Sweet Hearts Read online

  “But?” Lisa asked lightly.

  “Be careful with this one,” Elaine warned in a teasing tone.

  “Which one of us are you talking to, darling?” Marty allowed a little of her Southern accent to bleed through.

  “I was talking to you about Lisa. Sometimes I still can’t tell when she’s telling me the truth or setting me up for an elaborate gag.” Elaine laughed, then added, “But now that you mention it, you’ve got a much more finely honed authenticity detector than I do. You might have just met your match, Lisa.”

  “Seeing as I have no idea what an authenticity detector is, I’ll take your word for it.”

  “You do know what it is,” Marty said calmly. “You call it something else in your head, though.”

  The corner of Lisa’s mouth crooked up quickly. “Now you’re a mind reader?”

  “No, but I’m willing to bet when you hear the term authenticity detector you feel like the perpetual schoolboy who snickers every time the teacher accidently walks into the double entendre.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Go ahead let out your inner twelve-year-old. I promise I won’t be scandalized.”

  “Fine,” Lisa said before turning to Joey. “Just remember, your lovely wife and her mischievous friend were the ones who asked me to label them bullshit detectors in the middle of a formal event.”

  “Point taken,” Joey said, her smile resigned.

  “Bullshit detectors?” Elaine repeated. “I am a bullshit detector?”

  Joey only smiled and nodded, but Marty laughed outright. “I find that both refreshing and accurate.”

  “The term? Or the fact that I got the bride to say bullshit during her first official dance as a married woman.”

  “Both.”

  Lisa straightened her shoulders a little bit at the affirmation.

  Elaine seemed to notice the change too. “Now I really don’t know which one of you to worry about more.”

  “Neither of us,” Marty replied. “Go enjoy your wedding reception.”

  “Yeah, dance away, Mrs. Lang, dance away,” Lisa added, and Marty noted the big grin on Joey’s face as she spun Elaine out of earshot.

  “Is she really taking Joey’s last name?”

  “I don’t think so, but I stay out of their personal business.”

  “Yes, it certainly sounded like it from your toast earlier.”

  “Touché, but all I did was throw them together. They figured the rest out for themselves, but I’m sure you know all that.”

  “Because I’m Elaine’s friend and colleague?”

  “Right.” Lisa nodded. “But I know so little about you.”

  “What do you want to know?”

  “Where did that little lilt of a Southern accent you just used on Elaine come from?”

  “Oh, you caught that, did you?” Women usually did. “It’s a little muddled, but I grew up in Georgia and then North Carolina before moving to New York in college.”

  “And you never looked back?”

  “Not with any sort of longing. It wasn’t the small-town Southern existence you read about in the books.”

  “So not filled with incest and lynchings?”

  “No, thank God, but I just meant we were always transplants. Military brats, if you must.”

  “I don’t think I can ever reconcile this image of you”—Lisa stepped back a little to scan her up and down—“to either the military or brattiness.”

  “Well I was the first in several generations to break the Maine military line, but only time will give you the opportunity to assess my…brattiness.”

  “Time? Will I have that or are you just in town for the wedding?”

  “I am, actually. I’ve got a flight back to New York City early tomorrow morning.”

  Lisa’s frown was nearly imperceptible, but it tugged at something in Marty all the same. She wondered again how she’d gotten so much practice hiding her emotions and what had happened to make Lisa feel the need to cultivate the skill in the first place.

  “Do you ever make it to the city?”

  “Not really. Aside from college, I’m a Buffalo gal, born and bred.”

  Marty didn’t even try to hide her frown, and she didn’t care to hide why either. She liked Lisa’s sense of humor, her intelligence, the way she didn’t seem to take her skills and education too seriously. Many women with her background would’ve lorded it over everyone in the room, or tried to downplay their accomplishments in an attempt to fish for compliments. Instead, Lisa only projected a refreshing air of amiability.

