Taming Theresa (19 page)

Staring into those wonderful eyes, she
absently picked up her half full wine glass and set it down again.
She finally recovered and smiled back. "Sorry, I'm the only one
here, Chris."

"It's Diane isn't it? You're in the wedding
party."

"Yes, I'm Diane Vandersmoot. Jack and Vicky's
friend." She remained seated, transfixed by those beautiful
eyes.

He came around the table and reached for her
hand. "Okay then. Diane Vandersmoot, Would you like to dance?"

"What? Me? Oh, sure. Absolutely. Sorry." She
stood up and he slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her
close as he drew her onto the dance floor. Her head barely reached
his chin.

Tony edged as close to the gift table as he
dared. It's gotta be here. I've searched her damn car and every
damn place I could think of. The boss is gonna send his goons after
me soon if I don't come up with the money. Now. He wiped his sweaty
palms on his pants, and then leaned over the gifts, disguising his
curiosity by pretending to straighten his tie.

Damn sure looks like it. That's gotta be my
box, sitting right there in plain sight. How the hell did it get
there? Tony's thoughts raced. How can I get my money out of here?
It’s pretty heavy. Maybe I should real quick, just grab it and go
out the back door there. Maybe nobody would notice. He looked
cautiously over his shoulder. A lotta people around. Nervously he
flicked his Zippo lighter open and closed, staring at the gifts,
oblivious to the music and conversation filling the room. Reaching
out tentatively, he touched the box and jumped as he felt a tap on
his shoulder.

"Geeze Tony, take it easy. How you doin'
Buddy?" He turned to see Paul Buonadies behind him.

"Good, I'm good. How’s about you, Paul?"

"Having a great time, Tony. Food’s good.
Booze is good." Paul nodded at the crowd. "Lots of hot women. Tell
you what; I ain't kicked the habit yet. I'm going out back for a
cigarette. I see you playing with that Zippo like you need one
yourself. Let's you and me go out and have a quick smoke. We can
have a little talk," said Paul, jerking a thumb at the disc jockey.
Get away from all that noise for a minute, Okay?"

"Yeah sure, Paul. I need a cigarette. Why
not?"

Outside, Tony took out a pack of Camels and
began to rap it on his hand, but before he got his Zippo out, Paul
pointed to the yellow Lexis.

"Hey Tony, that your car?"

"What about it?" he shrugged.

Paul began walking toward the car, so Tony
followed him.

"I haven't seen you round for a while, Paul.
How you doin' anyhow?" Opening the lighter he flicked at the flint
wheel until he had the cigarette lit and blew a cloud of smoke.
"Doin' okay, you know, same old same old. Been working. Going to
school."

With a knowing nod of his head, Tony pulled
on his cigarette again, and blew another stream of smoke. "I know
what you mean." He turned at the sound of footsteps behind him.
Paul's brother Frank and another guy were coming toward them. He
eyed the two suspiciously.

"Hey," said Frank, nodding to them. He handed
him a glass. "Tony, I got you a drink. It's a Dewar's on the rocks.
That's your usual, right? This here is Bob."

"Yeah, thanks," he said, nodding to Bob and
taking the proffered glass with its rattling ice cubes. He took a
sip and dragged on his cigarette, blowing smoke skyward.

Bob handed a beer to Paul.

Frank clinked glasses with Tony and the
others. "Cheers!" he said. The other three men drank, laughing.

Tony sipped at the scotch watching them. Then
gesturing with his glass, he asked, "So, Paul? You wanted to
talk?"

"Sure Tony, it's just we hadn't seen you for
a while now. Not since you got canned from the restaurant. What the
hell was that all about?"

"I dunno. Your sister got mad at me for some
reason. Not sure what it was, but it don't matter. I got another
job."

"That's good," said Paul. "Women. They're all
crazy.” He took a swig of his beer, and Tony followed suit.

"You know what? I noticed all the bridesmaids
are smokin' hot. Did you see the one with the long light blond
hair, Frank? She just got engaged to that Joe guy though. Man!"

Frank nodded. "Yeah, and the tall blond one
is pretty nice too, but Theresa now, she's the hottest lookin' one
of the bunch. You and her, Tony, I can't figure why you broke up.
What's with that?"

