CHAPTER ELEVEN
Stuckeyville - the home of Mike and Nancy Burton
December 18, 2000
8:30 PM
Nancy came down the stairs quietly and looked over her shoulder towards the second floor - and Sarah's bedroom. She smiled, her mind picturing the sleeping baby - *her* baby, upstairs. She walked into the living room and sat next to Mike on the couch.
"Well," Nancy said with a sigh, "I finally got Sarah to go to sleep. No thanks to you."
"What did I do?" Mike said, pausing in his channel surfing to look at his wife.
"You filled her full of aerosol whipped cream."
"But Nance. What kind of father would I be if I denied my firstborn daughter the opportunity to sample one of life's greatest pleasures?"
"Mike. She's SIX MONTHS old. She's going to have a sugar rush for a month!"
Before Mike could respond, they heard a quiet knock on the door. Mike and Nancy looked at one another and shrugged, as if to say 'who that could be at this hour?'
Mike got up and went to the door. He peered out the peephole and then unlocked and opened the door. Molly walked inside, looking around.
"Hey guys," Molly said quietly, "I figured you'd be getting Sarah to bed and I didn't want to wake her, so I knocked softly."
"Thanks. I just managed to get her to bed," Nancy said quietly as well. "Come on in. What's up?"
Molly walked inside and slipped her coat off. "Well," her voice twinged with curiosity, "I was wondering if either of you got a chance to talk to Ed this weekend?"
"Nope," Mike replied. Then seeing the disappointed look on Molly's face, he quickly added, "Hey! I tried - I left a message for him to call me yesterday about noon - he hasn't returned my call, yet!"
Molly looked at Nancy for confirmation. Nancy nodded. Mike said, "Hey! Why did you need Nancy to confirm it - my word is my bond!"
Molly just rolled her eyes and said, "Well, I haven't had any luck with Carol either. She isn't answering her cell phone - nor the message I left at the hotel. One can only assume that she and Ed are out again together."
"Yeah," Nancy said with satisfaction, then frowned, "I just wish we could find out what is going on!"
"Aargh! I can't take any more of this! Do either of your realize that I spent four years of my life listening to Ed talk about Carol? And now you two?!!! Enough. I can't take it any more!" His voice takes on a rather imperious tone, "As Lord and Master of this House, I declare that there shall be no more talk of 'Ed and Carol'."
Molly and Nancy look at each other and smile.
"... *Or* talk about 'Carol and Ed'," Mike quickly added.
Molly and Nancy stop smiling.
"Molly, how are things with your grandfather's place?"" Mike asked, hoping to change the subject.
"Well" Molly exclaimed. "I could use the legal services of one Edward Stevens myself right about now."
"I thought I ruled there shall be no talking about Ed and Carol," Mike tried to sound imperious again.
"I'm not talking about 'Ed and Carol', I'm just talking about Ed," Molly smiled knowing that she'd won on a technicality. "He'd really be a help wading through all the legal stuff associated with my grandfather's estate. It's a real mess."
"Oh. I guess that's okay then."
"How's things between you and the ever-so-pleasant Dr. Jerome?"
Mike frowns, "He called me a gibbering baboon today and now has another doctor working at the office," Mike replied. He continued in a sneering tone, "Dr. Scotty. Be more like Dr. Snotty."
"Honey, do you think Dr. Jerome is trying to play you two against one another?" Nancy asked.
"I try not to delve into the mind of Walter Jerome," Mike said. "There are some things man just wasn't meant to know."
Molly and Nancy laughed. Molly snapped her fingers and said, "Oh, almost forgot! Did you guys here the latest rumor about StuckeyBowl?"
"No," Mike said.
"What?" Nancy asked.
"Well," Molly said, "it seems that the rumors about Big Rudy closing the place down are true. There were some developers from Jaspertown over the other day looking at the site. And... Brace yourselves for this --- they want to tear StuckeyBowl down and put up a Roller Disco!!"
"You're kidding?" Nancy asked in shock.
"It's the end of civilization as we know it," Mike stated candidly. Molly and Nancy just looked at him. "What?" Mike said.
"You like dancing," Nancy pointed out.
