Great, My Heart May Be Broken but My Hair Still Looks Great

by Dixie Cash

  Her future? Good grief. She had to stop thinking. This kind of woolgathering was what was wrong with physical labor. It might keep the body fit, but it turned the brain to mush and gave her far too much time to think.

  She had learned that Vic and Buddy were never home on Wednesday evenings. Buddy attended a class at Odessa College, and Vic had reduced his overnight runs to just one midweek haul. Debbie Sue and Edwina would be having their girls’ night out. Paige decided to call the Styling Station and invite them over for supper.

  With no mother or sister from whom to seek counsel, the two older women were the next best thing. They not only had the experience to guide her, but they also had the heart to see to her best interests. The excuse to discuss Spur was bona fide, but truth be known, she just flat out loved the company of the two zany women. If they agreed to be her guests she would pay another visit to Percy’s. The memory of his home-cooked cuisine was as delicious as the memory of Spur’s kiss. She just wished the kiss were as accessible as the home cooking.

  She secured the gate to the stall and started for the office to use the phone. It warbled as she approached the office. She broke into a run and grabbed the receiver. “Flying C Ranch.”

  “Good morning,” a distinguished voice said. “May I please speak to Lester Clinton?”

  “I’m sorry, but Lester isn’t here. Could I take a message?”

  “When do you anticipate his return?”

  This refined voice didn’t sound like the kind of person who usually called Lester. “He won’t be back for another day, maybe two. I’m his assistant. Can I help you with something?”

  After a few beats, the voice said, “It’s very important that he receive this message when he returns. Would you be so kind as to see that he gets it?”

  “Sure. Let me just grab a pen and some paper.” Paige pawed through the desk drawer. “All right, I’m ready.”

  “My name is Brooks Van Patten. Please make sure Lester knows that TAR, that’s T-A-R, has received six, but needs four more. He’ll understand.”

  “TAR has six, needs four more. I got it, Mr. Van Patten. Anything else?”

  “No, that’s all. He’ll understand without further explanation, and he knows how to reach me if he has any questions. Good day.”

  As she slowly replaced the receiver, Paige studied the note she had just taken. What in the world could the letters T-A-R stand for?

  Debbie Sue and Edwina would know. She picked up the receiver again and keyed in the salon’s number. On the third ring Edwina answered. “Domestic Equalizers. Before you have a showdown, let us get the lowdown. This is Edwina. How may I help you?”

  Paige giggled. “Hey, this is Paige.”

  “Hey youself, dumplin’. Your ears burning? We were just talking about you.”

  “You were? Who’s ‘we’?”

  “Me and Debbie Sue. We haven’t heard how your date went Saturday night. I hope you’re calling in to give us a report.”

  “I’ll do better than that. Will Buddy and Vic be gone tonight?”

  “Wednesday night. We’re on our own. What’s up?”

  “I’m going to finish up here about three. I thought I’d drive over to Percy’s and pick up supper if you and Debbie Sue can join me at my house. Or that is, at Debbie Sue’s house. Well, anyway, you know where I mean.”

  “Supper from Percy’s? I’m there. Hold on, let me ask Debbie Sue.”

  Paige heard them talking but couldn’t make out the conversation. After a few seconds, Edwina returned. “We’re both there. Let’s see, today being Wednesday, the special at Percy’s will be pot roast. It’ll come with brown gravy, mashed potatoes, ears of corn bathed in butter, and homemade rolls. Good Lord, my stomach just growled thinking about it. I’ll spring for dessert. Pick up one of his coconut cream pies and I’ll pay you for it.”

  “You don’t have to do that, Edwina. I finally got a paycheck. I’ve actually got some money.”

  “I wasn’t thinking about the cost. I intend to take it home with me so Vic and I can have some when he gets back. Just let me buy the pie.”

  “Okay. You can buy the pie and take it home. I’ll see y’all around six or six-thirty.”

  “We’ll be round like a doughnut,” Edwina said.

