Just the Man She Needs (21 page)

“I suppose so. I hadn’t thought of it that way. What about you? You’re the caretaker of my heart.”

“I know, and I haven’t slept worth a dime since you told me. I mean, you don’t have another one.”

“Damned straight I don’t. Handle with care.”

“Sure I will, and you take care of mine.”

“Not to worry, sweetheart. I’ve got it under lock and key. Be there for me when I get back?”

“With my arms wide open.”

He hung up, stepped out of the phone booth and looked up at the clear blue sky. Maybe his ship had finally docked. If it hadn’t, he was in for some rough times.

A
shton couldn’t miss Felicia’s genuine affection for Teddy as he read her column, for her account of the child and his antics would lead one to believe that the boy was her own child. He opened a copy of the paper that contained Reese Hall’s column, read it and, for the first time, found something in the woman’s writing that pleased him: she, too, sensed Felicia’s affection for Teddy. “I pray to God that I’m not on the wrong road here,” he said, hailed a taxi and returned to the volunteers’ camp.

Ashton didn’t express concern about or disapproval of her visit with Teddy and Eartha so, when Eartha called her to say that Teddy wanted to speak with her, she took the phone.

“Miss Felicia, this is Teddy. I forgot all the stories you told me. Can you come over and tell me some more stories? My tiger is lonely. I think he wants to see you, too.”

It occurred to her that charm might be inherited, for Teddy not only bore a startling resemblance to his father, but he also had Ashton’s facial expressions and beguiling ways. “But your tiger has you,” she said, testing the child’s ability to make a case for himself.

“Yes, but he misses you. Honest. Can you come today? I promise to be very good. My daddy is building a house for poor children, and I don’t know when he’s coming home.”

“He’ll be home in about a week or ten days, I think, Teddy. I’ll come over tomorrow, and we’ll go somewhere.”

“We will? Oh, I can’t wait for tomorrow. I’ll tell Miss Eartha. I love you, Miss Felicia.”

“I love you, too, Teddy,” she said, and sat down on the edge of her desk. She wasn’t trying to teach Teddy to love her, and she wouldn’t, but a feeling of apprehension pervaded her. Would Ashton think she’d deliberately gone behind his back and done the one thing he’d sought to avoid? Eartha was short on maternal instinct, though she loved Teddy, but the child needed more than she knew how to give.

The next day, Saturday, she packed a picnic basket and took a taxi to Ashton’s home.

When Eartha opened the door for her, Teddy’s squeals of delight thrilled her and, unable to contain her joy, she knelt with open arms and the child launched himself into them. She hugged his warm little body and fought back the tears when he kissed her cheek.

“Gee, you smell so good,” he said.

She looked at Eartha. “I thought we might have a picnic in Central Park. The weather is perfect, and later, we can stop at the children’s zoo—”

Eartha interrupted her. “I’m already combing my hair. I’ll be ready in a minute, and I’ll get a blanket and a tablecloth. This is such a good idea. Teddy is getting sick of the inside of this house.”

They entered Central Park at Seventy-second Street and Fifth Avenue. “Let’s make a stop at the children’s zoo,” Felicia said, so Teddy could see the animals. Teddy’s happiness proved contagious as he petted an alpaca, stroking and caressing it.

“I like this one, Miss Felicia. What is that one? Ooooooh. It’s a goat. Is that a pig?” he asked, racing along the fence. “I want to play with the pig.” He squatted and rubbed the Vietnamese potbellied pig, until the pig began to groan with pleasure. Teddy giggled with joy. “Can we come here again, Miss Felicia?”

She nodded. The child’s excitement made her think of all she’d missed. In her drive to achieve her goals, she may have bypassed true happiness. She pulled in a deep breath and told herself it wasn’t too late.

She and Eartha found a tree beneath which to enjoy their picnic. “Hot dogs!” Teddy shouted, clapping his hands. “I love hot dogs, Miss Felicia.”

She poured from a thermos lemonade that she made the previous evening and chilled overnight, and it delighted her that both Teddy and Eartha approved of her choice. “Mr. Ash doesn’t let him drink soft drinks. He says they’re not good for his teeth. This is just perfect,” Eartha said. Along with the hot dogs they ate deviled eggs, cherry tomatoes and strawberries.

“This is better than mashed potatoes, Miss Eartha. I wish you’d forget how to make mashed potatoes.”

