First Class to New York (6 page)

Janie soaked in the giant bathtub, relaxing in the warm
water, her eyes closed. Her mind flitted back and forth over the last 20 years;
memories of the boys and Robert fishing, photographs of their annual campout to
Frog Lake on Mt. Hood - no females allowed, high school graduation, Christmas
mornings, Robert lying in a hospital bed - frail and pale, the boys stoic on
either side of her at his funeral. All the memories were there, the good and
the bad. They had enjoyed a good life together, no regrets. Janie smiled as her
thoughts drifted back to the boys. Next year they would graduate from college
and then they would go off and start a new life. Adam was thinking about med
school in New Jersey and Tyler wanted an MBA from Harvard. They would leave
their roots in Portland and head off on their own path, leaving Janie. To what?
Once the boys don’t need me anymore, what then? Do they even need me now?
Janie
sighed,
Probably not.

Janie sat up and grabbed for the sea sponge and rubbed it up
her arm over the tops of her breasts. Matt’s face appeared in her mind and she
closed her eyes and shook her head violently. She could still feel his hand
resting on her wet t-shirt, still hear the words ‘You’re definitely hot’ roll
off his tongue. She could still feel his lips on hers and his thumbs caressing
her cheeks. She blushed at the thought. Her nipples hardened and she felt a
longing in between her legs. She was turned on by a memory, by a look, just by
his innocent touch.
Lord have mercy!
And Janie pulled the plug and
climbed out of the tub.

*****

Sunday morning was spent having breakfast and reading The
Times. That’s what everyone did in the movies, so that’s what she was going to
do. Room service delivered her bagel and cream cheese and a pot of hot coffee.
Feeling like a real New Yorker, Janie sat up in bed with the paper spread all
over her moving from one section to another.

At 11am, Janie took a long hot shower, making sure her
armpits were perfectly clean shaven, as her dress would not be hiding any
foliage growing under there. She deep conditioned her hair, hoping that it
would behave and not frizz, and she shaved her legs out of habit. She stood
under the flow of water anticipating how the night would go, excitement in the
pit of her stomach. She had seen pictures in magazines of events like this and
the thought that she got to be a part of it, just once, was amazing to her, to
say the least.

She wondered what Matt would wear and was sure he was going
to be sexy as hell in a tux. He was sexy in a dark grey suit, in blue jeans,
and a dark blue suit.
Hell, he’s just plain sexy!
Once again Janie found
her breathing a little shallow and her face flushed. “What that man does to me
is beyond words,” Janie muttered, and turned off the shower.

Still feeling very self-conscious about the “eating” remark
Matt made at the restaurant, Janie ordered room service around 3pm. She wanted
to be able to eat politely at dinner, but not inhale all that was placed in
front of her. After signing the receipt and handing over another tip, Janie
wondered if the size of the bill was worth her pride. She ate her sandwich and
finished the fries and hoped it would sustain her.

*****

Ray pulled the black BMW in front of the hotel and Matt
jumped out and strode in with purpose. He headed straight to the elevator and
once inside pushed the number 16 button and waited for the doors to slowly close.
He fidgeted with his tie, pulled on his shirt sleeves and checked the cuffs of
his pants. It was precisely 6:55pm when he stood outside Janie’s door and he
took a deep breath. He was going for it. Two weeks would be long enough for him
to have some fun, show Janie a good time, and then she could head back to
Portland, leaving him to move on and recapture his focus. Yes, he would have
her. He lifted his hand and knocked.

*****

 “I love you too Adam.” Janie pushed the OFF button on her
phone and placed it in her new silver clutch. Adam had called to check on his
mom and Janie had wondered who the parent was. She loved talking to her boys
and he had been excited to tell her about his weekend game. The Beavers had
beaten Cal and Adam had hit his first homer of the season.

KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK. The sound surprised Janie. She was just
about to head down to the lobby to meet Matt. She wasn’t expecting anyone.

Janie walked quickly to the door and opened it. There stood
Matt and her breath caught in her throat.
He is beautiful!
she thought.
He was dressed in an elegant black tux with a perfectly tied bowtie. He was
looking at her with wide eyes and his mouth was open; he looked surprised?