  Paige hung up the phone, shaking her head and laughing. She opened the desk drawer again. This time she was looking for a piece of tape or a magnet to affix the note to Lester to the metal filing cabinet drawer. She finally located a half-used roll of tape and stuck the note where Lester couldn’t miss it. Before clicking off the light and leaving the office, she glanced again at the note. TAR. She had to remember to ask Debbie Sue and Edwina what it meant.

  By three o’clock, as planned, she had finished riding the scheduled horses and exercised the others on the walker. All had been fed, watered, and locked in their stalls.

  Climbing into the Escalade, not even worrying if she got dirt on the upholstery, she couldn’t keep from thinking of how shocked some of her partying buddies would be if they saw her now. What they couldn’t know is that the person with whom they had partied hearty wasn’t the real Paige McBride. Now she was learning who that person was and had begun to like her. Marathon shopping sprees and globe-trotting antics were behind her. She had found her way home. Had her daddy known all along this would happen?

  An image of her mom in heaven breathing a sigh of relief formed and stayed with her as she drove into Midland. She had only a few solid memories of her mother, but she would bet a horsewoman like her would have loved the unfettered West Texas landscape. Her mom would approve of Spur, too, and so would Daddy. Paige was sure of it. He would admire Spur’s strong work ethic and his determination to succeed.

  It was ironic that Spur was on her mind as she entered Percy’s because there at the counter was his sister. “Electra? Hi, how are you?”

  Electra looked over her shoulder, and her face broke into a huge grin. “Paige, how great to see you again. Did your knees heal up okay?”

  Paige smiled and showed a high-stepping routine. “They’re great. Your brother would have made a fine people doctor.”

  “I think so, too. But then I think he would be a fine anything. He’s been my hero my whole life. Far as I’m concerned, he can do no wrong.”

  An awkward silence passed as the two women smiled and looked about the café/store. “You didn’t work in the clinic today?” Paige finally asked.

  “I was there this morning. Spur knows I like to be home when Ronny is, so I only worked half a day.”

  “I guess you’re taking supper home tonight, too. I just found this place last week and I’m back already. The food is sooo good.” Paige studied the chalkboard where the menu was posted.

  “Spur told me you served him meat loaf from here and it was delicious. I’ve had everything on the menu but the meat loaf, so I’m giving it a try tonight.”

  Paige’s ears had to be playing tricks. She mustered as much nonchalance as she could dredge up. “Sorry, I was reading the menu. When did Spur say he had the meat loaf?”

  “Why, at your house. Saturday night. Didn’t you serve meat loaf?”

  That jerk. Asking me all those questions about how I cooked meat loaf. He probably saw me coming out of this place and was trying to make me feel like a fool. “Oh, yes. Yes, I did. I served meat loaf. Percy’s meat loaf. From right here.” Paige rambled, her tongue having trouble not being distracted by her thoughts.

  “Miss? Miss, you ready to order?”

  “Oh, yes,” she replied to Percy. “Sorry. I need three of your pot roast specials and a coconut cream pie. To go.”

  “Feeding a crowd, huh?” the jerk’s sister said, gathering her meat loaf order from the counter.

  Paige smiled. “Oh, just a couple of friends.”

  “Well it was fun running into you. I hope to see you again soon.”

  “It’s nice seeing you, too. Oh, by the way, Spur and I talked about cooking the other night. When you see him, tell him I have a reci
pe for him.”

  “Sure. What is it? Believe it or not, he’s a good cook when he tries.”

  “It’s an old family secret from my grandmother. She was quite a card. It’s called ‘Bend Over and Bite Me Brownies.’”

  Electra laughed. “Hey, that’s colorful. He’ll get a kick out of that. I’ll be sure to tell him.”

  “I hope he does get a kick,” Paige said.

  twenty-three

  Bend Over and Bite Me Brownies? Spur was holding the receiver between his chin and shoulder while attempting to enter an appointment into the computer matrix.

  “Those were her exact words,” Electra said. “I don’t know what went wrong. She started acting different when I mentioned how much you liked Percy’s meat loaf and I, uh, I’m pretty sure something I said got you in trouble.”

  Spur chuckled. “Don’t worry ’Lectra. I didn’t tell her I knew the meal came from Percy’s. She probably thinks I was making fun of her. I’ll fix it. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “Boy, I hope not. I like her. With her being so rich, I didn’t expect her to be so nice. She’s even prettier than you described, but I like her in spite of that.”