"I don't know. I wasn't ready to be tied
down," said Tony. "Terry, she didn't take it to good. She went nuts
when I toll her it was off."

Bob giggled and drank from his bottle. "Yeah,
nuts, that's for sure. Girls always get a little crazy at weddings,
maybe drink too much."

"Yeah Bob, you're right. Good food, good
drink, that's why I like weddings. And weddings always make girls
horny, know what I mean?" said Frank.

Paul smoked in silence for a minute. So, you
got a new job huh, Tony? That's good. Where'd you get a job?"

"Workin' for some guy is all. Nothing
special. It's kind of like real estate." He tossed his butt and
drained the drink, tossing the last of the ice. "If you guys are
all done being sociable I gotta get back." He looked around the
parking lot, wondering how to lose Theresa's idiot brothers and get
back inside. He had to get that money somehow.

"What's the rush? Let's finish our drinks and
enjoy this," Paul said stepping closer to Tony. "It's real nice out
here, don't you think?"

"Yeah Paul, enough already. Now can
I...?"

"Real nice wedding," said Paul. That Jack is
great. I'm real glad for our cousin, Victoria. You got to admit,
Tony. She's a pretty classy lady. Good-looking bride. We always
liked her when we were kids together. Know what I mean? Vicky and
Terry, they were really tight, when they were young. You remember
Frank, Victoria and Theresa when they were little kids?"

"Yeah sure, Paul. I remember," said his
brother.

"So why did Terry fire your ass, Tony?" Paul
moved closer and sipped his beer, watching him.

"It ain't really none of your business." He
swallowed and shifted away, becoming a little apprehensive. Her
brothers were standing very close now.

From the tavern's back door, music and
laughter floated out into the darkness. He looked nervously at the
three smiling faces. Bobby upended his beer and finished it,
belching loudly. It seemed unnaturally loud. The music coming from
the reception was fading away. What's with that? He looked at the
back door of the tavern. Got to get back in there and get my hands
on the box of money. There was a ringing in his ears. His empty
glass slipped from his grasp and shattered on the pavement. He
opened his mouth to ask Paul a question, but couldn't speak.
Everything grew dark and he felt himself slipping. Someone put out
a hand to stop him from falling. Before everything went black, he
heard talking, but couldn't understand a word.

"Wow, what's the matter with him?" asked Bob.
"Is he drunk?"

Paul and Frank were propping an unconscious
Tony DePalma between them. "Tony never could drink much," said
Paul. "Just can't hold it. Know what I'm saying?"

"What should we do with him?" asked
Bobby.

"Don't worry about it. We'll take care of
this, won't we Frank," said Paul.

"Yeah, we're gonna take care of it."

"We can’t let him drive home. Frank, look in
his pockets for the car keys. Bob, want to give us a hand
here?"

"What are you going to do?" asked Bobby, wide
eyed.

"We should take this opportunity to teach him
a lesson. Yeah, that's it. How about it Paul?" said Frank,
enthusiastically.

"Yeah, that's exactly what we're gonna do.
You see Bob; he's not a nice man. He disrespected our sister,"
explained Paul. "They were engaged and he didn't treat our sister
right. He cheated on her, so we're going to even the score."

"You're not going to hurt him, are you?"
Bobby was shocked.

"Nah, Bobby. Nothing like that. Ya' see, he
cheated on Theresa and we don't like that. Not a little cheat, but
big time cheating. Ain't that right, Frank?"

"Yeah, big time," said Frank, fishing Tony's
keys out of his pocket.

"He embarrassed Theresa, so, we're going to
embarrass him a little bit, just for fun. Don't worry; we're not
going to hurt anybody. It's just a little joke," said Paul. "Yeah,
we're gonna play a little joke on Tony DePalma."

Diane felt like she was in heaven as Chris
spun her gently around the dance floor. He was so good looking, a
very good dancer, well built, and those eyes. Her spirits were
raised by this super cute guy in a matter of minutes.

"So, you've lived here in Pippins Grove all
your life?" Chris asked.

"Except for college. I went to Penn State,"
she replied, as they swayed to a slow song.

"And you came back home?"

"I didn't plan to, but my family has owned
the nursery since my parents started it not long after they got
married. When they retired a few years ago, Joe and I took
over."

