“That’s fine,” he said, resting his forearms on the Formica table.

“Heat it up in the microwave for forty seconds.”

I poured the dark coffee into a white ceramic mug and closed the microwave door.

“You didn’t have to drag those tires all the way over here today.”

“I wanted to be sure they were on the car before the next snow,” he said.

He stared at the gray linoleum pattern between his boots.

“Look, Jodi,” he added, his voice dropping lower.