A Merry Little Christmas

by Melanie Schuster

  “Nice to meet you,” Donnie said although his face looked anything but happy to see the man. This Mateo was about six-one, slender but well muscled and very exotic-looking with curly black hair, tawny skin and long-lashed hazel eyes. He had a cleft in his squared chin, high cheekbones and a full, pouty mouth that looked like it had seen a lot of action. Donnie grew grim as he reflected that he had witnessed a little of that action himself.

  Angelique took her hand away from Donnie’s and turned to put the flowers on the low table. Indicating the sofa, she suggested they sit down. Mateo sat at one end and she took a chair across from him. Donnie continued to stand, his expression unchanged. He was trying not to let it show but suddenly his stomach was churning and his head was pounding. This was not the reception he’d envisioned, not by a long shot. He’d anticipated giving the flowers to Angelique, making plans for a romantic dinner and maybe getting another one of her remarkable kisses. Definitely one of those. Instead he walked in to find her wrapped up with someone he’d never seen or heard of before. It suddenly dawned on him that Angelique was talking; he’d been too put off to really listen before. “I’m sorry, Angel, I didn’t hear you. What did you say?”

  Still facing her friend, Angelique repeated what she’d said before, eliciting an odd response from Mateo, or Matt, as he was called. He gave Angelique a wicked grin and moved his fingers in the distinctive and unmistakable pattern of sign language. Angelique made a sound of disgust, and then signed back as she spoke to him.

  “That is so rude. What have I told you about that? No, he’s not deaf, he’s just tired, and that’s why he didn’t hear me. Now behave yourself.”

  She continued to talk to Donnie and signed while she was speaking to him. “Matt likes to think he’s funny, you have to excuse him,” she said, and shrieked as Matt playfully spanked her leg in retaliation. Signing rapidly, she said something that made Matt fall back on the sofa in laughter. She saw Donnie looking at the two of them and felt self-conscious for some reason.

  “How was your trip? I hope it was successful,” she said softly. “You really do look a little tired.”

  Donnie finally smiled at the concern in her voice. “Yes, it was very successful, as a matter of fact. Listen, I don’t want to take up your time, I see you’re busy. How about if I call you later?”

  “Sure, that would be fine.” After a second she looked at him quizzically. “Umm, do you have my number?” she asked, still signing.

  Matt signed something that was apparently hilarious, as Angelique’s eyes widened and she burst out laughing. “He says you might not have my number but he has yours. I told you, he thinks he’s funny.”

  In the elevator Donnie ground his teeth and thought he’d never met anyone less humorous in his life. He managed to get to his office without snapping anyone’s head off, but his mood hadn’t improved in the least. He took off his topcoat and tossed it on the chair across from his desk, walking over to the small walnut refrigerator in the comer of the office. He took out a cobalt-blue bottle of his favorite mineral water and opened it. Staring moodily out the window, he drank most of it without tasting a thing. Finally, he went to his desk and sat down, then picked up the phone and punched in a familiar number. After exchanging pleasantries, he got right to the point. “What are you doing after work? Okay, sure, I’ll be there. Thanks, Warren, I’ll see you then.”

  Chapter Eleven

  A few hours later, Warren was in the kitchen of his big, still mostly unfurnished house in Farmington Hills preparing dinner. He was completely at home in the kitchen, as was evidenced by the expert way he was putting together what looked to be a savory meal for a cold night. He placed fresh basil leaves under the breast skin of a roasting chicken while Donnie watched him.

  Warren looked at his friend and made note of his foul mood. “What’s got you so down and out, man? I haven’t seen you like this since you got your ring returned.”

  Donnie gave a half smile. “Technically, the ring wasn’t returned since it was never accepted. I need to get rid of it, too. I keep forgetting to take it back to the jeweler,” he reflected.

  “Is that what’s got you looking like ten miles of bad road? Just take the ring back to the store, end of story. And take it back fast—you’re just asking for trouble having it lying around. Get rid of it,” Warren said. He rubbed the inside of the chicken and the neck cavity with pesto and placed a lemon half in each opening, then covered the plump bird with olive oil and finished with a sprinkle of sea salt and a twist of the pepper mill. Warren glanced at the wall clock before slipping the prepared bird into the oven. “You want something to drink?”

