“How can you think about food?” said Katherine as she pointed at their plates. “We’re barely done with this.”
“I’m always thinking ahead, darlin’.”
Katherine rolled her eyes, then said, “Ok, but I’m picking the movie.”
The waitress brought the check, and Scott grabbed it. “You bought last time, remember?” he explained.
“Oh yeah, great,” answered Katherine, though she didn't remember paying the last time.
***
When they arrived at Katherine’s apartment, Amy was on the couch watching television. When she saw Scott she said, “Don’t worry about me, I’m gonna go read, then go to sleep.”
“You don’t have to leave,” said Katherine. After months alone, Katherine hadn’t thought she’d like the company, and at first she hadn’t. But she was slowly adjusting to having someone there when she got home. She took off her coat and sat down.
“Oh my god!” said Amy. “What happened? Were you in a car wreck? Are you okay?”
“Calm down, Amy. I’m okay. I just fell.”
“You fell? In front of a bus?”
Katherine smiled, then winced. “Very funny. No, down the stairs, right out here.” She motioned with her head toward the front door.
“Oh, that’s why Jack told me to be careful climbing the stairs. I saw him when I got home. You need to be more careful. You always were clumsy. When we were kids, how many times did you fall off your bike? We called you ‘Crash’ for a while, remember?”
Katherine laughed. “I remember. But it wasn’t my fault this time. I don’t know what it was, but something was on those stairs.”
***
At the movie store, Scott had picked out a scary movie; Katherine had picked out a movie titled, ‘Unfaithful’. That was a mistake. It wasn’t long into the movie before the two main characters were having very realistic, very hot sex. Scott snuck a look at Katherine, then she snuck a look at him. They both shifted uncomfortably. Trying to sound amused, Katherine said, “Why don’t we put your movie in? I’m really not interested in watching those two go at it for two hours.”
Scott scooched closer to Katherine. He laid his head on her shoulder and said, “Are you sure? Voulez vous coucher avec moi?”
Katherine shoved him away. “Ewe. Have you always been a dope, or just since we met?”
“You bring it out in me, baby,” answered Scott.
“Whatever Romeo, just put your movie in.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Tuesday morning as Katherine was about the leave her building, Jack walked out of the maintenance office. He was on the phone and looking at some paperwork he held, so he didn’t notice her at first. She took the opportunity to look at him more thoroughly than good manners usually allowed. He had dark blonde hair, and she estimated he was about 5’10”. She doubted he was any danger to her heart - she definitely had a weakness for the tall, dark, and handsome type. He reminded her of the guy who starred in those Bourne Identity movies, Matt something or another. Very working-man-meets-stud muffin. As she opened the door, Jack put his phone away and noticed her. She turned when he called her name.
“Hi, Jack.”
Jack walked over to Katherine, looking concerned.
“I saw the note you left. I am so sorry, are you sure you’re alright?
Katherine touched the bruise on her face. “I’ll live, but I wish you’d used less wax, or whatever you all use, on the stairs. They were slick as ice.”
“The thing is, I’m the only maintenance guy here these days. And trust me, I didn’t do anything to the stairs. But you’re right - somehow, what looked like car wax was on those stairs. They’re safe now, but I’d really like to know how whatever it was got there. There was so much of it, it almost seemed deliberate.”
Katherine looked down at her hands, as if she could still see or feel the odd substance that had coated them after her fall. She shrugged, then said, “Well, if you find out how it got there, let me know. I’d really like to think there’s a logical explanation. I’ll see you later, Jack.”
***
By eleven o’clock, Katherine was starving. She called Scott and asked if he wanted to do lunch.
“Just can’t get enough of me, can you?” he joked, repeating what she’d said to him once before. Katherine could hear the smile in his voice.
“Oh yeah, sure. That’s it.”
“Gonna have to take a rain check. Too much work to do. Brown-bagging it today.”
Katherine spun her chair around to look out the window.
“That’s too bad. It’s a nice day out. Are we still meeting after work, to study?”
“Absolutely. I’m counting the hours.”
“Oh yeah, like you can count,” Katherine said, laughing. She hung up the phone with a grin on her face. She grabbed her purse and headed for the door.
“I’ll be back in an hour,” she yelled, to no one in particular.
***
Scott’s desk phone rang.
“Do you want to meet somewhere?” his father asked.
Scott looked at the pile of work on his desk. He really should stay and finish, but his dad hadn’t been in the area long and they were just getting reacquainted. Work could wait—he wanted to go.
“Sure. I’m near the mall.”
***
Katherine drove toward the mall with plans to eat lunch at the food court on the first floor. She parked upstairs in the parking garage and walked to the escalator. She glanced at the skating rink below and her heart jumped when she saw Scott sitting at the Starbucks.
Hey, he lied to me. I’m gonna kick his butt.
She was about to yell his name when a man arrived at his table. Scott rose and they hugged.
