THE JUNIOR BRIDESMAID (20 page)

“I need you to
leave,” I whispered. “I have an early flight.”

“Delilah!” he
yelled. “You’re going to let her win!”

My eyes winced
shut at his outburst. I could see he was losing control and I was guessing he
was mostly angry with himself. But I couldn’t handle Hugh at that moment. I
certainly couldn’t handle an angry Hugh. It didn’t matter whom that anger was
directed at. I shook my head at him again and managed to open my eyes to look
into his.

“But
I
didn’t let her win.” I knew he was
talking about Stacey. “
You
did. You
threw me under the bus the first chance you got. You didn’t even stop
to consider
giving me the benefit of the
doubt,” I choked on my words. “That’s exactly what Stacey wanted. You gave her
all the ammunition she needed when you had lunch with her that day,” I bounced
the tips of my right fingers against my right thigh before continuing.
“So…congratulations,” I stated flatly not feeling the celebratory mood that
would normally accompany such an expression.

Self control
completely gone, Hugh was clearly all out pissed off. But now I was pretty sure
he was pissed at me. Obviously my words had hit home. If steam could actually
rise from his head it would have. But I was done. My arms folded over my
stomach tightly trying to hold onto my last shred of pride. But, I just
couldn’t bear another moment. So I turned, walked to my intercom, pressed the
button to summon Davis and told him I needed someone escorted out of my
apartment immediately. I didn’t turn to see Hugh’s expression. I couldn’t.

I heard the
elevator ding its arrival almost immediately. I heard the footsteps thudding
loudly on the hallway floor and I could tell Davis had company. In my opened
doorway appeared Davis and directly behind him was Giancarlo. Giancarlo was
hard to miss because he was enormous. The guy must bench press small vehicles.
He was definitely the ‘heavy’ in the scenario. But Giancarlo wasn’t as
emotionally invested as Davis. So Davis couldn’t be underestimated.

“I’m not going
anywhere, Delilah. We aren’t done,” Hugh informed me ignoring Davis and
Giancarlo.

At his words, the
tears that had been threatening breached my lids and began to run down my
cheeks. I kept my back to Hugh so he couldn’t see how devastated I was but I
could tell by the look on Davis’ face that he had caught a glimpse.

“That’s not your decision,”
Davis protectively cut in from the doorway. “Delilah said she wants you gone.
So you’re gone,” he informed Hugh with a confrontational step forward. He was
so determined that even his hat didn’t look as ridiculous as usual.

“This is a big
mistake. A big fucking mistake,” Hugh rushed.

I said nothing
because it was in fact a mistake. But this one wasn’t mine. I had taken
responsibility for the ones I had made. I wasn’t taking responsibility for
everyone else’s. So I turned and made my way down the hall to the empty
bathroom and closed the door leaving Davis and Giancarlo to deal with a
confused, frustrated and very infuriated Hugh. I closed the lid on the toilet
and sat down holding my head in my hands. I could hear Hugh trying to defend
his actions.

“Davis. It was a
misunderstanding. I just didn’t know!” he repeated.

But then Davis
silenced Hugh with his next remark and I couldn’t have said it better myself.

“But, Mr. Rowen,
if you knew Delilah, you should have known.” Wiser words had never been spoken.
At least not when I was the topic of conversation.

My tears began to
flow freely because finally someone understood my position completely. And even
if it wasn’t Hugh or Logan, it was someone who I knew cared about me deeply.
And with Davis’ wise words, which he used to defend me, suddenly I didn’t feel
quite so alone.

“This isn’t over,
Delilah!” Hugh bellowed from my front door.

Then I heard what
sounded like a fist breaking through something. My entire body stilled at the
noise. I even stopped breathing. My mind tried to filter through the objects in
my entrance that could possibly make that sound but I just couldn’t figure what
it could be. I was just hoping he didn’t punch his fist through one of the
wallboards. I wouldn’t have time to have it fixed and that would definitely
cost me my security deposit. I was counting on that security deposit. That
money had already been spent. It was going toward the payment for the movers
who were due to arrive first thing in the morning.

