Happy Birthday: A Novel

“Good. Then we’re both free. Let’s just see where it goes.” But she liked where it was. It was so comfortable being friends with him that she hated to turn it into a dating or seduction game, playing cat and mouse. She loved the friendship they were just beginning to share.

“I like being your friend,” she said softly.

“Me too. That’ll work for now. Where are you anyway?”

“I just got to my place,” she said, slightly out of breath from the cold. “I’m outside.”

“Well, go on in. Don’t catch cold. I’ll call you tomorrow. Sleep tight.”

“You too.”

They hung up and she walked into the building, thinking about him. She didn’t want to do anything foolish or that she’d regret. But she liked him, a lot. And then she remembered his theory about being brave enough to open new doors. She had no idea if they’d ever open this one, or even if she wanted to. But at least it was nice to know, she reminded herself as she went up in the elevator, that the door was there, whether you opened it or not.

Chapter 13

Valerie saw Jack half a dozen times before the Super Bowl. She went to his apartment for dinner, and he took her to April’s once. They went out for pizza at a restaurant for a change and a real movie in a theater, and they always had a great time. They went to an art exhibit in SoHo, of an artist Valerie knew, and a play at Lincoln Center. They talked endlessly about every subject, and the relationship between them was growing warmer but building slowly, and neither of them was rushing it. They had no idea if it would ever be more than this.

The most exciting time she saw him was at the ceremony a week before the Super Bowl, when the mayor gave him the award they’d promised him, at a highly publicized event at City Hall. The medal they bestowed on him was for bravery in the service of his fellow citizens in the face of grave danger. They gave him a certificate and a medal and the governor was there too. He had always been a big fan of Jack’s.

Every news team from every channel attended, and Jack invited Valerie to be his guest. His son came down from Boston, and Valerie thought he was a very nice young man. He was tall and clean-cut and as handsome as his father, and he looked very proud of him as they gave Jack the award. Valerie had brought April with her, and the four of them spoke for a few minutes before Jack had to go for a photo op with the mayor and governor. He was using a cane by then and not crutches.

Valerie left with April after the ceremony, and Jack called her later to thank her for coming. It had been a touching event, and both April and Valerie had cried. There had been a moment of silence in honor of the lives that had been lost. All April could think about was what if her mother had died, and Valerie was shaken by it too. April had worn a big, heavy down coat, and her growing pregnancy still didn’t show. She was nearly five months pregnant by then and hadn’t heard from Mike in nearly a month, and was pretty sure she never would again. April kept reminding herself that she had never expected him to participate anyway, so this was no different. The only difference was that he had turned out to be so likable and appealing that now she would have liked him to be involved. The pregnancy had turned out to be more emotional than she had expected. She cried a lot, which was unheard of for her. And she felt fragile and vulnerable, which was her hormones working overtime, but it was unsettling anyway. Her doctor said it was to be expected, especially in a first pregnancy where April had no frame of reference and everything was new to her.

April said something about it to her mother in the cab leaving City Hall after the ceremony. “I never used to cry,” she said, blowing her nose.

“You’ve also never been pregnant, and by a guy who refuses to give you any emotional support.” Valerie was seriously annoyed with Mike about it, and she and Pat had discussed it several times, but there was nothing they could do. Pat had asked her if she thought he should call Mike, but Valerie didn’t think so, and thought April would be upset if she found out. She said it was really between the two of them, but April’s father was upset too. He thought disappearing was a rotten thing for Mike to do. This wasn’t how they had wanted their daughter to have her first child.

April was very brave about it and didn’t complain. She worked as hard as ever, and Jean-Pierre seemed to lend an extra hand wherever possible, almost too much so. He was always at her beck and call, anxious to help her. It was making her uncomfortable. April didn’t want to take advantage of it and encourage him. She had other things on her mind.