My hands were clammy, and the hair at the back of my neck rose as my heart thundered while Anna led me down a long hallway. It felt more like a gallows walk than the hall of a top-notch assisted living center.
Silently, I prayed to a god that I didn’t believe in. I begged him to let this old woman at least tolerate me enough that she didn’t jeopardize everything I had with Anna. Suddenly, everything wrong with us felt monumental. She was half myage. She lived a simple, quiet life, while I ran a multi-billion-dollar organization that was a front for a criminal enterprise. She was warm pop music and power ballads; I was cold classical symphonies.
I came into Anna’s life only three months ago, and I didn’t know how to breathe without her.
When we reached the activity room, Anna led me straight over to Edith, who was alone, sitting in front of a card table. She was tiny, fierce-eyed, and wore a Christmas sweater in February, a battered violin held in her long, spindly fingers.
She looked me up and down in one glance, her lips pursed as she pushed her massive bifocals up her nose.
“Is this the one?” she asked Anna, judgment lacing every single word.
“Edith, meet Darius. Darius, meet Edith,” Anna said with that sweet smile, and I couldn’t help but melt.
“It’s lovely to meet you, ma’am,” I said.
“We’ll see about that,” Edith said with a glare. “Do you plan on breaking Anna’s heart?”
Before I could answer, she pointed to the chair across the table. “Sit, we’re going to see if you’re worthy of my girl or not.”
“I can promise you I am not worthy. But, I try a little harder every single day.” I took a seat, trying desperately not to wither under her glare. At least Anna didn’t have to explain we were together. That was something.
Edith immediately dealt the cards, forcing me into a game of cribbage. I hadn’t played in years. The circles I ran in preferred poker or Durak.
We played in near silence, and I let her win.
Anna sat next to Edith, holding the violin and testing the strings, as Ella Fitzgerald played on the record player perched on the windowsill.
“My Anna seems to be rather fond of you,” she said, discarding a couple of cards.
“Was that a question or an accusation?” I asked.
Her sharp eyes flashed up to me, and I couldn’t tell if she was amused or judging me. “I haven’t made up my mind yet.”
“Let me know when you do,” I said, studying my cards.
“She’s also told me about the changes in the store. And how they are all your idea.”
I nodded. “I didn’t change much, just updated your inventory system and slapped some new signs and a fresh coat of paint up.”
“Well, whatever you’ve done, it seems to have reinvigorated the store. I’ve gone over the numbers, and they haven’t been that good in nearly a decade.”
“Anna deserves all the credit for that. It’s her vision, blended with yours. All I did was add some technology and advertising.”
A lowhumphsounded under her breath. I looked over at Anna to see how I was doing, but she was intensely focused on the violin.
“And how long have you been dating my Anna?” she asked, running her finger over the cribbage board’s peg holes.
“Three months,” I said, tapping the edge of my cards on the table.
“And how long have you been in love with her?”
Anna’s eyes went wide, and her hands froze.
“Three months,” I answered honestly.
Edith gave another dismissive sound in the back of her throat, then tapped the board twice. I wasn’t sure if it was a habit or some kind of warning. “It’s taken you three months to come and see me?”
I folded my cards and placed them face down on the table. She deserved my complete attention.
