“Of course. It’s the least I can do.” Rose smiled and Ronnie found herself helplessly lost in it.
“Ahem.” Susan’s polite cough broke the moment.
“I’d better get back to the phone calls.”
“Ronnie, I’ll make sure Mother gets home. You worry about getting in touch with everyone,” the redhead said.
It was almost nightfall by the time Susan and her family took Beatrice home. Ronnie made it a point to stay hidden in the office as much as possible while unbeknownst to her Rose was doing her best to keep the matriarch away from her. When the minivan backed out of her driveway, the black-haired woman breathed a sigh of relief and stepped into the living room.In her hiding, she had not noticed that the group of relatives arriving was outpacing those leaving and now close to thirty Cartwrights were floating around. She spotted Rose immediately and made a beeline for her. “Hi.”
“Hi. Your mother left.”
“I see that.” She looked around, her tall frame allowing her to see past the mass of people. “Do you think they could be a little louder?”
“Who’s the one in the blue jacket with the tie undone?”
“Michael. He owns a Toyota dealership. One of the cousins,” Ronnie said as she looked at the young man, frowning at his bereavement act.
“Oh.”
“Why do you ask?”
“He was telling me that he and Tommy were close.”
“Yeah and he was ‘close’ to Dad after he died. Didn’t get him anything then and it won’t now.”
“You mean he’s only acting like that because…” Rose stopped, thinking about how Delores acted when her father died. “That’s terrible.”
“I’m surprised he’s here and not ransacking Tommy’s condo right now. Must have been so close he forgot the address in all of his grief.” Hidden from the sight of others, a hand worked its way to the small of Ronnie’s back and began rubbing in gentle circles.
“They’ll be leaving soon, won’t they?”
“Well, there’s no reason for the them to stay. They all said their condolences to Mother and found out when the wake and funeral are scheduled. They’re just hanging out here because they have no place better to be. A loud crash from the game room drew her attention. “I’ll be right back.”
The crash turned out to be a barstool complete with its occupant. “Hey, Cuzz,” the drunken man slurred. Two of the half-dozen men standing around moved in to help him up. A breathalyzer was not needed to know they were all quite drunk.
“Frank, what are you doing.”
“The boys and I were just raising a few to Tommy.” He wobbled back onto his now upright stool. She walked past him and stepped behind the bar.
“A bottle of scotch and half a bottle of vodka. You guys have been toasting him quite well, I believe.” She capped the vodka and shut the light off behind the bar. “I think it’s time for your wives to take you home.” She walked around shutting off lights and hanging up the cue sticks. One by one the men grumbled and left the room, not all unassisted. It took her slightly longer to break up the clusters of women gathered together talking about every imaginable subject. Only when the last relative was gone did Maria appear with the vacuum. “Don’t bother tonight,” Ronnie said.
“Look at this room,” the housekeeper said incredulously.
“It will still be here in the morning, Maria. It’s been a long day and I’m exhausted. Please, just leave it until tomorrow, okay?”
“If you wish. I’ll be here first thing as usual. Should I pick up anything special at the market?”
“No, there’s nothing—”
“A roll of chocolate chip cookie dough,” Rose interjected. “Um, you know how kids love cookies. Maybe it’ll keep them occupied.” She caught the slight upturn of a smile on Ronnie’s lips and knew her idea was well received. “Better make that two,” she amended, her eyes never leaving those of her friend.
An hour later, two bodies were curled up around each other, both fighting yawns. “You are an incredibly thoughtful woman,” Ronnie mumbled into the young woman’s ear.
“Mm?”
“The cookies. And I know you put up with my mother to keep her away from me.” She squeezed the shoulder beneath her hand. “You don’t know how much I appreciate that.”
“You had enough to worry about.” She squirmed back into the warm body behind her. The biggest advantage of having her cast shortened was that she could snuggle up as close as she wanted to Ronnie. “She’s not that bad.”
“That’s because she’s not your mother.”
“True.”
“It’s a good thing too.” The hand that had been squeezing Rose’s shoulder, moved down to her waist.
“Why is that?”
“Because,” Ronnie answered as she flipped the smaller woman onto her back and put her hands on either side of the golden head of hair. She relaxed her shoulders, bringing their lips so close that their breath mingled. “That would make you my sister and I guarantee there are times when my thoughts of you are far from sisterly.” Even in the dim moonlight Rose could see the roguish grin before it was replaced with a more serious face. “You don’t know how much you’ve helped me today. You made me feel…well…very special.”
“With everything you mean to me, how could I do anything less?” She reached up and caressed the chiseled face above her. “And you are special. I know it’s going to be hard dealing with your family for the next few days but I’ll be right there to help you through it. Come on now, you’re tired, I’m tired, and tomorrow is going to be another long day. Enough talk for tonight.” Rose put her hand on Ronnie’s shoulder and pulled, forcing the taller woman to lie down against her.
“That’s better.”
“Rose?”
“Mm?”
“Can I stay like this…in your arms?” The woman who usually took charge sounded almost like a scared child with her request. As hard as it was for Rose to hear Ronnie in such pain, it filled her heart to know that it was she the older woman turned to for comfort. “Always,” she whispered, tightening her hold.
“I can’t believe he’s gone.” There was a long silence. “I know things have been hard between us lately but that’s not what I see when I think of him.”
“What do you see, Ronnie?” she whispered, her hand moving to stroke the long hair. “Tell me about the Tommy you grew up with, the one you loved.”
“He was the cutest little boy.” Rose felt the body against hers relax as happy memories surfaced.
“We were close when he was little. Whatever I was doing, he wanted to do. He was my shadow.” A tear fell and Ronnie swallowed hard.
“Hey, will you do something for me?”
A nod. “Anything.”
“Think back to a happy time, just you and Tommy. Close your eyes and picture it in your head.” She waited a few seconds. “Are you seeing it? Now, tell me about it. Is it summer or winter?”