The Lopsided Christmas Cake (22 page)

Delbert’s nose twitched and he sneezed. He went to the sink to get a drink and sneezed a few more times.
Achoo! Achoo! Achoo!
He reached for a paper towel and wiped his nose as his eyes began to water.

Meow! Meow!

Delbert looked down and scowled at the cat rubbing against his leg. No wonder he’d sneezed. “Go on, get!” he said, moving to one side.

The cat followed, meowing up at him as though it wanted something. Whatever it was, the feline wouldn’t get it from Delbert. He was allergic to cats and couldn’t get anywhere near one without his nose acting up. Sometimes when his allergies got real bad, he would become so stuffed up he could barely breathe. He wasn’t going to stay in here any longer. He needed to get back outside.

“I’ve done as much on your porch as I can for today,” Delbert said when he entered the twins’ store. “I need to be in Shipshe soon to bid on another job.”

“Oh, before you go,” Elma said, “there’s something else my sister and I would like to have done.”

“You said something about that in your note.” Delbert pulled out his hanky and wiped his nose.

“Do you have a cold?” Elma asked, stepping out from behind the counter where she stood with her twin sister.

“Nope. I’m allergic to katze.”

“There’s no cat in here,” Thelma spoke up. “Although we probably will bring the
busslin
out when it’s time to find them all homes.”

Delbert grimaced. “Kittens? Do you have kittens in your house? I thought it was just the one cat.”

“What one cat?” Elma asked. “Were you in the basement? That’s where the kittens and mama cat are.”

Delbert shook his head. “I was in the kitchen getting a drink when this orange-and-white cat rubbed against my trousers. It made me sneeze.” If there were more cats in the basement, he wouldn’t go down there.

Thelma pressed her fingers to her lips. “Uh-oh. I must have forgotten to put Tiger out this morning. I’d better do that right now, before he makes a mess in the house.” She slipped past Elma and rushed out the door.

Delbert moved across the room and leaned on the counter. “What else are you wantin’ me to do?”

“There’s a piece of fabric hanging below the kitchen sink. Thelma and I would like to have it replaced with real wooden doors.” Elma smiled—that oh, so sweet, smile that made him feel like he couldn’t say anything but yes.

“It’s in the kitchen, huh?”

“That’s what I just said.”

He paused to blow his nose then returned his hanky to his pocket. “Will the cat be in there when I’m workin’?”

“Oh, no, I’ll make sure he’s not.”

“That’s good, ’cause if he were, I’d probably have to wear a dust mask so I wouldn’t have to breathe all that cat dander.” Delbert paused to rub his eyes.

“I’m sorry you were exposed to Tiger. We’ll make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Delbert coughed then smiled. “Okay. When did you want me to start on the cabinet doors?”

“There’s no real rush. Whenever you finish with the porch. And if you have work for other people that needs to be done first, that’s all right, too.”

“I’ll get it done as soon as I can.” Delbert glanced to his left and noticed a rack full of candy. “Got any jelly beans over there?” he asked, gesturing to the candy.

“I believe so,” Elma replied, “but I’m not sure how fresh they are. Thelma and I are still in the process of taking inventory of all the stock in our store. We haven’t done the candy rack yet.”

“Think I’ll go have a look-see anyhow.” Delbert strode over to the candy and plucked off a package of mixed jelly beans. The black licorice–flavored ones looked especially enticing. “I’ll take these. How much do I owe you?” he asked, plopping the bag on the counter.

“Let me see if there’s an expiration date on them.” She picked up the bag and slipped on her reading glasses. It seemed odd to Delbert that a young woman her age would have a need for reading glasses. Come to think of it, he wasn’t sure how old she and her sister were. In the few times they’d been together, the subject hadn’t come up. Delbert guessed they were probably in their mid-to-late twenties. He thought about asking Elma her age, but a customer had entered the store, and she looked like she wanted to ask Elma a question.

“So how much for the jelly beans?” he quickly asked.

She pressed her lips together, staring at the package. “You know, Delbert, eating too much zucker is bad for your health.”

Delbert’s fingers curled into a ball, biting into his palms. Did Elma think she was his mother? One minute she could be so nice, then the next, she was downright irritating. Making no reference to her comment, he said, “How much do they cost?”

“Since you seem determined to have them, and since the expiration date was three months ago, I’ll give you the jelly beans for free.”

“Really?”

She nodded.

“Danki. I’ll be back sometime tomorrow to finish the porch.” He picked up the bag of candy and headed for the door, feeling a little better toward Elma than he had before. Now that he knew they sold jelly beans in this store, he’d make sure to visit more often.

LaGrange

A
re you ready for a rousing game of Ping-Pong?” Joseph asked when he arrived at Delbert’s on Friday night.

Delbert grinned. “More to the point, are you ready to lose?”

“We’ll have to wait and see about that.” Joseph removed his jacket and hung it over the back of a chair.

“Should we get started now, or did you want a cup of coffee first?” Delbert asked. “I’ve got a pot heatin’ on the stove.”

“Maybe I will have a cup.” Joseph followed Delbert into the kitchen and took a seat at the table, while Delbert got out the mugs and poured the coffee. “Sure was a colorful week, with autumn leaves at their peak.”

“You’re right, and this is my favorite time of the year.” Delbert glanced out the window and yawned. “You want a cinnamon roll?”

“Did you bake ’em?”

Delbert shook his head. “I’ve been too busy this week to do any baking.” He handed Joseph a cup and placed several cinnamon rolls on the table.

“Busy workin’ in your shop or on somebody’s home?”

