Speaking of baseball, we won both our games last week. We were now 13–1 and pegged as the team to beat in our district. I was now 4–0 with a 0.97 ERA, which triggered my first recruiting letter, from State, for baseball. I had never thought about playing baseball in college.
Tami and I wrapped up our call so she could go see the folk dancers. Even though I teased her, I knew she’d have fun today.
WHEN I GOT TO GRANNY’S, she was talking to customers. I was sent to the kitchen where they had everything ready for me. I was surprised to find Mom had also ordered food for after church. Granny came back and gave me instructions on how to reheat everything for our lunch.
When I got home, Angie was making coffee and Kyle and Mac were making a racket. Granny had only halfway-cooked the cinnamon rolls, so I put them in the oven to finish up. She had sent along a container of cream cheese frosting to top them with. I put the ham and everything else in the refrigerator. The smell of cinnamon rolls soon had everyone coming into the kitchen.
Mom called Uncle John and Bonnie over the intercom. They had stayed in my apartment. We had cleaned out and painted the two extra bedrooms on the third floor. My grandmothers took both of them. Greg and Angie stayed in his old room, and I shared with Kyle and Mac in the other one. Duke insisted he sleep in his crate in the apartment. He was getting set in his ways.
Angie pulled the rolls out and iced them. She put a huge platter on the kitchen table.
“I slaved over these all morning,” she announced.
“Greg, you’re a lucky man to have such a talented wife,” Aunt Bonnie told him.
I just ignored them. Angie could live in her fantasy world.
I ARRIVED IN THE LINCOLN Park neighborhood of Chicago just after three that afternoon. I was near the DePaul campus and the sidewalks seemed to be full of college-age kids and young professionals. The street was lined with three- and four-story older buildings, with storefronts on the main floor. There were bars/restaurants with outside seating and all of them seemed packed. If that many people were drinking on a Sunday afternoon, I was afraid of what I would do if I lived here.
It wasn’t hard to see why people wanted to live in the city, especially if they were young and single. There was an energy about the area. I was a little sad when I realized I’d passed up a summer of living in Chicago with Tami. I could picture myself sitting at a table on the sidewalk, people-watching. It was so much more inviting than New York where everyone seemed to be on top of each other.
My GPS was telling me to make a turn when I was close to where Harper lived. As I turned there was a large sign announcing a Mass Development. Harper told me her dad owned several blocks and they were gradually removing the old walk-ups and building detached single-family homes. What I saw as I drove down the street were three- and four-story homes built in a style that fit the neighborhood architecture. Harper said they used reclaimed Chicago bricks for the exteriors so her dad’s new homes would fit in.
I was given directions to turn off into an alley. I sent Harper a text to let her know I was there. I found a gate was opening and one of the garage doors went up. I pulled into the six-car garage to find a smiling girlfriend. I barely made it out of the Jeep before she had me in an embrace and was kissing me.
“I missed you, too,” I said when she finally let me go.
“Come on! I want to show you our new home.”
I was surprised to see stairs inside the garage leading to the rooftop. The top of the garage was an outdoor deck, complete with a huge fireplace. It had a terrific view of the downtown skyscrapers. We crossed a bridge into the back of the house’s second floor. We came into an entry room, where the back staircase was. Harper had me leave my bags by the stairwell and then led me into the kitchen.
It came right out of a kitchen idea book, something you could only dream of. It was all cream and white, with marble countertops and with touches of dark wood to make the whole room spectacular. The stoves were top-of-the-line commercial models. The refrigerator and dishwashers were hidden in the cabinets to give the room a clean look.
Harper led me through the butler’s pantry into a dining room in which you could easily entertain twelve people. I was amazed at the architectural details and the twelve-foot ceilings. You felt like you were in a modernized turn-of-the-century home.
As Harper showed me the rest of the house, I began to understand how wealthy her parents really were. The third floor was her parents’ area. They had a master bedroom suite, her mom’s office, a sitting area and an exercise room. On the fourth floor there were five bedrooms and a lounge area. Each bedroom had its own bathroom. Harper told me she had a surprise for me. It was Sarah Spence.
“Hey, Good-looking,” she said and gave me a hug and kiss on the cheek.
“What’re you doing here?” I asked.
“My parents are in the process of moving to Colorado for my dad’s newest job. Harper offered to let me come home with her for the week. When she said you were coming, I couldn’t refuse. I’m hoping you’ll let me tag along on some of your shoots.”
“Do you want to meet Adrienne again?” I asked.
She blushed and nodded. Harper smiled and we both looked at her. You could tell she had a surprise for us.
“Adrienne and Kendal will both be staying with us. Mom talked to Kendal to get your schedule and insisted everyone stay here. We have plenty of room.”
I should hope so. Harper told me they had eight bedrooms and nine-and-a-half baths. I had yet to see the floor I was staying on. The girls took me back down to the second floor to grab my bags. We then went down to the lower level. I’m not sure if it was technically the basement since it was only halfway underground. On the lower level there were two bedrooms, a laundry room, another exercise room, and a man cave. I could see living down here!
“Get ready for dinner. Mom and Dad will be home soon,” Harper told me.
She could see the need in my eyes and gave me a sad smile.
“Remember, I promised my parents no funny stuff under their roof,” Harper reminded me.
I growled at her, and she and Sarah scampered out before I could grab one of them. I smiled at myself. We would just need to get creative and find somewhere else to have a little fun.
WE HAD DINNER AT THE Ridgemoor Country Club on Gunnison Street. Harper teased her dad by saying this was his bar with a very nice backyard. He just gave her a dirty look but didn’t deny it. I had been warned they had a strict dress code. Harper made me put on a shirt with a collar instead of the silk t-shirt I had selected to wear under my jacket. The irony was the t-shirt was twice as expensive as the shirt she picked out.
We went to the President’s Room, a private dining room that overlooked the tennis courts. We were the first to arrive. I would guess the room was arranged to seat fifty. A buffet was being set up on the back wall. We had some time before the guests arrived, so Harper took Sarah and me on a tour. She told me people from her dad’s work were having dinner with us tonight. We went out onto the terrace overlooking the putting greens and ordered drinks. I had a hot tea since it was a little chilly out.
“Harper Mass, where have you been hiding yourself?” I heard a girl say from behind us.
Harper let go of my hand and jerked it into her lap before turning around. If I didn’t know better, I would have suspected that Harper was embarrassed to be seen with me. Sarah caught her actions also and gave me a confused look.
“Melisa Higson, how nice to see you,” Harper said as she got up and gave a little air-cheek kiss.
Melisa had long black hair and was dressed in a dark sweater and black skirt. She didn’t even acknowledge Sarah or me. I could tell this girl was a snob with a capital S.
“Come, I told the girls I thought it was you,” Melisa said as she pulled Harper toward their table.