“Let me have that little bundle of joy,” Maddie heard her mother, Caroline Sullivan, say after she answered the front door. Maddie could picture her mother reaching out her arms to the wiggling fifteen-month old boy in Lisa’s arms. The sound of her parents’ little dog, Maggie, a toy poodle and something else mix, could be heard barking in excitement before it suddenly became quiet again. Maggie must have been let outside.
“How’s my boy doing today?” her mother asked in the voice that adults used with babies. Maddie smiled at the sound from her spot in the kitchen. “You come into the kitchen, young man, and tell me all about it while I get you a cookie.” The little boy giggled with glee at the mention of a cookie and babbled incoherently. Only a few words came out clear. “I think Ethan can say a few more words. Good boy!”
“I wish that I could tell you not to encourage him, Caroline, but I can’t,” Lisa said in return as she followed them through the hallway to the kitchen located in the back of the Sullivan house. “He’s been talking my ear off all day. I just nod my head. I don’t know how you did it, raising six kids. This one exhausts me.”
“You get used to it, Lisa. You’re doing well, all things considered.” The smell of baking chocolate chip cookies filled the air, and Lisa commented on it just before they came into view. Maddie had removed another batch from the oven and was using the spatula to move the warm cookies from the sheet to the countertop. She greeted them and handed Ethan one of the cooler cookies that came out of the first batch. Mitzi, her mother’s cat, wrapped herself around Lisa’s legs and began to purr. Mitzi was just one of Maddie’s strays that had found a home in the Sullivan house. Maggie was the other.
“You spoil him too much. He loves it, of course,” Lisa said as she picked up a cookie for herself. “Thank you for filling in tonight, Caroline. I didn’t know what I would do if you weren’t available as my emergency babysitter. My dad’s out of town for his spring conference, and my usual Saturday sitter was out of town, too.”
Her brown eyes crinkled up in the corners as she smiled and took a bite. Her expression showed pure bliss. Caroline’s cookies were famous amongst the Sullivan family and friends. She even won a ribbon for the recipe one year at the county fair. They were definitely something to be experienced and not just eaten. Ethan’s eyes, so like Lisa’s, sparkled as he began to messily eat his cookie. Caroline quickly put him in the highchair that was sitting by the breakfast table while she told Lisa not to mention it.
“Well Maddie,” Lisa said as she sat down at a counter stool, “how was your date last night? Did you have a good time?”
How was her date last night? What a question. She was still flying high. She barely got any sleep because she kept reliving every minute of her date with Rick. The date was wonderful. He was wonderful. His kiss was wonderful. She just about melted on the spot when she felt his lips on hers and his strong arms go around her. When she realized that she hadn’t answered Lisa’s question, yet, she smiled dreamily.
“That good, huh? Well, it’s about time. So tell me all about it.”
“You went out on a date last night, Maddie?” Maddie’s mother came back and joined the conversation. “I guess it went well if your expression is anything to go by. I didn’t know that you were dating anyone. You never mentioned it.” She looked curiously at Maddie’s happy face, so like her own. Then after a quick glance at Lisa, she looked back at Maddie. “Do I know him?”
“Maddie went on a blind date last night,” Lisa supplied that information. “It looks like three times is the charm. Rick must have really made an impression. Maddie is positively glowing. I’ll have to tell Steve that it went well.”
“My date with Rick went very well, and yes, Mom, you do know him. As it turned out, Rick was Rick Davidson.” Maddie’s mother quickly drew in a breath but remained silent. When Lisa began to prompt for details, Maddie smiled and sighed. “We met at the restaurant as planned then went to the ball game.”
“The ball game?” Lisa’s face showed both horror and humor at that bit of news. “OMG, Maddie! A ball game is something that you do on a third or fourth date. What happened to the restaurant? You did eat at the restaurant, didn’t you?”
“No, we ate at the game. I had a problem with the dress while we waited to be seated, so we left. We changed at my place then went to the game. Rick was great. It was so nice to see him again. Mom, did you know that Rick was back in town?”
“I had heard something to that effect, yes. I ran into Kathy a few months ago. How is he? I heard that he went through a rough patch there after being injured. You didn’t know about that?” At Maddie and Lisa confused expressions and head shakes, she continued, “Kathy said that he lost a foot and uses a prosthetic now.”
