Holly's Wishes (11 page)

Chapter 23

 “Your brother-in-law told me where you worked,” Ben said as he leaned up against his car.

Holly stopped in her tracks as she walked out of the school building with Dan at six o’clock. They’d been working on their routine for the talent show, and since it had gotten so late, they’d agreed to grab a bite to eat together. She knew Jared was working the late shift and wouldn’t be home for hours.

“Perhaps a rain check?” Dan said, looking from Holly to Ben.

“Are you sure?” she asked.

“It’s no problem. I’ve got a ton of work to catch up on anyway. We made great progress tonight.” He moved his feet perfectly in sync with the dance steps Holly had taught him that afternoon and put two thumbs up.

“Looks great. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She smiled as she watched him walk to his car.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“How long have you been out here?” Holly asked.

“I don’t know, since about four-thirty, I guess. That’s what time you normally leave, right?”

“Normally, yes. What are you doing here?”
He sat out here for an hour and a half?

“I was hoping I could talk to you.”

“Sure,” she said, although she wasn’t certain she really wanted to have this conversation. It was bound to be awkward. “What’s up?”

He glanced around. “Do you think we could go somewhere private?”

Against her better judgment, she replied, “Jared’s working the late shift, and I’ve got leftover chili at my place. I’m only a few blocks away if you want to follow me over.”

He nodded, getting back into his car.

Holly went in first to make certain Jared really
was
working the late shift and hadn’t been sent home early again. She sighed in relief as she stepped into the empty apartment, wondering what she would have told Jared about having Ben in tow.

“Nice place,” he said.

“Thanks.” It was pretty nice. They were lucky to get the three bedroom rent-controlled apartment passed down from Jared’s grandmother.

“Here, let me take your coat.”

As he pulled his jacket off, the top two buttons on his shirt came undone. Holly watched the material slide across Ben’s muscular chest. She blinked her eyes and turned away, banishing the thought of the rest of the shirt falling away from his body. By the time she hung up his coat, his shirt was back in place and fully buttoned.

“I–I’ll get d–dinner started,” she stammered, trying to regain her composure. “Would you like a drink?” She desperately wanted to open a window to let in a bit of cool air. Instead, she stuck her head in the refrigerator as she reached in for the chili.

“Water would be great.”

“How’s the new car?” she asked, trying to make small talk to take her mind off of what she had just seen. Maybe coming back to her apartment wasn’t such a good idea after all.

“It’s great,” he responded. “Very reliable.”

“So … you wanted to talk to me?” She handed him his glass and put the chili on the stove. “Please …”

Motioning to the couch in the living room, she made sure to leave ample space between them as she sat down. She didn’t want to risk another episode like the one she just experienced.

Ben took a long drink before speaking. “I shouldn’t have run out like that the other day. I feel bad about it … guilty is really the better word. It’s been bothering me since it happened. Not about the kiss, about running out. It was kind of a weird thing to do. I guess I didn’t know what to do, you know?”

Holly nodded.
So he didn’t feel guilty about the kiss part?
“The whole thing was so unexpected,” she said. “And probably shouldn’t have happened. I was upset with Jared, but that didn’t mean I should be kissing other men.”

“Right. The thing is—”

The timer on the stove buzzed.

“Hold that thought,” Holly said, getting up. “This stuff heats up really fast, I don’t want it to burn.” She let out a breath as she walked to the kitchen. The conversation was taking an odd turn—her chili had impeccable timing.

Ben seemed nervous as she handed him a bowl of piping hot food. “Thanks. It looks and smells great.”

Taking her seat next to him, she placed her own bowl on the coffee table. “You were saying?”

“I was saying … yes,” he repeated, as if he needed a reminder of where he left off. He balanced the bowl on his leg, staring at his food, while stirring raptly as if all of the answers were in there. “Well, the thing is,” he paused again. “You know how at the wedding I told you I wasn’t really good about the whole talking to women thing back in high school?” he asked with an uneasy laugh. “I guess I’m still not very good.”

“You’re doing okay,” she lied.

“I’m not, but thanks. Anyway, ever since we saw each other at the wedding, I — I know we shouldn’t have, but I’m glad we kissed.  I needed to know. I felt something—when we kissed, that is.” He searched her eyes. “Did you feel it too?”

