by Lily Robins
*****
He got a text from Jess before eleven o’clock, telling him that she had arrived in Boston, and he asked her to call him that night. He and Rene had lunch together, and after they had spoken to several of the regulars and the servers they knew, they found a table and sat down.
“You did the right thing,” Rene said.
“I’m not so sure.” Roman had felt uneasy about the morning’s encounter, and had done what amounted to some soul searching. “I think I could have been too hasty with my accusations.”
“I don’t put anything past that woman,” Rene insisted. When the server came, they gave their orders for drinks and lunch. When she left, Rene kept her voice low. “Roman, now she’s sneakin’ around your house!”
“Maybe not,” he said, briefly shaking his head. “It’s just that feeling that someone’s watching me, and I think I’ve automatically assumed it’s her.”
“She’s jealous because she may have seen that you’ve got a lady friend. And don’t you be denying that too!”
Roman’s frown disappeared. And in its place was a different look. “I wasn’t trying to keep it a secret—exactly. Not in this town!” They both quietly laughed.
“She’s very pretty,” Rene said. “She looks an awful lot like Julia Roberts to me. And she’s got the most gorgeous green eyes. And—she’s classy.”
“Yes, she’s got everything you’ve just mentioned.” Roman smiled at Rene’s heartfelt compliments.
“We’re so thrilled for you. Tess peeked out of her office the other day, when Ms. Leitner came to take you to lunch. And, you’ve managed to dash out of the office so fast a couple of times lately, we thought the place was on fire!”
Roman chuckled at that, and at his compulsive behavior where Jess was concerned. “Could you do something for me, Rene?”
“You know I will,” Rene answered as their sandwiches and drinks were brought to the table.
*****
He picked up the phone and pressed in her number. He was about to disconnect from the call, after the phone rang four times, and he didn’t want to leave a message, but Cynthia Ralston answered in a clear voice.
“If I misjudged you this morning, I’m truly very sorry, Cynthia. Someone’s been walking around my house lately, and I thought…”
“It’s not me,” she said in a breathless voice. “Dr. Roman, I’m…sorry. Sorry for how I’ve acted in the past.”
“It’s all right, Cynthia. Everything’s forgiven.”
“Thank you, Doctor. I need a few more sessions with Ms. Gilliland, and then I’ll hopefully be better.”
“Good! Tess can help you, if you’ll let her.”
He felt better, after having made the call.
*****
He picked up Molly from her elementary school, waving to her teacher who had been told that he would be picking her up. After she took off her backpack tossing it up into the seat, Molly allowed Roman to help her get into the back seat, she fastened her seatbelt, and Roman said, “Would anyone riding in this car like some ice cream?”
“There’s just two of us riding in this car,” she replied with a spreading smile. “Would you like some?”
“I would love some! Chocolate’s my favorite.”
“That’s my favorite too!” she said.
Roman headed over to Jerry’s, knowing that they had thirty minutes or more before high schoolers crowded the place out.
“And my mom loooooves chocolate! She’s partial to Godiva, but she also like Hershey’s and Nestles and Cadbury.”
“Well that’s good to know.”
When he was pulling into a parking space in front of Jerry’s, Molly continued with her inquisition. “Because you like my mom?”
Roman said, “I do very much like her. And I like that she and her daughter both adore chocolate!” He helped Molly down from the high back seat, they went inside, and Malcolm Lundry had a big grin ready for both of his customers.
Roman said, “Mal, we’d like chocolate ice cream in cups—two scoops, and one scoop.”
“Comin’ up!” Lundry said. “That’s a real pretty miss you’ve got with you today, doc.”
“Aren’t I lucky?”
Roman pulled out a chair for Molly, seating her, and she smiled at being treated in such a ladylike manner. After he sat down, she tilted her head and said, “Why don’t you ask her to go on a date with you then?” Molly’s blue eyes sparkled like sapphires.
