by Maggie Way
He wanted to promise her more, promise her everything, but he wasn’t going to lie. He couldn’t tell her he would never leave. There were things that might force him to go eventually. Hope that he would never face any of those situations kept him from even bringing them up. They both knew what they were.
“Now that my casts are off, I can get a job, and move out if I want to,” John said. “I can fend for myself now. I don’t need your help anymore. But I do need you. I don’t want to leave.”
John wanted to add one more sentence to that, but with how she reacted to the idea of him being her boyfriend, he thought that adding to what he’d already said would only push her away even more. That discussion would have to wait for a better time.
“I don’t want you to leave either, John,” Gretchen said. “I don’t know what I would do with myself if you left, although I’m pretty sure I would starve to death without you here to cook for me every day.” Her teasing tone gave John hope. Was she warming to the idea, or at least thinking about it without wanting to panic?
Gretchen took a deep breath. There was still a little uncertainty in her eyes, but she was smiling when she said, “John, I would love to call you my boyfriend.”
Cocking one eyebrow, John waited. He watched to see if her smile was going to slip back into that fearful frown. Instead, peace settled over her and her smile grew. Still, he couldn’t help but ask.
“Gretchen, are you sure? I wasn’t trying to push you into anything. I just wanted to know what you thought about the idea,” John said.
“I’m sure,” Gretchen said, “and actually, this makes it the perfect time to mention that my parents called yesterday at lunch. They want to meet you and asked if they could come down to visit next weekend.”
Now it was John’s turn to panic.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Invitation
For some strange reason, Gretchen thought having a party with all her friends would make meeting her parents easier for John. Now she sat at the kitchen table with a stack of invitations wondering what on earth she had been thinking. John had actually been pretty excited about the idea. He had asked about meeting some of Gretchen’s friends a while ago, but she thought he liked the idea of a party because that meant there would be more people around to distract her parents.
Sitting next to Gretchen at the table, John was busy planning the menu for the party while she was addressing envelopes. Luckily, all she needed were first names. Pretty much everyone she knew in town were people she worked with, people she lived near, or the nurses at the hospital. She would slip the invitations for her co-workers into their mailboxes at work and John was going to drop off the nurses’ invitations at his physical therapy appointment the next day.
Of the three sets of neighbors she knew well enough to invite, Gretchen was actually only inviting one of them. Two were elderly and didn’t go out after dark, the other was a young family with a baby they routinely put to bed by eight o’clock every night, and then there was Carl. Gretchen finished writing his name and sat staring at the envelope.
John noticed her stupor and looked over at her. “Carl? Really?” he asked.
“I know,” she said.
“Is that really a good idea? The guy doesn’t seem to like me very much.”
“It’s not you he doesn’t like. It’s any guy that isn’t him,” Gretchen said. “I want him to get to know you. Maybe if he actually meets you he’ll realize how crazy he’s being about this situation.”
“I seriously doubt it. I don’t think guys work like that.” John set his notepad down. “Best case scenario, Carl refuses to come and watch you parade around your new boyfriend for all your friends. Worst case, he actually comes and I end up back in a cast.”
Rolling her eyes, Gretchen picked the envelope up off the table. “You are so dramatic. Carl knows how to behave himself.”
John grimaced. “I only have about two months of memories and some movies to go off, but I think I understand guys a little better than you do. Carl is not going to want to come, and if he does, I don’t want him to come. For my own safety.”
Gretchen rolled her eyes. “The only thing Carl is going to be upset about is if we don’t invite him. He’s a good friend, John. He’ll be offended if we don’t invite him.”
“It’s your call,” John said with a shrug. “But if he tries to kill me, it’s on your head.” He tried to keep a straight face as he said that last part, but he didn’t do a very good job of it.
Gretchen pushed away from the table, invitation in hand, and stood up. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“Do you want me to take it?” John asked. Now he was being serious, worry clouding his expression.
“No, thank you,” Gretchen said. She argued with John about inviting Carl, but she was a little worried about her hulking neighbor. Meeting John in front of her parents would keep Carl on his best behavior. Gretchen knew he would be hoping that on the off chance John took off, he would have already made a good impression on her parents, just in case he got his chance to try and seduce her afterward. There was no way Gretchen wanted John and Carl facing off without a house full of witness. She was pretty sure he would behave himself.
“I’ll be right back,” she said, and walked out of the house.
Gretchen’s nerves had her repeatedly tapping the invitation against her leg as she approached Carl’s front door. It took her a few seconds before she could bring herself to ring the doorbell. She was probably interrupting a basketball game, but Carl was at the door in less than ten seconds. Pulling it open with a smile, Carl pulled Gretchen into a bear hug before she could react.
She was really glad John couldn’t see Carl’s front porch from the house.
“Hey, Carl,” she said, her voice muffled by his chest.
Carl pulled back, but kept one arm around her shoulder. She should have shrugged it off, but she wanted to keep him in a good mood. “What are you up to? You want to come in?” Carl asked.
Gretchen hesitated.
Looking incredibly smug, Carl squeezed her shoulders. “We’re just friends, right? Come in for a minute. I haven’t gotten to talk to you very much lately.”
