Playing House

by Willsin Rowe

  “Hello? Hi, Gabs. Yeah, I can… sure, I’ll be… okay. See you…” He held the phone away from his ear and glared at the screen. “Soon…”

  My cheeks were feverishly hot, and it was impossibly to work out if it was from the oven, or from my embarrassment.

  “I, uh…” He coughed and started again. “I’m just going to pick Gabs up. I’ll see you… um, we’ll see you soon.”

  “Uh-huh.” He wasn’t getting any more than that from me at this point. If I stood up I’d fall down. If I looked at him, I’d jump into his arms. Girlfriend be damned.

  The moment the front door thumped closed I dropped to my hands and knees, searching for breath. Even that seemed too high a position for a would-be cheating whore like me, so I pushed my forehead to the floor, pondering what the hell just happened. I could have sworn Mark was about to kiss me. And the scariest part was I wouldn’t have had the strength to turn away.

  “Oh, I knew that man was trouble.” My voice was nothing but a ragged whisper. Nothing good could come from this afternoon. If I hated the girl on sight, then I’d be as jealous as hell that she was with this wonderful man. What’s worse, if I liked her, then nothing could ever happen between Mark and me. Even if they broke up.

  I hauled myself off the floor, plodding through to the living room to flop on the couch. Pulling out my phone once again, I dialed Toni’s number.

  “Hey again, Luce. What’s the word in the ’burbs?”

  “How well do you really know Mark?”

  “Oh, dear. What’s he done?”

  “Nothing. Well, nearly nothing. We had a moment.”

  The hiss of T’s breath was loud enough to have me pulling away from my phone. “Oh, I’m totally gonna need details here, babe. Was it a clean up that breadcrumb moment? Or a my god you’re perfect and I want to make babies with you moment?”

  “It was… it was somewhere in the middle.”

  “Luuuce...?”

  “Okay, it was more like the second one than the first.”

  Her squeal was loud enough I probably would have heard her without the phone. “Oh. My. God! You little tramp! I love it. I knew you two would—”

  “But what’s his deal with Gabrielle?”

  There was a long pause as she drew a slow breath in. “Hmm, let me think. Now, how do I say this?”

  “Just use whatever words feel—”

  “She’s a total skank. I can not stand the haughty bitch. She’s completely wrong for him in every way, she’s vapid and vain. And she’s just plain rude to everyone.”

  “Yeah, in your own time. I’m sure the words will come.”

  “Seriously, Luce. She comes wobbling in to work at least twice a week in her six-inch heels to drag Mark off to some stupid party or show with all the so-called beautiful people. She uses the ladies’ room nearest my desk to get changed, and let me tell you, the last thing you want to do is walk in while she’s in the middle of it. The woman has no shame. And apparently no underwear.”

  “Ew.”

  “Yep. I’ve seen more of her body than I have my own. Oh, plus she leaves all her stuff for Mark to deal with. The clothes she changes out of. His cubicle looks like a dry-cleaners half the time. He deserves so much better. I wish he’d dump her.”

  Not as much as I do, I bet. If I said it out loud, I’d only jinx the whole situation. “It’s his choice, though.”

  “Well, I hardly think that’s good enough. After all, you know better than most how many decisions guys make with the lower half of their body.”

  The sigh escaped me almost involuntarily. “He doesn’t seem like that kind of guy.”

  “Usually he’s not. But I guess not every relationship has to be meaningful. Maybe Gabrielle is kind of a bookmark for him between chapters of his life. Although, I think she’s more of a dog-ear.”

  “Stop it.” I glanced across at my book, as if it was somehow a good luck charm. “I love bookmarks.”

  “That’s why I used that example. Or how about this? Maybe she’s just a snack between meals. And now that delicious man is getting hungry for a far more substantial dish. A hot dinner.”

  “You’re a little weirder than I thought, T.”

  “And just to be clear, in this analogy, a hot dinner would be a direct reference to you, Luce.”

  I rolled my eyes at her, despite it being a voice call. “As if.”

