Chapter 10 #2
Gillian excused herself, walking toward the parking lot with Leo on her hip.
I could remember those days with Annie. Babies always seemed to be needing something—food, sleep, stimuli.
Mothers could never fully check out during those first years of their baby’s life.
Or really any time after that. There was always the next stage, just when you’d adjusted to the former one.
The job of mother was one without days off, even when they were fifteen years instead of nine months.
“How are you?” Dorian asked me.
“I’m good. Sold a few paintings today, so that means I can make the mortgage.
” This was only a joke, but not completely exaggerated.
My friends had all married men with tons of money.
I tried not to let it bother me, but it did make me feel a little left out when I was the only one worried about money.
It used to be just Seraphina who was often picking up the check.
Now they fought for it, insisting that I never pay.
Although I appreciated it, I also felt a bit like a charity case.
“That’s great,” Dorian said.
“How did Annie do today at the store?” I asked.
“She did splendidly. She’s a natural with the customers. Everyone loves her by the time they leave. And she’s got a great work ethic. We were slow this morning so she took it upon herself to dust the shelves and sweep the floor.
His praise made me glow with pride. I may not have been the perfect mother, but I’d taught Annie to work hard and with integrity.
“You have a remarkable kid,” Dorian said.
“I think so too.” Nothing was better than hearing someone compliment your child. This is what I miss, I thought. Just like Dorian’s mother had said.
The whistle blew and the game started.
From the first kick, Annie performed well, fast and decisive, reading the play two steps ahead of everyone else.
She and Bella worked well together, passing to each other with what seemed like instinct, as if they always knew where the other was.
I'd watched hundreds of her games, and I could never quite believe that this athlete was my daughter.
“She’s impressive,” Dorian said quietly, after Annie threaded a pass through two defenders to Bella, who nearly converted it.
“She loves it,” I said. “And I don’t know where she got it from.”
“You didn’t play sports?”
“No, I was more the arty, slightly geeky type. What about you?”
“Yeah, I ran cross-country in the fall. Track in the spring. Nothing with a ball though. Track is so individual, whereas soccer’s all about the team. I love seeing kids playing like this instead of on their devices.”
“Agree. It helps to grow up in a place like Willet Cove.”
“What do you mean?”
“Just that it’s beautiful here, which inspires outdoor activity. Plus, there’s a sense of community that makes it easier to raise children, especially as a single mother.”
“And you have your friends too.” Dorian said.
“Oh for sure. We’re a village. Have been since the kids were five years old.”
“Do you ever fall out with one another?” Dorian asked.
“We squabble occasionally but nothing serious. We made a pact a long time ago to talk through whatever was bothering us before it grew in to something bigger. Although, things are different now that they’re all married.”
“Changes the dynamics?”
“That’s right.” I leaned closer to him, catching a scent of his citrusy cologne. “Especially because they’re all so stinking rich now.”
He chuckled. “I understand. I’m friends with the guys. No one blinks over a hundred dollar bottle of wine. Except for me.”
“But you’re doing okay, aren’t you? Is the store profitable?”
“I’m doing fine, yeah. The house and the shop in town are paid for, thanks to my mom. And I have my Navy pension. So no complaints. Why do you ask?”
“No reason. Money’s just been on my mind lately. The gallery’s doing okay, but I always worry.”
“And you have your pottery, right? Gillian told me you do well with it—selling it up and down the coast.”
“Feast or famine, but yes, okay.”
Gillian returned with a satisfied Leo. Alex put him back into the pack and Gillian sank into her abandoned chair with a sigh.
“You okay?” I asked.
“I’m good. A little tired these days,” Gillian said. “But that’s to be expected. It’s a lot easier than the first time around—when it was just me and Grace. There was no one around to take turns with. Alex is wonderful that way. Very hands on.”
“That’s obvious,” Dorian said.
“You sound envious,” Gillian said, teasing.
“I am actually,” Dorian said matter-of-factly. “The bachelor life gets old after a time.”
Interesting.
The game moved up the field. A Willet Cove midfielder took a shot that sailed wide, and the parents around us groaned collectively.
In the last seconds of the first half, Annie converted a corner kick with her left foot. We were all on our feet, cheering when the whistle blew to announce the end of the half.
Annie ran over to us at the break, flushed and bright-eyed. “Dorian, you came.”
He smiled back at her. “I did.”
“I’d hug you, but I’m all sweaty,” Annie said before turning to me, almost as if I were an afterthought. “Mom, I think we should do pizza after the game. I’m craving the barbecue chicken one.”
“I love that one too,” Dorian said.
“Come with us,” Annie said without a second of hesitation.
“Um, if it’s okay with your mom?” Dorian glanced at me.
What could I say that wouldn’t make me sound like a terrible person? Other than, yes. “Sure. I could use a slice.”
“And we’re celebrating,” Dorian said. “You mom sold a few paintings today.”
“No way, Mom. That’s great.”
On the field, the referee blew the whistle calling players back. Annie jogged away, returning to her team.
The second half was tighter, the opposing team leveling it in the fifty-third minute on a set piece that silenced our side of the field. Annie responded by dropping deeper, organizing the defense, directing the other players. A leader, I thought. I was raising a girl boss.
“She’s really stepped up this year,” Gillian said.
“Bella too,” I said.
“I know. I’m so proud of her,” Gillian said. “She’s overcome a lot in her young life. She deserves something that makes her happy.”
Gillian and Alex were a blended family. She had Grace, who was technically her niece, but Gillian raised her after her sister died when Grace was only six months old.
Alex had married a woman with two children, who sadly passed away, leaving behind Bella and her brother Peter.
Now they had baby Leo to make them a family of six.
Willet Cove won it in the final minutes on a counter attack, Bella sneaking the ball past the keeper while the sidelines erupted.
“That was fun,” Dorian said. “Does it make you nervous when she plays?”
“Yes. I hate it when she feels as if she played poorly.”
“Well, she won’t be feeling that today,” Dorian said, just as Annie ran over to us. She had her bag slung over her shoulder, grinning. “Can we get pizza now? I could eat a large all on my own.”
I nodded. “Let’s do it.” God help me. I was going to pizza with my daughter and the way too handsome bookstore owner.
But what could I do, swept away as I was, headed out to sea without a life vest. I tried to caution myself, but decided it was too much work.
Instead, I thanked Gillian and Alex for the chair.
I ignored Gillian’s pointed look as Dorian and Annie walked away together, talking about the game.
Gillian stopped me, placing a hand on my arm, tugging me toward her so I had no choice but to look into my friend’s eyes. “It’s okay, you know. To be happy again. To let love into your life.”
“It’s just pizza,” I said.
“A lot of great love stories start with pizza,” Alex said, coming up behind his wife.
“No, they don’t,” I said, rolling my eyes. “But I should go. They’re waiting.”
Gillian and Alex looked smug as I walked away. Why must everyone insist that romance was in the air when it was just the heady smells of early summer, tricking them all into believing a happy ending could come to yours truly?
An image from the dream of Dorian in my garden played before my eyes. It was Dorian’s face in the moonlight I saw, clearly delighted I’d arrived, even as he cut off my peonies and let them fall to the ground in a lovely heap of pink.