We’re Just Neighbors

by J. P. Comeau

  “How could I forget. I caught Tom making out with another woman at the local bookstore. He dared to say she was just a coworker as if it was okay to be kissing someone while on the clock.”

  Crystal wrinkled her nose and put her feet up on the desk, pointing at me. “Tom wasn’t as bad as Martin, though.”

  Martin was on the creepier side. After getting out of prison and turning his life around, he worked alongside his father running a national chain of restaurants. He had spent time in jail for tax evasion, and I believed him when he said that he was a changed man.

  “I’ll never forget the day I woke up, found that he wasn’t in bed next to me, and I was also missing my wallet.”

  Crystal laughed loudly. “At least you got all of those charges dropped from your credit cards, though. What an asshole.”

  I let out a sigh and nodded. “Karma will catch up to those men. But see, that’s what I’m talking about Crystal. These guys, like Richard, they’re all the same. They’re never satisfied with what they have. Take a look at Martin. Why would he risk going back to prison after being given a second chance? They live on adrenaline. It’s only a matter of time before Richard stops getting that rush with me.”

  I laid my head on my desk, not wanting her to see the tears forming in my eyes. Crystal’s chair scooted against the floor when she got up and walked behind me, placing her hands on my shoulders. “Believe it or not, there are good men in the world. Some men don’t want to sleep with a dozen women at a time or evade paying taxes and commit credit card fraud. You just have to look for them, and there’s a chance that Richard is one of those men.”

  I looked up at her and smiled. “That was cheesy. Inspirational, but cheesy.”

  I rested my head on her shoulder.

  “That’s what I’m here for,” she said. “From everything you’ve told me about him, he seems pretty normal. I don’t think you have anything to worry about with Richard. Well, unless he has some weird fetish, like watching a woman juggle Jell-O in her toes or something.”

  I pulled my head away and looked up at her, my mouth wide open. “Gross! Why would you put that image in my mind, Crystal?”

  I couldn’t help but picture women’s feet, juggling green Jell-O while Richard watched. I hoped he wasn’t into anything weird like that.

  “I’m just saying Annie,” she said. “There are some weird-ass people in the world. You know how guys can be. But I don’t think you should worry. If he’s into anything remotely weird, it’s probably something like BDSM.”

  I held up my hands and shook my head.

  “Oh hell no, Crystal. I just want a normal guy. Why is that so hard to find? You’re probably right, too!”

  She burst out laughing and sat back down in her chair. “Relax, Annie. I’m sure he’s not into that stuff. Anyway, you owe it to yourself to at least go out on one date. You’ve already slept with the guy. What could go wrong?”

  I leaned back in my chair and looked at her, processing what she had said. She made a valid point. One date wouldn’t be so bad. We could meet for coffee or get a light dinner, nothing too serious that would cause us to end up in bed together again. I wanted to take things slow, also.

  “He’s been a lifelong bachelor, too. If he doesn’t try to sleep with me on the first date, that’d be a good sign, right?”

  Crystal nodded with a big smile on her face. “That would be an excellent sign.”

  “Alright, I’ll do it. I’ll go out with Richard, but just for you.”

  Crystal stood up and left our office, giving me some privacy to call him.

  I felt butterflies forming in my stomach as I pulled out my phone and dialed his number. But I suddenly worried that it was too late. Perhaps my declination earlier had turned him off.

  Whatever.

  If that’s the case, then it’ll be his loss.

  “Annie, hi.” Richard sounded a bit off when he answered the phone, but I told myself not to read too much into it. He was probably just busy working.

  “Hey, I hope you’re not too busy. Anyway, um, I was wondering if you’d like to get something to eat or drink tonight?” I started to feel insecure by the pause on his end.

  “I’d love to,” he finally replied. “How about eight o’clock? I’ll pick you up.”

  “That sounds great!” We hung up, and I felt like a teenage girl again, getting excited about a date with my crush.

  Crystal walked by the office window, and I gave her a thumbs-up. She pumped her fist, making me laugh, but it still didn’t take away my nerves.

  Richard

  I was on the phone with my attorney, Danielle, again. She called me as soon as she had received more information about the whole Heather saga. I found out Heather was definitely back in town and wanted everything settled right away, which only irritated me more.

  “Let me get this straight,” I said. “Heather waits all of this time to tell me that we have a daughter, and now I have to rush things along? Why is she suddenly in need of all of this money?”

  “Heather is getting married, Richard.”

  “Of course she is. And now she wants me to foot the bill. Let me guess. Heather is marrying some epic jerk-off with no way to pay for it, so now it’s up to me! To top it off, I can’t even see my daughter. What nightmare am I in right now, Danielle? How is any of this legal?” I could feel my face turning deeper shades of red.

  “Please try to calm down, Richard. I set up an emergency hearing for Monday. There’s a chance this will at least give you a few moments to meet the child. I’m told she resembles you. The attorney didn’t admit to this, but I’m sure Heather is hoping that will be enough for you to write the check. How do you feel about this?”

  “Confused. But I want to meet my daughter. That, I can tell you.”

