Twenty Wishes

by Debbie Macomber

  Lillie had a panicky moment before she remembered what she’d told the receptionist yesterday when she’d made the appointment. “There seems to be a hesitation….”

  “Coming from a full stop?” he asked, glancing up from his notepad.

  “Yes, that’s it. From a full stop.”

  “How often has this happened?”

  She didn’t want to overplay the situation. “A couple of times.”

  He jotted that down. “Just twice.”

  “No, more. Four or five times.” Her hands were clammy and her mouth had gone dry and she had the most compelling urge to turn tail and run. If she hadn’t handed her car keys over to the mechanic, she would’ve made an excuse and left before she looked like an even bigger fool.

  He wrote something else on the chart.

  “This won’t take long, will it?” she asked.

  “Not at all,” he assured her.

  Inside the waiting area, Lillie got a cup of coffee from the machine and picked up that day’s paper. Although she’d come for the express purpose of seeing Hector again, now she prayed she wouldn’t. How could she possibly explain what she’d done?

  Lillie liked to think of herself as mature and sensible. Never in all her life, not even as a teenager, had she indulged in such a ridiculous deception over a man. Her face burned with mortification. She’d lied about her car—told an outright lie in a futile effort to see Hector Silva again.

  Fifteen minutes later, the receptionist came to tell her that her vehicle was ready. She immediately went to pay the bill but found there was no charge. Eager to be on her way, Lillie hurried out of the building to the lot, where her car was waiting for her.

  She nearly stumbled when she saw Hector standing next to it.

  “Lillie,” he said, his smile warm. “I’ve personally checked out the car and I can’t find anything wrong with it. I thought if we took a drive, the problem might reappear and I could analyze it.”

  The offer to spend time with him was tempting, but she’d frittered away enough of his morning. “If you say it’s in fine working order, then I’m sure it is. I trust you.”

  “I wouldn’t mind, Lillie.”

  “Hector.” Her face shone as brightly as a lighthouse beacon. “There’s nothing wrong with my vehicle,” she said, making a spontaneous decision. “I apologize. I shouldn’t have wasted your time.” The most important thing at the moment was getting away with her dignity—or what remained of it—intact.

  Hector nodded. “We don’t need to test your car, then?”

  “We don’t.”

  He opened the driver’s door for her, and she climbed in. Her hand trembled as she inserted the key in the ignition. The door was still open.

  “Do you…have you ever gone bowling?” The words came at her in a rush.

  “Bowling?” she repeated, frowning. “Oh, sure, of course.” This must be a day meant for lies. In her entire life, she’d never even stepped inside a bowling alley.

  “I know it’s short notice… I hope you don’t mind my asking…”

  “I don’t mind.” How eager she sounded. Her heart did a silly dance while she tried to disguise her excitement at his invitation.

  “Tonight?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Six?”

  “Okay.” She mentally reviewed her closet filled with Misook and St. John suits. What did one wear bowling? Barbie would know.

  Barbie would help her. Then she realized she couldn’t tell Barbie.

  Not yet. Later maybe, after she’d gone out with Hector.

  He grinned. “Perhaps we should meet there?”

  “That’s fine.” Anywhere was fine.

  With a verve that was almost boyish, he shut her door, but not before giving her the address of the bowling alley. “I’ll look forward to seeing you this evening,” he said.

  “Yes.” Lillie didn’t know if she was going to dissolve into tears or giggles. Either way, her actions today had been embarrassing—but she didn’t care.

  She was going to see Hector tonight, and they wouldn’t be talking about cars, either.

  That evening, thanks to her navigation system, Lillie located the bowling alley and got there at ten minutes to six. She wore beige linen slacks and a soft teal cashmere sweater with a floral silk scarf around her neck. Earlier in the afternoon, she’d purchased tennis shoes and white cotton socks. With her makeup she’d gone for a light, natural look, and she’d worn her hair neatly tied back. Every detail of her appearance had been closely scrutinized.

