Heart to Heart

by Meline Nadeau

  “Too late for that.” He stood, his appetite gone. “How about ordering a pizza delivery? We can have salad while we wait.”

  “It isn’t the dinner I planned, but it sounds good. If I ever do get married, he’d better be a good cook.”

  “Men don’t marry women for their culinary skills,” he said in a teasing voice. “Who makes the best pizza in town?”

  “Joe’s Stop and Go. I have the number on my fridge.”

  “The gas station?” Small-town Iowa was full of surprises.

  “He started out with gas pumps and a small convenience store, but his pizza slices were so popular he added a big kitchen at the rear and began delivery. Now his brother runs the rest of the business, and all Joe does is make pizza.”

  “Interesting.” Actually it was. It never would’ve occurred to him to order pizza where he bought gas.

  He took his ever-present phone out of his pants pocket, hoping he wouldn’t get any emergency calls this evening. He was beginning to see the potential for enjoying himself with Amy, and now that he wasn’t faced with a dehydrated chicken, he felt hungry.

  “What do you like?” he asked.

  “White pizza with shrimp and scallops.” She didn’t hesitate. He liked a woman who knew what she wanted.

  “They have that at Joe’s?”

  “Hey, we may be small-town people, but that doesn’t mean our palates are numb. I doubt you can name a topping Joe can’t provide.”

  “How about Mexican?”

  “As hot as you can stand.”

  “Five cheese.”

  “Name them.”

  “Vegan?”

  “He might surprise you there, especially when zucchini is in season.”

  “Okay, I concede. I like plain old sausage, green peppers, mushrooms, and onions, plus a good aged cheese. And thick crust. But I wouldn’t mind a piece of yours too.”

  “I’m good about sharing.” She grinned at him and started to clear the table, leaving the salad fixings out.

  “Why are you bagging the chicken?” he asked.

  “For my neighbor’s cat. That beastie is a carnivore if I’ve ever seen one.”

  “You don’t like cats?” He preferred dogs himself, but Belinda had kept some nasty-tempered felines.

  “I like them fine, but Mom is allergic to them. We never had a cat, but I grew up with a Boston terrier. I cried buckets when he passed away.”

  “I seem to recall you cry at weddings too.” He grinned because he was having more fun than he’d anticipated.

  “You saw that?” She covered her face with her hands and peeked out between her fingers, a childlike but absolutely charming gesture.

  “When you’re a stranger at a reception, you notice a lot of things. Your niece, for instance, is a doll. I wouldn’t mind half a dozen like her someday.” He exaggerated, but kids had always figured in his plans for the future.

  “Six daughters! I never would’ve guessed you want to start your own basketball team.”

  “Well, maybe not six, and I don’t care whether I have girls or boys. But I love kids. They’re so honest and fresh, so ready to learn about the world. My nephews are my favorite people in the world.”

  “That’s nice. I adore Hannah — even if she is a born matchmaker at age seven.”

  “She wants you to get married?”

  “Oh, no, it’s worse than that. She wants me to marry Prince Charming and ride off into the sunset on his snow-white steed the way it happens in her fairy tale books.”

  “I’d like to have a talk with that girl,” Dan said laughing. “My nephews still think girls are lower order creatures, somewhere below tree toads and grasshoppers.”

  “No doubt they’ll change their minds eventually.” Amy’s light laughter made him tingle.

  When the pizza came twenty minutes later, he had to give her credit for knowing where to get the best. He wolfed down four large pieces, each one tasting better than the last. She was right about the white pizza too. It was better than what he’d had in urban areas.

  Afterward they made a pretense of watching TV, but he scarcely noticed what was flickering across the screen. They talked about music, movies, books, and their experiences as university students.

  “You keep surprising me,” he said after the sun went down and they were still sitting side-by-side on her couch in the dim light.

  “You never expected me to be such a horrible cook?” Her grin told him she was beyond hurt feelings.

