Roz shrugged, trying to stamp out the hope that Charlotte’s words created inside her heart. “Technically, I was his former sister-in-law.”
“That’s not my point.”
“What is your point?”
“My point is that’s no way to have a relationship. I don’t believe he went back to that woman.”
“Then why did he leave me?” That question kept her up nights and echoed through her mind all day.
“Did you ask him to stay?”
“Of course not.”
“Why not?”
Roz turned away from Charlotte’s question and focused on her girls, who had made it to the front of the line and were in the midst of getting their faces painted. Megan was being transformed into a kitten, while Suzanne was being turned into a fairy. “Because it wouldn’t be fair. He has a life in Florida. I can’t ask him to give it all up for me.”
“Is that the only reason?”
Roz frowned. This is what happened when you shared the most painful events of your past with friends. They didn’t let you lie to them. Or yourself. “No. I was afraid he would turn me down. Or worse, that he would promise to come back and then let me down again. I can’t open myself up to that kind of hurt again. My heart can’t take the disappointment.”
“But what if you don’t get hurt this time? Maybe things didn’t work out before because you guys were too young. But you’re both older. And wiser. Look at Rick and me. He left me standing at the altar years ago because he wasn’t ready to get married. Things didn’t work out between us before, but we’re getting married in a few weeks. What if this is the right time for you and Paul?”
“It’s nothing like what happened between you and Rick. Even if he doesn’t go back to his girlfriend, it doesn’t change the fact that I married his half brother.”
“Nothing in the past will change. Surely, Paul has learned that by now. And I hope you know that, too.”
“I do.” Which was why she didn’t share Charlotte’s optimism.
“Then let it go,” Charlotte continued. “Stop letting the past be an obstacle to the future. Instead, start planning a way to get your man back.”
Roz smiled, and for the first time since Paul left, she could breathe without her heart aching. Charlotte was right. Roz needed to let Paul know how she felt. She had to summon up the courage to tell him that she loved him and ask for a second chance. And if he still didn’t want her? Well, it would hurt, but she would survive. And she’d be able to go into her future without regrets.
* * *
“You look so pretty, Mommy,” Suzanne said as she and Megan walked into Roz’s bedroom.
Roz smiled at her youngest daughter. Dressed in a red dress she’d picked out herself and the shiniest red shoes they could find, Suzanne did indeed look like a princess. “Thanks, baby. I need to look my best if I want to be as pretty as you and Megan.”
Both girls giggled and twisted at the waist, sending their skirts swirling around their calves. Although the girls had initially wanted long dresses, “to the floor” as Megan described it, Roz had convinced them that tea length was the way to go. The girls had pouted until Roz pointed out that their pretty shoes would be hidden beneath a full-length dress. Then they’d gotten on board and enthusiastically tried on dress after dress until they’d settled on these.
They were so proud of their appearances, especially their brand-new high-heeled shoes. One inch wasn’t much to Roz, but to little girls it was the difference between being a little kid and being a big kid. And they definitely wanted to be counted among the big kids tonight.
“You’re the prettiest of all,” Megan said, brushing a hand against the skirt of her royal blue dress. She lifted one black patent leather shoe and inspected it for dust. Apparently satisfied with the state of her shoes, she put her foot back on the floor.
“I like your hair,” Suzanne said. Suzanne had remarked on Roz’s new style several times a day over the past couple of weeks. Only time would tell how her daughter would react once she ditched the wig and wore a new, shorter do.
“Thank you.” Roz checked herself in the mirror. The silver fabric shimmered in the light. The top was fitted across her breasts and skimmed her stomach before giving way to a full skirt, showing off her now-returned curves. The dress had been on sale, but she would have paid full price. Tonight was the beginning of her new happier and healthier life. “Is your brother ready?”
“I don’t know. He’s in his room.” The girls came to stand beside Roz so they could admire themselves in the full-length mirror. They turned from side to side, smiling with pleasure at their reflections. Roz had found rhinestone tiaras and each girl was wearing one, their thick hair down, brushing against their shoulder blades.
