The Running Series Complete Collection: 3-Book Set plus Bonus Novella (119 page)

Evan returns with two cold beers and tosses one to Derek.  He reminds Derek that it’s nearly kick-off time, and the two wander off into the living room to watch the first game of the day.  The Lions are playing at Green Bay today.  Evan’s played both teams already this season.  He beat the Lions in preseason and barely squeaked out a victory against the Packers a few weeks ago. 

Watching football with Evan is like watching a movie with someone who’s read the book.  He can predict what’s about to happen because he knows the plays and the players so well.  Evan says it’s like being a professional poker player.  You have to know your opponent and be able to read their tells.  And he’s rarely wrong.

I open up a bottle of sparking Prosecco and pour myself a glass.  I walk toward Reese with the bottle in hand.  “Can I pour you a glass?”

She shakes her head. “I can’t,” she gripes.

“No tannins or sulfites this time, Reese.  What gives?”

She stops what she’s doing, grabs me by the hand, and drags me into my bedroom.  She shuts the door and plops down on my bed.  Whatever she’s about to tell me is serious. 

“Listen, every time I drink too much, I wind up calling Derek to come over for a quickie.  I can’t keep doing that.” She sighs.

“That’s it?  That’s the only reason you won’t drink with me?” I question her.

“I think it’s a pretty damn good reason, don’t you?  You’re the one who’s always ragging on me to do the right thing with Derek, and I’m trying.  I’m really trying, Jette, but it’s hard.”  She’s upset and near tears. 

I move closer and wrap my arms around her and hug her tightly.  “Are you sure you don’t want to give it another try with Derek?  You obviously still have feelings for him.” 

She shakes her head.  “I want it all, Jette.  I want what you have.  You have someone who loves you and takes care of you in every possible way.  Derek could never do that.  Look around.  Do you think in a million years Derek could ever afford a home like this?  We would live paycheck to paycheck, hoarding nickels and dimes, hoping to save enough for a vacation once every two or three years.  I grew up like that.  I won’t do that to my own child.”

Her child?  Was that her admission to me that she’s going to have a baby?  I stare at her in momentary disbelief.  Eyes wide, I open my mouth to ask, but nothing comes out.

She looks up and sees the shock clearly registered on my face, “Oh, my God!  You think I’m ... ?”  I nod.  “No!  No way.  I may be stupid when it comes to Derek, but I’m not reckless.  There’s a way to make sure that doesn’t happen, you know.”

I exhale a deep breath I didn’t realize I was holding.  Relief washes over me.  “I’m sorry, honey.  So what are you going to do?” 

“I’m going to learn how to be by myself for a change.  No men and definitely no boys.  For the next six months, I’m going to concentrate on my friends, work, and myself.  I have to learn how to be self-reliant.  It’s time to grow up.”

I hold her at arm’s length and look directly in her gray eyes and say, “Okay.  I can help you do that.  Now let’s get back out there before they notice we’re missing.”

As we return to the kitchen, I hear Evan’s ringing phone.  He answers with a sarcastic, “Hey, Sparky,” and I immediately know it’s Adam calling.  Now even Evan’s started calling him Sparky.  I wonder how much longer Adam will put up with us calling him that.  “Where the hell are you ... sure, man ... no  problem.  You’re missing the game, though.  Yeah, yeah.  Okay.  See you later.”  Evan hollers to us, informing us that Adam and Emmy are running late.  They’ll be here by dinner.  Auggie and Lucas should be here shortly. 

I pass the time by putting the finishing touches on the table settings.  Auggie will be proud when he sees my masterpiece.  I want my guests to feel welcome and special.  I want them to remember this Thanksgiving as one of their favorites.  I know it will be mine.  It’s the first holiday Evan and I are hosting as a couple.

The table is complete, with a wine glass, water glass, five pieces of flatware, a charger plate, and a dinner plate for each place setting.  There are pillar candles of various heights placed around the table, leaving plenty of room for serving dishes.  As I’m folding the last of my citron napkins into fleurs de lis, Auggie and Lucas make their grand entrance.

The boys walk directly over to my table and hand me a large floral centerpiece.  “This is for you, Jepetto.”  It’s a stunning wooden flowerbox filled with white, orange, and green flowers with bunches of cranberries scattered throughout.  It matches my farm table and linens perfectly.  It’s low enough that we can appreciate it but still see across the table.

Evan is the perfect host.  He abandons his game to welcome Auggie and Lucas.  He takes their jackets and pours them glasses of wine before returning for the second half of the game.