  Her full pink lips were just too tempting. He stood and pulled her up with him, leaning down to slowly kiss her.

  “Oh my.” She looked stunned.

  He cupped her chin, loving the softness of her skin and the faint scent of a flowery perfume. When her lips parted under his, he felt a dazzling moment of pleasure before reality intruded.

  This had gone too far. Amy was too cute, too sweet, and too trusting. They couldn’t have a casual affair. He instinctively knew he’d end up hurting her if he let things get out of control.

  “I have to go.” He stepped away and retrieved the phone he’d left on her kitchen counter.

  After thanking her for the dinner invitation, he left abruptly. It wasn’t the way he wanted the evening to end: It was the way it had to end.

  CHAPTER 10

  “How was your date last night?” Josie gave her a sly grin as they got ready to open the store for the day on Friday.

  “What date?” The last thing Amy wanted to talk about was her dinner with Dan. After all, what was there to say? They’d kissed, and he raced out of her apartment like a man who’d just sat on a hot burner.

  “Come on,” her friend urged, “I know he had dinner at your place. My cousin Doug delivers pizza for Joe’s.”

  “I take it discretion isn’t one of the job requirements.” Amy felt put out by Josie’s curiosity, her cousin’s big mouth, and the way she felt about Dan.

  Why kiss her and run away? Did she disappoint him? Or was he afraid she’d expect something from him just because they’d shared a single brief moment?

  Life would be so much simpler if she lived in a big city. A person could have a fling, and no one would notice or care.

  “Did you have a good time?” Josie asked, never one to let a subject drop before she was satisfied.

  “The pizza was great, as always. You’d better start the coffee. We open in a few minutes.” Amy played the boss card, unwilling to share any part of the evening with her friend or anyone else.

  “I have big news,” Josie said. “Gayle Briggs is pregnant. They’ve been trying forever, so she didn’t tell anyone until now. She’s five months along and only beginning to show.”

  “That’s so nice for her,” Amy said, glad for their former teammate on the cheerleading squad and even happier to drop the subject of Dan.

  “She’s been seeing a fertility specialist in Des Moines,” Josie said, starting to ready the soda fountain for the morning coffee drinkers. “Since she’s had so much trouble, she’s going to have the baby there. She’ll stay at an aunt’s house when her time gets close.”

  “I’ll call and congratulate her after work,” Amy said. “She and Greg will make great parents.”

  “Brad and I have been talking about starting a family too,” Josie said. “I told him my clock is ticking, but he wants to save up more money first.”

  “You’re still young,” Amy said. “I have to get to work now.”

  Retreating to the pharmacy department in the rear of the store, she couldn’t keep her mind on the morning routine. Josie’s baby talk had reminded her of Dan’s comment about children. Some woman would be very fortunate to have him as the father of her babies, but she would probably be some beautiful, sophisticated Californian.

  Her first customer was Gracie F
ields, the president of the PTA for an eon or so. Although her children were grown up and living in other places, Gracie didn’t relinquish the gavel at the elementary school all four of them had attended. Given that no one else wanted the job, she was a shoo-in year after year.

  “Good morning, Amy.” The round-faced, curly-headed woman looked anything but presidential in her orange sundress and green flip-flops. “Dr. Prince called in a prescription for me yesterday, but I couldn’t get here to pick it up.”

  “No problem,” Amy said, finding it in the bin. “I have it ready for you. Did the doctor tell you to be sure to drink lots of water while you’re taking it?”

  “Oh, yes, he gave me very specific instructions,” the customer said. “Did you enjoy your date with the doctor?”

  How did a casual acquaintance like Gracie Fields know about something that happened the night before? Did someone put it on Facebook, or were the phone lines buzzing this early in the day?

  “We had pizza is all,” Amy said, probably telling the woman something she already knew. “It wasn’t a date.”

  “He stayed quite a while,” Gracie said, pretending to read the printed instructions that came with her pills.

