by Peggy Webb
He gave her a reckless grin, hoping it covered his true feelings. “Well, thanks for the cookies, Doc. And for the lesson.”
“Any time, Coach.”
She watched him leave the kitchen. His footsteps were loud on the tile floor, then muffled as he walked over her rug. Finally she heard the front door close behind him.
Oh help.
Janet grabbed her laptop and fired off an email.
From: Janet
To: Joanna, Molly, Bea, Belinda, Clemmie, Catherine
Re: Me and my mouth
If I ever tell any of you what to do again, just shoot me. Good lord, Dan Albany has turned me upside down. First, I’m determined to outwit and outdo him at every turn, and then he shows up on my doorstep and I melt like some wimpy heroine in a Lifetime TV movie. I even tried to make cookies! They were awful. Why can’t men be as uncomplicated as a frog under a microscope?
Janet
From: Joanna
To: Janet, Bea, Molly, Clementine, Catherine, Belinda
Re: Fairy Tales
You ought to read fewer medical books and watch more fairy tales. Don’t you know that a frog can turn into a prince!!! This is SO EXCITING!!!!
Joanna
From: Catherine
To: Janet, Bea, Molly, Joanna, Clementine, Belinda
Re: TV movies
OMG, if he came to your apartment and turned you upside down, he kissed you! On a scale of one to ten, how good is he? Don’t settle for anything less than an 8! By the way, I like those Lifetime TV movies!
Cat
From: Molly
To: Janet, Joanna, Bea, Catherine, Clementine, Belinda
Re: Daddy
Janet, you have got to find out about Daddy’s woman on Match.com! I know you’ve got Dan Albany on the brain, but I know you can handle him. Good grief, you can handle anything! But I think Daddy may be getting serious over some perfect stranger. I mean, at first, I thought it was cute. And harmless! But he keeps dropping hints. It’s not like Daddy not to come right out and say what he means. I wonder if this mystery woman has a criminal record. She could be one of those women in prison who takes advantage of a lonely man. I’m about to DIE!
Molly
From: Clemmie
To: Janet, Molly, Joanna, Bea, Belinda, Catherine
Re: Cookies
Janet, don’t give up on making cookies. Once you get the hang of it, it can be very soothing. I think you need to jump into your car and come to Peppertown so we can sit in the gazebo and just breathe! And Molly, don’t worry. Your daddy is too smart to take up with a bank robber or something, even if she is reformed.
Clemmie
From: Belinda
To: Janet, Molly, Joanna, Bea, Clementine, Catherine
Re: Airport
At the airport. Got to catch the plane. Talk soon.
Belinda
From: Bea
To: Janet, Molly, Joanna, Belinda, Clementin, Catherine
Re: Good God!
Just chill, Molly! With Mr. Jed’s looks, he’s going to attract class! And Janet, I’ve never seen you get your panties in such a wad. This Dan Albany must be hot!!! You need to just stop listening to your brain and start listening to your Virgina! Good God, if mine ever starts talking to me, I’m heading to the nearest Victoria’s Secret store for black lace! Now, go get ‘em, cowgirl! Yee Haw!!!
Bea
Chapter Six
On Monday, Janet blamed her bad day at the hospital on Bea. Every time Janet read somebody’s temperature, she thought about a certain sexy coach and got so hot she figured her own temp shot up twenty degrees. That’s what she got for letting Virgina take over!
She was glad when her shift was finally finished. Sighing, she headed home. It was far too late to visit Harvey, but maybe she’d visit Mr. Jed. Molly needed help, and that ought to take her mind off Dan Albany.
Molly’s dad usually watched out the window for her, and then cracked his door open to ask about her day. Tonight, though, she had to punch his buzzer three times before he answered. She was already having visions of getting the landlady and finding him inside with a heart attack.
When he finally came to the door, he was wearing rumpled striped pajamas and a big, self-satisfied grin. “Land sakes, Janet. What brings you over so late?”
“I got worried when I didn’t see your smiling face. Are you all right?”
“I’m better than all right, my dear.” He moved a copy of the Daily Journal off his sofa. “Sit down and have a cup of hot chocolate with me. I was just getting ready to make some.”
“Can I help you?”
“Don’t mind if you do. I always enjoy the company of a woman in the kitchen.”
She followed him into a kitchen as familiar with as her own and got cups from the cupboard while he got the mix they both loved, Hershey’s with miniature marshmallows.
“Mr. Jed, you should find a good woman. What about that nice widow who sings in choir?”
“The one who can’t keep her eyes off of me?”
“Yes. That’s the one.”
“Shoot, Janet. I’ve found somebody better than that on Match.com.”
He winked, then went to a little desk in the corner of his kitchen and picked up a handful of letters. “Look at this. She even writes letters. That’s a dying art, Janet, and a true measure of class.”
If she were reckless like Molly or Joanna, or even bossy like Bea, Janet would have leaned close enough to read the return address. Being merely opinionated, Janet refrained from spying.
“I agree, Mr. Jed. I’d love to meet her.”
“So would Molly.” He returned the letters to a desk drawer, then handed her a steaming mug of chocolate and a linen napkin. “Both of you are going to be very surprised.”
