Awakenings - SF1 (55 page)

Morris & Foster traditionally held a very large, very elegant New Year's Eve party for partners and their spouses. Jamie had never been invited and she had never regretted the oversight. But this year her father had broached the subject just after Thanksgiving. After the disagreement they had she was more amenable to doing small things to please him but she was very leery of attending this party. She rather doubted that Jack would want to go since he seemed almost agoraphobic lately but she decided to ask him anyway just so she could tell her father that she had brought it up.

She was as surprised as she had ever been when Jack's reaction turned out to be not only favorable, but downright enthusiastic. "I think that would be a lot of fun," he said with more enthusiasm than she had heard all year. "It'll give us a chance to get dressed up for a change. I would love to be able to dance with you when you're all sexy looking," he said winsomely.
Dance
, she thought with surprise.
He dances?

As the day approached Jamie spent a fairly enjoyable afternoon with her mother shopping for new dresses. Catherine probably had enough formalwear to clothe a small fashion deprived country but she hated to wear the same dress twice so she needed something too. At her current weight Jamie could have easily worn one of her mother's dresses but Catherine would not hear of it. "My things are far too mature for you, Dear. You need something that fits your age and your style." And so they descended on the small shops of the South Bay.

The recent glut of Internet and software millionaires in the Silicon Valley created a new market for formalwear and Jamie was surprised at how many little shops now dotted the tree lined streets of the small towns from Hillsborough down through San Jose. Luckily since many of the nouveau millionaires were in their 20's and 30's the dresses were much more to Jamie's taste. She finally decided on a nice little navy blue velvet dress that Catherine wholeheartedly approved of.

On the day of the party she waited until she was alone in the house to page Ryan. She had just seen Ryan the day before but she hadn't remembered to even ask her about her plans for the night. She assumed she would be with Tracy but she still felt the need to wish her a Happy New Year.

Minutes later her phone rang. "You rang?" Ryan's cheerful voice asked.

"I forgot to wish you a Happy New Year," she said. "I couldn't let that oversight ruin my evening."

"Your evening? Ha! What about my evening? I would have been the one without your good wishes. You could have ruined a whole year for me, Jamie," she teased. "I hope you're more careful in the future!"

"Maybe I should just call you every day and give you my good wishes."

"Now that's the best idea you've had in weeks," Ryan said happily. "I'll expect your call from here on in. So what are you up to tonight?"

"We're going to a big formal party at The Fairmont Hotel," she said with much less enthusiasm than Ryan thought normal.

"Well
,
that sounds pretty cool. Do you have a new dress?" she asked, knowing Jamie's penchant for shopping.

"Yep. Navy blue velvet. I look pretty good in it if I do say so myself," she said with a light chuckle.

"I've known you since August and I've yet to see you look anything but fabulous," Ryan said. "But I would bet navy blue velvet is just perfect for you given your hair color and skin tone. Jack will be the envy of every guy there."

"So what are you two up to?" Jamie asked, momentarily nonplussed that Ryan had obviously spent some time assessing her physical attributes.

"We're going to a big party at The Mark Hopkins," Ryan said.

"Really? That surprises me a bit. I thought you didn't like large gatherings."

"I don't. But you have to make some sacrifices for a relationship," she said wisely.

Tell that to Jack
, she thought, but decided to keep her gripes to herself. "Is this for girls only?"

"Yep. It's put on by one of the promoters who puts on big weekend parties in the City. I told Tracy I'd take her anywhere she wanted to go and this is what she chose."

"Do you have a new dress?" Jamie taunted.

"I have my version of a new dress," she conceded with a little laugh.

"And what might that be? Did you find formal jeans?"

"No, but that does sound appealing. Maybe I should have spent more than 10 minutes shopping."

"Come on, tell me what you bought. I'm not familiar with formal lesbian attire."

"Well the dress code is pretty darn flexible. I guarantee the diversity of my group will surpass yours," she teased.

"Spill it, O'Flaherty."

"Okay, I bought some black leather pants and a white pleated shirt...kind of a woman's tuxedo shirt. It's got little bitty black studs rather than buttons." She paused for a moment and said, "Jamie, are you still there?"

Jamie physically slapped her head to make her brain start to work again. "My cell phone must have blanked out for a second," she said hurriedly. "Your outfit sounds cute. I'd like to see it someday."
Yeah, like tomorrow
, she thought dejectedly.
I'd rather tag along on Ryan's date than hang out with a bunch of lawyers. And I sure can't imagine a person who would look better in leather pants.

"I hope you have a very good time tonight, Jamie. I send you every good wish for the New Year. But you'll have to wait for your kiss," she promised.

"Happy New Year, Ryan. I hope you and Tracy have a wonderful evening. Make sure you pay attention so you can tell me all about the unique outfits."

"Will do, Buddy. I'll call you tomorrow."

Dinner was scheduled for 8 o'clock and Jack showed up right on time at 7. Jim and Catherine had arranged for the firm's limo to pick them up and Jamie decided that it made sense to all ride together.

Jamie came down the stairs to the appreciative gazes of both her father and Jack. "Wow," was all that Jack could get out.

"You look wonderful, Honey," Jim gushed as he walked to the stairs to kiss her cheek.

"Thank you both," she said as she waited for Jack's kiss. "You look pretty wonderful yourself," she said softly as he leaned in for a kiss. He had purchased a tuxedo for himself, figuring that he would need one once he started his full time job. He asked his law review partner to help him pick it out and Jamie had to admit that Natalie's taste was exquisite. The suit was quite traditional but it had a shawl collar which set his broad shoulders off quite attractively. It was impeccably tailored and Jamie knew that it had cost more than he could comfortably afford but she had to admit that it looked fabulous on him. His wing collar white shirt and black tie completed the traditional look but he looked anything but stodgy. She thought that he had never looked more handsome and she began to feel a little better about attending the party.
If he cares enough to dress this carefully he must really want to attend
, she thought.
Maybe he really does want to cut loose for a change.

