by J. L. Ryan
Too soon the song ended to be replaced by “The Chicken Dance”. Hoping to escape, Jennifer pulled away to walk back to the sidelines but Lorenzo had other ideas. Yes, she was going to have to endure this most ridiculous wedding ritual. She was sure the “Electric Slide” would follow soon enough, but hoped they had seen fit to exclude “The Macarena”. Before realizing it, it had been several upbeat dance numbers and she was still on the dance floor. Sweaty and thirsty, she motioned to Lorenzo that she was getting a drink. He followed closely behind as they grabbed a couple champagne flutes off a nearby waiter’s tray and strolled outside for a breath of fresh air.
Removing her shoes on the sand, they walked out to the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. The sun was setting over the horizon. Jennifer plopped down on the sand to take in the beauty of the scene as she rarely saw the sunset anymore since she was always at the hospital or in the lab. Lorenzo joined her as they silently watched the glowing orange orb seemingly descend into the water. It was the first time in years that either of them had felt peaceful. This weekend had done wonders for them both, whether they realized it or not.
Unaware of the passage of time, the bride and groom came searching for them an hour later for the bouquet and garter throwing tradition. Jennifer always tried to make herself scarce during this particular portion of any wedding but decided to humor Jacy this once. Luckily, one of the groom’s sisters was intent on being the next to get hitched and knocked everyone out of the way. Lorenzo stood stock still as Ethan threw the garter right at him and let the item fall to the floor where the pre-teen ring bearer grabbed it up. With all the wedding traditions complete, the bride and groom quickly made their exit so they could start the real celebrations in the honeymoon suite. The rest of the wedding party meandered around the ballroom for a while longer but started to disperse for their own rooms. Jennifer looked over at Lorenzo with a coy smile and motioned for him to follow her.
Earlier that day Jennifer had spotted a billiards room down the hall from the spa area. In college they had played pool against each other relentlessly. A few times they had partnered up to swindle money from unsuspecting underclassmen. With a wink, she began to rack up the balls and selected her cue stick. “How about a friendly wager? For old times’ sake,” she challenged.
Laughing, Lorenzo accepted her dare. After requesting a couple drinks from the bartender, he asked, “So what are we betting this time? It’s not like I have a research paper I need your help on anymore and I don’t think they will allow me on the plane with a case of scotch. What’s it gonna be, little girl?”
“Alright there, jolly green giant,” she teased back with the pet name she had given him freshman year, “We’re both relatively successful people. We could actually bet real money this time.”
With a frown, he replied, “No. No. That’s no fun. Let’s make it interesting. Whoever wins gets to make the other either tell a truth or take a dare.” This proposal had potential but Jennifer was a little wary recalling past dares from him but decided to just go with it.
“You’re on, big guy,” she retorted with a smirk. Even though she hadn’t played pool in years she was confidant it would come back to her. However, the strategy didn’t work quite as she had planned. After thoroughly whipping his opponent, not once but three separate times, Jennifer admitted defeat and pleaded for mercy.
Appearing deep in thought Lorenzo issued his ultimatum. Truth or dare? Always uncomfortable with the truth category, she chose “dare”. His dark eyes sparkled at the prospect as he contemplated his request. “Okay, I dare you to skinny dip in the pool or ocean right now.”
Thankfully the alcohol that had flowed all night helped her find courage to do so but she was still not happy about it. After trying several times to convince Lorenzo to go “Best 5 out of 7 games”, she resigned herself to her fate. Even the bartender snickered as she headed out to the door to the pool. After seeing that the pool was a bit too well lit for her liking, she chose the darker, more concealing ocean. Jennifer timidly approached the edge of the surf to test the water temperature before shedding any clothes. Being the Atlantic Ocean, it was chilly no matter what time of year.
