Picket Fence Surprise

by Kris Fletcher

  An hour or twelve later, the presentation thankfully finished, she grabbed Leah’s arm and steered her away from the corridor that led to their offices and out the doors toward freedom.

  “Heather, what are you doing?”

  “Taking you to lunch.”

  “That’s good. I was terrified you were kidnapping me and making sure I could never return to the mother ship. Though now that I’ve planted that idea in your head, feel free. Just make sure you let my kids know they have to order a pizza for dinner.” Leah slid into Heather’s car with an exaggerated shiver. “Any special reason for this surprise, or is this simply because I’m the world’s most amazing friend?”

  “I owe you. You saved my bacon during the meeting.” Plus, Leah was her closest buddy at Duffy Young. They had met in the Vancouver office, cemented their friendship at assorted retreats and conferences after Heather transferred and picked up where they started when they both landed in Ottawa. Heather wanted to have as much fun with Leah as she could, while she could.

  “Bacon.” Leah practically moaned the word. “Great idea. Let’s go to that burger place on O’Conner that serves bacon on everything.”

  “Since when did bacon become part of that healthy living regime you started last week?”

  “Since when have I let that stop me? And by the way, what was your problem today? You were peeking at your phone so much, I thought you might have done a Freaky Friday and traded bodies with Millie.”

  “She doesn’t have a phone yet.”

  “Lucky you. Enjoy talking to her while you can. It’ll all be over once she gets that magic toy in her hands. So what had you so glued to your screen?”

  “I wasn’t—”

  “Wait. Inattention at meetings, giggling over texts and now denial. I smell a guy.”

  Heather’s stunned silence was quickly broken by Leah’s hoot of laughter.

  “Oh my God. It is a guy, isn’t it?”

  “I didn’t say anything.”

  “You didn’t have to.”

  This was a topic that Heather definitely did not want to address. She turned onto Bank Street and made a face at the line of cars. She should have come up with a quick line like I wish or Only in my dreams. Now she was trapped in the car with Leah and her questions.

  “I need details.” Leah was almost bouncing in her seat. “What’s his name? How did you meet him? How long has this been going on? When’s the wedding?”

  “I am so not having this conversation.” Heather gripped the wheel. “Or a wedding.”

  “Okay, I’ll make up my own answers. Let me see. His name is Bennett, you met him three months ago at the conference in Toronto and he’s been calling and texting nonstop ever since, begging you to run away to Tahiti with him.”

  “No, no, no, and—hold on. Wasn’t Bennett the name of that guy from Halifax that you were hanging with at the conference?”

  “Good memory.”

  “So, like, is this really happening? To you, I mean?”

  Leah sighed loud enough to be heard over the air conditioner and slumped down in her seat. “Nope. But a girl can dream, can’t she?”

  “Absolutely.” Especially if it kept Leah distracted long enough to make her forget Heather’s love life. “I assume that in this fantasy, Jonathan and the kids aren’t in your life.”

  “Of course they are. I never said that I would run away. Merely being begged would be enough. But it’s not happening, so I have to live vicariously through you, so dish.”

  “No comment.” Maybe if she talked about work... “You know, I think I have the career equivalent of the seven-year itch. I can’t focus on the job anymore.”

  “Oy. Nobody could focus on that snore fest today.”

  “It’s not that. Well, a little, but...there are days when I come into work and I look at the list of meetings and reviews, and I just want to walk out of my office and go sit in one of the planning sessions and soak it all up. You know?”

  “Soak up what? The smell of unwashed nerd?”

  “No. The enthusiasm. The creativity.” She inched the car forward.

  “Heather, Duffy Young is a decent place to work, but there are far better uses for your creativity and enthusiasm, many of them involving whoever had you blushing like a schoolgirl at the meeting.”

  Clearly there was no discouraging her.

  “Leah, there’s really nothing to tell.”

  “Turn at the next corner. I know the back way. So if there’s nothing to tell, why were you giggling?”

  “Because...okay, he’s funny.”

  “Well, I didn’t think you were laughing out of fear, but this is a start.”

  “No. Leah, really, I...” Heather nibbled on her lip and nudged her little Nissan off Bank Street and onto Lisgar. “Listen, I promise that if there’s ever anything, you know, significant to report, you’ll be the first to hear, okay? But the odds of that happening are about the same as the odds that you would ever run off with someone named Bennett.”

  “Why? Was it a one-night stand?” Leah sounded utterly delighted at the prospect. “Though I guess it wasn’t. Not if he was texting you. Not that I would know, because I was boring and stupid and never had one. Maybe you could have one for me and fill me in.”

  “No!”

  “Why not?”

  “Seriously, Leah?” She stomped on the brake as a car began to ease from the curb. “Are we close enough to walk?”

  “Yep. Grab that. The parking gods are with you. So he wasn’t a one-night stand, but you’re determined not to talk about him. Because...you don’t want to jinx things?”

  “Because...it’s none of your business?” Heather glanced over her shoulder. All clear.

  “You’re my friend. Of course it’s my business.”

  “Trying to parallel park, here.”

