Happy Hour (15 page)

Kat laughed sarcastically. “No. Christian’s relationship with the boys is
strange. I call Christian’s issues with the boys the cave man syndrome. You
know, he don’t look like me, talk like me, walk like me—he no part of me. He
part of Sperm Donor.”

Alyssa shook her head. “That is a pretty antiquated, silly way to think.
You really believe that’s how he feels?”

“Yes I do. I know it sounds stupid, but the real deal is that the boys
and Christian don’t have much in common—nothing really. Christian grew up an
outdoorsman. His grandfather taught him to hunt. His father taught him how to
build things. His uncle taught him how to fight. Christian could probably win
on
Survivor
. I keep telling him to try out. Guy can take some twine and
a paper clip and he’d figure out how to feed a clan.”

“Just because he can feed a clan doesn’t mean he can handle a family,”
Jamie said.

“What can I say?” Kat said. “He makes me laugh. I mean really laugh, and
you all know it takes a lot to make me laugh.” She smiled.

“But what about your boys, Kat?” Danielle asked. “Does he make them
laugh? Does he make them happy? You three were a package deal. Christian knew
that.”

“Yeah. I know. Guess I failed to think it all through before we got
married. When it comes to the boys, it doesn’t work. He doesn’t get them at
all, and they don’t get him at all. For as much a caveman as Christian is, my
boys are of the new era, the new age—they’re videoettes. I gotta take the blame
for helping them to achieve techno guru status. I haven’t always been the best
at setting rules.”

“Oh for God’s sakes, Kat. I have lots of friends with teenage boys, and
you’re not the only one battling the video game addiction. You can’t put all
that on your shoulders. They’re good kids, right? They get good grades, and I
know Brian plays tennis, doesn’t he?” Danielle let go of her hand.

“He does.”

“And isn’t Jeremy in wrestling and on the debate team at school?” Jamie
chimed in.

“Yes. He took second at the state championships last year. He says next
year he wants to join the water polo team.”

“Then I’m sorry, but Christian needs to get a grip here. This isn’t so
much about you. Time for your big boy to grow up and stop sulking that the boys
belong to another man. That’s just bullshit to deal with it. He’s acting like a
spoiled brat. Tell him to find something he can do with the boys. At the least
suggest they have a movie night. He married into this family, now he needs to
take the helm.” Danielle’s neck reddened. “Seriously, you are not a referee, or
a babysitter. You are a wife and a mother, and a friend, and a sommelier and we
love you, and your husband needs to get with the program.”

Kat nodded. “I know. At times I think Christian wants to be a dad to
them, but then he gets all weird because Brian is so close to his dad, so he
backs off.”

Danielle snapped. “Look at me.” Kat took her eyes off her wine glass.
“Stop making excuses for Christian. I did it for Al for years and look where
that got my marriage. You’ve got to tell him, hon, you’ve got to tell him to
step up.”

No one said anything for a minute. Jamie broke the silence. “I think
Danielle’s right.”

“Me, too,” Alyssa said. “I don’t think he needs to try and take over and
play Dad with the boys. Sure, if he’d been around since they were young, but
they were what, eleven and thirteen when you got married?” Kat nodded. “Being
daddy is out of the question, but he
can
be a friend to them even if
they have nothing in common.”

Kat wiped away angry tears. Her friends were being honest, but that
didn’t mean their words didn’t hurt. “I miss what we used to have. It was fun
and easy. Well, maybe it was never easy, but at least we had fun. And now I
feel duped, because when we first dated, Christian used to take the boys to
ball games and to the restaurant and the city and the park. They did have good
times together.”

“What do you think happened?” Alyssa asked.

Kat shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe we both got complacent. Maybe we all
got too busy. We opened the restaurant out here. We moved with him from Oakland
to Napa. That was a big change for the boys.” Kat twirled her empty wine glass.

“I’m not going to say it again, my friend. Last time you’ll hear it from
me, but stop making excuses. Talk to your husband.” Danielle poured more wine for
everyone.

“We do have a lot to talk about. On top of it all, when we moved out
here, Christian’s ex, Emily, followed us. I think at the time she did it to get
under our skin and it worked, but now, Emily is moving back into the city
because she’s pregnant and getting married.”

“How is Christian taking it? You guys won’t see Amber as often, will
you?” Jamie asked.

