by KB Winters
My eyes went wide and I glanced at her.
“I’m kidding!” A horrified look crossed her face. “Sorry, sometimes I don’t have a filter. I’m not a hooker. I promise.”
“Strange role reversal we’ve got going on here. You didn’t want to get into the car out of fear that I might be a psycho killer and now I’m kind of worrying this is some kind of sting operation.” I grinned and leaned closer, as if speaking into a mic planted on her. “Just to clarify, I am not soliciting anything, just giving a nice lady a ride home.”
She smacked my arm playfully and laughed. “I see I’ve met my match tonight.”
Her words hung in the air for a moment, our eyes locked.
“You know what I mean,” she said with a shaky laugh.
“Course.” I straightened in my seat and set both hands back on the wheel. “So, where to? You’re going to have to give me directions. This thing doesn’t exactly come fully loaded,” I said, patting the expansive dashboard affectionately. It was the car I’d learned to drive in. It was a beast of a machine, but would always hold a special place in my memories.
“You wanna go that way,” she said, pointing down the street. “I’m in the apartments across from the Olive Garden on Sycamore.”
“Got it.” I merged into traffic and headed in the direction she’d indicated. A lot of things had changed since my childhood. I visited home once or twice a year, usually around the holidays. A few times I’d flown my family out to LA or some other—warmer—locale but this year had opted for the traditional Christmas at home. I knew right where the Olive Garden was though, it had been there since my teen years. The apartments, however, were new.
“How was the rest of your shift?” I asked. “Besides wanting to stab out your eardrums.”
“Right. Besides that.” She laughed. “You know how it is, cranky, stressed out people trying to cram too much into too little time. Christmas-time in a nutshell.”
“That’s pretty cynical. Isn’t it?”
“Hey, you try working retail this time of year. It more than covers my license to be a Grinch every now and then.”
I laughed. “Fair enough.”
I couldn’t give her too much shit, even if I wanted to, as I’d had the same thought during my stint as Santa.
“There must be something you’re looking forward to for Christmas. Do you have family nearby?”
“My mom lives across town and then …” She paused and glanced over at me. “Well, I have a daughter, actually.”
“Oh?” We rolled to a stop at a light, the front of the car bathed in a soft red glow. “How old?”
“Six going on sixteen.”
“That’s great.” I couldn’t help but glance down at her left hand. I hadn’t thought to when we were eating together. There wasn’t a ring on her finger.
Maci noticed my meaningful glance. “I’m not married.”
I wanted to kick myself in the ass. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t—”
She shook her head. “It’s okay. Divorced, four years now.”
“Oh, wow. I’m sorry. My—uh—my sister is going through that right now. This is her first Christmas without her husband. They have two kids. Their daughter is only eight months old. She was barely old enough to sit up by herself when my jackass brother-in-law decided to peace out.”
“God, that’s awful,” Maci said, shaking her head sadly. “What is wrong with people?”
The light changed and I pulled forward. “I stopped trying to answer that question a long time ago.”
“Did you like him?”
“My brother-in-law?”
“Yeah.”
My fingers gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. “Not really. But Jamie’s two years older than me and thinks she knows everything so I didn’t have much choice in the matter. She’s my sister, my job isn’t to ask too many questions. I just gotta support her as best as I can.”
Maci nodded. “She’s a lucky girl then. My sister lives on the other side of the world and never calls me. We’re seven years apart and don’t have a lot in common.”
“Where does she live?”
“She’s in London. She used to work as a flight attendant until she fell in love with some guy in first class. Steve.”
I smiled at the disdainful way she curled his name. “Not a fan?”
“I’ve only met him twice. Once at their wedding and then few years ago when they came over for Christmas. He’s rich and kinda stuck on himself. I don’t know…” She drifted off and looked out the window. “It was probably me more than anything else. I was in a rough spot. Not in the friendliest mood.”
“I’m sure that’s not true. Other than the pepper spray threat, you’ve been delightful all night and I barely know you.”
