The Ladies' Room (31 page)

"Keep those germs there," she agreed. "I don't think I could
bear to be sick now that the morning sickness has passed.
Whatever you need, you just call, and I'll put it on the porch,"
she said.

Need? What I needed was to bare my aching soul to Billy
Lee. But he had to be well first. Hearing what I had to say
might shove him right over the edge into eternity.

While I waited, I set about making a cup of my famous
healing tea. Eight ounces of boiling water, a tablespoon of
honey, and a fine dusting of ginger over the top. That and two
pieces of cinnamon toast would be his breakfast. After he ate
every bite and drank every drop, he'd have a Tylenol and a
thousand milligrams of vitamin C. For lunch he'd get homemade chicken noodle soup and more pills. For supper it would
be more of the same, and at bedtime a cup of very sweet hot
lemonade.

The doorbell rang. The ordered items had arrived with a note. I was to call after breakfast, and Crystal would make a
run to the grocery store and check in on Momma. I changed
clothes, and ten minutes later I was sitting cross-legged on the
bed beside him, arguing over every bite or sip. I didn't care if
he didn't like the taste of ginger or if the toast had too much
sugar on it.

"You don't listen," he muttered.

"And you are not a good patient. That tea and toast will
keep you out of the undertaker's hearse."

He sniffled. "I am not dying. I just want to be left alone, not
badgered into eating and taking those stupid pills."

I handed him a tissue from the box beside the bed. "Blow
your nose, and stop whining. I'm protecting my interests; if
you die, I don't get my new cabinets." I didn't tell him my interest involved more than cherry stain and a new sink.

He huffed and puffed, but he ate the toast and drank the tea.
If this was what they taught them on Mars, I hoped my grandchild was a girl.

"Now get up and go take a shower, put on some lounging
clothes, and meet me in the living room," I said.

"I can't. I'll pass out in the shower," he groaned.

"If you do, I'll come in there and revive you," I threatened.

He almost grinned. You are a drill sergeant."

"You've got that right. You'll get sore and weaker lying
around all day. You need to sit up. We'll read or watch television or even work the crossword puzzle in the newspaper,
but you are going to get well"

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Don't you touch my crossword puzzle. I'll take a lot of bossing, but don't you touch my
puzzle."

"I'll do the whole thing in pen and cross out errors and
make a big mess of it if you don't get out of bed."

He took a shower, shaved, and put on a pair of flannel bottoms and a shirt. He didn't faint dead away or even throw up
the abominable ginger. He wasn't real perky when he plopped
down on the sofa, but at least he wasn't kissing Saint Peter's
ring or having a discussion with Lucifer about air-conditioning
Hades, either.

If a portion of his brain hadn't been fried with fever, he
probably could have finished the puzzle in fifteen minutes
without a peep from me. Have to also fess up that I could have
been a bigger help if he hadn't splashed that good-smelling
shaving lotion onto his face. My thoughts weren't exactly on
the capital of Peru or Nigel Julio's nickname in a 1941 movie.

"I'm feeling better. I'm going to get dressed and go out to
the shop," he announced a few minutes after we finished the
puzzle.

"Over my dead body. You are going to rest for at least two
days; then we'll talk about it."

"Who died and made you God?"

"Remember when I asked you that? You said Gert. Well,
the same answer applies to me today," I shot right back at him.

"Even Gert left me alone when I was sick," he snarled.

"I'm not God or Gert"

I picked up the remote and turned on the television. Jeopardy! was just coming on.

"Oklahoma," Billy Lee said between coughs.

"What?"

"Oklahoma is the forty-sixth state to enter the Union. After
that was Arizona and New Mexico, then Alaska and Hawaii."

I switched my thoughts to the program. "Oh"

"What were you thinking about, anyway? I don't even like
this show. I thought you wanted to watch it."

"I'd rather watch a movie. What have you got?"

"You didn't answer my question. What were you thinking
about?"

I told a white lie. "The lake house."

"Let's go to the lake house, and I'll sit on the deck and
watch the sun come up and go down. I'll even let you drive the
Caddy."

"Nice try. Let's talk," I said.

"I'm sick. I don't feel like talking. It makes me cough."

"Then we'll read. Or, better yet, let's have a Lethal Weapon
marathon. You own all four of them?"

"Don't own a single one. Don't even know what you're talking about. I don't watch much television," he said.

I went out to the kitchen and called Crystal on her cell
phone. She was on the way to the grocery store from the nursing home. Momma was not having a good day. I told her to go
to the video store and rent all four movies and leave them on
the porch. And to also bring popcorn, a whole chicken, a package of noodles, and a gallon of vanilla ice cream.

"It's not fair. I'm stuck over here all by myself, and you two
get to do a marathon. Lethal Weapon is my favorite, and now
that I'm pregnant, that last item would be extra special," she
whined.

"Rent two copies of each, and bring my new cell phone
over. We'll talk later."

Billy Lee chuckled.

He was going to live.

Life was wonderful.

lost my nerve.

Billy Lee was well, but now that I wasn't taking care of him
anymore, I wasn't so brave about telling him how I felt. I was
terrified he'd tell me that all he wanted to be was my lifetime
friend and neighbor. And I wanted so much more. I wanted to
open my eyes in the morning and see him all squinty, trying
to focus on my face. I wanted to hear him tell me I was beautiful.

