Chapter 4

Sadie caught me alone for a minute when Angie wasn’t present, “Jack, are you and Angie going to be a couple?”

“I don’t know. There isn’t much reason not to be on my part, but she hasn’t said anything and neither have I. We’ll discuss it sometime. I think she is waiting to see how the surgery on her face comes out. Her looks don’t bother me that much, but I can see how it does to her.”

“You’re a good man, Jack. You may have to convince her of that. Don’t hesitate. Pa and me think well of you. If love doesn’t develop between you two, we’re okay with that too. We know you will be friends. We want you for a friend either way.”

“We’ll always be friends. If it doesn’t happen, I’d like to come back sometime and spend an hour down in God’s glade in the woods.”

“You’re welcome. Please come anytime, with or without Angie.”

I hugged Sadie and just then Angie and Pa came in and saw us. “Are you making out with my mother?”

“Yes, Jack was, and it was at my invitation.” We laughed.

Soon it was time to leave. Not much had been said on the way home. I did get a chaste kiss when I took Angie’s into her house. I went across the street to my house.

Rita came across the street on Wednesday, reminding me that she was going to be on vacation next week. I wondered about that because she hadn’t been working in the factory that long a time. Not my business.

“What’s up Rita, you haven’t been over for awhile?”

“No, I haven’t been. I just wanted to ask how you and Angie are getting along. I understand you took her to visit he folks last weekend?”

“Did she tell you all about it?”

“Some. She said you were a nice guy. I pressed her for details, but didn’t get much of an answer. Jack, you didn’t come onto her and she rejected you? She just didn’t seem to want to talk about the trip or about you except for saying it was nice of you to drive her.”

“Rita, as far as I know we are still friends, and no, I didn’t come onto her. I haven’t seen her since Sunday when we returned. I thought you and I were enough of friends where you wouldn’t think I would do that. Let’s change the subject. When am I going to meet the person you have been dating?”

“Soon ... maybe within the month after I get back from vacation,”

“Where are you going on your vacation/”

“I have a cabin on a lake in the West Virginia Mountains. It is pretty primitive. My boy friend’s uncle owns it. I’ve only seen pictures of it.”

“Sounds like fun.”

“I’m sure it will be. Jack, take care of Angie while I’m away if you would.”

“I will. You and your boyfriend are serious, I take it.”

“We are very serious. He is a good guy. You could have been him, you know. The trouble is you never followed up on my advances. I left enough openings for you to come after me, but you never did.”

“That’s true. I was some surprised when you began dating. But you were giving me signals you were only interested in me for sex. When I meet someone I think I can live with for the rest of my live, I won’t hesitate. As far as sex is concerned, I’ll take it and enjoy it when offered. There seems to be enough around. Remember it was you who crawled in with me the first time.”

“It was me who made the mistake then?”

“No, you didn’t make a mistake if you enjoyed the times we had together and that is if I satisfied you?”

“Jack, you were the best I ever had and every woman that you make love to would say the same. It was just that you seemed to want to keep to your weird hours at work. I didn’t see where I compete with that.”

“Umm, you may have been right. I do get involved in my work. I’ll have to watch out for that when I meet the person I want to make my own for life.”

“You had better. I guess I’ll leave now. Maybe I can find out what Angie’s problem is before I go on vacation. Give me a hug; you are a good friend to have.” I watched Rita cross the street. She had given me a few things to think about. Rita was still a friend. For a minute I regretted I didn’t pick up on her signals back weeks ago ... but that was only for a minute. Being friends with her was enough.

‘****’

The next day before lunch, I went across the street to see Angie. “Hey, there, friend of mine, let’s go on a picnic? I’ll stop and get a bucket of chicken and we’ll go somewhere and eat it. I feel like lying out in the sun. I have blankets and a six pack of beer.”

“Are you sure you can leave your work long enough? I can remember when I saw you almost every day and it has been four days.”

“You could have come across the street.”

“I know, but I hated to interrupt you.”

“You know, you sound just like Rita. She basically said the same thing about me not keeping up in seeing my friends. So?”

“So, what?”

“So ... picnic. I just asked you if you would enjoy one.”

“I guess so. I need to talk to you, anyway.”

“What about?”

“Just some things I’ve done this week you should know about.”

“Good, Rita was saying you were acting weird and I’m the only one that is allowed to act that way.”

“You are weird, not just acting. I’m not going inside a store for the food you know. I haven’t been inside a store since I was injured.”

“I know and I’ll do it until you get your looks improved. I’d probably be the same if I had your problem, but then maybe not. I’m just weird enough to force people to deal with a man whose face was all fucked up.”

Angie laughed, knowing I spoke the truth. We drove into the city to a mall that had a Fried Chicken outlet. “I’ll get the chicken and after that I’ll walk down to the bake shop and get us a small cake. It’s busy so I’ll be awhile. There are some novels in the back you can look at. Pick one to read.”

