see Mitch and fess up.
I wanted to accompany them, but Adam adamantly refused. Hmm, Adam. . .adamantly. A word created just for him? Was this a clue to my sweetie's true personality? Was the honeymoon period of our dating life ending? Had he been hiding inflexibility and stubborn traits that he knew I'd run from? Was he being as duplicitous as I was?
Maybe. Not likely the duplicitous part. We'd only been together a short time and not having any real long-term relationships, I wasn't sure how long it took really to get to know someone. I would call Lisa tonight, and she could advise. That is, if she was talking to me.
Still, adamant or not, the thought of Karen's pain took over my brain, and I headed toward the back to retrieve the notes I'd taken at Karen's house. On the way to my truck, I found Hazel seated in a wrought iron chair in the classroom section of the shop. One hand gripped a large mug decorated with bright yellow tulips and the other supported her head as she leaned on the table.
At my approach she looked up, but her head seemed nearly too heavy to lift. "Daisy gonna be okay?" she asked in a dull tone.
I crossed over to her table. "I think so. Adam will take good care of her."
"That's good. She might be a pain in the neck most of the time, but she's kinda growing on me." Hazel stabbed her finger at the back of her hand. "Kinda like this wart." Normally, she would have had a big belly laugh over her joke; instead, she let her voice fall off as if talking was an effort not worth making. She stared over my shoulder as if I wasn't there.
I studied her face, surprised to see puffy eyes, rimmed in red. Had she been crying? My rugged sedum never cried. Never even came close to opening the tear faucet. Come to think of it, she'd never taken a break in the middle of the afternoon like this before, either.
"Is something wrong, Hazel? You seem upset about something."
She shrugged. "I'm fine. So where was Adam taking Daisy?"
As I fixed a cup of coffee for myself, I explained Daisy's split personality. Of course, I didn't admit that I, too, had experienced a similar split. That would mean I'd have put my deception into words, and I wasn't ready to do that with anyone but Adam.
I walked back to the table, inhaling the nutty coffee fragrance as I went. "Good thing you told me about her fight with Gary or Mitch might have heard this on the grapevine. She'd really have been in trouble if that happened."
"Yeah, he'd crucify her if he caught her lying, all right." Her voice was flat as if physically here but not really present.
I set my mug on the table and pulled out the chair next to her. "Okay, enough. You're going to tell me what's wrong, and you're going to do it now."
She rubbed a weathered hand across her eyes. "Zeke's having troubles at work."
"Trouble? What kind of trouble?"
She shifted away. "It's nothing, really."
I took her shoulders and forced her to look at me. "Nothing doesn't make you cry. Nothing doesn't sap all the life out of you like this. It's not nothing. So what is it?"
"He got fired."
"Wow." Her news forced me against the back of my chair. "But he's worked there for twenty years. What happened?"
She straightened as if rigid posture would make the telling easier. "Guess twenty years doesn't matter much these days. He was up for this promotion. Instead of giving it to him they brought in a guy half his age." She fidgeted with a napkin, shredding it into long strips. "Zeke was so mad he nearly quit. But we decided he needed to stay on for his retirement. One day the guy asks him to sweep up the floors. Zeke was gonna do it, but then the guy disrespected him and treated him like a bumbling rookie. So Zeke got mad and punched the guy out."
I laid my hand on hers now resting on the table. "I'm so sorry, Hazel."
"Yeah me, too. Sorry I married that louse."
"You don't mean that. You're just upset."
"I know, but what're we gonna do for retirement?"
I had no easy answer. I hadn't even pondered
I wanted to accompany them, but Adam adamantly refused. Hmm, Adam. . .adamantly. A word created just for him? Was this a clue to my sweetie's true personality? Was the honeymoon period of our dating life ending? Had he been hiding inflexibility and stubborn traits that he knew I'd run from? Was he being as duplicitous as I was?
Maybe. Not likely the duplicitous part. We'd only been together a short time and not having any real long-term relationships, I wasn't sure how long it took really to get to know someone. I would call Lisa tonight, and she could advise. That is, if she was talking to me.
Still, adamant or not, the thought of Karen's pain took over my brain, and I headed toward the back to retrieve the notes I'd taken at Karen's house. On the way to my truck, I found Hazel seated in a wrought iron chair in the classroom section of the shop. One hand gripped a large mug decorated with bright yellow tulips and the other supported her head as she leaned on the table.
At my approach she looked up, but her head seemed nearly too heavy to lift. "Daisy gonna be okay?" she asked in a dull tone.
I crossed over to her table. "I think so. Adam will take good care of her."
"That's good. She might be a pain in the neck most of the time, but she's kinda growing on me." Hazel stabbed her finger at the back of her hand. "Kinda like this wart." Normally, she would have had a big belly laugh over her joke; instead, she let her voice fall off as if talking was an effort not worth making. She stared over my shoulder as if I wasn't there.
I studied her face, surprised to see puffy eyes, rimmed in red. Had she been crying? My rugged sedum never cried. Never even came close to opening the tear faucet. Come to think of it, she'd never taken a break in the middle of the afternoon like this before, either.
"Is something wrong, Hazel? You seem upset about something."
She shrugged. "I'm fine. So where was Adam taking Daisy?"
As I fixed a cup of coffee for myself, I explained Daisy's split personality. Of course, I didn't admit that I, too, had experienced a similar split. That would mean I'd have put my deception into words, and I wasn't ready to do that with anyone but Adam.
I walked back to the table, inhaling the nutty coffee fragrance as I went. "Good thing you told me about her fight with Gary or Mitch might have heard this on the grapevine. She'd really have been in trouble if that happened."
"Yeah, he'd crucify her if he caught her lying, all right." Her voice was flat as if physically here but not really present.
I set my mug on the table and pulled out the chair next to her. "Okay, enough. You're going to tell me what's wrong, and you're going to do it now."
She rubbed a weathered hand across her eyes. "Zeke's having troubles at work."
"Trouble? What kind of trouble?"
She shifted away. "It's nothing, really."
I took her shoulders and forced her to look at me. "Nothing doesn't make you cry. Nothing doesn't sap all the life out of you like this. It's not nothing. So what is it?"
"He got fired."
"Wow." Her news forced me against the back of my chair. "But he's worked there for twenty years. What happened?"
She straightened as if rigid posture would make the telling easier. "Guess twenty years doesn't matter much these days. He was up for this promotion. Instead of giving it to him they brought in a guy half his age." She fidgeted with a napkin, shredding it into long strips. "Zeke was so mad he nearly quit. But we decided he needed to stay on for his retirement. One day the guy asks him to sweep up the floors. Zeke was gonna do it, but then the guy disrespected him and treated him like a bumbling rookie. So Zeke got mad and punched the guy out."
I laid my hand on hers now resting on the table. "I'm so sorry, Hazel."
"Yeah me, too. Sorry I married that louse."
"You don't mean that. You're just upset."
"I know, but what're we gonna do for retirement?"
I had no easy answer. I hadn't even pondered
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