Maid to Fit (21 page)

“There’s no one to call. Addie and I are basically her only family. She was a postal
carrier. Everyone on her route knew her but none of them really
knew
her. She was so great. It seems there should be more people to mourn for her. A daughter
and a granddaughter who was born out of wedlock shouldn’t be the only people at the
funeral of a woman like her,” Kayla whispered into Ronnie’s chest.

“You and Addie are the only ones she would care about being there. She told me how
proud she was of you that day I went to check on her. The day I told you that she
was so coherent. She told me that she knew you visited her and that Addie didn’t.
I promised her I would bring Addie to see her, and I did. You guys were the only ones
she mentioned…other than your dad,” he said. “A person’s impact isn’t measured by
the number of people who show up to their funeral. It’s measured by how much those
who do show up loved them. Quality over quantity is what is important.”

Kayla used some of the tissues to clean up the tears she had cried while Ronnie excused
himself. He came back a few minutes later with a warm washcloth. After she did the
best she could to collect herself, she whispered, “Take me home, please.”

He led her out to the parking lot and she handed him the keys to her car. He helped
her into the passenger seat and then drove her back to her house. When they arrived,
he told her not to worry about telling Addie tonight. It was already late and Addie
was enjoying her night with Kaitlyn. He then ordered Kayla into bed, where he brought
her some tea. She fell into an emotionally exhausted sleep with the feel of his hands
playing with her hair.

She woke the following morning to the sound of Ronnie talking on her cell phone. She
felt his weight as he sat on the edge of her bed. Sergeant Buck was pressed against
her side much as he had snuggled with her mother the night she had run away from the
nursing home.

“Addie’s on her way home. I told her you were in the shower,” he said, brushing her
hair back from her face.

“Will you be here when I tell her?” she asked, getting up and finding some clothes.

“Sure. Get a shower. I’ve got some coffee going downstairs whenever you’re ready,”
he said, getting up and leaving the room.

The cry she allowed herself in the shower and the heat of the water did wonders for
preparing her for the conversation with Addie. Once downstairs she found Ronnie and
Addie sitting at the table drinking coffee. Addie looked at her and then quickly looked
down at the table.

“She’s gone, isn’t she? Grandma died…didn’t she?”

“Yes, honey, yesterday afternoon. She had a stroke. I’m sorry I waited to tell you.
It was late when we got back from the hospital,” she said quietly as Ronnie brought
her a cup of coffee.

Addie was very quiet for a few minutes. Then she looked up at Ronnie with tears shining
in her eyes. “You were right. Thanks for making me go see her before the competition.
I think she knew I was there, and maybe that’s what she had been waiting for.”

Chapter Twelve

Watching Kayla and Addie hurting over the loss of Mary was killing him. Standing in
the lobby of the funeral home while Kayla met with the director about a service for
her mother, he was grateful for his own family. Grateful that when shit happened,
his sisters rallied around him with a force equal to that of his brothers in arms.

Kayla had told him she worried that this year’s Christmas would be a poor one for
Addie due to losing Mary. He couldn’t fix their grieving—it would have to mend in
its own good time—but he could try to ensure the holidays were good for Addie. Taking
out his cell phone, he dialed his oldest sister.

“My brother who never calls unless he needs something, is that really you? What is
it this time? Do you need bail money?” Elaine answered.

“Hey, sis. I called to ask for the big one,” he replied. The standing joke was that
at some point he was going to need something really big and by then he would have
burned up all his sisterly favors on the little stuff.

“Are you okay, Ronnie? What’s going on?” she said in that motherly tone of hers.

“Kayla’s mom died. We’re here at the funeral home and she’s making arrangements now.
She doesn’t have a big family…not like us. All she has left is an aunt in a nursing
home and a couple of cousins she doesn’t really know. The problem is that she’s worried
that the kid is going to have a bad Christmas with the funeral and all. I don’t really
know how to help her,” he choked out.

“When is the viewing and funeral?” Elaine asked.

“I think she’s shooting for Tuesday, since everything was already prearranged and
paid for. The viewing will be right before the service,” he replied.

