13. Melanie
CHAPTER 13
Melanie
The banquet room at Home Slice was getting full, and I didn’t know who half the people were. Nathan and Sharla were there with the kids, as were another family with kids of similar ages. My parents’ longtime neighbors, Ed and Linda, sat at the long table, chatting with a couple I hadn’t met yet.
Another family with two teenage girls sat at the other end of the table next to Heidi, who worked at the Copper Kettle Diner. I’d heard someone say the woman sitting next to Heidi was a kindergarten teacher, and a guy in scrubs had obviously come straight from work.
Covering my mouth with my hand, I tried to stifle a yawn. Thanks to a particularly vivid nightmare, I hadn’t slept much the previous night.
I moved to stand closer to my brother so he could hear me over the din of conversation. “So, what’s going on? Mom said to come for dinner, but she didn’t tell me it was a party.”
“It’s the annual pizza tasting.”
“What’s the annual pizza tasting?”
Nico ran by, and like the expert dad he was, Nathan slowed him down with a hand on his chest. “Dad likes to keep the menu fresh, so he brings in a bunch of people to taste his new pizza ideas once a year.”
“That’s… cute, actually.”
“Yeah.” He sounded skeptical. “Just be forewarned, it can be a little hit or miss.”
“Uh-oh.”
“The oyster pizza was pretty memorable. And not in a good way.”
I made a face. “Oysters?”
“His attempts at seafood pizzas haven’t been his best. The banana curry was pretty terrible, too.”
“Banana on pizza?”
He shrugged. “Apparently, it’s a thing in some countries.”
“What are we in for tonight?”
“No idea.”
“I don’t have to pretend I like something if it’s terrible, right?”
“Nah, they know who they invited.”
“Good.”
Several more people came in, including a guy around my age. Nathan went over to talk to him, and they shook hands. They clearly knew each other. I might have thought about the fact that he was attractive and wondered who he was, except the next couple who came in captured my full attention.
Paul and Marlene Haven.
My breath caught in my throat. I had yet to see Luke’s parents since I’d moved back to town. I knew my parents were friendly with them. Always had been. The fact that their kids had dated—and broken up—in high school hadn’t changed anything.
That didn’t bother me. The Havens were nice people. But I still felt a twinge of nervousness as they made their way into the banquet room and started chatting with Ed and Linda .
Paul Haven had broad shoulders and a thick beard. There was more salt in his salt-and-pepper hair than I remembered. Marlene still had the same friendly smile and blue-rimmed glasses. Her hair was cut in an above-the-shoulder bob that looked cute on her.
“Auntie Mel, Auntie Mel!” Lucia and Zola collided with me, one on each side. “Do the voice! Do the voice!”
I looked down and gave them my best slow, evil grin, then dropped into my Queen Ione voice. “Who are these little peasants? How dare you touch me. Begone, insolent brats!”
Laughing, they both hugged me.
“We’re not peasants,” Lucia said. “We’re secret princesses!”
I gasped and grabbed them each by the wrist. “Guards! The princesses have infiltrated my stronghold. Take them away!”
Nico marched up to us with a stern expression. He was smaller than both of them, but apparently, he was the guard. I handed them over, and he took his sisters’ wrists, one in each hand. “Let’s go.”
“Princess magic!” Zola exclaimed and pulled her arm away.
Lucia did the same, only with a twirl.
“Curse you, princesses!” I shook my fist. “You won’t escape so easily next time.”
In a fit of giggles, they scurried away.
“That was cute.”
I turned to find Marlene standing next to me and smiled. “Hi, Mrs. Haven.”
“None of that. It’s Marlene. It’s good to see you.” She held her arms out.
I stepped into her hug. “It’s good to see you, too.”
“How have you been? Getting all settled, I hope.”
“I’m working on it. It’s a process. ”
She gave me a warm smile. “I’m sure it is. I hear you’re working at Luke’s shop. How’s that going?”
“The fact that you have to ask seems like a good sign. Maybe that means Luke hasn’t been complaining about me.”
“Not at all.”
“That’s a tiny miracle. But it’s going fine. And it’s temporary. He just needed someone to fill in for a while, and I needed a job to tide me over until my next voice acting gig starts.”
“Voice acting? Is that what the voice was about just now?”
“She’s a character I play in a cartoon.”
“What’s it called?”
“ Enchanted Hollow . I play the villain, Queen Ione.”