  Suddenly the beat changed from the slow-love-song variety to the thumping bass of a bump-and-grind number as the DJ called for everyone young and old to join the dance party.

  Lisa stopped swaying. “Thanks for the dance.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I guess I should go check in with the wedding party and make sure everything’s running smoothly.”

  “Sounds very official.”

  “I’m a very important person at this party. Eventually there will be cake, and you know I’ll probably have to taste it first to make sure it’s okay for everyone else.”

  “If that’s too much of a burden on you, I’ve been known to taste a slice of cake or two.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” Lisa said, “but I’m sure you’d like to get back to the amazing glass of wine I recommended for you.”

  Marty couldn’t tell if Lisa was dismissing her or releasing her. She supposed both options involved saying good-bye here, but the motivation behind the parting mattered to her, possibly more than it should. Still, she couldn’t monopolize Lisa all night, so she smiled and said, “Thank you. It truly was a pleasure to meet you, Lisa.”

  Lisa returned her smile and nodded. “The feeling’s very mutual, Marty.”

  Then she turned quickly and wove her way off the now-crowded dance floor. Marty walked more slowly in the opposite direction, careful to avoid the ring bearer as he busted out some crazy break-dance moves. He was adorable, and even if she hadn’t known he was Elaine’s five-year-old nephew, she could have easily seen the family resemblance in his mop of blond curls and bright blue eyes. She wondered briefly if his aunt could dance like that and almost laughed at the mental image.

  She turned around as if to share the thought with Lisa, certain she would appreciate the humor in that image, but she was already too far away. A pang of emotion pulsed in her chest. Regret? Loneliness? Wistfulness? She wasn’t sure, but she didn’t leave her emotions unheeded. Was she merely lonely because she didn’t know anyone else at the wedding? Or had there been something special about Lisa?

  She smiled again, this time just to herself. Of course there was something special about Lisa. She was smart and quick and funny. Who wouldn’t enjoy having a little more of those things in her life? Then again, she didn’t want to be a one-night-stand or a wedding-night conquest. She also had her coaching relationship with Elaine to consider. She hadn’t lied to Lisa in saying she considered Elaine a dear friend and a colleague, but part of their relationship also involved being able to talk freely about the issues—and occasionally the people—in one another’s lives. If she got too close to Lisa, she might inadvertently lose her neutrality when it came to future conversations with Elaine, and Elaine was facing some pretty big transitions in the coming months.

  She reached the table where she’d left her wine. Taking a sip, she noted the flavors seemed even bolder after having had time to breathe. She inhaled its rich aroma and pulled her thoughts back to the pleasures of being completely in the moment.

  Chapter Two

  “What do you need?” Lisa asked as Joey wandered back toward the head table.

  “Nothing, except to get off my feet for a minute.”

  “Are you sure? Water? More champagne?” She bounced on her toes in anticipation.

  “No, thank you. One was more than enough. I’m afraid a second would wreck me.”

  “And you want to be able to perform on your
wedding night?”

  Joey snorted. “Something like that.”

  Lisa pulled out two chairs, and they flopped into them. “Do you have any questions about that?”

  “What?”

  “The wedding night.” She leaned in conspiratorially. “You know, like what will be expected of you in the bridal chambers?”

  Joey shook her head and rolled her eyes. “No, I want to be surprised.”

  “Good call.”

  Silence fell between them, and for the first time in a long time, Lisa felt the need to fill it. “What do you think of the DJ?”

  Joey looked over the hip young woman with spiked hair and an oversized set of headphones. “She’s doing a good job.”

  “Yeah, but she’s cute, right?”

  “Did you just ask me to check out another woman at my own wedding?”

  “Wedding reception.”

  “Oh, that’s much better.” Joey looked over her shoulder again. “Seems a bit young for you.”

  “Says the woman who just married someone fourteen years older.”

  “Fair point.” Joey nodded. “But aren’t you even starting to think about something more long-term?”

  “I’m still young.”

  “We turned thirty this year.”