Janie immediately looked down and wondered if she was not
appropriately dressed. He still had not spoken and Janie stopped breathing.
Shit!
What was I thinking? I must look like a country bumpkin!
She had left her
hair down, trying to make soft curls to frame her face. She had purchased a
simple necklace with a lone diamond pendant that sat just at the top of her
cleavage. She wore simple diamond studs in her ears and a silver cuff bracelet
on her left wrist. And she had added the last touch of rosy pink lipstick,
something she rarely wore.

She stepped backwards and Matt took a step towards her.
Janie took another step backwards and Matt again stepped towards her, now being
able to close the door behind him.

“You are breathtaking,” he whispered. “Absolutely
breathtaking.”

Janie looked up and saw his expression changing. His mouth
curved into a big smile and his eyes twinkled.
Maybe I look okay?
Janie
thought.

“You look beautiful.”

“Thank you,” she blushed red.
I must look okay
.

Matt took the last step between them and reached for her
hand and lifted it to his lips. His lips were warm and soft and he closed his
eyes as he kissed her. Janie’s knees almost buckled at his touch. He lowered
her hand away from his mouth but didn’t let go. “I think we have a dinner to go
to” and he guided her from the room.

*****

The car pulled up to the front of the hotel where the
fundraiser was being held, a that Janie did not recognize. A man in a bellman’s
uniform opened the door. She swung her legs around and her feet touched red
carpet.
Oh my
, thought Janie. Before she could stand up, Matt had raced
around and was offering his hand to help her out. She stood, straightening her
dress and was startled by a camera flash. Janie’s eyes swept in the direction
of the light and found herself looking at a throng of cameras, with many of
their operators yelling at Matt.

“Mr. Lathem, this way.” “Mr. Lathem, a picture please?”
“Matt, who’s your date?”

Janie was immediately tense as she realized all these people
were taking pictures of them. Matt leaned in and whispered, “A couple of photos
and they’ll be happy.”

Janie felt comforted that he did not let go of her hand but
rather intertwined their fingers as he turned them to face the cameramen. For
about 4 seconds, Janie was blinded by the offending flashes and then Matt guided
her into the open hotel door.

“Wow!” Janie couldn’t believe that had just happened.

Matt grinned at her. “They must not have anything better to
do than hang around hotels waiting for beautiful women to step out of cars.” He
winked at her and her heart fluttered a little. “Let’s go in.” He still had a
firm hold of her hand as he led her through the lobby.

*****

 ‘Magical’ was the word Janie thought of when walking into
the hotel’s grand ballroom. Giant chandeliers hung from the ceiling emitting a
dim glow. The massive room held dozens of round tables, each with a mauve
tablecloth and a white floral arrangement for the centerpiece. She could hear
the faint classical music playing over the steady hum of voices.

As they moved through the throng of people, each
immaculately dressed in their finery, Janie couldn’t help but notice the
attention Matt was getting. The men all had something to say to him and the
women? Well the women just gaped at him, openly acknowledging their instant
desire.

He’s handsome, rich and single
, Janie thought, a
combination women clambered for. But Matt never let go of her hand and didn’t
look twice at all the women batting their lashes at him.

He continued to lead them in the direction of the stage. It
held a giant white screen and podium. There were enormous floral arrangements
on both sides and a giant organizational banner that was strung from the
curtains, pronouncing the charity name and their mission statement.
OH!
smiled
Jamie.
It’s a humane society fundraiser!

At a table at the front, just off center, Matt stopped and
looked at the place cards. Janie read Matt’s name and to the left was hers; Ms.
Janie Anderson. The card was a bone color and had a watermark of a German
Shepherd behind the print. Matt’s card had a picture of a Siamese cat. Janie
knew she was smiling like an idiot, but she was overjoyed with the evening so
far. She loved animals and all of their cats and dogs through the years had
been rescued. Janie had always thought it was ridiculous to buy an animal when
there were so many sitting in cramped cages waiting for a loving family to
adopt them.