  “You said you tongue-wrestled with him.”

  “I said nothing of the sort. We had a… a moment. That’s all. A connection that sparked and then faded.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Was this your plan all along, Toni?”

  “I seem to be losing you, babe. Are you still there?”

  “Toni!”

  “Call you later!”

  “Cow!” But she’d already disconnected the call.

  10

  Time passed like molasses as I waited for Mark’s return. It wouldn’t be easy while he had Gabrielle with him, but I wanted so badly to talk to him about that moment. If only to reassure myself I’d misread it, and it meant nothing. Just so we could put it behind us and laugh. As long as it didn’t mean he’d be moving out, I thought I could handle anything else.

  Of course, the other reason I needed him back was that I had no idea how to tell if the cake was finished cooking.

  The grumbling sound of Mark’s car pulling into the driveway sent me into a minor conniption. It was ridiculous how badly I needed to impress this Gabrielle woman. Maybe it was a throwback to school, and the dreaded Connie Müller.

  I pulled the front curtain aside just enough that I could peek through without being seen. The first thing my eyes took in was Mark’s beautiful butt as he opened the passenger door, holding out his hand to help Gabrielle.

  Then my stomach lurched as I saw her in the flesh. She looked like she’d climbed straight out of that magazine. Some part of me had hoped she’d been heavily airbrushed in the ad, but apparently she’d scored all the right genes, as well as a natural skill with fashion and makeup. She had great bones, and clearly knew exactly how to dress them.

  I struggled to think of any woman I’d ever seen who was more… perfect. Her platinum blonde hair seemed to have its own portable wind machine, the way it waved and cascaded down around her wide, lean shoulders. Her makeup was a touch heavy but served to accentuate the sharpness of her cheekbones and the straightness of her nose. She had the long, slender legs of a catwalk model and not an ounce of fat anywhere, by the look of it. Except maybe in her perfect, pouty lips.

  It was supposed to be lunch but there was no doubt it would be torture. Well, for me, at least. Maybe for her as well. And either way, I couldn’t imagine Mark was going to have the greatest time. For his sake, I figured I’d do my best to play nice. No matter how hard that might end up being.

  Another glance at her immaculate clothing reminded me how plainly I was dressed. There’d been enough time for me to get changed. It simply hadn’t crossed my mind. If only I’d put on something better than my usual form-fitting house clothes. Especially when my form was far less fitting than hers.

  Panic hit my chest as they walked up the path. I released the curtain and scurried to the sofa, only to realize a good hostess would be at the front door to greet them. But I didn’t want to be actually waiting right there as they arrived, because that would make me look desperate to make a good impression. Which I was, of course, but no way did I want her to know that.

  In the end, I swept into the kitchen and hoped it made me look as if I’d been too busy to think about the impending disaster.

  Mark opened the front door and by the sound of it, allowed Gabrielle to enter first. Little gentlemanly touches like that seemed ingrained in the man, and they spoke to the part of me that still fantasized about being someone’s princess. By the end of my relationship with Cameron, his idea of chiva
lry had been to stick his ass out his side of the blankets when he farted.

  “Lucy? We’re here.”

  Out of habit as much as nervousness I brushed back the customary stray lock of hair from my forehead, evoking delicious memories of when Mark had done exactly the same thing only a matter of minutes ago. For a moment I struggled to control my eyelids as they wavered between open and closed. All I could think of was the soft touch of his hand, and the molten look in his eyes. With a deep breath I pushed down the wanton lust I couldn’t afford to acknowledge, and had no right to feel. Walking out of the kitchen, I donned my very best meet-and-greet smile.

  “Lucy, this is my girlfriend, Gabrielle.”

  I held out my hand to shake hers, but she surprised me by swooping in, grasping my shoulders and giving me Hollywood air-kisses instead.

  “OMG! Super-delighted to meet you, Lori. Mark’s told me so much about you. Congratulations!”

  “For what?”

