Waiting for a View

by Debby Mayne

  “It won’t hurt all that bad. Do you have any gloves?”

  “Not in the shop.”

  “If you don’t want him complaining all night, you better stop him now. Give him those pellets I brought.”

  “I left them at home.”

  Andy made a throaty sound of annoyance. “Shoulda brought ’em with you. Do you have any crackers or cereal?”

  Sherry glanced over at her stash of snacks. “I have peanut-butter crackers.”

  “I suppose that’ll have to do, but don’t give him much of that either.”

  After she got off the phone, she looked for something long and skinny to stick between the cage wires so she could roll the carrot closer to the door. The only thing she could find was a pencil.

  “Sorry, Murray, but your dad says you can’t have anymore candy.”

  “Murray wants candy.” She waited for his squawk, but it didn’t happen. Instead, he hopped closer to the cage door, stopped, and stared right back at her. “Murray wants candy.”

  Sherry decided to distract Murray by slipping a cracker into the other side of the cage so she could remove the carrot without upsetting him too much. She held her breath and prayed that it would work as the shop door chime sounded and Brad walked in.

  Murray squawked and fussed at the top of his lungs about wanting candy. Brad laughed. “He’s a handful, isn’t he?”

  “Oh, yeah.” She pointed to the half-eaten carrot. “I tried to take away his candy.”

  Brad leaned over and looked into the cage. “I don’t see any candy.”

  “He thinks carrots are candy. Andy told me I’ve already given him too many, and he might get sick, and I don’t want to be responsible for the bird getting sick, and—”

  “Here, let me see if I can get it away from him.” Brad reached for the cage door. “Got any gloves around here?”

  “No.”

  He let out a sigh of resignation. “I guess I’ll just have to take a chance and stick my bare hand in there.” He opened the cage door and reached for the carrot, but before he managed to pull it out, Murray squawked and clamped down on Brad’s hand.

  Brad’s eyebrows shot up as he yanked his hand from the cage, grabbing the carrot on the way out and slamming the door shut with his other hand. “That’s one mean bird.” He gripped his bleeding hand with his good one and flinched as he stared at the gash.

  “C’mon, let’s run some cold water over it and see how bad it is.” Sherry took Brad by the arm and led him to the sink in the back of the shop. As she washed his wound, she saw that it was worse than she originally thought. “You might need to have a doctor take a look at it. I’d hate for you to get an infection.”

  Brad grabbed a wad of paper towels and covered the gash. “I’ll run down to the walk-in clinic in a minute, but first, I wanted to know if you’d like to go to the church potluck with me Friday night.”

  “Woo-hoo! Squawk! Woo-hoo!”

  Sherry wasn’t sure whether the fluttering sensation in her chest was from Brad’s invitation or the fact that Murray echoed what she felt in her heart. She cleared her throat and backed toward the sales floor. “We better go see about Murray.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  After Brad left the shop, Sherry reflected on how he didn’t leave for the clinic until she agreed to go to the potluck with him, most likely at Naomi’s urging. But still, how could she turn him down, given the fact that he’d risked his own safety to help her get the carrot from Murray?

  Between customers, she tried to give the bird some attention, but now when she got near his cage, she couldn’t help but feel wary. “Murray wants candy . . . squawk.”

  “No more candy for Murray,” she said as she shoved another cracker toward him before ringing someone out at the register.

  The sound of the door chime got Murray all excited again. Sherry turned and spotted Andy heading toward her. “You’re back early.”

  “Yeah, after what you told me about my boy, I thought I’d better get back before something seriously bad happened.”

  “Hey there, handsome . . . squawk . . . Lookin’ good, young man!” Murray danced around in his cage, flapped his wings, and dipped his head from side to side.

  “Hey there, little buddy.” Andy stuck his finger inside the cage and nuzzled his bird. “Have you been good for this young lady?” He chuckled as he leaned over and looked Murray in the eye. “Or were you bad?”

