chapter eight

16 March

Evan led the way down to the middle section behind the first base line; his favorite place to sit at a game. He scanned the crowded arena while maneuvering around the baseball fans wandering up and down the metal stairs, keeping watch that Susie and Duncan were able to stay with them. Janet, he wasn’t worried about; she was too close against him to get separated. He supposed he shouldn’t worry about Susie, either. Duncan was staying right with her – ever since they’d stepped out of the car. If Evan got separated from her, at least she wouldn’t be alone.

The last professional game he’d seen with Duncan had been the Pittsburgh Pirates at home against the Cardinals. His buddy had mentioned in passing that he had never seen a live pro game, so when a few college acquaintances made plans to go, Evan had arranged an extra ticket. The group wasn’t the one that had been at the bar, but they still weren’t real friendly to his guest. Even Tara, the girl Evan had been dating at the time, eventually broke away and stayed with the other group. He hadn’t minded. At least Duncan was actually there to watch the game. Tara knew next to nothing about baseball and didn’t care to learn. If Evan remembered correctly, that had been their last date. He hadn’t minded about that, either.

Today would be different. Susie wouldn’t pull away from him because of his friend. She had already made that apparent when a couple of cropped-hair guys in button-up shirts had begun leering at her while they were in line at the entrance. When Duncan had stepped closer, as a warning that she wasn’t alone, they’d turned up their noses with that too-common expression – high falutin’, Stu would call it – with the lunatic idea that they were superior to him in some way. Susie had taken his arm as if they were old friends … or more … and leaned in to talk in his ear. She was incredible.

Settled two seats down, not what Evan had planned, Susie leaned up around Janet to find him. “So the Red Sox are going to win today since we’re here, right?” She grinned.

“Of course.” He wondered how rude it would be to ask Janet to trade places.

“Dad says Chicago has a better record going. I think he has money on them.”

Susie’s eyes glinted mischief at her manager. “He’s going to lose it.”

“Oh, he doesn’t very often. He follows the game, you know.”

“Maybe so, but whenever Evan and I go to a game together, our team always wins. So I hope your dad didn’t put much on them.” She had turned in her seat, pulling a leg up, in order to face them without completely having her back to Duncan. He was watching the conversation with amusement.

“You’re betting on coincidence?” Janet laughed.

“No. I’m betting on gut instinct.” She pulled her chin up just slightly when Janet laughed again. “What are you willing to put on it?”

“Put on it?”

“Not money – I don’t do that, but…”

“Dinner.”

Susie looked back at the man behind her.

He looked calmly into her eyes. “I’ll take your bet. Dinner’s on me tomorrow if Boston wins.”

“And if Chicago wins?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Then it’s at your place.”

Evan watched her. She wouldn’t accept. She didn’t know him well enough. Besides…

“Can we get in on that, too?”

Susie looked back at Janet, touching Evan’s eyes on the way.

“You’ve said Evan’s a good cook and I’m really not. I’ll split the bill with Duncan if we lose and you two can cook for us if we win.”

She touched his eyes again, waiting … letting him make the decision. Unfortunately, he couldn’t think of a good way to get out of it. He shrugged, not quite willing to say it was okay, but unwilling to turn down his buddy’s idea. Janet took it as an affirmative. As usual, Evan couldn’t read Duncan’s thoughts.

****

Susie thanked Duncan for pulling her chair out and holding it while she gathered her skirt to lie as neatly as possible over her bare legs and alongside the chair. She never wore nylons during the spring or summer unless it was for something formal. She was possibly overdressed tonight in her long navy slip dress with matching bolero, but it had been sitting in her closet nearly untouched since she’d made it to wear to an art show in the city with her dad the year before. None of her dates since then had seemed worth the effort of dressing so well. Even if this wasn’t a date, it was a nice restaurant and she’d expected Janet to look decent. Her manager had a thing for having the latest fashions.

The waiter lit the candle in the center of the round table and asked if they would like a wine menu. Janet asked for the house red wine. Susie stayed with iced tea, determined to keep her head clear.

She moved her eyes across the table to Evan when he copied her order. He looked great. The long sleeves of his crew-neck shirt were pushed half way to his elbows, revealing the strong, tanned arms and wrists below, and the shirt fit him better than the T-shirts he wore too loose. Janet reached over to touch his arm. Susie turned her eyes away.

Duncan pulled her into a conversation about baseball, saying that the last time he’d seen a game it had been with Ev, but their team had lost. {move above thoughts from Evan down here} She told him he hadn’t believed hard enough that they would win. The comment brought another laugh from Janet, but Duncan’s look erased any irritation that would normally have brought. Susie knew her manager didn’t understand the “strange ideas” she had about a lot of things. But she didn’t understand what was so strange about them. And Duncan didn’t look at her like she was crazy. He also didn’t seem interested in talking to anyone but her. He did, when he was pulled in. Otherwise, he kept the conversation between the two of them as much as possible. She wasn’t at all sure he’d wanted Evan and Janet to jump in on their bet. She also wasn’t sure she would have turned him down if they hadn’t.



