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Alan, Rose, and Susan soon joined the three on the landing, although that did make things a little crowded. The girls were just staring at Martha's rapture. It took Rose gently shaking Martha's shoulder to bring the older woman back to the here‑and‑now. Martha looked around at the broad smiles on the faces of her daughter and granddaughters, and the twitching lips of her soon‑to‑be son‑in‑law.
"What?" she demanded. That caused Alan's smile to break out, and he turned to hide it from her. He turned to the right and purposefully headed for the front bedroom. Katie was quickly on his heels since he was headed towards 'her' bedroom.
"Mother, what had you so entranced?" Rose inquired.
"I was just looking at this backyard and thinking how ideal it will be for your wedding in June," Martha said. This was news to Susan, and she filed the information away to be shared with Gil and the ladies at the Tuesday morning kaffeeklatsch.
"That's nice, Mother. Now, let's show you the rest of the upstairs."
Maggie pointed out that the East and West sides were mirrors of each other, with a bedroom in each of the North and South corners with a bathroom in between. "Katie and I are going to have the front bedrooms. The two here at the top of the stairs will be for guests."
"Like Tom and Julie? Or David?" Martha asked.
"No, David's gonna be in the front bedroom with me, as usual, Grandma," Maggie averred, causing Martha's eyes to widen a bit. Martha gave an inquiring look at Rose, who smiled and nodded.
Maggie continued, "Besides, Tom and Julie have their own space here."
Martha frowned as she tried to puzzle out the sleeping arrangements. She gestured with her fingers as she mentally allocated the rooms, but could not figure it out. Rose and Maggie watched as Martha flailed mentally.
"Surely not in the basement."
"Let's finish the upstairs tour and we'll show you where Tom and Julie will stay. You and Daddy can use your choice of the two guest rooms when you come to visit."
In the meantime, Katie and Alan measured the rooms on the East half of the upstairs, and Alan drew out the rough floorplan. Before they left Katie's future bedroom, she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissed him very lightly on the lips, and burrowed her turned head under his chin.
"Thank you, Poppa. I can't believe how much my life has turned around in just a few weeks, and it's all thanks to you and Momma." Small tears began to leak from her eyes, which she quickly dried on his shirt. "Mags, too. She's been so wonderful to me, and a much better sister than Sharon ever was."
Alan wasn't sure how to deal with his affectionate, weepy 'daughter', so he gingerly put his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. He just stood there holding his youthful charge until she could regain her composure.
After a short while, Katie raised her head and said, "Let's finish measuring the rest of the rooms for your diagram." When they were done, they rejoined the rest waiting for them at the landing.
"What's this about a space for Tom and Julie?" Martha inquired as they descended to the main level.
"There's an apartment above the three‑car garage they have laid claim to," Alan explained. Martha's eyes widened once again in surprise. If these little surprises didn't stop occurring, she might never need plastic surgery. "Would you like to see it?"
"Absolutely!"
They all put on their coats and Susan led them out the back door and across the ground to the stairs on the near side of the garage.
Martha judged the stairs to be in very good condition and easily able to support the party as they mounted the steps to the landing. Susan opened the door, entered, and stood aside gesturing gracefully for the others to enter.
While Martha, Rose, and the girls checked out the kitchen, sleeping area, and bath at the far end of the apartment, Susan was talking with Alan in quiet tones.
"So, Alan, when are you and Rose getting married? Her mother seems quite set on having the ceremony here in the backyard."
"With the company picnic on June 5th and Fathers' Day on June 20th, we figured that June 12th would be a good day. Hopefully, it won't be too hot by then, and that leaves us time to have a brief getaway together, not that we really need it." Alan paused to collect his thoughts. "It's almost like every day has been a honeymoon for us since Christmas. I hope that feeling never fades."
"Oh, Alan, anyone who watches Rose while you are together could not miss her happiness and devotion to you. It almost feels like fate or destiny for you two."
Alan nodded at Susan's words but did not respond. His thoughts, however, were of Laura and the life she had wanted for Alan. 'I'll love you forever, my Laura, and I miss you desperately,' Alan thought. A tear gently rolled down his cheek before he unobtrusively brushed it away.
The girls returned to Alan's side first, followed shortly by Rose and Martha.