“Okay, Carl, but just for a few minutes,” Gretchen said.
Carl clapped her on the shoulder in an overly friendly manner and held the door open for her. Gretchen followed him in and took her customary place on the couch. Sinking into the overstuffed cushions, she let herself relax a little. She loved this couch. Gretchen wasn't all that interested in sports, but she loved watching games with him. She’d forgotten how comfortable she felt here.
“So who’s winning?” Gretchen asked.
Carl groaned. “Not the Nuggets.”
“Again? I thought they were doing better this year,” she said.
“They were until about three weeks ago. Now they can’t win a game to save their lives. You’ve rescued me from having to finish watching this,” Carl said. He left the TV on, though. He complained every time his favorite teams lost, but he couldn’t make himself stop watching. He didn’t really want to. The bad games only made the good ones that much better.
“Maybe they’ll snap out of it,” she offered.
“Maybe.” Carl’s thoughts weren’t on the game. Not with the way he was watching Gretchen. “So, Gretchen, what brings you over here today? You haven’t just stopped by to talk since your lost puppy came home.”
This might be harder than she thought. “Carl,” Gretchen said warningly.
He just shrugged. “I know you’re not here to watch the Nuggets lose. What’s going on?”
“My parents are coming to visit next weekend,” she said.
“I thought they weren’t coming until school was out,” Carl said.
Talking with Carl felt nice. In the face of everything that had been going on over the last few months, Gretchen hadn’t realized how much she missed him. She didn’t have to stop and explain things to him every time they talked. Explaining her past
to him had been taken care of ages ago.
“They weren’t, but I guess a friend of my parents has a kid getting married next week in Phoenix. My parents are going down for the wedding and wanted to stop by for a visit on the way,” she said.
“So what’s that for?” Carl asked, pointing to the invitation.
“I’m having a party to introduce my parents to all my friends.” Gretchen watched for Carl’s response.
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a second. “You mean you’re having a party to introduce your friends and your parents to John.”
“That’s part of it. My mom and dad do want to meet John, but they want to meet you, too,” Gretchen said. It was the truth. Her mom had been bugging her about Carl for months. “I’ve told them a lot about you.”
Carl scoffed, but it was true. Before meeting John, Gretchen’s weekly conversations with her parents consisted of her telling them about her job and what she did with Carl. Gretchen’s mom didn’t understand why she hadn’t tried dating Carl any more than he did. Why was Gretchen the only one who got it? Beside the fact that her mom was dying to meet John, she had specifically asked to meet Carl as well. Gretchen didn’t bother mentioning that part of their conversation to John.
“How are things going between you and John?” Carl asked.
Gretchen knew he would ask, but still dreaded having to answer him. She wanted to lie, but wouldn’t do that to Carl. “We’re dating now,” she said.
Carl seemed to expect that, but his face still saddened at the news. Gretchen felt guilty even though she had no reason to. He knew how she felt. Expecting her to turn another man down just so she wouldn’t hurt his feelings would be ridiculous. Gretchen knew Carl understood that, but didn’t make it any easier for him to hear. Had she made a mistake in coming over to his house?
“Okay,” Carl said suddenly, “I’ll come. When is it?”
Blinking in surprise, Gretchen didn’t respond for a few seconds. “It’s Saturday night at eight,” she said. “Are you sure?”
“Of course. I wouldn’t miss it,” Carl said. The pleased smile on his face made her wary.
“Why?” she asked.
“I’m not going to miss a chance to show your parents what a great guy I am. Plus this will give me a chance to really get to know Coma Guy first hand. I’m pretty sure you’ve been hiding him from me so far,” Carl said. “I’m very curious about him.”
“I haven’t been hiding John from you. He’s been in a cast. It’s not like it’s exactly easy to get around with a broken arm and leg and crutches,” she argued. It was a pretty weak argument. Gretchen had totally been hiding John from Carl.
“Well, either way, there won’t be anywhere to hide Saturday.” Getting up from his recliner, Carl sat down on the couch next to Gretchen. His arm fell around her shoulders, squeezing her before she had the chance to wriggle free. “Your parents are going to love me. Maybe they’ll even help me convince you to ditch good ol’ John and give me a chance.”
“Carl, you better not do anything stupid,” she warned. “If you ruin my party, I will stop speaking to you. I swear I will.”
“Now why would I do anything stupid? I want your parents to like me, not think I’m some creepy mystery guy who might turn out to be a total psycho,” Carl said.
Forcing his arm off her shoulders Gretchen faced Carl. “I’m serious, Carl. You better behave yourself. No stupid comments about John being a serial killer. No trying to convince my parents I should be dating you instead. Nothing but you being a perfect gentleman. Do you understand me?”
“I don’t know that I’ve ever been a perfect gentleman, but for you, Gretchen, I will certainly try.” Carl swept up her hand and planted a kiss on the back of it, his attempt at debonair both irritating and amusing Gretchen.
