Bitter Sweets

go? Did you give ‘em hell?”

    “I’d like to think I held my own. That’s about as good as it got.”

    “Fair enough.”

    Arms around each other’s waists, they walked toward the kitchen.

    “Are you hungry?” Gran asked. “Can I make you some fried liver and onions, or 1 could bake you some corn bread, if you’ve got some buttermilk to go with it.”

    Savannah felt her stomach roil at the mention of food.

    “Thank you, but I’ve waited so long to eat, and I’m so tired that I feel sort of nauseous. I think I’ll just hold out until breakfast.”

    “Then why don’t you go on up to bed, and I’ll bring you a nice cup of peppermint tea in a few minutes.”

    “Are you sure? You’re my guest; I feel like I should be serving you.”

    “Aw, I’m not a guest. I’m family. Hightail it outta here and get yourself into bed before you fall apart at the seams.”

    After pressing a kiss to her grandmother’s forehead and making one more feeble complaint, Savannah allowed herself to be shooed upstairs.

    When she walked into her bedroom and flipped on the light, she found another lovely surprise. Gran had folded the comforter down, then pulled the blanket and sheet back in a neat triangle. Across her pillow, her grandmother had laid one of her prettiest nightgowns, a slip of peach silk, embellished with lace and seed pearls.

    “Oh, Gran,” she whispered as she stripped out of her street clothes and pulled the gown over her head. As she allowed the satiny waves to trickle down her body, she smelled the slight fragrance of roses. Gran had even remembered to spray the gown with cologne.

    She had only been in bed a few minutes when her grandmother arrived, bearing a china teacup filled with aromatic mint tea.

    Taking the delicate porcelain from her, Savannah breathed in the scented steam and instantly felt better.

    “I was just lying here thinking about you,” Savannah said as Gran sat on the bed beside her. “About my thirteenth birthday. Do you remember what we did?”

    “Of course I do. But then, I don’t have any problem remembering things that happened forty years ago, just yesterday.”

    “Gran, it wasn’t forty years ago, for heaven’s sake.”

    Her grandmother laughed and tweaked her nose. “Of course not. It was only yesterday, right?”

    “It seems like it.” Savannah closed her eyes and snuggled deeper into the sheets, savoring the memory. “You told me that, because I was turning thirteen, I was a young lady.”

    "That’s right. And we went shopping together, because I told you that a lady must always have two things-”

    “Beautiful lingerie and her own special perfume.”

    “It’s true. You never know when you’re going to be in a car wreck...or something much nicer...and you’ll need to be looking your best, all the way down to your skin.”

    To emphasize her point, Gran demurely lifted the hem of her caftan and revealed the exquisite bit of lace that edged her slip. “Besides, even if no one else ever sees what a person is wearing beneath her clothes, a lady knows, and it has a lot to do with how she feels about herself as a woman.”

    “Thank you, Gran... for the tea, for coming to see me... for teaching me about the good things in life.”

    “You were a delightful and eager student, Savannah. I learned a lot from you in the process.” Gran’s eyes searched hers.

    “How are you, really, child? How is your life here in California?” Savannah thought for a moment, deciding whether to give a pat answer or an honest one. With Granny Reid, there was only one choice. No matter what she said, her grandmother could always sense the truth.

    “Most of the time, I love my life. I have good friends, a cornfortable home, work that is fulfilling and worthwhile. But. . .” “There’s always a ‘but.’ That’s the bitter and sweet of it.” “It’s just that right now, things are tough. I’ve had cases that disturbed me, angered me, frustrated me. But this one has to be the worst so far.”

    “Even worse than when you lost your job?” “Yes, much worse. There’s much more at stake here. A woman’s life has been lost. And a beautiful little girl-”

    Savannah couldn’t hold it in any longer. The emotions turned to hot liquid and spilled down her face. Her grandmother handed her a box of tissues from the nightstand.

    “I’m sorry,” Savannah said between sniffles. “I don’t want to ruin your visit by crying on your shoulder like this.