The Wish List

by Linda Leigh Hargrove

  “Morning, sleepy head,” Elsa said.

  Chelsea stretched. “Why do you look so refreshed, Gramm? We both went to bed after midnight. I look like roadkill.”

  “Yep, you do,” Freddie offered. “A little squished squirrel mixed with dead coon.”

  “Never mind, you.” She stuck out her tongue at Freddie. “Gramm, you look all bright and sunny. Refreshed, even.”

  “Don’t need as much sleep as I used to. Getting older, you know.” She patted the leather cover of the Bible in the middle of the table. “And I’ve been redeeming my time. Been up studying the Word. That always gets me going on the right path.”

  Freddie narrowed her eyes. This is usually where the older woman put in a word of two about her husband list and the book for single Christians she was working on.

  Elsa flipped to a portion of her Bible and smoothed a hand over the thin pages. She smiled like she was handling a dear treasure. Freddie counted the seconds.

  One … two … three ….

  “Oh goodness, Freddie dear.” Elsa pulled a phone from the pocket of her tunic. “I almost forgot.”

  Wait for it ...

  “Chelsea Lynn derailed my thoughts. I was going to say that I may be old enough to be your abuela but I’m not out of touch, young lady. See…” She clicked on an icon on her phone that resembled a red and green Christmas gift box. “This is the Wish List App I was talking about before Chelsea came in. You build your profile and it matches your interests up with local charities that need resources. It’s brilliant. Or … you can just search for the charity you want to donate to or volunteer for. Might I suggest Wake City’s Children’s Hospital? They have some cool things on their wish list for the kids but also for the staff. I just love this app.”

  Freddie leaned in to get a better look of Elsa’s phone screen. So did Chelsea.

  “Oh yeah,” Chelsea said after a sip of coffee from the mug she held. “That’s one of the apps Zeus’ company built. It’s fresh out of beta now. Marc showed it to me.”

  “I don’t know what it’s out of,” Elsa said, clicking around on her phone. “But it’s brilliant. That Zeus has been working with the Children’s Hospital and several charities in town, so I hear. I can’t wait to meet him. Must be a fine fellow. I love his name too. Zeus. A nice strong name.”

  Chelsea settled into a chair beside her grandmother. “Freddie knows him.”

  “Really?” Elsa asked with bright eyes.

  Uh oh. Freddie imagined she saw images of wedding bells appear in Elsa Parker’s pupils. This old lady was something else. Her matchmaking senses seemed like they were always at the ready.

  “No, not really,” Freddie said, hoping to derail any machinations of matrimony. Wasn’t one pending wedding enough? “Zeus and I spent a summer together when we were teenagers. I met him at this pre-engineering camp when my family lived in Texas. We haven’t spoken in almost fifteen years. Meeting him in the bookstore yesterday was pure chance.”

  She was talking too much. She gulped her juice to keep her mouth from blabbing about anything else.

  “How interesting.” Elsa’s eyes seemed to twinkle even brighter now. “I don’t believe in chance meetings.”

  Red warning beacons seemed to be flashing all around Elsa’s head. Like those big gumdrop lights she’d strung up on her holly bushes outside but more menacing.

  Danger. Danger. Danger.

  Chelsea shrugged. “Well, you’re going to help him out today after church. Seems like he trusts you.”

  Be quiet, Chels.

  Elsa’s hand lingered on her Bible again.

  Oh good Lord.

  In a flash, Elsa’s hand was on Freddie’s head again. “You don’t look too good, honey. Maybe you should stay in today. I’ll make you some soup when we get back from church.”

  “Gramm,” Chelsea interrupted. “She’s fine. Stop fussing over her.”

  “How do you know if she’s fine, Chelsea Lynn. Look at her. She’s not as chipper as she usually is. Could be coming down with the flu. It’s bad this year, you know. Where’s that Freddie sparkle?”

  There’s the sparkle talk again.

  What am I, a Christmas ornament?

  “I’ve just got a lot on mind is all,” Freddie said as she took her dirty glass to the sink. “I’d better go get ready for church.” She checked the clock above the stove. “We leave at 10:30, right?”

