Kaleidoscope

Chapter Forty-One

Rose grabbed her keys from the hook in the kitchen and was headed out the door when the phone rang.

"Damn," she said. "It never fails. Now I'm going to be late for this ridiculous appointment." She debated about letting it go to voice mail but paused when she recognized the number.

"Rose, it's Tom. I was wondering if you could do me a favor and pick me up on the way to Dr. Connelly's. My car is in the shop and it's not ready yet. I didn't think I'd need a loaner because it was supposed to be ready early so they just dropped me off. Now I'm stuck. Since I'm on your way, I thought maybe you could stop by."

"Are you sure you can't get another ride?"

"I've been on the phone for the last hour, Rose, and I can't reach anyone. You would be doing me a big favor and we ARE going to the same place."

Rose paused and then answered.

"Okay, Tom. I'll be there in twenty minutes. Can you be outside?"

Rose had, for obvious reasons, never been to Tom's apartment and had no desire to. The parking lot would do just fine. She stepped out onto the back porch and breathed deeply. It was one thing to be in Tom's company with the kids around or in the safety of the doctor's office, but quite another to ride alone with him. But, they were both going to be late if she didn't agree to pick him up. She thought of the homework the Doc had given them and wondered what Tom would say about her.

She pulled out into the street in time to see Theresa pulling in with the van. She still wasn't used to seeing her behind the wheel and it gave her heart palpitations each time she left. She gave her a quick wave and proceeded on her way to Tom's.

Twenty minutes later, she saw Tom standing in his empty parking space, as promised.

"You're looking very nice," he said as soon as he opened the door. "I really appreciate your picking me up like this. I didn't want to miss our session today."

"Thank you, Tom," Rose answered, flattered by the compliment. "And it was no problem with the ride."

She was tempted to ask him how he liked living there, but that was touching on personal ground and she chose to stay away from the subject, although he was the one who chose to leave.

Rose turned on the radio to break the silence and make the ride comfortable for them. Tom, hating the reticence between them, asked how Theresa was doing with her van. She still hadn't asked him to take her out on the highway again.

"She seems to be handling the van pretty well. She only goes into town and down to the rec center to see her friends, but that's fine with me. I want her to stay close to home."

Tom, risking a blow-up, said she would have to get back out into more traffic if she were to overcome her fears. Rose said there was no need to rush, suppressing the urge to snipe at him. Why was he pushing her? She was doing just fine close to home.

They reached the Professional building and entered, Tom holding the door for her once again. They were escorted right in and settled into their chairs, infinitely more at ease with the process. The atmosphere in the room was calmer than the first few sessions as they were getting more accustomed to opening up to each other in front of someone else. At times, it didn't even feel like the doctor was there.

Dr. Connelly began the session with a review of their "homework" from last time—what made them first fall in love. He turned to Tom first.

"What was it about Rose that made you want to be with her, Tom."