Sweeter Than W(h)ine

by Nancy Goldberg Levine

  “Isn’t that illegal?” Jay asked.

  “It’s a strip mall, not a strip club,” Dina said, unable to resist laughing again.

  “That’s not what I heard. I think they’re looking for pole dancers. Dusky Dream is gonna apply for a job, and so is Bette Bastardo.”

  “Isn’t she your cousin?”

  “Nope,” Jay said. “No relation.”

  “Now, Jay…” Dina tried to imitate his boss, Rafe’s aunt, but she started snickering. She tried to talk again, but she couldn’t. Her mom smiled, and then joined in the merriment. By the time Jay reached Dina’s condo, they were all laughing, even her dad.

  “We’re ba-aaack,” Jay said, when he pulled onto the side street where the entrance to the condo was. Her dad paid the cab fare, and he and Jay grabbed the bags of stuff she’d accumulated from the hospital and Wellstone Village and carried them to the front door.

  Dina walked slowly toward them with the walker, the way she’d practiced so carefully with Ruthie. “Made it!” she said, smiling at Jay. She was about to invite him to lunch since she and her parents planned on ordering pizza when she saw a tiny tan puppy, and its owner, walk into the front door after them.

  “Well, hello there,” Jay said to the dog. Dina was checking out the owner. He was medium height and slender, with short brown hair and a wide smile. He wore the starched white shirt, black slacks and white hat of a Cincinnati Police officer. His nametag glittered in the sunshine, and she read it; “H. Bixler.” She hadn’t seen him in the building before, but she’d been gone for a while.

  “Hi, I’m Holden Bixler,” he said. “This little guy is Buster.”

  “I’m Dina Edelman.”

  “I live across the hall from you,” Holden said. “I was wondering if I’d ever get to meet my neighbor.”

  “I was a little busy,” she said. Yeah. With almost dying and having knee surgery, I’ve had a full plate.

  “Well, I’m happy to meet you. Let me know if you need any help. I’m…” She saw a hint of a smile. “I’m right next door.”

  “It looks like you’re in good hands here, Dina,” Jay said, and she suddenly remembered that her friend was there.

  “Do you want to stay for lunch?” Dina asked. “We’ll probably order pizza since I don’t have any groceries.”

  “I’d like to, honey, but I’ve got to pick up somebody else.”

  “You’re so popular,” Dina teased.

  Jay tried to look modest, but she knew he was flattered by her compliment. “Looks like you are, too,” he said, looking at her new neighbor. “Well, it’s great to see you up and around. Next time, we’ll go to McDonald’s. See you soon.”

  “See ya, Jay, and thanks…for everything.”

  ***

  Rafe found that he missed talking to Dina when he made his patient rounds. He wondered how things had gone for her, and debated whether or not to call her. Would someone on the Wellstone Village staff overhear, and think it was unprofessional? He had the feeling that Dina wouldn’t mind. She might even be impressed that he’d called. Although at first he thought she was a pain in the neck, he actually missed talking to her. He’d found out on New Year’s Eve and the days afterward that she had a pretty good sense of humor, which was a quality he liked.

  He opened his cell phone, and dialed Dina’s number.

  “Hello?”

  “Hello, Dina.”

  She sounded sleepy, but happy. “Who is this?”

  “It’s Dr. Farber. Rafe? I just called to see how you were doing.”

  “Oh…I’m fine. The physical and occupational therapists have been coming by and right now I’m in some pain, but I feel so much better than I did before the operation.”

  “That’s good. I’m glad to hear it.”

  “Thanks, Rafe, for calling and for all your help.”

  Now what? And why was he so nervous? He’d dated a lot, especially since he and Ruthie had started these dinner parties, but why did this one person make him so anxious? “Me? I didn’t do much.” Maybe the modesty card would work for him.

  “Yes, you did. You got me to play the piano again and…well, I…”

  “You had a big part in your recovery,” Rafe said, speaking quickly before he realized exactly what he was saying. When she was a patient at Wellstone, he’d told her stories about the singles dinner parties he and Ruthie had arranged. “It’s my turn to host the next singles dinner party at my house. Would you like to come?”

