Chapter One
"Oscar, I'm so glad you could make it," Steve said, feigning more joviality than he really felt. He was glad to see his old friend, but Steve's heart was too heavy with worry to allow him to genuinely smile.
Oscar could see it, too; they'd known each other for more than thirty years. He knew Steve would tell him eventually, but under no circumstances would he be rushed or forced to talk. "It's been awhile, Pal," he said casually as they headed toward the kitchen. "When Mary told me you called, I had her cancel my appointments. It's always good to see you."
"How's she working out?"
Oscar smiled. "She's no Peggy Callahan, but she's good, and she will be great, given a little time."
Steve handed him a mug of coffee and grabbed a towel-covered basket before the two men moved into the den. He removed the towel and held out the basket, offering Oscar a muffin. "Chocolate chip; Jaime just made them this morning. She's got this idea in her head that something's bothering me, and -"
"And she's right," Oscar concluded.
"Yeah," Steve admitted quietly.
"Where is Jaime?"
"She's out and about – wedding stuff – with Hannah and Daniel," Steve answered, pausing a moment before telling him the rest. "And Michael."
Oscar's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Oh. Are you ok with that?"
"No – no, I'm not."
"You could've gone with them."
Steve shrugged. "I'm not good at those things. It's more a 'mother' thing, but Daniel's mother died years ago, so Michael's...pinch-hitting, I guess."
"I thought he was in Texas."
"Yeah; his practice is based there, but he took a three-month leave of absence, and he's free until the wedding. He rented a house about ten minutes from here, and he'll be helping Jaime and the kids with the wedding arrangements."
"What about you, Steve?" Oscar asked, very quietly.
"I told you, I'm not good at -"
"No; I mean you – your feelings. I can see what this is doing to you. Have you talked to Jaime? Does she know how you feel?"
Steve shook his head sadly. "I can't tell her."
"Steve, she's your wife -"
"And last Thanksgiving, I assured her that I was ok with Michael joining the family, when Hannah and Daniel get married."
"Which is great, but joining the family is a hell of a lot different from spending time with your wife."
"Exactly," Steve agreed. "But I also apologized to Michael for being irrationally jealous; we shook hands -"
"And for you to try and stick to that, when the situation has obviously changed is huge," Oscar acknowledged, "but Jaime deserves to know what this is doing to you."
"Maybe. I just...I don't want her to feel I don't trust her."
"Jaime would never cheat on you, Pal. The thought wouldn't even enter her mind."
"I know that. She and Michael were so close, once, though -"
"A very long time ago," Oscar pointed out.
Steve could barely get his next words out; he hadn't shared this knowledge with Jaime, or anyone else, since learning about it a few months earlier. "Oscar...Michael's still in love with her."
"Oh, I doubt that –"
"He admitted it to me."
"Steve," Oscar said slowly, "that moves this into an entirely new ballpark."
- - - - - -
"Which one do you like best?" Jaime asked. They'd narrowed the cake topper choices to three, and it was time for Hannah and Daniel to make a final choice.
"The bears are cute," Michael said, taking a step closer to Jaime, who noticed he was looking at her and not the toppers, but chose to ignore it.
Hannah saw it, as well, and tactfully stepped between them as she fingered the tiny decorations. "What do you think, Mom?"
"The bears are cute, but when you show this to your kids and grandkids as a memento someday, will cute be what you want?"
"I like the bride and groom," Hannah said decisively, marking her choice on the order form. She turned to Daniel, grinning happily, and took his hand. "Now – we get to eat cake!"
- - - - - -
"We got a lot done today," Hannah sighed as she sank down next to Daniel in his living room that night. They'd finished just before dinnertime, sent their parents on their way and were finally grabbing a few hours of 'alone time'. "The cake, the flowers, the centerpieces...but what is up with your dad?"
Daniel wrapped a gentle arm around his fiancée. "What do you mean?"
"Every time I turned around, he was just...staring at my mom. It was kinda creepy."
"She used to be his patient. Maybe he was just checking her over."
"He was checking her over, alright," Hannah said with un-Hannah-like sarcasm. "I didn't like it one bit."
"And I don't like what you're implying -"
"God, if my dad saw that...!" She kissed him, to let him know she wasn't angry. "Danny, why did your parents split up?"
"I really don't want to talk about that; not right now."
"Please?"
The look in Hannah's eyes told Daniel how important this was to her, so he reluctantly delved into the extremely painful subject. "You won't like this," he warned.
"I need to know."
"I was really little, so I only remember bits and pieces, and it was just stuff I overheard from the other room, because they tried to keep it to themselves..."
"Daniel -" Hannah pleaded.
"I had no idea who or what they were arguing about back then - I only figured it out recently – but one name kept coming up, in almost every fight they had." Hannah waited expectantly, and after a deep breath, Daniel told her the rest. "The name that got them both so angry...was 'Jaime'."
- - - - - -