Preoccupied with the events of the previous day, Niles had not noticed he had not pressed the dishwasher button after loading the plates on the washer. He had not noticed either that he was about to drink the dishwater in a dirty mug and not his cappuccino in his mug labelled "Greatest Lover".
"Niles!" screamed Ms. Fine before he could drink the dishwater in the dirty coffee mug.
Startled, he looked at her from his reverie. Realizing he was holding the wrong mug, he immediately put it down and reached for his own coffee mug.
"What is it Ms. Fine?" he asked.
"Do you need a moment? You're so preoccupied with something you don't know what you're doing. Let me take over that while you go up to your room and change. I take it you've been wearing that since yesterday. Maybe when you come down later, you're more yourself."
As Ms. Fine hit the switch of the dishwasher, Niles turned back from going up the back stairs.
"Thank you, Ms. Fine for doing breakfast this morning," he said.
The brunette waved her right hand in the air dismissively.
"Nah, don't mention it. It's the least I could do for not going on our Sunday date," said Ms. Fine. She wanted to scold herself for opening a can of worms. It was a subject she didn't care to discuss as it might bring up how Niles was secretly in-love with her, which led her to cancel their long-running Sundate every month.
"I had no problem with that. You were under the weather. Well, you said you were under the weather… but it was fine, really…" protested Niles,
And Fran could see he was starting to have that far-away look in his eyes again.
"What exactly did you do yesterday? You look like you're still on cloud nine."
He winked at her. "I was in heaven."
"You should have gone with me to that charity event. They just call it charity because they collect thousands of dollars from people who wouldn't actually miss them, but dear it was a social event to meet everybody who's everybody. I snagged myself a Duke. You could have gotten your own too."
CC laughed. "You are crazy, Jocelyn. You know I couldn't come because Maxwell and I had an investors party that weekend. I couldn't just run off to a party, I've got a lot of work to do.
"You work too much, CC. You'll wake up one day you're an old maid," said Jocelyn.
Looking at her brother, she scolded, "You Maxwell, have been working her too hard. If you don't intend to marry her, then let her out a little so she could mingle and meet single men!"
Maxwell was indignant.
"I do not work her like a horse. She's the one who's workaholic. She can very well go out on a date. I'm not stopping her."
CC and Jocelyn looked at each other and rolled their eyes.
In a light-hearted manner, CC replied, "Uh huh! Then what about when I said I was going to Miami…"
"That was different. We were attending the Tony awards," said Maxwell.
"What about the time I wanted a week off…"
"It was the wrong time; we were in the middle of touring The Bachelor to Europe."
The girls looked at each other giggling.
"Uhuh! Then what about when I said I was going to a weekend at the Hamptons?"
Maxwell was getting irritated. "We had a meeting with VIPs!"
"Look, your timing was always off, CC. Try asking for a vacation on a slow time, okay."
"You know very well, we hardly have a slow time," retorted CC.
Jocelyn walked over to the sofa in exasperation. Her brother was often times pig-headed and unreasonable. Just because he was contented with being alone, doesn't mean others should be too.
"Anyhow, you know who I saw there in that event, CC? That ex-boyfriend of yours from when we were in college."
CC was intrigued. "Who are you talking about? I only had one serious boyfriend in college –Greg and we both know he is already married."
Jocelyn's eyes were filled with delight.
"Not Greg. This one is still one of the most eligible bachelors according to the society pages… well, that includes the sports columns," she teased.
A pang of dread hit CC's stomach. She had put that incident past her but remembering the time she was with him was a scary and traumatizing incident.
CC was quick to protest. "He was not my boyfriend. We dated a few times… that's it."
She couldn't believe her friend was excited about him. He was a first-class creep when she dated him when she was nineteen.
Maxwell was mildly curious about this guy who grazed the pages of the sports page and society page. Contrary to what Niles often believed that CC couldn't get a man in her life, she never had a lack of offers for a date. She was often busy with work or as he can tell, a bit wary and cautious with men. He would have to ask another day as they have shifted yet again to a different topic. Women, no matter what age would talk about everything and anything under the sun.
Maxwell ran his fingers through his wavy black hair to assuage his little headache, having to watch and hear his sister and CC incessantly talk about his sister's engagement to her new beau. He glanced up from the daily planner and saw Jocelyn still perched on the armrest of the green couch with a glass of orange juice in her hand and CC sat facing her with equal poise, her legs crossed, revealing her stockinged leg, her own drink in hand. CC was not going to get any work done at the rate they were going. He sighed, looking at them was bringing back memories.