"That's breakin', Nance. That's different," Mike corrected. Then proceeded to lecture Molly and Nancy for another fifteen minutes on the "civilization-ending" vileness of disco music.
After a few more minutes of conversation, Molly got up to leave. Nancy followed intending to lock up the house for the night. At the door, and what they thought was out of earshot of Mike, they agreed to trade information if Molly talked to Carol or Mike talked to Ed. Mike just looked on and rolled his eyes.
***
New York City - Room 426, the DoubleTree Hotel
December 18, 2000
10:30 PM
Ed and Carol were kissing. Well, kissing was a tame term for what was happening.
Their coats were thrown on the floor inside the door. Carol was backed against the wall to the right of the door, Ed right in front of her. Their lips pressed tightly together. Ed was slowly working one strap of Carol's dress down off her shoulder and Carol was working at the knot in Ed's tie, intent on removing it and the shirt underneath.
The kissing continued for several minutes. Occasionally they broke apart to gasp for breath, for Ed to trail a series of soft kisses down Carol's neck, for Carol to focus enough to get another button undone on Ed's shirt...
After several more minutes, Ed's shirt was completely unbuttoned and Ed was kissing along Carol's shoulder. He started working on the second spaghetti strap. Moving it down and off her shoulder. They were lost in a haze of passion.
Then the haze was disturbed, the sound of a cell phone ringing. She didn't understand at first what she was hearing, so lost was she in what Ed was doing. After about the third ring, her brain clicked back on. She realized from the ring that it was Ed's phone.
At about the same moment, Ed realized it as well. With an almost painful expression on his face, he pulled away from Carol. He looked around, hearing the phone ringing, knowing it was intruding on this moment between them, but not conscious enough to understand. On the fourth ring, his fog lifted and he gave a soft curse.
Looking around, he saw his coat thrown on the floor, the source of the ringing. He looked at Carol who said, "Don't answer it."
With a sigh, Ed said, "I have to. This late ... it's probably important. At least, it damn well better be."
Ed walked over and picked up his coat, fumbling in the pocket for the phone. He pulled out the phone and looked at the caller ID. It was the office - as he'd suspected. He had left instructions that he was not to be disturbed - except in an absolute emergency.
He turned the phone on and said, "Stevens."
Carol watched his face as he took the call. Ed suddenly turned around and she was no longer able to see his face.
"Miranda?" Ed asked, his voice a mixture of both anger and surprise. "What are you doing calling me this late at...? What? Now? Well, yes, of course I want to...but not right now! NO! I left instructions that no one was to call me unless it was an emergency. Yes, I know I *asked* you to, but *this* is not an emergency. We can do this tomorrow morning. Good night."
Ed sighed and turned off his phone. He slipped it back into his coat and turned to face Carol. They both knew that the mood had been lost. Ed walked over to Carol and kissed her, gently.
Carol was upset. The intensity and passion of the last few minutes had completely dissipated and she was torn between her desire to rekindle it and her growing sense of betrayal. Why had Ed turned away from her? What was he hiding from her about his relationship with Miranda? What did that conversation mean - it could have been about work or it could have been about so much more. That phrase, 'Well, yes, of course I want to...but not right now' floated through her mind. Ed hadn't meant...he and Miranda?
Could he?
Ed could see Carol distancing herself from him. He tried to tell himself that it was just his imagination. That he was just upset at the interruption. Except that 'upset' didn't even come close to the anger he was feeling right now. And it wasn't because he and Carol were going to be intimate, but because he couldn't deceive himself that the interruption seemed to have done something to his relationship with Carol. Some subtle shift he couldn't understand.
"I...," Carol started, then continued, "I guess I should let you go. You've obviously got...things to do." Her voice wasn't cold, just distant.
Ed was in anguish. He didn't understand what was going on. He just knew that right now wasn't the time. Whatever the problem was, he wouldn't push Carol. He would wait until tomorrow to work it out.
"Um, okay," Ed said. He raised Carol's face to look into her eyes and continued, "Carol, I think we need to talk. Now is not a good time for either of us - let's do this over dinner. My place this time?"
Carol smiled slightly. She couldn't help herself. He could sense something was wrong, but he wanted to give her time. Time to either calm down or to be ready to talk. Despite the anger she was feeling, she was feeling something else. Something that continued to draw her to him - like a moth to a flame.
