The Strawberry Hearts Diner(43)

“Friendship has no buts,” he said as he pushed the “Down” button. “I’ll check on you tomorrow afternoon.”

“I’ll look forward to it,” Vicky said.

The doors slid open, and he stepped inside. “Good night, and if you can’t sleep, call me.”

After the doors closed, she backed up against the wall and sat down on the floor, pulled her knees up against her chest, and wrapped her arms around them. The last couple of days had been totally surreal. First Emily saying she wasn’t going back to college and then this thing with Nettie. And finally the past three hours with Andy.

“Mama?” Emily whispered.

At first she thought she had imagined her daughter’s voice, but then she felt a presence next to her, and Emily tucked her hand into hers. “Are you all right?” Emily’s face had gone pale. “Do you know something that we don’t?”

“No, I’ve been honest with you,” Vicky said. “And I’m all right. A little tired and still worried about her, but I’m fine. Once the pacemaker is in place, I’ll feel much better.”

“I know what you are thinkin’,” Emily said. “Folks say if they have a second heart attack it’s pretty often fatal. But Nettie is strong, and she’s in the hospital, not at home.”

“Exactly. But that is why I’m still stayin’ with her. If she so much as groans, I’ll be there,” Vicky said.

“Want me to stay as your support system? You and I are hers,” Emily said.

“No, you and Jancy need to go home by bedtime and get some sleep. You are helping by keeping the diner open. Did you even get the recipe out for the tarts?”

“Busted!” Emily put her wrists together as if she was about to get cuffed. “Woody said that folks need to be needed and if we started making tarts Nettie would lose some of that. That got me to thinkin’ about Jancy. She hasn’t ever felt like folks needed her, but we do. How do we get that across to her?”

“By being there for her like she is for us right now.” Vicky stood up and pulled Emily up with her. “We’d better get back in there. She’s probably trying to talk Ryder and Shane into helping her escape.”

Emily slung an arm around Vicky’s shoulders. “I feel so much better since I’ve seen her and talked to you. You see why I have to be at home, Mama? What if this had happened during the school year?”

“One day at a time, my child. We’ve got all summer to discuss that,” Vicky said.



When they were back at home that evening, Shane walked Jancy to the door, her hand tucked into his. He let it go and wrapped his arms around her in a lingering hug. “Don’t w-w-worry. Nettie is goin’ to be okay.”

“I’ll do my best, but no promises. I inherited the worry bug from my mother.” She smiled.

“Your m-mama, Miz Elaine, w-was always good to m-me. I really did like her.”

“Thank you, Shane.” She forced herself to take a step back.

“Good night, Jancy,” he said.

“’Night,” she whispered.

Ryder had been standing close to Emily, but he took a step back. From the corner of her eye, Jancy noticed that their pinkie fingers were locked together. Maybe Ryder was the real reason that Emily didn’t want to go back to school. If he was the reason she’d come sneaking in the house before dawn, Vicky would be the next one in the hospital with a heart attack.

Emily unlocked the door and lingered on the porch while Jancy went inside and flipped on the lights. It had been a whole week since she started to work at the diner. She had friends, a boyfriend, and folks accepted her, even considered her one of their own. Everything she’d always wanted. What would they all think of her if they knew about the trouble she’d been in?

“Tell me this didn’t happen today,” Emily moaned as she flopped down on the sofa.

“Wish I could.” Jancy made another trip around the room. “I’m scared.”

“Nettie looked good. She was teasing with us and she wasn’t pale. Did you see something I didn’t? You’ve been through the death of a loved one. I haven’t. You’d tell me, right.”

Jancy sat down in Vicky’s recliner. “Nettie looked fine, and I’m tellin’ you the truth.”

“Then what on earth are you afraid of? We need you, Jancy. Please don’t leave. I’m talkin’ about long term, not just a few months,” Emily said.

“Folks needin’ me is a scary thing. What if I disappoint y’all, or what if Shane decides this whole thing is just a schoolboy crush that went on too long? I could go on and on.” Jancy sighed. “I’ve never made friends this fast. When I left Amarillo, I swore I’d never trust anyone again, and here I am, falling right back into the same old ways and in even a shorter time.”

“One week, twenty-four/seven. That would be close to a hundred and fifty hours you’ve spent with them and a lot of hours with me. You’ve been in the center of solving the drama with Carlton. You’ve got a boyfriend who really cares about you and respects you. And we are your friends, but you are also our friend, Jancy,” Emily said. “Think about it. If you were making friends with someone and saw them once a week at, say, a yoga class or a Bible study, for three hours, this would be the equivalent of fifty weeks or almost a year. We’re all just getting everything at warp rather than slow speed.”