  “Yeah,” Chelsea said. She gulped her coffee and rose from her chair. “We’d all better get going.”

  Chelsea followed Freddie into the foyer.

  Elsa called after them. “The kids’ choir is leading a Christmas program today. First Sunday of Advent. I think Pastor Kevin will be doing a short message though.”

  Freddie could hear water running in the kitchen, followed by the clink of dishes. She looked past Chelsea back into the kitchen to confirm that Elsa was washing dishes.

  “Whew,” Freddie declared under her breath. “Barely got out in time before I got husband-listed.”

  Chelsea frowned in judgment. “You need to stop treating my Gramm this way. If her talking about the list upsets you, tell her. She would appreciate your honesty. Elsa Parker does not have thin skin. Be honest and gracious.”

  Freddie shrugged as she led the way up the stairs to their rooms. “If it’s all the same with you, I’d rather not. I only visit Wake City once or twice a month. My game plan is to divert and avoid.”

  “Avoid, huh? Like you did with Zeus for almost 15 years. Look where that got you.”

  “Don’t start, Chels. I did apologize.”

  “Yeah, after you fell on him and broke his arm.”

  “You’re pushing all the buttons this morning.”

  “You’re welcome. Anytime, sister.” Chelsea stopped short of going to her room. “Oh, speaking of buttons. Did you pack your button-up Victorian boots?”

  “I might have. Why do you ask?”

  Chelsea made a face at her. “Can I borrow them please? They would go with Marc’s favorite skirt that I plan to wear to church today.”

  “This is bad. Now, the man is dictating what you wear to church.”

  “Just give me the boots. You can borrow my faux fur vest.”

  “Fake fur? What would I want with that?”

  “You’ll look cute for your date with Zeus de ‘So hot’ Sousa. If you don’t, I’ll tell my grandmother that you hate her list.”

  “Shhh.” Freddie glanced down the stairwell.

  “You girls getting ready for church?” Elsa called up to them.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Chelsea called back. “We’re swapping clothes.”

  She allowed Freddie to pull her into the guest room where she’d spent the night. “Alright already. You got a deal. Goodness, you’re so loud. And just so you know, it’s not a date with Zeus.”

  “Hmmm. You’re meeting a handsome man privately in his apartment.” Chelsea raised both eyebrows before turning on her heels. “Yeah, you’re right. It’s something entirely different. We’ll say a special prayer for you in church today.”

  Freddie chuckled along with her friend.

  Secretly, she wondered what might happen with Zeus. Did he still have feelings for her? Feelings that might lead to something more romantic?

  Or was she merely wasting energy thinking about what could have been?

  Chapter 6

  The reverend of Wake City AME Church, Pastor Kevin, as Elsa Parker called him, was a big line-backer of a man. Freddie liked him instantly, mainly because his homily was nice and short. Throughout the youth-led Christmas service, her mind had been on Zeus. Was he doing okay with his arm? Should she drop by the store to pick up ginger ale and chicken soup before going by his place? Or was that only for someone with the flu?

  The pastor’s smile lit up as he made his last point. “Mary, a mere teenager, had a willing heart, open to the Spirit of God. How about us? Do we wait, in humility and awe and anticipation, for G
od to fill our emptiness? He wants to so badly. He wants to fill us…with grace and love…with forgiveness and reconciliation. May we become pregnant with these things this Christmas season. When we are pressed from every side, we give birth to the things we’re pregnant with. May we not be pregnant with hate and fear. Or greed and anger. Amen?”

  He paused to his flock to respond.

  “Amen,” they said.

  “Let us pray,” he said, bowing his head.

  Pregnant with forgiveness?

  It was something she’d never considered becoming impregnated with. As a young teen, her mother had sat her down for ‘The Talk’ about the facts of life. When she went on her first date after her quince, her father embarrassed her by yelling, “Don’t come home pregnant” for the entire neighborhood to hear.

