“So, tell me. Respectful acknowledgement of Willie’s death aside, how’d it go?” Jane figured that there was no need for small talk after what Sherwood had been through. She wasn’t much on wasting time, anyhow.
“Well, I...uh,” Sherwood started, then stopped. She was beginning to sound like Smith did around Mrs. Storrey—off balance. “I don’t know where to start. I think everyone had a good time—the itinerary was well planned. Willie dying like that was terrible, but I think his death changed some outlooks on life. My group is all on a mission now, to reach out to all the ‘Willies’ of the world.”
Jane smiled, appreciating the fact that Sherwood had taken ownership, calling them her group.
Sherwood’s brain jumped back to Freddy. She couldn’t stop thinking about him. Whether or not she got the job, at least she’d discovered a wonderful man. One who’d been there all along, even though she’d never stopped to appreciate him. In that moment, she realized that it was the same as the Great Wings residents having a terrific man like Willie for their neighbor, but not appreciating him. Sherwood decided, just as she knew her residents had, to not take anything for granted anymore. To look around, and appreciate what was right in front of her. Jane was watching her, waiting.
“Okay, I think your residents can be unreasonable and grumpy and I think they hated me at first,” Sherwood blurted. “But they’re also fun-loving and adventurous, and can be quite funny. I’ve gotten to know many of them pretty well. And I think I did a great job for you, considering that it was my first bus trip.” Sherwood’s lashes dropped. “Well, except for leaving two people behind. But other than that.”
“Sherwood,” Jane said, catching her eyes. “You have done a good job. Especially handling things so well after Willie died. That couldn’t have been easy.”
“Thank you. And, no it wasn’t easy. But we all handled it, as a group actually, in what turned out to be a very positive way. Honestly, I probably wouldn’t have been able to deal with things so well if it hadn’t been for the support of the group. And, Freddy.” Freddy. The word came out dreamily.
“Freddy?”
“The bus driver. Well, see. We went to school together, and I didn’t know it until the motorcoach pulled up, but his family business is a travel agency and tour company. And that’s who Great Wings booked with – his company I mean – but the scheduled driver fell off his roof and broke a leg or something so Freddy had to fill in.”
“Uh huh.” Jane said prompting, wanting to know more without prying.
“Well, that’s it in a nutshell. I’m hopeful that you are still considering me for the job on a permanent basis. I think I’d be very good with your residents, given the chance.”
A loud rapping on the door interrupted her. It was the sound of a putter striking wood.
“Gus,” the two women said in unison as they looked at each other. Before Sherwood could reach the door to open it, Gus ambled in, behind the putter. He was followed by Maggie, Ruth, Gretta, Mabel, Burt, Ethyl, Smith, and Mrs. Storrey. The group crowded Jane’s otherwise spacious office.
“Hello everyone.” Jane’s eyebrows shot up when she noticed that Smith and Mrs. Storrey were leaning against the wall, holding hands. Holding hands? The two were notorious for their dislike of each other.
“Afternoon, Jane,” Gus said, leaning down to prop the putter against her desk. It was then that she noticed the small gold stud in his fleshy earlobe. She shot a questioning look at Sherwood.
Grinning, Sherwood shrugged a shoulder.
“Well, for pete’s sake,” Gus complained when the putter fell over. Maggie picked it up for him, then carefully re-positioned it against the desk. He gave her a loud slap on her bottom in thanks.
Gus was patting Maggie’s bottom? Jane Sullivan became more incredulous by the moment. Her lower jaw literally fell open in shock. Apparently it had been a more eventful week than she’d been aware of. She’d never in a million years guessed that Smith and Mrs. Storrey would even give each other the time of day, and that Gus would allow someone to touch his beloved putter. And, the earring. That had her completely floored.
“We just thought we’d stop in to say a few words about the new kid you hired to be our activities director,” Burt said. “She’s not as bad as we thought she’d be. So, we’ve decided we’ll keep her,” he told Jane, as if discussing an abandoned mixed breed mutt.
“Blew out my damn hearing aid with that bus’s microphone, for pete’s sake. But not a bad job,” Gus added and the unruly mustache twitched. Coming from him, the comment was a raving compliment.
“Yeah,” Ethyl added. “She did pretty good keeping up with us and all that.”
“Except for leaving me and Gretta behind,” Mabel added stupidly, trying to be helpful. The others shot her a collective look that silenced her.
“Yes, except for that,” Ethyl agreed. “But anyone new at group traveling could’ve made that mistake. Head counts aren’t always easy,” the traveling expert explained, attempting damage control.
“So, anyway,” Smith started. “Like Burt said, we’ll keep her. Sylvia and I have already been looking into some other places that we can all go for another group trip.”
Sylvia and I? The Great Wings director’s jaw dropped another fraction of an inch. It felt like she hadn’t blinked since their arrival in her office. Her eyes were stinging from drying out.
“That’s right,” Ruth added, just to be saying something. She loved belonging to the group.
“Shoot!” Gretta fiddled with her smartphone. “I think I accidentally erased the pictures of my son and grandkid.”
Jane cocked her head like a dog. Gretta had a son?