They are both styled handsomely today, each dressed very J. Crew.  Their slim-fitting, brightly colored chinos and button-down shirts make them look like they’re ready to start their own boy band.  Auggie takes me by the hand, lifts it over my head, and I do my obligatory spin for inspection.  “Jette, my pet, you look positively gorgeous.” 

“I don’t know if plum is her color,” Lucas interjects, clearly mocking me.

“Of course it is!” Auggie insists.  “Look how it draws attention to her green eyes.”  He gives me a kiss on the cheek. “Don’t listen to Lucas.  He’s had someone dressing him on the set every damn day and now he thinks he knows what he’s talking about.”  It’s adorable to watch them tease each other. 

The kitchen is a flurry of activity as Reese and I cook while Auggie and Lucas entertain us.  Lucas has such funny stories about filming a movie with a lot of CGI.  He talks about running away from invisible robots and androids while protecting Empire City with his robotic dog, Blitz. 

Lucas tells a story about filming some of the scenes on set in Vancouver for the city shots.  The shoot ran long and all the actors were getting hungry, so they ordered a few pizzas to be delivered.  He explains, “When the pizza guy showed up we were filming a SWAT scene, and when he saw all the guys running into the building with flak jackets and guns, he got back in his car and refused to come back with our pizza.” 

I can’t blame the poor delivery boy.  They probably should have told him it was a movie shoot.

“Tell them about the explosion scene,” Auggie urges. 

“Oh, that’s a good one too!  Another day we were filming a scene, still in Vancouver, where the other actors had to drop me from the roof of a building in order to escape an explosion.  The director told me they would drop me on the count of three.  What I didn’t know was that the rest of the crew was told to drop me on a count of two.  One of the extras taped it with his cell phone and sent it to Auggie.”

“I saw the footage, and the expression on his face is priceless,” Auggie adds. He takes a big helping of the spinach and artichoke dip, and then mentions, “Oh, I almost forgot to tell you.  You have an appointment with Daisy Shea.  She’s the wedding planner you asked me to hook you up with.  She’s coming to Rush tomorrow at noon.”

Reese stops what she’s doing to ask, “Wedding planner?  Really?”

“We kind of have no choice,” I tell her.  “Evan and I can’t make any plans without it making the five o’clock news.  I want my day to be perfect, and I think this is the only way to make that happen.”

She nods her head in agreement. “Got it.”

Finally it’s time to serve the turkey.  Reese is a trained chef and knows exactly how to carve a bird,  but as the head of the house, tradition dictates that Evan be permitted to carve the turkey.  Reese doesn’t like it, but she offers to talk Evan through his virginal attempt at turkey-carving.

By the time Evan is done, there is nearly as much turkey left on the carcass as there is on the plate,  but I don’t dare say a word.  When Evan proudly hands me the plate, he is beaming with delight.  Reese whispers in my ear, “Don’t worry.  I’ll clean up the rest for leftovers.”

Just as the final serving dish is placed on the table, the front door swings open.  Emmy and Adam have finally arrived.  We scurry to greet them and get everyone seated at the table while the food is still hot.  Evan opens a bottle of Pinot Grigio and fills every glass.  I walk around with a pitcher to fill everyone’s second glass with ice water.

Couples are seated next to each other, leaving Derek and Reese to sit side by side.  As I pour his glass of water, I notice Derek reaching for the sweet potatoes.  Reese reaches over and slaps his hand without a word.  She knows no one touches anything until after the blessing.  Derek just shrugs and smirks.

Once I’ve taken my seat beside Evan, he stands with a drink in one hand and my hand in the other.  Everyone reciprocates by raising a glass.

“I’d like to make this short and simple.  Juliette and Reese have prepared this amazing meal and I’m sure they would like us to enjoy it while it’s hot.  As I look around this table, I see the faces of my dearest friends, and each one of us has something very special to be thankful for.”  Evan looks down at me, smiles, and squeezes my hand.  “May plenty, peace, and prosperity be ours to share today and always.”  Everyone tips their glasses together and drinks. 

Evan taps my foot under the table, and when I look up at him he tilts his head toward Emmy, who is sitting directly across from me.  At first it doesn’t register, but when Evan covertly taps his wine glass, I see that she’s drinking from her water glass.  She didn’t toast with wine.  My wheels are spinning, but not for long.

