“Don’t worry. When I’m this tired, noise doesn’t bother me.”
“Okay.” Daphne reached for the doorknob.
Daphne found Sabrina still hard at work in the kitchen. “Hey, you’ve really made a dent in here.” She pointed to the porcelain sink. “Wow, it’s actually white.” Daphne ran her finger over the yellow laminate countertop. “And you could even eat off of here now.”
“Yes, but I think this is more than just an afternoon project.” Sabrina looked at the stove clock. “How late do you want to work?”
“How about until dinnertime? Then I’ll treat you and Mabel to takeout at my house.”
“Sounds like a deal.”
Daphne returned to Mabel’s room and frowned at the nasty-looking walls. Perhaps this space had been safer before the boxes were removed. She looked down at the matted brown carpet, wondering what might be under it. She gave a corner a tug and was surprised to see that it popped right up and underneath it was a hardwood floor. Because the carpet hadn’t been properly installed, it came up easily. And since the only piece of furniture in the room was the twin bed, she soon had both it and the carpet removed from the small room.
She was just dragging the rolled-up carpet out the front door, when Tom’s white van pulled up. “Need a hand?” He hurried over to help her pull it down the porch and onto the overgrown lawn.
“Thank you! And thank you for coming.”
Soon she was showing him the room, and before long the two of them were brushing some cleaning compound onto the wall and scrubbing it off with rags. “Now, I’ll just slap some Kilz on here,” Tom told her. “You go fetch your little friend so she can tell me what colors she likes.”
“Sure. We’ll be right back.”
She found Mabel with Sabrina in the kitchen. “Tom wants to know what color you’d like for your room,” Daphne told Mabel.
“What color?” Mabel looked confused.
“For the walls.”
“Oh.” Mabel twisted her mouth to one side. “Can he do purple?”
“I don’t know.” Daphne suppressed the urge to laugh. “Why don’t we go talk to him.”
After Daphne introduced Mabel to Tom, Mabel attempted to explain the color she wanted, but unable to make him understand, she told him she’d be right back. When she returned she had the nightgown they’d purchased at Walmart in hand. “I want this color.”
“Lavender,” Daphne proclaimed. “That would look very nice.”
Tom opened a can of paint and Mabel frowned, pointing out that it was white. “The same color the walls are now.”
“Yes, but that’s because I haven’t done my magic yet,” Tom told her with a twinkle in his eye.
“You do magic?” Her brown eyes grew wide.
Tom pulled a plastic bottle from a group of similar-looking bottles and squirted something dark into the white paint. Then he reached for another and gave it a generous squirt too. “Now the magic begins.” He stirred it with a paint stick.
“It’s purple!” Mabel exclaimed. “You did it. Magic!”
“Uh-huh.” He nodded as he reached for a brush and dipped it into the lavender paint. “Let’s see how it looks on the wall.” He brushed a large square. “What do you think?”
“It’s beautiful!” she cried out.
Now he handed her the paintbrush. “Want to help?”
Her eyes grew even wider now. “Really?”
“Yep.” He poured some paint into a smaller container, then directed her to a windowless wall where he’d already put a drop cloth over the floor. “Go for it.” He nodded to Daphne. “Don’t worry, it’s a very safe paint. No fumes.”
“You are like the Superman of painters, aren’t you?” Daphne teased him.
“It’s fun to be a hero sometimes,” he confessed as he dipped a roller into the paint and rolled it on the wall.
“Unless you need my help, I’ll go work on something else,” she told him.
“We’re good. Me and my helper got it under control.”
When Daphne had removed the twin bed, she’d realized what bad shape the sheets and blankets were in, and upon searching the linen cabinet in the hall bath, she discovered more of the same. Suddenly she remembered her aunt’s well-stocked linen closet and hurried down to gather some things from home.