She laughed. “I’ll take that as a compliment. Oh! This is me—” she pointed ahead at the illuminated outline of a row of nice looking apartments. They weren’t big, but the building looked like it was fairly new.
I turned into the wide entry and then followed her instructions to a parking space in front of her unit.
She unbuckled and then turned to face me, wearing a wide smile. “By the way, I don’t actually have a pepper spray key-chain. That was kind of for bravado’s sake.”
“Aww, man, and here I’d just scrapped my master plan.”
She giggled and shoved her hands back into her gloves. “Thank you for the ride, I really appreciate it.”
“Anytime,” I said, realizing how ridiculous it sounded.
“You vowing to be my personal Uber driver now?”
I chuckled. “Well I was trying to find a creative way to ask for your number, but I guess you just set up the perfect way for me to give you mine.”
She handed over her phone.
I grinned at her and tapped my number into her phone, labeling myself: Non-serial killer Alex.
Maci laughed out loud when she saw what I’d written. I stared at her pretty smile, thinking how easily I could get lost in it. “Cute.”
“Hey, I’m going two-for-two here, but would you want to do dinner tomorrow? A real dinner? You know, something with actual flatware and sans paper plates.”
Maci gave me the same look she had prior to hopping into the passenger seat; lower lip pulled in at the corner, her eyes moving between mine. Finally, she smiled and gave me a nod. “Sure. What the hell?”
“Do you work tomorrow?”
“Not at the mall,” she said, shaking her head. “Tomorrow is a normal work day.”
“All right. I have a few things going on. Would eight-thirty be too late?”
She considered it for a moment and then shook her head. “No, that’s perfect, actually.”
“Great,” I said, a rush of relief surged through me and I laughed at myself. I hadn’t realized how eager I’d been until getting her answer. “I’ll come pick you up.”
“Here?” She glanced up at what must have been her apartment. “Tell you what, I’ll meet you at the coffee shop just down the road from here. Is that all right?”
At my confused expression she continued, “Sorry, it’s nothing personal. I just don’t want my daughter to see you and ask a bunch of questions. I don’t really … date. If that’s what this is…”
I chuckled. “Well I was hoping so. And sure, I don’t mind picking you up at the coffee shop. Whatever makes you comfortable.”
She smiled sweetly. “Thank you, Alex. I’m really glad the food court was insane tonight.”
“Ha! Me, too!”
She pushed out into the cold and I waited until she was upstairs at her front door before I threw the Buick in reverse, already wishing it was time to pick her up again.
Chapter Four
Maci
“I don’t know what I was thinking.”
Honey frowned at me, one hand clasping a make-up brush hovering over my eyelids. “You were thinking that it’s about time you got the chance to get dolled up and go out for a night!”
“I just feel so
guilty,” I said, feeling a fresh wave of mommy-guilt sweeping over me. “I’m working seventy hours a week between the two jobs and Alyssa already spends all her time in school or daycare. The weekends are better; she gets to hang out here with my mom, but even still, she misses me. She tells me at least once a day. It’s heartbreaking. And yet, what do I do? Jump at the first chance to spend even more time away.”
I shook my head, sending my hair flying, half of it still enclosed in pink hot rollers. “I’m the worst mother in the world.”
“Maci, stop!” Honey sighed dramatically. “First of all, I’m bound to poke your eye out if you keep that up. Secondly, you’re a great mom! So that’s enough of that. Alyssa and I will have fun tonight. I brought every Disney movie Redbox had in stock and the pizza will be here any minute. I made sure she got to pick all the toppings. Then, I promised to paint her nails before bed.”
I smiled up at my friend, eyes misting over. “Thank you, Honey. Seriously, you don’t even know how much it means to me.”
“Hey, hey, no tears! I haven’t put on the waterproof stuff yet.”
