Chapter OneA Chapter by RAOrourke The beginning of Peyton's story
Chapter One
Peyton Montgomery pulled into the parking lot of the Mount Airy Post Office. Fumbling in the backseat she grabbed her oversized package. Being too preoccupied with her list of things left to do, she hadn’t noticed the post office was closing. There was still so much to do before she left this small town behind.
Peyton was anxious about packing up and leaving. She had lived in Mount Airy, a rural small town outside of Washington, DC her entire life. In a matter of six weeks, she had cancelled her wedding, sent back the gifts and applied to college. Now it was time to put the past behind her. She had no idea what lie ahead for her. Future unknown, but she was willing to take the risk, no matter how troubling she found it.
The “known” was something she could take hold of and understand. Peyton had experienced a lot of unknowns in her life up to this point and looked for a life that was predictable and stable. Who cared about living on the edge? She was most comfortable in secure surroundings.
Peyton bustled past Flora as she awkwardly carried her package in.
“Hi Peyton, How are you?” Flora greeted her.
Flora had known Peyton all her life. She had grown up in Mount Airy and so had her parents and grandparents. Flora was the kind of person who knew everyone and everything about everyone in town. Flora’s family had been from Mount Airy since back in the late 1800’s, and she was not one for gossip. She spoke her mind but found gossip to be intolerable. There wasn’t a mean word anyone could ever say about her or her family.
Flora continued twirling her sign to “Closed” unbeknownst to Peyton. Instead she was met with a warm smile as Flora ushered her in and welcomed her.
“Hi Flora, I need to overnight this package.” Peyton said struggling to lay the box onto the scale.
“No problem Sweetie.” Flora replied, “Where’s this headed to?”
Peyton fumbled in her purse for the address of the recipient whom had won the on-line auction of her beautiful designer wedding dress. Her purse was a mess, receipts, and papers were strewn everywhere and she pulled paper after paper out until she finally found what she needed.
Whoever they were they were getting a bargain, she thought to herself. She didn’t really care, she actually felt a sense of release to be getting rid of it.
She handed Flora the address, and said, “Okay, one more thing to cross off my list.”
Flora looked up at her with a puzzled look which went right over Peyton’s head.
“Okay, look at the screen and answer the question about dangerous materials, perfume, etc.” She said looking for some sort of response from Peyton. Not getting one she went on, “Do you want insurance? Do you need delivery confirmation?”
Peyton continued looking at her receipts and appeared to not have noticed Flora was asking her questions until she heard Flora clearing her throat.
“Honey? Are you okay?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Flora. My mind is going in a hundred different directions. I have two days left until I leave.” Peyton apologized.
“I understand I’m just sorry for what that son of a b***h did to you” she said as she placed her hand on top of Peyton’s patting it kindly.
“Thank you, it has been difficult.” Peyton admitted as she paid for the shipping, and ran her hand alongside the box one last time, letting out an enormous sigh.
“Thanks again!” she said as she pushed the door open to leave.
“Man I have to pull it together,” she whispered to herself as she wiped the tear that had fallen on her cheek.
Her hand was shaking as she pulled out her cell phone to check her messages. As usual there were tons. All from the same person. She hit delete over and over again until her messages were empty. She didn’t want to see or hear from him every again. She had thought that had been made very clear when she had thrown off her engagement ring into the bed she had caught him and Samantha in.
She pulled her list back out of her purse and crossed the post office off. It was getting close to being finished. She couldn’t wait to be away from here. The further the better. She needed to heal, and staying in this small town was a constant reminder of her failed relationship and she was looking forward to concentrating on herself for once.
She started the engine of her Toyota Rav4 and looked up at the sky at the ominous clouds rolling in. She hadn’t noticed the murky sky earlier. The wind was picking up as she drove down the windy country road back to her grandmother’s home. The only real home she had ever known.
Pulling up the gravel driveway, she saw her grandmother, Vivian Parker, clutching an enormous straw hat onto her head, in what appeared to be a futile attempt. The wind was coming in so strongly now, that Vivian appeared to almost be taking flight. Peyton grabbed her camera bag, always close by, and got out of the car. Instinctively she started taking candid shots of her grandmother. The sky dramatically crackled with a bolt of lightning at the precise moment Peyton was able to capture the photo.
“Beautiful!” She whispered as she continued to capturing the moment on film.
Vivian turned quickly toward the safety of their home, leaving Peyton with a smile
as she climbed back in the car to put her camera away. She started gathering up her bags as she watched Vivian marching up the wide planked flight of stairs to their Victorian home.
She thought how fortunate she was to have this woman in her life. Her life would
have been very different if her grandmother hadn’t stepped in to raise her after her parents died in that car accident when she was five years old. Her parents had been high school sweethearts and married right after graduation. Peyton had been born a year later.
Vivian was a remarkably strong, caring and devoted grandmother who had always loved Peyton unconditionally. She had created a secure and stable environment for her in a time which had been very difficult. They helped each other through that tragic and devastating time, which created an enormous bond between them. They never took for granted how blessed they both were to have each other. Peyton knew how blessed she was to have such a magnificent woman to raise and nurture her.
The thunderstorm was moving in rapidly now, the wind howling around Peyton. As she swung her car door open, the heavens decided to open up and let loose. The rain came down with such force that Peyton knew she needed to stay in the car and fought the wind to shut her door. She would have to wait to let the volatile weather subside. The list would have to wait as well.
Lightening cracked again nearby and she listened as the thunder rumbled not soon after. She sank back down into the driver’s seat and turned off the car’s engine. She pulled out her list to review the remaining chores, and as she did so, she began to reflect on what had brought her to this crossroads in her life.
. © 2015 RAOrourkeAuthor's Note
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Added on April 1, 2014Last Updated on May 14, 2015 Tags: Romance Author
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