Page 79 of Waiting for Tuesday

She smiled back and took the herbs from my hand. “Is this your shop, dear?”

I nodded, curious as to why she was asking the question, but there was something about her I didn’t like. I could almost see my own fear when I looked into her eyes. Normally, I loved meeting people like this, the eccentric ones, the ones who knewmorethan the rest of us did. But not today. I couldn’t handle it today; I was too vulnerable.

She smiled and met my eyes again. “Are you married, dear?”

“No,” I said,shaking my head.

“Divorced?”

“No,” I whispered.

She frowned, as though I’d given her an answer she wasn’t expecting. “Ahh, well… I just felt something here when I walked through the door. I thought it might have been because ofyou.”

She turned away from me to walk in the opposite direction, but I sat forward and touched her arm. I knew I should just let her go, but I couldn’t. “Ma’am, what did you see?”

She turned to face me again, looking from ceiling to floor before meeting my eyes. “There was love here once.” She shook her head. “It was very strong, not something you find every day.” She looked into my eyes again. “It was given up on too easily. Like it was nothing. Such a shame.” She tsked.

My eyes brimmed with tears, but I wiped them away before she addressed me again. “Do you know who owned it before you?”

“No.” I pushed myself from the couch. Goose bumps covered my body as I headed to the back room. I barely made it through the door before my shoulders began to shake. Becky was right behind me, as she always was, closing the door before turning me around.

“She’s just a crazy old lady, Tuesday. You’re okay. Don’t let her words get to you.”

I shook my head and looked her in the eyes. “You think she’s crazy?” I cried. “Becky, she knew things! She said there was love here, and there was. She said something happened, and it did. She said it was given up too easily… and maybe that’s true too! Don’t you believe in fate, Becky? Maybe she was meant to come in here and bring me that message. Maybe I’m giving up too easily.”

“Tuesday,” Becky began, shaking my shoulders. “Those words could be true for anyone. To you, to me, to everyone out there in your shop. Because we’ve all loved and lost, don’t you see that?”

“No.” I shook my head. “This was different. This was so different.”

She gripped my shoulders and spun me around before opening the door a crack so we could peek back into the store. “She’s crazy, Tuesday, look at her. Look at her socks—who wears socks like that?”

I found her in the corner of the shop by the lotions, opening jars and sniffing them before putting them back on the shelf. She wore knee high socks, visible beneath her yellow sack-like dress, and little red capes were flying off the backs of her calves: Wonder Woman.

I blew my nose on a tissue, not knowing what to think. She did look crazy, but the same argument could be used for me most days. Then the door chimed at the front entrance, and I looked in its direction. A large bouquet of roses was all I saw, and my heart slammed in my chest.

I tried to see who it was, but the crowd was too large for me to see beyond, even when I went up on my toes. I held my breath, waiting for the crowd to clear, holding Becky’s hand and praying that he had come back to find me. Then Austin stepped out from a group of people and began looking around the shop.

His hair was combed back, and he wore fitted jeans that showed off his muscular thighs. The sight of him initiated a hush of whispers to roll over the entire store, but all the air expelled from my lungs as I turned around. I should’ve been happy he was here to see me, that he wasn’t running away like my own father, but I wasn’t. I was disappointed he wasn’t John. All I wanted was him.

Becky opened the door, and Austin slipped into the back room. “Wow, it’s standing room only in there. You must be so happy.”

I forced a smile and took the flowers from his outstretched hand. A full dozen long-stemmed red roses. “You didn’t have to do this.”

He shook his head slightly, looking at the floor then up to me. His jaw tightened and he didn’t look so happy anymore. “There’s been talk around the studio that you were in the hospital because of the baby.”

I looked to Becky, wondering where he’d heard the news, then turned toward the kitchen and placed the roses on the counter. I could hear the frustration in his voice and knew it wasn’t invalid. He should have been the first person I called, but I hadn’t even thought about it.

“I’m sorry,” I began, turning around to face him. “I slipped in the rain, but the doctor assured me it was nothing, so I never thought to call you. I’m not used to having to report back to anyone… about anything.”

His expression softened and he nodded. As though he understood completely. “We have a lot to figure out in the next few months…” He walked toward me and rested his hip on the counter. We were both quiet a second, awkwardly looking at the counter, then he swallowed.

“There’s also something else.” He looked over his shoulder to Becky, as though looking for her support. She looked down at her feet, and right away, I knew she was responsible for this. For all of it.

“When I asked you to marry me,” he began, “I hadn’t even considered there was another guy.”

I squared my shoulders and inhaled a breath. I looked to Becky, but she only gestured for me to listen. I met Austin’s eyes again and nodded my head, urging for him to continue.

“I wanted to say I’m sorry. I’m sorry you’re facing this difficult situation. I’m sorry I got you pregnant when you didn’t want to be. If there’s anything you need me to do?” He stopped and looked to the ground before meeting my eyes. “I know something happened and I’m sorry. If you need me to talk to him, to straighten things out for you, you just let me know, and I’ll do anything.”

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