It Had to Be You (41 page)

“I hope you don’t mind,” the woman said. “Smoke makes me wheeze, and Ron said you didn’t allow it in here.”

“I don’t mind at all.” There was something endearing about her small, almost elfin features and freckled nose. Phoebe decided she was a definite improvement over the tall socialites Ron had been dating lately and found herself automatically returning her smile.

One of Ron’s assistants popped up at his side, and he excused himself.

“I feel like I’m barging in,” the young woman said.

“Nonsense. I’m glad to have company. Maybe you can distract me. I was just trying to figure out how I was going to get through the rest of the game without either throwing up or fainting.” She extended her hand. “I’m Phoebe Somerville.”

“Sharon Anderson.” The woman returned her handshake.

“Let me get you something to drink.” Phoebe led her over to the bar where Sharon requested a Diet Pepsi. “You’re a two-fisted drinker like I am.”

“Alcohol gives me a headache. I was voted the most boring girl in my college sorority.”

Phoebe laughed. She had missed her female friends, and she liked this young woman’s self-deprecating sense of humor.

The second quarter was beginning, and they took their drinks over to seats at the window. Phoebe gazed down at Dan and then turned to watch a close-up of him on the television screen as he barked orders into his headset while he kept his eyes riveted on the Stars’ defense.

She flinched as the Bills’ running back found a huge hole in the Stars’ defensive line and made a fifteen-yard gain before Webster brought him down. “I don’t think I can last three more quarters. I wish somebody would knock me out until this is over.”

“It must be hard to watch the game when you have so much at stake.”

“I used to hate football. It was—” She gasped with dismay and jumped up from her seat as the Bills completed a twenty-one-yard pass. “That’s it! I have to get out of here. Stay and enjoy yourself; I’m going to take a walk in the hallway to settle myself down.”

Sharon stood. “I’ll go with you.”

“You don’t have to. Really.”

“I don’t mind. To be honest, I’m not much of a football fan. Unless you’d rather be alone.”

“I’d love the company.”

The carpeted hallway outside was deserted but noisy with the sounds of blaring televisions, cheers, and groans coming from behind the doors of the other skyboxes. Phoebe crossed her arms tightly over her chest and began to walk. Hoping to distract herself, she asked, “How long have you and Ron been dating?”

“Oh, we’re not dating. We just met today. He’s really a nice guy, though.”

“The best. The fact that he’s gorgeous doesn’t hurt, either.”

“I must admit it’s nice to be around a man who doesn’t tower over me. I’m so short that most of them do. That’s one of the best things about my job. Everybody’s smaller than me.”

“What do you do?”

“I’m a nursery school teacher.”

“Do you like it?”

“I love it. Not that I don’t look forward to the end of the day. Kids are cute, but exhausting.”

They’d reached a bend in the hallway. As much as Phoebe didn’t want to watch the action, neither did she want to be too far away, and she turned so they could retract their steps. “My sister Molly baby-sits for a set of twins who live next door. Sometimes she brings them over to our house when they’ve gotten cranky and she’s having trouble controlling them. They’re little stinkers, but I love playing with them.”

Sharon regarded her curiously. “You don’t look like the type of—” Breaking off, she dropped her eyes in embarrassment.

“I don’t look like the type of woman who enjoys children?”

“I’m sorry. That sounds like an insult, and I didn’t intend it that way. You’re just so glamorous.”

“Thank you, but you’re not the first person to think that about me. Not even people with good imaginations seem to be able to see me as a mother.” She bit her lip as all of her anxieties about her future with Dan crept back.

“Is something wrong?”

A collective groan echoed from the nearby skyboxes, all of them held by Star fans, and Phoebe picked up the pace. “Children are very important to the man I’m sort of involved with. They are to me, too, but he hasn’t discovered that yet.” She smiled ruefully. “I’m afraid it’s easier for him to picture me popping out of a cake at a bachelor party than as his children’s mother. Since he hasn’t actually stated his intentions, it’s tough figuring out how to let him know I feel the same way he does about having a family.”

“Believe me, I understand from personal experience.”

“Are you involved with someone?”