Somehow she knew her company would be an intrusion. She walked along the railing above the rink until she was close to where they were sitting. She tried to look casual and felt only a little guilty about her plan to eavesdrop. She leaned over the railing a little farther, and the pen Scott had given her fell out of her purse. Before she could catch it, it fell to the floor below, almost hitting the ice. A little squeak escaped her lips, and she stepped back from the railing.
Scott saw the pen fall and walked over to pick it up. Turning it upside down, he watched as one end filled with glitter. He leaned over the rink’s railing and looked up, but nobody was there.
***
Katherine was glad that Amy was out when Scott arrived that evening to study. She didn’t need the disapproving looks Amy might have given her upon seeing him again so soon. Katherine was tempted to mess with Scott, maybe ask him how his bag lunch had been, but in the end she decided not to say anything. If she gave him a hard time, he’d know she’d been at the mall. She wasn’t about to admit she’d been eavesdropping on him and his friend and, oh by the way, can I have my pen back? So he didn’t want to have lunch with me, he could have just said he already had plans, he’d didn’t have to lie.
Being married to a habitual cheater had made Katherine ultra-sensitive to being lied to, but Scott wasn’t Ray, so she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, this time.
Scott set his laptop and books on the kitchen table and looked around at the clothes on her couch and the Sunday paper still covering half the living-room floor.
“Not much of a neat freak, are you?” he teased.
“Don’t start with me, mister. Do you wanna do something after class tomorrow night?”
Scott looked up from his laptop.
“Didn’t I mention I have a date tomorrow night?”
Katherine sat up a little straighter. “You have a date?”
“I’m taking Verna out.”
“The woman from the club?”
“Yep.”
“What about school?”
“I’m skipping.”
Katherine began shuffling paperwork in an agitated manner.
“What’s your problem?”
“Well, you’re always skipping school
. School is important, too. You shouldn’t just blow it off because of some skank you met in a bar.”
Scott sat up in his chair and held up his palms in a defensive gesture. Sure, he and Katherine were friends, but she was crossing a line.
“Whoa, whoa, that is completely uncalled for. It’s true I met Verna in a club, but that doesn’t make her a skank, and I’m right on schedule with my part of the project.”
Katherine was silent. The anger in Scott’s voice was unmistakable. He was right—as far as she knew, he’d always made up any work assignments he’d missed, and he was doing more than his fair share of their project. She had no good reason to complain, and wondered where her anger had come from.
“You’re right. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay, I get it. You’re just looking out for me, but you don’t have to. Now, let’s get to work.”
She and Scott had just begun discussing the next stage of their project when the phone rang.
“It’s Michael,” Katherine whispered to Scott. He turned away, a scowl on his face.
Michael asked if she was up for doing something other than going out to dinner for their next date.
“Absolutely. What did you have in mind?”
“How about roller skating? What do you think?”
Katherine envisioned strobe lights and cheap nachos. “Oh, I like that idea.” She gave him her address and they agreed that he’d come over at five thirty on Thursday.
She set the phone down. “Sorry about that. He wants to go roller-skating. That sounds fun, doesn’t it?”
“Sure, fun,” Scott said, without meeting her eyes.
They both looked up as Amy walked in.
“Scott, right?” she said.
Scott stood. “Yes. Nice to see you again, Amy. Glad to be back in Reno?”
Amy looked at Katherine. “Not really. What about you?”
“What do you mean?” asked Scott.
“Katherine told me you’d recently moved to Reno from Carson.”
“That’s right. I was just up there for Thanksgiving.”
“Well, it was nice to see you,” said Amy as she walked to her room.
“Is it my imagination or do I sense some tension between you two?”
Katherine looked toward Amy’s closed bedroom door. “Let’s just say I have some anger to work through. She wasn’t there for me when I really needed her.”
“Do you mean when you and your husband broke up?”
“Yes, I called her. She was busy and said she’d call back, but she never did. But that’s not the only issue we have. There’s something much worse.” Katherine looked down at her computer.
“Well? You gonna tell me what else she did or didn’t do?”
Katherine shut the lid on her laptop. “Nope. Maybe another time.”
Scott looked at Katherine intently for a few moments before speaking. “Listen,” he said. “I know first-hand what it’s like for someone you care about to let you down. Take it from me, it’s not worth it to hold onto that anger. Especially when it comes to family.”
Scott was right. She didn’t know why Amy hadn’t been there for her when she’d needed her to be, but she’d begun to wonder if she really wanted to hate her only sister. Katherine stood.
“What do you say we blow off studying?” she said. “Go over to the mall. I still have Christmas shopping to do.”
“This from the woman who just chewed me out for skipping class.”
“You’re right, you’re right. When’s the project due again?”
Scott glanced at the syllabus. “Last week of class.”
“And how far ahead are we?”
Scott smiled, then said, “Fine, but this has to be the last time. One of us has to be the responsible one.”
Katherine rolled her eyes.
Scott shook his finger at her. “You’re being a very naughty girl, making me play hooky like this. If you’re not careful, you won’t be on Santa’s nice list.”
Katherine laughed. “What did you ask Santa for?”
Scott winked. “Coincidentally, a naughty girl.”
