Better Deeds Than Words (The WORDS Series)

by Georgina Guthrie

  I laughed and leaned back in my chair. “I fear you’re preaching to the choir, sir.”

  “I’m happy to hear that. Do me a favor and encourage Daniel to audition for that choir?” He glanced around at the boxes. “All right, I have to get these sorted out. I hope inviting you at the last minute like this doesn’t mean you’ve made other plans. Will we see you at five thirty over at Old Vic?”

  My plans for the evening had included a shaving and plucking session followed by a do-it-yourself manicure and pedicure. But that could all wait until after seven thirty.

  “I’ll be there with bells on,” I said.

  “Good. I’m glad. Penny will be happy as well. She speaks fondly of you. It will be nice for her to have someone to talk to.”

  He started to walk back to his office, but stopped at the door to turn back. “I’m glad you’re going to be there tonight, Aubrey. It’s been a real joy having you working here.” He looked at me for another moment before closing the door quietly behind him.

  I grabbed my purse and escaped to the washroom. I’d be seeing Daniel in eight and a half hours! Now there was no point in waiting to open my last card. I ripped open the envelope, gasping when I saw the photo on the front of the card. It was a picture of the two of us in Penny’s spare room! I was lying on his chest, fast asleep, and his lips were pressed to the top of my head. He must have taken the picture with his phone. How adorable was he? I opened the card and stuck to the inside of the paper was a two-hundred-and-fifty-dollar gift certificate for La Vie en Rose—a lingerie store. On the bottom half of the card, Daniel had written:

  Well, it’s official. There simply can’t be any more ways to tell you that I love you. And since I’ve run out of words, I’ll borrow some from our beloved William: “true love…cannot speak; For truth hath better deeds than words to grace it.”

  Better deeds than words…I can think of some deeds that would be quite appropriate, can’t you? In fact, to hell with words. I’d be fine with us not talking at all this weekend!

  Speaking of this weekend, see that gift card up there? I’m sure you’re rolling your eyes, but I’ve kept my promise, poppet! So, now you need to brace yourself. All bets are off. La Vie en Rose is at the Eaton Centre. Spend it all this afternoon. Go crazy. Trust me-this is as much for me as it is for you. And just two words: polka dots. See you soon! ~D

  I leaned back on the vanity. This was how things would be from now on. As Daniel’s girlfriend, I’d have to graciously accept gifts, and lots of them. Was this something I could get used to? I peeled the gift card off and stowed it safely in my wallet. Then I grabbed my phone to send Daniel a text.

  Good morning, sunshine!

  Looks like I have a busy day ahead of me…

  party, packing…polka dots. ;) -A

  A few moments later, my phone buzzed.

  Good morning yourself, beautiful.

  Your text made me very happy.

  Party? I’m glad my dad got his shit together.

  Packing? Yes, I’ll send a list shortly.

  And I’m thrilled to hear polka dots

  are on your to-do list.

  Can’t wait to see you. Love you. -D

  I put my phone back in my bag, mighty chipper all of a sudden. A day that had seemed rather bleak when I’d gone to bed last night was looking up.

  “Hey, Penny,” I said, moving in for a quick hug.

  “There you are.” She sighed gratefully, kissing me on both cheeks and looking me up and down. “You look lovely.”

  “Thanks. I know I’m a little late. David was concerned about Daniel and me making a scene. Daniel suggested waiting for about twenty minutes for the crowd to fill in. How’re things so far?”

  “Well, I know nobody in the room except Brad and his family, the punch is plentiful but non-alcoholic, and the queue at the bar is ludicrous.” Penny gestured to a line of rather desperate people across the room. “I’m bloody glad you’re here.”

  I laughed and squeezed her arm.

  A voice behind me interrupted our exchange. “Aubrey?” I turned and there was Gwen, glorious in a black cocktail dress, which was tastefully accented with a lovely necklace and pair of dangling earrings. Any uncertainty I might have had about how to greet her was quickly squashed as she pulled me into a warm hug. “It’s so lovely to see you.”