'I just hope I'm not going to get burned!' she thought.
"Dinner at your place sounds good. Seven o'clock? I can find my way over."
Ed returned her smile and said, "Seven o'clock. You provide the company, I'll provide the food."
Ed bent down and kissed her again, this time with a little of the passion they had shared earlier. After a moment, he broke the kiss. He straightened his shirt and threw on his coat. As he opened the door, he turned and said, "Good night, Carol."
"Good night, Ed," Carol replied.
Carol thought she was either going to break down into tears as he started to close the door or throw herself at him and re-ignite the passion from minutes earlier.
The tears won out.
***
New York City - Room 426, the DoubleTree Hotel
December 19, 2000
7:30 AM
Carol had been awake for several hours. If she had thought that Sunday night was going to be her worst night's sleep, she was wrong. She didn't think that she had slept at all on Monday night. Her mind raced - about her relationship with Ed (whatever it was), Ed's relationship with Miranda (whatever THAT was), her book deal (she hadn't heard from Ed about the contract), and about a million little things.
She finally gave up the pretense of trying to get to sleep at seven o'clock. She got out of bed and showered. After half-heartedly eating some breakfast, she tried to write. Thinking she could lose herself in the fictional of world of her novel.
It didn't work and after an hour she closed her laptop in disgust. Whatever creative energies she'd had a few days ago had been tapped. Now, she was left with juvenile drivel.
She tried to flip through the TV channels, but nothing interested her.
It was now 11:30 in the morning. She was supposed to meet Ed at seven that evening - at his place to talk. The more she thought about it, the more curious she was about the topic. 'What do we have to talk about?' Carol wondered.
With a large sigh, she decided she couldn't handle being in the hotel any longer. She grabbed her coat, her purse, and the room key and headed out.
***
New York City - the Law Office of Farmer and Sheehan
December 19, 2000
11:45 AM
Ed Stevens was upset - VERY upset. A problem had crept up on the Henderson deal and he had to fly to Albany, New York for a late afternoon meeting. Which meant that he couldn't have dinner with Carol. And this was her last night in town!
He was mad, but he knew there wasn't anyone to be mad at. It was 'just one of those things'. And he hated it!
He was stuffing papers into his briefcase when Deloris walked into his office, to hand him some additional documents he had requested. He practically tore them out of her hands.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and sighed. When he opened his eyes, he looked at Deloris and said, "I'm sorry, Deloris. This trip is just damned inconvenient, and I shouldn't be taking it out on you." He gave a weak smile in addition to the apology.
Deloris gave him a small smile in return and said, "It's okay, Ed. I understand."
Ed wished she did. But he wasn't about to mention the call that had interrupted ... interrupted what, he thought. What might have been? He sighed again.
"Deloris," Ed said in a more normal tone, "would you double check the flight reservations for me. I want to make sure of my return time - I need to see if I can still get together with Carol tonight."
"Okay, Ed," Deloris said, but didn't move. When he raised his eyebrows in a silent question, she continued, "Are you sure about Miranda Van Note going with you? I didn't think she was working on the Henderson deal?"
"She's not," Ed said. "I need to speak with her on a personal matter."
Deloris raised her eyebrows in surprise.
Seeing Deloris' expression, Ed said, "NO! Nothing like what you are thinking. I'm having Miranda look into Knight Publishing. They're the ones that Carol is supposed to sign a contract with. But I have a feeling... No, I know that they're a bunch of crooks. Miranda was going to do some research for me, hopefully find something I could use as leverage against them and make them give Carol a better deal. I couldn't let Carol lose her dream..."
"Oh," was all Deloris said, though she began to suspect that there was something more that her boss wasn't telling her. She headed back to her desk. Ed could hear her on the phone, confirming what he already knew - that there was no way he could back to New York in time to see Carol tonight. He sighed and picked up the phone on his desk, dialing the number for the DoubleTree hotel.
***
New York City - the Law Office of Farmer and Sheehan
December 19, 2000
12:30 PM
Miranda watched as Carol Vessey strode purposefully into the lobby of the building housing the offices of Farmer & Sheehan. From the look of her, Carol obviously had something heavy weighing on her mind. Miranda smiled, then started walking towards Carol, calling her name as she got closer to her. "Ms. Vessey! Carol!"
