Walking the Dog

by Gail Sattler

  He threw his arms up in the air. “Okay. Most Friday nights! Happy?”

  Actually, it didn’t make her happy. It made her feel like a shrew for making him admit it out loud.

  “I’m not going out to play volleyball with a bunch of kids. I want to do an adult thing. With you.”

  “Edwin, the kids aren’t allowed. This is a late-night thing. It starts at nine.”

  “No kids? Like, none? At all?”

  Finally. It was about time she got through to him. “No kids, no teenagers. This is a young adult thing, for college and careers, and it’s a lot of fun. There’s been times I’ve turned down other things because I wanted to go play volleyball.” Unable to hold herself back, she strode across the room, stopped inches in front of him, then touched his nose with her forefinger. “Know what? I think you’re chicken.”

  In a flash, Edwin grabbed her wrist, holding it in front of him. “Me? I’m not chicken.” His pouty expression changed to a sly grin. “Just scared to death of making a fool of myself.”

  She smiled, but when his thumb started to massage the underside of her wrist, she yanked her hand away, and moved back a step. “There’s a difference?”

  The way his expression changed, Doreen didn’t dare to ask what the difference was. Instead, she ignored him.

  “You can’t possibly be any worse than I am. But I just go to have fun. You’ll at least have a nice time, and maybe get to meet some new friends.”

  She glanced up at the clock, then back to Edwin, still stretched out comfortably on her couch. “It doesn’t start for an hour. What do you want to do?”

  His gaze drifted to her mouth, and his eyes lost their twinkle. As he continued to watch her mouth, Doreen nearly broke out into a cold sweat. “We could go out for coffee,” she managed to say in a voice too squeaky to be her own.

  “Does that offer include dessert?”

  “As long as you’re buying.”

  His eyes finally met hers. His mouth opened as if he were going to reply, but the phone rang, cutting him off. She wasn’t sure she wanted to hear what he was going to say.

  She tried not to fumble with the phone as she picked it up and answered.

  “Oh, hello, Frank. How are you?” She could feel Edwin’s eyes digging into her back. She tried to be as brief as possible without being rude. When she finally hung up, her initial impression was correct. Edwin stood across the room, leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest, his mouth drawn to a tight line. This time he wasn’t giving her a playful pout. This time he meant it.

  “Who was that?” he asked.

  “That was Frank.”

  “Frank who?”

  “Would it matter, Edwin? You wouldn’t know him anyway.”

  “What did he want?”

  “He wanted to know if I was busy tonight, but I told him I was. Okay?” She didn’t want to tell him that Frank was a business client, and he was asking if she could meet him at a breeder’s to help select a puppy for a friend. Judging from Edwin’s behavior, he looked like he might be a little jealous. Not that it made a difference, there was nothing between them anyway.

  “Do you see him often?”

  She couldn’t believe he had the nerve to ask, but by reflex she answered. “No, I hardly ever see him.” She saw him once a month when he paid his bill.

  “Good,” Edwin mumbled under his breath. “Let’s go. And can we take my car?”

  nine

  As they drove into the dark church parking lot, Doreen recognized a number of the cars, and knew instantly that Edwin would be glad he came tonight.

  Walking toward the door with Edwin in tow, Doreen opened her mouth to tell him to stop acting so nervous, but the sudden blast of a car horn beside her nearly sent her into cardiac arrest.

  Startled, she screamed and jumped, bumping into Edwin, landing in his arms. Her heart pounded, but she wasn’t sure if it was due to fear or proximity. Standing frozen, their eyes locked as his hands settled around her waist. No words were spoken as he neither pushed her away nor removed his hands. Doreen forced herself to breathe. She liked the feel of his arms around her, although she knew she shouldn’t.

  “Hi, Doreen!” a male voice called out from the car window as it sped into a parking space and screeched to a halt.

  Slowly and awkwardly, Doreen disengaged herself from Edwin’s grasp, pushed her hair off her brow, then tugged at the hem of her sweater in a futile attempt to calm her shattered nerves.

