her mother replied. âMaybe itâs time for you to meet some new people.â
âThatâs actually why Iâm calling.â Addie saw a chance to change the subject. âI got kind of drunk last night . . .â
âOh, Adelaide.â
âMom, let me finish,â Addie said. âI got a little drunk last night and acted like an idiot. I think I said some things that I shouldnât have.â
There was silence as her mother thought about it. Finally she said, âWell, you know what your aunt Tilda always did when she stuck her foot in her mouth?â
âAte her foot? I donât remember Aunt Tilda apologizing to anyone . . . ever.â
âIt was rare. But it happened. Except she was a lot like youâshe had trouble saying the words. So she baked.â
âYou want me to bake?â
âI donât want you to do anything, kiddo,â her mother replied.âBut, at least for your aunt Tilda, baking was a way to relieve stress and apologize all at the same time.â
âI relieve stress with paint thinner and sandpaper,â Addie replied. âBut I do have all of Aunt Tildaâs cookbooks upstairs in the attic. I guess it canât hurt to try something new.â
Her motherâs laugh jingled through the phone. âI would suggest the recipe for fried pie.â
âOkay. Love you.â
âLove you, too.â
Addie threw her phone down on the couch and walked to the kitchen. She just needed to think for a minute. She walked over to the counter and cut off a twelve-inch piece of cheesecloth and soaked it in tung oil. Maybe if she could remove all the dust from the table sheâd been sanding, sheâd feel better. She strapped on a particle mask and got to work.
Addie was so engrossed in what she was doing that she didnât even hear the doorbell ring. It wasnât until Felix began to bark that she looked up. Wanda was standing in the doorway looking horrified.
âWhat on earth are you wearing on your face?â she exclaimed.
âItâs just a mask.â Addie pulled the mask off her face. âIt keeps the dust particles from the table out of my lungs.â
âDid you do all this?â Wanda ran her hand along the now smooth table.
âYup,â Addie replied. âI found it in my auntâs old shed out back. I think itâs the same one she had sitting in here when I was a kid.â
âWhat will it look like when youâre done?â
âSimilar to how it looks now. Iâm just going to stain it,â Addie said. âSo whatâs up?â
âWell, you left your clothes at my house last night.â Wanda handed Addie a plastic bag. âI washed them for ya.â
âThanks. Come on in.â
âHey, Felix.â Wanda leaned down and scratched Felix behind his ears. âI could hear you barking all the way from the street.â
âI thought you had to go in to work today.â
âI do. But not for another hour or so.â Wanda jammed her hands down into the pockets of her scrubs. âSo, last night was kind of crazy, huh?â
âItâs definitely on my top ten.â
âSo what happened with you and Jasper?â
âWhat do you mean?â
âCome on, Addie. Donât think I didnât notice your face all puffy like youâd been cryinâ when you came back inside.â Wanda sat down at the kitchen table. âI didnât say anything last night âcause we were with Bobby. But Iâm not blind.â
Addie sat down next to her friend. âI was just trying to get him out of there before your brother changed his mind. He didnât want to leave. We argued about it. Thatâs all.â
Wanda placed both of her hands palms down on the table. She stared down at the prints left on the glass. âLook, the reason I came over here . . . well, I wanted to
Maggie Brendan
Barbara O'Connor
Jan Washburn
Terri Blackstock
Norah Simone
Barry Kemp
G.P. Taylor
Alan Cumyn
Linda Barnes
Lisa Jackson