“None of this makes sense. So many years have passed. Why lie about it now? And why take the blame for something she didn’t do? Especially killing her own sister?”
“I was hoping you could talk me through this. Seriously, Kathleen, I was just starting to feel like I wasn’t losing my mind after all. Now talking to my grandmother, I feel like I’m losing it again.”
“Again?” She gave him a kindly smile. “You were never losing it, Joe. We can figure it out. We’ll get through this.”
We’ll get through this. Hearing those words helped Joe breathe more easily. They would do it together. He said, “It’s just that I feel that if I could get to the bottom of this, the dreams would stop completely, you know? I’m having them less frequently. In fact . . .” He stopped, something occurring to him.
“What?” Kathleen nibbled at her toast, her eyes on him.
“Two of the dreams I haven’t had at all. Not in a long time.” His forehead furrowed. “The one I used to call the Piano Dream.”
“The one we figured must have taken place in the theater.”
“Yeah, that one. And the second one was the dream where I was putting a metal box in the hollow of a tree.”
“The box you discovered the night of the storm.”
“Yes. Exactly.”
“Maybe,” she said thoughtfully, “once you’ve lived the dream in this life, you no longer experience it anymore.”
“Huh.” He grew quiet, parsing it out. “Okay. That makes sense.”
“So that means you have two dreams left, right? The Rowboat Dream and the Death Dream. We know that the Death Dream took place the evening of the Barn Dance.” Doris came with her coffeepot and gestured toward Kathleen’s cup. “Thanks, Doris. I’ll take a touch more.” She turned her attention back to Joe. “Maybe we should go to the Barn Dance this weekend?”
Joe looked up. “What do you think, Doris? Is the Barn Dance a good idea?”
Doris shrugged as she poured the coffee. “Suit yourself.”
“Would you go as my date, Doris? I would be honored if you’d accompany me. I can pick you up in my truck.”
“Ha!” Doris said with the slightest twitch of her lips. “You wish. I already got me a date, so you might as well stop yanking my chain and take your girlfriend here.”
“You already have a date? And it’s not me?” Joe called out with fake anguish as she turned and walked away. “Doris, how could you?” He met Kathleen’s eyes and shook his head. “Did you see her smile? I finally did it, Kathleen. I made Doris smile. And you said it couldn’t be done.” He folded his arms in satisfaction.
“Nope. It doesn’t count,” Kathleen said firmly. “It wasn’t a real smile, just an amused look.”
“I saw her lips move upward. It was a definite smile. I agree that it was quick, but it was there.”
“Nice try. I know what a smile looks like, and I didn’t see one on Doris. You’ll have to keep trying.”
He sighed. “Want to go to the Barn Dance with me?”
“I would love to go to the Barn Dance with you, Joe Arneson. Thank you very much.” And she gave him a smile, a real smile. This time he could clearly see the difference.
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
1983
The night of the Barn Dance, Joe picked Kathleen up at her house. On the way out, he apologized for having to take her in a truck. “I know it’s not the best vehicle for a date,” he said, emphasizing the word date and then waiting for her reaction.
“It’s not a problem,” she assured him as he opened the door and helped her inside.
Joe shut the door with a smile. Well, well, well. So he’d graduated from friend to someone she’d date. One more step, and there was a good possibility he could be upgraded to boyfriend, something that had definite appeal, but he knew enough not to push the subject. All in good time.
Joe drove around to the other side of the lake, following the makeshift signs directing them to the dance. Even without the signs, he could have found it. All traffic was going in that direction. He kept glancing her way, distracted by her appearance.
“What are you looking at?”
“You, Miss Dinsmore. You are looking pretty fine. What era is that dress, if I can ask?”
She laughed. “I’m not entirely sure. Maybe 1920s, or even earlier? It’s an antique. I think at some point someone took the sleeves off and shortened it, but otherwise, it’s all original. Do you like it?” It was gorgeous, cream and blue with a cinched waist and flowing skirt. The back was cut provocatively low, considering the time period. Her hair was pulled away from her face, falling in curls in the back. The combination of a modern woman in an old-fashioned dress was bewitching.