Violetta Craft's Arc

Chapter 48 of 65

Saturday came six days after the showcase. Jordie texted at nine in the morning and asked if she wanted breakfast out. Violetta stood in the office with the ribbon pinned above her sewing machine and read the message twice. A year of Saturdays. This was the first one. She wrote back the name of a small cafe on the corner near the school and told him ten. She wore a blue dress and low heels. Lymber took Elowen without asking questions. Paul lifted a hand from the couch. Missy watched from the stairs and said nothing, which was its own comment. The cafe had a striped awning and pots of green by the door. Jordie was already at a table by the window. He stood up when she came in. Leather jacket, white shirt, dark jeans, hair still wet from a shower. He had shaved. He pulled her chair out and pushed it back in when she sat. "You came," he said. "I said I would." A waitress brought coffee. Jordie ordered eggs. Violetta ordered toast and fruit. Her hands stayed folded on the table. "I want to say one thing," he said. "Then I'll stop." "Okay." "I'm not going to miss one. Not for a game. Not if I'm sick. Not if my mom needs me. I'll figure it out." "Don't promise big. Just show up." "I will." The food came. They ate. He asked about Elowen's new tooth and she told him. She asked about his job at the auto shop and he told her. He did not ask about the showcase. He did not ask about Greg. He did not reach for her hand. When the plates were cleared she asked for the check. He put his card down before the waitress reached the table. Outside the cafe he stopped on the sidewalk. He kept his hands in his jacket pockets. "Same time next week?" he asked. "Same time." He nodded and turned to go. She caught his sleeve. "Jordie." He stopped. "Elowen's had a cough since Thursday night. Low fever this morning. I didn't want to say it at the table." His face changed. "How low?" "Ninety-nine six. But she was in the hospital nine months ago for this same thing." "You calling the doctor?" "Monday if it isn't gone. Sooner if it climbs." "I'll drive you. Whenever. Text me at three in the morning if you need to." "I know." He looked at her for a long second. Then he walked to his car. She went home. Elowen was on the kitchen floor with the wooden spoon again. Violetta put a hand on her forehead. Warmer than the morning. She checked the thermometer. A hundred point two. She sat down on the tile and pulled Elowen into her lap and reached for her phone.