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"Oh. I'm sure Mrs. Mallen is right. His youth has been stolen from him. It's not easy for him to make new friends."

"It's not that easy for me."

She thought a moment. I could almost see the thoughts and questions careening about in her mind.

"Well then, do you think he's the best young man for you at this time? I don't want to sound negative, but you and I know you have your own problems. Adding to your own burdens might not be wise."

"Did you think like that when you hung out with my mother?" I countered.

"It was different then, Alice. I had little or no baggage to carry, and Karen's mother and stepfather were in an active business in the community. There were people who thought her mother was a gold digger, but that was about as critical as anyone was about them. I'm just telling you to be careful, that's all. I don't want to stifle you or clip your wings, but I wouldn't be doing my duty if I didn't voice my concerns, right?"

"No," I said. "I understand. I appreciate it," I said. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you. I really do appreciate your concern."

"Good. It's nice of you to care about him, Alice, but be careful," she said. And then, in order to explain what she meant, she added, "Sometimes, when you invest in someone, you're like a gambler who loses and keeps gambling to win it back but only loses more. I should know."

I thought for a moment. "You've told me how wonderful it was for you to become friends with my mother. Did she feel the same way about you?"

"I thought so. She didn't have all that many friends when I met her. Actually, she had no close friends, but I thought she was the most interesting and exciting girl I had ever met and didn't care if we had lots of friends or not. If nothing else, I was a great audience for her, and I made her feel good about herself."

"I guess in a way that's what I am for Duncan," I said.

She nodded. "Just be careful, honey. One of Tyler's favorite expressions is, Don't bite off more than you can chew. The great thing about all these adages is they hold up through time." She smiled and looked at my book. "Tyler loves this novel. When you're finished, he'll be happy to talk about it with you," she said.

"Great. I'd like that."

"I'm bushed. See you in the morning," she told me and left.

I sat there listening to the rain. It didn't seem to have let up a bit. I felt my eyelids growing heavy and decided to go to sleep myself. There was a lot on my mind, so many questions and thoughts because of the things my aunt Zipporah had said. I tossed and turned so much that I didn't really drift off until the wee hours.

I was so tired in the morning that I didn't get up when I heard Tyler moving about. I fell back to sleep. When I did get up finally, I found a note on the refrigerator for me. My aunt was reminding me that they wanted me to spend the day in my studio and not worry about working in the cafe.

I showered to help wake myself up and then made myself some breakfast. Aunt Zipporah called to be sure I had read her note and I was okay.

"I hope I didn't upset you last night, Alice." "No. Stop worrying about it."

"Call the cafe if you need anything," she said.

I thanked her. Moments after I hung up, the phone rang again. This time it was Duncan, and he wasn't whispering.

"I'm sorry I was so abrupt last night when you called," he said, "but she was hovering right over me. She was very angry that I didn't call and tell her I wouldn't be home for dinner."

"Now she hates me, is that it?"

"No, she didn't even ask me why I didn't call or where I was. She's like that. She knows."

"Duncan--"

"No, she knows," he insisted. "Anyway, she's punishing me by not taking me along on her church trip today."

"That's a punishment?" I asked, laughing.

"She says I don't deserve God's grace until I show real remorse. She just left."

"Well, I don't think--"

"She'll be gone almost all day," he said, quickly interrupting. "I know you want to get into your painting, but maybe I'll see you later, if that's all right."

"Of course it's all right. You can make me a wonderful lunch."