  “Yeah, sure. Anything,” Donnie said. He was sitting on a tall stool by the work island in the middle of the kitchen, leaning on his elbows and looking pretty much like Warren’s description. When Warren pushed a pilsner glass at him with some sort of red concoction in it, Donnie raised an eyebrow and looked at him questioningly.

  “Drink it, it won’t kill you,” Warren said with amusement.

  Donnie took a sip, and, sure enough, it was pleasant to the palate, slightly fizzy and tart with an underlying sweetness. “This is good, what is it?”

  Warren looked a little sheepish. “It’s pomegranate juice with lime-flavored Perrier,” he admitted. Before Donnie could revile him for serving a sissy drink, Warren added that it was Lisette’s favorite, which reminded Donnie of why he was so glum. Watching Warren prepare a perfect salad, he unburdened himself.

  “Warren, I think I’m losing my mind,” he told him. “I work too hard, I play too little, I’m tired and I’m in love with somebody I can’t stand.” He gave a short laugh. “Okay, I’m exaggerating. Of course I’m not in love with Angel, and I don’t mean that I can’t stand her but for some reason she’s on my mind a lot, a whole lot. And today I almost went ballistic because she was hugged up with this guy she says is her best friend.”

  He shook his head and told Warren the whole sorry tale, starting with his good-bye to Angelique and how he’d swept into her office bearing gifts, only to find her entwined with a tall, dark and handsome stranger. “Man, it was not my finest moment, believe me. I have no idea what made me so crazy but it was like I could feel all the molecules in my body rearranging themselves. I was ... I was ...” He groped around vainly for the right word while Warren poured red-wine vinegar into a mixing jar.

  “The word you’re looking for is ‘jealous.’ You were jealous, pure and simple, Cochran, and it’s because you like Angelique more than you’re willing to admit,” he said wisely.

  Donnie drank the rest of the pomegranate cocktail as he considered Warren’s words. Jealous? Me, jealous, of Angel and her little friend? He tried to remember an occasion when he’d been jealous over a woman, especially one he hadn’t actually dated. No, it couldn’t be jealousy. “No, Warren, I don’t think that’s it. I think I was just caught off guard, that’s all. I just wasn’t expecting to see her with a guy.”

  Warren finished adding finely minced rosemary and freshly ground pepper to the jar with the vinegar and wiped his fingers on a damp towel. Picking up a bottle of olive oil, he looked at Donnie with a pitying smile. “Cochran, give it a rest. You like Angel; you like her a lot and you don’t want to give it up to her. So go ahead, keep fighting it and make yourself miserable. But remember this: as long as you don’t deal with your feelings, you’re going to be miserable. Serves you right, too.”

  “Listen to Dr. Phil! When did you become an expert on relationships?” Donnie said in amusement.

  Warren looked completely serious when he replied. “When I found Lisette. I’m not claiming to be an expert or anything, but I recognize the symptoms. It’s all those years of medical training. I’m an excellent observer of human nature,” he said, raising his glass cheerfully.

  “So tell me this, Warren. What made you all of a sudden decide to ask Lisette out? I thought you weren’t going to try to get close to her. I thought you had all these reservations and stuff. What changed y
our mind?”

  Warren smiled, more to himself than to Donnie as he shook the salad dressing vigorously. Putting the jar into the refrigerator, he took out a bunch of asparagus and put it on the work island. “We were all spending a lot of time together, me and my little harem. If I went over to Angel’s house, she’d have Lisette and Paris there. If we went to a movie, it was usually the whole group. Lisette was just so sweet and pretty, it wasn’t like I could ignore her. You know what she looks like Cochran, she’s a doll. And she has a wonderful personality besides. Well, the weekend of the auto show was what did it,” he said as he picked up the asparagus and washed it thoroughly.

