by Maria Geraci
“Oh my God! Sarah came into the store today, and Grace, I swear, she’s never looked happier, except for the fact she’s worried about you. She’s tried to call you all day.”
If Sarah was so worried about her, then why hadn’t she come to see her in person? She knew the way to Grace’s town house better than anyone.
“You must be on cloud nine,” Penny continued. “Charlie and Sarah married! Isn’t it awesome?”
“You don’t think it’s too fast? I mean, she hasn’t even been divorced two months.”
Penny didn’t meet Grace’s gaze.
“What?”
“Grace, I think you should talk to Sarah.”
“Why don’t I like the sound of that?”
“I just think if you need reassurance about the relationship, then you should tell her what you’ve just told me. That’s all,” Penny said. Her expression turned serious. “So did you hear Speedway rag on Joe?”
“I listened as long as I could. Then Melanie got on the air and I had to turn it off.”
“It was awful! It’ll probably go down as the best of Speedway. You know those shows the station plays over and over? She gushed about Joe ad nauseum and, of course, Speedway called her fat and she started crying about how Joe was being unfairly treated by the media and she . . . she blamed you for all of it. And I think Speedway sensed that she wasn’t playing with a full deck and he tried to back off but it was too late. She practically had a nervous breakdown on the air.”
“I guess Speedway has a conscience after all.”
“Either that or he’s afraid Melanie will jump off a cliff and he’ll end up getting sued.”
“We can only hope.”
“At least you still have your sense of humor,” Penny said.
“It’s called survival by snark, Pen. You’ve been a good teacher.”
“What are you going to do now? I mean, about a job?”
Grace shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ll figure something out.”
“I hate how all this has turned out.”
“You tried to warn me. You and Sarah. This boyfriend club was a bad idea.” Grace took the pizza box and handed it to Penny. “Here, you and Butch go celebrate. I’ll call you tomorrow and we’ll start planning the wedding.”
“Butch can take care of himself. Why don’t I stay over? We could watch a movie. Or make frozen margaritas.”
“Thanks, but I just want to go to sleep.” Maybe she’d wake up to find it had all been a dream. Wouldn’t that be lovely?
Only she couldn’t go to sleep without talking to Joe. So after Penny left, she dialed his cell phone, but it went directly to his voice mail. He had to have heard Speedway’s show, otherwise he would have called her by now. Which meant that the reason he hadn’t called was because he didn’t want to talk to her.
There was no way she could sleep now. And chocolate ice cream wasn’t the answer either. So she got in her car and drove to the one place that somehow seemed logical, despite the illogic behind it. The one place that had always lifted her out of whatever funk she might be in.
She drove to Florida Charlie’s.
Second to the Santa outfit, the new NASCAR costume was now Grace’s favorite. Not everyone looked good in checkered black and white, but somehow Gator Claus managed to pull it off. His hat was still missing. She’d have to get him a new one. She might not be working at Florida Charlie’s anymore, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t help Abuela with the costumes.
“I’ve really fucked things up this time, haven’t I, Gator Claus?”
Gator Claus stared straight ahead, looking eerily . . . plastic.
“Sorry, I know how you hate it when I use profanity.” She batted her eyelashes at him.
Nothing.
Now this was strange, and Grace didn’t like it. Not one bit.
“I guess you’ve heard the news. It’s true. I’ve been canned by Pop and probably dumped by Joe. But there’s no need to give me the cold shoulder.”
If this was how Gator Claus wanted to play it, so be it.
Grace pretended to be interested in a flyer taped to one of the double doors. On it was a picture of a lost dog named Sammy. The owners were offering a reward. She pulled the flyer off the door and held it under Gator Claus’s snout. “You didn’t have anything to do with Sammy’s disappearance, did you?” If anything, this should get a rise from him.
For a second, she thought she saw a glimmer in his eye. Grace waited, but nothing happened. It must have been a trick of the light. Or maybe it was her imagination. She sighed and taped the flyer back in its original spot.
