Chapter 6

Paige called at three PM, saying the bus would arrive in about thirty minutes. I was there when the bus pulled in, and watched her appear on the steps, scan the crowd, and smile when she spotted me. Aside from her laptop, she had no luggage.

We hugged and I helped her into the cab of my truck. I filled her in on what had been happening on the way to the house.

"Charlie helped me move everything from the back of the house to the front. He has a cart that attaches to the back of his tractor so it only took a few trips. Nadine stopped by this morning, but she didn't stay long. She did say that she'll be back tomorrow."

"Didn't Gordon or Nancy show up?"

"They must have decided to take the day off."

"You and Charlie had to do all the work?" Paige asked, sounding perplexed. She was wearing a summer dress. She smiled when she saw me looking at the way she had one leg tucked under the other one, showing a bare knee.

"It worked out fine. Nadine helped price some of the stuff before she left. Anyway, I had a visit from the Historical Preservation Society yesterday. She says we have to preserve the barn."

"No way!" Paige gasped.

"I tried to tell her she was being unreasonable. I even told her that some of the beams are rotting, but that didn't faze her. She quoted a town by-law that gives her organization jurisdiction over what we do."

Paige looked a bit skeptic. "That's the first I've heard about rotting beams."

"That was an exaggeration. I wouldn't have let Charlie go into the loft if I'd seen any rot."

"That wasn't an exaggeration. Do you make a habit of lying to make a point?" she asked. Her expression told me that she found my fabrication humorous.

"Just thinking how much it was going to cost to square up the barn was making me desperate. She says it was built in seventeen ninety-eight and must be preserved regardless of the cost."

"I want to read that by-law," Paige said, and I told her that Mrs. Avery had given me a copy along with the name of a contractor she recommended to do the work.

She was amazed at how many yard-sale items were spread out along the driveway. "Will it be safe here?"

"Charlie is going to watch for trespassers. I told him that we're going out for a while."

"I'm sorry to drag you along tonight, Brian. Going to the church supper was the only way I could get him to change his vote, and I certainly wasn't going without you. It steams me that he and Nancy decided to take today off."

I opened the back door and followed her inside. "Actually, they gave me a break. They would have just gotten in the way. Charlie and I work well together."

"I'm going to have a word with them on Monday."

"Surprise!" I said, holding up the key to the locked file cabinet for her to see. "I found it in the game table."

Paige jumped into my arms. "What would have happened if you didn't buy the game table?" she asked.

Her breasts were pressed into my chest, and I felt her hands on my shoulders. "I would have given up finding the key and drilled into the lock."

"Oh," she said, pulling away from me; obviously embarrassed for becoming excited about the key.

I offered her the key to the cabinet, but she preferred to study the town by-law while I took a shower and got ready to go with her and Mr. McMahan to the church supper. All she said was, "We don't have much choice but to abide by their wishes," as we walked out to meet Mr. McMahan.

He introduced us to a lady in the backseat of his car as his mother. Mrs. McMahan's greeting could have turned a bucket of water into a giant ice cube. I held the back door open for Paige, but Mr. McMahan objected, saying that she had promised to go with him, and that she was to sit in the front with him.

I watched a grin cross her face as she got into the front seat. Her good humor immediately canceled what could have caused me to sink into a bad mood. As if Paige's verdict regarding the strength of the by-law was not enough to set me off, Mr. McMahan's demand that she sit in the front seat infuriated me. Her amused acceptance that she was his date for the evening gave me the impression that she would be receptive to having some fun with it.

"You must be very proud of your son, Mrs. McMahan. He's worked hard to represent his church in the distribution of the Peoples' estate."

The lady's expression changed from vinegary to a sugar-coated response. "I've always been proud of Gordon. It's good to hear you commend him for being an upstanding, ethical representative for a cause that he believes in."

"I didn't say that, Mrs. McMahan. He may be upstanding, but do you consider changing his vote for a chance to take Ms. Kindle to a church supper ethical?"

Gordon McMahan's head swiveled to glare at me, and his face turned scarlet, making me wonder if his bow tie was choking him.

