“Fine. After work, I’ll buy you a drink. Meet me next door at six.”
When Rosa’s first opened up next to our office, Anna and I had lunch there at least twice a week. Rosa made her salsa from scratch, and her enchiladas were to die for. Unfortunately, over the years we found it increasingly more difficult to break free from our desks in the middle of the day. Now, we were lucky if we made it here once a quarter for lunch. However, we often managed to squeeze in a quick drink at the bar after a long day. What can I say? Sometimes work seriously drives me to drink.
I arrived first and sat at one of the high-top round tables by the bar. Instead of glancing at my phone compulsively checking to see if I had any new work emails to attend to, I reached into my purse and pulled out Keith’s business card. I swore on Saturday night, when he placed it in my hand, I would rip it up into a bunch of tiny little pieces and toss it in the trash compactor the moment I got home. However, I just couldn’t. Instead, I just keep staring at it. I was sort of amazed, like me, he kept the same cell phone number all of these years. If only he had tried calling mine…
“Oh, sorry I’m late,” Anna huffed as she flopped down onto her stool. “McGrevor called me just as I was walking out the door. I was tempted to let the call go to voicemail, but I figured it was easier to talk to him now then worry about why he was calling all night.”
“What does the devil want now?” I sneered. John McGrevor had to be the most difficult client our firm had ever worked with. He had made everyone who touched his account miserable. Two people almost quit! Every time I heard his name I got a little nauseous. However, after much effort on my and Anna’s part, he seemed to be behaving.
Anna shook her head. “He wanted me to slightly tweak the tag lines I gave him last week. I never thought I would say this, but I think we are almost finished.”
I gave her a high five. “Thank God for minor miracles!”
“I know. Did you order? If this isn’t grounds for a toast, I don’t know what is.”
“Yeah, I ordered a pitcher.”
Anna raised her eyebrows at me, just as the waitress dropped off the margaritas and three glasses.
“Hope you don’t mind, I asked Meredith to join us.” When I first moved to the city after college, I shared a small apartment with two girls, Meredith and Katie. I got lucky; we all hit it off from the start and remained close ever since. When Katie got married she moved back home to Chicago to be close to her family, which was probably a very good decision, considering she now had seven children. Meri still lived in the city. Considering she was so close, we didn’t spend nearly enough time together as we should. Then again, she was barely in the state. She and husband owned a consulting firm, and they both traveled an enormous amount for work. I was shocked and thrilled when I called her and found out she was in town today. She didn’t hesitate for one second about hopping on the Long Island Rail Road to head over to Great Neck where my office was located. I knew what Anna wanted to talk about tonight, and I needed Meri to be part of the conversation.
“Mind? Are you kidding? I’m excited. I haven’t seen her in like forever.”
I was lucky. Anna got along so well with my old friends.
I picked up the pitcher and poured myself some liquid courage before filling her glass. “I’m sorry about today. I didn’t even give you a chance to tell me about your get away. How was it? Did you and Cole have a good time?”
“Yeah. We did. I know it was only one day, but it was awesome to be able to relax a little and be alone with him, especially after all this wedding planning. The hotel was lovely, the show was great, and the best part, the kids had an amazing time at my mom’s.”
I squeezed Anna’s hand knowing how much it meant to her that her mother was really trying to rebuild their relationship and finally be a grandmother to Anna’s children.
“Enough about me and my weekend. We’ve been talking about me a lot lately.”
I snorted. “Um, kind of an understatement, don’t you think?”
Anna flung a tortilla chip at me. “Really? You didn’t have to agree with me so quickly.”
“Hey guys,” Meredith yelled out as she approached our table. She pointed at our glasses. “Seriously, you better not have started without me.” Anna and I both stood up. Meri engulfed me in her arms and then she hugged Anna too.
“Um, what did you do to your hair?” I asked as soon as we sat back down.
“You don’t like?” She arched an eyebrow.
