On Tuesday morning when Suzanna woke, the sky was thick with ominous gray clouds and water was cascading from the eaves. During the night, she had heard Annie coughing and twice she’d climbed from the bed to check on her.
Annie was up and starting to dress when Suzanna came into the room and held a hand to her forehead.
“Uh oh. Feels like you’ve got a bit of fever.”
Annie tugged her second sock on. “I’m fine, Mama.”
“You’re not fine, and with the weather as nasty as it is I’m not going to chance you coming down with pneumonia.”
Despite the protests, Suzanna called the shop, told Colette she would not be in, then tucked Annie back in bed, rubbed her chest with Vicks, double-checked her temperature, and spent most of the morning carrying up trays of warm tea, chicken soup, and orange juice. That afternoon she was debating whether or not to cancel her date with Bobby when Annie’s temperature slid back to normal.
By then Ida had started coughing, but she insisted it was nothing.
“A twenty-four-hour bug,” she said. “It’ll be gone by morning.”
With a bit of hesitancy hanging onto her words, Suzanna asked if she felt well enough to take care of Annie for the evening. “I have plans to meet an old friend for dinner at the Ellington. I know it’ll be a late night, and with all this rain I thought it might be better if I stay over. Would that be okay with you?”
“Of course I’m well enough. This little bitty cough is nothing to be concerned about. A dose or two of cough medicine, and I’ll be fine. Besides, with the way you’ve been moping around the house the past few days, an evening out might be just what you need.”
Suzanna nodded. “Yeah, maybe…” There was a strange glumness attached to the words.
That afternoon she moved Annie into the small sitting room next to Ida’s, then settled her in front of the television to watch Queen for a Day and American Bandstand.
“If you stay covered up and mind what Grandma says, I might have a secret surprise for you when I get back.”
“What kind of surprise?”
“It wouldn’t be a secret or a surprise if I told you, would it? But trust me, it’s something you’ve wanted for a very long time.”
“A new Barbie?”
“Much better than a Barbie, but even if you guess it I’m not going to tell you. You’ll just have to wait and see.”
Suzanna kissed Annie’s cheek, then tossed a few necessities into a tote bag, climbed into the car and started for the Ellington.
The rain slowed the drive, and by the time she arrived Bobby was waiting in the bar. He flashed the smile she remembered so well, and it was as if all the years of being apart fell away. He walked over to her, put his hand on her lower back, pulled her close, and brushed a kiss across her lips.
She felt a touch of the passion she’d felt in the early days, but something was different. She’d changed; that was the problem. She’d forgotten how to trust him, how to give herself openly and without reservation. Thoughts of Gregg were still in her head; she would rid herself of them, but it was obviously going to take time.
“Would you like to have dinner here,” he asked, “or order up room service?”
“I don’t think I’m ready for that,” Suzanna said. “It’s been a long time—”
“Too long, but don’t you want to make up for lost time?” He leaned closer, and she felt his breath, heavy and warm against the side of her throat. “If I seem eager, Suzanna, forgive me. It’s because I can’t wait to feel you in my arms again.”
She’d come here wanting the exact same thing, but now it seemed awkward. Pushing that thought back, she said, “I’m eager too, but first we’ve got so much to catch up on.” She linked her arm through his and smiled. “I want to hear all about your life, and I know you’re anxious to hear about Annie.” She pulled a snapshot from her purse and handed it to him. “This is Annie. She’s got your eyes, Bobby. Isn’t she beautiful?”
He gave the picture a quick glance, then slid it into his pocket and smiled. “Well, of course she’s beautiful. Look at who she’s got for a mama.” He lifted Suzanna’s hand into his, dropped a kiss in her palm, then turned and gave the maître d’ a nod.
Moments later they were seated at a table in the back of the room. Bobby ordered a round of drinks—scotch on the rocks for him, wine for her—and as soon as the drinks were delivered, he told the waiter to go ahead and bring the menus.
Once the waiter was gone, Bobby leaned back in his chair, looked at Suzanna with the grin she remembered, and teasingly said, “So, go ahead, tell me what you’ve been up to for the past eight years.”
She began, not with tales of the heartache she’d suffered, but stories of Annie’s childhood, how she’d been quick to learn and had an easy laugh. She spoke of the joy she’d felt at hearing that first word and how Annie had walked before she’d crawled. She was talking about how Annie’s hands were so like Bobby’s with long fingers and a strong grasp when he cut in.
“And this new name, Darla Jean, is that something you’re sticking with?”
A moment or two ticked by before Suzanna answered.
“I’m afraid that would be impossible,” she said and gave a sigh of regret. “I’d have to tell Ida the truth, explain that you’re Annie’s daddy and…”
“Don’t do it because of me,” Bobby said. “You’ve got that job to consider,