When she returned with a laundry basket loaded with some sheets and blankets and towels, she spent some time cleaning the hall bath since this was the one Mabel used. She took all the raggedy linens from the narrow cabinet, as well as the filthy towels hanging on the towel racks, which looked as if they hadn’t been changed in months, and tossed them all into a large plastic trash bag. Then she did some quick scrubbing of the fixtures, hung up fresh towels, and put the rest of the linens in the linen cabinet.
She was just about to check on Sabrina but stopped to look at the painting progress. “My goodness. You’re more than half done.”
“He even painted inside the closet,” Mabel told her. “I have a purple closet!”
“It looks so bright and cheerful in here. Very pretty.” Daphne knew just what this room needed and where to find it.
It was a little tricky putting the small white dresser into the back of the Corvette, but by putting the top down, she was able to set it in upright. She also put in a pastel-colored braided rug as well as a pink-and-white gingham comforter that had been Daphne’s when she was a girl. She tossed in a couple of pillows as well as a set of white eyelet curtains that looked about the right size. She also put in several framed prints of flowers to hang on the wall and a small white table lamp. It wasn’t a lot to outfit a room, and it left one of the spare rooms looking a little sparse, but it would help to make Mabel’s room feel like a real bedroom.
Tom was completely done with the room shortly after five o’clock. “It’ll take a couple hours for the paint to completely dry,” he explained as he was carrying his tools out to his van. “But Mabel will be fine sleeping in here tonight.”
“I don’t even know how to thank you. But please send me your bill.”
“This one is on the house. It’s not every day I get to help someone in a situation like this.” He smiled. “I admire you for doing what you’re doing for this child, Daphne. I’m thankful I could be of help.”
“God bless you, Tom!” she said happily.
“Oh yes, he has.” He tipped his head. “See ya ’round.”
By six o’clock, while Mabel and Sabrina fixed something for Vera to eat for dinner, Daphne started putting Mabel’s bedroom together. “It’s going to be a surprise,” she told them. “So no peeking until I’m done.”
“How about if I call and order up our dinner?” Sabrina suggested. “Then we can all meet back at your house—around seven, you think?”
“Perfect.” Daphne reached for her purse. “Here’s my card.”
“Mabel is voting for pizza,” Sabrina said. “I’m inclined to agree. As hard as we’ve all worked today, I think we could use the extra carbs.”
Daphne laughed. “You’re right. See you around seven.”
While they were gone, Daphne put the bed into place, careful not to bump the freshly painted wall. She set it up near the window, which Tom must’ve washed because it was now transparent. Next she used some rags as sliders to move the white dresser against the wall near enough to the bed to work as a bedside table. On it, she placed the pretty white lamp as well as a fairy-tale book she’d nabbed on her way out of the house.
She made up the bed, topping it with the pink-and-white comforter and the two pastel patchwork throw pillows. Then she laid out the braided rug. Perfect! Finally she pulled out the tools she’d brought over and hung up the three prints as well as the eyelet curtains. And then satisfied that the closet paint was dry enough, she put in a new closet rod, low enough that Mabel could reach it.
She looked around wi
th satisfaction. It was almost done. All she needed to do now was to haul in all the bags of clothes and shoes and things and put them all away. But it was fun work hanging the clothes on the clean white hangers, filling the dresser with socks and underwear and pajamas. Daphne couldn’t wait to see Mabel’s reaction to her new room. Daphne even laid out the lavender nightgown on the bed, placing the bunny slippers on the rug beneath. She felt just like Cinderella’s fairy godmother as she turned on the little white lamp. It was all perfectly lovely.
“Oh my!”
Daphne turned around to see Vera looking into the room. Still wearing her faded bathrobe, her eyes were opened wide—as if she was in shock.
“What do you think?”
Vera just stared, holding on to the door frame as if for support.
“I hope it’s okay,” Daphne said nervously. “You did say it was all right, but I let Mabel pick out the color.”
Vera’s hand went over her mouth and she started shaking as if she was about to fall. And then she began to cry.
“Oh, Vera.” Daphne ran over to help. “I’m sorry. Did I go too far? Is it too much? I didn’t mean to overstep my—”
“No, no.” Vera shook her head. “It’s fine. It really is fine. I’m just so—so shocked. I never expected anything like this. How could you do this? So quickly?”
