Page 36 of Such a Good Wife

“At the truck stop. You fell?” I ask, but she doesn’t meet my eyes.

“No. I got canned from the truck stop, so I went back to Candy’s,” she says it like it’s no big deal, but her eyes don’t match her words. Candy’s is the strip club. What did Joe do to get her fired? is my first thought. I wonder how often he frequents Candy’s now, to see her.

“Okay,” is all I say, trying not to appear judgmental.

“It’s dark in there, it’s easy to trip,” she says defensively. “It’s just a small fracture.”

I don’t believe her for a second, but I know I can’t react.

“Sorry about your job at the truck stop.”

“Yeah. It’s whatever.” She makes a dismissive gesture, her words loose in her mouth from the alcohol. I push the drink she gave me away subtly. I don’t want it. I don’t want to be here, really. I feel like I’ve betrayed Lacy and I also can’t help her because she doesn’t want me to, and really, do I want to draw any attention to myself at this point even if she did want help?

I stare past the bar, looking at nothing in particular. Just thinking about how to move this along so I can go. It’s not that I don’t like Lacy; I actually really do. But I’m suddenly wondering if being seen with her is a good idea. Now that I think of it, did others see her with Luke? I can’t believe I have never thought about that. If she’s connected to him, and I’m hanging out with her, will they question me too?

I hear the front door of the bar open. I glance over and don’t believe what I see. It’s a cop, in uniform. He walks right to the bar, all business like he needs to ask the bartender or manager something important. Then he looks over at our table and I see who it is. It’s Joe Brooks.

***

15

HIS FACE BRIGHTENS AND transforms into a wide smile upon seeing me. It dawns on me that he has no idea I know all about him. To him, I’m just Bennett’s mom from baseball, Mel from high school. He walks right over to me. My heart beats in my throat and my head feels tight.

“Mel, hey there. What are you doing here?” he says jovially. Almost too upbeat. I stand to greet him and he gives me a half hug. He sees Lacy right across from me, but says nothing to her. He pretends he doesn’t know her.

“Oh, my Thursday group got canceled, so, ya know, just enjoying a few kid-free hours. What about you?”

“Picking up dinner. Best wings in town.” He still doesn’t even look at her. She’s looking at the table with her head low.

“Oh, I didn’t know that.”

“Yep. You gotta try ’em. How’s Ben doin’?” he asks. Is he trying to punish her in some fucked-up way, or is it a show for me? I decide to introduce her. Maybe it will help because if I act like I don’t know they know one another, he will not suspect she’s told me anything about him. Which of course, is exactly what he wants.

“Good. He’s doin’ great at his new school.”

“Oh, that’s good to hear.”

“I’m so sorry. This is Lacy, by the way. I’m so rude.” I watch his face as it reddens. He does not want to be forced to acknowledge her.

“Oh, I didn’t see you there,” he lies, nodding to her out of painful obligation.

“Oh, you know each other?” I ask.

“I come here a lot. It’s a small town,” he says, and I remember that she mentioned she waitresses here sometimes. He’s smart. He’s admitting acquaintanceship rather than denying knowing her altogether. I try to reinforce the fact that I don’t know her well—that it’s a chance thing.

“Right, well I don’t get out as much as the single folks, but last time I was here I wasn’t looking and I accidentally bumped into her while she had a full tray of drinks, can you believe that? The whole tray just dumped all over her. Poor thing. I forced her to let me make it up to her and buy her a drink next time I came out.” I give a little laugh to punctuate my story.

“Well, I’m glad you can sneak out and get some time for yourself now and then. You’re the hardest working mom I know.” A waitress comes over and hands him a plastic bag, knotted at the top, with foam to-go boxes inside. “Good to see you, Mel,” he says, and then leaves with his order. He’s good. Smooth. I look at Lacy.

“You okay?”

“I’m fine.” She pulls a few napkins out of the dispenser on the table and wipes her eyes, trying to dab gently around her thick mascara so she doesn’t streak it.

“I didn’t know what to do. I wanted to make sure he didn’t think you told me anything.”

“Don’t worry. He’s positive I won’t tell anyone. He’d never think that. He’s an expert at protecting himself and making everyone think I’m crazy. He knows I learned my lesson the first time...and there’s no use. Telling only gets me in trouble.” Her voice is flat. She twirls a short straw inside her fizzy drink and a tear drops to the table. She pulls out a tiny compact mirror and examines her face. She dabs again around her eyes, sighing, giving up on trying to fix it.

I want to say that I wasn’t worried for myself. Does she think that was a self-motivated move? Maybe it was. I try to erase the last few minutes by handing my card to the waitress and telling her to put all the drinks on me. Lacy’s demeanor changes and she looks at me with wide eyes.

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