It seemed to take forever getting my order of chicken. It was fragrant so I headed back to the car to leave it. Angie wasn’t there. This worried me because I feared she wouldn’t have left on her own. I turned and scanned the parking lot.

I was just about ready to call 911 to report her missing when I saw a woman walking down the front of the mall. People were staring at her, some even coming to a stop and looking after her. It was Angie carrying a cake box by its string. She came across the parking lot and I could see she was almost staggering. I went to meet her.

“Oh God, Jack, talk about walking the last mile I just did it. I’m so weak, I’m trembling all over. Get me into the car so I can sit down.”

“In a minute, people are still watching. Kiss me and let them know someone doesn’t feel sorry for you.” I held the kiss and then we started toward the car with my arm around her.

“Jack, that was the most difficult thing I have ever done.”

“Now you know how it is to be weird. Quite a charge isn’t it?”

“Shut up and drive. I’m hungry and I think I’ve paid my dues.” There was a quirky smile on Angie’s face. I was just as proud of Angie as she was of herself.

I found a place to put our blankets down in the park. Angie was soon gnawing on chicken bones. Every few minutes she would look at me a giggle. Finally, when the chicken and the potato salad were gone, I asked, “Pretty proud of yourself, aren’t you?”

“Yes I am, and I didn’t get hurt a bit.”

“Angie, I’m just as proud of you as you are. I’m wondering why you did it. Can you tell me why?”

“Jack, I did it for only one reason. I wanted to get your attention. I have to say this and I may be sorry when I tell you, but it is for the same reason as what I did earlier. Jack, I’ve been in love with you ever since I opened my eyes the first time you came into the hospital to see me. I’ve tried seducing you and although you gave me what I needed, it wasn’t what I wanted. What I want is your love.”

I didn’t say anything and the hope in Angie’s eyes was fast disappearing. “Just a minute, Angie; let me go to the car and I’ll be back and we’ll discuss this.” I stepped to the car and retrieved a ring box from the glove compartment. I came back and opened it in front of Angie. “Angie, will you marry me? Will you love me forever and ever?”

“Jack, oh my God, I didn’t expect this. It is too soon after the death of my husband. What would people say if I jumped from one husband to another is such a short time?”

“Question; Angie, how long before your husband died did your love disappear?”

“I wouldn’t be lying if I said two years or more, and that I would swear to.”

“Think about Rita and when she lost the love she had for her husband. It would be about the same amount of time. Think back to your marriage. There must have been some incident that made you accept the fact that love was gone. Use that for a date that you were free to look for some happiness. I would accept that date.”

“It is entirely different. Actually there is much more stigma attached to a wife who kills her husband than for just getting a divorce, even a messy one.”

“Angie, it was justified!”

“I know, but I don’t see how I can marry you even as much as I love you and want to. It wouldn’t be fair to you.”

“I’m the weird one. I can do whatever I want.”

“In this case I would have to agree to stand beside you when the ceremony is performed. I can’t do it.”

“Angie, if not, give me time to try to change your mind. In the meantime, would you accept this ring? Wear it or keep it in a treasured place. I would be so honored.”

“Jack, I want to. My life is so screwed up I can barely stand it.”

“That’s true, but there is also a man who loves you. That should be something to think about.”

“It is, Jack, and I’m going to have some sleepless nights thinking about us.” She was silent for a minute and then she brightened. “Now, I agreed to this picnic so I could talk to you. I called a forester to talk about my land. I told him what I wanted done. He is coming early tomorrow morning. I want him to mark the trees. I also asked if he knew someone I could hire to cut the trees and get rid of the brush and he said he does.”

“That’s great. Have him do the same on my wooded acre. I’m putting you in charge.”

“I thought you might. There is something more to tell you. I’m having a consultation next week about having my face restored to something a little less unsightly. That’s on Wednesday. I made the appointment for eleven in the morning. Can you get the time free to go with me? Rita is on vacation and George has been telling me how busy he is.”

“I’ll be there.”

“Thank you, I can always count on you. Jack, may I take this ring out of the box? It is so lovely. You know I believe I will accept it and wear it on a chain around my neck. Would that be okay with you?”

“Certainly, again I’m honored.”

“Jack, I know we are out in public, but may I kiss you?”

We talked about the future. Angie was adamant that we keep our engagement a secret. It was decided for the present we would maintain two households. With my weird hours that had me home for several hours during the day, we would see much of each other. Until Angie had the reconstruction on her face she wouldn’t be going out much anyway.

Angie called Rita’s cell as soon as we had finalized the plans for the lots to be improved. This was on Wednesday following the picnic when we became engaged. The phone was answered, “Mrs. George Johnson speaking.” A conversation commenced and went on for more than an hour.

Angie was waiting for me when I came home. “Jack, I found out who Rita has been seeing. In fact she married him last Saturday while we were thinking she was shacked up in some cabin in the woods. I guess you could say she was, but with her new husband and not with someone we didn’t know. How do you feel about that?”