“I had help.” Daphne put an arm around her, trying to support the trembling woman.
“But I—I don’t know what to say—” Vera let out a choked sob. “I feel so—so guilty. This is what I should’ve done for her and I couldn’t—”
“It’s okay. We wanted to help. That’s what neighbors do.”
“But . . . I . . . don’t know how to thank you.”
“You thanked us by allowing us into your lives, by letting us help,” Daphne told her.
“But it’s too much. I never expected . . .”
“I know. But let’s get you back to your room now. I can tell you’ve worn yourself out.” Daphne slowly walked Vera back to her bedroom. “I really enjoyed doing this. I honestly can’t remember when I’ve had this much fun. I mean, sure, it took some elbow grease too. But the end results were so satisfying. I’d gladly do it all over again if I needed to.”
“I . . . I had no idea people could be so kind.”
“Well, we all enjoyed helping you, Vera. And Mabel is a dear little girl. We loved helping her too. Thanks for letting us.” She eased Vera down onto her bed. “Is there anything else I can get for you?” She glanced at the food tray, seeing that it was partially eaten.
“No, I am fine. Thank you.”
“If you don’t mind, Mabel is joining my friend Sabrina and me for dinner. Then we’ll bring her back here for the big reveal.”
“Reveal?” Vera’s eyes lit up. “Like on those home-improvement shows?”
Daphne laughed. “Yes. Just like that.”
“Will you let me know when you get back?” Vera asked hopefully. “I’d like to see her reaction.”
“Absolutely.”
By the time Daphne got home, the pizza was just arriving. Sabrina was just finishing up making a green salad to go with it. The three of them, still scruffy and dirty from their hard work, sat at the kitchen table and ate.
“I’ve been getting better acquainted with Mabel,” Sabrina told Daphne. “Did you know she is a very good singer?”
“No, I did not.” Daphne smiled. “Maybe after dinner she’ll sing for us.”
“And she wants to take ballet lessons,” Sabrina said.
“Really?” Daphne was a little surprised that Mabel knew about such things.
But then Mabel described a cartoon where all the mice were ballerinas and went to dance school together. “I want to be like them.”
It was nearly eight when they finished cleaning up the dinner things, and Daphne could see Mabel was tired. In fact, she was sure they were all tired. “Are you ready to see your new bedroom?”
“Yes!” Mabel was on her feet.
“Can I come see it too?” Sabrina asked.
“Yes,” Mabel said happily. “Come with us.”
So they all walked down to the little blue house and Mabel led the way to her bedroom. “Wait,” Daphne said before she opened the door. “I promised your grandma she could see the big reveal.”
Mabel looked confused.
“You know,” Sabrina said. “When you see your room for the first time.”
“I’ll get Grandma.”
Daphne introduced Vera to Sabrina and then they were all standing outside the door, waiting for Mabel to open it.
“Oh my goodness,” Sabrina said as they followed Mabel inside. “It’s perfectly lovely.”
“My room!” Mabel danced around, taking time to examine every single thing, even pulling open the dresser drawers. “My very own room!”
Vera looked happy as she thanked Daphne again, then excused herself.
“It’s so beautiful.” Mabel ran her hand over the comforter.
“Beautiful and clean,” Daphne pointed out. “But you’re still a little grungy from all the housework. I think you should take a nice bath and get yourself all cleaned up to spend the first night in your lovely new room.”
“And wash that hair,” Sabrina told Mabel in a slightly teasing way. “Any self-respecting ballerina would want to go to bed with nice clean hair.”
“If you want I’ll stick around and help you with your hair,” Daphne told Mabel. “It looks like it’s pretty tangled up.”
“And I will bid you adieu,” Sabrina said.
“Huh?” Mabel frowned.
“That’s good-bye in French,” Daphne explained.
“Oh.” Mabel nodded. “A-do to you too.”