Katherine’s face became warm. She laughed and stood. “Let’s go.” The more time they spent together, the more fond of Scott she became. She liked spending time with him no matter what they were doing. She congratulated herself on her luck - she thought their friendship might extend past the class final. She hoped he didn’t get too serious about that Verna woman.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The transformation that occurred between Thanksgiving and Christmas at the mall was startling. Gone were the haystacks, dangling leaves, and pumpkins, and in their place were red bows and candy canes hung from the ceiling, tall lollipops lining the walls, and beanbag chairs designed to look like colorful gumdrops in a children’s play area. A beautifully decorated tree stood in the center, near the skating rink, and Santa and Mrs. Claus were nearby, eager to grant wishes for (and take their picture with) boys in suits and girls in red velvet dresses.
“You look Christmassy,” Scott said, looking at Katherine’s red wool coat. “All you need is a pillow underneath and you could bump off old lady Claus over there and take her place.”
“At least I’d need a pillow.” Katherine poked Scott’s belly.
He laughed and put his arm around her shoulders and hugged, letting his arm linger for a moment.
***
As Katherine browsed the cards at the Hallmark store, she noticed Jack walking toward her.
“Hi, Merry Christmas,” she said with a hint of surprise. She reminded herself that Reno had only one mall.
“Merry Christmas, Katherine. You're looking lovely this evening. Then again, when don't you look lovely?”
“You really are an incurable flirt, aren’t you?”
Just then Scott turned in to their aisle. His eyes met Jack’s.
“Oh, Scott,” said Katherine, “this is Jack. He works in my apartment building. Jack, this is my friend Scott.”
“Boyfriend?” asked Jack.
His eyes and Scott’s were still locked. Katherine being Katherine, she wasn’t aware that she was the lamb between two wolves. She laughed. “Oh no, he’s not my boyfriend, just a friend.”
Jack smiled as Scott put his arm around Katherine’s shoulders again. “A very good friend.”
“Well, nice to meet you, Scott, but I'd better get going. Lots of brothers and sisters to buy for.” Turning towards Katherine, he said, “As always, it was very nice seeing you.”
“Oh, Jack,” she said, smiling.
He winked. As he walked by Scott, he whispered, “With any luck, it’s going to be a very merry Christmas.”
Katherine didn’t hear Jack’s comment, and she didn’t notice Scott’s clenched fists either, or Jack’s sly smile as he walked away.
***
Wednesday evening, Katherine looked over at the desk Scott usually sat in. She wondered when he’d be picking Verna up. It was hard to pay attention to the professor, or concentrate on anything. She just kept imagining Scott and Verna and what they might be doing at that moment.
He really shouldn’t be missing so much school, especially when he just said we should stop playing hooky.
Katherine looked at the clock on the wall. It was nearly seven o’clock. She sighed loudly. Will this class never end?
***
At about the same time as Katherine was silently cursing the clock on the classroom wall, Scott and Verna were having their first real date at a local steakhouse. As they sat in their black booth surrounded by dark wood paneling and flickering candles, Scott looked at Verna. She wore a purple sweater, and with her blond hair, she looked very pretty, but his mind was elsewhere.
***
Katherine tossed and turned, finally accepting that she wouldn’t be getting any sleep anytime soon. She grabbed her blanket and went to lie on the couch, switching on the television.
She looked at the frost on the apartment windows and wrapped the blanket around hers
elf tight. Ignoring the infomercials, she instead pictured Michael; with his dark blue eyes and almost tar black hair, there was no disputing the fact that he was gorgeous. Then she thought about Scott and his date with Verna that night, and wondered how it ended. She tried to ignore how the thought of them together made her feel. She had no claim to Scott, but there was no denying the jealousy she was feeling. Was she afraid of losing the one friend she had in Reno, or was it something else?
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Katherine was in her bathroom blow-drying her hair Thursday night when she heard the door open and close and heard Amy yell hello. Then Amy was standing next to her. Katherine turned the dryer off.
“I saw Jack when I was coming in,” said Amy. “Way too cute to be a janitor.”
Their eyes met in the mirror, and Katherine smiled. “I’m sure he’d prefer ‘maintenance man.’”
“Whatever he wants to call himself is just fine by me. I got some pipes he can clean.”
“He’s not a plumber,” Katherine said with a chuckle.
“Well, I’m warm for his form. I’ll think of something he can fix. So, you going out?”
“Yes, Michael’s taking me roller skating.”
“Oh. What about Scott?”
“What do you mean?”
Amy shrugged.
“I don’t know. I guess I just thought there was something maybe growing between you two.”
Katherine laughed. “No. Did I mention I saw him with some guy at the mall after he said no to a lunch invitation from me?”
“So?”
“Just a little odd, isn’t it? Sometimes I feel like we’re becoming pretty good friends, and other times it feels like, I don’t know, like there’s just something he’s not telling me.”
“Maybe Scott’s leading a double life. Maybe he’s a spy.” Amy was smiling.
“Oh shut up,” said Katherine, giving Amy a playful shove.
Under the Moonlight collection Page 9