Chapter 7
OCEAN
Ocean smiled at the inside of the fridge. She smiled at the eggs and the yogurt and the blueberries. Standing there like a lovestruck child, the cool air on her face, thinking about CJ texting to say she’d miss her at the party tonight.
She really liked CJ. Sure, she was too young and bright, but she lightened her world. The older Ocean got, the more she understood why men chased younger women. She still didn’t approve, but she understood.
When a knock sounded at the door, she stopped smiling and turned to find Mrs. B stepping into her cottage.
“There you are!” Mrs. B said, pointing her phone at Ocean.
“Shockingly in my own house?”
“I need you to text CJ for me.”
“She’s at that party you sent Sophie to.”
“Exactly!”
Ocean took Mrs. B’s phone. “Why do you need me to do it? I know you know how to text.”
“Texting is undignified.” Mrs. B sat at the counter wearing a jade-green caftan with layers of gold jewelry she’d collected over the years. “Tap tap tapping away.”
“Oh, so I should do it?”
“Exactly.”
“Have you been in your gummies again?”
“Absolutely not! And I resent the implication.”
“Uh-huh. So can I interest you in a snack?”
“My gummies are a snack! My favorite is boysenberry.” She gave Ocean a loopy smile. “You’d prefer girlsenberry. Speaking of which, how are things with CJ?”
“She’s okay.”
“Ha! Ha-ha! I see that smile in your eyes! Good for you, you should be happy after that woman.”
“You can say my ex-wife’s name.”
“Yes, but why bother? Now, then. I’m Golda Bakofsky’s daughter.”
Ocean blinked at her. “What’re you babbling about, you mad old woman?”
“I mean text that to CJ! Text her the words ‘I’m Golda Bakofsky’s daughter.’”
“Why?”
“So she knows who you are.”
Ocean gave Mrs. B a look, then sat beside her and tapped at her phone.
Mrs. B
Hello! I’m Golda Bakofsky’s daughter.
You may also know me as Ocean.
Mrs. B is dictating this to me while stoned,
for some reason
I can only apologize for whatever happens next.
“Good! Now ask if she met Nicholas at the party.”
Ocean did as instructed, and a minute later, CJ responded.
CJ
Hello! I am CJ. I believe I remember you from such occasions as our first kiss.
Yes, I met Nicholas. Nice guy.
“Text her ‘And handsome.’ Oh, wait, no, she’s already dating! I wonder how she stumbled into romance? We will never know! Surely, no angel of loving insight introduced her to the perfect girl!”
“Girl?” Ocean said.
“Crabby woman,” Mrs. B amended. “Let’s see, what do I want to say? Well, you know Nicholas is absolutely determined to get Sophie’s play produced? Ask CJ if anyone at the party likes to fund the dramatic arts?”
Mrs. B
The interfering old woman wants to know if anyone at the party ever funds local playwrights
Mrs. B
She’s looking over my shoulder and saying she is not interfering she is
Nurturing
She is a back-door texter
Now she’s saying she is not
A back-door texter
CJ
She is a nurturing texter and
if anyone knows about plays,
it’s Frank’s friends George and Helene Kagant
Mrs. B
She is very politely asking you to
point Nicholas in their direction
CJ
He’s talking to them as we type
Mrs. B chortled. “What a mensch.”
“Yeah, Nicholas is great,” Ocean told her. “He’s probably not even stoned right now. Is that all?”
“Yes. Wait, no! Ask for a selfie.”
“A selfie?”
“Do it!”
Mrs. B
Now she wants a selfie
CJ didn’t respond immediately, so Mrs. B told Ocean about her top five favorite fruits, then told her that Hamilton claimed strawberries weren’t real berries, then a photo popped onto the screen. A selfie of CJ making a funny face with the party in the background.
Ocean’s heart gave a little hop and Mrs. B said, “Ooh, her hair is dry. I so rarely see her with entirely dry hair. Such a pretty color. But that’s just CJ, I want to see the whole party.”
“Do you know what a selfie is?”
“Of course I do! It’s a picture you take yourself.”
So Ocean asked CJ to take pictures of the whole party, including Sophie and Nicholas. Photos began to pop onto the screen a minute later, and Mrs. B snatched her phone back.
“Look at all that food,” Mrs. B said. “What was that you said about snacks?”