“Just the opposite. Emily wants us to have Amber for the week and she’ll
take her on the weekends.”

“What?” Danielle said. Boy, did she wish she could kick Christian in the
ass. Her friend didn’t deserve what he was dishing out.

“Yes. I learned this a couple of hours ago, thus the big fight and ‘Better
Man.’”

“Oh,” they all said in unison.

“What are you going to do?” Alyssa asked.

“What can I do? He’s my husband. She’s his daughter, and as weird as it
can be around here with all the family blending that goes on, I don’t think I
have a choice.”

“You have choices,” Danielle said. “Maybe ask Christian to get his own
place for awhile and then he can come back home when he’s all grown up. That’s
what I’d do.”

“Really? That’s not an option. Not at all. I see where you’re going here,
and yes, I agree I need to have a talk with my husband. And yes, I also agree
he acts like a petulant child when it comes to my boys, but, Danielle, you’ve
been married and divorced. You know the pain that comes with it. I’ve already
been through it once before, and this time I promised myself that before I
headed down that path again that I would do everything possible to make my
marriage work. It may not be ideal. But what marriage is? No matter what the
situation is around here, I love my children and I love my husband, and I will
do whatever the hell it takes to make it work. So back off.”

Danielle sucked in a pocket of air. “I’m sorry,” she said quietly. “I was
only trying to help.”

Kat closed her eyes. “I’m sorry, too. And I know. I know how much you
care and want the best for me, and I love you for it. I really do, but I think
this is one of those times when I have to sort it out on my own time.”

“I think I want more wine,” Jamie said. “Um, like a bottle. Yeah. A
bottle for each of us.”

“Works for me,” Alyssa said.

Kat and Danielle looked at each other and started laughing. Jamie and
Alyssa, wide-eyed, followed suit, grateful that things hadn’t completely blown
up between their friends. After a few minutes of their laughter with the
tension dissipating, Kat finally said, “I
did
always want a little girl.
It won’t be that much harder, right?”

“Not until she gets her period and turns into a teenager. Then she’ll go
all apeshit on you and that’s when you can send her back to her mother. Even
her dad will want that,” Danielle said.

“Speaking of daughters, how is Shannon?” Jamie asked, wanting to shift
the focus a little bit. She sensed Kat’s exhaustion.

“Big. Very big and grumpy and still not talking a lot. It drives me
crazy, but what can I do? We need to have a heart to heart. I don’t know what
to think. Maybe she isn’t ready to talk, but she better get ready soon because
she gets bigger every day. I have to tell you something kind of good, though. I
have a date.”

“What?” Kat said.

Danielle told them all about running into Mark again.

“You’re going on a date with your daughter’s gynecologist?” Alyssa laughed.
“There must be some law against that.”

“Yeah! You think?” Jamie chimed in.

“Funny. Ha, ha.
No.
He referred Shannon to his colleague. And it’s
only a dinner date with an old friend.”

“How much of an old friend?” Kat asked. “I mean, how much of a friend was
he?”

Danielle knew she was blushing. “You know me too well.”

“There’s this sparkle in your eye. That’s all,” Kat replied.

“He was my first.”

“Your first?” Jamie asked.

“Yes. You know. Sex.”

“Oh.
Oh
. Interesting.” Jamie heaped another pile of pasta onto her
plate.

“This is more than interesting. This is juicy. Do tell. Is he good-looking?”
Alyssa asked.

Danielle smiled and closed her eyes for a second. “Yes, he’s attractive.”
She nodded. “Very. He is really handsome.”

“You got the butterflies, didn’t you?” Kat asked.

Danielle bit her lip and nodded. “I did. I do right now talking about
him.”

Jamie clapped her hands, Kat laughed, and Alyssa pointed at her and said,
“You go girl.”

“It’s kind of strange.” Danielle twirled her pasta around with her fork.

“No, it’s good,” Kat said. “Really, really good for you.”

“Speaking of good-looking men, you’re taking Maddie to riding lessons,
aren’t you?” Danielle looked at Jamie.

She nodded.

“Well?” Danielle motioned her to continue. “Have you met Tyler?”

She nodded again.

“Look at her.” Kat pointed at her. “Cat got your tongue?”

“Yes, he is a nice-looking
young
man.”

