Never Try To Explain

by Donna McDonald

  Greg’s gaze wandered to Fran who burst out laughing and ran. Her hysterical guffaws echoed everywhere, even after she went into their bathroom and closed the door.

  “Ask your father to explain. I’m sure Chef Dozen understands,” Greg said gruffly.

  “I would find that surprising. I had to pick out his clothes when he first dated Trudy. He wears dress clothes, chef clothes, and workout clothes. That’s all the man knows.”

  Greg nodded. “Same here—substitute sweater vests for chef clothes. It was the only thing she asked me not to wear.”

  “I wouldn’t do it then,” Brandon said wisely. “I doubt she’d find it funny this soon in your relationship. The end of your evening might not go well.”

  “Indeed not,” Greg said. “Thanks for the advice.”

  “My pleasure,” Brandon said. “Want to hear what I haven’t found?”

  “What you haven’t found?” Greg asked.

  “I have not found any conclusions filed from the investigation. The original filing merely mentions the police were to investigate because of suspicious circumstances, but nothing conclusive was filed later confirming those suspicions. It will require a trip to the courthouse to be certain, in case we are missing something, but I think the police dropped the matter for some reason. From the looks of things, everyone accepted that initial suspicion as a truth without following through on it. This included the insurance companies who all denied the claims based on the pending investigation that was never completed.”

  “Companies as in plural?” Greg said, standing up. “How many are we talking?”

  Brandon grinned. “I’ve found twelve so far, but I think there might be more. Some were merely carrying additional riders on the original policies because the amounts were too large.”

  Greg snorted. “Too large by how much?”

  “May I refrain from guessing for now? I’ll have a number for you soon.”

  “Sure. Are we talking triple digits?”

  “I’d really rather wait…”

  Greg chuckled and held up a hand. “I get it. I do. I’m the same way. So no final conclusion was filed that you can find so far. That’s very interesting. I’ve found nothing like that in the next year so far either. Everything concerning the remaining business assets got sold so debts could be settled quickly. Chunks of cash were divvied up to everyone except Jellica.”

  “Whatever we find or don’t, I can safely say that some of this doesn’t add up. I hope for Jellica’s sake that I am right that no such conclusion was filed.”

  Greg grinned. “Boy, would I love that as well.”

  “Probably not as much as you love Jellica, but I understand your need to make her happy. I’m that way about Jivika. Okay. Now that you’ve solved your fashion emergency, I’ve got a little more to do before I leave. Good luck on your date, Greg.”

  “Thanks,” Greg said softly, wondering why both Brandon and Fran assumed he was madly in love with Jellica Quartz. Not that he wasn’t tumbling head over heels. He just hated being transparent.

  Greg sighed as he gathered up his things to head out for the day. “Maybe I should be wondering how true it is instead of caring what other people think.”

  Love or not, he had to go home and try to dress for his second date with her. Finding acceptable clothes in his own closet seemed a more daunting challenge than the one he’d left in piles in her dining room.

  Chapter Thirteen

  In the end, he settled on wearing navy chinos and an identical shirt to the one Brandon had suggested. He’d like the way the original navy striped one had fit him when he’d purchased it so he’d gone back to the store and picked up the shirt in several other colors. The only variation in the one he was wearing for his date was that the stripes were a lighter shade of blue. To better match his new casual appearance, Greg dug around in the back of his closet until he managed to find an old pair of leather slip-ons that didn’t require socks. You couldn’t get much more casual than that.

  “Look at me, Jellica. I’m dressed all casual just for you.” He shook his head over talking to someone who wasn’t there. “I look like a college boy again, including the worn out shoes,” Greg said, laughing at his feet.

  In college, he hadn’t spared a single thought about how he looked. His forties were obviously not going well if this clothing angst was anything to judge the decade by.

  The trip to Jellica’s house was made in record time. She answered the door in record time too. She was dressed in jeans she looked poured into and a t-shirt with Namaste across it. As eager as the college boy he was dressed as at the moment, his fingers itched to trace the divine letters… and he started wondering when he could.

