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“So Jack could finish school?”

“Yes. After he graduated, he started driving truck, like his uncle. Then his parents made him a loan to help them get into a mobile home.”

“Was Patience able to finish school?”

“She was pregnant her senior year. They wouldn’t let her attend regular high school, but she got her GED.”

So Glenda had replaced Patience in Jack’s bed and in his business. “I see. So why do you think they couldn’t make it?” He knew he shouldn’t be encouraging Glenda to share this information, but she was happy enough to entertain him with it, and he was curious.

“Her father wanted Jack to be someone he wasn’t. That’s Jack’s take on it, anyway.”

“Because Jack wasn’t making enough money or…”

“That was part of it. They were struggling to pay their bills. I remember meeting Patience for ice cream once and she couldn’t even buy one scoop. I offered to pay, but she was so embarrassed she wouldn’t let me. She sat there with a glass of water.”

“Sounds like you two were still close in those early years.”

“We were.” There was a wistful note in her voice, but it fell away as she focused on the conversation again. “I think Reverend Lee didn’t like Jack for a lot of reasons. Because he’d ‘stolen’ his daughter by getting her pregnant. Because having a child so soon meant they didn’t get the best start in life. Because Jack wouldn’t ‘repent’ and go to church. And because Jack dared to voice an opinion that didn’t agree with Lee’s, even though he was so much younger.”

“Blue Christmas” came on in the background. Kanon could remember it playing over and over the year he’d been the most at odds with his father and Heather. He associated it with being cold and hungry, so he tried to block it out. “I’m sorry if this is too personal,” he said, “but I can’t help wondering… If you were still close with Patience, how did you wind up getting involved with Jack?”

“That’s a long story,” she said with a dramatic sigh and then a little laugh—as if it was something she fell into and didn’t choose.

He wasn’t surprised that she dodged the question. It couldn’t be an easy thing to explain, especially after admitting that Patience had been through a lot, becoming a mother so young, having no money and being at odds with her autocratic father.

“Anyway, it doesn’t matter anymore,” she went on. “It’s in the past. My marriage to Jack will soon be in the past, too.”

“You’re splitting up?” He already knew they were. Patience had told him. But he didn’t let on.

“Yeah. It’s for the best.”

“How long have you been together?”

“Five years, but we’ve never really been happy.”

Patience had been divorced for five years, and Glenda had been with Jack for five years? The timing was certainly suspect. “Divorce is never easy,” he said.

“Are you divorced?” she asked.

“No, I’ve never been married.”

“Well, consider yourself lucky. Marriage is hard enough when both people are caring and thoughtful. If one gets selfish, it’s impossible.”

He bit back a sardonic smile. “You’re speaking of Jack, of course…”

“Yes. He only thinks of himself! I’ve done everything I possibly can to make our marriage work. I mean, take this for example.” She gestured toward Ari and Mia, who were still visiting with their friend from school across the restaurant. “I’m trying to maintain a relationship with his daughter even though he and I are breaking up.”

“That’s very nice of you,” he said. That was obviously what she was hoping to hear, and he was interested enough in the information she was providing to play along.

But he wasn’t sad when the girls returned, effectively putting an end to the discussion. Glenda wasn’t someone he was particularly interested in getting to know.

Ari and Mia sat down for a few minutes. Then Ari said she and Mia needed to get to work on a school project, and Glenda pulled out her key fob and looked over at Kanon again.

“We have to go, but it’s been nice visiting with you,” she said.

“You, too.” It was a throwaway statement on his part, but she seemed to take it more seriously than it was intended.

“A friend makes a big difference when you’re going through a difficult time. If you could use a friend, too, give me a call,” she said and wrote her number on a napkin she put at his elbow.