Coffee Sonata (11 page)

Vivian laughed. “Yes, two Great Danes.”

Manon joined in. “Oh, my…I’d forgotten about them. Perry and Mason.”

“They’ll love being spoiled by you,” Vivian said quietly. “I’ll pick them up when I’m done.” She bit her lower lip. “But I don’t know how late I’ll be, Mike.”

“No problem. I’ll wait up.”

The words, uttered with certainty, relaxed Vivian’s expression again, and her voice sank to a gentle purr. “Thank you,
cara
. Put this on my tab?”

Mike nodded, her face mirroring Vivian’s and gentler than Eryn had ever seen it.

Vivian looked as if she was about to say more but then glanced at Manon and Eryn. “I need to go home now, no matter how lovely this has been.”

Manon rose. “See you tomorrow, Vivian.”

Vivian turned to Eryn. “Will I see you at Manon’s condo? Perhaps you’d like to listen in on the rehearsals.”

“Yes, I’d love to.” Eryn tried to sound confident, not sure why her stomach was still in a knot. Annoyed at herself, she pushed her chair back. “Time for me to leave too.” She hated to sound so abrupt, but it was damn near impossible for her to figure out her mixed emotions. Why was she so jittery?

Vivian checked her watch. “Long overdue for me. The boys have been alone long enough to level the house.”

They walked behind Mike to the counter where Manon insisted on picking up the entire check. “You can treat me next time,” she said, apparently not about to give in. Eryn and Vivian surrendered, the latter claiming that she didn’t have time to stand around and argue.

“Next one’s on me!” Vivian called, and disappeared out the door.

As Eryn and Manon headed toward the parking lot, Eryn managed to sneak a look at Manon, her thoughts whirling. She knew how irrational her response earlier had been and was trying to make sense of it. But at the moment, she couldn’t make sense out of anything.

*

Manon turned the key in the ignition and listened to the low growl of the powerful engine, then backed out and started to leave. As she passed a red motorcycle, Manon glanced at Eryn’s frustrated face and saw her slam her fist into the handlebars while she straddled the cycle’s low, wide saddle.

Manon stopped next to the bike, rolled down her side window, and quirked an eyebrow. “Has it given up on you?”

“Looks like it.” Eryn closed her eyes. “Damn it, I can’t believe this. It’s never done this before. And no, I didn’t forget to fill up. It’s probably an electrical malfunction.” She gave her bike a gloomy look. “Traitor.”

“Why don’t you push it into Mike’s backyard and have a garage pick it up tomorrow? I’m sure she won’t mind. If you’re on your way home, I can drive you. It’s the neighborly thing to do.” Manon groaned inwardly at her own comment.
How silly did that sound?

Eryn hesitated a moment, then nodded. “Thanks. That would be great.” She ran over to the café and ducked her head in for a second, then dashed back to her bike and pushed it behind the wide plank fence.

Returning with a large white and blue gym bag in her left hand, she tossed it behind the seats, then sank down next to Manon and closed the door. She sighed heavily, equally relieved and annoyed.

“Why the gym bag? Have you been working out?” Manon asked, as Eryn buckled up.

“Yeah, I go twice a week, not because I’m into sports, but because I sometimes sit for hours typing. It’s murder on my back.”

“I know what you mean. I should exercise more, but at least I programmed my computer to insist I take breaks and stretch every hour.” As Manon maneuvered the Lotus smoothly along the streets leading into the city, they sat in silence. Finally Manon glanced at Eryn before speaking asking cautiously, “Is something bothering you?”

To Manon’s surprise Eryn blushed. Just when Manon thought she wouldn’t get an answer, the words tumbled over Eryn’s lips.

“You’re going to think I’m incredibly stupid, but when I saw you talking to Vivian, I felt…out of my league. You two have so much in common. You move in similar circles.” Eryn clasped her hands and looked straight ahead. “I’m not even sure why this matters. I mean, we’re neighbors. That’s all.”

