The Curl Up and Dye (4 page)

Lily wanted to slap that look off her face, but resisted the urge.

“Actually, it wasn’t hard at all. Mama was real sad after Daddy passed. I’m glad she’s happy again.”

The smirk slid a little sideways, but Polly persisted.

“I guess. It’s a shame you never managed to get over Randy Joe and all.”

Lily arched an eyebrow. “Why, whatever gave you the idea I was still grieving for Randy Joe?”

The smirk was gone. Polly frowned. “Well, you didn’t marry or even date anyone else. I just assumed—”

Lily interrupted. “Now Polly, you know what they say about the word ‘assume.’ It makes an ass of you know who.” She giggled for effect. “Actually, I just never found anyone else in town interesting enough to bother with. By the way… how’s Darrell? I heard he had another wreck. Is he okay? My stars, I’ll bet your insurance premiums are through the roof.”

Polly’s mouth opened, but she was so shocked she didn’t know what to say. Not only had LilyAnn just stood up for herself, but she’d also done a fair job of bitch-slapping Polly right back for that dig without touching a hair on her head.

“Uh… Well, I…”

“Oh. Gotta go. I’m next,” Lily said, and wheeled her cart right up to the counter and began unloading her groceries.

LilyAnn was so mad she was shaking, but she wouldn’t let on. She carried on a conversation with Gladys as she paid for her things, but didn’t remember a single word of what they’d said by the time she got outside.

The air was sharp, and the sun was about to set. If she hurried, she would get home before dark. And if she didn’t, it wouldn’t matter. This was Saturday night, the night when a good number of the citizens had places to go and people to see. It wasn’t like she’d be walking a dark street alone.

Her stride was long as she headed for home with the bags bumping against the sides of her legs. The first five blocks weren’t so bad, but the wind was picking up, and with the sun about to disappear, the temperature was dropping with it.

As she was approaching another intersection, she heard the sounds of a vehicle braking and someone calling out her name. She turned to look and then smiled as Mike came running. He took the sacks out of her hands.

“Get in the car before you freeze to death, woman.”

She didn’t have to be told twice. She jumped in the front seat as he put her bags in the back, and then off they went.

“Did you have car trouble, honey?” he asked.

“No. I just felt like walking and forgot I was going to get groceries. Totally my bad. Thanks for stopping. It was getting cold.”

“Any time,” he said, then slammed on the brakes just as a shiny, black pickup truck ran a stop sign and sped through the intersection in front of them.

LilyAnn recognized the truck
and
the driver and shivered just a little as the sound of that hot-rod engine rattled her senses.

“Stupid jerk,” Mike muttered.

Lily blinked. She didn’t like to think that T. J. Lachlan might be a stupid jerk with flaws, but he
had
been speeding.

“Yeah, dumb,” she said, and looked away as they drove on through.

A couple of minutes later, Mike pulled up in her driveway.

“You go unlock the door. I’ll get your groceries,” he said.

She did as he asked, then held the door aside as he carried her things inside.

“In the kitchen?” he asked.

“Please,” Lily said, and followed him in.

He set the bags on the counter and couldn’t help but notice the amount of healthy stuff she’d bought. He didn’t say anything, but he was pleased. Yet another sign that she was serious about change. If only he could figure out how to insinuate himself into her sights.

She was already putting up groceries and missed the look of longing on his face.

“Is there anything else you need me to do?” he asked.

“Uh… no, oh, wait! I almost forgot. Do you already have plans for Thanksgiving?”

Mike’s heart leaped. “No. Are you inviting me to dinner?”

She nodded. “Yes. Mama and Eddie are coming, and Mama wanted me to invite you.”

Disappointment shredded the little bit of hope he’d just felt.

“Your mama said to invite me?”

“Yes. Hand me those bananas, will you?”

He dropped them in her hand.

“What about you, LilyAnn? Do you want me to come to dinner, too?”

Lily looked up and frowned. “Well, of course. What a silly question.”

“Yeah, silly questions are my specialty,” he muttered. “So if you don’t need anything I’ll get out of your hair.”

He walked out without saying good-bye.

“Thanks for the ride,” she yelled, but all she heard was the door slam. She shrugged and promptly forgot about it.

***

The Sunday morning ritual for most of Blessings was about the same—breakfast, then church, or early church, then brunch.

It all depended on the denomination. LilyAnn was a member of the Wesley United Methodist Church, and there was never a question of if she was going to church. It was simply a question of which service.

