Chapter Eight

“Miss. Excuse me. Miss!” An older woman trotted across the lawn waving her hand.

Thalia rolled the window of the truck down. “Yes?”

“I’m sorry my daughter was rude.” She shot a look over her shoulder. “I’m Cora Foster. I called you. Please stay.”

Thalia inclined her head toward the house. “I think your daughter would prefer you call another plumber.”

Cora lifted her chin. “You’re here and I’m the one who called. My name is on half of this house. Please stay.”

Thalia rolled up the window and exited the truck. She walked to where Cora stood.

She shouldered her tool bag. “If you’re sure it won’t be a problem.” Thalia glanced toward the closed door of the house. Amari stood with her arms crossed over her chest. The small hairs stood up on the back of Thalia’s neck as she sensed her gaze on her.

“I’m sure. Thank you for staying. I have no idea what is going on with my daughter.”

Thalia pressed her lips together, unwilling to reveal Amari’s secrets, or her own. Cora looped her arm through Thalia’s and led her back to the house.

★

Thalia and Cora stood talking for a moment. Amari strained to hear what they were saying. Her mother glanced up and scalded her with a hot glare. Amari shifted her feet and shoved her hands into her pockets.

Thalia and her mother turned as one. Cora took Thalia’s arm and led her back to the house. Amari stepped back and opened the door. Lucy charged out of the door, tail wagging, and woofed softly. Amari caught her collar and held on to her. “Back up, girl. Sit.” The dog plopped onto Amari’s feet, effectively pinning her in place. Amari’s apology to Thalia dried up in her mouth.

Her mother stared her down, daring Amari to speak as she led Thalia into the house. Thalia never turned her gaze in Amari’s direction, her lack of acknowledgement all Amari needed to know about how badly she had fucked up.

Amari stood on the porch. The sounds of Brianna singing “Hello” filtered out of the door.

“Mama, the good part’s coming. Come watch,” Brianna called from inside the house.

★

In the living room, Brianna stood in front of the wide-screen television, dancing along with the multicolored trolls on the screen. “Come on, Mama. It’s my favorite part. We dance now.”

Amari shoved aside her annoyance and danced along with Brianna. They finished the final number. Amari sat on the couch and crossed her legs. Brianna cued the movie up again and started it from the beginning.

“How many times have you watched it today?”

“This makes three.” Brianna paused the movie. “Why is Ms. Thalia here?”

“Grammy called her to check out the upstairs toilet.”

Brianna chewed her lip a moment and frowned. “Hasn’t she seen one?”

“Yes. I’m sorry, I misspoke. Grammy called her to see if she could find my ring.”

“In the toilet? Did you drop your ring in the toilet?”

Amari picked at the hem of her jeans, avoiding Brianna’s eyes. “I didn’t.”

Brianna turned back to the screen and started the video.

★

“What is wrong with you today?” Cora bustled about the kitchen like it was her own as she emptied the dishwasher.

“Mom, I can do that. Sit down.” Amari clenched her jaw and lifted the silverware basket from the dishwasher.

“I know. But I know you hardly have time to do anything between your job and Brianna.” Cora slid the plates into the open dish cabinet over the countertop. “Now, are you going to tell me what is up with you and the plumber?”

Amari sorted the spoons and tossed them into their respective slots in the silverware drawer. “Nothing is up. It was a misunderstanding.”

“Un-huh. I’m not stupid, Amari. If you don’t want to tell me, that’s fine. Don’t you want to get your ring back? You’ve been moping around here all morning.”

Amari picked up a bowl from the top rack of the dishwasher and walked to the far side of the kitchen to put it away. “If Brianna did flush the ring, it’s probably gone now. It’s silly to even think it might still be there.”

Cora pushed past Amari. She plucked two glasses from the dishwasher. “I think it’s time you find a way to honor your past and move on, but that doesn’t mean you should give up on trying to find your ring.” She placed the glasses in the cabinet and then closed the door. Cora turned to Amari and rested her hands on her hips. “Rebecca was a gift, and she left you with Brianna and a legacy of love. She loved you, baby. Enough she would be pissed off at you for keeping yourself lonely.” She turned away from Amari and lifted the last cup from the dishwasher.

The sound of running footsteps overhead made them both look toward the ceiling.