"Have you known the bride and groom a long
time?"

"Jack's lived here ten years or so. Vicky
came about six months ago, when she inherited the Willet farm from
her grandmother. We've become good friends.

"Good friends? What do the two of you do
together?"

She looked up at him, surprised. Guys didn't
usually ask about what she liked to do. "Well, we both like to
read. We started a book club last summer with a group of friends.
How about you, Chris? What do you do in your spare time?"

"Can't say I really have much spare time. I
work long hours, but I do like to get out doors."

"Doing what? Sports?"

He looked around the room before answering.
"I recently bought some property in Virginia, and in my spare time
I've been building a house down there. Not often I can get away
though. It'll be a while before it's anywhere near finished."

Diane looked up, amazed. "You're building it
all by yourself?"

He laughed, "No, I've contracted out parts of
the job, but I can do most of the carpentry work."

"Very nice." She noticed he kept looking at
the cake. "Isn't it beautiful?"

"What?"

"The cake. Terry's cousin made it and drove
it all the way up from New Jersey."

"Oh, yeah. It's nice. You said you started a
book club?"

"Uh huh, and you didn't tell me what it is
you do. What's your job that keeps you busy all those long
hours?"

"I'm in law enforcement."

"Oh, impressive! Let me guess, State Police,
FBI, or maybe you're with the CIA?"

He grinned mischievously. "I could tell you,
but then I'd have to kill you."

"Very funny."

"Actually, most of what I do is pretty
boring. Real life law enforcement or police work isn't much like it
is in the movies."

The music ended and he stood, still holding
her hand, once more sweeping the room as if he were searching for
someone. She saw John and Theresa sit down at one of the round
tables with Joe and Marsha.

"Let's get a drink," he said, taking her
elbow and guiding her to the bar.

"All right." At this point, I'd follow him
anywhere. She felt a little giddy with excitement. Why is he
interested in me?

"Hey Diane, what can I get for you," asked
Fred.

"Just a glass of white wine, thanks."

"And for you sir," he said turning to
Chris.

"How about a Pellegrino with lemon?

"Sure thing." Fred grabbed a glass and thrust
it into the ice bin.

They took their drinks back to Joe's table
and she introduced Chris to everyone. They sat down and the men
began to talk. Diane felt Chris reach for her hand and hold it in
both of his. So, this is what it feels like. A wave of happiness
washed over her as she watched the room filled with people who
looked as though they were thoroughly enjoying themselves. For the
first time today, she felt as if she were a part of the
celebration.

Several couples were dancing again. Theresa's
white haired grandparents, with identical smiles, were talking with
family nearby. They each had a small cup of espresso coffee, a
snifter of brandy and a plate of Italian cookies. Across from them,
Doc Sweeney and his wife chatted with the lawyer, Fred Douglas. As
she watched, an attractive woman tapped Fred on the shoulder and
asked him to dance. He rose smiling with apparent surprise. I know
Fred is a confirmed bachelor. I wonder who she is. Fred looked
dazed as the couple began to dance.

Hearing a burst of raucous laughter, she
turned to see the Buonadies brothers and Bobby Connor come back
into the room and join the girls they'd met earlier. Everyone seems
to be having a great time. I'm so happy, and just a few minutes
earlier, I felt so alone I couldn't wait to leave.

Chris seemed to fit in naturally with her
friends. He wanted to know all about the garden center business and
seemed to pick up immediately on John’s interest in things
historical, asking several questions about Pippin’s Grove, the
tavern, and local history.

“Not drinking?” she asked, pointing to his
glass. “Are you someone’s designated driver tonight?”

“Well, sort of. I came with a friend," Chris
answered. "Maybe I'll try some of that wine later. It’s from a
local winery, right?”

“Yes, and it’s not very far from here. Jack
and Vicky’s orchard supplies them with the apples they use for
their apple wine. Terry asked the winery to do the customized
labels for the wedding. Aren't they nice?”

He reached for a bottle, turning it to
examine the picture of the happy couple posing in front of their
apple trees. “Very nice,” he agreed.

Diane looked up and noticed Theresa was
blinking a lot and staring at Chris. She looked from him to her
friend, wondering what the other girl was thinking.