I laughed and closed my eyes so she could finish my make-up. When she finished, I was granted permission to stand and inspect myself in the mirror. I normally wore make-up to both of my jobs, but it was the bare minimum. It had been far too long since I’d gone full sex kitten. Luckily, sex kitten seemed to be Honey’s specialty. I sent up silent thanks that my mother was not the one babysitting Alyssa for the evening. There was no way I’d be able to slip out under the radar if she was on duty and saw me like this.
“So, tell me about your mystery date. You met him at the mall?”
I laughed and put on a coat of shiny lip gloss. “Insane, right?”
“Don’t tell me you bagged the hot Santa! I’ll have to hate you forever!”
“No!” I rolled my eyes and laughed. “He was just shopping. I was on break and all the food court tables were full. He was nice enough to let me sit with him and we hit it off.”
I left out the part where I’d hopped into a stranger’s car because in hindsight, I’d decided that it made me sound bat-shit crazy.
“I’m so happy for you, Maci. You deserve someone special after all the shit you’ve gone through.”
I nodded a hearty agreement. I’d spilled my guts to Honey over a series of after work happy hour sessions. I’d worked at Jasper & Benson’s the last two Christmases while she worked there full-time. Even when I wasn’t an employee of the store, I’d pop in to say hello and we’d gone out shopping or to dinner once a month or so since meeting. She was the closest thing I had to a best friend.
My friends from high school and college were scattered all across the country. My sister was in London. The hygienists at the dental office were bitchy and almost cliquish. I shared front desk duties with a woman who disapproved of my lifestyle choices since I was a divorced mother. She believed I should have fought harder to keep my husband from leaving. One day, after months of her nasty looks and under-her-breath comments, I’d finally popped and asked what I should have done. Put a boot on the U-HAUL truck he’d rented? Begged his side piece to stop giving him her pussy so he’d come back to mine?
She hadn’t said much to me since then.
“All right, girl, you get on out of here and don’t worry about what time to be home. I’ve got it and I don’t care how late you want to stay out.” She winked at me and then steered me out to the living room of my small, two-bedroom apartment where Alyssa was sorting through the stack of movies Honey had brought with her.
“All right, sweetheart, Mama’s gotta run. You are going to have a great time with Honey. Okay?”
Alyssa barely looked up, her attention fully absorbed in the stack of DVDs. “Bye, Mom!”
Honey looked over and smiled. “Have a good time.”
***
Alex was already at the coffee shop when I arrived, casually sitting in a corner with a large tablet in his hands and a coffee cup perched at the edge of the table. A pitter-patter of nerves raced over me at the sight of him. I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him since the night before. All day I’d been tangled up, worrying about what would happen once we were officially on a date, if the effortless banter and playfulness would get lost in the sudden seriousness of it all. Somehow, just seeing him there, so casual and relaxed, made me nervous all over again.
He glanced up and surprise registered on his face when he saw me. His eyebrows lifted for a moment but then a wide smile crossed his chiseled face. A five o’clock shadow had grown in since our last meeting and I decided he was even hotter with the scruff. Why was it that men actually look better at the end of the day, while I always felt like I turn into some kind of swamp creature by the time I tumble into bed? Frizzy hair, specks of mascara residue that never seems to scrub all the way off in the shower, unmasked baby wrinkles around my eyes, and the occasional blob of zit cream. Whereas Alex no doubt looked just as sexy when he opened his eyes to when he closed them, and every moment in between.
Damn it.
Alex stood from the table, setting aside his tablet. I wandered forward and he embraced me like we were long-time friends. I held myself back a notch from completely melting into the warmth of his arms and the way his firm chest felt against me. “I’m so glad you made it,” he said, pulling away all too soon.
“How long have you been here?” I asked, catching a glimpse at the screen of his tablet. It looked like he was working on more holiday shopping.
“Not long.” He shrugged. “You want a cup of something?”
It struck me that we’d never really made plans. We’d talked about dinner but eight o’clock was a little late for a big meal. Was he trying to exchange our dinner date for a quick coffee instead? Wasn’t that what people did on awkward first dates? Coffee was easier to escape from if things went south. That’s what everyone said.
