Playing For Keeps

by Deborah Fletcher Mello

  “I fell in love with the idea of falling in love. I’m really not that serious about it.”

  Cilla laughed. “You’re a liar! I know for a fact that Ethan has your nose wide open!”

  Bianca grinned. “Maybe. But our situation is unique.”

  “Be honest with me? Do you think I’m crazy? I mean we’re still just getting to know each other. And Malcolm might actually be really bad in bed.”

  “You and I both know that’s a lie! Your man is sexy as hell. I can tell by the way he walks and how he moves on the dance floor that he is not bad in bed. In fact, I’m willing to bet that man has professional skills between the sheets.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “You might not be able to tell the pros from the amateurs but I surely can. I’m a master at detecting things like that,” Bianca said, laughter ringing in her voice.

  Cilla giggled with her. “You are such a fool!” she said teasingly.

  “That may very well be, but I’m not the one questioning my relationship with a really great guy. I let everyone know what a great guy my Ethan is.”

  “Malcolm is a really great guy, too, isn’t he?”

  Bianca blew a warm breath. “Girl, he’s the guy fairy tales are made of. You aren’t going to do much better so don’t mess it up. I know how you do.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “It means if you mess up, there are women who will gladly take your place. If I didn’t already have a man you might get your feelings hurt.”

  “You’d do that to me? You’d break the sister code and date one of my ex-boyfriends?”

  “Girl, good men are an endangered species. And I’m talking the kind of good man you want to take home to your daddy. The kind of good man Pops would want to see you married to and who would play golf with him once a week because they have so much in common. If you let a precious commodity like that go, then you better believe someone else will be there to pick him up. Who better than your best friend in the whole wide world? I’d want a good thing like that for you! No one is going to think about a code when there’s gold to be had and men like my Ethan and your Malcolm are pure gold!” Bianca laughed heartily.

  Cilla laughed with her as she changed the subject. “So what are you doing today?”

  “Church first and then I’ll probably head over to the flea market. I want to try and find myself a vintage mirror for my foyer. Do you want to come?”

  Cilla paused for a brief moment. Malcolm had already forewarned her that he would be out of pocket the entire day, having plans with his daughters. Despite her wishful thinking she didn’t even anticipate talking to him until later in the evening. “Yeah,” she said. “And I’ll even go to church with you too.”

  “Lord, have mercy, there must be a storm coming!” Bianca exclaimed.

  Cilla laughed. “Don’t even go there. You act like I never go to church.”

  “Oh, I know you go. Once last century and now. It’s a wonder the sky hasn’t started to fall.”

  She giggled again. “I am not that bad, Bianca!”

  “You’re not that good, either.”

  “At least I don’t have a host of sins I need to confess every Sunday morning.”

  “I might have one or two but then I have a much more interesting life than you do.”

  “Says the woman whose last date was how long ago?”

  “A very minor detail and only because my man is away on business.”

  “Pick me up,” Cilla quipped. “I’ll be ready.”

  “See you in a few,” Bianca said as she disconnected the call.

  Malcolm’s head swung back and forth like he was watching a tennis match. He found himself thoroughly entertained as the twins shared a story about something that had happened in math class. Math was the only class the two high school freshman shared at Ravenscroft School. The two had moved him to tears with their jokes and tales about high school life. As Claudia hit her punch line the two girls laughed simultaneously and he laughed with them.

  “Okay, okay, okay!” Malcolm exclaimed as he swiped a tear with his index finger. “That’s just too much! You two sound like you’re playing in school more than you’re learning.”

  “We’re learning,” Cleo giggled.

  “I got a ninety-eight on my last exam,” Claudia chuckled.

  “I did okay,” Cleo quipped, her smile fading a smidgen.

  Malcolm smiled as he looked from one to the other. “Well, I’m very proud of you both. When I went to parent-teacher conference everyone had good things to say about you and how you were performing. You know good grades make me very happy.”

