wanted us to live in Milwaukee, but I didn’t want to be that close to my father.” She let out a small laugh that had a bitter edge. “I went from one dominating man to another.” She took a sip of coffee and tasted regret.
Anna finished eating and raised her eyes to study her friend. Janice was a bright woman, but had always had a head-in-the-sand approach to life. Perhaps Kurt’s death was causing her to question and to face some harsh realities. Anna wasn’t sure Janice was altogether prepared for that. “Maybe what you need next is a man with whom you can be yourself, someone to really share with.”
“I think I have enough to cope with just recovering right now. To think of another man is not only premature, it’s ridiculous.” She stared down into her coffee cup. “Besides, what on earth would a worldly man like David Markus want with a small-town creature like me?”
Ridiculous, was it, Anna thought. Yet it was Janice who’d brought David’s name up again. “Eddie Wocheck’s been all over and yet I believe he’s very interested in seeing Alyssa, who’s lived her whole life in a small town. It isn’t where we’re from that matters as much as who we are.”
Janice waved a dismissive hand. “That’s different. They knew each other way back when and...”
“Didn’t you just tell me you went to college with David?”
“Yes, but we only dated a few times. He had this sense of obligation to his widowed mother and this burning need to succeed.”
Anna gave her a mock scowl. “Terrible traits in a man.”
But Janice was determined to make her point. “I’d be willing to bet that Eddie and Alyssa will get back together. She’s always loved him, always will. A one-man woman. Like you. Like me.”
Amused, Anna smiled. “You should be writing books, with your imagination. I don’t think it’s all that simple. Thirty years have passed. Alyssa’s not the same woman she was at nineteen and Eddie’s changed. They’ve both had a less than perfect marriage. I don’t think either one is impulsive enough to jump into anything.” Again, she met her friend’s eyes. “And I’m not convinced you’re a one-man woman, either.”
“Why do you say that? I had a good life married to a wonderful man who loved me.”
Anna had never cared very much for Kurt, but this was no time to mention that to his widow. She’d never been able to say why. There’d just been something about Kurt that had kept her from warming up to him. “Yes, you did have a good life. I only mean to point out that it is far from over.”
Janice finished her coffee thoughtfully. “I suppose you’re right, to some extent. It’s just that I feel so unfocused. I need to meet with Tom Sikes, to see what’s happening at the office. Maybe I should go back to school.”
“You really should,” Anna said encouragingly. “You’re so good with colors and fabrics that if you got your degree, you could open your own interior design studio. Liza thinks you’re a natural and she should know. She’s worked everywhere.”
“I’ll have to wait to see what the money situation is. Maybe I’ll need to get a job.”
Confusion and ambivalence were not uncommon after losing someone close, Anna knew. “It’s not too late to do either. Or both. Eber Insurance is a going concern. You could learn that business, if you feel so inclined. You know, there’s nothing quite like earning your own money to give you a sense of accomplishment, a feeling of independence.”
Janice ran a hand through her hair. “I’ve got to get a haircut, too,” she commented absently. “I know you’re right. I’ve been too dependent on Kurt, but he wanted it that way and I...well, I just drifted with it. It was easier. Now I regret not taking more of an interest.”
Anna rose. “As I said, it isn’t too late. Perhaps Kurt’s manager can help you. Or David Markus.”
There was that name again. Janice scooted out of the booth and went to the counter to pay Marge. Outside again in the chilly night air, she turned to Anna. “Thanks so much for coming with me and letting me bend your ear. You’re a good friend, Anna.”
Anna gave her a quick hug. “Anytime. Talking things out helps.”
About to start walking home, Janice paused. “Anna, why did you go to work for Dr. Phelps? Did you get tired of always being in the house or was it financial? I don’t mean to pry.”
“I wanted to. I wanted to do something that was mine alone. Johnny had his work at the plant and we shared the boardinghouse and the children. But I needed something of my own, and that independence I mentioned earlier. I think he began to respect me more, and my self-respect increased as well when I proved I could make my own way if I had to.”
“I would have thought Johnny would object to his wife working.”
“He didn’t and still doesn’t, because he knows that my working fulfills a need in me. Johnny doesn’t have this thing about needing to be in charge and in control the way Kurt did.”
She’d said it kindly, and with the best of intentions, yet it bothered Janice to hear the words. Probably because she knew Anna was right. “Kurt was a good man, Anna,” she said softly. It seemed important to remind her. And perhaps herself.
“Of course he was.”
Janice nodded. “Good night.” She set out at a brisk pace.
Anna stood watching Janice for a minute, then turned toward her own street. It would seem that Janice Eber had a long way to go before she accepted Kurt’s death. And, Anna thought with a sad shake of her head, it likely would be a painful journey.
* * *
SQUINTING, Janice leaned closer to the ledger spread out on Kurt’s desk. The numbers blurred. She pulled back and they came into focus. Brushing back her hair, she acknowledged that she’d have to make an appointment for that eye exam she’d been putting off for too long.
But even glasses wouldn’t clarify the columns of figures she’d been trying to make sense of since arriving at Eber Insurance several hours ago. Kurt’s secretary, the bookkeeper, Tom Sikes and the sales staff who’d come in and out had all treated her kindly. They’d gone to great pains to explain the operation to her. She envied them their acquired knowledge and despaired of ever catching up.
Finally, she’d shut herself in Kurt’s private office so no one would witness her private humiliation as she tried to make sense of the papers she’d been given. It would seem that the firm wrote insurance for commercial properties, plus auto, homeowners, and some life and health. A broad base. According to Tom, they were decidedly in the black. Janice would have to take his word for that, since the ledgers were beyond her understanding.
Tom had also pointed out several large policies coming up for renewal soon that she’d have to pay special attention to. Their representatives wanted to meet the person who’d be in charge, to be assured that the main thrust of Eber Insurance would be as before. Janice sensed that Tom thought himself the likely candidate to take over. He’d stopped short of offering to buy in or buy her out, yet she felt he was considering doing so.
She hadn’t the foggiest notion which way to go on that.
Janice rubbed her forehead. She’d never suffered