“No, indeed,” Eartha said. “You want to eat French fries all the time. No way.”

After they finished eating and Felicia repacked the picnic basket, Eartha produced a ball that was smaller that a basket ball but larger than a baseball and asked Teddy if he’d like to play catch.

“Maybe a little bit, Miss Eartha. Then can we go hear that music?”

Eartha’s face bore a perplexed expression. “What music is he talking about?”

“Don’t you hear it?” Teddy asked Felicia. She did and realized that he’d heard a jazz band from the direction of Sixty-sixth Street. After throwing the ball a few times and realizing that it held no interest for Teddy, they walked down to the Naumburg Bandshell where nine men played classical jazz. She didn’t see or hear anyone that she recognized, but Teddy had already taken a seat and become absorbed in the music. It became evident that he especially liked the alto saxophone. After about an hour, Eartha announced that it was time to go home.

“I don’t want to go,” Teddy said. “I want to stay here.”

“We have to leave now, Teddy,” Felicia said.

Teddy’s lip protruded and he folded his arms, giving notice that he meant to have his way. “I thought you told me that if I came to see you, you’d be very good,” Felicia said. “I don’t call this being good.”

He looked up at her with the saddest eyes she’d ever seen. “I like the music, and I want to stay.”

“We’ll come another time,” she said, “but we have to do as Miss Eartha says.”

He stared at her as if he didn’t believe her. “You, too? You’re not a little boy. You’re bigger than she is.”

She couldn’t help laughing, and she laughed so hard that Teddy soon joined her. “Teddy, adults also have to obey sometimes.”

She wasn’t sure he believed her, for he shook his head as if uncertain. No matter, she thought, when he slid out of the chair and took her hand.

“You must be a miracle maker,” Eartha said. “Honey, when he digs his heels in, it’s like that till Mr. Ash gets home and straightens him out.”

“Stubborn, eh?” Felicia said.

“In a way,” Eartha said. “Usually, you can reason with him. It’s only when he misses his father that he gets difficult, and I can’t say I blame him. Those two have a wonderful time together, but when Mr. Ash lays down the law, he means for Teddy to do as he says. He’s a good man, I’m telling you.”

Felicia sat in her living room that evening mending the silk case of an olive-green decorator pillow that had been cleaned too many times, glancing occasionally at a rerun of the “Cosby Show” on television, which she had tuned in primarily for company. The character, Rudy, although older than Teddy, nevertheless reminded her of him in her precociousness and seemingly innate charm. She recalled Teddy’s rapt attention to the music of the jazz ensemble and his reluctance to leave it. It wouldn’t hurt to determine whether he had a genuine interest in the music.

The next day, she stopped by a record store on her way home from work and bought CDs containing the music of Lester Young, Duke Ellington and Oscar Peterson.

“I don’t know a thing about playing music,” Eartha told Felicia when she took the music to Teddy. “If you have time, would you please play them for Teddy?”

“That’s just like the music we heard in Central Park,” Teddy said, and Felicia’s jaw sagged. He jumped up and down at the sound of Lester Young’s alto saxophone rendition of “Back Home In Indiana.”

“I like that,” Teddy said.

“Did you ever hear that instrument before?”

“In Central Park. I’m going to ask my daddy to buy me a million CDs.” He ran to her and hugged her. “Thank you, Miss Felicia. Gee, you smell so good.”

She wondered to what extent Teddy had been introduced to music and asked Eartha, “Has Teddy been exposed to music?”

“Yes, indeedy. Mr. Ash is a terrific pianist, and Teddy loves to hear him play. He’ll sit and listen as long as Mr. Ash plays.”

She stared at Eartha, certain that her jaw sagged. “You mean to tell me that Ashton plays the piano that well?”

“He sure does,” the woman said, in a voice filled with pride. “There isn’t much that Mr. Ash can’t do, from putting on a diaper to mending Teddy’s clothes. This is a huge house, and I can’t do everything and take care of the little one, too. So he helps me all he can.”

She nearly said,
But he could hire additional help,
and was glad she didn’t when Eartha looked at her and smiled. “Mr. Ash wants us to be like a family, and he doesn’t want Teddy to grow up thinking somebody’s around to wait on him and pick up after him. Teddy has to pick up after himself. And I tell you, he’s such a sweet child. If you don’t watch out, he’ll wind you right ’round his little fingers.” She laid her head to one side and appeared to muse over something. “Mr. Ash will do that to you, too. Sure as shootin’.”

