Chapter 49
Dinner for Two
Celia didn’t know what to think when Roger came into her bedroom, kissed her on the cheek and said that he and their mother was going out to dinner. They had reservations at Anthony’s and Mike would be staying with her for the evening. She had her mother help her in and out of the bathroom before they left and now she sat looking at the mirror.
For the first time it dawned on her how she’d let herself go. She’d been combing her hair, well her mother had, but she wore no makeup. The shirt she was wearing looked old and she was wearing sweatpants. Ugh!
There was nothing she could do about the sweatpants but she could put on some makeup and a fresh shirt. She rolled over to the closet and rummaged through the few things Roger had brought from her apartment. She found a shirt and changed.
She rolled around to the bed and used the pinchers, as she called them, to pick up her purse out of the floor. She rummaged through it finding her emergency stash of beauty products.
Once back at the mirror, she began working on her face. She was too tired to do foundation, but when she finished, she wouldn’t be ashamed to speak to Mike. She and Mike didn’t have any trouble finding things to talk about but she did want to pick his brain more about this new job she hopefully was getting.
Her mind rushed to the terrible thing she was supposed to think of for Mike to do. She could take him to a craft fair, or a museum. Then again, maybe they could go to a painting class. She looked at the wheelchair and shook her head. By the time she would be out of this mess it wouldn’t matter. He would be tired of her or would have just plain lost interest in taking her camping.
A tap on the door brought her out of her thoughts, “I hope you’re hungry. The food’s ready. We’re having a picnic out by the pool. I want to break you into camping slowly so not to shock your system all at once.”
Celia smiled and pulled the door open to find Mike standing there grinning from ear to ear. She was taken aback at how nice he looked. She was sure he hadn’t worn that crisp white shirt to work but the black jeans, maybe. Did he consider this a date?
“You look nice,” he said. She knew this was a lie but accepted the compliment thinking that it was the first one she’d heard in ages.
“Thanks, you clean up pretty good, too.”
He shrugged. “I’m trying to butter you up so you’ll take it easy on me with our little bet. Have you chosen a punishment?”
Celia wheeled past him. “No. I’m still working on something terrible.” She moved her hands when she felt the weight of his hands on the chair and he began to push her around the house.
“I’m not surprised, but I think it will be a mistake if you don’t go camping. There’s nothing like getting away from all the noise and busyness that life can bring. I always warn my family when I go that my phone will only be on in the morning for an hour and right before I go to bed.”
“You mean everyone doesn’t sit around the campfire texting?”
“Not with me they don’t. All I want to hear are the sounds of nature, the chirping of birds and crickets and the night calls of all the other wildlife. No beeping or clicking or ringing.”
“I don’t mind hearing them, and listening to them. I just don’t want to . . .” Celia didn’t mean to but she stopped at the sight of the table. There were flowers, candles, fine china and covered dishes just as there would be at one of the most upscale restaurants.
“You don’t want to what?” Mike teased, as he pushed her to the table.
“When did you do all of this? And it must have cost a fortune?”
“Not too much. These guys are one of our best customers.”
“It’s nice, unexpected, but nice. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. I overheard you and Roger talking the other night. I know you like burgers but I heard you say you also like Chicken Parmesan, so I ordered that for you and steak and a baked potato for me.”
She watched as he took off the dish covers. He then placed a cloth napkin in her lap and a salad in front of her and they began to eat. A few minutes later, he served sparkling water and she smiled. “Where’s the champagne, and what are we celebrating?”
“I knew I forgot something,” he said, acting a bit miffed with himself. “I’ll make it up to you. We’ll do that when the cast comes off.”
Celia stopped before taking her next bite and looked at Mike. He was busy cutting his steak. She thought about his statement and wondered if he would still be in the picture by then. Did she want him there? Before he caught her staring she went back to her meal. “This is delicious. And, thanks for treating Roger and Mom, too.”
“No problem. Your mom’s working hard and she deserves a break. And, Roger, well, I’m not too sure. Is he helping? I know he keeps saying he is.”
“He picked up some of my things and gave me a lecture. Does that count?”
“Did it help?”
“I think so. I’ve learned some crazy things about my family the last few days. Some of it I didn’t need to learn right now; not while I’m in the middle of a crisis of my own.”
“Is it something you’d like to share? Sometimes it helps to talk things over. If not, I understand. We can talk about the weather or just sit and eat.”
Celia wasn’t sure if she should delve into her mother’s love life, but she did need to talk to someone. She sure didn’t want to talk to Roger about it. After they sat silent a bit she spoke, “My mother told me the other day that she didn’t marry the man she loved. She didn’t tell me what happened, but she wasn’t in love with Dad, and it showed at times. I just thought she didn’t like being a wife.”
“Wow, that is a shocker. How do you feel about it?”
“Confused. I wonder if I was settling for Martin because I felt that’s what she did. I knew my parents didn’t seem to be ‘in love’ but they were considerate of each other. Dad provided for us. We didn’t live like this, or even close, but we did okay.”
“Did you feel loved?”
“Oh, yes. I was Daddy’s little girl. And, knowing what I do now, I feel he was cheated but I also feel sorry for mom. I think it explains why I feel the way I do about marriage, but it also has torn down everything that I thought was real. I’ll figure it out in time. Were your parents normal?”
“That’s a hard question, but pretty much. They were in love and always seemed to be. And, the way you feel about your parents, I have my issues. I compare every relationship with them. It’s hard trying to live up to perfect. I nitpick. I wonder if I’ll ever find someone who wants me for me, for who I can be instead of what they think I am.”
“That’s deep coming from a redneck.”
“I’m not a redneck.”
“You camp. You eat out of cans, sleep on the ground and kill animals with your bare hands.”
Mike laughed and Celia laughed, too. “I just added that last one for fun. It sounded like it fit with the others.”
“I don’t kill many wild animals. I do like to eat fish but not always. I would have never considered myself a redneck.”
“I’ve been watching videos on camping,” Celia said with a shrug. “It seems most who do that kind of thing are rednecks. I didn’t see one video from a person with a city accent.”
“Since you’re watching videos, does this mean you’re looking forward to camping? Or, are you just trying to see what you’re getting yourself into?”
Celia pointed her fork at Mike. “I’ve never been camping. Roger likes to fish, but not Dad. Also, I’ve seen Martin prepare to go but he never explained what he did and what made it fun. I was just curious why a man like you would find something like that interesting. I’m still not sure but at least I know now what to expect.”