A Marriage Carol Read Online Free

just a drop or two of honey,” the man said.
     
    “Just the way I like it. Thank you.”
     
    The mug spread warmth to my whole body, and Rue sniffed at the saucer when I placed it on the arm of the chair.
     
    “What are those pots?” I said.
     
    He paused a moment, searching for the words. “Family heirloom. I’ll tell you about them when I get back. Let the tea warm you, and I’ll get your chili after I find your husband.”
     
    “This is very kind of you. Thank you.”
     
    He smiled at me as he put on his coat and hat and disappeared into the garage. The smell of the tea brought back memories, ones I didn’t want to dredge up. Fights with Jacob; arguments and outbursts from me and the silence of a man resigned to something other than love. I hated associating those memories with the tea, but some things you can’t control.
     
    My mind raced through the possibilities of what had happened on the road. Sure, Jacob could have gone off on his own, looking for help, but what if someone wasn’t paying attention while they drove along? What if someone had skidded into him somewhere up the road? Or perhaps the truck driver had taken him for help.
     
    Something creaked above and Rue’s body tensed, his ears pricked. In a flash he was off my lap and up the stairs, his little legs churning. He disappeared at the top of the stairs and his nails clicked over the hardwood.
     

     
    The old man returned and hung his coat and hat on the hall tree. “I found your car, but there’s no sign of Jacob. Checked with the neighbors, too. It’s nasty on the roads. Almost got stuck even though I have four-wheel drive.” He picked up the phone but it was still dead. “Maybe he got a ride down the hill. I left a note on the front seat telling him where you are. Put the emergency flashers on, too, but that battery is pretty weak.”
     
    “I suppose that’s all we can do now,” I said.
     
    “Other than pray,” he said.
     
    I nodded. “I suppose there is that.”
     
    He disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a steaming bowl of chili with cornbread that tasted so sweet it melted in my mouth. He headed upstairs with another bowl and Rue met him at the top, wagging his tail and dancing on the hardwood like a trained circus animal.
     
    I had finished my bowl when he returned and he offered me another, but I was content. He pulled a chair beside me and settled in, cradling his own bowl and warming both hands with it.
     
    “Who else is here?” I said.
     
    “Excuse me?”
     
    “You said, ‘we’ when I first arrived. That ‘we’ haven’t had any visitors. And I heard noise while you were gone.”
     
    “No one is here but my wife and me. She’s resting upstairs.”
     
    “Is something wrong with her?”
     
    “Nothing time and life haven’t done.” He paused and there seemed to be a bit of sadness in it. “And what brought you out to these parts?”
     
    I told him we were on our way to an attorney’s office to sign divorce papers. No sense beating around the bush. I let that sink in and expected some kind of apology for prying, but he didn’t seem shocked.
     
    “Have you been planning this long?” he said.
     
    I told him more about us. More than I wanted, but it just seemed to spill out. And he didn’t stop me.
     
    “That’s a lot of years to be married. What’s the main reason? Has Jacob abused you in some way?”
     
    “No, there’s no abuse.”
     
    “Is there another woman?”
     
    “I don’t think so. His other woman is his work.”
     
    “Have you tried counseling?”
     
    I nodded. “A few times. A pastor once. A psychologist. Went to a marriage seminar one weekend a few years ago.”
     
    He reached toward the coffee table. “Have you tried—”
     
    “The books? Let me tell you about the books I’ve read. Stacked on my nightstand. I listened to them on CD in the carpool lane. Don’t give me another book. I’ve tried everything. Even called a radio program once asking