“I’ll buy from all of them.” Liz scanned the names on the paper in her hand. “CHRIS!”
She jumped to her feet. “You asked Chris? My ex, Chris, to buy cookie dough,” she hissed through closed lips.
“Don’t blow this up. We ran into him at the market. I didn’t go to him.”
“Uncle Chris is buying mint thumbprints,” the middle girl piped up. “Three of them.”
“Guess what?” Liz’s tone changed. She gathered up all the order forms. “I just spoke to him today. He’s going to buy six mint thumbprints from each of you. This is so exciting! Now go tell your dads.”
“Nice move Liz.”
“He’ll pay for them.” Liz walked the children and her sister to the door. “How am I going to get out of the driveway?”
“Why do you want to leave? Did you forget to buy my present?” the middle girl asked, wagging her finger at Liz.
“It’s your birthday. Are you having a party at grandma’s?” The little girl nodded her head. “Well lead the way. We don’t want to be late.”
Liz walked to her parents house, succumbing to the fact that the universe was keeping her out of Oscar’s arms. At least for tonight.
Chapter Ten
Liz spent the evening eating cake and watching princess movies with her nieces. She couldn’t tear herself away, even for an attractive perfect bartender. Disappointing her niece wasn’t an option.
Falling asleep in Oscar’s shirt again, she dreamt away all the unanswered questions she had about him. Enveloped with his scent when she roused the questions returned.
Who are you?
She asked sniffing her shoulder.
What do you do during the day? Why do you go to work on your evening off?
She stepped out of bed, changed into pajamas, and left his shirt on her pillow.
Guess I’ll have to wait another day to find out.
It was a cold cloudy Saturday morning. She poured herself a bowl of cereal, wrapped up in a blanket, and ate in front of the television on the sofa. She’d come full circle from when she’d first moved into her parent’s guest house. In two days her marriage to Chris would be over and hopefully a new relationship with Oscar would be beginning.
Binge watching romantic comedies seemed like that the best option to pass the hours. Only by immersing herself in love stories would she be able to look past Chris and open up to the possibility of what a relationship with Oscar could offer. All day she watched first loves, true loves, second chances, love triangles, and kept thinking,
Did I find you too soon?
Before her thoughts got away from her, she checked the time. It was early afternoon and she wanted to talk to someone. She needed a Bill pep talk.
He has to up by now.
“Hi, Mrs. Collins. Is Bill awake?” Liz asked at the door.
“Haven’t seen him this morning. You could go up and check.”
“Thank you.” Liz headed up the front stairs.
She barged in his bedroom door without bothering to knock, even though she knew Bill slept in the nude. She’d seen everything he had to offer in high school and wasn’t impressed.
She found what she expected, a grown man sleeping in his childhood bed, one leg outstretched and hanging off the edge. Even the blanket was small, barely covering his crotch. This trip she saw something she hadn’t expected to see.
Dina was sprawled out on the twin bed with him. The sound of the opening door woke them both and Bill fell off with a thud.
“Knock, mom,” he said from the floor.
“It’s only, me. I’ll come back later.”
“Liz? No, stay.” Bill pulled on a pair of shorts. “Pull up a pile of clothes. What’s up?”
She checked around the cramped room. It looked just like a the room of a middle aged man living at home with his parents would. The furnishings were dated and covered in crap and boxes. In the corner was what appeared to be a shrine to all things forgotten, including weights, a guitar, car parts, a blender, and a broken mascot head. The room was as disorganized as her friend.
“Last night. Why did you leave?” she asked.
“That was me.” Dina stretched her arms out, then tousled her blonde locks. “We left you in good hands.”
Liz sat down in an empty space on the floor and poured her heart out to Bill just like she did in high school. His laid back charm always calmed her worries away. “Do you really think so? I met Oscar and I think I’ve really screwed things up. My divorce isn’t final until Monday. I’ve been completely over Chris for a long time, but I already want things to work out between Oscar and I. Then there’s the fact that Chris wants to postpone again.”
“That asshole!” Dina sat up in bed. She wasn’t ashamed of being naked, but reacting to the shock on Liz’s face, she pulled the covers up over her exposed chest. “Don’t let him do that! I’ll go beat the shit out of him!”