  Shoulders slumping in resignation, Amy could only shake her head.

  “The secretary of the PTA happened to be visiting her aunt in your building,” Gracie said matter-of-factly. Apparently it never occurred to her that she was a nosy busybody, Amy thought.

  “That will be forty-two dollars,” Amy said.

  “My, I’m sure it wasn’t that much last time I had this infection. Of course, that must have been around 1998, the year my great uncle Herman passed on.”

  Amy tried to tune out the stream of idle chitchat, but she was too annoyed by the gossiping woman to concentrate. Did everyone in town know about the dinner with Dan?

  She accepted Heart City as a place where everyone knew everyone else’s business. Once it had felt comforting to be part of a close-knit community, and people usually backed up their curiosity with genuine concern for the welfare of others. Now it felt stifling to have her every move be public business. But she had to remember, this was the “white-picket fence” kind of life she’d always wanted. The buzz about Dan would soon go away. He was only passing through on the way to his real life.

  The rest of the morning dragged, and her thoughts kept coming back to Dan. His kisses had disturbed her, no question about that. She’d been disappointed by his abrupt departure, although it was understandable. Heart City wasn’t the kind of place where people had casual affairs under the radar, especially not a doctor who was very much in the public eye.

  When she had a few idle moments, she let her imagination run wild. What if they did live in a big city? They could have a passionate fling, and no one would know or care. She wouldn’t have to spend the rest of her life wondering how it would be to make love with Dan.

  When was a customer not a customer? Amy watched her mother make her way through the store directly toward the pharmacy counter. Alice Crane was not there to shop.

  “Am I the last one in town to know about your date?” Her mother sounded hurt and her blue eyes were moist as she confronted her daughter.

  “I’m sorry, Mom. It wasn’t a big deal. I just took your advice and invited him over for dinner. Unfortunately my meal was terrible, and we ordered out for pizza.”

  “I would’ve been happy to help you out. You know how tired I am of cooking for one. I could’ve made pasta and meatballs and shared with you.” Her mother ran her hand over her windblown hair, a lighter blonde than Amy’s because she regularly used the packaged hair coloring for sale in the drug store.

  “Mom, it was just a casual, spur-of-the-moment thing.” Amy felt a little guilty about varnishing the truth, but she didn’t want her mother to feel bad.

  “Well, I’m happy you’re starting to have some social life here,” her mother said. “I worry you’re eventually going to be bored and look for a job someplace more exciting.”

  “You know I love my job,” Amy assured her. “And I love living close to you and the rest of the family. I’d hate to miss watching Hannah grow up.”

  “You can’t let us hold you back if opportunity presents itself,” her mother assured her. She wasn’t talking about the job market. “Did the two of you have a nice time?”

  “We had Joe’s delicious pizza and a nice conversation. He went home early.” She had to give her mother something to think about, however sketchy the account was.

  One thing about gossip: It was here today and gone tomorrow. Since she and Dan were unlikely to spend more time together, the rumors would fade away, and life could get back to normal. She hoped.

  • • •

  Every morning when he woke up, Dan regretted leaving Amy so abruptly on the night of their date. His evenings home alone seemed especially lonely when he thought about her.

  A week passed, and somehow he hadn’t gotten so much as a glimpse of her. Was she avoiding him? He wouldn’t blame her. He couldn’t even pretend to himself their kisses had only been a friendly gesture.

  Although he’d never met a woman like her, he knew instinctively she couldn’t handle casual sex. He wanted to sneak away with her to a motel in a neighboring town as though they were naughty teenagers, but that was a bad idea. She would read too much into it, and he didn’t want to hurt her when he left. The two years would fly by if he gave in to his intense feelings for her, but the bottom line was that she belonged in Heart City, Iowa, and he didn’t.

  Friday office hours had been especially busy that week, mainly because kids were heading off to summer camps and needed physical forms filled out. He loved that part of his practice and spent more time with each child than was strictly necessary. It was a way to make friends with young patients before they were sick or injured.