“Oh, by the way,” Mrs. Storrey said casually, as though she were discussing the weather or something as mundane. “Smith will be moving into my unit this week. Can you make arrangements to lease his unit for us?”
Their director nodded, her head feeling wobbly.
“Well, then,” Smith said, ending the sudden visit. “So, that’s all, Jane. Just wanted to let you know that Sherwood is A-okay with us.” He waved a hand in the girl’s direction. “And that boyfriend of hers isn’t too bad, either.”
“The bus driver,” Mrs. Storrey clarified, reaching to unbutton the top button of Smith’s shirt collar. She liked to see a little chest hair. “We figure he’ll be hanging out around here, now that they’ve hooked up and all. But we like him. He’s a very polite young man.”
The group ambled out, just as suddenly as they’d ambled in.
Jane managed to find her voice and directed it at Sherwood.
“Who were all those people, and what have you done with my residents?”
Sherwood grinned. “I guess you could say our week together has resulted in a few…changes.”
“A few changes? Good Lord! What happened down there?”
“Honestly, Mrs. Sullivan,” Sherwood responded calmly. “I think Cupid must have been on our bus. Plus, Willie reminded everyone that each day is precious. His death had more influence on this bus group than it would have had on the entire Great Wings community, if he had died right here. Like I said, they’re on a mission now. They’ve decided that there will be no more strangers at Great Wings. As for Mrs. Storrey, she’s ready to marry again and Smith has told her that longevity runs in his family, so he’ll be her last husband. Ruth has found her calling as the group’s official instigator. And, Gus finally has finally met his match in Maggie. I think they make quite a cute couple.”
“Uh huh.”
The office door opened again and Gus poked his head back in. “So is she hired or not, for pete’s sake? My back is starting to hurt from leaning over.” He’d been eavesdropping with the group on the other side of the door.
“Yes, she is.”
Sherwood realized she was holding her breath and sucked in some air through a wide smile.
“Good,” Smith said from behind Gus. “Because there’s a duck with fuzzy chicks stranded in the west swimming pool, a
nd there’s a driver out front trying to deliver a pinball machine for the recreation room. He needs a signature or something.”
Epilogue
Several Months Later
“I’m so glad I was persistent. I guess great things are worth waiting for. God, I love you,” Freddy told her.
It was a drizzly Saturday afternoon and they lay together on his sofa with limbs entwined. She was reading a new novel and he was watching an old James Bond movie. Her feet were bare beneath baggy jeans, and he rubbed them subconsciously. Sherwood thought it felt wonderful and didn’t want him to stop.
“I love you, too, Freddy. It still amazes me that we went to school together for four years, and I missed out on that.” Grinning, she lay the book down across her chest and eyed his lap. He always looked so sexy in the button down jeans.
“You love me only for my body?”
“Of course not,” she said indignantly. “But it sure is a nice fringe benefit.”
“Uh huh. Not to mention the fact that I can always drive your busload of Q-tips whenever you’re taking them on an outing.”
“Sure, that’s a plus. Jane especially appreciates the discounted rates I’m able to obtain for Great Wings. She thinks I’m an expert negotiator.”
“Does she know that you include unspeakable sexual acts as a bonus when you’re negotiating the rates?”
“Of course not. If I told her that, she might think I was coming on to the bus driver. And that would be totally unprofessional.”
“Right.” He pressed his fingertips into the arch of her left foot. She groaned with appreciation. “Good idea to keep some things secret from the boss,” Freddy added.
“But not this.” Sherwood waved her hand around in front of the floor lamp. When the diamond captured some light, it shone brilliantly. And she wanted to show it off to the world. She wanted to show Freddy off to the world.
“No, not that,” he answered, watching her flaunt the emerald cut diamond that he’d given her last night. “That, we can tell anyone and everyone about.”
“You think I should tell the Great Wingers first? Smith, Mrs. Storrey, and Rose are in the midst of planning our next bus excursion and I have to meet with them tomorrow. Surely, someone will notice this piece of aged coal on my finger.”
“Of course you should tell your residents first. In fact, I’ll bet there will be baby rumors floating around within a month. Probably sooner. Want to take me up on the bet?” His hands had moved to her opposite foot and were lightly rubbing each individual toe.
“Well… I think the rumors will probably be out within a week that we’re getting married because I’m pregnant. Oh, I know. Here goes. We just met for the first time during the Myrtle Beach trip, and being young and silly, I got sloshed and jumped your bones. Then, since I liked it a lot, I kept jumping your bones, until I got pregnant. And, you, being the polite gentleman, will to do the right thing and marry me. And of course, having the family business and all, you’re rich and didn’t spare any expense on the ring.”
“Absolutely! We won’t tell them that it’s really a cubic zirconia.”
Sherwood sat up. “What?”
“Just kidding, Sweetheart.”
“Mmmm,” she said, enjoying the fabulous foot rub and studying her new diamond. She loved the way it looked on her finger, and shot out blue-white reflections of light when she turned it just the right way. Even if it had been fake, she wouldn’t have minded. Her man was the real deal.
“Oh, I know,” he continued, getting caught up in the prediction. “Not only have we just met and I’ve gotten you knocked up, but the ultrasound shows that you’re having twins.”
