Next Time (6 page)

Chapter 6

Anya’s eyes widened as Ryann crawled toward her on the blanket in the middle of the living room floor. “Oh, you know,” Ryann grabbed one of Anya’s flailing feet, “I have to bite it. I just have to.” Anya squealed and laughed as Ryann pretended to gobble up her feet and ankles.

It was a sweet deal. She’d enjoyed a dinner she didn’t have to cook, and all she had to do in exchange for the meal was play with the baby while Shelly cleaned the kitchen. Ryann was certain that Shelly got the short end of the stick, but it was her idea.

Brody draped himself over the armrest of the sofa and watched them play. “If I take off my shoes, will you bite my feet like that?”

“There are rules about feet.” Ryann grabbed one of Anya’s and waved it at Brody as she spoke. “They have to be this size.”

“Daddy chews Momma’s feet.”

“I could’ve gone the rest of my life without hearing that,” Ryann said as Anya’s foot slipped from her hand.

“Hearing what?” Evan asked as he walked into the living room.

Brody flopped over on his back and hung over the armrest upside-down. “You chew Momma’s feet. I saw you do it one day on the couch.”

Evan’s face colored a bit. “I was trying to get a splinter out, son,” he said as he grabbed Brody by the leg and hoisted him in the air. “Isn’t it time you take a shower?”

Brody dangled upside-down with a goofy grin. “I already did.”

“Then why are you still in your school clothes, boy?” Evan asked as he raised Brody in the air until they were almost face to face.

Brody laughed. “I lie.”

Ryann marveled at the contrast between the two. Brody looked like a shrimp compared to Evan’s six-foot-six-inch broad build. For that matter, Shelly did too when she stood next to him. Evan was sweet and nice-looking, but Ryann had no clue how Shelly tolerated the scruff that always seemed to be on his face even after he shaved.

“Take your lying butt up those stairs and bathe. No jokes. Don’t let me come up there and find you goofing off,” Evan said as he tossed Brody onto the couch like a ragdoll.

“Do it again, Dad! Do it again.”

“After your shower, go.” Evan grinned down at Anya. “There’s my baby girl,” he cooed.

“You are one big-ass teddy bear with a foot fetish,” Ryann said as she grinned up at him.

“That’s your sister’s thing,” Evan whispered. “That’s big love on my part. She’s got some ugly feet.” He smiled at Anya. “But my baby girl doesn’t, she has beautiful feet because she didn’t take after her mommy and her aunt.” He knelt and scooped the baby into his arms. “You come watch the game with Daddy. Auntie Ryann is trying to chew up your little feet and make them ugly like hers.”

“Coming from a man who looks like he has troll dolls for toes.” Ryann laughed. “You need to shave those bad boys.”

Shelly switched off the light in the kitchen and strode into the living room. “What are you two teasing each other about in here?”

“Evan just told me that you like your toes sucked.”

“Oh, you are so wrong for that,” Evan said with a laugh. “I’m just gonna take my baby and retreat upstairs.”

Shelly pulled him down for a kiss. “I’ll be up later. Would you make sure Grant is doing his homework and Brody isn’t pressing his naked butt on his window again?”

Evan headed for the stairs and called over his shoulder. “For the record, Brody takes after your side of the family, babe.”

Ryann got up and folded the blanket that she and Anya had played on. “So toes, huh?”

“Hey, we’ve been married a while. The poor boy will try anything to get my motor running. So where’s Leigh tonight?”

“You know exactly where she is—at work.”

“Do you know that for sure?” Shelly took a seat on the couch.

“We can track each other on our phones. I used to look at hers a lot, but I don’t anymore.”

Shelly watched as Ryann sat down. “Have you thought any more about what you’re gonna do?”

“All the time,” Ryann admitted with a sigh. “I just can’t bring myself to do it.”

“Send her a text.”

“I owe her more than that,” Ryann said as she rubbed her brow.

“I was joking.”

“I keep having this dream where I tell her that I want to break up. It takes her completely by surprise, and she’s devastated. Consciously, I think she and I are on the same page. She can’t be happy, either. Frankly, I think that’s why she stays at the office so much. I guess in my subconscious I worry that’s not the case, and I’ll break her heart.”

“So…if she’s still happy with you, you’ll stay?”