  “I like her too, sis.”

  “Well, Ronny’s waiting, so I have to go.”

  “Tell him I said hello and I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Spur finished his chore at the computer and pushed his chair back from the reception desk. He chuckled again, thinking about the brownie recipe. He couldn’t name the quality he most liked about Paige, but her spunky attitude was at the top of the list.

  His schedule today extended into the evening hours. When he finished maybe he would drop by Paige’s house and talk to her face-to-face. She could hang up on him if he called, but he would be hard to ignore if he was standing on her doorstep. This misunderstanding over meat loaf was a small hurdle to vault. If they couldn’t get past something so trivial the likelihood of anything serious developing between them was hopeless.

  PAIGE SCURRIED into the house with the food orders from Percy’s. Debbie Sue and Edwina would be here soon, and she hadn’t yet inventoried her liquor cabinet for the ingredients for cosmopolitans. Tonight would be a Sex in the City kind of night, and cosmos were the perfect libation. Back home in Fort Worth, if Sunny was in town, they never missed an episode of the HBO sitcom. They vacillated from week to week as to which character each of them was most like. Paige always shifted between Carrie and Charlotte. Sunny was sometimes a Miranda, but she was always a full profile of Samantha.

  After putting everything away, Paige showered and got into comfort clothes—sweatpants and an old flannel shirt. Carrie Bradshaw might not approve, but Debbie Sue and Edwina would find it appropriate. She wrapped a towel around her head, returned to the kitchen and assembled the ingredients for the delectable cosmopolitan drinks on the kitchen counter—Cointreau liqueur, cranberry juice, and Absolut citron. Yummy.

  She removed the top of the vodka bottle for a whiff of the lemon-lime mixture and hummed an approval. Standing on her tiptoes she reached to the back of the cabinet, retrieved a bowl, and filled it with ice. The trick was to mix each drink individually and to serve it in a chilled glass. Not a frozen, frosty one, but one barely kissed by ice cubes.

  Last, but by no means least, she carefully lifted three of her favorite crystal pieces from their resting place. Simply Red Waterford martini glasses the ones from which she and Spur had drunk wine. Exquisite. The flawless clear crystal on the bottom and deep-ruby-colored rim was the perfect vessel for the crimson cosmo. The price she had paid for four sets of these dainty, handcrafted pieces of crystal would buy her a couch today. Ironic how priorities had a way of changing.

  The stove clock showed fifteen minutes before her new girlfriends would arrive. What the hell? She mixed herself a drink. As she sipped, the doorbell rang, and before she could call out a “come in,” Edwina was standing in the living room. “Hey, we’re here. God, it smells good in here. I’m hungry enough to eat a horse.”

  “Bite your tongue, Ed,” Debbie Sue said, staring at her with an alarmed expression.

  “Oops, sorry.” Edwina turned to Paige. “We’re a little sensitive about horse meat.”

  “Oh, me, too,” Paige said. “By the way, I didn’t hear y’all drive up, and I was listening for you, too.”

  Debbie Sue explained that they had parked at the end of the block and walked to the house. “It’s not a good idea for anyone to park across the street from Koweba’s driveway. If she takes it into her head to go somewhere, she’ll back out in that Sherman tank she calls an automobile and plow right into whatever’s in her path.”

  Edwina headed for the kitchen at the invitation for a drink, but Debbie Sue strolled the house, with Paige following her. “This was the first home Buddy and I had,” Debbie Sue said. “Being here now is like visiting an old friend. Lots of special memories.” She stopped at the empty spare room and stared into it. “This would have been a nursery.”

  Paige didn’t know what to say, but Debbie Sue’s behavior raised a question.

  Debbie Sue turned to her, a hint of moisture in her eyes. “I’m glad you rented her, Paige. I know you’ll take real good care of her.”

  They returned to the front part of the house, where Debbie Sue leveled a long look at the folding chairs in the living room, then grinned. “Well, what can I say? I like what you’ve done in the bedroom, but the living room leaves a lot to be desired.”