  “We all piled in the SUV and went off to Cobo Hall and the girls kind of disappeared. After we got in there they scattered and it was just Lisette and me. She and I walked around looking at the cars and talking, and then it happened.” He stopped speaking for a moment while he broke the tough ends off the asparagus.

  Donnie tapped on the oak countertop to remind Warren that he was still in the room. “Then what happened? Don’t leave me hanging, man. You got any more of this?” he asked holding up his empty glass.

  “It’s in the refrigerator. The juice is on the door and so is the Perrier. What happened was this: we were looking at a beautiful Bentley and the representative turns to Lisette and asks if she’d like to try the car out with her husband. She just smiled up at me and said yes and we got in the car,” Warren said simply.

  Donnie looked confused. “That’s it? I don’t get it,” he said frowning at the cute POM bottle that held the pomegranate juice. It looked like a glass snowman.

  “It was the way she did it, Donnie. She didn’t hesitate, she didn’t say I wasn’t her husband she didn’t say we were just friends, she just looked up at me like she was totally proud to be with me and we got in the car. She acted like being with me was the most natural thing in the world. That’s when I knew that no matter what happened I had to get to know her better. I had to take the chance. And when Angel and Paris decided to have their little matchmaking soiree, everything just fell into place and I’ve been a very happy man ever since.”

  The doorbell rang and Warren smiled broadly. “There’s my honey now,” he said with evident pleasure and he went to open the door for her. They entered the kitchen holding hands and cooing at each other like newlyweds. Lisette looked pleased to see Donnie and went over to give him a quick sisterly kiss on the cheek.

  “It’s nice to see you again, Donnie. How are you doing?” she asked.

  Warren came up behind Lisette and wrapped his arms around her, bending down to give her a most unbrotherly kiss on the neck. “He’s miserable because he doesn’t have what we have, honey.”

  Lisette’s tender heart melted at Warren’s words. She turned around in his arms and put her hand on his face. “Don’t make fun of him, sweetheart. You should be helping him like our friends helped us,” she said with a gentle smile.

  Donnie looked from Warren to Lisette in amazement. “So you set out to shanghai him and you admit it?” he said to Lisette. Staring at Warren, he went on, “And you knew they were matchmaking and you went along with it? This was okay with you?” he asked incredulously.

  Warren and Lisette both laughed at Donnie’s expression. “Cochran, man, I would have paid Angel to come up with this idea. Are you crazy? I was going to beg Lisette to go out with me anyway; they just made it easier, that’s all.”

  Lisette looked up at Warren adoringly and said, “You never have to beg me for anything, Warren. I wanted to be with you, too. I always have.”

  Donnie correctly surmised that now would be a good time to leave. Refusing their repeated invitations to join them for dinner, he insisted on departing. Warren walked him to the door while Lisette set the table for two.

  “Listen, buddy, I do have one piece of advice for you. Whatever you do, don’t mess over Angelique. I’m not saying that you and she are going to end up in love like me and Lisette, but don’t play with her, man. She’s a very special person and she deserves better,” he said meaningfully. Donnie put on his suit jacket. “Warren, first of all, I’m not going to mess over anybody and I’m a little insulted that you’d suggest I would. And second of all, do you realize that you just said you were in love with Lisette?”

  Warren held up his hands in supplication. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to impugn your honor or anything, and I know you wouldn’t deliberately hurt her or anyone else. But I’ve gotten very fond of her; she’s like a little sister to me. And, yes, I did use the word ‘love’ in the same sentence as Lisette’s name. She’s also very special to me. Very, very special,” he said with quiet assurance.

  As he shrugged into his topcoat, Donnie gave Warren a look of grudging admiration and envy. “Well, I guess you have it all together, man. If you’re happy, I’m happy.” Warren took pity on his friend. “You will be if you don’t fight it,” he advised. Donnie looked perplexed and Warren was happy to enlighten him. “I noticed that you’ve stopped called her Evilene and now you refer to her as Angel. When did that happen?”

  Donnie didn’t have an answer for Warren as he left the house and got into his cold car. While waiting for it to warm up, he asked himself the same question. When did that happen?

