Disillusion Meets Delight (28 page)

“That’s fine.  It takes some of the heat off of me to get married and give her grandchildren.” 

“I’ll give her a call and see how things are.  Hang on; I left my phone in the car.”  As Ian was talking to my mother, I took a quick glance in my car window and tried to discretely apply more lip gloss. 

“Alright we’re good to go.  As soon as I mentioned we might go get coffee, she practically cried.”  Ian smiled and he looked as though he may actually be blushing. 

“You know, I just remembered, I am supposed to meet up with Mya after this.  Maybe we could have a rain check?”  Okay, ‘what are you thinking?’ is going through your head right?  Yeah, it’s going through mine too.  But we have had such a great time tonight; I don’t want to ruin it.  I want it to end with civility and smiles not daggers and insults.  Not to mention the fact that I am completely freaked out right now.  I could say something stupid at any moment. 

“Yeah, sure, I understand.  It is getting late anyway.  Maggie has school tomorrow.”  Ian wrinkled up his nose and waved his hand to say it was no big deal to him.  But I felt maybe it was. 

“Okay, well, I’ll talk to you later then?”  I turned back toward my car wondering if I was making a mistake. 

“Hey Natalie?”

“Yeah?” 

“I enjoyed spending this time with you.”  I thought I would melt.  His eyes were sincere and thoughtful and his mouth curled with a smile.  This was it.  The guy that once stepped on me in a video store and turned me into a righteous bitch had grown on me.  It was official.  I had fallen for the not so wretched Ian O’Reilly. 

It had been two days since my employment terminated.  It had also been two days since my fantabulous night with Ian.  Needless to say, there were many different emotions running through me.  One was guilt for lying to Mya about being sick.  I had to give her some explanation for why I was still in bed when she woke up at 9:00 A.M.  The truth was not an option at the time, okay? 

So now it is Thursday morning and I can hear Mya rustling around in the kitchen.  Hmm, I’m kind of hungry.  I wonder if she is making breakfast.

“Natalie?  Are you awake?”  The door is pushed ajar and I see Mya’s face appear. 

“Yeah, I just woke up.  What’s going on?”  Mya has a thermometer; blood pressure monitor and stethoscope, along with some foul smelling cup of please don’t tell me I have to drink that. 

“I know you don’t want to see the doctor, but I really think you should let me get your vitals.”  Ah yes, the pros and cons of having a nursing student as your best friend. 

“Actually Mya, I feel much better today.”  Phew, that could have been worse!

“Then why aren’t you at work?”  She asks puzzled.

“Can’t I stay home from work and not feel like I need to have you sign a note for my boss?  I really appreciate your concern but I am an adult and I am just fine!” 

“Natalie what is wrong with you?  Have I made you mad?  You have been avoiding me since Tuesday and I don’t get it.” 

“Do you have all day?” 

“Fine, I’m not going to talk to you when you’re like this.  Call when you’re not being a bitch.”  She walked out and slammed the door.  God, I was being a bitch.  I really wanted her to just break up with her boyfriend and go back home, which was only down the street, by the way.

“Mya wait, I’m sorry.  I haven’t been totally honest with you.  Can I talk to you?”  She was sitting on the sofa with her feet up on the coffee table, reading a rather large book about Physiology. 

“I’m trying to study Nat.  Maybe later?”  Wow, I did piss her off.  I wasn’t even getting direct eye contact.   

“I got fired on Tuesday morning!  There I said it.  I am a loser that got fired from a job that I didn’t even like in the first place and now I’m going to be poor and I’ll probably have to move to an old smelly studio apartment on Burnside where my neighbors are all drug dealers!”  It was true maybe.  I could barely afford the apartment I was in and my salary although not great would probably be difficult to match.  The thought of moving into a smelly apartment scared the hell out of me.

“Natalie, you got fired?  Why didn’t you tell me?”  Finally, the big text book came down and her face softened but looked confused. 

“I was embarrassed.  You have your career planned out.  When you graduate and take your boards, you are going to be a nurse.  Not only will you have a job you like, you’re also going to make pretty decent money.  I went to college, got a degree and had absolutely no idea what I would do after.  All I have to show for my education are student loans and credit card debt.  Oh, and some old books that say USED in yellow tape.  I’m a classy chick.  No wonder I can’t get a boyfriend!”  Oh, here they come, the tears.  It was really only a matter of time. 

“Hey, it’s going to be alright.  You are a fighter Natalie Everett.  You don’t give up when things get tough.  So you don’t have life planned out.  Big deal!  Losing this job may be the best thing that happened to you.  And boyfriends are not all they’re cracked up to be.  Look at me, I had one and I still wasn’t happy.” 

“Actually Mya, you still have him.” 

“You’re right.  I need to just do it.  Like a band aid?”

“Yep, like a band aid.” 

Ian was looking forward to the Tuesday night cooking class with Natalie.  It was an opportunity for them to just be themselves and laugh.  They were able to bond and feel inept together.  She pulled away at the end of the night, deciding last minute not to get coffee though.  Was she scared that her feelings for him changed?  Or maybe she knew his feelings had changed.  Maybe she didn’t feel the same way.  Or maybe she didn’t want to ruin what had been the best time they spent together yet.  Whatever the situation was, Ian knew that he yearned for more.

He rushed through lunch and got back to work so he could leave on time.  Maggie stayed with Caroline Everett while he was in class which meant he had to pick her up from Beaverton and brave rush hour traffic to Lake Oswego.  The fact that Maggie formed a bond with Natalie’s mother was a definite bonus. 

“Hey buddy, we got an extra ticket for the Blazers-Heat game tonight.  You up for it?”  Jake popped his head into Ian’s office with the basketball ticket in hand. 

