By the end of the family dinner, Michele had to admit . . . she liked this Christina. She didn’t seem to always know how much or how little to say. She had plenty of opinions but didn’t share them in a way that said you must be stupid if you didn’t agree. And she had a good sense of humor, bordering on the sarcastic side. She knew enough to play it safe. By the look in her eyes, Michele was sure she was holding back plenty.
It was safe to say, half the laughter at the table followed something Christina said.
Michele thought it was odd; Christina wasn’t like anyone else in the family—didn’t think like anyone else, didn’t talk like anyone else, seemed to view life from a totally different vantage point—yet at the same time, she fit right in.
Her mom was certainly enjoying having Christina there, or maybe she was just relieved. Doug seemed to be enjoying having her there too. As the meal went on, he seemed to be paying more and more attention to Christina. At one point, Michele thought she saw that certain look in his eye. He had only ever brought one girlfriend home, so she couldn’t be sure.
Whatever may or may not be happening on Doug’s end, she definitely detected interest on Christina’s side. Christina looked at Doug that way at fairly consistent intervals throughout the dinner. Michele didn’t know her little brother too well, but from what she did know, she would be surprised if Doug could overlook Christina’s . . . condition.
The only awkward moment in the meal came a few minutes ago when it came time to clear the table. The women all got up to help, including Christina. Marilyn, in a voice filled with kind, maternal concern, said, “Oh no, Christina, you better stay put in your condition.”
Christina looked so embarrassed; her face blushed instantly. She looked at Doug, then down at her big belly, as if wishing she could will it away. She recovered her composure and replied, “Mrs. Anderson, you’re so thoughtful. But really, I’d like to help. Besides, did you forget I’m a waitress? I do this kind of thing every day.”
“I did forget.”
“Christina,” Jean said, “I’m afraid you’re going to have to get used to being mothered if you live around here.”
“You mean smothered,” Doug said.
“Hey,” Marilyn said.
Doug laughed. “I meant it in a good way. As in smothered with love.”
Christina stood up and piled Doug’s plate and silverware on top of her own and walked them toward the kitchen.
“Oh, I almost forgot,” Marilyn said. “Speaking about your waitress job, isn’t it back in Sanford, closer to your apartment?”
“It is.” Christina set the plates down by the sink. “I didn’t really think about that when you invited me to live here. I’ll eat up all my tips in gas.” She looked around the kitchen and at the family members walking by. “But I can find another waitress job. I wouldn’t turn all this down because of that.”
“How set are you on staying a waitress?” Marilyn asked.
“Are you kidding? I hate it. Especially now. My back kills me at the end of every shift. But I can’t do anything else.”
“I doubt that,” Jim said as he carried in the main meat dish. “I’ll bet there’s lots you could do.”
“I know of one other thing you could do,” Marilyn said. “If you want to, I mean. I didn’t even tell you this yet, Jim.”
“Do what?” Christina said. “You mean like another job? A not-waitressing job?”
Marilyn nodded, smiled. “Right here in River Oaks.”
“No way.”
Marilyn nodded again. Michele figured it out before her mother even said it.
“How would you like to work with me? At a little shop on Main Street called Odds-n-Ends?”
“Emily’s leaving, isn’t she?” Michele said. “She told me at church. She’s leaving town to go back to college.”
“That’s right.”
“Is Emily someone you work with?” Christina asked.
“Yes, and the store owner goes to our church too. Her name’s Harriet. I asked her if she would consider interviewing you for Emily’s job.”
“And what did she say?”
“She said if I trusted you enough to invite you to move into our garage apartment, she didn’t even need to interview you. You could start this week.”
“Really? I can’t even believe this,” Christina said.
“Like I said, smothered with love.” Doug walked by, carrying what was left of two side dishes. He was actually helping to clear the table.
“How much of a notice do you need to give your boss?” Marilyn asked.
“How long? For him, not much.”
“Two weeks?” Marilyn said.
“More like two days. It’s not a nice place. He tells us at least once a day: ‘You think I need you? I don’t need you. I got fifty people waiting in line for your job. Now get back to work.’” She said it like a New Jersey mobster.
“Oh my,” Marilyn said. “That’s awful.”
“No,” Christina said. “That’s not awful. That’s what he says when he’s being nice. I can’t repeat what he says when he’s being awful.”
“I wouldn’t give a guy like that two minutes, let alone two days,” Doug said.
“Maybe you’re right.” Christina looked at Marilyn. “Tell the owner I’ll start whenever she wants me. Tomorrow even. I’ll just call my boss and tell him to call up one of those fifty people standing in line.”
Marilyn was so excited, she hugged Christina in a full Mom-embrace. Michele noticed a slight delay in Christina returning the hug. But she did hug her back and kept telling her how thankful she was.
Just then, Allan walked into the kitchen holding his cell phone. “Say, hon, just got a call from Ray. He was wondering if I could meet him for a quick cup of coffee. He said some big things are happening with the orphanage plan and wants to go over them with me. I guess he wants me to start working on them soon or something. Is that okay?”
“You mean now? You’re going to meet him now?”
“Well . . . yeah. If it’s okay. You know what’s gonna happen here. You guys’ll clean up like you always do, get the coffee on. Eat dessert a little while after that. I won’t be long. I’m too full for dessert anyway.”
What could she say? She wasn’t okay? But she didn’t want to say it. He was right about the routine. But part of the routine was him being there with her, sitting next to her, drinking coffee at the table as everyone talked and joked around. She also wasn’t crazy about all this Korah orphanage stuff coming back into play. It had been so nice the last few days having the old Allan back. She could tell by the look in his eyes, he was already halfway down the road on his way to meet Ray.
“So, is it okay?”
“I guess,” she said, as unenthusiastically as she could.
“Love you.” He pulled her into a hug and kissed her forehead.