  Joey wasn’t the first person to point that out recently, but for some reason it annoyed her more. “So, no on the DJ?”

  “She’s fine. I guess I should just be happy you passed on Marty so quickly.”

  Her stomach tightened. “Not sure there was anything to pass up there. She was just standing next to me when you sprang that shared first dance thing on us all.” They’d had a nice dance, a few laughs, and she’d let her go back to whoever she actually wanted to be with. Surely for a woman like Marty that was a long line.

  “I should’ve known not to worry. She’s not your type at all.”

  “She’s not female?”

  “No. As far as I know she’s a woman-identified woman.”

  “Then she’s pretty much my type. Low bar, remember?”

  “Exactly, she’s not one to inspire low standards. She’s a grown-up. She strikes me as someone who doesn’t mess around, and she has a real job.”

  “Really? I thought she was a life coach.”

  “I walked right into that one.”

  “You did. Thanks.” But the zing didn’t give her as much joy as it usually did. Was Marty really that far out of her league? She’d been fun enough to talk to, and an above-average dancer. And she lived in New York City, so how serious could things really get? Still, the comment about her being a grown-up had stung a little. Why did everyone assume once you reached a certain age you had to start acting different and wanting different things? She liked her life. She liked her job. She liked her friends. Change was overrated.

  That thought sent the tightness she’d felt in her stomach spreading up into her chest, and suddenly she felt the urge to move again. Standing quickly, she rubbed her hands together. “Are you sure you don’t want a drink or something? Or I could get things set up for the cake cutting. You like cake.”

  “Everyone likes cake, but really, relax. You’ve put on a great party here. I want you to enjoy it too.”

  Lisa looked around the room, from the caterer’s table, to the dance floor, to all the people milling around back by the bar. Casual, friendly, fun—everything had come together. “It is a pretty good party, isn’t it?”

  Joey’s eyes softened as she clasped a hand on her shoulder. “It really is, Lisa. I can’t thank you enough.”

  “Happy wedding, friend. I would’ve done more if you’d let me.”

  “I don’t doubt it, but really, the only thing you can do for me now is go have fun.”

  “Yeah? Okay.” Fun, she could do that. She was known for fun. “I do have some pretty sweet dance moves. Maybe I’ll go find Marty again since dancing with her makes you and your bride so nervous.”

  “I’m not nervous for her,” Joey said just a bit too seriously for Lisa’s liking. “She’s not the kind of woman who will fall for your usual MO.”

  “She’s only in town for one night. How much damage can she really do in twelve hours?”

  “Don’t tempt fate, my friend. It only took one hour alone with Elaine to break me completely.”

  “This is so not the same story.” She bumped her hip against Joey’s shoulder. “Besides, you always were the weaker minded of the two of us.”

  Joey raised her hands in surrender. “Fine, go on. You’ve earned your fun, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. That woman is more than you can handle in one night.”

  Lisa grabbed her beer and hopped down off the platform before raising the bottle as if toasting her friend. “Challenge accepted.”

  *

  Marty cradled her second glass of wine in the palm of her hand as she watched Elaine and Joey cut their beautiful three-tier wedding cake. Both of them looked a little flash-burned from all the camera bulbs clicking at them. Joey actually blinked a few times and stepped back, but the moment Elaine placed a hand lightly on her arm, the two of them made eye contact and there wasn’t a doubt in her mind everyone else in the room was now just a blur to them.

  “God, they look so in love,” she said to no one in particular, but a few people around her murmured their agreement.

  Joey lifted a piece of cake toward Elaine’s mouth with a grin on her face, but Elaine’s raised eyebrow and half smile clearly conveyed a message of Don’t you dare. And despite a few shouts of encouragement from the more boisterous guests, Joey did exactly as expected and behaved like a perfect gentleman. Elaine, on the other hand, embraced her playful side and tapped a light dab of icing on Joey’s nose before delivering her slice of cake.