Holly nodded and sighed. “But—we can’t. I can’t.”

“I know. I just haven’t been able to stop thinking about—”

The phone in the kitchen began to ring interrupting him.
Jared.
It was a sign. It had to be.

“I have to get that.” She ran into the kitchen. Taking the receiver into the bedroom, she softly closed the door behind her as she said, “Hello?”

“Hey baby. I’m just checking in to say hi. These long shifts are killing me. I can’t wait to get home and wrap my arms around you.”

Holly closed her eyes and leaned against the wall. “How’s work going?” she asked.

“Oh, you know … same old boring crap. The guys aren’t giving me shit anymore at least. Now I have to get my boss off my back. He’s been in a bad mood all night. Anyway, my break’s just about over. I’ll be home around midnight.”

“I’ll leave dinner for you in the stove.”

“Thanks, baby,” he said, and then yelled to someone else, “I’m coming! Geez—can’t a guy get thirty seconds to take a piss?” He swiftly hung up the phone.

Holly closed her eyes for a moment, trying to think of the right words to say to Ben, before walking back into the living room. When she got there, he was already gone. Next to his bowl of chili was a scribbled note that read, “
I’m sorry.”

Chapter 24

“Are you okay? You don’t seem your normal cheerful self.” Dan looked over at Holly as they ran through the first several lines of their rap. Her performance was lackluster at best.

“What?” she responded. “Yes, yes, I’m fine. I’ve just got a lot on my mind, sorry. We can do it again if you want.”

“It’s okay. I know how busy it gets around here trying to get everything done with the short week for Thanksgiving. We probably should’ve skipped rehearsal today.”

She wished she could concentrate on the talent show and forget about everything else. Things with Jared were fine. Great actually. He hadn’t had any more problems at work or drunken incidents since he apologized and had made a few more hints about a big surprise coming her way for her birthday. Something shiny that was guaranteed to make her smile. If only she could forget about …

 “So what do you say?” Dan asked. “Should we call it for today and pick up after the holiday? We’ll still have plenty of time to finish. You seem kind of beat. No offense.”

Holly laughed. “None taken. But I’d rather stay, if that’s all right. The stuff that’s got me stressed out isn’t work related.” She knew Jared wouldn’t be back until around eight o’clock. The last thing she wanted to do was go home to a quiet, empty apartment where her mind would surely wander to places she wanted to keep tucked away. Right now she only wanted to keep busy.

“I hear you. My family’s been giving me a lot of pressure lately, too. Happens every year around this time.
Why can’t you be more like your brothers and settle down with a family?
Gotta love the holidays! Ho, ho, ho, and pass the rum.”

“How many brothers do you have?” she asked.

“Two. I’m the youngest, and they’re both married with two kids each. Apparently for me, having five hundred kids nine months out of the year doesn’t count.”

“I feel your pain,” she said, nodding. “I’ve got two sisters. My older one is married with a kid. I’m in the middle, and my younger sister is still in college, so that makes me next in line. The pressure is full on.”

“Fun, isn’t it? New plan. We’ll still pick this up after the break, but instead of going home, let’s go grab that bite we never had a chance to get. Didn’t we agree on a rain check?”

Holly smiled. “As a matter of fact, we did.”

“Listen,” Dan said. “I need to tell you something before we go. Something I’ve been wanting to tell you for a while now.” Staring intensely into her eyes, he placed his hands on her shoulder and tilted his head.

Oh my God. He’s going to kiss me. I’m in my boss’s office, and he’s going to kiss me.
 She needed to stop him, she just couldn’t get the words out—she was completely frozen in shock at what was about to happen.

“Am I too early?”

Holly tore her eyes away from Dan to follow the sound of the voice. Before her stood a totally hot guy with dark blonde wavy hair and chiseled features. She could see the ripples of his muscles under his tight shirt. What was with all these guys who looked like underwear models?

“Oh, hello. No, you’re not too early at all. In fact your timing is perfect.” Dan tightened his grip on her shoulders as he faced the other man and said, “Holly, I’d like you to meet my partner, Alex.”

