Second Chances in Lavender Bay (The Lavender Bay Chronicles #3)

11. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

“ A re you afraid?” Nadine asked when they were alone in the car.

A heavy sigh escaped Angie. “I don’t know. I know I should be, but it doesn’t seem real. I don’t think it’s sunk in yet.” She looked over at her sister. “Do you know what I mean?” It felt like a bunch of words with the requisite reaction, but she didn’t feel sick, and that’s what was throwing her off. If she didn’t feel ill, how could her body be occupied by something so deadly?

“I do,” Nadine said quietly. She turned off Heather Lane, heading for the medical center. “At least you don’t have to go through it alone. We’ll all be here for you.”

But she did have to go through it alone. She knew Nadine meant well, and she was grateful for her family’s support. But only she had a foreign invader in her body. Only she could go through treatment and deal with any unpleasant side effects. It was her future that hung in the balance, no one else’s.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go home? Let the news settle in?”

Angie shook her head. “That’s the last thing I want to do. I don’t want to dwell on it. I want to continue living as I have. And work will take my mind off things.”

“All right, if you’re sure,” Nadine said in a tone that suggested she wasn’t wholly convinced. She pulled into the parking lot of the medical center a short time later and stopped behind Angie’s parked car.

Before she got out, Angie reached over and hugged Nadine, surprising her. Thank goodness for sisters. Aware that she was at risk of getting all teary-eyed, she said in a gruff voice, “I’d like to keep this under my hat for a while.”

“Of course.”

Angie waved her sister off and went inside to retrieve her jacket, switching it out for her mother’s sweater, which she folded and placed on the front seat of her car.

On arriving at Coffee Girl, she glanced around. The lunch rush would begin soon. Melissa was clearing tables and wiping them down. Iris was cashing someone out at the register. Erica was loading fresh trays of pastries and other baked goods into the case.

“Are you all right? We were worried about you,” Melissa said, straightening up, spray bottle and damp rag in hand.

At the counter, Iris added, “We’ve been texting you, but you didn’t answer.”

“I’m sorry, time got away from me,” Angie said glibly. “And I shut my phone off. I’ll switch it back on now.”

They looked at her but said nothing. Angie never turned off her phone.

Before they could ask any questions, she said, “Any news here?”

Melissa shook her head. “Nope. All is well.”

“Busy as usual,” Erica said, sticking in another tray of pastry hearts.

“Did anyone feed the cat?” Angie asked.

“I did,” Melissa said.

Iris looked at Melissa and lifted her eyebrows. “I fed him, too.”

“I fed him when I went on my break,” Erica piped in.

Angie laughed. “Okay, he’s all set then.”

“Ang? I want to show you something,” Melissa said. She pulled a piece of paper from her apron pocket and unfolded it. It was a color photo of the cat out back.

The first thing Angie asked was, “How did you get him to sit still for this?”

Melissa laughed. “He had just finished eating.”

“That explains it,” Angie said with a wry smile.

“Anyway, I was thinking of having a contest to name him, with the customers?”

Angie mulled it over for less than half a second. “That’s great. Do what you want, Melissa. Set it up.”

Melissa nodded.

“Anything else?” Angie asked.

“Yes, I left a cherry almond cupcake on your desk for you to try.”

“They’re delicious, I’ve already had two,” Iris said.

“Great, I’ll be in my office for a while.” Before they could respond, Angie headed to the back.

With a sigh, she sank into her desk chair, leaned back, and stared up at the ceiling. From where she sat, the muted sounds of the café floated around her: cutlery clinking, conversations, and the background music. On a small plate on her desk was a cupcake with pink frosting, topped with a maraschino cherry. Unable to resist, she took a bite. It was delicious, a nice balance of cherry and almond. She finished it and threw the paper wrapper into the bin.

Now what?

Remembering her phone, she pulled it out of her purse and powered it up. She gave Debbie a quick ring and when it went to voicemail, she left a message asking her to give her a call when she got the chance. She needed to call her mother and Maureen and remind them that she didn’t want anyone to know yet. But her phone started ringing before she could make those calls. Aunt Gail’s name flashed across the screen. Her heart sank. She could probably forget about calling her mother.