Didn’t she know it! She made a mental note to discuss with Ashton Teddy’s apparent interest in jazz. She’d had only modest training in music, but what she knew was sufficient to alert her to talent, and she suspected that Teddy had it.
I only hope he doesn’t think I’m butting into something that’s not my business.

“Where the devil could they be?” Ashton dialed his home for the fifth time in one hour and still didn’t get an answer. What if Teddy was ill and Eartha hadn’t been able to reach him? “I’ll call one more time, and then I’ll…” He fished in his pocket until he found the little notepad on which he’d written Felicia’s cellular phone number. It was his only hope, and he dialed the number with unsteady fingers, fearing that he would pass out from the pain in his foot.

“Hello?” Thank God, she answered.

“Sweetheart, this is Ashton. I can’t find my family. I’ve been calling—”

She interrupted him. “They’re fine, Ashton. I accepted Teddy’s invitation to visit him, and decided to take him and Eartha on a picnic in Central Park. We also went to the children’s zoo, and Teddy had a ball petting the animals. I’m sorry I didn’t think to call and tell you where we’d gone.”

“You couldn’t have reached me. My cell phone doesn’t work where we’re building. Remember? I came into Jackson so I could make some calls, especially to you and to my home. So Teddy and Eartha are okay?”

“Yes. They’re fine. Teddy loved the animals and…Ashton, he heard jazz music and wanted to get closer, so we stopped at the band shell, and he didn’t want to leave. I gather he loves the saxophone.”

“Really? If so, it’s the first I heard of it. Maybe he just wanted to stay in the park.”

“Maybe, but that isn’t the impression I got.”

“Look, I…I’ll call you back. I have to take care of something here.” He hung up. “Just a minute, Doctor. I have to call my son. He’s only four, and he gets upset if I’m away for long periods without contacting him.”

He called his house and listened to Teddy’s tale of his afternoon in Central Park. “Daddy, I’m going to ask Miss Felicia to come see me again. Why can’t she stay here with me, Daddy?”

“She has to stay in her own home, son, but I’m sure she’ll visit you when she can.”

“But I want her to stay with me, Daddy.”

“We’ll discuss this after I get home.” He wanted to speak with Eartha.

“Daddy, can we go listen to the music in the park? I liked it, Daddy. I’m going to ask Miss Felicia if we can go back.”

“All right, but remember, she works, so don’t use up all of her time. Do you understand?”

“She won’t mind, Daddy. She loves me.”

He’d like to know how a child that age judged love, because his granddad always said that children and dogs were better judges of people than adults were. After he hung up, an orderly helped him into a wheelchair, and he grimaced from the pain that the movement caused him. “Take it easy,” the orderly said. “In a few minutes, you won’t feel a thing.”

“Yeah. That’s what I’m afraid of.” He’d been so concerned about Teddy and Eartha that he’d become careless and dropped a two-by-four plank on his left foot, injuring it.

“I’ll have to set this bone,” the doctor told him, “and I don’t think you can handle it without a sedative, so I’m going to give you a shot that’ll probably keep you out for three or four hours, depending on your tolerance for it. But first I need the name of a contact.”

Ashton gave the doctor Cade’s name and phone number and added, “Don’t call my brother unless it’s absolutely necessary, because he’d be here in a few hours.”

“This is merely a matter of policy. I don’t expect to call anyone. Now, take a couple of deep breaths and relax. I’ll get some X-rays, put this baby in a cast, and you’ll be as good as new.”

However, when he awakened three hours later, he did not feel as good as new. His foot pained him, and he didn’t like having to lie on his back, his least comfortable sleeping position. With effort, he raised himself to a sitting position, rang the bell and asked for his cell phone.

“You aren’t allowed to use it,” the nurse told him.

His stern expression could have been aimed at a recalcitrant child. “Miss, I am a single parent of a four-year-old who is at least five hundred miles from here and doesn’t have any idea what the hell’s going on with me or where I am. Hand me that cell phone, please.”

“Yes, sir.”

After speaking with Eartha and explaining to her the details of his accident and his present predicament, he talked with Teddy, who continued to rave about the jazz music.