“I didn’t say she was fat,” Henry licked marshmallow off his fingers. “I said she was going to get fat. Especially if she keeps eating S’mores like that.”
“I’m not fat and I eat S’mores,” I said.
“Gretchen, can I please go get my iPod?” Henry asked for the three millionth time.
I rolled my eyes. “Henry, I told you, we can’t interrupt.”
“It will only take me a second.”
“No.”
“It’s in my room. I’ll run in and out, real quick.”
“Henry, I said no.” I started packing up the marshmallows, chocolate and graham crackers, putting them into their respective packages.
“Fine.” He grabbed another marshmallow before I could close the bag. “But what if we have to use the bathroom?”
“I told you.” I put the food into the basket and closed it up. ”If you have to go, I’ll take you in the back and you can use the one in the basement.”
“It’s creepy down there.” Janie shivered, pulling the hood on her hoodie up.
I rolled my eyes again. Was she kidding? The Baumgartners had a huge finished basement with a giant TV, a fireplace, a pool table, several old stand up video games and a full bathroom, including a shower.
“That’s not creepy,” I countered. “You should have seen the basement in my grandma’s house when I was little. It had dirt floors. And just one light bulb that hung down from the ceiling in the middle of the basement.”
“That is creepy!” Janie gaped at me. Henry’s eyes were wide.
“And the only bathroom in the whole house was in the basement,” I added.
“No way!” Janie gasped.
“Will you tell us ghost stories later?” Henry asked, always flirting with his love-hate relationship with all things scary.
“Maybe.” There was no way, of course. They’d be up all night long. And if I had to sleep out in the yard, I intended to actually sleep. I had my own tent with an air mattress in it.
“Can’t I please go get my iPod?” Henry begged. He batted his eyelashes at me when I glared at him, giving me a big, fake grin. “ Pleeeeeease? ”
I relented, a little.
“I’ll tell you what-I’ll go get it when everyone’s asleep.” I glanced up at the house again. They were sitting in the family room with the French doors open, but the screen door closed, letting the night air in. Their voices and occasional bursts laughter floated down to us, but I couldn’t make out what they were saying.
“Oh come on!” Henry made a face. “That’s going to be, like, forever.”
“They’re not as young as they think they are.” I winked at him. “I bet it’s all over by midnight.”
“Besides, Henry, we’ve got the DVD player,” Janie reminded him. “And I’ve got the whole set of Lord of the Rings.”
“Oh all right,” he grumbled. “Are you done eating? Can we watch yet?”
“Gretchen, do you want to watch?” Janie asked, digging the portable DVD player out of her bag and starting to crawl into the tent.
“Sure, let me just put out the fire.” It was one of those fire pits you could buy at Costco or Sam’s Club. Doc had set it up for us and had loaded it with wood around dusk, lighting it for us. We’d roasted hotdogs while the adults inside ate steak. Not that I cared. Hot dogs and S’mores were fine by me and the kids definitely preferred them.
I walked up the hill toward the house, carrying the empty pitcher that had contained lemonade when the night began. Now I used the faucet out back to fill it with water. I heard Mrs. B laughing, a bright, infectious sound. I hesitated at the back of the house, listening. I could hear them talking, the two women.
I’d met Danielle and her “husbands” the day before, when they had taken the Baumgartners out to dinner-although they only introduced Mason, the big guy with the sandy crew cut, as her actual husband. The other one, Nico, a dark haired, dark eyed Italian with an accent to die for, was introduced as their friend. But I knew the truth. I would have known it, even if I hadn’t overheard Mrs. B and Doc talking about their relationship. I could tell, the way they talked to each other, the familiar way they touched each other. I suppose I might have dismissed it as just a European over-friendliness if I hadn’t known. But I did know. They were all lovers.
Tonight, though, it was just Danielle-they called her Dani-who had shown up for dinner with Doc and Mrs. B. The Baumgartners had been anticipating this visit for a month and of course, I knew why. I’d heard them talking about Dani, their former lover, and I knew they both hoped to rekindle things with her-if just for the night. I wondered if Dani’s “husbands” knew about their plan, but I wasn’t in any position to ask.
“Oh my God, Dani, those two men!” Mrs. B exclaimed. “I mean, I knew Mason was a good-looking guy. But Nico too? You are one lucky woman.”
Dani gave a throaty laugh. “Tell me about it.”
“What’s it like, having two men at your beck and call?”
“Well, I don’t know if they’re at my beck and call…” Dani replied. “But having two men? It’s pretty fantastic.”
“I just bet it is.” Mrs. B sighed dreamily. “Don’t tell Doc I asked you. He doesn’t lean that way, but if he thought I wanted it, I think he just might give it a try. For me.”
I moved a little closer, changing the angle of my view. I could see them now as well as hear them, but I was pretty sure they couldn’t see my out in the darkness.
“Mason didn’t lean that way either. At least, I didn’t know he did.” Dani chuckled. “But Mason and Nico are… well, they spend plenty of time together.”
“Where are they tonight?” Mrs. B asked.
“Oh, Mason wanted to take Nico to a Detroit Tigers game. Nico is fascinated with baseball. It’s a boys’ night out.”
“Sounds like fun.” Mrs. B took a sip of her wine. “Doc should be back any time. I thought I’d bought two bottles of wine. I’ve been so busy lately, sometimes I think I’d forget my head if it wasn’t attached.”
“You all seem to be doing well,” Dani said. “Your children have gotten so big! They’re beautiful. So well-behaved.”
“Thank you. We’re good,” Mrs. B agreed. “We miss you, of course.”
There was something in her tone they both seemed to understand. Something passed between them with just a smile.
“What about Gretchen?” Dani asked.
“Gretchen?”
“Yes, your nanny. You aren’t…?” Dani shrugged. “I mean, the way she looks at you, I thought…”
“Oh my God, no,” Mrs. B exclaimed. “She’s so young. We tried a younger woman a while ago. It didn’t work out so well. Gretchen is just the nanny.”
Just the nanny. Like just the roommate.
I swallowed hard, gripping the pitcher hard in my fist.
“Did I tell you, we were approved as foster parents last month?” Mrs. B asked, changing the subject. “We’re hoping to adopt a baby.”
“Really?” Dani sounded genuinely surprised.
“Well you know, I had a lot of trouble conceiving Janie.” Mrs. B’s voice broke. She cleared her throat. “And after Henry was born, they had to take my uterus.”
“I know,” Dani responded softly.
“Haven’t you thought of having kids?” Mrs. B asked. “I mean… another…?”
“I’ve thought about it, but… I don’t know. I guess I just don’t want any more heartache.”
“There’s no guarantee it will happen again.” Mrs. B touched her friend’s arm.
“And no guarantee it won’t.” Dani sipped her wine. “Are you sure you want to go the foster care route? Wouldn’t regular adoption be safer?”
“Safer?” Mrs. B wrinkled her nose. “What do you mean?”
“Well, foster children sometimes go back to their parents, don’t they?”
“It’s true. We close lose a placement.” Mrs. B frowned. “It does happen. But adoption is much, much more expensive. And fostering… even if I had to give a child back, at least they had a home here with us for a little while.”
“I just know it’s not for me.” Dani sighed. “I know the pain of losing a child. I couldn’t… I just couldn’t. Not again.”