“I thought Brianna was outside.” Amari replaced the silverware basket and closed the dishwasher.

“She said the plumber was a nice lady and she’d sat with her at the wedding. Said she wanted to talk to her again.” Cora looked over her shoulder, pursed her lips, and skewered Amari with her gaze. “I guess they didn’t have a ‘misunderstanding.’”

“Oh, hell.” Amari strode out of the kitchen.

★

Thalia spread the thick canvas drop cloth over the black-and-white honeycomb tiled floor. After she shut the water off, she flushed to drain the toilet tank. The squeak of a shoe on the hardwood hallway floor made her look up.

Brianna stood in the doorway to the bathroom, clutching a worn rabbit stuffie.

“Hi.” Thalia removed a blue sponge from the waterproof pocket on her tool bag and sopped up the last of the water in the toilet tank.

“I like your nail polish. Poppy would like it too. Grammy paints my nails for me sometimes when she does hers. But she doesn’t have purple. What are you doing?” Brianna stepped into the bathroom and edged closer to Thalia.

“Taking the toilet off the floor.”

“Why?”

“Your mom’s worried she lost her ring in the toilet.”

Brianna tilted her head and looked at Thalia. “It’s not there.”

“What?” Thalia sat back on her heels.

Brianna turned and walked out of the bathroom. Thalia waited a moment and then went back to work, too annoyed with Amari’s behavior to follow up on Brianna’s comment. She used the sponge to soak up the last of the water and wrung it out in the sink.

Not enough sleep and one too many glasses of wine at the reception after Amari’s departure coalesced into a dull headache. Thalia placed the sponge back in its pocket. She kneeled and disconnected the waterline from the tank.

Thalia hadn’t had the heart to tell Cora no, or that the odds of the ring still being in the toilet were slim. She removed the bolts holding the tank in place and lifted the tank off the back of the bowl before she placed it on the drop cloth.

Thalia pondered the strength of Amari’s love, so strong, so fierce in her loyalty to her deceased wife. Not only was Amari not interested in any sort of contact with Thalia, she seemed angered by Thalia’s very existence if her behavior at the door was any indication.

Thalia pushed aside her bent feelings and went back to work. That’s what Hit Me Up was all about. One and done a normal part of the scene. How many times had Thalia been the one who had to let folks know that yes, as her own profile stated, she was not looking for a long-term partner?

Guilt wormed its way under her skin. She’d been in Amari’s place before and had been equally as rude when it came to putting people off. A tap on her shoulder drew her from her thoughts.

“Here.” Brianna held a ring between her two fingers.

Thalia opened her palm, and Brianna deposited the dull golden band in her hand.

“Why didn’t you give this to your mom?”

“She didn’t ask me for it.”

Thalia closed her fingers over the wedding ring. “Why’d you take it?”

Brianna’s forehead wrinkled, and a scar over her right eyebrow shone against her dark skin. “It makes Mama sad.”

Thalia huffed out a breath. “But didn’t she ask you for it? Why didn’t you give it to her? It made her sadder to think she had lost it.”

“She didn’t ask me for it. She asked if I had seen it. If she wanted it, she should have asked me.” Brianna kneeled on the floor next to Thalia. “Are all of these tools yours?”

“Yes.” Thalia placed the ring in her shirt pocket. She lifted the tank back into place.

“Can I help you?” Brianna drew her finger over the handle of the tool bag.

Thalia pointed to the two bolts on the drop cloth next to the tank. “You can hand me those bolts there.”

Brianna leaned her rabbit against the wall and gathered the bolts off the floor. “I help Mama with the car sometimes.”

Thalia placed the bolts in the tank and tightened them. Brianna watched her, eyes wide, as she reattached the water supply. “You want to turn the water back on?”

“Yes.” Brianna scooted closer. “How?”

Thalia pointed to the valve. “When the valve is at ninety degrees to the pipe, it’s closed. You have to turn it so it is in line with the pipe to open it. It’s a good thing to know. If your toilet starts to overflow, you can cut the water off so you don’t flood the bathroom.”

“The toilet at school overflowed once after Andy Meyer pooped. My teacher, Mrs. King, was really mad.” Brianna turned the valve and water splashed as it filled the tank.

“Now we have to watch to see if we have the bolts tightened correctly so there are no leaks.”