“I’ll go check on him,” Roz said, although she was not sure either girl had heard her. She wondered if she would be able to pull them away from the mirror when it was time to leave.
Nathaniel’s door was closed, so she knocked. When he didn’t answer, she turned the knob and poked her head inside. He was sitting on the edge of his bed, glaring at the tie in his hand.
“Is everything all right?” she asked, even though she could tell it wasn’t.
“I don’t know how to do this,” he said, holding up the tie. “I thought Uncle Paul would be here and he could help me. He told me on the phone that he would be, but he’s not.”
Roz’s heart sank as she felt her son’s pain. “He wanted to be here, but you know he told us that a fire broke out in one of his fitness clubs and he had to take care of things. Do you miss him?”
One side of Nathaniel’s mouth lifted in a half smile. “I do. It was cool having him around, but I knew he couldn’t stay forever.”
“That’s right. But we can call him from time to time.”
“I know.” Nathaniel’s eyes lit up and he smiled broadly. “Don’t forget. He’s going to take me fishing on his boat.”
“I remember.” She hoped Paul would keep that promise.
“Hey, do you think Bobby could come, too? He’s never been fishing off a boat either.”
“It wouldn’t hurt to ask.” She took the tie from his hand. He looked so mature in his navy suit. So much like a man. “Now let’s take care of tying this.”
“Do you know how?”
She shook her head. “No. But I bet we can find a video on YouTube. They have everything there.”
He followed her downstairs to the computer. Now that she was sleeping in her old bedroom, she’d converted the downstairs bedroom into an office. Sure enough, there was a video explaining, step by step, how to correctly make a Windsor knot in the tie. After a couple of false starts, Nathaniel mastered it and his tie looked perfect. Her heart filled with pride at the young man he was becoming.
She and Nathaniel managed to pry the girls away from the mirror and then drove to the youth center. There were several restaurants in town, but none of them was large enough to hold the entire population at the same time. The youth center not only had sufficient space, it was well equipped to handle the messes and spills that were inevitable with children.
Luck was with them and they found a parking spot near the front door. She turned off the car, released her seat belt and started to open her car door.
“Wait,” Nathaniel commanded, touching her arm. “I’ll get your door for you. I’ll open everyone’s door.”
Roz smiled. “Thanks. You are such a gentleman.”
Nathaniel’s pride was evident as he helped Roz and his sisters from the car, then carefully closed the doors behind them. He took each of his sisters by the hand and looked up at Roz, a lopsided grin on his face. “Sorry. I only have two hands.”
Megan giggled. “That’s what you always say, Mommy.”
“It’s true, and not just for me.” Roz took Megan’s free hand and the four of them trekked to the door. It swun
g open, and a handsome teenager in a gray suit held it open for them. “Thanks.”
Suzanne and Megan gasped. “Wow,” they said simultaneously.
Wow indeed. Roz looked around in amazement. The youth center had been transformed into every romantic fantasy she’d ever dared to dream. Twinkling white lights dangled from plants and hung from the ceiling as if by magic threads. Yards and yards of gold and white fabric covered the walls. White roses spilling from urns perfumed the air. And they were only in the entrance.
“I’m going to find Bobby, okay?” Nathaniel asked. Obviously, he believed his duty as a gentleman ended when he’d ushered the females of his family inside the building. “Okay, Mom?” he repeated when she didn’t answer quickly enough.
She nodded. “Be good.”
“Do you suppose the princes are here?” Suzanne whispered, her hands pressed hopefully against her chest.
Nathaniel rolled his eyes before running off to find his friend. Clearly, he was unaffected by the surroundings. But then he’d never cared for fairy tales in the same way his sisters did.
“I hope so,” Megan replied before Roz could. “I might marry one.”
