Part Thirteen

Peggy made her way to the ferry terminal in a light drizzle beneath gray skies. With her good arm she held her backpack in place on her shoulder. Her other arm was in a sling.

"How are you feeling?" said Raoul with a look of concern as she approached him.

"Fine. Much better." She took her seat next to him. He lifted the backpack off her shoulder. "Thank you," she said.

"Should I pour you some tea?" Raoul asked.

"Don't spoil me, I might get used to it," she said.

He unscrewed the little cup from the top of the Thermos and poured steaming tea into it. Just then the ferry gave a little lurch as it revved its engines to pull away from the dock. He adjusted quickly to the motion, and didn't spill a drop of tea. Peggy liked the look on his face as he concentrated. Then he poured his own tea.

"I feel so bad about what happened," said Raoul.

She placed her good hand on his arm and squeezed it affectionately. "It was the most fun I've had in a long time. I honestly don't even care about the arm. Besides, the whole thing was my idea, remember?"

He had arrived with a roar at her doorstep the previous afternoon. Peggy briefly wondered what her neighbors would think of this dashing man on a motorcycle coming to pick her up. As promised he brought a helmet, a yellow one, which closed around her head like a glove and made her feel like she was going on a space journey. She wore jeans and hiking boots, with the laces tucked in, plus a corduroy shirt with a scarf and an old denim jacket that she had not worn in ten years. The bike seemed fat and low as she swung her leg over it and settled onto a small seat immediately behind Raoul. She noticed there was nothing to hold onto, so she figured she would hold onto him.

When Raoul started the machine she felt the vibrations roll from her legs to her head. Her hands rested on her knees, but as soon as he turned the bike and accelerated out of the driveway she threw her arms around his waist without hesitation. She was awed by the sensation of speed and power, and the surprising smoothness of the ride. When he reached Fletcher Bay Road, she tightened her grip on him and drew closer as her body leaned with his into the turns and swooped beneath the tall dark evergreens that bordered the road.

The sky darkened quickly as they neared Battle Point Park after a gut-wrenching rollercoaster ride on a narrow, hilly road, leaving Peggy clinging to Raoul for dear life. Their timing was fortunate. The sky opened up, dumping a wall of rain on them just after they had gotten off the bike near a picnic shelter. Peggy ran across a patch of wet grass, her vision partially obscured by the helmet. She didn't see the slight depression. Her foot turned as it landed in the low spot and she fell forward onto a sheet of water and came down hard on her right arm. Raoul was immediately behind her. She felt him lift her quickly and carry her out of the rain.

The pain in her arm was intense, she knew something was wrong with it. Raoul pulled off her helmet.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm not sure." She felt wet. Raoul ran back to the bike and returned with a plastic bag in which he kept a towel. She tried to remove her wet denim jacket but then winced as she felt a stab of pain from her right arm.

"Let me help you," said Raoul. He very gently removed the jacket and then rolled up the right sleeve of her shirt. "I'm going to touch the arm." He did and she said 'Ouch.'

With her good arm she started to pat herself dry using the towel. The rain roared around them. Then she laughed. "This is absolutely crazy. I'm fifty-eight years old. I should be home knitting."

He took the towel and pressed it against a large wet spot on her back and right side. "I'm sorry you got hurt, but I'm very glad that you aren't home knitting."

The downpour stopped as quickly as it had started, leaving the green surroundings of the park dripping and steaming. Raoul offered to call for an ambulance on his cell phone.

"Oh no," said Peggy. "I really think I can ride back. I can hold on with my good arm and I'll be fine if you go slow."

Raoul looked extremely concerned. He thought for a moment and then said, "Okay, but we're going straight to the clinic to have it looked at."

Forty minutes and an x-ray later, she came out of an examining room wearing a sling and found Raoul in the waiting room.

"A sprain," she said, smiling.

"Thank goodness it wasn't worse." He had a genuine look of relief in his face.

Without giving it a second thought, they hugged each other for several long seconds. Peggy felt a certain amount of stress drain away from her body. She was aware of no pain and completely forgot that she felt like an old dishcloth. "I know you won't believe this, but I had a very, very wonderful time," she said.

"I feel terrible."

"Don't. I can't wait to do it again. But let's check the weather first."

Raoul walked her home, since her house was close to the clinic. She had to assure him over and over that she would be all right. Finally, they said good night and he left.

Now, sitting on the ferry the next morning, sipping tea with Raoul and reflecting on the previous afternoon, Peggy became aware that she had gone almost twenty four hours without thinking of Taylor. For the first time, she had done something that was completely new and completely different from anything she and Taylor had ever done. She realized that, regardless of what became of her relationship with Raoul, he had helped her take a small step towards independence. Her life had changed, and, she saw with a mixture of sadness and happiness, that she wanted it to change.