The Roundabout

by Gerri Hill

  “By the way, my parents are coming into town tomorrow,” Megan said.

  “Oh, yeah? Do I get to meet them?”

  “Yes. Nancy is planning a Sunday afternoon party at our place. You’ll never guess what she wants to serve.”

  Leah laughed. “Hamburgers?”

  “Yes! Freakin’ hamburgers on the grill. She’s having Johnny season them up ahead of time so all she had to do is cook them.” Megan rolled toward to her. “And you’ll never believe this. Nancy and Mary Beth are sleeping together! I still can’t wrap my mind around it. It’s too creepy to think about.”

  “Well, they were quite chummy at our dinner party the other night.”

  “I know. So it wasn’t a complete shock…but still.”

  “Is she happy?”

  Megan nodded. “Yes, and that’s all that should matter, I know.”

  “Right.” Leah rolled to her back and pulled Megan with her. “And are you happy?”

  Megan’s expression turned serious. “I’m almost too happy,” she whispered. “If I happen to fall in love with you, would you please not break my heart?”

  Leah was the one who felt too happy. Years ago she had given up on finding someone to share her life with. She had resolved to be alone. She’d accepted it and was content. Hell, she was over fifty. At what point do you admit to yourself that you’re not going to meet the love of your life?

  But then something wonderful happened. A fiery, grumpy, beautiful young woman walked into her shop and threw a wadded up note in her face. She smiled, remembering their first encounter. She should have recognized it then. Megan had stolen her heart that very day.

  Leah reversed their positions, resting her weight on top of Megan now. “If you happen to fall in love with me, I wouldn’t dare break your heart.”

  “You promise?”

  Leah kissed her gently. “I so promise.”

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  “I’m surprised you can both be away from the grill at the same time,” her mother said.

  “On Sundays, lunch is the busiest,” Megan said. “I covered that while Nancy got things ready here. Eileen is handling dinner.”

  “She needs a raise, by the way,” Nancy said. “We’ve been relying on her for so much lately. It’s not like you and I are there constantly anymore.”

  “You’re not? Why?” their mother asked.

  “Oh…you know,” Megan said vaguely as she and Nancy exchanged glances.

  They had decided not to tell their mother about Leah and Mary Beth. At least not yet. Although since both Leah and Mary Beth were coming over, she didn’t think they’d be able to keep it from their mother. Megan was likely to turn into a puddle of goo when Leah got there, and God only knew what Nancy would do with Mary Beth.

  Her mother eyed them suspiciously. “You girls have been acting very strange,” she said. She turned her attention to Nancy. “And who’s this mysterious friend that you’re staying with? Not that I don’t appreciate your bed,” she added.

  Megan looked at Nancy with raised eyebrows. They had indeed flipped a coin to see who would give up their bed. Megan had lost, thus being forced to keep her bed and share the house with her parents. Nancy had done a fist pump and promptly packed clothes for a five-day stay with Mary Beth.

  “Nothing mysterious about her,” Nancy said. “She’s coming over later. You’ll get to see her then.” She handed their mother a knife and a tomato. “I could use a little help.”

  Their mother glanced at Megan. “There’s room for all three of us in the kitchen,” she said. “It’ll be like old times.”

  Megan held her hands up and backed away. “I don’t do kitchen prep.”

  “You own a restaurant, for God’s sake. Do you still make Nancy do kitchen duty?”

  “We’ve settled on a routine, yes.”

  “So you always get bar duty?”

  Megan smiled. “I’ve turned into a pretty good bartender, thank you very much.”

  She had just gone outside to sit with her father when the doorbell rang. She immediately felt her pulse quicken with nervousness as she went back inside to get the door. Would it be Leah? She hadn’t seen her since their afternoon together. Their parents had gotten there earlier on Friday than they’d expected and had simply stayed at the grill until closing. Yesterday, Saturday, it was too busy for her to even think about going over to Ruby’s for a visit. She had peeked over there a few times, though, and noticed that Leah had customers. She hoped she’d been as busy as they were at the grill.

