The Ladies' Room

by Carolyn Brown

  "You are a fool, Trudy." His voice took on a sharper edge.

  "I can be a happy fool for not living with you or a -miserable one for living with you. I'll take happy."

  He jumped up and folded his arms across his chest. "I gave you a place in society."

  "Give it to Charity. I don't want it anymore."

  It takes me a while sometimes to get the big picture, but when I do, it's an amazing revelation. Drew was in a bind, and I was the only way out of it. It must be serious for him to arrive all dressed up, freshly shaven, smelling good, and with wine waiting.

  "She wants to get married, doesn't she?" I guessed. "I provided the fire wall between you and your young toys, didn't I? You couldn't leave poor old dumb Trudy, so you were protected from all those young twits. Now I'm gone, and you are in hot water, aren't you?"

  He jerked his head around to glare at me. "So what's the price? I can't marry that girl. She'll ruin me financially. Give me a ballpark figure of what you want"

  "Price? As in money?"

  "Or cars or a new house or you name it, Trudy."

  "What if I said absolute celibacy?"

  "What are you talking about? Me or you?"

  "Both"

  "You are crazy. You can have your own room, your own bed, and whatever else it'll cost me to get you back home. But Iwon't.."

  Oops! He'd gone too far, and he knew it the minute the words left his mouth.

  "I wouldn't ask it of you, Drew. You need a good, stable woman, but I'm not that woman. Not anymore."

  "It'll cost you," he said.

  "Oh?"

  "I'll turn Crystal against you. I've already started. You'll either take us both or you don't get her. She'll hate you."

  I raised my voice. "Don't threaten me"

  "Hey, Trudy." Billy Lee pushed back the hedge and headed straight for the porch.

  His timing was perfect. I thought about kissing him right in front of Drew.

  "Over here, Billy Lee. In the swing."

  Drew completely ignored Billy Lee when they passed on the steps. "You've got until tomorrow morning. Think it over," Drew threw over his shoulder when he reached the truck.

  "I've thought about it. The answer is no. Forever." Strangely, I wasn't even angry.

  "Got any sweet tea made up?" Billy Lee sat on the porch, bracing his back up against the house and stretching his legs out in front of him. Sawdust clung to his hair and clothing, and he smelled like wood shavings. He needed a shave, and the way his shoulders sloped, I could tell he was tired. But he was handsome beyond words and smelled like heaven to me.

  "Yes, I do. I'll get us a couple of glasses. I could use one too"

  He followed me into the house. "The floor man called me a while ago. Said he had a cancellation and can get to the office and guest room tomorrow if we want"

  "Guess I'd better reserve a room out at the Western Inn?" I thought aloud.

  "Well, if you want to catch up on some rest, that would be fine. But I was thinking maybe a little two-night jaunt somewhere would be nice for some of that rest and recuperation stuff. You up for another trip?"

  Billy Lee hadn't even mentioned Drew. Plain old curiosity would have prompted a couple of questions about why he'd been there.

  "Sure. Where are we going, and what kind of clothes do I need to pack?"

  He drank deeply of the tea I set in front of him. "Well, just how tightly can you pack a small bag?"

  "How little of a bag are we talking about?"

  "If we leave tomorrow morning, and you wear jeans and a T-shirt and maybe wrap an overshirt around your waist and tie the arms in front, could you make it with just the bare necessities?"

  "But why would I need to take so little?"

  "Thought we might go on the motorcycle."

  My heart skipped a beat. "Then I can pack in a grocery sack"

  "Duffel bag will be fine. I've got an extra one if you need it. We'll take the back roads down to Nocona, Texas, and prowl around in that area for a couple of days."

  "That sounds wonderful. Billy Lee, I've got a decision to make, and I need the help of a good friend, if you don't mind listening."

  A smile twitched the corners of his mouth. "You callin' me a friend?"

  "Guess I am. You got a problem with bein' my friend? I wouldn't blame you if you did. It comes with a lot of baggage"

  "I'll take the baggage. I've got baggage too, you know."

