The Coffee Shop (15 page)

Derrick shook his head. “Like I said, flashback, grade four all over again.”

Brian laughed, and Derrick climbed into the limousine, pulling the door closed behind him. “Very funny.” But when he went to open the door, it was locked, the limousine pulling away from the curb. “Hey!”

The car pulled to a stop, and Derrick rolled down the window. “Maybe next time you won’t be so much of an ass.”

“What? You’re going to leave me here? Seriously?”

“You’re a doctor, you can afford a cab. And seriously, stop saying seriously!” The limousine pulled away, but came to a stop about half a block down the street, the door opening.

“You really had me going there for a second,” Brian said, climbing in.

“Oh, I meant it. You are an ass.”

“Tell me something I don’t already know.”

Derrick stepped into the bedroom. “Hey, where are all the books?”

“Books?” Annie seemed truly perplexed by his question, and her gaze followed his.

“The bedside table. It was covered with stacks of books.” She turned back to him, her expression one of wondering. “I would joke about it eclipsing the sun?”

She laughed and patted him on the face. “Honestly, Derrick, you can be so funny sometimes.” She laughed again. “Stacks of books. I haven’t done that since…Now when was that? Hmm, can’t remember, oh a few months at least.” She shrugged, walking from the room.

Derrick stared after her. “Hasn’t done that for a few months? What is she talking about? She’s been doing it since…”

“You still standing there? We’ve got to get ready.”

“Ready?”

“The fundraiser, remember?”

“The fundraiser?”

“Oh please don’t tell me you’ve forgotten, Derrick.”

“No. No, I…I’m just distracted today, for some reason. No, I didn’t forget.” He smiled down at her. “And with you here, can you blame me?”

“You always did know what to say.” She sighed. “And I’ll never get tired of it.” She smiled and kissed him tenderly. “Now put on that new Armani shirt I bought you. You want to look your best tonight.” Running her hand down his chest, she stared up at him adoringly.

“Armani shirt? I thought you…”

She was looking up at him, waiting for him to finish his thought. “You?”

“Never mind.”

“All right. If you say so, just don’t be too long, we don’t want to miss the reception.”

He watched her as she walked into the washroom. Armani? She never buys Armani, he thought to himself.

“Annie, what’s going on?”

“The fundraiser, I told you.”

“No, not that, what’s going on here? The books. You buying Armani shirts?”

She poked her head out the door. “Honestly, Derrick, I have no idea what you are going on about, but if we talk about this much longer we are going to miss the reception.”

“Okay, you’re right.” Stepping into the walk-in closet, Derrick pulled out his cell phone and dialed. “Brian, I need to ask you about Annie.”

There was a long pause. “What…so you’re talking to me now?”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Well, last time I tried to call you, you wouldn’t have anything to do with me.”

“I wouldn’t…what?”

“The fight.”

“The fight? What fight? Brian, make sense will you?”

There was another long pause. “And now you’re calling me up like nothing ever happened?”

“Brian, I’m going to ask you a question, and no matter how stupid it sounds…I’ll need you to answer me, please.”

“Please? Well…this does sound interesting. Okay, what’s the question?”

“When did we have this fight?”

There was an odd sound, somewhere between a laugh and, “are you kidding me?” Brian cleared his throat. “Okay, I’ll bite.” There was a loud sigh. “Let’s see, oh yeah, how could I forget?”

The sarcasm was thick in Brian’s voice, and Derrick found himself wondering what could possibly have happened, or when, for that matter.

“That would be the day after you met Annie.”

“The day after?”

“Yep.”

“What do you remember about the day before?”

“Oh, some nonsense about a dream.”

“A dream?”

“And then you blew me off for Annie.” There was another sigh. “That’s what the fight was about. You, ditching me for some girl. Derrick what is this? What are you asking me all this for? And why am I suddenly good enough to talk to?”

“What the…?”

“Hello, earth to Derrick? I am still on the line, in case you’d forgotten.”

“I uh…um…”

“Derrick?” There was long silence. “Derrick, why did you call?”

“Um, it’s Annie.”

“Has something happened? Is she okay?”

“Yes, I mean no, I mean…”

“What, did you two have a fight?”

“No, we did not have a fight. She’s
—
” leaning out the closet door he checked to see she was still in the washroom “
—
she’s different.”

“Different? That’s what you called to tell me? You don’t talk to me for five months and you call me up to tell me Annie is different. Okay, now I know you’re losing it.”

