her daughter to…well, let’s just say that I didn’t remember quite this level of permissiveness before I went off to college. “I’m sure I’ll be back before you turn in.”
“Don’t rush home on my account, sweetie.”
“Goodbye, Mom.” Sheesh, sometimes I wonder if Mom’s grandmotherly imperative trumped any “maternal drive” on my part.
At 5:55, Gary returned. “Are we ready?” he asked.
“Not quite,” I said, and nodded toward Molly, who stood looking out the window for her mother’s car. Usually, her Mom would arrive shortly after 5:30. I wondered why she didn’t call if she knew she was running late. Finally, at 6:10, I turned out the lights and locked up. The three of us stood on the front steps and waited.
“You don’t mind, do you?” I asked.
“Not at all,” Gary said, calmly. “It’s not like I’m starving. In fact, I’m glad we’re making sure she stays safe.”
The sound of a car in need of a new muffler grew louder and soon appeared, parking on the side street. A woman in a down vest and jeans walked briskly toward us.
“Oh, my god, I’m so sorry. Thank you for watching Molly. They asked if I could stay a half hour longer at work. I thought for sure I’d get here before closing.”
“It wasn’t a problem,” I assured her. “I’m Melody, the librarian, and this is Gary Van Dyke.” She shook our hands. She smelled heavily of nicotine and stale smoke.
“Oh, the music store, huh?” she asked. She looked to be about the same age as me, early thirties. Now that the stress had subsided, her smile revealed an attractive woman. “I’m Cathy Spencer; call me Cat. Yeah, when they offer me some overtime, I have to jump on it. Matter of fact, they asked me to come in tomorrow for a half day. There’s something going on at the paper mill. I don’t know what, but I hope it stays busy. There were rumors of lay-offs not long ago, but now we’re heading into our peak season, so it should stay hopping. All I have to do is find a babysitter for tomorrow.”
“Do you have family in the area, Cat?” I asked.
“Got a sister in Rose City, but she works, too.”
Something made me hesitate – selfishness, maybe – but I found myself volunteering to watch Molly.
“Are you sure?” she asked. “That would be so helpful.”
“Sure, I’m sure. Just drop her off at the library. When would you pick her up?”
“I work from 9:00 to 1:00. Does that work for you?”
“I’ll make it work for me.” I’d have to go in early and stay later, but that was all right. I had plenty to do. “You’ll drop her off about 8:30?” Cat nodded. “Great. But if you’re going to be later than 1:30, please call.”
“Deal,” she said. “Thanks so much, Melody. Good to meet you both. Come on, Molly, you must be hungry.”
We watched them walk to the car. “How about you, Gary? Are you hungry?”
“Are you kidding?” he asked. “I’m starved!”
Burger’s was actually named after its owner, Klaus Burger, and was a nice casual dining eatery. But when your name is Burger and you serve food, you’d better feature some sort of hamburger on your menu or the tourists would revolt. So they came up with an extensive lineup of burger variations which became popular with both tourists and townies alike.
“Here you go,” our waitress said. “Two open-faced, gravy burgers, medium. Would you like another beer?”
“I’m driving, Melody, so feel free to indulge.” Gary had barely touched his beer.
“Sure, thanks.” As the waitress fetched the froth, I smiled at Gary. “It’s not like I couldn’t walk three blocks to home, regardless of how much I drank.”
“Sure, but if you’d like a lift, I’ll be the designated driver,” Gary said. He took another small sip and looked thoughtful. “I thought that was a real nice thing you did there with Molly.”
“It wasn’t a big deal,” I said. Mom has always said I can’t take a compliment, and maybe she’s right.
“Don’t rush home on my account, sweetie.”
“Goodbye, Mom.” Sheesh, sometimes I wonder if Mom’s grandmotherly imperative trumped any “maternal drive” on my part.
At 5:55, Gary returned. “Are we ready?” he asked.
“Not quite,” I said, and nodded toward Molly, who stood looking out the window for her mother’s car. Usually, her Mom would arrive shortly after 5:30. I wondered why she didn’t call if she knew she was running late. Finally, at 6:10, I turned out the lights and locked up. The three of us stood on the front steps and waited.
“You don’t mind, do you?” I asked.
“Not at all,” Gary said, calmly. “It’s not like I’m starving. In fact, I’m glad we’re making sure she stays safe.”
The sound of a car in need of a new muffler grew louder and soon appeared, parking on the side street. A woman in a down vest and jeans walked briskly toward us.
“Oh, my god, I’m so sorry. Thank you for watching Molly. They asked if I could stay a half hour longer at work. I thought for sure I’d get here before closing.”
“It wasn’t a problem,” I assured her. “I’m Melody, the librarian, and this is Gary Van Dyke.” She shook our hands. She smelled heavily of nicotine and stale smoke.
“Oh, the music store, huh?” she asked. She looked to be about the same age as me, early thirties. Now that the stress had subsided, her smile revealed an attractive woman. “I’m Cathy Spencer; call me Cat. Yeah, when they offer me some overtime, I have to jump on it. Matter of fact, they asked me to come in tomorrow for a half day. There’s something going on at the paper mill. I don’t know what, but I hope it stays busy. There were rumors of lay-offs not long ago, but now we’re heading into our peak season, so it should stay hopping. All I have to do is find a babysitter for tomorrow.”
“Do you have family in the area, Cat?” I asked.
“Got a sister in Rose City, but she works, too.”
Something made me hesitate – selfishness, maybe – but I found myself volunteering to watch Molly.
“Are you sure?” she asked. “That would be so helpful.”
“Sure, I’m sure. Just drop her off at the library. When would you pick her up?”
“I work from 9:00 to 1:00. Does that work for you?”
“I’ll make it work for me.” I’d have to go in early and stay later, but that was all right. I had plenty to do. “You’ll drop her off about 8:30?” Cat nodded. “Great. But if you’re going to be later than 1:30, please call.”
“Deal,” she said. “Thanks so much, Melody. Good to meet you both. Come on, Molly, you must be hungry.”
We watched them walk to the car. “How about you, Gary? Are you hungry?”
“Are you kidding?” he asked. “I’m starved!”
Burger’s was actually named after its owner, Klaus Burger, and was a nice casual dining eatery. But when your name is Burger and you serve food, you’d better feature some sort of hamburger on your menu or the tourists would revolt. So they came up with an extensive lineup of burger variations which became popular with both tourists and townies alike.
“Here you go,” our waitress said. “Two open-faced, gravy burgers, medium. Would you like another beer?”
“I’m driving, Melody, so feel free to indulge.” Gary had barely touched his beer.
“Sure, thanks.” As the waitress fetched the froth, I smiled at Gary. “It’s not like I couldn’t walk three blocks to home, regardless of how much I drank.”
“Sure, but if you’d like a lift, I’ll be the designated driver,” Gary said. He took another small sip and looked thoughtful. “I thought that was a real nice thing you did there with Molly.”
“It wasn’t a big deal,” I said. Mom has always said I can’t take a compliment, and maybe she’s right.
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