“Hey, I’m statin’ facts not startin’ a fight,” he said.
“Good, because I’m sure not in the mood for a fight!” She pushed her way past him. “See y’all in the kitchen after I clean up.”
When she looked in the mirror above the wall-hung sink in the bathroom, sure enough there was Irene Miller staring back at her. The streaks from tears mixing with dirt and dust had created pseudo-wrinkles down her cheeks. Her dark hair had a coating of white dust all the way to her scalp and her eyes were slightly swollen from crying.
That she looked like shit didn’t bother her half as much as the fact that Sharlene had seen her looking like that. She stripped out of her coveralls and left them lying on the bathroom floor. Her work pants and T-shirt were in good shape since they’d been covered up. However, the insulated underwear was getting pretty warm now that she was out of the chilly room. So she took off everything down to her underpants and bra and picked up a washcloth to work on her face.
One more glance in the mirror and she realized that she’d never brush all that grime from her hair. She found towels on the shelves above the toilet, along with shampoo. She pulled the curtain around the tub and hoped that the drain didn’t clog. She hated doing plumbing work.
“I promise to wear a hat next time I take down drywall.” She stepped into the tub and let the hot water rinse away tears, dirt, and dust from her body and hair.
When she finished, the woman in the mirror smiled at her. “Hello, I haven’t seen you since before you married Riley. I thought I’d lost you forever.”
The grin widened.
She redressed, leaving her work boots sitting on the floor beside her coveralls and long underwear. The phone in her hip pocket rang at the same time she stepped out into the hallway.
“Hello, Mama,” she said.
“I need you to stop what you are doing by one o’clock. I have to take your grandmother to Wichita Falls this afternoon for a doctor’s appointment. I forgot all about it until I looked at the calendar. You’ll need to mind the store.” Katy sounded frantic.
“It’s okay, Mama. I’m at a really good stopping point. I’ve got the ceiling down in the master bedroom.” Allie stopped and leaned against the wall. “Is one early enough? I can come on right now if you want me to.”
“The main roads are clear from here to there but we’re in for more snow tonight. I just want to get up there, get it done, and get home before the roads get slick. I’m not lookin’ forward to driving in it. Are you eating dinner with Blake and Deke?” Katy asked.
“Yes, but I could eat whatever you’ve made in the store. It’s no big deal,” she answered.
“Go on and eat your dinner. One o’clock will be fine. Thank goodness the sun melted some of this already,” Katy said.
Allie ran a hand through her hair and realized she hadn’t taken time to brush it. “Want me to take her?”
“No, I have to be there to sign papers and talk to them about a new medication they want to try. See you in an hour.”
She went back to the bathroom, ran the brush she found on the shelf beside the shampoo through her damp hair, and put it back on the shelf. Then she padded to the kitchen in her socks.
“Cinderella emerges.” Blake set a pot of beans on the table. “I thought I heard the shower pipes rattling. Did you find everything you needed?”
She nodded. “Maybe I should have asked.”
Blake patted her on the shoulder. “Friends make themselves at home. Your timing is great. Food’s on the table. Beans with ham hock, fried okra, and sweet potato casserole.”
Allie pulled out a chair and eased into it. “I’m hungry. You won’t get any fight out of me.”
“I’ll do the honors.” Deke picked up a ladle and filled Allie’s bowl first. “Herman showed up this morning with a crew and I swear he’s cutting and stackin’ wood as fast as Blake and the bulldozer can pile it up.”
“How are you doin’ with the wood business, Deke?” Allie scooped sweet potatoes onto her plate and added several spoons of okra to the side before passing both off to Blake.
Their fingertips brushed and sparks danced around the room. Life wasn’t fair. Not thirty minutes ago Sharlene had her tongue in his mouth and yet, a simple touch had created enough electricity to jack her pulse up. Her mind wandered and she had to play fast catch-up when it came back to the kitchen and Deke was answering her question.
“I’m selling everything I cut to Herman right in the field. We made a deal. He’s giving me five bucks less a rick than if I hauled it to Wichita Falls, but when you consider the time and the gas, I reckon I’m probably making money rather than losing it.”
She nodded but her thoughts skipped backward to what her father said when they started a new remodeling job. Was Blake the new that she was supposed to be thinking about now that she’d erased the old?