“That was fast,” she muttered before answering the call with a “Hello?”

“Honey, it’s Aunt Gail. I just spoke to your mother. She told me your news. I can’t believe it. I’m so sorry. Is there anything I can do?”

“No. I’ll know more when I see the oncologist.”

“Your mother could have knocked me over with a feather.”

“You and me both,” Angie said, and relayed all that had happened so far.

“This is awful.” Her aunt made some tsk-tsk noises and asked again, “What can I do?”

“Nothing. I’m sure Mom will keep you informed.” Louise and Gail spoke every day, sometimes multiple times.

“You know she will. Okay, call me if you need anything. I’ll be praying for you.”

“Thanks, Aunt Gail, I appreciate it.”

She had no sooner hung up than her phone started ringing again. Her younger sister, DeeDee, was calling now. Angie grumbled; her mother must be telling everyone they knew.

“Hi, DeeDee.”

DeeDee, always one for dramatics, was loud, and Angie had to hold the phone away from her ear.

“Mom called me. She said you have breast cancer! Oh my God! How did this happen? I’ll be home on the next flight—”

Angie cut her off. “Whoa, whoa! You do not need to come home.”

“That’s what Mom said. But I think I should.”

“Please don’t do that, DeeDee,” Angie said firmly.

“But you’re sick. I want to see you.”

Angie sighed. DeeDee hadn’t been home in a while, and Angie didn’t want this to be the reason she finally decided to make the trip. “No, stay put. I don’t feel sick. I’m still working.”

“You are? Shouldn’t you be home in bed?”

“No, that’s the last place I need to be.”

“What happened?”

Again, Angie relayed the story, thinking if she had to tell it one more time that day she was going to lose her temper. But she remembered how sensitive her younger sister could be. There was less than two years between them, but they were as different as night and day.

“That’s awful. I wish there was something I could do,” DeeDee lamented. “I feel so helpless.”

“I know what you mean,” Angie said honestly. Already tired of the subject of her health, she asked, “How are you?”

They texted from time to time, but they led very different lives, and she didn’t think any of her sisters spoke with DeeDee regularly.

“Fine.”

“Are you at work?” Angie asked.

“I usually don’t go into rehearsals until the afternoon, but the latest play I was in was canceled due to poor ticket sales.” DeeDee’s voice was hard to read.

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“That’s how it goes.”

They spoke for a few more minutes until Angie spotted Melissa standing in the doorway and said she had to go.

“All right, Ang, take care of yourself,” DeeDee said before she hung up.

Angie looked up to Melissa, who wore a worried expression. “Everything all right?”

“I just spoke to your mom,” Melissa said.

Mom! Angie leaned forward, putting her head in her hands and brushing her hair back. Before Melissa could say anything else, she said, “I’m fine. I feel fine. And I don’t know yet what the next steps are going to be.”

“Is there anything I can do?”

“Not at the moment,” Angie said, softening her tone. Her frustration with her mother couldn’t be taken out on Melissa. “You’re already doing enough.”

“Okay. But you know—”

“Yes, I do know, if I need anything, I only have to ask. I appreciate it.” With a nod toward the front of the café, Angie asked, “Does everyone else know?”

Melissa grimaced. “Yes, I’m afraid so.”

Defeated, Angie said, “That’s all right. They were bound to find out sooner or later.”

“I’ve got everything under control out front if you want to hang out here a little longer.”

“Thanks. What time are you here until?”

“Four, but I can stay late,” Melissa said.

“Nope, I’ll be fine.” The café served coffee, breakfast, and lunch. No dinner. By that time, things would be winding down and she’d be able to handle it.

“Are you sure?”

“I am, thanks.” Again, Angie thought how grateful she was for Melissa. “That cupcake was delicious, by the way.”

“Thanks, Ang.”

Melissa disappeared when Angie’s phone started ringing again with a call from Debbie.

“Have you heard about your biopsy?” was the first question Debbie asked.

Angie filled her in, and her friend’s response was, “Oh, poop.”

Esther poked her head around Angie’s office door.

“Deb, I’ll call you tonight,” Angie said. “Esther’s here.” She hung up and set her phone down on the desk.

“Hey, I just spoke to my mom,” Esther started, stepping into the office and plopping down in the chair.

