by Debby Mayne
Amanda had no idea what to say to that, so she shifted the sub sack to the other hand. Now that they had their helmets off and they were only a feet away, she saw the resemblance between them and Jerry.
“If you ever need anything, let me know, okay?” Amanda finally said. “In the meantime, I’d better get dinner home.”
“You married?” Mr. Simpson said.
“Stop it, Harold,” his wife scolded. “That is none of your business.”
“Oh, that’s okay.” Amanda glanced back and forth between the couple. She finally settled her gaze on Mr. Simpson. “No, I’m not married.” The heat of embarrassment crept up her cheeks.
“Jerry isn’t married either,” Mr. Simpson blurted. “He’s our only unmarried child. He hasn’t found the right girl yet.” He paused and narrowed his eyes for a moment. “I think it’s about time he settled down. He’s forty-five years old and not getting any younger.”
His wife jabbed him in the ribs. “I’m sure she doesn’t care.”
He scowled back at her and refocused on Amanda. “So you’re eating alone?”
She had to hand it to him for his persistence. “Um…no.”
“For heaven’s sake,” his wife said as she plopped her helmet back on her head and hooked the strap. “Let’s go and let this sweet girl get back to her business. We’re probably making her late for a date.”
Mr. Simpson snorted. “So do you have a date?”
“No,” Amanda replied. “I don’t have a date. I’m bringing food home for my sister and me.”
“You live with your sister?” A quick smile spread across Mrs. Simpson’s face.
“Well, it’s more like my sister lives with me, until she can find a place closer to the school where she teaches.” Too much information, but oh well.
“Come on, Harold,” Mrs. Simpson said, as she helped her husband with his helmet. “Let’s leave this young lady alone so she can get home and eat. Besides, Jerry’s expecting us back for dinner soon.” She turned back to Amanda. “He’s cooking tonight. Isn’t that great? Our son knows how to cook.”
“Back when we first met, my wife here did all the cooking,” Mr. Simpson said. “But times are changing. Maybe you can come over sometime and Jerry can cook for you.”
Mrs. Simpson shook her head. “Please forgive my husband.” She gave him a look of displeasure. “But like I was saying, Jerry took a cooking class so we wouldn’t have to eat out all the time.”
Amanda couldn’t help but giggle. “That’s wonderful.”
“I like eating out,” Mr. Simpson said.
“Come on, Harold; let’s go.”
Mr. and Mrs. Simpson grinned and waved as they took off down the street, while Amanda stood and stared after them. What a nice couple. The man was a little crotchety and the woman was on the bossy side, but she found them rather charming.
Amanda started to turn toward home when she noticed a thin black wallet lying on the ground a few feet away. She picked it up and hesitated for a moment before opening it. Even though it was obviously lost and the only way to find the rightful owner was to look inside, she still felt like a voyeur.
Smack dab in front, in a window compartment, was a picture. She turned it so she could see the faces of what appeared to be a family of five with a younger version of the elderly couple she’d just met sitting in the midst of two young boys and a girl. The ground seemed to shift beneath her a little as she thumbed through more pictures showing a progression of time until present-day. When she got to what looked like a current picture of Jerry Simpson’s smiling face, she experienced a quickness of breath. This was clearly Mrs. Simpson’s wallet, and she needed to return it—after dinner.
As she closed the distance between herself and her small house facing the side street, she realized that knowing that Jerry had brought his parents on vacation made her like him even more. Well, she didn’t exactly know him well enough to like him that much, but he’d always been very polite…and of course, very good-looking. And the way he looked at her was…well, heart-stopping. She scurried home and was met at the door by her sister, who snatched the bag from her.
“Who were those people on the bike?” Lacy said, as she rummaged through the sack and pulled out her sandwich and chips. “Mm, my favorite—cheese-flavored Sun Chips.”
“Jerry Simpson’s parents. Apparently he’s been renting the tandem bicycle for them.”