“Let me call everyone and find out who all can make it up there. Regardless, Jack
and I will bring the kids. They’re off for the holidays and Jack can work from his
laptop for a few days. The office won’t fold and go under with him gone. I know Mama
will want to come so you can count on her and Daddy, too. Let me make some calls and
I’ll get back to you,” she said.

“Thanks, sis, I’m glad I didn’t blow the big one,” he said.

“Never. Besides, we are all anxious to meet her. I just hate that it’ll be at such
a sad time for her and Addie. Don’t worry, though, Carrie and I will take care of
everything. It’ll give us something to do on the long car ride. Expect us sometime
Monday evening,” she said.

His oldest sister was married with two kids. Her husband, Jack, was a self-employed
CPA. His youngest sister, Carrie, worked as a receptionist in Jack’s office. Despite
the twelve-year difference in ages between Elaine and Carrie, they were very alike
and could plan the event of the year for the entire military in about four hours when
they put their minds to it. Then there was Mama, who would keep the two of them from
going overboard.

When he got off the phone with Elaine it rang again.

“Hey, Ronnie, some of the kids on the team and their parents want to come to the funeral.
I never told them that Grandma didn’t really get us that CD and it kind of seems wrong
to say anything now. Do you think it’s okay if they come?” Addie asked.

“Yeah, and you tell Chase I said that is the kind of suck-up points I’m talking about,”
he replied. Then, seeing Kayla heading his way with the funeral director, he said,
“I’ve got to go. I’ll see you at the house.”

“The viewing will be Tuesday morning starting at ten with the service right after
and then a short graveside service,” she said as she approached. “I called my mother’s
church and they will get the word out to the members who were friends with my mother.”

As he guided her out of the funeral home to her car he said, “I know I told you that
the number of people who come isn’t important, and it isn’t, but I think you are going
to end up with more people at the funeral than you thought.” Seeing her look of confusion,
he explained about Addie’s friends and she smiled through her tears.

“That is so sweet of those kids. I’m glad they will be there for Addie.” She sniffed.

“Addie also called your friend Tori. Then Rusty called and I mentioned it to him and
the guys all want to come. Then I called my sister and she… Well, Elaine is…an
organizer
. She wants to take care of the food and everything for the funeral, if you’re okay
with that. That’s what they do. It’s kind of their way of expressing their sympathy.
But if that is too weird, since you haven’t met them before, I can call her back,”
he said. It was a white lie, but he’d paid for it already by calling in the big one.

“Your family?” she asked.

“I might have mentioned you and Addie a time or two, so now they feel like they know
you through me, and it’s what they do. My family is crazy, my sisters especially,”
he said.

Maybe this was a mistake. He’d seen the disappointment on Kayla’s face when she worried
over who would come to her mother’s funeral, and maybe he’d overreacted but what was
done was done. It had seemed so important to Kayla. And during the brief moment of
lucidity he’d experienced with Mary she
had
been great. Kayla was
proof
of her greatness.

“No, that’s fine. I just hope they understand I may not be at my best that day,” she
said.

“Don’t worry about that. One thing my sisters all understand is emotion,” he replied.
“It’s a southern thing.”

The next couple of days flew by with his sisters calling often to make sure he had
a suit, to get an idea of how many people would be coming to the funeral and to ask
for gift ideas for Addie. They also had several tips for helping Kayla that he hadn’t
thought of, so he didn’t mind the near-constant interruptions. Between doing the things
his sisters suggested and making sure Addie and Kayla were taken care of, he was a
little stressed by the time Monday evening rolled around.

As he and Addie loaded the dishwasher after dinner, Sergeant Buck started barking
near the front door. Ronnie listened as Kayla answered the door and winced when he
heard Elaine say, “You must be Kayla. I’m Elaine Andes, Ronnie’s sister. Bless your
heart. I’m so sorry for your loss. Mama sent me over with some coffee cake for breakfast
in the mornin’.”

The truth was probably that Elaine had dropped everyone off at the hotel and then
used GPS and the internet to find Kayla’s house because being nosy with an excuse,
she just couldn’t wait another minute to meet her.