Carol turned as she heard her name called. Her face froze when she saw it was that 'woman' - Miranda! Carol stopped, not really wanting to, but not really having any other alternative.
"Ms. Vessey... Carol," Miranda began, "I'm glad I caught you. I assume you're here to see Ed... I mean, Mr. Stevens?"
"Yes," Carol said coldly, "I am."
"Well," Miranda said, hiding a smile at Carol's obviously hostile tone, "...he's not here. He just left for the airport."
"What?" Carol said. "The airport?"
"Yes," Miranda said, "I'm afraid there was a problem with the Henderson deal, and Ed had to go to Albany. He'll be back later tonight. He left about 15 minutes ago. I'm supposed to meet him at the airport for *our* flight to Albany. I'm just waiting for my cab."
The stunned look on Carol's face filled Miranda with satisfaction, but she hid it.
"But ..." Carol stammered, "... we were supposed to have dinner together tonight. It's my last night in New York!" Carol barely managed to get the last part of the sentence out. Folding her arms across her chest defensively, she looked almost to be in tears.
"Carol.... Ms. Vessey," Miranda said, laying a hand on Carol's arm, "Carol, I shouldn't be telling you this, but..." She looked around for effect, then continued, "Come on, let's go over here and talk." She directed Carol to a small alcove, out of sight of the usual lobby traffic.
"Carol, I know how you feel about Mr. Stevens, ... I mean, Ed. It was obvious to me when I saw how you looked at him the other day. I don't blame you. Ed and I were... are... Oh! I don't know what we are anymore!"
Miranda eyed Carol carefully, watching to see if her rival saw through her performance. When she was satisfied that wasn't the case, she continued.
"I know how charming Ed can be - trust me, I know. He charmed the pants right off... Um, I mean, he can be a real charmer. But I'm not sure that Ed is really focused on a serious relationship right now."
"But I thought that ..."
"Oh I wouldn't hold it against him. He might even want to believe it himself. Did you know that Ed is going to be made a partner after the holidays? I mean, it's not official yet or anything. Even Ed doesn't know for sure, but his star is on the rise at the firm. It's what he's worked for since the beginning. You know that, right?"
"Yes. Yes. I do," Carol squeaked out.
"And I know it must be so hard for you to hear this, because I can tell you are really falling for Ed. I'm going to give you some good advice. Let him go! I don't think you could be happy here in New York and I KNOW Ed couldn't be happy in Stuckeyville! Either you would be forced to give up your home and career, or he would. And while I think that you and Ed would be happy for a time - eventually he would begin to resent what he'd given up for you. Or if you came to New York, you'd resent what you'd given up for him. Either way, it would end up destroying you both."
Miranda looked around again and said, "I've said way too much. I've got to go!" With that Miranda walked away and resumed waiting for her cab.
Carol stood there stunned. She had come into the building intending to ask Ed out to lunch - on her dime this time. And she hadn't been prepared to take no for an answer. But Ed was gone - and without even a phone call! And now she learned that Ed was going to be promoted. He couldn't come back to Stuckeyville with her.
'What was I thinking?' she thought. 'I didn't even realize that I had thought about Ed coming back to Stuckeyville until just now. But I wanted it so much and didn't realize it. But it can't be - it would kill him. He'd have to give up this job, a partnership! And for what? ME? I couldn't ask him to do that!"
Carol continued to stand there, her heart breaking and her mind reeling.
Miranda surreptitiously watched Carol from the corner of her eye, no doubt enjoying the emotional turmoil she'd sown in her heart. She couldn't have arranged events better than if she'd planned them herself. She smiled contentedly.
Finally, Carol started to move - towards the exit! With tears forming in her eyes, she walked out to the street and hailed a cab.
Miranda watched with satisfaction as Carol got in a cab and the cab pulled away. About a minute later, as Miranda continued to stand there pleased with herself, an elevator bell chimed and Ed walked off the elevator. Seeing Miranda he stalked over and said without stopping, "Let's go."
They walked out to the street and hailed a taxi to take them to the airport.
