for all the shopping, meals, and dishes for a few days yet, but she
needed something to do with her hands or she?d use them to climb
the walls.
Pasta in general was Helen?s comfort food, and lasagna was the
queen of pasta. If she made the noodles from scratch, she?d be
33/395
occupied for hours, just like she wanted, so she pulled out the flour
and eggs and got to work.
When Jerry came home the second thing he noticed, after the
amazing smell, was that the house was swelteringly hot. He found
Helen sitting at the kitchen table, flour stuck to her sweaty face and
arms, worrying the heart-shaped necklace, which her mother had
given her as a baby, between her thumb and forefinger. He looked
around with tense shoulders and wide eyes.
?Made dinner,? Helen told him in a flat voice.
?Did I do something wrong?? he asked tentatively.
?Of course not. Why would you ask that when I just cooked you
dinner??
?Because usually when a woman spends hours cooking a complicated
meal and then just sits at the table with a pissed-off look
on her face, that means some guy somewhere did something really
stupid,? he said, still on edge. ?I have had other women in my life
besides you, you know.?
?Are you hungry or not?? Helen asked with a smile, trying to
shake off her ugly mood.
Hunger won out. Jerry shut his mouth and went to wash his
hands. Helen hadn?t eaten since breakfast and should have been
starved. When she tasted the first forkful she realized she wouldn?t
be able to eat. She listened as best as she could while she pushed
bits of her favorite food around her plate and Jerry devoured two