  Cleo cut an eye at her sister. Claudia gestured with her head, her eyes wide. “Well, I didn’t do so good on my English project,” Cleo muttered.

  Malcolm shifted his gaze toward the young girl. “What’s that mean?”

  The two girls exchanged a second look before Cleo replied.

  “I didn’t finish so I got an F and I failed my science test but Mr. Barnes said that I can retake it next week.”

  Malcolm leaned back in his seat. He folded his hands together in his lap. His brow furrowed as he took a deep breath. His eyes dropped to his breakfast plate for a quick second before he shifted his gaze toward Claudia.

  “Sweetheart, would you do me a favor, please?”

  The young woman gave him a smile. “Sure, Daddy!”

  “Would you please get me some more bacon and another omelet before they close down the omelet bar?”

  Claudia nodded. “Cheese and vegetables,” she asked.

  “Extra cheese,” Malcolm responded, his smile returning to his face.

  Claudia grinned back, her head bobbing up and down as she skipped away. Malcolm watched as his daughter crossed the carpeted floor of the restaurant. They were catching the tail end of the breakfast buffet at Golden Corral, one of the girls’ favorite places. Despite his mother’s protests they’d been allowed to plan the entire day. Both had opted to bypass Sunday school and church for the all-you-can-eat meal.

  He turned back to Cleo who was eyeing him curiously. “I’m worried about you, kiddo. Something’s going on and I don’t know what it is. Do you want to talk?”

  Cleo’s eyes shifted around the room as she struggled to avoid her father’s stare. “There’s nothing wrong,” she mumbled softly. “Everything’s fine.”

  Malcolm nodded. “I don’t agree. You’ve been moody and now you’re telling me that your grades have dropped. Something’s going on with you.”

  Cleo shrugged her narrow shoulders. “There’s nothing wrong,” she snapped, a hint of attitude rising in her tone. She cut her eye at him then dropped her gaze back to the table.

  There was a moment of pause as Malcolm sat staring at her. Cleo was the younger twin, born three minutes after her sister. Cleo had actually been born the following day at 12:01 in the morning, giving them separate birth dates. That fact always fascinated both girls, being able to celebrate the dates of their birth on different days. He remembered the exact moment his girls had pushed their way into his life. The minute the nurse had laid Claudia in his arms he’d fallen head over heels in love. In that moment he couldn’t imagine himself loving anyone else as much and then they had handed him Cleo to hold. His heart hadn’t been the same since.

  He’d been petrified at the prospect of parenthood but his children had made him a better man. They’d become his lifeline, the heartbeat that kept him whole and standing and ultimately sober. He loved them both like he had loved nothing else before them or since.

  Malcolm pushed himself up from the table and moved to the seat beside his daughter. He dropped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him, hugging her against his chest. He held her for a moment before he spoke. “Don’t you ever forget that you can always talk to me about anything. Even if it’s something that might upset me, I will still be here to support you. If you need my help don’t you ever be afraid to say so. Okay?”

  She nodde
d her head against her father’s chest.

  “Now, we’re not done with this conversation because I think there’s something you want to tell me but you just don’t know how. So you and I are going to talk again after you’ve had some time to think things over. Until then, you just remember that I love you, baby girl!”

  Cleo reached up to kiss her father’s cheek. “I love you, too, Daddy!”

  “I love you and you!” Claudia said, returning with her father’s omelet and bacon and a second plate piled high with fruit and chocolate-covered strawberries.

  “How much do you love your old man?” Malcolm teased as he reached for one of her strawberries.

  Claudia laughed. “I love you to infinity.”

  “I love you to infinity times two,” Cleo said.

  “Well, I love you to infinity times two plus infinity!” Claudia retorted.

  He gave them both a dramatic eye roll. “Well, I love you both so much that after we eat I’m taking you both to the flea market!”

  Both girls clapped excitedly. “Can we buy something?” Cleo asked.

