"Sure."After we put away the food, except for a whole chicken, he pulled out a large skillet and a cutting board. "How about fried chicken?""I don't want anything that heavy. What about some kind of chicken and pasta?""I can do that. Want some steamed veggies with it?""Yes. That'll be my job," I said, and then we set to work. I chopped carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower, while a pot full of water warmed on the stove. John began to cut up the chicken, but stopped and muttered under his breath."What's wrong?""Do you guys have a knife sharpener?""I think so." I dug around the knife drawer until I found a metal stick with a rough surface. "Something like this?""That'll do." He grabbed all the sharp knives from the drawer and put them on the counter. He picked up one and leaned back against the counter, and then began to run the blade rapidly against the sharpener."Are we supposed to do that? I don't think either one of us have ever done it.""I can tell." He grinned and shook his
"We want the chicken to get really brown to transfer the salt and fat to the bottom of the pan, but not enough to burn. Don't move it too much. Just lift the corner of this middle piece to see when it begins to stick."Mom chimed in, "We usually take the skin off or get skinless chicken breasts.""It might save you some calories, but you lose all the flavor that way. You can also press the chicken with the spatula to squeeze more of the grease out if you want."His breath touched my cheek and made me shiver. I needed an excuse to get him away from me or I was going to embarrass myself. "Can you hand me my wine?"He put it in my hand and our fingers touched briefly. I drank the rest of the wine and sat it on the counter next to the stove, where he refilled my glass and wandered over to pour more in Mom's glass. "This is amazing wine, Aunt Lisa.""Dan and I went that last summer. Kate had gone away to summer camp with Jules and we were on our own. He was between rounds of chemo and was
I felt him lean over and heard the sound of his backpack unzip. Then the room was suddenly filled with the aroma of sandalwood. When I looked up at him, I saw him rubbing his hands together with a small vial sitting on the table behind him."I'd like to return the favor," he murmured."What?"Reaching down, he took my foot in his warm hands and began to rub the oil into my skin. The sensation his fingers created forced open my mouth and made me expel a slow breath. "Fuck..."He lifted my leg and pulled my foot into his lap. After pushing my pajama legs up to expose my calf, he began to knead the muscles, drawing tension out with each strong squeeze. "If you lie on your stomach I can do them both at once."Before I could stop myself, I had turned onto my stomach. He moved my pant legs up and added some oil to his hands. When he continued the massage, I groaned out loud then whispered, "I'm cold."At my words, he pulled the blanket off of the back of the couch and covered me up, leaving
"That's not all, is it?" she asked.No, I thought, but didn't repeat it out loud. After cursing her for being intuitive, I slapped on a fake smile and switched gears. "Let's talk about your party. Mom wants to go, but she needs to check her work schedule. But even if she says she can, she may still bail on us. An ex-employee stuck her with an extra shift when she didn't show up for work last week.""I can't believe someone would do that," she said, taking a sip of her coffee. "Speaking of work, I was at the mall last weekend and you weren't working when I stopped by.""The store hired a bunch of seasonal workers this year. Since I don't work during the week because of school, the managers offered my weekend shifts to the seasonal staff if they wanted the extra money. So far, they've snapped them all up. I'm still on call, but as long as they have coverage, I won't have to go in until after New Years.""Sucks for your paycheck," Steph replied."Yeah, but I've been enjoying the extra ti
After paying for our coffee and a few pastries to share, I made my way back to our table. I didn't have a lot of money, but I felt like I owed them for keeping me occupied and away from home."Oh, Kate, thank you," Steph said as she took the coffee from me and sipped it carefully."My pleasure, I really appreciate you both hanging out with me today.""Missing Jules?" asked Holly over the top of her coffee."Yes." And I realized I really was. I could always count on her to give me a pep talk and she'd be able to put the situation with John into perspective. She had always managed to steer me away from the rocks where relationships were concerned. God knows she ended up on the rocks often enough herself to know what to avoid."Can I ask you a personal question?" Holly had a glint in her eye that made me feel uncomfortable."Sure, I guess.""Were you and Jules ever ... involved?" My mind flashed to a summer day in her pool, the scent of chlorine and coconut suntan lotion."What?" I asked
"Oh Steph," I rubbed her arm, "I'm so sorry, I didn't know."There were tears in her eyes. "Normally I'd just laugh it off, but life isn't like high school anymore.""Was Troy your first?""God no," she replied, wiping her eyes and chuckling. "I cashed in my V card on prom night, like most red-blooded American girls. Didn't you?"I looked down at my hands. "No, I've still got mine. That's why BF calls me VV. I figured everyone knew.""Wait." She gave me a penetrating look. "Are you telling me you've never been with anyone?""Is that really so weird? I just haven't found the right person." The mental image of John carrying me to my bed blew through my thoughts and left me twisted around inside. "Oh God," I whispered and shut my eyes."Are you okay?"The pain cleared my mind as I wrung the skin of my arm under the table. "I just remembered something, never mind. So why did Troy say those horrible things about you?"Steph sat back and took a big sip of her coffee. "He couldn't finish the
"Well, what time do you want to meet up here on Saturday?""At three o'clock, right here," I replied, but I had to force the words out."Good. Tell John I can't wait to meet him!" she said, squeezing my arm in a friendly way, but the bruises I'd left caused me to wince."I will. See you later, Steph," I said. When she'd walked off toward the exit, I made my way to the arts and crafts store where Mom worked.As I walked through the store looking for Mom, the coffee and lack of real food made my stomach cramp. As the manager of the whole store, she could be anywhere. I nodded to the staff members I recognized until one pointed in Mom's direction. I found her speaking to a woman about a sewing machine. Mom smiled at me over the customer's shoulder, so knowing it could be a while I browsed around the craft aisles until she was free."Kate! Where's John?""Home. Can I get a ride home with you?""How'd you get here?" she asked and gave me a quick hug."Steph and Holly.""Did you remember to
There was silence for two seconds and then John burst out laughing. It was his bubbling laugh that finally broke the dark spell over me. I had to loosen up, just like Steph said. I needed to be willing to make a mistake or two. I looked up at his laughing face and felt him lift me out of that dark place I'd been all day. Before long, I was laughing along with him.The infectious laughter spread and soon Mom started laughing, too. When we'd all calmed down a bit, John said, "Wait, wait. I don't mean to ask even more embarrassing questions, but I have to know. I understand how a little boy could pee on a plant, but how does a little girl do that?"Mom gave me a look that said you're on your own. "I had to be about four at the time and wore dresses with little cotton panties. I took off my panties and just ... squatted over the plant."That set him off again. Mom and I laughed more at his reaction. He finally had to cover his eyes so he couldn't see me anymore. "Oh God, I can't look at y