Worth the Weight (5 page)

“What else?”

She glanced again to the mirror. “Bust. The buttons don’t gap across my boobs. That’s good.”

“What else?”

“Tummy. The pleats of the shorts lay flat, they don’t pull even when I put my hands in the pockets.”

Alison joined in, “What else?”

“Thighs. The shorts don’t cling to my inner thighs or accentuate my saddlebags.”

“What else?”

“That’s it.”

“What do you mean that’s it?”

“That’s it, that’s all I see. Arms. Bust. Waist. Thighs. All sectioned off like that.”

Lizzie caught Katie and Alison exchanging looks.

“Don’t read too much into it. It’s just the way I look in the mirror, nothing else.”

“I don’t know. Seems to me you could make a case for the fact that you divide yourself into parts,” Alison said, putting her analyst’s cap on. “It’s all very Gestalt. The whole is less than the sum of all parts. Something like that. I forget. I always thought he was full of crap anyway.”

Lizzie waved Alison off. “You do the same thing, everybody does, you just don’t realize it.” She noticed her friends once again giving each other dubious looks. “I’ll tell you one other thing about this outfit.”

“Yes?”

“The shirt is tucked in and I’m wearing a belt.”

“So?”

Her voice cracked with emotion. Emotion she’d tried to silence with Ding Dongs for so long. “I haven’t worn a shirt tucked in with a belt in fifteen years.” She turned her head, but not before her friends could see the moistness in her eyes. Damn, she didn’t want to cry. Not now. Not when she had her first date with
Finn
tonight. She pretended to brush her hair away from her face and caught the dreaded tear.

Katie was not quite as subtle and openly let a few drops fall as she whispered, “Oh, Lizzie.”

Lizzie caught Katie and Alison’s glances in the mirror and decided the spotlight had been on her long enough for one afternoon. Turning the tables, she asked, “So, Al, any prospects out there?”

Alison shrugged. “A new prof in the civil department at Tech has been sniffing around a little bit.”

Katie perked up. “Really? Since when?”

“Just a couple of weeks ago. Of course with classes out now, I probably won’t see him for awhile, so it’ll probably turn out to be nothing.”

“You’re not teaching any summer classes?” Lizzie asked as she put her gym shorts and tee shirt back on, bringing the fashion show to an end. She put the winning choice over a chair and collected the runners up from the bed. Katie and Alison were lying cross-wise, their legs dangling off the side of the canopy bed that
she
had slept in since the sixth grade. She moved Alison’s legs to get a top that had been cut in the first round, put it on a hanger and back in the closet.

“No, I’m not teaching this summer. And my patient load is pretty light right now, so the summer’s looking pretty carefree.”

“Is this prof teaching this summer? Will he be around?” Katie inquired.

“He is teaching a couple of classes. Being new, he drew the short straw.”

“Where does he live? Has he ever been married? Kids? Where’s he from originally?”

Alison put her hands up to stop the barrage of questions. “Whoa, Kat, slow down. I don’t know any of that. Oh yeah, he’s from Baltimore originally.”

“And he’s spent a winter here? And he didn’t leave? The snowfall didn’t scare him off?”

“As far as I know he’s planning on teaching next fall.”

Lizzie finished hanging up the last of the clothes. “Anything we can do to help land this guy? You two are helping me out with my plan, I’d gladly help you out, Al.”

Before Katie could say a word, Alison cut them off. “No way. Let’s just handle you right now, Lizard. I have a feeling that this
twisted
plan of yours will keep us all on our toes for the next few weeks.”

“What do you mean
twisted
? This is a well thought out, succinctly planned mission which will be executed on time and in full.”

“Yes, General Hampton,” Alison said with a salute.

“Oh
,
shut up.” She picked up a hairbrush and threw it at the other two, which Alison easily deflected then handed to Katie who began to brush Alison’s hair. It was a routine that had begun in fifth grade.

As if reading Lizzie’s thoughts, Katie said, “Gosh, the more things change.... huh? I half expect Zeke to come barreling in here and scream at us to turn the musi
c down. Or your mother yelling ‘
Elizabeth, Ezekiel, behave yourselves’.”

Alison and Lizzie both s
miled, remembering all the time
the three of them had spent in this room doing pretty much the same thing they were doing now.

Katie continued on with her thoughts, “Hey, where is Zeke now? Still on float?”

“Yep, still on float. I think the carrier’s due back soon. You know the Navy, you get about a forty-eight hour notice as to when anything will happen. My mom and dad are ready to go as soon as they get the word. They’re going to fly to Jacksonville to meet the squadron when it flies in. It’s this big ritual they do after a float this long, all the wives and girlfriends go to the base and meet the jets with champagne
.
Anyway, with Zeke not seeing anybody right now, my parents wanted to make sure he’d have someone there when he landed, so they’re going down. They just don’t know when, yet.”

“That’s nice of them,” Katie said as she continued brushing Alison’s short, glossy locks.

“Yeah, it is. I did it, let’s see, six or seven years ago. It’s pretty cool. Those Navy pilots know how to party.”

“Hey Lizard, if it doesn’t work out with this Davis guy back in Detroit, you should have Zeke introduce you to his fellow pilots.”

“Good God, no! I’ve been to their parties, I’ve seen the women they like, I am definitely not trophy girlfriend material.”

“Oh, I don’t know, you put that mini with the halter back on and you could definitely pass,” Katie said.

“I don’t know why I even bought that one, it’s so not me. I think I was just so thrilled that I could fit into it. I don’t think that baby’s ever going to see the outside of my closet.”