  Hector, dressed in a suit and tie, was waiting outside the entrance, and when he saw her, his eyes lit up. Lillie knew exactly how he felt, because she felt the same happiness at seeing him.

  As she approached, he held out his hands to her, and for a moment neither of them spoke. “Thank you for agreeing to meet me.”

  “Thank you for asking me.” A little worried, she glanced at his suit. He looked as if he was about to attend a wedding. Lillie hadn’t realized bowling was such a formal sport.

  “Should I change my clothes?”

  Hector shook his head. “No, no, you look perfect.”

  “But you’re wearing a suit….”

  His cheeks reddened slightly. “My daughter said I should never have suggested bowling. She said you must think me a buffoon. Would you care to dine with me, Lillie? I apologize if I offended you by offering to take you bowling. It’s been many years since I invited a woman out. I don’t know how such things are done now.”

  All Lillie really wanted was to be with Hector. It didn’t matter to her if they were in a five-star restaurant or knocking down pins in a bowling alley. “Hmm. That’s quite a decision.”

  “Shall we have coffee and then decide?”

  She nodded. “That’s an excellent idea.”

  Next they needed to figure out where to have coffee. They chose the café in the bowling alley, since that was the simplest alternative. Hector led her to a booth in the corner. The menu was shaped like a bowling pin and the salt and pepper shakers were empty beer bottles. Lillie was enchanted.

  He slid into the booth across from her as she glanced happily around. The atmosphere reminded her of a fifties diner, the kind of place where the day’s special was a double bacon cheeseburger with greasy fries. When she read the chalkboard, she saw that the special here was actually two cheese enchiladas with rice and beans.

  Hector raised his hand and the waitress brought coffee.

  Lillie leaned forward. “There was nothing wrong with my car.” She’d told him as much earlier, but she wanted him to understand the reason for her pretense.

  “Oh, I knew that all along.”

  “You did?” That made it even more embarrassing. “I wanted to see you again,” she said bluntly.

  Hector spooned sugar into his coffee. “I wanted to see you, too.”

  “But you didn’t phone, you didn’t ask…. My daughter and my friends urged me to contact you. They say that’s how it’s done nowadays.”

  “You didn’t call me.”

  She avoided eye contact. “I wasn’t sure how. I’ve never called a man—well, other than a professional or a friend.”

  “My daughter said if you agreed to see me after tonight, it would be a miracle. She crossed herself when I told her I invited you to go bowling.”

  Lillie laughed. The cheerful clatter from the bowling alley made her curious and she noticed that everyone seemed to be having fun. “I have another confession to make.”

  “Two confessions in a single night?”

  “Two,” she said with a smile. “I’ve never been bowling.”

  This didn’t appear to surprise him, either. “Would you like to learn?” he asked.

  “Only if you’re going to be my teacher.”

  From across the table he grinned at her and she was mesmerized. He’d captured her imagination and her senses with his unfailing courtesy, genuine charm and with his kindness.

  When they finished their coff
ee, Hector procured them a lane, fitted her with rented shoes, and then proceeded to show Lillie how to bowl.

  By the end of the evening, Lillie had to admit she hadn’t laughed this much in twenty years. It was gratifying—and completely unexpected—to discover that she had a certain knack for the sport. What they both found nothing short of hilarious was the fact that her ball rolled at the speed of an earthworm. She’d release it just the way Hector instructed, return to her seat and wait while the bowling ball slowly but surely trundled down the narrow lane. After what seemed like minutes, the ball would connect with the pins. They’d fall lazily over, one at a time, almost in slow motion, knocking into one another.

  People stopped to watch when the ball finally made contact and the pins started to tumble. Once she managed to knock down nine pins, and the people in the next alley actually broke into applause.

  Hector—who was obviously an accomplished bowler, as his succession of strikes made clear—claimed he’d never seen anything like it. Apparently, no one else had, either. The place was growing crowded, and Lillie was unaccustomed to all the attention, which embarrassed her. All she could do was laugh.