“Surprises are not always good.”
“This one is. And I can guarantee you and Molly will approve. In fact, I can guarantee that all you girls will love her.”
“Then why wait? We’d all love to help you celebrate, especially Molly.”
“I’m selfish enough to want to keep the lady all to myself for a while.” He took her elbow and led her back to the den. “Did I see that big handsome fellow on your doorstep last night?”
“Yes. Dan Albany.”
“Is that the one you were baking cookies for?”
“Yes.”
He chuckled and plucked a piece of paper off his desk. “I don’t think we’ll be needing this, after all.”
“What is that?”
Grinning, he held it out to her. It was a typewritten ad, addressed to Match.com: “Young, beautiful female doctor looking for handsome companion. Must be intelligent, educated, industrious, but above all warm, fun-loving, tender and passionate. Please hurry.”
Janet slowly lowered the paper. “You wouldn’t have.”
He chuckled. “I wouldn’t have put in online, but I was going to suggest that you use it. What are friends for if not to help each other?”
Laughing, she hugged him. “Mr. Jed, what am I going to do with you?”
“Dance at my wedding!”
“Are you kidding?”
He leaned over and patted her hand. “It was just a figure of speech, my dear.”
o0o
By the time she got to her own apartment it was nine o’clock. Janet hung her coat in the hall closet, and her hand brushed against something soft. Dan’s sweatshirt. A faint masculine scent clung to the fabric.
Janet raced to her laptop and powered up her email.
From: Janet
To: Molly, Joanna, Belinda, Clemmie, Bea, Catherine
Re: Dilemma
I’m going crazy. I need to study, but I can’t think of a thing except Dan Albany’s sweatshirt hanging in my closet.
By the way, Molly, your dad’s ok. He’s too smart to do anything foolish, and you shouldn’t worry.
Janet
From: Joanna
To: Janet, Molly, Belinda, Clemmie, Bea, Catherine
Re: Swe
atshirt
His sweatshirt’s in YOUR closet!!! I hope it’s because you and the coach were engaged in some contact sports!!!
Joanna
From: Molly
To: Janet, Bea, Joanna, Clementine, Catherine, Belinda
Re: Daddy
OMG, Daddy let slip on the telephone something about all of us dancing at his wedding! And then he wouldn’t tell me anything else. How can I not worry!!! I don’t even know this woman!
Molly
From: Catherine
To: Janet, Bea, Joanna, Molly, Clementine, Belinda
Re: sweatshirts and weddings
Hugs, Molly. Everything will be all right.
Janet, you have the perfect excuse to see the coach. Return the sweatshirt! Wear something sexy. Get him so hot he forgets to take his shirt back. Then leave him wanting more. OMG, I LOVE this! If I didn’t adore you, I’d be jealous. You’ve got a FAB man and all I have is a test on parvo virus.
Cat
From: Belinda
To: Janet, Bea, Joanna, Molly, Clementine, Catherine
Re: Cat’s advice
Don’t worry, Molly. There’s nothing wrong the Dixie Virgins can’t fix. And Janet, Cat’s plan will work. I should know!
Belinda, feeling AMAZING
From: Bea
To: Catherine, Janet, Molly, Joanna, Clementine, Belinda
Re: Everything
Molly, I feel your pain. I worry about Mother, but thank God, she’s not on Match.com! Still, Janet’s right there with Mr. Jed. She’d know if there was anything fishy about his little online fling.
Janet, take that sweatshirt back to the hottie, but keep your Virginia to yourself! Save the contact sports for the wedding night! Nothing brings a man to his knees like Virgin Power!
Bea
Janet shot off another email thanking her friends, then shut off her computer and grabbed Dan’s sweatshirt. She thought about calling him first, but he’d said he was always prepared for surprises.
She stripped off her work clothes, and then struggled into a pair of jeans so tight they looked like they’d been painted on. Next, she grabbed a sweater Joanna would describe as come hither then sprayed enough jasmine fragrance to knock over an elephant.
Let the coach get a gander at that surprise.
o0o
Ten minutes later she was standing in front of Dan’s double front doors, knocking. She could hear loud music coming from inside the house.
When there was still no response, she pressed closer to the beveled-glass ovals in his front door and peeked inside. The long expanse of hallway looked exactly as she remembered it—wooden floors gleaming softly with wax and old age; the hall tree, enduring nobly under its weight of letter jackets and baseball caps and umbrellas; Victorian sconces on the walls casting a soft glow on the elegant fading wallpaper.
She decided that Dan must have gone out and forgotten to turn off his stereo. She was just turning to leave when she caught a glimpse of someone coming slowly into the hallway. Not just someone. Dan. She leaned closer to get a better look. What she saw made her smile.
Big Coach Dan Albany, completely unaware that he had company, was waltzing stiffly into his hallway, hanging onto a mop. His lips were moving as if he were desperately counting the rhythm of each clumsy footstep.
She knocked again, and he finally came to the door, still holding the mop.
“Janet! Come in. I didn’t hear you knocking.”
