Rosemarie's Revenge

January 2017 When an opportunity to work as a freelance writer up in Nevada came McKenna’s way, she headed north. Over the next twenty-one years, she would have two relationships: a short one with a man she eventually caught cheating on her, and another with a woman. They were together nearly sixteen years before cancer claimed her. McKenna thought of Raul over the years from time to time and wondered what his life was like. She looked him up online and found that he was now an ADA in Phoenix, but little else could be found on him. She assumed he would have his own family by now. A few years ago, McKenna won the lottery. Not enough to make her rich, but enough so that she didn’t have to work a typical job. It was as if she were being paid minimum wage not to work—although she always kept busy and wanted to work at least part-time so she’d have extra spending money. A friend of hers happened to move to Phoenix from her home state with her husband. Deciding she would love to have her nearby and that she didn’t really have anything or anyone keeping her tied down in Nevada, McKenna returned to Arizona. The couple happily agreed to let her stay with them until she got her own place. Elsa and her husband, Dan, were great people. McKenna felt totally at home with them. They were very easygoing and open-minded. “You know what?” Elsa said one night as the three of them feasted on the chicken casserole dish she and McKenna had prepared together. “Maybe you ought to just stay here, McKenna. You’re not in the way, and at the risk of sounding selfish, I kind of like having someone clean for us and help with the cooking and gardening—not to mention that pays us rent.” “Are you kidding?” Dan said with a laugh. “She may be fifty-three, but she’s still gorgeous. She’s going to meet someone sooner or later.” The two women laughed, although McKenna seriously had her doubts. “Well, she can stay until she’s swept off her feet again,” Elsa said. “I’ll drink to that,” Dan said, lifting his wineglass. And so she stayed until she got a job answering phones and scheduling appointments in a doctor’s office. Not her idea of an ideal job. But when she realized who would be training her, it suddenly became very worth it.