Manon shivered at the unexpected words. Only her years of practiced self-control made it possible for her to speak at all. “Why this sudden bout of insecurity?” she asked gently, a bit out of breath.

Eryn leaned her head against the backrest, giving another deep sigh. “You tell me. I feel so silly.”

“Vivian may seem worldly and privileged, that’s true, but we both know that isn’t so. When it comes to me…well, we’re all just people, aren’t we? Do I make you feel inferior? I’m sorry. I don’t intend to.”

“No, that’s not it at all.” Eryn tugged at her braid, inadvertently releasing more locks of hair.

“Then I don’t understand…” Manon took one hand off the wheel and gestured in confusion. “Why would you feel out of your league?”

“This’ll probably make you short-list me for your persona non grata award.” Eryn clearly tried to keep her voice light, but it sounded strained and sank to a low murmur. “I don’t play games, Manon. I’m attracted to you.”

What?
Manon braked reflexively and felt the Lotus shiver before she gathered herself and continued down Main Street. Stunned by Eryn’s declaration, as well as her candor, Manon kept driving, relieved to see their condo unit appear at the far end of the street. She changed lanes twice and pulled into the garage on the other side of the alley near the landmark building. After parking in her designated spot, she turned off the ignition and waited a few seconds to collect her thoughts.

“Eryn—”

“I know, I know. You don’t have to say anything.” Eryn grimaced and wound her braid around two fingertips. “I never should have said anything either. I do that all the time. Speak before I think.” And now she looked as if she wanted to bite her tongue to stay silent, despite the brave smile.

And do you tell other people…other women…what you told me? Just like that?
As they still sat in the parked car, Manon shifted to face Eryn. “Some would call that honesty.”

“Yes, well, honesty’s overrated sometimes. It tends to get me in trouble.” She peeked at Manon. “Would you call me honest or am I in trouble?”

Despite the facetious tone of voice, Manon sensed that Eryn had braced herself for the reply. And when she realized she might lose a rare friendship if she said the wrong thing, Manon curbed her initial impulse to withdraw.

“I see you as honest. Why would you be in trouble?” she asked gently. “I’m not sure why and how you’re attracted to me, but I’m flattered.”
Yes, that’s it. Keep it light. Friendly. Defuse it.

“You really have no idea, do you? You’re intriguing and stunning, and… But I’ll stop now before I dig this hole any deeper.” Eryn unclasped her fingers and instead laced them loosely together on her lap.

Manon’s heart was beating rapidly. The idea that this exciting, beautiful woman found her attractive amazed her.
Damage control. That’s what it’s about.

“Why don’t you join Vivian and me after work tomorrow?” she blurted. “If you’d like to, that is?”
Was that damage control? God almighty.

“Really? You sure?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. I don’t know when I’ll be back after my assignment, but if it’s not too late, I’ll pop up and see how the rehearsal’s going.” Eryn’s attempt to sound casual failed miserably since she couldn’t help but grin.

Manon returned the smile, torn between the giddiness she felt at the sight of Eryn’s sparkling eyes and the dread filling her. They walked through the glassed-in pathway one floor up from street level and reached their lobby.

“Allow me.” Eryn pressed the button for her floor and the one for the penthouse. When they reached her stop, Eryn gave a salute with two fingers and stepped off. “Night, Belmont. Appreciate the lift.”

Leaning back against the wall as the elevator proceeded up, Manon smiled at the charmingly irreverent use of her last name. No one ever treated her so casually, but then Eryn was constantly surprising her. She rather liked that. She wasn’t sure how she was going to deal with Eryn’s unexpected admission or even how she felt about it. That was more than she wanted to think about now. She was really only certain of one thing. She’d never met anyone remotely like Eryn Goddard.

“Fucking idiot!”

Chaos erupted at East Quay High School when a tall, middle-aged man shoved from inside the building through the glass doors straight into a large crowd that thronged the school grounds. Eryn felt caught in the middle and stood aside when the irate speaker continued to curse and barged forward past her. “You can’t do this! My kids deserve more!”