  And when she laughed, Hector did, too.

  In the last frame of their final game, Lillie achieved her first strike. It took nearly a minute for all the pins to fall and when the last one spun around and around and eventually toppled, she jumped up and down like a schoolgirl. Hector hugged her and then self-consciously stepped back.

  After that, they turned in their bowling shoes and balls. She could hardly remember a time she’d enjoyed more. When they left the lanes, it seemed the most natural thing in the world for him to take her hand.

  “Are you hungry?” he asked, dangling his suit jacket over his shoulder.

  “Famished.”

  “I am, too. Do you have a favorite restaurant?”

  “Yes, I do,” she said and smiled over at him. “It’s right here.”

  “Lillie, please allow me to take you to a real restaurant.”

  “This one looks real.”

  He hesitated. “My daughter suggested Gaucho’s. She said they have an extensive wine list and a pianist who plays classical music.”

  “Are you planning to wine and dine me?”

  “Yes, it’s what you deserve. I want only the best for you.”

  It was such a sweet gesture, but she couldn’t let Hector spend that kind of money. Besides, she wasn’t dressed for anyplace formal. “I’d love some cheese enchiladas,” she told him.

  Hector squeezed her fingers. “If you insist, but if my daughter asks, please tell her the choice was yours, not mine.”

  “Rita?”

  “Yes. Before I left this evening, she gave me a long list of things I should and shouldn’t do. When I dated my wife, it was nothing like this.” He stopped abruptly. “I don’t mean to imply…”

  “I know,” she assured him. “I feel just as nervous as you.”

  “Really?”

  She laughed. “You mean you can’t tell?”

  “No.” He seemed genuinely surprised. “I have a confession to make.”

  “You?” Well, she’d already made two of her own.

  “When I look at you,” he said in a low voice, “I forget to breathe.”

  She wondered if he realized the effect his words had on her—or that she felt the very same way.

  “Me, too,” she whispered. She might have said more but a booth became available and they slid inside.

  They each ordered the enchiladas and lingered over coffee, chatting until after one in the morning. Only when Lillie couldn’t hold back a yawn did Hector suggest they call it a night.

  He walked her to her car, which was one of the four or five still in the parking lot. The entire time Lillie prayed Hector would want to see her again. When he didn’t mention it, she was sure this would be their one and only date.

  “I had a lovely evening,” she said, fumbling for her keys.

  “So did I.”

  “Thank you for everything.” She opened the car door and got in.

  He nodded, stepping away as she started the engine.

  Lillie’s heart was in her throat.

  “Saturday,” he blurted out just as she was ready to drive away.

  “Pardon?”

  “Would you like to attend a lecture at the museum with me this Saturday?”

  The relief was so overwhelming, she nearly broke into tears. “That would be wonderful, Hector.”

  Wonderful didn’t begin to describe it.

  Chapter 24

  Wednesday afternoon, the sun was shining and the wind off Puget Sound was warm. This was a perfect spring day, and Anne Marie suddenly realized she felt…good. She’d almost forgotten what that was like. The comfort of the sun, the freshness of the breeze, the company of others—they all contributed to her sense of well-being. Most of all, though, she felt a contentment she hadn’t experienced since before her separation from Robert.

  She’d just finished a knitting class with Elise Beaumont. Three other women had signed up, and the session had been fun, with plenty of banter as Elise reviewed their work.

  While she was at the yarn store, Colette Dempsey came by with her infant daughter. At first Anne Marie had been afraid that seeing her friend with the baby would be painful; it wasn’t. Even though the world seemed to be full of surprise pregnancies and secret ones, too, she managed to distance herself from destructive emotions like envy.

  She found she could genuinely delight in Colette’s joy. They talked for an hour, and the visit passed with barely a ripple of pain.

  Anne Marie was saddened by the news that Colette and her husband, Christian, would be moving to California at the end of June for business reasons. Christian owned a successful importing firm and would be opening a second office in San Diego.

