Hope Springs - 05 - Wedding Cake by Lynne Hinton Page A

at the dining room table when Charlotte walked in the back door for work. Janice, Iris, Denise, Martha, and her two small children, both girls, were all sitting with her, eating breakfast. The four other adult residents and the two children had plans for the day, and Charlotte had been hoping that she would have some time alone with Carla to talk about the recent events that had brought her into St. Mary’s.
    “Well, don’t all of you look chipper and ready to face the morning?” Charlotte commented as she closed the door behind her. Her arms were full of shopping bags because she had stopped by the Goodwill Center to find Carla some things to wear. She knew that most of the clothes at St. Mary’s would be too large for a woman as petite as she was.
    The manager at the donation center usually allowed Charlotte to shop before they opened the store. The two women became friends when the manager, a victim of domestic abuse, had stayed a couple ofweeks at St. Mary’s after Charlotte first arrived in Gallup. Charlotte had helped the woman land the managerial position at Goodwill, and in return she liked being able to do anything she could for the residents of St. Mary’s. She donated most of the clothes to the shelter. She also gave them furniture and books and anything else the women needed.
    “You already been shopping?” Denise asked. She walked over to help Charlotte carry some of the bags. “You find anything in a twelve?” She opened one of the bags and peered inside.
    “Here,” Charlotte said, handing her another bag. “This one is yours.”
    Denise smiled and yanked the bag from Charlotte. She put the other bags she was holding on the floor. “Did you get a skirt?” she asked, and before Charlotte could answer she pulled out a long dark blue skirt. “You are so fabulous, Sister Charlotte!” she exclaimed. And she ran out of the room to try it on.
    “Wait!” Charlotte yelled. “You forgot the blazer.”
    Denise flew back into the room and grabbed the bag from Charlotte, who was still standing in the doorway holding it. “It’s a suit!” she yelled in delight. “I have a suit!” And she turned and ran down the hall.
    “She’s wanted a nice suit for three months,” Martha explained to Carla, who appeared surprised at what had just happened. “She’s been studying to be a court reporter and she was told that she has to have a dark suit to get the job.”
    Carla nodded and then quickly looked away from the other woman. Charlotte could see that there hadn’t been a lot of conversation or eye contact before she had arrived. She took the bags anddropped them off in her office. She would show her findings to Carla when everyone left.
    Charlotte walked back into the dining room and noticed everyone as they watched Carla trying unsuccessfully to eat her first spoonful of cereal. With the injuries she had suffered, she couldn’t open her mouth wide enough for the spoon, and once she realized that, she just put the spoon back in the bowl. The other women glanced away, ashamed they had been staring. There was an awkward silence at the table.
    “Why don’t I fix you a milk shake?” Charlotte asked.
    Just as she asked the question, Darlene walked into the room behind her. “I will fix the milk shake,” she announced. “Because I am the queen of shake,” she added.
    The little girls were watching and they both clapped their hands. “I want one too!” the younger one cried.
    “You don’t need no milk shake,” Martha said, pushing the bowl of cereal closer to her daughter. “You can eat your cereal.” And the little girl pouted but took up her spoon and continued eating.
    Darlene went into the kitchen and over to the freezer, got the ice cream, opened the refrigerator, pulled out the milk and some blue-berries, and then went over to the counter, cut half of a banana, and then slid the blender toward her. She mixed everything together, grabbed a tall glass from the cabinet, and poured the contents