“I’ll have to think about it a little before I can say. I thought for a long time it would be you who George would ask. But I could see that in the last month he wasn’t interested. That’s when I bought a ring, just in case.”

“What do you mean, just in case?”

“Just in case you were free to present a ring to.”

“Jack, you surprised me. I never really considered George for a husband. He was Brian’s friend and at times he defended Brian when I thought he should be considering my feelings. Also, I had thought you were making love to Rita until she began talking about dating someone else. I even went so far as to watch your house across the road to see if she left the area and came back and saw you later. I would have been crushed if she had.”

“Jealous?”

“Yes, damn it, I was jealous. Remember I told you I fell in love with you the first time we met.”

“Angie, you are over here and we are talking about our friends. Would you stay for a while?”

“Yes! Maybe we should call George and Rita later just to bust their butts for keeping their love a secret from us.”

‘****’

Our two lots consisted of a lot of weed trees that needed to be taken out. There was a lot of underbrush as well. When this was all removed, we ended up with three oak trees, four maple trees and some small ash saplings trees on each lot. When the work was finished we had some cordwood for sale. Angie brought in a wood chipper and had the brush and tops chipped.

There were bare spots and she was advised if we wanted to keep the brush clear we should plant ground cover of different sorts. We ended up with an almost park-like area of two acres. This was all done under Angie’s oversight with hired labor.

A month after the work on the lots began and almost done, I took Angie to Philadelphia for the surgery on her face. I stayed with Angie four days. She was then going to a facility to recuperate for a week or ten days. I would pick her up when the doctor said she could come home and then be under her own doctor’s care. If the procedure went as expected, her doctor’s care would be minimal.

Angie had a choice to have her nose and her face done in two separate operations. No, she wanted it completed at once so she wouldn’t have to return the second time. When she came out of surgery, her face was totally encased in bandages. I had no clue how effective the surgery would turn out to be.

Some soft tissue and skin was used from the inside of her thigh to rebuild her left cheek. The surgeon promised that this would look fine and would hardly be noticeable. The missing part of her nostril that couldn’t be saved was a more difficult problem. A section was removed from part of her ear and attached. It was less than 1/2 inch long, 3/8 inch wide and only 1/8 inch thick.

I was there when the bandages came off. I was amazed how much her looks had improved. The colors of her skin didn’t match on her cheek, but the scar itself was hardly detectable. Cosmetics could take care of the difference. This might have to be applied for the rest of her life, but the shape was good. The nostril was shaped well, but there was little blood or nerves feeding into the edge, so here again, Angie had to rely on makeup to make it less noticeable. I thought the surgeon’s work was amazing. I did have to keep reminding Angie of this fact.

“Sweetheart, it has been seven months since the incident when you were injured. Outside of your left knee, which has a permanent limp, but getting incrementally better as you continue to exercise, you are doing wonderfully well. It only takes a few minutes to put on your make up.”

Angie halted me, “What’s this leading up to?”

“Angie, you have been wearing my ring around your neck for two months now, don’t you think you should bring it out and let me put it on your finger?”

“No, Jack, but maybe I will someday. You forget that I murdered my husband. People won’t ever forget that. I will concede that I would like to live with you and not have to travel across the street when we have needs. I have a proposal. Would you move in with me? I have one more bedroom than you do. That would be a nice Christmas present for both of us.”

“What am I going to do with my house?”

“Keep it and enlarge your office if it needs it. Then if my or your family wants to visit, you can continue to work your weird hours if you wish or need to. My mother and father are coming after the first of the year for a few days. I would like to have your parents visit. I’ve only met your mother once and I really would like to get to know her better. Sammy and her kids can come and stay with her.”

“Angie, you didn’t answer my question about putting my ring on your finger.”

“Jack, I’m still going to say no at this time. I really have considered it and I will come to it. Would you give me since we met until a year has passed? That is only another five months.”

“Of course I will, and I will move across the street to be with you. We still have one thing more to do this year. I want to get our green grotto built. It isn’t too late to get it done before winter sets in permanently.”

“I’ll get it started. In fact I’ll call today and see if my former handymen will do it. They did such a wonderful job on clearing our two lots.”

“I’ll move in today, if you so desire.”

“Right now is good.”

Angie and I went to Sammy’s for Thanksgiving. Sammy had her boy three weeks ago. This was the first time Mom and Dad had seen their grandson. Dad didn’t have much to say about his grandson, but you could tell he was pretty proud. “Jack, you had better and find yourself a woman. It’s okay to have friends, but I’m telling you, you need a wife.”

“Someday, Dad. I’m thinking about it.”

“What about the woman you brought with you today?”

“Asked and turned down. I do like her a lot. She is a good friend though and keeps me from being too lonely.” Dad just shook his head, figuring I was hopeless.”