Page 12 of Man Glitter
Aha! She felt bad for ditching me before the sun was even up. I shrugged. “Coffee?”
She huffed and shook her head. “That’s all you’ve had?”
I smiled at her, though she refused to look at me. Time to lay it on thick with a pout. “Can’t do much with just one hand.”
She stopped walking and looked at me, guilt warring with irritation in her eyes. I couldn’t handle it and burst out laughing. That was such a Finnie look. Always irritation mixed with something else. She oozed irritation from her pores like a pheromone.
“Oh…” she grumbled and smacked me on the chest.
I laughed some more and followed her into the house for dinner. She plated my lasagna and even cut it into bite-sized pieces for me. I was perfectly capable of doing it myself with my left hand, but I liked her waiting on me. It meant she cared about me way, way,waydeep inside.
She told me all about her plans for the clinic while we ate and I shared how the pergola was going for the church and what jobs I had after that. Kept quiet about the secret project for her, though. I’d pull that card out of my back pocket when I’d pissed her off something fierce. I helped with dishes, though I think I may have gotten more water on her than she appreciated as she shooed me away rather quickly.
“Come on, Rudolfina. We have moonlight to bask in.” I had a six-pack of beer held in my injured hand and I grabbed Finnie with my good hand. “The rest of the dishes will wait.”
“But the pasta will turn into concrete on those plates,” she whined.
Damned woman was actually arguing to spend more time doing dishes. “Then I’ll throw them away and buy new ones.”
She scoffed at that idea, which only made me smile wider. She did, however, let me lace our fingers together and tug her all the way outside into an open clearing on my property. I had chairs already set up out there as I made it a habit of drinking beer under the full moon each month. Life was too short not to enjoy the little things.
I got her settled in a chair and handed her a beer. “Prepare for enlightenment.”
She rolled her eyes but took the beer, popping the top off using the edge of the chair like a seasoned pro.
“Damn. Rudolfina knows how to drink,” I teased. I grabbed the bundle of sage out of my jeans pocket and lit it with a cigarette lighter, watching the smoke rise in the cool air.
“We’re seriously doing this?” Finnie asked.
I nodded and had a seat in the chair next to her. “Sage is used for healing purposes and since I’m injured, I figured it would be a good idea, don’t you?”
Finnie spun in her seat to face me, her legs tucked up underneath her. She was still in a blouse and slacks, but she’d ditched the heels for bright pink flip flops.
“You do realize I’m a medical doctor, right? I believe in antibiotics and vaccines and pharmaceuticals to heal the body.”
I also spun to face her, the sage held between us. She could use some stress reducing. She had every single one of her sphincters clenched too fuckin’ tight. Being a messed up bastard, thinking of her sphincters had me wishing my pants were a little looser.
“I do understand that. And do you understand that I’m a hippie in a grown man’s body? I believe in all you believe in, but first, I think you should use all the natural resources our earth has to offer before going your route. Is that so harmful?”
She lifted her nose in the air. “Not if you use these things wisely and seek medical help before it’s too late.”
I nodded. “And as big of a tree hugger as I am, where was I headed when I cut myself the other night?”
Her nose dropped back down. “The ER,” she mumbled.
I leaned closer. “What was that?”
“The ER,” she said louder. “Okay, I get it. You’re a weirdo hippie using your sage and shit responsibly. Sage away. I’ll just sit here and drink a beer while you soak up the moonlight or whatever.”
I winked at her and sat back. “The sage is working already. Look at us getting along. And shit.”
She let out an honest-to-God giggle, and I smiled up at the full moon.
* * *
“We would have been here a lot sooner if you hadn’t made me juice all those disgusting vegetables,” Finnie grumbled, pulling her car off the side of the road where I’d directed her.
“Vegetables are not disgusting,” I countered, amazed anyone wouldn’t like a celery-beet-lemon-ginger root juice mix.
