consummate weasel.
I turned back to my potential island-cop boyfriend
(though now that seemed a remote possibility).
“Nick, I didn’t want to turn down your invitation since
you were so kind to ask-and Anita wanted me to do a
review of Pelican’s Grill.” I swallowed as if a boulder
blocked my throat. Who had I been kidding? I wasn’t the
type of girl who could handle dating one guy, much less
two.
He lifted one dark eyebrow, handed me the box of
chocolates, and left without a word.
Cole followed and retreated into his van.
I stood there, chocolates in hand and wildflowers at
my feet, with no one to blame but myself. Kong nuzzled
my ankle, picking up on my dejection, but this once, my
pooch’s affection couldn’t remedy my downcast mood.
I felt like a wrung-out dishrag. How could I have
been so stupid?
Just then, Pop Pop zoomed up in his golf cart, taking out a bougainvillea bush before he could apply the
brakes.
“Hiya, Mallie.”
I tried to summon a smile but managed only a slight
twist of my lips.
“Wanda Sue said you needed the site next to you
cleaned.” He slowly heaved his skinny legs out from behind the wheel and grabbed his cane and a bottle of Windex. Of course, he couldn’t juggle both at the same time,
and I had to rush up and grab the Windex.
“Be careful.” I rubbed my forehead in frustration. “I
think she wanted you to use Tilex.”
“Darn it, I thought Wanda Sue said Windex.” His
wrinkles deepened as he looked at the bottle in puzzlement; then he tapped his left ear. “My hearing aid batteries must be running low again.”
“Maybe so.” I raised my voice and enunciated each
word with exaggerated deliberateness.
“I guess since I’m here, I could clean the front windows on your Airstream-“
“No need.” I grabbed the Windex bottle from him
and tossed it into the back of his golf cart. The last thing
I wanted was for Pop Pop to stand on a ladder balancing
his cane and a bottle of Windex on those shaky, skinny
legs, trying to clean my large Airstream windows.
A recipe for a broken hip if I’d ever heard one.
“Okay, if you insist.” I could hear the relief in his voice.
He leaned forward, both hands on his cane. “You
look mighty nice, Miss Mallie.”
“Thanks, Pop Pop.” I set the chocolates on my picnic
table with a sigh.
He looked over at Cole’s buttoned-up van. “Did your
boyfriend back out on the date?”
“Sort of.” No point in trying to explain-Pop Pop
wouldn’t hear me anyway. I picked up the wildflowers
and set them next to the chocolates. “And I was going to
write a review of the restaurant where we were having
dinner, so I guess I’ll be eating alone.”
“A pretty girl like you? Naha” He shook his head, but
the motion seemed to loosen his dentures, and he had to
shift his jaw to move them back into place. “I’d be proud
to go with you.”
Huh?
“I know it’s not a real date or anything, ‘cause I’m a
little old for you, but we could share dinner.”
Little old? He was ancient, almost a mummy.
Still, the hopeful kindness in his sagging face tugged
at my heart. “I don’t know if your offer will stand if you
hear where I have to eat-Le Sink.”
“I love it there,” he enthused, which led to a cackle,
which led to a cough and my slapping him on the back
so he could catch his breath.
He finally straightened.
“Okay-it’s a date,” I said, realizing Madame Geri
had been right. This was my karma for being deceitful:
sharing dinner with a geriatric RV park handyman with
bad dentures. It couldn’t get much worse.
“You’ll have to drive, Mallie, and I’ll need to pick up my medication on the way there,” he pronounced. “If I
don’t take my pills, dinner goes right through me, and I
can’t even make it home in time.”
Okay, it just got worse.
Twenty minutes later, I had loaded Pop Pop, his newly
purchased pills, his cane, and his oxygen tank (just in
case) into my
I turned back to my potential island-cop boyfriend
(though now that seemed a remote possibility).
“Nick, I didn’t want to turn down your invitation since
you were so kind to ask-and Anita wanted me to do a
review of Pelican’s Grill.” I swallowed as if a boulder
blocked my throat. Who had I been kidding? I wasn’t the
type of girl who could handle dating one guy, much less
two.
He lifted one dark eyebrow, handed me the box of
chocolates, and left without a word.
Cole followed and retreated into his van.
I stood there, chocolates in hand and wildflowers at
my feet, with no one to blame but myself. Kong nuzzled
my ankle, picking up on my dejection, but this once, my
pooch’s affection couldn’t remedy my downcast mood.
I felt like a wrung-out dishrag. How could I have
been so stupid?
Just then, Pop Pop zoomed up in his golf cart, taking out a bougainvillea bush before he could apply the
brakes.
“Hiya, Mallie.”
I tried to summon a smile but managed only a slight
twist of my lips.
“Wanda Sue said you needed the site next to you
cleaned.” He slowly heaved his skinny legs out from behind the wheel and grabbed his cane and a bottle of Windex. Of course, he couldn’t juggle both at the same time,
and I had to rush up and grab the Windex.
“Be careful.” I rubbed my forehead in frustration. “I
think she wanted you to use Tilex.”
“Darn it, I thought Wanda Sue said Windex.” His
wrinkles deepened as he looked at the bottle in puzzlement; then he tapped his left ear. “My hearing aid batteries must be running low again.”
“Maybe so.” I raised my voice and enunciated each
word with exaggerated deliberateness.
“I guess since I’m here, I could clean the front windows on your Airstream-“
“No need.” I grabbed the Windex bottle from him
and tossed it into the back of his golf cart. The last thing
I wanted was for Pop Pop to stand on a ladder balancing
his cane and a bottle of Windex on those shaky, skinny
legs, trying to clean my large Airstream windows.
A recipe for a broken hip if I’d ever heard one.
“Okay, if you insist.” I could hear the relief in his voice.
He leaned forward, both hands on his cane. “You
look mighty nice, Miss Mallie.”
“Thanks, Pop Pop.” I set the chocolates on my picnic
table with a sigh.
He looked over at Cole’s buttoned-up van. “Did your
boyfriend back out on the date?”
“Sort of.” No point in trying to explain-Pop Pop
wouldn’t hear me anyway. I picked up the wildflowers
and set them next to the chocolates. “And I was going to
write a review of the restaurant where we were having
dinner, so I guess I’ll be eating alone.”
“A pretty girl like you? Naha” He shook his head, but
the motion seemed to loosen his dentures, and he had to
shift his jaw to move them back into place. “I’d be proud
to go with you.”
Huh?
“I know it’s not a real date or anything, ‘cause I’m a
little old for you, but we could share dinner.”
Little old? He was ancient, almost a mummy.
Still, the hopeful kindness in his sagging face tugged
at my heart. “I don’t know if your offer will stand if you
hear where I have to eat-Le Sink.”
“I love it there,” he enthused, which led to a cackle,
which led to a cough and my slapping him on the back
so he could catch his breath.
He finally straightened.
“Okay-it’s a date,” I said, realizing Madame Geri
had been right. This was my karma for being deceitful:
sharing dinner with a geriatric RV park handyman with
bad dentures. It couldn’t get much worse.
“You’ll have to drive, Mallie, and I’ll need to pick up my medication on the way there,” he pronounced. “If I
don’t take my pills, dinner goes right through me, and I
can’t even make it home in time.”
Okay, it just got worse.
Twenty minutes later, I had loaded Pop Pop, his newly
purchased pills, his cane, and his oxygen tank (just in
case) into my
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