It would be strange not seeing Gator Claus every day, not walking through the doors of Florida Charlie’s to see Stella and Marty and the rest of the staff.
She used her key to open the double doors and walked into the shop and flipped on the lights. It was over five thousand square feet of wall-to-wall junk. But it was beautiful junk, the kind of stuff kids liked to buy with their allowance money. Maybe it would end up in the trash before vacation was over. Or maybe it would stay tucked away in a bottom drawer to be brought out every now and then. Or maybe it might be something you kept forever, if you were that kind of rare sentimental kid. But the point was, whether it was a Hiawatha doll or a wax dinosaur or an inflatable seahorse, the memory of it was tangled up inside your childhood. And childhood memories were the stuff that made us who we are. As a kid growing up in the store, she’d taken it all for granted but she’d still known this place was magical.
Subconsciously it’s what Joe had taught her the day he’d come to the shop and they’d made the T. rex wax figurine. Florida Charlie’s was more than just some cheesy tourist trap. And Grace had forgotten that. She’d tried to make it into a tourist version of Walmart. The truth was, Pop was right. She didn’t deserve to be the manager of Florida Charlie’s.
She locked up the store, checked the door one last time the way Pop would, and turned to say good-bye to Gator Claus.
But he never changed his expression, not once.
Gator Claus wasn’t talking to her anymore. Maybe Penny was right. Maybe he never had.
32
The Official Kiss-Off
Finding something appropriate to wear to Chez Louis was a challenge. There was the black dress, but that was sexy and she didn’t want Brandon to get the wrong impression. Then there was the red dress she’d worn for her romantic dinner with Joe in St. Augustine and for the disastrous night afterward, but she couldn’t bring herself to look at it, let alone wear it. In the end she settled on a pair of black slacks and a simple sweater with some chunky heels.
She hadn’t wanted to go to Chez Louis but Brandon had insisted. Grace had spent all day rehearsing a five-minute speech on why they should stay just friends.
When they got to the restaurant they were greeted by a short, older gentleman sporting what sounded like a genuine French accent. He introduced himself as Pierre, the restaurant’s maître d’. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Felix talking to one of the hostesses. He caught her gaze, then made a point of snubbing her by purposely turning his back to her.
Well, at least there was one positive thing that had come from the whole boyfriend club revelation: Felix wouldn’t be trying to get back together with her anymore.
“How have you been?” Grace asked Brandon once they’d been seated. “Has there been any more fallout from the club review?”
“The Zumba thing has been a big source of entertainment for my buddies. But like I said, I can handle it.” The server brought them their drinks. “So what’s going on with you and Joe Rosenblum?” he asked casually, but Grace could tell by the way he watched her expression that he was more than casually interested in her answer.
Oh no. Brandon was going to bring up the kiss. Grace tried to remember the opening to her speech.
“I haven’t talked to Joe since Sunday. He’s not returning my calls.”
“The St. Valentine’s Day Curse?”
Grace had
forgotten she’d told Brandon about the Curse. It was funny, but she’d told him a lot of things over the past month. Stuff that she usually only told Sarah and Penny and Ellen. “I think I can pretty much take full credit this time.”
“Joe’s a good guy, Grace. Maybe in time, it’ll all work out.”
Now this was a surprise. Grace thought for sure that Brandon was about to make a case for himself. “Brandon, Joe told me once not to trust you.”
His gaze sharpened. “He did?”
“He’s wrong, of course. You’re one of the most stand-up guys I know.”
He didn’t say anything for a minute. “What made you do it, Grace? The boyfriend club, I mean.”
“I don’t know. I told myself it was about empowerment. But it was more about venting.” She thought about it a moment. “That’s not true. I guess you could say it was also about revenge.” It felt good to finally admit it out loud. She raised her drink in the air. “The truth will set you free.”
Brandon smiled sympathetically. “Don’t be so hard on yourself.”
