by J A Stone
“Thanks.” Corey could hear Stella beginning to become more active, and she felt her stomach tightening in response. She wished Stella would go back to sleep, because if she didn’t get in her full nap, she was liable to be very fussy. Corey tried to look relaxed and concentrate on the small talk that Larry and Sherri were making while keeping one ear attuned to the baby monitor.
“Wahhhhhh!” Stella’s voice came loudly through the baby monitor. So much for wishful thinking.
“Would y’all excuse me for a moment? Stella never wants to miss a party. Please make yourselves at home.” Corey remembered before she left the room to turn off the baby monitor.
While she was changing Stella, she heard her cell phone ringing. It was probably just Diane, but if it was important, whoever it was would leave a voice mail. “You’ve got to be good now, Stella girl. This is your mommy’s boss, and I’d really like for him to think I’m a superwoman.” In answer, Stella’s face tightened into a grimace, and she let out another cry. Probably not a good sign, Corey thought. Praying desperately that Stella would be good, Corey picked her up, wrapped her in a blanket, and went forward to face whatever was going to come next.
Larry and Sherri were sitting on the sofa, sipping their drinks, but they immediately put them down and came toward Corey as she entered the room. “Well, hello there, little princess,” Larry said in that tone that adults always use for babies. Stella looked up at him wide-eyed, but thankfully without crying.
Sherri reached out. “Can I hold her?”
“Of course. Just don’t get your feelings hurt if she starts fussing. She didn’t take her usual nap.” Corey handed the baby off to Sherri, and watched in surprise as Stella settled into her arms comfortably and even cooed a bit as Sherri rocked her back and forth. Perhaps miracles do happen!
“I just love infants. Unlike teenagers, they don’t talk back to you, and you always know where they are.”
“Don’t go getting any ideas,” Larry said. “If you need an infant fix, I’m sure Corey would be glad to share Stella with you anytime.”
“Definitely,” Corey agreed. “I must admit that I am not quite as enamored as you are with the infant stage. If you don’t mind, I’ll get lunch on the table while you’ve got Stella occupied.” When she walked into the kitchen, Larry followed her.
“So how are things really going?” he asked as he plopped one of the grapes off the fruit platter into his mouth.
“I’d be lying if I said it was easy. But I’ve found a wonderful nanny, and I’m beginning to get my life back under control.”
“Good! We miss you at the office. I’ve told them to leave you alone these past few weeks. But if you think you could handle it, I’d really like for John to call you about a few things.”
Although Corey still had two weeks of maternity leave left, what could she say other than, “Of course. Let me refill that tea glass for you before we eat.” She took his glass and turned to get the ice and tea out of the refrigerator. She put the crackers on a tray with cheese and placed the bowl of chicken salad and the fruit tray on the table.
“Sherri, let me see if Stella will play in her bassinet for a bit so we can eat.” Corey reached for Stella, who immediately started fussing when Corey placed her in her bassinet.
“Why don’t you just let me hold her while we eat?” Sherri suggested. “I used to be quite good at holding a baby and eating at the same time.”
“Are you sure?” Corey asked in amazement. “I haven’t quite mastered that skill yet.”
“I’d love to.”
So Corey handed Stella back and watched as Sherri deftly pacified Stella and still managed to eat her lunch. Corey was in awe. Probably not the best etiquette for treating a guest, but since Sherri seemed to be enjoying herself, Corey supposed it was okay. After lunch, when Stella was starting to fuss in earnest, Larry and Sherri said their good-byes so that Corey could get Stella down for her afternoon nap. “Thanks so much for coming,” Corey said.
“I really enjoyed it,” Sherri said. And Corey could tell she meant it. Corey felt like she and Sherri had bonded because she was now a member of the motherhood club. Corey’s feelings were verified when Sherri leaned over and gave her a hug. “I know this infant stage can be stressful,” she said soothingly to Corey, “but try to relax and enjoy it. Babies grow up so fast.”
“Everyone keeps telling me that, but I must say the past six weeks seem like six months. It must be because I miss my work so much.” Corey gave Larry a grin and then turned back to Sherri. “Please come back anytime you feel like you need another infant fix.”