I eyed Alex. “Um, yeah, sure.”
Alex smiled. “I have reservations for nine at that upscale little Italian place downtown. Marina’s Table?”
“Oh? Really? Wow, I heard it was hard to get reservations there. Everyone’s been buzzing about it since it opened.”
Alex walked with me to the counter. I ordered a cappuccino from the chirpy barista. “I figured Italian was a safe bet since you were eating pizza when we met.”
My cheeks warmed, remembering how I’d stuffed my face in front of him. Great first impression there, Mace. Oh well. It had obviously not scared him away.
We made small talk as the barista made my drink, the foam wand sputtering while the smell of fresh espresso swirled around us. The barista passed over my drink and we went back to Alex’s table. He closed the lid to the tablet and set it off to the side of the table.
“Doing some more shopping?” I asked, realizing a moment too late that made me sound like I’d been looking at his tablet. Snoop!
Alex didn’t seem to notice. He shook his head and picked up his own coffee. “Checking in with some stuff for work.”
“Right. What is it you do? I never asked.”
“Oh, it’s pretty boring actually. I work for a tech company.”
I nodded even though I was pretty sure I had no idea what that meant. Computers and smart phones weren’t really my speed. I used them, but that was about it. I had no clue as to the inner workings.
Alex grinned and took a long sip. “I know, it’s not the most glamorous thing.”
“I won’t throw stones.” I smiled. “After all, I spend six hours a day folding designer clothes made for miniature humans.”
Alex laughed. “I imagine that’s harder than it seems.”
“It can be tricky.” I gave a sage nod. “Luckily we have this little folding contraption that make it a little easier.”
“Fancy.”
“It’s very high tech, I assure you.”
“Just a few more weeks, huh?”
I nodded. “Yeah, assuming I make it that long. My boss wasn’t thrilled that I was so late
yesterday. Apparently not having a functioning car isn’t a valid excuse anymore.”
“Yikes. I’m sorry.”
I shrugged a shoulder and drank deeply. “It is what it is. As long as I can get everything to make my daughter’s Christmas one for the books, it’ll be worth the mind-numbing monotony of a couple of months spent in retail purgatory.”
Alex smiled. “Tell me about your daughter. What’s she like?”
“She’s amazing. Six years old, first grade this year, and not to brag or anything, but she’s the top of her class. She likes all things unicorn but then also has this unnatural fascination with monster truck rallies.”
Alex laughed out loud at this. “She sounds like my kind of girl.”
I grinned. “You a big monster truck guy? Or was it the unicorns that piqued your interest?”
“I like that she’s not getting boxed into one category or the other. My nephew is like that too. He has no problem playing tea party with the girls in his class but he also loves building LEGO towers just to stomp them down again.”
I smiled at the image. “Sounds like Alyssa and your nephew would get along just fine.”
“Marvin. Then Ella is my little niece. She’s eight months old. Total princess but that says more about my sister than her at this point.”
I laughed. “Right.”
He showed me some pictures on his phone and I did the same. I liked how easy it was with Alex. I’d always imagined integrating kids and dating would be a hard blend to get right, but he made it simple. Instead of worrying about being one of those moms who couldn’t talk about anything besides my kid, he was the one prodding me into sharing and giving me stories of his own. I also couldn’t stop the way I smiled as he lit up talking about being an uncle.
Time flew by and soon we realized we were closing in on nine o’clock.
“Looks like we need to get going or they’ll give away our table.” He stood and reached for my hand.
I smiled and gave it to him.
Chapter Five
Maci
Marina’s Table was every bit as elegant as its reputation had promised. As soon as we walked through the doors I was grateful that Honey had talked me into wearing my navy-blue wrap dress. Within minutes we were ushered to a table in the back corner of the restaurant. There was a fair amount of other customers at the surrounding tables and I was grateful for the buzz of conversation in the air. It was reassuring somehow. Most of my nerves had faded but as we were seated, they threatened to elbow their way in once again.