  “Uh-oh . . . squawk . . . Bad birdie.”

  Andy chuckled and glanced up at Sherry. “Thanks for lookin’ after him.” He lifted the cage from the counter. “I hear you’ve had too much candy, young man.”

  “Murray wants candy . . . squawk . . .” Instead of repeating himself, he hung his head. “Bad birdie.”

  “Yeah, bad birdie.” Andy winked at Sherry. “If you need anything, let me know. I owe you big time.”

  Sherry started to tell him he didn’t owe her a thing when Naomi popped out from behind one of the shelves. “Hey there!”

  “I didn’t hear you come in.”

  “That’s because I was right behind Andy.” The elderly woman folded her arms and nodded to Andy. “I hope you realize what an imposition you’ve placed on Sherry. Maybe you can repay her by fixing a few things around her house so she can put it on the market.”

  “You’re selling your house?” Andy asked as he placed the cage on the bench by the door.

  “I’m thinking about it.” Sherry looked back and forth between Naomi and Andy. “I’ll consider selling my house if an apartment with a view of the lake comes available at Fontainebleau.”

  Naomi lifted a finger and wagged it. “I’ve already told you that’s not how it works. It takes time to sell a house.”

  Sherry had never bought or sold real estate before, so she’d never even thought about what had to be done. “What if the house sells, and there’s no place to move?”

  “Oh, there’ll be a place to move to.” Naomi gave her a warm smile. “You might have to settle for something until what you want is available though.”

  Sherry glanced down at the counter. “It sounds like a hassle.”

  “Honey, life is a hassle, but you still get up every morning, face it head-on, and deal with it. This is no different.”

  “You tell her, Naomi.” Andy picked up the cage again and opened the door. “Call if you need me. I best get back out there. I’m sure Pamela is wondering what happened to me.” He waved as he turned.

  “Tell Pamela we’re in here discussing how to bring more people to Bloomfield, and she’ll be happy.”

  He laughed as he approached the door and turned. “She’ll never believe that. I’ll just say you two held me captive.”

  “Yeah, you do that.” Naomi lifted her hand. “Thanks for rescuing my friend before that bird drove her insane.”

  “Are you sure it wasn’t the other way around?” The teasing tone in his voice made Sherry smile.

  Once he left the shop, Naomi shook her head. “That is one strange man. One minute he’s the town grouch, but sometimes he can actually be charming, and he’s still dating Pamela Jasper. Whatever can he possibly see in her? Oh, never mind.” She backed toward the cards. “I have to find the perfect card for my granddaughter. She’s turning thirteen, and I want to let her know how special I think she is.”

  Sherry had a pretty good idea of what Andy saw in Pamela. Although it wasn’t a popularly held view, Sherry knew that deep below the bossy surface Pamela had a heart of gold. She had some odd ways of showing she cared, but her passion for life was second to none. She’d been widowed for a few years before she acknowledged her attraction to her deceased husband’s best friend Andy. Everyone else saw it, including Andy, and it was a relief when she finally gave in and allowed the relationship to develop. Andy had married his own high school s
weetheart right after they graduated, but she died in a car crash less than a year later. No doubt the grief had sunk him into such despair, he didn’t even bother making new friends or dating until Pamela needed him to help her get through the grief that only someone who’d been there would understand.

  Naomi returned with a card. “I couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for, but this is close enough.” She placed the card on the counter and opened her oversized hobo bag. “How much do I owe you?”

  “Four seventy-five.”

  “It’s just a piece of cardboard, for cryin’ out loud.” Naomi shook her head, mumbled something about being gouged, but plunked down a five-dollar bill anyway. “Maybe one of these days I’ll learn how to use my computer and start makin’ my own cards. All I can do now is e-mail. Here ya go.”

  “Enjoy the rest of the day,” Sherry said as she handed Naomi a quarter.