“Thanks, but I’m more concerned with this.” She tugged on her wedding ring. “I think I scared Oscar. Why can’t I take it off?”
“No wire cutters? Dad has some downstairs.”
“Stop teasing her.” Dina climbed to the end of the bed and took a closer look at the ring. “Nope, can’t cut that. They’ll only give you scrap for it at the pawn shop if you do.”
“You’re right, lets get some grease.”
“Forget about the ring.” Liz jerked her hand back. “I’m calling a jeweler. It’s a metaphor. Am I really ready to move on with someone else? What if Oscar turns out to be like Chris?”
“Oh honey. Oscar’s a good guy. Don’t worry about the ring. He could buy—”
Bill slammed up on top of Dina. “You’re thinking about this too much. Live your life,” Bill said.
“What if I mess up with Oscar? What if I fall out of love with him too?”
“Okay here we go,” Bill said, sitting up and taking Liz by the shoulders. “Do you remember that Camaro you owned in high school?”
“How could I forget? A different part broke off every time I started the damn thing.”
“But it never failed. And it was fast. You could take that out on drag and win every time.”
“You and my brother raced it. I stayed home.”
“Exactly. Why didn’t you come along?” Bill tugged on her wedding ring. “Were you scared?”
This had to be different. Liz wasn’t a car. Life wasn’t a race. She appreciated Bill’s analogy, but didn’t understand where he was going with it. Was Oscar the broken down car? “Is he still drunk Dina?”
“No. Don’t you get it? Let me try. Your Camaro was a piece of shit. Your husband was a piece of shit. Go to the Oscar dealership and get a fancy new car,” Dina explained.
“Yeah, take his truck for a ride.”
“Too far Bill.”
“Okay, but trust me. He’ll treat you right,” Bill said. “Sure he’s short and he’s the only bartender I know who doesn’t drink, but he deserves you. I haven’t met many men I can say that about.”
“We’re not steering you wrong,” Dina added. “Trust Bill this time.”
Liz had faith in her long time friend. He’d called the divorce at her wedding reception to Chris and managed to keep Dina happy all these years. It was herself she was worried about. Would she? Could she fall in love again? Only time would tell. But the first step, she had to get divorced first.
Chapter Eleven
Distraction was the goal for Sunday. After talking to Bill and Dina she’d decided not to return to the Buckeye or see Oscar until she was free from Chris. She had a marathon of action flicks lined up for the afternoon. But first she’d past the time with breakfast.
She walked down the driveway to her parents. They met her at the door. “Anyone want to make pancakes?”
“Sorry, kitten.” Her dad squeezed her arm. “Your mom and I have a golf lesson to get to.”
“Golf? When did you start that?”
“Sweetie, we really are going to be late. Help yourself to the kitchen though.” Her mom pulled her dad out the door.
And just like that, Liz was left to distract herself on her own. She stared out the open door across the street. “I could wake up Bill. I should wake up Bill.” She’d learned her lesson yesterday and opted to send him a text first.
Liz: Tell me you’re awake and not busy.
She closed up her parent’s house and sat on the porch, waiting for his reply.
Bill: Shit! Thanks for waking me up.
Liz: I’m bored. Can you come over?
Bill: Can’t. Have a gig in the park. Want to come?
He played in a band. It was just a few guys who’d kept in touch from high school, but they were good enough to be booked by dive bars and small weddings for the waitresses. Not what she was looking for in a distraction. She spent the rest of the day alone in bed.
The weekend was over. She’d made it without returning to the Buckeye. She only had to get through lunch without completely breaking down. Today was the day Chris would be signed out of her life forever. He’d postponed this as long as he could, but she was finally on the books for a judge to sign her divorce papers at one o’clock. After that she’d be a free woman. After that she could pursue her true feelings for Oscar.
On the way to work Liz had an important stop to make. One she should’ve made months ago. She took a deep breath, gathered her nerves and gripped the silver metal door handle. One step inside the unassuming storefront and she’d be back on the right rack for her life. She pushed forward and smacked against the glass. The door was locked.
“But how could it? The sign says open,” Liz said out loud, but only to herself, there wasn’t anyone else in sight. Peering in with her forehead against the glass she scanned the jewelry store for any movement. There was none. “Hmmm. I guess I’ll come back.”