  My heart felt lighter than it had in a long time. "Oh, yeah, what's your baggage? I'll bet mine is heavier."

  "This is beginning to sound like a television commercial. `My dog's bigger than your dog,'" he said.

  "So what is your baggage? You don't have an ex-husband who's a horse's butt or an obstinate grown child."

  "I don't want to discuss it tonight. What's the decision your friend can help you with?"

  "Actually, I've already made it, but I guess I just want you to be in agreement with me," I said.

  He looked away from me. "What is it?"

  "I'm not going back to school this fall. We're not nearly through in the house, and I really like the remodeling business. It's like resuscitating an old lady who's almost dead and finding she's got a lot of years left in her. Hey, did I tell you I found an old lamp up in the attic that I plan to use in my bedroom? It's got this strange shade. Maple leaves around the edge, and it's kind of like a leaded Tiffany lamp, but it's not."

  He turned back to me with a big smile on his face. "I remember that lamp. It used to sit on a table in the living room when I was a little boy, back before Gert married Lonnie. I was afraid you were going to say that you'd decided to give Drew another chance after all."

  "Drew has had all the chances he's getting. He can fix his own problems from now on," I said.

  "I'm glad, Trudy. I didn't want you to go back to him. I like us."

  "Us?"

  "Yes, I like us right where we are in this moment in time. I hope if it has to change, it goes forward, not backward," he said. "Now, about that lamp?"

  "You changed the subject, Billy Lee. Why?"

  "Because I'm not sure I want to hear what you've got to say about our going forward"

  "I think I'd like that"

  "Good. Now let's talk about the lamp."

  I smiled. That was enough for tonight for both of us. "I'd love to have another one just like it, but there was only one in the attic. When I buy a computer, I'll do some research and see if I can find another, but I bet it's the lone survivor of an era."

  He rolled his neck to get the kinks out. "Can you be ready by seven thirty in the morning?"

  "I can be ready in ten minutes if you want to go tonight."

  I got one of his crooked grins and thought again of Harrison Ford. "Seven thirty in the morning is early enough. And I think you made the right decisions about work and Drew."

  The next morning Billy Lee brought over a duffel bag, and I filled it very carefully, carrying only the barest of necessities to get me through the next two days. I carried it to the kitchen and handed it to Billy Lee. The Harley was parked in the backyard, so we went out the kitchen door. The floor man arrived as we were leaving, and Billy Lee told him to lock up when he left. Billy Lee shoved my duffel into one of the empty saddlebags on the cycle and helped me settle a brandnew helmet on my head. He brought out a tube of sunscreen from his pocket and said, "The wind and sun will blister your fair skin. Put on your overshirt. It will protect your arms from the heat as well as bugs. I'll put this on your face and neck, and you can use it like hand lotion to protect your hands."

  His touch was as light as butterfly wings. I didn't know which I'd rather do-ride with the wind or just stand there in the yard and let him cover my neck and face with sunblock all day. He finished and climbed onto the cycle, then patted the backseat, and I carefully hopped up behind him. Suddenly I was embarrassed. What did I do with my hands?

  Billy Lee solved that crisis when he reached around behind him and grabbed both my arms, wrapped them firmly around
his midsection, and revved up the engine. By the time he got to Main Street and turned right, I was in love with the cycle. Too bad Drew hadn't offered me a Harley. I might be moving my clothes back into my old bedroom.

  Yeah, right, I thought.

  Not even a Harley was that good.

  Ravia, what was left of Russet, Mannsville, and Dickson blew past at seventy miles an hour. I was definitely resigning when we got back to Tishomingo. There was no way I was ever going to be stuck in a classroom if Billy Lee wanted to take a two-day jaunt on a motorcycle and I had the opportunity to go with him.

  Billy Lee took us out Twelfth Street in Ardmore, past the shops that held absolutely no appeal to me that day. I was a motorcycle momma. I had all I needed in the duffel bag, and the world was mine. I didn't need to shop for a single thing that day.