“He didn’t say anything, and I didn’t see any difference in how he walked,” Maddie exclaimed. The news about his injury came as a big surprise. Why didn’t he tell her? It didn’t make any difference to her if he had an artificial limb. He was still a wonderful, intelligent, attractive man. That must have been why he acted so nervous at times. He didn’t know how to tell her or how she would respond.
“He was probably worried about telling you,” Lisa said. “You know how men are. They don’t want a woman to see them as weak or less than a man. Now you know. I wonder if Steve knows? He said that Rick is one of the best paramedics that he works with at the station. He said that the trauma center doctors and nurses all agree that Rick is the best one with accident victims. So your date went very well. Spill. I want details.”
“So do I,” Maddie’s mother said as she sat down on the other stool.
Maddie told them about her date with Rick. She knew that she was gushing when she talked. She couldn’t help it. She could even feel herself blush when she told them that Rick kissed her, but she didn’t go into details about the kiss. Her mom was sitting there. It was a little too weird talking about that part with her mom sitting there. Lisa would call her later for more details. She stopped talking altogether when her two younger brothers and her father came into the kitchen to grab handfuls of cookies and glasses of milk.
“Mark just scored and put Toronto up by one,” Kelly told them before he stuffed a whole cookie in his mouth and followed the other two back to the man cave in the basement.
He had been talking about Mark playing in the Stanley Cup semifinal game against Boston. Because of the playoffs, Mark wouldn’t be in Iowa the next day to see Kelly graduate. He would be missed, but if his team won, then it would tie up the best of seven series and force a final game in Boston on Monday. Kevin’s team had been knocked out of the playoffs in the quarterfinals, so he and Clarissa were flying in that afternoon from Dallas.
“Well, I would love to hear more, but I need to get to the hospital.” Lisa stood up and walked over to give her son a kiss and a hug. Then she motioned for Maddie to walk with her out to her car. Maggie was waiting to come back inside, and Maddie almost stepped on her when the dog ran through her legs. They were outside and next to Lisa’s car before Lisa said, “Is sounds like you and Rick really hit it off. I’m happy for you, Maddie. I really am. I was beginning to think that you wouldn’t become interested in anyone again after you and Tom broke up. Listen, I know that your brother and Rick have a history. Don’t let that stop you from seeing Rick if you want to keep seeing him.”
“I won’t.”
“Good. I have some news of my own. Remember me telling you how I needed to make some changes professionally. I applied for a position at the cancer center yesterday. Now that I have my master’s degree, I can work as an advance practice oncology nurse. There’s an opening at the cancer center for one. I’ll miss the hospital if I get the job, but I really want to help cancer patients. Plus, if I get the job, I’ll be working day hours. That will definitely help with daycare. I haven’t told Steve, yet. If I get it, he and I will be able to spend a little more time together, too. It’s a little difficult dating someone when you work on opposite shifts.”
“I hope that you get it, Lisa, and not just because of the day hours. You’d be an excellent oncology nurse. You’ll get it. I just hope that it won’t be too painful for you to be there.” Maddie couldn’t stop the worry from entering her voice. She remembered what Lisa dealt with in the past. Lisa lost her mother and older sister to ovarian cancer years earlier, and three years ago went through her own breast cancer scare. Maddie and her mother were there to help Lisa through the biopsy and what followed, but some memories were still very raw and painful. It took a lot of strength to work in oncology. That was what Lisa wanted to do, however, and Maddie would support her in any way that she could.
“I haven’t told Steve about that yet, either,” Lisa said referring to her one battles. “We’ve only gone out for a month, and the time just never felt right. He knows about mom and Jill, just not about me.”
Maddie pulled her into a hug then stepped back to look at Lisa’s face. A worried crease ran across her brow line, and she bit her lip. “Lisa, if you want your relationship to move forward, he has to know. Tell him before you both get too emotionally invested.”
“I will. We’re going out on Friday. I have to go. I’m already running behind.”
A rental car pulled into the driveway and parked behind Maddie’s car just as Maddie gave Lisa another hug. Maddie looked at the occupant and groaned. Great! Kevin arrived, alone that time, and Lisa was still at the house. Why did he come early and alone?