"My son wouldn't do that. He's worked hard to make sure the church is not cheated out of its share of the estate," Mrs. McMahan said.

"Where were you today, Gordon?"

"I'm tired of taking orders from you. I've done my part," he said.

"Does that mean you won't be there to help out tomorrow?"

"It depends on how tonight goes," he said, glancing adoringly at Paige.

What did he mean by that? I didn't respond because we had arrived at the church. He was quick to run around the car and open the passenger door. She turned to me and mouthed, 'stop goading him.'

By the time I helped Mrs. McMahan out of the car and we walked ever so slowly down the basement steps, Gordon was introducing Paige to the churchgoers. She kept turning to look my way, shrugging helplessly. When she motioned for me I rushed to her side, leaving the old lady chatting with others her age.

In the next fifteen minutes, I met the core members of the church. They all seemed to have a title, like deacon or pastor or director of an activity. They all spoke highly of Gordon McMahan; commending him for the splendid job he was doing in regard to the Peoples' estate. I would have loved to set them straight, but Paige's hand in mine, or her knee rubbing my leg warned me to let them think what they wanted to believe.

Mrs. McMahan appeared, urging us to get in the serving line before all the food was gone. I reluctantly followed her, and looked back to see Gordon's hands on Paige's hips as if he were steering her through the crowded room.

"I don't mind telling you that I'm opposed to my son becoming involved with that woman," Mrs. McMahan confided in me, just as one of the servers was asking if I wanted my potatoes scalloped or mashed. I spotted the gravy and elected to take the mashed potatoes.

Mrs. McMahan wasn't moving. We were holding up the serving line, but she had more to say. "I suppose you know that her husband was a gangster?"

"I've heard stories," I said.

"I've warned him not to encourage her, but he's an easy mark for a widow with children. My son is too charitable for his own good."

"May I have some gravy on my potatoes?" I asked, and received a grateful nod from the server for making Mrs. McMahan see that she was holding up the line. I followed her to a table where her friends had saved two seats for us.

I watched Paige follow Gordon to a nearby table, and take a seat next to him. After a prayer, I busied myself by remembering the names of Mrs. McMahan's friends. I even tolerated their praise for Gordon until I couldn't take any more. Someone, either Gordon or his mother, had elevated his role in the distribution committee to the lofty position of leader. I choked on the roast beef when I heard one of them say that Gordon gave the directions and the rest of us bowed to his authority.

Paige had warned me to not goad Gordon, and I took that to mean that I was not to burst Mrs. McMahan's bubble regarding her estimation of her son's ability either. I bided my time until dessert was served, and then I offered to take the old ladies' trays to the window where the dishes were being collected for washing.

Dessert was Indian pudding, but I didn't have a chance to finish mine because a constant stream of church officials wanted to shake my hand. They all began the same way.

"Mrs. Kindle tells me that you are largely responsible for keeping the ship on a steady course. We're grateful for the way Gordon has kept us appraised of the amount we're likely to receive, but I'd like to say that we appreciate your stewardship."

I responded to each of them with the same message, making my words clear and understandable, even to the hard of hearing. "I don't know what Gordon has told you, but had he reported for duty today, he would know that my estimates of the proceeds may be overstated. Had he come to help me prepare for tomorrow's yard sale, he would have heard the bad news. We may need to do extensive work on the old barn, and I have no way of knowing the cost at this time."

I only had to repeat my speech three times before word spread throughout the dining room; Gordon had not reported for duty that day and the church's share of the estate could go up in smoke.

Mrs. McMahan disputed my account that her son had failed to do his part. I sympathized with her, saying that it was just as well that he wasn't there because I could use my time more effectively than by having to give him constant direction. She responded by saying that sweeping the basement floor was demeaning, inconsistent with her son's abilities.

Paige was unusually talkative on the ride to the house. "That was fun. Did you have fun, Brian?"

"Yes, I had fun."

Mrs. McMahan and her son were uncharacteristically quiet. Gordon jumped out of the car and escorted Paige to the back door. I was helping Mrs. McMahan move from the back seat to the front when I heard the unmistakable sound of a slap.

"Sounds like she's rejecting his offer to be charitable," I observed, but Mrs. McMahan didn't respond.

