72 - Promenade

“I’m sorry, but can I ask what’s going to sound like a dumb question?”

From the back seat of the SUV that Jon chose to drive rather than taking a car to New Jersey, Delaney looked to the passenger side of the vehicle, where Matt rode shotgun.  Having put the two men’s questions about Hugo off until they’d hit the road for Matt’s house and promenade, she just finished telling them what transpired in that booth at the diner. 

“What?” Jon was the one to give the go-ahead from behind the wheel.  It was hard for Delaney to decipher what he was thinking because of the sunglasses, and he hadn’t said anything since she finished. 

“Who are Violet and Poppy?”

Eyes closing behind her own aviators, Delaney prattled off a silent Greek swear or two.  She hadn’t even considered that Matt didn’t already know, leaving her in the oh-so-fun position of telling that story. 

Or so she thought. 

“Delaney’s daughters,” her souley provided, much to her gratitude.  “She lost Violet to a heroin overdose five years ago, and Violet’s twin – fraternal twin – Poppy, took off right after.  She hasn’t been in contact with the family in years.”

Matt offered a regretful murmur before Jon took away his opportunity for anything further.  Something else that earned him a dump truck full of gratitude.

“Mou?  Do you wanna bypass this shit today?  I need to go to promenade, but I can cancel on Dave.  You can go to my house and see what’s on the flash drive instead.”

The truth was exactly as she’d told Hugo.  There was nothing he could give her that would make a real difference.  Violet was still gone, as was Poppy.  Yes, she might finally understand Poppy’s anger, but watching the footage wasn’t going to instantly bridge the divide with her daughter.

So, while it was tempting to find the nearest computer and glue herself to the screen, Delaney had responsibilities and wouldn’t shirk them.   

“We’ve already made commitments,” she stated firmly.  “Five-year-old news isn’t a reason to cancel, and besides.  I don’t trust you to pin Jake’s flowers.”

Jon’s chin lifted, and she suspected that shaded eyes found her in the rearview mirror.  There was a little smirk and brief dip of his head that told Delaney he approved of her decision.  “Whatever you say, baby.” 

She also was delivering some more last-minute beauties.  Jake had called the shop with his debit card early this morning with instructions to put together something she thought was pretty.   One of the girl’s dresses was “silvery gray”, but he wasn’t sure about the others, so whatever Delaney thought would be fine.  He trusted her.

It was unusually vague even for teenagers, but she followed the current trend of exotic and glitz to produce the pieces before noon.  Half a dozen vibrant corsages and matching boutonnieres were nestled in a cooler on the other side of the back seat, along with Jake’s white ones, ready to become part of someone’s memories.

“I want to thank you guys for coming to the diner today.  Admittedly, I thought it was ridiculous and overkill at first.  He did such a bad job of getting to the point, though, that there were a couple of times I found it reassuring to know I had a bouncer on call.”

“What’s a Bounce without a bouncer?” Matt teased.

Jon propped his right elbow on the center console and angled to reach toward the back seat.  When Delaney slipped her hand inside his, he squeezed.  “S’agapo.”

“S’agapo,” she murmured in return. 

“What?  You two have your own language already?”

Delaney laughed as hands slipped free.  “No.  It’s Greek.”

Letting a wrist hang over the steering wheel as they crossed into New Jersey, Jon explained, “Mou’s Greek/Irish.  She embraces the Greek side but can drink enough whiskey to make her Irish mama proud.”

Jon sounded a little bit proud himself, unless she was mistaken.   She’d found out a long time ago that it turned a man on when a woman could hold her liquor.  Why, she didn’t know, but it did. 

“I do okay with wine, too, as you well know.”

“Well, what I wanna know is who comes out on top tonight.”  Matt twisted to peer back at Delaney.  “Lema and his wife, Lexi, can drink like damn fish.”  

“That explains why he was impressed with Petra,” she laughed.  “She practically has gills.”