She didn’t know why it was, but Kevin and Lisa rubbed each other the wrong way ever since the first day that they met. She put the blame on Kevin, who was always the first to instigate trouble. How would he begin that day? It would either be with an insult or a snub. He usually pretended that Lisa wasn’t there, but every once in a while he would say something that made Maddie want to club him. He didn’t appear to be happy to see Lisa, so Maddie’s money was on an insult. Lisa didn’t appear to be happy to see him, either.
“Well, well, well! Nurse Ratched is here to greet me,” Kevin said as he got out of the driver’s seat and called Lisa by the name of the unfeeling nurse from One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Maddie looked at him and wondered what his problem was and why he could blow so hot and cold at times. He could be an extremely nice guy when he wanted to be. He was usually very personable. He was also handsome with brown hair, blue eyes, and a tall, athletic body. Maddie knew that women found him attractive. But Kevin could also be a real jerk, like now and every time he was around Lisa.
“At least I’ve read the book, Einstein.” Good! Lisa was going to give a little of her own back that day. Usually, she just tried to ignore him. “You should try it sometime. Reading, that is. You do know how to read, don’t you?” Lisa walked around to her driver’s door and opened it up. With a final farewell to Maddie, she climbed in and closed the door. Kevin stood by and watched her with a mysteriously sad expression on his face as she pulled out and drove away. Maddie almost felt sorry for him. Almost.
“You walked into that one,” she told him before she turned around and headed back onto the front porch of the two-story cedar and brick house that had been the Sullivan home for Maddie’s entire life. It sat on a five-acre lot north of the city and along Mud Creek. Kevin grabbed his suitcase and followed her. “Why are you always mean to Lisa? She’s my best friend.”
“I’m not always mean to Lisa. I like her. She’s genuine and has spunk.” They entered the foyer to the sounds of Maggie barking at Kevin’s feet, Ethan crying in the kitchen, and the telephone ringing. “I forgot how much of a madhouse this place could be. Maggie, shut up!” The little dog shook with nervous energy when Kevin yelled at it then urinated on his feet. Kevin swore then kicked his shoes off before he let Maggie outside. Maddie laughed at his thunderous expression and walked into the kitchen to see to Ethan.
“Maddie, I’ll take care of Ethan. The phone’s for you,” her mother told her as she handed Maddie the phone. Ethan was crying because his cookie fell on the floor. Kevin walked in and grabbed paper towels and soapy water. He grumbled the entire time about Maddie and her stray animals. It was too noisy to talk in the kitchen, so Maddie took the phone into her father’s study before she closed the door. Quiet, at last!
“Hello, this is Maddie.”
She sat down in her father’s desk chair and leaned back into the plush red leather. Her father’s office was filled with dark wood wainscoting, a big wooden desk that he imported after a trip to England, two heavy chairs, and a deep burgundy leather couch with nailhead trim. Bookshelves lined one wall, and papers and knickknacks covered the desk’s surface. The room smelled of pipe tobacco and lemon furniture polish. The room looked and smelled like it should belong to someone stuffy. Her father could never be called “stuffy.”
Maddie always loved this room. It was just like her father, at first glance formal and formidable, until you saw the whimsical superhero and science fiction knickknacks. That’s when you realized that looks could be deceiving and it paid to look beyond your first impressions and preconceived ideas. She always tried to remember that when dealing with people. It wasn’t always easy.
A female voice came on the line and reminded her about the call. She didn’t immediately recognize the woman until the woman identified herself.
“Maddie. Hi, this is Kathy Davidson. Did I call at a bad time?”
“Kathy! Hello.” She leaned forward again in the chair. “No, you called at a perfect time. There’s just a lot going on around here, as usual. You know how it is.”
“I do at that. The reason that I called was to get your home number from your mom. But since you’re at your parents’ house... I know it’s short notice, but I was wondering if you’d be interested in playing on our softball team this summer. The company sponsors a co-ed team every year, and we’re short a female player. We could really use you if you’re interested in playing. Rick thought that you might be interested.”
“He said that?” A warm glow began to enter Maddie’s body at Rick’s name. Several images of him from the night before flashed through her mind. She couldn’t decide which one she liked more, his shy smile, the lopsided grin, or the hot stare filled with desire when he looked at her. Her insides definitely danced with that one. Playing with the team would be perfect, not only because she loved to play but also because it would be a great way to get to know Rick and his family better. “When do you play?”