  “Thanks, it’s nice to see you too.”

  She was holding my wrist, gesturing to her husband who was chatting with three men near the punch table. He excused himself and made his way over to us. His face was flushed. He’d had quite a day between packing, fielding congratulatory calls from every corner of the university, and now this—a celebration to recognize his work at Vic.

  He bent forward and whispered, “I had no idea so many people would be here.”

  “Don’t be absurd, dear,” Gwen chided him, straightening his tie and patting his lapel.

  “Dean Grant, you have to know you’ll be missed,” I assured him.

  He pursed his lips and regarded me with an odd expression.

  “Aubrey, I think you’ll have to call me David from now on. Unless you’d prefer to call me Provost Grant.”

  “Good grief! That sounds pompous!” Gwen exclaimed. “I’d go with David if I were you,” she said to me.

  I laughed and nodded. “I think you’re right.”

  “Well, there’s the man of the hour!” a voice boomed behind us.

  “Aaron!” David spun around to shake hands with the man who’d just greeted him. And what do you know, it was Aaron Unibrow O’Connor. Crap almighty! What was he doing here?

  “So good of you to come,” David said.

  “Oh, I never pass up an opportunity to rub salt in my own wounds.”

  David chuckled and turned back to us. “Ladies, this is Aaron O’Connor. One of my rivals for the position of provost—”

  “Yes, that’s right,” O’Connor interrupted, leaning forward conspiratorially. “I dug pretty deep trying to find some dirt on old David here, but, I’m sorry to say, his record is spotless. I didn’t stand a chance.”

  While he was striving for a humorous tone, something about the way he spoke made me wonder how much of what he was saying was actually in jest. David laughed politely again and continued with his introductions.

  “Aaron, this is my wife, Gwen, my soon to be daughter-in-law, Penny, and my employee—well, former employee now—Aubrey Price.”

  O’Connor shook our hands in turn, and when he looked at me, one side of his long eyebrow flicked upward.

  “Aubrey Price? I believe we’ve met, have we not?”

  “Yes, sir, I was in for an interview early last week.”

  “Of course, of course. Well, isn’t this a coincidence,” he said, glancing at David before smiling at me. The look on his face made me shudder. I suddenly needed to take a shower. I also felt a clutching in my chest. David was looking at me questioningly, no doubt wondering why I’d been interviewed by the man whose role at the university was to monitor the conduct of graduate Teaching Assistants.

  We were distracted from O’Connor’s cryptic comment and equally mysterious expression by Brad and Daniel, who were easing their way through a small group of chatting people to reach us.

  “Boys, there you are,” Gwen said as her two sons made their way over, each carrying three drinks in their hands.

  “That line was brutal,” Brad complained, handing Penny a glass of white wine and his dad a beer before taking a sip of his own beer.

  Daniel quickly surveyed the group, his eyes darting across mine as he took quick note of the fact that his father was talking to Aaron O’Connor, the very man whose insistence on interviewing me had just about given us both heart failure the week before. For my part, I was trying to keep my eyeballs in their sockets. Suit-wearing Daniel was lethal.

  “And here he is now!” O’Connor exclaimed, clapping Daniel on the back and pointing at the drinks in his hands. “One of those for me?” he asked.

  Daniel ste
pped forward and graciously handed him a beer.

  “Mr. O’Connor, be my guest.”

  “Well, I was only kidding, but if you’re offering.” He laughed at his own attempt at a joke and took a long drink.

  “Mother,” Daniel said, handing her a glass of wine.

  Daniel’s eyes continued to flicker occasionally over to me, subtly taking in my outfit, my hair, the necklace that rested just above my cleavage. He looked absolutely gorgeous, but I contained both my expression and my desire to launch myself at him.

  Go away, bushy brow, I thought, internally glaring at O’Connor. You’re cramping my style. Not to mention giving me the heebie-jeebies.

  As if he could hear my silent plea, O’Connor again congratulated David, said he was happy to have met everyone, and told Daniel he would be in touch soon to discuss TA positions for the coming year. Daniel nodded and said that sounded wonderful. And then, thankfully, Aaron O’Connor was gone.

