The Patricia Kiyono Christmas Collection (32 page)

“
Oh, that would be
wonderful! When you’re done, why don’t you come in for lunch?”
After that glorious trip to Mackinac, she’d gotten used to seeing
his face. They’d had either lunch or dinner together almost every
day since then, and sometimes both.

“
It’s a deal. I might even
be persuaded to do some weeding if dessert is involved,” he
teased.

She laughed. “I think I can manage
that.”

She closed the door and raced to the
kitchen. Now that she’d issued the invitation, she needed to figure
out what to serve. Did she have time to run to Zylstra’s? Probably
not. Her lot wasn’t that large. She’d planned on a bowl of leftover
chili, but that wasn’t going to be enough for a man his size. Maybe
a sandwich to go with it? And a salad? What did she have for a
dessert?

By the time Mike knocked again, an apple
crisp was cooling on top of the stove next to the pot of reheated
chili, a tossed salad was in the refrigerator, and she had just
finished assembling a couple of grilled cheese sandwiches to put on
the griddle. He stepped in, sniffed appreciatively, and gave her a
wide smile. “I smell baked apples. It’s definitely fall in
Michigan. I’ve missed that.”

“
Hope you like apple
crisp.”

His eyes widened, and she got a glimpse of
the eager young boy he must have been. “I haven’t had apple crisp
in years! Can we start with dessert?”

She laughed. “It’s pretty hot. I just took
it out of the oven. Do you like chili? I made some earlier in the
week. I’m making grilled cheese sandwiches to go with it.”

“
Chili and grilled cheese
are a perfect meal for a fall day. Okay, let’s start with
that.”

She finished grilling the
sandwiches, and they sat. They bowed their heads while he gave
thanks.
What a comfortable routine we’ve
settled into. How long will it last?

“
Aside from cooking, what
are you up to today?” he asked between bites.

“
I found out another family
moved away from Zutphen, taking one of my actors, so I’m going to
have to rewrite the script again. I’m so glad I finally let the
education committee know they’d need to find someone else to take
over the job starting next year.”

“
I heard about that. You’ll
be sorely missed, but everyone can understand your reasons. It’s
time for someone else to step up. Or maybe they can do something
different for Christmas.”

“
Like what? What would
Christmas be without a pageant?”

“
There are other ways of
celebrating with the congregation. A Christmas hymn sing, for
example. Or an adult drama. I’m sure they’ll come up with something
suitable.”

She thought about that. At first it was
difficult to imagine a Christmas without a pageant. But Mike was
right. Times changed, and the community needed to change with it.
With fewer and fewer families, maybe a pageant wasn’t feasible any
more. She marveled at the sense of peace she had with that
thought.

“
It’s sad to see the
community shrinking. This has always been a wonderful place to live
and raise children.”

“
I guess the village elders
are meeting to see what, if anything, can be done to keep families
here.”

“
From what I understand,
most of the people who leave don’t want to go, but have to because
they need to find jobs.”

Mike leaned back, a thoughtful expression on
his handsome face. Realizing she stared, Helen pretended to study
her chili.

“
If the jobs were here,
what kind of housing is available for people moving in?”

“
I-I don’t know. Since
people have moved out and I haven’t heard about people moving in, I
suppose there are some houses for sale. But there aren’t any condos
or apartments. Sounds like you need to be on that committee,” she
teased.

“
Matt is already on it.
I’ve got an idea I’ll pass on to him.” He put his spoon down. “This
chili is delicious, but I’m ready for some apple crisp.”

Helen went along with the change of topic,
but a part of her wondered what his idea was. And why would he be
concerned with Zutphen’s population problems?

“
Thank you, Helen,
for your many years of service on the Education
Committee. We’ll miss you and your talents, especially your work
with the youth in the Christmas pageant each year.”

The applause from the rest of the committee
was enthusiastic, and Helen sank in her chair, uncomfortable with
the praise. “It was a pleasure,” she insisted. “I’m sure that the
next person to work on the pageants will do a wonderful job.”

Milton Longton stood. “Well, you might be on
to something, Helen. I may have to retire from committee work, too.
Martha is bugging me to take her traveling. Well, if you and the
pastor’s brother end up together, you’ll do your share of
travel.”

Helen froze.
If they end up together? We’re already being
discussed? Does everyone think Mike is the reason I’m stepping
down?
“Um, I guess we’ll just have to wait
and see.”

Milton nodded. “I suppose it’s early days
yet. But Martha is happy about the prospect.” He put on his
overcoat and followed the rest of the committee toward the
stairs.

“
I’ll be glad when the
church is finished so we won’t have these stairs to contend with,”
someone complained.

“
I’m sure the pastor and
his wife will be glad, too,” remarked another. “It’s got to be
difficult for them, having so many people coming in and out of
their home all the time.”

Helen put her coat on, but before she could
button it up, Matt stopped her with a hand at her elbow.

“
Kathy and I were hoping
you could join us for dessert tonight. The kids wanted to see Uncle
Mike, and the only way I could drag him away from the article he’s
writing was to promise I’d keep you here after our meeting. Plus,
we’d enjoy getting to know you more.”

“
Oh! Why, I… I…”

“
Please stay. We don’t
bite.”

“
I — thank you.”

She took her coat off and carried it up the
stairs. At the top landing, one door opened to the breezeway
between the house and garage, and the other went into the house.
Matt opened the second door and gestured for her to precede
him.

Kathy sat at the kitchen table, reading. She
looked up and stood when they entered.

“
How are you,
Helen?”

“
I’m fine, thank
you.”

