Two of a Kind Part 11 After breakfast Eleanor sent Melanie to brush her teeth and get dressed, she marched over to the telephone and picked up the telephone to call Tom. Abruptly Eleanor slammed the phone down without dialing. Why did she feel like she was back in junior high calling Richie Stevens to… [read more]

  Two of a Kind Part 10 Yes I know. My head is bowed in shame—not really, but it sounds melodramatic and literary—-I have left Melanie, Eleanor and Porter hanging in limbo.   You know sometimes I amaze even myself—Lol—-I wrote’ limbo and—instant flashback of dancing under the limbo stick.  Oh my! Oh my!  If I had… [read more]

“Miss this is some mighty fine brandy,” said Tom as he took an appreciative sip of Remy Martin. “You think you are a real stand up comic calling me Miss.  Quick, call Jimmy Fallon.  You wouldn’t be so cavalier, if Melanie only called you Mister.  Obviously she has no problem calling you Tom,” I said. “When I… [read more]

The atmosphere in the kitchen swirled with an odd pervasive sense of serenity.  This peculiar richness of feeling danced tantalizingly out of reach of words.  Fear of losing whatever it was circulating in the kitchen stopped me from attempting to define it. Norah Jones’ velvet tones floated out from the speakers.  Stately as any king Porter perched on a kitchen chair and watched the… [read more]

“Bloody hell,” I said as I sipped a Pina Colada cocktail and flipped through my fourth cookbook.   Making a decision about what to cook for a person I knew zip about, combined with finding recipes which Melanie could help me with was proving to be frustrating. Seriously what Melanie liked to eat was a mystery too.  So far she… [read more]

As I sat at the kitchen table savoring my morning coffee and watching the sun slide into view for a new day, I marveled a week had elapsed since Melanie had come to stay with me.   My initial angst of what I was going to do with a child for two weeks melted as quickly as an ice… [read more]

The next morning found me in my home office with the door closed waiting on hold for the lawyer, Thomas Wilham.  The line clicked. “Good morning, Eleanor,” he said with a tad too much enthusiasm.  “Everything is going well I assume.” “If you’re asking if  Melanie and I have survived the first forty-eight hours, then the answer is yes.”… [read more]

I bolted upright from a  slumped position totally disoriented, but quickly realized I had fallen asleep in my chair.  Some terrifying noise had jerked me out of a deep sleep.   I glanced at the clock which glowed 2:00 AM.  A primal scream from Melanie’s room ripped through the silence.  Leaping up  I kicked the footstool out of my path and… [read more]

“Cat’s got my tongue, I guess,” I said for lack of anything else to say.  Melanie continued to look at me bleakly.  “Sorry, lame joke,” I said instantly feeling contrite. For her this wasn’t a joking matter.  The only one not perturbed was Porter, who indolently began licking his front paw. “So what’s her name?” “He’s… [read more]

” Okay you win at least partially.   Just for the record I know you staged her in front of an open door on purpose.  You did forget one item of pathos to complete the picture, the beloved tattered teddy bear.” The lawyer had the grace to look sheepish. “The beloved tattered teddy is currently drying out in… [read more]