‘Jack.’ She beamed. ‘How lovely.’ She turned to look inside the house. ‘Richard, Jack’s here.’
‘Who?’
‘Jack,’ she repeated, louder. ‘You know, Jack from the restaurant.’
‘Oh, that Jack. What’s he want?’
She turned back to me. ‘How can we help you, Jack?’
I held up the box and she looked at it.
‘How lovely,’ she said. ‘What is it?’
‘You mentioned the other night that your showerhead had calcified and your water flow was almost non-existent.’
‘Oh, yes.’ She frowned. ‘I tried giving it a good scrub with an old toothbrush, but it didn’t help.’
‘I thought I could replace it for you. Picked up a new one from the store. I’ve got time to spare before I need to be at work, so, here I am.’
‘You don’t need to do that, Jack.’
‘I want to. Is now a good time?’
‘Close the door,’ Richard called. ‘I can feel a breeze.’
‘Oh, shush you,’ Irene scolded him. ‘We need all the breeze we can get in this heat.’ She stepped to one side. ‘Come in, Jack. I’ll put the kettle on. Would you like a tea? Coffee?’
I kicked off my shoes and stepped inside. ‘A coffee would be great, thanks, Irene. I’ll get to work changing this while you make it.’
‘Aren’t you lovely to think of us. Isn’t he lovely, Richard?’
‘What?’
‘I said isn’t he lovely?’
‘Did you close the door?’
She rolled her eyes at him affectionately. ‘Yes, I closed the door. If you’re cold, put a blanket over your knees.’ She turned to me again. ‘He feels the cold dreadfully, even now in summer. I think it has to do with his circulation. He…we, both appreciate you doing this for us.’
I smiled. ‘You’re welcome. I couldn’t have my favorite customers going without a decent shower now, could I?’
A mug of coffee was waiting on the kitchen table for me when I emerged. I washed my hands over the kitchen sink and then joined her at the table. Richard was in his La-Z-Boy in the lounge, watching a game show on TV.
‘Van Gogh,’ he said, answering a question I hadn’t heard.
‘All done?’ Irene asked, pushing a packet of biscuits across the table towards me. ‘I hope it wasn’t too much trouble.’
‘It was fine,’ I assured her, helping myself to a biscuit and dunking it in my coffee. ‘I tested the new one and it works well. You should get quite a few years out of it, but let me know if you have any issues. And not just with the shower. I’m happy to help with anything else you might need.’
‘That’s very kind of you, Jack. Richard used to do all the house repairs but he’s not really up to it any more.’ She picked up her purse. ‘How much do we owe you?’
‘Nothing.’
‘Jack.’
‘I mean it. You don’t owe me anything.’
‘At least let me pay for the part.’