Before anyone has a chance to eat, Adam stands up, tapping his glass with a fork to get everyone’s attention.  Once we’ve all quieted down, he puts the glass and fork down, takes Emmy’s hand, and pulls her up to stand beside him.  “Emmy and I have an announcement we’d like to make tonight.  The reason we were late is that ... ah ...  Um, we wanted you to be the first to know ... well, not exactly the first.  The truth is,” he pauses, struggling to find the right words, “we have something special to be thankful for this year.”

“I’m pregnant!” Emmy blurts out.  Everyone rushes to congratulate them, fighting to get close enough for a hug.  Emmy is beaming with joy and Adam looks like he’s about to throw up.

After the excitement dies down, we all take our seats and fill our plates, tossing question after question toward them.

Emmy is eight weeks pregnant.  Before telling their friends, they wanted to see Emmy’s parents and tell them first.  Adam’s family is in Delaware, so they’ll be driving there tomorrow.  There are no immediate wedding plans.  They won’t even discuss it until after the baby is born.  “I don’t want Adam to feel like he
has
to marry me, so when he proposed, I said no.  But if he still wants to marry me, he can ask again in exactly one year.”  She leans over and kisses Adam.  “And if I want to marry him, I’ll say yes.”

God, I wish I could be more like Emmy.  Simple solutions to complex problems.  She rarely overthinks things; she just accepts challenges without getting caught up in the drama.  She’ll make a great mom.  And overprotective Adam will make a great dad.

As we listen to Emmy and Adam discussing the prospect of parenthood, Evan slips his leg under mine so our legs are resting together.  The need for constant contact is nearly overwhelming. 

“So Emmy, how do you feel?” I ask as I pass the gravy.

“So far, so good.  A little tired, but the doctor says that’s normal.  She says little Bean is doing great.  We got to hear the heartbeat and everything.”

“Bean?” I repeat.

“Yeah – Bean as in kidney bean.  That’s how big the baby is right now,” she clarifies.  “We’re going to call the baby Bean until it’s born.  We don’t want to know if it’s a boy or a girl.  We want to be surprised.”

Evan rubs his leg affectionately up and down my calf. 

When we’ve finished dinner, the girls band together to clear the table quickly.  Emmy is assigned dishwasher duty.  I bring her a stack of dishes and pause to scrape the plates into the garbage disposal.  “So Jette, how cool would it be if you and Evan started a family?  Our kids could grow up together and be best friends.”

“Oh Emmy, I don’t think Evan and I are ready for that.  Not anytime soon, anyway.  We’re just figuring out this couple thing.”

“Well, from where I’m standing, you two seem to be doing pretty well,” Emmy remarks as she fills the dishwasher.  “Maybe I should be talking to Camilla.”

As if on cue, in walk Camilla and Marcus, just in time for dessert.  It’s time for another round of congratulations and explanations. 

Everyone calls out their requests as I plate desserts.  Camilla is my runner today, passing out everyone’s special orders.  Ice cream on top.  Whipped cream.  One slice.  Two slices.  There’s something for everyone, and some enjoy a little bit of everything.

Evan is a sucker for my cheesecake, and this is the only time of year when I indulge in my favorite, pumpkin pie with fresh homemade whipped cream.  I can’t resist the desire to rest my hand on Evan’s leg.  He reaches under the table and laces our fingers together.  I fumble with my left hand to cut off a piece of pie, scoop up a dollop of whipped cream, and gracefully feed myself.  The first bite is scrumptious and I can’t help but let out a small, “Mmm.”

“Good, right?” Evan teases.  He turns to look at me and a smile spreads across his face, dimples and all.  He looks at me and laughs.

“What?” I ask, suddenly feeling self-conscious.

“You, uh, got a little something.” He reaches out and brushes his thumb over my lip, removing a smidge of whipped cream from the corner of my mouth.  He brings his thumb to his mouth to taste, smiles, and leans in to kiss me.

“What was that?” I ask.

“That, Juliette Fletcher, was a kiss,” he smiles.

“I know it was, but what was it for?”

“Do I need to have a reason to kiss you?”

I smile and give him the simplest of answers, “No,” as I lean in to return the kiss. 

“You two better watch out,” Emmy warns.  “That’s how it started with us!”  She leans over and plants a big, wet kiss on Adam’s face.

After dinner, the boys gather back in the living room to watch the Ravens/Steelers game that’s about to start.  Auggie and Lucas take a stroll on the beach, and the girls help me clean up.  I stand back to appreciate the moment.  All my favorite people are gathered here today.