by Ashton Lee
Maura Beth couldn’t keep from smirking, but afterward pointed in Periwinkle’s direction with a flourish. “And now, I think our friend, Periwinkle Place, wanted to say something to all of you for coming here tonight. Will you step up and share your thoughts with us, sweetie?”
While Periwinkle headed toward the podium, all of her friends couldn’t help but notice that she was still a bit fragile-looking. It was true that her frame had always been on the wiry side, but there was more to it than that now. More even than the recuperation from a C-section. All of them knew what an ongoing trial it had been for her and Parker to endure the daily reports from the NICU; that the visits were both reassuring and frightening, and would continue to be until little Denia was released to their loving care forever. Yet, there was always an air of confidence, a visible spunki-ness about Periwinkle Violet Kohlmeyer Lattimore Place that never abandoned her, no matter the circumstances. And it showed the minute she opened her mouth to speak to her best friends.
“Aren’t we full of our tall tales?”
There was an explosion of laughter, and it took a while to die down.
“Seriously, though,” she continued, “we are the group to end all groups, aren’t we? What Elise McShay said is true. We are a new kind of group. We don’t limit ourselves to just one thing to lend our support. Whatever it is, we’re there for one another. And, of course, I can’t thank all of you enough for coming tonight. Parker and I live day-by-day with our situation, but we hear from you all the time. One of you will call us, and another will send an e-mail, and then we’ll go out to the mailbox and open up a card that says, ‘Thinking of You,’ with a sweet little bird flying in the clouds on the inside, and it will just make our day. But it’s even more than that. Parker’s mother, Ardenia, is gone now, as all of you know, and I’m sorry to say I’m having trouble with my mother that I won’t go into right now. So all of you really are our family, and you’ll be our Denia’s family. We’re right proud to have you, too, so don’t you ever stop doing all these nice things you do for us.”
Several among the crowd called out, “We won’t!”
“I know you won’t. I also know this club started out just reviewing books over potluck dinners a couple of years ago. That was not only fun, it saved our library from being closed down by City Hall. But it soon became something else, and what it became is what we have here tonight. Good folks, good food, good . . . well, good everything life has to offer in the way of friendship. And that’s about all Parker and I have to say to y’all tonight. We thank you, and we love you. Now, everyone turn to the person next to you and show ’em how you feel.”
That triggered a truckload of encomiums and a healthy amount of hugging, cheek-pecking, and handshaking among most everyone, as if the Peace had just commenced in church. After considerable time had elapsed, Maura Beth finally managed to get everyone’s attention.
“Folks, if no one has anything else to add to this timely discussion, shall we all dig in to the comfort food everyone’s brought tonight? Last time I looked it all over, I saw we’ve got a juicy baked ham, sweet potato casserole with marshmallows, Voncille Linwood’s famous biscuits and jelly, a green bean casserole, and I know I’m forgetting a few dishes and need to apologize to a few people for that, but they’re all over there for the sampling. And I believe there are more than a few Christmas cookies, candies, cakes, and pies, plus some eggnog to add to the menu this time around. What could be more in keeping with the holiday spirit?”
* * *
Was it Elise’s sunny, upbeat speech that had encouraged Alex to do exactly what Jeremy had advised him not to do? Did her concluding emphasis on “family” signal a change in her attitude toward being a single mother and all that it encompassed? Or was he just indulging a pipe dream?
Whatever the case, something deep within kept urging him on. He just had to pursue this fascination, crush, obsession, or whatever else it was with Elise McShay. The opportunity arose when Elise broke away from the throng and sat down in a corner of the break room where the buffet table had been arranged, happily munching away on an impromptu little sandwich she had made of a small slice of ham, a smear of mustard, and a biscuit.
“You’ll be having more than that before this is all over, I hope,” Alex said, moving to her and standing in front of her with his own plate of ham slices and a generous helping of sweet potato casserole.
