I lean forward. “Ava, are you breaking up with me?”
She grabs my arm. “If you want to call it that.”
She takes a deep breath. “I don’t think continuing on like this is helping either of our causes. Believe it or not, I’d really like to be with someone who wants more from me than just this.” She gestures to her body. “You know what I mean?”
I suddenly feel bad that I’ve never thought of Ava as anything more than someone to lay. That she might want something more than that. She seems to read my thoughts and she winks.
“Do you have any prospects?” I ask.
“Maybe.” Her face beams.
I smile and sit back. “Do tell.”
She shakes her head. “Nope. I don’t want to jinx it. But I will say he doesn’t work on Wall Street; he doesn’t have a three-hundred-thousand-dollar boat or a house on Dune Road. He’s just a regular guy with a regular job.”
“Sounds interesting. Where’d you meet him?”
“Blind date. A friend of mine set us up.”
We study each other with a warm understanding, the long-shared history of living in a small town, a kindred bond that can’t be broken. “I’m happy for you, Ava.”
“Thanks. I’m happy for me too.”
She stands and I do as well and I walk her to the door.
She puts her hand on my cheek and kisses me softly on the lips. “I’ll miss you, Danny.”
“I’ll miss you, too.” And I will.
Before she leaves, she says, “You should work things out with Laurel. She’s the mother of your kid. Don’t be so quick to let her go.”
Chapter 37
Carolyn starts stirring in her crib at 7:30. We’re both well rested since she’s slept for ten hours straight, and she is bright-eyed in her high chair while she eats scrambled eggs and Cheerios off her tray.
After breakfast and a chilly five-mile run that leaves both of our faces pink, I clean her up and then open the suitcase to locate the dress Laurel said she packed. When I unzip the soft-sided bag, there is an envelope resting on top of a pile of clothes, with the Harris and Associates letterhead on the front of it.
“What now, Laurel?” I say aloud. I sink onto the couch and shake my head, unsealing the envelope, and pull out a multipage document with a piece of stationery paper-clipped to the top. A note is written in Laurel’s handwriting.
Danny,
You need to fill out the highlighted sections in front of two witnesses and get their signatures. I already filled out the parts I am responsible for. I can’t change Carolyn’s birth certificate without this form. I hope you don’t mind the hyphenation.
Laurel
I pull the paper clip off and look at the document. Written in bold letters across the top is Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity. There are several sections to it and I read through each of them: mother’s information; father’s information; birth hospital information; and then, lastly, child’s information. I notice at the top of this part, under name, that Laurel has written out Carolyn Ramsey Harris-Santoro.
I stare at the name until Carolyn starts getting restless for my attention. I lie down on the floor next to her, helping her put shapes into their corresponding holes, and I grab my phone off the coffee table.
Laurel’s phone number is the first on my favorites list and I look at it for a while until I finally press it. She picks up on the first ring, with a melancholy, “Hello.”
“Harris-Santoro?” I ask.
She’s quiet for a minute, then, “Is it okay?”
“It’s a mouthful.”
“I like it, though. British with a hint of Italian bravado to make it interesting.”
“I like it, too.”
“I tried to do it all on my own. I wanted to surprise you with the new birth certificate, but it turns out you can’t randomly add a name to a birth certificate without that person’s permission. Who knew?”
I laugh.
“So you really broke up with Mike?”
“A month ago. And he’s already been spotted walking across campus holding Ashley’s hand. Maybe I did them a favor.”
Carolyn babbles, “Dadadadadada,” and tries to grab my phone.
“What is she doing?” Laurel asks softly.
“She’s wondering where you are. It’s her first Thanksgiving and you aren’t here.”
“Well, that’s the way the courts have ordered it.”
I lie back and look up at the ceiling. “You want to come over?”
Laurel’s quiet a little too long.
“You can come to the party with us. Meet the rest of my crazy family.”
“Are you sure you want me with you?”
“Don’t you want to see Carolyn try her first piece of turkey?”
“I would love to.”
“Then wear something nice. The Skylars tend to go over the top when they entertain. You need to be here by one.”
“I’ll invade Sheryl’s closet.”
****
Laurel arrives at my house in a black strapless dress with high heels to match. Her hair is pulled up into a bun, with lots of pieces of hair hanging around her face that has been made up with extra eyeliner, pink blush and a hint of lip gloss. I’ve never seen her look so good. If we didn’t have to go to this party, I’d be tearing her dress off.
“Is this okay?” she asks shyly. “I wasn’t sure how dressy to go.”
“You look…amazing.”
She smiles. “You don’t look so bad yourself.” She nods at the suit and tie I have on. “You look good in a suit.”
“Hang on,” I say and rush into my bedroom, where I’ve left Carolyn hidden in her crib. I pick her up in her crimson dress, white tights and black Mary Janes and bring her to show Laurel.
“Oh my gosh, she looks adorable!”
“Not bad for a dad doing the dressing, right?” I nod at my handiwork. “She wouldn’t let me put the ribbon thing around her head, but I think otherwise I did a pretty good job.”
Laurel reaches her arms out and takes her. “She’s perfect.”