The question, out of the blue as it surely was, took Roman by surprise. He twisted somewhat in his seat, trying to straighten out his long legs and, after buying a moment’s time to answer, looked at Molly and said in a forthright, serious manner, “Actually, we’ve had two dates already.” Molly’s eyes went brighter in surprise.
Mal brought their cups of ice cream to the table, chatted with Roman for a minute, and then went back to what occupied him behind the counter.
Molly began eating her ice cream, and it struck Roman full on, that if Erin had lived and had given birth to their baby, that child would now be around Molly’s age. He tried not to stare, or become too lost in what he was thinking, and before he could ask something innocuous, Molly said, “Well, Aden said you haven’t asked her yet, but now I know something that he doesn’t know.” She broadly grinned with self-satisfaction.
“But you could tell him,” Roman commented while beginning to eat his ice cream. “Your mom and I had a date last Saturday night, when you stayed over at Aunt Ruth’s.”
“Was it a secret?” Molly asked.
“Not at all,” Roman answered, thinking to himself that Jess and he were going to have to be clear with the kids about their situation, something he had never had to consider before. “We went out to dinner together.”
Molly appeared satisfied with that answer, and continued eating her ice cream in small bites, exactly like her mother did. Roman said, “Your mom told me that you make friends very easily.”
Molly brightened. “Candace is my friend, and there’s Britany, and there’s Greta.”
“Friends are great to have,” Roman said, glad that they had segued into another topic.
*****
He took a blanket out of the car, in case Molly got cold in the stands while the baseball team was practicing. More parents were there, along with a couple of school officials, and Roman spoke to just about everyone. He and Molly sat down, she had her I-Pod out and earbuds in, and began listening to music while idly watching the practice.
Ted Maldon, the school’s principal, sat down beside Roman. They had graduated from high school the same year. Maldon said to Molly, “Keep goin’ with that music, Miss Molly. You’re killin’ it!” When Molly widely smiled at him, Maldon smiled back. To Roman, he said, “You’re into childcare, I’m assuming?”
“They’re taking care of me,” Roman affably responded.
“This looks good on you, pal. The family-man thing.”
“Gray hair and all,” Roman commented, spotting Aden on the field.
“It’ll keep you young—or that’s what they say.”
“I’m for that, then.” Aden was beginning to pitch to one of Coach Lemming’s assistant coaches, throwing the ball straight and hard into the guy’s mitt. Maldon was watching too, and said, “That boy’s got a great arm. And look at that power he’s got.”
*****
The two looked at each other. Aden said, “Now comes the fun part.”
Roman helped Molly into the backseat of the vehicle, and Aden got in front after stowing his backpack in back. When Roman got in, he looked again at the boy. Aden had shown some of his ability to Coach Lemming and the assistant, and Lemming had called him to the mound for a more extended evaluation.
As Roman turned away from the parking area, he said, “Coach must have liked what he was seeing. I noticed he had you on the mound for quite a while.”
Aden didn’t respond, but that, in itself, was a response. Roman could smell the earthy scent of an adolescent boy who had been swe
ating and running and playing ball like he meant it. He didn’t say anything more until they stopped at the ferry landing and Roman saw that Aden had his nose in his smart phone.
“What’s going down?”
“A few savage tweets. Here’s one: ‘Leitner’s a queer.’ And another: ‘Leitner’s anybody’s bitch to pitch.’”
“THAT’S BULLYING!” Molly yelled from the backseat. Roman and Aden had both thought that she was immersed in her I-Pod and not listening.
“Sure is,” Roman muttered, looking at Aden. And the boy was looking back at him with an “I told you so” expression.
Roman smiled, but didn’t say anything. His sure smile was all he wanted to convey. Aden kept glancing at the big guy sitting in the driver’s seat, and in that important moment, the boy understood that he had gained a reliable source of support that he’d never had before.
“I can handle this,” Aden said with a degree of confidence. “These are just slurs.”
