Finding Home (16 page)

“I’m all smiley?” Sarah said the word with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah. You’re usually more…I don’t know…intense. More serious. Today, you’re smiley. How come?”

“Are you saying I’m not allowed to be smiley?”

Playing along at Sarah’s obviously teasing tone, Natalie answered, “No, not at all. I’m just saying it’s rare that I even see your teeth. And today, there they are, in all their pearly whiteness.

I’m just curious.”

Sarah laughed outright and the sound made Natalie grin even wider. Bentley plopped down at their feet, panting and wagging his nubby tail, apparently happy as a clam. Natalie loved seeing him like that and hoped Sarah did, too. Judging from the look on her face, it was a shared sentiment.

Sarah squatted down and gave Bentley a thorough neck-scratching, murmuring sweet words to him as Natalie watched.

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GEORGIA BEERS

She’d apparently gone home to change before joining them, donning a pair of khaki shorts and a navy blue polo shirt. Her dark hair was pulled back off her face and a Þ ne sheen of sweat sprinkled the back of her neck. The unexpected urge Natalie felt to touch her Þ ngertips to it was interrupted when Sarah looked up suddenly, catching Natalie by surprise with the blue of her eyes.

“I had a date last night, if you must know.”

Natalie’s eyebrows shot up into her hairline. “You did?

That’s great. I’d ask how it went, but I can see by your expression and mood that it went well.”

Sarah nodded. “I think it did.”

“Where did you meet her?” By unspoken pact, they began their usual stroll around the perimeter of this section of the park, alternating who threw the ball for Bentley. He fetched it and brought it back to wherever they were at the time.

“She gave a marketing presentation at my ofÞ ce yesterday.”

Natalie did a double take at her. “You asked somebody out who’s trying to get your business?”

Sarah’s face told Natalie she knew that wasn’t necessarily ethical. “I didn’t ask her out. She asked me out.”

“Okay, well, that makes a difference.” A teasing snort accompanied the comment.

“I know!” Sarah whined. “You’re right, I know. I’m bad. I probably should have said no. But she was so sexy and…it’s been a long time since somebody asked me out and…I wanted to go!

Sue me. I wanted to go. Do you know what I mean?”

Natalie tempered her laugh by putting a warm hand on Sarah’s back as they walked, rubbing it reassuringly. “Hey, you don’t have to explain to me. I totally understand that. Us single girls have to stick together. I probably would have done the same thing. Did you have a good time?”

“I did.” Sarah took the ball from Bentley, who was standing at red alert, his gaze focused on another dog coming into the area.

He took off at a dead run before either of them could stop him.

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FINDING HOME

“Bentley! Come!” Natalie shouted at him. His step faltered and Natalie yelled to him again. The springer spaniel that had entered the park was leashed and his owner looked questioningly at the two women, pulling tightly on the nylon lead. “He’s okay,”

Natalie called as they crossed toward the newcomers and Bentley inched forward to sniff the springer. “He just wants to say hi.

He’s not aggressive.”

“Yeah, but mine is,” the woman warned just as the springer snarled and snapped at Bentley. He jumped back, obviously surprised, and retreated back to his owners.

“Sorry about that,” Sarah said to the woman, who led her dog off in the opposite direction, shaking her head in irritation.

Natalie grimaced. “I forget about that,” she said, feeling suddenly foolish and inadequate. “Bentley’s so sweet and friendly that I forget there are dogs who just aren’t, and I shouldn’t assume everybody’s okay with him running up to them like that.” She sighed. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, but how ’bout we leash him now?” Sarah said with a note of concern. Seeing Natalie’s embarrassed expression, she added, “You know, at least he gets exercise with you. I told you I never had him off the lead.”

“Well, then, I guess that means you never had another dog try to take a chunk out of him.”

“True,” Sarah said. “We’ll just have to be more careful.”

Then out of the blue, she blurted, “Hey, want to go get some dinner? It’s Friday night, I’m ready for a glass of wine, and I’m starving. My treat.”

Natalie looked at her, thinking that having a date had actually done Sarah Buchanan a whole lot of good in the mood department. “That sounds great. We can drop Bentley off at my place and eat around here. Would that work?”

