Holiday ditties were piped through the speakers, adding to the general din of the crowd. Everyone had bags in their hands and was in a hurry to finish up their shopping. Ronnie gripped her purse closer to her body and headed for Macy’s. A few gift certificates and her shopping would be done. As she moved through the bustling crowd, she saw the Christmas shop, a generic store opened just for the holidays to sell everything from tinsel to lights to ornaments of every possible design. The clerks alternated between ringing up sales and watching for shoplifters. Ronnie picked up a shopping basket and began filling it with the usual decorations. Soon the basket was full but she was not finished. After nailing down a clerk to help her, Ronnie spent the better part of an hour picking both tasteful and fun things to convert her dour residence into a festive home. Just as she handed the clerk her credit card, she noticed one item had been overlooked. “Oh, wait. I’ll need that too.” She pointed an elegant finger at the item in question. As the sprig of mistletoe was added to her purchases, Ronnie’s mind entertained the possible benefit of catching Rose beneath it. “Add a few more, will you please?”
“Let’s try again,” Karen said gently, putting her hands in position.
“No, wait, please?” Rose cried. “Can’t we do this later?”
“Miss Grayson, you have to stretch at least twice a day.”
“I know,” she said, wiping a tear off her cheek. The door opened and Ronnie entered with several shopping bags in her hands.
“What’s going on?”
“I-it’s okay,” Rose croaked, embarrassed at the drops that continued to run down her cheeks. She looked up and saw Ronnie’s concerned face. “I have to stretch and it hurts.”
“Let me try,” Ronnie said, replacing Karen’s hands with her own. The young woman watched as the nurse explained how to properly stretch. Satisfied she knew what she was doing, the executive looked back at Rose. “You think you’re ready?”
She nodded, her eyes conveying her fear of the pain. “Be gentle?” She was still hesitant but there was something reassuring about the warmth of Ronnie’s hands on her foot.
“I swear.” The softly spoken words bathed her with a sense of reassurance. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the feeling of the strong fingers on her skin. Slowly she raised her leg to the point where she felt the pull up the back of her thighs. “Come on, Rose…that’s it, just a little more now.” She felt her limb being raised higher and fought the urge to fight against it. “That’s good, you’re doing great, Rose. You think we can go a little higher? Just a little bit?”
Ever so slowly she lifted her leg until she couldn’t take the pain anymore. Dimly she realized that it was higher than she had been able to go before, but that was immaterial at the moment.
“Please…”
“Okay, relax now. We’re going to go back down now.” Rose’s eyes were closed tightly and she clung fervently to Ronnie’s words and soothing tone. “There you go, almost done now.” Soon the sheet greeted her heel and she let out a deep breath. “How do you feel?”
Rose opened her eyes with surprise at the proximity of the voice and found herself staring into the endless blue depths. “It hurts.”
“Shh, it’s over now.” Ronnie looked up at Karen. “I think we’re done for the day. I have a party here tonight we have to get ready for. Is there anything else that has to be done?”
“Just bathing Miss Grayson.”
“Oh.” Rose looked from one woman to the other. “I can wash myself mostly if someone can get the water and washcloth for me.” She tried to tell her friend with her eyes that this was what she preferred to do. Ronnie nodded in understanding.
“Okay. I guess we can handle everything else, Karen. We’ll see you tomorrow.”
Rose relaxed with Ronnie’s words, until she remembered the rest of them…. “Oh God, the party.”
“Don’t worry about it,” the dark-haired woman replied, walking into the bathroom. “I’ll get the things together you’ll need to wash up and then we’ll get you dressed.” The sound of water running into the basin mixed with the words. “I’ve got to get everything else from the car and find the stand for the tree.” She returned with the washbowl, soap, and cloth. “I think it’s in the attic. Do you need anything else before I go?”
“No, this is great.” Rose maintained her smile until the older woman left the room. Her legs throbbed from the physical therapy but panic overrode the pain.The Dartmouth shirt found its way off her body and onto the bed. Rose felt the pressure building from within.The soapy cloth moved over her arms and shoulders as she thought about the possible disasters that could befall the evening. Her legs could get bumped accidentally, she could spill a drink down her front, she could say the wrong thing, all those and a dozen others passed through her mind while she continued to clean herself.
She was just finishing up when Ronnie knocked on the door. “May I come in?”
“Just a minute.” She covered her chest with the fluffy towel. “Okay.”
Ronnie walked in with a bag in one hand and the most gorgeous dress Rose had ever seen in the other.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered in awe.
“Glad you like it. I’ve got all the things you’ll need to wear with it so now is just as good a time as any to get you dressed.” Ronnie walked over to the bed and set the bag down. “Then you can help me with the other things that need to be done.” She reached into the bag and pulled out a lacy brassiere, snapping off the price tags effortlessly. “I um…I got one that closed in the front.” Ronnie handed her the bra and quickly turned to rummage through the bag. “I thought that would be easier for you.”
“Yes, it would be. Thank you.” She was not sure how to take what appeared to be shyness mixed with enthusiasm from her friend. Ronnie seemed almost nervous to her. She took the bra and ran her fingertips over the lacy trim. They were low cut cups, designed to be worn with something that showed cleavage and had no padding, not that she needed any help in that department. Rose was quite comfortable with her 36C bust that had only recently begun to droop. She looked at the size tag. 36B. Well, it would still fit, she decided, just make her appear more busty. She let the towel drop and slipped her arms through the straps before hooking it. “It fits nicely, thanks,” she said, drawing Ronnie’s attention away from the sales receipt she had been studying intently.