As Anna filled up Meredith’s glass I replied, “No.” I scrunched my face and studied her. “I actually love it. You look good. I’m just shocked you cut it so short.” She always prided herself on her waist length hair. Now, her chestnut locks were cut right above her chin in a stylish bob.
“Eh… I needed a change.” She raised her glass. “Cheers guys!” We toasted. She took a sip and beamed, “Cee, I’m so happy I was in town when you called. Gregg and I got back from Minneapolis yesterday afternoon, and we’re heading to Houston on Wednesday.”
“I don’t know how you guys keep your schedules,” Anna chimed in.
“Yeah, me neither. I used to love it, but now it is starting to wear on us both. At least we travel together, but still.” She dipped a chip in salsa. “So, while I’m happy you called. I’m kind of curious. I don’t remember the last time you asked me to meet you after work on a school night. What’s up?”
I took a deep breath. “You’ll never believe who I saw this weekend.” I paused. Both girls’ were staring at me. My voice was barely a whisper, “Keith.”
“Shut up!” Meri’s eyes opened as wide as saucers.
Meredith took a gulp of her drink. “Start from the beginning. Where did you see him?”
Before I could answer, Anna shook her head. “So you lied to me. I knew you had to have known him. You know, I didn’t believe you for a second when you said you didn’t. I don’t understand why you felt the need to lie to me! What the hell is going on?”
Meredith eyed the practically full pitcher. “Shit. I’m not sure there is enough tequila in the world for this conversation.”
Anna nervously started tapping her fingers on the table. “Will someone please tell me what is going on? Cecelia, who is Keith and why did you look like death when he showed up at the club to officiate the ceremony?”
I took a gulp of my drink. “I didn’t look that bad.”
Anna arched her eyebrow.
“I thought I hid it better. Bryce didn’t make a big deal out of it.”
“Yeah, I know. Your husband bought your story about remembering something at work. But I didn’t. If there was an issue bad enough to cause you to get so upset I’d have known about it too.”
“Okay. Someone needs to bring me up to speed. I wasn’t at the wedding remember? I’m clueless here.” Meredith stated.
I took a deep breath. “He’s a judge now.”
“Figures,” Meredith smirked as she rolled her eyes. “Why aren’t I surprised?”
“Hello!” Anna flung her hands in the air. “I still have no idea who Keith is.”
I twirled a strand of hair around my index finger. “He’s someone I used to know.”
“Someone you used to know? Really?” Meredith ran her fingers through her hair. “Is that really your answer?” She turned to Anna, “Has she ever even mentioned him to you in all the years you guys have been friends?”
“No. Not once.” The pain in her eyes was hard to avoid.
I picked up my glass and put it down again without even taking a sip. “I’m sorry. It’s not that I didn’t want to tell you about him. I just don’t like to think about him, so talking about him is pretty painful.”
“Why?” Both Anna and Meredith asked in unison, although probably for different reasons.
I took another deep breath. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen him, Anna. I honestly never thought I would lay eyes on him again.” I glanced at Meri who gave me a closed mouth smile. Before she could call me out
, I admitted, “Ok, fine. I’m lying. For a long time I hoped and prayed he’d reappear in my life. Then months turned to years, and he never reached out to me, not once. So finally I gave up hope. It wasn’t easy.” Meredith squeezed my hand. After all, she of all people knew how hard it was for me. “Eventually I came to terms with the fact that the past was the past.” I looked down at my wedding band and nervously began to twirl it. “I knew I had to move on and I did. Now, out of nowhere, and with no warning, he appeared again. All the emotions I buried are now boiling up to the surface. I have barely slept in days. Food feels like a lead weight in my stomach whenever I try to eat. I can’t sit still, and yet nothing I do remotely calms me down. I feel so frustrated and so confused. I can’t think clearly.” A tear rolled down my cheek. I didn’t bother to wipe it away. “I can’t stop thinking about the past.”
Anna passed me a napkin. “So I am guessing you guys were involved.”
I nodded.
“What happened?”