“I can’t tonight.  I have a class.”  Ian hadn’t told any of his work buddies exactly what he was doing.  A heterosexual man taking a cooking class would most likely be deemed, well not manly. 

“Dude what kind of class is more important than watching basketball?”

“Sorry man.”  Ian turned off his computer and gathered his things.

“Oh, I get it.  There’s a hot chick in the class.  Or is Ian hot for teacher?”  Jake raised his eyebrows and did a little air guitar just in case Ian didn’t get the Van Halen reference.  Ian suddenly had a flashback to being in his Frat house on a Saturday night.  The maturity level between he and Jake were still miles apart but the guy still made him laugh.    

“Uh, something like that.  Listen, maybe we can meet up this weekend for a beer or something.  I have an anniversary party on Saturday night but Sunday at the Sport’s Pub?” 

“Yeah that sounds cool.  Not too early on Sunday eh?  I might have a late Saturday night with the ladies.”  Jake gave a wink and a shooting gun signal and was off. 

Ian dropped Maggie off at Natalie’s mother’s house and got on the 217 to the cooking class.  He was eager to see Natalie but wished they could be somewhere to just talk.  It was hard to discuss their interests between instructions from Chef Le Bleu and intense recipe concentration.  If he was going to break through Natalie’s wall, it was going to take more than a couple quick jokes in cooking class.

“Natalie, it’s Ian, are you on your way to class?”

“Yeah, traffic is awful tonight.  In a city that has rain all the time, you’d think people could drive.  You’re still going aren’t you?”  She seemed stressed. 

“I’m on my way but I was thinking we should skip and go get food.  Are you hungry?” 

“Skip?  Would we get in trouble?”  She asked in a cute mischievous tone that reassured Ian a bit.  Her defensive angry tenor eased a bit. 

“It’s not like we’re getting graded for attendance.  I think it’ll be okay.”  Ian said reassuringly with a bit of a laugh. 

“Yeah you’re right.  It’s not real school.  Sure, let’s skip!  Where do you want to go?”  Ian could tell she was excited about the spontaneity and rebellion. 

“How about Mama’s?” 

“That’s perfect.  Okay I have to get off Sunset Hwy but I’ll be there in a little while.  See you in a few!” 

A few was actually 35 minutes but Ian felt he could have waited hours to see her.  Natalie walked in the restaurant in a rush and stopped abruptly.  She was still wearing her glasses and was simply beautiful.  Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail that bounced when she walked.  The apple green trench coat brightened her porcelain skin and brought out the warm brown in her eyes.  Ian was mesmerized.

“I’m sorry it took so long.  I shouldn’t have taken Walker.  Have you been here long?” 

“Nope, I just got here.  Do you know what you want or do you need time?” 

“Are you kidding?  I know this menu inside out.  Of course, I always get the same thing.  Creature of habit I suppose.  Do you want to split a pizza or are you having pasta?” 

“Let’s split a pizza.  I like pretty much everything except, let’s see, sun-dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts and pepperoncinis.” 

“Well, that’s everything that I like so we better do half and half eh?”  She laughed and waved Mr. B over to order. 

“Well, look here!  It’s our Natalie with Ian O’Reilly from Washington D.C.  Mama will be very happy to see this.  Very happy indeed.”  Mr. B gave his playful smile.  It was clear that Mr. and Mrs. Bonofiglio were accepting of the Natalie-Ian alliance. 

“We’re playing hooky from our cooking class.  It’s
very
exciting!”  It was clear to Ian that Natalie was not a rule breaker.

“So what’s going on with Jenna?  Do you know when she’s coming back from Santa Barbara?” 

“How do you know she’s in California?”  Natalie asked confused. 

“I called her the other day.  I didn’t know she left.  I was worried because I hadn’t seen her running lately.”  Ian took a sip from his beer.  He had actually talked to Jenna a couple times since her departure.  In fact, he knew exactly when Jenna was returning but he wanted to talk about it with Natalie.

“Well, Jenna hates me right now.  I don’t blame her.  The moment I found out Rob was engaged to Mallory, I should have just told her.  The longer I waited, the worse it got.  By the time I fessed up, Pandora’s Box had already opened and I was a goner.  The whole thing sucks.  I miss her so much.”  Natalie took a deep breath and began to look around aimlessly at the restaurant.  She was so afraid to open up.  Ian wasn’t sure if this was how she was with everyone or just him. 

“Why don’t you try calling her?  Just because she was mad at the time doesn’t mean she doesn’t miss you too Natalie.” 

“I want to but I can’t.  I know I should, but I’m scared.  I’m not good with rejection, especially if it is from someone that I care about.  Just another example of Natalie Everett: Non-risk taker and overall bore.  Maybe if I wasn’t such a chicken over everything, I wouldn’t be in this situation.” 

“Oh, I don’t know.  It may sound stupid, but I think everything happens for a reason.  I don’t think you’re so chicken.  You’re here having dinner with me, the guy that ran over you in the video store and was pretty much an ass in the process.  I would say that is a definite risk.”  A smile and giggle broke and Natalie’s mood seemed to lift. 

“Well I think that’s debatable.  I was kind of a wacko but yeah I see your point.” 

“Hey, it was a learning experience.  Don’t get between a girl and her John Hughes flicks.”

“Now Ian and Natalie, are we going to see you both on Saturday night?”  Mrs. B came out with the large pizza half vegetarian and half loaded with meat. 

“I’m planning on it.  Maggie has a slumber party that night so I am all yours Mrs. B.  I hope you have your dancing shoes on.”  Ian winked at Mrs. B and she blushed.