Read Online Love Me Tender by Audrey Couloumbis - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Audrey Couloumbis
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said, eyeing Kerrie, who did not look flattered. Kerrie had picked up on the general air of a fight might break out. But a little color came back to Mel's face.
“Is there any coffee left?” Aunt Clare asked after a long, awkward moment during which only the scraping of my knife could be heard. “Aren't you going to offer me some, Momma? Ask me to sit down?”
“Pour yourself some coffee and sit,” the grandmother said.
Aunt Clare used exaggeratedly polite tones to say, “Why don't you roll out the red carpet, Momma?”
The grandmother was not embarrassed. “Don't wait for engraved invitations, the mailman's bag is already heavy enough.”
“If you aren't just the limit,” Aunt Clare said, doing exactly as she was told, pulling an extra chair from beside the refrigerator. “Just because I'm family is no reason to let your manners slack off.”
“Then I guess I ought to tell you that's my chair I stood on to wash some of the soot off the cabinets. Put a dish towel over it if you don't want to dusty your shorts.”
“You shouldn't be standing on chairs at your age, Momma,” Aunt Clare said.
“I don't have a right way to get up there,” the grand-mother said. I could see the grandmother had tried. There were rounded shapes at the bottom of the stains to show where she had wiped them away until she couldn't reach anymore. She added, “I need a step stool.”
“I took the step stool, Momma, so you
wouldn't
get up there. The last thing I need is for you to fall off of it.”
“Step stools are for stepping on,” Kerrie said. “I learned that in Health and Safety.”
“Been here long?” Aunt Clare asked Mel, like she was the other person waiting at a bus stop. “Tony with you?”
“He had to be away for a few days,” Mel said. This was her chance to tell them more, but she didn't, pretty much leaving the impression his trip was business as usual.
“Mel came to see how I was doing,” the grandmother said. “She seemed to think I might be in the hospital. What do you make of that?”
Mel said, “I don't know where I got that idea.”
Kerrie looked up from her coloring book, saying, “On the way here—”
“We passed a big hospital,” Mel said.
“But we didn't stop by,” I added, and Kerrie remembered to take another bite of her egg. She went back to coloring.
“You said you thought I was in the hospital,” the grand-mother said, showing some nettle.
I said, “She asked about the hospital after you told her you'd had a fire.”
“I remember,” the grandmother said. “I remember things fine.”
“Fine,” Aunt Clare said, like a weak echo.
The grandmother fixed Mel in her sights. “I have this idea Clare called you and told you to come on out here.”
“I felt like you ought to get to know my girls, Momma,” Mel said, her eyes shining into the grand-mother's. I didn't think she ought to lie for her sister. I didn't think Aunt Clare deserved it.
“Isn't this a wish come true, Momma?” Aunt Clare asked, concentrating on adding some more sugar to her coffee. Rule number one for telling a lie: She should meet the grandmother's eyes, the way Mel did.
Chapter 12
“I CAN get up there without a stool,” I said, pointing to the smoky walls.
The grandmother looked interested. “Can you?”
“She no doubt can,” Mel said. “She used to get up on the counters to look in the cabinets for cookies. She made me think of a pigeon on a ledge.”
Aunt Clare met the grandmother's glance, and it was apparently decided to ignore Mel's offering of this piece of my personal history. I knocked off my shoes, put the chair in front of the sink, and climbed up. This brought every-body out of their chairs to look up, like one of those scenes where everyone points up at Superman.
With a slight stretch, I could put the flat of my palm to the ceiling. I could clean it. I would clean it, even though we'd received only the most grudging welcome. Grudging welcomes did seem to be the
“Is there any coffee left?” Aunt Clare asked after a long, awkward moment during which only the scraping of my knife could be heard. “Aren't you going to offer me some, Momma? Ask me to sit down?”
“Pour yourself some coffee and sit,” the grandmother said.
Aunt Clare used exaggeratedly polite tones to say, “Why don't you roll out the red carpet, Momma?”
The grandmother was not embarrassed. “Don't wait for engraved invitations, the mailman's bag is already heavy enough.”
“If you aren't just the limit,” Aunt Clare said, doing exactly as she was told, pulling an extra chair from beside the refrigerator. “Just because I'm family is no reason to let your manners slack off.”
“Then I guess I ought to tell you that's my chair I stood on to wash some of the soot off the cabinets. Put a dish towel over it if you don't want to dusty your shorts.”
“You shouldn't be standing on chairs at your age, Momma,” Aunt Clare said.
“I don't have a right way to get up there,” the grand-mother said. I could see the grandmother had tried. There were rounded shapes at the bottom of the stains to show where she had wiped them away until she couldn't reach anymore. She added, “I need a step stool.”
“I took the step stool, Momma, so you
wouldn't
get up there. The last thing I need is for you to fall off of it.”
“Step stools are for stepping on,” Kerrie said. “I learned that in Health and Safety.”
“Been here long?” Aunt Clare asked Mel, like she was the other person waiting at a bus stop. “Tony with you?”
“He had to be away for a few days,” Mel said. This was her chance to tell them more, but she didn't, pretty much leaving the impression his trip was business as usual.
“Mel came to see how I was doing,” the grandmother said. “She seemed to think I might be in the hospital. What do you make of that?”
Mel said, “I don't know where I got that idea.”
Kerrie looked up from her coloring book, saying, “On the way here—”
“We passed a big hospital,” Mel said.
“But we didn't stop by,” I added, and Kerrie remembered to take another bite of her egg. She went back to coloring.
“You said you thought I was in the hospital,” the grand-mother said, showing some nettle.
I said, “She asked about the hospital after you told her you'd had a fire.”
“I remember,” the grandmother said. “I remember things fine.”
“Fine,” Aunt Clare said, like a weak echo.
The grandmother fixed Mel in her sights. “I have this idea Clare called you and told you to come on out here.”
“I felt like you ought to get to know my girls, Momma,” Mel said, her eyes shining into the grand-mother's. I didn't think she ought to lie for her sister. I didn't think Aunt Clare deserved it.
“Isn't this a wish come true, Momma?” Aunt Clare asked, concentrating on adding some more sugar to her coffee. Rule number one for telling a lie: She should meet the grandmother's eyes, the way Mel did.
Chapter 12
“I CAN get up there without a stool,” I said, pointing to the smoky walls.
The grandmother looked interested. “Can you?”
“She no doubt can,” Mel said. “She used to get up on the counters to look in the cabinets for cookies. She made me think of a pigeon on a ledge.”
Aunt Clare met the grandmother's glance, and it was apparently decided to ignore Mel's offering of this piece of my personal history. I knocked off my shoes, put the chair in front of the sink, and climbed up. This brought every-body out of their chairs to look up, like one of those scenes where everyone points up at Superman.
With a slight stretch, I could put the flat of my palm to the ceiling. I could clean it. I would clean it, even though we'd received only the most grudging welcome. Grudging welcomes did seem to be the
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