  “It is at least something until the final hearing regarding the DNA test, and you find out for sure. But of course, there will be no check writing no matter how hard Heather my try to play you after you meet your daughter. Understood?”

  “Yes, I get it. No check writing. I guess that’s something. I want to see what she looks like, Danielle.”

  My heart softened a bit. Even if I could meet with our daughter just once, that might be enough to get Heather to open up. Maybe our daughter will beg to see Daddy more, and Heather will eventually cave in.

  “I’m going to be sending you some pictures of her. So that won’t be an issue much longer. As far as being around your daughter right now, please listen when I tell you that Heather is adamantly against it. She’s not giving us any reasons, either. She just doesn’t want you to see her and, she is going to fight this until… It all goes back to the test. If you’re the child’s father, Heather doesn’t have a leg to stand on.”

  I gripped the phone harder in my hand so much that I thought it would break. None of it made any sense. Even though I’d been somewhat of a playboy over the years, a serial bachelor, I was still a good man. My daughter deserved to know where she came from, too.

  “I just can’t think of a single good reason why she’s doing this. I’m not a bad guy.”

  Danielle let out an audible sigh. “Of course you’re not, Richard. You’re a wonderful man who deserves to see his daughter. The only thing I can think of is retaliation over the breakup. You mentioned that she wanted you to change, right?”

  I nodded. “Yes, and I’m glad that I never did change for that woman.”

  “I am too,” my attorney replied. “Check the pictures, breathe deeply, and know we are going to work all of this out. Okay?”

  “Will do,” I said. “And thank you.”

  “You are more than welcome. We’ll talk soon.”

  After we hung up the phone, I ran my fingers through my hair and closed my eyes. One way or another, I was going to see my daughter.

  Then the phone rang again, and it was Annie.

  What a pleasant surprise.

  10

  Richard

  I got out of the shower and wrapped a
large, grey bath towel around my waist. It was almost time to pick up Annie for our date. We hadn’t agreed on an actual destination, so I decided to surprise her by taking her to a local Italian restaurant. Something told me that a health nut like her would enjoy a night of indulgence, whether it be their award-winning lasagna or their delectable Tiramisu.

  As I cleaned up the facial hair, I kept thinking about my daughter. Danielle said that she’d be sending pictures over to me, but so far, I hadn’t received any. Hell, I didn’t even know my daughter’s name. I saw my face grow red with anger in the mirror, so I exhaled deeply to try and calm myself down.

  I was about to go on a date with Annie, and there was no point in wasting energy by being angry with Heather.

  After I was satisfied with my reflection in the mirror, I walked into my bedroom and heard my phone go off. I nearly broke my neck racing over to get it, stubbing my toe on the edge of my bed. I quickly regained my composure and checked my incoming text messages.

  I had one from Danielle. “Meet your daughter, Addison!”

  I sat down on my side of the bed, forgetting the fact that I was still partially wet and stared at her picture. Holding back the tears, I ran my thumb over the screen - Addison was the spitting image of me.

  There was a picture of me at about the same age on the mantel at my parents’ house. Our facial features were so similar, especially our eyes. Her bone structure, and even her thick hair resembled me so much that I wanted to tell Danielle to forget about the DNA test. It would just be a waste of time.

  There was no doubt in my mind that I was her father. But I knew better than to suggest it because Danielle had already told me that would be a mistake.

  Just then, another text came in, and this time it was from Annie. “I can’t wait to see you!”

  Her excitement made me smile. If it weren’t for our upcoming date, I knew that I’d just spend the entire evening at home, staring at Addison’s picture while cursing Heather for keeping her from me. Even at that moment, as I thought about the past several years that I missed with my child, I found myself getting angry again.

  After replying to Annie, I put my phone back on the dresser and finished getting ready. I had wanted to go out with her ever since the night we slept together, and it was finally happening. I would only be letting Heather win if I spent our first date being upset. Plus, I kept thinking about what Danielle had said. There was no point in being so angry.

  One way or another, though, I’d find a way to see my daughter. When I finally did get to meet Addison, I didn’t want her first impression of me to be one of an angry man. I wanted her to see a kind, generous person who loved her very much and was eager to get to know her.

  That was an even bigger reason to let go of all that resentment.

  I decided on a black Armani suit that I paired with a red Oxford shirt underneath. After getting dressed, I remembered to put on some Black Polo cologne. The look on Annie’s face when she smelled it was so erotic.

  I made a mental note to always wear it around her.

  As I went through a few work emails before leaving to pick Annie up, I thought about telling Annie about the whole Heather situation. Just lay it all out there for her. After all, Annie and I had been friends for quite some time. We weren’t just two people who had drunken sex. We were going on an actual date to get to know each other better on an intimate level.

  We had a history together.

  I decided not to tell Annie about it until I knew more, though. As of that moment, I wasn’t sure what would come of the situation. Despite what Danielle had told me, I might be ordered to pay a large lump sum to Heather for some sort of trumped-up damages and still be forbidden from seeing Addison. I’d heard and read about such things happening. In which case, there’d be no reason to tell Annie at all.

