Entertaining Angels (17 page)

“No problem. I’ll see you then.”

Renee let herself out the door, but Kristy could have sworn she saw her wink at Jason.

On the night of the Delacourts’ dinner party, Kristy stood before the bathroom mirror, struggling to get a faux diamond stud into her right earlobe and wondering if the set of pearls Gram had given her for her sixteenth birthday might be a better choice.

At the time she’d unwrapped Gram’s gift, she’d thought the earrings and necklace were too sophisticated for a teenager. She’d planned to exchange them for something a little more trendy, but one thing had led to another—that stupid party, Gram’s stroke, pregnancy—and she’d never gotten around to it.

Fortunately, they just might do the trick now. So she returned to her bedroom and rummaged through the chest of drawers, hoping she remembered where she’d stashed them.

The doorbell rang, and she quit searching long enough to glance at the clock on the bureau. 4:43.

“She’s here!” Jason called out from the living room, where he’d been awaiting the new sitter.

Renee had agreed to be here at 5:00, so the fact that she’d arrived a few minutes early was a good indication that she was responsible.

Kristy left the drawer open and went into the living room to see that Jason had already invited Renee inside.

She wore a pair of jeans and a large tie-dyed T-shirt, and
her shoulder-length hair had been pulled into a ponytail, which made her look especially young this evening.

“That’s a great dress,” she said. “You look really nice. Where are you going?”

“To a dinner party. And thanks.”

Renee had no idea how many outfits Kristy had already pulled out from the closet and tried on, even though the black dress that Shana had given her for Christmas last year had been her first choice all along.

You need to start going out,
Shana had said, as they’d sat around a twinkling Charlie Brown tree in Kristy’s living room last December.

Yeah, right. I have enough trouble getting a sitter for work. Besides, there’s no place to go by myself.

I was talking about
dating.

Deep inside, Kristy had known exactly what her friend had been hinting at. But she didn’t have any interest in men. At least, she hadn’t until now, but Craig Houston didn’t count.

“Thanks for coming,” Kristy said. “I don’t have to go yet, but I thought it would be best if you came early. I’ll pay you for the entire time.”

“That’s okay. I didn’t have anything else to do.”

Kristy was a bit uneasy about leaving Gram and Jason with a girl she really didn’t know, but she’d been comforted by Renee’s connection to the church. She’d also been desperate.

“You sure have a nice house,” Renee said, taking in the cream-colored walls that needed a new coat of paint and the dark wood beams that could stand to be sanded and refinished.

“Thanks.”

A lot of people liked the old Victorian-style homes and were drawn to Sugar Plum Lane, where some of the houses had been renovated better than others. And a few, like this one, needed a lot of work.

Even the décor, with its drab curtains and shabby furniture,
left a lot to be desired, so Kristy figured Renee was commenting about the overall appeal of the place.

“I’ll leave you a number where I can be reached,” she told Renee. “I also baked some chicken and potatoes. I’m not sure if you’ve eaten yet, but there’s plenty if you’d like to join Gram and Jason for dinner.”

“Sounds good. Thanks.”

“Gram will be coming out into the living room to watch television with you this evening. So I’ll help you get her into the wheelchair before I leave.” Kristy had already talked to her grandmother about Renee coming to work, and Gram, of course, wasn’t all that keen on having anyone new. But Kristy had insisted she’d feel better if Gram would come out into the living room in her wheelchair and keep an eye on things.

She also planned to give Gram the portable phone that was programmed for a one-touch dial to either 9-1-1 or Kristy’s cell.

Interestingly enough, when she’d explained the situation and the game plan to Gram, she’d only met with an initial grumble but no further complaints.

This was, Kristy realized, the first time in seven years that Gram had been given a chore to do, other than the rehab she’d had during the first year. Not that Kristy hadn’t tried to encourage Gram to cultivate new interests, but Gram had refused until Kristy had just given up.

So, taking a lesson from Pastor Craig, she made a mental note:
Admit to Gram that life indeed sucks and then give her a job to do anyway.

Something told Kristy it wouldn’t be that simple, though.

“Is there anything I should know?” Renee asked. “Like does anyone have allergies or anything like that?”

