The Owl & Moon Cafe: A Novel (No Series) (32 page)

Allegra returned to the microphone and after the applause ended, said, “Thank you, Mr. Applecross. Now, everybody, let’s eat,” and Mariah got busy ladling potatoes and gravy. Every so often she had to rush into the kitchen for a new tray. A few stations away from her, Fergus was serving stuffing and cranberry sauce. She caught his eye, and smiled. He raised his eyebrows back at her and she wondered if he’d enjoyed teasing her about his “previous commitment” that meant they’d be apart on the holiday.

“God bless,” she heard Gammy say, over and over again.

There were perks to giving up your family holiday. Serving at the shelter meant that you didn’t have to wash dishes or mop floors. At the end of the meal, some servers took their own plates of food, sat down at the empty tables, stripped of linen and flatware, and ate a meal that tasted better because they’d waited so long to eat it. Others, like Mariah’s family, packed up leftovers to enjoy at home. Mariah looked around for Fergus, and spotted him by the exit, slipping into his jacket. “So,” she said. “Now that I’ve found out your previous engagement, can we get together later?”

He frowned. “Honestly, I’ve a previous commitment I cannot break. Really, Mariah. It’s an urgent matter.”

“Sure,” she said, “I understand.”

He placed his hands on her shoulders and leaned in to kiss her cheek. “This is a significant matter. Please forgive me.”

“Will you call me later?”

“There’s no telling how late this could go. Tomorrow or the next day, possibly.”

He held the door for one of Gammy’s bingo buddies, then took up his instrument bag and went out the exit himself. Not that she could go, with the day after Thanksgiving being the biggest sales day of the year, but why hadn’t he invited her along?

“So,” Gammy said. “Four o’clock Fergus can play the pipes. Makes you wonder when he finds the time to practice.”

“There’s a lot I don’t know about him,” Mariah said.

Her grandmother put her arm around her. “Which is why the mattress tango is a bad idea. He could turn out to be a serial killer, like that Ted Bandy character.”

“Bundy, Gammy, and Fergus is not a serial killer.” Mariah rubbed her temples, where her headache was gathering force. “What did you think of the new minister?”

“She’s all wet behind the ears. Give her a year tending to this weary world and she’ll be turning the pages of the Old Testament and talking a different story.”

“Is there anything you’re grateful for?” Mariah asked.

“Darn tootin’ there is. I’m grateful that there’s still a chance for you to curb in your hormones and catch a husband. That man knew you worked at the shelter on holidays. He got up in front of strangers and played the pipes. I think he’s falling in love with you. Which is why you need to back away from the hootchie-coo. There’s a reason they call it holy matrimony, Mariah.”

Mariah wanted to remind her the reason marriage was invented was to secure property deals. Those bonds originally had nothing to do with commitment and desire; they were about ownership of land, plain and simple. But there had been enough arguing for one day. “I have to get Lindsay home,” she said.

“Suit yourself,” Gammy told her. “I’ll catch a ride with your mother. But I tell you what, nobody had better cut into that pie until I get there.”

N
OW THAT THE NEWS
of Dr. G’s biology was out, Lindsay couldn’t understand why her mother was so unhappy. Except for Dr. G, this was like any other Thanksgiving. They made up plates of leftovers and Gammy got out her sherry wine to pour everyone except Lindsay a glass. They ate, drank, told stories, and went to bed. Tonight her mother wouldn’t sit still for two seconds. First her excuse was she needed to stretch her legs, but on her way to stretch them, she poured a glass of wine and drank it. Now it was the can of almonds down in her car. She had to have the almonds—she was craving them, but she filled up her wine again before she hurried downstairs.

“Mariah’ll get over this in two shakes of a lamb’s tail,” Gammy said, as she unwrapped turkey and vegetables. “That Al’s a good egg. Although you could have broken the news more gently, Alice.”

Allegra held pills in one hand and bottled water in the other. “I
was
gentle! I took her aside and gave her time to think it over. What else was I supposed to do? Line Mariah’s world with down pillows?” Gammy shook her head at the container of cranberry relish. “No wonder nobody ate this,” she said. “It looks like a dog’s dinner. Next year we’re going back to the jelly kind.”

