"I'd be honored. Thank you. I'll make sure Sarah is there."
"She asked that I send Rebecca. Maybe the wheelchair?"
Evelyn nodded approvingly. "Very good idea. We'll be ready."
"Thank you." Polly left the addition and headed for the office. Two down, three more to go.
Jeff was bent over Stephanie's desk and they were looking at the computer screen. He glanced up, "Hey, Polly."
"You two. Dinner in the auditorium. It's a plan," she said determinedly.
"Tonight?" he asked.
"Yes. Don't tell me you have plans. You never eat with us when we do spontaneous meals."
"Wow. Direct orders and guilt. All in one breath. That's impressive."
"Come on. Please?"
He chuckled and said to Stephanie, "Shall we?"
"I don't know."
"Kayla has been having a wonderful time with Helen Oswald. She's the reason we're doing this. She loves the kids and they love her. Please?" Polly asked again.
"You'd better say yes," Jeff said. "Once she starts pleading, there's no stopping her."
Stephanie looked at Polly, concern on her face.
"Jessie will be there. You know her from working at the convenience store, don't you? And Rachel. Doug and Billy are about your age, too. It will be fun," Polly said. "Say yes. You'll have fun, meet a few people, and Kayla will have a good time, too."
"Okay. But we can't stay too late."
"You come and eat, then you can leave whenever you like."
"Okay," she said tentatively.
Polly smiled and left the office, but hadn't gotten all the way out when she heard Stephanie say to Jeff, "I'm never going to lose weight if you keep feeding me." Yes, Jeff was the perfect person to be in Stephanie's life right now. She just needed to know that she was okay, no matter what size she was. He'd do that easily. The poor girl needed to learn how to dress for her size and he'd take care of that, too, slowly but surely. Polly hesitated, waiting to hear Jeff's response.
"You're a beautiful girl, Stephanie Armstrong and don't you forget it. However, I suspect that eating regular healthy meals will be better for both you and Kayla. You can't tell me that you weren't living off hot dogs and other things from the convenience store."
"I know. You're right. Thanks."
Polly nodded and smiled to herself. Sometimes she was more fortunate than smart when it came to the people who had dropped into her life.
~~~
"That was too much food," Henry said, leaning back in his chair and draping his arm across Polly's.
"Sylvie is amazing."
"I still can't believe she did that with no notice," Evelyn said. "When I lived next door to her, she used to bring food over sometimes, usually sweet treats. She's really come into herself, hasn't she?"
Polly nodded. Between her kitchen and the Sycamore House kitchen, they'd come up with enough ingredients to make up three pans of lasagna. Sylvie had made a pan of incredible vegetable lasagna using frozen slices of eggplant from Eliseo's garden last fall. Polly had the hamburger and ricotta to make a regular pan and they'd come up with a chicken lasagna with white sauce. Sylvie had cranked out sourdough rolls with garlic butter and a quick run to the grocery store gave them ingredients for a tossed salad. Rachel and Sylvie's baking experiments provided sweet treats and everyone was enjoying dinner together.
Jason and Eliseo had pulled together two of the circular tables, making it possible for the entire group to eat together.
"Eliseo asked me to join him for a ride tomorrow morning," Helen said across the table to Polly. "Those are some mighty fine horses you have down there. They won't be intimidated by my size... not a one of them. However, those purty little donkeys saw me comin' and scampered out to the field."
"They did?"
Helen laughed. "No, they were as friendly as could be. Even when they discovered I wasn't carrying treats." She leaned forward to catch Stephanie's eye. "Your Kayla here should ask Eliseo for riding lessons. She's a natural around those animals. Just like her friend, Rebecca." Helen looked pointedly at Andrew. "You like to act as if you're scared of those big horses, but I think that's all made up." She spoke in a stage whisper. "He just doesn't want to show up his big brother."
"I don't like Nan," Andrew said. "She does scare me."
Jason said, "You just need to spend more time with her. She's not scary."