His attention shifted to Jon’s profile with a smile.  “Sounds like you’re in for a good night.”

“I sure as hell hope so.”

*****

“How ya doing?”

Snapping the passenger’s seatbelt into place, Delaney lifted a distracted smile to the man sliding behind the wheel. 

The first little while at promenade was awkward.  Other parents waved to Jon from a distance, but with his arm around her shoulders or their hands intertwined, no one came to speak – until Dorothea arrived along with hugs for both Jon and Delaney.  After that, several parents joined their little group.  There were introductions, small talk, compliments on Delaney’s flowers and multiple requests for Jon to send copies of the pictures he was snapping from behind his fancy camera. 

Delaney would wager that he’d added no less than a thousand images to that memory card in the last hour, including one of Jake with arms draped around both she and Dorothea – at Dorothea’s insistence.

“You realize that Dorothea is a complete angel, right?  I feel like I should break up with you just as a show of solidarity.  The more I get to know her, the more I think you screwed up a good thing, Jon.”

“Thanks for the support, Mou.”

His wry sarcasm had her laughing.  “Sorry.  Just keeping it real.”

“Yeah, well, I got something real out of that screw-up.  You.  So don’t knock it.”

“I’m not knocking it,” she contradicted as he navigated away from the cluster of parked cars and onto the road.  “But she’s nicer than the freeping Pope.  Is there more to this divorce than what you’ve told me?”

“You askin’ if I’m the one that wanted out?”

Tucking one leg under another against the supple leather seat, Delaney denied his accusatory glance.  “Not at all.  Just seems like she’s awfully accepting.  It’s hard to believe one young woman knocking on the door brought it all to an end.”

He pulled up to a stop light and turned to face her full-on.  “No, it wasn’t one knock at the door that ended it.  The brutal truth is that it’s not easy being married to me.  I forget birthdays and anniversaries.  I’m self-involved.  I’m un-fucking-romantic as hell.  Gone at the very time when I’m most needed – you saw that this week.  Dorothea accepted all that, but when a decades old lie on top crushes the one thing she thought I could be depended on for.... I guess it was enough.”

Impassive features turned away just as the light changed from red to green, and Delaney could feel the condemnation he heaped upon himself.  The new girlfriend wasn’t supposed to remind him of his shortcomings but reassure him that not everyone saw them as shortcomings. 

“I’m sorry for prying,” she apologized, shifting position to rest a hand on his thigh as the vehicle accelerated through the intersection.  “I wasn’t looking for a list of what you consider flaws.  It just takes me by surprise how kind she is.”

“She’s a good person.  One of the best I’ve ever known.  But she’s still human and makes her share of mistakes.”   

Dare Delaney ask what mistakes?

No.  You’ve already stolen his proud dad moment.  Isn’t that enough?  Go back to talking about prom and let him bask in the dadness a little more.

“Jake looked so handsome.  I can’t wait to see the pictures you took.  Wasn’t that the jacket he wore to the Hall of Fame induction?”

There was a pause, and for a breath, she thought he wasn’t going to respond.  Then he licked his lips as though coming to a decision and dropped a hand to rest atop hers.  “Yeah.  Apparently, a thousand Instagram comments on how good he looked in it outweighs the indignity of wearing it again.”

The JBJ smile didn’t rocket back to the same level sparkle it had been, but there was a glimmer of parental pride there.  Why shouldn’t there be?  There was every reason to be proud of his handsome and personality-rich son.  Everyone Delaney met this afternoon had only good things to say about the boy. 

Squeezing the leg that was still under her touch, she decided to stick with this subject.  The last thing she wanted to do was get into an argument before meeting David and his wife for dinner. 

“Did you see all the bling on those girls’s dresses?  I thought I was watching the red carpet pre-show for the Oscars.  They all looked like freepin’ movie stars.”

