by Holly Jacobs
He glanced at Louisa. Too bad she didn’t look as excited as Aaron did.
He smiled. “Hey, lighten up. I promise not to embarrass you.”
“Why would you think I was worried about that?” she asked sharply.
Too sharply.
“If not that, then what? Because it doesn’t take a private eye to figure out that you’re nervous.”
She offered him a small smile.
“It’s a party, Lou. Nothing to fret about.”
“Easy for you to say. You went to parties since your childhood. Let’s just say that the Clancy family didn’t get invited to many.”
“Then you have some lost time to make up for.” He gave her a friendly elbow to the arm. “Smile. Have fun.”
She stretched her mouth to a bad impression of a smile. “How’s that?”
Joe shook his head. “You know you can be a bit difficult at times, don’t you?”
He didn’t have time to continue arguing with Louisa. Elmer and Mabel walked toward them.
“Have you seen Pearly yet?” Louisa asked them.
“Speak of the devil,” Elmer muttered. “Come on, Mabel, you can chat with Joe later. I see someone we have to talk to across the room.”
“Doesn’t he like Pearly?” Joe asked.
“Of course he does. It’s just that they had a fight last time over whether dark chocolate or milk chocolate was better. It got a little heated.”
“Which did Elmer like?” Joe asked.
“Dark. And—”
Pearly interrupted. “Joe, Louisa, you made it.”
“We’re here,” Louisa said, her fake smile in place.
Joe smiled and said, “Thanks for inviting me.”
“Our pleasure. Let me introduce you around.” Before she led him off she said to Louisa, “Nice hair.”
“Thanks. I found this terrific salon that does great cuts. Unfortunately the stylist is a bit bossy.”
“But smart. It’s the perfect cut.” She turned back to Joe. “Don’t you think?”
“Louisa looks beautiful,” he said, and was rewarded by seeing her blush.
“Now, stop flirting with your woman and come with me. There are people to meet. Lou, maybe you could go in the back and give Susan a hand with the pizzas?”
Louisa didn’t look as if she was sure she should leave him with Pearly, but finally she nodded and headed into the back.
“That girl’s wound tighter than my Aunt Via’s bobbins,” Pearly muttered as they both watched her work her way toward the diner’s kitchen door.
“She’s nervous.”
“She doesn’t like parties most of the time,” Pearly agreed. “We’ve dragged her to a few, but tonight is especially rough on her.”
“She’s afraid I’ll embarrass her,” Joe said, wondering just what Louisa thought he was going to do.
“No she’s not, you lug head. You got it turned around. She’s afraid she’ll embarrass you. She’s afraid that we’ll all see the two of you together and assume you’re a couple.”
“We are a couple…of sorts, at least.” Figuring out just what sort of couple they were was the puzzle.
“For how long?” Pearly asked.
“I’m not leaving.” He would never be the one to leave.
“No, I mean how long will you be satisfied with just an ‘of sorts’ relationship?”
He shrugged.
Pearly simply stared at him, and not sure why he felt compelled to answer her, he finally said, “I don’t know. But I don’t think Louisa and I can have anything more than an ‘of sorts’ relationship until we settle the past.”
“And she’s not in a hurry for that?” Pearly pressed.
“She’ll talk about Aaron, about the here and now, but when it comes to what happened, she seems to feel we’ve said all that needs to be said.”
“And you don’t?” Pearly asked.
“No. I mean I understand what she’s saying, and maybe I don’t know her like I once did, but I know there’s more. There’s something she’s not telling me.”
“Give her time. She knew a boy, a boy on the cusp of manhood. Let her get to know the man and learn that she can trust you. She’ll tell you what you need to know if you don’t rush things.”
“I’m trying. It’s just been hard.”
Pearly didn’t say anything. Didn’t offer up some story about relatives she left behind in the South. Instead, she gave his hand a quick squeeze and said, “Come on.”