When she was little, her parents had taken her to the last one. Sunday school always began at 10:30 a.m. and preaching afterward at 11:15 a.m., and she’d been dressed for display, like the little doll she was.

Now she dressed to hide, and cooler weather was her friend. Jackets and coats, long-sleeved shirts and slacks hid a multitude of sins, which was good when you went to a church where people preached against them.

***

LilyAnn eyed the sky as she carried the trash out to the bin behind the house. It was nearly half a mile to church, too far to walk in heels. The day was cold but clear, and she could take a walk this afternoon. Right now, she needed to hurry and get out of her sweatshirt and jeans or she was going to be late for church.

She ran back inside, shutting out the cold as the door slammed behind her, and was on her way down the hall when the phone began to ring. She lengthened her stride to get to the bedroom to answer.

“Hello.”

“Hey, it’s me, Mike. Can you come over right now? I need some help.”

It was the slight tremor in his voice that made her heart kick out of rhythm.

“I’m on my way,” she said, and hung up the phone. By the time she got to the door, she was running.

She flew across her front yard and up his driveway, then around to the back door because she knew it would be unlocked.

“I’m here!” she yelled, as she ran in through the kitchen. “Where are you?”

“In the bedroom.”

She’d spent half her life in this house playing with Mike when they were little and knew exactly where to go. But the moment she started down the hall and saw the blood, panic hastened her steps. The trail went all the way across the hardwood floor of his bedroom and into the bathroom. The door was ajar.

“I’m coming in!” she yelled.

Mike was leaning over the bathroom sink, wearing a pair of blue jeans and nothing else. Blood was pouring from a cut on his forehead, and there were smaller cuts and scratches on his torso. The Plexiglas shower door was in shards.

“Oh my God, oh my God, Mike! You fell!”

“I got dizzy. Slipped. Tried to get dressed, and this is as far as I got. I’m too dizzy to drive myself to the ER. Can you—”

“Sit down,” she said, and slammed the lid shut on the commode, then grabbed a hand towel, folded it into a large pad, and pressed it against the cut. “Hold this,” she said, and flew back into his bedroom, snatching a button-up shirt from the closet and a pair of house shoes from beside his bed.

Within a couple of minutes, she had him dressed and on his way down the hall, but he was leaning on her with every step.

“Where are your car keys?” she asked.

He pointed to the dish by the front door.

She grabbed them on the way out, pulling the door shut as they went. Her purse and driver’s license were at her house, and that was just too damned bad. If they got stopped on the way to the ER for speeding, the police officer could kiss her fat ass.

By the time she got Mike in the car, all the color had washed from his face and she was getting scared.

“How long have you been bleeding?” she asked, as she backed the car down the driveway and took off, leaving rubber on the street as she accelerated.

“I don’t know,” he mumbled, and then passed out.

“Oh my God! Mike! Mike!”

But he wasn’t talking. She grabbed the compress that had fallen into his lap and shoved it against his forehead, steering with one hand as she ran stop signs and red lights, thankful it was Sunday morning when the traffic was sparse.

She picked up a cop car two blocks from the hospital, but she didn’t slow down. If he wanted to give her a ticket, he was going to have to do it there.

When she didn’t slow down or stop, the cop hit the siren and accelerated, trying to catch her. She pulled into the ER bay with him on her bumper. When she got out running and covered in blood, the cop’s attitude changed as he jumped out of the cruiser and followed her to the passenger door.

LilyAnn recognized the officer as a former classmate and started issuing orders.

“Lonnie, get me some help! Mike is unconscious!”

Every angry comment Officer Lonnie Pittman had been planning to deliver shifted into nervous energy as he dashed into the ER, coming back moments later with a doctor, a nurse, and two orderlies pushing a gurney.

“What happened?” the doctor said, as they dragged Mike’s bloody body out of the car.

“He fell in the shower. I don’t know how long ago, because he’d lost a lot of blood by the time he called me. It was a bad fall so he may have internal injuries, too. He has cuts and scratches all over his upper torso. Don’t know about the rest of him because he was wearing blue jeans when I showed up. All I know is that the shower door was Plexiglas and it was in pieces.”

“Are you his wife?” the nurse asked.

The question startled Lily. She’d never thought of Mike in that way. “No, but…I guess I’m the closest thing to family here in Blessings. We grew up next door to each other and still live in the same houses.”

“Follow me inside. Maybe you can help with some of his medical history.”

Her voice was beginning to shake. “I need to move the car.”

“I’ll do it,” Lonnie offered. “Meet you inside.”