Khan barked at the word
dinner.
Allegra swallowed her pills. Lindsay and Gammy pulled the oval coffee table to the center of the room so they could lay out the leftovers like they always did, and pick at what they wanted. Khan circled their feet, hopeful.

“My legs are killing me,” Gammy said as she sat down in her recliner.

“You should have them operated on,” Lindsay told her. “Maybe Dr. G can get you a discount.”

Allegra laughed.

“I don’t see what’s so funny about me going under the knife,” Gammy said. “These legs will get me to the pearly gates just fine.” She tried to give Khan a turkey wing, but Lindsay stopped her.

“Gammy, don’t give that to him, you know it makes him fart.”

“Say ‘pass gas,’ sweetie,” Gammy said. “It sounds so much nicer.”

“Actually, flatulence is the correct term,” Lindsay said. “But that sounds worse than fart.”

Allegra laughed again. “Lindsay, you have my permission to say fart.”

Gammy sighed. “Alice.”

“Alice what? I’m her grandmother. I’m supposed to indulge her. It’s a holiday. Relax.”

“I will if you have some turkey.”

“I will in a minute.”

“Alice, you have to eat something.”

“Mama, get off my back.”

Her words hung in the air and Lindsay wondered where her mother was. It didn’t take that long to go downstairs and come back up. The turkey looked dried out. With the statistics on food poisoning, no way was Lindsay having any stuffing. All she wanted was a sliver of pumpkin pie. She was about to top it with whipped cream when Allegra stood up and opened the door to the bathroom. It was a quirk of the upstairs apartment that one could not open the bathroom door and the entry door at the same time without them crashing into each other. They did just that, causing Mariah to drop the can of almonds, which of course spilled everywhere. Khan seized the opportunity to eat himself sick, and Mariah dove to the floor to keep him from eating them.

Lindsay handed Khan to Gammy and began picking up the nuts and putting them back into the can.

“Don’t eat any of those,” Gammy said. “I don’t need anybody sick during the Christmas season.”

Lindsay watched her mother get up and brush her front clean. Then Allegra came out of the bathroom. “Fergus’s music was great,” she said. “Where did he disappear to in such a hurry? I was hoping he’d join us tonight.”

Oh, boy. Lindsay braced herself for her mother’s response.

“I guess he had someplace he needed to be,” Mariah said crisply.

Lindsay knew that tone. It meant a grad student had plagiarized or the car battery was dead or she’d had her fill of picky customers and needed to take a break before she threw their orders at them.

“I’m sure he’ll call you later,” Gammy said. “Such a nice thing to do, playing for everyone for free. I hope we can count on him for the Christmas dinner.”

The wine bottle was empty now. Ignoring the sherry, Mariah retrieved a second bottle from the fridge and popped the cork. “He’s going to Scotland for Christmas.”

“Who’s going to watch his dog?” Lindsay asked. “Can I do it? I’ll be on winter break and I could use the money.”

“For what?” her mother asked.

“Excuse me,” Allegra said. “Did you just open the bottle of Korbel I was saving?”

“He takes Theo to Noah’s Bark,” Mariah said, holding her hand out to refuse when Gammy tried to hand her a plate. “I’m not sure if they board dogs. The champagne was in the fridge so I figured it was fair game.”

“You know we always have cream sherry at Thanksgiving,” Gammy said. “I don’t see the need to open a bottle of wine when only one person’s planning to drink it.”

“I was saving it,” Allegra said. “For when Al gets here.”

Mariah’s eyes flashed fire. “Oh, let’s get a head start before
Dad
arrives. His daughter deserves champagne on such a memorable occasion, doesn’t she?”

Mariah drank one glass and poured another. Again, Lindsay watched her drain it dry like it was water and fill it a third time. The more she drank, the more the disapproving silence grew. Lindsay imagined her family ramming into each other like bumper cars. It was funny, and then it wasn’t.

“Great champagne,” Mariah said. “Tastes expensive.”