Chapter 16

            Take
off and landing were by far the most taxing aspects of flying. At least they
were for me. But that statement would infer that I found the rest of the
process somewhat relaxing or even tolerable, which was totally untrue. I was a
mess in the air waiting for something tragic to happen. Some people just
stressed before their trip worrying about the intricate details involved in
packing or appropriate airport arrival times. But not me. I worried that the
pilot had a liquid breakfast after learning that his wife was screwing around
with his best friend and finally determined mid-flight that he had little if
nothing to live for.

Sad, but true.

So when the wheels
touched down in Greensboro, NC (it was closer to fly into NC than to fly into a
VA airport) and screeched our arrival I couldn’t be more relieved. Now if I
could just survive the mayhem in the airport and, subsequently, the car ride
with Julia, I should be in decent shape.

            “Dee!”
I heard my name squealed over the banter of the other travelers who were
meeting up with their friends and loved ones. I could see a hand waving above a
few other heads and I knew whose body was attached to those wiggling fingers.
Since all of my belongings were making their way south via a moving company, I
only had a small carry on which held some traveling essentials and a couple of
outfits to get me through the next couple of days.

I adjusted my bag
on my shoulder and weaved around the large group of people in the middle of the
terminal who couldn’t wait to begin their family reunion. Julia emerged from
behind two women, who must be twins because they looked almost identical to
each other, engaged in a tight embrace. I smiled when I finally caught sight of
all of her. She was wearing a cute little sundress, high heels and holding a crudely
designed homemade ‘welcome home’ sign. She looked the same as if I had just
seen her yesterday only her hair was a little shorter and a little blonder. It
hadn’t occurred to me at the time, but Logan’s description of her was perfect.
She was a ‘pepper.’ She hugged me like she hadn’t seen me in years, which was
apropos since she hadn’t, then she hit me gently with her sign.

“You look like
crap. Rough flight?” Julia knew my issues with air travel so she knew it had
been a few hours since I had breathed easy.

“It was fine,” I
exhaled a sigh of relief ignoring her left-handed greeting. I was just happy
that I had two feet on the ground.

As we neared the
exit doors, Julia pulled her sunglasses off of her head and lassoed them onto
her face with a flip of her hair to get it out of the way. “We’re just over
here,” she directed.

“Thanks for coming
to get me, Jules.” Little did I know, but Julia had illegally parked in the ‘No
Parking Zone’ situated directly outside of the exit doors. Had I known this
before we stepped outside I might not have expressed my gratitude at that very
moment. Needless to say there were a lot of angry drivers unable to pull up to
the curb because Julia’s little Fiat was creating an incomprehensible amount of
traffic. In between the near unrelenting honking was a healthy outpouring of
swearing in our direction.

Julia ignored my
gratitude at first so she could confront the driver of the Dodge Viper that had
pulled next to us to inform Julia that she was an asshole.

“Go to hell, you
big jackass!” she yelled giving him the finger. So basically nothing had
changed with Julia in the ten years that I’d been gone. She was just as ornery
and confrontational as always.

Julia turned to me
barking that I should stop dragging my ‘big New York ass’ and get in ‘the
fucking car.’ So I shut up and did what she instructed. Clearly she was maxed
out in the patience department.

A few more fingers
flew left and right and then our escapade culminated with the near collision of
Julia’s car with an old woman who rolled down the window of her paneled station
wagon to call Julia a dipshit.

“Maybe I should
stay at a hotel,” I blurted desperately as her little car jerked forward when
her high heels slipped off the clutch. My hand flew to the dashboard to brace.
I knew staying with her was going to be challenging. I just didn’t anticipate
that my tolerance would be tested so quickly. I probably should have waited a
bit before I shared that tidbit of information. Julia was already jacked up. So
needless to say she didn’t take my suggestion well.

“Are you kidding
me?” she asked rhetorically. “I hauled my ass all the way out here and you are
trying to dis me already? What the hell is that all about?”

Once we merged
onto the highway, I bent forward to bury my head in my bag under the guise of
searching for my sunglasses. “I just don’t want to be a burden,” I mumbled
having trouble locating the glasses that I had started out using as a beard.
“Where the hell are my glasses?” I asked the interior of my bag.