“No, she’s…she’s…the books. She always had this huge stack of books on the bedside table. The pile was so big I used to call it Mount Everest. I would tell her it eclipsed the sun, and that I was concerned about it falling over and burying us in our sleep.” Derrick heard laughter coming through the receiver. “Brian? You better tell me you’re not laughing?”

“Of course I’m laughing. That’s hilarious.”

“You think you could stop long enough for me to finish?”

“Okay, okay. All right, go ahead.”

“It’s gone.”

“Okay, now you lost me.”

“The books. They’re gone.”

“So she got rid of them. So what? Maybe she was tired of your little comments about them all the time and just wanted to shut you up.”

“This is what you have to offer?”

“What do you want me to say?”

“You don’t get it. I asked her where they went, and she looked at me like she had no idea what I was talking about. She told me she has never done that.”

“Okay, maybe she’s pretending it never happened. Maybe that’s her way of telling you she fixed the problem and she doesn’t want to talk about it anymore.”

“No, that is not what she is doing. I know her and the look on her face, she wasn’t lying. She has never had a stack of books on the bedside table.”

“Are you seriously telling me that you called me to talk about a pile of books that may or may not have ever existed?”

But then Derrick gasped. “I’m dreaming. I’m dreaming of my relationship with Annie five months in the future. Only…I’ve altered the timeline.” There was a long pause on the other end of the line.

“I know I am going to regret saying this but…What?”

“This is a dream. I’m dreaming. And this is me and Annie five months in my future.”

“All right. I’m coming over. You just sit down and take slow, deep breaths, and I’ll be there as soon as possible. How does that sound?”

“It sounds like you are talking to a one-year-old. Do you mind using your adult voice, please?”

“There’s the Derrick I know and love.”

Derrick slipped the phone back into his pocket. Walking into the bedroom, he fell onto the edge of the bed.

Stepping from the washroom door, Annie was busy slipping her earring into her ear. “Are you ready, honey?”

“Honey? Since when did you start calling me honey?” She appeared truly hurt by his comment.

“You don’t…like it?”

“No, it’s fine, I just don’t recall ever hearing you use it before.”

“I use it all the time. Derrick, are you all right? You look as pale as a ghost.” Sitting next to him on the bed, she held her hand to his face.

“Your ears.”

“What? What’s wrong?” She jumped up and ran into the washroom staring into the mirror. Reappearing in the washroom doorway, she stood looking at him from across the room. “Why did you say that?”

“They’re pierced. When did you get them pierced?”

“Okay, now you’re worrying me. I don’t care what you say, I’m going to call Brian.”

“No need, he’s already on his way over. He thinks I’m as crazy as you do, by the look on your face.”

“You…called Brian? Now I know it’s serious. I’m going to cancel.” She walked toward the bedroom door, but Derrick jumped up, grabbing her by the arm.

“Don’t do that. There’s no need for us both to miss out on this. I want you to go ahead. One of us needs to put in a showing. Besides, Brian will be here with me. I couldn’t be in better hands.”

“Now I know you’re sick. You’d never say that about Brian.”

“I’m kidding.”

“Oh…”

She was staring at him as though studying him.

“Please, go, have fun. I’m fine, just a little tired, it’s nothing. And as I say, Brian is coming over.”

“Are you sure?” She knew that Derrick talking to Brian was, in and of itself, monumental. And wanting to give them the privacy she knew they would require, she reluctantly agreed. “All right. But promise me you’ll…”

“What?”

“Take it easy?”

He grinned at her concerned expression. “I will.”

“Well then.” She reached up, giving him a kiss, and gently stroked his face with her hand. “I won’t be late, I promise.”

“Okay then.”

She grabbed her purse and disappeared out the front door. Derrick stared at the door for some time before the phone rang.

“Mr. Sloane, there’s a Dr. Taylor here requesting to see you. I explained only those persons approved may gain entrance. But he is most insistent.”

“Thank you, Harold. You may let him up.”

“See, I told you he was expecting me.”

Derrick grinned at the sound of Brian’s voice over the phone, and unlocking the front door, he left it open, pouring himself a drink, and one for Brian.

“God, you’re a sight!”

“For sore eyes?”

“What?”

“The expression…a sight…oh never mind. Good to see you too, Brian.” He thrust out the glass in Brian’s direction.

“Ah, getting right down to it are we?” He closed the door behind him, and walking the length of room to Derrick, he took the proffered glass of whiskey.

“So, what was all this on the phone you were trying to tell me?”

Derrick stared into his glass and took a large gulp. “You have to understand something, Brian. To me it’s as we never stopped speaking. And that’s because as far as I’m concerned, we didn’t.”

Brian didn’t say anything, and sitting on the couch he let Derrick talk.