The Fourth Sunrise by H. T. Night Page B

they were. In my heart, I wanted to believe we were the same in that retrospect.”
    Sharee smiled. “I would like to think she was.”
    I smiled at Sharee’s youthful optimism. “Okay, romance writer. Hold onto that best-case scenario.”
    We were both quiet. I wasn’t uncomfortable talking about sex. The subject sometimes had the ability to shut things down in a conversation when it was mentioned under the wrong circumstances.
    I continued to drink my cold coffee and every now and then, I’d look at Sharee and smile, praying she would say something. I was running out of polite conversation. Thank God she did think of something. “Hey, you want to do something crazy?”
    “ What?” I asked.
    “ The fair is here tonight.”
    “ I’m aware of that,” I said smiling. “I was hoping to take Christine there.”
    “ I may not be Christine, but would you like to check it out? There is still a half-hour left. I know it’s not a long time, but it might be fun.”
    “ Sharee seemed very eager and excited to go to the fair with me. She almost seemed flirtatious about it, which made me a tad uncomfortable, but even more excited that a young woman would like to spend time with me. This was definitely a first. “I would love to,” I said.
    We both got up and Sharee grabbed her briefcase. I didn't understand why a woman would go on a date with a leather briefcase. Maybe it was some kind of weird second bag.
     
     
     
    Chapter Fifteen
     
     
    Present Day – Delta, Colorado - Coffee Shop, 1:30 a.m.
     
    So, around 1:30 a.m. in the morning, Sharee and I got up from our cozy little table and went outside. I walked Sharee over to my truck.
    “ Here I am. This beat-up wagon is mine.”
    “ It’s charming.”
    “ She’s been my baby for 40 years, so she is pretty damn charming all right. This truck is so full of charm, she should be in a museum.” I opened the door and let her in. She hopped in, briefcase and all. I wanted to ask her about the briefcase, but she wasn’t talking about it, so I just let it be.
    I started my engine. I glanced over at Sharee and smiled. She must have trusted me after all this sharing to get in a truck with me, after meeting me only hours earlier. I was harmless and she knew it. I drove Sharee in my truck over to Deltarado Days 2012. I parked my truck in the front parking lot, as I had done many times over the years.
    It was, once again, a beautiful summer Colorado night. The fair on this night truly didn’t look much different than it did any of the times I have gone to it. There was food, booths, game booths, but the thing that stood out the most that I had not seen before was a giant stage. Apparently, someone had performed earlier in the night. At 1:35 in the morning, it was empty. As far as I was concerned, it was the perfect spot for us to grab something to eat and sit on top of it.
    “ Want to get a slice of pizza for old times’ sake?” Sharee asked.
    “ I would like that,” I said. We walked over to the pizza stand and we ordered two pizza slices and two Cokes. It came to $8.00. I smiled and winked at Sharee and said, “Fifty years ago, this wasn’t even a buck.”
    “ Times have changed, sir,” the young man said from behind the pizza stand. I laughed and told him, “Boy, do I know it.”
    We made our way to the stage with our slices of pepperoni pizza and soda pop and we sat and ate. Here I was once again, going late into the evening at Deltarado Days. But this time, it was with a completely different girl. Reliving this was turning out to be a little bit of fun. Sharee was sweet and I enjoyed her company.
    “So, Joel,” Sharee asked. “Whatever happened to your friend Douglas?”
    “ Oh… Douglas. He’s actually a bigger part of the story than you might think.”
    “ Why is that?”
    “ Well, Douglas eventually made it up to the big leagues and had at least .300 at bats at the major league level. Like me, sports injuries plagued him and in 1976, he was