“No, it was actually triplets! They just discovered a third heartbeat during my last doctor visit!” The two of them laughed together for several minutes, envisioning the seniors excitedly passing the word along about Sherwood and ‘the bus driver kid’.
“And,” Sherwood managed through almost uncontrollable laughing, “we’re naming the children Motorcoach, Diesel, Luxurina!”
“Or, how about Roadtrip, Cabana, and Sandy?”
“Oh, my we’re getting silly.” Sherwood’s laughter faded to giggles. “Can you do my calves now? They’re sore from the stair-stepper machine at the gym.”
Returning his attention to the James Bond movie, Freddy moved his hands to a well-defined calf muscle. He began massaging the leg and Sherwood made sounds of encouragement to keep him going.
“Mmmm, that hurts so good.”
“Speaking of your Great Wings group,” Freddy’s hands found her other leg, “where am I hauling them next?”
“Well, I was going to save this for next week. But since you asked, I just found out that they want to go to a happening spot for their next bus tour.”
“Happening, huh?”
“They think they want to live it up. They want, you know, uh… pizzazz.”
“Uh huh. So where am I taking you all next?”
“You really want to know?”
“Sure. Save me the surprise of hearing it from my father when the contract comes through with my name as the requested driver.” Freddy was continuing to learn the family tour and travel agency business, but only drove as a last resort. Unless he was specifically requested. The Great Wings seniors refused to be driven by anyone else.
“You know how to play Roulette? Craps? Black Jack?” she asked innocently.
“You’re kidding,” he said. “You’re taking a group to Vegas?”
“I hear they have some great shows. Dancing, singing. A lot of skin. Cheap all-you-can-eat buffets,” Sherwood said. “They love those. The all-you-can-eats, I mean. Probably the skin shows, too.”
Freddy mimicked pulling his hair out.
“It’ll be fun, Freddy. Do you realize we get to take vacations as a part of our job? Isn’t that great? I love my new job!” She wriggled her toes in a subtle attempt to draw his massaging hands back to her feet. It worked.
“Yeah, sure. It’s like being a chaperone for a bunch of hormone-driven high schoolers on a field trip. You’ve got to constantly keep an eye on them.”
“True,” she conceded. “But you have to admit, they’re much more entertaining than teenagers. And, it’s okay if they go off into the night by themselves for an evening of passion. Besides, not all of them are hormone-driven. A few are on Viagra, according to the grapevine.”
“Las Vegas,” he said. “Too long of a drive. But we can get a good group rate to fly in. I’ll have a chartered bus delivered to the airport.” A fly-coach was the way to go, but Freddy would happily drive her Q-Tips across the country and back if that’s what she wanted him to do. Ten times over.
“That would be great.” She flashed a dazzling smile at him, wondering if she’d have to do head counts at the airport, too.
“I love you,” he said. “The Great Wingers love you. Even Jane is crazy about you.”
“Yeah, well. She did hire me.”
“And, to think it all started as a trial job offer,” Freddy said. “Not to mention that you’d never worked with seniors before in your life.”
“Yup! I got the job.” And, I got the guy, too, she though smugly. I got it all.
Freddy nodded.
“But you know what’s even better than that?” Sherwood said. “That I’m together with you, Freddy. What on earth was I waiting for? You were right in front of me all that time during college!”
He remained silent because he had nothing to add. He’d often wondered what she had been waiting for, too. On the other hand, it had all worked out. He began rubbing her right foot, which had somehow been proffered in place of the left one. Had he not been paying attention, he never would have noticed that she’d switched feet. Sherwood could be tricky that way. He couldn’t wait to marry her. He’d gotten up enough nerve to ask her and present the ring, but they’d not yet set a date. All he knew is that he wanted it to be soon. Maybe he’d talk her into getting married in Las Vegas.
“So,” he s
aid grinning at her. She was beautiful. “Vegas, is it? You any good at Black Jack?”
“Yup. To both.”
“You’ll have to give them a strict two bag limit on luggage. And, no boxes tied with string or pet carriers allowed in lieu of a suitcase.”
“Already thought of that.”
“No animals allowed. Not even small, slow- moving crustaceans.”
“I’ll put it in the memo,” she said seriously.
Freddy pulled her to him and found her mouth for a long kiss, then gave her a brilliant smile. “What happens in Vegas probably won’t stay in Vegas.”
“Not when it comes to my Great Wingers!”
*** *** ***
Simple Things
It’s the simple things...
a touch, a laugh, a smile
fond memories to file
the brilliance of a purple flower
the heat from a steamy shower
spicy bites to devour
a handwritten note
with a funny quote
a wind-caught sail
a shell so frail
an old folk tale
a shaded park bench waiting
inviting, for the taking
a low-slung moon
a jazzy tune
a white sand dune
a sunny day to spend
lots of laughs with a friend
It’s the simple things
each day brings
that pull heart strings.
-- T. Lynn Ocean
Other Books by T. Lynn Ocean
Choosing Charleston
Carolina Booty
Southern Fatality (A Jersey Barnes thriller)
Mayhem in Myrtle Beach Page 19