CHAPTER 17
Stella seemed exhausted after being the center of attention and went right down for her afternoon nap. Corey looked at the clock. It was 2:20. The afternoon stretched long and empty. The weekends were the worst time for her. Having Millie during the week, Corey was free to go for a run or do an errand. She felt so trapped on the weekends because she just didn’t feel comfortable taking Stella out alone. As a result, Corey spent most of her weekends at home, reading or watching old movies. She remembered the call that had come earlier, and she picked up her cell phone. Great, she had a message from Kathryn.
“I know this is Tripp’s wedding day, and I thought you might be feeling a bit blue, so I’ve got a surprise for you. I’ve arranged for my favorite client’s daughter to babysit for you tonight. Don’t argue. She’s got lots of experience—more than you, definitely. So get all dolled up, and I’ll be there around seven to pick you up.”
Corey called Kathryn back immediately. “I thought I was your favorite client.”
“You’ve moved up to the friend category,” Kathryn explained.
“Does that mean I don’t have to pay you anymore for your services?”
“Darling, we’ll never be that good of friends. So, what do you think of my surprise?”
“Um . . . I don’t know about leaving Stella with an unknown babysitter,” Corey said.
“What? I was there when Stella was born. I’ve taken her to the doctor. I’ve been there for you and for her every day of her life. Do you really believe I would leave her with someone who wasn’t one hundred percent capable of taking care of her? I’m hurt. I really am.” Kathryn’s voice wasn’t kidding for once.
“No, no, of course, I know you wouldn’t,” Corey apologized. “It’s just that I’m not sure I’m ready to go out.”
“Ah . . . so now we get to the real heart of the matter. It’s time, Corey. It’s been over six weeks since you’ve been anywhere except the doctor’s office and the grocery store. Listen, we’ll go to Capo’s and get something to eat. If the babysitter has any problem, you can be home in five minutes.”
“I guess that sounds okay.”
“Well, don’t sound too excited. I guess I’ll bring Annie over at six so she can get to know Stella, and you can feel more comfortable with her before we leave for dinner.”
Corey cleaned the kitchen and thought about what she might wear that night. She didn’t want to wear any of her maternity clothes, but the pre-pregnancy clothes that she could wear were somewhat limited. Even though she’d only gained seventeen pounds while pregnant, things seemed to have shifted around into different places. Thinking about this displacement, she vowed to try out the new running stroller as soon as Stella woke up.
Later, she strapped a fidgeting Stella into the stroller, and once outside, Stella seemed perfectly happy. So happy that Corey ended up taking a much longer jog than she’d anticipated, and she even paused to visit with Ralph, who was working in the yard, when she ran by his house.
At six, Corey was sitting on the sofa feeding Stella her bottle when Kathryn and a teenage girl walked in. “Corey, meet Annie,” Kathryn said. “She’s the best babysitter in the Atlanta metropolitan area.” Annie looked to be about fifteen, with long, straight brown hair, and dark-brown glasses.
“Hello, Annie. So, you like to babysit?” Corey asked.
“Yes, ma’am. I have three younger
sisters, and one is only nine months old, so I have lots of experience. Hello, Stella,” Annie said, sitting down next to Corey on the sofa. “Can I feed her?”
“Sure. I need to get dressed, so that will be great.” Corey carefully handed off the frantically eating Stella to Annie without disrupting the bottle. Corey watched for a moment to make sure Annie had everything under control, then motioned for Kathryn to follow her into her bedroom.
“Kathryn, you are the best friend a person could have,” Corey said once they were in the bedroom. “I didn’t even know how much I needed to get out until this afternoon, when I realized that I could go out tonight.”
Kathryn grinned at her. “I do have my moments, don’t I? And I have another surprise for you.”
“Really?” Corey asked, feeling just a bit of trepidation.
“You know that guy Will, whose condo in midtown I’ve been redoing?” Kathryn asked.
“Yeah, I sort of remember you telling me about him.”