“Hi there. Excuse me.” A voice rang out behind Liz. “Had a little emergency. Let me get the door.” A pristine woman in her early fifties with fine white hair stepped up jiggling a set of keys. “I’m Geneva. How can I help you today?”
Liz followed her inside the small jewelry store and waited at the entrance as Geneva turned on the spot lights for the cases.
“Earrings? A pendant? Ooh we have new charms in for bracelets,” she said, gliding across the room.
“No, thank you. I’m not looking to buy. Not that I wouldn’t. You have exquisite pieces here.” Liz leaned over and admired a brooch with a center ruby surrounded by pearls.
Grandma would’ve liked that.
She let her thoughts wander as she perused the other pieces in the case. Then remembered why she’d come in to the shop. “It’s just that I need a delicate touch.” Liz twirled the wedding band on her finger.
Geneva stepped around the counter and placed a concerned hand on Liz’s forearm. “I’m here to help.”
“I’ve asked for a divorce.” Liz continued to spin the diamond eternity band on her finger. “He’s stretching out the process, but it’s over today.”
“You want to trade up?” Geneva took her hand and examined the ring. “There’s good weight to these diamonds. That will get you quite a bit of credit. Provided the original purchase is legal.”
“No I don’t want to.” Liz tugged on the ring. “I can’t trade it. I want to give it back to him, but it’s stuck.” Her knuckle reddened as she shoved the ring forward on her finger.
“I see.” Geneva sat Liz down next to a case of pendants and charms. She twirled the ring around under an intense magnifying glass. There wasn’t an open spot on the band. Every millimeter was covered in diamonds. “It will have to be cut off. But where?” Geneva asked herself, continuing to spin and inspect the ring. “Cutting it would include destroying a stone. But which one? Hmmm.”
It didn’t matter how. She didn’t care about the diamonds. Liz had to get the ring off her finger and Chris out of her life. This was the day. She was in the jewelry store and she wasn’t leaving until the task was done.
A half hour later, she marched into the coffee shop with a bandage on her ring finger and a little box in her purse.
As per usual, her favorite barista, Trent was there with a waiting smile. The line was short and when she approached the counter she didn’t have to say a word to order.
“Hazelnut Macchiato today?” Trent asked, writing Liz in green on a cup. Before she could answer he had a wheat bagel in his hand. “Cream cheese today, Liz?”
“Make it with peanut butter, please.”
“PB on WB? Solid choice. Hope your meeting goes well.”
It’d only occurred to her now that Trent knew her schedule better than anyone. He knew cream cheese on wheat meant all was well. If she ordered peanut butter she’d have a full schedule and need extra energy to keep going. If she was running late, he’d throw bagel bites at her. And a pastry order? Well he’d bagged them up with well wishes for a better rest of the day.
Today’s peanut butter had a bigger job than just an early meeting. She’d planned on skipping lunch to make it to the courthouse on time.
She waited for her order, staring over the case at the young college guy.
Amazing, I spend five minutes with him each day and he knows me so well. I don’t even know his last name. Maybe it was time I found out.
She moved closer to the end of the line and paid for her order while Trent continued to make it
. It’d be the opposite of what Chris would do. He was always so guarded during our marriage. “Tell people only the bare minimum,” he would say. Well those days are over. I think I’ll take a chance and get to know the people that know me best.
“Trent you look like a client of mine. Maybe you’re related, what’s your last name?” she asked as he slid the bagel out of the toaster and slapped on a glob of the nutty spread.
“Name’s T.S. Eliot,” he said, standing tall.
“Like the author?”
“I guess. It stands for, T as in Trenton, S as in Samuel and Eliot as in Eliot. So, are we related?”
It took her a second to remember her ruse for asking him his name in the first place. “Oh the client. No his name’s Johnson. Thanks T. S. Eliot, see you tomorrow.”
On the drive to the office Liz thought about Trent more. She felt it was odd that he knew her so well. He really only knew her bagel order. But the point was he
knew
her bagel order. Chris didn’t. She thought about Oscar.
I want him to know all this. And I’d like to know if he orders peanut butter or anything else for a busy day. Just once, it’d be nice if a man ordered for me and got it right, because he cared.