“Perfect.”

v

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GEORGIA BEERS

It didn’t occur to Natalie until she slid her key into the keyhole that she was about to let Sarah see her apartment. She did a quick mental scan and wanted to slap herself in the forehead for not
thinking
before she suggested. She knew the place wasn’t a complete disaster, but it wasn’t as clean as it could be and it sure wasn’t classy and elegant like Sarah’s townhouse. Resigned to her fate, she swallowed back a sigh and climbed the stairs to the second ß oor of the building, Bentley scooting up in front of her and Sarah following behind.

“The Valentis own the whole building?” Sarah asked.

“Yeah. They rent the second ß oor to me for a really good price. It’s not much as far as apartments go, but it works.” She keyed the second door, the one at the top of the stairs, and pushed it open. Bentley shot directly to his water dish and began slurping away. “Welcome to my humble abode,” she said, making a grand sweep with her arm. “Such as it is.”

“This is adorable,” Sarah said, wandering into the small living room. She stopped and looked at each photograph and knickknack, making Natalie shift uncomfortably from the kitchen as she made a lame attempt to clean up the tiny area.

Stooping to snag a sweatshirt off the ß oor, she hurled it into the bedroom before it could be seen.

Sarah stopped near the futon and looked out the windows.

“This is great. You can see right down to Monroe. I bet this is a cool place to sit and read, in the sun like this.” The setting sun cast red-hued light beams through the opened miniblinds and across the furniture and ß oor.

Natalie glanced up quickly from the dirty dishes she was piling into the sink. “It is.” She was pleased Sarah had picked out her favorite spot and her demeanor eased up just a touch. Hating that she was feeling so self-conscious, she noticed Sarah reading the back of the Ann Patchett book she’d been absorbed in last night. “Have you read that?”

“Not yet, but I saw that it’s gotten fabulous reviews.”

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FINDING HOME

“The woman writes like a goddess, I swear. She’s truly magical. You’re welcome to borrow it when I’m Þ nished.”

Sarah looked up and met her gaze across the small space.

“I’d like that. Thanks.” Bentley had sprawled across the ß oor like roadkill, tongue lolling, still panting. He looked like somebody had tossed him there and that’s how he’d landed. Sarah laughed.

“Well, I see he’s already missing us terribly. You ready?”

Hanging the dishcloth over the faucet, Natalie nodded.

“Ready. Where do you want to go?” she asked as she grabbed her keys.

“What about that little place on the corner of Park and Oxford? The one that’s been there for ages?”

Natalie scrunched up her face as she thought. “Logan’s?”

“That’s the one. We can walk there from here, can’t we?”

“Absolutely. Be a good boy, Bentley.”

Bentley barely lifted his head to look up at them as they exited, his tongue still hanging out the side of his mouth.

v

Sarah had anticipated dinner would be pleasant, but she enjoyed herself and Natalie’s company way more than she expected to. If anybody had said to her six months earlier that she and Natalie would become good friends, she would have expressed much surprise. On the surface, they didn’t seem to have much in common—the workaholic business executive and the cashier at the local coffee shop—but Sarah was having a blast. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed so much and she gave Natalie much-deserved credit for that. The girl had a knack for cracking Sarah up. Not many people could say that.

“So,” Natalie said over the rim of her wineglass. “Tell me more about this super date you had last night.” Her eyes twinkled and Sarah wasn’t sure if it was mischief or too much
vino
, but

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GEORGIA BEERS

Natalie’s cheeks were adorably rosy and she was grinning like a schoolgirl as she held the glass nested in her Þ ngers.

“Suzanne,” Sarah said. “Her name is Suzanne.” She took a sip of her own wine and grinned. “And she was incredibly sexy.

Tall. Blond. Assertive.”

“Assertive?” Natalie’s eyebrows furrowed. “You go for that?”

“No,” Sarah said with a laugh. “I usually don’t.”

“I didn’t think so,” Natalie said with a wink. “Because
you’re
the assertive one.”

Wanting to protest but knowing a denial would be pointless, Sarah nodded. “Correct.”

“So. Suzanne. Like her?”

Sarah pursed her lips, thinking about it. “Yeah. I think so.”

“A lot?”

“I’m not sure yet.” With a shrug, she clariÞ ed, “I only spent a couple hours with her.”

