Free The Ladies Farm by Viqui Litman

had thrown onto the floorboard. “That yours?”
    Barbara twisted around and then reached, feeling with her hand until she retrieved the purse. There’s no one around to appreciate this, Della thought, now that Pauline’s dead. Me comforting Barbara over her unfaithfulness to Richard.
    She felt her own eyes filling up and she turned away from Barbara. All she needed was another tear fest.
    Nonetheless, her eyes stayed full and blurred the figure walking toward her. Until he said her name, she didn’t recognize Tony at all.
    “You okay?” he asked, then looked into the car. “Barbara?”
    Barbara finished applying her lipstick and smooshed her lips together for a long second before she flashed a smile at Tony. “Well, hi there, stranger. How have you been?”
    In a move that surprised Della with both its speed and grace, Barbara popped out of the seat and stepped forward to hug Tony.
    Tony hated fat women, and Della noticed how gingerly he hugged back before Barbara pulled away. Weight had been an issue between them, and Della still bore great resentment to his criticism. At least I was never that obese, she thought now.
    “Tony,” Della said. “How are you?”
    He shrugged. He was a little too narrow for someone so tall, and Della noticed that most of his own weight gain had settled in his gut. She had heard that he’d opened another two copy shops, and she wondered why he didn’t buy himself a new suit.
    “Heard from Robbie yesterday. One of Hugh Junior’s friends called him.”
    Della nodded. “He called me, too. He said he’d be here in August.”
    Tony smiled a little. “He put Katie on the phone. That kid’s some talker.”
    Della smiled back. This was what they talked about when they saw each other: their remaining son and their grandchild.
    They stood for a second, Barbara beaming inanely and Della and Tony just looking at each other. “Sorry about Pauline,” he said finally. “This must be real hard for y’all.”
    Della nodded.
    “Guess what?” Barbara took up the slack. “I’ve moved out there, too!”
    “Have you?” Tony asked, looking down at where he had dug up a plug of grass with his boot toe.
    “Barbara’s sort of resident-for-life,” Della explained, crossing her fingers behind her back.
    Tony raised his eyebrows enough to show he appreciated the humor, then shook his head, “How are you doing out there?”
    “Oh, I’m fine out there,” Della said. “Out there’s a great place.”
    Tony nodded again. “Be hard without Pauline.”
    “Yeah.” She still thought he was a handsome man, but she wondered if his face would be so creased and his suit jacket so tight if they’d stayed together. She liked to think not. “How’s the copy shop business?”
    “Oh, great,” he replied without enthusiasm. “Opened a second one in Weatherford, and one up in Denton. They’ve all got computers-by-the-hour in them.”
    “Sounds lucrative.” Della couldn’t figure out what Barbara was beaming about, unless it was just joy over the presence of an actual man. There were so few in any of their lives, it was always an excitement.
    Tony had remarried after their divorce, a woman with three kids who left him after a year for a car salesman in New Mexico. Della thought the whole thing was just forgotten; she never thought it hadmuch to do with her, but she supposed there was something about the wife, Suzanne, that made up for something she herself had lacked. Suzanne hadn’t been especially thin or beautiful, but maybe she was easier to get along with. That wouldn’t have been hard, after Jamie died.
    “Barbara?” Tony asked. “How’s Dickie?” Maybe Della imagined the catch in his voice.
    “Doing great!” Barbara said.
    “Still in Dallas?”
    Della shifted from one foot to the other, feeling the sun through her long sleeves.
    “He may be moving to Houston,” Barbara said. “He’s got an offer from a big surgeon there, to work with him.”
    “Glad he’s doing well.