Looking back to see Lorenzo standing smugly a few yards back, Jennifer instructed him to turn around and close his eyes. Despite it being nighttime, the moon was full and cast too much light on the beach for her liking. Grumbling under her breath that she should have known not to accept a dare from that man in particular, she tried the zipper at the back of the dress. It wouldn’t budge. After a number of failed attempts she gave up and called for Lorenzo to help. The look on his face said that he was enjoying this a bit too much. He unhooked the clasp at the top, which she had completely forgotten about, and then slowly slid the zipper down to the small of her back. Her skin was chilled from the cool breeze coming off the ocean but where his fingers barely grazed her back as he worked the zipper almost seemed on fire. She shook her head slightly to clear her head. “Must be the alcohol affecting me,” she reasoned.
With the zipper situation remedied, Lorenzo retreated to his spot on the sand a few yards away. Being a gentleman, he turned away as she undressed. Still in her undies, Jennifer started to enter the water when she heard, “Skinny dipping means skin only, little girl,” followed by a smug chuckle. Wincing at being caught trying to cheat, she shed the rest of her garments and plunged into the waves.
Resurfacing quickly she looked over to see Lorenzo doubled over laughing. Wishing to get out of the frigid water and avoid any ocean inhabitants, she tersely instructed him to get a towel or at least turn around while she put her clothes back on. He turned away still laughing. As she came onshore she couldn’t find her undies. In her haste she had discarded them too close to the edge of the water and they had floated away with the tide. Reaching for her dress, Jennifer realized that due to being thoroughly drenched, she had difficulty getting it back on. After a few minutes struggling, Lorenzo had finally ceased laughing and questioned what was taking so long. Embarrassed she admitted the truth causing more laughter to erupt. After a few seconds, she started laughing too at the ridiculousness of a thirty-something year old doctor childishly taking a silly dare to strip off her clothes and run into the ocean. Her present predicament with the dress just highlighted the hilarity of the situation.
Finally regaining his composure, Lorenzo backed over to her so as not to see her clinging to the flimsy dress. He had left his suit jacket in the billiard room so he unbuttoned his dress shirt and handed it to her. Being so tall and Jennifer being so short, the shirt covered her almost to her knees. Playfully hitting him in the chest with the crumbled up dress, they made their way back to the hotel.
Luckily, due to the lateness of the hour, the lobby and hallways were relatively empty. Lorenzo escorted her back to her room. They were both still giggling when they arrived at her door. As she turned to open the door, Jennifer found herself wanting to invite him in for a drink but thought better of it. Instead she thanked him for a memorable “date” and gave him a quick kiss on cheek before retreating into her suite and closing the door behind her. She stood with her back against the door for several moments contemplating why she had gotten so nervous just now. It was just Lorenzo after all.
Chapter 4
Jennifer practically snuck out of the hotel the next morning to leave for the airport. Not sure why she didn’t want to run into anyone, particularly Lorenzo, she was packed and driving away almost before the resort starting serving breakfast. Apparently she wasn’t the only one attempting to escape unnoticed. As she entered the airport lobby she spotted his tall, dark head of hair at the check-in counter. The silly, flirty looks the airline attendant was giving him made Jennifer roll her eyes. Lorenzo could always turn seemingly normal women into acting like gaga teenagers drooling over him. In college it had been entertaining to watch. Now, she was just annoyed.
Momentarily he turned around and caught her staring at him. Flashing that swoon-worthy smile he walked over on the pretense of helpin
g with her luggage. “Hope you remembered my shirt when you packed this morning,” he joked. They compared airline itineraries and discovered they were on the same flight to Reagan National. Appearing happy about the situation, Lorenzo proceeded through the line with her to the check-in counter where he requested a seat change for her so they could sit together in first class. The same attendant as before did not seem thrilled to fulfill his request. Jennifer stifled a giggle as the woman banged away on her computer terminal to make the switch.
They had plenty of time to stroll to the concourse as the flight wasn’t for another two hours. Lorenzo suggested stopping for coffee and muffins. Jennifer agreed to the coffee. “Are you still not eating breakfast? No wonder you are so tiny,” he remarked. Two tall vanilla lattes later, they were seated in the terminal with nothing to say. In silence they sipped their coffees and stared out the window waiting on their flight to arrive.