“I thought I recognized the voice. That’s my grandkids’ favorite show.”
“Is it? That’s great.”
“Oh my goodness, they love Queen Ione even though I think they’re a little scared of her.”
I laughed. “That’s kind of what the writers are going for. Scary, but not too scary.”
The banquet room door flew open. My mom sashayed in and held her arms open wide. The small crowd immediately silenced.
“Family and friends,” Mom said, her arms still out like she was going to hug the entire room at once. “Thank you for joining us for Home Slice’s annual pizza tasting.”
She paused and glanced around. I got the hint first and started clapping. She nodded a few times as the room gave her a polite round of applause.
Holding up her hands as if she needed to quiet us down, she continued. “Thank you. We appreciate you coming. You are in for a treat. Anton has been hard at work with a variety of brand-new recipes.” She clasped her hands to her chest. “I can’t wait for you to try them. ”
Stepping aside, she swept an arm out to usher in my dad. Her raised eyebrows indicated we were supposed to clap again, so I started the applause. Dad just shook his head a little as he set the first piping-hot pizza on the table.
Behind him came Tristan and another employee whose name I didn’t remember, each with a pizza. They set them down next to the first. The three of them left, and Mom held up her hands, indicating we had to wait. A moment later, they came back with three more pizzas.
“All right, everyone.” Mom’s words carried above the rising conversations, and we all quieted again. “If you haven’t joined us before, this is how it works. We have plates and napkins here. The pizzas have been sliced into small portions, so please try one of each. When you’ve tried them all, let us know what you think. Be kind, but we do want your honest opinion.”
“What do we have here, Dad?” Nathan asked.
Dad pointed at each pizza in turn. “The first is an arugula and mushroom breakfast pizza, topped with fried eggs. Then we have loaded baked potato, asparagus and herbed cheese, hummus and sun-dried tomato, kimchi pizza, and finally, the Melanie. Fried pickle.”
I gasped. “You made a fried pickle pizza? Best dad ever.”
Nathan gagged. “Dad. No.”
“Quiet, peasant,” I said in my Queen Ione voice. “This is the greatest pizza flavor of all time. Fit for a queen.”
“Okay, weirdo,” Nathan said. “It’s all yours.”
“Try a piece, Nathan.” Mom wagged her finger at him. “You know the rules. Try one of each.”
“Mom.”
“Don’t test me.”
Shaking his head, he chuckled softly. I noticed Sharla meet his eyes and give him a subtle wink. She knew how much he hated pickles. She’d have his back and take his slice for him .
What a great wife.
There were several small stacks of plates, so people moved forward haphazardly to dish up. The noise of conversation grew once again as people chatted while they sampled. I went straight for the pickle pizza, already knowing I would love it. I had yet to meet a pickle I didn’t like.
Right as I took a huge bite, my mom appeared in front of me, smiling her big magenta smile.
“Mel, I want you to meet Hank.” She yanked a man over by his arm.
It was the guy Nathan had greeted when he’d first come in. He looked about my age, attractive, dressed in a button-down shirt with the sleeves cuffed to the elbows.
It took me a second to swallow my bite before I could say anything. “You do not look like a Hank.”
“Melanie, please,” Mom scolded.
“What? He doesn’t look like a Hank. That’s not an insult. It’s just my impression.”
“It’s fine,” he said. “I actually get that a lot. My parents were country music fans.”
“There you have it.” I gestured to him and turned to my mom. “I was going to ask if his name was music-inspired before you interrupted me.”
She huffed and rolled her eyes. “Don’t be put off by my mouthy daughter. She’s really quite charming when she wants to be.”
“Mouthy? What am I, eleven?”
“She’s a voice actor,” she continued, clearly ignoring me. “Melanie, Hank teaches at Tilikum College.”
“What do you teach?” I asked.
“Literature. My specialty is Shakespeare.”
Mom turned to me, acting overly impressed. “Shakespeare, Melanie. You two must have so much in common.”
That was when I realized what this was. She was trying to set me up with Hank .
Uh-oh.
“Um…” I hesitated, suddenly feeling flustered, although I had no idea why. “Shakespeare. That’s interesting.”
“His work has always been a passion of mine. Especially when it’s performed on stage. Reading Shakespeare just doesn’t have the same impact.”
“See?” Mom nudged me and lifted her eyebrows a few times. “Theater.”