  Edwin stared at the car as the taillights went out. “Who was that?” he demanded, both annoyed at the ignoramus who had just scared them half to death, and amazed at the sensation of touching Doreen, even if only for a fleeting minute.

  In the dim lights of the parking lot, he could see a slight tremor in Doreen’s fingers as she toyed with her hair. She sucked in a deep breath, then averted her head. “That’s Blair. And if my guess is correct, then Gary will be with him. Come on, I think you’ll like them, even after that bad first impression.”

  As they neared the car, true to her guess, two men got out. Both were tall and in their early twenties, although it was hard to tell if they were good looking in the dark. Edwin wondered why he cared. Doreen was with him tonight.

  “Hi, Doll!” the driver called as he waved. “Who’s your friend? Want to lose him and come away with me instead?”

  Edwin instantly disliked him.

  “Hi, Blair,” Doreen responded, her voice sounding like Eeyore with her drop in tone. “Dream on.”

  Both men approached, the passenger holding out his hand to Edwin when they were face-to-face. “Hi, I’m Gary, and the rude guy behind me is Blair.”

  Doreen rested one hand on Edwin’s arm. “Gary, this is my friend Edwin.”

  “Hi,” Edwin said cautiously, shaking hands with both of them, wondering about Doreen’s definition of a friend.

  A few more cars pulled into the lot as the four of them headed for the building together. Blair’s head turned with each new car entering the lot. “Looks like a good crowd tonight. I can hardly wait to get started. I had to miss the last few weeks, and I think I’m getting a little soft. Want to check my muscles, Doreen, and tell me what you think?” He grinned and wiggled his eyebrows at Doreen.

  Edwin wanted to punch Blair in the nose.

  “Forget it, Blair. Go find someone who wants to be impressed.”

  Blair elbowed Edwin in the ribs, making Edwin wince. He gritted his teeth. He would not make a scene.

  “Can’t blame a guy for trying, eh, Eddie?”

  “The name’s Edwin.”

  Blair ignored him and walked faster, his eye on another woman, leaving the group behind. But at least he left Doreen alone.

  Doreen shook her head. “Why do you hang around with that loudmouth, Gary?”

  Gary snickered. “Hey, someday my dear brother might turn into a decent human being, and maybe someone will want him.”

  Edwin blinked and tried not to let either Gary or Doreen see him shift his gaze back and forth between the two men. Brothers? In the brief few minutes since they had been introduced, he could plainly see that Blair and Gary were total opposites. Edwin didn’t have a brother, and wondered what it would be like.

  As they entered the building, he followed Doreen around a couple of corners and down the hall until he found himself in a small gymnasium.

  “This is a church, isn’t it?” Two volleyball nets stretched above the polished floor, and echoing thuds of bouncing balls resounded off the ceiling. He shook his head. A gym as part of a church? He had never seen anything like it.

  Someone tossed a volleyball to Doreen from the open doorway. Bouncing it, she turned her head toward Edwin. “There’s more to church than Sunday morning, you know.”

  “Hi, Doreen!” someone called, but because of the echo, he couldn’t tell where the voice originated. Most of the people in attendance were male, most of them in shorts, and a good number of them started that male strut to impress as soon as they notice
d Doreen walk in. Edwin fought the urge to put his arm around her and swiped the volleyball instead. Today, he wore jeans, because of all the things he imagined doing with Doreen on a Friday night, meeting a bunch of people in a church gymnasium hadn’t even come close. At least he hadn’t worn a tie. Next time he would dress more appropriately. He nearly missed the ball as he bounced it. Next time?

  Another young man approached them. “Good to see you; missed you on Sunday.”

  Doreen blushed. “I was busy on Sunday.” She turned to introduce them. “Dwayne, this is Edwin.”

  Edwin shook Dwayne’s hand. Another friend?

  “Everyone’s ready to pick teams.” Dwayne motioned his hand for them to follow. “Let’s go!” He turned and joined the gathering circle.