“Are you always this nice? Or just this nice to me?”
He picked up her hand and began playing with her fingers. She tried to feel something. A zing. A tingle. Anything. Her life would be so easy if she could fall in love with Brandon.
Grace froze.
Ellen was wrong. Brandon wasn’t her Mr. Darcy. He was the Laurie to her Jo. The perpetual friend, the trusted confidante, the guy who should be right for you. Only he wasn’t.
“Brandon—”
He squeezed her hand and let go. “You don’t have to say it, Grace. I wanted it to be there because you’re so damn perfect for me. But we’re better off staying friends.”
Relief swamped her. She thought back to the scene in the movie version of Little Women where Jo shot down Laurie. Brandon was taking this a lot better than Christian Bale had.
“So we’re good?”
“We’re better than good. These past few weeks have been terrific. I feel like I can tell you anything.” He paused. “It’s been a long time since I’ve had a friend I could trust.”
“That means a lot to me, Brandon.”
He nodded. “So . . . I’ve been thinking about your future. Your business future, that is. Now that you’re not working for your father anymore, have you thought about what you’re going to do?”
“I hear the Waffle House is hiring.”
“I think I can do a little better for you than that.” He pulled out his wallet and handed her a card.
“What’s this?”
“My buddy at the Chamber of Commerce is looking for a new PR person. I told him about you, and with your background in tourism, he thinks you’d be terrific. He’s expecting your call.”
“Brandon, that’s awfully sweet of you, but—”
“Damn it, Grace. I don’t do anything to be sweet. I wouldn’t have put my professional reputation on the line unless I thought you were right for the job.”
She tucked the card away in her purse. “Thanks. I owe you.”
“Good. Then you’ll buy the wine for our next movie night.” He looked like he was on the verge of saying something more, when his cell phone rang. It was a business call, so he excused himself and went to the lobby to continue his conversation in private.
The server brought a freshly baked loaf of bread with real butter. Grace had just cut into a slice when she saw Joe. He was with his mother, his aunt, and his cousin Phillip. The hostess seated them at a table on the opposite side of the restaurant, but Joe caught her gaze. He said something to his mother and made his way across the room. Before she had time to think, Grace stuffed a chunk of bread in her mouth in a nervous frenzy.
Joe wore a dark suit and a pale blue tie that brought out the color of his eyes. He looked beautiful, and Grace wanted to kick herself for not dressing up because she had a sinking feeling this might be the last time she ever saw him again.
“Hello, Grace.”
She frantically tried to swallow the bread so she could speak. “Hello,” she said, her mouth still stuffed with bread. What was she doing?
“How are you?” he asked cautiously. He seemed somber. Not friendly, but not mad either.
“I’m okay,” she squeaked. “And you?”
“I’m fine.” He looked across the room. “We’re celebrating my mother’s birthday.”
“Please wish her a happy birthday from . . . me.” Not that Joe’s mother would have any clue who Grace was. Other than as his patient of course.
He seemed to catch on to her thoughts and shuffled from foot to foot. It was the first time Grace had ever seen Joe physically uncomfortable. “I saw Farrell outside on his cell phone. Are you two together now?”
“What? No! I mean, we’re here together. But not like you think. Brandon is a good friend, Joe. I told you that. The stuff on the radio, what Felix said? That wasn’t true. Please, you have to believe me on that.”
He nodded, like he did believe her, and Grace felt a second’s relief. At least that was one thing she didn’t have to defend herself on.
“Do you mind if I sit down? Just for a few minutes?”
“Of course!” Grace gestured to the empty seat across from her.
“I’m sorry I haven’t returned your calls. I meant to, but I’ll be honest, I didn’t know what to say.”
She didn’t know what to say either. Except that she was sorry and that she wished she could take it all back. “How did it go with your aunt and Phillip?”
Joe seemed surprised but pleased that she remembered his cousin’s dilemma. “It was . . . You were right. She was great. It was a big relief. For everyone.”
