by Pamela Bauer
Bethany had returned and said, “Because she hasn’t met her Prince Charming. Talk about dumb questions.”
“All right, all of you. Cut the noise or you’re going to make Auntie Dena wish she’d celebrated her birthday alone,” Ryan admonished in a stern voice.
“She wouldn’t want to do that, not when she sees this,” Lisa said, carrying a large platter into the dining room. “My famous spaghetti and meatballs, a recipe so secret that not even Ryan knows the ingredients.”
Dena knew her sister-in-law had fussed over the meal and smiled gratefully as she set the platter on the table. Like other times she’d dined at the Bailey home, she was a bit overwhelmed by the constant commotion a family of five created. Halfway through the meal Luke’s fork went flying, landing on Dena’s lap. She looked down to see a blob of red sauce on her white blouse.
“Oh, Dena, I am so sorry,” Lisa said, jumping to her feet.
“It’s all right. This is washable.” Dena dabbed at the spot with her napkin.
“You should put cold water on it right now. Otherwise, the stain may set,” Lisa suggested.
“You’re probably right,” Dena said, getting up from the table. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll do it now.”
To her relief, the spot was easily removed by dabbing at it with a cloth soaked in cold water. After only a few minutes, Dena returned to the dining room, the only sign of the mishap a wet spot on her blouse.
Before she even sat down, Bethany said, “Auntie Dena, you had a phone call.”
It was then she noticed her cell phone had been pulled out of her purse and was next to her plate.
“Your phone was ringing in your purse and Bethany didn’t want you to miss a call so she answered it for you,” Lisa explained.
“It was Quinn Sterling,” Bethany blurted out, which explained the reason for the interest on the other faces at the table. Then the little girl added, “I told him you were in the bathroom.”
Lisa grimaced. “I’m sorry, Dena. We’ve told the kids that when they answer the phone they should simply say that the person can’t come to the phone.”
“He wanted to know where she was,” Bethany insisted.
“I wish I would have answered it,” Jeremy said. “I would have thanked him for the picture he autographed for me. How did you say you got it?” he asked his aunt.
Lisa answered for her. “We told you. Dena works at the advertising agency that is doing the calendar of Minnesota celebrities.”
“Did he leave a message?” she asked, trying to sound nonchalant.
“He just said to tell you he called,” Bethany reported.
That started a barrage of questions from Jeremy, who wanted to know everything and anything about the Minnesota Cougar hockey player. Fortunately, Ryan intervened, reminding his son that this was a day to celebrate Dena’s birthday, not discuss Cougar hockey. Dena hoped it would be the last she’d hear of it.
Later, however, when Lisa and Dena were alone in the kitchen, her sister-in-law came right out and asked her about Quinn. “There’s something’s going on between you and that hockey player, isn’t there?”
“What makes you think that?”
“You mean, besides the way your eyes sparkled when Bethany said he’d called?”
Dena knew there was no point in lying. “We’ve become friends.”
“Friends? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“We enjoy each other’s company. Look, Lisa, don’t go reading anything into this. We live in the same building, we’ve had a few good times together…that’s it.”
“I thought maybe because he called on your birthday…”
“He doesn’t even know it’s my birthday,” she said. “That’s how not close we are.”
“You don’t want to talk about this, do you?”
She shook her head. “Do you mind?”
Lisa gave her shoulder a quick squeeze. “Of course not. I never want to pry into your personal life.” Despite her words, there was a coolness in her tone.
“You weren’t prying, but the truth is I don’t know what’s going to happen between me and Quinn. Yeah, we’ve gone out, and yes, I like him, but you know me and my track record with men.”
“It’s too new for you to be discussing it, isn’t it?” she said with an understanding smile.
Dena nodded and, before she could say another word, Jeremy burst through the swinging door. “Dad wants to know what’s keeping you. We’re ready to light the candles.”
“We’ll be right there,” his mother answered.
Just as quickly the door swung the other way and Jeremy was gone. Dena was about to follow him when Lisa pulled on her arm.
“Just promise me one thing. That you’ll go slowly with this guy. He is, after all, a professional hockey player. They collect women like they collect notches on their hockey sticks.”
Dena knew the words were spoken out of concern, but she really didn’t feel the need for a warning from anyone when it came to Quinn. Calmly she said, “Believe me, Lisa, I know what I’m doing. I’m not involved the way you think I am.”
“Famous last words,” Lisa mumbled under her breath before she left the kitchen.
DENA HONESTLY DIDN’T BELIEVE she was involved with Quinn. They were having a little thing on a day-to-day basis. She was doing something few women had the opportunity to do—date a professional athlete. Sure, it was a heady experience. What woman wouldn’t have her head turned a wee bit?
Hers was definitely turned, but fortunately it was only her head that was involved and not her heart. But then she got home and found the flowers. A dozen long-stemmed red roses in a beautiful cut-glass vase. The envelope perched between the stems was unopened. Dena slid her nail beneath the flap and pulled out the card.
Sorry I couldn’t be there on your birthday. We’ll have our own private celebration in Mexico. Quinn.