“Yes, you can,” Roman calmly responded, looking at Aden.
The boy read another tweet aloud: ‘Newbie’s a pussy.” Then he laughed out loud, snorting part of the time. “Here’s Danny’s response to the one about me being anybody’s bitch. ‘Let’s see whose balls get all mushy when the Incredible Hulk starts rumbling!’”
“I think that’s you,” the boy asserted.
*****
He and the two kids walked into his mother’s warm kitchen with the delicious aroma of fresh bread baking, along with a full stovetop of food bubbling and wafting powerfully into the room. Mona was doing her customary happy dance, briefly rearing up and placing her paws on Roman’s chest, before settling back down again to continue her merry dance around Aden and Molly.
Roman wasn’t surprised, but he pretended to be and said, “What are you doing, Mrs. Mayer?”
“I’m doing exactly what this looks like, so don’t argue!” She smiled at Aden and Molly, asking, “Have you had Swiss Steak before?”
Molly answered before Aden could. “We love it!”
“I’m really hungry, Mrs. Mayer,” Aden openly admitted.
“Go get washed up, and we’ll all sup on the best cooking there is,” Roman told them.
During a fabulous dinner, enormously enhanced by fresh sourdough rolls, Roman asked, “Mom, do you think I look like the Incredible Hulk?”
Julia Mayer looked up from her plate, and to her towering son. She matter-of-factly said, “Only when you get truly mad, Dear. I watch for your skin to start turning green, your eyes to become fiery red, and when you burst out of your shirt and your pants look like high water’s on the way, I know you’re about to become The Hulk.” Julia delivered her reply in a perfectly conveyed, straight-faced manner and then returned to her eating.
Aden began laughing like mad, and Molly giggled so much that she nearly fell out of her chair. Roman sat stone-faced for one extended moment, before he too gutturally laughed. Julia continued to maintain her composure, and looked questionably at those at her table, pretending to wonder what all of the raucousness was about.
*****
Not long after they’d all stuffed their bellies, and the kids had helped clear the table, Roman began pitching in to clean up the kitchen. Julia rebuffed that effort and said, “You kids run along now and get your homework done. Roman, that means you too. We’ll visit longer when time permits.”
If he could have this woman as his mother for another lifetime, that would not be nearly long enough.
He and the kids thanked Julia again for the scrumptious meal, she hugged all three of them, and then sent everyone, including Mona, home. Roman made sure that they did what homework they had, and then they had their showers and brushed their teeth. He took his overnight bag up to Jess’s room, seeing it for the first time. There was nothing fancy or frilly about it; everything was serviceable and the bed was neatly made—something he often didn’t bother doing at his place.
It was nearly ten when she called.
“Tell me you’re surviving.”
“Actually, I’m thriving when I can think straight.”
She laughed and told him which hotel she was staying in. “Barry did some investigating before I got here, and was told that there’s been a temporary injunction order from a judge placed on Galaxy until the missing paperwork is found.”
“What does that mean exactly?” he asked.
“Those papers that Bill brought over last week were illegal documents. The Seattle police tried to get him to turn them over, and Bill played dumb. What papers? He and Frank Norcross are running the firm like nothing’s happened, and the police can’t intervene. But they can halt any changes in ownership for a while. Barry said that it wouldn’t surprise him if the police find out that they’re both guilty of murder, and trying to take over ownership of the firm. The attorney who originally drew up the firm’s ownership packet died three years ago, and no one’s found where he kept his copy of the charter documents. There wasn’t cloud storage available when the firm was started.
“Plus, Gary never owned a gun during all the time we were married, but Bill told the police that Gary bought the one that killed him for protection. He told them Gary bought it after we divorced, even though I’d already told them several times that Gary abhorred firearms of any kind.”
“So, you’ll just have to wait to see what develops in the investigation?”
“Just wait,” Jess confirmed. “The missing paperwork that spells out who invested what during the original charter is the key to my severance of ties with Bill and with Galaxy Investments.”
