The Misadventures of the Laundry Hag 00 - Swept Under the Rug

if I did have to do some math. That I didn’t notice must mean something, but damned if I knew what.
    “Hey, Maggie,” I turned around and blinked when I saw Eric. I opened my mouth, but what could I say to him? Making a scene in the gym after he’d been caught in the act was one thing, but I was not about to start screaming at the scum-sucking dickweed in the middle of Wal-Mart. Low though they may be, a girl has to have standards. I compressed my lips together and shot daggers at him with my gaze instead.
    “I, um, wanted to apologize for the unpleasantness at the gym the other day and wanted to make sure you knew we valued your family’s membership.”
    “Message received.” I turned away in dismissal, but Eric caught my arm.
    “The owner fired Sylvia.”
    “What?!” I shrieked in outrage. “Why?”
    Eric shuffled his feet, unwilling to look me in the eye. “Well, membership has dropped off, what with the economy and all…. And her classes have been less than half full since December. After the incident, he said one of us had to go.”
    “So even though the incident was your fault, you let her take the fall?” The man was lower than a snake’s belly.
    Eric huffed his indignation. “I’m the assistant manager and a full-time employee. It made good financial sense to—”
    I held up a hand in his face. “Save it for someone who gives a rat’s ass.”
    He hung his head. “She won’t return my phone calls or let me into the house.”
    “Can you fault her, really?”
    “Get off your high horse, Maggie. Sylvia isn’t perfect and she wasn’t carrying her weight in our marriage. It would have ended sooner or later.”
    I blinked. “Are you trying to foist the blame on her ?” Unbelievable.
    Eric studied me a moment before he shook his head. “I see this isn’t getting me anywhere. I’ll leave you alone.” He walked off without a backwards glance.
    “Miserable piece of crap,” I muttered and headed for maternity wear, eager to claim Marty and go home. Wal-Mart was just not good for my mental health.

    * * * *
    “Mom, Grandma called. She said to remind you about lunch tomorrow.” Josh didn’t bother looking up from the computer screen as he relayed the information. I blinked, wondering what lunch he was referring to, before it struck me. “You mean the luncheon?” Dang, Laura’s invitation/order to appear at a society luncheon had completely slipped my mind. Maybe on purpose, but now I was stuck. Laura would chain me in the basement if I cancelled on her without twenty-four hours’ notice. Our HMO was more understanding.
    Flipping through my day planner, I noted my next cleaning job was the Valentino’s on Friday morning. No work excuse for me. Maybe Neil would have an idea how I could get out…. Well, maybe not. Neil and I had bigger issues then his mother commandeering me for a society event.
    Penny poked her head around the corner. “I hope you don’t mind, but I made a casserole for dinner, since y’all didn’t have plans.” Her tone belied that she didn’t give a flipping fig if I minded or not. Not that I blamed her, I’d been a bitch-on-wheels ever since she’d arrived. Granted the circumstances were less than ideal, but where was my innate Southern hospitality?
    “Sounds great, Penny. When’s your first doctor’s appointment?” Marty had indeed found a decent health plan, which would cover the majority of Penny’s medical bills. We’d set the plan into motion, but the policy had to be reviewed and approved by several faceless pencil-pushers before it went into effect. Of course, I was picking up the tab for it as his current employer, but it was a small price to pay for my niece or nephew’s wellbeing.
    “Next Wednesday at 10 AM.” Penny responded as crisply as her honeyed accent would allow.
    No excuse there, either. Maybe Marty would run me over with his RV….
    “Oh and your friend from next door stopped by.” Penny tossed over her shoulder as she maneuvered her way to the kitchen. I followed, my eyebrows meeting at the bridge of my nose.
    “Sylvia stopped by? What did she say?”
    Penny shrugged and removed a Caffeine-Free Diet Coke that had somehow made its way into my refrigerator. Extracting a Caffeine-Full Non-Diet Coke, I stared at her, willing her to talk to me.
    “Yes, she came by. I don’t recall exactly what she said, other than asking you to come over when you had the chance.”
    Part of me wanted to leap for the door and find out what