Over the next half hour she introduced him to almost everyone in the room.
Joe realized early on that he would never manage to remember all the names and who worked where. But there were a few who stuck out.
He would remember meeting Libby and Josh Gardner. They had a new son. Seeing Libby holding the baby on her hips, Joe was hit again with a longing for all he’d missed.
He kept trying to put the past behind him, but it kept intruding, even now, at a party. He looked at the small boy and felt an intense wave of regret that he’d never known Aaron at that age.
“His name’s J.T.,” Libby said. “Joshua Taylor Gardner.”
“I say that’s an awful lot of name for something so small, so he’s simply J.T.,” Josh said.
The baby squealed. “He might be small, but he’s got a big set of lungs,” Libby said with a laugh. “Excuse me while I go see to His Majesty.”
“That was nothing. You should hear him when he’s really upset,” Josh said to Joe, but the man’s eyes were following his wife and son as they left the dining room. “Maybe I’d better see if she needs help.”
Josh stuck out his hand. “It’s nice to get to meet Aaron’s father. I hope we see you around.”
“You will,” Joe assured him as they shook.
Yes, Josh would be seeing him because Joe wasn’t going anywhere.
He scanned the crowd, looking for Aaron or Louisa.
Seeing the Gardners together, so happy, made him need to connect with them both, to reassure himself that they were there. But he didn’t need to go looking for them. Aaron came running over.
“Dad, Dad, this is my friend, Meg.” His hands gyrated as he made the introduction. “Do it like I taught you,” Aaron prompted.
“Hi. My name is J-O-E,” he fingerspelled, thought a moment and continued, “D-E-L-A-C-A-M-P.”
Slowly the dark-haired girl replied, “Hello. I’m M-E-G.”
She was older than Aaron, but still very much a little girl. She continued to sign, slowly.
“She said, did you see her baby brother?” Aaron translated.
Joe nodded.
He’d caught the sign for baby, mimicked it and fingerspelled, “C-U-T-E.”
She laughed and nodded.
Pearly called Joe.
Aaron heard her and said, “Better go, Dad. Pearly gets mad if you don’t listen.”
“I might not have known her that long, but I already know that annoying Pearly isn’t a good idea.” He laughed, then smiled at Meg, pointed to Pearly and waved goodbye as he headed back across the room.
“Joe Delacamp, this is our newest married couple, Donovan and Sarah,” Pearly introduced.
“Pleased to meet you,” he said.
“Where are you working on Perry Square?” Sarah asked.
“I don’t actually work on the Square. I’m an E.R. physician at the hospital.”
“He’s with Louisa,” Pearly added. “Over at The Chocolate Bar. They’re a couple. You know, love is in the air here on Perry Square.”
She paused a moment and said, “Wow, I’m such a poet. Do you think maybe the PSBA could do some advertising near Valentine’s Day and use that? Love is in the Air on Perry Square. Hey, I like that. What do you think, Joe?”
“Well, it does rhyme,” he answered.
Donovan laughed. “Joe, you’re the master of diplomacy. You sure you’re not a lawyer?”
“Positive,” he said.
“So, you and Louisa are together. That’s so romantic,” Sarah s
aid with a small sigh. “How long have you two been dating?”
Should he try to explain they weren’t really dating, or should he simply answer how long? How long? Would he count the fact he’d known her all her life, or count from the time they’d become a couple in school, or count from the time he’d rediscovered her in Erie?
He wasn’t sure how to answer, but before his silence could reach the embarrassing point, Louisa stepped out of the kitchen and waved at him.
“It was nice to meet you both, but I’m being called. Maybe we’ll have a chance to talk again later.”
He hurried over to Lou. “You saved me.”
“You were looking a bit desperate,” she said with a small laugh. “Since I know the feeling, and I know Pearly, I thought I’d rescue you.”
“My hero. Do I have to offer you a trinket to show my gratitude?” he teased.