Finally, Lorenzo broke the silence by saying, “Listen. You know my situation and I know yours. Neither of us is looking for a relationship, but I really do miss your friendship. I was kind of hoping we could keep in touch more, especially now that we know we live in the same metro area. Also, we could help each other out of awkward situations, like going to weddings or events without the stress of someone thinking it was a real date.” Jennifer nodded her head in agreement and looked up into his chocolate eyes. Having a sexy standby, go-to date was the perfect solution. She stuck her hand out to shake his to seal the agreement, but he leaned in and gave her a quick peck on the cheek.
The return flight went quickly as they discussed a myriad of topics. He spoke mostly about his son and his genetically-inherited love of soccer. She discussed her work at the hospital and how she wished she had more time for research since she felt a big breakthrough was just around the corner. Before they knew it, the fasten seatbelts sign lit up and the airplane descended. Having the window seat, Jennifer always enjoyed the arrival into this particular airport as it gave the illusion that the plane was about to crash into the Potomac River right before landing safely on the thin strip of land.
After retrieving their luggage, Jennifer made to give him a swift goodbye hug. Instead she found herself in a giant bear hug. Neither really wanted to let go. Saying goodbye, they headed their separate ways. Lorenzo to the parking garage to drive back to the DC suburb of Warrenton, VA. Jennifer to the Metro station to take the train into the District.
Jennifer’s thoughts remained on Lorenzo the entire ride back to the station closest to her Georgetown condo. It was a long walk from there in the humid weather with the clouds overhead, threatening rain. She didn’t notice though. Her mind ran over the events of the past couple days. Never in the last few years had she allowed herself to daydream. She was just too busy for that. Nevertheless, as a spattering of rain drops began to fall Jennifer didn’t even notice as she replayed the Sinatra song dance over and over in her mind. She blushed at the memory of her skinny dipping escapade. But the image that kept asserting itself was of Lorenzo smiling wickedly at her as they played pool. Her skin still felt the faint trace of where his fingers had brushed against her back unzipping her dress. Perhaps agreeing to be each other’s go-to wedding date had not been the greatest idea.
Chapter 5
Jennifer resumed her normal schedule and didn’t hear from Lorenzo for a couple of weeks. Trying to justify her increased interest in Facebook, she lied to herself that she wasn’t really just seeing if there were any messages from him. She was genuinely interested in everyone’s pet pictures and what they had for dinner. Then one stormy evening as she was relaxing after a long day at the hospital with a cup of herbal tea and a bowl of sugary kids’ cereal, her Facebook page finally indicated she had a message. Surprisingly, she could feel her heart beating faster in her chest when she saw that it was indeed from Lorenzo with an apology for not contacting her sooner. He indicated that he wasn’t really comfortable communicating via social media and requested her number instead, or at least a viable email account. He included his full contact information in the message so she took out her cell phone and plugged in his information after sending a quick reply with her own information.
Later that night as she was just getting out of the shower the phone rang. No one ever called her except the hospital so she assumed it was the dreaded “There’s a patient in distress” or worse call. Without glancing at the caller id, she answered and was delighted to hear the deep, husky voice of Lorenzo. Jennifer was surprised he called her so soon after she sent her contact information. Still wearing a towel and her hair dripping wet, she sat down on her bed to chat.
Hours later she was still wearing a towel with her hair dried naturally wavy and tousled. They had talked about everything and nothing, it seemed. When Jennifer happened to glance over at the clock she was shocked to see it was well past midnight. As she tried to say goodbye, Lorenzo surprised her again by stating there was a particular reason for his call. He needed a date. His son’s teacher was getting married. His son really wanted to go to the wedding, but Lorenzo dreaded the matchmaking that would go on if he showed up without a female companion. Every one of Raphael’s teachers and room moms seemed to make setting him up with any available female in the school district as their personal goal in life. He hated it! “Please, please, pretty please,” he begged, “save me from this impending disaster!” Laughing at his predicament, she tried to play coy with her answer just to tease him. Ultimately showing pity, Jennifer agreed. She wrote down the date and time on her whiteboard in the kitchen and made a mental note to double check her schedule at work. Jokingly thanking her for saving his life, he said good night. Once she hung up the phone, doubt set in. Not only was she going to another wedding with him. She was also going there with his son. Jennifer wished she had thought of that before saying “yes”.