  Naomi dropped the quarter into her pocketbook. “Have you started working on the playground yet?”

  “No, in fact I haven’t even given it much thought.”

  Naomi clicked her tongue, mother-hen style. “You might want to start thinking about it before the next garden club meeting if you don’t want Pamela on your case. She’ll expect a detailed report.”

  “Good point.”

  “Tell you what. Put my name down as a committee member, talk to Brad and let him know you’ll need his expertise, and see if you can get a couple more people interested. Then do a search for some city property where you might want to put the playground. If you have that in the report, Pamela will think you’re a hero.”

  “Thanks for the advice. I’ll do that.”

  After Naomi left, Sherry did some light administrative work to catch up and give herself time to think of what to say to Brad. When she called him, he sounded delighted she asked for his help with the playground.

  “Mind if I stop by your place after work?” he asked.

  She swallowed hard. “I suppose that would be okay.”

  “You don’t sound excited about it.”

  “Oh, no, it’s not that. It’s just that I don’t know much about playgrounds, and—”

  “That’s why you asked me, right? I mean, being an engineer and all . . .”

  “Right. That’s why I asked you.” No point in saying it was all Naomi’s idea.

  “See you around six?”

  “Sounds good.” After they hung up, she didn’t waste a minute before calling Naomi. She told Naomi about the meeting.

  “That’s dinnertime. Tell you what. I’ll bring food if you can provide the drinks.”

  Sherry racked her brain trying to come up with a logical person to fill the fourth slot. Most of her friends were in the garden club, and they were considerably older. She closed her eyes and tried to remember all the faces from the last meeting, and Bailey McCullough’s image popped into her head. Perfect! Bailey had tons of great ideas, and she was in the perfect position to publicize them. Even if she couldn’t make the meeting tonight, she’d have the committee on her radar.

  Bailey picked up her desk phone before the end of the first ring. “McCullough here.”

  Sherry barely mentioned the playground committee and asked if she’d be interested when Bailey blurted, “I’d love to be part of this. What time do I need to be there?”

  Another customer had entered the store while they talked, so as soon as she hung up, Sherry offered her assistance. The rest of the afternoon brought a steady stream of customers, and time went by quickly. She speed-walked home but slowed down and cringed as she approached her front porch and noticed that the right side rail leaned a tad more to the right. It had been rather wobbly over the past several months, and now she could see it was only a matter of time before it fell. She went inside and designed a makeshift sign to warn about the rickety rail.

  To get ready for the committee meeting, she adjusted the thermostat for comfort and pulled the string on the blinds to let in some of the sunlight. One of the slats snapped. Sherry puffed her cheeks and blew out a breath of exasperation. If another thing broke, she worried she’d snap just as quickly.

  All she needed to do in her tidy kitchen was lay out some napkins, forks, and glasses. She made some tea and pulled out cans of soft drinks.

  Bailey arrived first, followed by Brad, and then Naomi, who walked in carrying an extra large pizza. “Dinner has arrived. Now let’s get down to business so Sherry has something to report.”

  Brad shared some things they needed to look for in a playground location. Naomi nodded, while Bailey judiciously took notes on her new iPad. Sherry asked a few questions. By the time the pizza disappeared, they had a plan.

  “How about the budget?” Sherry asked. “I know we have money in the garden club treasury, but I also know Pamela is—”

  “A tightwad.” Naomi gave a clipped nod. “That’s one reason we’re doing so well financially, but I think it’s time we let go of some of our funds for a cause such as this. Still, we need to see what we can get donated.”

  “I’ll donate my time to draw up the plans,” Brad offered.

  Bailey lifted one hand and continued typing with the other. “I’ll handle the publicity.”

  Naomi grinned. “I’m sure the garden club members can donate some flower and plant clippings to pretty up the place, so basically all we’ll need is the equipment.”