“She a good kisser?” Natalie sipped from her glass again, apparently to hide the playful grin on her face.

“Hey!” Sarah said by way of protest, then followed Natalie’s lead and hid her own smile with her glass.

“She is, isn’t she?” Natalie pointed at her, mockingly accusatory.

They both burst into laughter. When each caught her breath, Sarah said, “Yes. She is a
very
good kisser.
Very
good.”

Natalie held up her glass for a toast. “Good for you.” They clinked and sipped.

“I’m having such a good time,” Sarah said suddenly. “I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun.”

“Was it, um, last night, perhaps? With Suzanne the Tongue?”

“No.” Sarah snorted a laugh at the nickname. “I mean like this.” She waved her hand between the two of them as they sat.

“No pressure to impress, no pretenses. Just enjoying somebody else’s company.”

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FINDING HOME

Natalie cocked her head to the side. “Don’t you have any friends, Sarah?” Her voice was teasing, but Sarah wondered if there wasn’t a small amount of honest curiosity to the question.

“Truth is I lost most of them in the divorce.” Sarah gave a half-grin, half-grimace. “The ones who stuck around, I made miserable with my whining, my disdain for my ex, my constant extolling of the unfairness of life, blah, blah, blah. I think they got sick of me. I drove them away.”

“Well, then they weren’t very good friends to begin with.”

“No?”

“No. You went through a breakup, for Christ’s sake. How did they expect you to act? You were in pain. They should have cut you a little slack.”

“Where were you a year ago?” Sarah said, grinning. “I could have used you then.”

“She really hurt you, huh?”

“Understatement of the century.”

“You told me she’s getting married. To a man, I assume?”

“Yep.” Sarah tried to keep her answers light, to act like it didn’t bother her, but she knew by the sympathy in Natalie’s eyes that she was failing miserably. And then she realized she didn’t have to pretend. She didn’t need to fake it with Natalie. She could be herself.

“Ugh. God, that must have sucked.”

Sarah laughed then. She couldn’t help it, it just burst out of her at the complete and totally perfect accuracy of the statement.

“That was exactly it. That’s
exactly
how it was,” she said. “It
sucked
. Karen fell out of love with me—though frankly, I suspect she was never in love with me in the Þ rst place—and in love with Derek and I had no freakin’ idea she even liked guys. How’s that for not knowing your spouse?”

“You’re not sitting there telling me you blame yourself for Karen leaving, are you? It had nothing at all to do with you.”

Sarah blinked at her in disbelief. “Of course it did! How can you say it didn’t? I mean, if I’d been home more, if I’d spent

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GEORGIA BEERS

more time with her and less in the ofÞ ce or something, maybe she wouldn’t have been so quick to leave. Maybe we…” Her words trailed off when Natalie placed a warm hand over hers and interrupted her thoughts with a Þ rmly quiet voice.

“Sweetie, Karen isn’t gay. She prefers to be with a man. It’s as simple as that. That’s not about you, it’s about her. You could have spent twenty-four hours a day with her and it wouldn’t have changed a thing. Her leaving is not your fault. Don’t you see that?”

Sarah hung her head and Þ ddled with the stem of her glass.

Deep down, she knew Natalie spoke the honest and simple truth.

But accepting that she could not change something, no matter what, was a difÞ cult prospect for her. She pressed her lips together and nodded almost imperceptibly. “I guess.”

“God, you’re stubborn,” Natalie said, and squeezed Sarah’s hand affectionately in an attempt to break the tension. With picture-perfect timing, the waiter stopped by with the check, which Sarah took from him. “I’m going to visit the little girls’

room.”

Grinning in self-deprecation, Sarah took care of the bill and left a generous tip, as she always did. Natalie was right. She knew Natalie was right. It was high time she stopped blaming herself for not being able to Þ x something and started looking forward instead of backward all the time. Wondering exactly how one went about turning over a new leaf, she poured the remains of the wine evenly into their glasses and picked hers up. As she lifted it to her lips to sip, her stomach clenched and her breath stuck in her throat at the sight walking toward her.

Karen and Derek were heading up the aisle between tables, his arm around her shoulders, her laugh audible from several yards away. Looking around in an almost blind panic, Sarah could Þ nd no route of escape as they just kept coming.