“Guess where I am.”
“In my bed, I hope.”
“And I’m getting the scent of Amazing Grace all up my nose.”
“I changed the sheets this morning, silly man.”
“Oh. Then the scent must stay in the air.”
“It’s just body wash, and I brought that with me.”
“Maybe the scent’s gotten stuck in my imagination.”
“Now that’s possible,” Jess said in a more relaxed tone. “Are the kids doing okay?”
Roman told her about the surprise dinner that his mother had fixed for them, and about Julia’s priceless response when he asked her if he looked like The Incredible Hulk.”
She laughed and said, “I think you’re more like Mr. Big. From Sex in the City?”
Roman smiled, and he figured she was smiling too. “Would you like a private meeting this Friday afternoon to ascertain that?”
“I’d like that very much,” she said.
CHAPTER 26
He had slept quite well in her bed, all folded up, woke with plenty of time on the schedule, showered, shaved and got dressed. While Mona was outside to take care of her business, he made coffee for himself, and saw on Jess’s note to him that the kids both liked oatmeal. He made sure they were awake, fixed breakfast for the three of them, and Molly was the first one to come down the stairs, dressed and ready to go, except for her hair.
She sleepily whined, “I’d like my hair to be in a high ponytail, but my arms are too tired this morning.” She held out a hairbrush.
“How long’s this arm thing been going on?” Roman solicitously asked, taking the brush and running in through Molly’s long blond hair.
“Forever,” she sorrowfully muttered.
Roman knew what a ponytail was, one glob of hair, fastened by a band. He kept brushing out Molly’s hair into some degree of order, and she reminded him, “A high one.”
“Okie-dokie.”
He kept trying to get her hair to cooperate, and was still doing that when Aden came down the stairs, snapped a picture of Roman’s concentrated efforts, mumbled a good-morning, and sat down to eat his breakfast. By the skin of his teeth and some unforeseen luck, Roman finally managed to get all of Molly’s hair into a bunch at the crown of her head, and he even succeeded in doubling the band, despite his big hands getting in the way.
“That’ll do,” Molly said. “Thank you, Dr. Roman.” Sh
e padded down to her counter stool, inched up on it, and had a defeated look on her face. The ponytail hung far to the left of the crown of her head.
Roman managed to take in some of his tepid oatmeal, ate a bite of his cold, hard toast, and proclaimed, “Actually, I think the girls at school will be jealous that you’re the one setting a new ponytail trend. We could call it the curve—like in baseball”
He expected Molly to continue her downtrodden look as she spooned her tepid oatmeal into her mouth with an expression of mild disgust. Instead, she shot Roman with a grin that was genuine, finally waking up, and in turn he looked at Molly and Aden anew, with something akin to wonder. He knew he could be a good stepfather to these two kids, and the possibility elated him.
After glancing at his watch, he said, “Let’s brush the teeth, and then make sure we’ve got everything that’s in any way related to school work in our backpacks, and we’ll be ready to shove off.”
Molly scooted out from the kitchen, and before Aden did likewise, he said, “My dad never made breakfast for us, and he sure as heck never tried to fix Molly’s hair.”
In response, Roman’s eyes relayed his sadness when he responded to the boy’s admission. “That was his loss, Aden.”
Nodding once, Aden left to brush his teeth.
*****
After depositing Mona at Julia’s, Roman turned his Navigator toward the ferry landing and then got into the queue to wait for five minutes or so. According to Julia, the day was going to be sunny yet again, but still cold.
Aden said, “We didn’t have to use the ferry system where we lived in Seattle. There was this busy bridge—the Murrow.”
“Did you want to live on one of the islands that is serviced by the ferry system?”
“I wouldn’t mind living on one of the San Juan’s,” Aden admitted. “There’s something special about living on a smaller landmass.”
“Surrounded by water, seeing lots of seals, and birds—the whales—they’ll be returning soon.”