Page 19 of Five Days in July
“I could.” Lenore pauses. “But I don’t currently have a way to get there since my car is kaput.” She glances at me, and I’m relieved to see the shimmer of laughter.
“Matt, how long do you think it will take to get Lenore’s car up and running again?”
“I haven’t even looked at it yet.” I’m reluctant to nail down a schedule and then not be able to follow through.
“Best guess.”
“A day or two depending on what parts are needed and if I have them on hand. Tomorrow I don’t have much scheduled, so I should be able to check it out in the morning.”
“Well, do you think you could pick her up until you fix it?” She turns to Lenore without waiting for a response. “How far away are you staying, dear?”
“I’m in a vacation rental a little north of Egg Harbor.”
“Well, that’s not too bad. If you can’t make it, Al or I certainly can.”
I face Lenore and lean a little forward so she can focus on just me instead of feeling pressured by Annie. “If you’re okay with this, I can pick you up in the morning, or they can. Whatever you’re more comfortable with.”
Lenore nods, but her face is pinched, and she’s practically shredding her napkin. She leans in and whispers, “You do realize I know absolutely nothing about cars and I, in fact, seem to curse them?”
“Don’t worry about it. I’m not going to strand you out in the garage fixing them. You’ll be fine in the shop. Plus, I’ll be there, so if you run into any questions, just holler.” It’s something I worry about, too, but I’ll make it work.
She stares at her half-eaten plate for a moment. “Promise me if I’m terrible or if it’s just not working out, you’ll let me know. I don’t want to be a burden.”
A deep weight settles around my shoulders when I realize that’s how she views herself. “I promise.” Slipping my hand over hers that’s still on my knee, I lean in closer and lower my voice, adding, “But I know you won’t be.” I give her hand a squeeze before letting go and leaning away again.
It wasn’t my intention to embarrass her, but I watch in fascination as a blush spreads across her cheekbones.
“If it’s okay with you, could you pull a portion of each paycheck and put it toward what I owe you for the work and Al for the tow?” She pulls her hand away and fiddles with her fork.
Grateful for the excuse to lean closer to her again, I lower my voice so Al and Annie won’t be able to hear. “If it makes you feel better. But Al owed me a favor, so he’s not charging you.” All I can focus on is the clean smell of her hair. “But whatever works best for you. You’re really doing me a favor.”
“I don’t believe that but thank you for saying it.” We both look up and freeze as we see Al and Annie smiling at us.
Trying to ignore our audience, I keep my voice low. “I’m serious. Most of the applications I’ve gotten were for kids who have to go back to school next month.”
Lenore finally nods in agreement and smiles at Annie. Grinning triumphantly, Annie opens her mouth to respond but gets distracted by Al. “Al! At least let them get a second helping first.” She smacks his arm and nearly knocks the third helping of lasagna from the spatula he had it balanced on.
“What? There’s plenty left.”
Annie doesn’t relent. “Dr. Wilson would tell you your servings should be half that, so you’re technically on fifths.”
“C’mon. It’s delicious, and you know it.” I’m not sure if it’s a ploy to butter her up or a genuine compliment, but either way, it gets Annie to back off enough so he can land the lasagna on the plate in front of him.
“See, Lenore, this is why I wanted you both to stay. Usually, she’d just take my plate from me.” Al shifts further away in anticipation of retaliation. Annie leans in like she wants to smack him upside the head, but the sound of Lenore’s clear, genuine laughter fills the room.
Al looks like he’s just been zapped by lightning, and Annie smiles to herself. I watch the light flood back into Lenore’s face and relax. I’m elated that she fits in so well with Al and Annie and understands their good-natured bickering.
When her laughter subsides, she says, “Oh, Matt told me I should ask you how you two met.”
Al turns red as a tomato, and Annie hides her face.
“Well, it’s an interesting story.” I hear Annie say from behind her hands, but I already know what’s coming.