Page 65 of Missile Tow
“But I thought you just said there was only one other guest?”
“The other attendees must have slipped my mind,” she corrected, the previous look of contrition disappearing quickly. Suddenly, and perhaps not surprisingly, the true Sadie reappeared.
“So you heard John is returning to Missile?”
“Of course, yes. I heard the great news,” she answered. “I’ve been a longtime friend of the Thomas family. I imagine you understand how delighted they are that John is coming home where he belongs.”
Her attempt at disguising her true intentions suffered tiny cracks the more she spoke. She’d almost had me fooled. Glee was the only word that came to mind as she explained her worry over seating arrangements. As much as I wanted to feel sorry for her, the more she revealed who she truly was, the less inclined I was to do so.
“How about this?” I countered. “To solve your seating issue, how about we move the dinner to Chip’s cabin?”
The cracks I’d noticed a second before were quickly becoming earthquake rubble. She took a step back and stared at me. I imagine to take full measure of an assumed foe she’d encountered. My earlier concern that the poor woman was lonely and had decided to eat crow, as well as acknowledge her transgression, was way off base. Sadie Hatfield was cunning.
“You’d actually have John as a guest at Chip’s?” she asked, looking around in case she’d misheard me, possibly looking for witnesses.
“Absolutely,” I replied. “No different from you inviting me to your home, where John will be with his parents.” I let that sink in for a moment before proceeding. “You know, the other guests:Chip’s ex, hisparents, and then, of course,Chip himself. We may as well have them all over to the cabin. Plus, Bertie can be there too. How about that? What do you think?”
Her well-rehearsed plan had a giant log dropped in its path. I knew what she was up to, and she’d just gathered that fact. I didn’t enjoy playing these types of games, especially with my desire to be respectful of Chip’s neighbors, but this woman was evidently not on my side.
“You seem more evolved than I imagined.”
“I try my best, ma’am,” I said, laying on the charm thicker than her face makeup.
“However,” she began, doing what I anticipated she would. Adjust her plan. “Perhaps my home is larger and better suited to accommodate that many.”
“Large enough to include Bertie?” I inquired, smiling.
She glared at me but managed to keep her mask of civility firmly in place. “I think I can arrange it so.”
“Lovely,” I replied. “I’m sure Bertie will be delighted to attend. I know Chip and I will be.”
Sadie snatched her eggs off the counter and walked off without so much as a goodbye or a fuck you. Chip, watching from the garage, immediately came rushing to the counter.
“She looked pissed,” he said, watching as she roared out of the parking lot. “What did you say to her, Van?” he asked, still following the billowing exhaust as she headed down Main Street.
“I accepted her invitation to Christmas Eve dinner.”
“You what?” he asked, spinning around to face me.
“Yep! She stopped by to invite me,” I clarified.
“But I’m not going, remember?”
“I’d like you to go now,” I pleaded. “I mean, come on, she took the time to come over and invite me.Andshe included Bertie.”
Chip looked outside toward the street again. Perhaps to verify he’d actually seen Sadie in the first place. He turned back, an incredulous look on his face. “Bertie?” he interrogated. “Mrs. Hatfield invited Bertie? To her house? On Christmas Eve? For the second time?”
“With some urging,” I admitted.
He grabbed my arms and held me at arm’s length. “Youarea miracle worker, baby. I swear, I can’t believe that,” he expressed, disbelief lacing his voice. “And to think you thought she had it out for you.”
“I know, right? To actually think she had it out for me,” I agreed, deciding he didn’t need to know I was onto her and her wicked plan to reunite John and Chip.
I told myself I wasn’t hiding things from Chip. Besides, I wasn’t positive Mrs. Hatfield was that devious. But in the event she was, I wanted to face what could otherwise easily happen behind my back. She may as well take her best shot, and I would do my best to present mine.
“You’re so evolved,” Chip said, rubbing my hand in his. “I’m so proud of you.”
That was the second time in five minutes someone had referred to me as evolved.But was I?