“We play on Tuesdays at the Hawkeye Softball Complex, but we practice on Sundays at seven at the high school.”
“Sign me up. I can’t practice tomorrow, though. Kelly’s graduating.”
“That’s great, Maddie! Don’t worry about practice. Our first game is on Tuesday at six. It will be great having you on the team. I’ll put you down on the roster right now and cover your fee until you can pay me back. I better let you go. The kids are arriving back from fishing. See you on Tuesday. Bye.”
“Bye.”
The warm glow and happy expression on Maddie’s face stayed with her when she went back to the kitchen. The house had calmed down. Her mother was removing the last batch of cookies from a tray at the counter and was filling the sink with dishwater. She hummed a Beatles tune and swayed her hips and shoulders while she worked. Surprisingly, Kevin was playing with Ethan in the family room instead of watching the hockey game with the others. They were rolling a ball back and forth between them on the floor, and Ethan laughed whenever the ball came his way. Kevin had an indulgent smile on his face when he watched Ethan, and periodically he would give encouragement to the little boy.
Maddie had never seen Kevin act so involved with a child before. She was always under the impression that he didn’t want children, yet there he was acting downright fatherly, and to Lisa’s son, no less. Now, she could see Rick acting that way. He was always good with children.
Her excitement about Rick increased with the thought. She didn’t want to get her hopes up too quickly, but she could envision Rick doing the same thing with their child that Kevin was doing with Ethan. That was jumping the gun, she knew that, but she couldn’t help it. She was that attracted to Rick, and she believed that he was just as attracted to her. There was an instant connection between them. She may not be the most experienced woman out there, but she knew that she hadn’t read his signals incorrectly. Tuesday couldn’t come soon enough. The phone rang again and broke up the train of her thoughts.
“I got it,” she said as she reached for the phone that was sitting on the coffee table. “Hello.”
“Maddie,” Clarissa said at the other end. Her voice was clipped, as it usually was when talking to another woman, and Maddie mentally rolled her eyes. She just didn’t get what Kevin or men, in general, saw in Clarissa. She was like an empty box wrapped in Christmas paper, pretty to look at but with nothing there. Maddie had tried to like her, to be nice to her, to find positive things about her, but she just couldn’t. She was too fake. “Put Kevin on the phone. I know that he’s there by now, and I want to talk to him.”
“Hello, Clarissa. It’s nice to hear from you, too,” Maddie said with as much sweetness as she could add without completely sounding false. “He’s right here.” She handed the phone to Kevin who appeared to be less than pleased that his wife was on the phone. Something was going on there. They probably had another fight. After handing him the phone, she picked up Ethan and went back to the kitchen. “Clarissa for Kevin,” she told her mother when her mother raised her eyebrows in question.
“Kevin said that she had a wedding to go to in Dallas, and that’s why she didn’t come with him,” her mother told her while she washed the dishes. “Kerri and Jake will be here shortly, so you can help me start supper soon. I picked up some steaks and potatoes. There’s asparagus in the fridge...”
“Kerri and Jake are coming?” Maddie exclaimed with surprise. “Why didn’t she tell me that they were coming? Are they bringing Momoko?”
“Maddie, you really need to check your email more often. She sent us their flight information last week.” Her mother shook her head in exasperation and went back to rinsing off the cookie sheet. Maddie couldn’t blame her for being exasperated. Maddie’s lack of computer savvy was a running joke in the family.
“My computer isn’t working. What did she say? How long will they be here? Will they be here for Memorial weekend?” She hadn’t seen Kerri and Jake since their wedding over Christmas, although they talked via Skype and emailed each other fairly regularly once Kelly helped her set them up. That was until Maddie’s laptop broke. She dropped it a few weeks ago, and it hadn’t worked since. Next week she would bring it over and have her father or Kelly look at it.
“No, they’ll only be here until Friday,” Maddie’s mother said as she let the water out of the sink. “Now that the figure skating season is over, they’re combining a little business with pleasure. Momoko wants to go to Disney World, so they’re going there over the holiday. After that, they’re headed to France on some business and so that Momoko can see her mother. There’s a young female skater that shows a lot of promise, and she’s moving to Japan to train with Jake and Kerri. Kerri said that the phone hasn’t stopped ringing since the Olympics.”