Lacy lifted an eyebrow. “I wonder if he’s married.”
“He’s not.” Amanda found a plate and put her sandwich on it as she thought of a different, more comfortable subject. She didn’t want to mention the wallet, since she planned to return it without making a fuss. “So, did you figure out what to do about Timmy?”
“You don’t wanna hear about that now,” Lacy replied.
“Sure I do. I told you we’d figure out something together.” Anything to change the subject. Amanda took a bite of her sandwich and pointed to the spot on the table adjacent to where she was sitting. After she swallowed, she used her most authoritative glare and nodded toward the chair. “You know it’s not good for your digestion to eat over the sink.”
“Okay, okay.” Lacy pulled a plate from the cupboard and joined her sister.
Amanda bowed her head and hoped Lacy would take the hint and do the same. She’d tried to talk to her little sister about faith issues, but Lacy usually accused her of preaching. As it was, Lacy at least went to church occasionally. She’d threatened to stop going altogether if Amanda pressured her.
When Amanda opened her eyes after the blessing, she couldn’t tell if Lacy had just sat there and waited or if she had also bowed her head. Lacy had both hands in her lap, so Amanda could only hope—and continue praying.
“Okay, so tell me about school,” Amanda prompted.
Lacy contorted her mouth. “All the kids were great today, except Timmy. I don’t think there’s anything I can do. That boy still causes more trouble than the rest of the class combined.”
“What, exactly, did he do today?” At least that would keep the subject off Jerry. “There has to be more than the lunch incident.”
“Well…” Lacy pursed her lips and frowned for a couple of seconds. “He didn’t listen to a thing I said all day. When I told them to put everything away, he didn’t budge.”
“Was he disruptive?”
Lacy lifted her hands. “He’s always disruptive. When I tell the kids to sit down, he runs around and makes stupid noises. When I tell them it’s time to go outside, he puts his head down and says he doesn’t feel like it.”
“A kid who doesn’t want to go outside?” Amanda said with a chuckle. “I’d be worried.” Then she paused for a moment. “Do you think he might be sick or something?”
Lacy’s cheek bulged with food as she shook her head. “He’s not sick.”
“But you said he didn’t want to go outside, and he sounds like such an active child. I thought maybe…”
“Oh, he always wants to go outside. Just not when I tell him to. He does that to make my life difficult. When I tell them it’s time to go back in, he wastes another fifteen minutes of my time by ignoring me.”
“Did you ever find out why he doesn’t have both parents at home?”
Lacy shrugged. “Not yet, but what should that matter? Most of the kids in my class only have one parent.”
Amanda knew that it did matter, but Lacy wouldn’t understand since Amanda had made it her job to protect her. “That’s really sad.”
“Not really.” Lacy stood and leaned on the chair. “It’s a reality they have to face. Very few kids have the old-fashioned kind of family with a working dad, a stay-at-home mom, and a house with a yard.” She bobbed her head. “We only had one parent, remember?”
Unfortunately, that was true, but it still didn’t make it right. Amanda found herself angry at Timmy’s parents for whatever they were doing to disrupt him and cause him to come across as a problem child. She bit her lip to keep from commenting any further, because
Lacy never understood family problems. She’d never had to deal with the problems as long as her big sister was there. Amanda had thought she was doing the right thing at the time, but now she knew better. She regretted protecting Lacy from life’s dirty details.
“I guess I’ll probably send a note home to Timmy’s father and ask him to come in.” She lifted a shoulder in a half-shrug. “He’s probably too busy, but I’ll give it a shot. Timmy’s said his father works all the time and doesn’t have much time for him.”
“Who takes care of Timmy when his dad’s not there?”
“Some teenager who lives down the street from them.”
That put a whole new light on things. “No wonder he’s acting out.”
Lacy dropped the sandwich wrappers in the garbage and put her glass into the sink. “I think I’ll go to my room and work on the cutouts for the bulletin board. See ya in the morning.”
