Gary steeped behind his grandmother-in-law sitting at the kitchen table and gathered her in a warm embracing hug.
"Are you ready to head home, old lady?" She teased.
"Judy, if he calls an old lady one more time, I'm going to knock him on his bony ass!"
"Go for it, grandma!" Judy encouraged. "He's been a smart ass all afternoon!"
Dorsey began to rise and Gary released her. She lovingly punched him in the chest and began to gather up her things.
"Can I borrow your hunk of a husband Wednesday night? I got some painting in the bathroom to be done." She inquired.
"Sure grandma. Just don't put up with any of his crap!" Judy replied, wrapping her right arm around the waist of her husband, hugging tight.
"I've got a broom if he gives me any trouble."
"Isn't anyone going to asked me if I want to paint Wednesday night?"
"And I thought I was second only to your wife. You jump at her smallest whim." Dorsey retorted jokingly. "Besides honey! Haven't you discovered that you're just a slave for us females!"
Gary kissed his wife and followed Dorsey out of the apartment. They ribbed each other all the way to the car. They pulled on I-95 for the twenty-minute drive to Dorsey's highrise.
"So, Judy tells me you got bad news from the doctor? I'm sorry to hear it. But look on the bright side your girlfriends will stop making you wear condoms."
"She's devastated, but we can always adopt." Gary replied. "And you're the only girlfriend I've got!"
"I appreciate that, Gary." Dorsey said, patting her son-in-law's leg. "I've never liked the damned things anyway."
Such was the relationship of Gary and Dorsey. They had hit it off the moment Judy, his fiancée at the time, introduced him to her grandmother. In the three years they had known each other, there had been very few serious conversations, but Gary knew that Dorsey was devastated too. There were long moments of silence between.
"I very seldom see you in a skirt or dress. You have quite nice looking legs for an old lady. You clean up very nice."
"Well! Thank you, sugar! That's very gracious of you."
Dorsey, 61 years old, was indeed still a very attractive woman. She wore her naturally curly, strawberry blonde hair in a 50s style that could be taken as a hat from a distance. Not overly abundant in any area of her body, one would probably have appraised her as the all-American girl next door 40 years earlier.
"You know what they say about a woman's legs?" He asked humorously.
"No. I don't believe I do. But you're going to tell me, I'm sure!"
"They run all the way up to her butt."
"Well, I certainly hope so." She replied. "Oh! You're being so bad! I get it! You're implying, nice legs, nice butt!"
"Yes! I suppose I was."
Gary was now pulling into the parking lot of the highrise. Instead of going up to the front door as he usually did the continued to a parking space.
"I will see Madam to the door!"
"How noble, sir knight!"
Gary offered his bent arm. Dorsey slid her arm through his and they postured, straight back and dignified, as they walked across the parking lot and into the building. When they arrived at her door, she unlocked her door and proceeded into the apartment without the least thought of saying good night to Gary at the door. He followed her in.
"Coffee?"
"Thank you."
Gary leaned against the counter of the small kitchen and watched his grandma-in-law fill the coffee pot with water, coffee and plug it into the wall.
"I'm going to get my PJs on." She said, as she passed him walking across the living room towards her bedroom. He turned to watch her go, then, reached for the phone hanging on the wall.
"I just dropped off your grandma. I'm going to stop by and see Bill for a while."
