Page 24 of Requiem

“I can’t do that to her. Not right now.”

“But, Brett, I think she needs something like this. Especially right now!”

“It’s not like replacing one dead goldfish with another,” I snap.

Shit. I didn’t mean to do that. I hear her take a deep breath on her end of the line.

“Fair enough,” she agrees quietly. “I’m sorry. That’s not what I was implying.”

“No, I’m sorry. I know you weren’t …”

“I’m just saying that your mother has lost her life’s companion. And, while having Elise in the picture again is a good thing, imagine what a grandson would do to lift her spirits!”

I’m skeptical and she knows it.

“Okay, okay, just promise me you’ll give it some thought,” she relents.

“Fine. I promise. How’s Mom doing, anyway? I thought Aunt Elise would’ve disappeared again by now.”

“Quite the opposite, actually. She’s been here twice this week already, once to help us go through your father’s things and then she brought Dianne by for dinner last night.”

“Dianne?”

“Her partner.”

“Oh! Dianne. I didn’t know that was her name. Is she nice?”

“I think she just might be the funniest woman I’ve ever met in my life. I swear, when I woke up this morning, my sides were sore from all the laughing. Your mom enjoyed it, too. She’s actually considering their invitation to come and spend a little time with them at their lake house.”

“Seriously? That’s really great. I’m glad they’re reconnecting. Does that mean you’ll be joining me on tour soon?”

“Sorry, no. This working girl has got to get back to the daily grind. I’ve got young minds to mold and families to reunite. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have a little fun phone time now,” she says suggestively …and a little too loudly for my comfort level.

“As tempting as that is, we probably shouldn’t. I told you, my mother hears everything.”

“Oh, please! She’s all the way over on the other side of the house. And the windows are closed. And the radio is on. And on top of all that, your next-door neighbors are having a very loud spat. Something about the wife, a guy named Buddy, and a chainsaw. Unless your mom’s a bat, there’s no way she’s going to have any idea what we’re discussing.”

“Okay, fine, then. What is it, exactly, that we’re discussing?”

“Mmmm …. how much I’d love get naked right now and let you lick strawberry jam off every square inch of my sticky body.”

Wow. Well, that’s a new one for me. But then, I’ve been meaning to open myself up to more new experiences.

“How soon can we try that one out for real?”

She giggles. It’s a sexy giggle.

“Well,” she considers, “I guess that depends on …” she stops mid-sentence and the squeaky swing stops abruptly.

“Hold on,” she whispers into the phone. “Yes, Trudy?”

I can hear muted voices. She must have her hand over the receiver. “Okay, I’m back,” she says finally.

“What happened?”

“It was your mom.”

“What about her? Is she alright?”

“Yes, she’s fine.”

“Good. What did she want?”

Maggie clears her throat. “She just wanted me to remind you that strawberries make you break out in hives.”

Uh-huh.