CHAPTER FIVE
CECELIA
It was amazing how years could fly by, and something so simple as a smell or a situation could trigger memories so powerful you felt like you were transported back in time. I glanced up at the baseball game that was playing on the television set hanging at the back corner of the bar. For a second, I felt as if I was no longer at Rosa’s but instead at the little bar in the middle of midtown Manhattan where I first met Keith.
Facing Anna, I explained, “It was a little over a year after I had graduated from college and I was working at my first job and living with the girls. Before meeting this one,” I smiled at Meri, “I had avoided sports like the plague. But she was a huge sports fan, and her enthusiasm was contagious, especially when it came to the Yankees.”
“Damn straight!” Meri chimed in. “And I still love them.” She reached for a chip as she smirked. “I got little Miss Cecelia hooked on the game, which of course drove Katie crazy. She hated sports. Cracks me up now because she must spend every single day of her life at some game with her five boys.”
“Yeah, so as I was saying, there was some big game on, and Meredith insisted we had to watch it at a bar.”
“I didn’t exactly have to drag you, you know. You never were one to turn down a beer. Especially when I was treating.”
Anna smiled as she topped off our glasses. “Good to know some things never change.”
“So the bar was packed with fans yelling and cheering. Everyone was having an awesome time. Well for the most part.” I bit my lip. “There was this one guy who didn’t seem to even notice there was a game on. He was sitting alone at the edge of the bar wearing a suit and tie. He was eating a burger while frantically scribbling away on a yellow legal pad.”
“How could he have even concentrated with all the noise?” Anna asked as she took a sip of her drink.
“We had no idea.” I smiled as I remembered the scene as if it happened yesterday. “He was so focused on his work, he didn’t even look up. His nose was buried in his papers.”
“It was bizarre.” Meredith chimed in. “We were in rare form. We kept whispering and joking about what a loser he must be.” She paused. “Back then, we were a little quick to judge.”
Anna raised an eyebrow. “Were?”
“Okay, fine. We still are, sometimes. Can I continue ladies?”
“Of course,” Anna smirked and Meredith took a sip of her drink.
“So, yes, we were making fun of him. Then he looked up from his papers and my heart stopped.”
Anna snorted. “Well, I didn’t want to say anything before because I didn’t know what the deal was. But man! He’s one handsome guy.”
“I know.” I looked at Meredith and placed my hand against my chest. “Call me crazy, I think he may even be better looking now.”
She rolled her eyes, “Of course he is.”
“So there we sat staring at him. Fortunately for me, Meri had a boyfriend at the time. She half dared, half nudged me to go talk to him.”
“Dared was more appropriate.”
“I wanted to keep my hands busy, so I ordered myself another beer and walked over to where he was sitting. With her watching me like a hawk, I struck up a conversation. For as serious as he seemed to be he was really funny. He told me he was an attorney and he was preparing for his first trial later in the week. Apparently, it was a huge case, and his nerves had him working around the clock. He had stopped at the bar to grab something to eat. He was shocked he managed to get any work done since it was so loud. He told me he disgraced his younger self by not knowing a big game was on.”
“I would have just taken a break, if it had been me,” Anna chimed in.
“You and me both.” I smiled. “I don’t think the word break was in his vocabulary, though. It was crystal clear he was incredibly ambitious, and his career meant the world to him. We really seemed to be hitting it off. I could have sworn he even relaxed slightly. After about fifteen minutes of us hanging out, he announced his dinner break was over. He said he had to get back to his office. I tried to convince him to stay longer but he was determined to get back to work.”
“I can’t believe he turned you down. You usually get your way.” Anna smiled.
“I was shocked too,” Meri chimed in. “And she looked hot that night.”
I smiled. “Thanks. I really thought I could get him to stay, but he wasn’t budging. It was so frustrating! He did give me his business card so I could call him. Now that pissed me off. I wanted him to ask me for my number, not give me his. I mean really! Wasn’t it bad enough I picked him up? He wanted me to chase after him too?”
“I hear you.” Anna shook her head. “It always drove me crazy when guys expected me to call and take the first step. It was such a turnoff! Why are guys so afraid of rejection?”