Janet invited them in when they took her back to her parents’ home. She had moved back in with them not long after her divorce. So they could help with her son, she had said. She couldn’t deal with being a single mom alone.

Inside, forest green paint peeped over the top of mahogany paneling. A few floor lamps were burning, enough to throw a shine from large pieces of crystal displayed on small mahogany tables and tall mahogany bookshelves. The curtains in the living room were the same forest green as the walls; Susie wondered if they had been custom matched. Luckily, the room was spacious enough that it didn’t quite feel like the inside of a casket. There was plenty of room to walk around the heavy furniture covered in a shiny gold fabric.

Janet’s mother asked about drinks. Susie tried to refuse, but the elder lady, dressed immaculately even at eight o’clock at night, wouldn’t hear of it. She finally agreed to have wine with the others, deciding she could sip at it just enough to be sociable.
Accepting the glass that was more full than necessary, Susie interrupted the grandfather clock ticking in the background somewhere. “You have a beautiful home. Do you collect antiques, or are they family pieces?”

Janet’s mother beamed. “Actually, both.” She pointed out furniture that had been her family’s for many years. “Do you collect antiques?”

Susie shook her head. “All I have is several pieces of Depression-ware that my great grandmother bought because she loved the pastel colors and etched designs. She gave it to my mom when she got married.”

“And your mother gave it to you already?”

“Dad gave it to me when I moved out. I have been looking for an antique china cabinet to put it in. Or something less expensive with an antique look.”

“I would suggest staying with originals; they are generally much better quality. We do go out window shopping often. If I see anything, I’ll have Janet let you know.”

“Thank you.” She didn’t bother to say she most likely couldn’t afford an original antique.

With the ice broken, Janet’s parents opened up and talked with them for over an hour, pausing occasionally to refill the wine. Evan declined after the first glass, saying he was driving. Susie’s first glass was still over half full when the couple finally decided to turn in for the night. They openly wished for Evan to come back any time, and the others, too.

Janet moved in closer to Evan. Susie turned more attention toward Duncan as an escape from having to watch Evan get hit on. Maybe she should have been taking lessons from Janet instead of trying to block her out.

Duncan told her quietly that the house seemed like the kind of place the two cropped-hair guys at the game would have grown up in. Susie chuckled. She wasn’t the only one bothered by its sinister feel. He also wondered how anyone could dare go into the basement of a house that was so dark upstairs. She laughed again, refusing to answer Janet about why she was laughing.

Evan stood. “I think we should be going. It’s getting late.”

He must have thought she was giggling from being too tired, or from the wine she’d barely touched. Or that she was being rude to their hostess. Actually, she was just enjoying his friend’s company.

Janet brushed his arm when she again took his side. “Would you help me take the glasses to the kitchen?”

“Of course.”

Suddenly being alone with Duncan was a bit uncomfortable, so Susie went over to a painting she had been glancing at occasionally. She could see the brush strokes; it had to be an original. A lone tree with delicate, strong branches reaching out to nowhere contrasted with the bright sunset in the distance.

“Beautiful.”

She started at his voice just behind her. “Yes, it is. I love trees.”

“I meant you.”

Her stomach twinged. Why couldn’t he have left it at making her laugh? That she could deal with. Having Evan’s best friend … best guy friend … hit on her, was … not right. Evan wanted him to stay and still wasn’t sure he would. She didn’t want to be the one to chase him away, either by accepting any advances or by refusing them.

Where was Evan? It didn’t take that long to walk to the kitchen and back. It hadn’t taken Janet’s mother that long to walk to the kitchen, retrieve a bottle of wine and the opener, put it on a tray with six wine glasses, and walk back again. Was he helping Janet wash them, too? She wouldn’t be rude enough to stand in there and wash dishes while she had company in the living room. Even just rinsing them to make later washing easier wouldn’t take this long.

“I embarrassed you again.”

She could feel the aura of his personal space meshing with hers. But he didn’t touch her – physically. “I’m … I’m Evan’s friend, you know. I’m just not sure…”

“You said you were no’ more than his friend. He said the same; I made sure before asking you out. I would no’ do that to a friend.”

He said the same? Evan knew Duncan planned to ask her out, and he didn’t care? Or was he testing her? They seemed so close recently. He’d been paying more attention to her; setting a hand on her back more often, sitting beside her instead of across the room, looking at her differently. Maybe it had all been her imagination. Maybe…. He was still in the kitchen with Janet – doing what?

