Chapter 20 - Take Your Time

When Grace awoke, it was dark outside and she was still wrapped in the blankets she and Dani made love on. Her wet pillow stuck against the side of her face, her tongue was dry from mouth breathing, and she could barely see out of her swollen eyes. The sound of tires on gravel she’d prayed for between bouts of crying never came. Dani was really gone. She flung the covers off and walked out the door, unable to bear the sight or smell of their love nest another second.

The crisp night air stung her skin, confirming that her pain was real. She tugged her T-shirt tighter around her. The moon was nearly full and lit the path to the B and B. She stood on the deck and gazed at the stars. Where was Dani on her journey? Did she drive straight through or stop for a rest? Did she think of Grace on the trip, consider coming back?

She opened the back door slowly, careful of the squeaking hinge on the screen that alerted Mary Jane to visitors. Harry flapped his wings when she entered. “Shush.” She gulped a glass of water at the kitchen sink then snagged an orange and returned to the sunroom, curling into the wicker chair beside Harry’s cage. “Want to talk?” She was losing it. Talking to a parrot.

“Orange.” Harry’s squawk sounded more like a request.

Grace peeled the fruit, tore off a small chunk, and eased it under the cover of Harry’s cage. If he saw her, he might go ballistic, and wake Mary Jane. “Here you go, boy.” Harry nibbled the segment gently from her fingers, and Grace almost burst into tears. “Now I know how you felt when Karla left. Throwing myself against the walls and picking myself bald doesn’t sound so bad right now.” She slid another piece of orange through the cage.

Dani had spent a lot of time with Harry and cleared him medically. Surely, Grace could figure out why he didn’t like her. He’d been nice after Dani’s bombshell, but she had no idea why. Had he somehow sensed her despair? “You and I are going to be friends, Harry.” She gave him the last segment of orange and headed toward the door.

“Bye, Grace,” Harry said as she eased the screen door closed.

The following week, when she wasn’t distracted with work, she buried herself in library books and online articles about African grays. She wasn’t particularly an animal person, but she was responsible for Harry since Karla abandoned him, and she’d try to make him happy. He deserved a peaceful life and affection like every other creature.

She pulled a spiral notebook from her bookshelf and scribbled Harry across the front. Opening to the first page, she filled in her efforts so far.

Day one—Dani left. Harry spoke to me civilly for the first time. Unsure why. Peeled and ate orange with him pre-dawn. Cage covered. No adverse reaction. Said good-bye to me when I left.

Day two—Talked to Harry quietly while changing his food and water. Cage covered. No adverse reaction.

Days three-six—Sat outside his cage late at night and told him how Dani cared for him when he was sick. Reassured him that he’d always be part of our family. Fed him orange slices. Teaching him a few new phrases. Still haven’t let him see me.

Days seven-ten—More of the above.

Day twelve—Took cover off Harry’s cage while changing his food and water this morning before work. He went crazy again, but when I put the cover back on and spoke, he calmed down. Remembered something Dani said before she left. Have an idea. Test tomorrow.

The next morning, Grace bounded across the backyard to the B and B. The sun was brilliant and the sky blue with promise. She’d showered and dressed in shorts and a T-shirt to test her theory. “MJ?”

Mary Jane placed the last platter on the buffet table and turned toward her. “What’s up?”

“Today is the day I figure out why Dirty Harry hates me and I need a witness.” She reached for the cover of his cage and eased it off, holding her breath as he turned and stared in her direction.

Harry bounced up and down. “Hello, Grace. Good morning. Pretty day.”

He actually seemed happy to see her, no loud, disturbing response. She cautiously opened the cage door and reached in, offering her finger as a perch. Harry hopped on, and she pulled him out slowly. He was still calm, so she lifted her finger to her shoulder and he stepped over. “Look at that, MJ.”

Harry pecked gently at her hair and nibbled the rim of her ear. He’d only ever done that to Karla before.

“Well, I never. He’s kissing you.” Mary Jane’s voice held as much wonder as Grace felt. “He’s okay now. What happened?”

“He hates my uniform…just like Dani. Not me. Isn’t that great?” The partially bald, neurotic parrot Karla left was becoming part of the family. Grace couldn’t imagine the house without his cheerful phrases and playful mocking.

Mary Jane ran her hand down Grace’s back. “You’ve done an amazing job with him, honey. He obviously loves you.”

“Yeah,” Grace said wistfully. “I guess he does. And I admit, I like having him around. He’s a perfect sounding board late at night when I can’t sleep. Never talks back or offers a dissenting opinion.”

Mary Jane pinched her arm. “In other words, he tells you what you want to hear?”

“Exactly.” Grace changed Harry’s water and topped up his food dish while he danced and sang on her shoulder. When she finished, she tried a new command she’d been teaching him. “Okay, Harry, cage.”

Harry obediently jumped from her shoulder to the cage top and worked his way inside.

“Good boy, Harry.” She handed him a slice of orange she’d held back as a reward. “I’ll see you both after work.” She kissed Mary Jane on the cheek and hurried to change into her uniform. Dani would be proud of her progress with Harry.

On her way out of the cottage, Grace stared at the pile of blankets still on the floor from her last night with Dani. She’d left them there to remind her of what she’d had and what she’d been able to give up for love. Would her life ever feel complete again?