  “I…I’d love to. I haven’t been out of the house at all, but physical therapy’s teaching me to use a cane instead of a walker and I…yes.”

  “That’s wonderful.” He gave her the date and time and said he’d pick her up, surprised at his bold gesture and at her answer.

  ***

  “Who was that?” Dina’s mom, who had come over for a visit, asked.

  “Dr. Farber…Rafe.”

  “Oh?”

  “Mom, don’t get your hopes up. There’s nothing to it. He just called to see how I was doing and to invite me to a singles dinner party.”

  “Oh?”

  Her mom’s grin was wide; her eyes sparkled. “Mo-om.”

  “He asked you for a date, y’know. And he’s a doctor.”

  “Well, since you’re trying to talk like Jay, maybe I’ll ask Rafe if I can bring him as my date,” Dina threatened.

  “You wouldn’t do that. You always say he’s like your brother, and I don’t think you’d want to date your brother.”

  “You know me too well,” Dina said, hugging her mom and pulling her close. “That’s one of the reasons I love you both so much. I still might invite Jay to one of the dinners, though. Maybe he’d meet somebody.”

  “That’s possible but you need to concentrate on you.” Her mom hugged her back and they broke apart. “What are you planning to wear?”

  “I have no idea.” She’d worn mostly T-shirts and yoga pants lately because she’d been doing physical therapy at home. “I have to see what I have that looks halfway decent because I’m not showing up at Rafe’s dinner party in yoga pants and a T-shirt. And then I have to worry about how I’ll be feeling.”

  “If you don’t feel well, you can’t go,” Stella said. “I’m sure Rafe will understand. Besides, you have that nice new neighbor, too. A girl can’t have too many friends.”

  That was true, but there were so many things to worry about. Somehow, she felt like she was being disloyal to Rob’s memory. She thought of his words at the hospital when he’d been lucid, and not incoherent. “Don’t worry, Dina bear. I’m going away, but you’ll get through this, and then you’ll meet someone else and start all over. It’ll be okay.” Sure, he’d told her that, and he’d never been the jealous type, but…

  She scolded herself. Who knew if anything would come of this? It was only one date, and she’d be at a dinner party with lots of other people. It didn’t mean that anything romantic would happen between her and Rafe. Right now, he was a friend who happened to be a guy, like Jay.

  “Are you okay?” her mom asked, as Dina reached out to pet her big gray kitty, Schmoopie, who had suddenly decided he wanted attention.

  “I’m fine,” she said. “I’m just thinking.”

  ***

  “The black dress doesn’t look right with these shoes,” Dina groaned into her cordless phone. “I’ve tried on three other outfits, and nothing works. Can’t I just wear a cute T-shirt, and some jeans?”

  “Is that what you usually wear when you’re playing the piano?” Her best friend, Krysta’s, voice came through on the other end of the phone.

  “No,” Dina muttered. Schmoopie started kneading his paws into the white sweater she’d almost decided to wear. “You’re no help at all.”

  “Who, me?” Krysta said. “I’m trying. You could always call the hosts of that TV show where they tell you what looks good on your body type.”

  “I was talking to Schmoopie, and I don’t have time to call a TV show.” She managed to pull the sweater aw
ay from Schmoopie, and hang it back in the closet. Schmoopie made his opinion of her move known, with a loud meow.

  “Men!” Dina sent Schmoopie an irritated look. She sat down on the bed a minute later and started petting her cat. Once he looked at her with those big, green eyes, she was lost. “Oh, you’re such a cutie, Schmoopie. Mommy didn’t mean to get mad at you.” The feline started to purr. “Do I have to go to this dinner party? Can’t you go in my place?”

  “No,” Krysta said. “I couldn’t, even if I wanted to. Rani’s play is tonight, so I have a date with my son.” Her friend had been divorced for a few years, and had custody of her two kids, Rani, age ten, and Tyler, age twelve. “I told you, you’ll do fine. Now, go, have a good time.”

  Once she’d finished talking to Krysta, she played her Jay & the Cincinnatians CD for inspiration, and finally decided to wear her flowered chiffon top with a red tank top, black slacks and the new red shoes. She got up and changed into the outfit.