Brianna leaned to her left and peered intently at the bolts. “I don’t see any water.”

“Touch the end of the bolts. Are they dry?”

Brianna touched the end of the first bolt followed by the second. “They’re dry.”

“Excellent.” Thalia stood and replaced the lid on the tank. “Then we’re finished.”

Brianna scrambled to her feet. “Do you have any other jobs today? Can I go with you to help?”

“Not today. It’s Sunday. I don’t usually work on Sunday unless it’s an emergency.”

“Brianna?” Amari’s voice rumbled down the hall. “Are you bothering Ms. Makris?”

“No, Mama, I was helping.” Brianna picked her stuffed animal off the floor and hugged it to her chest.

Thalia looked away, unsure she could hide her eye roll at Amari’s formality. She picked the drop cloth from the floor and folded into a tight bundle. “Brianna was a big help.”

Amari stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips. “It’s time for lunch. Grammy has your sandwich ready.”

Brianna pushed past her mother, paused, looked back, and waved at Thalia before she left the bathroom.

Thalia turned her back to Amari as she packed up the rest of her tools. After placing the drop cloth on top of the bag, she lifted it from the floor and settled the strap over her shoulder. Thalia turned to Amari as she dug into her pocket. She drew Amari’s ring from her shirt pocket. She laid it on the counter between them. “Here’s your ring.”

Amari rested her chin on her chest and pulled her wallet from her pocket. “What do I owe you?”

“Nothing, Ms. Foster.” Thalia crossed her arms over her chest. “And now, if you’ll excuse me.”

“I don’t need your charity.” Amari lifted her chin and glared at Thalia.

Thalia huffed out a breath before she spoke. “I’ve been here for fifteen minutes. I didn’t do anything other than talk to your daughter for most of it. It wasn’t in the toilet. She hid it. Said she didn’t want you to be sad all the time.” She moved forward to step around Amari.

Amari blocked her path.

Thalia looked up and into her eyes. “I need to go.”

Amari scrubbed her hand over her face. “I’m sorry.”

“For what part? Treating me like I’m so desperate for a relationship I make up reasons to show up dressed as a plumber and pretend you called me like a bad porno? Basically, calling me a liar?”

“All of it.” Amari reached out and touched Thalia’s hand. “I’m so very sorry. My mother raised me better.”

Thalia drew her hand away and shoved it into her pocket. “Your mother is the only reason I stayed.”

“I don’t know what to do about this. Us.” Amari held Thalia’s gaze.

“Us? There is no us. You’ve made it clear you’re not in the market. Although after our kiss at the wedding I thought—never mind, doesn’t matter.” She shifted her gaze to the ring on the counter and then down at the toes of her work boots. “You have your ring back. I need to go.”

“Thank you.” Amari rested her fingertips on the bare skin on Thalia’s forearm. Her touch ignited a flare of want. Desire rose, unwanted, and entirely inappropriate. Reminded of what she would never have, Thalia pulled away and clutched the strap of her bag with both hands before she stepped back from Amari and turned sideways. She pushed past Amari, careful not to brush against her body. For the second time that day she walked away, not bothering to see if Amari followed her.

★

Amari covered the ring with her hand, swept it off the counter, and shoved it into the watch pocket of her jeans. Thalia walked away from her, her movements stiff. Amari’s gaze settled on the fine shape of her ass. Even the loose-fitting work pants she wore couldn’t hide her exquisite figure. The thunk of Thalia’s boots as she jogged down the stairs echoed up the stairwell. The murmur of voices drifted from below. Her mother’s voice, and then Thalia’s lilting tones, followed by the sound of the front door opening and closing with a sharp click, reverberated up the stairs.

Amari walked to the end of the hall and stared out of the window facing the street. Amari dug into her pocket and pulled out her ring. Thalia’s truck remained parked. The tinted windows blocked Amari’s view. She closed her eyes as a wave of disappointment rose and crested.

Her hand ached, the edge of her ring cutting into her palm. She opened her eyes and stared at the gold band as she leaned her forehead against the window frame. “Get it together, Foster,” she mumbled. Her words, reverberated back to her from the windowpanes, sounded as pathetic as she imagined she appeared.

Amari turned away from the window and then walked to her room. She placed her ring on her velvet-covered valet tray and left her bedroom.