  On her sockless feet was a pair of well-worn shoes a near match of his. That brought a smile to his face. Suddenly he wished they were staying home at her house so he could just enjoy her privately. He could cook dinner just for her. He could maybe trace those curves and find out if she had meant what she said about wanting him to kiss her.

  His mouth opened to suggest a change of plans, but he never got to finish his statement. Her lips running across his sealed off the suggestion before it had a chance to be uttered.

  “Do you mind driving?” she asked. “I’m sure you’d be more comfortable in your car than in mine. Dinner’s on me though. Driving is all I’m going to ask of you.”

  He nodded and wondered when he’d lost his power of speech. “Happy to drive,” he finally managed.

  They parked in the first spot he found and Jellica took his hand as they started walking across the sea of green. A family of four played Frisbee in the late evening light. Others walked their dogs while children played on swings. Jellica was pulling him along at a fairly good clip or he’d have paused to people watch. Everyone looked like they were having fun. The last time he’d slowed down and done something like that was the evening he’d shown Eric and Noah his Tai Chi routine.

  Jellica turned and smiled. “Sorry. We have to rush a little because Stanley shuts down at seven on Friday nights.”

  “Stanley is the hot dog chef?”

  “Wow. He’d love you calling him a chef,” Jellica said, laughing at the term. “Speaking of chefs… it was Chef Trudy Baker who brought me and the boys here. We’ve been back three times since. Chef Jack Dozen showed this place to her. If I remember the story right, Jack’s son and the other boys at St. Christopher’s used to play ball here in this park. They found Stanley’s food cart and he gave Jack a discount to feed them all. Brandon grew up and did some math magic for Stanley that he swears has doubled his prosperity. Since Brandon did whatever it was he did, Stanley’s become even more of a legend in the park. I just hope he has a few hot dogs left today. We’re coming very close to his closing time.”

  “I’ll cross my fingers,” Greg said kindly, keeping to himself what outcome he’d be hoping for. He was also keeping to himself how he’d already met Jack’s son, Brandon… and Chef Trudy Baker.

  A delicious smell wafted from the food truck when they got close. The man she called Stanley spotted Jellica immediately.

  “Hey, Yoga Lady. When are you coming back to the park to teach? You liven up this place with that fine bod of yours bending over in all those crazy poses.”

  Greg’s head nearly spun off his shoulders when he heard Jellica belly laugh at the guy’s unabashed flirting. Is that what she wanted? A hot dog vendor who knew how to flatter a woman without it sounding more than ninety percent sexist?

  “Hi, Stanley. I’ll be back when my workload lightens. Tonight we’ve just come for dinner.”

  “We? The boys with you, Sweetie?”

  Jellica shook her head. “No. They’re out of town on a school field trip. I’m on a date. That’s my ‘we’ this evening.”

  “And your date brought you here?” Stanley shook his head and stuck it out the food truck window. “What is the world coming to? Let me see this guy.”

  “No. No. He didn’t bring me. I brought him here. This date is
my treat. It’s to prove a point. Greg thinks all I eat is stuff like tofu and raw carrots.”

  “I never said that. Why do you keep telling people that story?” Greg complained, finally speaking.

  Leaning on his counter, Stanley chuckled over their fighting. “Well, since you’re footing the bill on this one, I’ll do my best to impress him, I guess. I mean, since he’s your date and all…”

  Jellica tugged Greg closer. “Good. He’ll have the Chicago dog. I’ll have the Bakersfield special.”

  “No can do today, Girlie. I’m out of spicy ketchup and scallions. How about the Cincinnati? It’s the new one. You can try it on the house if you tell me what needs to be fixed with it. See? I just cut your dinner bill in half by making you part of my customer test group. That’s an idea I got from Chef Trudy Baker herself.”

  “I know. I was here when she told you, Stanley.”

  “Oh,” Stanley said, chuckling. “You’re right. My bad.”

  “Did you get your beer license back?”

  “No. If I stay in this location, beer goes off the menu and it’s tea and soda from here on out. They re-zoned for alcohol in the park and I’m not giving up my spot. Customers know where to find me and that’s more valuable than the pittance I typically made on beer.”