Maddie’s sister, Kerri, retired from competitive skating the previous autumn and joined Jake, her coach and new husband, in coaching the current female figure skating gold medal winner. Although, Kerri would end her long and successful career without the gold, she found love and happiness with her coach, Jake Takeda, and his daughter Momoko. Maddie couldn’t be happier for the three of them. It took Kerri going to Japan for her to find her future.
“Now, I have a question for you, young lady. Things appeared to go well between you and Rick last night, and I imagine that you want to see him again. How much?
“A lot. I know that Kevin and Rick...”
“I’m not worried about that, Maddie. Kevin will just have to deal with it. The reason that I ask is that I know you. You tend to see the bright side on everything and always expect the best. Those are fine qualities, and we could all do with more of them ourselves. You are also the type of person who likes to take care of people. We could all be more nurturing, too. But, Maddie, I’m afraid that you might jump into a relationship with Rick too quickly or expect too much from both of you. You have a good heart, and so does Rick. I just want you to be careful. I don’t want you to get hurt like you were after you and Tom broke up.”
“Mom, things are different between Rick and me. Tom and I...I was hurt after Tom left, sure. We were together for four years. But, you know, there was a part of me that was also relieved when he told me that he wanted to break up and he left, too, because deep down I didn’t want to marry him. I got over him, and I’m fine, now. We weren’t right for each other, and a part of me knew that when we were dating.”
She put down the dishtowel that she was using to dry dishes and walked over to the table. Ethan was on the floor playing with a truck, and Maggie was sniffing around him. When Maggie licked his face and he started to giggle, Maddie smiled and sat down. Her mother sat down next to her.
“Maddie, take it slow with Rick for both your sakes. Rick is still adjusting to a lot of things. He’s not the same man you remember him being. War changes a person. You need to look at him as he is now, get to know him as he is now, and not as he was back when you had a crush on him. Yes, I know all about that. Don’t be so surprised.” Her mother had a gentle smile on her face, but Maddie could see the strain around her eyes. Was there something that her mother wasn’t telling her?
“I will. I promise. We only went out once, that’s all, and I’ll see him again on Tuesday at softball. Kathy asked me to join their team. Mom, you don’t have to be worried about Rick and me.”
“Rick, who?” Kevin asked as he came into the kitchen and pulled out a chair. Ethan saw him and waddled over to him with excitement. The dark look on Kevin’s face softened into a smile when Ethan said something that vaguely resembled Kevin’s name. When he reached Kevin’s side, Kevin bent down and helped him climb onto his lap.
Maddie looked at her mother’s face then looked back at Kevin. She might as well tell him now rather than later. Maybe they would finally get the whole story of what happened between him and Rick. There was more to it than just Kevin marrying Clarissa.
“Rick Davidson,” Maddie told him. There was a flash of guilt that went across Kevin’s face before it turned to anger. “Rick and I were set up on a blind date last night. We had a lot of fun, and I’m going to play softball on his brothers’ team this summer. And before you ask, I plan on going out with him again.” Kevin’s eyes bore into hers before he stood up with Ethan in his arms.
“I don’t want you to see him. But you’re an adult, and you’ll do what you want no matter what I say.” He walked to the stairs leading down to the basement with Ethan in his arms. He paused only once to pick up a couple of cookies. They heard the door at the top of the stairs close and looked at each other, both perplexed about what the real story was behind Kevin’s animosity.
“Well, that went better than I thought it would,” her mother finally said before she smiled at Maddie. “Don’t worry about him. He’ll come around. Maybe this is what we need to finally get to the truth. Clarissa was only part of the problem. Rick was like another son to us. Maddie, don’t be afraid to bring him around if he wants to come. I would like to see him again. Just take it slow.”
“I will. What’s with Kevin’s sudden interest in children?”
“Beats me. He’s almost thirty-one and will have been married for eight years in August. I suppose it’s his biological clock ticking away.”
Maddie laughed at that and said,” Men don’t have biological clocks.”
“Oh, Maddie. You’d be surprised.”