Full Circle (22 page)

“I’m Annie
Campbell. Your clothes are amazing. I hope to be a designer one day.”

“Excellent.”
She shot a curious look at Maddie. “I thought I knew most of Maddie’s friends,
but I haven’t heard her mention you.”

“Oh, we just
met.” Annie smiled up at Maddie. “She was waiting to see my uncle.”

Lily’s
eyebrows shot up. “Your uncle?”

Maddie stepped
in. “Chase Drummond. Apparently I have to see him about renting the space, but
he’s in a long meeting, and we came over here to pass some time.”

Lily nodded as
though this made sense. “I see. And what are you going to do now?”

“I haven’t
asked Annie yet, but I thought we’d go to that little specialty coffee place
next door. I didn’t have any coffee this morning and I could really use some.”
She looked down at the young girl. “What do you say? Could you go for a hot
chocolate?”

Annie nodded.
“That would be nice. I’d better call my uncle’s office and tell them where I
am.”

Lily
acknowledged a compliment from one of the departing spectators then turned back
to Maddie and Annie. “I have a few things to do here, but I’ll try to join you.
Don’t wait for me though.” She paused and looked at Maddie. “If I get tied up,
I’ll call you, and if you leave, you call me, okay?”

“That’s a
deal.”

Annie studied
the chalkboard menu, eyes wide with delight. Maddie assumed that her uncle took
her to more traditional restaurants. Every second table seemed to be occupied
by someone with a laptop, and many of the others were engrossed in their
iPhones.

“What would
you like?” she asked the youngster.

Annie became
uncharacteristically shy. “Could I have a chai please? I’ve never had one
before and I’ve been dying to try one.”

Maddie
hesitated. She’d never tried one herself, but she couldn’t see that it would do
the child any harm. “Why not?” she said brightly. “I’m going to have a latte.”

They were soon
settled at a table by the window. It was obvious to Maddie that Annie was
trying to contain her excitement. She sipped at her drink, and Maddie’s heart
expanded to see the happiness on the child’s face.

“It’s good,”
she said and took another sip.

“I’m glad you
like it. I’ve never actually had one, myself.”

“Would you
like to try?” Annie turned the cup around and nudged it across the table.

“I think I
would. Would you like to try my latté?”

“No thanks.”
She watched expectantly as Maddie tried the chai.

“You’re right,
it is good,” she said, surprised. “Now I see what all the fuss is about.” She
returned the cup to Annie and shrugged out of her cape. “So you liked Lily’s
clothes?”

“They were
wonderful. And to think that she does the silk screening, as well.” She sipped
thoughtfully at her drink. “We had a demonstration of silk screening at school,
but it was just lettering on a t-shirt.” She looked at Maddie, eyes free of
guile. “Does Lily ever give tours of her shop? I’d love to see it some time.”

Maddie tried
to remember if her roommate had ever mentioned a tour. “I don’t think so.”

Annie tried to
hide her disappointment. “Maybe some day. I have a lot of other things to
learn, I know that.” A slight frown creased her brow. “Last night my uncle
asked me what I want for Christmas and when I told him he just looked at me as
though I was crazy.”

Maddie didn’t
know if she should go there, but she wanted to know. “What did you want?”

“A sewing
machine.” She gave her head what could only be called a frustrated shake. “I
have to be able to sew if I’m ever going to become a designer.”

Maddie was
surprised. She would have thought that Chase would be delighted to have the
problem solved. “What did he say?”

Annie thought
for a moment. “He was going to say something, but then Cynthia came out with
one of those phony laughs and said I couldn’t possibly want a sewing machine,
that I’m far too young.” Tears started to well up in her eyes, and she brushed
them back impatiently. “I’ll bet she doesn’t even know how to use one herself.”

“Who is
Cynthia? Your housekeeper?”

“No. She’s my
uncle’s girlfriend.” She stared into her chai. “She never pays any attention to
me. How does she know whether I can use a sewing machine or not?” She shrugged,
and the helpless gesture wrenched at Maddie’s heart. “Anyway, Uncle Chase said,
‘Don’t worry, we’ll come up with something’.” She sipped at the chai. “This is
really good. Thank you.”

Maddie took a
moment to recover her aplomb. “Have you done any sewing before?”

