by C. J. Corbin
At last, Debi drove me home. “Did you tell Don why we were leaving?”
Debi nodded her head. “Yes. Let me warn you he didn’t look happy.”
Shock registered in my voice and I turned to look at her, “He wouldn’t say anything to Michael, would he?”
“You know he would do just about anything to right a wrong where it concerned you. Both of us would.”
I turned back in my seat and was quiet the rest of the way home. Once inside and alone, I undressed and got into bed. Sleep took me quickly. The knocking on the front door and the dogs barking woke me up. The clock showed 5:30. The only person who would knock on the front door would be Michael everyone else would go to the back door.
There was no way I was prepared to face Michael. I lay in bed until he walked back down the front porch. The phone rang not more than 5 minutes later. My answering machine could take that one too. I heard Michael’s voice over the speaker wanting to know if I was okay. No, I was not okay, and I did not want to talk about it either.
I moved into the living room and plopped down in front of the television set. I wasn’t in the mood to write. After two movies, I fell asleep on the couch and woke to a dark house. I switched on a light, it was 2:00 AM, and it was surprising I had slept so much. The light was still flashing on my answering machine from the message that Michael had left earlier in the evening.
Going back into my bedroom I looked out the window, Michael’s bedroom light was on. It was strange for him to be up so late and I had the immediate urge to call him. Truthfully, I was beginning to grow angry about the whole episode. I had enough of the misery and thought we should get it over.
My fingers were dialing his cell number before I thought clearly about what I was doing. The phone rang a few times before he picked up.
He answered with worry in his voice, “Elizabeth, are you okay?”
Why did everyone keep asking me if I was okay? No, I was not okay. I was tired of answering the question.
“Why are you up so late?” I asked abruptly.
“What?” he asked with surprise in his voice. “How did you know I was up?”
“Your bedroom light is on.” I answered, “I can see it from my bedroom window.”
“Why aren’t you asleep?” he asked me.
“Never mind about me. Please come over here. I want to talk to you.”
Michael hesitated, “Why do you want to talk?”
“I don’t want to talk over the phone. Please just come over here.”
Michael sighed, his voice sounded tired. “Why don’t you come over here Elizabeth? I’ll make us some tea.”
“Okay, I will come over to you.” It surprised me how determined my voice sounded.
“I’ll wait on the porch for you.”
We hung up the phone and I threw a robe on over my nightgown. By the time I opened my back door, he had his porch light on and I could see him leaning against the railing. He looked surprised to see me in my robe. Michael followed me silently into his kitchen. A kettle already heated on the stove.
I sat at his kitchen table and watched him prepare the tea. He wore only sweat pants in that sexy way he had, slung low on his hips. I watched the muscles move in his finely defined back and shoulders, already mourning their loss. Molly padded into the kitchen and lay down next to my feet. Her long tail thumped against my legs. I bent over and petted her head. It was deadly silent in the kitchen.
He finally set the mug of hot tea in front of me and took a seat on the other side of the table crossing his arms over his chest. “Let the tea cool down first.”
I nodded. He looked at me expectantly.
“Why the change Michael, or are you just mad at me because I won’t sleep with you?”
He grimaced at me across the table. “Is that was has been upsetting you today?”
I could see evidence of a slight smile on his face as he looked at the ceiling lights shaking his head in disbelief.
“Yes.” I replied, “What is so funny? I don’t think this is very funny.”
He sighed, “No it’s not funny, but it is a comedy of errors.” He stood up and took my hand, “Here, come with me.”
I stood up and followed him. “Why? Where are we going?”
He flipped the kitchen lights off. “My bedroom. We need to talk and I don’t want the girls listening in.”
“Well I don’t think we need to talk in your bedroom. I’m being quiet.”
“The girls are very nosey when it comes to us.” Michael led me into his bedroom. The room was messy with clothes, papers, and his laptop strewn on the bed. A suitcase sat open in the corner of the room on a small table, and beyond the table, a door leading to another room was open. Max was lying on the folded bedspread at the end of the bed and Molly joined him as we entered. Michael closed the door behind us.
He turned to me as I leaned back against the wall. Both of his hands cupped the sides of my face and he tilted my face up to his. His thumbs rubbed across my cheeks and up underneath my eyes.
“Promise me that before I make you cry again you’ll always talk to me first?” His voice was softer than a whisper, “I’m sorry I thought I was doing the right thing.”
His lips found mine and he gently kissed me. One arm went around my waist as he pulled me closer. Holding the back of my head, our kiss intensified while his fingers stroked my hair. His back felt strong when I tightly wrapped my arms around him.
The kiss broke and we stood wrapped securely together not wanting to let go. We both tried to slow our labored breathing. His eyes burned as he looked at me.
“Elizabeth, you know I want to make love with you.” I started to interrupt but he continued, “However, I know I have to wait. I don’t want to force you to do anything you’re not ready to do, and I thought I needed to step back to give you some breathing room. It looks like I stepped too far back.”
“Is that all it was?” I searched his face for some other sign.
“That’s all it was Elizabeth.”
