead. He helped maneuver her to the door and then released his grip.

Luna looked down at the flatbed part of the truck. "Oh, my goodness!" she squealed. "My old dresser!" She jumped down from the loading dock and climbed into the back of the truck.

"Hold on there, little lady!" Duke said with concern. "Don't you go hurtin' yourself now."

"Oh, wow! Cullen! Thank you! Wow!" Luna proceeded to open the drawers. The first thing she pulled out was a copy of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban , then a Backstreet Boys CD.

A copy of One Last Time by psychic medium John Edward was also in the drawer. She held it up. "See? I've been validated!" Luna had read the book when she was twelve and became an avid fan of Edward's show, Crossing Over, when it aired in 2001. She begged her parents to watch it with her to prove she wasn't a loony tune. At the time, Cullen countered, "It's on the Sci-Fi Channel." She'd stuck her tongue out at him back then—and did so again now.

"Okay, Miss Smarty Pants. How about we get this into the shop, and then you can have your trip down memory lane," Cullen urged. "I am sure Duke has other things to do."

"Oh, that's alright. I got nowheres to be," Duke responded.

"Let's not encourage her, okay?" Cullen snickered. "Come on, Duke, let's unload it." Cullen pulled the lever that lowered the loading dock platform to meet the back of the truck. Then he hopped down the portable steps.

Luna wrapped her arms around the old dresser. "I am so happy to see you again." She rested her ear on the top of it. "What's that? You're happy to see me, too? That's terrific."

Cullen disengaged her arms and looked up at Chi-Chi. "Did you know she also communicates with inanimate objects?"

Chi-Chi folded her arms and grinned. "They say that is a sign of a highly intelligent person."

"Oh, geez. Now I'll never hear the end of it." He grimaced.

Luna gave him a peck on the cheek. "You are the best, Cul!" Then she scooted out of their way. "I can't wait to see what else is in this treasure trove."

"Maybe it will keep you out of trouble," Cullen joked.

"As if." Luna smirked.

Once the dresser was secure in the workshop, Duke said his goodbyes. "Give your folks my best. I sure miss workin' fer 'em."

"I'm sure I can find a few things for you to do over here." Cullen handed the man 500 dollars.

"Much appreciated," Duke said, then realized Cullen had overpaid him by 400 dollars. "Cullen, this is too much!"

"I can't hear you," Cullen said, as he hoisted the platform up. Everyone waved, and Cullen shut the door as Duke drove off.

The diversion of Duke's arrival had lightened the air. Chi-Chi was no longer feeling guilty, and Luna was feeling brighter, knowing Chris would be coming. Plus, she now had mementos to explore. And Cullen was walking on air. He'd taken the first step by proclaiming his relationship with Chi-Chi to an outsider. Now all he had to do was tell her in private.