  “Your engagement. How romantic. You simply must show me the ring!” Gabrielle grasped my left hand and studied it. “Oh, dear. Has it been called off already?”

  I retrieved my hand from her clutches. “No, I think you have me confused with—”

  “I told Mark at first I was worried about him living with a girl.” She turned to address him directly. “But I feel so much better about it now that I’ve seen her.”

  Mark’s eyes jolted wide. “Wh-what did you say?”

  “Well, now I’ve met her I can see she’s… nice.”

  “That wasn’t what you—”

  “Oh, my gosh.” She spun slowly on the spot, scanning the house interior. “This is so much cuter than your old place, Mark. Of course, you were living with that terrible Jeremy and his ugly brother.” Gabrielle strolled straight past me and into the living room. “Lori’s handiwork, I assume?”

  “It’s Lucy,” he replied with a sigh. “And well, you know me. I’ve never put much thought into—”

  “You know, Javier says kitsch is the new fashionable, so you’ve really outdone yourself, Lucy.”

  Kitsch? Is that what my place looked like?

  “Oh, really? I wasn’t trying—”

  Gabrielle’s cell phone squealed with an ear-murdering blast of some very new and very annoying dance tune that seemed to be on every teenager’s phone this month.

  “Hello? Carolina! Dah-ling!” She looked around the living room, apparently not really seeing much. “No, nothing at all. Of course! I can be there in twenty minutes. Kiss, kiss!”

  Mark was still standing at the front door. He crossed his arms and frowned, looking straight at Gabrielle. “Uh, Gabs?”

  “Shh! Just texting Javier to see if he can meet us at Blazé. He has such an eye for fashion.”

  “What about lunch?”

  “I’ll get a salad from Salacious. They’re di-vine! And so cool right now.”

  “I meant that Lucy and I have prepared—”

  “Oh, Lucy. You wouldn’t want to come with us. It’s just boring fashion stuff. You know, cool clothes and high heels. Not your kind of thing at all.”

  She truly seemed not to have a clue what she was saying. Not in the sense of being brainless. More in the sense of being senseless. “No, of course,” I said. “If it ain’t kitsch, then I ain’t your bitch.”

  “That’s cute.” She swept out of the living room and up to Mark. With those long legs of hers it took only a few steps and even in stilettos she seemed to glide. She grabbed his tie and gave it a tug as she sashayed out the front door like a catwalk model. “Let’s go, handsome.”

  I couldn’t quite read Mark’s expression. He looked angry, but the redness in his cheeks hinted at embarrassment. He turned toward me but seemed to be focused only on my feet.

  Before he could speak, Gabrielle popped her head back in the door. “Sorry, how rude of me. Lovely to meet you, Lori. We must do this again sometime.”

  “I’ll talk to my agent.” She was gone before I’d even finished being a bitch to her.

  Mark coughed, but still seemed inordinately fascinated by the floor. A moment passed before he found his voice. “I’m sorry, Lucy. Normally she’s not—”

  He was interrupted by the blaring of his car horn.

  “Come on, Marky! Fashionably late is one thing. Really late is just mortifying.”

  He sighed and I bit back on my laughter. Truly, it wasn’t funny in the slightest. If anything it was almost tragic to see first hand what an utter bitch that girl was. But my tension needed to find a way out, and for me, nervous giggling was almost always the fall back. “You’d better go take care of that… Marky.”

  He speared me with those gorgeous brown eyes. “I know what you’re thinking.”

  “No, you don’t.” He couldn’t possibly know. Because I hadn’t even begun to try and work out what I was thinking.

  “Yes, I do. You’re thinking she’s a ditzy blonde with a tight body but otherwise no obvious redeeming qualities, whose vapidity is matched only by her self-absorption.”

  “Hmm. Well, my guess is someone’s thinking that.” Now he’d said the words, I realized that was exactly how I felt about her. Hell, I was dizzy and short of breath from the onslaught, and she’d been in my house a matter of ninety seconds. I had to wonder just how Mark kept up with her. The matter of why he did was pretty damn obvious.