“I figure I owe you more than just a rescue, now and then,” she answered with a smile, but there was a sense of seriousness in her eyes.
“Lighten up,” he said.
An older woman, whom Joe thought he’d met but couldn’t quite identify, started calling Louisa.
“So, do you still maintain that parties are fun?” she asked as she started toward the woman.
“When I’m with you,” he said simply.
She looked flustered by his answer. “I’d better see what Mrs. Wagner wants.”
She took off like a shot and Joe let her go, content for the moment to hide out in the corner where one could ask him awkward questions and from where he could simply watch Louisa as she moved around the room.
Despite the fact she claimed to dislike parties, she circulated from group to group, talking, laughing, animated.
The old Louisa would never have managed it. This new, adult version looked as if she was born to mingle, at least now that she’d warmed up a bit.
He watched how people smiled when she approached. This whole little community on Perry Square liked her, welcomed her.
Joe could certainly understand that. Being with Louisa again…well, sometimes it was easy to forget that eight years had gone by. It felt so natural…so right.
He scanned the room and saw that Aaron was still chattering away at Meg, trying out his newly learned signs. The girl laughed and corrected a few. He felt a sense of pride that Aaron was working so hard to communicate with Meg.
His son was a great kid. Lou had done a great job raising him on her own.
He scanned the crowd and found her again. She was standing with Elmer and Mabel, laughing at something.
“Have some pizza, boy, and stop mooning around, making gaga eyes at her,” Elmer called over to him
Pearly was at his side thrusting a plate at him. “Thanks. And for the record I wasn’t, nor have I ever, made gaga eyes at anyone.”
“You’re welcome, and you most certainly were making gaga eyes at Louisa.”
Pearly was quiet for a moment, and Joe took a big bite of his pizza.
“Does she know?” Pearly asked abruptly.
Joe tried to swallow, and started choking.
“Know what?” he asked when he got his breath back.
“How you feel?”
“Of course she does. We’re becoming friends again. We have a son together and are working together for his benefit.”
Pearly snorted.
Then started chuckling.
And soon that gave way to out-and-out laughter.
“Ah, so she doesn’t know,” she said when her bout of hilarity had died down. “After all, if you’re not admitting how you feel to yourself, then how are you going to admit it to her? You might want to rethink that, though. You let her slip away once before and don’t want to let her get away again.”
“She’s not going anywhere.”
Joe was sure of that. She wouldn’t walk out on him again. She wouldn’t do that to him, or to their son.
“Not physically, but you both made mistakes before by not being honest about your feelings, about your fears. You can’t make that same mistake again—letting your fears keep you from saying what needs to be said.”
He wasn’t afraid of anything and started to tell Pearly that, “I—”
But she cut him off. “How about I volunteer to take Aaron tomorrow? I’ll take him to lunch and a movie.”
“Why—”
“Why would I do that? Well, I don’t have any other man beating down my door, so I guess poor Aaron will have to do. That, and because I think his mom and dad could use some time alone together.”
“Pearly, you’re trying to matchmake,” he accused.
She just grinned, looking terribly pleased with herself. “Sure I am. And I’m pretty good at it, if I do say so myself. Why, I practically threw Josh and Libby together. And it was one of my stories that pushed Sarah and Donovan together. Heck, if I ever give up doin’ hair, I could hang out a matchmaking sign.”
“You may be disappointed if you’re counting on Louisa and me.” There was so much history and baggage between them. He just wasn’t sure if they could move past it all.
“I disagree. I’d say you and Louisa are a pretty safe bet.”
“I—”
Pearly interrupted yet again. “Did I ever tell you about Fanny Mae and Milton?”
Joe smiled. She was obviously as addicted to storytelling as Louisa had said.
“Just the other day,” he reminded her.
“Well, let’s just say that what you and Louisa have is as clear as Milton’s warty nose was to everyone.”
“Pearly—”
“Just tell Louisa I’m taking the boy tomorrow. I’ll be there at eleven,” she said, and started to walk away.