“Well, we’ve gone out a couple of times, and he’s meeting us at Capo’s and bringing a friend of his.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Corey exclaimed. “You’ve set up a blind date! I haven’t even lost my baby weight, my hormones are going crazy, and you want me to go on a date the very first time I leave my baby with a new babysitter? I take back everything I just said about you being a good friend. You must hate me to do something like this to me.”
“Just trust me. You need this. You need to remember the Corey that existed before pregnancy, before becoming a mother, even before you were a widow.”
“I’m not going.”
“You have to go. I won’t be your friend or your decorator anymore if you don’t.”
“That’s blackmail.”
Kathryn laughed. “Maybe so, but you are going to go tonight, so stop arguing and let’s get you dressed.”
Eventually, they found a yellow loose-fitting pre-pregnancy dress that Corey felt comfortable wearing and that contrasted nicely with her dark hair. Kathryn went through the jewelry box and pulled out some large, gold loop earrings. As Corey was putting them in her ears, Kathryn cleared her throat and said in an uncharacteristically serious voice, “I understand that taking off your wedding ring is probably a difficult thing for you to do. But what about taking it off just for tonight? Will’s friend might notice it and ask questions that you’d rather not answer. I’ve seen you tense up when you’ve had to tell people that you’re a widow.”
Corey looked down at her ring. She had rarely taken it off. When she and Luke had bought their rings, they’d chosen simple ones that could be worn at all times—whether swimming or running or whatever. After Luke’s death, Corey continued to wear the ring because it comforted her. Now that she had Stella, the ring also provided her with protection against rude people who might look at her funny if she had a child and no ring on her finger. However, perhaps Kathryn was right. Maybe it was time she took the ring off, at least for one night.
“Okay.” Corey took the ring off her finger. The skin underneath was slightly whiter than the rest of the finger’s skin, but probably not so much that anyone would notice. Corey carefully put the ring in her jewelry box.
“Wow,” Kathryn said with a sigh of relief, “that was a lot easier than I thought it would be.”
Corey smiled slightly. “I’m willing to take it off just for tonight.”
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step,” Kathryn said wisely.
“Come on, Buddha, let’s go check on Annie and Stella.”
In the next room, Stella seemed perfectly content with Annie, so Corey couldn’t use the baby as an excuse for not going out. She wrote her cell-phone number down for Annie. They grabbed their purses and walked to Capo’s. During the walk, Corey felt strange. It had been a long time since she’d gone out at night as an attractively dressed single woman on a date. When they arrived at the restaurant, she glanced at Kathryn nervously, but her friend only had eyes for the extremely tall brown-headed man who was waving at them. Corey should have expected Will to be tall since Kathryn had said he played for the Atlanta Hawks basketball team. Still, Corey was five feet seven and not used to men towering over her. Kathryn looked like a midget next to him. The man standing next to Will was a good foot shorter than his friend, but certainly a respectable height, and Corey had to admit that he was pretty cute.
“Hey, pip-squeak.” Will grinned as he looked down at Kathryn.
“Hay is for horses.” Kathryn tossed her hair back coquettishly. Only Kathryn could get away with saying something that corny and making it sound cute, Corey thought.
“You must be Dave.” Kathryn put her hand out to the man standing next to Will. She smiled so brightly that she seemed to light up the dark corner where they were standing. “Dave, Will, this is my dear friend and sometimes client, Corey. You will have to forgive her if she dances on the table or does some other crazy thing. This is her first time out in a long time.”
“Kathryn!” Corey felt her face flush red.
“Just kidding, guys.” Kathryn laughed. “I’m actually the one who might embarrass you.”
“I can vouch for that,” Corey agreed.
“Your table is ready. Please follow me,” said the hostess, turning around without waiting to see if they were following her. They were seated at a table in the middle of the restaurant, which meant they were surrounded by noisy chatter, which seemed like a very good thing to Corey.
“I’ve never eaten here before,” Will said, “but it seems like a fun place.” Corey thought Will looked like a fun guy, and one who was very smitten with Kathryn, as he could hardly take his eyes off her.
