The Swear Jar (14 page)

Chapter Sixteen

“Earth to Duncan.  Come in,
Duncan.”  Mike laughed.

“Sorry.  What were you saying?”

“The food looks good.  I don’t know
what to get.  Where were you just now?”

“I was thinking about your Shore
house.  How’s everything going there?”

“No problems with the renters.  The
season will be over in a few weeks.  Did you want to use it?”  Mike asked. 
“It’s beautiful this time of year.”

They spoke with their server and
ordered.  Duncan didn’t know how to explain Meara to Mike.  Brenda and Sara had
been friends.  He wasn’t sure how Mike would react.

Mike was worried.  “You have
something on your mind.  What’s up?  The library?  The family?  I’ll shut up. 
You tell me.”

“Work is fine.  I’m fine.  The
family is fine.”

“Yes, that sounds like every time I
see you.”

“How’s Sara?”

“She’s fine.  I’m fine.  The kids
are fine.  See how boring it sounds?”

Duncan laughed heartily.  His green
eyes danced.  Mike was surprised at the change in his serious, somber friend.

Mike laughed too.  “That’s the
first time I’ve heard you laugh in a very long time.  What the heck is going
on?  Tell me.”

“Make sure you’re not eating or
drinking anything.  You might spit it out.”

“Mouth empty.  Should I drop my jaw
in horror?”

“Maybe.  I’ve met someone.”

Mike stared at Duncan for a minute,
but his jaw didn’t drop.  “I can see that.  You’re happy.  For the last ten years,
I’ve worried about you.  You’ve always been quiet.  Brenda’s death hit you
hard.  Now you’re downright giddy.  Who’s the lucky lady?”

“You’re not surprised?  At my age?”

“You’re only a few years older than
me.  Romance is not dead in my life, buddy.  Why should it be in yours?”

“I wasn’t looking for it until I
met Meara.”

“The mystery woman has a name. 
Meara.  Tell me about her.  How did you meet?”

“We met at the supermarket.  Meara
and her niece, Anne, were shopping.  The two of them were funny together.  I
followed them around until I was cornered.  I found out she was a librarian. 
You know my librarian retired, so I asked Meara to apply.  She did and I hired
her in June.  We’ve become friends.”

“This woman must be a miracle
worker.  I’ve never heard you talk so much.  You followed Meara around the
supermarket.  I never figured you for a stalker.  She must be cute.  She’s a
librarian and you just happened to need one?  Is she at least qualified for the
job?”

“I checked her references and they
all loved her.  She swooped in mid-June and had a Summer Reading Club up and
running by the end of the week.  She rallied the troops on my staff and painted
the entire Youth Services room in a few hours.  This woman is amazing.  And
yes, she is cute.”

“Is the feeling mutual?  You have
to be careful, especially if she’s your staff member and she isn’t interested
in a relationship.”

“The feeling is mutual and we’re
exploring it.  She lost her husband five years ago.  From what I’ve learned so
far, he was a bit of a jerk.”

“At our age, emotional baggage is
to be expected.  It’s not anyone’s first time on the merry-go-round.”

The server returned with their
food.  Mike attacked his plate.  Duncan pushed his food around a little.

“Do you think Sara will be upset?”
asked Duncan.

“No.  I’m sure she’ll understand
just like I do.  You’re not cheating on Brenda.  Don’t worry about Sara.”

“There is one problem.”  Duncan set
down his fork.

“What’s the problem?”

“Maybe I’m the only one who thinks
it’s a problem.  Meara doesn’t think it’s a problem.”

“You’re killing me.  What’s the
problem?”

“Meara’s about twenty years younger
than me.”

Mike’s fork clattered as he dropped
it.  “That’s a PROBLEM?  You need to stop thinking and start having fun.  If Sara
was gone as long as Brenda has been gone and I had a second chance at love, I
would grab Meara and not let go.  Age?  What the heck is wrong with you?”

“I hope it won’t become an issue.”

“If it isn’t an issue now, it won’t
be an issue later.  If she said it didn’t bother her, believe her.”  Mike
picked up his fork again.

“I believe her.  She met Russell in
June.”

“Is that idiot still director over
at South Branchville?”

“Yes.  He wants to offer her a
job.  And if he can’t hire her, he might date her.  He wants Meara to be the
Youth Services Committee chairperson.  I got the meeting moved from his library
to my library.  He has a raincheck from Meara for lunch.”