"Did you want to measure this space, Poppa?" Katie inquired.
Alan crinkled his nose and shook his head slightly.
"Nah, I'm gonna leave that for Tom and Jules, if they want. I do want to measure the downstairs rooms in the house before we leave, though."
"Let's head on down and gather in the kitchen. I wanted to speak with you about something before we leave here today," Susan directed.
They locked the apartment and started back to the house. At the bottom of the stairs, Katie reached out and took Alan's hand in hers. Maggie noticed this and quickly moved to take Alan's other hand. Looking at Katie behind Alan's back, she stuck out her tongue at her sister, immediately following it with a grin.
That was when Rose noticed that Alan's hands were 'occupied', and her anger flared briefly before she tamped it down. It was obviously important to Katie to have tactile contact with Alan, and Maggie was simply responding to Katie's claim. Had David been home, Rose doubted Maggie's hands would have been anywhere other than clasped in David's. Rose quickly strode ahead of Martha and Susan and took Katie's unoccupied hand in hers. 'God, the smile on that child's face would warm the iciest heart,' Rose thought. 'I'm bringing my two girls into this family, and Alan has his two sons. But Katie is our chosen daughter.'
Once back inside the house, Katie relieved Alan of the notepad, pencil, and measuring tape.
"Come on, Mags. Let's do this for Poppa so they can talk for a bit in the kitchen."
Both girls stood on tiptoes and kissed Alan on the cheek, replaying their scene with Jack at church earlier. Giggling, they scampered for the Master Bath to begin their measuring and drawing.
Meanwhile, Susan led the way to the kitchen and the four of them gathered around the central island.
"I was speaking with Helen Waters on our way home from church today. I don't think any of us realize what a godsend you have become to her and Steve. They were in a hole that kept getting deeper and deeper. Then you two come along and throw them a rope ladder.
"On your behalf, I've asked if you might be able to start your lease on Friday so you can set up the utilities and start to move in next weekend. They agreed right away at no extra cost to you. I need to re‑write the lease and get everyone's signatures on it. In the meantime,..."
Susan fished out a realtor's keyring from her purse and held it up, jingling the keys, which she then ceremoniously placed in Alan's hand.
"You couldn't have led with that?" an irritated Rose asked.
"Where would the fun be in that?" Susan riposted.
= = =
"Whatcha got coming up this week, Jules?" Tom inquired. They were sitting at the kitchen table having a soup‑and‑salad supper. Dawn and John had returned to their respective dorms shortly after lunch. Julie had spent the afternoon doing laundry while Tom straightened things up around the rest of their apartment. 'Somehow, things always seemed to get shifted around when Dawn and John spend the weekend', Tom thought. He finally got things back to what his orderly mind found to be acceptable.
"I have a quiz on Wednesday and a paper due on Friday. You?" Julie responded with her mouth full of salad.
"Rather than one big midterm, Dr. Casper is having two tests and the final will not be comprehensive. But it puts a lot of pressure on every test. The first one is Friday before we head home. To give you fair warning: I may be a little focused on preparing for that test and not as attentive to you this week. I do promise to make it up over the weekend."
A small shiver of anticipation danced down Julie's back at Tom's promise.
"I'll hold you to that, my love," she answered with a smile and a glint in her eye.
"You know, I don't have to start all that studying right away," he teased while waggling his eyebrows. The remaining soup and salad in their bowls was quickly forgotten as they retired to the bedroom to feed their souls.
= = =
After they bid Susan farewell, the five returned to Alan's house with the keys to the place in Alan's pocket. Rose, sitting in the back seat between Maggie and Katie, found it difficult to contain her excitement; yet, somehow, she managed.
Maggie and Katie were eager to get home so they could video conference with Joy. As soon as Alan turned off the car, they bolted into the house and headed for the media room.
Martha looked a little puzzled at the girls' behavior. Rose explained: "In addition to tutoring Katie, Maggie has been virtually tutoring her friend Joy, from Centreville. All three girls want to attend State in the fall, but Maggie's the only one of the three currently accepted. They generally have a video call on Sunday afternoons. Katie and Joy have to take the ACT on the first Saturday in March, and they've been worried about getting good enough scores to get into State in the fall. I'm not sure about Maggie's other friends, Abbie and Donna. Maggie hasn't said anything about them." Martha nodded her acceptance of the explanation.
