People who have called:
Kevin (11 messages)
Art (6 messages)
Mom (3 messages)
People who haven't called:
Gray
He hadn't called. He said he'd call and here it was, Saturday evening, and he still hadn't called. What happened to wanting to watch a movie with me?
The malignant neoplasm.
I drummed my fingers on my dinner plate. Maybe I needed to give him the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps he was run down by an ambulance. Or maybe a child bit him and he got rabies. I shook my head. I'd spent this morning volunteering at the clinic-if he'd gotten rabies Dee would have mentioned it. More likely he found another Barbie to harass.
Well good riddance, because I didn't want him in any case. I picked up my fork and stabbed it into the chicken I'd baked for dinner.
"Ah... Daph?"
Glaring at my sister, I tossed my fork down. "How many times do I have to tell you my name is Daphne?"
"You don't have to tell me. I choose not to use it." She exchanged looks with Rio. "If you weren't in the mood for company, why did you invite us over?"
Because I'd told Gray I was having dinner with them and I'd had a moment of guilt.
Rio picked up his plate and stood. "Excuse me."
"Where are you going?" I asked, confused. He'd barely touched his food.
"The living room." He smiled. "Your sister wants to talk to you alone."
Frowning, I looked back and forth between them. "How do you know?"
"She kicked me under the table. That's usually a pretty good indication." He bent and dropped a kiss on Mena's head. "Have a good talk."
"He's so well trained." Mena smiled after him like she'd been dosed with Prozac.
I nodded, thinking about Gray and how he wouldn't have been as quick to comply. If he complied at all.
"So are you going to tell me what's wrong or do I have to pour alcohol into you first?"
"There isn't any problem."
She snorted. "As if."
"There isn't," I insisted. Because there really wasn't. I shouldn't have let Gray coerce me into seeing him again. Neither one of us wanted to see the other. How many times did we have to agree that we were wrong for each other?
"Daphne." Mena leaned across the table. "The last time you said nothing was wrong you ended up quitting your job and couch surfing in my house."
"I'm not sleeping on the couch. I have a bed."
Mena went on as if I hadn't spoken. "I still don't understand what caused you to leave Stanford-"
I crossed my arms.
"-and you're obviously not going to tell me." Her eyes became squinty in the way they got when she was beginning to lose her temper. "But I'll be damned if I have to sit here and watch you mope."
"Don't swear, Mena."
"That's it." She slapped the table and stood. "I'm calling Mom and telling her she needs to come home because you're having a breakdown."
"No!" I grabbed her wrist before she could make a move.
She leaned down. "Then tell me what's going on."
I tapped my lips, wondering what I could say that would appease her.
She broke my hold and reached for her cell phone, on the kitchen counter where she'd set it when she came in.
"Wait," I shouted. "Okay, I'll tell you."
She sat down again, her phone still open and poised for action.
I scowled. "You don't have to threaten me."
"Just making sure you have incentive. Talk." She pursed her lips. "Is this about that guy from the pool hall? What was his name? Green?"
"Gray," I corrected.
"Right." She eyed me. "He looked at you like you were a tall glass of beer."
Considering how disgusting beer tasted, I wasn't sure that was a good thing. But I ignored her. "I need to start dating."
She nodded. "But Gray hasn't asked you out? Ask him instead. It's the twenty-first century. Women do that. Do you have his number?"
My hand involuntarily went to my pant pocket, where I'd put the scrap of paper he'd given. "I wasn't thinking of Gray."
Mena frowned. "You weren't?"
I was, but I wasn't going to admit that. "No. I was thinking maybe you could introduce me to someone. Someone nice."
"The only nice man I know is Matt."
"Hey," Rio called from the other room.
"You're more naughty than nice," Mena yelled back. "And that's the way I like it."
"Please." That wasn't something I needed to visualize.
"I can't help it if my man is hot." She focused on me again. "Are you interested in Matt?"
"No." Matt was too intelligent.
"If you were, I wouldn't mind. I'd probably be happy. If you promised to treat him well." Her gaze became narrow and hard.
"I'm not interested," I reassured her.
"Just as well. He hasn't said as much, but I think there's something going on between him and that new neighbor."
Remembering the way he looked at the woman when she'd walked into the billiards hall, I had to agree. "You've got to know other men. Don't you have an electrician or plumber or something?"
"I do all my own repairs. What's the deal? You have some sort of workman fetish? Although I can see the appeal. A manly man in loose jeans that bares his hairy ass when he bends over."
I frowned. "Are you being sarcastic?"
"Of course I'm being sarcastic." She leaned back, scowling at me. "I don't understand you. You have a perfectly decent man who obviously wants you and you're running the other direction."
"Gray is not decent. I'm positive there's insanity inherent in his genealogy."
"This is all part of the thing you're going through, isn't it?" she asked much too astutely.
"Why can't you be supportive for a change and just find me a man?"
"I knew it." She shook her head. "This is related to whatever made you quit your job. What the hell is going on?"
"Stop swearing."
"Then tell me what your frickin' problem is."
I glared at her. "I told you to stop swearing at me."
She stood, propped her hands on the table, and leaned toward me. "Make me."
"Do I have to break you two up?" Rio walked in and set his plate in the sink.
Mena pointed at me. "She's being an idiot."
"I am not," I retorted.
Rio rolled his eyes. "Phil, maybe you need to lighten up."
Mena narrowed her eyes at him. "If you knew what an idiot she's being you wouldn't say that."
"Phil."
"Fine." She shoved her chair back and stormed out of the kitchen.
