Chapter Forty-Four
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
Riley left for New York after breakfast service at the inn on Friday. She ate spinach and artichoke quiche with Franny and her mother and it was bittersweet to say goodbye to both of them. She was so happy for Franny, who was smitten with Joe. They’d seen each other almost every day that week and Franny was excited about their plans for New Year’s Eve.
“We have dinner reservations, early ones, at the Impudent Oyster. That’s Joe’s favorite restaurant in Chatham and it’s mine, too. And then we’re going back to his house for coffee and dessert and to watch the ball fall at midnight.”
“That sounds so fun, Franny.” Riley turned to her mother. “What are you and Sean doing? You still have plans, right?” Riley knew her mother had been upset by what she’d overheard Marcy say and that Sean had tried to ease her worries. Riley liked Sean and she’d enjoyed doing some work for him. Her mother had been very quiet since she’d seen him the night before and just said she had to really think about everything. She seemed somewhat calmer today, though. And she smiled at the question.
“Yes, I’m going to go out with him. I’m not exactly sure where, but he said something about going somewhere for dinner and to hear some live music.”
“That sounds great,” Riley said. She was relieved that her mother was going to go and hopefully would have a wonderful time.
“I close on my house next Friday, can you believe it?” Franny said.
“I can’t wait to see it,” Riley said. “I’ll come home in a few weeks or so and I’d love to visit then.”
“Absolutely. I’ll have you both over. I’d love to cook for you for a change,” Franny said.
Riley already looked forward to it. It was funny, she’d been gone for so many years and it wasn’t until she’d come back and spent several weeks in Chatham that it started to really feel like home again. She found herself feeling sad to go. She chalked it up to the coziness of the holiday season and being around so many people. That’s what she’d enjoyed the most. Especially spending time with her mother and with Aidan and Luke and Franny. She was going to miss them all. Her apartment in Manhattan seemed so far away and very empty. Though she would have Lily, of course. And she was certain once she was back there, she’d settle right in and love it again. She was sure of it.
She rented a car, packed up all her things and Lily, and arrived back in Manhattan late that afternoon. Once she was unpacked, the evening stretched before her. She knew that Jack wasn’t around. They’d talked earlier in the week and he’d let her know that he had a big card game with his guy friends Friday night. It was an annual thing, always the night before New Year’s Eve.
Riley had no food in her apartment and didn’t feel like going out. It was a cold night and it had started sleeting as she drove into the city. She ordered a pizza and when it came she ate on the sofa, with Lily by her side. She flipped through the channels and nothing grabbed her attention. Then she remembered the book that Aidan had given her—the Hannah McIntosh Christmas story.
She read a few pages and was hooked immediately. It was a story of best friends that reconnected over the holidays and it suited Riley’s mood perfectly. She read until her eyes grew heavy and she finally crawled into bed a little after eleven.
She woke early the next day and after feeding Lily, she made a shopping list and went to the grocery store and stocked up on everything as her refrigerator was empty. When she finished she ate a quick turkey sandwich and headed back out again, this time on a mission to find a dress to wear that night. Jack had said the party was black tie, which meant a full-length formal gown.
Riley went to several shops and nothing she tried on seemed quite right. Finally, she wandered into an upscale consignment shop, mostly to take a break from shopping. She didn’t expect that she would find anything there but the shop was right next to the one she’d just left so she’d decided to poke around. And she was surprised to find several intriguing dresses. Still, one never knew until you actually tried a dress on. She’d found several that seemed promising until she saw them in the dressing room mirror.
But one of the dresses in the consignment shop, a black slip-dress style with satin spaghetti straps and an airy chiffon fabric that hugged her curves in a flattering way fit perfectly and made her feel beautiful. Best part—it was half the price of the other dresses she’d tried on. She paid for the dress and headed home.
Jack had said that the party they were going to was near Riley’s apartment, so he was planning to come by and then they would walk over. Jack whistled when he saw her and pulled her in for a hug and kiss. “You look fantastic.”
Jack looked very handsome too, and she told him so. He was wearing a black tux with a crisp white shirt and black tie. His hair was slicked back with a bit of gel and it glistened in the light. She’d noticed that most of the guys in his office styled their hair similarly. Jack confessed that for some of them it was a way to hide stray grays.
“We can be a little vain about that, too,” he admitted. He didn’t have many gray hairs yet, but there were a few that popped up here and there. He hated it and yanked them viciously with tweezers when he spotted them. The gel was insurance for any others that might attempt to show themselves.
“Are you ready to go? Eric’s place is right around the corner,” he said.
He led the way and they walked a block to Eric’s building and went to the top floor, the penthouse.
“Wait until you see his place. It’s sick. He paid ten million for it and he could probably get almost twice that now.”
Riley couldn’t even imagine.