Polly was so thankful that Jason had finally settled in at school. He had gotten involved with FFA and had also found a kindred spirit in the school's shop teacher. She was waiting for him to find a girlfriend. He had rid himself of the gang he'd started the school year with and become more comfortable in his own skin. Now he was back to the loving boy she knew so well. He laughed easily and oh my goodness, he was turning into a good looking young man. He continued to fill out, but it was all muscle from working at the barn. Sylvie tried to keep his hair cut short, but those dark waves grew out before she could manage it. Polly had to admit it, if she was in high school, every time he brushed the hair back from his face, she'd have swooned. What in the world were the girls thinking? Why weren't they throwing themselves at him?
Jessie had commanded everyone's attention when she walked in the front door. She walked with the swagger of a pregnant woman who was getting tired of it and dropped into the first chair that was pulled out for her. Jeff had come in with Stephanie, taken in the room and sat so that Stephanie would be beside Jessie. He'd engaged the girls in conversation until they were talking together about babies and little girls, apartments and Stephanie's job at Sycamore House. There. That was a friendship ignited. The two would be good for each other. At least for a while.
Polly smiled to herself. Those two had both come from difficult situations. She hoped they would support each other.
Rebecca bounced around the room - spending most of her time making sure that her mother was comfortable and had everything she needed. It didn't matter that Evelyn was nearby, Rebecca insisted on being the one who did the work. Helen Oswald had taken time to sit beside Sarah, talking to her about her daughter and what a wonderfully talented girl Rebecca was.
"You're just watching it all happen, aren't you?" Henry asked Polly. He'd sat up so he could lean in and speak quietly in her ear.
"It's pretty cool, isn't it?"
"What about those two?" he nodded toward Rachel and Billy.
"Lydia talked to her today. I think she'll give him a break. She just needs to let him figure this out on his own."
"No, I meant the other two."
"Doug and Billy?"
"Yes."
"What do you mean?"
"Watch Doug."
Polly did and didn't see anything. "I don't know what you mean."
"He knows something is up. Something is going to change. He's so antsy, he can't stand it."
"How do you see that?"
"I'm just that good."
"So I didn't ask," she said, lowering her voice. "What happened with that Cody kid?"
"I fired him."
"He didn't ask why?"
"Of course he did. He was all innocent about it. Like he doesn't know she lives in my house!"
Polly put her hand on his knee to bring him back down. "What did you say?"
"I told him that if he ever went near her again, I would know. That I know everything and have people watching her all the time." He chuckled at his lie. "I told him that she's part of my family and he crossed the line. Then I told him that I was going to register a complaint with the police department so they'd have a record of his behavior."
"You can't do that. Jessie has to."
Henry scowled at her. "I know that. You know that. Dimwit doesn't know that."
"Oh," she chuckled. "I get it."
"I grabbed his shirt and pushed him up against a cabinet and told him that if he ever came near her or anyone else in this town with a raised fist, I would make sure that he spent the rest of his life fighting off unwanted attention from big burly men in Ana
mosa. That scared him. But, the worst thing I did?" He waited for her to pay attention.
"What's that?"
"I made him sit there while I telephoned his mother and told her what he'd done."
"You didn't!" Polly looked up, worried that people had heard her. They were busy with their own conversations."
"Yes I did. Right there in front of him. I told her that I was firing him because he'd hurt Jessie and that I was keeping an eye on him and he'd better not hurt anyone else. And then I gave her Jessie's therapist's name and told her that he needed counseling because this was a terrible way to start a life."
Polly's mouth dropped open and she stared at her husband. "I have no words."
"Neither did she. At first she was angry and defensive, but she knows me and I suspect she knows her son. When I hung up, young Cody wasn't much more than a stain in the chair. I told him I'd send his final check and that this was a wakeup call. He'd best figure it out. He left. I felt better."
"I love you," she said to him.
"You would have done the same thing."