  Besides the usual junk, his mail slot in the main foyer of the converted Victorian house had a couple of personal pieces. One he ripped open as soon as he got inside his apartment. His nephews had both drawn pictures of Uncle Dan the doctor, and he had a good laugh at their comic caricatures.

  The smaller envelope was a bit puzzling. He’d never heard of Gayle and Greg Briggs, and he’d certainly never been to a couples’ baby shower. A little note at the bottom explained why he’d gotten the invitation:

  “Please escort Amy Crane.”

  “What the … !” he said aloud. When had they become a couple, and why would complete strangers invite him to a baby shower?

  After ordering a pizza, he mulled over the odd summons. Would Amy be the only woman without a date if he didn’t go? Certainly he didn’t want to be there, but were they good friends of hers? Had she suggested him as an escort because she wanted to see him again? The idea didn’t bother him as much as he would’ve thought. In fact, he’d been looking for an excuse to see her again, if only to make things right between them.

  His pizza came; he was trying the white sauce with shrimp and scallops and extra mushrooms. It had great flavor, but somehow he didn’t enjoy it as much as he had the piece he’d tried at Amy’s apartment. After the leftovers were in the fridge, he made up his mind to sound her out on the invitation.

  “Hello.” Her voice was melodic on the phone, and he could imagine her holding it to her ear, soft blonde curls spilling over her cheek.

  “Hi, this is Dan Prince.”

  “Actually, you’re the only Dan I know,” she said in an expressionless voice.

  Was she angry or disinterested? He rarely got that kind of reception when he called a woman, but he probably deserved it. He hadn’t been exactly tactful about running out after some really hot kisses.

  “I have a little puzzle here,” he said.

  “I got the shower invitation too. You don’t have to go. They shouldn’t have assumed we were a couple.” Was she letting him off t
he hook, or did she genuinely not want to go with him?

  “I’ve never been to a couples’ baby shower — never heard of it to be honest. I guess it could be fun.”

  “Are you saying you want to go?” She sounded surprised.

  “Well, yeah, I guess so. I mean, it’s something different to do. The mother-to-be isn’t a patient of mine, so there’s no reason not to.”

  “You don’t have to. I’m sure I can get someone else or go alone. The men will just stand around talking to each other anyway, if it’s like the usual mixed event here.”

  “Look,” he said, “I’d like to go with you. If that bothers you, I’ll forget it.”

  “I suppose it would make Gayle happy. She’s gone through a lot to get pregnant — even went to a fertility specialist in Des Moines.”

  “Wednesday evening, right? Can I pick you up? I don’t know where this address is.” They weren’t getting anywhere debating it, he decided.

  “It’s tricky to find. They rent a small place behind a big farm house, so if you don’t know what to look for, you can drive right past it,” she said.

  “Then I’ll rely on you to get me there. What about a gift? Should we go in together? I’m clueless about baby clothes and stuff.”

  “I’ll put together a package of necessities from the drug store, diapers, powder, wipes, things like that. It can be from both of us. They’ll probably get enough tiny baby garments to clothe quintuplets.”

  “That’s settled then,” he said, surprised by how much he looked forward to seeing Amy again.

  “Okay.”

  “You wouldn’t like to have dinner with me tomorrow, would you?” he asked without giving it any thought.

  “No, thank you.” Her business-like tone told him exactly where he stood with her. “We’ll need twenty minutes to get to the shower. I can drive if you like.”

  “No thanks.” He remembered her high-speed driving on the day of the tornado warning. “I’ll pick you up.”

  “I’ll be outside waiting,” she said, saying a quick good-bye.

  What message was she sending? He wasn’t used to picking up women on the street, but then, she probably didn’t see this as a date. If her description of “mixed events” in Heart City was right, it was middle school all over, the boys in one room and the girls in the other.