They checked in with security in the building lobby and were waved ahead to the special elevator that went to the top floor. When they stepped out they were welcomed by a server holding a silver platter with flutes of champagne. They each took one and made their way into the living room. Riley looked around as they walked, taking it all in.
There were soaring ceilings with skylights that probably let in tons of light. The floors were sleek white Carrara marble and the same marble continued into the kitchen and onto the island and countertops. It was beautiful, although it also felt somewhat cold to Riley. There was no clutter, nothing on the countertops. It looked like the kitchen was never used. Jack told her that the caterers operated out of a second, smaller kitchen that was out of sight, tucked away in a different area of the sprawling custom-built apartment.
“Eric has a full-time chef. Neither he nor his wife cook, but they like having a beautiful kitchen. It’s all for show,” Jack said.
Servers glided by with appetizers on platters: plump shrimp, crab cakes, mini beef Wellingtons. And there was a vodka and caviar bar where people were gathered, and were pouring vodka down an ice chute to chill it on the way to a crystal shot glass. They drank the cold vodka after swallowing a bite of caviar spread on blini—little pancakes, topped with sour cream and onion.
“The caviar is outstanding. Definitely try it, but I’d limit yourself to one of the vodka shots. Those things can sneak up on you.” Jack grinned and Riley sensed he was speaking from experience.
“I think I’ll stick to champagne or wine.” Riley wasn’t much of a vodka drinker. And she’d never cared for caviar.
Jack loved it, though. He headed over, said hello to the guys gathered around the vodka bar, and introduced Riley to everyone that she didn’t already know. He ate a little caviar and washed it down with iced vodka.
There was no actual sit-down dinner, which Riley was kind of glad about. It was already close to eight so she didn’t want a heavy meal. There was plenty of food, though, and all of it was delicious. Jack also introduced her to the wives and girlfriends of his coworkers and though she had a hard time remembering all of their names, they were friendly and welcoming. Which was good because she kept losing track of Jack as he wandered off to talk to his colleagues. He knew everyone there and was having a fabulous time. After about an hour or so, though, Riley’s feet were beginning to hurt in the high heels that she’d dragged out of her closet and that she didn’t wear often enough. She could feel herself getting blisters on the back of her heel.
There was a band in a corner of a very large room that was almost like a ballroom. Jack said it was just used for parties. The music was good and the dance floor was crowded but Jack wasn’t much of a dancer. He kept disappearing and joining groups of his guy coworkers while Riley wandered around. She didn’t really know anyone there but the other women were good about including her and she noticed that their husbands or boyfriends were all with Jack, too.
“What do they talk about, do you suppose?” Riley asked at one point when she’d glanced over and saw the men leaning forward, listening intently to one of the senior partners.
“Work. It’s always work. They are obsessed.” Blair, a woman about Riley’s age who’d been married for about a year spoke matter-of-factly.
“Do your husbands all work extremely long hours?” Riley asked.
They all nodded. Even one of the older women, Dana, whose husband was a partner. She must have seen Riley’s look of surprise, because she added, “I thought it would stop or at least slow down once he made partner, but we’re three years in and nothing has changed. I don’t see my husband often at all.”
One of the other women grinned. “But working those long hours does have some benefits. I’m able to be a stay-at-home mother and have a nanny so I can meet up with friends for lunch or dinner or shopping anytime. It’s really not so bad.”
Riley looked around the room. If she stayed with Jack, this would be her future. It was a somewhat depressing thought.
Jack circled around a few times to chat with her before being drawn back to his circle of colleagues again. It was all men, so Riley didn’t feel comfortable intruding and stayed chatting with the women. Jack found her again a little before midnight and they danced the last song before the ball dropped. A large-screen television showed the countdown as the ball dropped in Times Square. Everyone cheered when it was officially the New Year and Jack pulled her in for a quick kiss. It was over in an instant and Riley felt somewhat deflated—by the kiss, by the night… and by the future that lay ahead. She’d thought there was a light at the end of the tunnel—that Jack’s workload would slow after a few more years. But now that looked doubtful.
She was exhausted and more than ready to go home. And she assumed they would leave once the ball dropped. But Jack didn’t seem to be in any hurry.
“Isn’t this party great? Eric said the band will play for two more hours. He’s making it worth their while. And then they’ll be putting out breakfast for everyone.”
“Jack, I’m ready to go. If you want to stay that’s fine. I’ll just talk to you tomorrow.” Riley really didn’t care at this point if he stayed or not, she just wanted to go home and crawl into bed.
He looked torn for a moment. “You sure you don’t want to stay?”
She nodded. “I’m sure.”
Jack glanced back at his group of friends that were gathered in a circle. There was a burst of laughter and high-fiving all around. He flashed her his most charming grin, the one he used when he wanted to win her over. “Okay. I am going to stay then. I’ll call you tomorrow.”