  She recalled that only a year ago, Colette had been a widow like her, and that was something they’d had in common. But Colette had been hiding a pregnancy and she’d struggled with a painful dilemma that had been dramatically resolved.

  Nothing dramatic had happened to Anne Marie in the last two months. Nothing had really changed, either; certainly not her circumstances, other than the fact that Ellen was living with her but that was only a temporary situation. The only difference was in Anne Marie’s attitude.

  She still had to make an effort to maintain that attitude. Her Twenty Wishes had helped, because she now felt she had some control over her emotions. Doing something for someone else—Ellen—had, without a doubt, made the biggest difference.

  To be honest, avoiding the question of Rebecca Gilroy had helped, too. One day soon, she’d ask who had fathered her son. But not until she felt ready to accept the answer.

  After her knitting class, Anne Marie did a few errands and then collected Baxter so the two of them could meet Ellen’s school bus. The girl’s spirits had been low since she’d learned that her Grandma Dolores wouldn’t be home as quickly as they’d hoped.

  Anne Marie decided a leisurely walk, maybe stopping somewhere for something to eat, might improve Ellen’s mood. As she waited on the street corner, the big yellow bus rumbled down Blossom Street. When it stopped and Ellen hopped out, Baxter strained against his leash, whining excitedly.

  “How was school?” Anne Marie asked.

  “Good.”

  The noncommittal reply was typical. Generally it wasn’t until later in the evening, usually over dinner, that Ellen began to talk more freely. She appeared to need time to assimilate the day’s events and perhaps figure out how much to share.

  “I thought we’d take Baxter for a walk together.”

  “Okay.”

  Ellen rarely showed much enthusiasm when Anne Marie suggested an outing. She revealed her pleasure in other ways. Anne Marie suspected she was afraid to let anyone know she was happy about something, for fear that the object of her happiness would be taken away.

  “If you want, you can leave your backpack in the shop with Theresa.”<
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  “Okay.” Ellen raced ahead and Anne Marie watched her employee place the heavy bag behind the counter. A minute later, Ellen was back.

  “You ready?” Anne Marie asked.

  “Ready.”

  Baxter certainly was. Her Yorkie pulled at the leash; apparently Anne Marie wasn’t walking briskly enough to satisfy him. The dog had places to go, territory to mark and friends to greet, especially the friends who kept special treats just for him.

  “Let’s walk down to Pike Place Market and have dinner at one of the sidewalk cafés,” Anne Marie said. “Does that sound good?”

  Ellen shrugged. “I guess so.”

  “Or would you rather go down to the waterfront and get fish and chips?”

  Ellen didn’t seem to have an opinion one way or the other. “What do you want?”

  Anne Marie had to think about it. “Pizza,” she finally said. “I haven’t had it in ages.”

  “What kind?”

  “Thin crust with lots of cheese.”

  “And pepperoni.”

  “Let’s see if we can find a restaurant where we can order pizza and eat outside.”

  “Okay.”

  On a mission now, they trudged down the steep hill toward the Seattle waterfront. Pike Place Market was a twenty-minute hike, but neither complained. Baxter didn’t, either, although this was new territory for the dog. Once they reached the market, Anne Marie picked him up and cradled him in her arms.

  Ellen and Anne Marie strolled through the market, where they watched two young men toss freshly caught salmon back and forth for the tourists’ benefit. Ellen’s eyes grew huge as she gazed at the impromptu performance. When they left the market building, the little girl slipped her hand into Anne Marie’s and they walked down the Hill Climb stairs to the waterfront. Baxter was back on his feet by then, taking in all the fascinating smells around him.

  “Have you ever been to the Seattle Aquarium?” Anne Marie asked when the building came into view.

  “My class went.”

  “Did you like it?”

  Ellen nodded eagerly. “I got to touch a sea cucumber and it felt really weird and I saw a baby sea otter and a real shark.”