  There were just far too many complications. Being a single guy was one thing, but being one with a child was another ballgame all together -- especially under the circumstances. Anna might suspect I had known about Addison all along but never admitted it to anyone, making me one hell of a jerk.

  I pulled up to her place right at eight o’clock, and she quickly came outside, looking as stunning as ever. Annie was wearing a red wrap dress that tied at the side, sheer black stockings, and a pair of black heels. It was quite different from her usual look, which was a bit on the hippy side with lots of loose blouses and casual pants.

  “Good evening, Richard,” she said after getting into the car. “I’ve never seen this car before. Is it new?”

  I owned several luxury cars, all of them vintage, and decided on a 1955 powder blue Cadillac.

  “It’s from the fifties, so technically no. But yes, I purchased it last month. What do you think?”

  She smiled and gave me a thumbs-up, glancing down in a flirtatious manner. My heart was beating so hard that I thought it'd jump out of my chest.

  Del Monaco’s Italian Restaurant was usually reservation-only, but they always made an exception for me. The hostess seated us at a private table in the back, far out of anyone’s view, which I appreciated since the place was fairly busy that night.

  In the back of my mind, I couldn’t help but wonder if Heather was also at the restaurant. She knew it was one of my favorite places to eat, though, and it was apparent that she was going out of her way to avoid seeing me.

  “Are you alright? You seem a bit distracted.” Annie had such a calm, collected voice that immediately put a smile on my face.

  As she glanced up at me from over the top of her menu, I contemplated telling her about Addison. Maybe it was best just to tell her, especially since I had vowed to see my daughter regardless of what Heather said.

  “I…”

  “Good evening.” Annie and I looked up at our server, who was standing there holding two bottles of wine.

  “Could we have a few more minutes, please? And we’ll take a bottle of your 1985 Jefferson Shiraz.” The server nodded and then left. “I’ve had shiraz on several occasions. You’ll love this brand and year.” I went back to reading my menu, deciding not to tell Annie after all.

  “Were you going to say something?”

  “I, uh, was going to suggest their lasagna. It’s won a few local food contests… But you probably already are aware of that.”

  Annie smiled and nodded, then went back to reading her menu.

  We spent the entire dinner talking about Jake and Julianna’s wedding, what they were probably doing on their honeymoon and some River Valley gossip.

  “Did you hear about the Johnson’s getting a divorce?”

  Annie nodded while sipping her wine. “I was just telling my dad about it. And you’re right. This wine is delicious.”

  “I’m surprised they’re getting divorced. Both the husband and wife were fooling around on each other. It sounds like they should just be in an open marriage.”

  Annie smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

  “Some people just don’t do well with commitment,” she said. I knew what she was suggesting.

  It didn’t surprise me that she was apprehensive about us dating each other. She had lived in River Valley her entire life. Annie knew the kind of life that I had and that I was a serial bachelor.

  “That can change over time, though.”

  “What do you mean?”

  I smiled as she looked at me; her eyes were brightening up. “Some people, you know, they’re afraid of being hurt. So, they decide to fool around and have consensual, sexual relationships. It’s a way of having your cake, but without fear of gaining any weight. If that makes any sense.”

  She laughed at my failed attempt to use a metaphor.

  “They have the intimacy without putting their trust in another person,” she said, once again using that soft, sensual voice that drove me wild.

  “Exactly. Not everyone who sleeps around is incapable of settling down one day. It just takes the right person.” I placed my hand over hers, and she immediately began to melt.

&nbs
p; It was like I’d just put a flame up to an ice statue. “That makes sense. It’s natural for humans to crave companionship, but that often comes at a price.”

  We spent the rest of the evening talking about our career goals. I knew that Annie wanted to have her own line of holistic foods and supplements. “So, tell me more about the health line that you want to start.”

  “Well, it’s a lot more complicated than I’d originally thought. Holistic health is my true calling in life, and it’s so much more than yoga. It’s about taking care of your body from the inside out.”

  I nodded. “Absolutely. I try to exercise every day, but I still feel like crap after eating a cheeseburger and fries.”

  She laughed. “Everything in moderation. I say excess in moderation.”

  “That’s an interesting phrase,” I said.

  “Between you and I, I don’t eat healthy all the time. It just doesn’t taste as good as, well, cheeseburgers and fries. In addition to supplements, I want to find a way to make healthy food taste like, well, junk food.”

  Annie discussed the various nutritional supplements she was interested in offering in her studio.

  “Will you be making anything for grey hair?”

  She laughed and shook her head. “Why on earth would you want to get rid of that gorgeous, sexy grey hair?”

  I could tell that she’d had a few too many glasses of shiraz, but she was also starting to open up to me.

  “I’ve heard that it shows my age,” I said, referring to some of her comments from the bachelor party.

  She rolled her eyes and finished off the glass of wine. I held out the bottle, and she gave me the go-ahead to fill it up.

  “I apologize for my ageist comment,” she said, smiling at me. “I didn’t realize that older men could be so appealing.”