“Is there someone else? I did no’ ask him that.”

She met his eyes. “No.” There was no one else; just Evan. And even if he didn’t care…

“Then will you go out with me? Alone, next time.”

How could she answer without offending him? She was single, and free, and she enjoyed his company. He had to know that by her laughter, and the way she’d taken his arm. Although, he also had to know that she’d taken his arm just because those two creeps were staring. Well, maybe not only because they were staring; it hadn’t bothered her to hold his arm. It had actually felt more natural than she’d expected. But he was still Evan’s best friend and she didn’t have great luck with guys.

“Please don’t be offended. I’ve had a great time today and I do enjoy talking music with you, or baseball or … anything else, but….”

“I’m no’ your type.” He looked hurt.

“Oh. No. I mean … I think you might be. I mean, you didn’t laugh at me like Janet does or look at me like I’m crazy, or…”

“Susie, it’s okay to just say I’m not. I will still talk to you about music or baseball … or anything else.”

He was making it too easy. Too easy to turn him down. Which made her want to turn him down even less. But he was Evan’s friend. She shook her head. “It’s not … it has nothing to do with you, really. I’m … just not really ready to date right now. I kind of … swore off dating for a while. And I think it would be too uncomfortable if we … if we went out and you found out you couldn’t stand being around me. Living with Evan … I wouldn’t be willing to not see him anymore…”

“I think that’s not likely.” His eyes sparkled.

She paused. “What?”

“I can’t imagine anyone no’ wanting you around.”

His repetition of his words at their first introduction brought back her feelings from his first touch. She half expected him to take her hand. He didn’t.

“Sorry I kept him so long.”

Susie turned at Janet’s voice. She’d forgotten about them doing whatever they were doing in the kitchen. Moving away from the painting, and from Duncan, she mentioned that she was enjoying the art, hearing Janet’s response about the artist and its origination but not really listening. She was noticing a different tone in her manager’s voice. Susie didn’t believe they had been washing dishes.



“I guess it didn’t work.”

Susie turned, surprised at Kate’s voice. “What didn’t work?”

“Duncan walked you in instead of Evan, so I’m assuming you weren’t able to get Janet away from him.”

“What makes you think I was trying to?”

“Suse, it’s me. I know how you feel about Evan.”

“And you promised not to say anything.”

“I haven’t, but I don’t understand why you don’t tell him instead of standing around watching him date other women. So is he dating her now?”

Susie hung her jacket beside the door and kicked off her shoes. “I suppose so. And if he was interested in me, he wouldn’t keep dating other women.” Her own statement – out in the open where she had never allowed it before – shocked her spirit. He wasn’t interested. She’d kept hoping for an answer and now she had one. Evan had arranged a double date with his friend, setting her up with him without even asking if she wanted to go out with him. Duncan had said he had asked Evan about her. He knew Duncan was interested, and he was helping to push them together.

She propped herself on her favorite couch section, pulling her feet up beside her and letting the skirt drape nearly to the floor. She didn’t care. The floor was clean.

“Suse.” Kate stopped whatever wandering she was doing for whatever reason and sat next to her. “You know I think you could do better than Evan, but I do know how much he means to you. I know you’re completely wrapped up in him and I’m your friend; I want you to be happy. So get mad if you want, but I’m going to give you some advice.”

“Kate….”

“No. Listen to me a minute. If you wanted to, you could have that man wrapped all the way around every finger. You’re going to have to stop treating him like a friend and start treating him more like … like a lust object.” She ignored Susie’s look. “I’m serious. Yes, he’s been your friend forever, but he’s also a man – a twenty-five-year-old man. He wants more than a friend, you know. Do you think Janet will turn him down? I’d bet anything she won’t.”

“Kate, don’t.”

“Why? Because you can’t stand to think of him with her? Well, he will be. Suse, he will be … if you don’t stop it now, or at least try to stop it. Hell, skip the talking part. Don’t tell him how you feel. Go over there and show him!”

“I can’t do that.”

“Why not? I saw you making out with Nathan more than once. I know you know how…

“Don’t mention that name again.”

“Okay, but if you could do it with him, you can do it with Evan.”

“No, I can’t! Kate … you don’t understand! What if I do that and I turn him completely off and then he won’t want to be around me because he’s afraid I’ll keep pushing something he doesn’t want? It would never be the same again! It would put too much distance between us, and I can’t risk that. He’s the one person I know I can always depend on, and I can’t lose him!”

Kate looked away, stung by the other truth Susie had never admitted openly.

“I’m sorry. I meant…”

“No, I deserved that. But I think you’re wrong. I think there is nothing on this earth that would distance you from him. I think you’re underestimating yourself. And I think you’ll regret it forever if you don’t give it a real chance.”

