Даниэла Стил - Turning Point

“I could use a hand with the barbecue on Sunday,” she said shyly. “I’m scared to light it.”

“That’s my forte. Ribs, chicken, and steaks. I’ll come over in the afternoon, if you want.”

“I’d like that.” They exchanged a glance that stretched just beyond friends, but not too far. He’d been inching his way toward her since he’d heard that she had broken up with her married boyfriend, but he didn’t want to scare her off if it was too soon.

“We should have dinner sometime,” he suggested and she nodded. Valérie was watching them and smiling. She’d been hoping something would happen between them after Paris. She thought they were perfect for each other.

By the time they left, Gabriel had gotten over his two-day pout and forgiven Stephanie for bringing her husband to the party.

Valérie and Tom were talking about it on the way home in his car. The others had gone back to the hotel in the van. Valérie was worried about Stephanie. She thought Gabriel was putting too much pressure on her, and she already had a lot going on with two small children, a divorce in the offing, and a married lover who expected her to give up her job and move to France. “She’s got so much on her plate.” Tom nodded, and had thought the same thing.

As they headed toward Oakland, Valérie told him something offhandedly that startled him. “I’m having lunch on Monday with an old friend, by the way. He lives here.”

“An old boyfriend?” Tom asked, suddenly worried.

“Not really.”

“What does ‘not really’ mean? He was a boyfriend but lousy in bed?”

“Don’t be silly. Just a friend,” she said vaguely, and offered no further information. And as though to reassure himself and conquer her again, he made love to her when they got back to his apartment, before they both left for dinner. She could tell he was worried, but she liked to tease him at times, to keep him on his toes. She told Marie-Laure it was good for him, and that a man like Tom should never be totally sure of a woman, or he’d get bored. But there was nothing boring about her. He was still worried about her “old friend” when they shared a cab into the city and he dropped her off at Perbacco to meet the other women. He went to meet the men at the bar at the Big 4 on Nob Hill, which had a nice manly feel to it.

They all had fun that evening. The four women talked about what they’d been doing all week. Wendy told them they should come shopping at the Stanford mall in Palo Alto one weekend, and Valérie said that she and Tom were going to the Auberge du Soleil in the Napa Valley for a romantic weekend, and he was coming to France to go on vacation with her in July. And after her second glass of wine, Marie-Laure admitted that Bruno had called her twice that week, and they were having dinner when she went back.

“What about you and Bill?” Marie-Laure asked Wendy.

“We’re just friends,” she said firmly. “But I had a really nice time with him and his daughters at Euro Disney. They’re adorable, really sweet kids.”

“Just wait,” Valérie said knowingly. “He looked very cozy with you this afternoon sitting by your pool.”

“He’s not interested. Honestly.”

“I predict a romance in your future,” Valérie said, pretending to read tea leaves, and they all laughed. It was an easy, relaxing evening. They went to the Fairmont for a drink afterward, and at midnight, they all went home. Stephanie texted Gabriel to see if he was at the hotel, but he answered that he wasn’t back yet, so she went back to her house. She was staying with him on Saturday night, and had already set it up with Andy, with the story about working for a night, and then she was going to the barbecue with Gabriel at Wendy’s on Sunday. He’d made reservations for them in Napa the following weekend too, at the same hotel where Valérie and Tom were staying. Marie-Laure was thinking of going skiing in Tahoe with Paul, if he didn’t have a real date. She had been a ski champion when she was in school, and she wanted to try out the slopes in California before she went back, but didn’t want to go alone. Wendy said she didn’t ski anymore since she had a knee injury two years before.

It had been a perfect evening for the women, but the men weren’t quite as restrained. They closed the bar at a pool hall South of Market at two A.M., near Bill’s apartment, and the owner let them stay until three. They were all home by three-thirty, and Tom woke up with a massive headache the next day, and groaned when he got out of bed.

“Oh God, I’m dying.” Valérie made him some evil brew with Jägermeister and an egg, and he actually felt better afterward.

“Where did you learn that?”

“In medical school,” she said smugly.

“Must be French. They never taught us that here.”

They spent a lazy day around his apartment and went to a movie that night. He was feeling better by then. He asked her again about the old friend she was having lunch with on Monday, and she ignored him and wouldn’t answer. He was getting seriously worried. Valérie was the kind of woman you could never own, and he loved that about her. But he didn’t like the idea of her having lunch with another man, which was the whole point, and why she’d told him, just to worry him a little, and keep him on his toes.

—

Stephanie left the house on Saturday afternoon, while Andy was at the park with the boys. She was at Gabriel’s hotel by four, and they never left his hotel room. She didn’t go home until noon on Sunday, and had lunch with Andy and the boys. She left again for Wendy’s house at six, and had warned Andy that the team was having a working dinner, to get a jump-start on the week. Andy and the boys were watching a movie when she left, and Ryan had fallen asleep in front of the TV.

She picked Gabriel up at the hotel, and they drove to Palo Alto together in good spirits. They’d had an incredible time together the night before. The only thing she felt guilty about was that she hadn’t spent much time with her children all weekend, except for lunch that day. But Andy had kept them busy.

She had a text from Andy as soon as they got to Wendy’s. He said Ryan had woken up with a fever after the movie, and he had just thrown up. Andy couldn’t find the thermometer and wanted to know where it was. She told him, and five minutes later, she got another text. “102.2. What do I do now?”

“Children’s Tylenol.” She told him how many drops and where it was. She was frowning while she texted him.

“Something wrong?” Gabriel asked her.

“Ryan has a fever. He gets them easily. But now Aden will get sick.” It was inevitable with two kids.

Bill was busily working at the barbecue when they got there. He had the meat organized on trays and he and Wendy were doing an efficient job. The table was set in her big country kitchen, and they sat at the pool until dinnertime when it got chilly. The French crew loved that they were sitting outdoors in February in the sun, while it was freezing in Paris.

“I want to live here,” Paul said.

“Don’t we all,” Valérie agreed, and Tom leaned over and kissed her.

“You’re welcome to move here anytime.” She smiled like a Cheshire cat in answer.

Stephanie called Andy before they sat down to dinner. He said Ryan seemed better, wasn’t as hot, and was asleep again. She sat down to dinner, feeling relieved. And they had lively discussions and compared medical school experiences and pranks. Tom had some outrageous stories, and Valérie had a few herself. And Bill’s skills at the barbecue were excellent. The dinner was delicious, and Wendy thanked him for doing all the cooking.

“I love it. I haven’t done that in years.” He had sold the barbecue with his house.