Angie rattled off a list of preemptive answers: “I’m fine. I don’t need anything. I don’t feel sick. I don’t know what my treatment plan is going to be. I haven’t seen the oncologist, and I don’t have an appointment yet.”

Esther snorted, her grin wide. Then she put her hands up as if to say what can you do? “You know how Mom and Aunt Louise are. The two of them are together right now—my mom even closed her shop—so they can put together a roster of rides for you.”

“A roster of rides?”

“Yep. You know, if you need rides to chemotherapy or radiation.”

Angie blinked in surprise. “I don’t even know if I’m doing those things yet.”

Esther laughed. “As I said, you know how they are. They’re like two battle generals, getting ready for the invasion of Germany.”

“I think they’re getting ahead of themselves.”

“Of course they are, but they have to feel like they’re doing something. Or helping.”

“I wish they wouldn’t help me so much,” Angie griped.

Esther laughed and stood. “Anyway, I just wanted to drop in. Call me if you need anything. Any time, day or night.”

“I know, Esther, and I appreciate it,” Angie said.

Esther said her goodbyes and disappeared. For a full five minutes Angie’s phone didn’t ring, and no one showed up in her office. She reveled in the peace and quiet.

She turned her phone off to avoid any further calls and decided to stay behind the scenes in the kitchen for the rest of the day, getting things ready for tomorrow’s baking.

A few minutes after six, after all her employees had gone home, she turned the lock on the door, savoring the end-of-day stillness of the restaurant. She was glad to be alone. All afternoon, Erica and Iris had treated her as if she were an invalid, cutting her off with variations on “I’ll do that. You sit down.” Finally, she’d had to call an impromptu meeting where she advised them that she was perfectly fine to continue as is and that if she needed help, she would ask. Their looks were unsure, but her tone convinced them to back off.

Erica had mopped the floor before she left, and now that it was mostly dry, Angie began unloading the chairs from the tables. There was a knock on the front window, and she looked up to see Tom on the other side.

“Watch the floor, it’s wet in some places,” she said as she let him in.

“Gotcha.”

Despite the frosty late-October air, he wore only a long-sleeved thermal top. Black, of course.

“Two questions,” she said. “First, do you not own a coat?”

He squinted as if giving it serious thought and finally said, “Yes, I have a coat at home.”

She rolled her eyes. “Second question: do you ever wear anything other than black?”

“Black’s my favorite color.”

She shook her head. “Figures. The absence of light. The Dark Lord of Lavender Bay.”

Laughter erupted from him and rumbled through the empty café.

Angie resumed pulling the chairs down off the tables. Tom joined her, careful to avoid the odd wet spot on the floor.

“I have a question of my own,” he said as he took down the last chair.

She looked everywhere but at Tom. She didn’t think she could bear it if she saw pity in his eyes.

“Evangeline,” he said.

Finally, she met his gaze. There was no pity there, only concern. She could deal with that. After all, she’d been dealing with it all day.

“There’s a rumor going around that you’ve got breast cancer,” he said.

There. He’d said it. It was out in the open.

“That is not a rumor,” she said.

“I’m very sorry to hear that.” He took a step closer to her. “How are you holding up?”

“I’m all right,” she admitted. “It’s come as a shock.”

“I can imagine. What’s the plan?”

“I don’t know yet. Waiting now for an appointment with the oncologist.”

“If anyone can beat this, it’s you,” he said.

“I appreciate that.”

“If you need a ride to your appointment, I’d be happy to take you and go with you,” he said.

“It’s covered, Tom, but thanks anyway. Most of my family are insisting on going with me and to be honest, I don’t think there’ll be room in the car.”

He let out a bark of laughter. That brought a smile to her face. The first real one of the day.

“But I promise, if I need anything, I will call you,” she said.

“Good,” he said softly. He pulled out his phone. “Give me your number.”

She rattled it off, and he inputted it into his phone. “I’ll send you a text so you’ll have mine,” he said.

She tilted her head to one side. “Does that make us friends then?”

With a smile, he said, “We’ve always been friends, Evangeline.”

As she locked up, she watched him walk across the street to Java Joe’s, thinking she was glad to have a friend like him.