Page 23 of Jam and Jingle Bells
He chuckled and took a bite of the pie. When he swallowed he pointed at it with his fork. “Oh, my gourd, that’s amazing.”
“Oh, my gourd?” I asked, a brow up.
“Kids,” he explained. “I had to break myself of the habit of using God.”
“Ahhh, right, impressionable and all that.”
We finished the pie and when my plate was empty, I slid it onto the table. “The Shep thing goes like this. He has been a brittle asthmatic all his life. If it weren’t for Ivy, he probably would have died about five times, but she was always there to jab him with an Epi-Pen and call for help. He was one of those kids who always joked about it. Like a teacher would ask him to pass out test papers and he’d say,Sorry, I’d probably die today and Ivy isn’t here.Things like that,” I explained and he nodded. “He’s improved over the years as he learned to control it better, but big emotional events always set him off. I wasn’t sure he’d be able to get married last year because he couldn’t stop wheezing. Mason finally had to hit him with an Epi-Pen to get him through the ceremony.”
He lowered his brow. “Seriously?”
I snortled with laughter and brushed my hand at him. “No, I’m kidding, but it was on the table as an option and we all had one in our pocket in case he went down. The truth is, the next big attack could be his last. We all know it. They both know it. They could choose to live their lives afraid of that day, but instead, they choose to live and do the best they can to prevent it. The thing is, if you can’t laugh about it then you can only cry about it, and they refuse to cry about it. Maybe me laughing tonight sounded callous to your ears, but I wasn’t laughing at him, I really was laughing with him. We’re a tight-knit community here and we all know each other and each other’s nuances. I get that you don’t, so instead of being upset or offended, just ask the honest question. I’d rather explain it to you than be irritated you thought less of me for something taken out of context.”
He nodded once. “You’re right. I agree with you one hundred percent. I definitely flew off the handle there without thinking it out. It won’t happen again. The last week has thrown me and I’m looking at things all wrong now. I’m not feeling namaste at all and that makes me even more anxious.”
I rubbed his shoulder quietly for a moment to calm him. “Forget about it, okay. You know now and we can move on. Also, if you ever find him in bad shape, you’ll know what to do. That said, thank you for dinner tonight. I love Dave Malone’s but haven’t been there in a long time.”
“You definitely could have colored me surprised with that place. It was like eating on the set of Happy Days. The food was fantastic as well.”
“I still can’t believe you didn’t order the buffalo burger.” I shook my head sadly. “You missed out.”
His lips tipped up in amusement. “I’m not sure what you heard about us in Wyoming …”
I leaned back on the couch and tossed my head to the side. “All I’m saying is, your face didn’t say you hated it when you ate half of my burger.”
“I’m always open to sharing,” he said, laughing when I punched him lightly.
“Sharing? You basically snarfed down half my burger while I was talking to the waiter.”
“Well, maybe you shouldn’t have been making eyes at the waiter then. Maybe your eyes should have been on your plate.”
I rolled said eyes to the ceiling in exasperation. “Yes, because our ninety-year-old waiter was a real threat to your manhood.”
He guffawed as he turned to see me better. “He wasn’t a day over sixty-five and he was checking you out.”
“How do you know?” I asked curiously. “Your face was buried in my burger.”
“I know because he was looking at you the same way I was whenever you weren’t looking.” His hand came up to grasp a piece of flyaway hair. “Your hair is so soft and silky. All I want to do is run my hands through it and feel it against my skin. It distracted me the entire night.”
Mission accomplished, I thought while I smoothed it down and gave him a lip tilt. “I was thinking about dying it, but Heather said I couldn’t.”
“You can do anything you want to, but why would you want to? Your hair is amazing. I’ve never seen hair so soft and beautiful before.”
“I guess the answer is, I’m a ginger and gingers don’t have souls,” I joked as he let his fingers slide into the silkiness.
“I don’t buy that old wives tale. If anything, you have too much soul. You’re an old soul and I wouldn’t want you to change that. Besides, your hair adds to the mystery and uniqueness that is you.”
“You’re saying I should never underestimate the power of uniqueness?”
He shook his head. “Never. You’re beautiful, Addie, just the way you are. Don’t go changing for anyone.”
“Unless I want to?”
He nodded once and smiled sheepishly. “Unless you want to.”
“Stylists have a tendency to mess with their hair all the time. I’ve never been one to do that, but Heather? Oh boy, she has a new look every week.”
“Maybe that means you’re already comfortable with who you are.”