  In all her years of dating, there was only one young man who came close to being a contender. They ended up living together for a few years after she graduated college. The first six months or so were golden. Carlos Ruiz was so attentive and nurturing. Then, without warning an invisible trigger went off and he’d changed into a domineering control freak. It took four years to pull away from him. Four years of her life she’d never get back. Four years of living in the dark. Living beneath her potential. On the outside, everything was perfect but behind closed doors, things were going increasingly bad. The yelling. The put-downs. The guilt trips.

  Freddie looked up at the wooden rafters and ornate light fixtures above the praying congregants of Chelsea’s home church. It had been Freddie’s decision to become more involved in her neighborhood church that had given her strength and wisdom to tear away from that abusive relationship. Carlos never hit her, but he had devised other ways of crushing her spirit and dismissing her gifts.

  She closed her eyes against the tears that the painful memories dredged up. “Thank you for my freedom, Lord,” she mumbled.

  Pastor Kevin brought his prayer to a close. “And Lord, there are some in our audience today who are struggling today. I’m one of them, I admit. Please remind us that peace is not a destination, but this peace is a Person. Jesus, the Christ. It is in His name that we pray. Amen.”

  The congregation echoed his closing. “Amen.”

  “Youth choir,” the pastor said as he turned to face the 30 or so smiling faces behind him. “Can you close us out with one last number?”

  A teenager Freddie recognized from the bookstore stepped closer to the microphone. “Pastor Kevin, we would like to invite Mr. Marc Waterman to join us, if that’s okay. He sang “Go Tell It on the Mountain” with us last year.”

  The pastor nodded his head to the teenager. “That’s fine with me, Jon-Jon. Sing us all happy.”

  The audience applauded as Marc made his way to the choir box. The children cheered loudly. When the cheers and applause died down, Marc took the microphone and thanked them all for the warm welcome.

  “I don’t think I got that much applause last year,” Marc said. His audience laughed. “All jokes aside, thanks for having me back, kids. I saw you guys practicing. I just hope I can keep up with all this fancy choreography.”

  “You can do it, Mr. Marc,” said Jon-Jon assured him. “Just follow me. The name of the song is called “Mary, Did You Know” but our version if a little more upbeat than you might be used to. This ain’t the Pentatonix version, for show.”

  Jon-Jon nodded to the musician and an African vibe filled the air. Before long the entire church was on its feet dancing and singing along. Freddie was a fan of the acapella version, but this rendition was way more fun. The dancing reminded her of the moves Elf Zeus had done with the kids in the bookstore. He would fit into this moment, without a doubt. That was the old playful side of Zeus she remembered. When they were talking privately afterward, he’d displayed another side. A serious persona she wasn’t familiar with.

  She hoped this wasn’t a sign that he would turn into a monster like Carlos?

  Freddie checked her phone. Zeus still had not texted her. Should she call or text him? Or should she ask Marc after the service? Yes, maybe that was what she should do.

  The song ended. The people cheered and celebrated the children’s success and Pastor Kevin dismissed his congregation. A buzz of excitement arose from the crowd as the children left the choir loft and found their individual mothers, fathers, and grandparents.

  Elsa Parker leaned over the pew toward Freddie and Chelsea. “That was wonderful. They worked so hard and it paid off. Marc did great. And somehow Pastor Kevin squeezed his sermon down to a 10 minute message. It was all so good.”

  “Yes,” Chelsea said as she bounced her shoulders. “They all did a super job. I like that beat. Very ethnic and festive.” She looked past Freddie and waved at someone. “Hey, Jon-Jon. Hey, Lacey. Y’all did great.”

  Freddie offered the group home kids a distracted wave. Her attention was drawn to her vibrating phone. Zeus’ text with the street address had just come through.

  She texted him back: On my way.

  Chelsea stopped dancing and looked at Freddie. “You need to go now, don’t you?”

  Elsa Parker excused herself. “Somehow, I need to wade through this sea of people to meet with Tessa Curtis. Their new kids from Mexico are coming later this week. She needs some curtains sewn for a spare room. This Wish List App is the bomb.”

  “Bye, Grammsie,” Freddie said as Elsa left.