  “I hear you,” Jellica replied. “Okay. Give me the Cincinnati. We’ll wait for both dogs so Greg and I can eat together.”

  “You’re such a sweet person. I’m going to make you two Cincinnati dogs and that Chicago one you ordered. That will finish me up for the day and I can go home. I got a hot date too. She’s a nurse and gets off at seven. I’m taking her downtown to Frederick’s for a late dinner and a little dancing afterward.”

  “Sounds like fun.”

  “Maybe when it’s his turn to take you out on a date, your fella will spring for Frederick’s too.”

  Jellica giggled when Greg stiffened beside her. She patted his arm before his ego came unglued over Stanley’s teasing. “Greg sprung for Azo’s on our first date. I can’t top that. Can you?”

  Stanley whistled. “No. And you’re taking him out for a hot dog? Woman, what are you thinking? You could have at least worn a dress and let him look at those nice legs of yours.”

  “Yeah,” Greg said, chiming in. “Though those jeans aren’t half bad either.”

  “Stop it, both of you. I brought him here because I wanted him to have the best hot dog in town. Isn’t that what you serve, Stanley?” Jellica demanded, laughing at both men.

  Stanley looked at Greg. “She’s a real smartass when you get to know her. Consider yourself warned. One of them boys is exactly like her too. I’m not going to tell you which one…”

  “Noah,” Greg said immediately, sipping the iced tea she’d handed him arbitrarily. But it was nice that she remembered his preference for a half sweet version. “Eric can be like that too, but it’s not his nature to make a ruckus. Noah has to agitate him before he cracks.”

  Stanley nodded his head. “I see somebody’s been paying special attention. You’ve got a good eye for details.”

  “Greg’s an accountant,” Jellica said proudly.

  “And you’re bragging about dating one of those types? Lord, woman.” Stanley rolled his eyes. He put the three dogs into a cardboard container and tossed two bags of plain chips beside them. “There. You got your dog, your veggie chips, and your dessert. You can’t beat that for a ten-dollar dinner.”

  “I can’t beat that for twenty. You forgot to charge for the drinks,” Jellica said, tossing the twenty on the counter. She grabbed a handful of napkins. “Thanks for dinner.”

  Greg said goodbye to the grinning man and followed Jellica’s denim-clad hips as she headed for a nearby picnic table. He watched her swing one lovely long leg over the bench with the grace of a ballerina. The other soon followed. Greg stepped over the bench and sat beside her. He looked around in awe. The sun was starting to go down now. Lights strung in trees were coming on. He worried a little about where they were and for their safety, but mostly he was enjoying being outdoors with the woman at his side. If he could somehow get out of eating the hot dog she’d bought for him, the evening would be perfect.

  Jellica selected a Cincinnati dog and a bag of chips from the container before pushing the rest over to him.

  “One is probably going to be enough for me,” he said, warning her.

  “It won’t be. You eat like my boys—not that it shows on you. I’m glad Stanley gave us another dog.”

  Greg lifted one of the hot dogs and took a sniff. It did smell good. Jellica was already three bites into hers. He bit the corner off and a flavor explosion happened in his mouth. He chewed and swallowed and stared at her in shock.

  Jellica lifted both shoulders in a shrug. “Told you.”

  Greg finished the hot dog before speaking. “That was the most amazing hot dog I’ve ever eaten.”

  Jellica nodded as she swallowed her last bite. “I know. And he makes them as healthy as he can.”

  Greg broke the second hot dog and handed her half. “Here. You’ve been feeding me for a couple of weeks now and my pants are getting tight.”

  Giggling, Jellica took the half he was offering and sighed in happiness as she ate it in small bites. It quietly dawned on him that his bratty sister was right about his situation. He was definitely smitten. How else could his feelings be explained?

  It was one of the most enjoyable meals he’d had in ages—with maybe the exception of making spaghetti for Eric and Noah. He’d enjoyed cooking for Jellica’s sons and watching them eat with great appreciation. They even did the praying thing their mom usually did over her food.