Our arms relaxed but we continued to hold each other. “I’m glad.” I snuggled my head against his shoulder and neck. As I kissed his inviting neck and trailed my lips up his jaw line, I felt him shudder in my arms.
Michael cleared his throat, “Babe, I need to get ready for my trip. Seven o’clock is going to come early.”
I stepped back nodding my head, “I’m sorry.”
He tilted up my face, “Don’t be sorry. I love kissing you. Do you want to stay with me and keep me company while I get ready?”
“Okay.” I murmured.
With quick movements, he cleared off half of the bed. I slipped off my slippers and sat cross-legged on the bed. His laptop displayed an article on alligators. While he packed his suitcase, I turned over on my side to watch. Pulling out a pillow from the top of the bed, I snuggled into it and closed my eyes.
When I awoke, the room was dark. It took me a minute to realize I was still in Michael’s bedroom. He had pulled the bedspread up to cover us. Michael lay sleeping on his back next to me. I pushed the pillow away and cuddled close to him, laying my head on his chest. He turned toward me putting his arm around me. I felt him kiss the top of my head, and he was content with that kiss.
When I awoke again light filled the room. I was alone in the bed. The house was quiet. The nightstand clock showed eight o’clock. A folded note lay next to me on the pillow.
“Babe, I couldn’t bear to wake you this morning. I’ll call you when I get to New Orleans. Please keep an eye on my girls. Michael. P.S. Thank you for staying with me last night. We should do it more often!”
I refolded and tucked the note into the pocket of my robe. I made the bed and noticed the door at the end of the bedroom was still open. I was curious about the room behind the door. Peeking around the corner, I found a small room with a desk, a light table, and bookshelves. It was Michael’s office. Had Michael left the door open on purpose? Was it okay for me to go inside the room? I was nosey but stood at the edge
of the doorway a little afraid to cross the threshold. The small window was covered with a black shade that would block out all the light if needed. The desk was neat but when I turned to look at the light table, I saw the photographs Michael had taken of the girls and me over the past three weeks covering the entire table. It was touching that he had printed them out. On the bookshelves lay three worn copies of my books, I grinned and wondered if he had read them.
The sight of the room and the photographs made me feel comforted. Not wishing to intrude into Michael’s privacy any further, I opened the bedroom door quietly listening for sounds within the house. I didn’t think either of the girls was up yet, so I tiptoed out to the kitchen.
Tammy was in the kitchen eating cereal. I didn’t see her at first, but heard her voice instead. “Good morning Elizabeth.” Her tone was slightly disapproving.
Her voice had startled me, “Oh hi Tammy. I didn’t think you were up.”
“I usually try to get up with Dad when he’s going on a trip. I like to say goodbye to him. There’s some coffee left, Dad made it for you.” She pointed to the coffee maker. “The mugs are in the cupboard above the coffee maker.” Tammy didn’t make a move to get a mug for me.
I crossed into the kitchen. Both dogs were under the kitchen table wagging their tails when they saw me. I poured myself a cup of coffee. Luckily, I liked it black because Tammy was not volunteering any additional instructions.
I sat down next to Tammy. She found her cereal bowl interesting and did not look up at me. I touched her shoulder, “Tammy what’s wrong.”
After a pause, she looked up at me with disappointment in her eyes. “So you and Dad had a sleep over. You told me nothing was going on between the two of you. You lied to me.”
My brow knitted because I was not expecting her pouty reaction. I would have thought she would be happy to see her dad and me together. “Tammy no, we did not have a sleep over, not in the way you think we did.”
Her look was incredulous, “Why should I believe you, because you didn’t believe me?”
“Tammy you know that I believe you.” How could I get myself into this type of conversation? Better yet, how was I going to get myself out of the conversation?
“You’re only going to hurt him like his other girlfriends.” She said the words and the real reason for her anger became clear.
“It’s not my intention to hurt your dad. For goodness sake Tammy, your dad and I are just friends.” I had not yet concentrated on her use of the word girlfriends in the plural. This would probably strike me later on in the day. “Instead of talking to me about this, shouldn’t you talk to your dad about it?”
“I tried,” Tammy replied, “but he told me that it wasn’t any of my business and to stay out of it.”
I thought how typical of a man, what a way with words he had. “Tammy, it looks like your dad and I are probably going to have a relationship that is more than just casual friends. I don’t have a crystal ball, and I don’t know how this will end or what will happen. I’m hoping that it will turn out well, but face it your dad and I don’t have good track records. Both of us have been divorced so that means we aren’t very good in the relationship department, but we’re trying. If your dad wants to share or not to share with you that is up to him. He does deserve his privacy as do I and so do you. So, I hope that you allow us to stumble around making whatever mistakes we make without your input.” I swallowed down the remaining coffee and rose from the chair.
Tammy stared up at me with a look of surprise and shock on her face. “Okay.” She said quietly. I walked to the back door and she called out to me. “Are you still taking me to the doctor on Wednesday?”
I turned around before opening the door, “Absolutely.” I smiled at her and then walked out to the back porch closing the door behind me.
As I turned around to go down the steps of the porch, Debi drove by with her car. When she saw me, she pulled up by my house and got out of her car to wait for me. Rolling my eyes, I couldn’t believe my good fortune. My day was getting better and better.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Debi followed me up to the back door. “What an interesting jogging outfit you’re wearing this morning Elizabeth. Or is that the walk of shame you’re doing?”