There was a couple already seated on the other side of the
table and the man stood and walked to Matt and extended his hand. Matt let go
of Janie’s and shook it and she felt a wave of disappointment at the loss of
contact, but as Matt finished the hand shake he turned and grabbed her around
the waist and pulled her close.

“Janie, I would like you to meet my good friend Ryan Little
and his wife, Courtney.”

Ryan shook Janie’s hand and smiled and Janie turned to
Courtney, still seated at the table, and said hello. Courtney smiled and
greeted her warmly and Janie’s attention was brought back to Ryan as he spoke.

“Well I would never have believed it if I hadn’t seen you
myself.” Ryan slapped Matt on the back and laughed. “You NEVER show up at
these. What’s up? Getting a big award?”

Matt grinned and shook his head.

Janie glanced over at Courtney, who was still smiling, but a
movement off to the side caught her eye. She turned to see an elderly couple
step close to the table and the woman, who appeared to be in her late sixties
maybe, looked shocked. She was dressed in a long black gown and wore a
beautiful emerald broach that matched her eyes.

“Matthew! What are you doing here?” The woman exclaimed.

“Hi Mom. Dad.” Matt stepped away from Janie and moved around
her to give his mom a peck on the cheek and then his dad a manly hug. “I would
like you to meet Janie Anderson. She has graciously agreed to be my date this
evening.”

Janie was in shock from the revelation that this was Matt’s
parents. She managed a weak smile and shook their offered hands.

“Janie, these are my parents, Maureen and Peter Lathem.”

“Hello. It’s lovely to meet you,” squeaked Janie.

“Well good evening dear. What a pleasure to meet you too. I
haven’t heard a thing about you!” Maureen smiled and looked at Matt with a
quizzing gaze.

“Leave the boy alone, Maureen. He doesn’t have to clear his
social calendar with you!” Peter chuckled. “You are a vision Ms. Anderson.
Lovely to meet you too.” And Peter lifted Janie’s hand and gave it a quick
peck.

Like father, like son
, Janie mused.

The tap of the microphone interrupted the awkward moment and
they turned to the table and took their seats. Maureen disregarded the place
cards and sat next to Janie, patting her hand as Janie laid her new silver
clutch to the left of her forks.

“I don’t know how you convinced him to come tonight, but
well done!” Maureen squeezed her hand and then let go, winking at her and
smiling. “Very well done!” she said.

*****

The dinner came course by course, each scrumptious and
divine. Presentations and speakers went on through the evening and Janie was
captivated by the stories of animal rescue and their efforts of adoption. A few
celebrities told of their experiences with the agency and had pictures of their
beloved pets. It was all very swanky.

 The conversation at their table was light and friendly and
Janie found herself at ease and participating, laughing, and thoroughly
enjoying herself. She really liked Matt’s parents, especially his father Peter.
He had a dry sense of humor and always seemed to have a twinkle in his eye. It
was obvious he and Maureen adored each other, and they really did end each
other’s sentences.  They were very cute to watch.

There was a small dance floor in the middle of the ballroom
and as the last presentation came to an end, the DJ announced that the fun was
just about to begin. A drum beat echoed through the room and a fast-paced song
had the younger crowd up quickly and dancing away. People started to mill about
the room, and several made their way to talk to Matt. It seemed everyone was
surprised to see him and it appeared he was getting a tad irritated by the
remarks.

“You NEVER came to these when we were married!”

Janie whipped her head around to see a tall leggy brunette,
dressed in a skintight red halter dress with a slit that went all the way up
her right leg, almost to her hip. Her makeup was perfect and her hair was
whisked into an elegant bun.

Matt seemed to bristle at the comment and turned to see
Janie watching them.

“Janie, this is Beth. Beth? Janie.”

Janie managed to sort of smile and mumbled something that
was supposed to sound like ‘hello’. Beth smiled brightly and reached over Matt,
her breasts inches from his face and offered her hand. “Well how lovely to meet
you. Janie, is it?”

Janie nodded and felt her face flush.
This is an ex-wife?
She thought.
She’s stunning!