“That’s all she’s going to give us? ‘Yes he’s nice-looking. Notice I left
out the ‘young’ word. Jamie, you aren’t no grandma,” Alyssa said.

“Hey,” Danielle piped in. “Ouch. Nana-to-be here.”

“Yeah well, you don’t count. You’re like the freak of nature who found
the fountain of youth,” Kat commented.

“Whatever. You don’t have to tiptoe around it,” Danielle replied. “Back
to Jamie and the cowboy. I think there is more to it than our blonde bombshell
does tell. Dish, Blondie.”

Jamie giggled.

“She’s giggling,” Alyssa said. “Oh my God. She’s giggling.”

“I rode his horse.”

“What? You rode his horse? Is that a euphemism for something?” Danielle
teased.

“Not even. He talked me into riding his horse while Maddie had a lesson
and I had fun. I liked it. And I volunteered for the Horsemanship for
Handicapped program that he runs on Saturdays. Then I rode his horse again.
He’s giving me riding lessons once a week.”

“Do I smell romance in the air?” Danielle asked. “A little passion? A
little heat? Some lust.” She rubbed her hands together.

“No. Please. I rode his horse.
Twice
. That was it. That’s all
there is to it.”

“Maybe ride him,” Kat said.

“Kat!” They all looked at her.

Jamie frowned. “You are all so impossible. Ride him. Jeez.” She shook her
head and swallowed the rest of her wine, and then she couldn’t help herself but
started giggling again.

“You should think about it, at least. I mean if just thinking about doing
it with him, and we know you are thinking about doing it with him, makes you
giggle like a girl, hmmm…what it might be like. You know you’re thinking about
it.” Kat sliced into the peach pie she’d baked that morning. “Dessert? Coffee?
Think about it, J. You deserve some fun.”

“Leave me alone and give me some of that pie,” Jamie replied.

They all opted for the pie and some decaf. Picking up their plates they
followed Kat into the kitchen. “I think we’re quite a crew. Look at us. I’m
getting another child, Danielle is dating her daughter’s OB-GYN—”

“Hey, I am not. I explained already.”

“Uh-huh, and he was the one who got you naked at sixteen. Very
tantalizing and now Jamie is riding horses and lusting after the cowboy.”

“Kat.” Jamie rolled her eyes and rinsed her plate.

“Sorry. I’ll stop.” She smiled wickedly. “For now. What about you,
Alyssa? And don’t tell us there’s nothing to report. I know you have a life.
We’re your friends. Spill the beans. Give us the goods. Tell all time. You must
have a secret lover or you robbed a bank. Something.”

“I do have something.” Everyone looked thoughtfully at her, all stopping
whatever they were busily doing in the kitchen. She sighed and didn’t believe
she’d said it until she saw the looks on her friends’ faces. “I have a child. A
son. He’s eighteen. His name is Ian.”

***

WINE LOVER’S MAGAZINE

When Life gets Crazy….

By

Jamie Evans

Life is like a roller coaster. There are ups and
downs and twists and turns. Things come at us from every corner, every
direction. Just when you begin to think that life is predictable, you can be
thrown a curve ball and things get crazy.

It seems in the past month, our Happy Hour discussions have tended to
be about life’s never-ending rollercoaster ride. When the ride dips low and
then chugs up hill, it’s not easy. It’s saying, “No,” when you want to say,
“Yes,” or saying “Yes,” when maybe you should say, “No.” If you’re a woman
reading this, then I’m sure you can relate. It would be nice if the coaster had
one long stretch of straight ahead and at an easy pace.

Alyssa, Kat, Danielle, and I are on that coaster that does loopdy
loops, dealing with family issues, from aging parents to surly teenagers,
blended families and the possibilities of new families. Not to mention that
romantic possibilities for at least one of us looks to be on the horizon—a
certain winemaker has run into a love from the past. Who knows? Maybe there’s a
future there…

One thing that I know for certain is that when life gets crazy, the
best way I can think of to handle it all is by getting together with friends,
sharing a bottle of Syrah, and piling high a plate of pasta with goat cheese,
spinach and pancetta in a light cream sauce. It’s like stepping off the
uncontrollable ride for a few hours and taking a deep breath.

Check out the pasta recipe straight from Kat’s kitchen in this month’s
issue.