When You Least Expect It (16 page)

             
“I’m okay Sheryl; same-o, same-o.  How about you?  I haven’t heard from you in a while.”

             
“Just working and going crazy at home.  Bud is his usual pain in the ass.  My babies also keep me pretty busy.” 

             
Sheryl’s babies were her dogs.  At last count she had five of them, all different shapes and sizes.  They were the loves of her life.             

 
              “How come you never visit?”

             
“Well, for the moment, Sheryl, I don’t even have a car.”  Amanda told her friend the whole sordid story of her life and its current events.  She left out the Ray part though.

             
“Mandy you numb nuts…you should have called me!  Do you remember what Bud does for a living?”  Sheryl voice had gotten about twelve octaves higher.  It had the tendency to do that when she got excited.

             
Amanda thought for a moment.  “Oh yeah, he’s a used car salesman!”   She’d forgotten.  She wondered if he would be able to help her.  Sheryl answered that question for her.

             
“Let me talk to him and see what he can do.  I’ll have him call you, okay?”

             
“That is more than okay.  Thank you so much, Sheryl.”

             
“You’re welcome.  When are you going to learn to come to me when you need help?”  She feigned exasperation.  Sheryl loved her like a daughter.  She hoped she would be able to help her.

             
Amanda laughed, “I’ll be waiting to hear from Bud then.  I’m glad you called Sheryl, and not just because of the car thing.”

             
“Yeah, sure you are.  Then pick up the phone and call me some time, you brat!”  They were both smiling as they hung up the phone.

             
Amanda tried not to get too excited about this prospect.  If Bud could help her get a car, that would be wonderful.  He had helped other people she knew, and it seemed under impossible situations.  Why not her?  Amanda prayed it would happen.  She decided not to tell anyone until she spoke with Bud.

             
The doorbell rang.  In popped Hilary, Suzanne, Elisa and Alex.  Not too quietly either. 

             
“Hey,” cried Amanda, “who let in the clowns?”

             
“Very funny,” replied Elisa.  “What’s for dinner?”  Elisa looked into the pot and made a face.  Spaghetti was not her favorite.

             
“How about you make a salad to go with it, Elis?  Amanda ignored the face.  She was used to it.

             
“Oh, Mom, do I have to?”

             
“Yes, you do.  Thanks, though, your tired mom does appreciate it.”

             
Elisa groaned and went to the refrigerator to get out the lettuce, tomatoes, mushrooms and cucumbers.  She commenced to chop, a bit too zealously. 

             
“So Hilary, where’s your husband?”

             
“He had to work late, but promises to stop by after. How did you get home?

             
“I got a ride.  That helped.”

             
“What are you going to do about this car thing, Mandy?  With two teenagers, you have to have one.”

             
She took a deep breath, “Wow, Hilary, thanks for enlightening me.  I will take that into consideration.”

             
Hilary was undaunted.  “You are most welcome.  Any way I can help you, big sister, you know me.”  She looked at the look on her sister’s face and laughed hysterically.  Amanda reacted by throwing noodles at her.

             
“Hey, not fair throwing food we have yet to eat.”  Hilary picked the spaghetti off her.  “I was just kidding,” she pouted.

             
“Dinner is ready, so let’s eat.  I’m starved.”  Amanda set the table with paper plates and they all sat down to the meaty spaghetti.  It was delicious.  They made a fuss over Elisa’s salad, and she had to admit, this was a wonderful meal.

             
Hilary cleaned up the dishes and wondered how she could bring up the subject of Ray without upsetting her sister.  She wanted to know about him, about his life about his intentions.  She knew it was her own fault that Amanda was on the defense whenever she brought it up, but she decided it was a losing battle, so she might as well just give up and accept it.

             
After she finished cleaning up, she poured them both a cup of coffee.  The kids had all retired to their bedrooms. It was perfect timing.   

             
“So Mandy, have you seen a picture of Ray yet?” 

             
“No, I haven’t.  He wants to send me one, but I’m undecided about giving him my address.  I trust him and all, but am trying not to be irresponsible.”

             
Hilary saw this as an opportunity to show her she was in her corner again.  “What harm would it do, Mandy?  Then we can see what he looks like.  Maybe he’s a super freak and you won’t want anything to do with him.”

             
Amanda looked suspiciously at her sister.  “Is this a test?”

             
“No, I’m serious.  Did you send him yours?”

             
“Yes, I did.  He had nothing but nice things to say.”

             
“Aren’t you interested in what he looks like?
              “Yes, very.  So you see nothing wrong with giving him my address?”  Mandy raised her eyebrows at her sister.  Something was up, but she wasn’t sure what.  She was never this supportive of the Ray situation.

             
“No I don’t.  I say, go for it.  He is after all thousands of miles away, what harm would it do?  I, for one, am dying to see a picture.  Let’s write him now.”  Hilary went over to turn on the computer.

             
Together, the sisters composed a letter to Ray, sending him Amanda’s information.  They said they were anxious to get the pictures, to send more than one, and to do it immediately, if not sooner.  They signed it ‘Mandy and Hilary’.

             
“Ray is going to freak out when he reads this,” laughed Amanda.

             
“I know,” added Hilary, “it will be good for him.  I’m really excited about the pictures.  We finally will get to see this mystery man!”

             
Amanda lost in her own thoughts just nodded her head.