  Doreen stayed close to Edwin as the group divided into four teams, getting ready to play. Everyone respected her unspoken signal to be on the same team as Edwin. He appeared a little out of place, which was perfectly understandable, so she decided to stay close to him until he became more accustomed to the routine.

  The volleyball games started, all participants doing very little talking and a lot of laughing. Edwin warmed to the crowd quickly, and true to his sociable nature, found his niche. Doreen noticed, however, that a number of the men who tried to impress her on a regular basis kept an eye on Edwin, as if trying to figure out their relationship. Doreen ignored them as she participated in the game.

  Her team won, pitting them against the winner of the game in the other court. Everyone waited in line at the water fountain for the other game to finish, pausing to chat and joke around.

  She stood aside to watch a few of the others banter with Edwin. Their effort to include her friend, even though he was a newcomer, warmed her heart.

  When the game on the other court finished, they broke up for a few minutes to allow the others to grab a drink, and soon they were back at it, vying for the “championship.” Usually, if the games ended early enough, the “champs” bought donuts.

  After more hard play, the other team won, but the night was still young, and catcalls of challenge and rematch resounded, resulting in regrouping and another match.

  Exhausted but happy, they decided to pack it in just after midnight. Balls bounced off the walls, floors, and a few heads as everyone packed up the nets and balls for the night.

  As Edwin helped stack the poles in the storage room, Doreen waited at the water fountain. She turned when she heard Gary’s voice behind her.

  “Whew,” he said in a rush of air, wiping his sleeve on his forehead and pushing his hair back with his hand. “Good game. It always surprises me that someone as short as you can jump so high.”

  Gary stood in front of her, towering above her small frame. You’re six-foot-three. Everyone is short compared to you.”

  A loud series of clangs from the supply room drowned out her reply. “What?” he shouted.

  Another array of noise, followed by shouting then gales of laughter completely obliterated her attempt to repeat herself.

  Gary smiled and jerked his head toward the open door, then reached for her hand and led her to continue their conversation in the corridor.

  Glancing once over her shoulder for Edwin, Doreen convinced herself that if he ever made it out of the storage room he surely would come find her, so she allowed Gary to escort her out of the gym.

  She had known Gary for a long time, having dated him off and on for the past year or so. But, as nice as he was, she had never developed anything more than a friendship as a Christian sister with him. Gary, on the other hand, had a huge crush on her which had not yet been cured, even though she did nothing to encourage him.

  As often happened, Gary seemed to be shadowing her all evening, pouncing on the opportunity to chat with her whenever she was alone. Even though he had seen her arrive with Edwin, Gary continued to follow her around. While she found it flattering, she did not want to encourage him when she did not feel the same way. She chatted and joked with him for a while, constantly checking over his shoulder, looking for Edwin.

  Finally, unable to stifle a yawn, she tried to excuse herself to find Edwin and go home.

  “Sure, Doreen.” Gary nodded slowly, then his voice dropped in pitch. “See you Sunday.” Before she realized what was happening, he leaned down and brushed a kiss on her cheek and quickly turned and walked away. One hand shot up to cover the cheek he had kissed. She froze, stunned by the unexpected and unsolicited gesture, trying to decide if she should rebuke him for it.

  She turned to say something before he disappeared around the corner, but as she turned, the first person she saw was Edwin. Her mouth dropped open, and she whisked her hand behind her back, then to her side. She had nothing to hide. She’d done nothing.

  Edwin glared as he strode toward her, his steps uncharacteristically determined. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that he had seen everything. It also didn’t take much to see that Edwin was not happy.

  “Who is that guy?” he demanded, standing with his feet braced apart and arms folded stiffly across his chest. He turned his head slightly to glare icicles as Gary disappeared down the corridor, then glared back at her.

  Doreen blinked at his affront. “What guy?” she asked, stalling to gain some time.

  “You know very well what guy. Him!” Edwin jerked his head in the direction of Gary’s departure, flopping a lock of damp hair into the center of his forehead. He didn’t bother to swish it back.

  “That’s Gary. You met him in the parking lot.”

  His eyes narrowed. “Very funny, Doreen. You know what I mean. Who is he?”

