Free Pretend Mom by Rita Hestand Page B

loud,
nearly choking on a cookie.
    How could anyone make singing in church
sound so indecent?
    "Yes, I used to sing in church a lot,
before I moved away. I think I remember a few of the
songs."
    Mrs. Butie stood up and puffed like a
bullfrog. "The entire town is liable to turn out for that
performance."
    Dixie eyed her evenly. "I'm sorry, but
I've never heard of a performance in church."
    For the moment, it looked as though
Dixie had scored the last word, but Mrs. Butie wasn't going to let
her enjoy it for long.
    "You are aware of the impending
engagement of Janet to Mike Dalton, aren't you?"
    "Engagement? No. He's never mentioned
it. But then, we don't talk much about his personal life. How
wonderful for the both of them, and for Amanda." Dixie forced a
plastic smile. "It's the first I've heard of it, but then, I'm not
prone to gossip."
    Not satisfied, Mrs. Butie went on, as
though the war weren't over. "I guess it's of no consequence to you
since you'll be going home soon, anyway."
    Emily was obviously stunned by her
friend's rudeness, but Dixie didn't let her own discomfort
show.
    "You're right, it's of no consequence
to me," she replied steadily. "Tell me, just out of curiosity, what
does Janet think of Amanda?"
    "She plans to take Amanda in hand. Mike
is a bachelor and hasn't realized that Amanda doesn't belong
everywhere her father goes. There'll be a lot of changes when they
marry, I can tell you. I imagine I'll be doing a lot of babysitting
for those two before long. Good day, Emily, Dixie," the older woman
huffed and the ladies all shot up at once.
    Dixie watched as Emily practically
hurried them out the door.
    Without a word, Dixie gathered the
dirty dishes and took them into the kitchen, where she proceeded to
wash them, as though nothing had happened.
    "Oh, Dixie, I'm so sorry, dear. Julia
can be so crude at times. I wasn't expecting to see her today."
Emily stammered for an apology, as she brought the last of the
dishes to the sink.
    Sinking her hands into the warm soapy
water, Dixie felt the tension draining from her. She shrugged her
shoulders. "Don't worry about it. I've handled much worse than Mrs.
Butie before. Have you ever heard of gossip columnists?" She
laughed. "Besides, it keeps the senses sharpened. I only hope I
haven't harmed your relationship with her. You've been friends a
long time now."
    "Don't worry about that, dear. Our
relationship has never been on solid ground."
    "Somehow, I get the idea that Janet
doesn't like Amanda."
    "She knows very little about children,
and Amanda hasn't taken to her at all. Not like she took to you, at
least. Poor little thing. She's never had a mother, really, that
she can remember." She glanced at Dixie then added, "And poor
Julia, she's had such a bad time of things lately. Her heart's very
bad. And she's so anxious for Janet to settle down and get married.
I don't think there's a thing between her and Mike. Mike's
certainly not in love with her. No, if I had my guess, I'd say Mike
has been waiting for something or someone for a long time. He never
speaks about it to me of course."
    "Mom," Dixie stopped what she was doing
and faced her, "I once thought Mike liked Audrey."
    Emily glanced at her strangely, "Well,
I know they dated once but—"
    "Well, anyway, he's practically engaged
to Janet, according to Mrs. Butie."
    "Yes, according to Mrs. Butie." Emily
shot her a curious glance. "I think Audrey was too much of a
realist for Mike, and of course they were very young then. Now,
he's a man, and I think he's ready to settle down again. Amanda
does need a mother's influence, but I don't think Janet knows the
first thing about it. It's unfortunate for her. But, you know, I
think Mike has missed romance in his life. I think his wife must
have been a lot like Audrey."
    "Audrey was sweet. But I guess she did
have a logical kind of mind. Why, does he compare them?"
    "No, not really. I do. I don't know,
dear, only from what I've picked up from him. He married her when
he