After Lacy left her alone in the kitchen, Amanda remained in her chair, staring out the window overlooking the street. The setting sun cast an orange glow on the horizon, which warmed the room with amber reflections on the wall and ceiling. She remembered how much her mother enjoyed walking down to the beach and watching the sunset on the Gulf each evening. Treasure Island had the most amazing sunsets. Her mother loved sitting outside and just staring at the western horizon until the last fleck of sun had disappeared into the water. Sometimes when Amanda visited her, they sat in silence and watched the sunset; yet other times, her mother talked about how different things would have been for them if the only man she’d ever loved had stuck around.
The irony of the situation wasn’t lost on Amanda. The barrier island off Florida’s West Coast was a favorite among vacationers who loved the serenity and charm. People came here to get away from the stress of life. However, this same charm and beauty served as a constant reminder that Amanda had taken over an adult role before she was ready.
Once the painful memories started flooding her mind, Amanda got up, cleared the table, and grabbed the wallet. She needed to stop by the shop to get the Simpsons’ current address, since the information inside the wallet had Mrs. Simpson’s permanent address in Atlanta.
Jerry couldn’t help but notice the surreptitious glances between his parents during dinner. At first, he tried to ignore them, but that became increasingly impossible when his mother started giggling. He should have been happy they were getting along for a change, but they weren’t acting right.
“Okay, you two. What’s up?”
His dad grinned and winked at his mother then turned to face Jerry. “What do you mean, what’s up?” He let out a brief snicker before he caught himself.
Jerry turned to his mother. “Are we going to play this answer-a-question-with-a-question game, or are you going to make this easier on all of us and tell me what’s so funny?”
She tried to hide her grin, but Jerry saw right through that. “Nothing’s funny. We just had a really nice time riding that wonderful bicycle-built-for-two.”
If it weren’t for the fact that his dad couldn’t control himself, Jerry might have believed his mother. He wanted to. But if they wanted to share a secret, that was fine. He wanted to believe it was something special between a husband and wife, but he was pretty sure they had something up their sleeves.
After dinner, he stood to clear the table. His mother got up to help, but he held out his hand to stop her. “Why don’t you and Dad go for a walk and enjoy some fresh air?” He paused and glanced at his dad. “Maybe you’ll find that treasure you’ve been looking for.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but his dad reached for her hand and tugged her toward the door. Jerry’s chest constricted as he was reminded of a happier, more carefree time in his life—back when his parents were still deeply in love and not at each other’s throats all the time. Before his father started showing signs of Alzheimer’s.
As soon as he heard the door close, Jerry didn’t waste any time before clearing the table and cleaning the kitchen. He wanted to relax and enjoy a little quiet time before his parents returned. He knew there would be a time—hopefully not for a while, but soon enough—when peaceful moments would be few and far between. His father’s doctor had told him that Alzheimer’s gradually took people’s independence, and life would get more difficult toward the end.
The end. What a concept. Even though he was a faithful Christ-follower, the very thought of losing his parents was like a swift kick to the gut. He couldn’t imagine life without them, although he knew it would eventually happen.
His eyes misted over as he remembered his childhood and how hard his parents had worked for him, his brother, and his sister. He knew his parents had sacrificed for their kids, but they never let on that they missed out on anything they wanted. They celebrated the kids’ accomplishments and were there during the rocky times.
Jerry felt like he owed his parents everything. Too bad his sister and brother didn’t share some of his concern. In fact, he hadn’t seen either of them since the last time they wanted something. When Jerry had talked to his brother about how their dad’s condition had begun to deteriorate, his brother made a few sympathetic noises but got off the phone as quickly as possible. Jerry’s sister, on the other hand, said she’d try to come home, but she had so much going on in her life with her job and her husband’s business commitments that it might be impossible.