Elise swallowed her food and smiled. “You bet. I’m just getting started. The truth is, I’m not going to stop eating until I give birth. It’s more or less doctor’s orders, even if there are times I stretch that a little.”
Emboldened by her cordial mood, Alex forged ahead. “I really liked what you said about a new kind of support group back there. A new kind of family, too. We definitely should give The Cherry Cola Book Club its own chapter in our book. Who do you think should handle it?”
Elise put down her sandwich and thought for a second. “Well, I think Jeremy’s best suited since he’s the only one who’s really been a member of it. I’m sure Maura Beth can give him lots of input, and that should be all we need.”
“No doubt.”
There was an awkward pause, and Elise gave him a quizzical glance.
“I get the feeling there’s something else you wanted to say to me.”
He pulled up a chair and sat down beside her, putting his plate on the floor. “You’re right, I did have something on my mind. Sometimes I think you’re one of those fortune-tellers. It’s about the single mother thing.”
“What about it? Did you want to have more input into that chapter of the book? If you think I’m doing too much on it, we could certainly discuss it—the three of us. I’ll admit I’m new to a collaborative effort, but I’m learning. You two have taught me to be more flexible.”
Again, he hesitated, clearly uncomfortable. “Glad to hear it, but no . . . this is not about the book. It’s about real life.”
“Okay.”
“It’s about your real life and my real life, actually.”
“Go on.”
Alex somehow found the courage to blurt it out, and get it over and done with once and for all. “Could you see yourself ever bringing up that daughter of yours with someone else in the picture?”
Elise’s tone was totally matter-of-fact. “Of course I could. I told everyone I’d see that Celice got to spend lots of time with her cousin, Liam. And Aunt Connie and Uncle Doug, my parents, Maura Beth and my brother, and anyone else in the family who’s interested. I was always a bit cavalier about the traditional concept of family, but now I see the good in it.”
Alex managed a smile, but it quickly disappeared. “Yes, I understand all that, and I think that’s terrific. What I meant was, could you see yourself bringing up your daughter with a husband in the picture?”
“Why would I want to do that? How would that ever happen?” Elise said, frowning. But there was incredulity more than anything else in her voice.
Alex looked down into his lap, avoiding her gaze. “Well, if someone asked you, that’s how.”
“Such as who?” she said, finishing the last of her biscuit with aplomb. It was as if the biscuit was truly more important than their conversation.
Alex did not understand how someone as perceptive and insightful as Elise could continue to avoid the obvious. Surely, she was not that oblivious. Or was she playing a game with him to let him down easy?
“Have I truly hidden my feelings for you that successfully?” he finally said. “Have I been that invisible?”
Elise looked dumbstruck. It took her a while to gather herself, but she finally caught his gaze. “Alex, I thought everything was strictly professional between us. It’s been so much fun working on the book together. There’s no denying that. We’ve spent a lot of time talking and laughing, and we’ve certainly gotten close that way. Are you sure what you’re feeling is not just friendship for a colleague?”
He shook his head, closing his eyes briefly and saying nothing.
&nbs
p; “Oh, Alex, dear Alex,” she began. “You above all should know how I feel about what I’m doing. I’m incredibly grateful to you for giving me a platform for my positions and experiences by letting me speak to your class. My brother is just as grateful to you for your contributions to his fatherhood book. But you have to realize that that’s as far as it goes with me.”
The smile he found for her was not a bit labored. “A part of me knows that. The rational part, I guess. But there’s another part of me—the emotional part of me—that wants more, that wants to know you more, and be a part of your life. I can’t help it. It’s something that has come upon me gradually until it’s taken me over. That’s the best way I can explain it.”
She reached over and took his hand. “Honestly, I had no idea. I’ll say it again—when we cut up and laugh during our brainstorming sessions the way we do, I just think we’re clicking as professionals. And then Jeremy is always there, too, so I just think of the two of you as my book boys. I hope that doesn’t sound too patronizing to you. I don’t mean it that way.”
