Sweet Hearts by Cynthia Lee

Author:Cynthia Lee [Lee, Cynthia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Gondal Press
Published: 2022-06-04T23:00:00+00:00

7

My Sweet Catherine

Cathy gasped, audibly.

“You’ve got to get out of here,” she said. “Bubba doesn’t like it when people stay here without his permission.”

“He gave me permission,” Paul said, softly. “He and Cosette wanted to be alone and I wanted to be away from them.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Cathy said. She didn’t want to look at Paul Mara. He was (for him) slightly disheveled. He was wearing jeans and an old T-shirt. His hair stood up in places, as if he’d just risen from an afternoon nap.

“I was writing,” he said. “Or trying to, at any rate.”

Cathy felt suddenly that there wasn’t enough air in the room. She rubbed her temples so she wouldn’t have to look him in the face.

“I’m sorry I interrupted you,” she said. “I’ll go. I really thought you were Bubba.”

“Understandable,” Paul said.

They stood together in an awkward silence.

“What weird stuff has been happening?” Paul said, finally, in soft tones.

“Oh, I think I was sleepwalking again,” Cathy said, trying to sound casual. “I do that sometimes, not as much as I did when I was younger though.”

“You walked all this way while asleep?” Paul said.

“Apparently,” she said, nodding.

Paul’s smile touched his eyes, but just barely.

“Let me make you some tea,” he said. “I don’t want you walking in the dark alone. There’s no telling what’s out there.”

“You want me to stay?” Cathy said.

Paul nodded, a barely perceptible movement of his head.

“Don’t go,” he whispered.

Paul Mara made tea, the ordinary Lipton variety, with a splash of milk and a little sugar. He brought the steaming cups on a platter and placed it before Cathy with his usual grace. Cathy blew at her hot tea and coiled her legs beneath her.

“What are you writing?” she said, after a silence of several seconds duration.

“I’m not sure,” Paul Mara said. “I keep redrafting, nothing seems to stick.”

“I’m sure something will, eventually.”

Paul Mara sighed. “I hope so.”

“How is Cosette doing? I haven’t seen her in a few weeks,” Cathy said.

“She’s the same,” Paul said. His face darkened at the mention of Cosette. “She has a new challenge so she’ll be busy for a little while.”

“What kind of new challenge?”

Paul Mara shifted in his chair. He ran a hand through his dark hair.

“She said Bubba Barlow is a touch nut to crack,” Paul Mara said. “That’s what she said.”

“She has no idea,” Cathy said. “I don’t know all the things Bubba can do and I’ve known him my whole life practically.”

“I’ve seen her do this before,” Paul Mara said. He sipped at his tea. “She gets bored easily.”

“Bubba has never had a girlfriend for long,” Cathy said. “I think the longest was six months. He says he’s already raised us kids and he doesn’t want to do it all again.”

“That makes sense.”

“Steff has been hanging out at the Big House for a while now,” Cathy said.

“He needs someone to take care of him,” Paul said, simply.

“I got that impression,” Cathy said, nodding. She sipped at her tea, placed it back on the coffee table.

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