  I glanced at the Santa Fe steakhouse while we were stopped at the red light, but once the light turned green, even food took second place to the wind in my face and the freedom. He stopped at McDonald's on the far side of the 1-35 overpass, removed his helmet, and helped me do the same.

  "Thought you might be ready for breakfast," he said.

  I fluffed up my hair with my fingertips. "Tell me the truth, does it look all right?"

  "You always look beautiful."

  "Billy Lee Tucker, we promised to be honest with each other."

  "Trudy Matthews, I am, and someday you are going to believe me."

  "Someday I might listen to you, but believing you is another issue. I'm starving for good old greasy food. Let's go" I looped my arm through his.

  Instinctively, he laced his fingers in mine. We must have looked like a real couple, walking across the lot and into the restaurant. I liked the idea. For the most part the breakfast crowd had cleared out, so we got our bacon, egg, and cheese biscuits, hash browns, orange juice, coffee, and two apple pies quickly.

  "So, what do you think of the ride so far?" he asked as we ate.

  "It's freedom in a soup bowl."

  "Never heard of a Harley ride put just like that"

  "Let's not stop in Texas. Let's keep on going until we hit the Pacific Ocean, then turn around and head for the Atlantic," I teased, but if he'd agreed, I wouldn't have looked back one time.

  "Maybe someday we'll do that. But we've got a house to get in order by Christmas. Won't have the furniture or the kitchen done by then, but we'll get the dining and living rooms finished so you can entertain if you want."

  "And who would I invite to a Christmas party?"

  He looked at me strangely, and my heart seized into a knot.

  "I'm not inviting you to holiday meals. You don't need an invitation. You are welcome anytime, and you should know it."

  "Like you should know you're pretty?"

  "That's a different story."

  "Are you being nice?" he asked.

  "No, I am not," I answered.

  "By then this will all be blown over, and they'll all want to come around to see what you've done with the old, ugly house. And you will have earned the right to gloat, Trudy."

  ,.Who are `they all'?"

  He sipped his coffee. "Marty and Betsy and their families. Your mother if she's having a good day. Maybe Lessie. You'll be surprised."

  I shrugged. "I would be surprised if anyone comes other than you and me. Getting the dining room ready will be our goal. Did you and Gert have Christmas dinner together?"

  He nodded.

  Sitting there dipping apple pie into the last of the coffee in my cup, I began to look forward to the holidays. I'd bring Momma home no matter what kind of day she was having, and I'd definitely invite Lessie. I'd call Crystal, and if she didn't want to spend the day with me, I'd try not to whine. I would even be nice and call Marty and Betsy. Billy Lee and I would make a turkey and dressing and all the trimmings.

  "What are you thinking about? You look like you're somewhere far away," he said.

  "I was planning our menu for Christmas. You think we should get a turkey or a ham?"

  "Gert always had turkey, the smallest one she could buy."

  "Buy! You mean she didn't go out to some farm and select a live bird?"

  "Not in the past twenty years"

  The giggles started.

  "What's so funny?" His face was as serious as it had been the day of Gert's funeral when we were in the sanctuary.

  I finally got my laughter under control with only a slight case of hiccups. "Gert made me feel like I wasn't a real cook because I didn't buy a live bird and dress it for holidays. She fussed at me every year, saying that a good wife wouldn't mess with one of those frozen turkeys"

  "You three girls never knew when she was fussing and when she was teasing. Her sense of humor was very dry," he said.

  "Then we'll get a turkey, and you can make that potato salad you brought to the church social."

  "And the pecan pies. I'm good at making them. Secret is in-"

  "Chopping the pecans very fine so they make a crusty top." I finished the sentence for him.

  "That's right. And in never substituting waffle syrup for Karo"

  I nodded slowly. "Learned that lesson the hard way too. I'm surprised Gert let you do any cooking. In her generation, men stayed out of the kitchen."

  "It took some doing and more than a couple of years to convince her."

  "I'd bet it did."

  "But she never let me fix the turkey. I offered to deep-fry it or smoke it, but she wouldn't have any part of that."