  Everyone cheered, causing the happy couple to turn and blush in unison as though they’d just realized a hundred people had watched the sweet exchange. Marty felt like her heart actually had to expand to accompany all her happiness at their happiness. Everyone deserved to be happy. Everyone deserved to be loved, but some people had to work harder to internalize that belief for themselves. Joey and Elaine had worked harder than most to make space for the magnitude of their connection, and tonight proved they’d been duly rewarded. She didn’t care if it made her a bleeding-heart sappy romantic to get a little misty on their behalf.

  “Are you going to cry because you’re at the back of the cake line?”

  The voice was close, low, and pleasantly familiar in a room full of strangers. Her smile was full before she even turned to see Lisa beside her.

  “No,” she said, wiping her eyes softly. “I’m just so happy for them.”

  Lisa glanced at the newlyweds, her smile sweet but restrained. “Yeah, they’re pretty perfect together.”

  “I wish I knew Joey better, but Elaine is the happiest I’ve ever seen her, so I know she’s found someone special.”

  “She has, but if true love is all it takes to make you gloriously sappy, then I’ll just keep this for myself.” With a little flourish, Lisa produced a plate holding three slices of cake from behind her back.

  “True love? What true love?”

  “True love between two women and three pieces of cake?”

  “Yes, exactly that.”

  Lisa nodded for Marty to follow her, and they wove their way in and out of the crowd to a deserted table off to the side of the wedding party’s. Lisa pulled out a chair for Marty, then retrieved two forks from the inside chest pocket of her tuxedo. Marty felt a little butterfly flutter in her stomach. “You do know your way around a tuxedo jacket, don’t you?”

  “I told you it wasn’t my first rodeo,” Lisa said, taking a seat next to her and pulling it a little closer. “What’s your poison? Chocolate, vanilla, or red velvet.”

  “Red velvet.”

  “Predictable.”

  “Really?” Marty asked, mildly disappointed to be an easy read. “And you like chocolate.”

  “What can I say? I’m sweet.”

  “Oh,
another piece of the puzzle.”

  Lisa grinned. “Who gets the vanilla, then?”

  “Well, if one of us has to eat two pieces, I’d be willing to do that.”

  “I don’t want you to be put out. You’re the guest here. If anyone should have to take on extra work, it should be the host.”

  The host? Marty thought. That was as close as Lisa had come to admitting she’d paid for this party in its entirety, but she got the suspicion she’d close up again if they spoke about it frankly, either because she didn’t want to admit to taking something so seriously, or perhaps because Marty had only known such a detail from talking to Elaine in confidence during a session. “It’s no hardship really. I’m trained to see the good in everything, even vanilla cake with vanilla icing.”

  “It’s cream-cheese icing,” Lisa said as she reached her fork toward the object of their conversation.

  Marty countered with her own fork, poking Lisa’s hand lightly. “Back off.”

  “Oh, saucy all of a sudden, are we?”

  “Cream-cheese frosting is a game changer.”

  “Good to know.” Lisa laughed.

  “Everyone has her boundaries.”

  “Or triggers,” Lisa countered, moving her fork back over to the piece of chocolate cake. “I’m compiling quite a list of yours.”

  “Oh?” Marty asked, taking a bite of the red velvet and closing her eyes to savor the dense, smooth sweetness.

  “Fine wine, cream-cheese frosting, cheesy romantic displays, and dashingly handsome maids of ill repute.”

  “You went three-for-four there, not bad.”

  Another flash of a frown crossed Lisa’s features before she forced another laugh, this one sounding only slightly less genuine. “Well, in that case I think the dashingly handsome maid of ill repute should at least get the vanilla cake as a consolation prize.”

  Marty took a piece of the cake on her fork and started to lean toward Lisa before turning it around and directing it back in to her own mouth.

  “Hey now.”

  “No,” Marty said, shaking her head. “No consolation prize for you, because the incorrect item on your list was cheesy romantic displays.”