  He shrugged again, looking suddenly like a schoolboy in trouble. “I guess it doesn’t matter.”

  For some reason, those few words cut me far deeper than any of Gabrielle’s ignorant behavior. I wanted to matter to him. Even if we couldn’t be together, what we already had was pretty damn good. He seemed to respect my opinions on basically everything, even if he didn’t agree with them. For him to dismiss my thoughts like that was a pain I truly didn’t need.

  He turned away from me and marched out as if to face the firing squad, closing the door gently behind him. Even over the roar of his car’s engine I could still hear Gabrielle giving him directions. Or orders, perhaps.

  From within the safety of my house, I flipped her the bird. Just to make sure of it, I used both hands. That way, any shrapnel from the impact could pepper Mark and his dismissive attitude.

  God, it was impossible to tell if that woman had a clue at all about other people. Everything Mark had told me still hadn’t prepared me for the experience. The weird thing was, he’d made this big song-and-dance about how easy she is to be with. That she’s basically uncomplicated and horny. Having just met her—albeit briefly—all I could think was that she seemed to be the epitome of high maintenance.

  Sure, for me to call someone high maintenance was a little rich, given how much Toni had always ribbed me about my quirks. One thing I could say was at least I did the maintenance myself. I didn’t swan about expecting others to cater to me.

  A bell rang in the kitchen, pulling me out of my scowling session. With nothing else to go on, I had to assume the bell was something to do with the cake. No way was I about to call Mark to find out what had to happen, so it was time to make an educated guess. Glancing in through the oven door, I could see the top of the cake was nice and brown. There hadn’t been any smoke yet, which I also assumed was a good thing. With no other ideas, I took the tin out, hoping that was what was supposed to be done.

  Turning the oven off, I poured myself a glass of red wine and wandered through to the living room. My whole day had been ruined by that woman. And for what? Two minutes of rudeness which ended up kind of making me mad at the guy I was lusting for. Or making him mad at me. It wasn’t clear to me how it all started, and until he came back it wouldn’t get any clearer. Maybe not even then.

  I couldn’t shake the hurt I felt at Mark’s words before he left. But even with that cut still fresh, and with him only leaving a few minutes ago, I couldn’t deny I missed him. He’d been living here only a matter of weeks, ye
t he left an enormous void whenever he was gone. Any night he actually stayed home with me had begun to feel like a wicked indulgence. For his conversation and company as much as for his chiseled demigod looks.

  All those long months of being single had taught me it was fine to be in my own company, mostly. Even before we broke up, Cameron had spent a lot of time away from home, doing any female with a pulse. At least, I assumed his tastes hadn’t wandered outside those two essential criteria. If they had, I definitely didn’t want to know. And when Toni lived here, she mostly slept over at Robert’s, even though she was paying me rent.

  So right at that moment, I felt a cold loneliness that was alien to me. With no brothers or sisters, time alone had been pretty much a constant theme all throughout my life. So what was going on here? What was it about Mark that made me miss him?

  Oh, no. You idiot! This is beyond simple lust. You’re actually falling for him!

  “The hell I am,” I muttered to myself.

  “What’s that?”

  “Crap on a cracker, Mark! Would you stop sneaking up on me? How do you even do that with the beast you drive?”

  “Parked up the street.”

  “Oh, are you still on the meter?”

  “Ha ha. No, not officially. Javier had his super-trendy Audi convertible. No need for Mark and his totes lame-o rust-bucket. But it wouldn’t be the first time she changed her plans. Gotta be ready at the drop of a name.”

  “Wine?”

  “Yes, she does a bit, doesn’t she?”

  I did a tiny double-take, and then a trusty burst of nervous giggling leapt straight from my throat. It seemed to work a little magic on Mark as well, coaxing a smile onto his lovely lips. “Sorry, that was beneath me.”

  There was only one thing I wanted beneath him at that moment, but I couldn’t see a way it would ever happen. So I would be, for all intents and purposes, the embodiment of Switzerland. Cool, efficient and neutral.