“No. Jason isn’t allowed to go outside tonight. I also monitor the television he watches. No violence, no bad language. Just G-rated shows, if you know what I mean.”

“Yeah, I totally get it.” Renee smiled, and her eyes, an
ocean-blue shade, glimmered. “Those rules will be easy to follow.”

Kristy hoped so. “Would you mind helping me get my grandmother out of bed now?”

“No, not at all.”

Another good sign. If Renee had any qualms about working with Gram, the chance of any long-term employment was out of the question.

“Just tell me what you need me to do,” the girl added, as she followed Kristy down the hall. “I’m a fast learner.”

Kristy entered her grandmother’s bedroom, the one she’d had to fix for her downstairs. The footsteps behind her seemed to freeze at the entrance, but just briefly. She wasn’t sure if Renee had paused out of respect or because the hospital bed was a bit daunting. But she guessed it didn’t matter; she was beside her now.

“Gram, this is Renee.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” the girl said, as Gram gave her a once over.

“You’re not a nurse,” Gram said.

“No. But I can call the paramedics if you need medical help.”

Gram gave a little humph, then said, “I doubt that’ll be necessary.”

“Me, too,” Kristy said, hoping to put Renee at ease. “Come on. I’ll show you how to get her in the chair. She can help a little.”

Moving Gram was a bit awkward at first, but Kristy had to give Renee credit. She jumped right in and gave it her best shot.

Once they had Gram set up in the living room and turned on the television, Kristy returned to her room to fix her hair.

She could hardly remember the last time she’d done anything more than pull it back in a ponytail or let it hang loose.

So it took her a while to get her fingers and the curls to comply.

Ten minutes later, she returned to the living room, her hair swept up into a twist, the pearls adorning her ears and throat.

“Oh, wow,” Renee said. “You look super.”

“Yeah, Mom.” Jason beamed. “If you had a crown, you’d look just like a princess.”

“Thanks, honey.”

For a moment, Jesse’s comment about being a child of the king came to mind. Kristy still struggled with the whole concept, but she decided that, when she went to the Delacourts’ house tonight, she was going to try to carry herself with the grace and dignity of a woman born to nobility.

The trouble was, she was afraid she’d feel more like a duck sitting on a pond—calm and serene on top of the water while paddling like crazy underneath.

Renee was glad to have paid employment, even if this particular job wasn’t exactly what she’d planned on landing.

There was an upside, though. She was getting dinner out of it—a hot meal for a change.

And she’d also get to watch a little television—a luxury she hadn’t had in a long time, since Mary Ellen had never hooked up the cable at her apartment and without it, the reception was awful.

There was a downside, too. While Renee wanted to do an exceptional job so that she’d be asked to come back and work again, she wasn’t exactly sure what Jason’s mom expected from her.

And then there was Mrs. Smith to deal with. She had a mean expression glued on her face and refused to return a smile, which wouldn’t have hurt her to do.

She also smelled funny, although it wasn’t stale sweat, tobacco or booze, which is what some of the people who had lived in Mary Ellen’s apartment building used to smell like.

This was more like medicine, Renee decided.

It would be nice if Mrs. Smith gave Jason’s mom a thumbs
up about Renee, but that wasn’t likely. She just hoped she didn’t give her a thumbs down.

She tried one last time to connect with her by saying, “You have a nice house.” And she did; Renee wasn’t just blowing smoke about that.

“It’s not so nice when you know you’ll be cooped up in it for the rest of your life,” Mrs. Smith said.

Oh, yeah?
Renee wanted to snap back.
How would you like living in a tree?

But she didn’t respond because, to be honest, Renee would much rather live in a tree house than be stuck in a hospital bed.

So she asked, “Are you guys hungry? I could put dinner on the table.”

“I want to eat,” Jason said.

Good. She had an excuse to get out of the living room and away from Mrs. Smith’s evil eye.

When Renee had finished setting out the food, she wheeled Mrs. Smith into the dining room and made a place for her so the chair would fit.

They pretty much ate in silence, other than Jason’s happy chatter about “the cool go-cart” Tommy’s stepdad was helping him build “with a real engine and everything.”

But to his credit, Jason never once mentioned the Bushman Trail or the tree house, which was a huge relief.

After dinner, Renee took Mrs. Smith back into the living room and turned on the television for her.

