Page 29 of Chasing Fireflies

“Want a drink?” I ask.

“Yes,” she says. We make our way over to the bar, and Banner walks up to us with a towel over his shoulder.

“Hello, you two.”

“Bartender, give my husband and me two beers on tap, please, sir.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Oh, and can you put some salt on my rim?” she asks so sweetly, and I grin.

“Only for you, Sara.”

“Thanks, Banner,” I say as I turn toward my wife. She sways her hips to the music and moves her head side to side in the most carefree way. Nothing is bothering her today, and I send a prayer up to whomever that my girl is happy. It’s written all over her face.

*

The night is long, and the girl who hates wearing shoes is barefoot as we walk down the sidewalk. She laughs at my jokes and holds my hand while her other grips her wedges. She’s drunk and giddy. I’m in love and happy.

“I wish my flowers looked like these,” she says, pointing to the flowers in the park. Her flowers aren’t doing well, but she tries.

“Maybe Anne can come over and help?”

“Maybe so,” she says, shrugging.

*

We make it home, and I carry my sleeping baby to our bedroom. I lay her in bed and then walk downstairs. Grabbing a beer out of the fridge and twisting the cap off, I head out onto the porch swing. A small breeze moves in from the field, and the old swing softly creaks as I push off with my boots. Crickets sound in the distance, and a night owl hoots from a nearby tree. I sip my beer and rest my arm against the back of the swing. The moonlight shines down on the garden Sara is trying to grow, and I get an idea. Tomorrow, I’m going to make sure my girl has some flowers.

*

I stretch my arms and roll over. Sara is still asleep, and I look and see it’s early. My idea crosses my mind, and I quietly slip out of bed.

I leave a note for Sara and head out to the truck. Jumping in, I start Old Blue and make my way into town. He backfires, and I swear I’m going to get that looked at. I walk into the hardware store and make my way to the back where the flowers are.

“Hey, Cash.” I look up when I see Mark standing there.

“Hey, man.”

“Flower shopping?” he questions.

“Yeah, Sara isn’t having any luck with her garden, so I figured I’d plant her one already grown.”

He laughs. “Well, you’ve come to the right place. You’ve got a ton of sun out there, so you need flowers that can’t get enough. Come on over here and we will load you up.”

*

I wipe my brow and sit back on my heels. My back is sore from being bent over for an hour and a half, but I’ve got my girl’s flowers planted, and it looks beautiful. I can’t wait to see her face. She’s still sleeping, so I clean up my mess and head inside for a shower. I toss the empty flower containers into the bed of the truck and slip my gloves off.

SMACK!

I look toward the house. What the hell was that?

SMACK!

I run up onto the porch and grab the handle of the screen door. I cover my mouth to hold back a laugh when I see Sara on top of a chair smacking the fly swatter up against the wall for the third time. She huffs and blows a piece of hair out of her face. The fly swarms around her before he lands back on the wall. The tips of her toes are over the edge of the chair, and she leans over as far as she possibly can. Her tongue darts out, and she draws back before she goes to smack the fly again. I run over just as she falls forward and catch her in my arms.

“Oh shit.” She laughs loud, and I look down at her smiling face.

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