“Mom, I don’t think Nathan has had the pickle pizza yet.” Yes, I was throwing my brother under the bus. But I was sure he’d done something mean when we were kids and totally deserved it. “You better make sure he tries it and doesn’t give his piece to Sharla.”
Mom looked around, her face lighting up when she spotted him. “Oh, Nathan!”
I let out a breath as she wove her way through the crowd to accost my brother with pickle pizza.
“Sorry,” I said. “My mother is excellent at making things awkward.”
“Not a big deal. So, voice acting? How did you get into that?”
“I did a lot of live theater when I was younger. But I sort of moved on from that.” I kept it vague. I didn’t like talking about that period in my life. “I tried some voice-over stuff, and it was a lot of fun. I guess the rest is history.”
His lips turned up in a grin, and he took a small step closer. “That’s great.”
I felt a little flutter in my stomach, but it wasn’t a pleasant one. Or was it? Maybe it had been so long since a man had seemed interested in me that I didn’t remember what it felt like.
“So, your mom tells me you just moved back to Tilikum,” he said.
“How do you know my mom?”
He blinked as if surprised by my question. Of course, I hadn’t answered his. “I did a community workshop on Shakespeare’s comedies last summer. She was in the class.”
“Oh, I see. And yes, I just moved back. Divorced.” I shrugged. “My ex was a jerk, so we didn’t visit very often. Makes it feel like I’ve been gone for a hundred years, and half the town is exactly the same, while the other half is unrecognizable. Where are you from?”
He hesitated again. Not everyone had an easy time keeping up with me. “I grew up in Oregon, just south of Portland. But I went to college in Boston.”
“And here you are in funny little Tilikum.”
“It’s a great place to live.”
“Even with all the squirrels?”
He laughed a little. “Yes, even with all the squirrels.”
“Sorry to interrupt.” Mom sidled up next to me. “Have you tried all the flavors?”
“No, I haven’t.”
“Well, don’t let me get in your way.” She tried to push me closer to Hank. “You two keep getting to know each other. But also try the pizza.”
She disappeared again into the crowd.
I gestured to the table. “I should try the other flavors.”
“She seems very serious about that.”
“Apparently, the annual pizza tasting is a big deal.”
He smiled. “I won’t keep you from the experimental pizza. But would you like to go out sometime?”
My heart seemed to stop for a second. Did I want to go out with Hank? Why not? He was attractive and well-spoken. My mother hadn’t scared him off. Of course, my mother had clearly invited him to introduce us, which meant if I said yes, I was trusting her judgment, and that was slightly terrifying. But still, just one date?
“Sorry,” he said. “If it’s too soon for you, I totally understand. ”
“No, it’s not really. My ex and I split up over a year ago. I’m just… Sorry, I haven’t… This is the first time that…”
He nodded along as I babbled, then hesitated, like he was waiting to see if I was finished. “The first time after divorce is probably difficult. I’ve never been married, but I’d imagine it’s tough.”
I appreciated his understanding, but it wasn’t my divorce holding me back. So what was it?
This guy? Really, Mel? The voice in my mind sounded suspiciously like Luke Haven.
Luke. Freaking. Haven. He really needed to get out of my head.
Although I knew it wasn’t Luke talking to me telepathically, the fact that he was invading my headspace when a nice, good-looking man was asking me out infuriated me. A burst of hot anger swept through me like a spark igniting dry tinder.
“Hank, I would love to go out with you,” I said, my voice both cheerful and decisive. “That would be wonderful.”
“Great,” he said with a smile.
Triumphantly, as if I’d just won a victory over Luke, I gave Hank my number and put his in my contacts. We set a date. Dinner, maybe drinks afterward.
I went for a slice of the loaded baked potato pizza and took a hearty bite. That would show Luke. Not that he’d actually done anything. But still. I had every right to go out with Hank. Luke and I were… nothing. He was my temporary boss. So what? He wasn’t going to care who I dated.
I tried the arugula and mushroom pizza. It was awful, so I tossed it and took another slice of pickle. Everyone else seemed to be avoiding it, but that was their loss. I scarfed it down, and I was absolutely not eating my feelings.
Okay, maybe a little.
Because what if Luke didn’t care who I dated? What if he was completely indifferent ?
Obviously, he was supposed to be indifferent. But his imaginary nonchalance about my potential love life made me angrier.
So I ate another piece of pickle pizza.
I’d go on a date with Hank, and it would be wonderful. And there wasn’t a thing Luke Haven could do about it.