“Oh, well, thank you,” he heard Kayla reply and he knew his sister had entered the
house.

“You’re every bit as pretty as Ronnie said you were.
And your house
, it’s absolutely beautiful,” Elaine said. His sisters’ ability to embarrass him knew
no limits, and often made him feel like he was in junior high school all over again.

“Thank you. Ronnie and Addie are in the kitchen,” Kayla said.

A mere second later the two women appeared in the doorway. Spotting Addie, Elaine
handed Ronnie the coffee cake and made her way over to the girl. She put her well-manicured
but chubby hands on each side of Addie’s face.

“Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry about your granny. I know she must have just adored you.
I’m gonna give you a little hug,” Elaine said, wrapping Addie in a hug that he knew
could both smother and comfort all at the same time.

It never ceased to amaze him how, between his sisters and his mama, they could make
just about anyone cry. Though Kayla had been in tears off and on throughout the weekend,
he’d not seen Addie do more than sniff. His sister’s abundant bosom was apparently
a magnet for crying children, though, because within seconds, Addie was sobbing. Kayla
glanced at him in alarm before looking back to where Elaine stood holding her daughter.

“You go on and have a good cry,” Elaine said, rubbing Addie’s back. Having been given
permission, Addie sobbed for several minutes before making an attempt to collect herself.
Elaine motioned for Ronnie to get a tissue, and as he headed to the small bathroom
near the laundry room he heard her say, “Once you get it all out we’ll run up to that
shoppin’ mall I saw on my way here. Nothing helps me feel better like some shoppin’,
especially with the company of another woman.”

An hour later he found himself sitting alone in Kayla’s living room watching Buck
sleeping on the rug. This was exactly why he’d called Elaine, but he’d forgotten just
how good she was at it. Elaine had managed to convince both Kayla and Addie to go
to the mall with her in search of boots and a wrap, since it was so cold up here and
she hadn’t packed the right things for the weather. It was ridiculous and crazy but
it worked.

He called Carrie to get the hotel name and room numbers for where they were all staying.
She informed him that Elaine was stopping by to pick up her and their mother before
going to the mall. She went on to tell him that his father was already sleeping because
he’d done all the driving and Elaine’s husband and kids were downstairs at the indoor
pool. So here he sat, watching Buck sleep and wondering how Kayla would get along
with his family.

During his recent visit, his family had been thrilled when he’d mentioned Kayla and
Addie. They knew he liked her and that she was a little hesitant to get involved with
him. That is where he let it stand. He could only hope his family would stay on topic
and not try to convince her of his worth.

Kayla’s need to keep him hidden from Addie had said it all. Even now that Addie knew
about them, Kayla hadn’t said anything to him about what she wanted from him. If she
wanted anything from him.

As much as he still wanted something more with her, being without her since Addie’s
competition had made him reassess the whole friends-with-benefits idea. Maybe he was
weak, but having some form of Kayla was better than having none. Right now, though,
the loss of her mother was hard on her. He would be here for her as long as she would
allow it.

Watching Elaine work her magic with Addie made him consider taking her boys camping
for a couple of weeks next summer to allow her and Jack some time alone. He’d called
in the big one and she had delivered far more than he’d hoped for. Addie’s need to
pretend like everything was okay when it wasn’t really bothered him. He hoped she
would learn to express herself…even the not-so-happy-and perky parts. No one was happy
all the time.

He must have dozed off right along with Buck because the next thing he heard was women’s
voices coming up the walk. Kayla came through the door and the look she gave him was
one of gratitude. He released the breath he had been holding since they’d left for
the mall. Addie followed behind Kayla along with his sister Carrie.

“My dress is up in my closet. Come on and I’ll show you,” Addie said to Carrie.

At twenty-five, Carrie was the baby, the free spirit of the bunch, and he watched
in fascination as she followed Addie up to her room as though they’d been friends
for years. Elaine and his mama were the last through the door. He stood up, walked
over and bent to kiss his mother’s cheek.