  Leah, of course, refused to take the hint. “See, I understand wanting to keep quiet when you’re in the beginning stages. But if he’s sending you texts that leave you redder than Santa’s you-know-what—”

  “Leah!”

  “—then I think we’re past the point of jinxing it.”

  “There’s nothing to jinx.” She nudged the car forward, called it good and turned off the engine. “Come on. I’m starved.”

  “Hang on.” Leah grabbed Heather’s sleeve, stopping her flight from the car. “I need to ask you something.”

  “As opposed to what you’ve been doing all along?”

  “Details.” Leah waved the word away. “Seriously, sweetie, I’m glad you found someone. You’ve been alone too long. And I promise I won’t tease you while we’re at the office. But I can’t help but wonder...were you serious about being bored at work, or were you trying to throw me off the scent?”

  The temptation to run with the easy excuse was strong. But just as Xander had insisted that it wouldn’t feel right to sleep with her without first telling her the truth, Heather knew she had to give Leah...well, not the whole story. For one thing, it was too long. For another, until she had a definite offer—any offer—in hand, she was definitely erring on the side of Not Jinxing.

  But Leah had been her friend for a long time. She deserved to have some inkling that there might be a change on the horizon.

  “I am getting a little tired of spending all my time supervising.”

  Leah’s uncharacteristic silence wasn’t encouraging.

  “I like collaborating,” Heather rushed to add. “And being part of a team.”

  “But...”

  “But I only like the part when I’m talking with the creative crew.” Or, more honestly, when she was the one doing the dreaming and creating. Just like when she was pulling together the proposal for her impending interview. “But when I have to deal with the stick people in management...that’s whe
n it gets shaky.”

  “That’s kind of a problem. You know, since management is the biggest part of being a supervisor.”

  “It’s nothing I can’t handle.” Heather opened her door, hoping she hadn’t completely ruined the afternoon.

  It wasn’t until they were halfway down the block, pushing their way through July humidity, that Leah spoke again.

  “You know why I picked this place for lunch? It’s not just because the food is so great. It’s because it’s fun. I walk in, and no matter how grumpy I am, or pissed off at the kids, or depressed because my best friend is dropping hints that she might be leaving her job—”

  Sigh.

  “—I walk in there and I grin. I’m glad to be there. And believe it or not, most days, that’s how I feel when I walk into the office, too. Not for the same reasons, but because it’s the right place for me. At least for right now.”

  “Leah—”

  “A little boredom is okay. It can be the nudge you need to stretch yourself. But if it lasts, and if you really feel like you’re not doing what you’re supposed to be doing, then all I can say is that life is too short to spend the majority of your waking hours simply coping.”

  “I—”

  “Everyone deserves to be happy, Heather. And when you sat there giggling through the meeting, it hit me that I haven’t seen you like that in a long time. Not that you should be getting all hot and bothered over expense reports, because that would be sick. But if all you’re getting from the job is a paycheck...” She huffed and tugged her purse strap higher on her shoulder. “Well, all I can say is, I hope you’re feeling flush today.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Because now I’m depressed. And there’s only one way to handle that.” Leah started walking. “Double bacon, double cheese and there will be dessert.”

  * * *

  FRIDAY NIGHT—AND Darcy’s text that she and Ian were home from their honeymoon and ready for Cady anytime—came far too fast for Xander.

  “Looks like it’s time to pack up, Cady girl.” He handed her a bowl of animal crackers to keep her occupied while he crawled around her room, hunting for lost socks and toys that needed to travel back to Cady’s other home. Every item he tossed into the pink polka-dotted suitcase was another reminder of the fact that it would be days before he saw his kid again.

  Usually, he could shake it off by reminding himself that all of this was a miracle. Tonight he wasn’t quite able to convince himself.

  To think he’d laughed at his mother when she tried to explain why she cried for three days before Bethie left for university.

  “There’s another apology I owe you, Mom.”

  Cady’s head snapped up. “Mama?”

  “Soon, Cady bug. How’s those crackers? Do you have a lion?”

  “Rawr.” She tossed the cracker to Lulu, who, being a dog of excellent instincts, snapped it up.

  “Screw the natural food chain, right, Lu?”

  Cady looked up from her bowl and grinned at him. “Screw!”

  “Shi—Are you kidding? That whole sentence, and that’s the word you picked up on?”

  Her grin widened. “Sit!”

  “I hope to God you’re talking to the dog.”

  With the room thoroughly scoured and everything packed, he had no excuse to prolong the departure. Dragging things out wouldn’t be fair to anyone, especially not to his daughter who took one look at the suitcase in his hand and launched into a chant of Mama Mama Mama.

  Still, he couldn’t resist giving Cady an extra-tight squeeze before buckling her into her car seat.

  The minute he pulled into the driveway, Darcy burst from the house and made a beeline for Cady’s door. She had the car seat undone and Cady in her arms before Xander had unfastened his seat belt.

  Not that he was moving very quickly.

