'You don't think he'll be pleased when he finds out we took an earlier flight home?' Rolland asked. 'We saved him a trip to the airport.'
'At six-thirty on a Saturday morning, I doubt he'll be pleased about much of anything.'
Her heart pounding, Phoebe punched Wyatt. 'Wyatt! Wake up,' she whispered urgently.
'Huh?'
'Your grandparents are home!'
'No, no,' he said groggily. 'I'm not supposed to pick them up until two this afternoon.'
'Well, they're here! They must have taken a taxi.'
Wyatt woke up all the way. He sat up, glanced at the clock, then out the window, and finally at Phoebe. 'They're home?' He had that look in his eye, sort of like a deer in headlights.
'Do you want coffee, Rolland?' Helen asked. 'Maybe the smell will wake Wyatt up.'
'He doesn't like coffee, dear, remember?'
'Oh, right.'
Panic welled up in Phoebe's chest. 'What do we do? There's no way I can sneak out.'
He put his arms around her and nuzzled her ear. 'You don't have to sneak out. My grandparents will understand. We're engaged, after all.'
'They told me to be nice to you. They didn't mean this nice.'
'Oh, you'd be surprised what they might have meant. They've wanted us to get together for years.'
'But not naked! Not in their guest room!'
Wyatt sighed and swung his feet over the side of the bed. 'Okay, okay. I'll take them out on the balcony and show them how well I've been taking care of their plants. You sneak out the front door.'
Phoebe jumped out of bed and frantically threw on clothes. Wyatt dressed in a more leisurely fashion, a faint smile on his face.
'You're enjoying this!' Phoebe accused.
'You're cute when you're panicked.'
She huffed and shoved her feet into sandals, wondering where she'd left her purse. Well, she'd worry about that later.
Wyatt quickly kissed her. 'I'll call you in a few minutes to come over for coffee. Together we can share our good news with them.'
Phoebe's stomach fluttered. She loved the Madisons like her very own grandparents, but she wasn't sure how they would feel about her taking over their adored grandson.
'They'll be thrilled,' Wyatt said, giving her one more quick kiss before exiting the room.
Phoebe listened through the cracked door as Wyatt welcomed Rolland and Helen. She felt warm all over as she heard the love they felt for each other, evidenced in their affectionate greeting. She couldn't wait to be part of this wonderful family. On top of the new understanding she and Olga had come to, she felt truly blessed.
She was so happy, in fact, that she wanted everyone to enjoy the same bliss. But so far Daisy was still alone. Then there were Frannie and Bill. Phoebe knew they truly cared for one another, but Frannie was still nursing her hurt feelings and Bill was certain he'd done nothing to warrant her cold shoulder.
'Let's go out on the balcony,' she heard Wyatt say to his grandparents. 'The cactus is blooming.'
'Which one?' Helen asked excitedly. 'The pink or the yellow?'
'Both.'
'Did you talk to them?'
'I did, but they didn't start blooming until I got stern with them…' Their voices faded away.
Phoebe took a deep breath, darted down the hall and made for the front door. She realized as she reached for the knob that her keys were in her misplaced purse, but she supposed she could hang out with one of her other neighbors for a while.
'Don't you need this, Phoebe?'
Phoebe whirled around, her heart in her throat, to see Helen standing in the living room holding Phoebe's purse, a big smile on her face.
'How… what…' Phoebe's face burned. 'Didn't you want to see the cactus?'
'I came back in to find my glasses. Don't look so stricken, dear. I already knew about you and Wyatt.'
'How?'
'We ran into Frannie on our way into the building. She couldn't wait to spill the beans. We couldn't be happier. And don't worry, I remember what it was like to be young and in love.' Helen stepped closer and handed Phoebe her purse. 'Run home, now. I'll pretend like I never saw you.'
Phoebe gave her a quick hug. 'I think of you as my grandmother, you know.'
'Well, I try. I'm sorry you didn't know your real grandma very well. But trust me when I say she would have been very happy to see you settled with Wyatt. She liked Wyatt.'
'Wyatt knew my grandmother?'
Helen nodded. 'I think that might be why she left you her condo in her will. She and I, well, we always thought the two of you might make a good couple.'
'Why, you schemers!'
The French doors from the balcony opened, and Rolland stepped inside. 'Helen? Can't you find your- oh, hello, Phoebe.'
'Phoebe stopped in for coffee,' Helen said smoothly, taking Phoebe's arm as if she'd just arrived. She picked up her glasses from an end table where she'd left them, and they all joined Wyatt outside. He looked slightly surprised to see Phoebe, but he didn't hesitate to slip an arm around her and draw her next to him on the picnic table bench where he sat.
'I guess now's as good a time as any to tell you guys there've been a few changes while you were away…'
Phoebe sat back and let Wyatt enjoy breaking the joyful news, even though she knew Rolland and Helen already knew. Her happiness bloomed, just the way Helen's prickly cactus had bloomed when it got the right amounts of sun, water, love and a stern talking-to.
Kara Lennox