Lily followed behind as they wheeled Mike in. Her heart was hammering so hard that it was difficult to catch her breath, and she couldn’t look at the blood on her clothes without wanting to cry.

Mike was the invincible one. Seeing him so pale and still brought back memories of her daddy’s heart attack. He had gone from the emergency room to the funeral home in less than two hours, and this was a horrible reminder of that day.

After giving them all the pertinent information regarding age, birth date, address, and so on, she referred them to Mike’s family doctor for medical info. It was all she could do. Before she knew it, they were wheeling him into surgery.

Lonnie Pittman found her in the surgery waiting room. When he handed her the car keys, her hands were shaking so hard that she dropped them twice before she got them in her pocket.

“I’m sorry I was speeding,” she whispered.

“Yeah, well, unusual circumstances and all that, but damn it to hell, LilyAnn, don’t ever do that again. Call an ambulance next time.”

She nodded.

He sighed. “Is there someone you want me to notify? Does he have a girlfriend? Maybe his pastor?”

“No girlfriend,” she said, and then frowned. “At least none that I know of. I’ll call his parents as soon as I know what to tell them.”

“Where do they live?”

“Denver, Colorado. They moved there after his dad retired. That’s where his sister’s family lives.”

“Okay. Well, remember what I said.”

Unaware there were tears on her cheeks, she looked up.

“I will, and thank you.”

He patted the top of her head. “You’re welcome, LilyAnn. Hope he’s okay.”

She didn’t know when Lonnie left. Her gaze was fixed on the doors at the far end of the hall. Mike had to be okay. She couldn’t imagine life without him somewhere in it.

In a town the size of Blessings, word spread fast about Mike Dalton’s accident. Within an hour, customers and friends alike began showing up in the waiting room to check on his condition. Seeing LilyAnn sitting there with her clothes covered in blood just made the situation worse. The fear on her face set the tone for the room as silence grew.

And then Ruby Dye showed up. Someone had asked for prayers for Mike Dalton at her church, and the moment service was over, she had headed for the hospital. When she saw LilyAnn and the shape she was in, Ruby gasped in horror.

“Honey! What on earth happened? Are you okay? Is any of this yours?”

It was the sympathy that did Lily in. She started to cry.

“No, Sister, it’s all Mike’s. He slipped in the shower. He had a bad cut on his head, and they were talking about internal injuries.”

“Well, bless his heart,” Ruby said. “Soapy surfaces, I guess.”

Lily shrugged, about to agree, when she remembered something Mike told her.

“No. He said he was dizzy. Oh my gosh! I forgot about that. He said he got dizzy.”

“From the head injury, I’m sure.”

“No, no, it was before he fell. Mike used to get inner ear infections a lot, and they always affected his balance. I need to tell the doctors. I should have remembered. They need to know.”

“You can tell them later. Right now he’s where he needs to be.”

Lily nodded as she wiped her eyes and blew her nose.

“Is there anything I can do?” Ruby asked. “Do you want some clean clothes? I can go to your house and get whatever you need. Is there anything we can do for Mike?”

Lily thought of what his house looked like when they left it.

“There’s blood all over his house, and the shower door is in pieces.”

Ruby patted her hand. “I’ll get the girls from the shop, and we’ll take care of that. Can I bring you anything from your house? Make me a list. Tell me where to find the stuff, and I’ll do it gladly.”

Lily felt weight coming off her shoulders. “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely,” Ruby said.

Lily leaned over, lowering her voice so no one else could hear.

“Mike is a private person.”

Ruby whispered back. “Honey, we’ll just clean up, not mess into his business, okay?”

“Okay. The back door at his house is open. The front door is unlocked at my house, too. I’ll give you a list of stuff to bring from my house, including my purse and keys. If you’d lock both houses when you’re through, I would appreciate it.”

“Consider it done,” Ruby said, and gave LilyAnn a quick hug. “I’ll be back later with your things. Have faith, honey. He’s going to be fine.”

Lily sighed. “From your lips to God’s ears.”

***

Mike Dalton was in recovery when Lily finally made the call to his parents. It was the most difficult phone call she’d ever had to make. Just when she thought the call was going to go to voice mail, someone picked up.

“Hello?”

She recognized his mother’s voice.

“Carol, hi. It’s me, LilyAnn.”

“LilyAnn. Oh my goodness. I haven’t heard your sweet voice in ages. How have you been?”

“I’m okay. I’m sorry, but I’m calling about Mike. He’s had an accident.” She heard a gasp, and then Carol’s voice began to tremble.

“Please tell me he’s alive.”

