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I shake my head as I hand his phone back. “You must really have atype.”
“I guess so.”
Is that true for everyone? Kristen and Meg don’t look alike, and from what I know about Meg, I don’t think their personalities are the same either. Kristen was the life of the party, and Meg seems like the type that’s happy to sit in the back and let others be the center of attention.
“Anna Mae was the best dancer at the dance. She knew the cha-cha, the two-step, the waltz, the jitterbug, and the Electric Slide. She’s just a wonderful person.” Paul’s face lights up with happiness, and I envy him.
“When are you going to see her again?”
“We’re going out to lunch on Tuesday. Something casual.”
“Do you feel guilty about it? Like you’re moving on too soon?”
Paul shifts in his chair. “After I came home from the dance last night, I cried for about an hour. It’s hard to start over. It’s hard to meet someone new, especially when she reminds me of Marilyn so much. But when I woke up this morning, I didn’t feel as lonely. I had something to look forward to.”
“I think I know what you mean.”
After I talked to Meg at the school carnival last week, I felt sad. Not because I didn’t enjoy our conversation, but because I enjoyedittoomuch. In some ways, I feel like I’m cheating on Kristen. In other ways, I’m excited thinking about the prospect of something new and different. But each night when my head hits my pillow, it’s Meg that’s on my mind. I want to get to know her justbecause. Thinking about Meg gets me giddy. It makes me look forward to the future. I think that’s a good sign that maybe I am ready to move on. It’s taken me a long time to get to this point, and it’s crazy that I tipped over the last little bit so quickly, but there’s something about Meg that pushed me over the edge.
“Dad, let’s go.” Krew pulls on my leg. Usually I would leave, but I want to talk to Paul about Meg. I feel like he’s the only one who would understand me. I pull my phone out from my back pocket and hand it to Krew. “Five more minutes. You can play on my phone while you wait.”
“Yes!” Krew takes the phone and immediately begins doing who knows what with it. He walks away just as I hear him say, “Hey Siri, how do you spell poop?”
Good. He’s distracted.
I turn back to Paul, lowering my voice a little so Krew can’t hear me. “I met somebody too.” I shrug, feeling a little self-conscious. “I hardly know her, and I’m sure nothing will happen, but it’s the first time since Kristen died that I’ve noticed another woman, or eventhoughtabout another woman.”
“Do you feel guilty?”
“Sometimes, but if I’m being honest with myself, I know Kristen would want this for me.”
“I think that’s natural.”
“A few weeks ago, I wasn’t ready to move on, but when I look at this other woman, I feel like making plans.”
“Making plans?”
“Yeah, planning when I’m going to see her again or planning to ask her out. Do you think it’s too soon? Or that people will judge me?”
“Too soon?” Paul scoffs. “You’re asking me? It’s been five months for me, and I’m already going out to lunch with a woman.”He pulls on the brim of his tan bucket hat. “Your wife’s been gone almost two years. If you’re ready to move on with your life, don’t worry about what other people will think. They aren’t the ones dealing with loneliness.”
“You’re right.”
Paul slaps me on the shoulder like a father would his son—like my father never has. “Of course I’m right. I want you to go home and call the girl up. Ask her to go to lunch with you.”
I laugh. “We aren’t exactly there yet. I’d have to get her number first.”
“Well, find it. This relationship is going nowhere if you don’t even have her number.”
Technically, the relationship issupposedto go nowhere. Diane made that clear at Meet the Teacher Night.
But Diane also signed me up to volunteer at the fishing pond game at the carnival. She probably thought she was being wise, pairing me up with Mr. Hunsaker, a male teacher, but her plan backfired when Meg stepped in for him.
Lucky me. The twenty minutes we spent at the carnival game talking were the best twenty minutes of my week.
Now I’m planning out how I can talk to her again.
CHAPTER13