  “Garage sale chic, I’d call it,” Edwina said.

  “Oh, it’s not a big deal,” Paige felt compelled to reply. “The only time I’ve spent at home has been in bed. I haven’t had time to sit in the living room once, so I guess it doesn’t bother me that much not to have real furniture.”

  “Spending all your time in bed, huh?” Edwina said, looking at Debbie Sue with mischief in her eyes. “That’s not much different from when you and Buddy lived here, is it?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but…” Debbie Sue’s voice trailed off in a suggestive way.

  “Let me mix y’all a drink,” Paige said. “We’re having cosmopolitans. That and Scotch are all the liquor I’ve got.”

  “Cosmopolitans are alcoholic, right?” Edwina said.

  Paige explained the mixture as she placed a curled lemon rind on the edge of a glass. With a healthy measure of pride she offered the drink to Edwina.

  “Why, look at how pretty this is,” Edwina gushed, accepting her drink. “I don’t know if I should drink it or take a picture of it.” She took a big gulp. “Ooohh, that’s good. I could do some damage with these. And aren’t these glasses pretty? I think my mother had a set like this when I was growing up. Got ’em with S & H green stamps they used to give away at Piggly Wiggly. Nowadays, these would probably be worth something at a flea mart. Or even on eBay.”

  Paige chose not to go into the cost of the unique glasses. What it all boiled down to was Edwina’s last statement. “Yes,” Paige answered. “They’re practically priceless. Here, let me mix you another drink.”

  Several drinks later the friends sat down to devour Percy’s pot roast dinners.

  “Debbie Sue made me promise I’d wait before asking this and I have,” Edwina said. “But my curiosity’s killing me. So tell us, how’d the date go Saturday night?”

  Paige gave them a brief summary of the evening she and Spur had spent together. They all joined in laughing when she told about the apron.

  “Why, Debbie Sue Overstreet,” Edwina said. “That apron was a gift from me. You didn’t leave it here on purpose, did you?”

  “It wasn’t me who packed the kitchen,” Debbie Sue said. “That was Buddy’s job. He most likely didn’t see the humor in it. We weren’t together when you gave it to me.”

  “He probably thought it was a gift from Quint.” They all guffawed over that idea.

  “So, you didn’t get any?” Edwina asked when the laughter died out.

  Paige felt all the blood in her body rush to h
er face.

  “Ed, I swear to God,” Debbie Sue said. “You’re embarrassing her. You can’t just ask a person something like that.”

  “Why not? We’re all friends.” She pointed a look at Paige. “So did you two fuck or not?”

  “How are things working out with Lester being away?” Debbie Sue asked, obviously redirecting the conversation. “Are you enjoying him being gone, or is the work too much for you?”

  “I’m doing fine,” Paige answered, silently thanking Debbie Sue. “It’s a big responsibility, but luckily I have help from the hired hands.”

  The phone message she had taken for Lester earlier came back to her. “I took a message for Lester today that I can’t figure out and I can’t stop thinking about it. There was something creepy in the caller’s voice.”

  “Tell us about it,” Debbie Sue said.

  Paige repeated the conversation word for word.

  Edwina and Debbie Sue exchanged glances. Finally Edwina said, “Brooks Van Patten. Never heard of him. I’d remember a name like that. I’m betting he’s not from around here. Hell, he’s probably not even from Texas.”

  “What do you think TAR is?” Paige asked, toying with her last bite of pot roast.

  Debbie Sue suddenly pushed from the table, her face crimson. “Oh, my God,” she whispered, tears in her eyes. “Oh, my God. Surely not. Surely he wouldn’t.”

  Paige picked up a puzzled expression on Edwina’s face.

  “What? Speak up forgodsake,” the older friend said.

  “TAR. Texas Agricultural Resources.”

  Edwina shrugged. “Okay. What’s that?”

  Debbie Sue’s eyes had grown huge and serious, and Paige felt her own eyes widen.

  “Texas Agricultural Resources is the largest horse slaughterhouse in Texas,” Debbie Sue said. “They kill horses and sell the meat. They use that fancy name to fool the animal rights people.”