Annie nodded.
“That’s what makes it so unfair. I know how to work one. We had a play at
school, and I helped out with the costumes.” She made a funny face. “It was
plain sewing. Nothing glamorous like the fashion show today, but I do know how
a sewing machine runs. Mrs. Z. showed us what to do.”

“Mrs Z.?”

Annie giggled.
“We call her Mrs. Z. because her last name is really long and hard to
pronounce. But she sure knows how to sew.”

“Sounds as if
you like her.”

Annie
acknowledged the comment with a quick nod, and then looked out the window, her
thoughts somewhere else. When she finally spoke her voice was low. “She sticks
up for me when the other kids make fun of me and call me names.”

Maddie
couldn’t imagine why anyone would make fun of this delightful child, but then
it had been a long time since she was in school. Things had changed a lot.

“What do they
say?”

The child
turned around, her eyes bright with tears. Maddie could see that she was
fighting to hold herself together. “They call me Little Orphan Annie.” She very
deliberately took a napkin from the dispenser, folded it once and dabbed at her
eyes. “They say all I need is curly hair and I could be in the movies.”

Maddie’s
throat closed up as she thought of what the child must have endured.

“I’m an orphan
too.” She didn’t know where the words came from; they just popped out. She
picked up her cup to cover her own confusion.

“You are?”
Annie looked at her as though she didn’t quite believe her ears.

“Uh-huh. It
was five years ago, so I was a lot older than you, but I don’t think it matters
how old you are, it still hurts.”

Annie nodded
in agreement, her eyes locked on Maddie’s. “My father died about two years ago
in an accident on an oil rig. He was what’s called a trouble-shooter.” She had
both hands on her cup of chai and rotated it back and forth between her palms.
“My mom died eight months and twelve days later. I saw that in the paper, and
for some reason it stuck in my head.” She inhaled slowly. “The newspaper said
that the cancer hit her so quickly she didn’t get a chance to grieve.” She
looked up. “That doesn’t seem fair, does it?”

Maddie could
only shake her head.

She was still
sitting, staring into her cup, when Annie’s small hand covered hers. “I’m sorry
I brought this up. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

Maddie raised
her head and looked into the amazing eyes of this woman/child. Most of the
adults she knew would have crumpled when faced with the amount of grief this
young girl had endured, and yet here she was, doing the comforting.

“I’m glad you
told me,” she said with a soft smile. “Too many people refuse to acknowledge
their grief, as though ignoring it will make it go away. They pack it up and
shove it away in some dark corner, hoping that they never stumble on it again.
But I think that’s wrong. I think you should remember your parents every day,
and not be afraid to be sad when you think of them. You’ll always miss them,
but in time it won’t hurt so much. One day, happy memories will come along, and
eventually they will crowd out the unhappy ones.”

Annie looked
at her quietly for a moment, as though trying to memorize her face.

“Can we be
friends?” she asked finally.

Maddie opened
her arms, and the child walked into them. “Absolutely,” she said. She looked
over Annie’s shoulder and saw Lily approaching. “And here comes number three.”

Annie pulled
back. “Number three?”

“Yes. Lily’s
here. We’ll be a gang of three friends.”

Lily sat down
with an exaggerated groan. She brought with her the fresh, crisp air of outside
and her own personal scent, the ingredients of which she refused to divulge.
“My feet are killing me.” She reached down and massaged her arches.

“Shall I get
you something?” Annie rose, eager to be of assistance.

“That would be
great,” Lily said. “I’d love some chai.”

“That’s what I
had!” Annie squealed her approval and dashed off to the counter.

“You just made
her day,” said Maddie, watching as Annie paid with a credit card. She brought
the tea back, set it in front of Lily then turned to Maddie. “Did you tell Lily
that she’s part of our gang?”

Lily rolled
her eyes. “Gang? What is this,
West Side Story
?”

“No.” Maddie
winked at Annie. “Just three girls supporting each other.” She changed the
subject. “So how did the show go?”

“There was a
buyer in the audience from a boutique in Edmonton. I didn’t know she was there,
that’s what took me so long.”

“They don’t
usually go to showings at retail outlets, do they?”