It took about an hour to get Mabel thoroughly cleaned and her hair detangled and dried, but eventually she was wearing her lavender nightgown and bunny slippers and ready to get into bed. “Can I read this now?” She picked up the fairy-tale book.
“Maybe not tonight. I’m sure you must be really tired.”
“Okay.” Mabel pulled back the covers and jumped into bed.
“Do you want me to wait while you say your prayers?” Daphne asked.
“Prayers?”
“Do you say prayers before you go to bed?”
Mabel shook her head. “I don’t know how.”
“Well, maybe we can do it together.” Daphne smiled. “You just close your eyes and imagine that God is right here with you—because really he is. Then you tell him thank you for whatever comes to mind and you ask him to bless the ones you love. Or you could ask him to help your grandma get better. Just whatever it is that comes to mind.”
“Okay.” Mabel got a thoughtful look. “How do you start it?”
“I usually start by saying ‘Dear God,’” Daphne told her. “Kind of like writing a letter. But it probably doesn’t matter how you begin, as long as you begin. And it’s good to tell God thanks. If you’re especially thankful for anything, God likes to hear about it.”
Mabel closed her eyes. “Dear God. Thank you . . . for my new room. It’s really cool. I really, really love it.” She twisted her mouth to one side like she was thinking hard. “God, I really, really want to thank you for Aunt Daphne. She’s really, really great. And I love her a lot. I’m so glad that I have an aunt now. And thanks for Sabrina too. I’m glad she’s my friend now.” Mabel opened her eyes. “What else do I say?”
“Anything you want to say. God’s listening.”
“Can God help Grandma to get better?”
“God can do anything, Mabel.”
She closed her eyes tightly. “Please, God, make it so my grandma won’t be sick anymore.” She looked expectantly at Daphne. “Should I say anything else?”
“If you’re finished praying, you can say ‘Amen.’ It’s kind of like saying good-b
ye to God—or like agreeing with him about what you just said.”
“Amen,” Mabel proclaimed. Now she looked at Daphne with worried brown eyes. “Was God really listening?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Will God make Grandma better?”
“I hope so.” Daphne pushed the freshly washed hair away from Mabel’s forehead. “But God is God. He can do what he wants. But I’ll be praying for your grandma too.”
Mabel snuggled down deeper into bed. “Do you go to church?” she asked sleepily.
“As a matter of fact, I do go to church.” Daphne nodded as she pulled the quilt up around Mabel’s chin. “Would you ever want to come with me?”
“Yes!”
“All right, then. You ask your grandma about it in the morning. If she says you can go, call me and let me know. Church starts at ten thirty, but Sabrina and I go earlier than that.”
“Okay!”
Daphne leaned down and kissed Mabel’s forehead—just the same way her Aunt Dee used to kiss her at bedtime. “Good night.” She clicked off the light. “Sleep tight—don’t let the bed bugs bite.”
Mabel giggled. “There aren’t any bugs in here.”
“No, there certainly aren’t. See you tomorrow, Mabel.”
“Uh-huh,” Mabel murmured drowsily.
As Daphne tiptoed out of the room and out of the house, she felt exhausted—thoroughly but wonderfully exhausted. With no regrets. What a perfect way to spend her Saturday! As she walked home in the moonlight, she thought about Aunt Dee. It was too bad her aunt’s will didn’t have some other options in it. Like instead of insisting that Daphne find herself a husband, why couldn’t her aunt have settled for Daphne finding herself a needy little girl to help out? Didn’t that count for anything? Maybe she’d call Jake and ask him about it. Not that he could change anything. But wouldn’t it be wonderful if he could?
Chapter 21
On Sunday morning, Sabrina brought blueberry muffins over to Daphne’s house around nine. They were just having them with coffee when Mabel showed up. Dressed neatly in the red plaid dress she’d fallen in love with the previous day, Mabel proudly announced that her grandma said she could go to church. “Grandma told me that she used to go to church too. A long time ago when she was a little girl.”
Dating, Dining, and Desperation (A Dear Daphne Novel) Page 19