“No. I’m having a hard time with this.” Ryann raked a hand roughly through her hair. “I rehearse what I need to say all the time, and I tell myself, ‘Tonight is the night.’ Then she walks through the door looking tired, and I come up with a million excuses why it’s not the right time. Truth is, I just lose my nerve.”

“Send her a text—”

“Seriously, Shelly!”

“Listen, send her a text, and tell her that y’all need to talk. Surely, she can come home from work early one damn night. You’ll be locked in then, and you’ll say what you need to.” Shelly shook her head. “I don’t know of anyone in a relationship that would tolerate their partner staying away from home as much as she does. Deny if you will, but I
know
you have suspicions.”

“I do,” Ryann admitted softly.

“And you still have feelings for her. If you didn’t, you wouldn’t be so indecisive.”

Ryann nodded and looked away. “I do. I probably always will. They’re just not strong enough to pull me out of the rut, though.”

*******

Payton had lost her appetite when Jana left, so she drank her margarita and Jana’s. Hours passed with no word, so she decided to take a walk and burn off some of the tension she felt and the booze. Even though it was October, the night was warm. With her phone in the pocket of her favorite cutoffs, she headed for the sidewalk at a brisk pace. The conversation she’d had with Jana about Ryann was starting to really settle in on her. She wondered if maybe her search for a soul mate was a fantasy that she’d been clinging to. Maybe the soul’s other half was a fantasy perpetuated by romance novels and movies. Maybe, she’d let Lydia slip through her fingers, and they could’ve been happy when she wasn’t a squirrel.

She’d gone a couple of blocks when her phone rang. “I have to talk fast, so listen, don’t interrupt,” Jana whispered. “Leigh claimed that she and Ryann had a really bad fight a while back. They’d basically broken up, but neither of them had moved out when she put up the profile. They reconciled, and she forgot to take it down.”

“But there was a recent post,” Payton said as she walked faster.

“Melanie called her on that, too. Leigh said she was at work one day waiting to go into a meeting that she knew was gonna be stressful. She just happened to conveniently remember the profile and went in to take it down. She made the post and was about to delete the page when she was interrupted and forgot about it. Lame, I know, and Melanie saw through it, too, and said so. Leigh started crying and begging Melanie not to say anything. She claims she thought that Ryann was having an affair, and that was actually what they fought about. Melanie didn’t believe any of it, but before she left, Leigh promised that she would tell Ryann about the profile, and she would take it down.” Jana sighed heavily. “Melanie wants to leave it in Leigh’s hands. She doesn’t want to lose either of them as friends, and she wants them to be able to work it out.”

“Okay,” Payton said with resignation, but her feet were moving at top speed.

“You took that well, now I’m really afraid.”

“No, you’re right. This isn’t really any of our business.”

“Okay, I’m going back to bed,” Jana said with a yawn. “We’ll talk tomorrow.”

“Good night.”

Payton stuffed the phone in her pocket and began to run. She felt like she was running away from her stupidity. She was jogging away from Ryann and a situation she had no control over. She was limping to a telephone pole because she couldn’t breathe.

“First order of business tomorrow,” Payton panted out. “I’m joining a gym. I’m gonna get my life in order. Tonight…I’m calling a cab.”

Chapter 7

“So you had basically given up?” Olivia asked Payton.

“I felt like I was losing my mind. I know it sounds crazy, but in my heart and soul, I felt like Ryann was the one I’d been searching for. Jana and my own common sense were hard to refute. All I had was a feeling. Then there was Ryann’s situation. Regardless of the outcome, it all seemed so hopeless. So I decided to jam my life with so much activity that I couldn’t think about any of it anymore.”

Olivia set her gaze on Ryann. “Did Leigh come clean?”

“No, she didn’t, and neither did I,” Ryann admitted with a sigh.

*******

******

***

“Do you have any goals in mind, Ms. Foret?”

Payton stared at the trainer who looked like she was twelve years old. “You mean…for what?”

The woman smiled and scrubbed her hands together. “Is weight loss your primary focus, or do you want strength and endurance?”

“Can I have all three?”

“Yes, you can. Let’s start off on the treadmill and get you warmed up for a workout.” Payton stared at her trainer, watching the muscle in her arms move beneath her skin as she waved at someone who walked in. Her body had been sculpted by hours of exercise, and her breasts were done with a surgeon’s knife. They were huge and looked as though they’d take flight if not held down by her bra. The All Day Fitness logo was stretched to the point the lettering had begun to crack.

