could see how crazy she was about her kids. It would have been hard to miss.
“Is that your date?” Sam asked with suspicion.
“Yes, it is,” Maxine said, looking embarrassed. “His name is Dr. West.”
“Charles,” he corrected with an easy smile as he approached the bed. “Hi, Sam. Looks like you're feeling pretty crummy. Have you been throwing up all day?”
“Six times,” Sam said proudly. “I threw up in the taxi coming home from school.” Charles glanced at Maxine with a sympathetic grin. He could imagine the scene.
“That doesn't sound like fun. Can I touch your tummy?” Sam nodded and pulled up the top of his pajamas, as his brother walked in.
“You had to call a doctor for him?” Jack looked instantly worried.
“He's her date,” Sam explained as Jack looked confused.
“Who's her date?” Jack asked.
“The doctor,” Sam told his brother, as Maxine introduced Jack to Charles, who turned to smile at him.
“You must be the soccer player.” Jack nodded, wondering where the mysterious doctor/date had come from, and why he hadn't heard about him. “What position do you play? I played soccer in college. I was better at basketball, but I thought soccer was more fun.”
“Me too. I want to play lacrosse next year,” Jack volunteered as Maxine watched them.
“Lacrosse is a tough sport. You get a lot more injuries in lacrosse than in soccer,” Charles said, as he stood up after examining Sam, and then he looked down at the little boy with a smile. “I think you're going to make it, Sam. I'll bet you feel better by tomorrow.”
“Do you think I'll throw up again?” Sam looked worried.
“I hope not. Just take it easy tonight. Would you like some Coke or ginger ale?” Sam nodded, assessing Charles with interest. As Maxine watched them, she realized how unfamiliar it was to all of them to have a man in their midst, but it was nice. And he had a sweet way with them. She could see that Jack was checking him out too. And a minute later, Daphne walked back in. They were all standing in their mother's bedroom, which seemed suddenly too small with so many people in it. “Where are you hiding the sick nanny?” Charles asked her.
“I'll show you,” Maxine said, and led him out of the room, as Sam giggled and started to say something, and Jack put a finger to his lips to silence him. Maxine and Charles could hear them giggling and whispering as they walked away, as Maxine turned to Charles with an apologetic grin. “This is a little different for them.”
“So I gather. They're nice kids,” he said easily, as they walked into the kitchen and then the hallway beyond. Maxine knocked on the door to Zelda's room, quietly opened it, and offered to have Charles take a look at her. She made the introductions from the doorway. Zelda looked instantly confused. She had no idea who Dr. West was or why he was there.
“I'm not that sick,” she said, looking embarrassed, thinking Maxine had called him just for her. “It's just the flu.”
“He was here anyway, and he just took a look at Sam.” Zelda wondered if he was a new pediatrician she didn't know about. It never occurred to her that Maxine had a dinner date with him. And he told her pretty much the same thing he had told Sam.
A few minutes later, Maxine and Charles were standing in her kitchen, and she handed him a Coke, a bowl of chips, and some guacamole she found in the fridge. He said he was going to leave in a few minutes and let her take care of her kids. She had enough on her hands. She sat down at the kitchen table with him and they chatted for a few minutes. He had certainly had his trial by fire, and had met them all. Sam throwing up as he walked in was certainly one way to introduce Charles to her children, though not the one she would have chosen. As far as Maxine was concerned, he had passed with flying colors. She wasn't sure how he felt about it, but he had certainly been a good sport. This was by no means a standard first date. Far from it.
“I'm sorry tonight was such a mess,” she apologized again.
“It worked out fine,” he said easily, thinking longingly for a minute of the dinner they would have had at La Grenouille. “We'll have a nice time on Friday night. I guess you have to be flexible when you have kids.”
“Usually, not as flexible as this. I'm pretty well organized most of the time. Today just got out of hand. Mostly because Zellie was sick too. I count on her a lot.” He nodded. It was obvious that she had to have someone to rely on, and her ex-husband wasn't around. After what Daphne had told him, he could see why. He had read about Blake Williams over the years. He was a major figure in the jet set, and didn't sound like a family man. Maxine had said as much over lunch.
Charles went to say goodbye to the children before he left, and told Sam he hoped he'd feel better soon.
“Thanks,” Sam said, and waved goodbye. And a moment later, Maxine let Charles out.
“I'll pick you up at seven on Friday,” Charles promised, and she thanked him again for being so nice about tonight. “Don't worry about it. At least I got to meet all your kids.” He waved as he got in the elevator, and a moment later she collapsed on her bed next to Sam with a sigh, as the others walked in.
“So how come you didn't tell us you had a date?” Jack complained.
“I forgot about it.”
“Who is he anyway?” Daphne looked suspicious.
“Just a doctor I met,” Maxine said, looking exhausted. She didn't want to have to justify it to them. Tonight had been bad enough. “And by the way,” she said to her daughter, “you shouldn't brag about your father like that. It's not nice.”
“Why not?” Daphne looked instantly defiant.
“Because talking about his yacht and his plane isn't cool. It could make people uncomfortable.” Which of course was precisely why she had done it. Daphne shrugged and walked out of the room.
“He's okay,” Sam pronounced.
“Yeah, maybe,” Jack said, sounding unconvinced. He didn't see why his mother needed a man around. They were doing fine the way they were. It didn't shock them that their father went out with women, even a lot of them. They weren't used to seeing a man in their mother's life, and none of them liked the idea. It worked fine for them having her to themselves. And there was no reason why that should change, in their opinion anyway. Their mother got the message loud and clear.
It was eight o'clock by then and none of them had eaten, so Maxine went out to the kitchen to see what she could dig up. As she was pulling out salad and some cold meats and eggs, Zelda walked in in her bathrobe, looking puzzled.
“Who was that masked man, Tonto?” she asked Maxine, and her employer laughed.
“I guess the correct answer to that is the Lone Ranger. Actually, he's a doctor I met. I had a date with him, and I completely forgot. Sam threw up all over the front hall as he walked in. It was quite a scene.”
“Think you'll ever see him again?” Zelda asked with interest. She thought he'd seemed nice. And good looking.
She knew that Maxine hadn't had a date in a long time, and this one looked promising to her. He seemed the right type, he was nice-looking, and she thought the fact that they were both physicians was a good beginning to establish common ground.
“Supposedly he's taking me out on Friday night,” Maxine said in answer to her question. “If he recovers from tonight.”
“That's interesting,” Zelda commented, poured herself a glass of ginger ale, and went back to bed.
Maxine made pasta, cold cuts, and scrambled eggs, and they had brownies for dessert. She cleaned up the kitchen, and then went to help Daphne with her paper. They didn't finish until twelve o'clock. It had been a hell of a day, and a long night. And when she finally slipped into her bed next to Sam, she had a minute to think about Charles. She had no idea what would come of it, or if she'd see him again after Friday night, but in its own way, tonight hadn't been so bad. He hadn't run out the door screaming at least. That was something. And for now, it was enough.
Chapter 8