  He grinned over the way she’d devoured the hot dog without stopping. Guess Jellica didn’t pray over hot dogs. She just dug right in and enjoyed.

  “You were right. Stanley is great. Thanks for the culinary education,” Greg said.

  “My pleasure,” Jellica said. “I thought we might get ice cream for dessert. There’s a tiny shop half-way around the park.”

  “Sounds great,” Greg said, treading carefully. “But I know this little place a couple miles from your house that sells this decadent expensive kind that tastes like ambrosia. Maybe we can pick up some on the way home.”

  “Tired of me already?” Jellica asked, feeling a bit rejected.

  “Just the opposite, I want to be alone with you,” Greg said, his voice sincere. “Eating ice cream out on your patio sounds like a pretty perfect way to end our evening. What do you think?”

  Jellica twirled a piece of her hair around one finger. It was a nervous habit she’d never managed to break. Was he hinting at what she thought he was? “I think I’d like that too.”

  “Great.”

  “Can we take a walk first?” Jellica asked.

  “Absolutely,” Greg said, secretly hoping the muggers wouldn’t come out until he got her safely back to the car.

  They walked along what Greg realized was a large circular paved area, which was going to lead them right back to the car eventually. In the first few minutes, they passed a group of women who glanced their way then looked quickly off.

  “Want a hotness lesson?” Jellica asked. “This is a great place to practice.”

  “Here? Now? In the park?” Greg asked in alarm.

  Jellica stopped and giggled. “Yes. Have you got on a t-shirt under your dress shirt? Oh, why am I asking? Of course, you do.”

  She moved in close and started unbuttoning his shirt

  “I nearly always wear a white t-shirt, but…”

  Greg stopped complaining to watch her fingers move deftly down his front until all the buttons were undone. She spread the dress shirt until it hung open. Then Jellica ran her hands over his chest muscles and murmured “nice”. That was followed by a giggle and a blush. He was shocked and charmed at the same time… and growing very uncomfortable south of his waistband.

  “I like this lesson. When do I get my turn to remove some of your clothes?” he finally aske
d, the words tumbling out nervously.

  The next giggle she let loose was louder. His smile was proud… and pleased. Another group of women passed by and his gaze lifted to them. All of them were staring at him and smiling back.

  “See?” Jellica whispered.

  “See what?” Greg asked. He caught on when she rolled her eyes. “Okay. Okay. It’s getting clearer. My track record with dating might have been better over the years if I was a little more friendly while walking around half dressed. Is that your point?”

  “How can you be so smart about life and so obtuse about yourself? You have the galactic average kind of handsome face that many men have, but that smile of yours is lethal to a woman’s libido. Don’t pretend you don’t know,” Jellica ordered, patting his chest.

  “Lethal,” Greg repeated, suddenly realizing he repeated words a lot around this woman. He was stuck on her description of him being average yet handsome. Of course, he couldn't admit that and keep his man card. “Lethal sounds dangerous.”

  “Only to a woman’s peace of mind,” Jellica said, slipping her hand down to lace their fingers again.

  Greg pulled her to his side and forced their laced fingers to brush his thigh. He stared into her eyes. Screw it. He’d turn in his man card tomorrow. “If you think I’m hot, that’s really all that matters to me.”

  Jellica nodded and smiled. “I do think you’re hot, especially in your sweatpants. You didn’t know this but I watched you doing Tai Chi in my backyard. I’m sorry my headache kept me from talking to you that night. It was the first time I’d felt simple attraction in years. My feelings for you confused me.”

  Greg leaned forward and brushed her lips lightly. It was the first time he’d acted on the impulse that was fighting to own him. Jellica’s face softened after. Their brief kiss had the opposite effect on him. He’d never been happier.

  “When you and the boys have a free weekend, let’s drive up to Cedar Point. Brittany and I used to beg Mom and Dad to take us there when we were kids. If you haven’t been, it’s worth the trip.”

  Jellica laughed. “Are you already asking me for a third date… and inviting my sons along?”