  “Do you want me and Marc to go with you?” Chelsea asked Freddie.

  “No, I don’t need a chaperone.”

  She wagged a finger at Chelsea. “Don’t come home preg—”

  Freddie grabbed her finger. “Don’t you dare do a Felix Martinez.”

  Chelsea giggled. “Your Papi loves you.”

  She knew they loved her but at times she felt belittled, like her ideas didn’t matter. “Yeah, I guess. Sometimes I wish they could show it differently. I’d better get going.”

  The drive across town to the historic section of Wake City was quick. Or maybe it was her nerves. She felt her heart drumming in her chest as she neared the address.

  “You’ve arrived,” her phone’s GPS announced.

  It was the parking lot of Monica Ferguson’s business incubator. There were no lights coming from the building. The street, in fact, was completely vacant. In the distance, she could hear the hum of traffic on an adjoining street so there was some life in this little hamlet. Across the street, the string of white lights were flickering around the front window of Ciro’s Place, but she suspected they always stayed on.

  It’s You and me, Lord.

  She parked and checked the time on her dash. One o’clock. Her phone vibrated with a text.

  It was Zeus: Come on in. I’ll buzz you in.

  Gulp.

  She checked her face in the rearview mirror. Was this shade of lipstick too much? Maybe she should have skipped the perfume this morning. And Chelsea fur vest made her feel overdressed.

  “Stop it, chica,” she told herself as she left her car.

  With his free arm, Zeus held the building door open for her. “You came.”

  He was smiling but it wasn’t a glad-you-came kind of smile. It reminded Freddie of the polite facial expression her sister-in-law gave her when they exchanged Christmas gifts each year.

  “Yep. I’m here.”

  She stepped inside and allowed him to lock the door behind them.

  “Just wanna make sure no one wanders in,” Zeus said, explaining his actions. “Monica’s instructions. I promise I’m not an axe murderer or sex trafficker.”

  “Or day trader.”

  Zeus looked at her with his head turned to one side.

  “Inside joke,” Freddie explained.

  “Oh okay.” He reached around her and flipped a couple of light switches on the wall. The space flooded with light from several large pendant lights hanging from the high ceiling. Zeus swept his good arm forward. “Welcome to Crescent Hub. It’s an old tobacco warehouse
, according to Monica. As you can tell she’s preserved the original woodwork and concrete floors, giving them a shine job. Each of these bay areas on the left and right will be local business offices.”

  Zeus de Sousa was all-business, even though he was dressed in joggers and a windbreaker. His perfectly gelled hair. The cut of his mustache. The scent of his cologne. All screamed consummate businessman.

  Light years from the zany kid gamer who carried marbles in his pockets at STEM camp.

  Freddie looked away when he glanced her way. He cleared his throat and pointed to the glass-fronted office cubicles they were walking past. “The grand opening is next month but I think Monica has booked all the spaces. Folks are still setting up shop, moving in slowly. My office is up here on the right.”

  “I love the way the light warms the space,” Freddie said as they walked along. She made sure she was walking close but not too close. “It has an industrial feel but it’s homey at the same time. All these wonderful beams and girders...”

  “That’s Monica’s genius at work.” He glanced her way but this time his smile was genuine. “Wonderful homey beams and girders, huh?”

  “Yeah, beams and girders can be wonderful and homey.”

  “If you say so. What’s wrong with day traders, by the way?”

  “You say that like you might know a thing or two about day trading.”

  “I might. So here we are.” He pointed to a door that bore the Sousa Source logo. “After you.”

  Stacks of boxes filled one side of the front office area. A wooden desk stood in the middle.

  He closed the door behind them. “This is only part of our setup. Ray is bringing more stuff in a few days.”

  Freddie hoped he hadn’t seen how her jaw clenched when he mentioned his brother. She eyed the formidable collection of packages and bins. This would take her days to go through and put right. But she volunteered for this.

  She glanced at his arm sling as she placed her purse on the desk. “So, you want me to start unpacking.”

  “No. No.” He said as he looked her up and down. “I wouldn’t have you unpacking looking like that.”

  I knew it.