Yes, and she has Company!

You drive the dozen or so miles away from the interstate and the landscape around you becomes more hilly and forested by the minute. It really was some beautiful country out here. You wished you had time to do some fishing while you were out here, it was a good reminder to take more time and visit more regularly in the future. You make the turn onto the dirt road that followed the lake's shore and receive a dirty look from an elderly couple coming the other way. The road really wasn't meant for vehicles the size of your Peterbilt and both you and the couple's little sedan had to be partially on the grassy shoulder in order to pass each other.

You pass five properties before reaching Grace's. You turn down the narrow driveway, branch tips reaching in so close as to brush along both sides of your truck as you make your way down the long winding driveway. To the right and left is dense forest and up ahead you can see the glimmer of the water through the trees. Grace certainly had seclusion out here.

You make the final turn and see Grace's quaint white and brown house dead ahead. It was really more of a summer cabin but it had everything Grace needed. To the right the driveway widened for parking, beside this was your sister's large garden which was mostly harvested at this point. To the left was a shed and a roofed area where Grace parked her black Jeep Wrangler. The jeep was there so you knew she was home. There would be no way she could miss the sound of your engine as you pulled the truck in to park but you hit a short blast of your air horn just to announce your presence.

MRRRPP!

You shut down your rig, grab your thermos and jacket, then hop out. As you turn toward the house you see your sister opening the front door and stepping out onto the porch. She wore a thick wool sweater and jeans, her dirty blonde was hair up in a loose bun, and as always she had on her oval shaped glasses. She was a tiny woman, barely over five foot in height, with rich brown eyes. In so many ways Grace had a distinct resemblance to an early 80's Carrie Fisher, if a tad more curvaceous.

"Andy!?" She says with conflicting emotions expressed plainly her pretty face.

"Hey Sis." You smile. You step up onto the front porch, taking the stairs two at a time, and engulf your little sister in a big hug. At 6 foot 3 and over 250 pounds you absolutely dwarfed your younger sibling. "Sorry to come without warning."

You can feel her tense body calm, as it always did, in your enveloping embrace but the moment you let go she become very nervous.

"Uh...uhm..." You notice she kept glancing back toward the door. "Uh...what are you doing here? You should have called."

"Is it a bad time?"

"YES!" She blurts. "Er...I mean...what are you...I just...I wasn't expecting you. You should have called."

You sigh. "Yeah." You go on to explain the reason for my unannounced visit. As you tell her about the closure of the highway and explain that you had nowhere else to go her jittery nerves escalate. She hadn't invited you in yet and you had the distinct impression she didn't want to. You weren't sure what was going on but you try to offer her a way out. Thumbing back over your shoulder you say. "You know, that accident probably isn't that bad. Maybe the road is open already. I can always take a nap in the truck until..."

She rests her small hand on my arm. "No, sorry Andy. You are always welcome here."

"You sure?"

She swallows and nods, seeming to have come to some sort of **** acceptance to the decision. "Y-you can stay. Of course you can stay, I can't turn you away big brother." She fidgets and shifts her weight from side to side as she bit her lip in that way she had when she was nervous. "It's just...uhmmm...it's just...ohh dear..."

You smile warmly and pat her hand with my big mitt. "What's up?"

She looks up at you with huge guilty eyes. "I...I...I have company over."

Your jaw drops. You could have been knocked over with a feather! Your super shy little sister had company! It wasn't her publicist as their car wasn't here. In fact, there was no other vehicle here so whoever was inside had come here with Grace or walked. The second option being very unlikely given how secluded this place was. The fact she was so **** to admit it seemed to suggest... Could it be? Did Grace finally have a boyfriend!?

"Oh!" You exclaim. "Oh...uh, hey. I can go Grace. No problem at all. If you'd rather be...alone." You were grinning from ear to ear. Even if it wasn't a boyfriend, just the fact she had company over was amazing. You were so happy for her.

"No." She takes your hand and holds it, just like when she was little. "Please stay. It's just...you should know...uh...it's just...you should know...about...ohhh dear..."

"Yes?"

"My visitor..." She nibbles her lip. "...is..."

"Yes?" Your wide grin widens further. It had to be a man, it's the only thing that made sense. You couldn't wait to meet the guy who somehow found a way to get close to my loner of a sister. You also couldn't wait to take his measure and see if he was a douchebag or some sort of heartbreaking playboy type, this was your little sister after all. You try to peek in through the window beside the door but there was nothing to see thanks to a drawn curtain.

"Erm..."

"Yes? Who is it?" You ask with rising anticipation.

"My company is..."