  It was not Leah, however, at the door. It was Mary Beth, holding a bottle of wine. Megan stared at her for a few seconds. She looked different. Had she lost weight? Her hair had been trimmed, she knew that much.

  “Hello, Megan.”

  “Mary Beth,” she said in as friendly a tone as she could manage. “Come in.”

  “Am I early?”

  “No. Nancy’s in the kitchen,” she said, stepping aside to let Mary Beth enter. Mary Beth paused, as if she wanted to say something. Megan raised her eyebrows questioningly.

  “Well, I…” Mary Beth glanced toward the kitchen. “I need to apologize to you,” she said. “The whole Facebook thing.”

  “Do you mean for stripping me naked against my will and taking pictures of me? Or for actually posting those pictures?” she asked pointedly, glad to see Mary Beth look uncomfortable about the situation. It was about time.

  “Both, of course,” Mary Beth said. “I…I don’t have an excuse, other than stupidity.”

  “Nancy insisted that it was all in fun, but you and I know that wasn’t the case. Was it?”

  “No. As I said, it was a stupid attempt to get you to go out with me. I’m truly sorry. I’ve removed the photos, I’ve deleted them. I—”

  “The one you showed me on your phone?”

  “Yes, that too.”

  Megan narrowed her eyes. “And of course you’ve deleted them all from your memory as well?”

  “Oh, absolutely.”

  Megan finally smiled. “Thank you. I suppose Nancy had something to do with that?”

  “I told you before—sometimes love is right under your nose. I’ve been quite charmed by your sister. We’ve become close this last month, and I don’t only mean physically.”

  Megan held her hand up. “I don’t need details. And she seems very happy.”

  “We both are.”

  “Then we can say something good came of this.” She paused. “Actually, I suppose I should thank you, as crazy as that sounds. In a roundabout way, it was because of you that Leah and I started dating in the first place.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Oh, crap. Mary Beth didn’t need to know about their silly fake dating plan. No one needed to ever know about it! “I mean, I needed someone to talk to, someone to turn to,” she said, which wasn’t a lie. “I needed an ally. Nancy had become yours. Anyway, it brought Leah and me together. And as you said, we’ve become really close in the last month.” She grinned. “And I don’t just mean physically.”

  Mary Beth laughed. “Well, glad that crazy plan of mine helped push things along.” She shrugged. “So you forgive me?”

  Megan nodded. “I forgive you.” She pointed toward the kitchen. “Nancy’s in there with our mom.”

  Mary Beth held up the wine bottle. “This is actually for you and Leah. It’s that red zinfandel that you liked. Leah is coming, right?”

  “That was nice of you, thanks. And yes, she’s coming.” As if on cue, the doorbell rang.

  “I’ll drop this off in the kitchen,” Mary Beth said.

  Megan nodded, but her attention was already on the door. She opened it, finding Leah standing there. The dark shirt she was wearing made her eyes look smoky blue today. Megan fell into them as quickly as she fell into her arms. Had it only been two days since she’d seen her?

  Kissing someone on her front porch was a first for Megan, and she did temper her greeting somewhat because of that. However, the kiss was enou
gh to bring back all sorts of delicious memories, and she allowed herself to press tightly against Leah’s body.

  “I missed you,” Leah murmured into her ear as she held her close. “How many more days until your parents leave?”

  “Three more nights.” She pulled away, smiling. “I was planning an elaborate escape through my window and a quick jog down the hill to Ruby’s, but I decided it would be easier to simply tell them the truth.” She met Leah’s eyes, her voice lowering to nearly a whisper. “I want to sleep there tonight. I want to be with you.”

  Leah met her gaze, smiling. “I would love for you to sleep with me tonight. I’ll treat you to a special breakfast.”

  “You, naked in bed, is treat enough.”

  Leah laughed. “I’ll wear a sexy apron while I cook,” she tempted.

  “Oh, now that’s a visual,” Megan said. She linked arms with Leah and led her inside. “Come, meet my parents.”

  Chapter Forty

  “Isn’t she the one you called arrogant?”

  Megan nodded. “Yes.”

  “And annoying? And a bully?”