Stuckeyville - the home of Mike and Nancy Burton
December 18, 2000
8:30 PM
Nancy came down the stairs quietly and looked over her shoulder towards the second floor - and Sarah's bedroom. She smiled, her mind picturing the sleeping baby - *her* baby, upstairs. She walked into the living room and sat next to Mike on the couch.
"Well," Nancy said with a sigh, "I finally got Sarah to go to sleep. No thanks to you."
"What did I do?" Mike said, pausing in his channel surfing to look at his wife.
"You filled her full of aerosol whipped cream."
"But Nance. What kind of father would I be if I denied my firstborn daughter the opportunity to sample one of life's greatest pleasures?"
"Mike. She's SIX MONTHS old. She's going to have a sugar rush for a month!"
Before Mike could respond, they heard a quiet knock on the door. Mike and Nancy looked at one another and shrugged, as if to say 'who that could be at this hour?'
Mike got up and went to the door. He peered out the peephole and then unlocked and opened the door. Molly walked inside, looking around.
"Hey guys," Molly said quietly, "I figured you'd be getting Sarah to bed and I didn't want to wake her, so I knocked softly."
"Thanks. I just managed to get her to bed," Nancy said quietly as well. "Come on in. What's up?"
Molly walked inside and slipped her coat off. "Well," her voice twinged with curiosity, "I was wondering if either of you got a chance to talk to Ed this weekend?"
"Nope," Mike replied. Then seeing the disappointed look on Molly's face, he quickly added, "Hey! I tried - I left a message for him to call me yesterday about noon - he hasn't returned my call, yet!"
Molly looked at Nancy for confirmation. Nancy nodded. Mike said, "Hey! Why did you need Nancy to confirm it - my word is my bond!"
Molly just rolled her eyes and said, "Well, I haven't had any luck with Carol either. She isn't answering her cell phone - nor the message I left at the hotel. One can only assume that she and Ed are out again together."
"Yeah," Nancy said with satisfaction, then frowned, "I just wish we could find out what is going on!"
"Aargh! I can't take any more of this! Do either of your realize that I spent four years of my life listening to Ed talk about Carol? And now you two?!!! Enough. I can't take it any more!" His voice takes on a rather imperious tone, "As Lord and Master of this House, I declare that there shall be no more talk of 'Ed and Carol'."
Molly and Nancy look at each other and smile.
"... *Or* talk about 'Carol and Ed'," Mike quickly added.
Molly and Nancy stop smiling.
"Molly, how are things with your grandfather's place?"" Mike asked, hoping to change the subject.
"Well" Molly exclaimed. "I could use the legal services of one Edward Stevens myself right about now."
"I thought I ruled there shall be no talking about Ed and Carol," Mike tried to sound imperious again.
"I'm not talking about 'Ed and Carol', I'm just talking about Ed," Molly smiled knowing that she'd won on a technicality. "He'd really be a help wading through all the legal stuff associated with my grandfather's estate. It's a real mess."
"Oh. I guess that's okay then."
"How's things between you and the ever-so-pleasant Dr. Jerome?"
Mike frowns, "He called me a gibbering baboon today and now has another doctor working at the office," Mike replied. He continued in a sneering tone, "Dr. Scotty. Be more like Dr. Snotty."
"Honey, do you think Dr. Jerome is trying to play you two against one another?" Nancy asked.
"I try not to delve into the mind of Walter Jerome," Mike said. "There are some things man just wasn't meant to know."
Molly and Nancy laughed. Molly snapped her fingers and said, "Oh, almost forgot! Did you guys here the latest rumor about StuckeyBowl?"
"No," Mike said.
"What?" Nancy asked.
"Well," Molly said, "it seems that the rumors about Big Rudy closing the place down are true. There were some developers from Jaspertown over the other day looking at the site. And... Brace yourselves for this --- they want to tear StuckeyBowl down and put up a Roller Disco!!"
"You're kidding?" Nancy asked in shock.
"It's the end of civilization as we know it," Mike stated candidly. Molly and Nancy just looked at him. "What?" Mike said.
"You like dancing," Nancy pointed out.