Renee expected her to be super fussy about the station they watched, but she wasn’t. She let Jason have his choice, which was good.

In fact, she was pretty nice to him, so Renee had to give her credit for that. She didn’t like to see kids yelled at or mistreated.

Eager to put some space between her and the crotchety woman, Renee said, “If you don’t need anything from me, I’ll go into the kitchen and do the dishes.”

“Go ahead and do that. We’re fine.”

“Yeah,” Jason added. “But hurry back so you can watch SpongeBob.”

Cartoons weren’t all that appealing anymore, so she was glad she wouldn’t miss out on something good. “Start it without me, okay? You can tell me about the parts I missed during the commercials.”

Renee not only did the dishes, but she cleaned the stove, too, making sure that the kitchen was cleaner than she’d found it. She also took out the trash and mopped the floor.

All the while, she kept poking her head into the living room to check on Jason and his grandmother. She hated to admit it, but she was kind of avoiding Mrs. Smith.

No matter what Dawn had said the other day about old people, the only ones Renee had ever run into had been grumpy and mean.

And Mrs. Smith was no different.

But Renee wouldn’t complain. She needed this job. Maybe, if Jason’s mom came home and saw that Renee hadn’t just eaten up all her food and watched television all night, she’d hire her permanently.

If she did, Renee planned to make the best of it—even if she half-expected Mrs. Smith to jump out of that chair with a wild-eyed cackle, grab a broomstick, and fly through the house.

Craig had volunteered to be away from the house while the Delacourts hosted the dinner party for the Rensfields, but Cassandra wouldn’t hear of it.

“Don’t be silly, Craig. We’d love to have you with us tonight.”

He had no choice but to believe her. “All right. Is there anything I can help you with?”

“Not really. I have all the food prepared and the table set. I’ve also hired someone to serve the meal and clean up. So there’s nothing to do other than to welcome our guests.”

At five-thirty, Cassandra’s parents, Carlton and Shirley Price arrived. Daniel greeted his father-in-law with a firm handshake and his mother-in-law with a stiff-armed hug before introducing the couple to Craig.

Dressed in an expensive gray suit, Carlton was a dapper gent in his late sixties. His yellow shirt and striped tie coordinated nicely with the silk dress his wife, Shirley, wore. Together they made a sharp-looking pair.

“I hope you don’t mind us coming early,” Carlton said. “We’ve been looking forward to this get-together and to meeting the Rensfields.”

“It’s an exciting night,” Cassandra said. “You have no idea how pleased we are that Shana and Brad have finally made a match. When they were in high school, I thought they’d make a perfect couple someday. It’s almost as though I had a premonition about it.”

Carlton leaned toward his daughter as though sharing a confidence, yet not lowering his voice enough to keep his words a secret. “From what I’ve heard, the Rensfields made a killing in stocks a while back, selling at just the right time. So Shana made a great catch.”

Daniel’s smile faded. “I’d like to think that Brad is the one who lucked out.”

Cassandra placed a hand on her husband’s forearm. “Sweetheart, will you please pour Mother a glass of wine and get Daddy his bourbon and water?”

“Certainly.” Daniel drew away from his wife and addressed Craig, his grin only a shadow of what it had been earlier. “Can I get you something, Pastor?”

“Not right now. Thanks.”

As Daniel left the room, Craig turned to Carlton, only to find the man was making his way toward a built-in bookshelf that boasted fancy knickknacks as well as leather-bound volumes of the classics.

Somewhat at a social loss, Craig was left to eavesdrop on the women’s conversation.

“Who will be coming tonight?” Shirley asked her daughter.

“The Rensfields, of course—Eric and Darla. I’m sure you’ll like them. Eric has been very generous with his financial support of the hospital, as well as the Boys and Girls Club. And Darla volunteers a lot of time to various charitable organizations.”

“Will Brad be here?”

“He’s going to drop by for a while, but I’m afraid he’ll have to leave early.”

Shirley smiled. “I’m glad I’ll get a chance to meet him.”

“You’re going to love him, Mom. He’s the nicest young man. Not what you’d call handsome, but he certainly carries himself well.” Cassandra waited a beat before adding, “I’ve also invited Kristy, the maid of honor.”