  “I know the guy who runs the lumber yard, so I bet we can get a good discount,” Brad added. He turned to Sherry. “Remember Harry Shaw from high school?”

  She vaguely remembered the name but couldn’t put a face with it. “Sorry.”

  Brad glanced at Naomi, then back at Sherry. “He came to Bloomfield right before his senior year, and he graduated two years ahead of us.”

  “Oh, yeah.” Naomi tapped the table. “His mother was transferred here to run the banking operations. We tried to recruit her for the garden club, but she was always too busy.”

  “Harry’s a pretty decent guy, and I think he’ll agree to help us out.” Brad looked at Sherry. “Want me to talk to him?”

  “That would be nice.”

  Naomi shoved her chair away from the table and stood. “Okay, folks, that’s about it for this meeting. We have all we need for Sherry’s report.”

  Bailey glanced up from the iPad she’d been using to take notes. “I have some ideas too.”

  Naomi lifted a hand. “Save ’em for later. We don’t need to do too much too fast, or Sherry won’t have anything to report at the next meeting.”

  Sherry saw a hint of annoyance as Bailey tightened her lips. “Don’t take it personally. Naomi has always looked out for me, and she takes no prisoners.”

  Bailey nodded as her annoyance turned to amusement. “Alrighty then.” Bailey dropped her iPad into her briefcase and stood. “I guess it’s time to go on home.” She carried her plate to the sink. When Sherry joined her, she leaned over and whispered, “I hear you’re interested in Fontainebleau Apartments. I’ve been living there since they opened, and I absolutely love them.”

  Sherry laughed. “Word sure gets around, doesn’t it?”

  Bailey tipped her head toward Naomi. “Oh, yeah. If you’d like to come over sometime, I can tell you all about the amenities and show you what I’ve done with my apartment. It’s really nice compared to where I used to live.”

  Sherry knew that Bailey had rented one side of a duplex from Andy when she first moved back to town. Although not a terrible place, it was old and weathered like this house.

  Naomi grabbed Bailey by the crook of the arm. “C’mon, let’s get outta here so Sherry and Brad can have some time to themselves.”

  Sherry opened her mouth, but before she had a chance to utter a single word, the other two women were gone. She turned around to face an amused Brad, who leaned against her kitchen counter
, arms folded, his lips slanted into a half grin.

  CHAPTER NINE

  I’m sorry.” Sherry gave Brad an apologetic smile.

  “They’re pretty obvious, aren’t they?”

  Sherry nodded. “Very.”

  “At least you never have to wonder where folks stand around here.”

  “True.” Sherry glanced around nervously before settling her gaze on Brad. “Would you like to go to the living room?”

  Brad hesitated. “I think I best get outta here. No point in overstaying my welcome, and since the committee meeting—”

  “You’re not overstaying your welcome.” Heat flooded Sherry’s cheeks, but she forced herself to look him in the eye. “I’d like for you to stay . . . at least for a little while.”

  He tilted his head. “Are you sure?”

  “Positive.” She’d never been so sure of anything in her life. “Let me clean up the kitchen so we can relax.”

  It took Sherry less than five minutes to put the dishes in the dishwasher and wipe off the kitchen table, with Brad’s help. He followed her into the living room and gestured for her to sit down on the sofa. Normally she would have chosen the adjacent rocking chair, but Naomi’s voice telling her to change things up rang in her ears. Even small changes made her uncomfortable, but she might as well start now.

  She sat on the very edge of the sofa, and Brad chuckled as he sat down on the other side. “I don’t bite.”

  “I know. It’s just that . . .”

  Brad positioned himself to face her. “You don’t have to explain anything, Sherry. I’ve known you a long time.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “You’ve never been one to embrace new things.” Brad winked. “I’m not saying that’s bad.”

  “Then what are you saying?” Maybe she should have let him leave.

  “After Theo took off, I watched you.”

  She lifted an eyebrow and folded her arms. “And?”

  “You froze.”