“It’s a great neighborhood bistro, and I’ve never been disappointed in the food,” Corey said.
“We don’t have anything like this out in Norcross,” Kathryn began. “I wish I hadn’t bought out there; it would be so much more exciting to live in midtown like all of you.”
“So where do you guys live?” Corey asked, trying to do her part to keep the conversation going.
“I live in the best-decorated condo in Colony Square,” Will answered with a wink toward Kathryn.
“I live in the Midtown Tower. You know, the one next door to the High Museum.” Dave sort of reminded Corey of John Kowlowski; he had that smooth salesmanlike air about him.
“Wow, y’all live right across from each other—how convenient!” Kathryn said, eyes wide as if it were the most amazing thing she’d ever heard. Corey had never seen the flirty side of Kathryn before, and she was finding it quite entertaining.
“Yeah, we’re always going back and forth across Tenth Street to borrow a cup of sugar. Where do you live?” Dave turned to Corey.
“I live right down the street from here in the Peachtree Arms condos. This is my neighborhood bistro.”
“She lives in the best-decorated condo there as well,” Kathryn offered. “If you want your condo to be the best-decorated condo in the Midtown Tower, here’s my card.” Kathryn withdrew one of her business cards and handed it to Dave.
“Nice,” Dave whistled. “I should hire you to work at my PR firm.”
“Your PR firm needs a decorator?” Kathryn asked eagerly.
“No, right now we need salespeople who can sell hospitality suites and packages to Braves games. I bet you could sell ice makers to Eskimos.”
“You’ve got me all wrong,” Kathryn began. “I’m only passionate about two things.” She paused and winked at Will. “And one of those things is decorating. I’d be a bust trying to sell Braves boxes.”
Corey decided to try to get back in the conversation. “Do you guys go to the High Museum a lot?”
“I hate to admit it, but I’ve never even been there,” Dave said.
“Never?” asked Corey incredulously.
“Hey, we’re into sports, not the arts,” Will explained apologetically.
“What are you into, Corey?” asked Dave.
Corey paused for a mo
ment. She could say diapers, spit-up, or a thousand other things that would be an instant conversation killer, but it was always safe to fall back on her job. “The law. I work for Landon, Crane, and Forrester,” she said.
“It’s one of the oldest law firms in Atlanta,” Kathryn said, obviously proud of her friend’s credentials.
“Do you have lots of decrepitly old clients with lots of old money?” asked Will.
“Nah,” said Dave, before Corey could answer. “Old in Atlanta means since about 1972. They do have lots of hot young lawyers, though.”
Corey blushed. She had to admit that it felt good to have an attractive man like Dave flirting with her. “Actually, specializing in estate planning like I do, I have more than my fair share of decrepitly old and wealthy clients.”
“Ever thought about marrying one of those old widowers for their money? Might not be such a bad deal. You’d have to put in a difficult year or two, and then you’d be an incredibly sexy widow with lots of money.” Dave’s words fell like rocks, crushing the conversation. Kathryn looked at Corey, whose mind had suddenly gone blank. Dave picked up from the instant stillness at the table that something was wrong. “Hey, I was just joking, guys.”
Kathryn came to Corey’s rescue. “I guess we might as well tell you. Corey is a recent widow with a six-week-old baby at home.”
Will looked guiltily at Corey, and Dave looked distraught. “I’m so sorry,” Dave said immediately. “What an ass you must think I am.”
“Of course not,” Corey said politely. “You didn’t know.” Corey suddenly wished she could leave and go home. She knew the rest of the night was going to be difficult. She might as well be wearing a sign saying, “I’m a widow; I’m different.” However, Corey soon realized that Dave was in public relations for a reason, as he launched into a campaign to save the dinner.
“I never would have guessed you had a six-week-old baby—you look fantastic! Is it a boy or a girl?” Dave asked.
Corey was grateful for his efforts. “I have a girl. Her name is Stella.”
“I love that name—Stella,” Dave said. “It isn’t a namby-pamby kind of name. It has character and strength.”