Bringing back memories of the time he first met his wife Sara…
He had forgotten it was Jocelyn's summer break from university and his sister was home, but he had no idea she had brought along her best friends to spend two weeks at the manor. He came barging into the den where he caught them huddled comfortably on the couch and bean bags, having their girl talk much like this one.
"Who the hell are you just barging in here?" yelled Sara.
Apparently, she was in the middle of sharing a confidential topic only for the ears of her best friends. She was blond and beautiful. The type that would make every man's head turn just like Jocelyn and CC, but Maxwell didn't take much interest in her until a week into their vacation, CC's agent had called her for a modelling stint she could not refuse, and promised Sara and Jocelyn they would have a weekend in Cabo, her treat, after she gets her check from the modelling assignment, and Jocelyn's boyfriend at the time unexpectedly showed up two days later, taking up most of her time, leaving Sara alone in the manor most of the time.
She happened to be in the pool that afternoon, and Maxwell didn't let her presence deter his four times a week routine of 50 pool laps, so he proceeded with his butterfly stroke counting the continuous lap, unmindful of her, until he got a cramp on his leg on his fortieth lap. He winced in pain and Sara immediately swam towards him, bringing him to the shallow part of the pool.
She massaged his leg a few times until the stiffness of muscles subsided. He was impressed.
"I didn't know they offer Physical Therapy in Byrn Mawr," joked Maxwell.
Sara did not return his smile. "They don't. I learned from my mother," she said, swimming away from Maxell.
Intrigued, Maxwell followed her.
"Your mother was a physical therapist?" he asked, cornering her at the edge of the pool.
Sara sighed and stared at him.
"No! she was a masseuse."
Seeing the confusion in Maxwell's eyes, she continued.
"She was a masseuse. My father was a manager of a technological firm. We were not this rich before. I was not born with a silver spoon like you or Jocelyn and CC. We were middle class until my father got promoted as Vice President of the company and suddenly, I found myself swimming in money when I was sixteen years old."
Maxwell was curious. Seemed like he had a lot to learn about her and apparently a lot to learn about CC as well. He always judged them to be stuck up and snobbish, but he was wrong.
"CC had been my best friend since we were sixteen. My parents moved me from public school to a private school. It was hard enough moving from one public school to another, let alone the gigantic change from public school to private school during your adolescent years. It was a big adjustment for me I almost rebelled against my parents then on that fateful day I met CC, I was prying open the lock of my locker, my key suddenly doesn't fit…"
Maxwell laughed. "Let me guess, you were at CC's locker and not years. Did she had a fit catching you?"
Sara was feeling comfortable with Maxwell. He wasn't so bad after all.
She laughed. "No. She was actually humorous about it. She asked me to join her for lunch and teach her my expertise in picking locks… that was the start of a long-lasting friendship. I found myself from struggling to fit in, to being a part of the popular clique-thanks to CC. I know she doesn't strike you as a warm and friendly person but when you get to know her, beneath all that ice cold, high-browed demeanor is a warm, loving true friend."
Sara found herself staring into Maxwell's dark eyes. He was so close, much too close, his head coming nearer and nearer, and she had her back to the pool's edge.
"Seems like CC is not the only one with the icy, standoffish exterior with a warm heart beneath… I'd like to break the ice of like this brown-eyed lass before me…"
His lips descended on hers and it was their first kiss. The kiss that started it all.
Maxwell was relishing the memory when suddenly Sara's brown eyes slowly dissolved into blue and he found himself back to the present looking into CC's eyes filled with concern, with Jocelyn behind her sipping her drink, patiently waiting.
"Maxwell!"
"Maxwell!"
Her dainty hands, waving in front of his face to get his attention.
"What is it CC?"
"I hope you don't mind me stepping out for an hour or so. Jocelyn bought me this intricately woven Persian rug she brought all the way from Iran on her last trip. We'll take it over to the penthouse. I'll bring Niles with me to help Lester carry the rug. You don't mind, do you?"
He smiled wryly.
"Go ahead. Even if I say I mind, you will still go ahead with it anyhow."
CC giggled flirtatiously.
"Oh Maxwell, you know me so well."