  “How do I look?” she asked the cat, trying to pose like a model, but giving up and sitting back on the bed when her knee started to hurt. She still had pain, but nothing like the hurt she’d experienced before surgery.

  Schmoopie gave a purr of approval, then rolled onto his back. Dina gave him a belly rub, and he kept right on purring. “Okay,” she said. “Time for me to get going. Rafe’s picking me up in a few minutes.” Just for luck, Dina had put a fork in her purse. She didn’t think Rafe would try anything, but she’d had such good luck doing that on her first date with Rob.

  There will never be another Rob, she reminded herself. This is just a casual dinner party. Other people will be there. She was making an awfully big fuss over a casual singles dinner.

  “I’ll see you later, Schmoopie,” Dina said, walking from the bedroom to the living room with her walker and slowly toward the front door. She still wasn’t sure what to expect from the enigmatic doctor.

  Chapter Four

  They arrived at his house, which was lit up by the gaslights on the street, as well as the lighting Rafe had installed to brighten his path when he came home at night. The white house, with its gingerbread trim, and wrap-around porch, looked pretty with all the glow surrounding it.

  “It’s so beautiful!” Dina said, her eyes lighting up like a child getting a new toy. She spoke again, her words coming out in a rush. “My husband, Rob, lived in Wyoming. When I first met him, and he said he was from Wyoming, I thought he lived in an old Victorian home. When he took me to his house for the first time, I was disappointed. My mom asked me what his house looked like and I said, ‘It was okay.’ When she went there, she couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me. It was a beautiful house, but it was new. Not like this.”

  “You’re welcome to come and look anytime,” Rafe said, before he realized the words were out of his mouth.

  He took her hand to help her into the garage, so they could go in the back door. “I can do it,” she said, reaching for her walker.

  Independent, he thought, and liked it. She’d seemed so vulnerable at the nursing home that he’d thought she’d depend on everyone else to help her.

  When she looked in the garage, he tried to see things through her eyes. She saw the old cars he and his dad had lovingly restored, and he felt a twinge of sadness that his father was gone. She looked at the old Checker cab, and two cars from the ’60s.

  “These are incredible!”

  “I’m pretty happy with them. If my dad hadn’t found the parts for these two…” he rubbed his leather-gloved hand over the yellow Corvette, “I don’t know if they’d be in such good shape now.”

  “I can’t understand why you and Jay aren’t friends. Jay fixes up old cars and…”

  “Dina,” he said, becoming irritated at the mention of “Saint Jay’s” name again, but not wanting to. “If you’re going to talk about Jay Galloway all night, this could become a very long evening.”

  She frowned, looking hurt. In fact, she looked like she might cry. “I didn’t mean anything by it,” she muttered. “I was just…”

  “And I didn’t mean to be grouchy, but as I told you, I don’t want you to get hurt if he does something to jeopardize your friendship.”

  “I can handle it,” Dina said.

  “Okay,” Rafe said, but he wasn’t convinced.

  From that point on, the conversation flowed as easily as the sparkling water/cranberry juice combo Rafe fixed her when they entered the large, eat-in kitchen. She asked a lot of questions, but like she’d said about Jay, he could handle them. As long as she didn’t get too personal, and start trying to probe into his feelings about his dad’s or his niece’s death.

  “Were you born in Cincinnati?” Dina asked.

  “Born and raised.”

  “Me, too. Where did you go to school?”

  “I went to elementary school at the Ida Malloy Academy, and Wyoming High School.”

  “Oh,” Dina said.

  “Have you got a problem with my alma mater?”

  “No,” Dina said. “It’s just that my cousins went to the academy. My aunt and uncle have a lot of money, and wanted their daughters to have the best. That’s why we’ve never been very close to my dad’s side of the family. I don’t know too much about Wyoming High School except that my late husband went there for a year.” She looked like she was going to cry again when she mentioned her late husband, so Rafe decided to ask some questions.

  “So where did you go to school?” Rafe asked.

  “Roselawn School, and Walnut Hills.”