As he rinsed the soap off the last of the pots and pans, Jerry thought about his own life and how differently things had turned out. He’d always assumed he’d find a nice girl, marry her, settle down, and have kids. Of course they’d attend church together. That was a given. He’d grown up in the church, so he couldn’t imagine not going—unlike his sister and brother.
His deep-set anger brewed and bubbled to the surface. His jaws ached from clenching his teeth. He finally put the last of the pans in the cupboard, and he shoved the door so hard, the noise reverberated throughout the kitchen.
“Who are you so mad at, son?”
He spun around to face his mother, who stood behind him with her arms folded, while she glared up at him. “How long have you been here?”
“Long enough to see you slam the cupboard door.” She shook her head. “We just got back, but I can tell you’re miserable. Are you sure this little vacation isn’t putting a strain on you?”
“Positive.” Jerry forced a smile as he gently guided his mother into the living room, where his father had already made himself comfortable in the rocker/recliner in front of the TV. “You know I’ve always been heavy-handed.”
She hesitated for a split second. “Did anyone call while we were out?”
Jerry frowned. “No, why? Are you expecting a call?”
She took a step back and quickly averted her line of vision. “No, of course not.”
Jerry squinted his eyes and stared at her. She was definitely acting suspicious. As if on cue, the sound of someone knocking on the front door sent Jerry’s mom scurrying.
He stood still as he listened to his mother greeting whoever was at the door. “Please come in,” she said, her voice dripping syrup. “Oh, thank you so much! You found it! I was so worried I might have lost it for good.”
Now his curiosity was piqued. He had to find out what was going on. The instant he stepped into the hallway between the foyer and the living room, he knew there was no doubt his mother was up to something, because there stood Amanda, the bicycle shop owner, right outside the condo on the doorstep. She cast a confused glance his way. All he could do was shrug.
“Please come in,” his mother urged.
“No, that’s okay. I—I just wanted to get this to you.” Amanda offered a shaky smile to Jerry before she looked at his mom. “I figured you might need it.”
When she took a step back to leave, Jerry’s mother reached out and grabbed her by the arm. “I have something for you.”
Jerry felt his lips twitch over the humor of the situation. He’d seen his mother in action before. This wasn’t her first
foray into matchmaking, since she’d done it with his brother and sister.
He wasn’t about to fall for it, but he certainly didn’t want to embarrass Amanda. “Hey, Amanda,” he said. “I see you’ve experienced my parents.”
His mother shot him a glance of annoyance before turning back to Amanda. “Don’t mind my son. He can be such a pill sometimes. But he’s really a very sweet boy with the most loving heart you’ll ever know.”
“How was dinner?” Amanda asked.
“You remembered!” His mom rubbed her abdomen. “Jerry is a wonderful cook. I don’t think I’ve ever tasted anything so good. After tasting that, I bet he can cook anything.”
Hoo, boy, she was turning it on thick.
Amanda’s eyes widened, and she offered a forced smile. “I’m sure.”
“Hey, gorgeous!”
The booming voice from behind Jerry commanded all the attention. Everyone turned to face his dad.
“What brings you to our neck of the woods…um, I mean beach?”
They’d had so much practice they made it seem natural, and no one would have suspected they’d tag-teamed prospective children-in-law before. Jerry tried not to laugh, but a chuckle escaped his lips.
“Don’t just stand there laughing, son. Ask her if she wants some lemonade.”
“Dad, I don’t think—”
“I know you don’t think,” his dad whispered. “That’s what you have your mother and me for. Go invite the pretty girl in.” He gave Jerry a soft but powerful shove that would have sent him sprawling if he hadn’t already widened his stance.
Amanda fidgeted and shifted her weight from one foot to the other. She clearly didn’t know what to do—or how to handle his expert parents. His heart went out to her.
He grinned down at her and winked. “Would you like some lemonade?”
“Uh…” Amanda glanced from him to his parents, who stood on both sides of her, locking her in. “Sure?”