"That's breakin', Nance. That's different," Mike corrected. Then proceeded to lecture Molly and Nancy for another fifteen minutes on the "civilization-ending" vileness of disco music.
After a few more minutes of conversation, Molly got up to leave. Nancy followed intending to lock up the house for the night. At the door, and what they thought was out of earshot of Mike, they agreed to trade information if Molly talked to Carol or Mike talked to Ed. Mike just looked on and rolled his eyes.
***
New York City - Room 426, the DoubleTree Hotel
December 18, 2000
10:30 PM
Ed and Carol were kissing. Well, kissing was a tame term for what was happening.
Their coats were thrown on the floor inside the door. Carol was backed against the wall to the right of the door, Ed right in front of her. Their lips pressed tightly together. Ed was slowly working one strap of Carol's dress down off her shoulder and Carol was working at the knot in Ed's tie, intent on removing it and the shirt underneath.
The kissing continued for several minutes. Occasionally they broke apart to gasp for breath, for Ed to trail a series of soft kisses down Carol's neck, for Carol to focus enough to get another button undone on Ed's shirt...
After several more minutes, Ed's shirt was completely unbuttoned and Ed was kissing along Carol's shoulder. He started working on the second spaghetti strap. Moving it down and off her shoulder. They were lost in a haze of passion.
Then the haze was disturbed, the sound of a cell phone ringing. She didn't understand at first what she was hearing, so lost was she in what Ed was doing. After about the third ring, her brain clicked back on. She realized from the ring that it was Ed's phone.
At about the same moment, Ed realized it as well. With an almost painful expression on his face, he pulled away from Carol. He looked around, hearing the phone ringing, knowing it was intruding on this moment between them, but not conscious enough to understand. On the fourth ring, his fog lifted and he gave a soft curse.
Looking around, he saw his coat thrown on the floor, the source of the ringing. He looked at Carol who said, "Don't answer it."
With a sigh, Ed said, "I have to. This late ... it's probably important. At least, it damn well better be."
Ed walked over and picked up his coat, fumbling in the pocket for the phone. He pulled out the phone and looked at the caller ID. It was the office - as he'd suspected. He had left instructions that he was not to be disturbed - except in an absolute emergency.
He turned the phone on and said, "Stevens."
Carol watched his face as he took the call. Ed suddenly turned around and she was no longer able to see his face.
"Miranda?" Ed asked, his voice a mixture of both anger and surprise. "What are you doing calling me this late at...? What? Now? Well, yes, of course I want to...but not right now! NO! I left instructions that no one was to call me unless it was an emergency. Yes, I know I *asked* you to, but *this* is not an emergency. We can do this tomorrow morning. Good night."
Ed sighed and turned off his phone. He slipped it back into his coat and turned to face Carol. They both knew that the mood had been lost. Ed walked over to Carol and kissed her, gently.
Carol was upset. The intensity and passion of the last few minutes had completely dissipated and she was torn between her desire to rekindle it and her growing sense of betrayal. Why had Ed turned away from her? What was he hiding from her about his relationship with Miranda? What did that conversation mean - it could have been about work or it could have been about so much more. That phrase, 'Well, yes, of course I want to...but not right now' floated through her mind. Ed hadn't meant...he and Miranda?
Could he?
Ed could see Carol distancing herself from him. He tried to tell himself that it was just his imagination. That he was just upset at the interruption. Except that 'upset' didn't even come close to the anger he was feeling right now. And it wasn't because he and Carol were going to be intimate, but because he couldn't deceive himself that the interruption seemed to have done something to his relationship with Carol. Some subtle shift he couldn't understand.
"I...," Carol started, then continued, "I guess I should let you go. You've obviously got...things to do." Her voice wasn't cold, just distant.
Ed was in anguish. He didn't understand what was going on. He just knew that right now wasn't the time. Whatever the problem was, he wouldn't push Carol. He would wait until tomorrow to work it out.
"Um, okay," Ed said. He raised Carol's face to look into her eyes and continued, "Carol, I think we need to talk. Now is not a good time for either of us - let's do this over dinner. My place this time?"
Carol smiled slightly. She couldn't help herself. He could sense something was wrong, but he wanted to give her time. Time to either calm down or to be ready to talk. Despite the anger she was feeling, she was feeling something else. Something that continued to draw her to him - like a moth to a flame.
