"See you. Bye, Emma." Emma smiled for him, and Jennifer took off down the driveway, too fast, as usual. Oliver went back to bed for an hour.
He stayed around the house, split wood, and organized his tools. He watched a basketball game and took a nap. His plan was to start the day over again around eight in the evening, eat breakfast at a diner, and be at the hospital in time to make sure that everything was ready at midnight for the operating system revision. With luck, he could be at Suzanne's by one or one-thirty in the morning. "I know you need to be good on Saturdays," he had said to her. "But it will be Sunday. I can actually stay all night, for once." Suzanne thought for a second.
"If I'm in bed, the door will be open," she said. Oliver felt a jolt of electricity, remembering.
He looked around the house and ruffled Woof's ears. "See you tomorrow. So long Verdi—wherever you are." He drove away in the dark and began collecting himself for computer work.
His schedule was perfect. The reports ran correctly. He made an extra set of backups and had time to clean out his desk before midnight. The operating system went in without a hitch. Shortly after one, he eased up Suzanne's driveway.
Her lights were on.
"Hi, there," he called softly as he stepped inside. She came immediately to the door and held open her arms. "Mmmm, you look sleepy," Oliver said.
"I've been reading, mostly, waiting for you. I took a nap after church.
Are you very tired?"
"Not really. I took a nap, too."
"Want some tea? I have one strawberry jam left from last summer."