“Ah, Holly,” the man said, flashing a radiating smile. “It’s great to finally meet you. Dan talks about you all the time.”

“Thanks. It’s nice to meet you, too.” She turned back to Dan. “So … your … partner?” she asked, looking between the two men with a confused expression. “Like business partner? For what, the talent show?”

Dan released Holly’s shoulders and walked over to Alex, taking his hand. “No, partner as in life partner.”

Holly’s chin dropped, as she peered at him. “You mean … you’re gay?”

He raised his eyebrows and nodded. “That’s what I was about to tell you. And also I wanted to let you know Alex would be joining us. I had asked him to stop by to watch us rehearse. I thought it might be good for us to get comfortable performing in front of someone. But we can start that part next time. Mind if Alex tags along for dinner?”

“Wow,” Holly said, raising her eyebrows. “Ok. Sure, Dan, whatever you’d like.” She shook her head and laughed under her breath. “I seriously have to work on reading signals better. I thought for sure you were flirting with me today … and for the past couple of months. In fact, I could have sworn you were about to kiss me.”

“Really?” Alex asked, half chuckling, looking at his boyfriend.

“What?” Dan asked. “Could happen. I’m cute and loveable.”

“Yes,” Alex said, kissing him on the cheek, playfully. “Of course you are. Holly’s just a little too feminine for you, that’s all.”

“It’s true,” Dan agreed.

She laughed. “It’s okay. I’m taken anyway. I’m just usually spot on about these things.” She shook her head again. “Wow, okay. Well, it’s nice to meet you, Alex. Has anyone told you the two of you make a
really
good looking couple?”

Alex nudged Dan in the shoulder, and smiled. “Thanks. Hey, did someone say something about food?”

~~~

The tiny diner on the other side of town had only one table open.

“Where’d you find this place? I had no idea this even existed,” Holly said, checking out her surroundings.

“It only opened a couple of months ago,” Dan explained as they sat down. “It received a big write-up in the city paper. We’ve been dying to come here. Usually the line is out the door. I figured it wouldn’t be so bad at four o’clock on a Wednesday. Looks like we got lucky.”

She scanned the menu. “So what’s good?”

“Milkshakes,” Alex said. “People come from miles around to get their hands on one.”

“Ah, so you’ve heard I’ve been known to have ice cream for dinner every now and again?”

“You, too?” Dan asked. “That’s one of our standard meals. Their roast beef sandwich is supposed to be very good as well. Actually, I don’t think you can go wrong with anything here.”

They all ordered sandwiches and chocolate shakes. When the waitress brought them over, Holly’s eyes nearly popped out of her head.

“This is for one person?” she asked. “Guess I know what I’ll be having for lunch tomorrow and dinner … and possibly lunch the next day.” Taking a sip of her milkshake, she sat back in her chair. “Oh, I have died and gone to heaven. This is orgasmic. Oh shit. Did I just say
orgasmic
in front of my boss? … Did I just say
shit
in front of my boss?” Holly put her hands over her eyes like a visor and sunk into her seat, feeling her cheeks turn what was surely a shade of crimson.

Dan cracked up. “I can’t believe we haven’t done this before. The three of us need to hang out more often. Don’t you think, Alex?”

“Absolutely,” he said, laughing also. “Holly is just adorable.”

“See?” Dan said, looking at her. “This is exactly what we needed, I can feel the stress easing already.” He took a sip of his shake and leaned back into his chair. Closing his eyes, he started to moan.

Oh … he wasn’t
…

“Holly.”

Dan opened his eyes as Holly looked over to the familiar male voice.

 “Ben … hi.” She hadn’t seen him since that awkward night in her apartment. She sat in silence for a moment as she tried to think of something to say over the pounding of her heart. “I’m sorry, this is Dan Harper, the principal at the school where I teach, and his partner, Alex—” She realized she never got his last name.

“Schiff,” he said, standing up to shake Ben’s hand.

Dan stood up as well. “It’s nice to see you again. We didn’t get a chance to meet the other day.”

“Right, I’m sorry if I interrupted something then when I showed up at school,” he said with an odd sadness to his voice.