'I just hope I'm not going to get burned!' she thought.
"Dinner at your place sounds good. Seven o'clock? I can find my way over."
Ed returned her smile and said, "Seven o'clock. You provide the company, I'll provide the food."
Ed bent down and kissed her again, this time with a little of the passion they had shared earlier. After a moment, he broke the kiss. He straightened his shirt and threw on his coat. As he opened the door, he turned and said, "Good night, Carol."
"Good night, Ed," Carol replied.
Carol thought she was either going to break down into tears as he started to close the door or throw herself at him and re-ignite the passion from minutes earlier.
The tears won out.
***
New York City - Room 426, the DoubleTree Hotel
December 19, 2000
7:30 AM
Carol had been awake for several hours. If she had thought that Sunday night was going to be her worst night's sleep, she was wrong. She didn't think that she had slept at all on Monday night. Her mind raced - about her relationship with Ed (whatever it was), Ed's relationship with Miranda (whatever THAT was), her book deal (she hadn't heard from Ed about the contract), and about a million little things.
She finally gave up the pretense of trying to get to sleep at seven o'clock. She got out of bed and showered. After half-heartedly eating some breakfast, she tried to write. Thinking she could lose herself in the fictional of world of her novel.
It didn't work and after an hour she closed her laptop in disgust. Whatever creative energies she'd had a few days ago had been tapped. Now, she was left with juvenile drivel.
She tried to flip through the TV channels, but nothing interested her.
It was now 11:30 in the morning. She was supposed to meet Ed at seven that evening - at his place to talk. The more she thought about it, the more curious she was about the topic. 'What do we have to talk about?' Carol wondered.
With a large sigh, she decided she couldn't handle being in the hotel any longer. She grabbed her coat, her purse, and the room key and headed out.
***
New York City - the Law Office of Farmer and Sheehan
December 19, 2000
11:45 AM
Ed Stevens was upset - VERY upset. A problem had crept up on the Henderson deal and he had to fly to Albany, New York for a late afternoon meeting. Which meant that he couldn't have dinner with Carol. And this was her last night in town!
He was mad, but he knew there wasn't anyone to be mad at. It was 'just one of those things'. And he hated it!
He was stuffing papers into his briefcase when Deloris walked into his office, to hand him some additional documents he had requested. He practically tore them out of her hands.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and sighed. When he opened his eyes, he looked at Deloris and said, "I'm sorry, Deloris. This trip is just damned inconvenient, and I shouldn't be taking it out on you." He gave a weak smile in addition to the apology.
Deloris gave him a small smile in return and said, "It's okay, Ed. I understand."
Ed wished she did. But he wasn't about to mention the call that had interrupted ... interrupted what, he thought. What might have been? He sighed again.
"Deloris," Ed said in a more normal tone, "would you double check the flight reservations for me. I want to make sure of my return time - I need to see if I can still get together with Carol tonight."
"Okay, Ed," Deloris said, but didn't move. When he raised his eyebrows in a silent question, she continued, "Are you sure about Miranda Van Note going with you? I didn't think she was working on the Henderson deal?"
"She's not," Ed said. "I need to speak with her on a personal matter."
Deloris raised her eyebrows in surprise.
Seeing Deloris' expression, Ed said, "NO! Nothing like what you are thinking. I'm having Miranda look into Knight Publishing. They're the ones that Carol is supposed to sign a contract with. But I have a feeling... No, I know that they're a bunch of crooks. Miranda was going to do some research for me, hopefully find something I could use as leverage against them and make them give Carol a better deal. I couldn't let Carol lose her dream..."
"Oh," was all Deloris said, though she began to suspect that there was something more that her boss wasn't telling her. She headed back to her desk. Ed could hear her on the phone, confirming what he already knew - that there was no way he could back to New York in time to see Carol tonight. He sighed and picked up the phone on his desk, dialing the number for the DoubleTree hotel.
***
New York City - the Law Office of Farmer and Sheehan
December 19, 2000
12:30 PM
Miranda watched as Carol Vessey strode purposefully into the lobby of the building housing the offices of Farmer & Sheehan. From the look of her, Carol obviously had something heavy weighing on her mind. Miranda smiled, then started walking towards Carol, calling her name as she got closer to her. "Ms. Vessey! Carol!"