“I’m glad.” She thought about the best way to apologize but there was no best way except to simply come right out and say it. “Joe, I’m sorry about the boyfriend club.”
“You mean your women’s empowerment group?” Finally. There was the anger she’d been expecting. “What made you do it, Grace?”
“It started out as petty revenge for a date gone bad. Then it grew into something I couldn’t control. It was . . . it was stupid.”
“Why would you tell a roomful of strangers—” He shook his head, clearly at a loss.
“Why would I tell a roomful of strangers a bunch of personal details about us? About you? In my defense, I only told them the good stuff, Joe. The bit about you trying to pick me up at the Wobbly Duck? I told that to Sarah and Ellen and Penny, and Ellen thought you were my Mr. Wickham, and so she put that in the review. And I did tell everyone you snored, but that was because Melanie got me riled up.”
“That’s how you knew about Melanie being out of control. She was actually a part of this club too?”
“I wanted to tell you, but . . .” Her voice faltered. “I have no excuse, really. Except I’m sorry.”
He didn’t say anything, but then he didn’t have to. The look on his face told her what she needed to know. This was it. The end. If she’d hoped that there was a possibility that the two of them would be able to get past the events of the last few days, the expression in his eyes killed it. He wasn’t angry anymore. He was blank. Devoid of any emotion. And that was probably the worst of all. Grace felt like the earth had just tilted beneath her feet. She wished she knew how to push it back into place again.
“I’m sorry too, Grace, because I think we could have had something terrific here.” He cleared his throat. “And I’m sorry I didn’t introduce you to my mother when I had the chance, but I think there’s something you should know. Maybe, I don’t know . . . maybe it’ll help us both if I say this out loud.”
He looked nervous again, which only made Grace more nervous. She could feel her palms go damp.
“You won’t believe it, but my cousin Phillip has been seeing this counselor. This ex-marine type—”
“Don’t tell me. Jim the manly therapist?”
“Seems he’s a pretty popular guy. He’s been helping Phillip come to terms with his sexuality and a few other things. Like
standing up for himself, taking control of his life, that sort of stuff. And now, because he’s been in therapy, Phillip himself thinks he’s Dr. Phil. Literally.”
Despite all that was happening, Grace couldn’t help but smile. Joe smiled too. But it was a sad smile.
“And I told him what went down between us, and he gave me some insight that I actually think is spot-on.”
“Like . . . what?”
“Well, considering the timing, our relationship was probably doomed from the start. You weren’t in a good place to begin with, and that might have influenced things. I’ll be honest, Grace, when I look back . . . at one point I thought . . . Well, it doesn’t matter what I thought. But there was something missing. Something that kept me from taking that final emotional plunge.” He stopped and shook his head. “Wow. I’m beginning to sound like a damn shrink.”
Something missing. It was the second time Joe had said that. Grace had felt it too.
“So after talking to Phillip and thinking about it some, I think I’ve figured it out. I don’t think you really ever gave me a chance, Grace. I knew things weren’t right when I found out about Florida Charlie’s being in trouble. You mentioned it in some offhand way, and when I wanted to talk about it, you brushed me off. But I know how you feel about that store. The idea of selling Florida Charlie’s has got to be eating you up inside. Maybe I could have been a good sounding board, if you’d opened up to me.”
“I told you about Craig cheating on Sarah. I’ve never told anyone that, Joe. Not even my closest friends.”
He considered that a moment. “Would you have told me if we hadn’t run into them at the restaurant that night? I think you were vulnerable, and you let your guard down. I don’t think you would have confided in me otherwise.” He lowered his voice. “I don’t want the kind of relationships my dad falls into. It’s not enough to be lovers. I want to be friends too. You were right when you accused me of being jealous of Farrell. It was obvious you had connected with him in a way you and I hadn’t.”
“Is this about the day at the hospital? Because, Joe—”