February slipped into March. The crocuses and tulips peeked
up from the frozen earth and put on their show. The kitchen
cabinets were coming along very well, and the carpenters
would start taking the present kitchen down to the bare studs
in a few days. The greenhouse plans were finalized, and a
crew from Oklahoma City would arrive the next day to start
that job. We were in our normal routines and busy again.

But every time Billy Lee was in the room, and that was
every single day, I wanted to sit in his lap and kiss him. I was
sitting on the back part of the porch watching the kittens, Peter
and Paul, romp around on the porch. Mary had spent a couple
of days at the vet, so there would be no more children for her.
Peter and Paul were just little boys intent on biting each other's
tails and ears.

Billy Lee joined me on the porch swing. Sawdust clung
to the legs of his overalls and his shirtsleeves. I flicked a
piece from his left sideburn and asked if he wanted a glass
of iced tea.

"No, thanks. Pretty day, isn't it?"

"Too pretty to be inside. Want to go to the lake house for a
couple of days?" I asked wistfully.

"Got too much to do right now. Maybe in a few weeks. How
do you feel about me, Trudy?" he asked.

I was stunned into muteness.

"As in?" Two words were my limit.

"What do you mean?" He frowned.

"As in friend, neighbor. .. as in ..." I managed a few
more, but my mind was racing.

"As in me. Plain old Billy Lee Tucker."

"Billy Lee, there's nothing plain about you. You are a wonderful person. A devoted friend who's brought me through
tough times and made me feel alive again. A wonderful
neighbor."

"Is that all?"

"Why?" I swallowed hard.

"Because I've been in love with you my whole life. I can't
remember when I didn't love you. I'm not so good with telling
you romantic things that are in my heart. We can talk about
wood or refinishing all day, but I get all tongue-tied when I
start to tell you how I feel. But I love you with my whole heart.
I've got an idea about something, but I want to know how you
feel about me. I don't want you to like my idea just to be nice,"
he said without looking at me.

I felt as if someone had jump-started my heart with a set of
those orange cables they use on a car. Electricity set every
hair on my neck and arms to standing straight up.

"You love me?" I whispered.

"You had to know that," he said.

"I've been scared to death that you were going to tell me
you just wanted to be my friend and neighbor, that our New
Year's kiss was just because of the holiday and .. " I ran out
of breath.

"So?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Billy Lee, I can't say that I've been in love with you my
whole life. But I can say that I intend to be for the rest of it. I
don't even know when it happened, but it did. I can't get you
off my mind or out of my heart," I said.

He gave me his best crooked smile. His gorgeous blue eyes
sparkled. Before I could open my mouth to say another word,
he'd slid across the swing and proved that all his kisses would
set my heart to singing. He finally pulled his lips away but
kept his arms around me.

I laid my head on his shoulder. "It feels so good to get that
off my chest. I was afraid..

"Hush," he said, and he kissed me again.

He held me tightly and whispered, "Trudy, I've waited
nearly forty years to hear you say that."

I took a deep breath. "Billy Lee, are you going to ask, or do
I have to?"

"Ask what?"

"If we're going to get married."

"I've waited almost forty years. I can wait until you're ready."

"We're going to have a church wedding at our church-you
know, at our church on Broadway Street. How about in two
weeks? That will give us time to plan a simple wedding, and
the reception can be in the fellowship hall." I snuggled down
into his chest. I fit there as if I belonged.

"You sure you want something that public?"

"You are the man I've fallen in love with. I love you and
can't wait to be your wife. Two weeks is my limit."

He raised an eyebrow. "You plan whatever you want. I'll be
there. I'd like a wedding at our church"

I cuddled down even deeper into his arms. "Then I'll tell
Crystal, and we'll plan it for two weeks from today."

"Want to hear my idea now?"

"If it's got to do with more kisses, yes"

"Actually, it kind of pales in comparison to our kisses, but I
was thinking that maybe Crystal could have my house, and it
would give her and the baby more independence, and I could
move in here with you"

"I love it. "-l pulled his lips down to mine.

He hugged me tightly, and then we broke apart. "Where do
you want to honeymoon? I'll plan that while you and Crystal
put together a wedding," he offered.

"The lake house."

"Trudy, I can take you anywhere in the world. Name it, and
we'll go"

"The lake house. And bring a `Do Not Disturb' sign."

He kissed me again, and I was very sure about my honeymoon.

We were married four years ago. Momma was good that
day. Crystal served as my bridesmaid. I wore an ecru brocade
suit, and Billy Lee wore the same suit he'd worn for Gert's
funeral. We spent a whole week at the lake house.

Billy Lee and I talked about children for six months and
decided that we'd just enjoy our granddaughter, Malee. After
all, we were both over forty, and Crystal was grown with a
child of her own, so we made up our minds and didn't look
back.

It's said that when you set your plans in stone, God pitches
in a monkey wrench to show you who's really boss. I thought
I had the flu; then I thought I was going through menopause.
Wil was born the day we were married eighteen months.

Malee is four now. Crystal hired a local man named Joshua
Valdez to help her in the greenhouse when the business took
off-like a bottle rocket, I should add. They had so much in
common and became such fast friends while they worked together, it was no big surprise when they married when Malee
was a year old. Now there's another little girl, Tess, over in the
house next door. They talk of adding a wing to it, and I expect
that'll be the next big project around here, since Crystal is
pregnant again. So poor little Wil tags along with those girls
and does the best he can. I'm reminded of Billy Lee having to
make do with me and my cousins all those years ago.