“It doesn’t.”
“I don’t know what else to say to you, then.”
Alex thought over his next words carefully. If he could only find a way to keep the door cracked, he would find an altogether charming way to weasel his way in. “Then could I say something else?”
“Of course.”
“I would just ask you to keep your options open. Once you have your baby, I know things will change for you. Of course I don’t know from experience, but that’s what Miz Brachle said in the auditorium before. Maybe you’ll feel differently about your life at that point, and if you do, maybe you’d be willing to give me a thought.”
Elise squeezed his hand for emphasis. “You know I respect these feelings you have for me, but I can’t see myself changing my mind about being a single mother. This was my project from the beginning. My intent is to keep it that way. For the record, I can’t see myself getting married to anyone. Or asking anyone to step into my life and share it that way. I hope you can understand.”
“Yes, I do. But it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t let you know how I felt about you. By the way, your brother advised me not to say anything and to keep this under my hat. I’ve been going back and forth, but as you see, I didn’t listen to him. I’m hardheaded that way.”
Elise withdrew her hand and cupped her chin thoughtfully. “Jer knows me, he really does. But I’m tremendously flattered that you think so much of me. Most men have been threatened by me and don’t even try to approach me. Or if they do, they soon tuck their tail between their legs and run off into the woods when I get into one of my feminist rants. I admit I’m bad about that. You may be one of the first who’s stuck around long enough to open up to me the way you have. I asked you a while back if you thought I was some sort of curiosity because of my artificial insemination route to pregnancy, and you said no. I believed you then, and I certainly believe you now. Your honesty has to count for something, and I have to give you full credit for that.”
Detecting the slightest crack in her armor, Alex spoke up with good humor. “Hey, don’t throw me out with the baby’s bathwater, then. Let’s just keep working on the book with Jeremy, and you know I’ll be around smiling and applauding when your little Celice makes her debut in the world. How does that sound?”
Elise offered her hand warmly. “I can certainly deal with that. Meanwhile, would you mind making me another one of these ham and biscuit sandwiches while I go on over and take a look at some of those veggie casseroles? Got to maintain my balanced diet, you know. As I said, I’m going to keep eating until I pop. Bad pun, I realize, but that’s the truth of it.”
“Be happy to oblige you,” Alex said, picking up his plate and hers and walking toward the buffet table.
On the way there, he felt the faintest ray of hope regarding Elise and her agenda. Now his feelings were out in the open, and she was free to mull them over. He would keep on seeing her as they plowed through each chapter of the book right up until the Saterstrom Press deadline for the first draft. What good news that had been—further interest from a real publisher in their project! He knew without a doubt that he could keep up his professional demeanor easily enough, as he had promised Jeremy he would do. But now she would surely view him in a different light—one that had been doused by her relentless pursuit of her sociological goals. It wasn’t the ideal romantic scenario—far from it. But under the circumstances, it was the best available, and at least he had made his case.
Besides, they said food brought people together. They might have different political or religious views, but there were very few people who could not break bread and forget those things at least for a while during a convivial meal. Elise had asked him to make her another ham and biscuit sandwich instead of making it herself. That was something, wasn’t it? She could easily have made it herself. In fact, that was her modus operandi. She was the one who was always on her own. So, perhaps something subtle had kicked in and moved her beyond the professional colleague role.
As he stood at the buffet table spreading mustard on the bottom half of the biscuit he had split in half for her, he began to feel more and more confident that he was going to break through. Then, once he had completely assembled her sandwich, he paused to take himself to task mentally. He even managed to smirk about it. Was he on the verge of becoming a basket case with all this speculation in the midst of mustard-spreading and biscuit-splitting?
No matter. It was time to hand Elise her sandwich and let things unfold over the next month.