“Yes.” She suddenly looked shy, and Phoebe gave her an encouraging smile. Sharon sighed. “It’s a strange relationship. All my life I’ve attracted ordinary guys—brothers of my girlfriends, quiet, sweet men, not too exciting, but steady. And then this Greek god pops into my life out of nowhere, the kind of man who always passes up ordinary women like me for glamorous women like you. He’s been subtly feeling me out about marriage and children for weeks, and I’m fairly certain he’s going to get around to proposing any day now, but I still can’t figure out what he sees in me.”

“Maybe the same thing I do—a very nice woman who’d make a wonderful wife.”

“Thanks, Phoebe. I wish I could believe that. He’s making me crazy. In this day and age— I mean, if you were ready to propose marriage to somebody, wouldn’t you expect—” Sharon turned red and blurted out, “He treats me like the Virgin Mary!”

“You’re not sleeping together?”

Sharon tugged on her hair and looked embarrassed. “I can’t believe we’re having this conversation. I haven’t even told my sister about this, and I tell her everything.”

“We’re meeting under a crisis situation. Like two strangers sitting next to each other on a doomed airplane.” Another chorus of groans erupted from the nearby skyboxes, and Phoebe flinched. “Your secret’s safe with me. To tell you the truth, I’m a little envious. At least you’ll never have to be afraid that he only wants you for sex.”

“I suppose you’re right. And to be honest, I haven’t encouraged him at all. He’s the most exciting man I’ve ever known, but I can’t seem to relax with him. It’s complicated.”

Phoebe recalled Ron’s saying that Sharon had been in the next skybox, the one the Stars used as an overflow for visiting VIPs. Sharon’s suitor was obviously someone with a high profile, and she couldn’t resist a gentle probe. “I haven’t heard any unusual gossip, so you and your Greek god must be keeping this quiet.”

“The local press had a field day with his divorce, so we’ve been careful about appearing together in public. This is the first game I’ve attended. As a matter of fact, there have been more rumors about the two of you than about us. Your friendship seems to mean a lot to him.”

Phoebe looked at her quizzically, and then everything inside her went still. Wild cheering broke out in the skyboxes, but she didn’t hear it. She didn’t hear anything except the clamoring of her own heart.

Sharon failed to notice that anything was wrong. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that Dan never mentioned me to you.”

“No. No, he didn’t.” Her voice seemed to be coming from a great distance.

“He’s a private person in a lot of ways. I’m not putting myself down when I say this—really, I’m not. But I just can’t figure out what he sees in me.”

Phoebe could figure it out. Sharon Anderson was the sweet, down-to-earth girl a man fell in love with and married. Phoebe was the sexy bimbo a man fucked and forgot.

Another round of cheering broke out. She didn’t know how they got back into the skybox or how she managed to stumble through her halftime interview. Luckily, the wild cheering during the third and fourth quarters made conversation for the remainder of the game impossible. By the time it was over, she was barely able to register the Stars’ decisive 2410 victory over the Bills.

On the two televisions suspended from the ceiling, the commentator explained how it had happened. “The Bills began to lose their momentum during the second quarter, and they never regained it. You can’t make that many critical mistakes against a team as talented and well coached as the Stars. This team has improved so much over the season. No doubt about it. The Stars are this season’s Cinderella team.”

Meanwhile, the Cinderella team’s owner had been left with a broken heart and a glass slipper that had shattered into a million pieces. Hours later, as she stood at her bedroom window, her eyes swollen and her chest aching, she wondered how she was going to find the courage to go on. She had suffered a betrayal so deep and wrenching that she felt as if she had been ripped apart. For the first time in her life, she had dared to hope that she was worthy of love, only to discover, once again, that she was wrong.

She had no more tears left. Her insides were as empty as a broken vessel.
I loved you so, Dan. Why couldn’t you have loved me back.

The following Tuesday afternoon Sharon was putting the last of the poster paint away in the cupboard when Dan walked into the classroom. She was a mess, as usual, and she tried to tuck her shirttail back into her slacks. Why did she always have to look her worst when he came by?

“You missed the kids. They left almost an hour ago.”

“I wish I could have gotten away earlier.”

