Heart of the Matter Read Online Free PDF Page B

when they were both heading for the trash, Ellen saw empty Diet Pepsi cans and a frozen pizza box in Kate’s garbage.
    So she grabbed a twelve-pack of the soda and a couple of frozen pizzas. But she also decided to make something for her, something she could get several meals out of and have the pizza just in case.
    Ellen’s mother would be proud of her domestic felicity.
    Once inside the building, she pushed her collapsible cart out of the elevator and entered her condo, dropping her purse and keys on the credenza. Beau jumped up on the counter where he knew he wasn’t supposed to be, but grocery days always meant a treat, and he constantly got in Ellen’s way until she gave it to him. Sure enough, with a Pavlovian response, she dug through a grocery bag and opened a can of Pounce cat snacks. As she put the rest of the groceries away, she set out all the ingredients for making lasagna.
    People always told her how great her lasagna was, and she wanted to show Kate she cared.
    By six thirty that evening, the lasagna was done and she carried it and the rest of the groceries next door. She took a deep breath, uncertain of the reception she was about to receive, and knocked firmly on the door. Like the first time, there was no immediate response, so she knocked again.
    “Kate, it’s me, Ellen…your neighbor. I brought you something to eat and a few groceries. I thought you might be able to use them.”
    She stood quietly, straining to hear any sound from within. For a moment, she thought she heard a slight movement, but wasn’t sure if it was Kate or the sound of her own heart beating. When she didn’t hear any acknowledgment, she tried another tack.
    “Kate, I’ll tell you what. I’m going to leave these here and when you feel like it, you can come get them. I’ll be next door if you need anything.” She propped the grocery bags against the door and set the lasagna on the dish towel she had carried it with.
    “Oh, and I should tell you I made lasagna. So you might consider eating it while it’s hot. It tastes best that way. Although, come to think of it, it’s pretty good cold, too. I like it the next day right out of the refrigerator after it’s had time—” Ellen shut her mouth so hard her teeth clicked together and she almost bit her tongue. What the hell was she doing? “Anyway…um, if you need anything, you know where to find me.”
    ❖
    Kate watched through the peephole as Ellen—so that was her name—retreated and closed her door. What a busybody. Kate couldn’t believe it. Who was this woman who thought she could randomly intrude where she was neither invited nor wanted? And groceries. Who the hell did she think she was?
    She was angry and embarrassed by what appeared to be nothing less than charity. I’m Kate Foster, for Christ’s sake. She was not some socially and economically deprived person who needed help from the outside. She was perfectly capable of taking care of herself.
    If she wanted help she could afford to hire it. If her inquisitive neighbor had any idea how much money she made, perhaps she would understand that simple fact.
    Still…Kate contemplated what the grocery bags might contain.
    Admittedly, earlier that day she had been wondering about this dilemma—needing groceries and not being able to venture outside.
    Kate leaned against the door, debating whether she should open it. Lasagna. She loved lasagna, but only if it was made the right way with ricotta cheese and a good béchamel sauce. No. I don’t need anybody’s help. Kate limped as fast as her leg allowed into the living room again. She’d been watching an old Audrey Hepburn movie, Wait Until Dark , and she flopped onto the sofa and focused on the television screen again.
    But after a few minutes in which she hadn’t absorbed anything in the movie, she got back up and strolled leisurely into the kitchen.
    After looking into the refrigerator door for the tenth time that day, still expecting to see something she