13
Sip ’N’ See
There was one last tumbleweed effect after Christmas before the glacier effect of January set in. Although Ardenia Bedloe Place had not been able to make it home for Christmas due to a small setback with her lungs, Nurse Imogene Rodgers assured Periwinkle and Parker that New Year’s Day was now the target for the long-awaited release to her eager parents.
“Just this one last week and I think she’s home-free,” she told them. “I know you’ve been waiting for what seems like ages for me to say that to you. But Dr. Dye seems pretty sure of himself, and I’ve worked with him long enough to know you can take his word.”
Never had they wanted to get rid of the old year so fast once that was thankfully out of the bag. Each day seemed like a month, but they busied themselves making sure the nursery was ready with a few last-minute additions. They had already put in new wallpaper, which was pink with baby ducks adorning it, and there was a colorful mobile hanging over the crib, plus a baby monitor and a breast pump on the shelves, and everything else they had been advised to buy to welcome their little angel to her brand-new life.
The news spread throughout The Cherry Cola Book Club quickly, and it was Becca who reminded Periwinkle of a charming little event she had staged for Markie to introduce him to all her friends.
“Remember the sip ’n’ see I hosted for all of you at my house?” she was saying over the phone. “It’s easy as pie to stage, but I’ll be glad to come over and help you if you want. You just need some wine, a bit of booze and mixers for the adults, and then the baby, of course, in all her glory.”
Periwinkle was full of fond remembrance. “Ah, yes. That was so much fun. I sipped my wine and gazed down at your little Markie, and I recall thinking, Why haven’t people thought of something like this before? Well, maybe they have in other towns, but I know I’d love to do it for everybody and Denia when the time comes.”
“Then it’s a done deal. Just let me know when you think your little Denia is ready, and we’ll put our heads together.”
Periwinkle put in one last word of caution. “But just let us get her home first so we can take a deep breath before we start planning her social calendar. She’s not quite ready for the prom. We haven’t picked out her dress yet.”
Becca laughed heartily. “Your sense of humor has got to be the best in Cherico, if not the entire state of Mississippi. I’ve always loved the way you come out fr
om the kitchen and visit with your customers at The Twinkle. Your food’s not the only reason people keep coming back for more. You put on a one-woman show.”
“I try.”
“You succeed, too.”
* * *
It was three weeks later and well into the New Year that Periwinkle sent out invitations to Denia’s sip ’n’ see. She and Parker were so relieved to have her out of the NICU at last, and things had been going so well once she was home that they decided it was way past time to show her off to their friends. Following Becca’s suggestions, Periwinkle had laid out a generous bar on her lace-covered dining room table—all sorts of wine, liquors, and mixers, along with soft drinks, fruit punch, and water for the teetotalers. Then for all those who wanted to gnosh there were mini-quiches, bowls of nuts, spinach dip, and crackers. Of course, it wasn’t about the food or the drinks or even the small talk with friends. It was all about taking a peek at the little one whose present and future life had been a question mark for so long. Thankfully, that was no longer a concern.
The event was to last one hour on a Sunday afternoon so as not to disrupt Denia’s rigid schedule, and there weren’t many latecomers. But there were plenty of oohs and aahs from the admiring guests as the time tumbled by fast.
“Isn’t she the most precious thing you’ve ever seen?” Becca was saying, smiling down at the baby snuggled in her white bassinet with gray ribbons sewn around the bumper. The white blanket swaddling her set off her beautiful, café au lait skin, and wisps of curly brown hair adorned her tiny head. There was about her something of a golden aura, and everyone who saw her was mesmerized.
Becca nudged Justin, who was standing beside her, entreating him with her eyes and a nod of her head to make a comment as well.
“She sure is,” he said, catching on quickly. “It takes me back less than a year ago. I was such a sucker for Markie the first time I laid my proud father eyes on him, so I know how you feel about your little Denia. She even looks like she’s smirking at some kinda inside joke right this minute. That certainly is a unique smile, no matter what.”
