I laid aside the dish towel I had used to dry my hands and came back to the table. My hands on the back of my usual chair, I stared at my daughter, suddenly apprehensive. “What’s wrong? Is it something to do with the baby?”
Laura shook her head. “No, Dad, it’s not that.” She paused, as if gathering her nerve to continue. “You know Frank’s been out of town for a couple of days?”
I nodded. Frank Salisbury, Laura’s husband, taught in the theater department at Athena College. “He’s home again?”
“Yes,” Laura said. “We didn’t tell you, but he went to Virginia on a job interview.”
I suddenly lost my appetite. “And?”
Laura looked upset. “They’ve offered him the job, and he’s thinking seriously about taking it.”
TWO
My fingers ached from my tight grip on the back of the chair. I let go, pulled the chair out, and sat, all the while staring at my daughter. I tried to form a response, but my brain refused to cooperate.
Laura easily read my thoughts in my expression, however, and her tone turned defensive. “I knew you’d hate the idea, Dad.” She paused, and her lower lip trembled. “I’m not crazy about it myself, but it’s such a great opportunity for Frank.”
I heard the whispers of doubt in my daughter’s voice. For her sake, I had to keep calm and try to look at the issue with a clear mind. Diesel sensed my agitation, however, and came over to my chair. He rubbed against my legs and meowed. I stroked his head to reassure him.
When I could speak, I was pleased that my voice didn’t wobble. “Tell me about this great opportunity.”
Laura looked at me doubtfully, as if surprised at my seeming lack of emotion. “Well, it’s a much bigger department with a bigger budget, and the salary is about twenty percent higher than what he earns here. He would have graduate students as well, and he would get to teach theater history courses. He can’t do that here, at least not until Professor Thayer retires.”
“Those are powerful inducements to taking the job.” My heart ached at the thought of my daughter and her husband moving to Virginia not long after the birth of my first grandchild. I had so looked forward to seeing little Charles Franklin Salisbury grow up here in my hometown. I realized that was selfish, though, because Frank had his family and his career to consider, and this opportunity sounded like an excellent one. “What do you think about it?”
“Since I decided to stay at home with the baby for at least the first three years,” Laura said, “the increase in salary will help make up for the loss of income.” She frowned. “Frank hasn’t said anything, but I know he’s worried about how we’ll manage on his salary alone if we stay here.”
“Has he discussed this with his department head here?” I asked. “From what you and Frank have said, she thinks highly of Frank. If she wants to keep him here, maybe she can come up with more money.”
“She leans on him a lot,” Laura said. “They don’t have an extensive budget, though. They have to get grants for most of the productions as it is, and when I quit at the end of this semester, she’s not going to be allowed to rehire for my position.”
My daughter sounded more upset the longer we discussed the situation. Diesel left me to go to her. She looked down at him and smiled briefly. She stroked his head for a moment, then focused her gaze on me again.
“I don’t want to move, Dad. I don’t want to leave you all. I’m terrified of trying to cope with a baby and finding a new place to live and packing up and moving and . . .” She threw up her hands. “But we have to think about our future, and in the long run Frank’s taking this job and our moving to Virginia makes perfect sense. I’m simply feeling a bit overwhelmed.”
I didn’t want to add any pressure to Laura’s already overburdened emotions. Frank’s and her needs—present and future—came before mine. She deserved honesty, too, but honesty phrased as tactfully as I could manage. I noticed Azalea standing by with her hands clasped as if in prayer, and I hoped she was praying for guidance for us all.
“Frank is a good man.” I tried to keep my voice steady, but I struggled. “I’m proud of his accomplishments and his dedication to you and the baby. If he truly thinks that taking this job in Virginia is the best course for you—and if you agree with that decision—then I will support you with all my heart.” I paused. “Of course I would love to have you all here in Athena, but what I want most of all is what’s best for the three of you.”
“Thank you, Daddy,” Laura said, her smile tremulous. “You and Mom always told Sean and me to follow our dreams, and you allowed us to make our own decisions, even when they didn’t turn out so well. Frank and I still have a lot to discuss, but I didn’t want to go any further before I told you.”
She pushed back from the table and stood, holding on to the table as she did so. “If you’ll excuse me, I need the bathroom.” She moved slowly out of the room and into the hall.
Azalea and I looked at each other. I could see she was fighting back tears.
“Oh, Mr. Charlie, I can’t hardly bear thinking about that child being all alone in Virginia with her baby and nobody there to look after them.” She dabbed at her eyes with the hem of her apron.
I was ready to cry myself. “I can’t bear it, either, but this is their decision, hers and Frank’s. I know Frank will make sure that Laura and the baby have everything they need, no matter where they are.”
“I’ll be praying for them,” Azalea said. “The Lord will provide.”
I nodded, my throat too tight for me to be able to get words out. I stared down at the table through a mist of tears. Diesel meowed anxiously and put a large paw on my knee. He hated it when I was upset about anything, and this was probably the most worried or anxious I’d been in a long time.
He continued to meow and mutter while I rubbed his head. I didn’t think my attentions convinced him that all was well. I certainly didn’t feel it myself.
I cleared my throat and pulled my handkerchief out to wipe my eyes. “Let’s try to perk up.” I spoke for Azalea’s benefit as much as my own. “We don’t want to cause Laura any distress, and I know she’s already worried about how we’re taking this news.”
“I’ll try.” Azalea moved to the sink to wash her hands and, I suspected, dab her face with cold water.
By the time Laura returned a couple of minutes later, I had better control of my emotions, and Diesel had settled down by my feet. He moved over to sit beside Laura, however, when she resumed her place at the table.
“You’d best be eating something, Mr. Charlie, before you have to go back to work.” Azalea set a plate in front of me, and then placed one before Laura. “You, too, Miss Laura. You need your strength.”
Laura offered a wan smile of thanks. I looked down at my plate, my appetite nearly nonexistent. I knew, however, I needed to eat or Laura would see the lack of appetite as a symptom of distress on my part. The chicken and rice casserole, one of Azalea’s standards, was a favorite of mine. I had a bite, then another, at first having to force myself, but then my appetite revived, and I ended up eating the entire serving, along with two buttered rolls and some green beans almondine.
Diesel went off to the utility room for a snack of his own. He couldn’t have any of the casserole because it had onions and garlic in it, and both of those were no-no ingredients for cats. He did occasionally get treats from the table, but I was careful about their contents.
Azalea excused herself, after being sure we had everything we needed, and headed upstairs to clean.
Laura and I chatted about my job as interim director at the college library. Focusing on that, rather than her possible impending departure to Virginia, made it easier to get through the meal.