  “Hello, sweet girl. I missed you so much. Did you have the best time ever with Daddy?” Darcy ceased covering Cady’s head with kisses long enough to beam at Xander. “You’re staying for dinner, right? Ian’s out back. He asked me to send you out there. Something about a branch coming down while we were gone, and now there’s leaves everywhere.”

  Since Darcy kept insisting that Ian and Xander should have male bonding time, he figured this was another of her excuses to give them a chance to do some Guy Thing together. Someday, the Guy Thing in question might involve something other than home repair and beer, but he wasn’t holding his breath.

  Sure enough, once he wandered around back and checked in with Ian, it turned out that his job was to hold a ladder while Ian cleaned out gutters and told him all about the joys of snorkeling.

  “So would you go back to Jamaica?” Xander asked.

  “Maybe, but I’m not in any hurry.” Ian patted the roof. “I have a feeling we’ll be mostly homebound the next few years.”

  “Time for the picket fence phase of life?”

  “Looks that way.”

  Given that Ian’s expression could only be described as that of a lovesick fool, Xander didn’t think his old friend was too upset.

  Not that Xander was jealous.

  Much.

  “I don’t know, Ian. The more I see of this home ownership stuff, the more I give thanks that I rent,” he said as a handful of guck hit the ground.

  “You say that now. But let me tell you this.” Ian grunted and reached forward. “Short of killing a charging rhino, there’s nothing that will impress a woman like your ability to deal with plumbing. And if you can do wiring? Guaranteed gratitude sex.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.” Would it be wrong to sneak over to Heather’s and throw something down her toilet?

  Nah. Now he was thinking like a lovesick teenager. Not his best look.

  Another handful of leafy crud sailed through the air, just missing him.

  “Hey! Watch out for the lackey!”

  “Move faster. You’re gathering wool down there.”

  He couldn’t help it. He kept thinking back to Heather on his sofa. And Heather curled up in his bed. And Heather laughing in his kitchen.

  “Seriously, Xander. Wake up. Your head’s so high in the clouds, you could give us a long-range weather forecast.”

  “Good. I could use a new job. Meteorologist sounds good. Unless you call for snow in July, you have a fifty-fifty chance of being right, no matter what you say.”

  “Plus you can screw up as much as you want and nobody expects any different. Coming down.”

  Xander tightened his grip against the shaking of the ladder as Ian descended.

  “Thanks.” Ian raised his hands. “I’m gonna wash up. Ready for a beer?”

  “Sure.”

  As soon as Ian vanished into the house, Xander pulled his phone from his pocket. Nothing from Heather.

  Damn.

  Ian returned with two beers, which he set on the picnic table. Xander joined him, glad for the distraction.

  “Darcy gave me orders to stay out here with you for fifteen minutes, at which point I’m allowed to go back inside and help carry out food.”

  “So I’m supposed to keep you entertained for that long?” Xander snorted. “Darce owes me.”

  “Hey, some people find me interesting.”

  “Yeah, but she married you.”

  “Yeah, I guess she did.”

  The satisfied tone in Ian’s voice had Xander staring at the drops on the side of his mug. What would it be like to have someone, not just for a night or two, but for the rest of your life?

  “So,” Ian said, “are you still seeing what’s her name? The one from Cornwall?”

  Xander had to stop and think. Cornwall...that would be Julie, the one he’d met up with at the coffee shop the night he kept staring at Heather... “Nah. That didn’t make
it past the first date.”

  “Jesus, Xander, you have to stop getting so involved. I mean, one whole date. She must have been heartbroken when you ended it.”

  There was no need to admit that she’d been the one to call a halt. A man had his pride. Sometimes it was all he had, but at least it was his.

  “What can I say? Sometimes there’s no saving it, no matter how long you try.”

  “True that.”

  Xander tasted the beer. Ian was his oldest and closest friend. Things had been tense for a while there, when Xander had showed up out of the blue upon his release and discovered he had a daughter whom Ian loved like his own, but they had worked though those issues. These days it was like they were back in their university dorm, except instead of sharing a room they shared a dog and a kid. There was no one Xander trusted more.

  So maybe, if he took care to avoid revealing any secrets or names, he could run things past Ian. Get another perspective.

  “Let me give you a hypothetical.” Xander turned so his back was against the edge of the table and his legs could stretch out in front of him. That was better. “Say you knew someone.”

  “A female someone?”

  “Quite probable. And you thought it was going well, but there was one big thing that you couldn’t agree on. Something that doesn’t matter too much now, but could in the long run.”

  “Go on.”

  “Well, that’s about it.”

  “That’s it? What’s the problem?”

  “The...you know. The big thing.”

  “The big unnamed thing that isn’t creating a problem now?”

  “Right.” Xander frowned into his beer. “Well, it kind of is, because the parties involved are worried about it and what could happen. You know. Down the road.”

  Ian stared into his own mug. “Either they’ve started making this a lot stronger, or you’re not making any sense at all.”

  “Was that supposed to be helpful?”

  “I don’t see where you need help.”

  “Were you listening?”

  “Course I was,” Ian said. “You said that things are fine now, and the only hitch is something that could potentially become a problem down the road. Correct?”