As it turned out, she wasn’t scheduled to work the day in question so no backing out that way. Her supervisor, Jacob, was somewhat taken aback when he later asked her to attend a hospital fundraising event at the Mayflower Hotel that same evening. Teasing her about finally getting a social life, he mildly suggested that he hoped she still had time for her research. The comment was completely uncalled for but had its intended effect by making Jennifer doubt herself. “Was it really necessary that she spend her time helping out an old friend, who quite frankly should be getting set up on dates in order to meet someone and provide a mother-figure for Raphael,” she thought. “Perhaps it was selfish of her to want to spend time away from the hospital or anything benefitting the hospital when saving children’s lives with her research was the most important thing in the world.” After mulling it over, she had almost convinced herself to cancel with Lorenzo. However, when she tried to call him to tell him so, he sounded so excited and grateful she was going to be there with him that Jennifer didn’t have the heart to turn him down.
Not having a car since living in DC, on the date of the teacher’s wedding, she took the Metro to the subway station farthest west of the city. Lorenzo would pick her up there. To avoid walking the many blocks to the Metro station in painful high heels, she slipped her comfy sneakers on and packed the heels away in an oversized designer purse her mother had given her for Christmas. The vision of a petite woman in a pale green sundress and sneakers must have been amusing because Lorenzo starting chuckling as soon as he saw her emerge from the station. “Cut it out, meathead, or I’m turning around and getting back on that train,” she threatened.
“Hey, Dad! You going to let her get away with calling you that?” said a robust little boy voice. Lorenzo was so tall she hadn’t even seen the little boy behind him. He was a perfect miniature of his father with dark olive skin and jet black hair that was a little too long and kept falling over his large, almond-shaped eyes. He was dressed in a khaki pants, with a button-down shirt and even a clip on tie. The perfect little man, except for the dirt-smudged sneakers on his feet. “My kind of kid,” she thought. She wondered how much Lorenzo had argued with the boy to get hi
m in the dress clothes.
Lorenzo laughed and replied, “Yes, I will let it slip this once since she is a lady and we should always show them respect.” With that he introduced his son and the little man reached out to shake her hand. Being a little Casanova himself, the boy adeptly turned her hand so he could bend over to kiss the top. Jennifer thanked him and complimented him on his attire and manners. He, in turn, commented on her brand of sneakers since apparently they were not the “in” brand of his generation. As the two continued to debate the finer aspects of various sneaker brands, Lorenzo escorted them back to the car.
To say Raphael was charming was indeed an understatement. He entertained Jennifer the entire ride to the church where the wedding was to take place. She was so captivated by him she forgot to change her shoes in the car. As she stepped out of Lorenzo’s white Chevy SUV, he made a little “hmm hmm” noise. When she looked up at him oblivious to the problem, he started laughing. This time Raphael jumped in to scold his father for laughing at a lady. After thanking her little hero, she finally noticed the issue and started laughing herself. This seemed to confuse the boy. After his brave defense of the pretty lady, she was now laughing. When she sat back down in the car and pulled out her high heels to change he was even more shocked. How could one explain to a five year old boy that he could get away with wearing sneakers to a wedding but a lady could not? Raphael just rolled his eyes and said “Whatever”.
As they walked arm in arm towards the church, Jennifer admired her escort out of the corner of her eye. Lorenzo looked dapper in a light grey suit and plum colored silk tie. His hair had grown longer since the wedding in Cocoa Beach and fell over his right eye hiding a small scar just below his eye brow. Jennifer recalled him explaining the scar to her one night. When he was ten years old, an opposing team player was angry at losing a game and in the last second of the game kicked the ball as hard as he could right at Lorenzo’s face, splitting the skin above his eye. Just before walking into the church, she reached up to brush the hair away from his eyes and unconsciously allowed her finger to lightly trace the scar.