“What’s your name again?” Payton asked. “I apologize for being forgetful. I don’t normally get up this early, and my brain hasn’t booted up yet.”

“Susan,” she said as she began doing a few leg stretches that Payton mimicked and feared that she’d be in traction if the process went on any longer. Susan stepped up on one of the treadmills and pointed to the one beside her. “You stand on the outer rails and punch in the settings first. After the belt starts to move, you step on. We’re going to start with fat burn, it really gets the blood pumping.”

Payton watched as Susan pressed the tabs on the screen and set her weight, level of difficulty, and speed. Before long, they were both moving at a brisk pace. Payton was breathing heavy before her first minute was up. Susan didn’t sound winded at all as she explained the workings of the gym.

“We’re open twenty-four hours a day. You’ll use your keycard to come inside, but the rules are strict about opening the door for anyone else. If they don’t have an active card, they shouldn’t be in here. Most people wear earbuds and listen to music while they work out. The code is if the buds are in, then don’t disturb them, they’re focused on the work. Follow me so far?”

Payton wanted to say no. It wasn’t that she didn’t understand what Susan was saying; she just didn’t want to go any farther on the treadmill. “I got it,” she panted out.

“When you come in, start with cardio. It warms the muscle and gets your heart rate up, which kick-starts your metabolism. You can do that on the treadmills, elliptical machines, and the bikes for twenty minutes. Then you’ll be ready to work with me on the muscle-building.”

Sweat began to trickle down Payton’s spine. Her legs felt as though they’d already burst into flames. She was afraid to look down at them. She grabbed the water bottle that sat in the cup holder and drank greedily.

“Is that yours? I thought I saw you put a bottle in your locker.”

Payton had just swallowed the last gulp when what Susan said registered, and she began to gag. Her feet stopped moving, and she shot off the back of the treadmill like a rocket. When her back connected with the padded wall behind the row of treadmills, she released a burp that turned every head in the gym.

Susan seemed to take the whole incident in stride and threw the emergency switch on Payton’s treadmill. “Maybe we should finish our warmup on the bikes.”

“I’m warm,” Payton said and blinked away the sweat that dripped into her eyes. “Can I lay here for a minute or two?”

*******

“Are you sick?” Jana asked when Payton answered the phone later that day.

“I might be. I drank out of a water bottle I found in the gym.”

“Are you insane?”

“Yeah, there’s no sense in arguing that point.”

“Wait, did you just tell me you were in a gym?”

“Yes,” Payton said with a loud sigh. “I’ve got all the muscle tone of a rubber band, and I’ve decided to make some new patterns in my life.”

“That’s excellent. A gym is a good place to meet people.”

“Yes, that’s a benefit but not why I joined. I think the change of environment and the exercises might do something for inspiration, maybe I’ll get new ideas. Matter of fact, an idea for a new song popped into my head. It’s called
Monkey on a Treadmill
.”

“Leigh’s page is gone from the dating site, but that’s not what I called to tell you. Stargazer left you a compelling message, you should check it out.”

“Can everyone see what people write to me?”

“No, I used your login. She’s really cute. You need to get on there and check her out.”

Payton wished that Jana had not mentioned Leigh. She’d fought hard to stop thinking about Ryann, but she found herself asking, “Has Melanie talked to either of them today?”

“She talked to Ryann when she went by her house after work. Melanie made it a point to go to check the mail when Ryann did. She said Ryann was just as cheerful and sweet as usual, and she didn’t look like she’d been through any emotional storms. I guess that means Leigh didn’t make any confessions.”

“I’m not surprised.”

“I gotta run, but check out that hit on your profile. It might turn out to be something good.”

“I’ll get around to it. Chat with you later,” Payton said and ended the call.

She got up with a groan and passed the computer without the slightest urge to see what Stargazer had to say. What she desired more than human companionship at that moment was a hot bath that would hopefully stop her muscles from complaining. Her slow trip to the bathroom was delayed by a knock.

Grace smiled at Payton kindly when she opened her front door. “My last lightbulb burned out in the kitchen, dear. Would you be so kind as to change them for me?”