  David eyed me grimly. I couldn’t help recalling his warning from earlier.

  “Was it just me, or might you characterize that man as, I don’t know, a little…opportunistic?” I asked him.

  “You might indeed,” he replied dryly.

  “He took Jeremy’s beer,” Brad observed.

  David laughed and placed his hand on his son’s shoulder. “He certainly did.”

  “David, we should probably mingle,” Gwen suggested.

  “You’re right,” David said. “Have fun, everyone. Talk to you in a bit.” He leaned over to murmur something in Daniel’s ear which elicited an eye roll from his son, and then he and his wife moved on, quickly absorbed into another group of chatting people eager to offer their congratulations. Daniel watched his parents walk away and then regarded me with a concerned expression.

  Brad, oblivious to the drama swirling around us, threw his arm around me and said, “So, how are you, Aubrey? All edjumacated?”

  I laughed. “Just finished exams yesterday.”

  “No kidding! Well, cheers! Wait, you don’t have a drink. Daniel, she doesn’t have a drink.”

  “Let me remedy the situation, then. Would you like a beer or a glass of wine?” he asked.

  I eyed the line and winced. “I’ll have a glass of punch. Really.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m positive.”

  “We’ll make up for it tomorrow, okay?” He winked at me slyly and headed over to the punch table.

  “Tomorrow, eh?” Brad smiled at me lewdly. “Bow chicka wow wow.”

  I blushed and put my hands over my eyes.

  “Aw, don’t be embarrassed. You’re gonna have a great weekend. You’ll love—”

  “Bradley, it’s a surprise,” Penny interrupted. “And this is not the right time to be discussing this.”

  Brad cringed. “Right, sorry. I forgot. You know what, beauty? Can you hold my beer for a sec? I gotta hit the washroom. I’ll see if I can track Jeremy down, too.”

  Brad headed off through the crowd. “Jeremy went to call Julie,” Penny explained.

  “Oh, okay. I was wondering where he was. Julie’s crazy busy with her showcase. You’re coming with us to the show next weekend, right?”

  “Absolutely. Can’t wait to see Miss Bendy in action,” she said, smiling. Her eyes flickered over my shoulder, and her smile withered.

  “Oh, ruddy hell.”

  I turned to follow her gaze. A tall, very thin brunette was walking purposefully across the room toward the punch table—and Daniel. It was Sabrina. There was no mistaking it. That prom picture I’d seen at Patty’s was indelibly seared in my mind. I’d need some serious brain bleach to rid my memory of it.

  She reeked of money, her I-just-stepped-out-of-the-salon hair falling around her face in thick waves. The price of her shoes alone could have paid my rent for two months. I couldn’t even contemplate her jewelry. The sight of her made me feel ill. What the hell was she doing here?

  “That’s her, isn’t it, Penny?”

  “Yes, that’s Sabrina, darling. Those are her parents behind her.”

  I watched Daniel turn as Sabrina greeted him, invading his space and pressing her lips to his cheek. He shook hands with her father and kissed her mother on the cheek. Well, this was all kinds of heinous.

  Daniel looked woefully in my direction. Part of me felt sorry for him. He couldn’t exactly drag Sabrina over here to introduce her to me as his girlfriend tonight. The other part—the part that had once wanted to pierce Penny’s eyeball with the heel of my shoe—wanted to punch him in the junk for failing to warn me she would be here tonight. Wasn’t she supposed to be five hours away in Ottawa? Penny watched me, her face awash with sympathy.

  “She’s nothing more than a clothes horse, lovey. Don’t give her a second thought.”

  I glanced back across the room to see her now hugging David and Gwen. My face burned. First Aaron O’Connor and now her!

  “Breathe, darling,” Penny whispered.

  I followed her advice and took a deep breath.

  “I think I need some air. Will you tell Daniel I’m going outside for a minute?”

  “You are a little flushed. Go ahead. I’ll talk to him.”