“I’m surprised you could get away at all.” She fumbled nervously with her shirt cuffs as she rolled them down. “When are you leaving for Miami?”

“Tonight. We have our first practice Wednesday morning.”

“One more win and you’re in the AFC Championship.”

“Too bad we have to beat the Dolphins to get there.” He slipped his hands into his pockets. “I have to meet some reporters at five-thirty. Why don’t we go grab a quick bite to eat?”

“I didn’t know you were stopping by, and I promised my sister I’d go shopping with her.” She saw that he looked edgy. “Is something wrong?”

“It can wait.”

“Are you sure? I know how tight your schedule is. We didn’t even get to see each other after the game on Sunday.”

“I’d rather have some privacy. This probably isn’t the best place to talk.”

She wasn’t a naturally assertive person, especially around him, but she wanted to get this over with. Making her way to one of the small tables, she drew out a chair and sat down. “Everyone’s left, so we won’t be interrupted. Let’s talk now.”

He should have looked ridiculous as he lowered his large frame into the tiny chair next to her, but he accomplished the move as gracefully as he did everything else. Just looking at him made her feel awkward and unsure of herself. When would she feel comfortable with this man?

He picked up her hand and trapped it between his. “Sharon, you’re one of the nicest people I’ve ever known.”

Her heart began to pound in dread. She’d been waiting for this moment for weeks, but now that it was here, she wasn’t ready.

“As soon as I met you, I realized that you were everything I admired in a woman. You’re sweet tempered and kind . . .”

He listed her virtues, but instead of being flattered, she wanted him to let her hand go. Everything about him was too big for her—his size, his reputation. He was too good looking, too strong, too rich. Why couldn’t he be ordinary like her?

He rubbed her hand. “For a long time now, I’ve been playing around with the idea that the two of us might have a future together. I suspect you know that.”

He was going to propose, and she would have to accept, because a woman would be insane to turn down a man like him. Life was getting ready to hand her the gold ring, so why did she feel as if she wanted to jump off the merry-go-round?

“. . . that’s why it’s so hard for me to tell you I’ve made a mistake.” He looked down at her hand.

“A mistake?”

“I’ve been leading you toward something I thought was right, but I’ve only recently realized that it’s not.”

She sat up straighter in the tiny chair and permitted herself the first flicker of hope. “It isn’t?”

“Sharon, I’m sorry. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the two of us in the past few days. . . .”

“Yes?”

“This is all my fault. I’m old enough to know myself better and not make this kind of mistake.”

She was afraid she’d expire from the suspense if he didn’t get to the point soon.

“As special as you are, and you are special— As important as this relationship has been to me . . .” Once again, his voice trailed off.

“Dan, are you dumping me?”

He looked horrified. “God, no! It’s nothing like that. We’re friends. It’s just—”

“You are! You’re dumping me.”

His face fell. “I feel like a heel for leading you on. I got caught up with you and the kids and everything. You’d think I would have figured out by now what I want out of life. I’m sorry I had to put you through my mid-life crisis.”

“No, no, it’s fine! Really. I understand.” She could barely hold back her glee. “I guess I’ve known for a while that we weren’t right for each other, but I didn’t know how to talk to you about it. I’m glad you came to see me, and I appreciate you being honest with me. Most men wouldn’t have put themselves through a confrontation. They would have just stopped calling.”

“I couldn’t do that.”

“Of course you couldn’t.” She wasn’t able to control the smile that was spreading over her face.

He began to look amused. “Don’t you want to cry or hit me or something?”

She didn’t always get his jokes, but she understood this one. “I guess you can tell that I’m a little bit relieved. I’ve been feeling sort of crazy these past few weeks. You’re every woman’s dream man, and I knew I should fall in love with you.”

“But you didn’t.”

She shook her head.

“Sharon, I can’t believe I’m going to do this, but I wasn’t exactly expecting this conversation to turn out so well. Yesterday, a friend of mine asked me about you. At first I thought he was just curious because he knew you were my guest at the game on Sunday, but then I realized he wanted to ask you out himself.”

“The one thing I’ve learned the past few months is that I’m not comfortable with athletes.”

“Perfect.”

She couldn’t understand why he was smiling.