“What if she has plans?” he asked.
Pearly turned around and winked. “She does. With you. She just doesn’t know it yet.”
Louisa was bustling around the kitchen the next morning. She’d survived the party…barely.
Being around that many people in a social environment wore her out, though she did just fine at work.
Joe had crawled out of bed much earlier than most days. He looked more than a bit rough around the edges.
“Hey, Aaron,” he said as he sipped some coffee, “Pearly wanted to know if you’d like to spend the day with her?”
Louisa turned around, ready to protest, but before she could, Aaron said, “Oh, cool. When’s she coming?”
Joe glanced at his watch. “I think she said eleven.”
“Man, I better get dressed. That’s in just a few minutes,” Aaron cried, already halfway down the hall before Louisa could protest.
She kept smiling until Aaron was out of sight. The moment he was gone, she let the fake upturn of her lips slip. “Joe, you can’t just go making decisions about Aaron without talking to me first.”
He set down his coffee mug with a loud clunk. “Do you consult me about every decision you make about him?”
“No, of course not,” she said. “But that’s different.”
“How?” He sounded almost annoyed, which made no sense since she was the one who was annoyed.
“It’s different because I’m his mother. You have to ask—”
“And I’m his father,” Joe interrupted.
“Yes, but…” She couldn’t think of a convincing argument to that. She was shut down before she even started.
Joe was right, he was Aaron’s father. They might not have a formal agreement, but their arrangement constituted a joint custody, of sorts.
“You didn’t have any plans, did you?” he asked softly.
“No,” she admitted.
She took a huge gulp of her own coffee and felt the scalding liquid sear her throat the whole way down.
“You trust Pearly, right?” he pressed.
“Yes,” she admitted.
“So, what’s the problem?”
“Nothing.” She hated that he was right. She had no cause to be annoyed. She’d made decisions for Aaron without consulting Joe.
�
�You’re right.” She punctuated the admission with a huge sigh. “We’re both going to have to be careful to consult each other. I’m just used to doing things on my own. I have to adjust to consulting someone else.”
“And I’m not used to this whole father business, so you’ll just have to give me a chance to settle in.”
“Deal.”
She raised her coffee mug in a mock toast, and Joe clinked his against it.
She took a more cautious sip this time.
“Since Aaron’s leaving soon, and you already admitted you didn’t have any plans, I wondered if you’d like to do something?”
She choked on the coffee.
“What?” she asked, setting the cup down with a loud clunk, sure that she’d heard him wrong. It almost sounded as if he was asking for a date.
“I don’t know. Just something. Together. With me.”
“I—”
Before she could come up with an argument, he added, “Please?”
Any attempt to get out of doing something with him would sound churlish after that. “Fine,” she said.
“Oh, don’t gush so much, Lou. You’re going to give me a swollen head.”
She laughed, despite the fact she didn’t want to. “I’d be too late. Your head’s already way too big. It always was.”
He was still sputtering at her teasing insult when she asked, “So what do you have in mind?”
“Just leave it to me,” he said.
He was grinning a grin that left Louisa wondering if leaving it to him was wise.
And a small part of her didn’t care.
She was spending a day with Joe.
That was enough.
Joe bided his time, finished his breakfast, then walked slowly down the stairs to Elmer’s, at which point he hurried because he was feeling quite desperate.
“Elmer, I need help,” he said as he rushed into the downstairs living room.
He’d pretended to have an idea about what to do with Louisa, but in truth he didn’t have a clue.
“I’ll say you need help,” Elmer muttered, but a hint of a smile softened the statement.
They weren’t exactly friends, but over the past weeks had begun to build a foundation that might someday lead to a friendship.
Oh, Joe didn’t delude himself.
If he in any way hurt Louisa or Aaron, Elmer would turn on him. But since he didn’t plan on hurting either of them, he felt rather confident that the friendship they were building would last.