             
                                                        ~~~

             
Later that night, Ray opened his mail and read the letter the sisters had sent.  He was amazed, as well as amused.  What was this sudden turn around with Hilary?  He didn’t care, as long as there was one.  Also, he had felt Amanda’s hesitation when he asked for her address.  He had felt bad about it, because he felt like she really didn’t totally trust him.  Of course, if he were her, he wouldn’t either.  Sometimes he wondered himself what he was doing on the internet, meeting strangers.  For heavens sake, for all he knew, she was a nutcase.  He doubted it though.  No one had ever made him feel like she did.  It’s just that if one of his friends, let’s say, Diego, called him and told him he had fallen in love with someone on the internet, he would definitely call 911 and ask for the men in white coats to be dispatched.  But being the one in this situation, it just felt right.

             
He had developed the pictures of the beach, and had gotten doubles, so no one would question when a few popped up missing.  Carrie had questioned this, but he had told her he wanted to send a few to his mom, so she had dropped it.  Usually, he shied away from the camera, and this trip, he was always posing.  In the water, on the pier, by his car, it was almost funny.  He was everywhere.  He picked two out, one at the beach in his trunks…he looked happy and relaxed.  He wasn’t wearing his glasses and he had to admit, it was pretty decent.  The other was one in the cottage, very posed and uptight.  Carrie had taken that one.  But he picked it anyway, and stuffed them in an envelope with a small note.

             
Mandy,

             
As per your and your sister’s request, here are my pictures.  Please don’t run to your nearest dumpster until you have seen them several times.  I tend to grow on people, and remember, I definitely look better in the dark.  Okay, I don’t look like Garth Brooks, but I hope it will do anyway.  Hilary, be nice to me. 

             
Ray

             
He addressed the envelope and put it in his briefcase, so he could send it in the morning.  He was very nervous about what Amanda might think.  She had told them over and over that looks didn’t matter to her; it was only what was on the inside.  He hoped this was true.

             
                                                        ~~~

             
Amanda had to ride the bus home.  It was hot and she was definitely crabby.  After a tough day at medical assisting, she was in no mood for the hour trip home.  She had dealt all day with the pediatrician in the office, and she could be very demanding.  Couple that with the fact that she had been giving babies injections all day, it led to her feeling emotionally and physically drained.

             
It was almost seven when she arrived home.  Both the kids were at their prospective places of employments.  Alex was a grill cook at a Mexican restaurant downtown, and Elisa worked at a 50’s diner.  They both liked their jobs, but they were gone most evenings, leaving her alone for dinner a lot.  She was too tired to think about eating, so she grabbed a yogurt from the refrigerator, and sat down at her computer to check her email.  Before she got there, the phone rang.  She went to get it and was surprised to hear a man’s voice that she didn’t recognize.

             
“Amanda?”

             
“This is she,” replied Amanda hesitantly.  One of the drawbacks of being alone was that everything made her uneasy.

             
“It’s Bud.  Sheryl asked me to give you a call.  She said you were in need of a car.”

             
Amanda sighed with relief.  “Hi Bud.  How are you?”

             
“I’m good.  Now how can I help you?”

             
She explained her situation to him.   She told him everything, including the voluntary repossession.  “I just couldn’t afford to do it, Bud.  I live on a very tight income, and it just wasn’t possible for me to have it fix, or continue to pay for a car I wasn’t driving.”

             
“I understand that, but it’s going to be a hard thing to explain to my loan officer.  But I’m sure going to try.  Do you care what kind of car it is?”

             
“No, of course not.  I just want it to be dependable, that’s all.”

             
“Alright then, as soon as something dependable comes our way, and I can fix it with the money people, I’ll give you a call.  How does that sound?”

             
“It sounds as if I’ve finally met my fairy godfather.  Thanks so much, Bud.”  She was almost moved to tears.  This was too good to be true.

             
“Nonsense, Sheryl and I are always glad to help you.  What are friends for?”  Bud had always liked Amanda.  He really was happy to help her.  He just hoped it worked out, although he was very skeptical.

             
“I’ll be waiting to hear from you then.  Thanks again, Bud, and thank Sheryl for me again, too.  Take care.” 

“I will call you as soon as I know anything.  Bye, Mandy.”

              She could barely contain her excitement!  She dialed Hilary’s number.  She answered on the first ring. “Hi, sis.  What’s up?”

             
“How did you know it was me?” asked Amanda perplexed.

             
“Caller ID?”              She laughed, “Oh yeah, I forgot.  Anyhow, guess what?  I have some exciting news.  Anyway I hope it’s exciting.  I have a friend who’s a used car salesman and he thinks he can help me get a car, despite all my difficulties.  Isn’t that great?”

             
“Wow, it sure is.  When do you find out?”

             
“He says as soon as he can find a car, and the money, he’ll call me.  I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much, but, I NEED this car.  It has been hell without it.” 

             
“I know it has been, sis, I hope it pans out for you.   Not to change the subject, but, have you received the pictures from Ray yet?”

             
“No, not yet.  It takes awhile to come from Maine, Hilary.”

             
“I guess so…aren’t you excited?” 

             
Amanda was excited.  She was nervous though too.  She had told Ray she wasn’t hung up on looks, but she wondered if she could put her money where her mouth was.  She was worried that he would be really bad and she would be totally turned off.  Then what would she say?  She would just have to wait and see.