  I turned, and she grabbed my arm.

  “Try not to let this ruin everything. He’s got a lovely weekend planned for you. Don’t let her cast a pall over your time together. He loves you.”

  “I know, Penny. I love him, too. I’m just not sure I can smile through this right now.”

  I made a beeline for the south exit and pushed my way through the double doors. I’d barely reached the bottom step when Daniel was beside me.

  “Aubrey? Where are you going? You’re not leaving, are you?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea for me to come. I mean, what the hell is Sabrina doing here?”

  He jammed one hand in his pants pocket and raked the other through his hair in frustration.

  “Walk with me?” he said, bobbing his head toward the Pratt Library.

  We walked the short distance and settled onto the bench we’d shared all those weeks ago when he’d first told me about Mary’s death.

  “I did not know Sabrina was going to be here, you know that, right?” he said.

  “Are you sure? Is she going out with your family tonight? Is that the real reason I’m not invited to dinner?”

  The muscle in his jaw jumped. “Of course she’s not. Why would you say something like that?”

  “Just connecting the dots, I guess. She lives in Ottawa. Why else would she be here unless there was a special occasion to come back for?”

  “She’s not going out for dinner with us. She was dropping off her parents, that’s all. Her father’s had a couple of weird seizures. He’s not allowed to drive right now. Doctor’s orders. Now that they’re here, they’ll get a lift with my parents to the restaurant.”

  “So, she came all the way from Ottawa to do weekend chauffeur duties?”

  “Not exactly.”

  “Well, what exactly?”

  “Fuck.” He grimaced at the sky before looking back at me. “Sabrina is in town because she’s moved back to Toronto. She didn’t like living so far away while her father was unwell.”

  I slumped back on the bench. “Wow. That’s awesome. How long have you known?”

  “Since the weekend. I would have told you on Tuesday at Penny and Brad’s, but I didn’t want to ruin our time together. I wasn’t sure how you’d feel about it. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.” He looked at me apprehensively.

  “Weren’t sure how you felt about it—meaning what? Weren’t sure if you were excited?”

  “No! God, no. Just…it was easier knowing I wouldn’t have to deal with her being around. My mom and dad are such good friends with her parents, and now that she’s back, the likelihood of her randomly showing up places is a lot greater. But I did not know that she’d be here tonight. I assure you, I was completely taken by surprise when she walked in.”

  “Me too
.”

  “I’m sorry. Look, she’s gone now. She took two minutes to congratulate my father and left. End of story,” he said.

  But not before rubbing her perfume all over you and leaving a red lipstick mark on your cheek.

  “This sucks,” he said. “I was hoping we’d never have to talk about her again.”

  “She’s a person, Daniel, not a dust bunny. You can’t just sweep her out of the way. So, now that we are talking about her, is there anything else I should know?” I asked.

  He closed his eyes for a second. “Let’s just say I’ll be buying new towels, sheets, and throw pillows before you come over again,” he said. “Housewarming gift,” he added.

  “Wait—what? Are you saying I slept on sheets that Sabrina bought?”

  “Technically, no. You slept in a sleeping bag on sheets that Sabrina bought.”

  I ground my teeth, letting this information sink in.

  “What are you thinking?” he said.

  “I’m thinking that’s a very personal gift. Please tell me Sabrina never slept on those sheets.”

  “She didn’t. Sabrina didn’t even touch those sheets. She bought them online and had them delivered. You claim it’s a personal gift, but I’d say it’s one of the least personal gifts I’ve ever received.”

  “Okay, good. That’s good. That makes me feel a bit better.”

  “Good.” He expelled a deep breath. “Will you come back inside with me?”

  “I don’t think so. After bumping into Aaron O’Connor, and now this, I’m kind of rattled. I think I need to go home and get my head together. Plus, I have some packing to do.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m positive. You go and enjoy your evening. It’s your father’s night. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Are we okay?”

  “We’re okay,” I assured him.

  “And you’ll be at York Mills at ten o’clock sharp tomorrow?”