Lily groaned. “Yes, yes, I’m sorry. I should have said that first. I didn’t mean to scare you, but he’s in the hospital here in Blessings. He fell in the shower this morning. At first I thought it was just a bad cut on his head, but he passed out in the car when I was taking him to ER. The doctor said he had ruptured his spleen in the fall and came close to bleeding out. He’s out of surgery and in recovery now. I waited to call until I knew what to tell you.”

“Oh lordy. Hang on a minute. I need to get Don.”

Lily could hear Carol calling her husband, and then moments later she heard him pick up an extension.

“LilyAnn, this is Don. Is he okay?”

“I haven’t seen him yet, but the doctor assured me he came through surgery just fine. They don’t expect a problem, but—”

“We understand… there’s always a ‘but’ with surgery. And this couldn’t have happened at a worse time for us. We’re snowed in. Literally. Until they run the snowplows on our roads, we will not be able to get out of the house. I can make a call to see if they’ll make an exception, but for now, we’re stuck.”

“Oh no, I’m so sorry,” Lily said. “Look, don’t worry, okay? I won’t leave him on his own, you know that. I’ll take care of him until you guys can get here, and I’ll make sure he understands your situation.”

Carol was crying, but Lily could hear the relief in her voice.

“You are a godsend, sugar. Thank God you are just next door. Did he say how he happened to fall?”

“He said he got dizzy. I forgot to tell the doctor, but you know what I’m thinking.”

Carol groaned. “Yes. Inner ear troubles again. We went through that all through his childhood. I guess I thought he’d outgrown it.”

“I’ll be sure to mention it to the doctor,” Lily said.

“Tell Mike we love him and that we’ll be there as soon as we can get out, okay?”

“Yes, ma’am, see you soon.”

A short while later, Ruby came by with clean clothes and LilyAnn’s purse.

“Here you go, honey. Clean clothes are in the bag. Lord have mercy, I never saw so much blood.”

Lily nodded. “I know. Scared me to death when I first saw it, too. Thanks again for what you did. It really helps.”

Ruby hugged her. “That’s what friends are for. You call me if you need anything else. Tomorrow’s Monday and you know I’m off work.”

“Yes, thank you, but I think I can handle everything else.”

“Did you get in touch with his family?”

Lily nodded. “They’re snowed in. They’ll get here as soon as they can.”

Ruby rolled her eyes. “I swear, Colorado is a beautiful state, but I could never live where it snows like that. I’d never get warm. Anyway, I’m off. Call if you need me.”

“Thank you again.”

Ruby smiled. “You’re welcome.”

As soon as she left, LilyAnn changed out of her bloody clothes and then made a call to Willy Green, the local fix-it man, to repair Mike’s shower door. She had just finished negotiating a day and time for him to come by when she saw them bringing Mike down the hall from recovery. She breathed a huge sigh of relief.

A short while later, Stewart Friend, the desk clerk at the fitness center, appeared, red in the face and out of breath. He poked his head in the room, saw Mike asleep on the bed, and motioned for Lily to come out in the hall.

“Oh my God! It’s true. I heard he was in the hospital, but I didn’t believe it. Is he going to be all right?”

“They said yes, but he’s going to be out of commission for a while.”

“That’s what I came to talk about. You tell Mike that I’ll handle everything until he gets back. I know how he does everything, right down to daily deposits, and he trusts me. I’ve done it before. If I need help, I’ll get my wife to come in and help me clean and work the desk.”

“That’s great. I’m sure he’ll appreciate it,” Lily said.

“Yes, well, I’d better go. I’ll run by to make sure everything is set up to open tomorrow and then go from there.”

“Thank you, Stewart. You are amazing.”

Stewart shrugged. “I like Mike a lot. He’s not just a good boss, he’s a friend. So, see you later. Call if you need me.”

Lily went back into the room with a lighter step. Yet another problem solved.

***

LilyAnn had been sitting by Mike’s bed for almost an hour, studying the contours of his face. It was weird, but she felt like she was looking at a stranger—a good-looking stranger. She’d never seen him so still.

Well-wishers straggled in and out of his room, but as soon as they realized he was asleep, left their regards and quickly exited—all except for Rachel Goodhope.

The door was closed and visiting hours were over, and yet Rachel came in without knocking. She seemed surprised and then unhappy when she saw LilyAnn, but Lily didn’t care. The moment she saw what Rachel was wearing, her intent for being here was obvious.