“Not me,” Suzanne said firmly. “I’m going to marry Uncle Paul.”
Just hearing Paul’s name made Roz’s heart skip a beat. She didn’t comment, though, because she couldn’t speak over the lump in her throat. When he’d left, she hadn’t believed he would come back. He’d managed to convince her in their conversations. But that was before the fire. Her rational mind knew that he wasn’t going to show. So why was she still hoping that he would magically materialize?
Because she was a fool, that’s why. Well, enough foolishness. She had children to raise. Daughters to teach that they didn’t need a prince to rescue them. She needed to show them that they could have a happy and fulfilled life without being coupled with someone else. The best way to do that was by example.
She took each one by the hand. “Come on, girls. Let’s go find the ballroom. I want to see just how beautiful that is. And then we can find the kids’ party.”
Smiling at two men dressed in tuxedos, Roz led the girls through the hallways and to the gym. Again, the decorations took her breath away. She’d been to fancy hotels before and had seen many beautiful rooms, but the gym in all of its glory put them to shame. She could have been standing inside the fairy castle of one of the girls’ favorite stories. She foolishly began to wonder if maybe happily-ever-after did happen in real life and could happen for her. Of course, since she was short one fairy godmother, that could be a problem. But it was a problem for another day. Tonight was for fun and maybe a little bit of dreaming.
“Well, don’t you all look beautiful?” Charlotte said. Somehow her best friend had materialized while Roz was looking around.
“Thanks.” Roz rubbed her hands over her silver dress. For the first time in months she felt like a whole woman. A sexy woman. “You look great yourself.”
“This old thing?” Charlotte asked, then laughed. Charlotte had a strict exercise regimen although her diet was that of an eleven-year-old. She looked fabulous in a long white dress that clung to her body like a second skin. If she didn’t know how good she looked, Roz would have felt like a scarecrow standing next to Charlotte. “Let’s just agree that we’re the belles of the ball, shall we?”
“Absolutely,” Roz agreed, although the other women in attendance did look spectacular. The dresses were in every color of the rainbow, but black seemed to be a favorite choice. Many women were draped in stunning jewels. Roz wore simple diamond studs and a diamond tennis bracelet that had belonged to her mother that her great-aunt, in a rare show of kindness, had saved for Roz.
“The kids are set up down the hall in the cafeteria. The teenagers are in charge, although parents are rotating in and out to make sure the kids behave themselves. Rick is scheduled for now. Shall we drop off the girls and then mingle? From the amount of attention you’re drawing from the single men, I think you’re going to be busy in a few minutes.”
Roz didn’t answer. She’d noticed a few heads turn in her direction when she’d entered the room. She didn’t expect to feel anything special for any of the men, but she was open to the possibility that one might make her feel a slight zing. Maybe her heart wouldn’t sing as it had when she was with Paul, but it might hum a few notes. She would never know if she didn’t try.
She smiled and nodded at a few people she recognized as she led the girls to the kids’ party. Once again, the decorations, although different from the ones in the ballroom, were spectacular. There was an enormous arch constructed of silver and gold balloons in one corner of the room, and several preteen girls were clustered there. The seats of folding chairs had been covered with gold and silver fabric, and an alternating silver or gold balloon had been tied to the backs of the chairs. A photographer had been hired and she was walking around taking candid pictures.
Megan and Suzanne squealed when they saw their friends and joined them at the punch bowl in the center of a festively decorated table. Clearly, a mother had been in charge of the liquid refreshment, and instead of the expected red, which created indelible stains on all kinds of clothes, the punch was frothy and clear. There were plates filled with cake, brownies, chocolate chip cookies and other assorted goodies, so, the punch notwithstanding, there was undoubtedly a visit to the dry cleaner in her future.