  “So you were a geek?”

  “You think I’m a geek because I went to…”

  The doorbell rang, interrupting Rafe’s line of questioning. He went to answer it, and returned to the kitchen with Ruthie Gordon, and Alec Stern, from Wellstone.

  “Dina!” Ruthie exclaimed when she saw her. “I’m so glad to see you out and about. When Rafe said you were coming to dinner, I couldn’t believe it. You’re doing so well.”

  “It feels good to finally get out,” Dina said. “I guess pretty soon I’ll be going to the grocery as long as Jay Galloway gives me a ride.” She cast a pointed glance Rafe’s way, and he tried to suck it up.

  Other guests began to arrive, each bringing their contributions to the dinner. Rafe got hungry just looking at the appetizers, side dishes, and desserts and thinking about the main course, rack of lamb in honey garlic sauce that he’d prepared. Dina had brought one of the desserts, chocolate-chestnut brownies from Nutsie Nan’s Café.

  As the other guests arrived and Rafe greeted them and Dina, she continued to ask questions as she walked around the house with her walker. “Did you go to Hebrew school?”

  “I’m a proud alumnus of Shalom Israel Hebrew School. I had my Bar Mitzvah there and everything. What about you?”

  “I went to Beth Abraham,” Dina said. “In the sixth grade, I stopped going because the kids from my elementary school were making fun of me, and I didn’t want a Bat Mitzvah because of that.”

  “What a bunch of bullies!” Rafe said. “Why would anyone make fun of you?”

  “According to them, I smelled. This went on for a while at Walnut Hills, too, until I got to the ninth grade. Then it stopped.”

  Rafe leaned closer to her, and considered kissing her to make up for her awful classmates. It’s too soon, he decided. Slow down. It was only their first date and he was definitely not ready for anything serious. He took her hand and looked into her eyes. “Dina,” he said. “I’m sure lots of people have told you this, but you don’t smell. Not only that, you seem like a very giving, loving person. How many people go out of their way to sing the praises of their cab driver every chance they get?”

  “Well, Jay’s a friend, too,” Dina said. “And he’s like the brother I never had.”

  “I know, but still, not everybody would do that, even for a friend.” Rafe didn’t know what to say when she told him Jay was like the brother she never had. He had a brother, but they’d never been very close, e
specially now that his niece had passed away.

  “When somebody does something good for me then I remember. Thanks for all the nice words. One thing that helped me get through those times in elementary school is that I always had cats for pets. I could tell my problems to Stormy, and she’d sit there, at the bottom of my bed, and listen. I never told my parents about what the kids said until later in my life, but I could tell everything to my Stormy.”

  “She must have been a wonderful cat.”

  “She was,” Dina said. “She was black and white and she was my companion all through the sixth grade and high school. She finally died my first year of college.”

  He found that he enjoyed talking to her and getting little glimpses into her past. He’d already discovered that she had a funny sense of humor and that the woman he’d originally dismissed as a whiner with a depressing job was just what he saw–a giving, loving person.

  ***

  Dina loved Rafe’s house. She’d made her way to a window seat, taking in the stars in the winter . “I always wanted a window seat. There was a crocheted throw on one of the chairs.

  “My mom made it,” Rafe explained. “She was into crocheting.”

  Rafe had candy sitting in a crystal candy dish on the coffee table, and Dina took one piece. It was dark, delicious, and probably expensive. She just sat there, eating candy and talking to Rafe like she belonged, but she didn’t know him very well.

  “There’s no pictures,” she said, looking at the bare walls.

  “Sure there are,” Rafe said, glancing up at a perfectly nice seascape painting above the leather sofa.

  “That’s not what I mean,” Dina said. “Why don’t you have any family photos?”

  “My brother’s the photographer in the family. He’s always taking pictures because he works for the Tribune in Chicago. That way, he can write his story, and turn in a photo with it. He’s got most of the family photos. He used to live in Cincinnati, but he and my sister-in-law had to move so he could keep working as a reporter.”

  “Oh,” Dina said, sensing the tension in Rafe’s voice when he talked about his brother.