We watched her leave in silence. A moment later, Rio said, "She's worried about you."
I snorted.
"She is." He turned to me, his arms folded. "This is the only way she knows to express it."
"So you're saying this is like third grade when Bobby McIntire stuck gum in my hair?"
His grin spread slowly. "A little."
"I hated Bobby."
Laughing, he put an arm around my shoulder and squeezed.
For a moment I stiffened, but then I relaxed into his hug. It was kind of nice actually. Warm. I glanced up at him. "Mena's a lucky woman."
"I'm just as lucky."
From the expression in his eyes, I knew he meant it from the bottom of his soul. Kevin had never had that look in his eyes. Gray-
I didn't want to think about him. To cover my turbulent thoughts, I smiled. "I'm happy you're going to be part of the family."
"As long as I don't have to go insect hunting with your dad." He pretended to shudder.
I laughed. "It's not so bad."
"I thought he almost got put into a South American prison on his last bug hunting trip."
"It's wasn't nearly as bad as the time in Africa." I put my uneaten dinner in the sink and ran the water. "He got banned from Kenya on that one. Indefinitely."
"Daphne?"
I glanced over my shoulder.
He gazed at me, serious and steady. "Phil loves you, and I already think of you as my sister. If you need anything, we're here for you."
Turning around so he couldn't see the sudden tears that popped into my eyes, I said, "I'll keep that in mind."
There was a long silence before he spoke again. "Need help with the dishes?"
I shook my head as I cleared the lump in my throat. "I can handle it."
"I'll join Phil then."
When I felt I was alone, I gave in and let a tear fall. I'd always wanted a brother. I always imagined that if I'd had one, he would have beaten up the other kids who taunted me. I didn't have anyone calling me Doogie Howser anymore, but if someone did I knew who to call.
My cell phone rang. Turning the sink off, I dried my hands on a towel as I walked into the living. I arrived just in time to see Mena answer my phone.
"Hello," she said into it like she was God.
Scowling, I rushed toward her. "Give me that."
She held her hand out and stood up on the couch to get the phone out of my reach. "Actually this is Daphne's sister, Mena," she said into the phone. "Who's this?"
"Philomena, give me the phone," I said in my big sister voice.
She didn't listen. Not surprising-she'd never listened. "Dinner was great, if a little too healthy. But Daphne cooked so you've got to expect that." She paused. "Yes, we did have pasta. How did you know?"
Hands on hips, I glared at Rio. "Are you just going to sit there?"
He nodded. "It'd be prudent of me to stay out of this one."
"Of course I remember you. We met at the pool hall." Mena took a moment out of her conversation to smirk at me.
Pool hall? I froze.
"Uh-huh." She pursed her lips. "Right."
Right what? Furious, I whispered so Gray wouldn't hear. "What are you saying?"
She ignored me. "No, I don't think so."
What didn't she think?
"I can do that, no prob." She nodded.
"What?" I eyed the couch, debating pushing Rio aside so I could climb up and get my phone back. I was several inches taller than my sister-I could outreach her.
"Got it. Nice talking to you too." She stepped down and held out the phone. "It's for you."
Glaring, I snatched it from her. "Thank you so much."
"Sarcasm doesn't become you, Daphne," she said, affecting our mother's tone. The grin on her face ruined it though. She toed Rio. "Come on. Let's head out. Daph needs her privacy."
I was about to snap at her when she shocked me into silence by kissing my cheek. She squeezed my hand. "Make good choices."
Gaping, I watched them head to the stairs. Rio winked at me over his shoulder and nodded his chin at the phone, clutched in my hand.
Right. Gray. I held it to my ear. "Hello?"
"Daphne."
I shivered involuntarily at the melted chocolate tone of his voice. Then I scowled. "What do you do? Practice sounding like that on purpose?"
"How do I sound?"
Decadent. Tempting. "Cheesy."
He chuckled. "This from the woman who endured a coffee date with tuber man? All I said was your name. How could I sound cheesy?"
It was better than admitting he sounded enticing. "Well, it was nice talking to you."
"Why are you pissed?"
"Who said I'm pi-angry?" I asked coolly.
"No one, but I'm a fairly intuitive guy. Is this because I didn't call?" He sounded entirely too pleased by the thought.
Which made me scowl deeper. "No."
His voice softened. "Daphne, I'm sorry. I meant to, but I had an emergency with one of my patients and have been spending a lot of time at the hospital monitoring him. It's not an excuse, but maybe you can understand a little."
On the inside I thawed just a little. "Is everything okay?"
"He's fine, and I'm sorry I didn't call when I said I would. I really could use some help at the clinic. We're slammed."
What did that mean? Was seeing me an underhanded way to get me to work for him like it had been for Kevin? I shook my head. He didn't know I was a doctor, and he could ask anyone to help with the admin side of the business.
"Anyway, let me make it up to you," he said, interrupting my thoughts.
I tried not to think how he would do that. Certainly not with kisses. Would he? "You don't owe me anything."
"Maybe not, but I don't like that I made you unhappy. Let me make dinner for you tomorrow night."
"Dinner?" I frowned. No man had ever made dinner for me. Kevin hadn't even warmed me a can of soup when I'd caught a cold a year ago.
"When one eats in the evening," he replied with a smile in his voice.
"Real food?" I should say no but I could only gape in astonishment that a man wanted to make me dinner.
"I try not to serve plastic to my guests. We'll watch Star Wars after dinner. I'll pick you up at six. Daphne?"
"Yes?"
"I can't wait."
To my dismay, neither could I.