“
I got some beautiful
strawberries at Zylstra’s the other day and decided to make
shortcakes to eat with them. Does that sound all right?”

“
It sounds delicious. Thank
you for inviting me.”

“
Please have a seat.” Matt
pulled one out for her, and as soon as she sat, Loretta came
through the doorway to her apartment.

“
There you are, Helen. I
understand you and my son are an item.” She took a seat next to
Helen.

“
An item?”

“
A couple, a pair, in an
understanding, whatever the terminology is nowadays.”

“
Err, I suppose.
Maybe.”

“
You’re not
sure?”

“
Well, he’s my tenant, so
it could be that he’s just extremely courteous because of
that.”

“
Extremely courteous
tenants do not kiss their landlords goodbye when they leave their
homes.”

“
Ah, that’s
true.”

“
They do not drop
everything and stay up half the night rearranging their schedules
so that they can go on trips to wherever their landlord is
going.”

“
I guess not.”

“
They don’t spend the
church service with their heads turned away from the pastor to
stare at someone across the aisle.”

“
Uh, I didn’t realize that
was happening.”

“
So when are you going to
put him out of his misery and make an honest man of
him?”

“
Loretta! It’s not like
that.”

“
No? Why not? It’s not like
either of you is a spring chicken. You’re both old enough to make
up your own minds. You do know how to make up your mind, don’t
you?”

“
Y-yes, of course. But-but
I’m a lot older than he is.”

“
Good! He needs an
experienced mom to give him a kick in the pants from time to
time.”

Helen laughed. “Loretta, why would he need a
mother figure when he has you?”

Loretta seemed to shrink before her eyes.
“I’m not going to be around forever.”

Helen leaned forward and touched her arm.
“What’s going on, Loretta? Are you sick?”

“
I don’t know. I think
so.”

“
I know Mike and Matt have
been worried about you. A lot of us are concerned because we hardly
ever see you any more.”

Loretta hesitated, and Helen wondered if
she’d decided not to respond. But when the answer came, the words
were spoken so quietly she thought she’d imagined it.

“
No one will want to see
me.”

“
Why would you say that?
Everyone loves you.”

“
Everyone — Oh!” She paled
and dashed back into her apartment. Without stopping to think,
Helen followed, concerned for her.

The odor that assailed her as soon as she
stepped through the door had her flinching. Had Loretta had an
accident?

There was no messy trail on the floor, but
Loretta had disappeared into the bathroom. The water was running,
as well as the fan.

She took a step forward. “Loretta, can I
help you?” She knocked on the bathroom door.

There was no answer. Had Loretta passed out?
Was she unable to speak? She knocked again and called out. Maybe
she’d better tell Matt to call an ambulance. She knocked harder.
Inside the bathroom she heard water running and faint moans.
Finally she heard the toilet flush. The door opened and Loretta
faced her with a scowl. Helen noticed with relief that the woman’s
color was back, and so was her fiery spirit.

“
What are you doing here?”
she demanded. “I didn’t invite you in. Have you forgotten your
manners?”

Helen folded her arms across her chest. “I
have not forgotten my manners. My parents taught me to have
compassion and a desire to help someone who seemed to need it.”

“
I don’t need any
help.”

“
Well, my nose tells me
that you have a stomach problem. Is that why you’ve been so
antisocial?”

Loretta’s defiant stance faded for a moment
but came back quickly. “When did you become a doctor?”

“
I don’t have a degree, but
I’m a mother, just like you. I had two sons who had their share of
tummy problems. When I stepped through the doorway, I thought maybe
you had an accident and needed help cleaning up, but it doesn’t
look like you did. So that means that something else is wrong. I
know this apartment didn’t smell like this the last time I came
here.”

“
When were you
here?”

“
About ten years ago. Just
after your husband died. You insisted you were fine, that you
didn’t need anything. But you never left the apartment other than
to go to church. I knew you just needed something else to do,
someone else to think about, so I came. I told you I needed help
with the Christmas pageant, and you were the only person I knew who
could help me handle those kids. And you were wonderful with them.
When we came back, you went to bed and slept for twelve
hours.

“
I stepped out of my
comfort zone that day to step in where I wasn’t sure I was wanted.
But it was the right thing to do. And it’s the right thing now. I’m
telling you, Loretta, you need to see a doctor. Stop being
embarrassed about it. If you don’t go to Doctor Minton in town, go
to a specialist.”

“
I’ve already been to the
doc. And to a specialist.”

“
What did they
say?”

“
Nothing. I couldn’t tell
him I was stinking up my house!”

“
Didn’t they take any
tests?”

“
Not without my
permission.”

“
Couldn’t you just tell him
you had a problem with gas?”

“
What would he do with that
information? Laugh at me?”

“
No, he’d look into what’s
happening. Maybe prescribe medication or a special
diet.”

“
I don’t need more pills.
My cupboard already looks like a pharmacy. Kathy had to set up a
chart so I knew when to take what.”

“
My daughter-in-law did
that for me, too. Isn’t it wonderful to have helpful children?
Children who care enough about you to make sure you’re okay and
have the things you need, like a roof over your head?”

Loretta’s response was muttered. Helen
couldn’t quite make it out but figured she’d said enough.

“
Well, I’m going to go now
that I know you’re not hurt. But make an appointment soon to get
some help.”

“
I suppose you’re going to
go out there and blab about all this to my kids.”

“
Well, I—”

“
She doesn’t have to,
Mom.”

Matt, Kathy, and Mike all stood just inside
her doorway. Matt had his hands on his hips. Helen couldn’t
remember ever seeing her pastor look so angry.