A deep breath overtook her body. Maybe Kate was right. Maybe she would regret it forever. But not as much as she would regret losing him in any way. And she was tired of the conversation. “Well, I think that about you and Mike, too. You know you could have him, and I know you want him, but you keep pushing him away. Someday you’re going to push too hard and lose him. And I think you’ll regret that, too.”

“At least he knows I’m interested, and willing. If he’s going to give up on me, he’s not worth having. Besides, I’m only twenty-three. I’m too young to be tied down by a serious relationship. And I’d be more willing to date him if he would lighten up about it.”

“He’s in love with you.”

“I know, and it scares the hell out of me.”

“Kate, just because your parents’ marriage didn’t work, that doesn’t mean yours wouldn’t.”

“Suse, I’m not like you. I’m just like my mom; Dad says so all the time. Why should I make a promise to Mike that I won’t be able to keep?”

“You don’t have to be like your mom.”

“But I am. I like my freedom and independence. Besides, I can’t have the career I want if I’m tied down to a husband and kids.”

“And how often do you expect him to just take you back after you’ve been dating other men?”

“I’m sure he dates other women.”

“No, he doesn’t, but he should.”

Kate shrugged. “I never asked him not to. Besides, Evan has been dating others, but you’d still take him.”

“I’m not sleeping with Evan. It’s different.”

“Maybe you should be.”

Susie stood suddenly and walked past her friend to her room. She could really be an idiot, considering how intelligent she actually was. Mike was crazy about her, and she felt the same about him. If Evan ever gave her the slightest hint.… She sighed. There was no point in arguing with her. Kate just had different goals, and once her mind was set, there was no looking back. She couldn’t help thinking that although Kate was three years older than Susie, she sometimes acted three years younger. Ever since her mom left her and her dad to run away with a younger man, Kate had become unstable and seemed to be daring the world. She left a well-paying secretary job to run after her dream of being an actress, getting a few small roles in small theatrical productions. Now she took modeling jobs to help pay bills while between shows. At 5’7” and 115 pounds, she had a very nice figure, and her brown wavy hair and brown eyes were very photogenic. Susie thought she was a little too willing to show skin, but Kate always pointed out that she had nothing she was ashamed to show. Her father rarely came to see her anymore, finding her lifestyle too degrading for his old-fashioned attitudes. Kate had often told Susie that her mom wouldn’t have left if he had loosened up, though Susie had trouble finding any fault with the kindly doctor.

When Kate decided to move to Lakewood with Susie, Doc had given his two week notice to the hospital and bought a large house in a nearby neighborhood, living on the top floor, and converting the bottom floor into office space. He had talked for years about setting up his own practice and saw no reason to stay alone in the family house. Evan, Kate, Susie, and her dad had helped him move and get set up, and he now had two nurses and a young female ob/gyn working for him. Being as private as she was, Susie appreciated having her childhood doctor still looking after her general care needs and a woman for anything more personal.

A knock on her bedroom door interrupted her thoughts just before she slipped out of her dress in favor of sweats.

“Duncan’s here.”

She opened the door. “Duncan? Why?”

Kate raised her eyebrows. “That’s what I was wondering. He looks really hot tonight … and he’s asking for you. So, is there another reason you’re not objecting to Evan dating Janet?”

She was right. He did look very nice in his khakis and fitted T. “He asked me out.”

“Duncan did? Wow. You accepted, right? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“No. I didn’t accept.”

“Susie! Are you crazy? Have you looked at him?!”

“Ssh, he’ll hear you.”

“Okay, so he’ll know I think you’re crazy. You are! Damn! Forget Evan; go look at him!”

“Kate, hush!” She started moving past her friend, hoping her voice hadn’t carried.

A grasp on her arm stopped her. “You know, I keep saying there’s someone better for you than Evan. If you have any sense, you’ll go tell that man you’ve changed your mind and would love to go out with him.”

Better than Evan. Susie couldn’t imagine. She pulled her arm away and went out to face his buddy.

His eyes studying her shoulders reminded her that she’d removed her jacket, leaving nothing but spaghetti straps above the dress bodice. She felt too naked in front of him.

“Sorry t’ interrupt.”

“It’s okay; I was just going to change.” She waited. Had he come back for her answer? They hadn’t actually finished the conversation.

“We just wondered if you wanted a ride in the morning.”

A ride. We. And Evan had sent him instead of coming over himself. “No, thank you. I have the kids until noon.” She kept her distance. He stood a moment, waiting for an invitation to stay, possibly. She couldn’t give it to him.

“Good night, Suse.” He quit waiting and let himself out.

Kate met her at the corner leading back to the bedrooms. “Why didn’t you ask him to stay and chat, have coffee … something?”

“Because I want Evan.” She swirled around her and shut the door behind.