Fall With Me

the hell needs to happen to make you realize that there is something more going on here?”
    I pull the check from my pocket and rip it up into tiny pieces and throw them in his face where they flutter down like confetti. “We don’t need your money. We don’t need you coming around here trying to tell us that we don’t care when in fact we do. Just because we don’t happen to deal with things the same way you do doesn’t mean it doesn’t bother us. Don’t you get that? Or have you just got it all figured out? Go off and do whatever it is that you think is going to prove something that’s un-provable. Go ahead. We don’t need to hear about it.”
    “Some day you will,” he snaps. “I hope to god that someday, somehow, something will make you realize that this wasn’t just an accident.”
                  He gets in his car and peels away, leaving me standing there in a cloud of exhaust.
     
    *
                 
    Bill and Lorrie have taken the kids on a hike, so Karen and I stay back and work in the kitchen to get things ready for the cookout we’ll have later. This cookout is a more toned down version of the Beach Party BBQ. There won’t be any camping out on the beach and everyone will probably be back and in bed by ten, but we still have an enormous amount of food to prepare. Karen is making a giant bowl of fruit salad and I’m patting out circles of ground beef into burgers.
    “I just feel so fortunate for this opportunity,” Karen says as she slices strawberries. “Especially since Griff got here.”
    I squeeze the handful of ground beef that I’ve got and feel it ooze through my fingers. Better than a stress ball. “I didn’t realize him showing up would drastically alter the quality of your time here.”
    “Well, it’s just that I get to work with someone who’s clearly so gifted in . . . many areas, really.”
    I stifle a laugh. “And you too,” Karen adds quickly. “I mean, you’re so great with the horses. And he’s so great at so many things. Did you see him swimming today?”
    “No, I missed out on that exquisite pleasure.”
    She stops chopping fruit and leans toward me. “I think he’s the hottest guy I’ve ever seen. Allison is so lucky!”
    The screen door peels open and Griffin walks into the kitchen, alone.
    “Where’s Allison?” I say.
    He shrugs. “I don’t know. I heard you ladies might need some assistance in here getting the stuff for the cookout ready.”
    He walks over to where we’re standing and grabs a handful of raspberries from one of the containers.
    “You’re not going to wash that first?” Karen asks. “You don’t know what pesticides it’s got on it.”
    He pops the raspberry into his mouth. “Sweetheart,” he says. “I smoke cigarettes. Do you think a chemical or two on a piece of fruit is going to bother me? You should be congratulating me for making healthy eating choices.”
    She blushes. “Congratulations.”
    I roll my eyes. “You shouldn’t smoke. It’s disgusting.”
    He leans against the refrigerator and tosses a few more raspberries into his mouth. I look down at the burgers, but I can see him watching me.
    “Why Jill,” he says. “I didn’t realize you cared. I’m touched.” He smiles.
    “I don’t care about you,” I say. “I care about the fact that you’re smoking around the horses, and setting a bad example for the kids here.”
    “I’ve actually cut way back,” he says. “It must have something to do with being out here in all this fresh air. My lungs just don’t know what to do with themselves.”
    “Well, you and your lungs could come over here and help us get the rest of this food prepared, if you’re looking for something to do.”
    “Sure,” he says. “You’re the boss.”
    “Actually, I’m not.” I push the bowl of ground hamburger toward him. “Because if I was, you wouldn’t still be around. Here, you can help me make the burgers.”
    He grins and starts to reach for the bowl. “I’m happy to squeeze some beef for you, baby—”
    “God, can you just shut up? Do you have to act like such a moron all the time? And wash your hands first! I don’t even want to know where they’ve been.”
    Karen is staring at me, her mouth hanging halfway open. I shoot her a look. Griffin slinks over to the sink, but I know he’s still got a smile on his face.
    “It’s unhygienic,” I tell Karen. “You of all people should care about that.”
    “It’s just . . . you