Part 40 (2/2)
”Well, that whole part of Maine. Skowhegan, Waterville, Augusta, Brunswick.”
”Brunswick. That's where you went to college?”
”Yeah. I drove over there to poke around for a couple of hours and wound up staying two days. Spent some time on campus. Bowdoin has a great library. Saw a couple of professors I studied with. One of them has a new book coming out.”
”Sounds exciting.”
Another silence settled on them, but this time they waited it out.
324.
”I thought about you, Novalee.”
”Forney . . .”
”I wanted to talk to you, but I thought what I had to say . . . well, it wouldn't seem right over the phone.”
”What did you want to say?”
”It was about the last time we were together. I was afraid . . . I mean, I wondered if I might have, uh, hurt you or something.”
”Hurt me?”
”I suppose I wasn't very . . . well, I was worried that I might have been clumsy . . . not exactly . . . gentle.”
”No, Forney. You didn't hurt me.”
”I wouldn't want to, Novalee.”
A noisy compressor in the window air conditioner kicked on and the lights dimmed for just a second.
”So, what's happening here?”
”Not much. Lexie found a place. A duplex. They'll be moving out on the first.”
”You'll miss her.”
”She won't be far away. Right across from the school.”
”How's Americus?”
”Fine. She's going to be Annie Oakley in the Western Days Parade on Sat.u.r.day.”
”I brought her a book.” Forney dug in an opened suitcase on the bed behind him and came up with a package wrapped in red paper.
”The Maine Woods. Th.o.r.eau. We had two copies in the library here, but . . .” Th.o.r.eau. We had two copies in the library here, but . . .”
”Retha Holloway wants to see you.”
”Any plans yet for the new library?”
”Yeah, but I don't think you want to hear it.”
”What?”
325.
”Well, Retha said the mayor's daughter is going to be the new librarian.”
”Oh, I'm not surprised. Albright's wanted to move her in for a long time. But that's okay. It's time for something new.” Forney wiped his hand over his face, then rubbed the back of his neck. ”I hear they're hiring at the plastics plant.”
Novalee had seen the workers from Therm.o.f.orms come into Wal-Mart to get their checks cashed-tired men and women, their ID badges still clipped to their pockets.
”Novalee?”
Unsmiling men and women waiting for the thin stack of bills they got paid for pus.h.i.+ng the same plastic forms down the a.s.sembly line day after day, week after week.
”Novalee, are you okay?”
”Sure.”
”You were a thousand miles away.”
”Forney, what about teaching. You said once you wanted to be a teacher.”
”Well, that was a long time ago.”
”But if it's something you want, then time doesn't matter. Time doesn't matter at all.”
”What I want, Novalee . . . what I want, is to be with you. To be with you and Americus.”
”Forney.”
”I love you. I love you more than anything in the world and when we were here together . . . when I had you in my arms . . .”
”Forney, maybe we made a mistake. I don't know how it happened or why it happened when it did. But maybe it wasn't the right time for us. Maybe we . . .”
”Novalee, did you . . . did you make love to me because you felt sorry for me. Was that it?”
326.
”Oh, no. Don't think that.”
”Because if that was the reason . . .”
”No, Forney. It wasn't.”
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