She smiles. “Yes, I was spoiled, and cursed with many cavities of course. I don't have my real teeth, you know.”
I didn't know that she wore dentures, and the image pops up in my mind, unwelcome. “That’s why your teeth are always fabulous,” I point out. “They'll be fabulous until the day you die.”
She laughs. ‘Well, that’s a plus with dentures… anyway, let's get back to my story.”
“Yes, let’s.”
“I first met Caleb when I was eighteen,” she tells me. “He was a bad boy… I liked the bad boys you see.”
I smile. “You… and everyone else. I do too unfortunately.” I think about Christian's father, Keith, definitely a bad boy. Then I think of Colton. Yes, also a bad boy, but in a completely different way.
“Caleb had a sexy motorcycle, and wore a black leather jacket. Back in the early fifties, we girls loved that.”
“I bet you did.”
“Did he ever have his eye on me,” she says. “He was crazy about me. I don't know why. I'm nothing special to look at.”
I eye her from head to toe. "I bet you were. Look at yourself… those eyes.”
She smiles. “He did love my eyes.”
“So what happened?” I ask, wanting to know more.
“Uh… you know what would go great with these cupcakes?”
I shake my head, mildly annoyed.
“A tall glass of milk,” she says as she painstakingly rises from her seat. “You want one?”
“But you were just about to get to the good stuff,” I hear myself whining. No, I don't want a tall glass of milk, I want to hear the rest of the story.
“Can I fetch it for you?”
“No need.” She heads over to the kitchen. “Christian, you want some milk?”
“No, thank you,” he says very politely. That’s my boy.
She always spoils Christian. If it’s not a glass of milk, it’s a can of Coke or some candy. That's why he loves it here. I always tell him to brush his teeth after a visit with Judy. That’s the rule, and he knows it because as I mentioned, we don't have dental insurance.
“So you were about to say," I remind her when she comes back.
“Oh, but wait… I have to get my chocolates. They were a gift from Julie… you need to have one.”
“But… we already have cupcakes and muffins.” Surely that’s enough sweets. She is going to be the end of me. I'll never hear the end of the story… or the beginning.
When she comes back, she presents me with an open box of chocolates. “Sea salt and caramel,” she tells me.
I help myself to one, and take a bite. It’s to die for, and I instantly forgive her for her flakiness. Christian doesn’t miss a beat and helps himself to one also.
“So back to the story,” I say as soon as she’s settled in her seat once again.
“Uh… I forget where I was.”
“You were talking about Caleb, your first love…”
“Oh, yes, yes… Caleb did have a beautiful laugh,” she says, staring up at the ceiling, at what, I’m not sure. God, she's never going to tell me that story. “He was my first love.”
I smile.