“A lot like her mom.”
Laurel glances at me.
“We should get going. Where’s your coat?”
“In the car.”
I tug her arm. “Let’s go.”
Chapter 38
The parking lot to Skylar Walk Vineyards is packed, and we are forced to find a spot at the far end of the lot, bundle Carolyn up in her stroller and wobble across a frozen pebble parking lot through the cold. I want to drop Laurel and Carolyn off near the entrance, but Laurel doesn’t dare go inside without me.
“I’d rather freeze with you than walk inside alone. We stick together,” she says.
“Nervous?” I ask.
She doesn’t answer, but I can tell by how hard she’s squeezing her hands together, she is anxious.
As we head toward the double doors that lead to the tasting room, the sound of a band grows louder.
“So this is how your family celebrates Thanksgiving?” she asks, tucking her arm into mine. “Fancy.”
“Never before this. My mom thinks they’re going to be making an announcement about something, although she doesn’t know what it could be. They invited my whole family and Steve’s family plus a bunch of friends. It’s like a wedding.”
I hold the door open and Laurel pushes the stroller inside.
“Is your mom okay? She barely talks to me when she meets me at the ferry.”
“She’s protective of her son. She knows I’ve been upset.”
Laurel stops and looks up at me. “You have?”
I don’t elaborate and change the subject. “She got an offer on the house. They’re closing right after Christmas.”
“Oh, that’s great!” Laurel shivers.
We unpack Carolyn and hand a coat-check girl our coats and the stroller.
“Come on. You need some wine to warm you up.” I put my arm around Laurel’s creamy shoulders and we enter a cavernous tasting roo
m decorated with stainless steel barrels and an exposed brick wall displaying hundreds of bottles of wine. In the center of the room is a large, wraparound granite island, where people are gathered, tasting various wines while a three-piece band plays overhead in a loft space that overlooks the room below. Light pours through two stories of windows, and doors provide views of a large brick patio and neatly planted rows of grapevines that go off into the horizon.
“Oh my gosh, Danny! This place is amazing!”
“I’ve never been here before.”
“This is what a tasting room should be. Wow!”
I look around the room to find a recognizable face, but there are so many people here, one is difficult to spot. Laurel and I find an open space at the counter and the hostess puts a wine menu in front of us.
“I don’t think Carolyn will have the patience for us to taste six wines. Could we just get one by the glass?” Laurel asks.
The woman smiles and opens up a bottle of red with the profile of a blue bird on the label. “This is our most popular red,” she says. “Songbird Claret. It’s been named one of Long Island’s best reds.”
She pours a small amount into a glass and I watch as Laurel tries it.
“That’s delicious.” She hands it to me so I can too. “What’s in it?”
“Five different grapes, though Steve won’t reveal which ones other than Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.”
Laurel nods her head in recognition, taking another sip.
“We’ll take two glasses of this,” I say and we venture to the other side of the room.
My brother and mother are sitting at a cocktail table with my aunt Alaina and uncle Leo. Jenny’s standing by the doors to the patio, talking to my cousin Bobby and his wife, Denise, and I can see the boys are roughhousing out in the cold with some of their cousins.
As we approach, I sense some apprehension in my mother’s eyes when she sees I’m with Laurel, but I ignore it.
My aunt stands when she sees us. “Oh my, Danny. Look at this little girl!” She comes around the table and reaches her hands out for Carolyn. “She’s gorgeous!”
I hand Carolyn over to my mom’s youngest sister and shake my uncle’s hand, who has also stood to greet us, then put my free arm around Laurel. “This is Laurel. Carolyn’s mother.”
“We’ve heard a lot about you.” The nuance of his comment comes out loud and clear to me. I cough, hoping Laurel hasn’t noticed.
“How was the drive from New Jersey?” I ask him.
“We flew all the way. We didn’t bother going through Manhattan with the parade. Only took a few hours.”
“Aunt Alaina, you want to feed Carolyn? She’s due for a bottle,” I say, reaching into Carolyn’s diaper bag.
My aunt looks at my mom and smiles. “Look at Danny being such a good father. He even knows when his baby needs to eat.”
“Well, he takes care of her on his own every other weekend, he’s got to,” my mother says curtly. My aunt gives Laurel the once-over while she reaches for the bottle. Sensing the need to free Laurel from judging eyes, I pull her into the crowd.
Janie and Steve are in the center of the room, talking to their guests. I spot Alaina and Leo’s daughters nearby, my cousins Angela and Marie. Angela is my age and Marie a couple years older. The two of them have been a pain in my ass my whole life. Neither one has any kind of social filter and they say exactly what they are thinking when they think it, no matter how inappropriate or insensitive it may be.
“Who do you want to meet first?” I ask Laurel. “The lawyer you went up against in court or my loud-ass cousins over there from New Jersey?”
Laurel’s shoulders sag. “I have to pick? Couldn’t I just say neither?”
I laugh. “Come on. Let’s say hi to Steve and Janie.”
While we wait our turn in their makeshift receiving line, Laurel grabs my arm. “Now I know why you invited me here today. It has nothing to do with Carolyn’s first Thanksgiving. This is payback for the last seven months.”
