Her Mate

Chapter thirty-four

After Ashley took off I was glad things had settled down for the most part. JoAnn was deeply bothered by her visit so I ended up spending most of my time trying to calm her down.

After we had the service that consisted of a photo timeline of their lives along with people giving small speeches on what they had meant to them, Pastor Daniels I thought was especially good despite my personal feelings towards him, we all headed to Greenwood Cemetery where our parents were finally laid to rest.

Despite my best efforts JoAnn went off on them for not having both headstones she ordered done. Our fathers was completed and looked beautifully. It was an evergreen granite upright monument that no doubt wasn't cheap so I could understand her being upset.

"Do I have to remind you how much you charged me for them? Where not talking about some ridiculous blouse or insignificant thing here that can wait, we're talking about my mother's headstone. This is completely unacceptable!" Said fuming to the middle aged woman who sat staring blankly behind the thickest black framed glasses I can recall seeing.

"Ms. Reeves, as I have explained to you we don't make them ourselves, that's done by-" A short middle aged women said with short brown hair and dark glasses.

"I don't care! We don't build the houses we sell but we're sure as hell are responsible that they're ready when we tell the client they'll be!"

"They said they'd give you a discount. That's something, right? I know you're upset, and you have every right to be, but these things do happen. I'm sure it wasn't intentional."

"I don't care about a stupid discount, Crystal! I just wanted everything to be perfect and now it's going to be
horrible with just our dads monument and mom with some stupid sign. We use better ones on houses at the realtors. I could just grabbed one from work and saved me thirty-five hundred dollars."

"They didn't have cheaper? C'mon, JoAnn I get you're trying to-"

"Don't you dare start, Crystal! Really, after Ashley and this, I can't take it. I wanted to do it, that should be enough."

I took a deep breath and nodded making a note not to ask her about the caskets. I just hate the fact that she is insisting on doing this all herself instead of letting me help.

"Maybe I should've let Ashley come. I bet they would've had it done then."

She sat down on the curb just outside with me sitting down beside her.

"You don't mean that. You're not going, JoAnn, and that's final."

"I have to or there's no telling what she'll do. She only wants to explain to me what happened, I guess I would too if I was her."

"That's bullshit and you know it! I can't believe you're defending her again especially after what just happened.

"Nothing happened, Crystal! She was a little bossy but that's just how she is. It's not like she threatened to hurt anyone. Even Nancy, she didn't try anything with. All she said was she wanted to spend time with me."

She shrugged looking down at the ground.

"Can we not do this right now?"

Pastor Daniels ended up giving a very warm and touching speech right before they were finally put into the ground. The sun was just passing through the pines when it was over making it seem even more magical. JoAnn wasn't thrilled that the view was mostly of I-90 and not the town me and Nancy convinced her they probably would've preferred this anyways. In there younger days they had enjoyed traveling. I wasn't sure it fully worked but she nodded and seemed content with it.