“No, but
apparently she was in town and heard about the show and as they say, the rest
is history.” She paused. “She wants an exclusive for Edmonton, and I’m thinking
about giving it to her. My product would be lost in among all the designers in
the large stores, and this would be a great way to experiment, for both of us.”

“Sounds like
you’ve already decided.”

“Yes, I
suppose I have.” She reached for her purse and turned to Annie, who had been
hanging onto every word. “I forgot to pay you for the chai.”

“Oh, no.
Please let it be my treat. Maddie paid for me.”

Lily grinned
and saluted with her cup. “In that case, thanks!” She closed her eyes and took
a sip. “So, Annie. What got you interested in fashion?”

The child
thought for a moment. “I think it was when my parents used to go out for the
evening. My mother always let me watch her get ready. She had a little makeup
table in their bedroom with lights and everything. She’d sit there in her slip
and put on her makeup and we’d talk about...oh, about everything. She always
had her dress hanging up, and we’d decide what jewelry she was going to wear,
and what shoes.” Her eyes took on a dreamy, far-away look. “My mom had a lot of
her clothes made and she took me with her a few times when she went for
fittings. I was just a kid then, and it seemed like a magical place to me, yet
I understood what they were doing.”

Lily touched
Annie’s silky hair. “Did you get this beautiful hair from your mother? You can
do anything with hair like this.”

“Really? The
kids at school make fun of it.”

Lily gave an
unladylike snort. “Well they would, wouldn’t they? They’re jealous, that’s all
it is.” She pointed to her hair, which was anchored by the ever-present
chopsticks. “Can you imagine the ribbing I took with this? They were always
telling me I should put it in a pigtail. Either that or they were calling me a
Chink. I was born in Vancouver General Hospital for heaven’s sake.” She took a
sip of chai. “People can be so stupid.”

“Can I touch
it?” Annie edged closer, obviously fascinated by this exotic creature who spoke
her mind so bluntly.

“Sure.” Lily
reached up and pulled out the chopsticks. “As a matter of fact, it’s starting
to feel heavy.” The mass of hair came free, and she rotated her neck, causing
her hair to ripple down her back. “That feels so good,” she said, her voice low
and throaty. “It feels almost as good as...well, hello there!”

Maddie had
seen Lily in just about every situation imaginable, but she’d never seen her
react the way she did when Chase Drummond walked into the coffee shop. Lily
Hsu, who was accustomed to commanding the attention of every man with a pulse,
was looking at Chase as though she’d never seen a member of the opposite sex
before.

“Uncle Chase!”
Unaware of the electric undercurrents zinging between her uncle and Lily, Annie
jumped up, ran to him and threw her arms around his legs.

Chase
acknowledged his niece with a pat on the head, but he kept his gaze on Lily. A
shaft of sunlight came through the window, creating dark blue highlights in her
hair. For a moment, Maddie thought he was going to reach out and touch it, then
he recovered.

He tore his
eyes away and nodded to Maddie. “I’m sorry you had to wait so long, but Marilyn
did warn you, didn’t she?”

“She did, yes.
Please don’t apologize. I didn’t realize I’d have to see you personally to ask
about a rental.” She looked at Annie. “We decided to wait here until you were
free.”

Annie tugged
at his hand. “Sit down, Uncle Chase. Sit down.”

“Oh no, I
don’t think so.” He glanced at Lily. “Well, maybe for a minute.” He folded his
tall frame into a chair. “So, it looks like you ladies are having a tea party.”

“Can I get you
something?” Annie jumped up again.

“No, I don’t
think so. I promised to take you out to lunch, remember?” He was looking at
Lily as though he’d like to make a meal out of her. “We could all go together.”
He shot a quick, questioning glance at Maddie before re-focusing his attention
on Lily. “I don’t think we’ve met.”

“Lily Hsu.”
She extended a small, elegant hand. “Nice to meet you, Chase.” She stood up
abruptly. “I’m afraid I can’t join you though.” She glanced at her roommate,
but Maddie couldn’t read her expression. “I have appointments all afternoon.”

Chase stood.
“I’m sorry to hear that.” He motioned to her chai. “You’re not going to finish
your tea?”

“No.” Lily
almost knocked her chair over in her haste to leave. She paused for a moment
and made eye contact with Annie. “We’ll see each other again, okay? Maybe you
could come out to the studio some time.”