Principal Archibald Rex froze. He and the school board had just decided, in a closed emergency meeting, to cut the staff by four teachers and consolidate the eight classes into six. This would increase each group of students by eight and consequently decrease the time the teachers could devote to each student.

Eryn had followed the escalating debate over the last few weeks, and now, doing a follow-up, she and her photographer Don found themselves in the middle of an outraged group of parents.

“We need a comment from Rex, Don. Damn it! Now he’s heading back into the school. He’s not going to deal with the parents. What a coward. Think he’ll use the west entrance?” Eryn yanked Don’s sleeve. “Let’s go!”

They hurried away from the crowd and ran around the corner. As they approached the side door they saw a crowd of teachers gathering there. “Damn,” she muttered. “This could get ugly.”
This is about as action packed as it gets in East Quay.
Eryn didn’t know whether to be concerned or amused.

“Mr. Rex, Eryn Goddard,
New Quay Chronicle.
” She pressed down the record button on her tape recorder and extended it as Rex stepped outside. “What’s your response to the concerns of the parents? Aren’t the kids going to be the ones to suffer from these cutbacks?”

Rex gave her an annoyed glance. “No comment.”

“Isn’t your decision going to diminish the quality of education for East Quay’s children?”

“The quality will
not
diminish.”

“Then the citizens of East Quay have a right to know how you plan to ensure the same level of education with fewer staff and larger classes.” Eryn cocked her head and moved closer to the tall, bulky man. “After all, it’s their children and their tax money.”

Rex stopped in midstride, his face suffused with anger. “I’ll address this issue at the next PTA meeting, not here on the sidewalk.”

“Sir, we have to get going,” a woman behind Rex said. “We have another appointment.”

“I have nothing more to say,” the principal said, turning away.

“You heard that, Ms. Goddard. Good-bye.”

“Just one more thing, Mr. Rex. I hear you’ve decided on these cutbacks because of problems with last year’s budget. Is it true you overspent on technology? Surely you want to comment on that accusation?”

Rex’s mouth hardened into a thin line. “What part of ‘no comment’ don’t you understand, Ms. Goddard?”

“Here comes the rest of the gang,” Don murmured next to her, and raised his camera to film the now-enraged Principal Rex.

Eryn heard the noise of the angry parents. In front of her, Rex tried to circle the smaller crowd of teachers, and Don turned with the camera to keep him in view.

Clearly annoyed, Rex swung at the camera, and though Don managed to duck in time, Eryn wasn’t as lucky. A fist slammed into her temple. Her tape recorder hit the sidewalk, and after two stumbling steps backward, she followed.

She landed on her left shoulder before her head connected with something hard. Her vision wavered and she blinked at the sharp flashes of light that danced against a curtain of blackness. With effort, she willed herself to stay conscious, then groaned and felt around the back of her head for blood.

“What the hell are you doing, man?” Don was by her side instantly. “God, Eryn.” He slid an arm behind her back and carefully helped her sit up. “You okay?”

“Damn, I hurt my shoulder,” she managed, tears of pain streaming down her cheeks. The sound of screeching tires and the shouting voices didn’t help her headache either. “Godalmighty. Is he crazy?”

“He must be. Jesus.” Don scanned the gathering crowd. “Fuck. He’s gone.” Don helped her lean against one of the columns that flanked the door. “Don’t move. I’ll call the police and an ambulance.”

“No…well, I do want to report this, but no ambulance. I can walk to the car.”

Holding his arm, she stood on wobbly legs and let Don escort her to his car across the street.

Several people called out in unison. “We saw what happened, lady! We’ll testify to it!”

After Don helped her into the passenger seat, he handed her his cell phone. “Here. Call the police while we’re on the way to East Quay Memorial so they can get some statements. That bastard won’t get away with this.”

Every movement hurt, and Eryn couldn’t hide a quiet whimper while she punched 911. When a dispatcher answered, Eryn kept her voice steady when she reported the details of the assault and their destination, but she still trembled from pain. “Oh yes, I can identify him. And I have a witness.”