Payton stifled a groan. “Sure.”

*******

Half the bulbs in Grace’s house were burned out. Payton climbed up and down a ladder as she changed each one, adding to the pain in her legs. “Honey, why haven’t you asked me to do this sooner? You’re practically living in the dark.”

“I hate asking for help, even from you.” Grace handed Payton another bulb. “I’d do it myself, but if I fall, Janet will stick me in a retirement home. She tries to make it sound so wonderful, calls it a summer camp for grannies, like I don’t know anything about those places. I have a friend who lives in one. The last time I visited her, a strange woman came into her room and started petting her head and said, ‘Nice kitty, pretty kitty.’ The old bird was so far gone she thought Gladys was a damn cat. Getting old sucks, kid, remember that. Why are you moving like an old woman?”

“I joined a gym today,” Payton said with a groan as she climbed down the ladder.

Grace rested her hands on her hips. “Why? So you can look like a man?”

“No, I wanna be in shape. Where does this ladder go?”

“Hall closet. How about some coffee and a slice of pie? It won’t be that great, it’s not homemade. I picked it up at the market. I was hungry, and they’d just baked them.”

“That sounds good.” Payton stuffed the ladder into the closet and mouthed
yes
.

“Why do you want to be in shape all the sudden? Does it have anything to do with the new woman?” Grace called out as she walked into her kitchen.

“There’s no new woman,” Payton said as she joined her. “I mean, I just met her, but she’s not my woman. She belongs to someone else.”

“Oh, so you’re up in someone else’s pudding.”

Payton shook her head and fought the urge to roll her eyes. The last time she did that, Grace rapped her with a rolled-up newspaper reserved for Trevor. “We’re only friends, but I felt this odd connection with her, even though I’ve only talked to her twice. That’s the other reason I joined the gym. I need to get my mind off of what I can never have.”

The coffee brewed while Grace listened intently as Payton told her all about meeting Ryann, finding Leigh’s profile, and how Melanie had handled things with Leigh. Payton confessed her guilt over not stepping up as a friend and telling Ryann what she knew.

“You got no business getting in the middle of that,” Grace said firmly. “Sure, if you knew this Ryann like you know Jana, then you’d be obligated.”

“I feel like I do, though.” Payton pulled two plates from Grace’s cabinet. “It’s so weird.”

“Love at first sight, it happens sometimes…usually way up in the sticks where people are sparse, and when they do see another human, they call it love. It’s usually their cousin.”

“I’m not that hard up,” Payton said as she sliced the pie.

“You dated a woman who thought she was a squirrel.”

Payton grimaced when she recalled Lydia’s ass sticking out of the azalea bushes in Jana’s yard on her search for acorns. “I wish everyone would stop reminding me of that.”

“Let me tell you about my sister.” Grace motioned for Payton to sit down. “During the war, she worked at a munitions plant in St. Louis. My folks and I were visiting her then, and she took us out for a night on the town. We were at a club, and this young man hobbled in on a pair of crutches, got his foot blown off in battle, the army sent him back stateside. I happened to be looking at Myrna when her gaze fell on him, and something happened just that quick. A light flickered on in her eyes. I turned and found him looking at her the same way.”

Grace poured the coffee and joined Payton at the table. “It was magic. Myrna was engaged, but the second she laid eyes on Paul, all bets were off. Caused a big stink with my dad, he said it was just lust and told Myrna that she was throwing away a good man because of hormones. She and Paul were married a month after they met, ran off, and eloped.” Grace’s eyes misted as she stared out her window. “When he died, she did, too, only her body didn’t get the message until a year later, she was eighty-six.”

“Wow, that’s a long time to love someone.”

“Mm-hmm,” Grace agreed with a nod. “I was jealous. My Ronald was a good man, and I loved him with all my heart, but what we had didn’t compare. Myrna and Paul were joined at the soul the moment they met. I’ve never seen two people so close. That kind of love is rare, but it happens.”

“So you believe in love at first sight.”

“No,” Grace said as she cut into the pie. “That’s just what we call intense attraction and luck. Myrna and Paul were awestruck by each other. Luck played its part, and they turned out to be extremely compatible. Falling in love was easy for them, but it didn’t happen the day they met.”

“Ah,” Payton said, and her last string of hope broke.