Horseplay…
Once they got home to North Carolina, she and Ginny slept for one solid day. They had both been hysterical with exhaustion by the time their heads hit the pillows, and Amanda slept the deep dreamless sleep of the dead. Her only visitor was Ursie, who tried to wake her up by pressing her cold doggie nose against her cheek and giving her a big sloppy kiss. It didn’t work.
Ginny’s sleep, on the other hand, had been rudely interrupted by Lissa jumping on her bed. Her pent-up daughter would not take no for an answer. She pestered Ginny until her mom climbed yawning from her nest and presented Lissa with the Mickey Mouse ears they’d bought the kid at a tourist rest stop miles from Disney World.
When Amanda finally emerged, she was shocked to discover it was Saturday. The lost week would eventually fade from memory, she supposed, but in the meantime, it was high time she rejoined the world.
“Have some more grits, Mandy.” Trout passed the bowl and loaded her plate with more bacon, eggs and toast. That was great, because Amanda was ravenously hungry.
“Eat up, because you’ll need all the energy you can get today,” Ginny added as she slurped her orange juice.
“Why, what’s happening?”
Her mother laughed. “Your big van is blocking us all in, so it’s time you got your cute little fanny down to Metrolina and unpacked.”
Amanda blinked at Ginny. “We’re unpacking today?”
“Not me, I’ve already done my bit. Trev and Danny have volunteered to help. You could use some male muscle on the job.”
Obviously the day had been planned for her. Diana and Liz were wildly busy with real estate now that the Great Recession was receding. Trout, who owned a convenience store/auto repair shop/gas station on River Highway, had been playing grandpa for three days and had to get back to work. Amanda knew her stepdad was semiretired and no longer needed to put in the long hours. But she also knew Trout loved to jaw with the customers and got antsy when his gossip line was severed.
“And Trev says it’s my turn to hold down the fort at Buffalo Guys,” Ginny added. “I must catch up with the bookwork, and since it’s Saturday, I’ll be onstage tonight.”
Ginny, in addition to being the restaurant’s accountant, was also its feature attraction. She played guitar and sang, and she was damned good, Amanda had heard.
“Do I have any say in this?” Amanda asked.
“No!” they all said in unison.
“But who’s going to watch Lissa?”
“Don’t worry, Aunt Mandy,” she piped up. “I’m going to a picnic and sleepover at my girlfriend’s house.”
* * *
She felt more than a little silly squeezed into Moby’s front seat with two large men she hardly knew. Trev was an ex-marine, with the physique and bravado that implied. His tan hairy leg in cut-off jeans pressed against her thigh as she drove.
Liz’s Danny, with his curly brown hair, long gangly limbs and jovial nature, was a building contractor with a fresh joke for every mile. The boys knew each other well, kept jabbing one another with their elbows, distracting her. Indeed the handsome pair would turn heads at Metrolina, possibly even promote Amanda’s image as a straight woman—but what was this, high school?
“Will you guys knock it off? You’re going to cause an accident.”
But her plea only heightened the horseplay, so when they arrived safely at Building 16, Amanda was the first one out of the van. The north entrance was already open and the three of them barreled inside, where Amanda pointed to Space D to their left. “That’s my booth over there.”
“Awesome!” Danny whistled. “It’s a lot bigger than I expected.”
“Yeah, but it sure needs a coat of paint,” Trev pointed out. “And won’t you need some display shelves?”
“What about lights? It’s kind of dark in here.”
They were right. Space D was more battered than she remembered. “I see what you mean. So let’s start by unloading my stuff into my work area. It’ll be out of harm’s way while I spruce up the showroom.”
Danny’s head swiveled. “You have more space somewhere?”
“You bet she does!” The enthusiastic female voice surprised them from behind.
When they spun around, Amanda saw her across-the-hall neighbor, Lucy Monroe, the pottery lady. She was staring longingly at the two men. Her daughter Jenny stood right behind. She was also fixated on Trev and Danny.
Jenny spoke next. “My mom and Amanda have big studios just beyond that door. Mom and me make pots.”
“That’s right,” Amanda said. “And they are both super talented.” She made the introductions, noting how both Trev and Danny were inching away from the Monroe women. Lucy had actually latched onto their hands, with no sign of letting go.
“Well, we better get started with the unpacking. See you later, ladies.” Trev broke away, so did Danny.
“Anything we can do to help?” Lucy offered hopefully.
“Well, ma’am, do you know where we can buy some paint, lumber and lighting around here?” Danny asked.
“There’s a Lowe’s Home Improvement down near the Northlake Mall, on Perimeter Parkway off Route 24. You know the place?”
“I’ll Google the address, then I reckon the old GPS will take us there.” Danny rushed for the exit.
“Hey, guys, let’s unpack before you go shopping,” Amanda said. “There’s a garage door at the side of this building that opens directly to my workspace, we’ll drive around there…”
“Oh, by the way, guys,” young Jenny called to their backs. “Which one of you is Amanda’s boyfriend?”
The pair hesitated not one moment, looked back over their shoulders and hollered, “We both are!”