“I worked at my shop a few days, but the rest of the week I was in Topeka, at the Hochstetler twins’ place.”

Joseph set his cup down and plopped his elbows on the table, eager to hear about the twins—especially Thelma. “How’d it go over there?” He helped himself to a roll.

“I got their porch done, and then I made a couple of doors for under the kitchen sink.”

“Sounds like you’ve been busy.”

“Jah.”

“Did you see Thelma?”

Delbert grabbed a cinnamon roll, broke it in half, and dunked the piece in his hot coffee. “Not so much. Saw a lot of Elma, though.”

Joseph smiled, biting into the soft, sweet pastry. “That’s good to hear.”

Delbert shook his head. “No, not really.” He finished up his last piece of the cinnamon roll.

“Seeing Elma isn’t good?” Joseph couldn’t hide his confusion. “But you said before that you thought she was pretty.” He took a sip of his steaming hot coffee.

“She is, but she doesn’t like to fish, and on top of that, she sometimes gets on my nerves.”

“Oh, really? Why’s that?” Joseph blew on the coffee.

Delbert reached for another roll. “She says things to irritate me and offers her opinion on how I should do things. No wonder she’s not married.”

“I wouldn’t talk about who’s not married, if I were you. In case you haven’t looked in the mirror lately, you’re over thirty and still not sportin’ a beard.”

Delbert jerked his head around to meet Joseph’s gaze. “That’s right. I’m still single, and I kinda like it that way.” He took another bite of the pastry he held.

Joseph leaned forward. “Are you sure? Don’t you think havin’ a wife and family would be nice?”

Delbert just drank down his coffee and grabbed another cinnamon roll.

“Maybe you’re too set in your ways.”

“That could be.” Delbert pushed away from the table, licking some of the icing that had stuck to his fingers. “I’d best go wash my hands.” He got up and went to the sink. After he’d washed and dried his hands, he returned to the table. “Are you ready to play that game of table tennis now?”

“Not quite. I haven’t finished my coffee yet.” Truth was, Joseph felt like he and Delbert were already playing a type of Ping-Pong.

Delbert went to the stove and got a refill then sat back down.

“I’ve been thinking that maybe we could see if Thelma and Elma would like to come over to my house for pizza next Friday night. We could play a few board games after we eat.”

“I don’t think so, Joe. Elma gets on my nerves. She even made an issue of me eating jelly beans the other day.” Delbert grimaced. “Made me feel like a little boy being scolded for having too much candy.”

“You should take that as a good sign.”

Delbert’s eyebrows pulled together. “Good sign of what?”

“That she likes you and cares about your welfare. Too much zucker can be bad, you know.”

“I don’t eat too much sugar. Besides, she’s not with me all the time, so there’s no way she can know how much sugar I eat.” Delbert folded his arms. “If you want to keep seeing Thelma, that’s fine by me, but I think I’m done pursuing Elma.”

Joseph sat rigidly in his chair as a sense of panic set in. “Aw, come on, Dell. You don’t know Elma all that well yet. I think you need to give her a chance.”

Delbert slowly shook his head. “I don’t know about that.”

Joseph leaned closer to Delbert. “Won’t you go out with her a couple more times, even if it’s only as a friend? I want to keep seeing Thelma, and I really need you with me.”

“You don’t need me in order to see Thelma.”

“Jah, I do, because I still feel a little awkward and tongue-tied when I’m around her. Besides, after you get to know Elma a little better, maybe you’ll decide that she’s the right girl for you.” Joseph’s stomach tightened. If Delbert gave up on seeing Elma, he didn’t know what he would do. Could he really find the courage to court Thelma on his own?

Delbert sighed. “I’ll give it some thought. Now are we gonna play Ping-Pong or what?”

“Sure, and if you wanna serve first, that’s fine by me.”

Topeka

“Did you happen to notice that the F
OR
S
ALE
sign is back on the house across the street?” Elma took a seat in her favorite chair. “The sign did read ‘Sale Pending’ before. I wonder what happened with the potential buyers. It’s such a nice place, too.”

“That’s right. I thought the family from Graybill was interested in getting that house.” Thelma shifted a bit on Grandpa’s old chair. “I guess it wasn’t meant to be. When the time is right, maybe someone else will buy the house.”

“What are you knitting?” Elma asked, noticing Thelma’s yarn. “It doesn’t look like gloves for Mom. The yarn is a different color.”

“No, it’s not. I finished those several days ago.” Thelma held up the ball of blue yarn. “I’m making a stocking cap for Joseph.”

“Really?” Elma placed the dress she was hemming in her lap. “Are you serious about him? I mean, you’ve only gone out with him a few times.”

“I know, but I really like Joe. I may give him the cap for Christmas.”

“What do we have here, Sister—a case of love at first sight, the way it was for Mom and Dad?”

Thelma’s heart raced a bit, and she felt the heat of a blush. “Maybe, but I’m not sure how he feels about me.”

“If the dreamy-eyed look he gets when he’s with you is any indication, then I’d say you have nothing to worry about.” Elma grinned and picked up her mending.

Thelma smiled in response, feeling relaxed. “How about you and Delbert? He’s been over here quite a bit in the last week, and it seemed like you were talking to him a lot.”

Elma sighed. “I don’t think he likes me, Thelma.”

Thelma’s eyes widened. “What makes you say that?”

“He seems irritated whenever I ask him a question.”

“He was probably preoccupied. After all, he did come here to work.”

Elma threaded her needle. “I know, but it was more than that. I just feel that we don’t communicate well or really have much in common.”

“Dad and Mom don’t have a lot of things in common, but they’ve been happily married for thirty-four years.”