She stepped into the hallway and nodded toward his mop. “Doing a little housecleaning?”
“No. That’s Betty June.”
“Betty June?”
“Actually, it’s Betty June’s substitute. My sister’s been trying to teach me to dance.” He propped the mop against the wall. “Here. Let me take your coat.”
He hung her coat on the hall tree and led her into his den. It was like walking into the arms of a good friend. Real logs in the fireplace glowed and snapped in welcome, and the light coming from the lamps was pink and softly diffused by the Victorian shades. Dan’s idea of home decoration took on an entirely new meaning to Janet. Some tightly controlled part of herself give in to the music and the simple graciousness of his house.
“The music,” she said. “It’s Gershwin, isn’t it?”
“Yes. Someone to Watch over Me. It’s the song my sister selected for my dance lessons. I think she was trying to tell me something.”
“You don’t enjoy dancing?”
“I’ve never had the patience. I like activities with a little more excitement.”
“Sports?”
“Yes. All of them. Give me a ball of any kind, and I’m content.”
“Then why did you consent to the dance lesson?”
His grin was sheepish. “I did it to impress you.”
Something warm and pleasurable bloomed inside her.
“Since you’ve gone to all that trouble, I see no reason to waste your efforts. I’m sure I lack some of the more sterling qualities of your mop, but do you think I would be a good substitute?”
“Do you like to live dangerously?”
“Sometimes.”
“In that case...” He left the fireplace and held his arms out toward her. “May I have this dance?”
He looked so stiff and uncomfortable standing there anticipating the dance that she wanted to smile. But there was something sweet and gentle and humble about him, too. He was a much more complex man than she had first imagined.
She slid smoothly into his embrace. He took one awkward step, still moving stiffly as if he had never held a woman in his arms before.
“I’m not fragile, Dan. I won’t break.”
“It’s not you I’m worried about; it’s your toes.”
“They’ll survive, too.”
It was lover’s music playing, just right for cheek-to-cheek dancing and heart-to-heart cuddling. But it wasn’t cuddling on Dan Albany’s mind; it was that tight little outfit the good doctor was wearing. How could he count his steps when he kept getting distracted by the way she filled out her sweater?
With any other woman, Dan would have done what came naturally, but Janet was not any other woman. He’d already made a fool of himself more than once with her, and he had no intention of blowing this perfect chance to show her that he was more than a brainless jock.
Holding Janet at a distance, barely touching her, he began silently counting the steps in the dance. He was born to win, and conquering the complicated art of the fox trot was just one more way to show Janet he was a winner.
“Dan.”
He missed a step and almost squashed her toe. “Oops. Sorry.”
“Dancing is not a nine-inning game.”
“It has rules, though. I know if I get the moves right I can do this.”
“Think of it as a contact sport.”
Janet made one deft move that put her in contact with his chest. His arms automatically closed about her.
“There,” she said. “Isn’t that better?”
“Yes.” He smiled down at her. “But is it dancing?”
“The best kind.” She swayed to the beat of the music. “Feel the rhythm, Dan. Move with it.”
“Sideways or backwards?”
“It doesn’t matter. Just forget your feet and move with the music.”
The stiffness went out of him as he gave himself up to the pleasure of catching Janet’s rhythm. It felt so good to him that he exuberantly danced her all the way around the room. She didn’t have the heart to tell him that if they had been on a small, crowded dance floor he’d have mowed down six couples.
“Hey, this isn’t so bad.” He pulled her closer and began another enthusiastic dancing tour of the room.
“Coach, the object is not necessarily to cover as much ground as possible.”
“What is the object, Doc?”
“To enjoy the pleasure of the music and the pleasure of the one in your arms. Like so.”
Suddenly dancing fell into place for Dan. It was as if his
body had always known what to do if it could get past the stubborn block in his mind. His hands began to caress her back, and his head lowered itself until his face was quite naturally in her fragrant hair.
“Ahh, Doc. This kind of dancing could lead to other things.”
“What other things, Coach?”
He chuckled softly. “Is that an invitation for another demonstration?”
She leaned back slightly so she could look directly into his eyes. “I’m not sure I could survive another demonstration with either my sanity or my honor intact.”
“Neither could I. Why don’t we call a simple truce for the rest of the evening?”
“Agreed.”
Cuddled even closer, they continued their slow swaying movements in front of the warm winter fire. She thought he was tender and funny and endearing and enormously, dangerously sexy. That she had once thought him hopelessly old-fashioned now seemed a rash judgment. And she was extraordinarily close to losing her head over him.
He thought she was gorgeous and talented and sweet and heart-stoppingly desirable. That he had ever considered her ridiculously modern seemed a foolish notion to him. And he was dangerously close to losing his heart to her.
When the music ended they slowly drew apart.
“Thank you for the dance, Doc.”
“Any time, Coach.”
He ran his hands carefully down her arms, as if he were taking her measure for future reference. Then he stepped back.
“I think one good turn deserves another, don’t you?”
She smiled. “That’s a nice old-fashioned philosophy. But I can go along with it.”
“Since you’ve taught me to dance, I want to share something with you”