As with most dances for the junior high set, the boys were huddled together on one wall, laughing and talking, completely oblivious to the girls, who were giggling and sneaking glances at them. If Nathaniel’s declaration about only dancing with his sisters was any indication of how the other boys felt, the girls were either going to have to do the asking or dance with each other. The six-and seven-year-old girls didn’t seem to have a problem doing that, as Megan, Suzanne and their friends were already on the dance floor, bumping into each other as they tried to perform the complicated movements of a line dance.
Roz waved to the kids, then walked back to the ballroom with Charlotte. “Do you think the boys will get out there and dance?”
Charlotte laughed. “Not a chance. Bobby insisted that I was the only girl he was going to dance with. Apparently, a girl passed him a note in school asking him to be her boyfriend. She even tried to hold his hand. Rick thinks it’s no big deal. I think that little girl needs to sit down somewhere and leave my Bobby alone.”
“I’m with Rick,” Roz said, biting her lip in order to keep from laughing at the outraged expression on her friend’s face. “It’s cute. You’re just worried that you’ll lose your status as Bobby’s best girl.”
Charlotte shook her head. “That’s ridiculous.”
“It sure is. That boy loves you. His love won’t fade when he starts liking girls and wants to hold their hands. You know that’s not how love works.” And didn’t she know that better than anyone? Her love for Paul was as strong as it had been a decade ago. Although she’d chosen not to act on that love and had hidden it in a tiny part of her heart, she knew that if given the opportunity to flourish, it would bloom like a rose in summer.
But if she was going to find love in the future, she needed to find a way to bury it once and for all. She needed to open her heart to the possibility of falling in love with a new man.
“Come on,” she said, tugging on Charlotte’s arm. “I feel like dancing the night away. Or until ten thirty, when the dance ends.”
* * *
Paul walked into the youth center, momentarily stunned by the transformation. They’d taken decorating to another level. No doubt many women stepped inside and immediately started fantasizing about meeting their Prince Charming tonight. Paul wouldn’t be surprised if a marriage proposal or two resulted from the events of the night. And he predicted that more than one baby would be born nine months from now.
Not that any of that mattered to him. All he cared about was getting to Roz. It had
been far too long since he’d seen her. He’d been to the youth center many times with the kids, so he knew his way around. He followed the sound of music and laughter down the hall. From the look of things, the party was in full swing. Thank goodness he wasn’t too late.
He stepped around a pillar that had been wrapped in white lights and didn’t seem to serve a purpose other than impeding his progress. Blowing out a breath, he tamped down his irritation and tried to stop frowning. He didn’t want Roz to think he was angry with her.
Nothing had gone according to plan. He’d intended to be back in town two days ago so he and Roz could take the kids to the carnival and parade. But there’d been a fire in one of his gyms in Virginia, started when the barbecue joint next door went up in flames. The fire had occurred after hours and the building had been empty, so, thankfully, no one had been injured. The damage had been substantial and the club would be closed for several weeks while repairs were done.
Roz had been disappointed when he’d told her he wouldn’t be able to make it. Though she’d claimed to understand, he knew she was thinking the past was repeating itself. Which was why he hadn’t told her he was coming to the ball tonight. Just in case something went wrong, which it had, he wanted to spare her feelings.
He’d hit the road as soon as he could, but that was later than he would have liked. He’d been making good time and expected to arrive in enough time to change clothes and leave with Roz and the kids. Then he’d had a flat tire—a flat tire!—on the highway, throwing his plan to surprise Roz at the house out the window. Fortunately, he’d been wearing jeans and hadn’t gotten his tuxedo dirty. He’d let himself into Roz’s house, taken the quickest shower on record, changed clothes and hid his present for her in the kitchen before racing to the youth center. The parking lot was packed and he’d had to park so far from the entrance that he could have left the car at Roz’s house and walked.
He passed a few women he vaguely recognized and nodded, not slowing his pace. His heart began to thump in his chest as he realized he would soon be seeing Roz. He’d missed her. Being away from her had clarified his thinking and proved one thing: she was in his blood. He’d realized that he would die if he didn’t have Roz in his life.
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