Wishing for Wonderful (Serendipity #3)(42)

“I’ll go with you,” Lindsay said. “I’d like to get a new dress for Thanksgiving, and I really need another pair of jeans.” Once they decided to go together, both women came up with a lengthy list of things they could most likely use.

That evening Eleanor made several telephone calls to invite the dinner guests. The last call she made was to Ray. Traci answered the phone.

“Hi, Mom,” she said brightly.

Eleanor explained that she and John were having a special Thanksgiving dinner and wanted to include them.

“Mom, I’m not sure that’s such a good idea.” Traci’s voice went lower and apprehension was threaded through every word. “Ray’s been in a bad mood lately, and the truth is he’s none too fond of John.” She tried to soften the sound of the words, but no matter how they were spoken they had the same ugliness stuck to them.

“Well, perhaps if I spoke to him…”

“Um,” she hesitated, then whispered, “I probably think it’s better if you don’t because…” Before she could finish the sentence, Ray’s voice blasted its way through the wire.

“What?” he snapped angrily. “You think my wife is gonna side with you? I’m not coming over there for another fiasco like Labor Day! If that’s what you’re thinking, think again!”

“But, Ray, I thought you—”

“You thought what?” he interrupted. “You’re not thinking, that’s the problem!”

“Why are you acting like—”

“Me? It’s not me, it’s you. You’re acting like a lovesick schoolgirl. For God’s sake, Mother, you’re fifty-four years old!”

“Just because I’m a bit older doesn’t mean—”

“You’re old enough to have some sense! You’re not stupid! You should know better than to get involved with some—”

“Wait a minute, Ray, this isn’t just an affair,” Eleanor said. “John and I are planning to—”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. That’s what they all say. I see it on television every day.”

“You see what on television?”

“Stories about women like you. Women duped into letting some jerk take everything—”

“John is not like that—”

“You know what, Ma, I take it back—you are stupid! Stupid enough to let that jerk take advantage of you. If that’s what you want to do, fine! But don’t call me again until you come to your senses!” Ray slammed the receiver down with such force that it left Eleanor with a ringing in her ear.

~

This is the problem I told you about. Trust me, it will get much worse before it gets better. If it gets better. From where I stand right now, the future for Eleanor and John looks very bleak. That is, if they even have a future.

~

Lindsay was searching animal rescue sites on the computer in the den, but she’d heard the phone call. Although she couldn’t make out the words, she recognized the angry sound and knew it was Ray. When there was only silence, Lindsay got up and went into the kitchen. Eleanor was sitting alone.

“Are you okay?” Lindsay asked.

Eleanor looked up with tears rolling down her cheeks.

Lindsay knew the answer.

“I don’t know what to do,” Eleanor said. “Ray is so angry. He doesn’t understand; he thinks your father is trying to take advantage…”

“Dad take advantage?” Lindsay contorted her face into a look of disbelief. “Never.”

“I know that,” Eleanor replied sadly. “But Ray…”

Lindsay sat alongside Eleanor and pulled her chair close. “Don’t worry,” she said, taking Eleanor’s hand in hers. “He’ll come around. When I first found out about you and Dad, I felt the same way but look at us now—we’re like best friends.” Lindsay still couldn’t bring herself to say like mother and daughter; perhaps one day she might, but not yet.

“Ray’s a lot different than you. Once he gets a grudge in his heart, he’s not about to part with it. I don’t think I’ve ever heard him as angry…”

“He won’t be angry forever. Wait and see. I’ll bet he calls tomorrow morning and apologizes for acting that way.”

Eleanor shrugged, but there was a serious look of doubt stretched across her face.





Cupid

The Last Word





I’d like to be able to tell you what’s going to happen, but regretfully I can’t. Even I have blind spots, and right now the only thing I can see in either Eleanor or Lindsay’s future is a gigantic black hole. That scares me. A black hole is not good. It generally means Life Management is up to something, something they want to keep hidden. Like humans the world over, I want to believe love conquers all. Sometimes it does; sometimes it doesn’t. Look at the Mark Antony and Cleopatra fiasco, tragedy all the way around. If Cleo had been genuinely in love, she could have spared Mark Antony the sword and avoided the asp incident, but of course that’s history.

Right now the best I can hope for is to muster up enough love power to break through this black hole I’m seeing and avoid whatever mishaps Life Management has planned.

~