  Malcolm smiled as he pulled a forkful of food to his mouth. “You can buy two somethings!”

  The weather was absolutely perfect for the Raleigh flea market at the historic state fairgrounds. The sun was bright and peeking high from behind a bevy of cushiony clouds. There was just enough breeze in the air to keep the rising heat at bay. A pleasant crowd of tourists and shoppers packed the aisles inside and out and the assorted items for sale ran the gamut from baseball cards to chocolate fudge.

  Malcolm raced behind both girls as they jumped from one booth to another, oohing over knockoff jewelry, sun catchers, gauze tops, and all things shiny and pretty that caught their eye. In a matter of minutes he saw his promised two somethings manifest into a host of bags that he was expected to carry. He laughed as he marveled at their capacity to find a need for almost everything they laid their eyes on.

  “But Daddy!” Claudia exclaimed excitedly.

  “But Daddy nothing. I am not an ATM machine, baby girl, nor do I have a money tree growing in the backyard.”

  “But we can’t go home without something for Grandma. Her feelings will be hurt,” Cleo reasoned.

  Malcolm rolled his eyes skyward. “Well, if it’s for your grandmother why do I need to buy two of them?”

  “Because we need one for Grandma Maxine when she comes to visit,” Claudia insisted.

  “They’re really pretty, too,” Cleo noted. She ran her hand across the polished wood.

  Claudia had spied the rocking chairs first, both girls skipping off to inspect them. Made from salvaged hardwood, the rockers had a classic curved headboard and slat back, with pretty spindle-turned arms and base supports. Each had deep seats and were polished to a high sheen. His mother had been wanting one for the front porch since forever. He was impressed that the girls had even remembered.

  With the saleswoman extolling their quality and uniqueness and both girls batting their lengthy eyelashes at him, Malcolm found himself outnumbered, feeling as if his credit card had been talked right out of his pocket. He smiled at the delight in the twins’ eyes as both claimed a rocker, sliding their lean frames into them.

  “You two have cost me a fortune today,” he said as he slid the purchase receipt into his pocket.

  “No, we haven’t,” Claudia said as she rocked her torso back and forth to move the chair.

  “After the movie you can say we cost you a fortune,” Cleo teased.

  Malcolm feigned a look of surprise, his eyes wide and his mouth open. “The movies? I have to take you to the movies, too?”

  The girls giggled. “You said whatever we wanted!” they exclaimed at the same time.

  The joy across their faces made the man smile. In that moment they had him completely wrapped around their little fingers. He was grateful that neither knew just how much.

  “I need to go pull the car around. You two stay right here with our chairs so no one runs off with them and I’ll be right back.”

  Both girls nodded.

  “And no talking to strangers,” he reiterated, shaking an index finger at the two of them.

  Both girls rolled their eyes, ignoring him completely. He chuckled softly to himself as he strode quickly back to the parking lot. As he reached his vehicle he couldn’t help but note how well the day was going. He was enjoying his time with the twins and made a mental note to himself to carve more time in his schedule for days just like this one.

  He settled down in the driver’s seat of his SUV and started the ignition. Before he put the car into gear he stole a quick glance to his cell phone. There were no missed calls or messages and though he had hoped to hear from Cilla he knew that she didn’t want to interfere with his time with his daughters. He typed a quick text message to her and after pushing the SEND button, backed out of the parking space.

  “Daddy won’t be mad at you, Cleo!” Claudia was shaking her head at her sister. “And even if he’s mad at you for a little bit, he’ll be able to fix this! Because you really need him to fix this!” The young girl tossed a glance over her shoulder and around the space to see if anyone was watching. The crowd at the flea market was oblivious, everyone going about their own business.

  Cleo was crying, tears streaming down her delicate face. She was visibly distressed, her face flushed a brilliant shade of red because she was crying so hard. Her slender frame shook with a vengeance, every muscle trembling. She had a tight grip around her cell phone, the device engaged as she scrolled through a text message that had been sent to her. Claudia stared over her sister’s shoulder, mortified by what she was seeing.