She
watched the two women she loved most in the world, with the exception of her mother, and felt a sense of calm and serenity come over her that she hadn’t felt in years. Maybe she never had. So many new feelings and emotions had surfaced in the last three years that
her
only way to deal with them had been to quickly acknowledge their presence then politely ask them to leave, assuring them that they’d be welcome some other time, when she was better equipped to handle them. When that day would be, Lizzie couldn’t say.

She knew she sublimated emotions with food, she didn’t need Dr.
Phil
to tell her that, but allowing said emotions free reign was another thing entirely.

She’d get there; it was just taking a while. She considered herself a work in progress.

Chapter Three

√ Meet
Finn
at Commodore

√ Do Pilates tape to make up for mom’s dinner last night

√ Call Sybil

From the back booth of the Commodore,
Finn
watched Liz walk in. He got out from the booth and waved. He noticed the stares she got from a bunch of the guys as she walked past.

His chest filled with pride. His Liz, all grown up.

God, she’d turned into a beauty. Her long, pitch-black hair was swept from her face with a headband. It swung loose behind her, showing a teasing glimpse from around the side of her waist as she moved. She’d worn her hair very short when they’d dated, and he’d thought that looked great on her, brought out her eyes, but this…this was sexy as hell.

The body of the girl he’d known had developed into that of a woman. Her hips swung with tempting fullness and her lush breasts were framed by a crisp white shirt that she had unbuttoned only once. That was Liz, never giving it away. Only a lucky few got to see what was going on underneath. On every level.

Finn
had been
one of those lucky few. He’d known the softness of her skin past the second button. Known the deeper thoughts that went past her friendly exterior.

It’d been a huge hassle getting free to be here, but seeing her made it worthwhile. He hadn’t outright lied to Annie, but he
’d
certainly omitted some facts. Even saying something as innocent as having dinner with an old friend who was in town for a short time would have sent Annie into a tailspin. If she whiffed the smallest scent of
Finn
’s true feelings toward Liz, she would have gone into a full-blown tantrum.

The thought jarred
him
. Just what did he mean his true feelings about Liz? This was just going to be a one shot deal, right?

He continued to watch as Liz stopped at a table halfway through the restaurant. A man got up from his table
an
d pulled Liz into a huge hug,
then held her out at arm’s length, as if soaking in the sight of her.
Finn
’s eyes narrowed as he had a flash of jealousy. It quickly left when he got a better look at the white-haired man who hugged Liz. He was sixty if he was a day. Certainly Liz wasn't into old men.

A fleeting notion of just what kind of men Liz was into went through
him
. Why would she have never married? She was into guys, right? She sure had been back then.

But that can sometimes change. Was that the reason she’d never married? She’d switched teams? Nah, she’d definitely come on to him the other night at the
Mine Shaft
. It’d been a long time for
him
, but not so long that he didn’t know when a woman wanted him.

Still, a sense of dread eased its way into
his
neck. Liz was so nice, she’d be the type to give you a hug and want to catch up with someone she hadn’t seen in so long. Maybe he was wrong and that’s all this was to her. A chance to catch up with an old boyfriend, then back to Detroit to her lesbian lover. Although he’d
definitely
file the vision of Liz making love with another woman away to pull out some lonely night, he didn’t believe it to be true.

His doubts were eased as Liz finally made it to their table and flashed him a killer smile.

Her smile was warm and genuine, like Liz herself, but it didn’t say, “Gee, it’s good to see you”. No, the smile Liz flashed said, “I want to eat you up with a spoon”. Which suited
him
just fine, and he hoped to fulfill her unspoken wish by the end of the night.

“Hey there,” she said as she reached him. Calm, cool, like she saw him everyday. He half expected her to comment on the weather or some such bullshit.

There was an awkward second, and they both looked at their feet while they wondered if a hug, handshake or a simple smile should be their greeting. Then their eyes met. Eighteen years fell away and it was his Liz, whose eyes had always seen him with an integrity and strength he could only hope to aspire to.

His Liz, who didn’t even realize that she was above him in all things, but looked at him with an adoration which both humbled and aroused him.

Always had.

He guessed it always would, because
t
here she was looking at him in the same way, and all of
Finn
’s thoughts about keeping this thing casual went out the window.

He pulled her into his embrace and held her. Just held her. Her arms encircled his waist and she stepped closer to him, laid her head on his chest and breathed in the scent of him. She’d always done that. It’d made him self-conscious at first, wondering if he hadn’t showered
off
t
he smell of horses entirely
before their dates.

She breathed in deeply once more then pulled away, looking into his eyes. A small, teasing smile played on her face. “You still wear Brut. I didn’t know they even still sold that stuff.”

He nodded, mesmerized by her. By her smile, her apparently stellar sense of smell, but mostly by her memory of him. He had meant enough to her that she remembered his scent. They had only dated for a few months eighteen years ago and she remembered how he smelled? Had anyone else in his life ever known him like that?
He
wasn’t sure that even his ex-wife would know him if blindfolded. Hell, his childhood dog probably couldn’t even sniff him out.

“But no horses? Don’t you still have horses?”

“Huh?” His moment of self-pity made him lose her drift.

“You always smelled of Brut and horses. But, no horses tonight. Do you still have them?”

“No. No horses. I sold them all.” He didn’t elaborate. How could he even begin to tell her about the horses? How his heart broke and the last of his dreams drifted into the dust that the trailer hauling
away
his joy kicked up. How he’d had no choice, not really, but the day he signed the bill of sale, a little piece of him had died.