Dena fingered the velvety petals. Red roses. A symbol of love…at least for some. But she and Quinn weren’t in love. They were in a convenient form of dating. That was all. By next year’s birthday the petals would be pressed between two pages of a book, and he would more than likely be nothing but a memory to her.
She set the vase of roses on her nightstand next to the bobblehead Quinn. She closed her eyes and inhaled the flowers’ fragrance. She wouldn’t think about what might happen next year. If her history with men was anything to go by, she still had more than sixty days before the coach turned back into a pumpkin.
DENA HAD WATCHED all three of the televised hockey games Quinn played on his road trip, wincing every time the puck came near him, for she knew it meant there was a good chance he’d be knocked down…or worse. To her relief, he didn’t get into a single fight during the Cougars’ final victory. When he was interviewed by the media immediately following the game, Dena’s heart did a little thump at the sight of his damp hair and rosy cheeks. She found herself longing to see him again and looked forward to his coming home.
Only he didn’t come home. Dena knew that the Cougars had returned from their final road trip. It had been reported in the paper and on the television news, yet she’d heard nothing from Quinn except a voice mail message he’d left saying that something had come up and he had to make an unscheduled trip to South Carolina.
Dena couldn’t help but be curious as to what it was that had caused him to delay his return. Doubts began to creep into her mind as to whether or not he’d already tired of her and had moved on to his next conquest. When several days passed without word from him, it became more difficult not to think that he was having second thoughts about their relationship. He had been, after all, the one who couldn’t wait to fly to Mexico as soon as the season was over.
It turned out she wasn’t the only one having trouble with her love life. When she bumped into Krystal on the second-floor landing, she saw the younger woman had been crying, her eyes puffy and her face splotchy.
“Are you all right?” Dena asked.
She nodded, then pu
lled a tissue from her pocket and blew her nose. “I don’t know why I’m crying. I’m really more angry than I am sad.”
“Why? What happened?”
She sniffled, then said, “I just found out that Roy is two-timing me. He’s been writing to another one of his old girlfriends, Jasmine Calloway. Apparently he pulled the same number on her that he did on me. Told her he realized he’d made a mistake breaking up with her and that he’d changed…that going off on the military assignment had made him realize how much he wanted to settle down with one woman.”
“I’m sorry,” Dena said sincerely, aware that she could very well be in the same boat. Maybe Quinn had another woman in another city.
“I feel like such a fool,” Krystal said on a hiccup, dabbing at her eyes with another tissue.
Dena didn’t know what to say. How could she give advice to Krystal when it was possible that she was in the very same predicament?
Krystal didn’t wait for her to come up with a suitable response or a sympathetic phrase of understanding. She straightened her back, took a deep breath and said, “I’m not going to let that doofus mess up my life.”
“You shouldn’t,” Dena agreed.
“You know what today is?” she asked the rhetorical question. “It’s my independence day,” she said with her chin held high. “And I’m going to celebrate. Want to come along?”
“Where?”
She shrugged. “Wherever the mood takes us. There’s no shortage of places where a girl can go to have fun.” When Dena didn’t answer right away, she asked, “Or do you have plans with Quinn tonight?”
“I’m not sure…” she began. Seeing the curious look on her neighbor’s face, she said, “We were supposed to get together when he came back from his final road trip, but so far I haven’t heard from him.”
“You’re not worried, are you? I mean, Quinn’s not the kind of guy to just dump a girl. He’s no Roy, Dena.”
She was tempted to ask what made her so sure, when not so long ago she’d called him a catch and release. It was possible that Dena had been released and didn’t even know it.
She found herself speculating about his social life before they had started dating. Maybe he’d had a different woman in each city where the team played.
“So do you want to go out with me?” Krystal interrupted her musings.
Dena really didn’t, but neither did she want to sit home waiting to see if Quinn would call. Because she knew the imagination could be a terrible thing, she said, “Sure, I’ll go with you. Sounds like fun.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
ON SUNDAY MORNING when Dena went down for breakfast, she found the kitchen empty. She wasn’t surprised that Krystal hadn’t come down. As she filled a kettle with water, she smiled as she remembered how Krystal seemed to have an endless supply of energy, dancing until the nightclubs closed their doors.
“I need a jolt of caffeine.”
Dena turned at the sound of her landlady’s voice. “I’m having tea if you want some.”
“I need something stronger,” Leonie said as she set the thick Sunday paper down on the table. “I was out late last night.”
“I hope you had fun.”
“Oh, I did. It was the wedding of one of my clients.” She yawned as she reached for the coffee-maker.
“Must have been a satisfied client if it ended in marriage.”
“What can I say? Sometimes they actually listen,” she said with a wink. She pressed a hand to her lower back and grimaced. “I don’t think I should have tried the limbo, though. Or maybe it was that tango I did with the best man.”
Dena smiled as she imagined Leonie dancing.
“I wonder where Krystal is this morning. She’s usually the first one down,” Leonie remarked as she measured coffee grounds into the basket.
“She may have danced one too many last night, too,” Dena answered. “We had a girls’ night out.”
“Did you go to First Avenue? I know that’s one of her favorite places.”
