The Trouble With Angels Page 0,41

abruptly and laid his forehead against hers.

"That answers that," he whispered.

"It does?" As far as Joy was concerned, it resurrected far more questions than answers.

"I want to see you again. Dinner, dancing, whatever you want."

"I'm free most any night." She should call for a counseling appointment right then and there. Something was drastically wrong with her to agree to date a man already involved with someone else.

"Monday. I'll pick you up on my way home from work."

With her eyes closed, she nodded. She had the distinct impression she was going to regret this.

"What do you mean, there's something wrong with Dad?" Bethany demanded, her voice sounding shrill and disbelieving through the telephone wire.

Joe raised his eyes to the ceiling. Having this conversation over the phone wasn't ideal, but he needed to discuss the problem with his sister, and he didn't want to spring it on her when she arrived for dinner. "Listen to me, Bethany, Dad just isn't himself."

"You mean physically?"

"No and yes. He's lost weight."

"Let me put you on hold," she said impatiently.

Elevator music hummed over the wire while his sister caught the second call. She was back almost immediately. "Sorry to keep you waiting," she mumbled. "Now what was it you were saying?"

"It's about Dad. I found him cleaning the garage in the middle of the day. Mrs. Johnson told me he hadn't even come into the office, and he had an elders' meeting that afternoon. If I hadn't found him when I did, he would have completely missed the meeting."

"Dad miss an elders' meeting?"

"Yes, Dad."

"But he's always been so conscientious about his leadership role in the church."

"That's not the half of it. Mrs. Johnson says he's consistently late for meetings. He isn't eating right, and to tell you the truth, he doesn't look good." Joe brushed the hair off his forehead. "On top of everything else, the house is a mess. I've never known Dad to be so untidy. There's mail all over the kitchen. Annie found a notice from the electric company that said if he didn't pay the bill in five days, they are going to cut off his electricity."

"My heavens. Has it been paid?"

"No. I showed it to him and he mumbled something about taking care of it right away. I told him I'd do it for him, and Annie and I went down personally and paid it."

"He's beginning to sound like an absentminded professor," Bethany commented.

"I think it's more than that."

"What do you mean?'

"He's not the same, Beth. When was the last time you saw him?"

Bethany paused. "Longer than it should have been. I know we're only an hour or so away, but we're so busy and - "

"I know, we all are. Dad could come see you, too."

"I've invited him over countless times, but he always has an excuse." Beth heaved a deep sigh, and Joe could almost picture his sister worrying her lower lip, mulling over the situation. "He misses Mom."

"We all miss Mom."

"Maybe he needs a housekeeper. Somebody to come in a couple of times a week to clean up, keep him organized so there's not another one of those electric bill incidents."

"A housekeeper." That sounded like a workable solution to Joe, something positive they could do to help their father. Maybe matters weren't as bad as he thought.

"When are you and Annie heading north?" Bethany wanted to know.

"Not until the twenty-third, but to be honest, I don't feel good about leaving Dad like this. He likes Annie and everything. I mean, it'd be impossible not to love her, she's wonderful, but I wish we'd thought our plans through more carefully."

"Here comes another call," Beth said impatiently. "Damn."

Her impatience was cut off by a violin concerto as Joe was placed on hold. He mentally twiddled his thumbs until his sister came back on the line.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "Listen, Eric and I'll be over tomorrow evening for dinner. Go ahead and approach Dad about this housekeeper thing. Don't be obvious about it, just sound him out and then we can talk about it later, all right?"

"Great." Already Joe felt better. His big sister had a way of making matters right. He was grateful he had her to bounce his concerns off, otherwise he wouldn't have known what to do.

Paul Morris sat in his den. Books littered the floor, and he sighed as he set aside one volume and reached for another. He treasured his books and had spent many an evening in this very room, reading over thoughts of