  "You've got that big a smoker?" I asked.

  "Big enough to do two turkeys and a ham all at once," he answered.

  "Then we're having smoked turkey. But if you make the potato salad, pecan pies, and do the turkey, what's left for me to take care of?" I asked.

  "I can't make hot rolls. When I do, they're heavy enough to be considered a concealed weapon if I put one in my pocket," he said.

  "How about pumpkin pie?"

  "Crust is always soggy."

  I laughed. "Billy Lee Tucker! Are you just saying that to make me feel important?"

  "I'll make hot rolls and a pumpkin pie, and you can be the judge. I'm being honest," he said.

  "Okay, I'll believe you. Are we ready to go again?"

  "You might want to visit the ladies' room before we take off. The ride is more than an hour, and the last forty-five minutes there's only one convenience store with a bathroom"

  I'd hated ladies' rooms since Gert's funeral. The scenario from that fiasco did an instant replay any time I shut a stall door. Any moment I expected Marty and Betsy to barrel into the room, spouting off about Billy Lee, and I'd find out he wasn't the person I thought, either. But nothing happened in the McDonald's ladies' room that day.

  Billy Lee was already on the cycle by the time I got outside. He handed me the helmet, which I jerked onto my head without any help. I threw a leg over the backseat and wrapped my arms around his waist. We stopped on the Taovayas Bridge across the Red River separating Oklahoma and Texas. The Red was down slightly, with sandbars on both sides of a shallow, winding river. Widespread debris gave firm testimony that in the rainy spring it had pushed its way over the banks. Green trees lined both sides, and on the Texas side Angus cattle and one lonesome-looking donkey dotted the pasture.

  Billy Lee propped his elbows on the edge of the concrete bridge. "Know why there's a donkey over there?"

  "Because he's cute?"

  "No, donkeys protect the young calves. They can't abide bobcats or coyotes. They'll kick and bite them until they're dead"

  "Are you pulling my leg?" I asked.

  "It's the truth. I got an e-mail last week about it. If I had cattle, I'd put a donkey in every pasture"

  "Imagine that," I murmured. How could anyone think he was an oddball?

  It must have been a good day for cycle riding, because three more cycles stopped on the bridge. The riders meandered across the two lanes and asked Billy Lee how the roads were on up ahead. They were on their way to Turner Falls in Davis for the night, an
d then they'd return to Dallas the next day.

  "Looks like there's construction on thirty-five, but you'll be taking the back roads anyway, won't you?" he answered.

  "We get all the traffic we want at home, so we stay off the big highways," one man said. "Where y'all goin'?"

  "Down to Nocona for a couple or three days. Anything going on that way?" Billy Lee asked.

  "Traffic is bad. We passed two pickup trucks." The man laughed at his own joke and slapped his wife on the back.

  She laughed with him.

  The men went to the other side of the bridge to see how things looked to the east. The ladies gathered around me.

  "So, y'all going to Nocona? There ain't much shopping in that little town. Got a good western-wear store and a couple of specialty gift stores and an antiques store, and that's about it. But then, traveling the way we do, there ain't any extra room to take it home, anyway. Sometimes I think this man of mine started this way of travel just so I couldn't shop."

  "But don't you love it?" I asked.

  She whispered into my ear, "It's the best thing since microwave ovens. I just have to give him a hard time now and then. I get so excited every time he plans a trip, you'd think I was a little kid."

  "I can believe it. This is my first time to ride," I whispered back.

  "That's not your husband? Y'all look like you been ridin' together for years," she said.

  "No, we're just very, very good friends."

  "Then, honey, you'd better wake up and smell the bacon frying. It's serious when a feller shares his bike with a woman"

  "Really?"

  "You'll have a ring on your finger by this time next year, or I'll give you my bike," she said.

  "I might come lookin' for it" I smiled.

  "You won't have to. I'll park it in your front yard. Where do you live?" she asked.

  "Broadway Street, Tishomingo, Oklahoma."

  "I know that town. Love the ride up through the country to get there"