“No, she wanted me to sample the suburban night-life. I think since I’m from Iowa she figured I’d be more comfortable on a dance floor hooked onto a bowling alley,” she said dryly.
Leonie chuckled. “And were you?”
“Yes.” It was said on a note of disbelief. “The music was good and the dance floor was huge. It rocked.”
“If there’s a good time to be had, Krystal will find it,” Leonie said affectionately.
“Don’t remind me,” the hairdresser said, coming into the room with a hand on her forehead. On her feet were a pair of slippers in the shape of bunnies and a pink robe covered her pajamas. She glanced at Dena and said, “We should have come home when the bars closed.”
“You didn’t?” Leonie asked.
Dena looked at her landlady. “We were celebrating Krystal’s independence day.”
“Another one?” Leonie looked at Krystal, who nodded solemnly. “Oh, my. I thought maybe the third time was the charm.”
“Well, I can guarantee you there won’t be a fourth time,” Krystal assured her.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Leonie asked.
Krystal padded over to the table and sank onto a chair. “I’m all talked out when it comes to Roy. If I didn’t exorcise him last night, nothing’s going to do the trick.”
“She met quite a few candidates to be his replacement,” Dena stated. The kettle whistled and she got up to turn it off.
“I’m not sure I want a replacement,” Krystal said on a sigh.
Leonie patted her hand. “You’ll feel better with time. A broken heart isn’t mended in one night.”
Krystal pushed her hair off her forehead, balancing her head on her palm. “I should have never let him back into my life, Leonie. You knew he was wrong for me, didn’t you?”
“I’d rather see you with someone who recognizes what a treasure you are,” she said in a maternal tone.
“I should have come to you for advice. Then maybe…” She brushed the air with her fingers. “It doesn’t matter. What’s done is done. In the future, I won’t make the same mistake.”
“I believe you won’t,” Leonie said with conviction.
Dena brought the teapot over to the table and asked Krystal, “Would you like me to make you some toast?”
Krystal groaned. “Oh, please. Don’t mention food.” She grimaced and asked, “Why did you let me eat all those greasy wings? They gave me a terrible headache.”
“Are you sure it was the food and not those shots you were doing with a certain Tom Cruise look-alike?” Dena asked.
Krystal smiled wistfully. “He was cute, wasn’t he?”
When the phone rang, Leonie excused herself. Krystal groaned, then dropped her head onto the table. “I feel awful.”
“You should take some aspirin. It’ll take care of your head if not your stomach. Want me to get you some?” Dena offered.
She lifted her head slightly. “Would you?”
“Sure.” Dena went upstairs to her apartment to get the pain reliever for her hungover friend. When she got there, she automatically checked her phone for messages. There was one, which she immediately played back, hoping it was from Quinn.
At the sound of his voice, she sighed. She longed to see him and feel his arms around her. He apologized for not calling, told her that he missed her, then went on to explain that the reason he was in South Carolina was because two good friends—his college roommate and his wife—had been killed in a plane crash. He was with their family members and would be home as soon as he took care of some legal matters. Again he said that he missed her and wished he could be with her.
Dena was swamped with guilt. She’d been worrying that he was off with some hockey groupie having wild sex, when the truth was he’d been grieving over the loss of his friends. She was sitting on her bed thinking about him when Krystal walked in.
“I decided to go back to bed, so you can forget about the aspirin,” she said, leaning against the door-jamb.
“I’m sorry I didn’t come back down right away. I was listening to a message from Quinn.”
“Didn’t I tell you he’d call? He’s a good guy.” When Dena didn’t speak, she added, “It was good news, wasn’t it?”
“Yes and no.” She told Krystal the reason Quinn hadn’t returned.
“Oh my God, that’s horrible,” she said in disbelief. “He’s probably staying in South Carolina to attend the funeral.”
She nodded. “I think it’s tomorrow…and he said something about there being some legal matters he needed to take care of.”
“Did he say when he’d be home?”
She shook her head.
“Does Leonie know about this?”
“He said he was going to call her, but I think I’ll go down and talk with her.”
“If there’s anything I can do to help, let me know,” Krystal offered before shuffling back to bed.
Dena wondered if there was anything anyone could do to help Quinn cope with such a loss. She wanted to believe that he would return home and they would pick up where they’d left off before he’d gone away for that final road trip. But she wasn’t sure that would happen. Only time would tell. And that was what worried her. Time had not always been on her side when it came to men.
IT WAS FOUR DAYS LATER that Dena arrived home from work and saw Quinn’s SUV in the driveway. The thought of being with him again had her heart racing. She hurried up the stairs to her apartment, wanting to freshen up before she saw him. She was just about to put her key in the lock when Krystal came bouncing up the stairs from the kitchen.
“Quinn’s back,” she announced.
“I know. I saw his car out back.”
“He’s not alone.”
Dena frowned. “What do you mean?”
She eyed her curiously. “I guess he didn’t tell you, then.”
“Tell me what?” Dena’s heart began to bang against her chest. “What should he have told me?”
“Those friends of his who died? They had two kids. They’re seven and twelve.”