  “Yes.”

  “And the spawn of Satan?”

  “Yes, Mom.”

  “And now you’re dating?”

  “Well…it’s complicated.”

  “She’s very attractive. Mature. Polite. I only met Erin the one time,” she said. “She was an immature child. Cute, but a child. And of course you know how I felt about Tammi.”

  Megan held her hand up. “We don’t need to rehash my past failures, Mom.” Then she smiled. “I really like her though. I…I think I could fall in love with her.”

  Her mom hugged her quickly. “Honey, I saw the way you looked at her. I think you already have.”

  “It…it feels different. I feel different.”

  “You look different too. Happy. I haven’t seen you look happy in so long, Megan. It’s nice to see a spark in your eyes.”

  “Yes. Maybe that’s what feels different. I feel happy,” she said with a smile. And that was true. She felt like singing, like laughing, like dancing in the rain. “It feels good, Mom.”

  Her mother hugged her again. “Yes, it does.” When they pulled apart, her mother was smiling. “So…what’s with Nancy and Mary Beth?”

  Megan feigned ignorance. “What do you mean?”

  “Isn’t this the Mary Beth who was posting pictures of you?”

  “Yes, the same.”

  “Trying to blackmail you into a date, right?”

  Megan nodded. “Yes.”

  “So? What’s going on?”

  Megan shrugged. “They’re friends.”

  “Oh, please. Nancy is practically giddy.”

  Megan smiled. “Yes, she is. Scary, isn’t it?”

  “So they are dating?” her mother asked in a whisper.

  “I’m afraid so.”

  Her mother shook her head. “I’ll never be able to explain all of this to your father.”

  * * *

  Leah had just shoved a chip loaded with sour cream dip into her mouth when she saw Mrs. Phenix make her way over to her. She smiled apologetically as she chewed.

  “Sorry…I love sour cream and this dip is wonderful,” she said.

  “Thank you. It’s my secret recipe.” She leaned closer. “The girls have been badgering me for years to give it to them,” she said quietly. “If I did that, then they’d make it all the time and it would no longer be special.”

  Leah took another sample. “Shrimp, obviously. Cream cheese mixed with sour cream?”

  Mrs. Phenix nodded. “Yes. The girls have tried to duplicate it on their own, but they always miss one or two key ingredients.” She smiled. “I suppose one day I’ll have to give it up.”

  “Well, if I promise to keep it a secret, would you pass it on to me?”

  “Seeing as how you’re sleeping with my daughter, I’m not sure how many secrets there would be.”

  Leah was surprised at how easily that statement made her blush. She didn’t expect Mrs. Phenix to be that direct, although she shouldn’t have been surprised, not after knowing both Megan and Nancy.

  Mrs. Phenix laughed. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have been so blunt. Megan seems quite fond of you.”

  Leah nodded. “I hope so. Because I’m very fond of her.”

  “I assume you know about Tammi? And Erin?”

  “I know that they both cheated on her. Is that what you mean?”

  She nodded. “Yes. I don’t believe Megan was all that invested in Erin, but she and Tammi shared a house. Megan was devastated.” She leaned closer, her voice quiet. “Do you know about the fire?”

  Leah managed to suppress a smile. “Nancy mentioned it a while back, before Megan and I were dating.”

  Mrs. Phenix laughed. “And you still went out with Megan?”

  “Well, Nancy didn’t really go into details. Are you suggesting I need to get all the facts first?”

  She was surprised by Mrs. Phenix’s hand wrapping around her arm and squeezing tightly. “I think it’s too late for that, don’t you? Too late for both of you.”

  Leah met her gaze and nodded. “Yes. It is too late.”

  The hand slipped from her arm. “I could tell. Megan looks as happy as I’ve ever seen her.” Her expression turned serious. “May I offer a bit of advice?”

  “Please.”

  “Don’t keep secrets of any kind. Communication is the key to a successful relationship, Leah. Communication and honesty. There’ll always be disagreements, of course. That’s a given. And I’m sure you already know that Megan can be a little…well, difficult.”

