Upside Down (27 page)

“Now, seriously, don’t you think I’ll get in your way? I mean, you’ll be moving back here.”

“Absolutely not. Besides, we’ll need an extra pair of hands.”

“That is settled, then. I’ll book my flight. Then, I’ll send you the information as soon as it’s done.”

“Deal. See you soon, love.”

“See you.”

I hung up and texted both Cindy and Mark to come to my office. Mark came first but she was right behind him. They looked at each other in surprise and I asked them to sit down.

“Well, you’re both aware of our situation so I thought it would be more practical to talk with you two together. I’ve felt horrible these couple of days and I sense you aren’t much more comfortable. Am I wrong?”

“No,” they said at the same time.

“I’ve decided on a deadline for this torturing situation. My birthday party, next week. You both have confirmed your presences and I think this is as far as my sanity can endure.”

They just nodded. They had concentrated all their attention on me and pretended to ignore each other. It was so awkward. I sighed and told them the rest of my plans.

“I’m going to take some days off until then. I’m going to London to meet with Dave and Jerry. I need the
physical distance. Also, I can work from my laptop.”

Again, they just nodded.

“Great. So, see you two next week.”

“Are you going today?” Cindy asked.

“What about your schedule?” Mark argued.

“I’ve cleared it up, Mark. Don’t worry,” then I turned to Cindy. “I’ll make the reservations as soon as you both leave.”

They finally looked at each other and their expression was priceless. Apparently, a worry in common would do wonders to unite two antagonists. I silently prayed they would find other common interests over the next few days. Then, I dropped the last bomb.

“Also, I want you two working together on the MaxByte account.”

“What? Why?” they spoke together, again. That was the spirit.

“It’s a very important client and they’re going through a difficult period. They’re already insecure because of that. I want them to know they’ll have the best people in Horizon taking care of them while I’m gone. That means – you both.”

They looked at each other, sizing each other up. I hid my smug smile behind an aloof expression. I didn’t do it well enough, though.

“What are you up to, Carol?” Mark asked.

“Nothing. Don’t be paranoid. Any questions?”

“How about a couple of million?” was Cindy’s sarcastic reply.

“Shoot,” I challenged her but she didn’t accept it. “Good. Now, go back to work, both of you. See you in a week. In Boston.”

Mark muttered something under his breath and I saw Cindy nodding slightly. When they left my office and closed the door, I let the smile finally split my face in two. Maybe I had had a good idea, after all.

* * * *

Dave and Jerry insisted on picking me up at Heathrow airport although it was so far from their house in London. They also wanted me to stay in their house but I wouldn’t have any of that.

“No, way. I love you, guys, but I’ll stay at the hotel.”

“Why? Our house has a spare room,” Jerry said over his shoulder as he drove us back to town.

“Which Dave must have filled with useless stuff, right?”

“It’s not useless,” my best friend defended himself.

“Yeah, right
,” I said. “Besides, you need your privacy.”

“Come on, honey. After all this time together, we’re not exactly newlyweds. We can survive a week without sex.”

“Don’t be rude, Dave,” Jerry chided his husband, smiling. “We can survive a week without making love.”

“Same thing, different name.”

“I see he’s still quite the romantic, huh, Jerry?”

“You have no idea.”

It was so good to see them again after so long. We had so much to catch up on that they dropped me at the hotel, helped me settle things up in my suite and we went to their apartment before we had covered less than half of the topics.

Over dinner, Jerry told me about his research with some rare children diseases, first in India then in London. He had collaborated with great doctors in India and a Nobel prize winner in London.

“That is awesome, Jerry. I’m so proud of you, honey.”

“So am I,” Dave held his husband’s hand and I felt like a third wheel when they kissed and forgot the world around them.

“Ahem.”

We laughed, finished dinner and kept talking until two in the morning.

“Guys, I have to go.”

“No, it’s too late, now. Stay in the spare room.”

“Dave, I didn’t bring pajamas or anything.”

“Silly, I know you don’t own pajamas. There are new toothbrushes in the cabinet in the spare bathroom, too.”

“In that case, I’d better stay, then.”

We went to bed and I slept better than I had in weeks. No dreams. No nightmares.

The next morning, I got a ride with Jerry. Dave complaint and tried to convince me to stay with him but I told him I needed to work. It was true. I worked for most of the day. Late in the afternoon, Dave called me.

“How about a little culture? Would like to
visit the National Gallery?”

“Yeah. I love it. But it’s almost closing time, isn’t it?”

“It’s open until nine today.”

“It’s a date, then. See you there in thirty.”

“See you.”

We had a blast walking through those majestic rooms and looking at all those masterpieces. But, then again, Dave and I always had a blast – anywhere we
went, doing anything at all. Just being together accounted for most of the fun.

Along the week I spent in London with them, I told Jerry and Dave
everything about my parents and my own mess. I kept no secrets from Dave and he kept none from Jerry. It had always been like that. I also helped them pack to go back home. In between emptying closets and filling up boxes, Jerry and Dave helped me put things into perspective. They helped me see my problems from a different point of view. They didn’t tell me what I should do and I never expected them to do so. They pointed out things I had overlooked or chosen to ignore. Best friends do that. I loved them even more for that. By the time we boarded the plane together, I had made my mind up.

“Have you decided what you’ll do, honey?”

“Yeah, Dave. Thank you,” I kissed the back of his hand.

“Don’t mention it. Whatever it is you’ve decided, we’ll back you up all the way,” Jerry added.

“I think you know what I’ll do, don’t you?”

“I have a pretty good idea,” Jerry said with an approving smile.

“I guess I do, too. You go, girl,” Dave winked at me.