In the media room, everything was still set up for a video conference, so Maggie quickly got things fired up and Joy's face appeared on the big screen display. Big smiles appeared all around.
"Okay, so don't leave us hanging here, Joy. How did you do on the Trig quiz?" Maggie inquired.
"Oh, God, Mags! I'd be nowhere near where I am without your help," Joy began.
"The score, girl! What did you get?"
"I got a 95. I made a boneheaded error on a sign inversion."
"95‽ That's great!" Katie exclaimed.
"How do you feel about your math abilities now?" Maggie asked.
"Much better, thanks to you. I'd be so totally lost without your help, Mags, so thank you! Is there any chance you might be able to come back to Centreville on the Friday before the ACT? It'd be March fifth."
Maggie's smile dropped away suddenly, and she sorrowfully declared, "I have to work that Friday and Saturday at the jewelry store. Besides, I don't even have a Learner's Permit yet. But we can do some ACT question review on the nights before."
"That'd probably be really good for both of us," Katie interjected. "Mags, are you sure you could spare the time?"
"We'll work out a schedule, Kat. Joy, how are you progressing in your review of the prep book you got?"
Joy made a face; an ugly, scowling, "be careful or it may freeze that way" sort of face. Maggie chuckled softly at her friend's expression.
"I take it you have not even cracked it open yet," Maggie intuited.
"No, and I'm starting to get afraid, Mags," Joy nearly sobbed.
"Joy, listen to me! Relax. Breathe. There's still time to do this right," Maggie assured her, and Katie nodded in agreement and encouragement.
"It's just going to take some commitment, some prioritization on your part," Maggie continued. "And you can't let the regular classwork slip, either. That's probably the hardest part. Katie had a really good session yesterday with Poppa working through the prep book. Maybe someone there could help you with yours?"
"Okay, alright, I hear you, loud and clear. Maybe I could get Abbie to help me."
"It seems like you've got a pretty good handle on the Trigonometry part. Just keep it up, okay? Now, how about the other subjects?"
The girls talked for nearly an hour, mostly about the different subjects covered by the test. They had to end their call when Joy's mother called her for supper. They agreed to shift to ACT prep for the next two weeks and they called it a day.
= = =
"Maggie, I understand the jewelry store is closed on Mondays, so you're not working tomorrow. Did you have any plans for the day?" Martha inquired over supper.
"Not really, Grandma. I usually have some supervised driving lessons with Katie once she's done with school in the afternoon. Did you have something in mind?"
"How about you and I go wander around the mall and have lunch out? I'm sure I can have you back here in time for your usual driving time with your sister," Martha offered.
"That might be nice for it to be just the two of us for a while," Maggie acknowledged. "The stores don't usually open until 10, though."
"I'll be here by 9:45 and we can head out then."
"Okay. I'll be ready to go when you get here."
After getting all the supper dishes rinsed and placed in the dishwasher, Katie and Maggie tag‑teamed Martha and kissed her cheeks at the same time.
"Good night, Grandma," came the harmonized voices of the two girls. Giggling, they made their way up to their bedrooms.
Martha was still a little surprised at how accepting and caring her new 'granddaughter' was toward her. Rose just stood back and allowed a subtle smile to gradually overtake her expression.
"With that, I'll bid you two a pleasant evening," Martha declared. "I believe I have some reconsidering to do this evening, and that's best achieved by myself. We'll have dinner here tomorrow?"
"Absolutely, Mom."
Martha did a quick mental double‑take at Rose using 'Mom' rather than the more formal 'Mother' she normally used. "Please take good care of my Rosalie, Alan. She's the only child I have."
"I will, Martha. On that, you can depend. Rest well."
Monday, February 22, 2021
On her way out the door the next morning, Rose advised Maggie not to get too aggravated if her grandmother was not there promptly as she had promised.
"Oh, like you were yesterday?" Maggie fired back.
"That was different. We had somewhere to be by a certain time."
Maggie gave Rose that point and promised to behave herself when out with Martha.
Maggie was a little surprised when the doorbell rang at 9:30.
"Grandma! You're early!" Maggie exclaimed.
"Yeah? Well, it's still winter out here. Can I come in?"
