21 #2
“And you don’t have to refuse all help,” she replied tartly.
Then she sighed in resignation. “I suppose I can have dinner with the man, though I would guess he wants someone else to do all the work, while he takes all the credit, or he wouldn’t be asking for help at all.
” She leveled a finger at me. “That’s the real difference between men and women, you know.
” She stood and shook her head. “It’s going to be a long day.
I’d invite you to lunch with Mrs. Kline, but she doesn’t seem to like you. Will you be all right on your own?”
I can’t wait to be on my own, I thought. “Perfectly so.”
After Ruth left for lunch at Hofberg’s with Mrs. Kline, I genuinely debated calling the restaurant to warn them.
I wouldn’t wish those two together on my worst enemy .
.. Then again, those two together were my worst enemy so maybe they deserved each other.
Either way, I was free for an entire glorious midday and evening.
It was a beautiful day, so I tied a scarf around my hair and rolled the windows down in the car to drive to Greene’s for the weekly shopping.
The sky looked bluer than usual, as if the sun approved of my plan to make Ruth the new Mrs. Moskowitz.
I found myself singing along to “Hey Paula” on the radio as I drove.
Eddie found me by the bakery counter, eyeing the babkas. I didn’t want to think about what Ruth would put in one if she made it, but her mention had sparked a craving. And a well-made babka would be a perfect celebration tonight when the date went well.
“What’s the occasion?” he asked, leaning an elbow on the counter to face me.
I smiled broadly. “I’m getting rid of Ruth,” I said.
“Barbara,” Eddie said, feigning seriousness. “Murder is never the answer.”
He cracked up as well when I laughed. “Noted. But no. She has a date tonight!”
“Really?” he asked, leaning back a little. “With who?”
“A widowed neighbor of mine.”
Eddie closed his left eye to scrutinize me. “Wait. Not the one who came out of his house screaming at me when I parked down the street that one time?”
I shrugged. He hadn’t told me about that. “Probably. He’s the neighborhood grump.”
“Ruth agreed to go out with him ?”
“Well, kind of. I may have made up a reason for dinner. But he agreed. And you should have seen them together last week. She made him laugh. Mr. Moskowitz, laughing!”
“Well, she’s funny. But, Barbara, setups don’t work like that. I should know. Janet has set me up with enough people.”
“Has she?” I asked. Strange that I didn’t know that. “Either way, she’ll be good for him.”
“But will he be good for her ? I obviously didn’t know her husband, but Harry didn’t have a grumpy bone in his body.”
“He had a couple of grumpy bones,” I said, but I couldn’t quite meet Eddie’s gaze.
I realized I didn’t know what drew someone like Abe to Ruth.
Had she been softer when she was young? Heaven knew I wasn’t the same as I was when I had Harry.
Or did opposites attract? A small niggle of doubt formed about my plan, but I tried to shrug it off.
What I needed mattered too. And I needed Ruth out of my house.
“It’s one date, Eddie,” I said finally. “If she doesn’t like him, I’ll look for someone else.”
“You know better than I do,” he said. “What would an old bachelor know about matters of the heart?”
I looked at him sharply—that second sentence had a bite to it.
But if anything, Eddie’s face was a little sad.
“Do you want to be set up?” I asked, genuinely curious.
Janet’s view of her brother certainly wasn’t the same as mine.
No, I didn’t know anyone for him, but I’d be happy to keep my eyes open if he was looking.
I started mentally going down the hospital nurses’ relationship statuses.
“No,” Eddie said firmly. “If I meet the right girl, I meet the right girl.”
“If that changes—”
“You’ll be the first person I ask,” he assured me. “Wrap up the chocolate babka for Mrs. Feldman,” he told the young man at the bakery counter, then turned back to me. “I have a feeling you may need it for when Ruth gets home.”
Annoyed, I went home to put the groceries away, then stopped by Janet’s house. Unlike Eddie, Janet would agree that this was a brilliant plan. After all, she had suggested it.
“Please,” Janet said, pouring me a cup of coffee. “You think Eddie knows anything about love? I’m not sure he’s even kissed a girl.”
“I’m sure he’s kissed plenty of girls.”
“I’m not. You know, I’ve wondered if he—”
“Janet Weinstein, you stop that right now. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with your brother.”
“Who says it’s wrong?” Janet shrugged. “He’s my brother and I love him. I just wouldn’t take matchmaking advice from him.” She sipped her coffee, then added another sugar cube. “Of course, if your plan works out, you’re hardly rid of her.”
“I thought of that too late.”
Janet laughed. “Let’s find her a rich European. Put an ocean between you and her and get a nice, fat inheritance when she eventually kicks the bucket.”
“Janet!”
She raised her coffee cup to mine. “To a mother-in-law–free home. With money for a pool.”
This time, I laughed as I clinked my cup to hers. “You’re incorrigible.”
“A badge I wear proudly,” she said. “Call me tonight and let me know how it went.”