We landed in New York on
December, seventeenth - one day before my birthday. The following morning I drove up to Boston. That time, I didn’t choose the Ferrari because I took Dave and Jerry with me.

My mother greeted us at the door herself. She looked as excited as a teenager going to her first rock concert. The only thing missing was my mom jumping up
and down and giggling. She hugged Dave and Jerry before turning to me.

“Happy birthday, my love,” s
he clung to me as if I were a lifeboat in the middle of a storm.

“Hey, mom. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong. I’m just very happy to see you all,” she laced her arm with mine and we started walking towards the downstairs library.

“Has everybody arrived?”

“Almost. Mark and Cindy haven’t arrived yet.”

My father was waiting for us
at the foot of the stairs.

“Happy birthday, freckles,” he hugged me and I felt like crying. I stifled a sob and smiled up at him. I was a tall woman but my father towered over me.

We entered the room. There were about ten people inside. For once, my mother had listened to me.

Dave saw Josh before I did and came to stand on my left. He put his arm around my shoulder
s and I smiled at him. When I noticed his dark expression, I frowned and he nodded subtly towards the other side of the room. I scanned the place until my eyes found him, leaning against a window. Devilish handsome as always. An aura of danger surrounded him. Maybe because of his jet-black hair, maybe because of his arrogant confidence. I was never able to pinpoint why but he had always sent off that sense of danger. Unfortunately, for me, it was an enticing signal for a thrill seeker such as I was at eighteen. I could feel his bright blue eyes glued to me. The air went out of me and I felt numb. My mother was still clinging to my right arm. She looked at me when I stopped abruptly in my tracks and I realized she had no idea of what she had done. She didn’t know about Josh.

“Come, dear. Let me show you around the room.”

Ever the perfect hostess, my mom dragged me from one little group to the next. As we approached Josh, he stood up straight and greeted us with one of his trademark smiles. To my great surprise, it reached his eyes and they became instantly warm. Would it be possible for a person to change that much in little less than ten years? In fact, I had seen him again no more than three years before. He was the same then. I wondered what had caused that change. I shook my head and saw Dave standing nearby watching me with eyes like a hawk. He was so sweet to worry about me.

“Carol, you remember Josh Peterson, don’t you? His father was your dad’s best friend growing up.”

“How are you doing, Josh?” I offered him my hand. He took it then pulled me into an embrace.

“Come one, Carol. We don’t have to be so formal, do we?”

I let him hug me. When he rubbed his huge hands up and down my back, I expected to combust at once. Again, to my astonishment, nothing happened. My body didn’t react at all to his presence. Another first. Maybe people did change - me, included.

“My mom doesn’t know about us,” I explained to Josh when he let go of me.

“What is there to know, sweetie?” my mother asked me but he answered before I could.

“We dated when she was younger. How old were you, then, Carol?
Twenty?”

“Nineteen,” I corrected Josh.

His twisted sense of humor hadn’t changed. I wouldn’t have described what we did as ‘dating’ but I didn’t want to tell that to my mom.

“Well, so I’m sure you have a lot to catch up on. I’ll leave you two alone.”

I panicked but my innate good manners prevented me from turning my back at him at walking away. Besides, I was curious about Josh and his apparent subtle changes.

“You didn’t answer me. How have you been, Josh?”

He stared at me for a while, then, shook his head a little and smiled again. This time, he offered me one of the smiles he usually wore when we had sex. A wicked, panty-melting one. Again, my panties remained intact and I was very proud of myself.

“God, I had forgotten how gorgeous you are. Magazine pictures don’t do you justice, Carol,” he rubbed his thumb on my cheek, still wearing that sexy smile, and winked. “Did you miss me, pet?”

That last question brought back memories. Bad ones. Before I could swat his hand away, though, a muscled arm snaked around my waist and Mark’s raspy voice sounded in my ear.

“I missed you, sweetheart.”

He pulled my chin up and kissed me, muffling my surprised exclamation. When he pulled away, my heart was beating fast and I was out of breath.

“I’m Mark Aikens, the boyfriend,” he introduced himself but I didn’t deny it.

“I’m Josh Peterson. The ex. Boyfriend, I mean.”

“I know who you are. Now, if you’ll excuse us. We have other people to greet, too.”

When we were out of Josh’s earshot, I asked Mark, “What do you know about Josh?”

“I know he was your first and only master.”

“I never told you that.”

“In a way you did. Along these
last two years, you’ve dropped hints, bits and pieces of the story. Cindy gave me the name.”

“And you remember the bits and pieces I told you?”

“I remember everything you’ve ever told me, Carol.”

I smiled lovingly at him and cupped his cheek.

“That is so sweet, Mark.”

My mom showed up beside us at that moment, “We’ll serve dinner in five.”

I looked around the room and found Cindy talking to Dave and Jerry. I nodded at her and she smiled back. She mouthed ‘I missed you’ to me to which I replied I had missed her, too.

“That’s fine, mom. Thank you.”

Mark still had his arm around my waist and I put mine around his. We walked to where Jerry, Dave and Cindy stood. I hugged her and she kissed my cheek, temptingly close to my lips but not exactly on them. We talked about London until Bob announced dinner was served.

At the dinner table, I sat by my father’s right. Dave was on my right while Mark and Cindy sat across from me, two chairs down the table. I couldn’t talk to either but I had the perfect advantage point to observe them without arising suspicions. They seemed very comfortable together, so different from that last day in my office. They laughed and talked like old friends. She touched his arm and he patted her hand. I didn’t feel jealous at all. On the contrary, I was thrilled to see them getting along that well. I congratulated myself on the decision I had made. Putting them to work together had been a stroke of
genius.