  “This is bad, Cleo. Daddy really needs to know.”

  Cleo shook her head. “I’ll figure it out, but you swore, Claudia. You swore you wouldn’t tell anyone.”

  “I don’t know if I can keep that promise,” she said, pointing to where Cleo was staring. The phone buzzed again signaling the arrival of another text message.

  Cleo narrowed her gaze on her sister, her vision still clouded by her tears. She swiped a hand across her face, brushing away the moisture that dampened her view. “I swear,” she suddenly hissed. “If you tell anyone I will never forgive you, sissy. Never!”

  Claudia swiped away her own tear. Before she could say another word, Cleo did an about-face, rushing off in the opposite direction.

  “I like the other one better,” Cilla said as she and Bianca stood two steps away from a gold-framed mirror. She was studying the accent piece intently. It was a classic Louis Philippe rectangular mirror crafted with ornate beading and acanthus leaf carvings around the frame. It featured a dusty gold finish and the original aged mirror glass. “It’s too gold,” she concluded. “I think the silver tones in the other one will look better in your foyer with that gray slate tile.”

  Bianca nodded. “I think so, too,” she said. “Let’s get back to that vendor before she sells my mirror to someone else.”

  The two women took an easy stroll through the midday crowd. The flea market was a popular weekend jaunt for young and old alike and the atmosphere was easy and carefree. As the two pushed past other buyers, Cilla’s cell phone suddenly beeped, a text message showing on her cell phone screen. A bright smile filled her face as she read the short message from Malcolm.

  “What?” Bianca questioned, eyeing her suspiciously.

  “What do you mean what?”

  “I mean why do you have that stupid grin on your face?”

  Cilla tilted the cell phone screen toward her friend. “He says he misses me.”

  Bianca shook her head. “Awww!Younglove!”shesaidteasingly.

  Cilla laughed, giggling like her first crush had paid her some attention. “Don’t be jealous.”

  Bianca laughed with her. “Girl, please! You know I don’t have a jealous bone in my body.”

  The two women continued their stroll, both laughing and joking easily. The two were lifelong friends, having met in grade school. They’d bee
n best buddies since Miss Rayner’s third grade class at Pinewood Elementary School. In high school they’d been cheerleaders together. After graduation Cilla had moved to Chapel Hill and Bianca had left the state, drawn by the big-city lights of New York.

  When her parents had moved from their Charlotte home to Boone, North Carolina, Bianca had come back to the state, settling herself in Raleigh, and the two had picked up their friendship as if they’d never been apart. For a time they’d shared an apartment, then Bianca had bought a fixer-upper in the historic Oakwood neighborhood near downtown Raleigh. Cilla had preferred the newness of her Brier Creek townhome. Their working together at the pharmaceutical company that employed them had been a fluke and a blessing that neither had ever taken for granted.

  Their conversation was abruptly interrupted when a crying teenager slammed into Cilla. Hard. Both landed harshly against the pavement, the collision startling them both. The girl’s cell phone flew in the air and everything Cilla had been holding in her hands dropped to the ground as well.

  “Ummph!” Cilla grunted, the abruption knocking the wind from her lungs.

  “I’m sorry,” the girl gushed, shock registering across her face as she looked about nervously. She stared intently, contrition seeping in with the tears in her eyes. She looked about, moving to help Cilla pick up her purse and the contents that had spilled out on the ground. “I’m really sorry!” she said again.

  Bianca leaned to pick up one cell phone and then the other. The two Samsung units were identical, both even protected by the same stylish, damage-resistant cases. Without giving it any thought she passed the device that had landed closest to Cilla to her and the other to the girl.

  “Are you okay?” Cilla asked, concern washing over her expression. She brushed the dust from her white shorts. “Is there anything we can do to help?” she asked as she reached into her leather handbag for a tissue, passing it to the young woman.