Despite the cold weather, her skirt was so short it barely covered her ass, and her black blouse was unbuttoned all the way past her décolletage. The red push-up bra beneath was doing a bang-up job of rearranging the ‘girls.’ They would have given Dolly Parton’s boobs a run for their money, and the message Rachel was sending was loud and clear.

Lily knew Mike would
never
mess with a married woman, and since Mike could not defend himself, it was up to her to do it for him.

When Rachel started to walk in, LilyAnn shot up from her chair and quickly backed her out into the hall, closing the door behind them.

Rachel frowned. “What do you think you’re doing? I came to see Mike.”

Lily stood her ground. “But as you saw, he’s asleep.”

“I thought I would sit—”

“No.”

Rachel’s frown deepened. “Excuse me?”

“He’s not up to visitors.”

“You’re here,” Rachel sneered, then saw a look on LilyAnn’s face that made her nervous. She pulled her purse against her chest as a subconscious shield.

Lily put her hands on her hips in a defiant gesture. “Yes I am here, and I’m not going anywhere, either, so don’t think you can sneak back in here later. I promised his parents I would take care of him until they can get here, which means you can’t go in until the doctor says he’s strong enough for visitors.”

Rachel’s eyes narrowed angrily. “You’re overstepping your bounds.”

Lily jabbed a finger between Rachel’s abundant boobs.

“No,
you’re
the one overstepping your bounds. Does Bud know he’s on the way out? Does he know Mike Dalton is in your sights as hubby number four? Better yet, does Mike know that? I’d bet the deed to my house that the answer to all three of those questions is a big loud NO.”

Rachel stifled a gasp, shocked that the fat bitch had picked up on that.

“How dare you?” she hissed.

Lily poked her finger a second time, jabbing harder as she lowered her voice.

“No! How dare
you
?” she whispered. “Your life is your business, and I don’t give a damn what you do with it until you involve a helpless man in your cheating-ass scheme. Now you take your pitiful self out of my sight, or I might have to let it slip around town that poor Bud Goodhope is about to become ex number three.”

Rachel’s face was flushed and Lily knew she’d hit a nerve, but Rachel was still defiant.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said. “Bud and I are fine.”

“Then get your ass home and make sure it stays that way. People run all over me, Rachel, but that’s because I
let
it happen. However, you don’t mess with my friends when they can’t defend themselves. Do you hear me?”

Rachel shrugged. “Fine. I didn’t expect you to make such a big deal out of a simple visit to a friend.”

“I’ll give you a piece of advice. Next time you get dressed for a friendly visit to a single man, wear a skirt that covers your ass, button up your damned blouse, and leave the push-up bra at home.”

Rachel’s eyes widened in disbelief. “I can’t believe you just said that,” she gasped.

LilyAnn glared. “And I can’t believe you wore that hooker outfit in public.”

“Oh my God,” Rachel said.

“Yes, now that I think of it, God is probably interested in your intent, too, so I’d say that a prayer for forgiveness is a good idea. While you’re at it, say one for Mike that he gets well, and tell Bud I said hello.”

Rachel cheeks were red, her eyes flashing angrily, but LilyAnn Bronte was a good five inches taller and at least forty pounds heavier. Rachel wasn’t getting into a slap-fest with this woman, regardless of what she’d said.

“Of course I’ll say a prayer,” Rachel said shortly, and took herself back to the elevator as fast as she could.

Lily couldn’t help but stare. That woman looked cheaper going than she had coming. Her skirt was so tight and her heels so high that while one butt cheek went up, the other went down, like the pistons that used to fire beneath the hood of Randy Joe’s hot rod. As soon as the woman disappeared, Lily went back into the room and sat down.

Another hour passed before Mike began showing signs of regaining consciousness. She was so relieved to see movement that she quickly rang for a nurse.

“He’s waking up, isn’t he?” Lily whispered.

The nurse nodded. “He was one lucky guy. That cut on his head was minor compared to the ruptured spleen. If you hadn’t gotten him here when you did, he might not have made it. Just sit tight and talk to him if you want. He’ll come to in his own time.”

The nurse was gone, but Lily’s stomach was still in knots, knowing how close he’d come to dying. She pulled her chair a little closer to the bed.

“Hey Mike, it’s me, LilyAnn. I would greatly appreciate it if you would open your eyes.”

***

The first thing Mike felt was pain, and the first thing he thought was why. Then he heard a voice.

LilyAnn.

Wherever he was, knowing she was there calmed him. He tried to move and then groaned.

The
pain
is
in
my
belly—no, my head—no, my belly.
He took a breath and then gasped.
For
whatever
reason, I hurt all over.