“They’re on your
head,” Julia stated snidely not buying my ‘burden’ excuse.

Oh. I sat up slowly and reached for
my glasses. I slowly slid them down to rest on my nose.

Then I slid my
body down in my seat, put my head back against the headrest and ignored the
entire conversation. Luckily, so did Julia.

            “So
when do you start?” Julia unlocked the front door to her little two bedroom
bungalow pushing the heavy wood door open wide. She was referring to my new
job. Which was taking place in a new city where I would have to find a new
place to live and start a new life. That was a lot of ‘new’ for me to handle
all at once. I really had never mastered the art of multi-tasking.

I had to admit, as
soon as Julia pulled her little Fiat into her loose gravel driveway a feeling
came over me. Longing? Jealousy? Regret? You name it. It flitted through my
mind uninvited. Not because I begrudged Julia of what she worked so hard to
obtain. But because she was completely settled in her life and mine had just
become a simulated version of an egregious game of 52-card-pick-up. Nothing in
my life was the same. Nothing. My home, my job, my friends, my phone number,
not even the man that I’d dreamed of making mine for the last decade. Everyone
got to keep their dream man. Everyone. It was like a given that when your life
turned to shit you could always retreat into the protective corners of your own
mind to live in a fantasy world with the one you always loved but could never
have. But even that dream had died. I got my dream man and then he threw me in
the street. Everything I knew and loved yesterday was gone today. Except for
Julia and my family, of course. But I only called them a couple of times a
month to check in. They weren’t even aware that I was moving back to Virginia.
Every single aspect of my life was beginning anew and I resented every nuance
of it.

“They asked me to
come in tomorrow to fill out some paperwork for security and insurance
purposes. I’m sure they will show me around, introduce me to the staff, stuff
like that,” I downplayed. I stepped into her home and took a look around. It
was darling. The rooms weren’t large but they were all Julia. Most people got
the impression that Julia was modern and edgy. They would be surprised to know
that she was quite traditional and very conservative.

“Okay, well,
tomorrow I have to follow a couple of leads that I am working on. Gossip never
rests.” She walked to the kitchen and swiped something off of the counter. She
turned and came to me with her hand outstretched. “Here’s a key. You can come
and go as you please. If you want, tomorrow morning I can take you to the
rent-a-car place down on Main Street,” she offered. “When does all of your
stuff arrive?” She turned around and walked back into her kitchen. I could see
her through the little window that separated the kitchen from the dining area.
She was washing her hands at the sink and then reached for what looked like a
glass carafe to a coffee pot. Thank God. She must have read my mind because
that is just what I needed. “Still take milk and sugar?” she asked while she
swished water around the pot to rinse out all the bubbles.

“Just milk. My
shipment should arrive some time tomorrow. I’ll be here to receive it,” I
answered as I surveyed the nooks and crannies of her home. “This is just…perfect,
Jules.”

She peeked her
head out of her kitchen trying to ascertain if I was being sarcastic about my
situation or genuine about the surroundings I was admiring. Since I was going
from one surface to the next with a delicate hand she must have assumed the
latter. “This shithole?” She asked with surprise in her tone. She continued
before I answered. “It’s no biggee.”

But it was. It was
to me. I knew Julia was verbally trashing her place so as to make me feel even
more inadequate about my situation. Her house was pristine and decorated with a
caring hand. There was no way that she truly thought of it as a shithole. And
even though I knew her intentions were stemming from a sympathetic place, the
mere act made my circumstances hit home even more. Unwilling to let Julia know
that I was floundering internally I responded with a tentative smile but a
smile none-the-less. “Well I think it’s wonderful.”

“Thanks, Dee.” I
saw Julia press her lips together and take a deep breath. Maybe I wasn’t hiding
my struggle as well as I had hoped. “Listen,” Julia’s tone changed. “We have
plans tonight. I lined up a little reunion for you and me and we are going out
on the town. So. That means if you don’t have something in that little bag of
yours that will do me proud, you better find something in my closet to wear.
Cause there is no way,” her finger came out and took on a life of its own
making jerky movements while pointing at my physique, “that I will be seen with
you wearing those rags.”