“You liked that, huh?”  Jon deliberately shifted mental gears, putting aside the mood he’d allowed to sour under Delaney’s questioning.  His marriage was over.  The evening ahead was just beginning. 

“Duh.  Those girls felt just as beautiful as they looked, and I just loved how their faces were lit with it.  I wish they could bottle and hold onto it for the rest of their lives.”

“I’m sure they’ll fondly recall tonight for years.  Sorry about the extra flowers you got stuck with, though.”

When Delaney had asked who should get the corsages, Jake had gotten that stupid teenage boy look in his eyes and apologized.  There was some lame explanation about there being a mix-up and how everybody already had flowers that nobody had really believed.  Jon was the only one who jumped wholeheartedly on board with the excuse – because he knew the real story.

“I’m not quite sure what that was all about, since Jake acted like he forgot ordering them, but it’s no big deal.  I’ll refund his card on Monday.”

“Not necessary.  I’ll cover it,” he assured.  “It’s not like you can resell prom flowers on a Monday morning.”

“Jon, don’t do that.  I promise it’s-“

Lifting his voice over hers, Jon demanded, “Mou.  Shut up and let me take care of it, okay?  You can’t give away business and make a living.”

She huffed a little but ended up conceding the point.  “Fine.  Thank you.”

“My pleasure.”  He patted her hand with both appreciation and affection.  “You sure you wouldn’t rather watch that video than go out with Dave and Lexi?”

There was no doubt she’d choose dinner.  Delaney’s sense of responsibility was as pronounced as his own, and she wouldn’t let someone down without a damn good reason.  Still, he wanted to make sure before moving on.

“Positive.  It’s waited this long and will wait another few hours – or a whole night.”  Her head swiveled first one direction and then the other as she realized where they were.  Or, rather, where they weren’t.  “This isn’t the way back to the city.  I thought we were meeting the Bryans in Greenwich Village?”

“Slight change of plans.”  The smooth explanation became even smoother when he glossed over it with, “Did seeing all those fancy dresses stir up regrets over your missed prom?”

“Little bit.  I may wear ripped jeans all the time, but there’s something about having a reason to get all dressed up that tugs at me.”

He was counting on that. 

“If you had a chance to do it over again, would you?”

“I think so,” she speculated with a short laugh.  “Depends on who asked me .”

Flicking on the turn signal for the Red Bank exit off the Parkway, Jon posed, “How about if I asked you?”

“Oh, definitely.  Who wouldn’t want to go to prom with the hottest guy in New Jersey?”

Braking to a stop at the end of the exit ramp, Jon turned a cheeky grin on her.  “Do I still have to ask, even though you said yes already?”

Her forehead crinkled in bewilderment.  “What are you talking about?”

“I guess that means I hafta ask,” he sighed.  “Delaney Gardener, will you go to prom with me?”

She laughed like it was a joke, but when he didn’t join in, her head cocked to one side.  “You’re freeping serious.”

“I am.”  He’d probably better tell her now rather than waiting until they got to the house.  This way, if she got her panties in a twist, she could untwist them again and enjoy herself.  “And I hope like hell you say yes, because a lot of people have busted their asses at my house today putting together your senior prom.”

“My what?”

“You heard me,” he chuckled.  Gray eyes were as round as flying saucers, and she looked more excited than panty-twisted.  That was good.  It meant he hadn’t wasted everybody’s time along with a good chunk of money.  “Prom starts in two hours.  That give you enough time to get ready?”

“Jon!  I don’t even have a dress.”

Picking up the hand that still rested in his lap, Jon pressed a kiss to the knuckles. 

“Sure you do.  I took care of everything…”  He gestured toward the cooler in the back seat with a slight jerk of his head and a smirk.  “Including flowers.  Just say yes, dammit."

Even as she shook her head with disbelief, his girl's dimples dug deep and suggested that he wasn't completely un-fucking romantic.

"Yes, dammit."

That made Jon's grin was as wide as hers.