“You got me. I had to get even somehow, you know?” I smile.
“Well played.”
I pull her close and kiss her cheek, whispering in her ear, “I’m glad you’re here. I missed you.”
When I let her go, I notice her face is flushing.
Chapter 39
After several introductions and a concerted effort to shield Laurel from any side-handed remarks, the band leader announces over a microphone that we’re going to eat lunch.
Doors open revealing a large banquet room filled with gold-gilded chairs, tables covered in silky, floor-length linens and two buffets, one on either side of the room. Each one is identical with carvings of turkey, beef and rack of lamb, various kinds of pastas, a seafood bar on an ice sculpture, salads, vegetables, breads, and on a separate table in between both buffets is an over-the-top dessert station with a chocolate fountain, Italian pastries, cakes and pies.
“I think this is more elaborate than their wedding a couple years back,” I say to Laurel after we’ve found our table.
There is a high chair for Carolyn, who is already getting tired from all the attention she’s receiving and is rubbing her eyes. A seat was added for Laurel after I introduced her to Steve and Janie and Janie whispered something to a banquet manager.
I’m thankful when Joe and Jenny approach us with the boys that we are not sitting with Angela and Marie.
We take turns going to the buffet, making plates for the boys, ourselves and Carolyn, who bravely tries a variety of foods chopped into small pieces, until she’s just so tired she starts nodding off right in her chair.
“Danny, look at her,” Laurel says, smiling. Carolyn’s head is resting on the tray.
“I’ve never seen her fall asleep while she’s eating.”
Everyone laughs.
“She looks like Uncle Leo after he’s had one too many,” Joe quips.
“I’ll get her stroller so she can sleep,” I say and push away from the table.
When I return from the coat check, Janie and Steve are standing in the middle of the room, Steve holding a microphone.
“We’re so thankful for so much this year and are thrilled to share this day with our family and friends. The winery had a great year thanks to an almost perfect growing season. I’m officially retired from practicing law and can now focus on following my passion, which is making great wines.”
The room breaks out in applause.
Steve holds up his hand. “No, no. That’s not the big news. We have an even bigger announcement today.”
The room goes quiet. I look over at my brother and shrug. What now?
Steve continues. “Janie has decided to return to her roots in television. But I’m going to let her tell you the news.” He hands Janie the microphone.
“Well, after months of negotiation, Long Island Today has offered me an anchor position on both the five- and six-o’clock news.”
Everyone starts applauding again. When the sound finally dies down, she continues. “It’s going to be a lifestyle adjustment for everyone, but with Steve no longer working at the firm and the television studio in Riverhead, we’ve decided to make Southold our permanent home.”
More applause. Although everyone at my table rolls their eyes.
***
After the speeches and congratulations, Laurel and I make our escape, using Carolyn’s exhaustion as our excuse. When we’re safely in Laurel’s SUV and driving away from the vineyard, I put my head into my hands.
“What?” Laurel asks.
“All that to announce that Janie’s going back to work?”
“It was over the top.” She laughs. “But I had fun.”
I reach over and rest my hand behind her neck. “You did?”
“I like seeing where you come from, meeting your family.”
“Did you notice I deliberately kept you away from my cousins Angela and Marie? They can be vicious.”
“I ran into them in the bathroom when I was c
hanging Carolyn. We talked.”
“You did?”
“They were nice. They liked my dress.”
“What did they say?”
“They said they thought we made a good couple. They hoped we could work it out.” She glances at me.
“They said that?”
“Angela did. Marie agreed.”
“What did you say?”
“I said we’ll see.”
We drive the rest of the way back to my place in silence.
Chapter 40
Carolyn is so out of it, we’ve moved her from the high chair, to the stroller, to her car seat and finally to her crib without so much as a peep from her. We don’t bother taking her out of her dress or shoes and close the door so she can settle in for a long, late afternoon nap.
“Something tells me she’s going to be up all night,” I say, loosening my tie.
Laurel’s taken off her heels and is rubbing her feet. I sit down beside her. “I can take her back with me to Shelter Island if you want to get some sleep tonight. I don’t mind.”
I shake my head. “Nope. You’re not going anywhere tonight. You’re staying right here even if it means we both get no sleep.”
“I don’t mind all-nighters,” Laurel says and I pull her into my arms. She rests her head on my chest.
“I don’t mind them with you,” I say, kissing the top of her head.
She looks at me. “I have something to tell you.”
“Oh, what’s that?”
“I went on the pill.”
“You did?”
“Yes. Right after I broke up with Mike.”
“So you break up with your boyfriend and then go on birth control? It’s kind of counterintuitive, don’t you think?”
She laughs. “Maybe. But I realized something that week you were with me, when we got together.”
I push her up off my chest so I can see her face. “Oh, what’s that?”
“It wasn’t that I wasn’t ready to have sex. I just wasn’t ready to have sex with the wrong person. Being with you feels like home. You’ve been my friend and an amazing father to our girl. You’ve put up with so much and you’re still here. That’s for a reason, right? There’s more between us than either of us has let on.”
Yours and Mine (Freshman Forty #2) Page 15