"I don't know that I would have thought to call his mother. That was a nice touch."
"I wanted to punch his arrogant face." Henry's teeth were gritted. "Then I wanted to push him into the sander. I made all sorts of horrible plans for that boy today, but I kinda figured you might not want to have Aaron call you to hire a lawyer for me."
"Thank you," she said. "I appreciate that. Still... the mom? Good job."
Helen stood up with her plate. "It's been nice to meet y'all, but I've had a busy day. What say we help our wonderful hostesses and clean up so they don't have to."
Polly, Sylvie and Rachel were waved back to their seats as the others quickly cleared the tables. Finally Sylvie could stand it no longer. "They don't know how to run the dishwasher," she said. "At least let me be the boss in my kitchen."
Rebecca and Evelyn took an exhausted Sarah Heater back to her room, but not before she grabbed Polly's hand. "This was a wonderful evening. Thanks for letting me be part of it."
Polly hugged her again. "I'm glad you were here. You know she will always be loved by tons of people, don't you?"
"That's what I saw tonight. Thank you."
"Get some rest. It sounds like you're going to help me in the office next week when Jeff and Stephanie leave town."
"I'm looking forward to it. Thanks again."
The mood in the kitchen had erupted into play and fun. Sylvie didn't stop the water fight that broke out, she simply tossed towels at them from her perch on the counter top. Stephanie stood apart, trying to understand what was happening in front of her until Doug mistakenly threw an entire pitcher of water down her front. She looked at him in shock and the look on his face was priceless.
"I'm sorry!" he exclaimed. "I was aiming for Polly, but I had to move to miss Andrew. I'm so sorry." He grabbed up one of the towels and started patting at her chest. In a split second, he started to laugh hysterically and handed her the towel. "Oh god, I'm so sorry." He turned to Polly. "Help me out here, will you?"
"Me?" she asked. "You were aiming for me. This is your doing."
"But I barely know her. What a first impression. Help me!"
Stephanie's shock was quickly replaced with laughter as she tried to blot up the water. The adults in the room had stopped for just a moment to see how she would respond to Doug, but when she relaxed, so did everyone and they went back to what they were doing.
The kitchen was finally clean and Sylvie said, "I think it's time that my boys get home. There is still school tomorrow and it's getting late."
"We should go too," Stephanie said to Kayla. "Thank you for inviting us. This was fun." She stopped by the stool Jessie was sitting on. "We should do lunch sometime."
"That sounds great."
Sycamore House cleared out, Helen was shown to her room and Polly asked Rebecca and Jessie to send the dogs down for one last trip outside before bedtime. She and Henry stood in the back yard as Han and Obiwan wandered, sniffing and romping in the last bits of the melting snow.
"That was a good evening," he said, pulling her close for warmth.
"I always say we should do it more often, but then we get busy and it never happens."
"Maybe spontaneity is what makes it work."
"You really are perfect, you know that?"
"I'm what?"
"Everyone tells me you're perfect. Maybe too perfect."
Henry wrinkled his nose and stuck his tongue out at her. "Does that help?"
"Yes. Could you keep it like that forever, please?"
CHAPTER TWENTY
"I've got it!" Sal said, rushing into Polly's office.
"Where'd you come from?" Polly asked, bewildered.
Sal slapped a piece of paper down on her desk. "I've got it!"
"You've got what."
"The name for the coffee shop. Sweet Beans. It's perfect!"
"Okay, Sweet Beans. That sounds great."
"No, it's not just great, it's perfect."
"Tell me why it's perfect."
"Because that's what I called my dachshund when I was young. Some friends of his bred them and he wanted me to experience the entire journey. He and Mom thought it would be a good way for me to learn how to take care of someone other than myself. So, the day after she was born, he took me over to the house and I saw this itty bitty baby dachshund and I told Dad she looked like a bean. That was her name. She was always Sweet Bean after that. But, beans ... coffee. You know. And sweet works perfectly for all of the pastries Sylvie is going to bake."
