One
May 1996
Tell me again why I agreed to help you with this.” Matt, red-faced and grunting, continued to push the spa toward the recently cut square at the far edge of the deck. His feet slipped, and he could feel sweat pouring from his forehead into the corners of his eyes, making them sting. It was hot, way too hot for early May. Too damn hot for this, that’s for sure. Even Travis’s dog, Moby, was hiding in the shade and panting, his tongue hanging out.
Travis Parker, who was pushing the massive box alongside him, managed to shrug. “Because you thought it would be fun,” he said. He lowered his shoulder and shoved; the spa-which must have weighed four hundred pounds-moved another couple of inches. At this rate, the spa should be in place, oh… sometime next week.
“This is ridiculous,” Matt said, heaving his weight into the box, thinking that what they really needed was a team of mules. His back was killing him. For a moment, he visualized his ears blowing off the sides of his head from the strain, shooting in both directions like the bottle rockets he and Travis used to launch as kids.
“You’ve already said that.”
“And it isn’t fun,” Matt grunted.
“You said that, too.”
“And it isn’t going to be easy to install.”
“Sure it is,” Travis said. He stood and pointed to the lettering on the box. “See? It says right here, ‘Easy to Install.’” From his spot beneath the shady tree, Moby-a purebred boxer-barked as if in agreement, and Travis smiled, looking way too pleased with himself.
Matt scowled, trying to catch his breath. He hated that look. Well, not always. Most of the time he enjoyed his friend’s boundless enthusiasm. But not today. Definitely not today.
Matt reached for the bandanna in his rear pocket. It was soaked with sweat, which had of course done wonders for the seat of his pants. He wiped his face and wrung the bandanna with a quick twist. Sweat dribbled from it like a leaky faucet onto the top of his shoe. He stared at it almost hypnotically, before feeling it soak through the light mesh fabric, giving his toes a nice, slimy feel. Oh, that was just dandy, wasn’t it?
“As I recall, you said Joe and Laird would be here to help us with your ‘little project’ and that Megan and Allison would cook some burgers and we’d have beer, and that-oh yeah, installing this thing should only take a couple of hours at the most.”
“They’re coming,” Travis said.
“You said that four hours ago.”
“They must be running a little late.”
“Maybe you never called them at all.”
“Of course I called them. And they’re bringing the kids, too. I promise.”
“When?”
“Soon.”
“Uh-huh,” Matt answered. He stuffed the bandanna back in his pocket. “And by the way-assuming they don’t arrive soon, just how on earth do you think the two of us will be able to lower this thing into place?”
Travis dismissed the problem with a wave as he turned toward the box again. “We’ll figure it out. Just think how well we’ve done so far. We’re almost halfway there.”
Matt scowled again. It was Saturday-Saturday! His day of recreation and relaxation, his chance to escape from the grindstone, the break he earned after five days at the bank, the kind of day he needed. He was a loan officer, for God’s sake! He was supposed to push paper, not hot tubs! He could have been watching the Braves play the Dodgers! He could have been golfing! He could have gone to the beach! He could have slept in with Liz before heading to her parents’ house like they did almost every Saturday, instead of waking at the crack of dawn and performing manual labor for eight straight hours beneath a scalding southern sun…
He paused. Who was he kidding? Had he not been here, he would have definitely spent the day with Liz’s parents, which was, in all honesty, the main reason he’d agreed to Travis’s request in the first place. But that wasn’t the point. The point was, he didn’t need this. He really didn’t.
“I don’t need this,” he said. “I really don’t.”
Travis didn’t seem to hear him. His hands were already on the box, and he was getting into position. “You ready?”
Matt lowered his shoulder, feeling bitter. His legs were shaking. Shaking! He already knew he’d be in serious, double-dose-of-Advil pain in the morning. Unlike Travis, he didn’t make it into the gym four days a week or play racquetball or go running or go scuba diving in Aruba or surfing in Bali or skiing in Vail or anything else the guy did. “This isn’t fun, you know?”
Travis winked. “You said that already, remember?”
“Wow!” Joe commented, lifting an eyebrow as he walked the perimeter of the hot tub. By then, the sun was beginning its descent, streams of gold reflecting off the bay. In the distance, a heron broke from the trees and gracefully skimmed the surface, dispersing the light. Joe and Megan, along with Laird and Allison, had arrived a few minutes before with kids in tow, and Travis was showing them around. “This looks great! You two did all of this today?”
Travis nodded, holding his beer. “It wasn’t so bad,” he said. “I think Matt even enjoyed it.”
Joe glanced at Matt, who lay flattened in a lawn chair off to the side of the deck, a cold rag over his head. Even his belly-Matt had always been on the pudgy side-seemed to sag.
“I can see that.”
“Was it heavy?”
“Like an Egyptian sarcophagus!” Matt croaked. “One of those gold ones that only cranes can move!”
Joe laughed. “Can the kids get in?”
“Not yet. I just filled it, and the water will take a little while to heat up. The sun will help, though.”
“The sun will heat it within minutes!” Matt moaned. “Within seconds!”
Joe grinned. Laird and the three of them had gone to school together since kindergarten.
“Tough day, Matt?”
Matt removed the rag and scowled at Joe. “You have no idea. And thanks for showing up on time.”
“Travis said to be here at five. If I had known you needed help, I would have come earlier.”
Matt slowly shifted his gaze to Travis. He really hated his friend sometimes.
“How’s Tina doing?” Travis said, changing the subject. “Is Megan getting any sleep?”
Megan was chatting with Allison at the table on the far end of the deck, and Joe glanced briefly in her direction. “Some. Tina’s cough is gone and she’s been able to sleep through the night again, but sometimes I just think that Megan isn’t wired to sleep. At least, not since she became a mom. She gets up even if Tina hasn’t made a peep. It’s like the quiet wakes her up.”
“She’s a good mom,” Travis said. “She always has been.”
Joe turned to Matt. “Where’s Liz?” he asked.
“She should be here any minute,” Matt answered, his voice floating up as if from the dead. “She spent the day with her parents.”
“Lovely,” Joe commented.
“Be nice. They’re good people.”
“I seem to recall you saying that if you had to sit through one more of your father-in-law’s stories about his prostate cancer or listen to your mother-in-law fret about Henry getting fired again-even though it wasn’t his fault-you were going to stick your head in the oven.”
Matt struggled to sit up. “I never said that!”
“Yes, you did.” Joe winked as Matt’s wife, Liz, rounded the corner of the house with Ben toddling just in front of her. “But don’t worry. I won’t say a word.”
Matt’s eyes darted nervously from Liz to Joe and back again, checking to see if she’d heard.
“Hey, y’all!” Liz called out with a friendly wave, leading little Ben by the hand. She made a beeline for Megan and Allison. Ben broke away and toddled toward the other kids in the yard.
Joe saw Matt sigh in relief. He grinned and lowered his voice. “So… Matt’s in-laws. Is that how you conned him into coming here?”