  Leah laughed. “Difficult? Is that a nice way of saying temperamental?”

  “Let’s just hope you don’t do anything to cause her to start a fire and toss your belongings into it.” She laughed. “What a sight that was!”

  “Oh. My. God! Say you are not telling her about that!”

  They turned to find Megan glaring at them. Leah couldn’t hide her smile, and Mrs. Phenix waved her hand dismissively.

  “She has a right to know what will happen if she cheats on you, doesn’t she?”

  Megan covered her face with both hands. “Please say you didn’t tell her, Mother.”

  Mrs. Phenix glanced at Leah. “She only calls me Mother when I’m in trouble,” she murmured. Then she turned to Megan. “I didn’t tell her. Nancy did.”

  Megan’s eyes flew to Leah’s. “You already knew about it?”

  Leah nodded. “Yeah. I hear you made the paper.”

  Megan groaned. “I’ll kill her.”

  “I think it’s classic,” Leah said with a laugh. “How many people have thought about doing that?” She laughed again. “And on Halloween. I have an image of you in a witch’s costume, hauling her stuff outside and piling it on the fire.”

  Mrs. Phenix laughed too. “I still have the newspaper clipping.”

  “Mom…please,” Megan groaned.

  “Oh, the article was hilarious. Everyone was talking about it.”

  “Enough.” Megan grabbed Leah’s arm and led her away.

  Leah was surprised when they went past the kitchen and into the other side of the house. Megan opened a door and pulled Leah into a bedroom, closing the door behind them. Leah glanced around the room—the bed neatly made, the blinds open to let in the sun, the dresser impeccably tidy.

  “I…I should explain,” Megan said.

  “You don’t have to explain.”

  “You must think I’m a little nuts. I mean, the police—”

  “I know. The fire department and police both showed up. You made the paper. The neighbors thought you were crazy.”

  Megan stared at her. “I can’t believe she told you.”

  Leah smiled. “She did preface it by saying you’d kill her if you found out.”

  “I was…I was so angry, so humiliated. And she was laughing about it. Bragging about how long she’d gotten away with cheating on me. I…I snapped,” Megan said. “I started
throwing her things out on the lawn and we’re screaming at each other and yes, the neighbors were starting to gather.”

  “And the fire?”

  “We had those damn Tiki torches with the oil in them. They were hideous. If they’d been the wicker or bamboo or whatever it is, fine. But these were gaudy colored with faces painted on them. And if we lived near a beach, okay. Even a pool. But in a neighborhood in St. Louis?” Megan shook her head. “Anyway, I was glad to be rid of them. Tammi went berserk when the oil spilled out onto her clothes. And I guess I went berserk when I tossed a match on it.”

  “So she called the police?”

  “Yes. And a neighbor called the fire department.” Megan covered her face. “It was a mess. I was so embarrassed. I had to move. None of the neighbors would speak to me after that.”

  Leah moved closer, taking her hand. “You’re a passionate woman, Megan. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

  Megan met her gaze. “Passionate or not, I should have never set her things on fire. That’s really bothered me all these years. I tried to apologize, but she wouldn’t see me, wouldn’t talk to me.”

  “That’s when you left St. Louis and moved here?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, then I guess I should be happy you started the fire. We would never have met otherwise.”

  Megan finally smiled. “That’s the rationale we should use?”

  Leah nodded. “It works for me. And if you’re wondering if I think you’re dangerous or not…well, I think you’re very, very dangerous.” She pulled her closer. “For completely different reasons, of course.”

  Megan settled against her, wrapping her arms tightly around her waist. Leah sighed contentedly as they held each other.

  “Mary Beth apologized to me, by the way.”

  “Did she now?”

  Megan’s lips nibbled against her neck, causing Leah’s eyes to close. “She’s in love with my sister,” Megan murmured.

  Leah turned her head, finding Megan’s mouth. The gentleness of their kiss didn’t last long, not with their bodies pressed together like they were. One brush of Megan’s tongue against hers caused her own fire to start. When she felt Megan’s hands slide up to cup her breasts, she moaned and pulled Megan even closer to her.