  Lisette joined Warren in the living room just in time to see Donnie backing out of the wide driveway. She leaned into his side and breathed in his wonderful masculine scent as he wrapped his arms around her.

  “Lisette, you know I’ve fallen in love with you, don’t you?” he said softly.

  Without hesitation she turned in his arms so that she was facing him. “I love you too, Warren. And because I love you so much, I have to tell you something and I hope you’ll still be in love with me afterward” she said sadly.

  ***

  Donnie was sequestered in his office, ostensibly looking over budget projections for the next quarter, but in reality he was doing what he’d been doing more and more of lately: he was thinking about Angelique. Over the past few days, Donnie had an opportunity to ask himself a great many more questions as he tried to make sense of his new feelings. Ever since the day he’d seen her in Matt’s arms and he’d gotten the lecture from Warren, Donnie had been in turmoil. Part of the problem was that Angelique was just so inaccessible since Matt had come to town. Even though she was perfectly friendly to Donnie, she was also busy. They managed to have dinner together once, but even that wasn’t what he’d hoped for since Paris and Matt also came along. They’d shared an excellent meal at Xochimilco in the trendy Mexican Town section of Detroit and then gone dancing together at Parabox, one of Angelique’s favorite dance clubs. It was New Latin Generation night and she had danced all night with what seemed to be every man in the place. Donnie frowned as he recalled that part of the evening.

  He didn’t know why he hadn’t remembered how well she danced but she was out there putting everyone else to shame with her moves. The only other time he could remember Angelique dancing was at her brother Marcus’s wedding, and to be honest, he’d been pretty busy meeting the flock of beautiful women who were in attendance. That night, though, Angelique had amazed him. She’d been wearing black leather pants and a red camisole with matching bolero-type cardigan in a bright red angora, and her hair had been curlier than usual. She was a graceful, sexy figure on the dance floor and she commanded every eye as she executed the intricate steps. What’s more, Matt danced with her several times and they made an exquisite-looking couple, something else that irritated Donnie.

  Donnie took a couple of calls while he continued to peruse the figures with the help of his laptop, but his mind kept going back to that night. Paris had also deserted him to dance but she eventually came back to the table and drank copious amounts of club soda with lime. She’d eyed him curiously and then asked the question he was dreading.

  “So why aren’t you out there dancing, Donnie?”

  He’d tried not to cringe and surprised himself by answering her honestly instead of indulging in his usual no
nanswer. “I hate to dance, Paris. I’ve always felt kind of gawky, to tell you the truth. When your head is as far from your feet as mine is, getting on a dance floor is just asking for trouble,” he’d told her.

  Her eyes had crinkled with laughter and he’d shrugged. “Besides, I was watching my brothers doing the Electric Slide or something one night and it was just scary, if you ask me. They looked like big ol’ giraffes bobbing for water. From then on I decided to protect the public by restricting myself to slow-dancing only.” He watched Matt and Angelique dance some more and asked Paris how Matt could dance so well if he couldn’t hear the music.

  “Angelique says if the music is really loud, he can feel the vibrations. And he wasn’t born deaf, he lost his hearing gradually. I don’t know if that makes a difference or not.”

  Snapping out of his reverie, Donnie suddenly looked at his watch and realized how late it was getting; on impulse he decided to take a walk around the office to clear his head. After rising from his desk and stretching, he took his suit coat from the closet and headed out. He really did try to stick to his plan; he strolled around the executive floor, chatting with a few key employees, and dropped in on the lower floor that held the radio station, but continued his “walk” only until he’d reached the elevator and gone down to the first floor. His footsteps were deliberate and purposeful; he went right to Angelique’s studio. There was a computer-printed note on the door that puzzled him: it read Closed for Wedding. He stared at the note for a moment and then went to find Fanchon.

  Fanchon Rencher was the highly efficient concierge of the building. She knew everything that went on within its environs and was quite fond of Angelique. If Angelique had taken the day off for a wedding, Fanchon would know.