“Shut up Debi. Come in and make some coffee while I feed the dogs. I’ll fill you in.”
Debi knew her way around my kitchen. She started the coffee maker while I prepared breakfast for the dogs. As the dogs ate, we sat down and drank our coffee.
“You look a lot better than you did yesterday.” She said.
“I took your advice. I talked to him.” I drew little circles on the table with my fingers and then looked up at her. “You were right. It was a misunderstanding.”
“So, I take by your attractive outfit this morning you finally gave it up?” Debi smirked at me.
I shook my head, “Why does everyone assume that we’ve had sex?”
Debi looked with wide eyes, “Who do you mean by everyone?”
Laughing, I told her about my conversation with Tammy. Debi took my hand, “I think Mr. Don can top that one.”
“What do you mean Debi?” I asked suspiciously.
It would be just like Don to get involved in my private life. He had been rescuing me forever, and of course, he wasn’t always successful, evidence Kevin.
Debi hesitated then laughed knowing that somehow it was well intended, “Well, after the game Don told Michael he would do him great bodily harm if he hurt you.”
I laughed loudly, “Michael must have laughed at that one. He’s at least six inches taller than Don and probably has fifty pounds on him.”
Debi laughed with me, “Hey my Donny is scrappy.”
“I know. I love him too because of that character trait. I just hope that he doesn’t have to follow up on his threat.”
“You and me both.” Debi chuckled.
We spent the next two hours talking like the two old friends we were. We poured over the note Michael had written to me and analyzed every word. We laughed and admitted that we were being terribly silly. Debi had always accepted me just the way I was with no pretense. She made me promise to come over for dinner and since I was responsible for the girls, I was supposed to bring them with me.
After I showered, I worked on my book for several hours. When the phone rang, it was Katy asking me to come and rehearse with her and the boys. I hated to admit it to myself, but I was disappointed that Michael hadn’t called yet. I knew it was ridiculous for me to wait for his call. However, there I was jumping up when the phone rang.
When I arrived over at the house Tammy was in the kitchen baking cookies. The kitchen looked like it had exploded in flour with baking pans scattered from one end to the other. She smiled and seemed to be in a better mood than this morning.
Tammy stood by the stove with bright red oven mitts on, “Hi Elizabeth, here to rehearse? Cookies will be ready soon. Would you let Katy and the boys know.”
I smiled, “The cookies smell delicious. We’re supposed to go over to Debi and Don’s for dinner this evening.” I silently hoped that the kitchen would be clean before Michael came home on Thursday, but I had my doubts.
“Yeah, Jason called to let me know about dinner.”
“Have you heard from your dad?” I asked trying to keep the emotion out of my voice.
Tammy nodded her head, “Yeah, about an hour ago. He said he arrived safely and was on his way out to start shooting the alligators.”
I looked at her and then she laughed, teasing me, “But you know only taking their pictures, not killing them!”
I chuckled and nodded my head as I left the kitchen, “Yeah yeah.”
I joined Katy and her band mates. They wanted me to learn three classical jazz pieces. All three of them were happy when I told them that I already knew the songs. We worked for two hours rehearsing the music and my style of singing. They appeared to be pleased with the results of the rehearsal. While we took a break, Tammy broug
ht us cookies. The rehearsal was enjoyable. It reminded me of a time that I shared with my mother. She had her own quartet, but they usually only performed for friends and family. Katy’s group hoped to perform in nightclubs, but they needed to make a demo tape, and yes, they were going to do the taping Sunday night with my singing. Before leaving, we planned one more rehearsal on Thursday.
The answering machine did not have a blinking light when I walked into my kitchen. Disappointment hit me immediately since Michael had already called Tammy. His note said he would call. What would it take to stop me worrying? I knew the answer was simple. All it would take was a call.
I changed into shorts and a t-shirt and called the dogs. I needed to burn off the excess energy I felt and a run usually did the trick. Normally it was not my routine to run so late in the afternoon but it had been a cool day for August. Being too close to the phone was driving me crazy too. Still there was no message when we returned home and after my shower, I checked the machine again.
The phone rang suddenly as I was dressing. I nervously picked up the receiver. It was Tammy letting me know it was time for dinner. I hung up the phone and frowned, I was not going to be able to take much more.
Arriving back home after dinner I was again disappointed to see that Michael hadn’t called. Maybe he forgot I told myself. It was already midnight in Louisiana, and I knew that a call would not be coming tonight. I threw on a t-shirt after undressing for bed. The dogs were already in their places on the bed.
Turning off the light and slipping under the covers, Topper crawled his way up to me to snuggle with me. As I petted the top of his head, we were both jarred with the ringing of the phone. My heart jumped into my throat when I answered the phone.
“Hey Babe.” Michael’s voice was clear but he sound tired. “Are you in bed?”
I cleared my throat and tried to put my heart back into its proper place. “Yeah, I just got home from dinner.”
“I figured. Tammy called me to let me know that both she and Katy were tucked in safely.”