“I am so sorry for all this,” Allegra said for the jillionth time that day. “I wish there was something I could do to make things better.”

“Look at me,” Mariah said, “I’m so fine that I’m smiling.”

“I’ll tell you what won’t make things better,” Gammy said as she speared turkey and dropped it on her plate. “That’s splashing alcohol on facts that can’t be changed. What in Hades do you think you’re going to accomplish by getting drunk, Mariah?”

Lindsay watched her mom stare into her glass and then drain it. “I’m not drunk.”

“Yet,” Gammy huffed. “For the love of God, you two! What’s done is done. Alice can’t take it back. Mariah, you make peace with your mother this instant and let’s move forward into the holiday season grateful for our blessings. Today’s news is tomorrow’s birdcage liner. If you ask me, your mother and Al making things legal is the best thing to happen in years, not to mention a good example.” She wagged her fork at Allegra. “I have only one request. Alice, please don’t wear white to the wedding.”

Lindsay fed Khan her pie.

“Mama,” Allegra said, “give me a break! Last time I checked, Miss Manners didn’t live in Pacific Grove.”

Lindsay sipped ice water. Tension zapped through the small room like tiny bolts of lightning, and her stomach lining sizzled as if someone had branded her insides the way cowboys did cattle.

“You’re right, Alice. I take it back. Wear leopard skin if you want. And a purple tutu.” Gammy looked out the window.

Lindsay set Khan down.

There was a knock at the door, and Allegra called out, “Al, sweetheart, come on in,” and then there he was, standing in the doorway dripping wet, Lindsay’s grandfather, her mom’s father, Gammy’s soon-to-be son-in-law, and Allegra’s future husband.

“Hello, all,” he said. “Happy Thanksgiving.”

Allegra took his coat. “How was the city? Traffic beastly? I heard the fog was terrible along the coast. I’m so glad you made it back in one piece. Do you want coffee or tea? I have decaf. There’s sherry, too. And maybe, if you’re lucky, there’s a little champagne left.” She looked at Mariah, who was studying the bubbles in her glass.

“Dr. G? Did you know that carbonation occurs when carbon dioxide gas is added to a water-based liquid?” Lindsay said. “It’s true. Most ‘champagne’ is actually sparkling wine. Real champagne only comes from this one town in France. It gets its bubbles from sugar and yeast and a second fermentation.”

“Absolutely right,” Dr. G said. “The sugar gives it its sparkle. Way back in the 1690s, a monk named Dom Pérignon said that drinking champagne was like ‘drinking the stars.’ So how is it, Mariah?” he asked, and sat down next to her.

“It gets the job done.”

Lindsay watched her mother deliberately move away a few inches, something Taylor Foster would do.

Dr. G took the glass Gammy offered and filled it with the last of the champagne. “I’m glad we’re all together,” he said. “Allegra and I have some news.”

“Don’t waste your breath,” Mariah said. “The alley cat, as my grandmother would say, is out of the bag.”

Dr. G smiled. “Good. We waited too long to tell you, but Allegra assured me this was the best way. There’s so much I want to ask you, Mariah. So much to make up for. I want to help in any way I can, be it Lindsay’s tuition, a college fund; tell me what you need and I’ll do my best.”

Lindsay could tell by the tight look on her mother’s face that it didn’t matter what Doc said. This was because Fergus the Freak wasn’t here. If he were, her mom and Allegra would have men between them like shields. They could talk to each other a lot better that way. Lindsay tried to think of all the reasons why FTF wasn’t here, but all she could come up with was that maybe he had another girlfriend.

“By all means,” Mariah said, her words beginning to slur. “Fix everything with cash. Lots and lots of cash. Pay off my car. Buy a house. Send Lindsay to MIT so she can escape waitressing and the damn café.”

“Mariah, you put that glass down right now,” Gammy said, getting up. “I’m going to make some high-test coffee and you’re going to drink it.”

“No,” Mariah said. “I’m sticking with fermented sugar. And bubbles.”

Allegra looked like she might cry. Khan was trembling.

“Listen,” Dr. G said. “I know all this is new to you, and I don’t expect us to become family overnight. Now, how about we have that long overdue toast to our engagement?”