"See you tomorrow, Brian," he said as we met on his way to the car, me on my way to the house. I placed my hand on his chest, stopping him.

"You changed your vote and she paid off by going with you to the church supper. That's the end of it. If I see your hand anywhere near her ass again, I'll open up the gap between your front teeth, got it?"

He didn't respond and I let him go. Paige was shaking when I got into the house.

"The audacity of that idiot," she said.

I opened my arms, and she came to me.

"I told him that you'd paid him in full for changing his vote, and that was the end of it."

"He's so dense. I had to slap him," she said, snuggling to me, like she couldn't get close enough. I rubbed her back.

"I heard."

"You did?" she asked, pulling her head away to look at me.

I nodded and rubbed her back. She tucked her cheek against mine.

"He put his hands on my ass," she whispered into my ear, like she was embarrassed to tell me and didn't want anyone else to hear.

"I know, and I made him understand that he is not to do that again."

"You did?" she asked as if she was surprised that I'd seen it or that I'd told him not to do it again, I wasn't sure which. I nodded, and felt her cheek move with mine. It was like we were attached.

"Brian, I need to explain something to you," she said, breaking our embrace and moving away.

We took seats at the kitchen table. I would have offered her something to drink if we had had anything, but the wine and beer were long gone. I watched closely, waiting for her to begin.

"I only called you once this week, not because I didn't want to talk to you or know how you were. I didn't trust myself. You see, I've been nagged by something and its better that I ask you in person."

"Ask me anything," I offered.

"Can I trust you to tell me the truth?"

What kind of question was that? Was she referring to the lie I'd admitted to telling to the preservation society lady about beams in the barn rotting? Surely, she wouldn't know about me telling some of the church members that if Gordon had shown up for duty that day he would have known that updating the barn was likely to cost a small fortune. That was technically a lie, too. He wouldn't know because I would not have told him.

"I'll be truthful. What's been nagging you?" I asked, hoping she would believe me.

"You said you were near marriage with Marian."

"I said we were talking about it."

"You said it would be a marriage of convenience?"

"That's right."

"You also said you are over her?"

"Correct."

"My question is this. Why would you considering marrying someone you didn't love?"

She sat quietly, giving me time to consider my answer.

"Marian was good with my kids, and her position in the bank was going to be good for me. My friend thought it was the right thing for me to do. Even Mary accepted Marian. I guess I let all those things influence me."

Paige slammed her hand down on the table. "That doesn't answer my question. You're not the type that bows to others' suggestions. Why would you marry someone you didn't love?"

"We had feelings for each other."

"What does that mean? Was the sex so good that you could forego love?"

"I never found out about the sex. We were getting close, but it never happened."

"Look me in the eyes, Brian. Can I believe you?"

I looked her straight in the eye. She had to believe me, didn't she? She was looking away. I had to convince her that I was being forthright.

"I guess I rationalized that I'd had love once. I loved one woman for six years and she'd loved me with all her heart and soul. That's more than some get, isn't it? I knew Marian would never take Peg's place in my heart, and I believe she knew it too. Anyway, she wasn't looking for security. She would have been content to have an affair, but I didn't want to bring another bastard into the world. I was the one holding out for marriage even though I knew we didn't love each other."

Paige was looking down at her hands, as if they held some mystical secret. She caught me looking at the clock on the stove.

"What?"

"I was wondering what time the liquor stores close."

"Brian, we have to get up early in the morning."

"Come on, we'll find a bar that's still serving."

I could tell that she wanted to give in and go with me. "Brian, don't look at me that way."

"How am I looking at you?"

"You're using your convincing look," she said, getting up and taking my hand.

We found a cocktail lounge that was next door to a motel. Most of the customers looked like they were transients. We ordered whiskey sours and danced to a slow song.

"Did you dance this way with Peggy?"

"Close?"

"Yes, did you hold her close the way you're holding me?"

We sat down to finish our drinks, and I told Paige about my first date with Peg, how she pretended to be my girlfriend, and how we'd convinced my co-workers that we were a couple. "She was a terrible tease," I said, and watched Paige's eye glisten.