Snatching her hand away, Gretchen folded her arms across her chest, and said, “You better.” Slumping down into the couch, she couldn’t help but wonder what she had just gotten herself into.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Guilt and Regret
The doorbell rang and John almost dropped the tray of stuffed mushrooms he was trying to find a place for in the fridge. Recovering from the surprise, John slid the tray onto a shelf and turned to stare at Gretchen.
“Are they here already?” he asked. He looked a little pale. Gretchen couldn’t blame him. He’d only been out of his casts for a week and they had spent the whole day either getting everything at the grocery store or standing in the kitchen cooking. Gretchen’s legs were already aching and she knew John’s were twice as tired.
“Go ahead and finish what you’re doing. I’ll get the door,” Gretchen said. John nodded thankfully as she dashed out of the room. The doorbell rang again just as she reached it. Gretchen pulled the door open to find her father with his finger poised to ring the bell again. He didn’t like to be kept waiting.
“Hello, Gretchen, what took you so long?” her dad asked.
She shook her head and hugged him. “It’s good to see you too, Daddy. Come on in.”
They shuffled through the narrow entryway and dropped their bags just inside the living room. Gretchen’s mom rushed over and clobbered her with a hug. “Oh, Gretchen, it’s so good to see you, sweetheart. I feel like it’s been forever.”
“Mom, we saw each other at Christmas. That was only a few months ago,” Gretchen said. “How’s Mildred doing? I haven’t talked to her since before they left for vacation.”
“Your sister is doing just fine. She and Martin got back from Seattle on Tuesday. They said it rained pretty much the whole time they were there, but they had a nice trip even with the bad weather,” she said.
“I’m glad they had fun,” Gretchen said.
Gretchen’s mom settled her purse on the side table then turned back to her daughter with excitement in her eyes. “So where is he? Where is John?” Even her dad was glancing around curiously.
“He’s in the kitchen. Follow me.” They did, her mom following right behind her, her dad walking calmly a few steps back.
The counters were cleared, amazingly enough. Gretchen wondered how John had managed to fit everything into the fridge. There were way too many trays and bowls to get them all inside. Somewhere along the way Gretchen thought John forgot he was just supposed to be making hors d’oeuvres for the party, not a five course meal. It made him happy to do it, though, so she didn’t complain.
John laid a wet rag on the counter and anxiously waited for somebody to say something. He looked so nervous. Gretchen didn’t think it even occurred to him that he could be the one to start the introductions.
Her mom was more than happy to break the silence. “A man in an apron, now that’s something I would like to see a little more often,” she said.
Gretchen’s dad coughed behind her. “You banned me from the kitchen two days after we got married. Don’t complain now that I don’t even know how to boil water.”
Waving dismissively, her mom approached John. “It’s so nice to meet you, John.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Gesner. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Gretchen has told me a lot about you,” John said.
“I bet. Did she tell you about all the grief she caused me as a child?” she asked.
“Gretchen? She said she was a pretty quiet kid,” John said. He looked over at Gretchen for an explanation, but she shook her head.
“Oh, she was, John. This girl spent most of her childhood reading books and drawing pictures in her room. I never thought I would see the day when she would find a life outside of her books and pencils. I was convinced she was going to turn into a hermit by the time she was fifteen,” her mom said dramatically.
“Gretchen was a good kid,” her dad said. “There’s nothing wrong with being quiet and keeping to yourself, is there, Gretchen?”
“Of course not, Daddy,” she said.
“Now, are we going to dinner, or not?” her dad asked.
Dinner passed relatively painlessly. Gretchen’s mom talked enough for eve
ryone, sparing John from being grilled too much. Although there wasn't a whole lot they could ask him in all reality. Gretchen was the one who suffered the most, having to sit through her mom telling story after story of her and her sister growing up. They were both pretty mellow kids, so it wasn't too embarrassing, but her mom’s constant comments about how glad she was that Gretchen wasn't going to end up a spinster made it sound as if she were scared of everything.
Gretchen dated in high school. She got invited to prom, and not by the captain of the chess team, either. To her mom, unless Gretchen was prancing around the field as either a cheerleader or athlete, while running for student body president and heading up a dozen other extracurricular activities, she wasn't outgoing enough. Gretchen ignored her while John took in every detail. He, at least, seemed utterly fascinated by her mom’s stories.
By the time they made it back to the house, though, John was much more worried about getting the food ready than he was about listening to any more of her mom’s stories. Gretchen put her mom in charge of answering the door and dashed into the kitchen to help John, and to escape listening to her mom.
“What do you need me to do?” Gretchen asked John.
“Will you turn the oven on? 375 degrees, please.” He topped off his request with a quick kiss and went back to the fridge.
“You have plenty of time, sweetheart. Relax. We still have an hour before anyone’s supposed to arrive,” Gretchen said. Stepping in and stealing a longer kiss, she didn’t back off until she felt him relax.
“Sweetheart, huh? You’ve never called me that before. Does that mean I get to call you Gigi now?” he asked.
Gretchen smiled as sweetly as she could. “Not unless you want me to punch you in the teeth.”
Cocking his head to the side, he seemed to be considering whether or not it would be worth it. “Just finish topping your canapes before you get yourself into trouble,” Gretchen said. “I’ll get the mushrooms in the oven.”