Allegra handed Dr. G a plate. “Mariah gets in snits,” she said. “Give her time.”

“I am not in a snit,” Mariah said.

“Yes, you are,” Allegra said. “You’re miffed at the way I delivered the news. All I can say is have fun in your corner and let us know when you come out of it. Al, would you like pumpkin pie or pecan?”

“Some of each. But first, the toast.”

Lindsay dutifully lifted her glass of water. Everyone lifted a glass, including her mother. Gammy tinked hers with Al’s. “Welcome to the family, son. We’ve been waiting on you for thirty-odd years. And I do mean odd!”

Soon everyone was talking, telling stories, but nothing melted the ice around her mother. Lindsay imagined Thanksgiving at DeThomas Farms. There would be so many people around that table there must have been two turkeys at least. Calpurnia, the rat terrier, no doubt laid under the table waiting for spilled food. Savannah would cry at least twice. Sally would sneak sips of champagne and then ride her horse bareback because everyone else was preoccupied with talking or eating or something that made them forget Sally’s tendency to run wild. It had to be more fun than sitting around waiting for your mom to blow a gasket. She wished the pretending game was finally over, but there was still a week to go.

Dr. G finished his plate, wiped his mouth with his napkin and reached a hand out to Mariah. “Maybe we can start as friends. Sound acceptable to you?”

Mariah smirked at him. “Sure! Why not?”

“Mom,” Lindsay said. “This is so dumb! You share DNA. Big deal. At least Dr. G didn’t pick up and move when he found out Allegra was pregnant like my father did. You’re already grown up, so what is the big problem? If you ask me, you’re lucky.”

“Lindsay!” Mariah said. “Apologize.”

“What do you want me to apologize for? Telling the truth?”

Gammy chuckled. “Out of the mouths of babes…”

“Mariah,” Allegra said when she saw her daughter reach for the sherry, “I think you’ve had enough—”

“Don’t tell me how much I can drink. You of all people! All the times you came home slaphappy, Christ, I can’t even count that high.”

“Do not,” Gammy said, rising to clear dishes, “take the Lord’s name in vain like that, especially on a holiday.”

Dr. G interrupted her. “It’s all right, Bess. Mariah has every right to be upset. It’s a shock.”

“That doesn’t excuse cursing.”

Mariah looked down at her hands. “I just can’t see where in my life you’re supposed to function. What your responsibility is. What I am to you. What you are to me. I mean, the hard part is already over. You weren’t there for any of the things I needed you for. I learned to ride a bike by myself. I flunked algebra, and probably you could have helped me pass it, but no, you were raising another family when I needed fatherly advice. It’s too late for you to matter.”

Allegra started crying.

Dr. G stayed quiet a while. “It makes me sick that I wasn’t there. Had I known Allegra was pregnant, things would have been different. I know you think you’re angry at me and your mother, but I wonder if it’s yourself you can’t forgive.”

“Excuse me?” Mariah spluttered. “I am perfectly
fine
with who I am and where I come from.”

“Good,” he’d said. “I want my daughter and granddaughter happy and living productive lives.”

Everyone flinched when Mariah set her glass down so hard that Khan barked. “Is that crack supposed to make me feel bad because I lost my job?”

Gammy wadded napkins and placed them in the wastebasket. “Mariah, it’s been four months. Get over the job loss already. Waitressing is honest work. Your mother’s done it for thirty-five years and so have I. Are you ashamed of us?”

Lindsay watched her mom start to cry. She knew exactly what she was feeling. That she didn’t have her job or a friend or even Fergus the Freak. All she had was this weird family that didn’t follow the rules, and she wanted the other kind so badly it was breaking her heart. Lindsay wanted to tell her how nobody at Country Day had a family like that, that maybe happy families were an urban myth, like the story of the businessman waking up in a tub of ice because his kidneys had been removed and the note telling him to call 911.

But then her mom said, “You’ve got this prestigious job. My mom will be your charming but eccentric wife. You’ll move her into your house and we’ll be left with what? This so-called restaurant?”