  Doreen stiffened. “He’s a friend.”

  “What kind of friend?” Edwin demanded, his head lowered almost imperceptibly. “I’ve never heard you mention his name before.”

  “He’s a good friend. I’ve known him since we were kids.”

  “You dating him?”

  “We’ve gone out a few times,” she answered honestly, then clamped her lips closed. Why was she allowing him to badger her like this? Who she saw and what she did was none of Edwin’s business.

  “So you have been out with him. Why won’t you go out with me?”

  “That’s different,” she mumbled. Gary had been born and raised a Christian, like she had, but Edwin had not. At that second, she made up her mind. She would not get involved with Edwin while he was maturing in his faith. Besides, she’d known Gary almost all her life. Gary was safe.

  “What’s he got that I ain’t got?”

  “I beg your pardon?” Doreen tipped her head to one side. If she didn’t know better, she might think that Edwin was jealous.

  He bored into her eyes. “What’s he like? Describe him.”

  “Gary? Well, he’s intelligent.”

  “E = mc2.” Edwin squared his shoulders, then resettled his arms in their crossed position. “Keep going.”

  Doreen bit back a smile. Even angry, Edwin couldn’t be serious if his life depended on it.

  She thought a little more about Gary. As nice as he was, there was nothing about him that excited her, so she decided to state the obvious. “He’s good-looking.”

  Edwin straightened his posture and stiffened, making him appear taller, at the same time he tried to push his messy hair into place.

  “Not as good as me.” He raised one eyebrow and tipped up one corner of his mouth slightly, no doubt an attempt to look macho. “I’m tall, dark, and handsome. Ask my mother, I’m good-looking like my dad.” He stood, waiting for her to continue.

  Doreen smiled. Gary was the tallest person she knew. However, except for the fact that she had never seen Edwin’s father, she had no argument about the handsome part, in a boyish sort of way. “He comes from a nice family,” she continued, baiting him further.

  “So do I. You can meet my folks anytime. Just don’t ask about Great-Aunt Ethyl. Keep going.”

  All joking aside, she couldn’t help but feel Edwin’s competitive edge. “Edwin! What is wit
h you?” she asked, tapping her foot and placing her hands on her hips.

  Edwin ignored her. He shuffled his feet wider apart. “What’s he like? What’s so good about him?” His intimidating stance betrayed the light tone of his voice.

  Doreen started to grasp at straws. “He’s stable and dependable.”

  “So am I. I have a good job, I like it, my boss likes me, money’s not bad. Keep going.”

  “He has a nice home.”

  “My house is nice. I even have a good watchdog.”

  Doreen tried not to laugh out loud. She couldn’t stand it anymore. “The part about the good watchdog is debatable.”

  “Never mind. Keep going. What’s so good about this Gary guy?”

  She couldn’t believe it. Edwin was jealous. “We go to the same church, he’s a fellow believer, and I’ve known him almost all my life.”

  “I’ve been to your church,” he countered, “and even though I’ve only been once, and even though I still have a few things to figure and work out, I’m not a total heathen. And I think we’re getting to know each other pretty well.”

  She stared in silence. This guy is unbelievable.

  “Well?” he asked, lifting his chin slightly, giving him more of an arrogant, aloof appearance, and making her feel shorter.

  Doreen looked up. His brown eyes flashed in the bright overhead light of the corridor. “Well, what? What do you want out of me, Edwin?”

  In one quick movement, Edwin stepped so close their toes touched. “This,” he whispered. Without warning, the fingers of his right hand tipped her chin up, and his left arm circled around her back, pulling her body against his. Slowly, he lowered his head and kissed her gently and tenderly, oblivious to anyone who might have walked by the corridor. Too shocked to protest, as he continued to kiss her, she suddenly decided she didn’t want to protest. When they finally separated from what turned out to be a beautiful and sensuous long kiss, Doreen stood breathless.

  Taking one step back from him, she had to concentrate on where they were before she could speak. Not only had she allowed him to kiss her when anyone could have walked by, she had thoroughly kissed him back.