"Then it's perfect. I agree." Polly was glad to see her friend excited about this. "Now, what do you want the decor to look like? Beans or dachshunds."
Sal finally took a breath and sat down. "So you're fine with the name?"
"Of course I am. It's a great name and the story is even better. Whatever happened to her?"
"She got diabetes and died the week before I graduated from high school."
"That's horrible."
"It was pretty awful. I'd been taking care of her for four years - giving her insulin shots every day. We got really close. Finally it just took her over and we couldn't keep up. I sat beside her all night long and Dad told me in the morning that it was time to let her go."
"How did you even get through the rest of that week?"
"I just existed."
"You never talked about this and you haven't had a dog since I've known you."
Sal shook her head. "I just couldn't. But Mark says I should get a dog to keep me company when I'm writing."
"You really should. Would you get another dachshund?"
"Maybe," Sal smiled weakly at Polly. "I do miss her."
"What are you waiting for? We should go to the shelter and see what they have."
Sal chuckled and took out her phone, swiped it open and after another couple of swipes, showed Polly a picture.
"Who's that?"
"They have three dachshunds." She swiped through the pictures from a red to a black and tan, to a cream colored long-hair. "I've been watching for the last couple of weeks. Those first two just showed up yesterday."
Polly snatched her coat from the back of her chair. "Let's go now."
"No. Not now. You have work to do and I'm in the middle of an article. I just had to get out of the house to tell you my idea."
"Come on. You need one of those babies. Today."
Sal gestured for Polly to sit back down. "Let me talk to Mark about it again. Not right now."
Polly dropped back into her chair. "You don't want to let the right one get away, you know."
"I figure that whoever is there when I'm ready is who I'm supposed to have in my life. It will work out."
"Okay. So back to decor at the coffee shop. What are you thinking?"
"I want it soft and warm, not cold and warehousey. People should be able to talk to each other without sound echoing through the room. Soft, comfortable chairs in corners and at side tables holding lamp
s and maybe piles of books. Wouldn't it be awesome to have a big bookshelf along one of the walls filled with things that people can read? If they take a book home, no big deal. Or maybe other people would bring in some of their old books."
"Who's going to manage that?"
"I don't know. But let's put a bookshelf on the inside wall anyway. We'll figure out the details later. I want rustic dark wood. Not polished and probably on the darker side."
Polly opened her browser and did a search. "What about this?"
"That's it! It's not like red mahogany or cherry. I don't want those. What is that?"
"It's called knotty alder and it can be a dark stain. It's what our front door is made of."
"Perfect. I love it. And I want oddly shaped tables. Not those four by four pre-made things that are in every restaurant. And do you think that the chairs can all be different?"
"Sure. We might have to hit some thrift stores and antique shops."
"You have a truck. We could take Joss and go shopping some Saturday."
Polly just smiled. Now that Sal had found her name, she was jumping on board with the project. "What about on the walls and maybe in the shelves of the bookcases?" she asked.
"You're going to think I'm weird."
"That's just putting words in my mouth. Go ahead, what are you thinking?"
"Since it's named after my dog, what if we used old pictures and statues of animals. And what if we put a computer screen on one wall that scrolled through adoption pets from the shelter."
"That could work," Polly was taking notes as fast as she could. "Dogs playing poker?"
"My mother would just die. She'd think those type of things were so déclassé."
"So no?"
"So, absolutely yes! I want the kitschiest things we can find and I want to tuck them into nooks and crannies all over the place so that when people look up from their work or their coffee, they see silly and interesting pieces."
"You know pieces like that will get stolen."
Sal waved her off. "This is Iowa. No one would ever do that out here, would they?"
"In a heartbeat."
"I'm not going to worry about it. I'm just going to have to trust. Besides, it isn't like I'm going to have hundreds of people in and out of there during the day."
Pages of the Past (Bellingwood Book 9) Page 20