“Wait a minute.  She met him back
in June?  And has she gone on an interview with Russell?”

“Not that she has told me.  She
didn’t seem too thrilled with him.”

“You think if he offers her a job,
she’ll leave?  Or if she turns down the job, she’ll date him?”

“I’m wondering.  Russell can be
quite charming.”

“Meara has had since June to jump
ship or to date Russell.  Who does she like?  You.  I don’t think that’s going
to change.  It sounds more like self-confidence and jealousy issues on your
part.”

“Ouch.”

“Maybe we should have met in a
bar.  I’d buy you a couple of beers and loosen you up.”

“I’m not looking forward to Russell
cornering Meara.  I’d hate to lose her as a librarian and as…whatever she’s
going to be.”

“It’s the job of the director to
protect his staff.  Don’t let Russell get too close.  If he does get to Meara
and she changes her mind, then let her go.  It may hurt like hell, but won’t
you be sparing yourself some grief?”

“You’re right.  I can’t let what I
can’t control ruin what might happen.”

“If that was meant to be positive
and philosophical, that sounded great.  The real question is do I need to have
that special talk with you about being careful and protecting yourself?  Do we
need to take a trip to the pharmacy?”

“What?  No.  No.”  Duncan waved his
hands.

“You’re clamming up again.  I’ll
back off on the teasing if you remember that in a couple of weeks, the Shore house
could be your very own personal love shack.”

Duncan grinned, looking away from
Mike.  Mike narrowed his eyes and chuckled.  He shook his finger at Duncan.

“Wait a minute.  That’s what you
were thinking about before.  You dirty old man.  You should be ashamed of
yourself.  Luring the poor woman into a romantic getaway!  Call me if things
heat up faster than you think.  I can kick out the renters.”  Mike grinned
impishly.

Duncan cleared his throat.  “This
conversation has degenerated right into the gutter.  I think it’s time to turn
the topic away from my love life.”

“Let me bend your ear for a while
on what’s been going on in my life.  It’s not nearly interesting or exciting as
yours, but I would like your opinion on a few things.”

After dinner, Duncan could see Mike
was exhausted.  He invited Mike to stay over.  Mike gladly accepted because he
wasn’t looking forward to driving in the dark.  He followed Duncan back to his
house.  Duncan waited for him at the front door.  When Mike and Sara had been
there years ago, the house had held Brenda’s little feminine touches.

Those little touches were gone. 
The décor was now streamlined and masculine.  In the living room, a table by
the wall held family photos and one large framed picture of Brenda.  Duncan
turned on the kitchen and family room lights.  There was a large dark brown sectional
couch that looked very comfortable.  After the long day, Mike was ready to curl
up on it.

“I don’t have any beer.  I do have
soda,” Duncan said.  “Do you want anything?”

“To be honest, all I need is a
pillow and blanket.  I’ll curl up right here.  You have an early day tomorrow
with John’s birthday.”

Duncan pointed to the ceiling.  “Are
you kidding?  I’ve got three rooms upstairs with perfectly good beds.  You have
your choice unless you really do want to sleep on the couch.”

“You twisted my arm.  Let’s check
out upstairs.  Are they going to celebrate your birthday too?”

“I hope not.  It’s not until
Friday.  Lisa always makes a fuss.  John should be the center of attention, not
me.  Why do you ask?”

“Maybe your worries about age come
from the fact that you are about to be a year older?”

Duncan headed upstairs.  “You have
a valid point.  Let’s get you settled.  If you need an extra blanket, it might
take me a while to find it.  Lisa rearranges when she comes over.  She’s like a
mother hen who thinks I can’t do anything.”

Duncan’s master bedroom was to the
right of the landing.  The other three bedrooms were to the left.  He swept his
arm towards the bedrooms.

“Take your pick.  The one on the
left has a twin size bed, the one straight ahead has a full size bed, and the
one on the right has a queen size bed.”  He pointed.

“I feel like Goldilocks.  I’m going
with the biggest bed.  It’s not often I get a big bed to myself.  I’ll take the
door on the right!” Mike chuckled.

Duncan flipped on the bedroom
light.  Mike had never been upstairs.  He didn’t know what the room had looked
like when Brenda was alive, but now it was a simple bedroom with a bed, dresser
and nightstand.  The wall colors were neutral and the bedclothes were sedate. 
The bed looked comfortable.  Mike heaved a sigh and flopped forward onto the
bed.