Carol turned as she heard her name called. Her face froze when she saw it was that 'woman' - Miranda! Carol stopped, not really wanting to, but not really having any other alternative.
"Ms. Vessey... Carol," Miranda began, "I'm glad I caught you. I assume you're here to see Ed... I mean, Mr. Stevens?"
"Yes," Carol said coldly, "I am."
"Well," Miranda said, hiding a smile at Carol's obviously hostile tone, "...he's not here. He just left for the airport."
"What?" Carol said. "The airport?"
"Yes," Miranda said, "I'm afraid there was a problem with the Henderson deal, and Ed had to go to Albany. He'll be back later tonight. He left about 15 minutes ago. I'm supposed to meet him at the airport for *our* flight to Albany. I'm just waiting for my cab."
The stunned look on Carol's face filled Miranda with satisfaction, but she hid it.
"But ..." Carol stammered, "... we were supposed to have dinner together tonight. It's my last night in New York!" Carol barely managed to get the last part of the sentence out. Folding her arms across her chest defensively, she looked almost to be in tears.
"Carol.... Ms. Vessey," Miranda said, laying a hand on Carol's arm, "Carol, I shouldn't be telling you this, but..." She looked around for effect, then continued, "Come on, let's go over here and talk." She directed Carol to a small alcove, out of sight of the usual lobby traffic.
"Carol, I know how you feel about Mr. Stevens, ... I mean, Ed. It was obvious to me when I saw how you looked at him the other day. I don't blame you. Ed and I were... are... Oh! I don't know what we are anymore!"
Miranda eyed Carol carefully, watching to see if her rival saw through her performance. When she was satisfied that wasn't the case, she continued.
"I know how charming Ed can be - trust me, I know. He charmed the pants right off... Um, I mean, he can be a real charmer. But I'm not sure that Ed is really focused on a serious relationship right now."
"But I thought that ..."
"Oh I wouldn't hold it against him. He might even want to believe it himself. Did you know that Ed is going to be made a partner after the holidays? I mean, it's not official yet or anything. Even Ed doesn't know for sure, but his star is on the rise at the firm. It's what he's worked for since the beginning. You know that, right?"
"Yes. Yes. I do," Carol squeaked out.
"And I know it must be so hard for you to hear this, because I can tell you are really falling for Ed. I'm going to give you some good advice. Let him go! I don't think you could be happy here in New York and I KNOW Ed couldn't be happy in Stuckeyville! Either you would be forced to give up your home and career, or he would. And while I think that you and Ed would be happy for a time - eventually he would begin to resent what he'd given up for you. Or if you came to New York, you'd resent what you'd given up for him. Either way, it would end up destroying you both."
Miranda looked around again and said, "I've said way too much. I've got to go!" With that Miranda walked away and resumed waiting for her cab.
Carol stood there stunned. She had come into the building intending to ask Ed out to lunch - on her dime this time. And she hadn't been prepared to take no for an answer. But Ed was gone - and without even a phone call! And now she learned that Ed was going to be promoted. He couldn't come back to Stuckeyville with her.
'What was I thinking?' she thought. 'I didn't even realize that I had thought about Ed coming back to Stuckeyville until just now. But I wanted it so much and didn't realize it. But it can't be - it would kill him. He'd have to give up this job, a partnership! And for what? ME? I couldn't ask him to do that!"
Carol continued to stand there, her heart breaking and her mind reeling.
Miranda surreptitiously watched Carol from the corner of her eye, no doubt enjoying the emotional turmoil she'd sown in her heart. She couldn't have arranged events better than if she'd planned them herself. She smiled contentedly.
Finally, Carol started to move - towards the exit! With tears forming in her eyes, she walked out to the street and hailed a cab.
Miranda watched with satisfaction as Carol got in a cab and the cab pulled away. About a minute later, as Miranda continued to stand there pleased with herself, an elevator bell chimed and Ed walked off the elevator. Seeing Miranda he stalked over and said without stopping, "Let's go."
They walked out to the street and hailed a taxi to take them to the airport.