Catherine made her entrance a short time later and gracefully accepted the compliments of the small crowd. She also looked particularly lovely this evening. A deep emerald green silk cocktail dress showed off both her figure and her pale blonde hair to good advantage.

"Shall we?" Jim asked as he took Catherine's arm to lead her to the waiting limo.

The evening started off well enough. Dinner was the standard hotel banquet room fare: nothing special except the prices. They sat at a table with the other senior members of the firm but the ambient noise forced them to speak mostly to each other. But as soon as dinner was finished Jim invited Jack to join him and the other senior partners down in the bar to have a cigar. Jamie watched in horror as Jack immediately agreed.
He doesn't smoke!
she thought in alarm.
That is such a disgusting habit!
And he'll reek of the smell all night long,
she groused to herself.

She was in quite a little funk when Catherine leaned over and said, "You may as well get used to it, Honey. These events are not made for us. It's just an extension of the office. Our job is to look good and not get drunk enough to cause a scene," she laughed wryly at her own joke but Jamie caught the bitter edge to her voice. "I'm having vodka tonight. How about you?"

"I think I'll stick with Champagne," she said since she had already had a glass.

Catherine called the waiter over and signaled for him to come closer, "I'd like an Absolut on the rocks and a bottle of decent Champagne."

"We're serving Mumm's tonight, Ma'am," he informed her politely.

"I know what you're serving but that's not what we're drinking," she said sweetly. "I'd like a bottle of Crystal. I can sign for it separately," she decreed.

"Yes ma'am," he said as he snapped to it. A few minutes later Jamie was sipping the excellent Champagne while various wives and fellow partners paid homage to her mother.

When they were alone for a moment Jamie asked, "Do you really know all of these people?"

"I know quite a few of them. We've been friends with some of these people since we were your age," she laughed. "But many of them are complete strangers. I have no idea why they insist on talking to me. It's not like you father quizzes me at the end of the evening, 'So Catherine, did all of the partners and their wives kiss your
ring?'
"

Jamie laughed at her mother's usually hidden sense of humor.
She's kind of fun when Daddy's not around
, she thought to herself.

After a while a well dressed woman who looked a little older than Catherine came up and asked, "Could I have a word with you in private, dear?"

Catherine looked like she wanted to refuse but she got up and followed the woman to the side of the room. It was almost 10 when the men returned. They reeked of cigar smoke and Jamie felt a little nauseous when Jack sat next to her and spoke in her direction. But she had no interest in making a big deal about it so she tried to ignore the strong odor. After a few minutes he asked her to dance and she accepted mostly to see if he really knew how. They had never been in a situation that required them to dance and she hoped that he had some idea of what to do since she didn't think it would be wise to lead.

Her mouth nearly hit her chest as he gracefully placed one hand behind her back and grasped her other hand in his. As the music started he led her around the floor as though he had been dancing for years. He seemed so self-assured and elegant that she had to question her long held perceptions of him. They didn't speak as they danced but that didn't bother her one bit. She just let him lead her with his calm but determined manner.

They remained on the dance for a several more songs and when they returned to their table he looked at her with his normal boyish face and whispered, "How'd I do?"

She sat back in her chair to regard him for a moment. He looked like nothing but a young boy seeking approval from his teacher for a well written essay. "You dance beautifully Jack," she said sincerely. "I had no idea that you knew how."

"I didn't," he said rather proudly.

"But how...?"

"When you invited me I knew I couldn't stumble around looking stupid so I signed up for lessons," he said with a big boyish grin.

"You...you took dance lessons?
"Yeah. It's important to look like you belong, Jamie," he explained patiently.

"I think I get that," she said, trying to hold the edge from her voice. "But when did you have time to take lessons?"

"Natalie and I took a course together. She didn't know how either so it seemed like a good way to learn," he explained happily.

"You took dance lessons?" she asked for the second time; still unable to get her mind around the concept.

"Yes, Jamie, this evening is important to me," he said as he gave her a little squeeze.

She had never considered herself slow. As a matter of fact she usually thought that she caught on rather quickly. That's why this revelation hit her with such force.
How stupid am I? I honestly believed he wanted to come to this party to be with me!
She silently berated herself for a few minutes and shortly thereafter her father whisked Jack away for 'face time' with some of the other important people at the party.

She had to force herself to adopt a pleasant countenance after Jack departed. When she really thought about it she had to admit that she had rarely felt so alone. The walls of the huge banquet room seemed to be closing in on her and she fervently wished she was at home watching 'Dick Clark's New Years Rockin' Eve', never one of her favorite shows, but supremely more enjoyable than this debacle. Turning to her mother, she caught a look of unguarded despair on the older woman's normally placid face. The look was so heart rending that she quickly averted her gaze to avoid making her uncomfortable. "You'll never survive a lifetime of these events if you don't learn how to drink, Jamie," her mother's voice floated past her ear a few minutes later. "You've barely had a full glass."

Just then the waiter ambled past. Jamie looked up at him and asked in a clear voice, "Morphine and soda please."

Ryan was dressed and ready to roll at 9 o'clock. Martin had insisted that she take his truck for the evening since he would be at work and would have no need for it. "It's not wise to be gallivanting around on New Year's Eve on a motorcycle," he decreed. Rather than risk worrying him Ryan had dropped him off at work in the afternoon.