Martha entered the house and Maggie quickly shut the door.
"Is there any coffee still in the pot?" Martha asked, to which Maggie nodded. "Well, let's go sit, have a cup, and plan our assault, shall we?"
Maggie pulled up the mall's directory and they discussed how many clothing stores there appeared to be as well as the number of shoe stores. That led to Maggie relating how Maeve had given her a pair of comfortable shoes out of Maeve's closet to wear on her first day working for them.
"And how about your work clothes? Do you have enough?" Martha inquired.
Maggie made a face and admitted that she could use a few more nice skirts, blouses, and dresses.
"Then let's go and see what we can do about this," Martha declared, and they departed shortly before 10:00.
Maggie wasn't certain what to expect, but a day alone with her grandmother provided the opportunity to get to know each other better. They walked from store to store, chattering and laughing. They had to make three trips back to Martha's car to deposit the purchases. As a result of their time together, Maggie felt much closer to Martha than she had ever felt before.
It was in the food court when Martha broached the topic of David.
"I believe that you can tell a lot about a parent by their child or children. I've seen David in a couple of our video calls. Tell me what makes David so special to you."
Maggie narrowed her eyes minutely as she considered what her grandmother was asking and what her grandmother wanted to know but wasn't asking.
"He genuinely cares about a lot of things. He sweats the details sometimes." Maggie paused for a few seconds. "He's quite good at reading people and communicating with them. He's the family B.S. champion. I mean, Alan's pretty good, but David smokes him every time."
"B.S.?" Martha inquired.
"It's a card game and it involves lying to the other players," Maggie chuckled. "We'll have to get a game going when he's home next weekend. Then you'll see for yourself."
Maggie went on about how gobsmacked David had been at a photo of her that Julie had shown him, so much so that he did two drawings of her before they had even met. She explained that while he is a very talented artist, he had realized that it would not likely be something that could sustain a family. He would be transferring to State in the fall so he could get a more practical education.
She admitted that she had not had much interest in the males of the species until she met David on Thanksgiving Day. It was then that she realized that she had been waiting for him, or someone like him, to come into her life.
She told of the Winter Solstice dance in Centreville when he acceded to her request to slow‑dance with her three close friends. She tactfully left out their intimacy, but her lips did twitch at the memory of how perfectly he filled her up. She wrapped up her description by relating how, in his role as Lifeguard at the pool, he had saved a small boy who turned out to be the mayor's grandson.
"He sounds almost too good to be true," Martha commented.
"Oh, he's not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. His math and science skills can't compete with mine, but his social skills are superb. He's not driven to excel. But we have a lot in common and shore up each other's weak spots." Maggie's left hand drifted to her right ring finger and slowly twisted the ring around. "Very much like Mom and Alan are for each other."
Martha's eyes widened in surprise at Maggie's last rejoinder.
"I didn't ask about your mother and Alan."
"Not directly, no. But you still aren't 100% sure about his suitability for Mom."
"She made such a poor choice the first time with Ron."
"Without that 'poor choice', neither Jules nor I would be here."
Martha focused on eating her food for the next few minutes. Maggie had effectively put her in her place and closed off that line of discussion. Martha then turned her gaze turned to Maggie's fidgeting hands.
"What's that?" Martha asked, pointing at the ring Maggie was twisting on her right hand.
"My friendship ring from David. It's also known as a Claddagh ring."
Martha held Maggie's right hand in hers, examining the ring's knotwork.
"I've heard of friendship rings, but never the Clad‑,"
"Claddagh," Maggie supplied when Martha stumbled over the word. "It's an Irish term. David has one almost identical to this. Ah, here, watch," and Maggie started the video of their ring giving.
Martha accepted the phone and watched the video. Her mouth slowly opened as the scene unfolded. By the end, her mouth was truly agape and small tears were forming at the corners of her eyes. Wordlessly, she handed the phone back to Maggie, then reached for a tissue to dry her eyes.
"Grandma, these three Harrison men are just perfect for the three of us girls. Rest assured that we're all looking out for each other. I don't believe any of our relationships will be going off the tracks, but what do I know? I'm just 18, going on 28." Maggie smiled at her joke. "Now, all we need to do is find someone for Katie," Maggie thought.