Duncan chuckled.  “I’ll leave you
two alone.  Let me know if you need anything.  The bathroom is next door. 
There are extra towels in the bathroom closet.  Lisa didn’t move those.  Feel
free to raid the fridge.  There aren’t any televisions up here, so if you want,
there’s one downstairs in the family room.  I usually sleep with the bedroom
door open, but I’m told I snore, so I’ll close the door.  See you in the
morning.”

“Thanks again, Duncan.  I
appreciate it.”

“Thank you for the advice.  I’m
happy to know you and Sara will be comfortable with my relationship with
Meara.”

“Anytime, Duncan.  See you in the
morning.”

The next morning, Mike awoke to the
smell of good, strong coffee.  He sat up in bed and inhaled deeply.  A glance at
the clock told him it was nine in the morning.  He padded out to the hall
bathroom.  Duncan’s bedroom door was open.  He was tempted to peek and see if Duncan’s
bedroom was devoid of feminine touches like the rest of the house.  Brenda had
been a good woman, just not very sentimental.  He suspected she had eliminated
her presence with Lisa’s help.  He wasn’t so sure that had been the best thing
for Duncan, his sensitive and deep thinking friend.

It probably didn’t matter anymore. 
Meara had Duncan under a spell.  He had been chipper and lighthearted
yesterday.  Mike hoped Meara felt the same way about Duncan.  He didn’t want
Duncan to withdraw again.  As he headed to the kitchen, Mike thought it would
be great to meet this Meara someday.  The kitchen was cool and the natural
daylight made the house bright.  There was no sign of Duncan.  Mike could hear
paper shuffling in the dining room.  He heard Duncan sigh.

“Good morning, Duncan,” said Mike.

Reading glasses propped on his
nose, Duncan sat at the dining room table with a pile of picture books,
wrapping paper, tissue paper, a colorful bag, scissors and tape.  He was
overwhelmed.

“Good morning, Mike.  How are you? 
Did you sleep well?  I hope I didn’t wake you.”  He smiled.

“I’m fine, thank you.  I slept like
the dead.  It was exactly what I needed.  That good Colombian coffee is driving
me crazy.  Is there enough for two?”

“Of course.  Help yourself.  Mugs are
in the cabinet above the machine.  Spoons in the drawer next to the machine. 
Sugar on the counter and milk in the fridge.”

“Efficient setup.  I’ll be right
back.  Then you can tell me what the heck you’re doing.”  Mike came back with a
mug of coffee.  “Excellent coffee.  My compliments.  You always knew how to
brew a good pot of java.”

“I’ll make you breakfast too once I
figure out this wrapping paper nightmare.”

“What are you doing?”

“I’m trying to wrap the books and
teddy bear I have for John, but I confess I’m lost.  I’ve got no gift wrapping
skills.”

“Maybe you should call Meara and
ask her to do it.”  Mike grinned wickedly.

“Don’t think I haven’t thought of it. 
She has a sprained ankle.  It’s a long story.  I don’t want to go into it right
now.  And if I go over to her place, I won’t leave.”

“I’m shocked.  I hardly know you
anymore.  It’s awesome.”

“I’m changing, aren’t I?”

“It’s about time too.  Now if you
can’t get Meara’s help, then you’re stuck with me.  The problem is you have
sons.  Your daughter-in-law would just do it for you.  Now, if you had daughters
like I do, then they would make you learn this stuff.  What do we have here?”

“Lucy told me I would need
birthday-themed wrapping paper, tissue paper and one of these bags.  How do I
wrap the books and shove the bear into the bag?”

Mike put his hands on his hips.  “Wait
a minute.  Who’s getting the dragon and the wounded teddy bear?  As if I didn’t
know.”

“Are you going to help me or what?”
 Duncan was cranky.

Mike laughed.  “Step aside, novice
and let an expert at it.”

Duncan watched in fascination as
Mike took the books and the wrapping paper.  Soon he had a wrapped package. 
Mike took the tissue paper and made a nest to surround the teddy bear.  He
placed the tissue paper nest in the bag.

“Voila!  Do I get breakfast now?”
Mike asked.

“You sure do!  Bacon, eggs and
bagels.  And more coffee, of course.  You saved me, my friend.  Thank you!”

“Happy I could help.  I’m starving
after all that gift wrapping origami.  After that, I should get out of your way
so you make it to the party.  I have to admit, I want to get to the Shore house
and enjoy it while I can.”