I took a sip of my drink. “You got me. And to think, they think we’re insecure!” I chuckled at my own joke. “Well, anyway, he got up to leave just as the Yankees scored a homer. The bar went nuts. Some guy standing to my left knocked into me and caused me to spill my beer all over Keith’s crisp white shirt.”
“Oh shit.” Anna shook her head.
“Yep.” I slowly nodded my head. “He was mortified. He kept mumbling about having to go back to work stinking like beer.”
“Why didn’t he just go home and change?”
“He lived in the East Village and didn’t want to waste time commuting when he had so much work to do.”
“Which should have been your first sign that he had an unhealthy relationship with his career,” Meredith said in an authoritative tone.
I ignored her remark. “I apologized to him, even though the spill wasn’t my fault. He told me not to worry about it, but I still felt horrible. He headed off to the bathroom to wash the beer out as best as he could. I expected he would come back to say goodbye, but he never did.”
Meri nervously cracked her knuckles. “He snuck out the back exit. I was watching.” She leaned over and patted Cee’s thigh. “Our poor girl stayed by his stool for a good fifteen minutes or so looking like an abandoned puppy.”
“That was a dick move.” Anna was angry. “What was his problem? He had to have known it was an accident.”
“Yeah, maybe,” I shook my head. “Truthfully, I wasn’t so sure what to think at the time. I actually thought I might have come on too strong trying to get him to stay at the bar. You know, I can be pushy when I want something. I was mortified, I worried he thought I had purposely poured my beer on him.”
Anna rubbed her temple. “Don’t you think you were being a bit dramatic?”
Meri rolled her eyes. “I said the exact same thing to her when she finally came back to where I was sitting. She didn’t want to listen to me, though.”
“I don’t know what it was. There was something about him that really intrigued me. I didn’t want those few minutes to be it. I really wanted to get to know him better, so I did something crazy.”
“What did you do?”
“It was classic,” Meredith replied before she dipped another chip in the salsa.
Pointing towards Meredith, I explained, “I left her at the bar. Then I ran over to Macy’s and raced to the men’s department. I picked out a white shirt, very similar to the one he was wearing and had it gift-wrapped. On the card, I simply wrote my phone number.”
Anna smiled wide. “Wow! I love that. Like a scene from a movie.”
“It was,” Meredith smiled.
I laughed. “Ha! I knew all the chick lit books I was obsessed with would someday come in handy. I’d hoped he’d love my plan as much as I did. Since I had his card, I knew where his office was. I showed up, and even though it was almost ten o’clock at night, the office was bustling. I guess he wasn’t the only workaholic there. The receptionist called him up to the front desk.”
“What was his reaction?”
“Well, my gut was right. He didn’t seem the least bit happy to see me. In fact, he seemed downright annoyed. I was there already, so I went with it. I apologized again. I told him I couldn’t stand the thought of him working in a wet, beer-stained shirt so I bought him a new one. I handed the box to him, wished him a good night, and walked out of the office without so much as a backward glance.”
“He didn’t say anything?” Anna asked while Meredith took a sip of her drink.
“I didn’t give him the chance to. A few hours later he called me. We made plans to have dinner that Friday night.”
Anna was at the edge of her bar stool. “And?”
“And I went out with him and had an amazing time. We dated for almost two years. I fell completely in love with him, but he never cared about me.” I looked up at the ceiling. “He broke my heart.”
Meredith got up and hugged me. When she sat back down I continued. “I was lucky I had such great friends.” I squeezed Meri’s hand. “I was a complete mess. I expected he’d call me and try to get back together after we broke up but he never did.”
Meredith looked at her lap.
“Getting over him was the hardest thing I ever had to do. To be completely honest, I don’t know if I ever did. I did come to terms with the fact he was out of my life forever. And now, out of nowhere he suddenly walks back in? I ran my hand through my hair. “I’m so confused.”
Plan Cee (Secrets, Lies, and Second Chances Book 2) Page 3